Title: Faith Like a Mustard Seed
Contents On regular Sundays, we gathered as a community called Daelim Church. We greet each other as brothers and sisters in the Lord. We pray, praise, and fellowship together. But folks, we are all different. different age. The job is different. The economic level is different. There was a newly married couple. My wife has boiled potatoes for my husband who is studying. By the way, it was brought along with sugar. “Your family is very strange. We ate it with salt.” I fought over this and got a divorce. The professor said, "That's strange. We just eat.” A student from Gangwon-do said, “Professor, we eat with soy sauce.” I did. We can be so different when we eat one potato.
Nevertheless, we are a community. There is also comfort in the community. You can also experience joy. However, sometimes it is an unforgettable wound. They also experience the pain of division and conflict.
Guys, what do you think we have in common? What makes us different? It is Jesus. We always gather in the name of Jesus Christ. We love our brother because of Jesus. I love my sisters because of Jesus. That's right. The only common denominator we have in this community is Jesus Christ. Nevertheless, there are divisions and wounds in us because we have sin in us. Jesus unites us on the cross, but sin always separates us.
This text is what the Lord taught His disciples for a beautiful community. The Lord is telling us how to solve the problem of sin that causes conflict and division in the church. These are the words that apply to churches and families. Through these words, let's build a beautiful church, a true church. Through these words, I hope that beautiful families and happy families will be restored.
1. Sin must be taken seriously. Verses 1-2
There is not yet a problem-free community on earth. There is no perfect church everywhere. Every family has a sin problem. This is verse 1. “There can be nothing that causes you to stumble.” Jesus acknowledges that we cannot avoid causing others to stumble. No matter how hard you try, you can't avoid this. Think honestly? Is there anyone who has never caused anyone to stumble in the past? Conversely, is there anyone who has never been hurt by anyone? No one here is not. We are all giving or taking. Therefore, we must admit that we are inevitable sinners. This sin is found both in us and in others. Gentlemen, there really is no perfect church, no perfect family, and no perfect person.
Nevertheless, the Lord does not take sin lightly. Because everyone is a sinner inevitably, it is not treated appropriately. The Lord takes sin seriously. Verses 1 and 2. “Woe to him who gives. If he should cause one of these little ones to stumble, it would be better for him to have a stone tied around his neck and thrown into the sea.” Guys, how terrifying are these words? It is said that it is better to drown in the sea than to cause others to stumble. In this way, the Lord takes our sins seriously. We, too, must treat sin as seriously as the Lord did. It must be taken seriously.
2. We must point out our sins and forgive them. Verse 3-4
No matter how careful we are, we cannot avoid sin. No matter how hard you try, you can't hurt others. But sin has serious consequences, so we must be careful with ourselves. You have to look at yourself first and then look at others. So the Lord tells us how to deal with the sins found in the community.
2) If the person who has wronged us repents, we must forgive. This is verse 3. “If you repent, forgive.” Guys, it's really hard to forgive someone you don't like. I know I have to do it with my head. But the heart doesn't follow. The hurt you have been hurt is so great that it is difficult to forgive. I am struggling with pain and suffering. Guys, how long have you been having this heartburn? That is why we set up reasons for which we will not forgive. But, gentlemen, the Lord speaks in verse 4. “If I sin against you even seven times a day and I come back to you seven times and say, I repent, you forgive me.”
Think of the word of the Lord. There is a brother in the community who hurts more than seven times a day. None of us will be like this. When a brother like this comes back seven times a day and says, “I repent, I have to forgive you.” This is the Lord's command. Folks, forgiveness is not an emotion. Forgiveness is a decision of our will. Moreover, forgiveness is not optional. It is an act of obedience to the Lord's command to forgive. To not forgive is to disobey the Lord.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are all sinners. We are receiving this kind of forgiveness from God. It is contradictory that we do not forgive other brothers who have already received, are, and will receive God's forgiveness through the cross.
3. We must do it by faith. Verses 5-6
The disciples who had heard the word of the Lord up to this point suddenly felt despair. No matter how hard you try, you can't avoid committing a terrible sin. What's more difficult is pointing out the sins of others. Even more difficult is to forgive the unforgivable. They thought they couldn't do it with the faith they had. I thought that I needed stronger faith to obey the word of the Lord. So in verse 5 they say, “Give us faith.” and asked the Lord.
Guys, what is the Lord's answer? This is verse 6. “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, says the Lord, you would have said to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” The smallest of the seeds of the tree is the mustard seed. Faith the size of a mustard seed is a very small faith. Mulberry is a tree with very long and deep roots. It is very difficult to pull the mulberry tree. But if we speak to a mulberry tree with faith like this mustard seed, the mulberry tree will obey.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is not necessary for the disciples to have greater faith in order to obey the word of the Lord. They already had the faith to obey the Word. We already have the faith to do amazing things. We have the faith to plant mulberry trees in the sea and move mountains. Everyone has the faith to forgive. What is belief? Faith itself does not have power. The object of your belief is not important. Living faith is faith in God. Even if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, God works. The problem is that it is important to use the beliefs we have. Folks, the Lord doesn't ask us to do what we can't do. He has already given us the faith to obey if we give it a command. gives you the power to do it.
Guys, what's the problem? We use our faith. All you have to do is throw away your emotions and rely on the Word. If we cast away our doubts and put our faith in, works will happen. Folks, we can. We can forgive even those who we think are impossible. We can forgive even those who we really think we can never forgive. We can't do it because we don't. If we really do, God works in us. We can get in our way and move mulberry trees. We are commanded by the faith we have been given. Then problems will obey us. I hope you win with faith.
4. It must be done in absolute obedience. Verses 7-10
The Lord uses parables to tell His disciples to obey. Verses 7-9 are the parable of the servant. “Which of you has a servant who plows or shepherds the sheep, and when he comes back from the field, is there any one of you who says to him, ‘Come, sit down and eat right away? Shall I not do it, or will I reward my servant for doing what I was commanded to do?” Folks, who are we at the heart of Jesus' story? is. We are like the bells in the story. It is to be absolutely obedient to the word of the Lord like a servant. When the Lord speaks, there is no reason. How you feel, no excuses. It is obedience. why? Because the Lord commands.
Therefore, the Lord applies directly to the disciples in verse 10. Like the servant in the parable, it is to do all that is commanded. And humbly confess that we are unprofitable servants and have only done what we were supposed to.
Folks, it is up to us to solve the problem. If you listen to the word of the Lord and give reasons and excuses, the problem remains. It gets worse. However, if you obey God's Word like a fool, God will solve your problems. If we humbly obey the Lord like the servant in the parable, the mulberry tree will obey us. The problems surrounding us will be solved. God will give us more blessings than we can handle.
Folks, we are not perfect. We live with each other hurting each other. It is a being who lives by sinning against others. Please point out each other and forgive each other. Folks, we can. Because we have been given the faith to do it. All we have to do is use our faith. It is obedience by faith. Then you will experience the power of God. All matters will obey us. Hope you all win.