Title: Flowers, Life, Autumn (November 26)
Contents
flower, life, autumn
(1 Peter 1:23-25)
Today is the last Sunday in November.(…) Now, we have passed Ipdong (11/7) and novel (11/22), but we are passing through the middle of a pile of fallen leaves. (…) God gives us seasons every year. He gives you, reaps that season, and shows you another season. I think a lot in front of God's providence of nature, which is shown in this bonanza of natural grace.(…) Today I would like to think about flowers, life, and autumn fruits for a moment.
① Look at flowers and life.
According to God's Word, the glory of all life is like a flower of grass (1 Peter 1:24). Flowers are masterpieces of God the Creator. The flower of life is God's masterpiece. Just as a flower has a root and a bud there, life has a common root Adam, and numerous buds grow from it. There are many kinds of flowers (…) All these flowers teach us love, hope, gratitude and prayer. Humans live in a flower-like state, exuding fragrance and color. Blessed parents are as sweet as the chrysanthemum of the house. A prosperous child's steps are a joy for parents like cherry blossoms. A happy couple smells like gardenia flowers in May. If you look at a family with good faith, it is hot and full like a bunch of sunflowers. The blessed church is like a flower that gives hope and peace in life. Compare your life to a flower.
② Think of autumn and life.
Today's text says, “The grass withers and the flowers fall.” (…) All flesh is like grass. All its glory is like the flower of the grass. The grass dries up and the flowers wither. Today's word speaks of a life like fallen leaves. It is said that there are times when the green, fresh leaves turn into faded leaves on the trees.(…) This is no accidental fall. It is not an endless season that goes back and forth indifferently. Autumn is inevitable. It is the fall of Providence. It is the autumn of purpose in which God's will is engraved. Autumn is said to reap what you sow. It is God's natural revelation to prepare for a more prosperous next year and see tomorrow.
③ See the fruit and life.
Verse 25 says, “But the word of the Lord endures forever. And this is the gospel that was preached to you.” The word of God does not change from the beginning of the year to the end of the year, from sunrise to sunset, not even one jot or one jot.(…) The fruit is the new future of the season. It shows the promise of hope.(…) Behind the falling petals, you see new flowers, flowers that never fade, and flowers of fruit that last forever. A Christian “receives the living and abiding seed of life from God” amid all things blooming and withering. If the seed that falls into us is regeneration, if the seed bursts and grows and blossoms is repentance and faith, then the fruit seen after the flower has fallen It is our sanctuary. And the fruit will be a sign of glory that leads to full salvation, less abundant. Then, fall is by no means the season for fallen leaves. Rather, it is a season of fullness, a season of abundance, a season of promise and hope for the future.(…)
Autumn marks a finite life. It is a revelation of nature that tells us that life is a life of fruitful devotion, in which we must bow before the Lord.(…) I hope that this autumn will become our prayer to long for God's grace more. Ambrose said that Jesus Christ on the cross was the fruit of an apple on a tree. I hope it will be a graceful season for you to pick the fruit of salvation from the tree of the cross. Amen.