Title: Follow Me
Contents
♡♥♡ Follow me / Mark 1:14-20
*** Introduction
Today is the 8th anniversary of the establishment of Daebok Church in this village. It seems like eight years have passed. Although it was a short eight years, it was truly a long period with many twists and turns. Daebok Village 8 years ago was really bleak. It was a small and stubborn country village with 125 families. As it was the first church to be built, there was a lot of persecution and coldness, and it took 10 months to erect the cross and signboard to represent the church. The first worship service was on the 4th of September 1994 at 11 am Sunday day service. The first church in Daebok Village was thrilling that 8 people gathered to worship in a single room that was used as a private residence. After that, a small warehouse of only 4-5 pyeong was converted to make a church, and it was used for 5 years until February 1999. Now, this church was entered on Sunday, February 28, 1999.
When children are eight years old, they take off their shirts and enter elementary school. Now is the time for our church to take off the stigma of a child and grow actively. So, on this thrilling day, we want to check once again what the Lord's call is and where we are staying, so that we can use it as a stepping stone for growth.
Let's look at the background of the word.
Before God sent the promised Messiah, He first sent John the Baptist. John the Baptist was responsible for breaking people's closed hearts, preaching repentance, baptizing people with water, and preparing people's hearts to receive Jesus.
John the Baptist was a prophet of God who appeared 400 years after the prophet Malachi. God left the world and took away the prophets because of evil, and gave no sign. People who have been cut off from God for a long time longed for the Word of God. It was at this time that John proclaimed repentance in the wilderness and preached the kingdom of God. People flocked to the wilderness, repented and were baptized by John.
Around this time, Jesus, who had lived an ordinary life in the world for over 30 years, came to John the Baptist and was baptized. Now, this is to begin the three-year ministry called public life. After being baptized, Jesus was led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit, fasted and prayed for 40 days, and was tempted by Satan.
At the time, the Jewish leader, Herod the tetrarch, arrested John the Baptist and imprisoned him for rebuking his wrongdoing. When Jesus heard the news that John was arrested, he began to preach the gospel of God in earnest. Jesus made known to the world the unprecedented and great salvation plan of God established for mankind.
“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel!”
It was shocking news that turned the world upside down. The crowd was noisy and they flocked to Jesus' side. But they did not yet know the amazing story of God's love.
Jesus prepared through prayer all night to call the first disciples to spread this love story of God to the ends of the earth. Jesus was walking along the shores of the Sea of Galilee. There I met Simon who was casting a net and his brother Andrew. Jesus said to them, “Follow me. I will make you fishers of men.” He asked for discipleship. Upon receiving Jesus' request, the fisherman brother immediately followed Jesus. Going a little further, we met James and his brother John, who were also mending nets on a boat by the lake. Jesus called them too. The brother immediately left his father, his workers, and the field of life and followed Jesus.
In this way, Jesus made disciples of lowly and ignorant people in a region that did not receive much spotlight on the fringes of the times and did not even care about people. But what is surprising is that all the twelve disciples who were called by Jesus immediately followed Him. This is the topic we will be thinking about at this time.
All that is required of a disciple of Jesus is obedience.
Isn't it surprising that the first disciples immediately obeyed Jesus' call? Did they know who Jesus was, what they would do, and did they know and followed the details of their future? Nothing was certain for them. Nevertheless, they immediately obeyed the call. It's amazing how much you can jump out of your life and get up in an instant. The Lord called them because they needed obedience, and there is a reason that obedience is required.
The purpose of Jesus' coming into this world was to 'open the way of salvation'. His life was to open the way to reconciliation with those who were enemies with God. Therefore, the disciples of Jesus are naturally given a mission to preach this way of salvation. Jesus wanted his disciples to enjoy the amazing grace of salvation and become witnesses of God's love that accomplishes that salvation (Acts 1:8). This work cannot be accomplished by worldly wisdom, knowledge, wealth, power, or human strength. It can only be done by the power of the Holy Spirit.
After the Israelites returned from captivity for 70 years, they focused on rebuilding the temple of God and restoring their lives. However, several interruptions prevented the work from progressing, and people became skeptical. He believed that rebuilding the temple or restoring life was not the will of God. At that time, God enlightened and encouraged the people through the prophets Haggai and Zechariah. God spoke through the prophet Zechariah to Zerubbabel, who was in charge of building the temple. This is Zechariah 4:6. “It is not by force, not by might, says the LORD of hosts, but by my spirit.” God's work is possible only with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In other words, even if the circumstances are not favorable, God wants you to believe and obey the Word of God. God often makes circumstances difficult to show that He is doing what He is doing. This is because they will recognize that it was done by God, not by man. This is why Jesus chose disciples who are humble in the world but obey the calling.
People like to do things their own way, like arms bent inward. It is especially bad for those who have worldly knowledge, power, power, and wealth. Not only that, when something is done, people will say that it was done with their knowledge and strength. That is why, in God's work, people who obey the Word are needed more than those who have much of the world.
Obedience means fully agreeing to and following its will. “Follow me” presupposes such obedience. The word ‘follow’ means ‘… There is also the meaning of ‘following’, but ‘… It also means 'towards'. In other words, ‘following Jesus’ means ‘going toward Jesus’. In order to go to Jesus, we have to get out of the direction we have been. Jesus offers a new direction: “I will make you fishers of men.” That's why in Matthew 16:24, "Then Jesus said to his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me."
A famous acrobat was teaching his pupils the acrobatics of hanging on a horizontal bar from high altitude. The acrobats taught by demonstrating everything necessary to perform this acrobatics. Then he instructed the disciples to show their abilities.
One of them, however, was terrified when he looked at the rod hanging high up in the distance. He was terrified as he imagined the dreadful sight of falling from that high peak. The boy said to the acrobat, “I can't. I can't do it!" he said trembling. Then the acrobat said, softly placing his hand on the boy's shoulder.
“You can do enough. I will teach you how to Throw your whole heart over that horizontal rod. Then your body will follow your mind.”
The words of this acrobat make me realize deeply how I will go on the path of discipleship and what the path of obedience is. “Throw your heart over that horizontal rod. Then your body will follow your mind.” When a person starts to get caught up in his thoughts or his environment, he can't do anything right. Casting your heart on God's plan without being preoccupied with your circumstances or your own thoughts is the first step on the path of obedience as a disciple.
The Lord did not promise the disciples a splendid way or glory. Instead, he demanded sacrifice and the way of the cross, and promised resurrection life and eternal glory for this. These requests and promises of Jesus are given to us who are now Christians. And the only way to go on this path is to obey God's call and will. It is because of obedience that the Lord shows the process of the calling of the first disciples.
The disciples, who were called by the Lord, did not delay for any reason, but rather left their work, their homes, and their families, and immediately followed the Lord. The Lord has promised these rewards: Matthew 19:27,28. “Then Peter answered and said, ‘Look. Since we have left everything and followed the Lord, what then shall we gain?' Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, when the world is renewed and the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who follow me will also receive twelve thrones. I will sit on the throne and judge the twelve tribes of Israel.” And in Luke 22:28-30, “You have always been with me in all my trials, so I also give you the kingdom as my Father has entrusted to me. trust me, that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, or sit on thrones to rule over the twelve tribes of Israel.” What a great honor this is?!
You and I have been given the opportunity for the most valuable life on earth. However, as he said, “You can’t even audit Pyongyang if you don’t want to.” No matter how noble and glorious a position may be, if you refuse it, you cannot take it.