Title: From Selotians to Disciples (Acts 1:12~14)
Contents
At the time of Jesus, there were four factions active in Judea. They are the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and the Celticites, as we know them well. Among them, the Selot Party can be translated as the Yeolshim Party. The origin of this Zealot party is that around 167 BC, Syrian Antiochus Epiphanes invaded Judea. At that time there was an old priest named Mattathias who, with his five sons, started a religious and political uprising. He eventually died, but his eldest son, Judah Maccabi, succeeded the leader and led the revolution to victory. And until the arrival of Rome, the splendid Judean culture was ignited.
And this Zealot was religiously zealous zealots for the law. They were strict interpreters of the law. He was willing to die for keeping "zealous for the law of the God of Israel." However, out of the 11 disciples of the Lord in today's text, this man named Simon was also a member of this Zealot Party and was among these groups.
If you look at the text, it is revealed that Simon is of Celtic origin before the name. He belonged to the Zealots. He was deeply immersed in the ideology and attention of the Yeolshim Party. The values of that life belonged to the Yeolyeol Party.
But Simon, a celloth like this, became a disciple of Jesus. Jesus did not know that Simon was a Celtic and did not call him a disciple. Even though Jesus knew it, he called him to be a disciple.
Jesus called a wide variety of disciples. Being diverse isn't a bad thing. Although they were diverse disciples, they were united as evangelists.
Simon, the celloth, was transformed.
Simon was a Zealot. Zealots were more radical than ordinary people, extreme and hot.
Nevertheless, after he became a disciple of Jesus, he remained silent. He has nowhere to go.
I think this is a great change. After becoming a disciple of Jesus, Simon, a celloth, became a preacher of love and the cross.
Simon was originally a member of a group that solved all problems by force. That was the value of his life. However, as he learned the word from the Lord, he realized that he should not solve it by force. When a person is tamed with cruelty, he becomes more and more cruel. When a person sees blood, he becomes more agitated and cruel.
Simon, a cellot, a terrorist was transformed after he believed in Jesus and was nurtured and trained by Jesus. If you believe in Jesus, you will be transformed. When you become a disciple of Jesus, you are transformed.
There is no one who will not be changed through Jesus. There is no one who cannot change. Simon, who was an armed terrorist, has also changed. However, the devil keeps tempting us that we cannot change. So it prevents us from experiencing change. The old man, the old character, the rotting and dying soul.
Saints! I hope you will not fall for Satan's tricks. You have really changed a lot now than when you first believed in Jesus. I believe that more and better changes will be made through parenting and training in the future.
If you become like Jesus, you will be transformed. If we hold on to the gospel, we will be changed. Prayer changes you. When you receive the Holy Spirit, you are transformed.
Simon became a witness for Jesus Christ as a member of the secret society. He came to realize that the first thing to do is to become a witness of Jesus Christ, not to restore the bond by force. We have become a member of the world conquering world through the gospel, not by force. The Lord did not tell us to conquer the world by force, but gave us a mission to conquer the world with the gospel.
It must not change. If you have received the Holy Spirit and have not changed, and you have received grace but have not been changed, then that is a problem. Simon the Celloth prayed, received the Holy Spirit and was transformed. We Christians also need to be changed just as Simon the Zealot was transformed by believing in Jesus and receiving the Holy Spirit and becoming a witness of Jesus.
Simon, Zelot, threw away the sword he had in his bosom and became a cross-bearer. I gave up my sword for the cross. I became a person of prayer. Read today's text. They gathered in Jerusalem to pray. And in the attic, he devoted himself to prayer.
Instead of hating people through Jesus, he became a person who hates Satan and his sin, the spirit that commands him. Saints! Don't hate people. You must see the enemy devil working in it and learn to hate it. And worldly zeal must be converted into zeal for preaching Christ and witnessing Christ.
If Simon, the Celt, had not met Jesus, he would have perished by the sword while carrying a sword. However, after he met Jesus, he was able to embrace Matthew, who was the opposite of him. The Celts hated the Syrians and Romans and treated them as enemies, but the publicans and prostitutes who lived with them hated and looked down on them the same way. The devil is sowing us hatred. divided into the poor and the rich, the educated and the uneducated. It leads to polarization. If we are deceived by this devil and hate others, we will become infinitely small and become ugliness. However, if you overcome and overcome hatred, you can embrace even the enemy.
According to legend, Simon was killed by sawing him while preaching the gospel to the end. Think of Simon, who became a disciple of Jesus. And we see a new hope in us. Change is possible for anyone.
A person who comes out with the logic of hate and hate cannot be a good leader. You can't be a good leader. The gospel is to satisfy all human needs. The gospel is to help you live an abundant life. Simon, a narrow-minded little one, has changed into a person who embraces the world after meeting Jesus. Only Jesus can change. In the name of the Lord, I pray that you will become those who change from me through the gospel, and therefore those who embrace everyone.