Title: God's Convenient Tool/Mark 1:1~8
I would like to start expounding on the Gospel of Mark this week. It may take a year or more.
The beginning of change is you. The world changes only when you change yourself. The way God works is through people. We change the world through people.
As the ministry of Jesus Christ begins, John the Baptist appears. He was a convenient tool for God to use. Let's look at the strengths of John the Baptist who was used by God in this way.
his passion
God uses passionate people. Verses 2-4 show John the Baptist's passion to prepare the way for Jesus. How will he honor Jesus? There was a longing for how to get Jesus to the attention of people.
In the book of Isaiah, John the Baptist compared himself to a voice, not a person. In verses 7-8, John the Baptist saw himself as a milestone of Jesus Christ. Don't look at me, look to Jesus! It was his dream and goal to testify of Jesus.
In John 3:3 he says that he must increase and I must decrease. We should have this passion too. During the Civil War, President Lincoln said of Grant to his lieutenants, "We won, because General Grant has a strong desire to win."
A strategist doesn't win a war, and he who writes a good book on war doesn't win a war. Only those who have the desire to win can win the war. We, too, must put those who have aspirations to the positions of leaders and leaders. Put those with aspirations into the decision makers. Do you want to revive? We need to raise up a leader who has a desire for revival.
Show your desire to prove yourself. John the Baptist had that passion. Passion commits a person. One person's passion inspires another. Therefore, we must pray, "God pour out your passion on us!"
To believe in Jesus is to be fascinated by Jesus. You must have a passion to have an irresistible heart enchanted by the love for Jesus, and a passion to change the world with that love. I hope this special event will be a period of prayer, saying, "Please pour out the passion of John the Baptist on us as well."
simple life
As John the Baptist said in verse 6, he lived faithfully to reality. Despite poverty and poor conditions, he devoted himself to his work. A camel's coat is not an obstacle to work.
A simple life allows you to work in all conditions. We often misunderstand that celibacy and asceticism are more religious. "Is the poor religious? Is the rich religious?" This argument is the logic of Marxism.
Whether you are poor or rich, all you need to do is to correctly proclaim the Word of God, pray and serve the poor. At any moment, you must be faithful on the spot with what God has given you.
Finding the cause of your dissatisfaction with the world in others is like a Pharisee. Faith is a battle full of contradictions. It is a battle against the devil in the midst of reality.
Life is hard and complicated. At that time, holding on to the Word and moving forward is faith. Faith is to be faithful as you are. John the Baptist did not pray for a silk garment instead of a camel hair garment. I didn't pray for anything other than the grasshopper.
Simply be faithful to the word. Don't shout slogans, just live. If you have the heart to donate, don't think about it and just give it away. Please live such a simple life.
Be loyal today, do your best today. And forgive me. This is the true glory. The end.