Title: Heart of Jesus, Heart of Saints / 2004.3.14
Content Well, the heart of a saint
-- Living like a Greek --
Philippians 2:1-11, 1 Timothy 6:17-19
These days we all live in a world that is too narrow. In the old days, it was a world where I could live in my own way, paying attention only to my neighbors. However, the modern world is not a world where you can't live alone like that, and let yourself live on your own. We live in a world where politics directly affect our lives and the global economy immediately changes our lives.
In this world, it is not easy for us Christians to think and live like Christians. Because it is a world where I cannot live on my own. That is why those who want to think like Christians and live like Christians must have more clear methods and attitudes than ever before. Otherwise, you will lose your own identity in this turbid world and you will have no choice but to live a life that is drifting away into sepas.
First of all, you should have a clear awareness of yourself. This means that you need to be clear about who you are.
Who do you consider yourself to be? what is my name what is my job I am someone's wife and husband. I am someone's father and mother. If we answer only to this extent, isn't it the same as having only a shell and no inside? Shouldn't we Christians at least think like Christians in this regard? 'I am a child of God, a man of God.' At least, this should be the Christian's self-awareness and confession.
If you want to become such self-awareness, your confession of faith must be clear. What is the basis of the confession of faith that a Christian should have? Always remember three things.
First, I am a man created in the image of God (soul).
Second, we believe in the eternal kingdom of God.
Third, they are the people of the kingdom of God who have received forgiveness of sins through the grace of the cross of Jesus Christ.
When we have this confession and faith, we can at least have a Christian thought and a Christian attitude. Because people act as much as they think, and their attitudes change as much as their consciousness.
What should we think of others? When we treat others, how can we be Christians and socialize like Christians?
Most of all, I don't judge people by their looks. It is to see the image of God in man. When we see man in the image of God, we can never become proud. By seeing the hand of God in a person, you develop an attitude of respect for others--whether or not they are Christians--
You could call this humility. What is St. Augustine's most important Christian virtue? To the disciple who asked, he answered that the first was humility, the second was humility, and the third was humility. That is why humility is so important to Christians. Because Christians do not look at people by outward appearances, but in people they see the image of God.
When people with power empty their minds, their abilities are more prominent When you respect him, his character shines even more. That's what a Christian looks like. This is possible only when we see people as the image of God in them, not by their outward appearances.
Be of the same mind, have the same love, be of one mind, be of one mind
Do nothing through strife or vanity
But in lowliness of mind, each considers others better than himself,
Not only do each look at his own business, but also look at the work of others.
fill my joy Philippians 2:2-4
These attitudes and behaviors are what we have learned from the Lord.
He is the essence of God
He did not consider equality with God to be robbery.
Rather, he emptied himself and took the form of a servant, and became like men.
Being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death.
soon to die on the cross. Philippians 2:6-8
It is that Jesus, though he was in the form of God, gave up his form and emptied himself and came into the world as a poor and marginalized person. He came to become the Savior of all people, encompassing all those who are abandoned, hurt, and despised, the poor and needy, and even those who sometimes sin because they do not have enough to eat every day. That is why Isaiah prophesied that Jesus was 'the One who does not break a bruised reed or put out a smoldering lamp' (42:3).
Therefore, Christianness arises in those who look to Christ. In today's turbulent world, we must always look to Jesus, the Christ, in order to live with the right values, right discernment, and right choices. What does it mean to look to Jesus? Thinking about what Jesus would have done. Thinking about what Jesus meant. It is submitting myself to the will of Jesus.
But the problem is that sometimes it is not clear what God's will is. There are several devices that God has given us to discern well at such times. When you put these things to good use, you will be able to think and act like a true Christian.
First, God has given us reason. He has given us humans the ability to think beyond reason. The will of God transcends human reason, but not against human reason. God is not unreasonable.
Second, God has given us a conscience. The Bible says that conscience is a law written in the heart. There cannot be any will of God that is against the conscience. Therefore, we must always act according to our conscience.
Third, God gave the Bible, the word of God. The Bible is to show us the example of how God's will has been revealed through various circumstances and times through past history. Therefore, we should always ponder the teachings of the Bible and try to find the will of God by the light that the Bible shows.
Fourth, God sent the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, to see and help us in all our weaknesses. The Lord Himself said that the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things. As we read the Bible with a calm reason and a clear conscience and pray quietly before God, we will seek the right will of God under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Thinking about wealth and possessions is an essential part of Christian thinking and life. No matter how noble a thought and a plausible attitude, you cannot live like a Christian when you are not clear about wealth and possessions.
I am not going to talk about this at length. However, we will replace it with the words of the Bible.
Do not command those who are rich in this generation to lift their hearts.
Don't put your hope in wealth that is not fixed.
but to God, who gives us all things to enjoy,
Let them do good, be rich in good works, be generous and sympathetic.
This is to build a good foundation for yourself in the future, so that you may take the true life. 1 Timothy 6:17-19
Please do not put your hope in unpredictable riches, but listen to the words of God who gives you all these things to enjoy. He said that this is to build a good foundation for himself in the future.
Earn hard.
Don't waste, save.
Use generously for the sake of the Lord.
You might ask, how can a person live like that? That's right. It is difficult with the values of this world. However, do not forget that there are more people in the world who live their lives entirely according to these words to God than we think.
I saw an advertisement featuring an actress's face. This American actress named Audrey Hepburn was known for being very beautiful and innocent. However, no matter how beautiful a person is, the wrinkled and tight neckline will become loose as time goes by. Years passed and Audrey Hepburn became such a shriveled grandmother. An advertisement in the newspaper showed Audrey Hepburn, an old-fashioned grandmother, holding a skinny black boy in her arms, her face filled with sorrow. And the ad says: 'We didn't see this actor's truly beautiful figure in a scene in an innocent movie, but in Africa.'
Audrey Hepburn passed away. These words remain in his will to his daughter.
If you want beautiful lips, say kind words.
If you want to have lovely eyes, see the good.
If you want to be slim, share your food with the hungry.
If you want beautiful hair, let a child stroke your hair once a day.
If you want to have a beautiful posture, walk, remembering that you are never walking alone.
People must be restored from their wounds, they must be renewed from the old,
We must recover from sickness, and we must be edified from ignorance.
No one should be saved from suffering, and no one should ever be forged.
Forget it!
If you realize you need a helping hand
Use your hand at the end of your arm.
And as you grow older you will discover that you have two hands.
One hand is a helping hand,
The fact that the other hand is a helping hand...
Thinking like a Christian and living like a Christian are people who are really needed in this day and age and are like jewels. A person who lives with the certainty of salvation, treats people in the image of God, and lives in the world with a right view of materialism that person is a true Christian. The world today is thirsty for such Christians.
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