Title: Let's be blessed by doing
2010.9.5 Let's be blessed because we preach on Sunday morning worship
James 1:22-25 ‘22. Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23. Anyone who hears the word and does not do it is like a man who sees his own face in a mirror,
24. When he sees himself, he goes and immediately forgets what he was like, 25. He who is looking into the perfect law of liberty is not the one who hears it and forgets it, but the one who practices it, and this person will be blessed in what he does.” Amen.
There are people who know the church but acknowledge God, and there are believers who come out of the church but cannot properly authenticate God. Both are problems, but our concern is that we feel sorry for believers who cannot prove God even after leaving the church, so today's topic is <Let's receive blessings through deeds> to share grace.
1. Christian faith begins with the Word
Superstitions and cults pretend to be religions with strange oral traditions, ethics, and mystical experiences with unknown sources and no scriptures of the teachings that are the basis of their beliefs. Christianity is based on the historically clear, existential person of Jesus Christ and the biblical basis of his background.
Text James 1:22-23'22. Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves, 23. Anyone who hears the word…’
The word listening is repeated twice in succession.
Romans 10:17 “Therefore, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”
Recently, the Korean church has been plagued by mystic cults just as huge cults arose right after 6.25 when it suffered political chaos in the past.
God is in mystery. However, mystics deviate from God's Word and cause them to lose their true faith, especially through the mystical dreams or visions of which Koreans are weak. If you say that anything is God's work if only the power is shown, this will happen.
Matthew 7:22-23'22. On that day many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and perform many mighty works in your name? I will never know; depart from me, you who practice lawlessness.”
2. You must find your true self to become a true believer
There is no person who can't spend his whole life until he finds his true self and confesses that way. Realizing and knowing the honest face of the self is also a matter directly related to salvation. In the scene of salvation in the Bible, everyone is thoroughly aware that they are sinners. So, the content of the preaching of the gospel is Luke 24:47-48'47. And it is written that repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem, 48. You are witnesses of all these things.”
Today's text James 1:23-24'23. ... he is like a man looking at his own face in a mirror, 24. He sees himself and goes...',
When you listen to the Word, you must realize the existence of your self. So, when preaching a sermon, the preacher focuses on making sure the members understand it. What are you eager to hear? It's about making yourself aware of yourself.
3. Faith is confirmed and blessed by works.
Christianity is not the center of belief in ups and downs like superstitions or general religions that seek to gain worldly blessings. However, since God has promised to always give us blessings according to our deeds, historically, we can see that He has blessed us according to that covenant. There are too many historical proofs that those who followed God were blessed, starting with the blessing of Abraham, who left his hometown and relatives and followed the word of God.
James 1:25 “He who is looking into the perfect law of liberty is not the one who hears it and forgets it, but the one who practices it, and this person will be blessed in what he does.”
The expression of the perfect law of liberty means the gospel. The Word of God consists of the Old and New Testaments, but God's completed will is to receive salvation and grace through Jesus Christ. Salvation comes through the grace of God that has already been ordained, but to receive blessings must be done according to the gospel.
September has begun. When autumn comes, even if we live in a city, we become conscious of the season of harvesting fruit and it is also a season to look back on our lives. According to the law of reaping what you sow, God rewards your actions of faith.
James 2:26 “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead.
Of course, you will receive God's grace by praying a lot. The problem is that when life goes wrong, we get caught up in these words.
Proverbs 28:9 “If a man turns his ear away from hearing the law, his prayer is also detestable.”
Matthew 11:19 “… Wisdom is justified by what it has done”
If you are a believer who has been promised salvation by God's grace in the past, you must not live alone in the world anymore, but enjoy God's grace. Knowledge of the secret to receiving that grace is necessary, but only in following the truth of the Bible. No matter how mysterious things are, if there is no truth from the Lord in my life, it is futile.
Originally, the word “pivsti”, the word for faith, itself is a word that can be interpreted to mean loyalty. Faith is not a noun, but a verb. It is followed by actions. Christianity is not a religion of meditation or cultivating the Way. It is living according to the gospel, sacrificing oneself according to goodness and righteousness, and allowing the Lord's truth to stand in. Then, I believe that the Lord will be with him and reward him.