Title: Living with a Mission (使命)
Contents
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15. When Joseph's brothers saw that his father was dead, they said, 'Maybe Joseph hates us and we will repay him for all the evil we have done to him.
16. And he spoke to Joseph, saying, Before your father died, he commanded, saying,
17. Thus ye shall say to Joseph, Even though your brothers have done evil to you, now please forgive their transgressions and sins. Now forgive the sins of the servants of your father's God. I cried when
18. And his brothers came again, and fell on their faces before Joseph, saying, We are your servants
19. And Joseph said to them, "Do not be afraid, will I be in God's place?
20. You tried to harm me, but God turned it into a good one to save the lives of all people as it is today.
21. Do not be afraid, I will feed you and your children. And he comforted them with earnest words.
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18. What then? Outwardly or truly, by any means, it is Christ that is preached, in which I will rejoice and rejoice.
19. For I know how this will lead to my salvation through your supplication and the help of the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ.
20. In accordance with my earnest expectations and hopes, I am not ashamed of anything, but I am still fully confident as before, that Christ may be glorified in my body, whether by life or death.
21. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
22. But if living in the flesh is the fruit of my work, I do not know what will be hidden.
23. It is better that I have the desire to depart and be with Christ, since I am caught between them.
24. But it will be more profitable for you that I abide in the flesh.
25. I know with certainty that I will live and will dwell with all of you for the advancement and joy of your faith.
26. That I am with you again so that your boasting in Christ Jesus may abound for me.
Content
Title: Living with a Mission (使命)
Text: Genesis 50:15-21, Philippians 1:18-26
A healthy faith is not faith in ups and downs, but faith in mission. Faith in ups and downs is a belief that is consistent with all religions. Idolatry in all its forms is a prime example. There is no such tendency in the color of Christian faith. However, the ultimate purpose of ups and downs cannot remain in the selfish category. This is because God's will of blessing is toward all mankind (Genesis 12:1-3). Faith that embraces this will of God is mission faith. The identities of the two faiths are revealed in the face of trials. Faith in ups and downs focuses on trials. So I will fight the ordeal. However, mission faith focuses on mission. That is why we carry out our mission even in the midst of trials. It is the faith of ‘even if it is not so’ during the Babylonian captivity (Daniel 3:18). That is why we focus on fulfilling our mission even in the midst of trials.
Faith in ups and downs is a belief that every human being has. It must be the desire of all human beings to appease the sense of loss in Paradise Lost. However, the end of the ups and downs of faith is tragic. This is because we end up wandering in this world as well as forgetting about eternity. It is necessary to sublimate to the mission faith. We must meet God who is true love. Here comes the ordeal. Such was the life of the patriarchs. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. Today's Old Testament text (Genesis 50:15-21) is the final scene of Joseph's tumultuous life. The trials he had to go through were in the cradle of life, at home. I am the eleventh born into a family of four mothers. This is the story behind the meaning of the name ‘Joseph’. “He has taken away the shame,” “I hope to increase it” (Genesis 30:23,24).
Rachel's wish comes true with her death (Genesis 35:16-20). Joseph, who had to grow up with half brothers without a mother, receives extraordinary love from his father. However, the trials the two brothers had to go through while growing up with the youngest Benjamin must also have been formidable. Joseph's real ordeal begins with his dream (Genesis 37:5-11). Those two dreams are understood to be God-given. The older brothers become more jealous and hateful, and they also hear rebuke from their father. But Jacob said, “He had the word in his heart.” It was envy and hatred around special love. The dream he had at that time was a dream of a mission. And the life of Joseph that followed was more and more chaotic. It was only obedience according to God's will, but the trials aggravated. The mission is accompanied by trials like a shadow.