Title: Locomotive of Powerful Blessing
The Gospel of John (5) The Locomotive of Powerful Blessing (John 1:12-13)
< The greatest meaning and blessing of life >
Today, the favorite food of church members is stew. When the stew boils, it makes a ‘bubble bubble’ and boils like that, “Blessings! Blessings!” while seeking happiness. But reliefism makes us miss out on true blessings. Of course, pursuing blessings and miracles is not a bad thing, but it is a bad thing to be so obsessed with blessings and miracles and not realize the blessings and miracles of becoming a child of God. The greatest blessing is to believe in Jesus and become a child of God (verse 12).
In this world, there is no priority and nothing to compare with the blessings of salvation. When we realize that fact and give thanks deeply for the blessings of salvation, secondary blessings follow. Without the blessing of salvation, other secondary blessings have no substance or meaning. It doesn't take long for the unsaved person to be proven to be in vain. In particular, death turns all the possessions of the unsaved into nothing. When you die, you throw everything away. The shroud has no pockets.
Alexander the Great left his hometown of Macedonia with the dream of conquering the world at the age of 20 and never set foot on his homeland. Because he was too busy to conquer the world. But there were people, like Alexander, who were busy conquests in other dimensions. He is the philosopher Diogenes, who was busy with his conquest. Diogenes spent his life in self-denial in a cask, and at that time the only person Alexander admired, besides his teacher, Aristotle, was Diogenes.
One day, Alexander sent messengers to Diogenes and said, "Teacher! Just say one wish. I will grant you any wish.” Then Diogenes said. “King! Give me one piece of eternity.” Diogenes said that he would not be able to comply with that request. “King! I want to know why you are so busy conquering the world when you can't hold on to a single piece of eternity." Alexander could not answer that question. Because he himself could not find any clear reason for his rush to conquer the world.
Shortly thereafter, Alexander died of a fever at the age of 33. Some historians say that he died of a disease caused by the bite of a pet monkey. He died so absurdly at such a young age that he was so shocked that he made this will. “When I die, make holes in both sides of the coffin so that both empty hands are released, and show the people their hands.” He wanted people to know that when they die, they leave everything behind. What a wonderful life is it?
If you live a busy life without the purpose and meaning of a holy life, you are living a wonderful life. Furthermore, if you live a busy life without knowing your final destination, you are living an even more amazing life. In that sense, there is nothing more blessed than receiving Jesus, being saved, becoming a child of God, and being able to go to Heaven, where God is, our eternal hometown. In the end, accepting Jesus is ‘the greatest meaning of life’ and ‘the greatest blessing in life’.
< Locomotive of Strong Blessing >
Occasionally, when I meet an old acquaintance, we talk about various things and ask about someone's news. “How does he live?” Then I get a lot of answers like this. "Ah! Don't you know? He passed away.” The time will come soon when people will say the same about us. “He passed away.” Such a moment is coming closer and closer, and what is the meaning of sweating and success without wisely preparing for it?
The reason people bleed is to ask for recognition. People want to leave their name behind. But how futile is it if you die soon and become a forgotten existence? However, if you accept the Lord, you will be remembered forever before God. However, the blessings given to those who believe do not end with the blessing of gaining eternal life. The ‘hope of eternal life’ becomes the strength to overcome all the adversities of the world, and the ‘energy of eternal life’ serves as the most powerful locomotive of blessing to obtain secondary blessings in the world before death.