Title: Revive / Luke 18:9-14
Contents
Revive / Luke 18:9-14
One of the words we hear often in our church life is revival. When I pray, I pray for revival, and when I sing the gospel hymn, I often sing the hymn called 'revival'. We also hold revival meetings once or twice a year. So what is 'revival'? In simple terms, it means that our hearts and communities are renewed, transformed, and refreshed. This revival begins with God coming to meet me. It starts there when the Spirit of God comes upon me. When the Holy Spirit of God comes upon me, I can see my existence accurately. Then my dirty and soiled spirit is healed and refreshed, and my stagnant spirit is refreshed. You will see the vision and vision of a new life that God shows you, and the meaning and purpose of your life will change. The history of repentance is revealed, from a self-centered life to a God-centered life. The broken relationship with God is healed and the relationship of love is restored. This is the history of change and revival.
Today's text shows two contrasting human figures. One is a publican who is criticized and disrespected in the world, and the other is a Pharisee who pretends to be the most holy and righteous of himself spiritually suffering from princess disease or prince disease. In other words, he is a person who is deceived by his own delusions. The Pharisee boasted and mocked himself and prayed to God. I prayed, stating that I did not extort, do injustice, commit adultery, or steal like that publican. However, the publican did not dare raise his head, but beating his chest and praying, 'I am a sinner'. I confessed my sins and repented that I had sinned in one way or another. However, God did not acknowledge and accept the Pharisees as righteous, but acknowledge and accept the tax collectors as righteous. Here is an important and shocking lesson for us to pay attention to.
Kilkegaard said that in today's text, not two, but three kinds of people shine. The first was a publican, the second a Pharisee, and the third a Pharisee pretending to be a publican. In fact, a Pharisee pretending to be a publican is a more hypocritical and hypocritical Pharisee. A more cunning Christian with a mask of culture and hypocrisy. In modern society, there are more such luxurious Pharisees.
Someone said that if you go to heaven you will be surprised three times. One, he thought that he would never enter the kingdom of heaven, but he was surprised to see that he had come. Second, he was surprised that he did not see the people he had expected to come. Third, he thought that he had come here and led his life of faith. He said that he would be surprised to find out that it was measured by a completely different standard from the norm. This is a very important statement that we should ponder deeply.
Even today, we need a change in the way we view our life and the world from God's perspective. This is where spiritual revival begins. My life will be fundamentally changed and the paradigm (frame) of my church life and faith life will be fundamentally renewed. The Pharisee thought that he had believed in God and lived a good life, but God judged that 'you are a fake and an idiot'. How shocked must the Pharisees be then? We have lived a life of faith and served the church, thinking that we are the best in serving God and that we are the most righteous. If God said to me at this time, 'You are a Pharisee,' what would my answer be?
Here is the task that needs to be renewed for spiritual revival. Here are the tasks that need to be changed and renewed through this revival meeting. Both went up to pray. We are well aware that prayer is the center of our religious life and the most important factor for spiritual revival. The foundation of all spiritual awakening movements, revival movements, evangelism and gospel movements began with the prayer movement. A revival movement without prayer seems like a success, but it returns to failure. Where there is religion there is prayer, and where there is prayer there is faith. Humans are ultimately creatures of prayer.
Prayer becomes the driving force and vitality of our religious life. If we look at all the people we have lived a great life and who have given us the faith and service that serve as a great signator, it is easy to see that they were all 'people of prayer'. It was because of their prayers that Jesus was able to bear the atonement cross, that Stephen could offer a prayer to forgive his enemies like the Lord at the scene of the magnificent martyrdom, and that Paul and Silas were able to give thanks and praise while in prison in Philippi. Because.
More importantly, it is not a matter of whether we worship and pray or not. There is something more important than that. That is the attitude of the heart of prayer. In today's text, both of them went up to the temple to worship God and pray. It's not that they don't pray. I prayed hard.
The important thing is with what kind of heart and with what attitude you come to God and pray. Worship and prayer that bring spiritual revival are impossible with formal prayer. There must be a prayer that is truly risking your life and offering it with a bone-shearing posture.
Why didn't God answer the Pharisee's prayer? He did not realize that he was a sinner with many faults before God. self-deprecating. True spiritual revival begins with humble confession that I am a sinner who cannot stand before God.
The publican had this humble and sincere confession. But the Pharisees did not have this. The most important thing is to stand before God as a true person. As I quietly reflected on myself through the Word, I realized that it was truly an abomination. As I saw lies, greed, unclean things, hypocrisy, and so many faults and sins surrounded me, I prayed for repentance before God. At that time, I experienced my spirituality restored and spiritually renewed.
David prayed in Psalm 51:10, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit in me." God loves sincere people. You want a true spirit. God loves a broken heart. Even if you have committed a scarlet sin, God forgives you if you reveal your shortcomings before God.
We want this spiritual revival to happen at this time. In particular, I sincerely hope that such spiritual awakening and revival will occur through this revival meeting. I pray in the name of the Lord that all of us cry out to God with a sincere and broken heart, so that the new spiritual awakening and restoration that God gives us will take place and we will be an opportunity to receive God's abundant grace.