Title: Romans 16:3 4 The Unforgettable Man
Content unforgettable
Romans 16:3-4
There are people who come to mind all of a sudden. Since people cannot live alone and have no choice but to live in relationships with other people, everyone has people in their lives that they can never forget.
The words of the Bible we read today were unforgettable and unforgettable to the Apostle Paul. While imprisoned in a Roman prison, Paul, feeling the death of martyrdom approaching, looks back on the days that have passed and remembers and greets those who cannot be forgotten and will not be forgotten. By listing the names of several people, I express my gratitude to the co-workers who have helped Paul's missionary work. Among them, there is a person who stops our eyes. They are Aquila and Priscilla.
This couple were faithful people who did not spare their lives in order to save Paul's life. Paul regarded them as the most grateful of the unforgettable. What a blessing it is to have such unforgettable, unforgettable people. So who the hell are these unforgettable people?
First, those who share the burden in difficult times
A married couple who lived happily ever after turned 60. They were poor but a happy couple. The friendship between Hado and her husband was strong and they believed in Jesus well, so God decided to grant their wishes. So I asked my wife for a wish. "I wish I could give you a beautiful and peaceful home where I can spend the rest of my life." God has given us a beautiful, modern and well-equipped home. It was so good. Having my own home couldn't have been better. Now I asked my husband for a wish. "I'm not asking for a new wife. I just want you to make a wife who is about 30 years younger than me." God also granted his request. Suddenly, my husband turned 90. He came to live with his wife, who was under 30 years old, but he was too old to do anything. It is a humor that shows the folly of human greed that endlessly tries to reach out to self-centeredness.
It is important to consider who is unforgettable to me, but more importantly, to whom do I become unforgettable. If I want to have someone who is unforgettable, someone who will not be forgotten, it is important that I first be someone who will be unforgettable to others. This truth is the golden rule that Jesus taught us.
"Therefore, whatever you would like others to do to you, do also to them. This is the Law and the Prophets" (Matthew 7:12).
There are so many people around us in need of warm love. There are many who secretly sigh or cry in the midst of mental and physical difficulties. Even among my close friends, there will be people who struggle with difficulties I am not aware of. You don't know how much it makes my short life worthwhile for them to be someone they will never forget.
Second, those who lay down their lives first
Paul referred to Priscilla and Aquila as 'those who gave their heads and spared my life'. This means that they are as grateful and important as their lives. If you give up your life first, you will not only be able to live by yourself, but you will create a miracle of saving everyone around you (the world) as well. Look at Jonah's sign. When he sinned and fled to Tarshish, the ship met with a storm. When a lot was cast, confessing their sins and dying, the others on board survived. He will live again later. Are you as well? When they went to Nineveh and cried out for repentance, a miracle occurred that the city of Nineveh was saved. Jesus came to this earth to teach us this truth. When Jesus came into this world, he said strange things to teach the principle of love.
"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends..." (John 15:13)
Usually it is taught that I must live first, but Jesus teaches that I must lay down my life first to save my friend. As he teaches, he commands, "My commandment is that you love one another, as I have loved you." We can be friends of Jesus if we love one another as Jesus loved us. Jesus gave his life as the sacrifice of atonement on the cross to set the example of the greatest love as a friend. I thought it would end with that, but he showed us the mysterious miracle of truth. That is the resurrection life. Only then did the disciples understand the lesson of the grain of wheat.
?쏷ruly, truly, I say to you, unless a single grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit??(John 12:24).
A rich old man in Texas died and left no will. He died while looking for his only son who had left home 30 years ago without ever hearing the news. The city had the old man's house and furniture put up for auction. However, a small photo frame cost 5 dollars, but no one bought it. Then an old woman watching the auction raised her hand. The old woman looked so shabby, the auction house gave me a photo frame for only one dollar. This old woman was the old maid who had been working in the house for decades. She was a grandmother who cared for her son from an early age and loved him more than his father. The old woman only raised her hand when she saw the picture of her son in it rather than the picture frame. However, my father's will, which I thought did not exist, was in the frame of the photo. On it was written, "I will hand over all my fortune to the person who has the picture of my son whom I loved like life." The grandmother who devoted her heart to her son, though she was a maid, probably loved and cherished her son as if she were her life. So I would have tried to own even that picture. But unexpectedly, everything in the house became hers.
Third, they are people who will not be forgotten by Jesus.
The truth of Jesus, ?쏽ou have to die to live,??is a mystery teaching that ultimately leads to a lot of fruit. Jesus did not spare his life and gave it to us in order to become an unforgettable person. It doesn't end with just giving up your life. It is not an act to show only a noble and faithful image. Because he did not spare his own life and gave it, it was not only to live again, but to save countless souls.
?쏤ather loves me, because I lay down my life in order that it may be taken again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it back, and this commandment is given to me by my Father.??"(John 10:17-18)
He came and is still among us to be the one we can't and will never forget. He is the one who helps me when I am having a hard time and makes me see my hope for the future.
Isn't it our turn now? Now that Jesus has become our unforgettable friend, it is our turn to be the unforgettable one of Jesus. Reflecting on the saying, ?쏧f you love one another as I have loved you,??that is, you love me, you realize what the path to becoming an unforgettable person is. The way to follow Jesus is to have the power to forsake me on my own, not forced or forced. In the end, if, like Priscilla and Aquila, they are faithful and devoted to the work of Jesus Christ, without sparing their lives, I will become an unforgettable person to God.