Title: Stand on Four Feet
Contents
Subject: Stand on all fours
Text ;Acts 26:14-18
There are differences between children and adults.
Those who can do their own work are adults, and those who cannot do their own work and have to do it are children. I have a 10-year-old daughter named Joo-hee. My wife and I always talk to Joo-hee. "Baby, wipe your teeth. Clean the room. Change the blanket. Do your homework in advance."
Because they are not children, but adults who can do their own thing.
God always says, "Child, pray. Have good worship. Read the Bible. Evangelize." However, once your faith has grown to a certain extent, you will not be able to say these words well.
This does not mean that we should not pray, read the Bible, and do evangelism. It's about knowing what to do on your own.
It is to come out all night worship, read the Bible by yourself, do some evangelism on your own, and become mature saints who act for the Lord on your own.
The women take care of the meals themselves, and the men take care of cleaning, mowing the lawn and trimming the fence on their own. The young people are good at washing dishes on their own, and the children are playing well on their own... and so on.
let's greet each other “You are a very good person.” Hallelujah!
In today's text, the resurrected Jesus met Paul on the road to Damascus and said,
"Arise, stand on your feet. I have appeared to you, that I may make you a servant and a witness in what you have seen me and what I am about to appear to you." (Acts 26:16)
The Lord entrusted Paul with a precious mission to preach the gospel. However, there were many difficulties in carrying out the task.
There were too many people trying to knock Paul down and knock him down. Sometimes I was so strong that I didn't even have the energy to get up. But the Lord gave Paul courage and strength each time.
Nevertheless, the suffering that was approaching him was so severe that it was not easy for Paul to have the courage to get up at times.
Thoughtfully, I want to leave the body and go to heaven as soon as possible to rest, but I could not leave this earth because I still have a mission on this earth and because God has not yet called me in heaven.
Moreover, it was not easy to spread the Gospel while traveling around the world.
However, I couldn't just spread out and lie on my stomach just because it was hard.
At this time, the Lord tells Paul: "Paul, get up. Get up and stand on your feet."
In other words, the Lord gave Paul the faith and the gift to overcome difficult circumstances and stand up on his own. Don't act like a child, don't act like an unbelieving person, but have the courage to stand up again.
Even though the Lord gave Paul the gift of being able to stand up on his own, the Lord is in trouble if he doesn't stand up on his own and wants to raise him up.
Take the case of small children. Children fall a lot. And there are many children who do not get up on their own and just fall and cry, hoping that their mother or father will lift them up. Of course, when you are young, your parents raise you countless times.
However, even when grown up, if you continue to sit on the ground because you fell, your parents will scold you loudly. "Hey, you're not getting up early!"
If you still scream and don't wake up, say, "This guy!" And slap your ass. Of course, from the point of view of a child, "too much." I don't know if you think so. But parents think so. "What are you doing too much? Are you a child now?"
Some people may pretend to be adults even though they are still children, while others may want to act like children even though they are adults.
In Jeremiah 1, God says to Jeremiah:
"Jeremiah, I have appointed you to be a prophet to the nations. So, speak my words to the nations."
Then Jeremiah answered God. "Lord, I am a child. I do not know how to speak properly." Then God speaks. "Don't call me a child, and fulfill my mission." .
In the eyes of God, Jeremiah is already an adult, but he keeps saying that he is young and trying to take away the task of fulfilling the God-given mission. In the end, God is speaking to Jeremiah.
"Do not say that you are a child, now stand on your feet."
Guys, look at the students.
After elementary school childhood, when you become a middle and high school student, you have to study on your own, make a time schedule, and do what you have to do. This makes parents and children tired of each other.
From a parent's point of view, when their children become secondary and high school students, they feel reassured and rewarding to see them do the work themselves.
On the other hand, even though I became a secondary school student, I couldn't do the things I had to do on my own and fell down on my own. And I'm worried.
Then, even though you have reached adulthood, it must be very sad for God if you fall on your back without being able to do the work you should be doing yourself.
Moreover, if you come to a foreign land and you fall down without being able to do your job properly, wouldn't it be very sad for God's heart?
Gentlemen, the character of a fallen man is very strange. They cannot do good and good things on their own, and do evil and bad things very well on their own even if no one tells them to do them.
In other words, if a fallen person is left alone, they will commit evil themselves. And they go to the path of self-destruction, the path of judgment.
In this regard, the Bible also says that the fallen human nature leads to self-destruction, becomes enemies with God, deceives itself, and leads to misfortune.
In order to save mankind from self-destruction, God sent the Savior Jesus to this earth. Jesus took us, like dragonflies caught in a spider's web, out of the web, to the power of Satan.
And with its help, the dragonfly, which came out of the web, should now fly on its own. If a dragonfly comes out of a spider's web and continues to feel discouraged, as if caught in a spider's web, gives up on itself and does not fly, and then gets caught by a spider again, whose fault is it?
Ladies and gentlemen, if God gave dragonfly wings to fly and took it out of the spider's web, but it didn't fly and became food for spiders again, wouldn't it be miserable?
In the same way, even though God saved us and gave us strong feet to stand on our own, wouldn't it be a pity if we continued to fall, like a child with polio, without getting up?
Ladies and gentlemen, when we are in a situation where it is impossible for us to happen, the Lord lifts us up. Help us and comfort us.
However, if it doesn't happen even if it can happen on your own, even if you have given faith to stand up on your own, the Lord speaks to us just as he did to Paul. "Get up and stand on your feet!"
Everyone, stand up on your own feet.
Do not blame others or complain that no one raises you up.
Now, become more mature Christians who love God for themselves, keep away from evil, and live for the Lord on their own.
Once again, have the courage to stand up for yourself. Try to get up on your own feet, even if it takes a little bit of effort.
The Lord speaks to me and you today. "Get up and stand right there."