Title: Taste the Kingdom of God on Earth...
Contents
Those who taste the kingdom of God on this earth (Matthew 18:1-6) 2002.05.05
The effect of parents' beliefs and disbeliefs on children
Two children were born in 1889. One child was born to an Austrian couple, an illegal couple because they were cousins. My father was very impatient, and my mother was not interested in work as a housewife or mother, but only in social life outside. Then the father died, and the mother left the child with her alcoholic aunt and ran away. The 16-year-old boy dropped out of school and ran away. He prospered at random, eventually joining the German army. After Germany's defeat in World War I, he ventured into politics and became a radical. He was imprisoned for participating in a rebellion conspiracy and was imprisoned, vowing never to enter politics again, receiving the benefit of commuting his sentence from prison, but he continued his political activities even more fiercely, eventually becoming the F hrer, the absolute leader of the German people, in 1933. His name was Adolf Hitler, which brought Germany and the world to war, and to this day, millions of people still suffer from the effects of this child's poison.
In the same 1889, another child was born in Texas, USA. This boy was brought up with the love of his father and mother. The parents took this child to rural Kansas because they felt that rural life would be beneficial to the child's religious education. His father passed on the motto of 'Fear God' to the boy, and the whole family was known as the most active volunteer in the church. Even as an adult, the boy remembered the routine of praying earnestly in his mother's arms every evening. This boy also became interested in the military and entered the West Point Military Academy.
In 1944 these two men of the same age faced each other in battle. Over 11 months, Hitler fought Allied commander Dwight Eisenhower. The defeated Hitler committed suicide in an underground air defense shelter on April 30, 1945, and the world applauded when he heard the news. Meanwhile, Eisenhower lived 25 years longer than Hitler and died peacefully at the age of 80 in 1969, and his death was mourned by the world. The story of these two children of the same age eloquently demonstrates just how great the impact parents' faith and unbelief can have on their children.
According to the Gospels, the apostles practiced love according to the teachings of Jesus, and they were respected by many people by assisting in Jesus' ministry. But they also made mistakes and had weaknesses. In today's text, people brought their children and begged the disciples, hoping that Jesus would touch them. But the disciples stopped Jesus and rebuked his parents. Of course, there is no denying that the disciples who stood in the way of Jesus were meant to protect Jesus' effective time management and health from a human point of view. However, it was due to the disciples' ignorance of not knowing the possibilities of little children, and it was a mistake that did not grasp the center of Jesus.
As we celebrate Children's Day today, I hope that we will be taught a lesson from God by recognizing the reality that this can happen to us as well. Obviously, children are a heavy task on the one hand, and a great blessing and reward on the other. Are your children being homeworked like a pile of homework? Or is it a blessing or a reward?
watering the plants
Educating your children is like watering plants. If you don't water the plants too much, they dry out, and if you water them too much, the roots will rot and die. Neither love nor interest in children should be too little or too much. So, how much attention and love is the right education? Here are the difficulties in our life.
Getting a visa is not easy for us to go to the US. A visa is also required to enter the kingdom of God. They say that just because they want to go, no one can go. There are certain qualifications required. Jesus limits that qualification to 'becoming like a little child'. Unless we become like little children, no one can enter the kingdom of God even one step.
In Matthew 18:3 Jesus spoke to his disciples. ?쏹nless you turn and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.??What does this mean? The disciples were going in the completely wrong direction. It is said, 'If you do not change your direction, you will have no choice but to live a life that is forever far from the kingdom of heaven'. What is more important than 'Am I living a hard life or not, whether I work with a sense of responsibility in everything' is more important than 'Which direction am I going and what attitude am I living in?' is more important. No matter how diligently I work, no matter how hard I work, if the direction of my life is wrong, I will never be able to get a visa to enter the kingdom of God. Jesus defined the direction of life we should live as 'becoming like little children'. In other words, without the attitude and direction of life to become like a child, it is impossible to reach the kingdom of God.
So what does 'becoming like a child' mean? We need to approach it in a negative way first. In other words, before directly defining "what it is to be like a child", we try to approach the essence of the problem by defining "'becoming like a child' is not at least not like this." . 'Being like a child' doesn't mean 'becoming a child' at least. There are good sides to children, but there are also bad sides. There are good things about a child who is not self-assertive, likes to learn, trusts others, and can obey, but there are also bad things about being stupid, childish, self-knowledgeable, and stubborn. When Jesus did not say 'become a child', but 'become like a child', his intention is implied that he should resemble only the good points of a child, not the bad points.
Then, what are 'being like a child' and 'the good thing about a child'?
It is said that children do not present themselves.
Humans have animal desires and spiritual desires. Animal needs refer to desires such as appetite and sexual desire. Just as a hungry person does not need all the food in the world and a thirsty person does not need all the water in the world, so animal needs can be satisfied.
On the other hand, man's most basic spiritual need is 'approval'.
Whether humans are greedy for money or glaring at honor, they all start from the desire to be recognized by others. Of course, humans earn money for their survival needs. However, if it is not known to others that 'I have saved this much money and I have become this successful', people will not sleep at night and work hard to save money. To say that a good man when he had no money, once he made money, became arrogant and arrogant, proves the fact that humans never live only for necessity, but rather for recognition.
The fact that human beings try to raise their social status and choose a decent job rather than a job that makes a lot of money is maximized when human life is fulfilled by meaning rather than need, and that meaning is recognized by others. is to prove it. When those who live by pure ideology and pursue a virtuous life lose their honor, the expression of unbearable anger makes it undeniable that human beings live for recognition.
Also, I feel bad when a person younger than me doesn't treat me like an older person, and it's unpleasant to see people who say they're older than me. I feel bad when I hear it, and even though I have no time left and my body hurts, I have prepared the food with all my heart, but if you complain that 'the food is salty and spicy', you will have the urge to throw the spoon you prepared for the food into the trash can. On the other hand, if you treat me like my age and honor me even when I'm young, even if it's hypocrisy, it's not a bad thing to be happy about, and if you praise me for 'You made my hair beautiful' and 'You made the food so delicious,' even if it's a lie, even if it's a lie, it really is. Mistaking it for a pretty thing, the tiredness of having to eat food is relieved. These things testify to the fact that humans really desperately want to be recognized, and when they do, they feel the happiest.
But Jesus tells us not to seek approval. In Matthew 18:1, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" Then in verse 4, Jesus said, "Whoever humbles himself like a little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Don't try to be accepted, you're asking to humble yourself. And in verse 5, He said, "And whoever welcomes this little child welcomes me." When we try to be recognized, we cannot acknowledge others, and when we do not humble ourselves, we cannot accept others. Therefore, if we are to receive others, we must humble ourselves.
In Matthew 7:12, Jesus said, "Whoever wants to be treated, treat others first." Guys, what does it mean to treat others? It is about acknowledging and respecting others. People often say, 'If you do something that deserves recognition, you will be recognized, and if you do something that is worthy of respect, you will be respected.' But the world recognizes those who do something that deserves recognition, even if I don't. People who do something worthy of respect are respected automatically, even if I do not try to respect them. Recognizing a person who has done something that deserves recognition and respecting someone who deserves respect is what everyone in the world does. You can do all of these things without believing in Jesus. A person who believes in Jesus must be able to acknowledge those whom others do not acknowledge at all, and to respect those who have no respect for others.
Only the great can recognize and respect the little ones
In the world, the respected person is greater than the respected person. And the respected person is less than the respected person. But in the kingdom of God, those who respect are greater than those who are respected. Conversely, a respected person is less than a respected person. Therefore, if you say 'I can't acknowledge that person, I can't respect that person', you are showing yourself as a little person. Only the truly great can recognize and respect the little ones. Only the truly great know how to humble themselves. If we do not humble ourselves, we cannot receive others. If you do not receive others, you cannot receive Jesus, and if you do not receive Jesus, you cannot enter the kingdom of God.
We must learn to acknowledge the unacceptable and to respect the unworthy. To do that, you must humble yourself. This is a very difficult job. But all of this is possible if you don't assert yourself. Once you start asserting yourself, you see everything in a critical way and look down on the other person.
Jesus said, 'Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it cannot bear any fruit.' He also said, 'Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me'. The Apostle Paul said, 'My self must die, so that Christ lives in me'. Those who do not promote themselves, those who humble themselves, those who acknowledge others, and those who respect others receive a visa to enter the kingdom of God.