Title: The basic mission of a believer
Contents
The basic mission of the true believer (Rev 1:12~20)
The apostle John recorded a vision he had seen as a servant of Jesus Christ on the island of Patmos. It was a vision of Jesus holding the seven stars in his hand and going back and forth between the seven golden candlesticks. In the text, the seven golden candlesticks are the seven churches, and the seven stars are the messengers of the seven churches. What is the basic mission of the believer through the text?
First, it has to shine.
The analogy to the candlestick in the vision is because the candlestick is a tool for illuminating the light and teaching the basic mission of the church. That is why it is also recorded in the Bible, “Arise, shine” (Isaiah 60:1 3). We must shine toward the world and the darkness. The content of light is the word of God, and the word is light. (Psalm 119:5) Also, Jesus Christ is compared to light (John 1:9). To emit light is to preach the Word and to exalt and boast about Jesus Christ. is. This is the basic mission, the Great Commission, and the preaching of the gospel. Light drives away darkness, and darkness means ignorance, and neither heaven nor hell nor God knows. The role of the gospel is to free man from this ignorance. Also, because there is fear in the world, people suffer from anxiety and fear, but through the Gospel, they can be freed from anxiety and fear, and they can obtain true joy and peace. Just as life cannot exist without the sun, there is only death in darkness. The world is under death and power, but the gospel gives life and eternal life. Therefore, we must do our best to preach the gospel.
Second, it must not change like pure gold.
Gold is immutable and does not change. Gold candlesticks signify the constancy of the believer's faith. Even when trials and tribulations approach, we must have unchanging faith by relying on God and keeping the Word firmly. Making it into pure gold (Exodus 25:35) is to become a true believer in the midst of fiery trials. For Christians, trials and tribulations are bound to come. American baseball king Babe Ruth left the mythical record of 714 home runs, but behind the home run was 1330 strikeouts. U.S. President Abraham Lincoln also had the experience of being defeated eight times before becoming president. As it is written in the Bible, 'The trial of our faith is more precious than gold that perishes, even though it is tried by fire, so that we may find praise, glory, and honor at the appearing of Jesus Christ' (1 Peter 1:7). We must have unchanging faith together.
Third, we must live according to the instructions of God's Word.