Title: The Power of the Cross
"I tell you... the evil one
Do not resist; if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn it on the left as well..."
Christianity is... a paradoxical religion where you have to die.
Of course, first of all, it means the death of my self.
Today's text is difficult for us to keep without the determination of martyrdom.
Jesus tells us to take up our cross and follow me.
Everyone, the cross is not the degree of suffering... The cross means death.
We can divide martyrdom into two categories.
The first is... to carry the gospel of the Lord and go to another country to fulfill the mission and then be martyred.
Second, it is the 'martyrdom of the self.' I must die to be used by God.
... your body, to which God is pleased
Offer it as a holy, living sacrifice, which is your spiritual worship. {Romans 12:1}
If you look at the sacrifices in the Old Testament, God receives the 'fragrance' of the sacrifice.{Leviticus 1:1-17}
The sacrifice on the altar must be completely burned and turned into powder. In order to offer incense to God as rain.
There is nothing unsightly 'like a sacrifice' that has not been completely burned on the altar.
Before we do God's work, we must first offer our self as a sacrifice to God.
We die by taking up the cross, but it is only by dying wholly that God is pleased.
It will become a fragrance and deliver the beautiful 'fragrance of Christ' to those around you.
Otherwise, if my strong disposition lives and works for the Lord, I
Not only will you not be virtuous, but you will also be subjected to various tests due to your immature personality.
Today's message is telling us to die.
Unless we die completely on the cross, the cheeks...
Aren't we the ones who can't stand the bloody spirit and can't be patient even if others ignore me a little bit?
"The sign of a person who is born again is that he fights against himself every day."
The Apostle Paul, although born again, still exists in himself.
Through the fight against evil {惡}, they are lamenting, 'I am a wretched person.'
To keep today's Word, you have to endure even if you get hit in the face
Even if you lose, you should not take revenge, and even if you make a burdensome request, do not refuse.
In order to bear this word, a 'fighting with the body...' struggle is taking place within us today.
The problem is that, if you are a born-again believer, today's Word is not an option, but a mountain that you must climb 'essentially'.
In a small kingdom in India, a little prince went out alone and lost his way.
The prince was captured by the beggars and made to live with them.
During his childhood, the king's servants found the prince and brought him back to the royal palace.
Remove the rags from the prince and wash his dirty body clean
By putting on a splendid royal robe, he has now restored the appearance and identity of a prince {王子}.
But in that way, the prince's identity was found, but he was
Unknowingly, the habit of living with the old tent beggars was emerging.
The way he speaks, his attitude, his actions... the prince is inwardly
It took a long time and effort to restore the status of a prince who was completely outwardly intact.
Yes.. We too were saved 'by the grace of the Lord' and restored our status as children of God.
In the old world, when you live as a servant of the devil, your physical nature remains the same.
We can only change this character when we die.
In our relationships with everyone or conversations between couples that happen in our lives
All the problems that arise... We cannot win unless we take up our cross and follow the Lord.
Seeing the miracles of the Lord, following and following
Many disciples left the Lord because it was difficult and burdensome to follow these words.
The cross is specifically, what I sacrifice and lose.
This step of doing is because... you have to pay the price of sacrifice, as Jesus Christ did.
In this age, people who want to work with Jesus
There are many people, but few are willing to bear the cross of suffering with Jesus.
"Cross... It's a cross." Today's Korean church is only through faith,
It is true that the faith in practice was weakened by the doctrine of gain and righteousness, the one who obtains salvation.
To the people of the world a 'dynamic faith' that abuses the Lord's grace and is followed by teaching.
Of course, it is impossible to show them, and as a Christian, they cannot have any influence on their lives.
In order to put into action and follow the words of today's text, we must die.
You must die to be born again, and only to die to be resurrected. This is the power of the cross.
"And he said to the crowds... If anyone would come after me,
deny yourself and take up your cross daily and follow me.” {Luke 9:23}