Title: The purpose of life is not flowers
John 21 (24) The purpose of life is not flowers
(John 21:18-19)
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In Matthew 21, the Lord said, “Untie the donkey and bring it to me!” (Matthew 21:2). Whatever you unpack, you must bring it to the Lord, and the Lord will use it. If I don't use everything given to me for the Lord, I can become an instrument of Satan. If I release my material, health, time, and talents and lead them to the Lord, my life will be unraveled, but if I just bind them to me, my life will be bound together.
When the colt said, “The Lord will use it!”, it was greatly used for the Lord. Do not try to make large things and give them to the Lord, but first bind small things to the Lord. It's not a big deal. If you work big, you get big. If you sit still and tie yourself up, you won't be used. When the Lord says he will use it, he says, “Here I am. Use me.” The door to happiness also opens.
Someone's confession “I have done many things for happiness so far, but I was the happiest when I devoted myself to the Lord and the church to the point where my body was too tired.” That confession is the confession of all saints. The most rewarding time in life is when you discover that you are still needed and useful in the presence of God, in the church and in your family! Conversely, the most miserable thing in life is when you think, “You are no longer needed.”
Wherever you go, “You are precious. Be blessed to be told, “You are absolutely necessary for us.” A sense of mission means “Where am I needed? How will my life be used?” is self-awareness. A healthy life is a life lived hard with such a sense of duty.
< If you are bound by love, you are bound to your mission >
The text of the text is the Lord's challenge to Peter on his mission. The Lord restored Peter's love in verses 15-17, and immediately followed up with his mission. The restoration of love leads to the restoration of mission. Love without a mission cannot be true love, and love without responsibility cannot be true love. Risk your life to love, risk your life to fulfill your mission. If you are bound by love, you are bound to be bound by your mission.
See verse 18 of the text. “Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young you girded yourself and went wherever you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your arms, and another will gird you and take you where you do not want to go.” The Lord restored Peter's mission and said that Peter would go where he did not want to go.
Where is it? Look at the first half of verse 19. “He was saying these things to indicate what kind of death Peter was going to glorify God.” The place Peter didn't want to go to was the place of death on the cross. This means that Peter would glorify God by his death. This verse tells us what success is. Success is taking up the cross with joy for the Lord.
According to the text, Peter was already planned to take up the cross and die. Likewise, the Lord has a thorough plan even in the matter of my death. There is no need to be afraid of carrying the cross. The cross is difficult, difficult, and terrifying, but the final victory is promised.
The central content of the Lord's life was the cross. The Lord lived toward the cross from the beginning of his public life to the end, and Satan interfered with the cross of the Lord from the beginning to the end of his public life. Even Satan knows that the life that bears the cross is the most blessed life. When there is no cross, Satan sings with joy, but when there is a cross, Satan cannot bear it and leaves.
The happiest thing in the life of faith is to bear the cross with joy. Don't be too afraid before the test of the cross. As long as you are alert and prepare in advance, the test of the cross always leaves good fruit and disappears.
"The purpose of life is not flowers"
The real dreadful temptation is the temptation to avoid the cross. The three tests that the Lord received from Satan in the wilderness were also tests to avoid the cross. The first test was to fast and pray for 40 days, and when hungry, turn stones into bread and eat them. Sometimes the wilderness comes into our lives, and when things are difficult or something goes wrong, Satan always tempts us to avoid the cross and seek the wrong miracle.
The second test was that if he jumped from the top of the temple, an angel would be sent to receive him. That test is a test for lust for honor, which shows off one's ability, and that test is also a test to avoid the cross. Beware of the temptations of fantastic faith, such as jumping off the top of a temple and accepting someone. The essence of faith is not to become the protagonist of a fantastic miracle, but to bear the cross silently.
The third test was that if you bow down to Satan, you would give everything. That test is ultimately a test to reject the cross. Even now, Satan is constantly saying, “Do not take up the cross! What are you doing to fulfill your mission? Live comfortably!” he tempted. If you fall for that temptation, your body will be at ease, but your soul will perish.
Satan knew that fact and constantly prevented Jesus from taking up the cross, but the Lord finally gave up on the way of the hero and chose the way of the cross to win. The only way to victory is to take up the cross. When I take up the cross of God that belongs to me at home and in society, the soul lives from then on, and the heavy burden of life feels light.
Even today, Satan tempts us to abandon the cross and pursue money and flowers of power. But the purpose of life is not flowers. Don't be a member of the entertainment industry who doesn't care about your mission as a singer sang, "I'm not a flower!" You should not give up your mission for the glory of the world, but rather, you should be able to lose time, material, and honor because of my mission. If you take up the cross with joy, God will surely remember your devotion.