Title: Those Who Belong to the Truth
Contents
Gospel of John (104) Those who belong to the truth
1. A person filled with the Holy Spirit
If you look at the text, the Lord is not shaken at all while being judged before Pilate. When Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of the world. I am not the king of the world, but the king who came into the world to testify of the truth, and he who belongs to the truth hears my voice.” Who is of the truth? He is a man filled with the Holy Spirit who does not waver even in the midst of difficulties.
There are many misconceptions about being filled with the Holy Spirit today. Some people think that falling easily during worship is evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit. That is why it is said that if the preacher does not fall when he pushes the saints with his energetic voice, his will is still alive and he does not fall. Of course, the work of the Holy Spirit may appear in the form of a fall because of the variety, but the problem is that if there is no change in heart and life after receiving the Holy Spirit in that way, it is a shame.
People will expect from a person who has received the Holy Spirit in the form of a fall. "Hey! I got the falling spirit! Now something will change.” But what will people think if nothing has changed and they still don't want to evangelize, they're still selfish, they're still worried, they're still often depressed, they still have negative thoughts, they still don't want to bear the cross? You will say, “Why did that person do that while acting as if he had received all the Holy Spirit by himself?” On the contrary, such an attitude greatly dishonors the Holy Spirit.
There are many misunderstandings about abilities, so in some ability-seeking seminars, attendees learn how to knock them down. We do clinical trials of knocking down each other while laying hands on each other. There is a religious leader who even learns hypnosis because he misunderstands such a magical thing as an ability. According to the head of a certain hypnosis academy, half of his students are religious leaders. How amazing is that? True grace and power are not experimental instruments.
2. The person who bears the cross
What is the core of the truth the Lord speaks of in the text? That's the cross. What is the cross? It's about saving others through your own death. After all, 'living' is the truth. The Lord came to save people, and He accomplished the work. So, the person who made the best living in history was the Lord. When we die on the cross and only Jesus appears in ourselves, the power is revealed and the work of solving problems begins.
After that, she killed herself and lived with patience and love without words, with a heart that “Jesus lives in me.” Then, exactly one year later, my husband returned to the Lord, and after a while, my parents-in-law also returned to the Lord. When he died in Jesus, he became the best housekeeper. The best way to live is to ‘die yourself’.
According to her husband's confession, after meeting the pastor one evening, his wife had lost his assertion. what do you mean? Those who died on the cross are speechless. He didn't die, so he talks a lot. In general, workers are silent and bystanders are very talkative. When you think that spectators are also needed in human society, but spectators are not blessed or rewarded, do not belong to the ranks of spectators and stand in the ranks of workers who bear the cross. If you take up the cross, you can become the best housekeeper wherever you go, and you will not be deprived of happiness, satisfaction and leisure under any circumstances.
<Pursue Peace>
The Lord says, “My kingdom is not of this world, so the disciples did not fight!” (verses 36-37). That means we must seek peace. No matter how plausible the logic may be, those who cause quarrels and like to fight are never of the truth. How many people are struggling and lonely right now? Be messengers of peace, bringing warmth to them.
Some argue that Captain Hook bullied and bullied Peter Pan not because he hated him, but because he was lonely. I want to get to know Peter Pan, but I have the prestige of being the pirate boss, and I can't get to know him openly due to the circumstances around me, so I pretended to be fighting for nothing, pretending to be harmed, and hanging out with Peter Pan. There are no inherently demonic people in this world. There are only people who are weary and lonely because they have been tricked by Satan and the devil. Be a ‘warm gift’ to them and buy them. How much do you have to give as a gift to a lonely world?
A warm smile, a single word of “thank you!”, hymns and whistles made in difficult times, a phone call, washing dishes and throwing away trash instead, serving meals, hiding faults and praising strengths, bad luck To not look, to be with you in lieu of advice, to laugh at sloppy jokes, to not show self-confidence, to kindly explain something and not say "I'm bored!", quiet kindness, courage and hope. You don't know how many gifts you have to give, such as having them, listening intently, going out and traveling without notice.
Above all, preach the gospel of Jesus, spread the love of Jesus, and give yourself as a gift like Jesus. Those who seek peace while living as a gift from such a dark world are those who belong to the truth. If you break the peace, hurt someone and make their soul cry, that cry becomes a sword, severing the arteries of your soul, and you become more alienated. On the other hand, if you strive to be a messenger of peace, you will gain friends, happiness, and love.
< Try to live together >
In a certain pond, there lived a beautiful fish called ‘Janggeumi’ with golden scales. The other fish were envious of Jang Geum-i, but he was so arrogant that no one approached him. Jang Geum-i went on a path that other fish did not go, for fear of damaging her scales, and she only watched from afar during the village festival. Then, Jang Geum was always alone, and no one noticed her loneliness.
One day, a fish named ‘Hyeun-i’ moved from another pond and fell in love with Jang Geum-i’s beauty and started talking to her. Weary of loneliness, Jang Geum welcomed her, and Jang Geum and Hye Eun soon became friends. And as the friendship deepened, Hye-eun asked Jang Geum-yi. “Pretty! Won't you give me one of your beautiful scales? I want one too.” Then, Jang Geum-i willingly took out one of her golden scales and put it on Hye-eun's chest, and the two looked at each other with a happy smile and rejoiced.
The next day, seeing the golden scales on Hyeun's chest, the other fish in the pond came to Janggeumi and begged him for only one scale. Knowing that sharing what she owns brings love and happiness, Jang Geum gave them one by one. After sharing all the scales, all the gold decorations covering her body disappeared and she became like a normal fish, but she was no longer lonely because she had many friends around her.
After a while, a passerby was surprised to see the entire pond glistening in gold. It turned out that the golden scales of each fish in the pond were shining beautifully.
Don't try to live alone, but try to live together. Live in peace with your neighbors as much as possible. Please pull out the scales one by one for the missionaries who work hard to help those in need, do their best to spread the gospel of Jesus, and work at the forefront for the gospel. Sometimes, when missionaries send missionary letters, it means that they need something. Therefore, when reading the missionary letter, pay attention to the meaning hidden between the lines and read it prayerfully. Truth and peace will be revealed as you pull out one of your precious scales in prayer like that.