Title: Those Who Live Through Jesus Christ
Contents
♡♥♡ Those who live only through Jesus Christ / Romans 8:31-39
*** Introduction
All the words of the Bible are words for human life. Among them, there are many words that give courage to Christians. Among the words of boldness and courage, the main text is the most outstanding word that gives absolute assurance. In particular, in the text, the love of God and the love of Jesus Christ are presented as strong grounds, convincing us of the victory of life.
Helen Keller is a world-famous author who has risen from the triple disability of the inability to see, hear and speak. Ms. Helen Keller talks about her teacher Anne Sullivan, a gift she will never forget.
“If I open my eyes, the first thing I want to see is Mr. Sullivan,” he recalled.
“He made me a human being. It is neither the power of science nor the power of philosophy. A love that gave her life for her beliefs made a miracle. Giving up is love.”
The excellence of love is known enough that no one in the world can dispute it. The power of love works regardless of whether it is an animal or a plant. So these days, even in places where plants are grown, they play music and pour their love into them. ‘Love’ must be the ‘elixir’ that cures everything.
A team of researchers from the University of Berkeley conducted an experiment in which three separate groups of rats were fed. The first group put only one bird in the cage and allowed them to feed alone. The second group had five of us mingle and feed. The third group put only one bird in the cage, but each time it was fed, humans gave it affectionately.
As a result, the first group of solitary mice lived 600 days with small brains with blunted cellular activity. The second group lived 700 days with a slightly heavier brain, and the third group lived 950 days with a heavy brain with active cellular activity.
Like this, ‘love’ is stronger than any weapon and has a better therapeutic effect than any medicine. The reason we praise love in the introduction is that what is most powerful not only in the text but also in us now is the love of God who sent Jesus Christ, and at the same time, the sacrificial love of Jesus who gave his life.
1. Let's look at the background of the text.
It is speculated that the creation of a Christian community in Rome was probably due to the ‘people from Rome’ who heard the gospel on the day of Pentecost. Acts 2 records the incident of the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost and the fact that the signs of “tongues” appeared in 15 languages due to the coming of the Holy Spirit.
At that time, Jews from all over the country gathered to celebrate the Day of Pentecost, and it was a wonderful thing that they heard the gospel in their own language because of the sign of this tongue. Among them were “people from Rome.” In Acts 2:10, “… They are strangers from Rome, Jews and those who have entered Judaism.” They must have heard the gospel and returned home to form a Christian community.
In Rome, where the gospel of God had just begun, there was no one to teach and lead the faith. Moreover, since it was the early days of Christianity and it was a city with strong Gentile powers, it was necessary to establish a strong foundation for the Christian faith. In addition, since most of them were converts from Judaism, it was also necessary to understand the difference between the Law and the Gospel. Therefore, Romans has a lot of explanations about the law and the gospel, and it also records in detail the process by which the gospel was delivered to the Gentiles.
If I had to add one more thing, I had to instill courage and courage in my faith so that I could endure the severe persecution and persecution that was to come. Considering all these circumstances, God is instilling in us the courage of faith that is too powerful to go beyond the level of certainty as in the words of the text. Why do we need such strong courage and confidence in our faith?
2. Only to live in Christ.
In the first part of verse 35, “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? ” and in verse 39 “… will not be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” This means that no force, power, or environment in the world can separate the saints who are in Christ Jesus. That means staying in Jesus Christ is important. So why emphasize the importance of staying in Jesus Christ so much?
First, because there is freedom in Jesus Christ.
Let's look at verses 8:1-2 at the beginning of the text. “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, for the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.”
We are called to freedom. From the time of Abraham in the past, the Jews who had received God's covenant were enslaved in Egypt. When the time came, God sent Moses and called the descendants of the covenant into the wilderness. And in the wilderness on Mount Sinai, God made a covenant with the Jews in the law. In Leviticus 26:12, God said, “I will walk among you, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people.” They formed the nation of Israel, where God was the ruler, and headed for the Promised Land. This has become a foreshadowing of the New Testament age in which we are now living.
Instead of the beast appointed by the law, God chose Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as a sin offering to wash away the sins of man. This was to achieve eternal atonement, to set free people from the bondage of their lives in sin for the rest of their lives. Galatians 5:1 says, “For Christ set us free, so stand firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery” and in 5:13, “You were called to freedom. .” he said.
If you deviate from Jesus Christ, it is like a fish out of water, and the consequences are so clear. It is only the misery of becoming a slave to sin and being drawn to material things, pleasures, and things of the world, and eventually perishing with the world.
The second is to bring them under the control of the law of the Holy Spirit.
In Jesus Christ, the “law of the Holy Spirit” works. The ‘law of the Holy Spirit’ is ‘life’. 8:2, which we read earlier, says “the law of the Spirit of life which is in Christ Jesus”. This Holy Spirit sees through the will of God and guides us Christians to live according to God's will. In the end, the Holy Spirit allows the saints to enjoy freedom to their heart's content within the will of God.
Does that mean, then, that a Christian who is controlled by the Holy Spirit can do anything? Of course you can. However, you must distinguish between the things of the flesh that follow desire and the things of the Spirit that follow the Spirit. The guidance of the Holy Spirit calls for submission to the will of God. But the work of the flesh demands that we conform to the circumstances of the world and our own desires. We must not forget that this is a spiritual battle, and if we lose to the desires of the flesh in this battle, the result is death. Let's look at Romans 8:12,13. “Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh to live according to the flesh. If you live according to the flesh you will surely die; but if you put to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit you will live.”
The Holy Spirit enlightens the hearts of God's people and guides them so that they do not deviate from God's love. Verse 37 says, “In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” He also clearly states how the Holy Spirit helps us. Let's read 8:26-27 together.
“In the same way the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words. He who searches hearts knows the thoughts of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”
When we are governed by the law of the Holy Spirit and remain in Christ Jesus, the life of a believer will enjoy a happy life filled with joy, joy, gratitude, and emotion. Not only that, but this life leads to the eternal kingdom of God. This is the only happiness that comes to those who live in Christ.
3. Let us, therefore, live boldly and courageously.
You and I have been given such great happiness. But no matter how good a thing is, it is of no use if you do not know how to use it or enjoy it. How unfortunate would it be if we just piled up this great happiness that we were given to enjoy to our heart's content by being bound by the surrounding environment or life circumstances? Do you have the courage and lack of confidence? It is the God who loves us who rules and provides the circumstances and circumstances. Don't be afraid, don't be anxious, and let's share the happiness that comes from Christ.
The beginning of his career was a cerebral palsy student named Billy. Many students used ‘Billy’ as a plaything. He twisted his body, mimicking Billy who stuttered and spoke slowly. But one day, when I appointed this ‘Billie’ as the leader of the evening prayer, something happened.
This prayer meeting is held every evening at each dormitory and is led by children, and on that day, the children chose ‘Billie’ as their leader. It was put forward for fun to see Billy's groping. It was prayer time, and Billy opened his mouth.
"Yes… Number… sir… this me... I love you… I also… Yes… Number… you... love… do."
It took me 2-3 minutes to say these short words. But not a single child laughed. It was quiet for a long time after Billy had finished speaking. But on that very day, an amazing work happened when all the students gathered there decided to follow Jesus.
It is said that this camp invited famous athletes and superstars with a large budget to revive the students' faith. However, what the superstars could not do was accomplished by a boy with cerebral palsy with the conviction and courage of faith.
That's right. Jesus came into the world to give us freedom and happiness. Now, the Advent season has come, when we remember this event, give thanks, and refresh our minds again. Let us be thankful for the love of the Lord, who never let us fall into the circumstances, power and power of the world, but rather overcomes us abundantly. And let us share that love.
Galatians 5:13 says, “Brothers, you were called to freedom, but do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” Let us practice our courageous acts of love according to these words. We can express our love for our neighbors in any form, be it evangelism, giving, volunteering, or serving. So, this Christmas, I pray that we can present our beautiful life as a Christmas gift.