Title: True Religion/Deuteronomy 14:28-29
Content True godliness/Deuteronomy 14:28-29, James 1:26-27
Now that the history of the Korean church is over 100 years, Christianity has become a part of our society. In the meantime, the church has reached the present day by exchanging influences in the midst of conflict and adaptation with the national culture. However, as we enter the 21st century, the church is following the rapidly changing social phenomena without any room to respond. Now that even the will to lead the national spirit dreamed of by early Christianity in Korea has been lost, as a weak church that does not recognize the special value of its existence from society, it is facing a crisis of its existence and is in a hurry to live on its own. This is the result that the world did not taste the fruit of faith by being satisfied with hearing and learning the word rather than putting faith in practice and planting the tree of faith only in the church.
Church and society are the result of a relationship of indifference that walks parallel and has no expectations for each other. The church is crowded with so-called godly Christians, but they are degenerating into hypocritical pietists who exhaust their strength through friction and self-pride because they are not dedicated to the kingdom of God. Now, the way the church and faith live is to be transformed into godly Christians who can be used like gold for the kingdom of God.
In today's text, we are talking about true godliness that we must restore. In the original Old Testament sacrificial terms, it requires us to “be without blemish and pure godliness” (Ezekiel 22:26), which was required of the priests. “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is to visit orphans and widows in their affliction” (James 1:27).
All human beings deserve their dignity protected. A nation has value when it protects the dignity of its people, and a society has value when it protects the weak. The kingdom of God is a country where the dignity of all people is preserved. But in the world, the rich oppress the poor and the powerful persecute the weak to satisfy their desires. So was the Roman Empire, and so was the fallen Jewish religious leaders.
Our church is God's people, established for the Lord's kingdom. We must become godly Christians who obey God's Word in order to accomplish His will. A mere intellectual assent and confession of God's truth cannot replace a godly life. It is self-deception. It says that God requires us to practice faith. It is to protect the unprotected.
God never values social obligations lower than sacrificial obligations. “What good are your countless sacrifices to me?… … You have come to show me, and who has required it of you? They only tread on my yard.” (Isaiah 1:1112). God told us to put away the vain godliness that seeks to satisfy our lusts through sacrificial practices and to adopt true godliness that shows God's love and justice. Seek righteousness, help the oppressed, plead for the orphan, plead for the widow” (Isaiah 1:1617).
Today's text, Deuteronomy 14:29, also tells where God's interests lie. “Let the strangers and orphans and widows sojourn in the city come and eat and be satisfied. Then the LORD your God will bless you in all that you do with your hands.” You said. Hospitality to unaccompanied orphans, widows, and strangers can never be underestimated. So, God allowed the tithes given to God to be used to look after the lives of the poor. In the Gospel of Matthew, the Lord taught that caring for the weak is a practice of godliness by saying that when He judges the world, He gives food to the least of them when they are hungry and accepts them as strangers.
The widows, orphans, and strangers mentioned in the text symbolize those without a guardian. God has given us the responsibility to protect the weak who do not have the protection of their husbands, the protection of their parents, and the protection of society and the state. This God's concern shows that God has a protector for them too, and it is a warning that He will not tolerate ignoring them. But rather than paying attention to those who are powerless and helpless, we prefer to draw attention to those who are strong and to whom we can help.
I care more about my interests than God's interests. This is not a life that fears the Lord, and it is not a godly life. It is foolish to distance yourself from God's help to focus only on your own self-interest by focusing on your own work. God has promised to give us more abundantly when we give. Because they are the protectors of the weak in the name of God.
Piety is the most beautiful term the church should keep. It shines and becomes a power when put into practice. God sees inner beauty. Its beauty enables us to unite with God. Because we discover the will of God through the inner beauty of godliness.
Through today's text, God commands godly Christians to practice the beauty of true godliness. If I need the Lord's protection, I must protect someone. Helping others is not proportional to how much or how little you have. Even a person who owns ten million gold cannot open his hands unless his heart is open to his neighbors. We must develop a generous heart before we can judge whether we can help someone by counting our possessions. We must cultivate the heart of God who cares for the powerless. Only after that, even the small power that I have can be used greatly for God. God is looking for such people and is building the kingdom of God with them.
When today's Korean churches practice true godliness, their values will be recognized and they will gain the power to lead society. The selfish teaching of trying to waste time on internal crackdowns, worrying about the crisis of the existence of the church, creates only vain pietists. Now, the church must let the love-hungry world taste the fruits of the faith it has planted. For this work, our church must restore true godliness to protect the weak, such as orphans, widows, and strangers.