Title: Who Moves Heavy Stones?
Contents
Gal 6:2 Who moves heavy stones?
Once upon a time, a king went to a Minjeong temple. In the middle of the night, without anyone knowing, he had one of his servants put a large stone in the middle of a main road frequented by people. Then, in the daytime, the king hid behind a large tree and watched the people passing by.
A lot of people pass by. Most people thought differently and there was a stone in front of them, but they avoided cooking and passed by. Occasionally, some people just looked ahead and crashed their feet against the stone and almost fell. Nevertheless, they did not try to get rid of the stones, but rather swear words and complain. "Hey, what kind of bad guy put such a big stone in the middle of the road?"
And in this case, “Hey, it has nothing to do with me. Let's not waste time on annoying things." And there are people who are busy with their own work and do not want to move at all for the public good. Many modern people today are like this. But even these people are not worthy of praise in the eyes of the king. Rather, it makes the king sigh and make him sad.
But even a powerless old man, even if he already has a burden on his back, even if he stumbles over a stone, does not criticize others, does not pass by, and groans silently to remove the stone. If you saw it, and if you were the king of the field, what would you do? Perhaps the king will be greatly impressed. If I were the king, I would run out with tears in my eyes, hold the old man's hand and say “Hello. You are truly a wonderful people. The king is happy because of you.”
Gentlemen, God is our King. We are His people. Sometimes our God wants to make a civil inspection of the places where his people live. If God comes to our church to inspect the civil affairs, and hide and ask, “Who moves the heavy stones?” And if you watch, who are you?
① “What kind of guy brought a big stone like this and put it here?” ② “Hey, it has nothing to do with me. Let's not waste our time on troublesome things.” A person passing by saying, ③ A person who moves heavy stones for the benefit of others, even if my burden is heavy: Everyone confidently raised their hands and answered ③. Oh, that's great. They are indeed the members of the Full Gospel Central Church. We don't know how much the Lord is pleased with us right now. Applause of glory to everyone!!!
If this story was told by a teacher in a children's classroom, and the teacher asks the children, “What kind of children do you want to be?” the children will respond as vigorously as we do, “It is ③!” . But the children who heard this story were on their way home from school. Trash was scattered all over the school yard, apparently someone dumped it. There were also slurpy cans and soda cans that were thrown away while eating.
However, the children who heard the story a little while ago and responded vigorously with “3 Yes!” do not pick up the pieces of tissue paper that have fallen while running through the playground to the house. Some children walk past tin cans. Watching this scene from the classroom window, the teacher sighs, “Huh-!!!”
Everyone, I wonder if our society today is like this. Everyone responds vigorously, “It’s ③!”, but when it comes to such a situation, they adopt the attitudes of ① and ② rather than ③. Moreover, many of us who go to church hear such stories. But, wouldn't it be better to hear this story once, put it into practice, and act rightly than to not do it after hearing this story a lot?
In this story, if all the people just pass by without removing the stones, or if they only complain about the person who put the stones on the highway, what will be the future of the country? How happy will the king who rules the country be, and how happy will the people who live in it be? But if each other try to lift the heavy stone first, the nation will have a future. The people there will be at peace, and the king will feel rewarded.
Everyone, please. Let us actively remove the heavy stones that lie in front of us. Don't take it out because you're busy, don't criticize who put these heavy stones, and even if it takes time or effort, I pray that I will be the first to stand in the place of moving the heavy stones. Therefore, I pray that you will stand in a precious place that pleases our King, who watches us quietly, and makes the kingdom of heaven beautiful.
Let's work together to carry a burden that is too heavy to be lifted alone. Let the men's missionary family work together to bear the heavy burden, the women's missionary family also work together to bear the heavy burden, and let the young international students and middle and high school students work together to bear the heavy burden. So let's make the kingdom of God beautiful. Today's text says: “You bear each other’s burdens. Thus fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2).
Guys, keep that in mind. The law of Christ will not be fulfilled if we only speak without bearing the burden. Moreover, if we only criticize without bearing the burden, the law of Christ is destroyed. However, it is only when we bear heavy burdens that the supreme corporate love of Christ is put into practice. And by those who carry such heavy stones, the kingdom of Christ is nurtured with love.
The law of Christ is that we should love one another as the Lord has loved us. This is the new commandment the Lord has given us (John 13:34). And in order to love one another, we have to bear burdens, not just words. The law of love will be fulfilled in that family only when the husband, wife, and children bear each other's burdens. Even in the church, we must bear each other's burdens to become a church with love. He is a hypocrite if he only cries out for love without carrying a burden. If he only criticizes without carrying a burden, he is not a true believer.
Instead of criticism, instead of indifference, we need the courage to bear the burden. It takes a decision to move the heavy stone. "Bear one another's burdens" was a popular saying in Paul's day. That is, it was the language of the time. In terms that we use well these days, it can be interpreted as 'pain sharing'. That is, love is achieved only when we share pain with each other. Love is fulfilled when the wife and husband share the pain, love is fulfilled when the pastor and the saints share pain, and love is fulfilled when the saints and the saints also share the pain.
Jesus fulfilled God's love by carrying our heavy burdens. The specific way Jesus practiced love was to bear the heavy burdens of others. And He died on the cross, bearing all our burdens. If Jesus had only talked and did not carry burdens like the scribes and Pharisees at the time, Jesus would have been just a hypocrite like them. And Jesus could never have been our true Savior.
Dear saints, do you want to be a true husband? Do you want to be a real wife? Do you want to be a real child? Do you want to become a true saint? You must have the heart to move heavy stones. Action must follow. This is the way to practice and achieve the corporate love of Christ. If you throw away the cross because it is heavy, the stones are heavy, or the load is heavy, love will disappear and you will become cold.
In the last days, people do not like to carry heavy burdens. Because it becomes selfish. So, even between husband and wife, if they think that the other is a heavy burden on them, they try to cut it off firmly. This mindset is also true between friends. Moreover, even the saints who have received so much love from God do not like to bear the burden God has entrusted to them. Therefore, the relationship between each other cannot be a relationship of true love. They cannot become true people of the kingdom of heaven who fulfill the law of Christ.
However, there are gem-like people who silently move the heavy stone even today, even if everyone does not want to move the heavy stone. Those people want to be who we are today. Even if no one recognizes me, our Lord is watching how I am carrying the heavy stone, and if the Lord sees it and is pleased with it, I am just thankful. I am happy. I will close the speech by asking today's question again. “Who moves the heavy stones?”