Title GoStop/Rows 16:6-10
Content GoStop (Acts 16:6-10 Lee Jinwoo)
Today's text is the story of Paul's second missionary journey.
What kind of personality did Paul have? He was a person with a personality to push through without hesitation or giving up no matter what difficulties or obstacles were encountered. No matter how difficult or difficult it is, he does not avoid it, but rather actively overcomes it. It is well shown in the Bible's Acts of the Apostles and Paul's epistles. God used Paul's character well in preaching the gospel to the Gentiles.
In 2 Corinthians 11:26-27, Paul's appearance is recorded as it is.
On many journeys, in dangers from rivers, in dangers from robbers, in dangers from our own people, in dangers from Gentiles, in dangers in the city, in dangers in the wilderness, in dangers at sea, in dangers among false brothers, and toiling and toiling, many times sleepless, hunger and thirsty, Many times I was hungry, cold, and naked.
Although Paul faced various difficulties and difficulties during his missionary journey, he did not avoid it each time, but rather actively broke through it, so that the gospel could be preached as it is today. If Paul had not had such a personality, the gospel would not have been able to spread to Asia Minor. No, God must have used Paul because he needed that character.
The Apostle Paul was such a man who was thoroughly guided by God.
In fact, we too want to live under the guidance of God. However, in many cases, we do not know what God's guidance is.
In order to receive God's guidance, you must be good at going and stopping. Paul was a gifted man in GoStop. Of course, I am not talking about oriental painting, the traditional culture (?) of Korea.
To be good at GoStop is to go right when you go and stop boldly when you stop. Even the lyrics of praise we know contain this content.
If the Lord speaks, I will go
If it is not the will of the Lord, I will stop.
However, there are times in life when we have to distinguish between Go and Stop, which is really difficult. Of course, one cannot quickly conclude that one of the two is easier than the other, but if you have to choose one, it is much more difficult to stop than Go.
There are many places in Korea that train dogs. Dogs are trained and used in daily life of people here and there, including guide dogs for the visually impaired.
When it comes to training a dog, which is more important - to bite or not to bite? Just to avoid biting. Dogs are born to bite with their mouths. So not biting is training. The goal of dog training is to help you know exactly who to bite and who not to bite.
The same goes for faith. You need to be able to clearly distinguish when to go and when to stop and not go.
However, the reason I say that stopping is more difficult and more important than going is that if you do not stop when you stop, a serious accident or danger often follows. If you don't go when you go, you can go back a little late, like 'I'm coming with my hand because I don't have the will to give it to you'. But if you don't stop when you are told to stop, sometimes big things happen that you can't even handle yourself.
There are traffic lights on the street. You have to stop when the red light comes on. If you don't stop at this time, you will end up in a big accident. Signal violations are the most common cause of traffic accidents in Korea. But, conversely, what happens if you stand at the stop line and stop without going despite the start signal? Actually, there's nothing wrong with it. They will honk and swear at you from behind. If you don't go, no one will hit you. You will know how to avoid it. In fact, as a result, there are no major accidents or difficulties compared to the former. Stop swearing and live a long life.
Apostle Paul was good at Go, but he was better at Stop than him.
Today's text proves that.
If we look at verses 6-7 of today's text,
The Holy Spirit forbade them to preach the word in Asia, so they went through Phrygia and Galatia, and came to Mysia, and tried to go to Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow it.
The apostle Paul was going to Bithynia. But the Bible says, ?쏷he Spirit of Jesus did not allow it.??That's what God had told me not to go. God stopped it. So he stopped right away.
A person who is good at stopping like Paul can find ?쁃avid??in the Old Testament. David is described as ?쏿 man after God?셲 own heart??in the Bible. Why was David able to become a man after God's own heart? Is it because David was good at what he told him to do? Of course David did a lot, and Go was good too. They also defeated Goliath, occupied Hebron, restored the Ark of the Covenant, did many things God wanted, and was good at moving forward every time. But this is also true of Saul. Rather, Saul even told him not to do it. Even though only the priest told him to do the sacrifice, he did it all by himself.
But Saul couldn't stop. God commanded Saul to stop several times in the middle.
Conversely, David boldly stopped when God told him to stop. A typical example was that the temple was not built. David made all the preparations to build the temple. We had enough money to build the temple, and all the materials were ready. And there was nothing that could hinder David from building the temple. Perhaps David himself made all the preparations to build the temple. But God stopped it.
Target 28:3
God said to me, "You are a man who has fought many battles, and because you have shed much blood, you will not build a temple for my name.
David did not build a temple at this single word from God. If you are an ordinary person, you may have pushed yourself like, ?쁈f you bleed, you can wipe it off??or ?쁈 do it on both sides of the sky?? David made all the preparations to build the temple, and it was just before the start, but for David, it was a waste. If the temple was built, David could become the king of kings among the people of Israel, and the synergistic effect of honor and status following him would be indescribable. But he immediately obeyed God's word and did not proceed any further.
So is our life. There are times when God tells us to stop. Now is the time to get some rest. From Monday to Saturday, God told us to work hard, but on the 7th day, right on the Sunday, He tells us to stop and rest. But even that is not easy to obey. Monday through Saturday are working days, and Sunday is a rest day. This is a biblical principle. However, there are people who play hard from Monday to Saturday and say, ?쁈 have to study, I have to work??on Sunday.
Christians must be able to stop when God tells them to stop and rest when God tells them to rest.
Gamsin University has a retreat meeting once a semester. A retreat is a time to take a step back from your daily life and renew your relationship with God while resting.
Up until now, everyone may have done their best in their own lives and ran forward looking forward. But God may at some point tell you to stop and look back. You must be able to hear that voice and put it into practice.
Now is the time to start preparing for the Mongolian short-term mission in earnest. Although the recruitment of team members is not completely finished yet, we are going to start with the meeting. A few more can still join. Perhaps this Mongolian short-term mission is the time of stop that God is saying to you. It can be a God-given opportunity to get away from running hard, see and feel God's work, and examine the life I've lived so far. But nevertheless, I hope that no one misses out on such an opportunity.
Also, Christians should be able to go boldly when they go. In today's text verse 9, Paul saw a vision from God. And I went ahead with confidence. I was captivated by the gospel and went forward. As soon as he saw the vision, he left for Macedonia.
However, many Christians these days are also weak in Go. Of course, if you are weak against high, you will also be weak against stops. For Go, we need a purpose and a mission first. Is there a purpose in our community? Do you have a mission? Do you have a purpose in your life? Do you have a mission?
Why do people flock to Saddleback Church in America? It's because of the 'purpose'. When you are obsessed with your purpose and mission, you can immediately go without leaning left or right. The church, as a Christian, is a being that moves because of its mission and purpose. The bold move of many Christians has disappeared.
Dear Mokyang Church youth,
Do you have God's guidance in your life?
I hope that we can become young people who are caught up in God's purpose and mission. If there is God's purpose and mission in our community, and God's purpose and mission in each of you, if you are captivated by it, the kingdom of God will expand through our community and the kingdom of God will be established through each of you. It can expand and change this society.
I pray that we will become young people who can go and stop when they stop when they go with a purpose and mission under God's guidance.