Title [Happy Today] Fruits of Sacrifice and Joy
Contents
Matthew 6:33-34
“I bought a house when I was working. However, when he devoted his late dedication to planting a church, he kept that fact a secret in preparation for his retirement. Then, he taught only the church members to give donations and preached the spirit of sacrifice for the Lord and the gospel.
There was one deacon who worked hard in our church and was close to me. One day, while talking to him, I inadvertently told him my secret. I told him not to tell anyone because I thought it was a mistake. After some time, this butler asked me to give him a guarantee. I wanted to refuse, but I had no choice, so I put up a guarantee, but the house was blown away.
Now that I think about it, if I had first offered my house to God and said, 'Let's work hard for the Lord and the gospel together,' the church would have grown by now. I am very sorry.”
All God's commands are to sacrifice. That is, enter through the narrow gate, go by the narrow way, deny yourself, take up your cross, you are the light and salt of the world, evangelize, give, forgive, be patient, obey, love, be faithful to death, etc. No word can be put into practice without sacrifice. Because God will die and go to the good heaven, he did not ask for sacrifice in the sense of only suffering on this earth. It is to give you better and more beautiful blessings and fruits.
A small country that most people in the world barely remembered until a few decades ago stands out in the world because of the sacrifices made by parents who tightened their belts and taught them not to suffer their beloved sons and daughters. Esther fasted and went to the king with the determination, “If I die, I will die.” The people of Judah who lived in the land were saved. The United States, today's world power, was built on the spirit of sacrifice of the Puritans who came aboard the Mayflower.
And while the joy of the fruit obtained as a result of this sacrifice is great, you will feel joy, reward, and happiness in the process. That's why Dostoevsky said, "There is nothing so blissful as sacrificing oneself."
These days, there is a growing trend of disliking sacrifice and looking for convenient and easy things. It is becoming a world where fewer and fewer people know the true joy and happiness of sacrifice. Even in the midst of such circumstances, even as disciples of Jesus, who became the example of sacrifice, let us be armed with the spirit of sacrifice and take the lead in leading the way to win, revive the church, make families happy, and save the company and the country. “Lord, who died for a sinner like me! Now it is my turn to die for the Lord.”