Title Paradigm Shift (1 Thessalonians 2:13-20)
Contents
Paradigm shift (1 Thessalonians 2:13-20)
One of the hardest things in the world is changing people's minds.
These are the people who do business well. If you talk with that person for a little bit, you will change to a heart that can't let go of an accident. The packaging of items in supermarkets is also the most conspicuous packaging for this very reason.
However, there are some things that are not good for me if I buy them blindly. Because milk is good for bones and good for health, an 80-year-old old man can get diarrhea and lie down if he drinks it. If a person with a high fever like me eats ginseng just because he likes it, he might get a fever.
Therefore, it is not enough to just change your mind. What I need to do after my mind is changed is to train my body.
Let's take a very easy example.
If you study Japanese and study Japanese or live in Japan with a heart that hates or hates Japan, then that person will at least fail. And while he is studying or living in Japan, it will be a series of pain and sorrow. Such a person needs a revolution in epistemology. In other words, a paradigm shift is needed.
Why did I come to Japan? What to do in Japan? What does the Lord want from me? You have to change your thinking.
The next thing to do is to try a better method and tame yourself if the study method you have done has not been effective. If I had only read with my eyes, I had to train myself to memorize while writing, and if I couldn't get up in the morning, I had to train myself to sleep early at night.
Even if the way you study is the best, there is still work to be done. Adequate exercise and rest should also be provided to avoid fatigue and exhaustion. Of course, prayer with the Lord should not be neglected either.
According to today's text, the Thessalonians faced the situation of being shaken inside and persecuted outside because their faith, which had been fully and beautifully grown through the Apostle Paul, collided with the idea of Judaism, which had sneaked in.
Yet, what is the reason that they have not been shaken to the end and overcame tribulation and have remained as examples of the church to this day?
1. It is the power of the Word.
(13) For this reason, we give thanks to God without ceasing because when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you received it not as the word of men, but as the word of God, verily, this word also works in you who believe.
You don't have to listen to me telling you what I think. On the contrary, there are many words that may be harmful to hear.
However, the situation will be different if we understand that the words preached from the pulpit are the words that God gives to us and we must obey them and engrave them in our hearts.
(1 Thessalonians 1:6) And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, receiving the word with the joy of the Holy Spirit in much tribulation.
To what extent did the Thessalonians obey the apostle Paul?
The reason why they are being persecuted and suffering right now is that when they receive the word, they do not receive it as the words of men, but as the words of God. Still, they were happy and were praised by the churches around them.
They have already changed the paradigm with the Word. From a life that pursued the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life on this earth, they have become people who look to God and the kingdom of God. Therefore, all that remains now is to take care of the body.
Those who do not believe in Jesus and do not have a paradigm shift will laugh and ridicule these Thessalonians when they see them. However, their appearance in the eyes of the saints who have already become the people of the kingdom of God is different.
(14) Brethren, in Christ Jesus you have become imitators of the churches of God in Judea, as they suffered from the Jews, so you also received the same from the people of your country.
My friend's pastor's father is a veteran of the Vietnam War.
A bullet pierced his side and came out of his back. It seems that he can't use one leg and is receiving a monthly pension of 3 million won as a first-class national meritorious person.
He doesn't even regret going to the Vietnam War. Instead of feeling sorry for being shot, he is proud of it. Rather, it is his honor.
Do you have any hardships or difficulties for the kingdom of God and the church? It will surely be your honor.
The same is true of living in the world. If you are going to study, pray and study until your nose bleeds. I hope you study hard enough that your heart is pounding and you vomit because you can't even sleep. Still, please take a look. It will surely change into a rewarding life.
Back to the main text... ..
What is the strength of the Thessalonians to overcome tribulation? The first is the power of the word. Second... .
2. It is the power of prayer.
(1 Thessalonians 5:17) Pray without ceasing.
I need to pray so that my weak and insufficient moisture will not be exposed and the power of the Lord will move me. You have to pray so that your body will not get tired even if you work for an hour or study for 10 hours.
If you pray, you will be able to memorize a Chinese character that you cannot memorize even if you use it 100 times with your own power.
Only when we pray can we change our negative heart into the peaceful heart, positive heart, and love heart that Jesus gives us, and we become more generous toward others.
Only through prayer will I be able to forgive those who persecute me.
Just as the body needs to eat three meals a day, keep in mind that if you don't pray, your soul cannot survive.
When you wake up in the morning, pray for a while as soon as you wake up, pray while you eat, pray while you sleep, and pray while looking at the Bible once a day. The mighty power of the Lord will come upon you.
What is the strength of the Thessalonians to overcome tribulation? The first is the power of the word. The second is the power of prayer, and the third is??.
3. It is the power of life to share and love.
(17) Brethren, we left you for a little while, but in face, not in heart, we eagerly sought to see your face all the more.
(18) Therefore I, Paul, wanted to come to you once or twice, but Satan stopped us.
The Apostle Paul gave even his life for the Thessalonians.
(1:8) We long for you in this way, and we are glad to give you our lives as well as the gospel of God, for you are our Beloved.
Love has the power to overcome everything. If you don't love, you can never share mine. We can share for a purpose, but we don't call it love. It's called a contract.
(3:12) May the Lord increase and abound in love for one another and for all people, just as we love you.
(4:9) You have nothing to write about your brothers, for you yourselves were taught by God to love one another
A lot of young people these days misunderstand the meaning of love, but love doesn't give up blindly. Give it away when it is useful to the other person. If a child asks for a snake and gives it to him because he wants it, it is not a loving person, but an evil and foolish person.
We want to become a Jesus missionary church that shares and loves God's love.
(18) Therefore I, Paul, wanted to come to you once or twice, but Satan stopped us.
What is the strength of the Thessalonians to overcome tribulation? The first is the power of the word. Second, the power of prayer Third, the ability to share and love, and finally
4. Life with Hope
(19) What is our hope, or our joy, or the crown of boasting? Are not you before our Lord Jesus at his coming?
(20) You are our glory and our joy.
It is said that people without dreams will perish.
If you rely on me, who doesn't know the future, and look at the world that will decay, there is no hope. In a world where yesterday's comrades are today's enemies, what hope and true joy can we find?
(20) You are our glory and our joy.
The reason we worship while looking at the Word in this way today is because we have hope.
Is there anything in the world you want to hold on to until you let go of the Lord?
He's the stupidest person in the world.
Until the day we meet the Lord, do not let go of our true hope, Lord, and I bless you in the name of Jesus that you and I will walk with you.