Title PLAN-DO-SEE analogy
1. Introduction
Regarding the text, Kim Deuk-joong said in <The Parables of the Gospels, Concordia, pp. 308-310>, those who read the parable of the great banquet (Luke 14:15-24) immediately before the text said, “Being a disciple of Jesus is not a big deal. Isn’t that what everyone else is doing!” I believe that the writer of Luke edited the parable of the text here, for fear of thinking in this way. In other words, I see it as a warning that it is not so easy to become a disciple of Jesus. What is Jesus' disciple? It is a person who can give up his parents and children for Jesus' sake (Luke 14:26), can take up his cross and follow Jesus (Luke 14:27), and can give up everything he has (Luke 14:33) ). Can you do that? How difficult and difficult is this? So, like a man who builds a tower, like a king before war, he said that it is a metaphor to remind people that it is a decision to be made after weighing and counting, and not just an easy decision.
You may see it that way, but I want to meditate on the text story itself.
2. What does the story of the text say?
The first story goes like this. A person who has a purpose to build a house does not build a house blindly. You will have a sufficient plan for building the house, including cost, blueprints, terrain, season, carpenter selection, etc. Wouldn't it be a laughing matter if we recklessly build without such a plan and then stop the construction due to budget problems in the middle? It's a story.
The second story goes like this. Suppose that King A with 20,000 soldiers wants to pay King B with 10,000 soldiers. In this case, what will be the wage of B? Why don't you try to see if you have a chance of winning this battle yourself? And if there is no chance of success, shouldn't King A have to go and ask for peace before crossing the border with gold and silver? What could be more foolish than this if, without a plan, King A's attack and King B's country collapsed? It's a story. In fact, Hezekiah stripped even the gold that had been painted on the temple and offered it as a tribute to the king of Assyria Sennacherib (2 Kings 18:13-16).
3. What is the main point of the text story?
The two stories in the text are structured into three frames. One is to build a house and to protect the country. The second question is whether the person who wants to build a house or whether King B has a well-planned plan for that purpose. Third is the evaluation of the results. That evaluation was praised and ridiculed, and it appeared as a blessing for the country. It would be better to call the three frames of this analogy <PLAN-DO-SEE>.
4. Message of the PLAN-DO-SEE metaphor
first. You must have a good plan for your goals (PLAN). PLAN is VISION, PLAN is based on a goal, and PLAN is also a direction toward the goal. Because there can be no PLAN without a goal.
Depending on the circumstances in which each person lives, their goals may be different. But don't be a goalless person. Our Lord also made clear the purpose and purpose of his coming (Matthew 20:28, Mark 1:38). Do you have a goal in life?
There is a distinction between goals. These are the physical, intellectual, spiritual, and goal. A wise person is a person who clearly achieves this three-dimensional goal. I can't give you specific details due to space constraints, but I hope you set your own goals for these three parts of your life.
second. There must be a DO (push-and-go action). There is no practice in life. There are no excuses for winning in life. Just as faith without works is dead faith, plans without works are fantasies, dreams, and complaints.
However, in reality, there are many people who have a PLAN but do not have a DO. Why? Because every DO in this world has suffering. DO has a process of sweating, tears and bleeding. When world-famous dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov decided to give up dancing because it was so difficult, he found a teacher in charge, and he said the following: "Mikhail-kun, if the dance isn't painful, you're on the wrong track, but if it's so hard and painful, you're on the right track!".
third. There must be constant introspection (SEE). I see people who excel at PLAN and DO go bankrupt. Why? Because it ignores SEE. SEE refers to the process of looking at yourself, looking around, and looking at the times. Therefore, SEE means to pray. Because you can best know who you are when you lie on your face in silence and with your mouth shut before a holy God.
SEE refers to the process of receiving God's power through prayer, upgrading the previous PLAN anew, and breathing holy life into your DO.
5. Closing story / <PLAN-DO-SEE> circulates with us forever. But <PLAN-DO-SEE> takes us to a new world. Therefore, always keep <PLAN-DO-SEE> in your heart. Glory to our God.
Weekly <Fountain of the Word>