Title Sharing is justice, not good deeds
Galatians (8) Sharing is justice, not good works (Galatians 2:6-10)
< Live by your calling >
How was the powerful ministry of the Apostle Paul possible? First, because there was ‘complete independence’. The Apostle Paul did not depend on men and went out believing only in God (verse 6).
Second, it was because there was ‘friendly sociality’. The Apostle Paul looked to God thoroughly and proceeded, but he did not go astray and recognized Peter's realm (verse 7). Saints should have good vertical and horizontal relationships. In other words, in addition to vertical independence, horizontal sociality must be good. If vertical revelatory is excellent, horizontal realism must be excellent. If vertical religiosity is present, horizontal ethics must also be desired. When both the vertical absolute relationship and the horizontal relative relationship are good, a capable life will appear through a balanced life.
Third, it was because there was a ‘sacred sense of calling’. The apostle Paul had a clear sense of purpose that God had called him to be an apostle of the Gentiles (verse 8), so he was able to carry out his ministry without wavering despite all kinds of difficulties, misunderstandings, and difficulties. As such, the purpose of life is to say, “I will make money! Rather than saying, “I will become famous!”, it should be living according to the mission God has given you. The most important thing to change when you live your life of faith is the purpose and mission of your life. Responsible life and a blessed life are maximized when we live according to our mission.
< Sharing is Justice >
As the apostle Paul worked powerfully with a clear sense of calling, the Jerusalem church leaders respected his ministry (verse 9). And then I made a request. It was specially asked to take good care of the poor when preaching the gospel, and the Apostle Paul says that he himself was devoted to caring for the poor from the beginning (verse 10).
Let go of two prejudices in life. First, let go of the prejudice against the rich. A lot of people either think of the rich unconditionally as good or badly without even considering how they made their money. Both are wrong attitudes.
Second, let go of prejudice against the poor. Don't treat them unconditionally as idle beings, and on the contrary, don't side with them unconditionally. Be unbiased in your judgment, whether material or not. At the same time, please take care of the poor and the socially disadvantaged. If the life of caring for the poor and the socially weak is omitted, a large part of the church is missing, and a large part of the life of faith and the Word is also missing.
The Jewish “Torah” was originally a law of equality based on love. The content of the Torah is condensed into three words. The first is ‘mishpat’. This means 'minimal justice'. If the minimum level of justice, which should be punished for wrongdoing and compensated for inflicting damage, is broken, society cannot survive. Mishpat is a law that applies equally to both the privileged and the marginalized, and it means today's 'judicial justice'.
The second is 'tzedakah'. This means ‘distributive justice’. The Torah is very concerned with the poor. The commandment to forgive debts in the year of jubilee, leaving a corner of the field at the harvest, is a commandment that guarantees the right to live for the poor and weak. God wants those who have come to this world for a while to live happily by comforting each other through sharing rather than occupying them all alone. In that sense, sharing is justice, not good deeds.
Third, it is ‘hesed’. This means ‘covenantal grace’. Even though God is angry with the people who keep away from Him, He gives them the opportunity to repent and grants them the grace of restoration according to the covenant. The blessed world will be opened only when such a flow of grace flows through the saints to take care of the socially weak and accept them sincerely. Saints should dream and practice the socialization of such mercy.
In modern society, the fundamental spirit of the law seems to have collapsed. The world that Jesus dreamed of is a world that respects human rights while respecting all people in the image of God. Even though there is a long way to go, do not be discouraged and live your dream of such a world. Those who have found the way to go cannot be discouraged. Because God will always accompany you along the way. Instead of looking at human appearances or conditions like that, try to help the poor and the weak, pursue the best value, and live like Jesus.