For the prize of title calling
Contents
♡♥♡ For the reward of calling / Philippians 3:12-14
*** Introduction
At this time of the year, we look back on the path we have been living and whether the goals we set out at the beginning of the year have been achieved. You may have achieved more than you expected, but you will also discover that there are many things that have not reached your goals. Then, in the new year, I set new goals while thinking of ‘better achievements’. If you, too, are engrossed in these and other goals and plans right now, please remember these words and set them up.
There is a book called 'Christian Self-Care' by Stefan Douglas. The content is a practical guide to Christian time planning and self-management. There is this story in the introduction to this book.
One day, the husband drove the tractor and left the house saying to his wife, “I am going to plow the fields in the south today.” He left early in the morning to refuel the tractor. But on the way to the gas station, oil ran out. With the car parked in the field, he headed to the gas station to buy oil.
On the way to the gas station, he realized he hadn't fed the pigs for breakfast. So I went to the corn shed and found a sack of food for pigs. Looking at the sacks, he remembered that the potatoes in the cellar were sprouting. On the way to the potato pit, we passed a pile of firewood.
At home, I remembered my wife saying, ‘Bring me some firewood.’ So while I was picking up some pieces of wood, a sick chicken passed by. ‘Why was that chicken sick?’ he put down the firewood and followed the sick chicken.
Meanwhile, the sun was already setting over Mt. Seo, but he had yet to refuel the tractor he had parked in the field.
Do you think there is such a person? He is a really distracted and unscaled person who works. There is an old saying, “If you have a lot of talent, you will starve to death.” This means that you cannot run towards a goal in any one direction, and you do 'a little bit of this and a little bit of that', and you don't achieve any one thing.
The same is true of faith. You can't achieve anything unless you run with a heart that turns to the Lord. The Israelites in Elijah's time worshiped God, but in real life they sacrificed to the idols of Baal and Asherah. Maybe he had to bow down to Baal because he was afraid of the power to live on. Just like the shrine worship in the Japanese colonial era. So, God said through the prophet Elijah in 1 Kings 18:21, “How long will you hesitate between the two? If the LORD is God, follow him; if Baal is God, follow him.”
The goal to which we Christians should run is the “reward of the calling.” God saved us and made us His children to fulfill the will of our calling. And the meaning of calling is ‘to the praise of God’s glory’. After all, fulfilling God's righteousness in our lives and revealing God's glory is to obtain great rewards, and that is the 'reward of calling'.
1. You must take advantage of the opportunity for the reward of your calling.
Ephesians 5:16. “Save time. The times are evil.” These very brief verses are valuable lessons about 'opportunity' and 'time to work.' The Greek word for “time” is kairos (kairov”), meaning “opportunity,” ie, “appointed,” “appropriate time.” And the Greek word for “time” is hemera (hJmevra), which means “day.” That is, it mainly refers to 'the time period from dawn to evening.' The word "evil" also means 'sin' or 'Satan', and in particular, it refers to 'morally condemnable evil.' It means 'buy' or 'take advantage of the opportunity.' The whole meaning is 'We are working now, in a time when sin is rampant, so take advantage of the given opportunity.'
When sending out his disciples, Jesus already warned of the evil in the world and said, “Be wise and pure.” This is Matthew 10:16. "Purple. I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. Therefore, be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” This is a message to use our opportunities wisely, but to keep a clean life. James 1:27 says, “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.”
Our time in life is a precious and limited asset. In addition, ‘opportunities’ that may only occur several times in a lifetime are even more precious. Therefore, the spirit must be awake so as not to miss the given opportunity, and it must be firmly grasped and used. Even the apostle Paul wrote to the Thessalonian church, “I command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you turn away from every brother who walks without measure and does not walk according to the tradition we have received” (2 Thessalonians 3:6). . The phrase “acting without a scale” means “doing things chaotically and distractingly, meddling in the affairs of others without doing your own thing.”
As much as we have clear goals, we must live with moderation, patience and wisdom.
2. There must be a decision to make and break for the reward of calling.
People change calendars, change notebooks, make new plans, redecorate everything and expect new things for the new year. Changing everything like this doesn't mean your life will change. You will feel new for a while, but soon you will be back to your old life.
A person with a clear goal must know how to cut off obstacles to that goal. If you hesitate to throw away the things of the old people, there is no room for the new ones. And if you are hesitant to accept something new because of fear or anxiety, the result is the same. That is why Ephesians 4:22-24 says, “Put off your old self, which is corrupt according to the lusts of deceit, and be renewed in your spirits, so that you are created according to God in righteousness and holiness of truth. Put on people,” he exhorts.
The fastest animal in the animal world is the cheetah, which runs at a speed of 110 km/h. Have you ever seen a cheetah hunting a 'Thompson's gazelle' in the Serengeti Meadow?
Cheetahs search for suitable prey among the Thomson's gazelle herds. When the target is set, lie flat on your back and approach as close as possible. Then, in an instant, they rush towards their prey. Numerous gazelles pass by, but the cheetah only sprints towards its target.
To sprint, you need to get rid of the clutter. The Apostle Paul said that we forget what has happened and run towards the goal ahead. So the Christian life is not complicated. The Lord does not burden our strength so much. Human greed makes itself complicated and heavy. Let us lay down the burden of the desires of the flesh. Let's run towards the reward of the calling God has called.
As we look forward to the new year 2003, let's renew our goals, shake off all the cumbersome things, and move toward the prize of the calling God has called us.