Catching the point

Catching the point
Galatians 2:20
We call Jesus the Lord. This means we are the servants of Jesus. That is the right understanding and right thinking. But what do we think of Jesus nowadays? Do you think of Jesus as your Lord? Or do you treat Jesus as your servant? If you do, you are not catching the point. Jesus told us, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."(Matthew 7:21)
If you don't catch the point of this scripture, you may misunderstand this verse like this, "O, we can enter the kingdom of heaven by our deed." This is wrong. This scripture actually means we can enter the kingdom of heaven by faith in Jesus. Why do I say this? Because the will of God is that we can only enter the kingdom of heaven by believing in Jesus. If we cannot catch this point, we will be heretics.
One of the differences between Korean and English is that English has a clear subject and object. But Korean does not have a clear subject and object. Korean sentence can be complete without a subject and object. For example, Korean youths often say, "O, shame!"(O, Jok Pal Ryo! : Korean language) This sentence has no subject and object. O is not the subject. Jok is not the subject. If Jok is the subject, that means Jok is kidnapped.
We cannot catch the subject in this sentence, O, shame!"(O, Jok Pal Ryo!) The subject in this sentence might be I or You, or They. Therefore. let me translate this sentence into English, "It's shame on you!" or "It is shame on me." "It is shame on them." In English, the object is very clear. Let me tell you one more example :
Korean people say, "Love!" This sentence has no subject or object. But in English, it has to be translated like this, "Juliet, I love you." "Romeo, I love you." English has the clear subject and object. So it is easy for us to understand the point. English is a pragmatic language. But Korean is a poetic language.
When we study English, I hope all of us catch the point. When someone cannot catch the point, the bible calls this person arrogant or pity. Think of this. Human beings are created by God. But if someone believe that humans are a descendant of monkeys, it is a real pity. On the other hand, if someone think he is the creator, he is the really arrogant man.
When you are not able to catch the point, you can become easily a vain person, which God despise the most. So to become a righteous Christian, we must understand that God is our Creator, the owner of the universe and all creatures. If you cannot catch this, your faith is no good.
When Jesus entered Jerusalem, he rode a donkey. He was greeted by a large crowd. They spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road as if it were a red carpet. But what a surprise! The donkey raised his voice, "Heeheeheeing!" Why would this donkey shout? Because the donkey did not catch the point. The donkey thought the crowd was welcoming the donkey himself instead of Jesus. What a terrible misunderstanding!
Some people give attitude toward God, "God, if you do that, I will not go to church. I will not give you tithe. That will be a very big loss to you. So obey me. If you do not obey me, your future will be very bad."
Why do situations like the above occur? It's because people miss the point. Whose loss is it not to attend church? And whose loss is it not to give God tithe? Whose loss is it not to eat the food their mother has prepared? Who on earth gave grace? And who on earth has received grace? When you are able to catch the point, you will become an ignorant person.
Let's take a look at love between parents and their children. No matter how much the children try to pay back the love they have received from their parents, they cannot reach the level of parental love. Buying them a great house won't do. It is same with God's love. No matter how much we donate money to God, it is very small compared to the love he has given us. We must understand this. Therefore it would be foolish to have great pride when you feel like you have done something for God.
Now, let's look at the church. Who is the owner of the church? Jesus is the head of the church and owner. So if someone thinks the church belongs to a person, that is wrong. Even if he built the church or donated lots of money, the ownership of the church belongs to God. And when someone wants to build a church, they must follow the way God wants it to be built.
We must apply these ideas to our life as a Christian. Whose ideas are you trusting on when making decisions? Of course you can be led by your friends. But it is a good idea to make sure that the friend is someone who is living a life led by God.
In the verses we read today, Paul says, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."(Galatians2:20)
Paul is telling us that he does not own his own life, it is God who lives in him. In other words, it is not our talent and skills that have brought us this far in life. It is all God's grace. That's why Paul said, "I can do everything through him who gives me strength."(Philippians 4:13)
Our church took 10 years for our Sunday service attendance to be 153 people. And doubling 153 would make 306. Some months ago, I prayed for 306. But now I have changed my mind to 1530, 10 times of 153. I know this cannot be done by my power, but by God's power.
What do you think of 1530. I want you to have same mind like me. We cannot do that by our power, but by God's power. Please, don't have stress for accomplishing this number 1530. That is not our work but God's work. But God told us, "Open wide your mouth and I will fill it."(Psalms 81:10)
When the baby sparrows were fed by their mother sparrow, they open their mouth as wide as possible. We do not say, "That big mouth is covetous." But we says, "They are really cute!" Likewise God will think it is so cute when we open our mouth wide. And God will fill it.
Maybe people might come to our church for interview when 1530 attendance accomplished. At that time, don't say, "That was done by our pastor." And don't say, "That was done by us." But say like this, "That was done by God." In conclusion, let's catch the point. Amen!