11This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, We shall also live with Him.12If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us.13If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.14Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers.15Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Verse 11 is so critical: if we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we have died with Him - we have accepted His substitution for us on the cross so that we might have eternal life. And, in this life, we are called to affirm Him and embrace His truth. We have to be diligent, as verse 15 says, and to "rightly divide" the Word of truth. This implies making our relationship with God and our time with Jesus a high priority. As we grow in our knowledge of the Word, we increase in our capacity to walk in obedience to Him.
In Exodus 20, Moses lays out the 10 Commandments, which reflect the heart of God for His people. And, the first two provide foundational principles not only for the other commandments, but for the way we are to live our lives today, seeking to revere God and place our relationship with Him as our first priority:
3You shall have no other gods before Me.4"You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;5you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,6but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
The country of North Korea is known to many in the Christian community as a leading persecutor of Christians. They also have a reputation for ratting the sabers, with nuclear threats and a large military that is sold out to their supreme leader. Unfortunately, there are reports of the population at large experiencing starvation.
There's a thought-provoking piece on the WORLD News Group website by Sophia Lee, a recent guest on my radio show that gives some insight into the mindset of this rather isolated country. She cites a piece from the official state-controlled website that uses biblical terms and references to describe the country as a
utopian paradise.
Titled “Chosun is a human paradise in which Jesus would have nothing to do even if he came,” the Korean-language piece called North Korea (or “Chosun”) a “Holy Kingdom.” The article painted a rosy picture of a land with free healthcare, free education, and no taxes— thanks to its leader’s perfect philosophy and love. Kim Jong Un, the article claims, embraces his loving people in his “ever-shining arms of eternal life and happiness.”
The article claimed its title is a direct quote from a famous American religious figure who visited North Korea, but it did not name him. It also included a quote from Kim. “Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il are great leaders who, throughout our thousands of years in history, are the first figures to be welcomed and enshrined by our people,” the country’s dictator supposedly said. “They are the eternal image of our Baekdu Mountain nation, and the banner of all victory and glory.”
She contends that the article is likely an indirect response to a report from a United Nations commission report of human rights abuses and chronic starvation in the country. The article attempts to paint a different picture.
Sophia concludes the piece by saying that:
North Korea claims it guarantees freedom of religion, though numerous testimonies from defectors say otherwise. People who have fled the brutal dictatorship testify to religious persecution, especially targeting Christianity. John Short’s recent arrest is one example. Short was detained, interrogated, and kept under 24-hour guard for 13 days after being caught distributing Christian materials at a Buddhist temple and on trains in Pyongyang.
The message from the North Korean regime is clear: Christianity is a threat to their ideology, which is the country’s gospel. The Kim leaders are the North Koreans’ trinity god. And the country lives according to the Kims’ will and hallowed name.It is an amazing quote, isn't it? The one about Jesus having nothing to do if he came. It's great to have nationalistic pride, but there is documented evidence of that nationalism taking precedent over respect for religious beliefs and the basic human condition. It is apparent that this regime has become a religion unto itself, and as Sophia points out, the populace is called, or forced, to buy into it. You could say that the nation has replaced the knowledge of the one true God with a worship of humanity or the nation as a whole.
But, lest we point the finger at people replacing God with other gods, we have to look at ourselves. The Bible tells us that we are to have no other gods before Him, but if we examine our lives, we might find gods that we have erected, false idols who occupy a place in our hearts or our consciousness that replace the preeminence of Christ. We have to be very watchful about what we spend our time on, and if our pursuit of other activities supersedes the pursuit of God, then we are walking in a state that is not pleasing to our Heavenly Father. So, we have to guard against those things that we prioritize above the worship of our Lord.
We recognize that there are all sorts of streams of thought that undercut the acknowledgement and worship of the one true God. Even though Jesus said He was the way, the truth, and the life, there is an increasing tolerance of other religions that also promise a way to heaven or to a right relationship with a divine being. It is important that we are growing in the knowledge of the Word of truth, so that we can operate according to it and so that we can stand against the variety of philosophies that set themselves up against the knowledge of Christ. In this world with a multiplicity of belief systems, we have to stay grounded in the His truth.
No comments:
Post a Comment