It always perseveres
“It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” (1 Corinthians 13:7)
I think the gratitude that comes out of the difficulty is true. Of course, we can appreciate it in good circumstances, and we admit that it is valuable. However when the situation is good, when things go as I please, it’s not new to say thank you because I feel good. It depends on how much I appreciate it and what kinds of thanks to see at what level my faith in Jesus is. When young men and women are in the midst of the hope and joy of physical life, they shout love countless times. Then, as time goes by, when the environment and life change come, they may fall into hatred and strife.
When it comes to Thanks-giving Day and preaches on gratitude, you may wonder what you are grateful for. Unless you express thanks anytime in daily life, not only for Thanks-giving Day, you will not be a man who loves the Lord. And if you do not love men, you are under the delusion of love for the Lord. Gratitude is so deeply related to love. Therefore this preaching refers to the love, on this Thanks-giving Day.
Nobody would not know Christianity as the religion of love, and the love as the completion of all the laws. But as you one of Christians, do you think you understand well Christ’s love? And do you live in practicing the love, the highest level of the laws? I could not give a clear answer of loud voice to that question in mind. Frankly speaking, I have lived without love only as a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal, in 1 Corinthians 13:1. I have discoursed upon the faith as if a learned man, but it is valueless in front of the Lord, for it does not include the love in itself. If so, I could never get good marks from the Lord, for I have not helped others sufficiently and given my body even to be fired for them. “Ah, my life has been useless!” I have to feel grief for myself.
From now on, it is not too late to repent of my ways. God’s living word always meets my ear through the voice of the Spirit. The word says, “Be patient, kind. Do not envy, boast, be proud, dishonor others, be self-seeking, be easily angered, keep wrongs, delight in evil. Rejoice with the truth.” To run as previously mentioned, we always have to protect, trust, hope, persevere. Then you will be pleasant, strong, and you could give Him real thanks. Look back upon your time of bygone days. How many troubles and hardships have you experienced? We have been often suffered because of many problems, without a moment’s rest. If we are so only negative thoughts, we may cry like this out of the blue, “What? Why do you mean I should be grateful?” However our Lord wants us to see the way of thanks from your hearts. Gratitude during hardships is worth more than the ordinary gratitude. As you know the secret of pearl, that is made through a hard time inside the shell. The story of pearl and shell teaches us a deep principle of gratitude, as the given to man from God. Don’t you have to know what many people know already?
“It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” In this verse, what does the ‘always’ mean? As the word means in itself, ‘always’ is same to ‘anytime’ ‘at all times’ ‘without exception’ either in easy life or under hard situation. And what is πάντα in the original text? Literally πάντα which means ‘all things’ is a situation that we always go through, whether we like it or not. This meaning makes us remind Jesus Christ of the love and salvation. on the other hand, people distinguish everything between right and wrong discriminatively depending on the state of things, to be profitable for oneself as possible as. That is the general principle of worldly life, so-called from a rational point of view of life. But Christ showed no such attitude at all. Jesus anyway forgave sinners and tolerated them, without calling to account. The Lord pardoned them, though He had been coughed up saliva, jeered, whipped by them. Christians are the followers in the Lord Jesus’ wake. If they are scattered to break faith, they will not be Jesus’ disciples anymore. True disciple is a man of courage like Simon of Cyrene who repented even later of the mistake committed ahead, for he unwillingly burdened the cross instead of Jesus at first.
We should thank to the Lord, for we have realized the grace God made ourselves be alive, not to belong to the sinful world. And this is one of many thanks, because God permitted us to stay on the earth for a year. For if God decides, our lives will be over at any time. We have not lived in hunger, and to be dirty like a beggar. Instead, God led us in prayer to live in a clean way, this is also the reason for the appreciation. It’s not easy to live by just solving the problem of clothing, food, shelter. And we could have sought only the comfort of the body. But the Lord gave us a spiritual food of life for eternal life, to praise Himself. But we are not fully grateful to God!
(Written by Koonoh, Pastor of JDO Presbyterian Church in Korea, on Nov 17th 2019)