많은 역경을 이겨내어 왔다고 하는 이들의 말은 자신이 그렇게 비춰지고 싶어하는 포장일 뿐 그 속엔 진실이 아닌 것들로 득실거린다. 남에게 마치 훌륭한 사람인양 멋있는 사람인양 보이기위한 포장일뿐이다. 인생이란 바르게 살면 살수록 단순한 것이고 자신의 정욕(欲)을 따라 산 인생일수록 복잡한 인생으로 꼬이게 된다. 바르게 사는 사람은 그냥 인간이면 당연히 해야할 것을 한 것 뿐이라고 여기지만 거짓으로 자신을 포장한 사람은 꾸며낸 것을 말해주는데에 급급하다. 당연한 길을 걸은 사람과 자신의 잘못으로 아쉬움과 후회만 날리던 길을 걸은 사람의 근본적인 차이인것이다. 긴 여정인데 자신의 잘못은 없고 다 누구 누구의 잘못으로 인생이 꼬였다라고 말하는 이야기는 시초부터 진실하지 않을 확율이 크다. 소설에서나 피 터지는 전장속의 진정한 영웅이 있지 현실 세계에서의 진정한 영웅은 아무도 보지 않는 곳에서 조용히 꺼져가는 불 하나 지켜 나간 사람들 뿐이다. 누가 인정하든 하지 않튼 보든 말든 바른 길을 나간 사람들이다. 물론 어쩔 수 없는 상황 때문에 큰 피해를 입는 사람들은 누구나 있다. 그런 피해라도 많은 사람들이 비슷하게 겪어 냈으리라 생각하고 당연한 자세로 극복해나간다. 그러나 거짓으로 포장되고 속이 비어있는 사람일수록 남에게 자신이 꾸며낸 이야기를 풀어낸다. 포장을 유지하기 위해 자신의 거짓에 넘어온 사람들에게는 부지런하다. 타인으로 인해 인생의 많은 굴곡을 겪었다고 하소연하는 사람들의 이야기들은 자신의 잘못을 감추는 이야기들이기 때문에 그냥 소설 하나 들은 듯 들어주고 지금부터라도 하나님앞에서 정직하게 살 수 있도록 인도하는 길 밖에 없어보인다.
Category Archives: Logos (λόγος)
If we confess our sins
Whenever Japanese students, pastor, or church members visit Korea Pastor Kozo Yoshida (吉田耕三•79) of Seoul Japanese Church (in Seoul, Korea) always take them to places like the Independence Hall of Korea, Seodaemun Prison, Tapgol Park, and Jeam-ri Church where Korean Christians were massacred by the Japanese soldiers. When Japanese people ask to go to Gyeongbokgung Palace, Insa-dong, or other landmarks more popular with tourists, he always suggests that they stop by a place like Tapgol Park briefly. If possible, he arranges for students from Japan to meet face-to-face with comfort women who are now in their 80s or 90s. “I’m sorry that the grandmothers remind you of old pain, but there is no better education than to tell your peers what they’ve been through.” Through this process, it is said that there were some Japanese students who said, “From now on, I want to serve Koreans and Asians because my perception of history and outlook on life have changed.”
“Only when you know, you can repent and apologize. The reason Japan does not sincerely acknowledge and apologize is because it is ignorant. It is because the people, politicians, and government officials are equally ignorant.”
Since September 1981, Pastor Yoshida has been carrying out the ministry of apology and reconciliation for 40 years. Shintaro Ishihara, the governor of Tokyo, wrote letters to scold Japanese politicians and ministers who made absurd remarks, and wrote articles criticizing Japan in leading newspapers such as Asahi and Mainichi.
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:8-9)
한국 내 일본인 교회인 ‘서울일본인교회’ 요시다 고조(吉田耕三•79) 목사는 일본인 학생방문단이나 목회자, 신도들이 한국에 오면 꼭 데리고 가는 곳이 있다. 독립기념관, 서대문형무소, 탑골공원, 일제의 기독교인 학살이 있었던 제암리교회 같은 곳이다. 일본인들이 경복궁이나 인사동에 가자고 하면 “잠깐만 탑골공원 들렀다 가자”며 ‘꼬셔서’ 데려간다. 가능하면 일본에서 온 학생들은 위안부 할머니와 직접 만나도록 주선한다. “할머니들이 옛 고통을 떠올리게 하는 건 죄송하지만, 학생들 또래에 겪은 일을 들려주는 것보다 더 좋은 교육은 없기 때문”이다. 이 과정을 거치면서 “역사 인식과 인생관이 바뀌어 한국과 아시아분들을 섬기는 일을 하고 싶다”는 일본인 학생도 생겼다고한다.
“알아야 회개도 하고, 사죄도 할 수 있어요. 일본이 진심으로 인정하고 사죄하지 않는 것은 ‘무지’하기 때문입니다. 국민도 위정자도 정부 당국자도 똑같이 무지하기 때문입니다.”
요시다 목사는 81년 9월부터 40년째 ‘사죄와 화해의 목회’를 하고 있다. ‘일제 통치도 창씨개명도 한국인의 부탁을 받아서 한 것’이라는 이시하라 신타로 도쿄도지사처럼 망언을 하는 일본 정치인이나 각료 등을 꾸짖는 편지를 써 보내고, 아사히、마이니치 등 유력신문사에 일본을 비판하는 글을 쓴 목사이다.
만일 우리가 죄 없다하면 스스로 속이고 또 진리가 우리 속에 있지 아니할 것이요 만일 우리가 우리 죄를 자백하면 저는 미쁘시고 의로우사 우리 죄를 사하시며 모든 불의에서 우리를 깨끗케 하실 것이요. (요한1서1:8-9)
韓国内の日本人教会である「ソウル日本人教会」吉田耕三牧師（79）は、日本人学生訪問団や牧師、信徒たちが韓国に来たら必ず連れて行く所がある。 独立記念館、西大門刑務所、タプコル公園、日帝のキリスト教徒虐殺があった堤岩里教会のようなところだ。 日本人が景福宮や仁寺洞に行こうと言ったら「ちょっと待って、タプコル公園に寄って行こう」と言って「誘って」連れて行く。 できれば日本から来た学生たちは慰安婦さんと直接会うよう手配する。 「おばあさんたちが昔の苦痛を思い出させるのは申し訳ないが、学生たちと同じ年頃に体験したことを聞かせるより良い教育はないため」だ。 この過程を経て「歴史認識と人生観が変わり、韓国とアジアの方々に仕える仕事をしたい」という日本人学生もできたという。
「知ってこそ悔い改めもして謝罪もできます。 日本が心から認めて謝罪しないのは「無知」だからです。 国民も為政者も政府当局者も同じように無知だからです」
吉田牧師は81年9月から40年間「謝罪と和解の牧会」をしている。 「日本統治も創氏改名も韓国人に頼まれてしたもの」という石原慎太郎東京都知事のように妄言を吐く日本の政治家や閣僚などを叱る手紙を書き、朝日、毎日など有力新聞社に日本を批判する文を書いた牧師だ。
万一私たちが罪なしすると自ら騙し、また真理が私たちの中にあるのではないでしょう もし私たちが私たちの罪を自白すれば、私は憎くて毅然として私たちの罪を謝り、すべての不義から私たちをきれいにするでしょう。 (ヨハン1書1:8-9)
Like a tree planted by streams of water
Pioneer Lee Su-jeong, who first translated the New Testament Bible from Japanese to Korean, held a solemn baptism ceremony at the Nowol Orthodox Church (Current known as Shiba Church<芝敎會>) in Tokyo on April 29, 1883, with Pastor John Knox in the presence of Pastor Yasugawa after the baptismal dialogue. It is said that the missionaries and Japanese Christians were nervous about conducting the baptism ceremony for a person who will play the role of a Macedonian as a a pioneer of the Korean church, and at the same time it was the very first baptism of a Korean person in Japan.
The text below is of pioneer Lee Su-jeong’s confession of faith, which is currently on the lower floor of the birthplace of Niijima, the founder of Dojisha University (同志社大学), and the content has been translated from Japanese.
—
“The faith in God in the heart of a man is like a tree with healthy roots, and a tree without a heart of love and compassion is like withering roots.
A loving heart is like water, which enriches the roots, so even though the leaves fall in autumn and winter, the roots do not dry out. It is always like spring, budding and blossoming, and its leaves are luxuriant.
If you honor God and believe in the Word, flowers will bloom, and every tangled branch will be full of fruit. Its trunk is like a pine tree and a cypress tree, so even when snow and frost come it cannot wither it.”
—
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor – Isaiah 61:1-2a
신약 일본어 성경을 한글 성경으로 처음 작성한 이수정선구자는 1883년4월29일 동경 노월정교회에서 존 낙스 목사의 입회하에 야스가와 목사가 세례문답후 장엄한 세례식이 진행 되었다. 일본에서 처음 베푸는 한국 사람의 세례식인 동시에 한국교회의 선구자가 되는 마게도니아 사람의 역활을 할 사람의 세례식을 진행하는데 선교사들과 일본기독교 신자 및 지도자들이 긴장했다고 전해지고있다.
이수정선구자의 신앙고백의 유품이 동지사대학 창시자 니지마의 생가 아래층에 현재 있는데 그 내용을 한글로 해석한내용이다.
“사람에게 하나님을 믿는 마음이 있는 것은 나무에 뿌리가 있는 것과 같고 사랑함과 측은한 마음이 없으면 그 나무 뿌리가 마름과 같도다.
사랑하는 마음은 물과 같아서 뿌리를 윤택하게 하나니 가을과 겨울에 나뭇잎이 떨어져도 그 뿌리가 마르지 아니 하느니라. 항상 봄과 같아서 싹이 나고 꽃이 만발하여 그 잎이 무성하도다.
하나님을 공경하고 말씀을 믿으면 꽃이 피고 얽히고 설킨 가지마다 열매가 가득하니 그 깊음이 있고 심히 크고 달도다. 그 몸통은 소나무와 잣나무 같아서 눈과 서리가 와도 가히 시들게 하지 못하느니라.“
주의 성령이 내게 임하였으니 이는 가난한 자에게 복음을 전하게 하시려고 내게 기름을 부으시고 나를 보내사 포로 된 자에게 자유를 눈 먼 자에게 다시 보게 함을 전파하며 눌린 자를 자유롭게 하고 주의 은혜의 해를 전파하게 하려 하심이라. (누가복음4:18~19)
新約日本語聖書をハングル聖書として初めて作成したイ·スジョン選求者は1883年4月29日、東京老月正教会でジョン·ナックス牧師の入会の下、安川牧師が洗礼問答後、荘厳な洗礼式が行われた。 日本で初めて行う韓国人の洗礼式であると同時に、韓国教会の先駆者となるマゲドニア人の役割を果たす人の洗礼式を行うのに宣教師たちと日本キリスト教信者および指導者たちが緊張したと伝えられている。
イ·スジョン選求者の信仰告白の遺品が同志社大学創始者である新島の生家階下に現在あるが、その内容をハングルで解釈した内容だ。
「人に神様を信じる心があるのは木に根があるのと同じで、愛と哀れな心がなければその木の根が枯れるのと同じだ。
愛する心は水のようで根を潤すものだから、秋と冬に木の葉が落ちてもその根が乾かないからだ。 いつも春のようで芽が出て花が咲き乱れ、その葉が生い茂っている。
神様を敬い、言葉を信じれば花が咲いて絡み合った枝ごとに実がいっぱいなので、その深さがあり、ひどく月島だ。 その胴体は松とチョウセンマツの木のようで、雪と霜が降っても枯らすことができない。“
主の聖霊が私に臨んだのだから、これは貧しい者に福音を伝えようと私に油を注ぎ、私を送って捕虜になった者に自由を盲目の者に再び見るようにすることを伝播し、押された者を自由にし、主の恵みの年を伝播させようとすることである。 （ヌガ福音4:18~19）
In Him the whole building is joined together
Am I a real Christian? Romans 8:9 reads, “You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.” And in v28, we read, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[i] have been called according to his purpose.” 1 Corinthians 13:13, “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
If someone were to ask me how much I know about Japan, I could use a watermelon for analogy. As a student, I saw the outside of the watermelon. I saw inside of the watermelon as a businessman, and then as a pastor inside a Japanese church denomination, I tasted the watermelon. But it still doesn’t mean that I know Japan very well. As someone had said, Japanese are like onions, where you keep peeling away only to find white and you end up feeling like you still don’t know the person very well. But Ephesians 2:20-22 reads, “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” In the same manner, I’m still a work-in-progress as a missionary who loves Japanese by the love and grace of God and with the help of the Holy Spirit.
I earnestly pray that we all would be true worshipers of God, and as true Christians who help and cooperate to reach Japanese by the love and grace of God and with the help of the Holy Spirit, so that we will all experience the blessing of the dwelling place of God being built in Jesus Christ. Shalom.
이는 나는 진실한 크리스천인가? 라고 묻습니다. 로마서8장9절에 “만일 너희 속에 하나님의 영이 거하시면 너희가 육신에 있지 아니하고 영에 있나니 누구든지 그리스도의 영이 없으면 그리스도의 사람이 아니라.” 라고 하십니다. 또한 우리가 알거니와 하나님을 사랑하는 자 곧 그의 뜻대로 부르심을 입은 자들에게는 모든 것이 합력하여 선을 이루느니라. (로마서8장28절)
그런즉 믿음, 소망, 사랑, 이 세 가지는 항상 있을 것인데 그 중의 제일은 사랑이라. (고린도전서13장13절) 라고 하십니다.
당신은 일본을 얼마나 아는가? 라고 묻는다면 저는 수박을 예를 들어 말씀드릴 수 있습니다. 유학시절에는 수박 겉을 보았습니다. 사업을 할 때에는 수박 속을 보았습니다. 일본기독교단에서 일본인들을 사역하면서는 수박 맛을 보았습니다. 그렇다고 해서 일본을 잘 안다고 말하는 것이 아닙니다. 누군가 말한 것처럼 일본인은 양파와 같아서 양파껍질을 벗겨도 하얀 것처럼 잘 모르겠다는 결론입니다. 그러나 에베소서2장20절-22절에서 “너희는 사도들과 선지자들의 터 위에 세우심을 입은 자라 그리스도 예수께서 친히 모퉁잇돌이 되셨느니라. 그의 안에서 건물마다 서로 연결하여 주 안에서 성전이 되어 가고 너희도 성령 안에서 하나님이 거하실 처소가 되기 위하여 그리스도 예수 안에서 함께 지어져 가느니라.” 라고 말씀하시는 것처럼 저는 오늘도 하나님의 사랑과 은혜와 성령의 도우심으로 일본인을 사랑하는 선교사로 지어져 가고 있습니다.
우리 모두가 하나님의 사랑으로 진정한 예배 자로 진실한 크리스천으로서 하나님의 사랑과 은혜와 성령의 도우심으로 일본인을 사랑하며 협력하여 선교하며 하나님이 거하실 처소가 되기 위하여 그리스도 예수 안에서 지어져 가는 축복이 함께하시길 간절히 기도합니다. 샬롬
これは私は真実のクリスチャンなのか？と尋ねます。 ローマ書8章9節に「もしあなたたちの中に神様の霊が居れば、あなたたちが肉体におらず霊にいるから、誰でもキリストの霊がなければキリストの人ではなく。」と言います。 また、私たちが知っているはずの神を愛する者、すなわち彼の思い通りに呼ぶことを受けた者たちには、すべてが力を合わせて善を成す。(ローマ書8章28節)
つまり信頼、希望、愛の3つはいつもあるはずですが、その中で一番は愛だと。（コリント全書13章13節）。
あなたは日本をどれくらい知っているか？と聞かれたら、私はスイカを例に挙げることができます。 留学時代にはスイカの表面を見ました。 ビジネスをしているときはスイカの中身を見ました。 日本基督教団で日本人を使役しながらスイカの味見をしました。 だからといって日本をよく知っていると言っているわけではありません。 誰かが言ったように、日本人は玉ねぎと同じで玉ねぎの皮をむいても白いようによく分からないという結論です。 しかし、エヴェソ書2章20節-22節で「あなたたちは使徒と預言者たちの敷地の上に建てられたザラキリストイエスが自ら角石になった。 彼の中で建物ごとに連結して主の中で聖殿になって行き、君たちも聖霊の中で神様が住む場所になるためにキリストイエスの中で一緒に建てられていく。」とおっしゃるように私は今日も神様の愛と恩恵と聖霊の助けで日本人を愛する宣教師として建てられています。
私たち皆が神様の愛で真の礼拝者として真のクリスチャンとして神様の愛と恩恵と聖霊の助けで日本人を愛し協力して宣教し、神様が住む場所になるためにキリストイエスの中で建てられていく祝福が共にすることを切に祈ります。 シャローム
True worshipers worship God in the Spirit and in truth
I consider the question of why do we need to evangelize to be the same as asking why do I have to worship God on a daily basis?
Don’t many people come to church to worship so they can receive something from God? Such as blessing, or mental or spiritual comfort? But a true worshipper does not worship God because he expects to receive something from God. Worship is one of giving to God and not of receiving.
Worship is a time when you meet with God. It is a glorious time for the saved children of the Lord to be encountering the living God. We worship God because God has saved us. We were destined to die as sinners, but God has saved us. God came to this earth in form of a servant to save us. He’s done such a marvelous thing and made an unimaginable sacrifice for us that the *least* we could do is to respond to such love and grace with the utmost of our lives and hearts. John 4:23-24 reads, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
나는 왜 하나님께 예배 드리는가? 하나님을 예배할 이유가 무엇인가? 무엇 때문에 날마다 하나님을 경배하며 그 앞에 엎드려 예배를 드리는 건가? 라고 묻는 것과 같다고 봅니다.
많은 사람들이 축복을 받기 위해 정신적이고 영적인 위로를 받고자 사실 우리는 대부분 무엇인가를 받으려고 교회에 나오며 예배를 드리지는 않은지요? 그러나 우리가 무엇인가를 받으려고 교회에 나와 예배한다면 그것은 진정한 예배자가 아닙니다. 예배는 하나님께 드리는 것이지 받는 것이 아니기 때문입니다.
예배란 하나님과의 만남입니다. 살아계신 하나님과 구속 받은 주의 자녀들과의 영광스러운 만남의 시간입니다. 우리가 하나님께 예배드리는 목적은 하나님께서 우리를 구원해 주셨기 때문입니다. 우리는 죽을 수 밖에 없는 죄인인데 구원을 받았습니다. 하나님께서 종의 형체로 이 땅에 오셔서 우리를 구원하시는 엄청난 일을 이루셨기에 우리들은 그분에게 최상의 가치를 돌리면서 그 사랑과 은혜에 응답하는 것입니다. 그래서 요한복음 4장23절-24절에 “아버지께 참되게 예배하는 자들은 영과 진리로 예배할 때가 오나니 곧 이때라 아버지께서는 자기에게 이렇게 예배하는 자를 찾으시느니라. 하나님은 영이시니 예배하는 자가 영과 진리로 예배할지니라.” 라고 하십니다.
この質問は、「私はなぜ神様に礼拝をするのか？ 神様を礼拝する理由は何か？ 何のために毎日神様を敬拝し、その前に伏せて礼拝を捧げるのか?と尋ねるようなものだと思います。
多くの人が祝福を受けるために精神的で霊的な慰めを受けようと、実は私たちはほとんど何かを受けようと教会に出て礼拝をしていないのでしょうか？ しかし、私たちが何かを受けようと教会に出て礼拝するなら、それは真の礼拝者ではありません。 礼拝は神様に捧げるものであって、受けるものではないからです。
礼拝とは神様との出会いです。 生きている神様と拘束された主の子供たちとの栄光な出会いの時間です。 私たちが神様に礼拝する目的は、神様が私たちを救ってくださったからです。 私たちは死ぬしかない罪人なのに救われました。 神様が鐘の形でこの地に来て私たちを救われる途方もないことを成し遂げられたので、私たちはその方に最上の価値を回しながらその愛と恩恵に答えるのです。 それでヨハネ福音書4章23節-24節に「父に本当に礼拝する者たちは霊と真理で礼拝する時が来るから、もうすぐこの時なので父は自分にこのように礼拝する者を探すのだ。 神様は霊であるから礼拝する者が霊と真理で礼拝するのだ」と言います。
Because God loved us while we were still sinners
Do you have the love of Jesus Christ? Are you a true worshipper? Can you say you are a true Christian? I ask these questions to myself who has lived in Japan for over 31 years (as of 2021), first as a student, then as a businessman, and now as a pastor and a missionary. Do I have the love of Christ? More precisely, I ask myself do I love the country of Japan, and its people with the love of Christ?
Even though I have received a lot of love and care from Japanese people, first as a student, then as a businessman, and then as a pastor, I could not reciprocate with a sincere love in Christ, because–I’m somewhat ashamed to admit this–of the painful history, and of the political issues that had caused misunderstanding, and thereby feeling socially ostracized as a Korean in Japan.
However, Romans 5:8 reads, “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” I was having such a hard time, feeling so inadequate, I was about to quit the ministry in Japan when God made me realize the meaning of cherry blossom (日本國花). If you look up the old kanji character for sakura (櫻) it means ‘mother protecting a child.’ God is protecting Japan, and in His time, God will use the remnant.
“God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8
우리는 예수그리스도의 사랑이 있는지? 진정한 예배자 인지? 진실한 크리스천이라고 당당하게 말할 수 있는지요? 일본에서 유학생으로 , 사업가로, 교역자 선교사로 2021년 31년째을 맞이하며 자신에게 물어봅니다. 나는 예수그리스도의 사랑이 있는가? 더 정확하게 물어보면 나는 일본나라와 일본사람을 예수그리스도의 사랑으로 사랑하는가?
일본에서의 유학생과 사업을 할 때와 사역자로서 많은 사랑을 일본사람들에게 받았지만 한국인으로 역사와 정치적 문제로 오해 받고 무시당하는 아픔도 있었기에 부끄럽지만 진심으로 예수그리스도의 사랑으로 사랑합니다 라고 말할 수 없었습니다.
그러나 하나님께서는 “우리가 아직 죄인 되었을 때에 그리스도께서 우리를 위하여 죽으심으로 하나님께서 우리에 대한 자기의 사랑을 확증하셨느니라.” (로마서5장8절) 라고 말씀하십니다.
너무 힘들고 부족함을 느껴 일본선교를 포기하고 싶었을 때 하나님께서는 일본국화(日本國花) 벗 꽃의 의미를 깨닫게 하셨습니다. 사쿠라(櫻) 옛 한문을 찾아보면 ‘엄마가 아기를 보호하고 있는’ 뜻이 있습니다. 하나님께서 일본을 보호하고 계시며 하나님께서 하나님떼에 남은 자들을 사용하신다고 말씀하십니다.
“우리가 아직 죄인 되었을 때에 그리스도께서 우리를 위하여 죽으심으로 하나님께서 우리에 대한 자기의 사랑을 확증하셨느니라.” (로마서5장8절)
私たちはイエス·キリストの愛があるのか？ 本当の礼拝者なのか？ 真実のクリスチャンだと堂々と言えるでしょうか？ 日本で留学生として、ビジネスマンとして、交易者の宣教師として2021年31年目を迎え、自分に尋ねます。 私はイエス·キリストの愛があるのか？ もっと正確に聞けば私は日本国と日本人をイエスキリストの愛で愛しているのか？
日本での留学生と事業をする時と使役者として多くの愛を日本の人々に受けましたが、韓国人で歴史や政治的問題だと誤解され無視される痛みもあったので恥ずかしいですが、心からイエスキリストの愛で愛していますとは言えませんでした。
しかし神様は「私たちがまだ罪人になった時にキリストが私たちのために死ぬことで神様が私たちに対する自分の愛を確証した。」(ローマ書5章8節)とおっしゃっています。
とても大変で不足を感じて日本宣教をあきらめたかった時、神様は日本菊の桜の意味を悟らせました。 桜の昔の漢文を探してみると、「お母さんが赤ちゃんを守っている」という意味があります。 神様が日本を保護していらっしゃるし、神様が神様の群れに残った者たちを使うとおっしゃっています。
「私たちがまだ罪人になった時、キリストが私たちのために死ぬことで神様が私たちに対する自分の愛を確証したのだ。」（ローマ書5章8節）
A passing thought on the nature of universe
In the satirical novel Flatland by Abbott, we were introduced to sentient beings in a two dimensional world. If a three dimensional, henceforth 3D, being had put his three fingers at that plane, those 2D beings would only see three lines and they would seem like they are moving independently if we wiggled our fingers randomly, but they, if sentient, would also conclude that the lines also move together as if they were a group when we moved our hands smoothly. This is also why nothing can be made secret to a 4D being, because, for example, a 2D sentient being would believe that hiding something behind a closed line, say a square, is secure, while the content is completely exposed to a 3D being. Imagine being able to experience past, present, and future simultaneously, and all of your thoughts exposed as if by a super mind-reading computer. A 4D being (we already are one, in a way) would be just that.
The quantum computer utilizes the entanglement property of quantum mechanics. Once two or more qubits are entangled a change in one would cause a simultaneous change in the other regardless of distance between them. This is a mere property of quantum mechanics, which is directly observable and we are now utilizing for practical purposes. It’s also a mere property of nature, because nature exists at a higher dimension, although our own experience is limited to three dimensional plane and we have yet to discover more quantum entanglements in nature. (It’s everywhere, it’s just that we don’t know which ones to pair together. IMHO, it’s much more closely entangled with multitudes of things in nature.) There was a paper, a couple of years ago, that hinted at this in photosynthesis, but we have a long way to go before we can understand this beyond just with photons. Photons tend to be much more predictable (with a better understanding of quantum mechanics,) and easier to experiment with.
The observable universe is probably a good sign of higher dimensions.
First off, the source of gravitational force is based in 4D or at a higher dimension, and that’s probably why physicists are having such a hard time unifying it with the rest of the forces in the current model. String theories try, and the math seems to point to 11D or even higher, which is another way to say that the source of fundamental forces in nature is much more complex that we can ever hope to imagine. The hubris of Enlightenment ideals is like a 2D being, having recently discovered a truth about nature, boasting about being able determine an arc simply by measuring the distance to each points of the line its seeing in front of it. We only know a thimble worth of ocean full of vast knowledge that is still far beyond us.
Secondly, more discoveries through the latest telescope in our orbit basically reaffirms the view that space is infinitely larger than we had ever imagined. This seems to be congruent with the multidimensional nature of the universe. It’s just another way of saying that infinity at the outer edge of visible universe is exactly what you would expect if the universe is merely a part of a higher dimension. Likewise, this probably means that galaxies we are able to observe are merely a complex unit of higher dimension not-yet-named-thing, if the source of gravity could be enumerated as such.
What does this all point to in my mind? If the biblical account of creation is correct, with no mumbo-jumbo of Deism or Theistic Uniformitarianism, then without paying any homage to the anthropic principle, the universe was created by God for us, so that we can glorify Him and enjoy His presence forever. You are wonderfully and fearfully created by Him. Enjoy the view of the heavens, created specially for us.
Neo-pagans worship their identities
But followers of Jesus worship God.
We’re in the full swing of neo-paganism where people worship their identities. In summary, ancient pagans worshipped wood or stone-made idols, whereas in our days, we worship our identities. Alan Bloom had raised warning lights for the U.S. back in 1980s, when African American studies, and other ethnic studies started to launch in higher education establishments across the U.S. The one directly experienced by Bloom himself was done by brute force at Cornell, in line with the ethos that had to the collapse of German universities by National Socialists several decades earlier. Soon after, likes of Thomas Sowell left Cornell. The same force that threatened academic freedom has begotten many more children since those pioneering decades. Akin to what had happened in Germany in 1930s, the words like “trigger warnings,” “safe spaces,” and “micro-aggressions” are thrown around as if they have any legal legitimacy to shut up any intellectually honest opinions, and if their demands aren’t met, they resort to violence. Until recently, I had no idea how invasive this disease was.
I was shocked to find a couple of my daughters in their late teens strongly identifying themselves as Koreans, almost as a foreign (to me) identity against the mainstream white culture. It isn’t even a true Korean identity, but a misshapen one unique to the US that derogatorily looks down on other Asians who are more assimilated to the US culture as being “white-washed” ?! Anyway, I could not understand why and how they’ve developed such ill-conceived notions about their own identity, and I was lucky enough to help correct for one, but with the pervasive nature of identity politics that have integrated into the US education system, I should have seen this coming earlier. They are taught that it’s all about their identity (however they have defined it themselves) and you can freely rebel against whatever you like in the name of pursuing that identity. You can apply that to being an Asian American, an African American, a lesbian, a trans-sexual, or whatever else you’d like to identify as, and that is the most important thing in your life and nothing else matters. This is what’s being taught to our own children nowadays. A thorough paganization of soul. Add a sprinkle of narcissism already pervasive with this generation on the top of this cake, and it’s hard not to ponder on this sublimity.
The Cancer of Self-significance: Faux Spirtuality
One of the tales from Chaucer’s famous work is the tale of a Pardoner, who calls out to yorkels to come to him to purchase indulgences from him so that they could be absolved of sin. The sense of the spiritual superiority is not lost on him, and this fervor only grows to the height of his greed, thus the oft-repeated theme of the tale: radix malorum est cupiditas.
Although the innate need for self-significance seems as natural as hunger, I often find more signs of self-significance than Christ-significance among the leadership of the church. One salient example of this is often seen among Korean churches. To a certain extent, the why can be easily grasped, but it is often overlooked as a part of etiquette, probably to the dismay of the Head of the Church. It is often the wife of the pastor who typically sacrifice her adult years and beyond for the education and then leads into a lifetime of pastoral ministry. Her husband is the visible leadership, and wife is expected to take the assistive role to that ministry. If not in any active form, then a benign neutrality as a housekeeper. However, in the spiritual fervor of post-1970s revival in South Korea, the wife of a pastor lays claim to some spiritual power such as being able to read people’s mind, or see things that others can’t because God has gifted them with such abilities. Sometimes, they claim to have dreams which, for mysterious reason, becomes as authoritative as the Word of God, in a ministry setting. The pastor is often mute about this, however, such claim to spiritual power imbues his ministry with a veil of power that no lay member of the church can dare to challenge. Else they are immediately marked as being of the devil, and gradually casted out of the church. Unbeknownst to the believers, including the perpetuators themselves, the people being driven out are often people that are disliked by the pastor and his wife. This type of witch-hunting continues to this day in many of Korean and Korean American churches as far as I can tell.
The tradition of early morning prayer meeting, speaking in tongues, everyone praying out aloud all at the same time, and so on, are all marks of fervency of the spirit among Korean churches, however, it can also be a sign of faux religiosity that has no bearing on the true health of the church such as discipleship, biblical theology, evangelism, and so on. Rather, it probably masks more problems underneath that aren’t being addressed directly.
Why do so many K/KA churches allow this to continue? The cultural element of respecting authority is still very strong to the point where any challenge to the authority is seen as being of the devil. Divisiveness, although often warned by Paul, is strongly discouraged even at the cost of maintaining status quo that is toxic to the health of the church. Many problems remain unaddressed, unconfronted, and swept under the rug for the sake of the harmony of the church. The incompetence in leadership, and many failures at different levels are simply covered with the continued mediocrity of reluctant acceptance, labeled as being part of maturity, and verges on becoming a learned helplessness covered under the thin veil of positivism.
True, there is no perfect church, but false spirituality should not reign. The Word of God needs to be elucidated, and proclaimed in the walls of the church to weed out any darkness, especially that of the faux spirituality which clearly portends the lack of discipleship, and preaching of the transformative gospel grounded in the biblical theology.
Warning against anchoring on experiential faith
If Jesus solely promoted experiential faith and pushed for the type of anti-intellectualism the liberals have been cramming on for several decades now, Christianity would have disappeared by the Diocletianic persecution of early 4th century. Nothing Jesus taught, nor Paul, vectors to a conviction where spiritual experience becomes as important as the anchor of faith. Yes, all of the disciples, except Paul, had spent a lot of time walking, eating, and living with Jesus. And if experience is truly the anchor of faith, no one should have denied Jesus. Even in the OT, David’s delight was in the law of the Lord, not his subjective joy. Even the joy — an experience — itself is treated as a byproduct, but never as an end. If marriages were merely based only on emotional experiences, all marriages should result in divorces. Volition, a determined and directed effort, is what drives a human life. (Let me take a quick pause here to say that I’m usually more inclined to a holistic approach to human personhoold, and don’t subscribe to a strict Platonic tripartite theory, but since what sparked this seemed to be based on that theory, I have no choice but to stand near that level ground. If I can get around to it, I may write more about the holistic view of human personality, which I think is more biblical.)
Both Jesus and Paul emphasize the importance of faith and actions, rather than experience in the way we commonly understand it today. The prioritization of personal, subjective experience over belief, commitment, and proper behavior, seems to be found in the book of Acts when Paul asks Ephesians if they had received the Holy Spirit. However, in the context, the Holy Spirit isn’t treated like a medium of subjective experience like how it is often described today, but rather as a mere Person of Trinity. The subjectiveness comes at the point of baptism. Therefore, the passage should be understood as primarily an encounter with a Person of the Trinity, and byproduct of that encounter is a subjective experience. The experience is secondary, not primary. A bit of wider context here for the interpretative lense — which is the one I find an issue with — that may have been used. The commonly shared, historical experience of Korean (collective) church, albeit a short history, is one that is deeply grounded in spiritual experiences. But such emphasis in experience is not uncommon in Korean version of Buddhism, animism (aka shamanism), and even in Bible-based heretical groups. The emphasis on the subjective experiential aspect of faith seems to be deeply ingrained in Korean psyche, and in this context, it is not surprising that God would use such temperament to bring revival to the Korean church. Many Koreans who had lived through that era, including myself, were part of that collective experience and they make up a large portion of the Korean church today. We were blessed, or lucky, to have been a part of that spiritual wind. However, an encounter with the Spirit should not only result in a hyped experience, but it should be followed by the transformation of the total person, including the mind. This is exactly what we see after the Pentecost, and also what we saw with our own lives during that part of Korean history. Therefore, over-emphasis solely on the experiential aspect as THE anchor of faith is misleading. If the word experience is actually meant as an encounter, or at least imply an encounter, or the beginning of a relationship with God, such use of the word in that context should be fine. But again, without such explanation, the hearer is liable to hear it in a simpler meaning without a learned context. The experience is to be under the service of knowing God to the fullest. In simpler terms, when one encounters God, whether through the direct workings of the Spirit, or through the study of the Word, or through the sermon from the Word, our emotions (if healthy) should react appropriately as a response. Luther, Augustine, Wesley, C.S. Lewis, and so many effective Christians all had an emotional experience, but that was because they were diligent students of the Word, and came to encounter God Himself in the Word of God. Our churches today are depriving people of that with wrong messages.
This is why the anti-intellectualism is one of the biggest sources of the decay of the Church, because without a proper version of biblical literacy, instead of having people’s lives transformed and grow towards a mature faith, it’s easy to have people gather only to have a dopaminergic experience without any resulting growth. This is exactly what we’re seeing with the churches in Korea. Instead of mature Christians who are effective catalysts in the society, we see Christians cloistered inside the safety of church walls, self-satisfied with their tribal experiences and relationships. Vineyard movement, and countless experience-oriented heretical movements, all have people remain in a trance-like state where they feel like they are experiencing the Spirit of God, and feel like they have done something worthwhile, when their own lifestyle remains unchanged and completely unaffected. It’s a passive form of social hysteria. I’m not suggesting that the worship is unimportant, but there is a need for stern warning to be spoken against a version of Christianity that promotes only experiential aspect over intentional obedience to the Word of God.
Knowing that the speaker was educated at an elite, extremely liberal institution, he was exposed to the higher textual criticism which claims to be the most intellectual form of study you could do when it comes to a biblical scholarship, and he probably takes a pride in that. Unbeknownst to him, he seems to be blind to the fact that there is a form of hermeneutics that takes a humble approach to the Bible, where you literally try to stand under the Scripture to understand, not stand above the Scripture to impose your own or even the world’s horizon on the Word of God. But, again, it’s not his fault that he grew up in such and such location, and went to such and such school, resulting in such and such intellectual horizon which is marked by a form of sadistic self-hatred.
Experience, by its very nature, is a part of past. Churches do not need to induce some type of subjective emotional experiences to be revived. In this post-modern world, we need biblically literate churches that know the difference between God’s will and Satan’s schemes, and be able to defend their faith, and carry not only action but their words to the public squares. When there’s a talk of eugenics, homosexual (2SLBGTQIABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQ+) activism, malignant form of social justice, artificial intelligence, CRISPR gene editing, human cloning, Christians are mute, because churches have been working overtime to make the Bible irrelevant to the world outside of the church walls. BIBLE IS MEANT TO BE INTEGRATIVE TO OUR LIVES RIGHT NOW, not compartmentalized for some type of religious experience. Post-modernism brings fragmentation, and look where the society is now. True Christian faith brings coherence, based on the Word of God. As soon as you make the Bible irrelevant to the history of the universe, to the history of Earth, to the history of humanity, and to the history of nations, and to the history of individual, you no longer have a Christianity. It starts from the largest scope that the Bible touches on from the very beginning, and how could you make it relevant when the teacher of the Bible himself doesn’t have the faith to believe the word as it is presented. Coherence doesn’t come cheap. When did Jesus ever say that the world will embrace you for your faith? Don’t try to fit in so hard. Some try so hard to a point where the Word of God is mangled to be powerless, safe so that it requires practically no faith — it’s enough if you can come to church with it. The world is probably right to ridicule it, not because the Word of God is not credible, but people who teach it have mangled to a point where it is no longer the Word of God and they don’t believe it themselves. As soon as you compromise on one thing, you introduce noise that disrupts the whole framework, and it’s bifurcated from there. This is why we have too many apathetic, and impotent Christians who don’t even understand the basics of their own faith, and that’s sadly reflected in their lives. Leaders should not be quick to appease, and quick to pacify, rather face the lies inside (including one’s private ones) and outside manly. During a war, we don’t need more gardeners; we need more warriors who can also tend to gardens. I’m so weary of pastors still clinging to their personal experience back in Korea. Good for them, but let’s grow up for the Church. Let’s please understand the world as it is now, know the word of God inside and out, and think hard to look towards the future.
We had enough status quo. There’s no understanding. There is no knowledge of the Word of God. And instead of encouraging people to think on their feet (once grounded in the Word of God), the last thing we should be doing is to tell people not to use their minds that God has given them to use to the maximum. We are to love the Lord our God with all of our hearts, with all of our minds, and with all of our strengths. Don’t ever leave any part of that out, and say only one thing is needed. Most of partial truths are worse than lies, and this happens to be right at the vicinity.