주일낮설교(한영중)
2 Chronicles 20:17-20 Have faith in God
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2017.02.03 14:06
2 Chronicles 20:17-20 Have faith in God
대하 20:17
이 전쟁에는 너희가 싸울 것이 없나니 항오를 이루고 서서 너희와 함께 한 여호와가 구원하는 것을 보라 유다와 예루살렘아 너희는 두려워하며 놀라지 말고 내일 저희를 마주 나가라 여호와가 너희와 함께 하리라 하셨느니라 하매
대하 20:17
You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.'"
여호사밧이 몸을 굽혀 얼굴을 땅에 대니 온 유다와 예루살렘 거민들도 여호와 앞에 엎드려 경배하고
대하 20:18
Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the LORD.
대하 20:19
그핫 자손과 고라 자손에게 속한 레위 사람들은 서서 심히 큰 소리로 이스라엘 하나님 여호와를 찬송하니라
대하 20:19
Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the LORD, the God of Israel, with very loud voice.
대하 20:20
이에 백성들이 일찌기 일어나서 드고아 들로 나가니라 나갈 때에 여호사밧이 서서 가로되 유다와 예루살렘 거민들아 내 말을 들을지어다 너희는 너희 하나님 여호와를 신뢰하라 그리하면 견고히 서리라 그 선지자를 신뢰하라 그리하면 형통하리라 하고
대하 20:20
Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful."
In 1967, a war between Israel and the United Arab Republic broke out. This war is also known as the Six-Day War. The press all over the world predicted that Israel would lose at the war.
In terms of its military strength such as the number of soldiers and the economic power for the war, Israel was no match for the United Arab Republic, which had built up wealth by producing oil and been armed with enough weapons.
However, before the Six-Day War broke out, the Israeli military announced the following statement: “We have the most up-to-date weapon which we never made known to anyone. We will win this war because of that weapon.”
And military experts all over the world and the U.S. intelligence authorities tried to reveal the identity of the secret weapon, but either of them could not find what it really was. What do you think it was? After winning the war, Israel revealed the identity of the secret weapon. It was Jehovah God whom they believe in.
They believed that God was a God who guaranteed the victory of war, and that God played the leading role in this war. Hallelujah!
The mentality of the people right before the war between Israel and the United Arab Republic was extremely unstable. However, Rabbi Harvard of Israel encouraged the Israeli people, saying, “God is protecting Israel. God will save us in a very special way and lead us to victory.”
And five days before the war broke, an Israeli daily newspaper published an article quoting the rabbi, “God is watching over the holy land. The salvation of Israel is near.”
On the next day, all other Israeli newspapers published articles stating the same. Not only that. The Israeli national broadcasting company continued to broadcasted with the headline, “God will be with us in this war, and will grant us a great victory. Trust in God and rely on him.”
Dear everyone! What is amazing is that the Israeli people trusted the reports in the media. They believed that God was with them and helped them. As a result, just six days after the war broke out Israel could defeat the United Arab Republic and get back the holy place Jerusalem. Hallelujah!
The year 2011 has begun. God will be with you and I throughout this year. As the year 2011 begins, we consider how we should live the year. Our God who is with us today will be with us always, and will protect us, help us, and walk with us in every circumstance. Hallelujah!
It is very important to rely on God. Our God is a God who is with us all the time. Therefore, it is important to rely on him in every circumstance.
Today’s scripture is like this: at the time of King Jehoshaphat, the Ammonites, the Moabites, and the Meunites formed an ally and attacked Israel. King Jehoshaphat who was the King of Israel at that time was scared. However, without being frustrated by fear, he fasted, prayed to God, and declared to his people as follows.
Please look at 2 Chronicles 20:3.
대하 20:3
여호사밧이 두려워하여 여호와께로 낯을 향하여 간구하고 온 유다 백성에게 금식하라 공포하매
대하 20:3
Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah.
대하 20:4
유다 사람이 여호와께 도우심을 구하려 하여 유다 모든 성읍에서 모여와서 여호와께 간구하더라
대하 20:4
The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him.
대하 20:4
Dear everyone! As we live our lives, regardless of whether we want or not, we confront difficulties. In such circumstances, it is important to desperately pray to the Lord.
There are various forms of prayers, but fasting is substantially important among them. There are many benefits in fasting. The benefits are the following as written in Isaiah 58:6.
사 58:6
나의 기뻐하는 금식은 흉악의 결박을 풀어 주며 멍에의 줄을 끌러주며 압제 당하는 자를 자유케 하며 모든 멍에를 꺾는 것이 아니겠느냐.
사 58:6
"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?
사 58:7
또 주린 자에게 네 식물을 나눠 주며 유리하는 빈민을 네 집에 들이며 벗은 자를 보면 입히며 또 네 골육을 피하여 스스로 숨지 아니하는 것이 아니겠느냐
사 58:7
Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter--when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
사 58:8
그리하면 네 빛이 아침 같이 비췰 것이며 네 치료가 급속할 것이며 네 의가 네 앞에 행하고 여호와의 영광이 네 뒤에 호위하리니
사 58:8
Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
Amen. It is said that fasting looses the chains of injustice. It is also said that it unties the cords of yoke.
Jesus climbed the Mount of Transfiguration and the disciples were waiting under the mountain. At that time, a father brought a child who had epilepsy to the disciples. The father of this epileptic child came to the disciples because he heard the rumor that Jesus heals the possessed and the sick, and thought that the disciples could do the same because they were always with Jesus.
The disciples, who witnessed what Jesus did, prayed for the epileptic child, thinking that praying like Jesus would heal the child. However, the child was not healed, and the situation got worse.
Jesus who came down from the Mount Transfiguration at that time saw what was happening and said to the embarrassed disciples and the suspicious father, “This kind can come only by prayer and fasting.” Amen! Fasting is the power of God. Amen!
Moreover, in Isaiah 58:7, it is said that fasting is sharing food with the hungry, providing the poor wanderer with shelter, and not turning away from our own brothers. That is right. It says that we can take care of the people in need by fasting. When you are fasting you feel hungry and difficult. Those who have never been hungry cannot understand people who are starving.
Just as those who have never tasted tear-soaked bread do not know the value of bread, fasting acts as a channel with which we understand the poor and the hungry. Furthermore, we get to have the heart of our Father God and help them.
After all, fasting is a channel of blessing which opens up another perspective. We get to see something that we could not see before, we get to understand what we could not understand before; we do not stop there, but we go on to actually put in practice and provide help.
In other words, fasting serves as a helping hand for the people in need. And we can show the glory of God in fasting. Hallelujah! I pray that you and I may reveal the glory of God in fasting in Jesus’ name.
Let’s read 2 Chronicles 20:20 together.
대하 20:20
이에 백성들이 일찌기 일어나서 드고아 들로 나가니라 나갈 때에 여호사밧이 서서 가로되 유다와 예루살렘 거민들아 내 말을 들을지어다 너희는 너희 하나님 여호와를 신뢰하라 그리하면 견고히 서리라 그 선지자를 신뢰하라 그리하면 형통하리라 하고
대하 20:20
Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful."
Amen.
Jehoshaphat, after fasting and praying to God, declares: “Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful." Amen.
Have faith in the Lord, and you are going to be upheld. Have faith in his prophets and you will be successful. Being successful means that “everything goes as one wishes.”
How good would it be if everything went as one wished? But how can everything go as one wills? It is important according to whose will things go. God wants God’s will be done.
Therefore, to Christians, being successful means that God’s will is done. Being successful means I desire God’s good will to be done. Therefore, in order to be successful, we must first have faith in God. In today’s scripture, it says, “[then] you will be successful.” What does the word “then” require as prerequisite? Let’s look at the scripture again.
Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful."
Man must have faith in God. To have faith means to trust and rely on. Why should we have faith in Jehovah? What is the reason we must have fain in God?
We can find the beginning of today’s problem in 2 Chronicles 20:1. It says, “After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.”
The Moabites and Ammonites and the Meunites formed ally to strike King Jehoshaphat of Judah. Their number was like that of the sand grains in the beach. But the army of Jehoshaphat had no power to fight against them.
King Jehoshaphat was afraid. So he declared fasting to the people and he himself started praying to God. Man is a weak being. Although he may seem strong, he actually is very weak. So we cannot blame anyone for his weakness.
Sometimes, man’s weakness is a channel of blessing which leads him to trust in God. When we call Abraham, we call him the Father of our Faith. However, to be the Father of Faith, he still had many weaknesses.
He introduced his wife as his sister so that he may survive. So Abraham’s innocent wife was dragged to Pharaoh’s palace. This Pharaoh could be considered as another person who is victimized by Abraham’s weakness.
Abraham, despite all his weaknesses, is made the Father of our Faith by God’s help. Dear everyone! Do not be discouraged because of the weaknesses we have. God will make us strong and courageous through our weaknesses.
Remember the song we sang, “You are my strength when I am weak. You are the treasure that I seek. You are my all in all.” When we think we are weak, God is strong. The weaker we are, the more we have to rely on God.
I believe that because we are weak we rely on God, and reliance on God is our blessing. Do you know why our reliance on God is a blessing? Please look at verse 5 of today’s scripture.
대하 20:5
가로되 우리 열조의 하나님 여호와여 주는 하늘에서 하나님이 아니시니이까 이방 사람의 모든 나라를 다스리지 아니하시나이까 주의 손에 권세와 능력이 있사오니 능히 막을 사람이 없나이다
대하 20:6
and said: "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you.
Amen.
That is right. This is the reason why we must rely on God. God is the only one who deserves all the glory, power, and might. He is God to whom all the power, might, and glory are due.
God is God of might. Because God is God of might, he wants you and I to be under his might. When we talk about might or strength, there are some that is external, and some internal.
Paul confessed in Philippians 4:13, “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” When Paul talked about strength, he did not talk about his own strength but about God’s strength, identifying the source of the strength as God “who gives [him] strength.” He was talking about the strength of God. He knew that the source of his strength was God. What Paul could do through the strength that God provided as to endure and overcome.
So why he confesses as following in verse 11-12.
빌 4:11
내가 궁핍하므로 말하는 것이 아니라 어떠한 형편에든지 내가 자족하기를 배웠노니
I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
빌 4:12
내가 비천에 처할 줄도 알고 풍부에 처할 줄도 알아 모든 일에 배부르며 배고픔과 풍부와 궁핍에도 일체의 비결을 배웠노라
I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
Paul at least acquired the strength to endure any circumstance. He knew what it was to be in need and to have plenty. He knew what it was to be well fed or hungry, to live in plenty or in want. He learned to be content whatever the circumstances. He had the strength to rejoice and be grateful in every circumstance.
Dear everyone, why do we need this kind of strength? Why should we acquire the strength to endure difficulties, instead of making the difficult situations into an easy one?
That is because although God sometimes changes our difficult situations into easier ones, he sometimes leaves our difficulties as they are. Instead of changing our difficult circumstances, he leaves us as poor, sick, and uncomfortable.
This is what Paul was heading at. He is willing to learn how to endure difficult circumstances because God sometimes does not change such circumstances.What is strength? It is to overcome a difficult situation, when we confront one, by faith and to live a victorious life. That is strength.
Dear everyone! The year 2011 has begun. Make this year a year in which you rely on God and trust in him. When we desperately fast and pray, God will have his will done through our fasting.
God will eventually make us people of strength and might. I pray in the name of our Lord that such precious grace will be everyone.
대하 20:17
이 전쟁에는 너희가 싸울 것이 없나니 항오를 이루고 서서 너희와 함께 한 여호와가 구원하는 것을 보라 유다와 예루살렘아 너희는 두려워하며 놀라지 말고 내일 저희를 마주 나가라 여호와가 너희와 함께 하리라 하셨느니라 하매
대하 20:17
You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.'"
여호사밧이 몸을 굽혀 얼굴을 땅에 대니 온 유다와 예루살렘 거민들도 여호와 앞에 엎드려 경배하고
대하 20:18
Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the LORD.
대하 20:19
그핫 자손과 고라 자손에게 속한 레위 사람들은 서서 심히 큰 소리로 이스라엘 하나님 여호와를 찬송하니라
대하 20:19
Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the LORD, the God of Israel, with very loud voice.
대하 20:20
이에 백성들이 일찌기 일어나서 드고아 들로 나가니라 나갈 때에 여호사밧이 서서 가로되 유다와 예루살렘 거민들아 내 말을 들을지어다 너희는 너희 하나님 여호와를 신뢰하라 그리하면 견고히 서리라 그 선지자를 신뢰하라 그리하면 형통하리라 하고
대하 20:20
Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful."
In 1967, a war between Israel and the United Arab Republic broke out. This war is also known as the Six-Day War. The press all over the world predicted that Israel would lose at the war.
In terms of its military strength such as the number of soldiers and the economic power for the war, Israel was no match for the United Arab Republic, which had built up wealth by producing oil and been armed with enough weapons.
However, before the Six-Day War broke out, the Israeli military announced the following statement: “We have the most up-to-date weapon which we never made known to anyone. We will win this war because of that weapon.”
And military experts all over the world and the U.S. intelligence authorities tried to reveal the identity of the secret weapon, but either of them could not find what it really was. What do you think it was? After winning the war, Israel revealed the identity of the secret weapon. It was Jehovah God whom they believe in.
They believed that God was a God who guaranteed the victory of war, and that God played the leading role in this war. Hallelujah!
The mentality of the people right before the war between Israel and the United Arab Republic was extremely unstable. However, Rabbi Harvard of Israel encouraged the Israeli people, saying, “God is protecting Israel. God will save us in a very special way and lead us to victory.”
And five days before the war broke, an Israeli daily newspaper published an article quoting the rabbi, “God is watching over the holy land. The salvation of Israel is near.”
On the next day, all other Israeli newspapers published articles stating the same. Not only that. The Israeli national broadcasting company continued to broadcasted with the headline, “God will be with us in this war, and will grant us a great victory. Trust in God and rely on him.”
Dear everyone! What is amazing is that the Israeli people trusted the reports in the media. They believed that God was with them and helped them. As a result, just six days after the war broke out Israel could defeat the United Arab Republic and get back the holy place Jerusalem. Hallelujah!
The year 2011 has begun. God will be with you and I throughout this year. As the year 2011 begins, we consider how we should live the year. Our God who is with us today will be with us always, and will protect us, help us, and walk with us in every circumstance. Hallelujah!
It is very important to rely on God. Our God is a God who is with us all the time. Therefore, it is important to rely on him in every circumstance.
Today’s scripture is like this: at the time of King Jehoshaphat, the Ammonites, the Moabites, and the Meunites formed an ally and attacked Israel. King Jehoshaphat who was the King of Israel at that time was scared. However, without being frustrated by fear, he fasted, prayed to God, and declared to his people as follows.
Please look at 2 Chronicles 20:3.
대하 20:3
여호사밧이 두려워하여 여호와께로 낯을 향하여 간구하고 온 유다 백성에게 금식하라 공포하매
대하 20:3
Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah.
대하 20:4
유다 사람이 여호와께 도우심을 구하려 하여 유다 모든 성읍에서 모여와서 여호와께 간구하더라
대하 20:4
The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him.
대하 20:4
Dear everyone! As we live our lives, regardless of whether we want or not, we confront difficulties. In such circumstances, it is important to desperately pray to the Lord.
There are various forms of prayers, but fasting is substantially important among them. There are many benefits in fasting. The benefits are the following as written in Isaiah 58:6.
사 58:6
나의 기뻐하는 금식은 흉악의 결박을 풀어 주며 멍에의 줄을 끌러주며 압제 당하는 자를 자유케 하며 모든 멍에를 꺾는 것이 아니겠느냐.
사 58:6
"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?
사 58:7
또 주린 자에게 네 식물을 나눠 주며 유리하는 빈민을 네 집에 들이며 벗은 자를 보면 입히며 또 네 골육을 피하여 스스로 숨지 아니하는 것이 아니겠느냐
사 58:7
Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter--when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
사 58:8
그리하면 네 빛이 아침 같이 비췰 것이며 네 치료가 급속할 것이며 네 의가 네 앞에 행하고 여호와의 영광이 네 뒤에 호위하리니
사 58:8
Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
Amen. It is said that fasting looses the chains of injustice. It is also said that it unties the cords of yoke.
Jesus climbed the Mount of Transfiguration and the disciples were waiting under the mountain. At that time, a father brought a child who had epilepsy to the disciples. The father of this epileptic child came to the disciples because he heard the rumor that Jesus heals the possessed and the sick, and thought that the disciples could do the same because they were always with Jesus.
The disciples, who witnessed what Jesus did, prayed for the epileptic child, thinking that praying like Jesus would heal the child. However, the child was not healed, and the situation got worse.
Jesus who came down from the Mount Transfiguration at that time saw what was happening and said to the embarrassed disciples and the suspicious father, “This kind can come only by prayer and fasting.” Amen! Fasting is the power of God. Amen!
Moreover, in Isaiah 58:7, it is said that fasting is sharing food with the hungry, providing the poor wanderer with shelter, and not turning away from our own brothers. That is right. It says that we can take care of the people in need by fasting. When you are fasting you feel hungry and difficult. Those who have never been hungry cannot understand people who are starving.
Just as those who have never tasted tear-soaked bread do not know the value of bread, fasting acts as a channel with which we understand the poor and the hungry. Furthermore, we get to have the heart of our Father God and help them.
After all, fasting is a channel of blessing which opens up another perspective. We get to see something that we could not see before, we get to understand what we could not understand before; we do not stop there, but we go on to actually put in practice and provide help.
In other words, fasting serves as a helping hand for the people in need. And we can show the glory of God in fasting. Hallelujah! I pray that you and I may reveal the glory of God in fasting in Jesus’ name.
Let’s read 2 Chronicles 20:20 together.
대하 20:20
이에 백성들이 일찌기 일어나서 드고아 들로 나가니라 나갈 때에 여호사밧이 서서 가로되 유다와 예루살렘 거민들아 내 말을 들을지어다 너희는 너희 하나님 여호와를 신뢰하라 그리하면 견고히 서리라 그 선지자를 신뢰하라 그리하면 형통하리라 하고
대하 20:20
Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful."
Amen.
Jehoshaphat, after fasting and praying to God, declares: “Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful." Amen.
Have faith in the Lord, and you are going to be upheld. Have faith in his prophets and you will be successful. Being successful means that “everything goes as one wishes.”
How good would it be if everything went as one wished? But how can everything go as one wills? It is important according to whose will things go. God wants God’s will be done.
Therefore, to Christians, being successful means that God’s will is done. Being successful means I desire God’s good will to be done. Therefore, in order to be successful, we must first have faith in God. In today’s scripture, it says, “[then] you will be successful.” What does the word “then” require as prerequisite? Let’s look at the scripture again.
Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful."
Man must have faith in God. To have faith means to trust and rely on. Why should we have faith in Jehovah? What is the reason we must have fain in God?
We can find the beginning of today’s problem in 2 Chronicles 20:1. It says, “After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.”
The Moabites and Ammonites and the Meunites formed ally to strike King Jehoshaphat of Judah. Their number was like that of the sand grains in the beach. But the army of Jehoshaphat had no power to fight against them.
King Jehoshaphat was afraid. So he declared fasting to the people and he himself started praying to God. Man is a weak being. Although he may seem strong, he actually is very weak. So we cannot blame anyone for his weakness.
Sometimes, man’s weakness is a channel of blessing which leads him to trust in God. When we call Abraham, we call him the Father of our Faith. However, to be the Father of Faith, he still had many weaknesses.
He introduced his wife as his sister so that he may survive. So Abraham’s innocent wife was dragged to Pharaoh’s palace. This Pharaoh could be considered as another person who is victimized by Abraham’s weakness.
Abraham, despite all his weaknesses, is made the Father of our Faith by God’s help. Dear everyone! Do not be discouraged because of the weaknesses we have. God will make us strong and courageous through our weaknesses.
Remember the song we sang, “You are my strength when I am weak. You are the treasure that I seek. You are my all in all.” When we think we are weak, God is strong. The weaker we are, the more we have to rely on God.
I believe that because we are weak we rely on God, and reliance on God is our blessing. Do you know why our reliance on God is a blessing? Please look at verse 5 of today’s scripture.
대하 20:5
가로되 우리 열조의 하나님 여호와여 주는 하늘에서 하나님이 아니시니이까 이방 사람의 모든 나라를 다스리지 아니하시나이까 주의 손에 권세와 능력이 있사오니 능히 막을 사람이 없나이다
대하 20:6
and said: "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you.
Amen.
That is right. This is the reason why we must rely on God. God is the only one who deserves all the glory, power, and might. He is God to whom all the power, might, and glory are due.
God is God of might. Because God is God of might, he wants you and I to be under his might. When we talk about might or strength, there are some that is external, and some internal.
Paul confessed in Philippians 4:13, “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” When Paul talked about strength, he did not talk about his own strength but about God’s strength, identifying the source of the strength as God “who gives [him] strength.” He was talking about the strength of God. He knew that the source of his strength was God. What Paul could do through the strength that God provided as to endure and overcome.
So why he confesses as following in verse 11-12.
빌 4:11
내가 궁핍하므로 말하는 것이 아니라 어떠한 형편에든지 내가 자족하기를 배웠노니
I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
빌 4:12
내가 비천에 처할 줄도 알고 풍부에 처할 줄도 알아 모든 일에 배부르며 배고픔과 풍부와 궁핍에도 일체의 비결을 배웠노라
I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
Paul at least acquired the strength to endure any circumstance. He knew what it was to be in need and to have plenty. He knew what it was to be well fed or hungry, to live in plenty or in want. He learned to be content whatever the circumstances. He had the strength to rejoice and be grateful in every circumstance.
Dear everyone, why do we need this kind of strength? Why should we acquire the strength to endure difficulties, instead of making the difficult situations into an easy one?
That is because although God sometimes changes our difficult situations into easier ones, he sometimes leaves our difficulties as they are. Instead of changing our difficult circumstances, he leaves us as poor, sick, and uncomfortable.
This is what Paul was heading at. He is willing to learn how to endure difficult circumstances because God sometimes does not change such circumstances.What is strength? It is to overcome a difficult situation, when we confront one, by faith and to live a victorious life. That is strength.
Dear everyone! The year 2011 has begun. Make this year a year in which you rely on God and trust in him. When we desperately fast and pray, God will have his will done through our fasting.
God will eventually make us people of strength and might. I pray in the name of our Lord that such precious grace will be everyone.
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