License Exams

CPX/OSCE - 10.26
KMLE - 1.5-6

The Gospel of the Coming Kingdom

For some time now, a constant message of the Gospel has been fed to me. Small group sessions are about it. Quiet time message is on Romans and, to top it off, there is a new Benhur movie coming out.

As a Christian, it is easy to come across the word “Gospel” many times, but no one really sits you down to teach it.

Creation, sin, the impending doom, God’s promise of salvation, the coming kingdom, death, resurrection and the end.

This is the short summary of the world that we live in according to the Bible. The death of the world as well as the death of self. Actual death and the spiritual death. There are many more topics of discussion and education, but for now, I will focus on the coming kingdom.

In essence, Jesus states that the kingdom of God is already here as seen in Matthew 12:28.

“But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”

Israelites back then expected a savior to rise, one that will overthrow governments and oppression. God had planned otherwise. Thus, when Jesus spoke of the kingdom, it was nothing as limited to the world, rather a spiritual concept that shall seep through and change the intellectual as well as the physical.

The kingdom is here, and we are free to enter it. Or, more like we are allowed to be a part of it. His kingdom consists of his reign. That is what the kingdom is all about. Through the cross, we have been reconciled. We are able to enter in his governance.

That is precisely what Jesus was talking about. We imagine a sudden change in our lives to happen, like a shift in the Matrix, life circumstances changing drastically in our favor. It might. It definitely can, but the focus is in our constant communication, a steady walk with God.

Now coming back to the question of what is the Gospel. What is it? It is the good news that we are not able to be with God, to walk with Him in his kingdom. 

기다림

안녕이라는 그 작은 말 하나에

세상을 다 가진 자의 웃음과

깊은 절망에 있는 자의 슬픔이

공존할 수 있다는 신비.

너와 헤어진 후, 지나가는 시간 속에

수많은 만남과 이별들이 있었어.

그 모든 것을 뒤로한지 얼마가 지났을까?

문득 네 생각이 나더라,

너를 기다려야겠다는 마음과 함께.

다시 만날 수 없을 걸 잘 알지만

혹시라도 너의 상처에

도움이 될 수 있진 않을까,

그 작은 희망 하나만으로도

이제는 아마 영원을 기다릴 수 있을 것 같아.

김경섭의 [리더십의 고지 이렇게 점령하라] 에서

무디 목사가 잠시 휴식을 취하러 스코트랜드의 한 마을에 갔을 때, 이를 알게 된 마을 사람들의 간청에 못 이겨 집회를 인도하게 되었습니다. 놀랍게도 병자들이 낫고, 죄인이 회개하고, 심령이 뒤집어지는 은혜의 역사가 있었습니다. 사람들은 기뻐했지만, 무디 목사는 "기도 없이는 부흥이 없는데, 휴식하러 온 곳에서 큰 부흥을 경험하니 이해가 안 된다."라고 의아해했습니다.

그러자 그 지역 교회의 목사가 말했습니다. "저희 교회에 17년 동안 전심 마비로 누워 있는 형제가 10년간 해 온 기도가 무디 목사님을 초청해 영적 부흥을 일으키는 것이었습니다." 무디 목사가 그에게 찾아가 그동안 사탄의 시험이 없었는지 묻자, 그는 이렇게 말했습니다. "사탄은 제게 '하나님은 안 계신다. 하나님이 계신다면 네가 17년이나 누워 있을 리 없다.'라고 속삭입니다. 또 하나님이 계시더라도 나를 사랑하지 않는다고 하지요. 나를 사랑하신다면, 왜 고쳐 주지 않으시겠냐고요. 그때마다 나는 '사탄아, 네 설명은 그럴듯하지만, 내게는 예수의 사랑이 각인되어 있다. 예수 이름으로 명하노니 떠나가라.'라고 합니다."

부흥은 그냥 이뤄지지 않습니다. 예상치 못한 이 마을의 놀라운 부흥은 전신이 마비된 성도가 10년 동안 해 온 간절한 기도 덕이었습니다. 힘들고 어려운 현실 속에서 우리가 의지할 수 있는 분은 하나님밖에 없습니다.

[리더십의 고지 이렇게 점령하라]  - 김경섭

by Drazool from reddit, on Pixel Dungeon

She stopped, frozen, at the heavy oaken door, and eyed the light emerging from the door's borders. From some neglected corner of her mind, recognition. 

Sunlight.. she muttered to herself. How long had it been? In the eternal gloom of the Dungeon, she had long ago given up on tracking the days. The light illuminated disused memories. She remembered her training, long days of arduous practice with 'rang and blade, of log keeping, and map making. She remembered the mantras and disciplines intended to allow her to retain some semblance of sanity as she plumbed the unknown depths. What she didn't remember, couldn't remember, were people. 

She remembered their voices, their commands, and their warnings, but not their faces, nor their touch.

Pain had trained her. Remember the dangers, always the dangers. Rabid animals, undead, insane brigands, and cunning ninjas had fallen before her. She had cut, burned, stabbed, and poisoned her way through abominations, demons, clockwork abominations, and insane necromancers. Even Gods had fallen before her. 

She had tracked Yog through Heaven and Hell, before silencing his corrupting whispers forever. Even then, there was work to be done. Yog was a servant of one even more occult and powerful than himself. 

So she delved further, deeper. The old wizard's journal, still radiating power, had shown her the path. With the magic in its pages, she traveled to a wild new land, a tiny village ensconced in a mighty forest. There, she finally tracked the evil to its labyrinthine source, and vanquished all who stood before her.

Now, in the faint daylight, she examined herself in a pool of cavewater. Her body was warped almost beyond recognition by magic. Her skin, pale to the point of translucency, was caked with dirt, grime and soot. Her necklace of rings could pay a kings ransom, and her holster of wands contained enough magical energy to lay waste to armies. She gripped her weapons, literally fine enough to cut down the very gods. Truly, she had become master of this dark realm, this wasteland of despair.

She had chased evil to the far corners of the multiverse, but now she was paralyzed with fear. What if they reject her? What if they don't? How could she interact with there people anymore? Hell, she had lost count of the times death had claimed her, only to be pulled from its icy grasp.

No, there was no place for her in the light, not anymore. She turned from the meager light, and descended into the dark, perhaps for the last time.

by drazool from reddit - on Pixel Dungeon

Fixer-Upper

Jesus didn't come with a blazing sword.
He came with a hammer and some nails. 

Get to Know Him

I’m not doing this because I have free time. I do this because it is the only lasting meaning in life. You say you are busy, that you have no time. God is more important than what you are doing right now. Stop making excuses.

Or instead of saying you don’t have time, just say you don’t really know, that you don’t know why God is so important.

There is a big difference between ignorance and unknowing. Open up your mind, open up your heart. Make the effort to learn more about Him.