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Words of the Bible

The Bible enables us to be wise for salvation (2 Ti 3:15). Let us learn the true will of God from it.

Envoys

Ushimado is a small village in Setouchi, Okayama Prefecture, Japan. The strains of “Arirang,” played on the taepyeongso, fill the air as people dressed in hanbok parade through the streets. The festival commemorates the processions of Joseon diplomatic envoys that once passed through the village. The term tongsinsa (通信使), meaning “envoys who communicate through mutual trust,” referred to the diplomatic missions sent from Joseon to Japan. Each delegation consisted of four hundred to five hundred people, and the approximately three-thousand-kilometer round trip from Hanyang (the former capital of the Joseon Dynasty and present-day Seoul) to Edo (the former name of Tokyo) took anywhere from six months to a year and a half. When the warriors assigned by Japan to escort…

As If Serving God

One winter night, Martin, a shoemaker reading the Bible, heard God’s voice say, “I will visit you tomorrow, so watch the road carefully through your window.” The next day, filled with joy at the thought of welcoming God, he prepared warm tea and soup and spent the entire day watching the street. Yet no matter how long he waited, God did not appear. Instead, an elderly street cleaner shoveling snow, a woman shivering in the cold with a baby in her arms, and a boy being scolded by an old woman for stealing one of her apples appeared one after another. Martin served the street cleaner warm tea, offered soup and clothing to the woman and her baby, and intervened…

Advancing Toward an Assured Future

Before we begin anything, there is a mountain we must overcome: fear. Fear usually stems from uncertainty. When we cannot foresee the outcome of our actions, anxiety naturally sets in. We begin to wonder, “Will I really be able to do this?” and worry that things may not go according to plan. As a result, we seek help from various sources or repeatedly examine our decisions in an effort to assure ourselves that we have made the right choice. Yet change begins when we overcome fear and take the first step. Abraham set out for an unfamiliar land that God would show him, though he did not know where he was going. The priests stood before the surging Jordan River,…

Regret and Repentance

Everyone dreams of living without regrets, yet when we look back on our lives, we inevitably find things we wish we had done differently, whether many or few. Even if our lives have not been perfect, we might still feel that we have lived well if we can say that we have no regrets. Yet living such a life is by no means easy. Daniel Pink, a bestselling author and business thinker, collected and analyzed a wide range of regrets through a survey of approximately sixteen thousand people in 105 countries and compiled the “World Regret Report.” The report divides regret into four categories: regret over failing to build a stable foundation, regret over lacking the courage to seize opportunities…

A Person Who Forgives

In Aesop’s fable “The Fox and the Stork,” the stork invited the fox to a meal and served the food in a narrow-necked jar, repaying the fox for having served the stork food on a flat plate. Just as the stork had previously been unable to eat, the fox could only gaze at the food and lick its lips. Although the story teaches the importance of considering another person’s circumstances, it is sometimes portrayed as a satisfying tale of revenge in which one repays another in kind. It may seem gratifying to make others suffer as much as they have made us suffer, but anger and hostility take a toll on our health. A racing pulse and rapid breathing when…

What Comes Into View When We Change Our Perspective

In a novel, the point of view depends on who tells the story and how it is told. When the narrator appears within the story, it is told in the first person. When the narrator remains outside the story, it is told in the third person. The point of view is further defined by whether the narrator is the protagonist, an observer, or an omniscient narrator who knows the thoughts and feelings of every character. A story told from the first-person point of view of the protagonist can vividly reveal the protagonist’s inner world and draw readers deeply into the narrative. By contrast, the third-person omniscient point of view can portray the inner lives of both the protagonist and the…

The Habit of Loving

Birds that soar freely through the sky are admired for their natural ability to fly. Yet even a newly hatched bird must practice countless times before flying becomes effortless. Habits are formed in much the same way. Just as a young bird repeatedly flaps its wings, when we practice a behavior again and again until it becomes ingrained, we eventually begin to perform it naturally, without conscious thought. This has to do with the way the brain processes behavior. Just as we can reach our destination along a familiar route without consulting a map or consciously searching for the way, repeated behavior gradually requires less involvement from the frontal lobe, which is responsible for decision-making. Instead, the basal ganglia1 become…

My Brother’s Keeper

Fan Li, a strategist of China’s late Spring and Autumn period, helped the king of Yue rescue the state from crisis. Yet having discerned the ruthless nature of power, he soon withdrew from public life and disappeared from view. He later settled in Tao, where he worked diligently and amassed great wealth. Then one day, he received unexpected news: his second son, who had gone to the state of Chu, had killed someone and was now imprisoned, awaiting execution. Fan Li summoned his third son and instructed him to load a cart with gold, travel to Chu, and save his older brother. When his eldest son heard of this, however, he insisted that such an important responsibility should fall to…

The Pleasure of Sin and the Joy of Heaven

Our lives are shaped by what we choose to live for. Will we choose to live for worldly pleasures or for the glory of heaven that God has promised us? As we walk the path of faith, we will inevitably find ourselves at this crossroads. Following Christ means taking a path of hardship and suffering, as Jesus said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (Mt 16:24). Moreover, everyone who desires to live a godly life in Christ will inevitably face persecution in this world, whether mild or severe (2 Tim 3:12). Through the Bible, let us consider which one we should choose to live for, the pleasure of sin…

Her Only Concern

A mother was taking her son to kindergarten. She had stepped out of the car first, and just as her son set foot on the road, the ground suddenly gave way. The boy and the car plunged into a massive sinkhole. Though momentarily thrown off balance, the mother leaped into the hole without a second’s hesitation. She gave no thought to whether the ground might collapse further or whether the large truck teetering precariously at the edge might fall on them. This harrowing scene was captured on CCTV and reported by international media. A mother begins putting her child before herself even before the child is born. According to Donald Winnicott, an English pediatrician and psychoanalyst, a mother enters a…

The Proper Way to Breathe

Scuba diving is an activity in which divers wear underwater breathing equipment and enter the water to observe marine ecosystems. One of its most important safety rules is never to hold one’s breath. The deeper a diver descends, the greater the water pressure becomes, causing the volume of air to decrease.1 This places pressure on air-filled parts of the body, such as the ears and lungs. Holding one’s breath can interfere with the regulation of internal pressure and put one’s life at risk. Divers must therefore continue breathing deeply and steadily to equalize the pressure. When ascending to the surface, they must also breathe continuously and rise slowly to minimize the harmful effects of changes in pressure. 1. This is…

Even Through Fire and Water

As climate change intensifies, devastating wildfires and weather-related disasters such as typhoons and floods are occurring with increasing frequency throughout the world. The destructive force of fire and flood is immense, sweeping across everything in their path and engulfing entire areas in an instant. It is no wonder that they are described as “fire demons” and “water demons.” Even human beings, who regard themselves as the highest of all creatures, are powerless before the forces of nature. How much more helpless must animals be? Their instinct is to flee desperately from danger and seek a way to survive. Yet even in the midst of such danger, some creatures defy their instincts. A mother bird remains in her nest, brooding over…

Global Leaders Who Save the World

We can watch the World Cup held in Africa live on TV at home. With just one click of a button, we can access real-time news from every part of the world. One sneeze from an infected person can spread a virus to people on the opposite side of the world. If a powerful nation’s financial markets are unstable, it can cause chaos in global financial markets. The 21st century we are living in is truly a global age. National borders are gradually becoming meaningless, and people all around the world are easily able to get together. At this point in time, the world is looking for a supranational leader who is suitable for the global age. A narrow world,…

Body Temperature Maintenance

Titanic is a blockbuster in 1997. In the cold ocean, when Titanic was sinking into the deep Atlantic Ocean, Jack the main character lifted Rose up from the bone-chilling water to a floating shipwreck. In the end, he became ice cold and sank into the sea. Many people were saddened by the last parting scene between Jack and Rose which is still considered as one of the best movie scenes. The movie is based on the true story. On April 10, 1912, the Titanic, the biggest ocean liner in the world at that time started its maiden voyage from Southampton in the U.K. to New York City in the U.S. with about 2,200 passengers. Although it was called The Unsinkable…

Shout Aloud, Do Not Hold Back

Tension hangs over Jericho, the fortified city. It is because of the Israelites who are camped on the plains of Jericho before their entrance into Canaan. All the people of Jericho melt in fear as they hear the news that the Israelites have completely destroyed the two kings of the Amorites and crossed the overflowing Jordan as if they were walking on dry land, by God’s help. They are so scared that they lock up their city gates tightly and forbid people to come in and go out, so that they can defend the city. Then God instructs Joshua how to destroy the city of Jericho. “See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its…

Heavenly Family and Heavenly Mother

The Bible teaches that the things on this earth are “a copy and shadow of what is in heaven” (Heb 8:5). Just as there is a physical family on earth, there is also a spiritual family in the kingdom of heaven. A family consists of a father, a mother, and their sons and daughters. When we examine the Bible, we come to understand that it is through the existence of our Heavenly Mother that we have become members of the heavenly family, who will receive the blessings of the kingdom of heaven. However, Satan, who stands in enmity against Mother, slanders the truth and hinders the repentance and salvation of God’s heavenly children. The Bible portrays this unceasing spiritual battle,…

It is known that Christianity believes in only one God. Actually, however, most Christians believe in Jesus and the Holy Spirit as well as the LORD God, Jehovah. Does it mean that God is three distinct Persons?

For the salvation of human beings, God divided 6,000 years into three ages—the age of the Father, the age of the Son, and the age of the Holy Spirit—and He carried out His salvation work with a different name in each age. In the age of the Father, God used the name Jehovah; and in the age of the Son, God came in the name of Jesus. In the age of the Holy Spirit, God is to have another name when He carries out His work of redemption on this earth. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them…

Before It Gets Too Late

The Four Things That Matter Most is a book written by Ira Byock, who has been in hospice care (a type of health care that helps terminally ill patients to spend their last moments of their lives in peace) for over four decades. In his book, he gives suggestion to terminally ill patients and their families. It is to say four phrases: “Please forgive me,” “I forgive you,” “Thank you,” and “I love you.” He came up with this after witnessing many cases that the patients and their family members regret later for not having confessed what was in their hearts. In fact, a man, who had not talked to his father for twenty years, let go of old hurts…

The Council of Nicaea and Arianism

In A.D. 325, the Council of Nicaea was convened mainly to settle the dispute over Arianism along with the Passover controversy. This dispute caused so much blood to be shed, which was a dark chapter in history. Arius’ insistence Arius held a prominent position as a presbyter in the Church of Alexandria in Egypt. He evoked public criticism by insisting on a peculiar doctrine as follows: Christ is the incarnate Logos (λóγoς in Greek, meaning “Word” or “Truth”). Christ is capable of change and suffering. Therefore, the Logos is mutable and not equal to God. According to Arius’ insistence, Jesus is not God but only a creature, so he is not eternal; and just as the Son is the first…

Relationship between Faith and Obedience

Everybody has a family—a precious relationship which God has allowed them to build. God has given everyone a “family”—a community of love—as a microcosm of heaven full of happiness. From a spiritual point of view, we are all members of the spiritual family. We have a spiritual Father, a spiritual Mother, and spiritual brothers and sisters. The Bible teaches that the command to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” is the first and greatest commandment, and that the command to “honor your father and mother” is the first commandment with a promise (Mt 22:37–38; Eph 6:2). According to this teaching of the Bible, we should honor and…

Relationship between Faith and Obedience

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