Gandhi, as a non-Christian greatly embarrasses most of us: The quality of his life is so great, his willingness to devote his life to the needs of his people - and especially to the poor of his people. She always likens herself to the poor. Having seen pictures or pictures of Gandhi would remember him as a very thin man with skeletal feet and hands, and a body covered only by a piece of cloth. Her body was half naked because she was only wearing a piece of cloth as a covering of her body, just as most poor Indians do. In fact, when he dies, he has no possessions even though he is a leader of the nation. Even though he has enormous power in his country, he has no possessions other than cloth, glasses, a bowl and several books. That's all his stuff. I do not think he even considers the books as his. He is a very big person.
To him, one of his prime examples is Christ. Surprisingly, he made Christ his example even though he was a Hindu. And he is attracted to Christ because Christ is the One who always cares about the poor. He gained a great sense of care for this poor man from Jesus. He did not renounce Hinduism, but he made Jesus the model he had to imitate.
What a remarkable thing when a non-Christian, a Hindu would greatly admire Jesus, following the example of Jesus' life. While Christians themselves do not behave like that. I myself wonder, on the Day of Judgment, when we stand before God, who is more desired by God on the Day of Judgment? Christians who claim they believe in Jesus, who claim to have the right doctrine but harass the Hindus as idolaters, but their lives do not show Christlike qualities, no concern for the poor and their fellow human beings around them? They think only of themselves - their own salvation alone. All should be centered on me, which is important me, I must be saved. Oh, the selfishness of Christians makes us so sick, does not it? Really cloying. While Gandhi is a non-Christian whose life is more closer to the ideal picture of the life of Christ when compared to most Christians you or I know. Please mention the name of a Christian who you think the quality of his life is close to the quality of Gandhi's life in imitating the life of Christ. Please call the name of one person you know, one who has turned away from the world.
Gandhi was once a successful pangacara. He does not come from poor farmers. He was once a successful lawyer in South Africa. But in the interests of his people, he left his career in the field of law. For those of you who have sacrificed something for Christ's sake - before we become too proud or self-praise - think about this Gandhi. He left everything and moved to serve his people. He was persecuted by the British government. Often he fasts for the sake of his people. Several times he almost died. That is why he became very thin. Because of the length of time he fasted, prayed and prayed, he was a very religious man. And he pursues the ideals of Indian independence through peaceful means - in Hinduism called ahimsa, non-violence. Instead of taking up arms, for the first time in human history - as far as we know - through peaceful means, he encouraged the infamously powerful British empire at the time to grant independence to India. The English can not understand Gandhi. Some admire and some feel very annoyed by him, but they all can not understand it.
What is your mission and me?
What is the mission of the church? This is an important question because you and I are the building blocks of the church, so, what is your mission? What is my mission? Our mission, as stated by Jesus, is to preach the gospel to the poor, wherever they may be. Are you running the task? I want to read a passage from Matthew 11: 2-6 for you:
In the prison John hears about the work of Christ, then sends his disciples to ask him: "Are you the one to come (the Messiah) or should we wait for another?" Jesus answered them: "Go and tell John what you hear and you See: the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the poor have good news preached. And blessed is the one who will not be disappointed and reject Me. "
Every Christian should imitate Christ - caring for the poor
When John the Baptist asked the question, "Are you the one sent by God? Are you the Messiah? Should we wait for someone else? "Jesus did not say," Yes, I am the Messiah. You should know that. "When John baptized Jesus, the Holy Spirit came down to Jesus in the form of a dove. John the Baptist should have known about it, but when asking this question he was in prison and his conviction was rather shaky. He had heard the news conveyed to him, and the news did not seem to match his expectations about the work of the Messiah. Then how did Jesus answer it? Jesus answered by saying, "Tell John what you see and hear. The blind see. The lame man walks. "He mentions five things, including about the resurrected dead. They are miracles. Everything is the result of the power of God working in it. And after mentioning the five things, he mentioned one more thing: to the poor the good news is preached. It's interesting. The sixth point is not a miracle. The sixth is the preaching of the good news - not to everyone - but to the poor! In particular he calls the poor. Jesus always cares for the poor.
And Gandhi was right. He better understands the message of Jesus than most Christians. Though he was a Hindu, he understood the message. What is the proof? He imitates the life of Jesus. This should be done by every Christian. That is why Paul says, "Be my imitators as I have imitated Christ." What Paul means is, "Make the example of my life because I myself make Jesus an example to my life."
True Christians are not just people who believe in this and that. What sacrifices are needed to trust some things? There is no. I can trust this and that. You can trust whatever you want. Your beliefs may be true. There are some people who believe in things that are not true. It's better to believe the right thing. However, just believing does not require any sacrifice. It is wonderful to believe that Jesus died for us. Does it require sacrifice from you? No. But it is important to believe that Jesus died for us because it is true. The problem, just trusting and saying, "I have been saved by it," does not require any sacrifice from you.
Jesus affirms his sacrifice. He said, "You can not be my disciple if you do not carry your cross. It's not enough to believe that I died for you. It is not enough to say that I have carried the cross for you. You must take up your cross and follow me. That is, live your life by imitating my voice. I went to the cross, so you also went to the cross. Rely on my life. "Gandhi really understood that. Christians do not understand that. Until now, they still do not understand either.
Do you know what the consequences? The result is that non-Christians will not listen to you. The result is that the church means nothing to the world. You know that. Please talk to your non-Christian friends, are they impressed with the church? The Church has failed to perform its duties. Here's the problem. The church has no mission in the world because non-Christians do not listen to it. You are nobody! You do not have any messages. No messages from you they want to hear.
The Christian must live in the power of the Holy Spirit
What did Jesus tell the disciples of John the Baptist? "What do you see? What are you hearing? Tell him that! "Then what do they see and hear? The works are amazing. Who does the works
They see and hear? The works are amazing. Who is doing the works? People who live their lives by imitating Jesus. We do not witness much of the great work because few people imitate the life of Jesus. Do not think that because you believe in this and that and then you can make great work. You can not, you know that. That power comes from the way of life in the power of the Holy Spirit that always encourages us to imitate Jesus' example, making him our example.
"All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God," says Paul at Romans 8:14. Who are the children of God? Are those who say, "I believe this and that"? Paul says, "No, but those who are led by the Spirit of God, they are the children of God." Which way does the Spirit lead us? To Jesus, to follow in his footsteps. In Romans 8:29, Paul says, "For all those whom he chose from the beginning, they also predestined Himself to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he, his Son, be firstborn among many Brother. "What does the statement mean? It means to be an example of Jesus' life. That is the work that the Holy Spirit will make - making us similar to Jesus
