Shincheonji Bible: What It Means to Be Wise

A quick Google search will reveal that wisdom can be defined as "the quality of having experience, knowledge, and good judgment." In other words, someone that is considered wise is expected to be able to make the correct choices.

For example, in many cultures the elderly are deemed to be wise because by definition they have lived more years and have more experience and knowledge. People end up respecting their judgments as a result of this understanding of wisdom. But is simply living longer or knowing more the key to truly having wisdom?

When Jesus began his ministry he was only thirty years of age. Furthermore, as a carpenter's son he was not brought up to serve in the temple courts like the Pharisees and Sadducees. Despite these things, Jesus was the very Messiah that the Jews were waiting for! Yet did the religious leaders at that time, those that the people looked to for guidance, make the correct choice and tell everyone to follow Jesus?

Then, there must be better way to define wisdom. The religious leaders were considered wise because of how much they studied and preached but at the most crucial moment they proved that they were not. The only ones that truly had good judgment were those that followed Christ and the words from God that he came with.

The standard has to be on God and the Word. The key to truly having wisdom is understanding what God has described in the Bible and discerning what God's will really is.

Shincheonji Bible: Where Does True Wisdom Stem From?

Just decades ago, someone who obtained a college degree was extremely respected and idolized.

Nowadays, a college degree has become the norm. In the United States alone, there are about 4,100 universities/colleges, and 8 Ivy League universities. Individuals who graduate from these Ivy Leagues are considered to be exceptionally intelligent and "wise," and generally end up with reputable jobs, which allow financially comfortable ways of living.

Because the world puts such a high emphasis of connection between education and living "well," it's easy to get sucked into this mindset, even without us realizing. However, we as children of God, need to constantly reflect and think about what type of wisdom is acknowledged not by people, but by God. 

2,000 years ago, in the eyes of the world, Jesus did not really pertain to much. He had "no beauty or majesty" (Isaiah 53:2), and he was simply a carpenter's son. He had no prestigious college degree, occupation, or anything appealing in his appearance. However, those who were able to perceive the words of Jesus were able to discern that Jesus was the true son of God, the only one who was granted the true wisdom of heaven. 

Contrasting to the religious leaders at that time, the Pharisees and Sadducees were esteemed in the eyes of man, highly educated and polished. However, they only spoke lies and blocked the path of heaven from God's people (Matthew 23:13). 

So, what was the difference between these religious leaders and Jesus? Why was Jesus the only one granted the wisdom of heaven out of all people? That is because only Jesus had a true understanding of God's word. True wisdom of heaven only comes from true understanding of God's word. 

People today are devoting incredible amounts of time and effort in studying to obtain wisdom of the world. However, if we claim to be truly be believers of God, we have to constantly check ourselves and see how much time and effort we are devoting into understanding God's word, where the only true wisdom of heaven is recorded today.

Shincheonji Bible: Wisdom at its Finest

What does it mean to be a wise individual? Is wisdom defined by a person's ability to make money? Is it defined by a person's ability to be successful? How do you define wisdom?

Many people have different interpretations of what a wise individual is. However, in terms of the bible, wisdom is an absolute necessity in order to understand God's plan and will. God has left us many mysteries for us to know as it says in Colossians 2:2-3. Furthermore, we cannot become individuals who see the lack of wisdom as a benefit. There is a saying that ignorance is bliss, but in God's eyes, ignorance is the beginning of lacking knowledge and wisdom. If we lack wisdom we much ask God to grant us it as it mentions in James 1:5. 

Solomon was such a character in the Bible who asked for wisdom. He asked for wisdom to discern what is good and evil (1 Ki 3:9). God was pleased when he asked for such things and granted the wisdom as James 1:5 states as well.

Therefore, we must be ones who strive for wisdom. Wisdom is not something some individuals should have, but the entire world. I hope we can earnestly ask God everyday for this heart forevermore, Amen!

Shincheonji Bible: A Life Worth Living

Calvin here asks what most people might wonder at least once in their lives. 

The breakdown of a "normal" life looks like this:

0-22 yrs old: study hard to get a decent job

22-35: work to pay off school loans, bills

35: get married, settle down and have kids

35-45: work to save for kids' college funds and retirement

55-65: retirement

75+: death

So from this, you can see that the majority of a person's life is spent working to be financially equipped to live even just a decent life. Sure, there are moments of happiness that are experienced in between these life events. But, we really have to wonder, did God create us so we can live menial lives without any set purpose? There has to be a greater purpose as to why He created us.

Every now and then, there are people who deviate from this normal life. Revolutionary pioneers like Albert Einstein and MLK Jr., their lives are remembered by all of mankind. These lives are valued as being lived to the fullest, or to its full potential. But, this is only from the standard of the eyes of mankind.

It's curious to think, would the lives of these people be regarded as the same in God's eyes? If not, then what kind of life would truly be considered worthy in front of God? Only the Creator knows the purpose of its creation. For us to live our lives according to how we think we should live it, this is comparable to mistakenly using a water bottle as a vase instead of using it for its true function. 

So why did God give us life? The answer to this can only be found where God's plans, will, thoughts are recorded. The answer to this is only found in the Bible. It now lies in our hands to learn what God's reason is, and for us to live a life that is truly worthy and acknowledged in God's eyes. Amen.

Shincheonji Bible:What does life mean to you?

What does life mean to you?

From the dictionary, life means the existence of an individual human being or animal, and the condition that the capacity for growth, reproduction, and continual change preceding death.

But even without the dictionary, I am sure we all know the meaning of life.

However, all individuals have their own criteria for life through their personal experiences.

The meaning of life to a certain group of people may be defined as having the necessary things in order to live such as water, air, and food. Some others may see having a family as life. But let me ask you a question. What does life mean to you?

 

Life exists everywhere and that is evidence of how precious life is.  All the trees, flowers, and animals know that their lives are precious and always try to protect themselves to live. Who created the animals and the trees to live this way? If life were not precious, then the animals and the trees would not do their very best to live as long as they can. Why does a deer run from a tiger? Even a deer understands how precious its own life is. Therefore shouldn’t we think about how precious life is? The heart of understanding what is precious cannot be something that was taught. Deers do not teach their doe’s how to view life as precious. Then they must have been born with it and someone must have planted that heart. Who must have planted that heart? Would someone who doesn’t see life as precious plant the heart to know what is precious? No. That means that someone who sees life as precious must have planted the heart to know what is precious among all creation and that is life itself.

Next time we will see planted this in the first place. 

Shincheonji Bible: The Best Kind of Gift

What is the best gift anyone can receive?

When I was young, I wanted so many different gifts. During Christmas, I always wanted a gift from my parents and each year the gifts only got bigger and better. However, I would remember that after 3 to 4 months, I would quickly become bored of the gift. It wasn't until I grew 10 more years that I realized that gifts of material worth were so temporary.

Then we have to ask ourselves again. What is the greatest gift? What lasts and what never gets boring? It is life.

Life is truly the best gift we can receive. We live everyday without appreciating this gift because we always have it. We wake up every morning expecting to be alive. We go to sleep everyday already thinking what tomorrow will be. However, we cannot live like this. Why? Because the moment our lives are at stake, we will regret how much we didn't value this life of ours.

When I talk about life, I am not talking about the things done in life. I talking about the very breath that we breathe and the very blood that pumps through our bodies. The fact we are living is the greatest gift. However, this gift ends. This gift of life ends when we turn old. Why is this?

This is a question I will leave with you. However I will leave you with this analogy. If a galaxy phone dies who do you go to in order to fix it? You go to the creator which is Samsung. When an iphone dies who do you go to in order to fix it? You go to the creator which is Apple. Then when we see one another die at the end, who should we go to? When we see the earth dying who do we go to? We go to the one who created it. Amen.

My Life as a Photographer

Apart from cooking, I am an amateur photographer. However I am not any kind of photographer, I am an analog (film) photographer. What does this mean? I actually have to buy rolls of film, take a picture, hope that the picture turned out well, and lastly drop it off a photo lab to have the pictures developed. Quite a progress right? It is, but film is a lost art that we all forgot about. Film is different in its feel and one who sees the pictures can be confident knowing the photographer put in a lot of effort for even one picture.

Take a look at the picture above. Do you see the grain? Do you see the antiqueness of the image? This can only be formulated through film. In fact the grain arises from the high speed film of 800 iso.

Let us look at another picture.

What do I love about this picture? There is so much one can say about this image. First we see a shopper who is surrounded by a vast variety of vegetables, yet the image is consisted of all the natural greens of the earth. She blends right in making it seem she is a part of the surrounding.

Lastly I present the last image.

In a time where we celebrate the freedom of our country, the 4th of July was the perfect time to take pictures. A flag raised high waiting for the lights to dim stands tall, but no one would be able to tell if this picture was taken in 2017 or 1980. This just shows that time may go on, but beauty of the earth never changes.

We snap pictures everyday hoping to capture moments of our lives. We snap, we delete. This creates a culture of photography that captures moments without meaning. With film, I have never found myself not remember the moment I took every picture. Every picture was meaningful to me and every image is something I care about. Film is fun, so why don't we all try?

Shincheonji Bible: Who are You in the Bible?

Until the Bible is all fulfilled, we must think about where we are within the very texts that are yet to fulfill. What book are we in? We know for a fact that we are not in the book of Deuteronomy and we know for a fact we are not in the book of John. Then what book are we in? What if we are in the book of Revelation? These are questions we must ask ourselves everyday.

The first thing someone with faith should definitely ask is how close are we to the fulfillment of revelation? Many say we are far from it and some say we are close to it. However, what is the evidence that shows directly where we are? We should never try to guess or try to make our own interpretations, but instead look at the signs that directly point us to the direction where we may be at. If we look in Mt 24, we can understand that there is a sign that is to show when it is near the end. The scriptures state that when there is an abomination that causes desolation standing in the holy place, one should flee to the mountain. Then isn't it our curiosity to ask who this abomination is, where the holy place is and what mountain we must flee to? If we are not asking these questions, when will we recognize the signs? It will be difficult. So let us start asking. Where are we in the Bible and who are you in the Bible? Are you someone who is just like the blade of grass who withers away in time? Are you someone who is a part of the holy nation? Are you a part of the great multitude in white? Although we may not know, God surely knows. So let us come before God and ask for a heart of discernment and ask Him to reveal us what is true to us today. Amen!

Shincheonji Bible: The Heart of a Father

There once was a time when I really felt that I grew up mentally in my life. The moment that guided me to see much deeper into my fathers heart was when I got my first car. Through this one moment, I realized the heart is difficult to see and it is not as tangible as we may think. I perceived that the heart can be seen when it is understood.

During my young years in life, there was a time I asked my father for a car because everyone else had one and I felt that I deserved it. I found it unfair that every other person in my age had one while I was still being dependent on others for a ride. I complained and complained to my father asking him why he cannot get me a car. All I thought was about my perspective, my needs and my life.

After a couple of weeks of nagging, my father finally bought me a car. I was overjoyed and drove everywhere. I felt proud to get what I wanted. I was grateful, but that thankfulness was only a thankfulness that resulted from my conscience to be thankful when given something. The thankfulness wasn't from the heart, but still I had no regret for complaining and begging for a car.

However... All of this changed one day when I saw my mother text message from my father. My father wrote that he was under his desk at work in trembling and fear that we would lose our house. He told my mother that paying for my car was the most difficult decision of his life because it put him under enormous amounts of stress. However at the end of the message he wrote, "Even though it may be hard for me, seeing him [myself] driving around makes me smile. Even if we lose our house, our child's joy is why we work." At this moment I bawled and at that moment I understood my father's heart for me.

We understand our father's heart when we understand what he must go through to give us what we need. We may see it as something we deserve, but we must understand that sacrifice must come for others to receive. Our father in Heaven is our spiritual father whom we must understand. We must see His heart of suffering through all the historical events of the Bible and see how much He worked in order to give us faith. We may believe that faith is something we make and something we form, but in fact we must understand that it is a gift. God had to work until now so we can even have faith. He had to show that He is willing to suffer for 6,000 years in order for us to see His heart. But the question is... do we know His heart? If we don't then we must pray and ask God to grant us faith and lead us to the word that can open our minds and hearts to His own. I pray that we may all one day understand God's heart so we may carry out the actions of faith to help Him complete His purpose and will. May the grace we perceive push us to action! Amen!