God's work and man's work

 

God's work and man's work

 

God's work is to make people believe in the one sent from God (Christ). Peter confessed to Jesus, “You are the Son of God,” but suddenly rebelled against what Jesus said. In other words, you should not die. In Matthew 16:21-23, “From that time began to Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised.” again the third day. Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee. But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offense unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.』

Because Peter did something like denying the work of God for a moment, Satan (the prosecutor) tried to indict Peter. At that moment, Jesus Christ defeats Satan to protect Peter. And Jesus rebuked Peter because he was thinking about human things and was trying to stumble Jesus. Peter denied Jesus three times until the rooster crowed three times. And Jesus died on the cross. Peter, who denied it three times, says in Matthew 26:75, “And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.” And he went out, and wept bitterly. 』However, the resurrected Jesus Christ visited Peter and gave him the task of spreading the kingdom of God once again.

A case like Peter is the content of Acts 21:10-14.『And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus. And when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles. And when we heard these things, both we, and they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break my heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.』

Many of the disciples, who had heard through the Holy Spirit that Paul would be delivered into the hands of the Gentiles, advised him not to go up to Jerusalem. Paul already tried to fulfill his mission as someone who did God's work and as someone who spread God's will without thinking about his own life. The disciples who told him not to go to Jerusalem were worried about Paul's death. That is, they think about human affairs. God's work is to preach the death and resurrection of the cross no matter what. Jesus' death on the cross and resurrection were to save all mankind, and the disciples must also spread this. This is God's work.

John 6:29-30 also talks about the work of God. 『Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. They said therefore unto him, What sign shewest thou then, that we may see, and believe thee? what dost thou work?』

The one whom God sent is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. God's work is to believe in Jesus Christ. What are we to believe? In chapter 6, verses 38-40, “For I came down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him that sent me.” And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.』

If you look at the Greek Bible in chapter 6 verse 40, τοῦτο γάρ ἐστιν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ πατρός μου, ἵνα πᾶς ὁ θεωρῶν τὸν υἱὸν καὶ πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν ἔχῃ ζωὴν αἰώνιον, καὶ ἀναστήσω αὐτὸν ἐγὼ [ἐν] τῇ ἐσχάτῃ ἡμέρᾳ.

Theoron (θεωρῶν) means to look carefully. “Pistuon Ace Auto” (πιστεύων εἰς αὐτὸν) means one who enters into Him (the Son) and believes. So, rather than simply looking at Jesus and believing in him, one becomes one who enters into Christ and has faith that unites him.

The last day means the end for all people, but for those who enter into the Son, it means physical death. That is, in Romans 6:4-5, “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:』

Anyone who enters into the Son and believes becomes a believer in Christ. It is a faith that unites one who died on the cross and was resurrected. So Apostle Paul says in Galatians 3:23-25, “But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.” Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring unto us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.』

Ultimately, God's work is to enable believers to enter Christ and gain eternal life. To enter into Christ you must die twice. This means dying to sin through water baptism, burning to death the old soul (physical body) with fire and the Holy Spirit, and changing clothes (the clothes of Christ) into a new soul (spiritual body) with the power of the Holy Spirit. In Galatians 3:27, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.”

In 1 Corinthians 15:44-45, “It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.』The soul received from the body is destined to die. So, the saints are to die with Jesus and assume the soul (spirit body) that comes from heaven. When a believer puts on a new soul, the spirit comes back to life from the dead. Salvation is the salvation of the soul.

1 Peter 1:9 also speaks of the salvation of the soul. 『Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.』 In the end, it is the spirit that comes back to life. When a believer puts on the soul (clothes of Christ) that comes from heaven, the spirit comes to life. In John 6:63, “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. 』This is eternal life.