Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.
Matthew 7:21
Dear members and friends,
Fundamentally, being a Christian means a person who devoted one’s life to following the teachings of Jesus Christ. However, in most cases being a Christian is understood as one’s belonging to and willingness to follow the rules and dogmas of a certain institution that claims to foster and evangelize the teachings of Jesus Christ. The difference is surprisingly simple. The former follows the actual teachings of Jesus as found in Gospels, while the latter follows an interpreted version of Jesus’ teachings by the institution or organization. Most problems caused by Christians or Christian institutions arose from following the interpreted version (or their own dogmas). The core difference has always been one simple factor: Jesus’ teachings focus on selflessness and loving others, while any interpretation is often influenced by the mentality of those who created it, which focuses more on selfish desire and greed.
What truly saddens my heart whenever I read the history of Christianity arises from the vivid misinterpretations of the Kingdom of Heaven. In the Gospels, Jesus repeatedly teaches that Heaven is essentially and entirely different from any worldly matters, meaning what you possess in the world does not matter at all. As to the condition by which one enters into the Kingdom of Heaven, in Matthew Jesus emphasizes, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in Heaven”. What is the will of Father in Heaven? Jesus teaches, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (John 15:12) Now, if you were to ask what it means to love our neighbor, Jesus would answer, “you should love them with a gentle and humble heart.” Thus, the focus of any Christian should be finding and living a way of life in which loving one’s neighbor is central and essential.
My brothers and sisters in God, let us take a moment of meditational prayer this week. I hope that you choose a consecrated space and time and enter into the presence of God. In the presence of God, let us look into our hearts and see how much gentleness and humility is present.
Blessings, Rev. Junchol Lee