나눔 사역 일기 ( Sharing Ministry Journal ) 2025. 10. 23. 목요일. 오늘 YMCA 에서 운동을 하면서 두 지체하고 각각 따로 다른 시간에 카카오톡으로 대화를 나눴습니다. 그 나눔 속에서 저는 "나눔 사역 일기"(Sharing Ministry Journal)를 쓰면 좋겠다는 생각이 들어서 이렇게 밤 11시가 좀 넘어서 잠들기 전에 오늘 하루를 뒤돌아보면서 나눔 사역에 관하여 배우게 된 점들이나 느낀 점들이나 생각하게된 점들을 좀 두리뭉실하게 기록해보고자 합니다. 저의 나눔 사역 일기가 여러분들에게도 조금이나마 유익되길 바랍니다. 1. Sharing is Caring ! 오늘 대화 속에서 저는 제 막내 딸 예은이가 초등학교 다닐 때 저에게 한 말인 "Sharing is Caring"란 말이 생각났습니다. 아마도 그 이유는 어느 한 지체와 주님 안에서 진솔한 대화를 나눴을 때 주님의 사랑으로 서로 care하기에 그 caring heart로 각자 마음의 이야기를 나눴기 때문인 것 같습니다. 2. 나눔은 관심 속에서 몇 마디 인사로 시작되었습니다. 여러번 경험케하셨는데 오늘도 저는 운동을 하면서 어느 지체가 생각나서 카카오톡으로 몇 마디 글을 적어 보냈는데 그 말로 말미암아 주님 안에서 진솔한 대화를 나누게 되었습니다. 다른 지체도 저는 몇 마디 글을 적어서 카카오톡으로 보낸 것뿐인데 귀한 마음의 대화를 나누게 되었습니다. 그래서 저는 그 때 그 때 생각나게 하시는 사람이 있고 관심이 생기면 서슴치 않고 마음으로 하고 싶은 말(그 말이 인사이든 다른 말이든)을 계속해서 해야겠다는 다짐입니다. 3. 나눔의 타이밍이 기가막힙니다. 하하. 오늘도 그 두 지제들 하고 각각 따로 대화를 하면서 공통적으로 그들이 저에게 한 말을 생각해보면 각자 무엇을 고민하고 있었을 때 제가 카톡으로 말을 걸었다는 것입니다. 그리고 그들은 제가 말을 걸었음으로 말미암아...
The Word of God will
come to us
who are in the
wilderness.
“In the
fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar—when Pontius Pilate was governor
of Judea, Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea
and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene—during the high priesthood of
Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the
wilderness” (Luke 3:1–2).
As I meditate on this passage, I want to receive the lessons God gives
through it.
(1) The Word Came After Centuries of Silence
(a) When I reflect on the words, “The word of God
came to John, son of Zechariah, in the wilderness” (Lk. 3:2) three meaningful
insights arise:
(i)
First, this
marks the moment when God’s word broke through four hundred years of prophetic
silence. After centuries without
revelation, the living Word once again spoke—this time, not in a temple or
palace, but in the desolate wilderness.
·
I am
reminded of Amos 8:11: “‘The days are coming,’ declares the Sovereign LORD, ‘when
I will send a famine through the land—not a famine of bread or a thirst for
water, but a famine of hearing the words of the LORD.’”
-
Even in an
age like ours, when sermons, podcasts, and online resources overflow like a
flood, I sense that Amos’s prophecy has come true. We are surrounded by the
information of God’s Word, yet starved for the hearing of it in our hearts.
n At such moments, I remember the hymn “I need
Thee every hour”: “I need Thee every hour, most gracious Lord No tender voice
like Thine can peace afford.” Indeed,
there is no greater joy than hearing the voice of our Lord.
(2) The Word Came in the Wilderness
(a) Second, I am drawn by the place where the Word
of God came—“the wilderness.”
(i)
The Greek
word “ἐρήμῳ” erēmos) means “a desert” or “a desolate place.” This barren setting is not accidental; it
powerfully underscores John’s message. While
the grand highways of Rome displayed imperial power, John stood in the barren
wilderness to proclaim a greater kingdom—the Kingdom of God (Internet).
·
His ministry
fulfilled Scripture: “John came preaching in the wilderness of Judea” (Mt.
3:1). Yet it also symbolized a
separation from the corruption of Jerusalem’s priesthood. The crowds who left the city to seek John show
that genuine repentance sometimes requires leaving the familiar centers of
culture and religion in order to encounter God afresh (Internet).
-
In Luke 3:2,
the high priests Annas and Caiaphas represent this spiritual corruption. Annas,
the former high priest, persecuted Jesus and His followers, while Caiaphas, his
son-in-law, plotted Jesus’ crucifixion. Amid such religious decay, God’s voice
was not heard in the temple—but in the wilderness (Internet).
n And yet, paradoxically, Scripture teaches that
the wilderness is often the very place where God’s presence and provision
abound. As one reflection beautifully
states: “In Scripture, a ‘desert’ (érēmos) is ironically also where God richly
grants His presence and provision to those who seek Him. The limitless Lord
shows Himself strong in the ‘limiting’ (difficult) scenes of life” (Internet).
(b) The wilderness is where God reveals His strength
in our weakness. It is there we learn
that “man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the
mouth of the LORD” (Deut. 8:3). Therefore,
we must be willing—sometimes even intentionally—to enter the wilderness.
(i)
It is there,
before God’s holy presence, that we bow low, listen to His gentle voice, and
are transformed. In the solitude and
stillness of the wilderness, our souls are renewed and made alive again.
·
There, we
drink deeply from the streams of living water that flow from Jesus, our Rock (Jn.
7:38). There, we are filled afresh with
the Holy Spirit. There, we discover that even the wilderness can become a place
of joy.
(3) The Word Came as a Call
(a) Finally, the word that came to John was not
merely a word of comfort—it was a word of calling.
(i)
Luke 3:4
quotes Isaiah 40:3: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way
for the Lord, make straight paths for Him.’”
·
John’s
divine calling was to prepare the way for the coming of the Lord by proclaiming
a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins (Lk. 3:3). His mission was to ready God’s people for
salvation through repentance and renewal.
-
Thus, John
preached in the wilderness of Judea: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is
near!” (Mt. 3:1–2)
(b) When I meditate on this calling of John the
Baptist, I am reminded of how the Lord called me as well.
(i)
During the
1987 college retreat of Victory Presbyterian Church, through the late Pastor Young-ik
Kim’s sermon on John 6:1–15, the Lord spoke to my heart and gave me a mission.
·
That calling
remains: to meditate on His living Word day and night, and to share it with
others.
-
Unstoppable
and unending calling—to meditate on His living Word day and night, and to share
it with others. This is my calling.
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