“ True Believers Like Wheat ” and “ The Wicked Like Chaff ” “John answered them all, ‘I baptize you with water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire’” (Luke 3:16–17). Let us meditate on this passage and receive its spiritual lessons: (1) When the people, who had long awaited the coming of the Messiah, began to wonder in their hearts whether John the Baptist might be the Messiah (Luke 3:15, Modern Translation ), John testified clearly that he was not the Messiah, but that the One coming after him was. (a) John 1:8 says: “He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light” ( Modern Translation : “He was not the light himself but came only to bear witness to the light”). (i) The purp...
마치 어미 독수리처럼 ... 하나님께서는 그가 택하신 자기 백성을 광야에서 만나시고 호위하시며 보호하시며 자기의 눈동자 같이 지키십니다 . 그리고 하나님께서는 자기 백성인 우리를 마치 어미 독수리가 자기의 보금자리를 어지럽게 하듯이 우리의 안락한 보금자리를 어지럽게 하십니다 . 마치 어미 독수리가 보금자리에서 떨어진 자기 새끼 독수리 위에 너풀거리다가 자신의 날개를 펴서 새끼를 받아 업는 것 같이 하나님께서는 안락한 보금자리에서 떨어진 우리를 위에서 지켜 보시다가 우리가 땅바닥에 떨어지기 전에 날개를 펴시사 우리를 받으시고 업으십니다 . 하나님은 우리와 함께 하시고 홀로 우리를 인도하십니다 ( 신명기 32:9-12).