Why God?
All Things Are From God
The Bible says that God created the
heaven and the earth. Yes, it is true
that God created the heaven and
earth, but there are rarely people who
believe that all the great and small
things that happen to them are
through God. The Bible says that God
created the light, the darkness, agony,
joy, and sadness. The Bible records
that all of these things were made
through God.
And without him was not any
thing made that was made.
There is nothing that is done that is
not through God. Before, I would often
become upset and angry at other
people, and think, "This problem happened
because that brother did not do
good things. Things are difficult because
of that sister." But even if that
brother was trying to hurt me, God
could have changed it to not be so. On
the other hand, even if a brother was
trying to help me, I could not be helped
unless God helps me.
After coming
to know this, the way I saw things
and people completely changed.
Joseph must have felt wronged
when he was sold by his brothers to
become a servant in the house of Potiphar
in Egypt. Joseph then began to
receive a certain amount of recognition
there and his life began to find
security. However, he ended up going
to prison through the scheming of Potiphar's
wife. Joseph may have
thought, "God, I feel so wronged!"
But later on, after becoming the governor
of Egypt, Joseph came to know,
"Ah, the reason for God sending me
to prison was a part of the process for
gaining all this."
Joseph and Apostle Paul were both
in prison. Perhaps Joseph complained,
but Apostle Paul did not. When Paul
and Silas were beaten and locked in
prison, they awoke during the night
and were neither sad nor afraid, but
praised God and prayed. It was because
they believed with assurance
that all things are done through God.
Because Paul knew precisely that such
things could not happen without God,
Paul praised God and thanked God.
Then an earthquake opened the prison
gates and the prison became a
place where they preached the gospel.
We could clearly see how God
was accomplishing His will.
Did Jesus Also Not Know?
As I read, All things were made by
him; and without him was not any
thing made that was made, in the Bible,
I came to know that things do not
happen through or because of a certain
person or people, but through God.
Nay, in all these things we are
more than conquerors, through him
that loved us. (Romans 3:27) What it
says before this verse is, "For the Lord
we are killed all the day long; we are
accounted as sheep for the slaughter."
It means that they face hardships.
We are killed all the day long; we
are accounted as sheep for the
slaughter. Nay, in all these things we
are more than conquerors through
him that loved us. (Romans 8:36-37)
"Yes, then even for this problem,
we are more than conquerors through the Lord! It will not be a
problem! It will go well if God helps!"
My heart became truly free from
my problems.
"God allowed this."
Why Did He Create Darkness?
In the Bible, God created the light
and He created the darkness. Why did
God create darkness?
There are levels in spiritual life.
There are people who have themselves
as the center, trusting themselves and
following their own thoughts, and
there are those who have gone beyond
this to deny themselves and to be
free from their thoughts.
Although I was young when I received
salvation, I knew precisely that
I was evil and filthy.
"I am like a broken car. If there is
something I like, I continue to roll in
that direction even though I step on
the brakes. If there is something I want,
my heart continually goes there even
though I steer in another direction."
If a car continues to move even
though I step on the brakes and goes
in a direction different from the way I
have steered, that car is bound to get
into an accident.
I came to precisely
know, "If I believe my thoughts and
follow my heart, I will surely be destroyed."
From that day on, thoughts
did arise, but I did not believe those
thoughts.
"I should not follow these thoughts
or I will be ruined."
When I came to precisely know
this, I could not follow my thoughts.
When I became freed from my
thoughts, the guidance of God precisely
appeared and led me.
It is extremely difficult to enter the
level of denying ourselves. Therefore,
God makes darkness enter our lives so
that we will deny ourselves.
In Luke chapter 15, the younger
son takes the father's wealth to a far
away country and lives riotously.
While he had money and a full stomach,
he did not realize his wrongdoings
nor return to the father. To let
him know of his truly evil, filthy, and
dirty image, God gave him hunger,
pain, and darkness.
In terms of pictures,
the image of the prodigal son in
the pig pen is an extremely dark and
frustrating image, while the state of
the prodigal son returning to the
father's home to wear good clothes
and eat the fatted calf is a shining,
beautiful image.
I Thank God that He
Made Me Fail
God gives us pain. He gives us suffering.
He gives us sadness. Through
this, He leads us to deny ourselves. Because
we do not know ourselves well,
we think we live well through our intelligence
and greatness.
That is why
God uses darkness. Whether it be a
car accident, cancer, divorce, or failure
in business, God works through using
such things.
When people eat and live well,
they think that this is due to their own
greatness and intelligence, making
them uplift their own hearts. Therefore,
they only accept the Word of
God when it fits their heart and do
not when it does not fit. They are the
kings, they are the lords, and because
they believe themselves, they can only
live this way.
Some people say that
they cannot break their hearts when
they are told to. When some people
are told to believe that their sins are
washed away, they say that they understand
what it means, but they cannot
believe it.
It is because they have
themselves as their master. That is why
God made the darkness.
Like the lady who sold apples, like
the company president I just mentioned,
like the man with the infirmity
for 38 years in the Bible, like the thief
at the cross, and like the woman taken
in adultery, people who meet
hardships and know that they are
ruined are unable to believe in themselves.
People begin to change from
the time they become unable to believe
themselves. When people refuse
the Word of God because it does not
fit their thoughts and they live selfcentered
lives, God gives them difficulties
and pain.
But when people
crumble down through this, God begins
to work and people live truly precious,
blessed lives.
All things were made by him; and
without him was not any thing made
that was made. (John 1:3)
If God gives you agony, you have to
know, "This is not because of some
person, but it is from God," and know
the fact that it was through God.
We Need the Wisdom
to Accept that It Was
from God
One day God showed me my image
and I came to know precisely
what an evil, dirty, and pitiful human
being I was. From then on, it was not
me at work but Jesus was living and
working inside me. I was so joyful,
thankful, and peaceful.
God did not only create the light.
He did not only create happiness and
joy. He also created pain, suffering,
sadness, and agony, and gives some
people sadness and some people pain.
Through this, God leads us to come
before God to receive grace.
We are people who believe in God.
No matter what it is, you must throw
away what you see with your eyes
that say, "If I do this, it will go well. If I
do this, I will succeed," and you must
believe that all the things you go
through is from God.
If God allowed
you to be wronged, allowed you pain,
allowed you sadness, and allowed you
to go through agony, He does not do
so without a reason. God makes us realize
what pitiful people we are
through these things.
Sometimes, you
are mocked for not having one dollar,
and there are times you cannot do
what you need to do for the lack of a
few dollars. While going through such
heartaches, God humbles our hearts
more and more in order to lead us
into having faith in God.
There is nothing in this world that
is not made through God.
"And without him was not any
thing made that was made."
Whatever it is, we need the wisdom
to know that it is given from
God.
When you are in pain through
pain God gives you, and when you receive
hunger and spite that is given to
you, this becomes an opportunity for
you to receive the grace of God. As
these things pass, we come to know
that He is leading us to live the life of
having our hearts one with His.