ルカによる福音書11:27-28 Luke 11:27-28,

イエスがこれらのことを話しておられると、ある女が群衆の中から声高らかに言った。「なんと幸いなことでしょう、あなたを宿した胎、あなたが吸った乳房は。」 しかし、イエスは言われた。「むしろ、幸いなのは神の言葉を聞き、それを守る人である。」　　　　　　　（ルカ11:27-28）

キリストがおっしゃった「神の言葉を聞き、それを守る人」とは、どのような人のことでしょうか？「守る」と翻訳されているフュラッソーというギリシャ語の動詞は、神の律法を「守る」と言うときに用いられる言葉です。(マタイ19:20、ルカ18:21、ローマ2:26)。しかし、キリストがファリサイ派や律法学者のように文字どおりに神の律法を守るという意味で「神の言葉を守る人」が幸いであるとおっしゃったとすれば、それはファリサイ派や律法学者に反対されたキリストの教えそのものと矛盾することになります。ですから、ファリサイ派や律法学者のような意味で言っておられるはずはありません。したがって、「神の言葉を守る」とは、文字どおりに神の律法を守るという意味ではなく、神様に人格的に信頼して従うという意味なのでしょう。

キリストはヨハネによる福音書の12章47節と48節で次のように語っておられます。「わたしの言葉を聞いて、それを守らない者がいても、わたしはその者を裁かない。わたしは、世を裁くためではなく、世を救うために来たからである。わたしを拒み、わたしの言葉を受け入れない者に対しては、裁くものがある。わたしの語った言葉が、終わりの日にその者を裁く。」

したがって、このヨハネによる福音書の御言葉からも「神の言葉を聞き、それを守る」とは、命令を受けた奴隷のように文字どおり神の言葉を守ることではなく、 「神の言葉を聞いて信じて従う」という自発的に神様に従うことであるのがわかります。この自発的に従うことは、私たちが神の言葉を聞くときに、聖霊が私たちの心に働いてくださることによって起こります。このことを宗教改革者のカルヴァンは、聖霊が「我々の貪りの悪を絶えず溶かしまた焼き尽くして、心に神への愛と敬虔の精進を燃え上がらせる」(『キリスト教綱要』3篇1章3)と教えています。このように考えていきますと、「神の言葉を聞き、それを守る」とは、「神の言葉を聞いて信じ、聖霊に満たされて、神を愛して神に従う」ということだと言えるでしょう。

（7月13日の説教より）

Rev. HIRATA Masuo, who laid the foundation for this Shiki Kita Presbyterian Church through his evangelistic work, often said, “The church is a mysterious organisation.” This is well expressed in the following passage from the weekly bulletin of the former Shiki Kita Mission Station.

There are many organisations in this world, but none is as mysterious as the Christian church. There are political organisations, schools, companies, sports teams, and various other clubs based on hobbies. All of these are centred on human interests or hobbies. Therefore, they constantly come together and break apart according to their own interests.
However, despite the fact that the church demands human sacrifice and has endured much persecution and oppression since its beginning, it is remarkable that it has become the largest organisation in the world today, with approximately 1.5 billion believers. Furthermore, the Roman Empire, which persecuted and oppressed Christianity, as well as the atheist communist regime, German Nazism, and Japan’s political system that deified the Emperor of Japan, have all perished. (Translated by MIYOSHI Akira.)

According to a report published in 2018 by the International Mission Centre of Tokyo Christian University, the number of Christians worldwide has continued to grow, reaching approximately 2.448 billion in 2016. Rev. HIRATA explains that the reason for the remarkable endurance and growth of the Christian church is that Christ himself, who was crucified and resurrected, is still alive as the head of the church. In other words, this means that the Christian church will continue to exist and grow as long as it is centred on Christ. Therefore, it also means that if the Christian church is centred on something other than Christ, such as a particular human being, it will become like any other organisation that repeatedly comes together and breaks apart. For this reason, while the Christian church cares for the souls of its members, but at the same time, it is careful not to allow human elements to become too strong within the church.

The Apostle Paul clearly states in 2 Corinthians 5:16, “From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer.” “According to the flesh” here means “from a human perspective.” This is likely a warning to the believers of the Corinthian church, which was facing various internal issues, not to judge people from a human perspective or be swayed by those who appear outwardly impressive. In the church we are not connected to each other by human perspectives, nor are we connected to Christ by human thoughts. Our connection with Christ is a spiritual bond based on faith in Christ, who died on the cross and rose again for us, and on following him. As stated in 2 Corinthians 5:15, “those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.” In other words, it is living through the love of Christ. The remarkable endurance and growth of the church find their driving force in such a loving communion with Christ.

In today’s Bible passage, Christ himself clearly teaches that communion with him is not human communion but communion through faith. As we read in verse 27, when Christ was teaching the people with authority, a woman raised her voice and said, “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts at which you nursed!” Moved deeply by the content and manner of Christ’s words, she could not help but exclaim in this way. Her words likely meant, “How blessed is your mother!” However, the use of “the womb that bore you” and “the breasts at which you nursed” instead of “your mother” adds a poetic beauty that conveys a sense of deep emotion. However, in response to this woman’s beautiful words about the blessedness of Mary, the mother of Christ, as recorded in verse 28, Christ said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

The meaning of Christ’s words here can be interpreted in two ways, depending on how one understands the nuance of the word “rather.” On the one hand, a scholar interprets this “rather” as not denying what the woman said but rather correcting it. That is, the meaning of Christ’s words is, “What you said is correct. Indeed, my mother Mary is a blessed woman who has received God’s blessing. However, the blessing Mary received was that she heard God’s words and kept them.” Indeed, when Mary heard the angel’s announcement that she would conceive the Son of God through the Holy Spirit, she responded, “Let it be to me according to your word,” accepting God’s word. Therefore, the interpretation that Jesus did not deny what the woman said but rather corrected it is a valid one.

On the other hand, another scholar understands the word “rather” as asserting the opposite of what the woman said. That is, it is not the “blood relationship” with Christ that is important, but the “faith relationship.” In this case, the meaning of Christ’s words would be, “What you said about the blood relationship between me and my mother is not important. Rather, the faith relationship of hearing God’s word and keeping it is what is important.” It is not easy to decide which of these two interpretations is correct. The Greek word “menūn” (μενοῦν), translated as “rather,” can also mean “on the contrary,” and an English translation (REB) translates it as “No.”

Therefore, I would like to consider the meaning of Christ’s words in this passage in relation to other passages in the Bible. According to Luke 2:41-51, when Christ was 12 years old, he went to the temple in Jerusalem with his mother Mary and his father Joseph for the Passover. At that time, he stayed behind in the temple without his parents’ permission and engaged in discussions with the scholars of the Old Testament, causing his parents great concern. When Mary said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress” (Luke 2:48), Christ replied, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49). “My Father’s house” refers to the temple, which is the house of God the Father in heaven. This story shows that Jesus valued his spiritual relationship with God the Father in heaven more than his blood relationship with his human family.

Additionally, according to Mark 3:31–35, while Jesus was teaching, his family sent someone to call him. When the messenger said, “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you” (Mark 3:32), Jesus replied with the puzzling words, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” (Mark 3:33). Then, looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother” (Mark 3:34-35). This story clearly shows that Jesus valued the spiritual relationship of “doing the will of God” more than blood relationship. Considering the messages in these other passages, it is appropriate to interpret today’s passage as Jesus teaching that “it is not blood relationship but spiritual relationship that are important.” Of course, God also taught us in the Ten Commandments given to Moses to “honour your father and mother.” The reason for honouring one’s father and mother is that one has been given life in this world through one’s father and mother. However, we must not forget that in the Bible, another reason for honouring one’s father and mother is that they are the ones who teach God’s word to their children.

Then, what kind of person is Christ referring to when he says, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”? The Greek verb “phülassō” (φυλάσσω), translated as “keep,” is used when referring to keeping God’s law (Matthew 19:20; Luke 18:21; Romans 2:26). However, if Christ meant that those who keep the word of God are blessed in the same sense that the Pharisees and scribes kept God’s law literally, then this would contradict Christ’s teaching itself, which rebuked the Pharisees and scribes. Therefore, He could not have meant it in the same sense as the Pharisees and scribes. Therefore, “keeping the word of God ” does not mean keeping God’s law literally, but rather trusting and following God personally.

Christ speaks as follows in John 12:47-48.

If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.

Therefore, from these words of the Gospel of John, we can see that “hearing the word of God and keeping it” does not mean keeping God’s words literally like a slave who has been commanded, but rather “hearing the word of God, believing it, and following it”—that is, voluntarily following God. This voluntary following occurs when we hear the word of God and the Holy Spirit works in our hearts. The Reformer John Calvin teaches that the Holy Spirit “is constantly employed in subduing and destroying the vices of our concupiscence, and inflaming our hearts with the love of God and piety” (Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 3, Chapter 1, Section 3). Considering this, “hearing the word of God and keeping it” can be said to mean “hearing the word of God, believing it, being filled with the Holy Spirit, and loving and following God.”

The work of the Holy Spirit sometimes brings about explosive and intense changes in a person’s life. However, it also quietly burns like charcoal fire that cannot be seen from a distance, inflaming and moving people. Therefore, we cannot judge a person who “hears the word of God and keep it” by outward appearances alone. What is important is whether the flame of faith and love is burning within them through the work of the Holy Spirit. And this depends on whether they have truly accepted God’s love through Christ. If one truly accepts God’s love through Christ with a humble heart, the love of God will continue to burn within them, enabling them to follow God. There are those who appear to be extremely active yet lack love of God. Conversely, there are those who seem quiet and inactive yet have a burning love of God.

A British female missionary named Amy Carmichael, who devoted her life to evangelism and social work in India, was a person who kept her love for Christ burning. She wrote a short passage about her new calling. This passage was written during a period when her faith deepened significantly in her life of following Christ. First, she confessed her experiences of disappointment as follows.

We have toiled for someone dear to us, but never knew it as toil. We have poured out stores of health never to be recovered, but did not know it, nor would we have cared if we had known it, so dearly did we love. And all our hope was that the one so cherished would become a minister to others. But it was not so. And then unwillingly we become aware of a strange unresponsiveness in the one for whom nothing had seemed too much to do, of a coldness that chilled, a hardness that pushed away as with hard hands the heart that had almost broken to save that life from destruction. (Amy Carmichael, If, Part 3, Section 5. Same below.)

And Amy Carmichael came to realise that the human joy and hope within her were fading, and the love in her heart was growing cold. At that moment, she recalled the words of an old Christian prayer as follows.

Deep unto deep, O Lord,
Crieth in me,
Gathering strength, I come,
Lord, unto Thee.
Jesus of Calvary,
Smitten for me, Ask what Thou wilt, but give
Love to me.

From this prayer, Amy Carmichael comes to realise anew that the hope and joy that are common in the world cannot be the source of love of Christ and neighbour. And she prays, “O Lord of Love and Lord of Pain, abound in me in love: Love through me, Love of God.” Just as in this prayer, surrendering one’s personality to Christ is the communion with Christ through faith. And when one surrenders one’s personality to Christ, the living Christ pours out God’s love through the Holy Spirit. Those who know this communion of love are blessed. For they are united with Christ through love and continue to receive God’s love through Christ. We desire to be filled with God’s love and to follow God’s word.