밥상 공동체, 나그네 공동체

Ten years ago, I had the opportunity to live and serve in a mission house in Strathfield with young people. Some of them are part of our church today. We shared meals, lived together, and held family gatherings every Wednesday evening. Groups and teams from our church would often meet here, making it a hub for our community. Most discussions, concerns, and initiatives started in this place.

People from different walks of life lived together, including those working, attending university, or studying theology. Despite occasional clashes due to diverse habits, we all grew and refined ourselves in the process.

If given the chance, I would love to live with young people again, though I'm not sure if they would enjoy it. I also dream of creating a shared house where several families live together. Although challenges are inevitable, I'm eager to try because of my desire to replicate the early church community as depicted in the New Testament.

If we consider such a community to be unrealistic or idealistic, then we would have to view the Bible as a book filled with impossible tales. But we know that's not the case.

Since my college days, I have lived in places like mission houses. I lived with older and younger siblings in a place called "Haksa" run by the SFC missionary organisation. In the 1950s, American missionaries built a house near the university which later became a dormitory called the Christian Student Center, accommodating 30-40 people. From the 1980s, we had two people per room, and the rooftop served as a worship hall.

We held daily early morning prayer meetings, where each person would share their reflections on one Bible chapter. This was more like sharing personal insights than preaching. College students, graduate students, and Ph.D. candidates lived together here. Many prominent individuals emerged from this community, including well-known pastors, Nobel Peace Prize nominees, professors, business leaders, and missionaries, all serving as exemplary Christians in various fields.

This place allowed me to deeply encounter God and set the direction for my life. Even now, I fondly reminisce about my time there.

One day, we gathered at 5 AM for the early morning prayer meeting. Sleepily, we made our way to the rooftop worship hall. After finishing our prayers, we stepped outside and saw the school's orchard and rice fields. The serene scene at dawn was deeply moving. I confessed, "Lord, I wish this dawn could last forever. I hope the world doesn't become sinful again when the sun rises, and this sinless dawn remains. Look at the dew-covered roses under the streetlights; they're so beautiful. When the world brightens, people will trample these flowers, and the dew will vanish. Please, let this dawn last. I want to spend this time alone with You. I am so content right now." Tears streaming down my face, I vividly remember welcoming that quiet moment.

We sang hymn 442, "On the Dew-Covered Roses":

After one early morning prayer meeting, everyone went back to their rooms to catch some more sleep. That sleep is always so sweet. But I was so content in that spot that I laid down right there. Morning passed, and I just wanted to stay. I didn't want to lose that feeling by moving, so I remained still. My 9 AM classes and other lessons all passed by. I didn't want to break that precious moment.

One morning, the students in the dormitory quickly ate breakfast and went to school. Next to the dormitory was a large tree with branches that were big enough to sit on. I would play my guitar and sing hymns from up there. I would wave to those heading to school and tell them to have a good day, but I would stay there playing guitar and having fun, even skipping class sometimes. I enjoyed singing and praising God so much. However, this doesn't mean that I didn't study. I did well in college and even got a job during the IMF crisis, so I did my best.

This dormitory was a community where young people who were poor, wanted to study but didn't have support, and those who came from rural areas gathered. It was a place for the weak. However, when they heard the word and the gospel, there was more synergy in their lives than just sharing burdens. It became the center of various missionary organizations and joint activities, and it was a place where serving churches shared information and content with each other, making them one. Living together became a training ground for personal growth, and praying and studying the Bible together helped them grow in faith. I want to experience this kind of community again, where we strive for God together.

Boaz invites Ruth into his community. He tells her to not go to other fields and to only pick grain in his field, and he will instruct other young workers not to touch her. This is an amazing proposal. Ruth knows that she cannot become a member of the Jewish community, but Boaz breaks down that barrier. It is the moment he accepts her as his family. That's not all. After verse 14, it seems to be lunchtime. Boaz tells Ruth to come and sit with the workers and eat bread dipped in vinegar and roasted grain. He invited her to the community meal. Vinegar was like seasoning at the time, and the Jewish meal culture was different from the Western style with individual plates. People sat around a large plate of food and ate it together. They would take a piece of bread and dip it into the plate to eat. Sometimes, the host would put food into the guest's mouth, which was a sign of the utmost respect. It was a culture of community.

Boaz has invited Ruth to join his community at the dinner table and accepted her as part of the family. Everyone, regardless of their status, gender, or ethnicity, sits together and shares a meal. This is a beautiful sight and Ruth is overwhelmed with gratitude for the kindness shown to her. This is an example of how heaven can be experienced in our everyday lives, as we live a life that reveals heaven through our daily activities.

Galatians 3:28 says that in Christ, there is no distinction between Jews or Gentiles, slaves or free, or men and women. Luke 17:21 says that the kingdom of God is within us and not a place we go after death. Therefore, we can experience heaven on earth by living a life that reflects the unity and love of Christ. We can find heaven in serving others in our homes, on our farms, and in our churches, creating a community that shows no discrimination or prejudice.

Boaz, who is David's great-grandfather, created a community that accepted and cared for everyone, including the poor and oppressed. David later became the king, and the people who gathered around him in his exile became key players in his kingdom. This shows how the Holy Spirit can transform a community where discrimination once existed into a place of unity and equality.

In Acts 6, the church faced difficulty due to the issue of distribution of resources. However, instead of turning away the poor and needy, the church embraced them and created a community where everyone belonged. This brought joy to everyone and allowed the church to grow.

Jesus also embraced sinners and tax collectors at the dinner table, creating a community where everyone was welcome, regardless of their social status. However, the Pharisees only saw this as an opportunity to judge and condemn. We should strive to create a community like Jesus did, a community that reflects the love and unity of heaven.

Dear beloved congregation! We bless the HOF community to become a heavenly community, where we become one with the oppressed, the unjustly treated, and the downtrodden, as well as with sinners and the suffering. Let us create a community where we share meals together and embrace each other's pain, praying with each other and crying and laughing together with Jesus. When we become one community, whatever we pray for, God will answer. Every week, at the community gatherings, we will witness testimonies of restored lives, released burdens, and forgiveness. We bless the community to become a place overflowing with these testimonies. Let us dream of such a community and love each other with that hope. Just as Boaz showed grace to Ruth, we too can share grace with our neighbours, so that God's blessings overflow within them and us.

Lastly, I want to meditate on one more thing. Why did Boaz take care of and look back at this foreign woman whom no one else paid attention to? It is because he knew his identity. Though he owned the land, he knew that it belonged to God, and that he was merely a steward. He knew that his identity was not to live for ownership, but to live a life revealing God's kingdom through serving the weak, the poor, and the neighbours.

Dear congregation, we are sojourners in this land. While we hope for heaven, we love and serve those who do not have that hope. When the Lord calls, we leave everything behind and go to Him. Our life on this earth is like playing pretend on a playground, with one pretending to be the president, another the minister, and another the secretary. But when evening comes and our mother calls us home, we leave everything behind because that playground was just a make-believe world. Our true home is where we can eat, laugh, and rest with our family.