“Intimacy or Sweetness?” ~ ✨
“Moving fast” and “networking” are the mainstream values of today, encouraging people to prefer building relationships with those who benefit them. The primary goal of first-generation social media ‘Link’ was to establish networks between people to achieve personal or organizational gains. The Chinese value of “courtesy demands reciprocity” is now practiced throughout the global village. The world of networks is the world of relationships. In other words, without a network, there are no relationships. The traditional system of “steadily strengthening over time” is already outdated!
Within the framework of the global village, those who move quickly in the network have the strongest connections and the most solutions. Under the profit-driven climate, conversations are about profit, not the heart. If the saying “The friendship between gentlemen appears indifferent but is pure like water; the friendship between petty men is sweet like wine” were applied today, to be a gentleman would mean no business; to act quickly would mean no good people involved. Intimacy and sweetness intertwine; closeness becomes sweet familiarity.
“The sweetness of petty men” can be fatal, for “the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil” (1 Timothy 6:10). In these declining times obsessed with wealth accumulation, with human hearts no longer what they were, can we, as believers in Christ—children of God—ride the waves and press forward courageously in the true faith? The answer lies in whether we worship God in spirit and truth (John 4:24). God is spirit, and He values a truthful heart. When the children of God gather together, they should interact with spiritual honesty, treat each other humbly, unite as one, and shine as a witness for Christ in the darkness.
Christ is the Saviour of the world and the head of the church (Ephesians 5:23). Christ is the mediator between God and man, and through Him, man can establish an intimate relationship with God, allowing him to enjoy a joy as sweet as honey (Romans 8:9-15). Believers must follow Christ’s example, having the same attitude as He had. The Holy Spirit permeates all things; the spiritual person sees through all things. But who can know the mind of Christ? (1 Corinthians 2:10 & 15)
The church must be built on the rock, to be the light and salt in the last days, and this rock is Christ (Matthew 16:18). If the church also becomes a ‘Link’ following the declining worldly trends, if church members turn from intimacy to mere sweet familiarity, and from honesty to falsehood, then the earth would return to being “formless and empty, with darkness over the surface of the deep,” and God’s judgment would come.
The Bible warns believers that seeking profit is selfishness; self-interest is sin (James 4:17). The church does not belong to Link, nor to Instagram; she belongs only to Christ. Anyone who believes can become a member of “righteousness”; the membership fee is “a spirit of truth”; the membership is “permanent”; the service provided is “building a relationship with God”; and the aspiration is “through faith, hope, and love, to build an intimate and sweet relationship with God in eternity.”
Therefore, we must all be vigilant, maintain a clear conscience, hold firmly to the mystery of the truth, and become spiritual ‘Link’ members, acting as God’s ‘online’ bridge to all people for the sake of love and righteousness. Rejoice!
Finally, I conclude with a poem👇🏻
“As the ‘Heart’ Desires” ✨
Greed for money, the root of all evil
Envy, the source of murder
From where does sin come
Desire + Heart, and it arrives
Selfishness and public good rarely unite
Lust and righteousness struggle to combine
Sin, the life-destroying scourge
The Lamb sacrificed for me.
To remove sin
First rid desire
To rid desires
Start from the heart.
When the heart becomes loyal
Loyalty is based on righteousness.
Following righteousness all my life
Rejoice!
✨✨💖 ~
en yan hua fang 