To One of These Little Ones

I am grateful to speak to you in this precious service today. In the text of today's Gospel, “Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41 Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever welcomes a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. 42 And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward.”

A similar statement is found in Matthew 25. When the Son of Man comes with all the angels in his glory, he will sit on the throne of his glory, gathering all the nations in front of him and separating them from each other, as shepherds separate sheep from goats. And then the king shall be blessed by those on the right hand, and come and inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the founding. He said that he said that when he was dressed and cared for when he was sick, he came and watched when he was locked in prison. In the medieval church, this was important because it was called six good works.

Then the righteous replied, "Lord, when did we see the Lord hungry and serve the food, and let him drink after seeing him thirsty? I asked if I had stopped. Then the king replied, "I tell you the truth, what you have done to one of the least of my brothers here is what you have done to me."

Jesus said that what we did to one of the least of our brothers was to Jesus. Reformer Martin Luther said in a sermon: “Matthew 25 said that whatever you did to man, you did to me. So God fused the two commandments together so that there was only one act and only one love. Whatever we have done for our neighbors by preaching, teaching, dressing, and providing food is all done to Christ Himself.”

Luther then explained Jesus' words like this: “If you want to love me, and if you want to do what I rejoice, help the poor, do it by doing everything you want others to do to you. . . . Then you truly and completely love me. But be careful not to forget about me. I will be close enough to you. I will be in every poor person who needs your help and teaching. I myself will be in that person.” Luther said again in another sermon: “There [in a troubled and needy neighbor] we must find God and love God. In other words, whenever we want to serve God and do good to God, we must serve our neighbors and do good to him. So the commandment to love God is fully and completely included in the commandment to love our neighbor.... For this reason, he took the image of God and put on the image of a servant to direct our love for him to the bottom of the earth and connect our love for him to our neighbor. But we leave our neighbors here and stare at heaven and pretend to serve him greatly with great love toward God.”

Luther also said in a book called “On the Freedom of Christian,” “As our Heavenly Father has come to help us freely in Christ, we too must freely help our neighbors through our bodies and their actions. And each person must be a Christ to the other person. This is so that we can become Christ to each other and make Christ dwell in all people equally, that is, we are truly Christians.” Also, Luther said, "I have to be a Christ to my neighbor, and as Christ is for me, I must be for him."

Who needs a bowl of cold water around us right now? We are now living in a welfare state. There is a system called basic living allowance, and if you combine your livelihood salary, housing salary, and medical salary, you will be paid one million won each month. If you are a family of four with children attending high school, you will be paid about 3 million won per month if you combine your livelihood, housing, medical and educational benefits. Now our society is a society where anyone can live.

But our young people call our country Hell Joseon and hellish Joseon. There was a saying, "three-po generation(‘po’ stands for giving up)." It means the generation who gave up dating, marriage, and childbirth. Then there was a saying, "Five-po generation." In addition to these three, it means that the generation has given up on buying a house and relationships. Then there was a saying, "Seven-po generations." In addition to these five, the generation has given up their dreams and hopes. Now we are called the generation N for giving up N.

Isn't it strange that even when the GNP per capita was less than $100, people got married and had children, and the GNP per capita was 30,000 dollars, but they couldn't get married and have children?

Last year, 303,054 babies were born. From January to March this year, the number of births decreased by 11% compared to last year. At this rate, the number of babies born this year will be around 270,000 (303,054 ×0.89 = about 269,718). In 1971, 1.02 million babies were born. It's down by almost a quarter from then. The estimated number of births for this year is approximately 270,000, plus 82.7 years of life expectancy in Korea is about 22 million (approximately 269,718 82 82.7 = 22,305,684). South Korea's population is about 52 million on the surface, but it has actually entered the era of 22 million.

According to the announcement of the National Assembly's Legislative Survey, the population of South Korea will be 10 million in 2136, about 100 years later, and 1 million in 2256, about 200 years later. If only 1 million people live in Korea, where it is neither hot nor cold, a lot of other people will move. There will be a national migration. Our descendants will remain a minority and disappear from the historical arena. According to Professor David Coleman, a professor of demography at Oxford University, in the 2300's, our country will disappear due to lack of population. It is said that Korea will be the first country in the world to disappear due to lack of population. In order to maintain Korea's current population of 58.4 million, more than 620,000 children must be born each year (approximately 58.4 million ÷ life expectancy 82.7 years old = about 626,844 people). Now less than half are not born.

So far, many governments of South Korea have tried hard to increase the number of births. However, those efforts did not work. The number of children born in 2016 was 406,243, 357,771 in 2017, 326,822 in 2018, 303,054 in 2019, and 270,000 expected this year. Statistics show that the number of births in the top 40% of households is 2.225 times higher than the number of births in the bottom 40%. Efforts such as paying childbirth incentives, paying child allowances, supporting kindergarten fees, supporting educational expenses, etc. were only to help those who live well to get married and have babies. They are those who can marry and have a baby without this support. The number of births can increase if you don't have enough money to help those who can't get married or have babies.

Looking at the population distribution by age group in Korea, this is the golden time to solve the low birth rate problem. This is because there are currently 726 million people in their 30s who have babies, 20.95 million people in their 20s who will have babies in the next 10 years, and 482 million people in their teens, or less than 4 million. It may not be possible to recover the population without special measures immediately.

These days, there is an active discussion of basic income in our society. I think it is necessary to introduce a basic income system to solve the problem of low birthrates. I am asking all the people to pay basic taxes and be given basic income. According to a former Minister of Health and Welfare, the government can pay 500,000 won a month if we distribute it to the entire nation with the nation's welfare budget and the welfare budget that will be increased. It's to collect basic taxes on all citizens and add 400,000 won to the welfare budget of the central and local governments, and pay most of them more basic income than they pay the basic taxes.

There will have to be a national debate on how much to impose the basic tax. If basic tax is charged according to income but averages 400,000 won per person per month, basic income can be paid 800,000 won per person per month. If the basic tax is imposed on an average of 600,000 won per person per month, you will be able to pay a basic income of 1 million won per person per month. One million won is the amount currently paid to those who receive basic living expenses.

To be more specific, the basic tax could be imposed around 15% for single-person households, around 25% for single-person households, around 35% for 3-person households, and around 40% for 4-person households. It would be good to charge a basic tax of 5% or less in the section of monthly income of 10 million or more. In terms of four-person households, 2 million won would be beneficial for those with a monthly income of 5 million won because they pay 2 million won as a basic tax and 4 million won as a basic income. If you earn 10 million won per month, you will pay 4 million won as a basic tax and 4 million won as a basic income, so there will be no loss. Those with a monthly income of 20 million won will lose 500,000 won because they pay 4.5 million won as the basic tax and receive 4 million won as the basic income. However, if the basic income system is introduced, it is expected that there will be an economic growth effect of about 5%, so the monthly income will increase to 21 million won, so there will actually be a profit of 500,000 won.

Eventually, no one will lose money. Not all citizens receive basic taxes and basic income. Those who have more basic income to receive than the basic tax to calculate the basic tax and basic income deposit the difference into the personal account, and those who pay more than the basic income to be paid the basic tax to pay You can pay the basic tax together. The IRS understands the income of the people, from those who receive salaries to those who are self-employed, so there will be no problems in doing this.

If the government pays 800,000 won or 1 million won per month to all citizens, it will pay 3.2 million won or 4 million won per month to all four families. That way, young people who want to get married and have children will be able to get married and have children. The problem of low birth rate will be solved, and our country will not be extinct because of the lack of population. We should not let this precious country, where our predecessors sacrificed their lives to restore the country, die out of population.

The Korean business community has argued for the flexibility of the labor market. It is to ask for freedom to increase and decrease employment. That would increase investments and increase jobs. That's right. If the labor market is stiff as it is now and once it is difficult to hire and fire, companies will hesitate to invest and hire. However, the labor community argues that the flexibility of the labor market is unacceptable because it threatens workers' right to live. This is also true in our country because it is difficult to find another job once fired from a job. If the basic income system is introduced, the basic income will not threaten the right to survive, making the labor market more flexible. And the economy will be boosted by increased investment and employment. It will be a good society to do business. On the other hand, it will be a good working society. If you paid the basic income, who would go to a job that was overusing power? The bossy company will have no choice but to disappear.

Now, many young people who have graduated from college are trying to be civil servants. This is because becoming a public servant solves the problem of living until you die. Recall the past. Even after leaving high school, I was able to become a civil servant. If the basic income system is introduced, our young people will be able to fulfill their dreams free from concerns about their livelihood. It will be a society full of freedom not only for young people, but also for all people to do and do what they want to do. Also, if the basic income system is introduced, domestic demand will increase and the economy will grow.

Criticism of basic income is also formidable. First, the basic income system is criticized as communism. Communism in the past insisted on sharing property. Modern communism claims the sharing of means of production, such as land and factories. The basic income theory does not claim the sharing of property nor the sharing of means of production. Secondly, the basic income system will repeat the failure of communism. Communism is often cited as a problem as "a society without freedom" and "a society where the economy is depressed." The basic income society will be a society full of freedom for all citizens to do what they want to do. Also, domestic demand will pick up and the economy will be revitalized.

Third, people's willingness to work will disappear and they will try to play and eat. Rather, the current basic living supply and demand system is detracting from labor. Currently, if the person who receives the basic living allowance earns money, the state will repay in full. So they try not to work. Under the basic income system, if you work, only 15 percent of the basic tax for single-person households will be paid by the state, and the remaining 85 percent will be available to you. Fourth, the overwhelming majority in Switzerland (23.1:76.9) shows that something is wrong with this system. Scholars explain why it was rejected.

First, if the basic income system was introduced only in Switzerland, the Swiss people were concerned that the immigration would increase in neighboring countries. Second, existing welfare beneficiaries were concerned that their welfare benefits would decrease if the money to be paid to them was paid to all citizens. Third, the people who pursued the basic income system did not offer measures to raise funds, so the people could not know how much more taxes they should pay. But first, in our country, the government will have no choice but to allow immigration. Second, the proposal presented here does not harm existing welfare recipients. Third, here we have a specific proposal for funding.

If the basic income system is introduced, the Korean church will be greatly revived. The number of births in the church will increase, and the elementary and secondary schools will revive, which will lead to the revival of the church. If there are 200 members, only the tithe of basic income will be 20 million won per month. Pastors of the pioneering and non-self-reliant churches will be able to devote themselves to pastoral care, freeing them from concerns about their livelihoods. Missionaries will be able to do their best without worrying about the cost of the mission.

Martin Luther said that God's word for growth and prosperity is more than command. Luther said, “Be fruitful and multiply” means, “It is not our authority to do more than command, that is, to interfere with or ignore it as God's work.” Luther said again. “Priests, monks, and nuns should abandon their vows if they find that God's command to produce and reproduce seeds is powerful within them. They are not authorized by any authority, law or order or vow to prevent this which God has created in them." Luther said that anyone who stays single cannot avoid indulgence and promiscuity. He also said that anyone who avoids marriage does not do God's will, but does Satan's will.

Luther said that God is the founder of marriage, and Satan is the enemy of marriage. Satan said he was trying not to marry and to break the married family. Luther said that it is the most sublime and most precious thing in the world to marry and have children and raise them as children of God. Luther said, “To make the greatest good in marriage, to make all suffering and effort worthwhile, is God's permission to give offspring and command to nurture them to worship and serve God. This is the most sublime and most precious thing in the world. For God cannot have anything more important than the salvation of the soul.”

When the generations who have married and have children and have a happy family have seen, it seems that the generations who cannot marry or have children and raise them are the “little people” Jesus said.