Isaiah 60:19 – 61:3 “God: The One Who Heals”

 

Isaiah prophesied before 750 B.C. that when Jesus Christ comes, His kingdom will come to preach good tidings to the poor, to heal the broken-hearted (Isaiah 61:1- ), and the Lord will be to you an everlasting light (Isaiah 60:19B).  I will read Isaiah 61:1B, “Because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; he has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.”  Today I pray the Holy Spirit speaks to your hearts as you receive the grace through this message.

 

First, this world is filled with wounded people.  As we live in the world, there is a time we are physically wounded through sickness and sometimes through car accidents.  Not only this, as we live in this rough world, sometimes we get hurt in our hearts, getting heartaches and suffer from it.  Seeing with spiritual eyes there are more people with wounds in their hearts than with physical wounds.  Is there anyone who does not get hurt in their hearts during their life time? Getting hurt could come from our own mistakes, or by someone elses, or it could be money related, or because of family relations.  When we are hurt physically we get treated.  If we neglect to get treated it could become a serious problem.  Physical wounds are easily treated since they can be seen, but the wounds of the heart are not so easy to treat.  Medicine can be used for outer wounds; however wounds of the heart are not healed by medicine or visits to the hospital.  If wounds of the heart get worse they can bring serious results; easy discouragement, pessimism, and mental disorders that could become criminal.  The disease of the body and wounds of the heart must be treated.

 

Secondly, then how do we treat the wounds in our hearts?  We have to take them to Jesus.  Physical diseases, mental diseases, all of them must be taken to Jesus.  It is the same in the Old Testament and the New Testament.  jPhysical problems.  For example in the Old Testament 2 Chronicles 16:12-13 says, “12And in the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa became diseased in his feet, and his malady was severe; yet in his disease he did not seek the LORD, but the physicians.  13So Asa rested with his fathers; he died in the forty-first year of his reign.”  And in 2 Kings 1:2 it says, “Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria, and was injured; so he sent messengers and said to them, "Go, inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury."” 

At the time, “Then he said to him, "Thus says the LORD: 'Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of His word?  Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.'"” (2 Kings 1:16), as it said he died.  As we see this, before we go to the doctor with our physical disease we must first ask God, and we are not to ask any other god either.  This does not mean ignore today’s hospitals. 
kWounds of the heart.  Jesus is our healer Who heals the wounds of our hearts and minds.  Exodus 15:26B says, “For I am the LORD who heals you.”  Malachi 4:2A says, “But to you who fear My name the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings.”  (Ref. Matthew 9:20). 

Look here, the heart of Zacchaeus, the chief tax collector, who was despised by the people was wounded in his heart, but as soon as he met Jesus his heart was treated (Luke 19:1-10).  In John Chapter 8, when the woman, who was caught in adultery by the scribes and Pharisees, was brought to Jesus for punishment she was ashamed and wounded in her heart.  But with Jesus’ answer, full of love and wisdom, the shame and wounds in her were healed (treated).  In John 4:7, the Samaritan woman at the well, who was not even treated like a human being, as she met and talked with Jesus was healed.  And Lazarus who was dead was raised from the dead (John 11:1-44).  Beloved saints.  Let’s take all the diseases to Jesus, whether they are physical wound or wounds in the heart.  I believe the consolation from the Lord will heal all our painful wounds.  The Lord says, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  38 "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."” as recorded in John 7:37B-38.  “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.”  We must take all our wounds and pain to Jesus.

 

Thirdly, after treatment we are restored to health.  When health is restored, energy comes back, so a person wants to go to work.  Jesus gave us liberty from disease of death from sin and our wounded hearts and minds by carrying the cross.  We received new life through salvation.  We were saved by the grace of the Lord and received new vitality by the prompting of the Holy Spirit.  I believe as I am saved by the grace of God I seek others to give help and encouragement to them in the name of our Lord.  For example, let’s look at St. Paul.  When he was Saul, he was also a sick soul.  He was the incarnation of evil whose job was killing, under the name of God.  After he met Jesus Christ he was a new person.  Jesus healed his spiritual anguish by His light and voice, and then he was healed and became a new person.  He received spiritual vitality and became an instrument to lead other souls to the Lord.  We see in Acts Chapter 27 the story of the Alexandrian ship, which eventually shipwrecked. 

There were many opinions about whether the ship would stay in the place called Fair Havens for the winter or set sail from there to reach Phoenix.  At that time Paul who was caught for preaching the gospel and taken as a prisoner was onboard; he said that this voyage to Phoenix was dangerous.  But the centurion and the helmsman did not listen and ignored him.  So the centurion was more persuaded by the helmsman and the owner of the ship than by what Paul said (Acts 27:11).  So the ship (Alexandrian) left the harbor and not long after the sky suddenly turned dark and they were in trouble due to the tempestuous head wind which arose called Euroclydon.  The Bible records that neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the wind and tempest were about to devour the ship.  Those onboard could not eat for 14 days because of the tempest.  They lightened the ship by throwing all the cargo and ship’s tackle overboard, and finally the hope of being saved was lost.  About this time Paul could have said, “See what happened!  Why didn’t you listen to me?”  He could have said that.  If it was us wouldn’t have we said that?  If a person’s advice is ignored, especially living in today’s world, we get angry, don’t we?  But Paul did not. 

He prayed for them and the Lord answered Paul; when 270 people onboard could not eat and were in trouble, Paul stood and said, “Men, you should have listened to me, and not have sailed from Crete and incurred this disaster and loss.  And now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship.  For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve.  I believe God that it will be just as it was told me.”  This is the attitude of one who is completely healed.  Stephen was also like that.  When he was stoned, he did not curse those stoning him but said, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.”  I believe in forgiving those who are wounded, furthermore the right attitude for the spiritually healthy person is to have a heart to help those wounded.  I believe Christians must first have a positive attitude to be treated ourselves and get saved and then help others to get saved.  I finish preaching.  Beloved saints?  We live in a strange and sick society. 

There are so many souls who surround us that are worn out and wounded.  When they come to church they come to receive the love, comfort, and healing from the Lord.  So who will help them?  Who will comfort them?  Of course only Jesus can.  But I believe we who are healed can be an instrument of Jesus to comfort them in the healing process through our own experiences.  May God’s grace be upon your hearts.

By: Rev. Samuel Choi

Proverbs 3:1-6 “A Man Who Lives In Wisdom”

 

The Korean space ship “Naro” was launched a few days ago (June 9, 2010) but exploded after 137 seconds of flight at an altitude of 70 kilometers.  If it succeeds on the third time (next attempt), when the space ship sees the earth, it will be seen as a little ball in the air from space.  This small earth has over 6 billion people living on and is up in space and is flying by wings called time.  All those people who live on it have a destination, if I tell you what the Bible teaches, there are two destinations: jEternal world where Jesus is.  Some travelers will arrive there in the glorious kingdom of God.  kAnother place, the world of punishment, is called hell and burns with fire and sulfur.  It says some travelers will arrive in the world of punishment.  The Bible says that if a man is born, there must be an appointed time for the end of life (Hebrews 9:27, Psalm 90:1-4).  I believe a man must live with wisdom before he arrives at his destination.  Therefore today, we will receive grace through a sermon titled “A Man Who Lives In Wisdom.”  God’s grace be upon your hearts.

 

First, let’s think about who the ones are that live foolishly?  What kind of man is foolish?  He is jA person who does not believe in Jesus (God).  Psalm 14:1 says, “The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none who does good.”  (Psalm 53:1)  A foolish or thoughtless person is not an uneducated person, or a poor person, or a mistreated person.  A foolish person is one who is unbelieving and says that there is no God in his heart.  Because he already despises in his heart he will not listen to advice or to an explanation.  Therefore he is foolish and thoughtless.  kA person who looses his chance is foolish.  A man lives in misunderstanding that he thinks he will live a thousand or ten thousand years, as though he doesn’t know what will happen tomorrow, is foolish and thoughtless.

 
In Second Timothy 4:21 St. Paul said to Timothy, “Do your utmost to come before winter.”  This means to come before cold winter, if it gets cold snow comes and piles up and he would not be able to come.  A foolish person does not think about winter coming but he only sees whatever is before him.  He will not think about his life and will not think about Jesus Christ and totally forget.  He is foolish and thoughtless.  In Luke 16:19-31 we see a foolish rich man regret forever his lost chance.  After he died he regretted that he did not believe Jesus Christ.  He was in the poor lot in the burning place from which he never could return to tell his five living brothers not to come to that place.  Such a man like this lost his chance and is foolish.

 

Secondly, how is to live as a wise man?  jA wise man remembers God the creator.  Isaiah 40:26 says, “Lift up your eyes on high, and see who has created these things, who brings out their host by number; he calls them all by name, by the greatness of His might and the strength of His power; not one is missing.”  It says in Proverbs 1:7A, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.”  (Ecclesiastes 12:1-14)  A life with wisdom is that in which one remembers God as he looks at the handy work of creation in the universe and the power in which God rules over it.  What does “to remember” mean in this verse?  It is like to think always so we would not forget.  Do you know what the difference is between the words “come to mind” and “to remember”?  “Come to mind” is naturally or instinctively coming to mind.  “To remember” involves will power to remember.  For example, it is like the love between parents and their children.  The minds of parents naturally, instinctively think about their children.  But the minds of children for their parents are not natural, but need a little will power. 

They have to have a heart to remember that their parents bore them and raised them thus far.  Likewise, the mind of Jesus to love us is natural.  How do we know this?  We know this in that Jesus died on the cross for us.  Without love, He could not have died.  The love of Jesus, by which He wanted to save us in spite of all the suffering and pain, is natural.  Such a great passionate love we must always remember.  I believe a wise man always remembers God the creator and Jesus Who saved us. 
kA man who discerns the time is a wise man.  What time is it?  It is high time to awake out of sleep (Romans 13:11-14).  We live in the world, with its complications in the Middle East, in fear of calamity, in hunger from famine, to cheat and to be cheated, and even a person saying, “I am God.” (Matthew 24:1-51, Ezekiel 38:14-, revelation 16:12-).  What time is it?  It is a dark time.  It is an urgent time, near time for the Lord to come back.  A man who knows the time is a wise man.  lA man who understands the will of the Master and acts upon it is a wise man.  What is the will of our Lord?  John 6:40 says, “And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”  It is the will of God to lead a person to Jesus. 

Why is the witness, which leads a person to God, so important?  It is because the life of man is more precious than the whole world.  Jesus says in Matthew 16:26, “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”  Jesus suffered on the cross for the souls of men which can not be exchanged for the whole world.  A person who knows the mind of God and leads a soul to the Lord is a wise man.  For example, this is a story of a certain pastor.  It was the time of Hitler, who was in power in Germany.  The pastor was imprisoned because he was against the power of Hitler.  He had hatred and hostility against Hitler’s power and was suffering in a Nazi prison camp.  As the time went by his anger grew bigger and he never witnessed to anyone in the camp.  As he gnashed his teeth in hatred, he rather thought that Hitler and his followers must go to hell.  One night he had a dream.  There was the fearful thrown of God, the judgment of God’s white thrown.  In that place Hitler was trembling and sweating before the judgment of God.  Hitler was stunned blue.  His fearful face trembled and he said, “God it’s not fair, it’s not only my fault, no one told me to believe in Jesus, therefore I could not believe in Jesus.” He was defending himself with all the strength he had. 

At that time the cold look of God’s eyes met with the pastor’s eyes.  He was stunned and opened his eyes and realized it was a dream.  Ever since that this pastor started to witness to everyone he met in prison.  He understood that God wanted even Hitler to have the right to hear the good news of salvation.  I believe we must tell others Jesus is the Savior, in season and out of season.  I finish preaching.  Beloved saints, who is the foolish person without wisdom in this world?  A foolish person is one who thinks there is no God in his heart and has lost his chance.  Then who is the wise person?  A wise person is to live as he remembers God the creator and knows the time, and understands God’s will, which is to lead souls to Jesus. 

Let’s finish by reading Romans 13:11-14 together.  “And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.  The night is far spent, the day is at hand.   Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.  Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy.  But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”  The grace of God be upon your hearts.

By: Rev. Samuel Choi

Hebrews 11:13-16 (Genesis 22:1-2) “A Man of Faith”

 

We call Abraham the father of faith.  And God said to Abram, “I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing.” (Genesis 12:2B).  By the way, Abraham had two encounters that would show how he would become a father of faith and be a blessing.  jIt was when God called him to move out of his father’s hometown and he responded by doing it (Ur of the Chaldees).  kAlso it was when Abram heard God’s voice to give his son Isaac, who was born when Abraham was 100 years old, as a burnt offering and he obeyed. 

To leave Ur of the Chaldees was the beginning of salvation for Abraham.  If he had not left, salvation would not have started.  The moment the people of Israel came out of Egypt they experienced the salvation of God.  It is the same in our lives.  If we want to have a life of faith we must get out of our hometown and family where we live and are loved.  Spiritually speaking it means we must leave the life which is entangled by the flesh.  I must leave the place where I used to live in my father’s home and my family whom I love, and when my soul turns toward the Lord, it is from that moment that a life of faith begins.  However, leaving is not all there is.  Abraham needed to grow in faith after he heard God’s voice and left.  God tested Abraham for his faith to grow in that he was to give his only son, Isaac, who was born when Abraham was 100 years old, as a burnt offering (Genesis 22:1).  It was very difficult for Abraham, but he obeyed.  Because of this he obtained the big title “Father of faith and be a blessing.”  Therefore today we receive grace from a sermon titled “A Man of Faith.”  I pray God’s grace be upon your hearts.

 

First, a man of faith must have a sense of being a pilgrim on this earth.  Abraham left Ur of the Chaldees for the land that God directed him by faith.  It was as the life of a pilgrim.  What does it mean?  Spiritually it means we are the people who are left, who look toward heaven as the land God has directed us to, which is the spiritual Canaan land.  Our physical body is in this land but our mind and spirit are in the spiritual land, God’s nation, so we must live in a sense, as a pilgrim in this land.  Hebrews 11:13 of today’s text says so. 

Let’s read it together.  “These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.”  It says they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth and they embraced the promises seen afar off.  In Genesis 47:9, what did Jacob say before Pharaoh?  “The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years.”  Yes it is true.  If we want to rightly live a life of faith, we must live as pilgrims.  If we don’t, we can not be happy, because the love for the things of this world entangles us in the greed for the things of this world.  If we are attached deeply in the world we can not be used as God’s precious vessels.  For example, a long time ago there was a man who cleaned the clothes of a king in some country.  He was very poor but always happy.  One day the king asked him what the reason was that he was so happy.  Then his answer was simple.  “Yes I am always satisfied with my life.” 

Since the king heard this he praised him to his other ministers and said, “Wow, that man lives very happily.”  At that time one minister said to the king, “King, if the man has nothing but happiness always perhaps he has not been entrapped in the 99 pitfalls.  Give him 99 gold coins and see how he may also be different.”  After the king heard this he wanted to test the man.  So the king called him and gave him 99 gold coins to praise him for his sincerity.  The clothes cleaner came home and counted the money that the king gave him.  No matter how many times he counted, it was 99 coins.  At that time he felt that he was lacking one gold coin, and wished for 100 gold coins.  Since then he became so stingy in order to save one coin to make 100 gold coins.  He reduced eating and hated his children for using so much money and did not even want to see his wife.  His shoulders were hanging down and his eyes lost their brightness.  Finally he was caught in the trap of 99.  The greediness to fill one more causes the happiness to run far away from a person.  This is called the psychology of man that if he has $100, his desire is for $200, if he has $1000, then he desires $10,000.  Therefore we must be content with what we have (1 Timothy 6:8, Hebrews 13:5) for we must have a sense of being a pilgrim in this land.  Because we don’t know when the master may call us, if we look up to the countenance of our Lord always, this will be a blessing to us and God will also use us in a precious way.

 

Secondly, God trains the man of faith with trials and troubles for his spiritual growth.  A pole vaulter does not jump 5 meters or 6 meters from the beginning.  In training the vaulter continuously repeats running down the track and vaulting over the high pole until he can go over it smoothly.  The coach trains the vaulters on how they should improve.  Likewise our God trains the man of faith by strong trials.  Genesis 22:1 of the text says that God came to Abraham not to give something but to take away his only son Isaac, born to him when he was 100. 

This was done for Abraham to understand that God’s purpose was to grow his faith in God.  The people in  the world have a lot of interest in faith which causes them to boast; men are interested in possessing something and becoming rich and having power.  But God’s way is different.  God’s way is much higher than man’s way, like heaven is much higher than earth.  God trains a person by trials like fire in order to make a great vessel.  We see this in Job as recorded in the Bible.  We know so well about Job’s difficulties so there is no need to explain.  But what did Job confess before God?  Job 23:10 says, “But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.”  We see God trains Job first by trials like fire in order to bless him.  I believe that a man of faith must look up to God, Who makes our faith grow in the trials, without being disappointed or discouraged.

 

Thirdly, a man of God is to look up to Jesus Christ.  Hebrews 12:2A says, “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.”  The meaning of ‘looking unto’ is to take after or to learn from.  A man of faith is to take after Jesus and learn from Him.  There are so many things to learn but I have listed only three things:


j
To learn Jesus’ love, kTo learn Jesus’ humility, lTo learn Jesus’ obedience.  In the text, when Abraham heard that he was to give Isaac as a burnt offering he went up toward the mountain.  In this, God’s great secret is hidden.  It meant that in later days God’s Son would be born and He would be given for man as a burnt offering.  A father can not offer his son as a burnt offering without suffering himself.  He had a broken heart as he would have to watch his son Isaac bleed to death.  He had to stab him with his own hands.  This is the heart of Father God, Who gave His Son Jesus Christ, to be nailed on the cross. 

God had to eye witness His Son die on the cross.  God had to watch His Son bleeding and crying out, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”  This is the similar thing that God let Abraham experience.  We receive the forgiveness of sin by Jesus Christ and are saved.  Faith is to meet Jesus.  It is not a way of thinking, which is positive and constructive.  It is not just to say that we believe or be positive then it is O.K.  That is hypnotism, not faith.  Faith is to look up to Jesus Christ.  A faithful man can die of sickness, can fail in business, and go to the hospital.  However, in times like these, the action of holding on to Jesus Christ, that is faith.  Give up on everything and hold on to Jesus Christ, that is faith.  I finish preaching.  Beloved saints!  How is biblical faith?  Biblical faith is to look up to Jesus Christ.  It means to follow Jesus Christ, Who is the Lamb hung on the cross for us and for us to look up to Him, this is faith.  I believe we must become people of faith.  I pray God’s grace be upon your hearts.

 

We call Abraham the father of faith.  And God said to Abram, “I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing.” (Genesis 12:2B).  By the way, Abraham had two encounters that would show how he would become a father of faith and be a blessing.  jIt was when God called him to move out of his father’s hometown and he responded by doing it (Ur of the Chaldees).  kAlso it was when Abram heard God’s voice to give his son Isaac, who was born when Abraham was 100 years old, as a burnt offering and he obeyed. 

To leave Ur of the Chaldees was the beginning of salvation for Abraham.  If he had not left, salvation would not have started.  The moment the people of Israel came out of Egypt they experienced the salvation of God.  It is the same in our lives.  If we want to have a life of faith we must get out of our hometown and family where we live and are loved.  Spiritually speaking it means we must leave the life which is entangled by the flesh.  I must leave the place where I used to live in my father’s home and my family whom I love, and when my soul turns toward the Lord, it is from that moment that a life of faith begins.  However, leaving is not all there is.  Abraham needed to grow in faith after he heard God’s voice and left.  God tested Abraham for his faith to grow in that he was to give his only son, Isaac, who was born when Abraham was 100 years old, as a burnt offering (Genesis 22:1).  It was very difficult for Abraham, but he obeyed.  Because of this he obtained the big title “Father of faith and be a blessing.”  Therefore today we receive grace from a sermon titled “A Man of Faith.”  I pray God’s grace be upon your hearts.

 

First, a man of faith must have a sense of being a pilgrim on this earth.  Abraham left Ur of the Chaldees for the land that God directed him by faith.  It was as the life of a pilgrim.  What does it mean?  Spiritually it means we are the people who are left, who look toward heaven as the land God has directed us to, which is the spiritual Canaan land.  Our physical body is in this land but our mind and spirit are in the spiritual land, God’s nation, so we must live in a sense, as a pilgrim in this land.  Hebrews 11:13 of today’s text says so.  Let’s read it together.

 
“These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.”  It says they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth and they embraced the promises seen afar off.  In Genesis 47:9, what did Jacob say before Pharaoh?  “The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years.”  Yes it is true.  If we want to rightly live a life of faith, we must live as pilgrims.  If we don’t, we can not be happy, because the love for the things of this world entangles us in the greed for the things of this world.  If we are attached deeply in the world we can not be used as God’s precious vessels.  For example, a long time ago there was a man who cleaned the clothes of a king in some country.  He was very poor but always happy.  One day the king asked him what the reason was that he was so happy.  Then his answer was simple.  “Yes I am always satisfied with my life.”  Since the king heard this he praised him to his other ministers and said, “Wow, that man lives very happily.”  At that time one minister said to the king, “King, if the man has nothing but happiness always perhaps he has not been entrapped in the 99 pitfalls.  Give him 99 gold coins and see how he may also be different.”  After the king heard this he wanted to test the man.  So the king called him and gave him 99 gold coins to praise him for his sincerity. 

The clothes cleaner came home and counted the money that the king gave him.  No matter how many times he counted, it was 99 coins.  At that time he felt that he was lacking one gold coin, and wished for 100 gold coins.  Since then he became so stingy in order to save one coin to make 100 gold coins.  He reduced eating and hated his children for using so much money and did not even want to see his wife.  His shoulders were hanging down and his eyes lost their brightness.  Finally he was caught in the trap of 99.  The greediness to fill one more causes the happiness to run far away from a person.  This is called the psychology of man that if he has $100, his desire is for $200, if he has $1000, then he desires $10,000.  Therefore we must be content with what we have (1 Timothy 6:8, Hebrews 13:5) for we must have a sense of being a pilgrim in this land.  Because we don’t know when the master may call us, if we look up to the countenance of our Lord always, this will be a blessing to us and God will also use us in a precious way.

 

Secondly, God trains the man of faith with trials and troubles for his spiritual growth.  A pole vaulter does not jump 5 meters or 6 meters from the beginning.  In training the vaulter continuously repeats running down the track and vaulting over the high pole until he can go over it smoothly.  The coach trains the vaulters on how they should improve.  Likewise our God trains the man of faith by strong trials.  Genesis 22:1 of the text says that God came to Abraham not to give something but to take away his only son Isaac, born to him when he was 100. 

This was done for Abraham to understand that God’s purpose was to grow his faith in God.  The people in  the world have a lot of interest in faith which causes them to boast; men are interested in possessing something and becoming rich and having power.  But God’s way is different.  God’s way is much higher than man’s way, like heaven is much higher than earth.  God trains a person by trials like fire in order to make a great vessel.  We see this in Job as recorded in the Bible.  We know so well about Job’s difficulties so there is no need to explain.  But what did Job confess before God?  Job 23:10 says, “But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.”  We see God trains Job first by trials like fire in order to bless him.  I believe that a man of faith must look up to God, Who makes our faith grow in the trials, without being disappointed or discouraged.

 

Thirdly, a man of God is to look up to Jesus Christ.  Hebrews 12:2A says, “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.”  The meaning of ‘looking unto’ is to take after or to learn from.  A man of faith is to take after Jesus and learn from Him.  There are so many things to learn but I have listed only three things:


j
To learn Jesus’ love, kTo learn Jesus’ humility, lTo learn Jesus’ obedience.  In the text, when Abraham heard that he was to give Isaac as a burnt offering he went up toward the mountain.  In this, God’s great secret is hidden.  It meant that in later days God’s Son would be born and He would be given for man as a burnt offering.  A father can not offer his son as a burnt offering without suffering himself.  He had a broken heart as he would have to watch his son Isaac bleed to death.  He had to stab him with his own hands.  This is the heart of Father God, Who gave His Son Jesus Christ, to be nailed on the cross.  God had to eye witness His Son die on the cross.  God had to watch His Son bleeding and crying out, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”  This is the similar thing that God let Abraham experience. 

We receive the forgiveness of sin by Jesus Christ and are saved.  Faith is to meet Jesus.  It is not a way of thinking, which is positive and constructive.  It is not just to say that we believe or be positive then it is O.K.  That is hypnotism, not faith.  Faith is to look up to Jesus Christ.  A faithful man can die of sickness, can fail in business, and go to the hospital.  However, in times like these, the action of holding on to Jesus Christ, that is faith.  Give up on everything and hold on to Jesus Christ, that is faith.  I finish preaching.  Beloved saints!  How is biblical faith?  Biblical faith is to look up to Jesus Christ.  It means to follow Jesus Christ, Who is the Lamb hung on the cross for us and for us to look up to Him, this is faith.  I believe we must become people of faith.  I pray God’s grace be upon your hearts.


By: Rev. Samuel Choi

Today’s message is very basic and I will make it easy.  Let me ask you one thing.  Does our salvation come by our righteous actions or by God’s grace?  Yes! It is by God’s grace (Ephesians 2:8-9).  What is the difference between Christians’ and non-believers’ views when they look at people?  The non-believers look at the appearance of a man and usually judge right away (looks good or ugly, has knowledge or not, etc,).  But Christians look at an individual’s faith.  It says in 1 Samuel 16:7B, “For man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”  God looks at a man to see whether he serves God or other gods and if he believes in Jesus or not.  I would like to think about how and why God bestowed the hand of salvation to mankind and what kind of love He gave for that salvation.  I pray that the prompting of the Holy Spirit be upon your hearts.

 

First, let’s think about how and why God bestowed the hand of salvation.  Why did God bestow the hand of salvation?  It is because His life is in us.  When man was created God breathed life and created man in His image.  Since God breathed the life and put His image in man, God’s love for man is great.  For example, the mother’s love for her child is great, why?  It is because she shared her life, blood, and meat with her child.  So a mother’s love for her child is great, as she loves her child as her own life.  God’s love for humankind is like this.  ‚How does He save man?  He saves man by the sacrifice of Himself.  “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).  “The soul who sins shall die” (Ezekiel 18:20A).  According to God’s word, because we have sinned, Jesus died instead of us, to save us.  Isaiah 53:6, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”  Yes, how did He save us?  He saved us by His death.

 

Secondly, let’s think about how the love is that saves us.  We can think at once, through the four gospels, which were written about the life of Jesus (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John).  They contain His life and death for humankind.  When we read the biographies of those who are famous in the world, the contents are mostly their boasts; where they were born, what family they were from, and what they did in a prideful manner.  They write only good things in so many pages leaving out the bad things.  There is no mention about their death, if there is, it is short. 

However, as we read the four gospels they are written largely about the last few days of Jesus.  In this we see they are written telling about the death of Jesus on the cross.  In verse 34A of today’s text, we see the death of Jesus.  He says, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”  Jesus never said anything in His defense nor avoided the trials.  He died only for sinners and came to see the lonely and sick and to comfort the people who were alienated.  This is the love of Jesus that God has for us.  At this point, we need to think about ourselves.  I don’t know how we all have lived, some people try their best to show the love of Jesus, but some other people only love those who love them and love those who benefit them.  We see the faith of Steven, who walked before us and the faith of St. Paul, who had beautiful faith.  I believe we need to examine our rough life before God in comparison to them.  For example, I read this story in a book and it touched my heart.  It was during the Korean War on June 25th.  Four of the seven elders who served Bong San Church in Hwang-Hae province were martyred.  One of the four elders was named Kang Duck-Gi and was martyred in the cruelest way. 

The communists tied him to a tree and plucked out his two eyes.  As he was suffering, with blood and tears flowing, he crawled in to the church and as he prayed he said, “Father, please forgive their sin against you, they don’t know what they are doing.”  Then the communists came and shot him to death as he suffered and prayed.  So this elder left his painful body and was taken silently in to the bosom of God.  However, a few days later the army marched onward and those communists who did not run away quickly were caught.  The young men of the village wanted the communists killed just like elder Kang.  As they tied them up to the tree and were about to pluck out their eyes, the son of elder Kang saw this and with passionate tears said, “I can not let my father’s holy martyrdom be in vain, please release them.”  This is the love of Jesus blossoming so that in this moment it became fruit.  When this kind of the love of Christ is in us we are a new creation and made new and created for new works.

 

Thirdly, let’s think about where this love of Jesus leads us.  We need wisdom and discernment in our life of faith.  And we also need to know where the love of Christ and the meaning of the cross lead us.  At this time, as I mention some denomination or some individual, it is not to abuse them or to slander them.  They are free to go the way they want to in following their form of faith.  But we should reflect on what they do.  There are so many preachers in the world, but their preaching can be put in to two different categories.  A preaching which induces people to belong to this world.  ‚A preaching which strives to lead and guide people to Jesus and God’s kingdom.  The first means that if you believe in Jesus then you will prosper and get well and will get the gift of healing.  It focuses on the physical things and that the person will be prosperous.  So we see many people following this faith, which is built on things of this world instead of on Jesus Christ.  So it makes the merit of the cross dim and causes people not to see the way of salvation. 

In this aspect, we need to have discernment and wisdom.  Where does Jesus lead us?  He leads us to the kingdom of God.  Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, “He has put eternity in their hearts.”  God’s chosen people are to follow wherever Jesus leads.  The kingdom of our Lord is not of this world.  What did Jesus say before Pilate at the time He was going to the cross? (John 18:36~)  “Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world.  If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”  And John 18:37B says, “For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth.”  In these words, where does the Lord lead us?  Yes! He leads us in the truth, Jesus’ love, and God’s eternal kingdom.  He leads us in the way of salvation.  We see in Revelation Chapter 19 that it says that Jesus Christ is our bridegroom and we are to be His bride before God in the future. 
The apostle John heard a loud voice as a great multitude in heaven, saying salvation, glory, honor, and power belong to God (Revelation 19:1).  And he saw that God is almighty and reigns over us as King, in the world of God (Revelation 19:6-8).  And he saw that we are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:9).  After that we are to praise God in His everlasting world and forget about this world’s suffering, sadness, crying, and death, which has long ago passed, but in God’s world we will praise Him forever and ever. 

I finish preaching.  Beloved saints! Where does the love of the cross of Jesus Christ lead us?  It leads us to God’s eternal world.  I bless you in the name of our Lord that you become blessed saints who must not be led by the things of this world, but led to eternal God and His kingdom.

By: Rev. Samuel K Choi

Luke 5:1-11 “A New Morning With Jesus”

 

Beloved saints! Today we are gathered in church to give glory to God at the moment when the old year of 2009 passes and we usher in the new morning of 2010.  I pray that God’s grace and peace be with you and in your homes and God’s grace and blessing be upon our church, where we serve.  I don’t know how many churches give a New Year’s Eve service, but this is a good chance to look back at the past one year in this special time.  No human beings are perfect, we may do some good before God, but we also do some not so good.  We have no regrets for the things we did good, but we have regrets for things we do not do good.  We make up our minds to do good in the beginning of the year; but when December comes, there are things that we regret.  Therefore I pray that at this time we make decisions not to repeat the same thing over again before God in 2010.  St. Paul says in Philippians 3:13B, “But one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.”  I believe we must live well with newness in our hearts in the New Year.  I believe this is the right attitude as a saint.

 

First, let’s go back to today’s text.  Peter has toiled all night fishing in the Lake of Gennesaret (Sea of Galilee) with his companions, but did not catch one fish.  But after he met Jesus, he ushered in the new morning with Jesus.  This beautiful, blessed experience was written in today’s text.  I pray that a great blessing will come through the words in the text to us who usher in the year of 2010.  Do not give up easily in the time of trouble.  ‚Abide with Jesus in our lifeboat.  ƒObey totally the words of Jesus.  Peter toiled all night but failed to catch even one fish, but he did not give up, how do we know this?  It shows us in verse 2 (Luke 5:2), “And saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets.”  In this, one of the fishermen was Peter; he was washing his nets in preparation for the next day. 

In order to continue fishing, one would have to wash and clean the nets to be ready for the next day, isn’t this right?  Their action in not throwing the nets away but washing them so they would be clean shows that even though they did not catch any fish all night, they would not give up.  They did not give up on the next day just because today’s failure.  What kind of person is the most difficult for Jesus to use?  It is the one who gives up on their life.  However, even though this society or parents and relatives forsake and give up on a person if that person has a heart with hope and says to himself, “I can do it, I can overcome it and not give up on it,” then that person has hope.  It is the same in our life of faith.  In spite of difficulty, we must endure and be with Jesus until the end.  We must not give up.  As we read the Bible, the Lord says constantly, “I am the Lord, I am the Lord God Who saves you, Almighty God, God says . . . etc.  We see that when a person stays within the line of belief in God, then this person receives God’s love, but when a person is out of line then the trouble comes upon him.  Therefore after we hear the sermon titled “A new Morning With Jesus,” I pray that you become beautiful saints, who walk with God in this new year of 2010, like Enoch (Genesis 5:21-24).

 

Secondly, Jesus came to see Peter.  Jesus came to see Peter when he was cleaning the nets, for he would not give up but endure to the end in spite of unproductive work.  Jesus gave Peter a new idea “Launch out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch” (Verse 4B).  What was Peter’s response?  Verse 5 states he said, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.”  This was Peter’s response, which is the response of faith.  After his response of faith to Jesus’ request, he threw out the nets, then he caught a great number of fish and his nets were breaking.  So he signaled to his partners in the other boat to come and help him.  They came and filled both the boats so they began to sink. 

I pray in the name of our Lord that our life will be like this as we are about to begin today, the year of 2010.  I pray we may be blessed that our boat will be filled and other boats will be filled also.  How did Peter do this? 
He failed but never gave up.  ‚He met Jesus.  ƒHe threw his net out in the sea in obedience.  Beloved saints!  I finish preaching.  Do you want a new beginning in the new morning of this year 2010 with Jesus?  Do you want to be successful and victorious in life, coming out of failure?  Do you want to fill your neighbor’s boat through yourself?  Then I believe we need to obey the word of Jesus Christ and walk with Him every moment of your life.


By: Rev. Samuel Choi

Psalms 23:1-6 “The Lord Is My Shepherd”

 

Psalms 23 begins with the words “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want” and is a truly pure, beautiful song and a praise of the soul.  This psalm is good to be heard by everyone no matter when or where they may be or what circumstance they are in.  These are good words to be given to new mothers, these words are a great comfort to sick patients, they are good for a wedding ceremony, and also they are favorably great words for a funeral.  A person rising up in the morning and reading Psalm 23 before going to work will be happy and in the evening can meditate on these words and give thanks for the day, that person will sleep in peace.  A person who holds on to Psalm 23 will not be afraid even on their deathbed.  I believe whoever reads this psalm and assimilates it as his own will always be blessed with a fullness of energy.  Therefore today we will receive grace through a sermon titled “The Lord Is My Shepherd.”  I pray God’s grace over flows in your souls.

 

First of all, let us think about why human beings need a shepherd.  Men are weak vessels and the world is rough therefore we need a shepherd.  In one aspect, a sheep is a weak animal; it doesn’t have claws like a lion, it doesn’t have poison like a poisonous snake, doesn’t have horns like a goat, doesn’t kick back like a horse, and doesn’t have long legs to run fast like a deer.  They can not find their own way to or their way back from where they need to go.  They are foolish animals.  When they are lost in the valley they become the prey of fierce animals.  They never attack others.  This is how sheep are.  They only follow their shepherd and are only able live by his protection.  Beloved saints! How have we been living in this world so far?  Have your lives in the work place, business place, or home turned into ones of strife and have these places become battlefields?  If so, you may not need a shepherd.  If you are strong as a lion and diligent as an ox, why would you need the help of the shepherd?  Isn’t that right?  We all are young sheep of our Lord.  We don’t attack others and don’t have greater power than others nor ability.  Therefore I believe we need Jesus Christ Who is our Shepherd.  The Lord of the universe and God of creation is my Shepherd, I shall not want (Psalm 23:1, John 10:11).

 

Secondly, how does God the Shepherd protect us?  He protects us by: jKeeping us well.  We see in Psalms 121:4-5 it says, “Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.  The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade at your right hand.”  I believe God the Shepherd protects His sheep, you and me who are bought with His blood.  kGod the Shepherd protects us by supplying our needs.  Psalm 23:2 says, “He makes me to lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside the still waters.”  Why does the shepherd lead his sheep to the green pastures and lead them beside the still waters?  It is to give them grass to eat and clean water to drink.  Likewise God the Shepherd always leads us to green pastures and gives us abundantly according to all our needs.  Look here!  For example, in olden days the Israelites ate manna and quail in the wilderness.  What does this mean?  We too live life like we are in the wilderness; there is a time to be hungry and thirsty.  However, every time God miraculously supplies things to eat, things to wear, and things to drink.  From time to time He supplies us with spiritual food for life and sparkling, living waters by the work of the Holy Spirit for our thirstiness.  St. Paul says in Philippians 4:19, “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”  I firmly believe God the Shepherd (Jesus Christ) fills us with everything we need.  lGod protects us by leading us.  Verse 3 in today’s text says, “He restores my soul; he leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake.” 

In this, God the Shepherd restores my soul first then He leads me in the paths of righteousness and even takes responsibility for His name’s sake.  What are the paths of righteousness in this verse?  These are the right ways; the way of salvation, the way of life, in other words it is Jesus Christ.  God the Shepherd, Himself, came to this earth and showed the paths of righteousness which is the cross of Jesus Christ.  We must believe the only way is the cross of Jesus Christ which is the path of righteousness and the way of life and the way of salvation.  When we believe in the merit of the cross of Jesus, our soul can be restored.  I believe we are God’s sheep, whose souls are restored by the blood of our Lord.  It is for these kinds of people that God takes responsibility and promised them to be saved for His name’s sake and God’s honor.

 

Thirdly, how should the attitude of the sheep be for those who are lead by the Shepherd?  How should our attitude be as sheep when God the Shepherd protects us, supplies our need, and leads us for His name’s sake?  The attitude should be: jThat the sheep have to let the Shepherd know their condition.  What does this mean?  It means to pray.  When a sheep is wounded and crying in pain the Shepherd responds quickly by listening to the crying and finding out its condition and healing the wounds.  Then the sheep is comfortable.  In this, the sheep has nothing to do but cry out; the shepherd does the rest.  Do you believe this?  This is prayer.  If you are in pain then tell the Shepherd that you are in pain, if you are sad, then tell the Shepherd you are sad.  The Shepherd Jesus will take care of the rest.  kThe sheep must heed the voice of the Shepherd and obey.  This means that we give our ears to God’s word and obey it.  In 1 Samuel 15:22 we see a terrible scene in that King Saul loses his throne as a result of not obeying God’s word. 

The prophet Samuel said to King Saul, “To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams.”  Because of this I believe a saint becomes a blessed saint when they heed the word of God the Shepherd and obey His words.  If the Shepherd says to go to the pasture, then go and to go to the still waters, then go and rest then rest.  If the Bible says to do, then do and if it says don’t do, then don’t do. 
lThe sheep must believe in the leading of the Shepherd and trust Him.  Let’s read verse 4 of today’s text together.  “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”  What does this mean?  In the spiritual aspect, the valley of the shadow of death is to see this as the moments of hard difficulty through which we are not able to endure.  Even though the valley of trial is hard as the valley of the shadow of death, we fear no evil; this is only possible when we trust the Shepherd.  The Shepherd will pull us from this difficult place with His staff. 

Beloved saints!  I will finish preaching.  Do you have difficulty that you are not able to endure, like the valley of the shadow of death?  If so, please don’t be afraid.  God the Shepherd protects us with eyes like a flame of fire.  He Who keeps us will not slumber nor sleep (Psalms 121:4).  The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night (Psalm 121:6).  We finish by reading Psalm 23:1-4 together.  “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.  He makes me to lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside the still waters.  He restores my soul; he leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake.  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”  May you have peace in all of your life as you follow the Shepherd Jesus Christ.

By: Rev. Samuel Choi

A certain person pointed out today’s text says something like this.  “These three things (rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and in everything gives thanks) are like three rose flowers blooming in the faith garden and are like three treasures that are only found in the faith garden.”  This seems so true.  The life span of man is so short and not always filled with bright spring days, it is filled more with trials and suffering.  At times like these it is not so easy to rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and to give thanks in everything.  However God wants us to do that.  Then how is this possible?  This is only possible when we have faith to love God in Jesus Christ.  Therefore today we will receive grace in a sermon titled “A Saint’s Trials and God’s Will.”  May the grace of God overflow your heart.

 

First, every human life has difficult trials.  There is no human life that is without trials and no student enters school without exams.  In human life we must go through big exams in order to be a great person.  It is the same in our life of faith.  After tests and trials, we will possess stronger faith.  As we raise children, there is a time that they get sick.  However when we look closely after the sickness is gone they seem to grow in their thoughts and in their expressions.  Through the trial of sickness, a little child grows to maturity, little by little.  Jesus also went through many tests; perhaps no one had greater temptations and trials like Jesus.  He had three tests after 40 days of fasting in the Judean wilderness.  We see jthe first thing was a physical test; Satan tempted Him to change a stone into bread and eat.  This is a test for the most instinctive physical desire.  kThe second thing was a psychological test; Satan said that if He would throw Himself down from the pinnacle of the temple, then the angels would keep Him. 

lThe third thing was a spiritual test; if He would worship Satan, He would be given all the glory of the kingdoms of the world by him.  However, Jesus overcame the three tests with the word of God.  He must have been physically tired.  Not only that, but Jesus also was to suffer great tests and trials on the cross.  Jesus had power to destroy, all at once by calling twelve legions of angels; however, He obeyed by suffering the trials to accomplish God’s will.  It is the same in our life of faith.  In order to be found true and go the right way we must go over the obstacles of difficult trials and various tests.  To become a great person of faith and a person of greater work there could possibly be pain like Abraham experienced, who offered his only son Isaac; like Jacob who had a difficult time wondering in the wilderness, like Daniel who was put in the lion’s den, like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, whose trial began in the fiery furnace.  We must remember every human life has trials and adversity.  However, one thing is so obvious, that is tests and trials are not to make us fall.  In them we meet God and we find the will of God.  I believe if we follow the will of God, it will be a great blessing.

 

Secondly, what is God’s will for us in the trial?  It is that we are to jrejoice always, kpray without ceasing, land in everything give thanks.  jWe are to rejoice means always to live by unfolding the wrinkles (frowns) on our faces.  How can this be?  It is only possible with faith in God through Jesus Christ.  It is only possible to live by following the Holy Spirit in Jesus Christ.  That is why it says in today’s text that it is the will of God for us in Jesus Christ.  Afflictions come to both believers and even nonbelievers; however the result is so different.  Suffering for nonbelievers brings only disappointment and discouragement. 

For example, many years ago a great wealthy person in Japan, who was named Osanogengi, died.  There was no way to escape death even with great wealth; however his death was a great concern for everyone.  The reason was because he was so rich and the cause of his death.  He had only a primary school education and focused only on one thing all his life, making money and he died without any children.  People called him names like “top profiteer, the master of the Black devil, monster and king of purchase.”  He had given so many hard times to others and had been so successful at snatching and saving a great amount of money, six billion yen at that time.  However at the age of 69, which is not that old, he was made to kneel before sickness. 

This astronomical pile of money brought him only death.  His money and fame did not keep him from death.  However, those who believe in Jesus and live in the Lord have a future.  Because they have tomorrow, even in the midst of distress, they can rejoice.  Job, in the Old Testament, did that.  He lost all of his children in one morning and lost all of his possessions.  On top of this painful boils struck him and he took a potshard to scrape himself which made him bleed and worms came out of his wounds.  (He rolled in the midst of suffering)  However, his heart over flowed with joy in the fear of God and he confessed like this.  “And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God.” (Job 19:26).  And Job praised God and said, “But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.” (Job 23:10).  This is what’s different between believers and nonbelievers.  I believe saints can rejoice always as we look for tomorrow in Jesus Christ. 


k
We are to pray without ceasing.  Prayer is a privilege for saints.  I believe those who have the privilege to communicate with God can overcome their troubles and distress.  lWe are to give thanks in everything.  This means to become a saint who gives thanks in every circumstance, not only in joyful times but also in sorrow.  Be thankful not only in peace but in distress and trouble.  How is this possible?  It only comes from the heart which trusts God and is only possible when a person believes that all things work together for good.  Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”  This means to believe that the trouble that we face now will pass away and there is hand of God which will give us something good.  A trial is not meaningless for human life.  As we see the Lord who works all things together for good, I believe God will change it into a great blessing.  For example, we see it in Joseph’s case when he was a young boy and was sold as a slave in Egypt because of the jealousy of his brothers.  Even in that place, he was imprisoned unfairly by trying to escape from the crafty temptation of his master’s wife.  The difficulty continued. 

However, God changed all things into good.  Because Joseph went to jail and met the servants of Pharaoh, he overcame the situation and became the prime minister of Egypt at a young age.  Who made him that?  It is God who works for good.  Without trials there would be no glorious things.  A nail goes deeper and deeper by hammering more and more.  A ball bounces higher and higher as it hits the ground harder.  It is the same in our life of faith.  If we are in God, as more trials come upon us, our faith will be stronger.  In every difficulty I have had I have experienced good things as an outcome after them, therefore in trouble, I pray with expectation and say, “Lord what good thing are you going to give?” 

Beloved saints!  I’ll finish preaching with this.  Do we have unknown trials and afflictions among us?  Do not be discouraged!  I believe God will work all things together for good.  I bless you in the name of our Lord that you all become saints who rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in every circumstance.


By: Rev. Samuel Choi

A thirsty life and living water( John 4:7-15)

Throughout our lifetime, there are many things that we need. We need a suitable environment and condition. We need financial stability, status and etc. Isn’t that right? However, unfortunately, we can’t obtain all these things just because we want them. At a time like this, we feel anxious and we feel the thirst. Also, even if we’ve acquired all these things, we would still feel the life’s vanity and emptiness. Whether we’re rich or poor, we still have to deal with life’s trouble. In today’s text, a Samaritan woman is a good example of us living the thirsty life. I am not sure what the reason was but this woman changed husband five times to find happiness but she felt thirstier. When the woman met Jesus at Jacob’s well, she said, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty.” I believe this is the confession of people living in the present day. You and I feel the thirst in our lives too.  Therefore, I would like us to receive grace with a sermon titled, “A thirsty life and living water.” I pray God’s grace fill your spirit.

First of all, let’s think about why our lives are thirsty? There are three reasons. First, it is because of sins. Second, it is because of lack of God’s word. Third, it is because we don’t follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance. First, when God created this world, He had created it good. God’s purpose for creating humans was to have us give glory to God and rule the world with goodness. Nevertheless, the first humans, Adam and Eve, disobeyed God’s rule and crossed the line. It’s like the train derailing on the track. If a train derails, what come next are, death, shouting and pain. Since the present day people have derailed from God’s order, we suffer from thirst and pain. Second, the thirst comes from lack of God’s word. Amos 8:11 says, “The days are coming, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I will send a famine through the land- not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.” Today, the people in the present day have wealth, status and pleasure. So, why are they in famine? Like Korea, the youngsters in U.S. have lost the life’s worth and they are wandering. Why is that? That is because they are lacking God’s word. The schools, classrooms and auditoriums don’t like to teach God’s word. Therefore, in order to go to school, the youngsters have to pay the price by rejecting or not learning God’s word. Due to this, the communist countries are ruined and they are not sincere because they don’t have God’s word. An individual that rejects God’s word is a thirsty life. A nation that rejects God’s word is a thirsty nation. God speaks to us. Let’s read Isaiah 55:1-2 together. “Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the riches of fare.” I believe only in God’s word we will have the ability to avoid the famine. Third, we need to be led by the Holy Spirit. When the Israelites came out of Egypt, God guided and protected them by day in a pillar of cloud and by night in a pillar of fire. In the present day, the Holy Spirit comes to us and protects us by day in a pillar of cloud and by night in a pillar of fire. However, the people disobey the Holy Spirit’s guidance. Due to this, do you know that we feel thirsty and we feel the emptiness in life? On occasion, we disobey the Holy Spirit’s guidance and live according to our will. We live according to our thoughts and carnal desires. The bible tells us that this is like the sin of divination and the evil of idolatry. (1 Samuel 15:23) Also, 1 Thessalonians 5:19 says, “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire.” If we neglect God’s word and disobey the Holy Spirit due to our sins, we can’t escape the thirsty life.”

Secondly, how can we find the living water in the thirsty life?  Let’s find out the ways. That is, first, to meet Jesus Christ. In today’s text, since the Samaritan woman met Jesus Christ, she found solutions to her life problems and soul problems. She was afraid to be in the public eye so she avoided being in public. It was hard for her to even go out and draw water from the well. In the old days in Korea, the ladies at the well often gossiped. I think that’s how it used to be in Israel, too. Therefore, she went to the well at the hour when nobody came. Although she changed her husband five times, her life became more difficult. When she chose her last husband, she had the hopes of spending the rest of her life with him. But she found out that he was a married man. This is so appalling. Even if she wanted to cry, her tears were dried up. Her body and soul were exhausted. Then, she met Jesus. Jesus came to her. He was waiting to meet her at the well. Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” When she heard this, her thoughts had changed and her life had changed. She was born again as a new being. The woman who was avoiding people stood in front of people. She shouted, “I know that Messiah is coming.” Not only she is born again but also she became the messenger of God’s word. The verses 28-30 tell us this. Let’s read these verses together. “Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ? They came out of the town and made their way toward him.” Yes, that is right. I believe the only way for us to find solution to our life’s trouble is to meet Jesus Christ in our life. Second, it is to pray. By praying, we receive the ability to get rid of life’s thirst. If we look at verse 15, it says, “The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” She realizes that she’s in a hopeless situation and she’s desperately pleading to Jesus. What is a prayer? A prayer is to earnestly express our wishes to Jesus. This is indeed a prayer. The bible tells us this (Philippians 4:6) “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Don’t think that prayer is difficult. When we pray, we are to tell God about our present situation and condition. Don’t be mistaken by thinking that God will be pleased with a prayer full of beautiful words. We believe that God answers better to the tax collector’s prayer than the Pharisee’s.  For example, it is like a baby, who can hardly talk, getting all the love from his mom just with his crying. If we just ask earnestly, “O Lord, I need this and that,” God will listen to us and answer our prayers.

Dear congregation, I’ll end here. The Samaritan woman appealed her thirsty life to Jesus. What about our life? Are we suffering from the thirst in our life? Jesus waited to meet the wounded woman. Today, I believe Jesus waits for us. The Lord speaks to us. (Jeremiah 33:3) “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” I pray in the name of the Lord that all of you meet Jesus and get rid of the life’s thirst by drinking the living water and live a bountiful life.

 

 By, Rev. Samuel Choi

Acts 26:19-29   A person who belongs to heaven

Someone said, “A person who believes in Jesus is from a different world.” In other words, although we live in the same world, we live differently as we live for different purpose and live in a different level. That is so true. The Christians see things that the worldly people can’t see and also we hear God’s holy voice that the worldly people can’t hear. We believe in God while the other people believe God doesn’t exist.  Also, we call heaven that we can’t see our home and we wait patiently. We believe that this universe was created by God. Although this is an absurd world since God is alive, we trust that He controls the history and leads us to the way of salvation. Also, even though the worldly people are sad that the life ends in the grave, we hope for the day of Jesus’ second coming because we believe that Jesus had resurrected. Therefore, we are different from the people in this world. We have different purpose and the way we live our lives are different. We take a different route and the final destination is different, too. Although we live in this world, we belong to a different world and we are the citizens of God’s kingdom. Therefore, I would like us to receive grace with a sermon titled, “A person who belongs to heaven.”  I pray that God’s grace fill your spirit.

First of all, a person who belongs in heaven lives a holy life with a divine dignity. Just as the worldly people live in this world thinking that they are superior to others, as the believers of Jesus Christ, we should have dignity of eternal life. No matter what happens, we shouldn’t be let down. In any kind of tribulation, we shouldn’t be discouraged. The believers who lived this way are called, “The great Christians.” Take a look at Apostle Paul in today’s text. When Paul was witnessing to Festus, Festus interrupted Paul and said, “You are out of your mind, Paul!” He shouted. “Your great learning is driving you insane.” “I am not insane, most excellent Festus,” Paul replied. “What I am saying is true and reasonable. The king is familiar with these things and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner.”  Paul boldly witnessed Jesus Christ to Festus and the King. Instead of being discouraged, he was audacious. In the bible, the ancestors of faith were the people who lived with dignity of faith. To mention some of them, Joseph was one of them. Moses was one of them. Even though Joseph was sold to Egypt, he didn’t despair; he lived courageously in God. The bible tells us that Moses refused to enjoy the pleasures of sin in the palace but he paid close attention to God’s voice. However, on the other hand, we can see some people who belonged to heaven but didn’t have a beautiful faith. How about Samson, Barak and Prophet Jonah? These people followed the wealth, statues and idleness and eventually, they were mocked by Satan and rebuked by Satan. But most of all, they were rebuked by God. Therefore, dear saints, we belong to heaven. We should live with the dignity as we are God’s citizens. Then, I believe even in tribulation we’ll be happy and give praises to God. I believe in any circumstances we should be thankful for what we have and live as God’s children.

Secondly, a person who belongs to heaven possesses the true happiness. We weren’t happy before but through Jesus Christ, we became possessor of happiness. 1 Peter 2:9-10 says, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” The verse 10 says,  “Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” Now that we belong to Jesus Christ, we belong to heaven. Also, since we belong to heaven, even if we are poor, naked, hungry and mistreated, we are happy people. Therefore, Apostle Paul confessed about his happiness in Jesus. 2 Corinthians 6:9-10, “Known, yet regarded as unknown; dying and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.” That is so true. We are happy because the King of Kings Jesus Christ is in our heart. A person who believes in Jesus is happy and at the same time belongs to heaven. Even if the people who live with true happiness are persecuted by this world, the world is not worthy of them. Let’s read Hebrew 11:36-38 together.”Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.” Why weren’t they afraid even when they were persecuted and got killed with knives? That is because it can’t be compared to the glory that we’ll receive in the future. A person who is truly happy in Jesus Christ is bold in front of death. For example, all the prophets mentioned in Hebrew 11 were this way and Stephen was this way, too.  Also, if we read about the history of Christianity, many people were happy even when they were persecuted.  A person who belongs to heaven belongs to the Lord whether he lives or dies. Dear saints, is it hard living in this world? I ask you to look onto God. The happiness of a person who belongs in heaven is totally different from a person who belongs to this world.  The happiness of a worldly person depends on worldly things. Therefore, he laughs or cries about trivial things. But, a person who belongs to heaven is happy as long as he walks with Jesus Christ.

Thirdly, God protects and stays with the person who belongs to heaven even on this earth. Isaiah 43:2 says, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” God watches over His children who belong to heaven. He protects us. God doesn’t leave us or fall asleep; he guards His people. When Jesus resurrected and ascended, he promised something-Matthew 28:20, “And teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” He is not with us only when we’re doing well. Even when we are in hardship or tribulation, he is with us and He protects us. To believe this is faith. The person who understands this belongs to heaven. For example, in Matthew 14, we can read about Jesus walking on lake. Peter said, “Lord, if it’s you tell me to come to you on the water.” Jesus said, “Come.” Then, Peter got down out of the boat, walked on water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and beginning to sink.” What does this mean? This story gives us a great lesson as we lead a faithful life. In this weary world, sometimes we meet a storm. At a time like this, instead of looking at the situation, we should look at Jesus who controls it. Then, Jesus will hold us with his powerful hands and protect us. For example, take a look at surfers. They are never afraid of the waves. Rather, they love the big waves. Why is that? That is because they enjoy riding the waves. Likewise, the people who belong to God are not afraid of the big waves which are like trials. That is because they know that it would be a good opportunity to experience God’s ability. I believe God is with us and he commands, “Waves and wind, be calm.” Since we belong to heaven, we’ll never perish.

By, Rev. Samuel Choi

Psalms 123:1-4 “A Prayer Unto the Lord”

 

I will read verse one of today’s text again.  “Unto You I lift up my eyes, O You who dwell in the heavens.”  This psalm is one of the songs of a person ascending to the temple.  We don’t know who wrote this psalm.  It seems to have been written in the time of Nehemiah.  It is during this time, about the 5th century B.C., that the Israelites returned to Jerusalem after 70 years of exile in Babylon to rebuild the temple.  Originally, Nehemiah was in the land of Media and Persia (during the reign of King Artaxerxes) as a king’s cupbearer and heard that the walls of Jerusalem were broken down and the survivors were in distress (Nehemiah 1:1-3).  After he heard this news, Nehemiah became saddened by it and was excused from his high position and allowed to return to Jerusalem.  When he saw that the temple rebuilding was stopped, the people’s strength was down, and the Ammonite Gentiles who watched, despised and mocked them, wanting to attack, Nehemiah prayed to God.  “Hear O our God, for we are despised” (Nehemiah 4:4A).  Even though they were despised the Israelites could not go against their enemies.  So Nehemiah opened his eyes toward God and prayed to God voicing his wishes from deep within his heart.  “Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the LORD our God, until He has mercy on us.  Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us!  For we are exceedingly filled with contempt.”  (Psalm 123:2-3)  Today, with these words we will receive grace.  May God’s grace fill your hearts.

 

First, I lift up my eyes (Psalms 123:1).  This means that I believe and trust God as an expression of faith and also means to wait on God’s help.  Prayer is an appearance of godliness, not only with words, but also with lifting up our eyes, which look for God and it is with our eyes that we can express our earnest wishes.  When Nehemiah prayed, his eyes were lifted up in adversity as he rebuilt God’s temple.  This is belief and prayer.  As we live our lives we unwillingly face difficulty, at this time we need to lift up our eyes.  As you know well, King Hezekiah was a good king among the kings of the nation of Judah (2 Kings 19:14, – Isaiah 37:14-20, 2 Chronicles 32:20-26).  He ruled the nation well as a good king.  But one day King Sennacherib of Assyria and his army came up against Judah, leaving no way out for them, but to be destroyed.  King Sennacherib rebuked King Hezekiah by saying, “Can the Lord your God you believe in, save your country?”  He continued to despise, ridicule, and threaten King Hezekiah (2 Kings 18:28-37).  At this time, King Hezekiah did not know what to do.  Then he went to the house of the Lord and took Sennacherib’s letter and spread it out before God and prayed as he was seeking the face of Almighty God (2 Kings 19:14-19).  “Then Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said: "O LORD God of Israel, the One who dwells between the cherubim, You are God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.  Incline Your ear, O LORD, and hear; open Your eyes, O LORD, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to reproach the living God.”  (2 Kings 19:15-16)  King Hezekiah prayed earnestly and it came to pass on a certain night that the angel of the Lord went out and killed one hundred and eighty-five thousand soldiers of the Assyrian army (2 Kings 19:35).  Who did this?  It was God.  How did He do this?  This was because of King Hezekiah’s prayer in which he lifted up his eyes to the Lord in seeking God’s face and pleading for help from Almighty God.  God answered Hezekiah’s prayer.

 

Secondly, remember we exist as week human beings.  Men are only made with dust of the ground (Genesis 2:7).  Our vessel can be marred or can be preserved in the hands of the potter (Jeremiah 18:1-6).  Man seems to be strong; however, eating the wrong things causes the body to suffer just like most weak vessels which bump into something will be broken.  Look!  Even though the Assyrian king, Sennacherib, gathered up his army and came against Judah, one hundred and eighty-five thousand soldiers were destroyed in one evening.  As we see this we realize how men are weak.  Beloved saints!  We must know this when we think we are not that weak and think we are strong beings who are able to do anything.  Therefore we don’t pray, but neglect it and neglect coming to church.  We think and say, “I am strong so I will live long and also think that I still have power which last forever.”  All of these are foolish thoughts.  The Bible says (Proverbs 27:1, James 4:14), “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.”  Let us think back in time.  Napoleon is one who had great power, but also eventually died.  Helen of Troy (Yang Kuei-fei of China), who was proud of her beauty, died.  And King Ahasuerus, who reined over one hundred and twenty-seven provinces from India to Ethiopia, also died.  The great wrestler, Yuk Do San, who boasted about his strength, died.  Therefore, we don’t know what a day may bring forth.  This is life.  In this aspect, men are weak beings.  What can we do, as such weak men, to conduct ourselves with godly wisdom?  We, as wise believers, need to open our eyes toward our Savior Jesus Christ and look up to Him with the eyes of faith and expectation and pray like this.  “God, look at me and my weakness, have mercy on me, hold me up in my weakness and in the inferiority which causes me to become disheartened, even though I say I believe, have mercy on my faithlessness.”  As we pray this we need to look up to the Lord as with the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress.

 

Thirdly, As we lift our eyes and pray, what happens?  God helps us in our weakness.  How did God help Nehemiah?  He helped him until the city walls were completed (Nehemiah 6:15).  God helped them to finish the work on the city walls in fifty-two days and protected them from the hindrance of Sanballat and Tobiah.  God helped them, under the leadership of Zerubbable, to complete rebuilding the house of the Lord which was started by the people who went to Jerusalem earlier and had stopped for fifteen years (Ezra 6:1-18)  When God works, every mountain and every obstruction will disappear and will be as a plane (leveled) (Zechariah 4:6-7).  “'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the LORD of hosts.”  (Zechariah 4:6B)  Yes!  When we lift up our eyes and pray, all of the difficulties will, by God’s help, become as a plane.  Look, how did God help King Hezekiah?  He annihilated (blotted out) the Assyrian Army who threatened Judah (185 thousand soldiers).  God is the same with us today as we trust Him.  In the times of trouble, when we look to the Lord, He will give us those things which are needed and will annihilate (blot out) the things not needed and will add the things that are needed.  How does this happen?  It is because all power is under God.  Psalms 50:15 says, “Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”  Isaiah 58:9 says, “Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and He will say, 'Here I am.'  If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness.”  Isaiah 65:24 says, “It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.”  Yes! Prayer, especially prayer of faith is a weapon for a successful life and key to a victorious life. 

Beloved saints!  I conclude with this.  We, all of us, live as weak beings; therefore without a helper, we fall.  We must lift our eyes (Psalm 121:1).  “I will lift up my eyes to the hills-- from whence comes my help?  My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121:1-2)  May the grace of God fill your hearts.


By: Rev. Samuel Choi

1 Thessalonians “A Saint Who Loves Jesus”

 

In the present age it seems like a period of Christian victory, since there are so many Christians, so many churches, so many denominations and so many pastors.  It is also an age of many heresies which interpret the Bible wrongly and are rising like poison mushrooms here and there.  In such an ambiguous time, if our Lord comes back, then what kind of saints would be recognized and be loved by God.  Therefore today we will think about this subject.  May the grace of God fill your hearts.  Saints need to attend church and receive love from God.

 

In order to do this,
first we must have a faith grounded in Jesus Christ.  1 Corinthians 10:4 says, “And all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.”  It says we must drink the spiritual drink from the Rock.  The spiritual drink, spiritually speaking, is the Bible, which is the word of God.  For example, our life is like that of a stranger who is passing through the wild wilderness.  In our rugged road of life, sometimes we are tired and thirsty, then we look for water.  Drinking water is needed to live and gain strength.  However, no matter how much water there is in the world there is water that we can drink and water that we can not drink.  Sea water or polluted water must not be drunk.  If a person drinks this water, the more he drinks the more he gets thirsty and it could cause him to finally die because of the bacteria.  Therefore we must drink clean water, further more, clean living water from the Rock.  What is the living water from the Rock?  Spiritually speaking the Rock is Jesus Christ. 

The living water from the Rock is the word from Jesus Christ.  John 7:37-38 says, “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."””  Today, we saints can live by “drinking,” which is reading the word of Jesus Christ, Who is the living water.  In this manner we gain strength and are able to help others who feel thirsty and help them to meet Jesus Christ, Who is the living water.  In order to do this our faith must be grounded upon Jesus Christ and the word of Christ will work in our hearts.  Remember!  There are no other teachings or funny stories that will give us life in our souls.  Listening to the words which tickle our ears and drinking them in only makes us more thirsty.  Beloved saints!  Do not be deceived.  Such a soft and seductive language would not give life to our spirit and make us new.  I believe that only the living word of God, which is a spiritual rock, makes us new and revives our lives; I believe we must put our faith in Jesus Christ and live in the His word.

 

Secondly, we must become believers full of faith.  We saints are the ones who live by faith.  We live by believing in Jesus Christ.  Through faith we gain salvation and through faith we do the work of the Lord.  Therefore, today’s text says in verse 3A, “Your work of faith.”  Man often thinks this way: people go to church for moral training, by listening to good words they become good people, and are able to change bad emotions to good emotions.  Therefore some people call religion a change of emotions.  I don’t know about other religions that have emotional changes; however Christianity’s goal is not that of changing emotions.  Christianity is a belief, believing in a living God and living Lord.  It is our belief, that in Christianity, we follow Jesus Christ, with a faith which is truthful and tangible.  So we can say that our faith has united our lives with the living life of Jesus, as one.  “But the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.”  (Hebrews 4:2B)  For example, let’s take a look at electricity.  We can not see the flow of electricity from the plus (+) to the minus (-) side in flowing electricity, but when they unite the power moves and we are able to turn on the light and move big things with the power and we can certainly see the light with our eyes.  Likewise, even though the living God and Jesus Christ are here, we can not see Them with our physical eyes.  However when the faith in our hearts unites with the living Holy Spirit of God, Who is unseen, the great power comes and makes great work.  This is called the work of faith in the Bible.  Faith is not an abstract or vague concept.  Faith must be truthful and tangible in our lives.  We can see a person who has truthful and tangible faith.  One is jElijah: Elijah brought down fire from heaven by prayer in faith and pulled down the rain from heaven by tangible prayer in faith, even after one drop of rain had not even been see for three and a half years. 

This is the power and the work of faith. 
kSamson: He killed a thousand Philistine soldiers who were armed with swords and spears with a jawbone of a dead donkey.  This is the work of faith that trusts in God.  lWe see David: David killed the giant Goliath with one stone from a slingshot and took his sword and drew it out of the sheath and cut off his head.  This is a work of faith.  Beloved saints!  Don’t we have a Goliath who tears up our lives in front of us?  Don’t we have the wicked plays of Satan, who gives us trouble and brakes up our homes and businesses and lives of faith?  At this time, we now need the work of faith.  Jeremiah 32:27 says, “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh.  Is there anything too hard for Me?”  (Genesis 18:14)  Isaiah 48:13 also says, “Indeed My hand has laid the foundation of the earth, and My right hand has stretched out the heavens; when I call to them, they stand up together.”  When things need to be done, it is not by knowledge or high position, but it is God, Who works through the faithful person.

 

Thirdly, we must be people who live in God’s love.  It seems easy for a young man and young woman to meet and fall in love.  However, in order to complete and make a sweet home it requires effort between them.  As human love requires work from each other, likewise the love which Jesus gave us also needs effort.  Therefore, today’s text says, “Labor of love.” (Verse 3)  John 13:34 says, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.”  I believe we too follow the example of the labor of love that Jesus carried on the cross to love us; we are to love others even though it is hard and causes us labor.  In Greek the word love is classified as:

jEros (ερως érōs): couple’s love between different sexes

k Philia (φιλία philia): brotherly love, parental love

lStorge (στοργή storgē): friendly love

m Philanthropy: love for people

n\Agape (αγάπη agápē): God’s love, Jesus’ love


In among so many different meanings of love, the word for love in today’s Bible text is agape.  Saints need to love, which means to love God as in agape and to do this requires labor.  Love in the Bible is seen as this, “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”  (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)  If a man speaks with the tongues of angels, but doesn’t have love, then he becomes as sounding brass or a clanging cymbal and though he has all faith, but has not love, he is nothing.  And though he bestows all his goods to feed the poor, and though he gives his body to be burned, but has not love, it profits him nothing.  (1 Corinthian 13:1-3)  A man named Palmer said, “Church becomes a church, not by a sign, merit, or numbers, but only by love.”  I love Jesus, I have no hatefulness or enemies because I believe and follow the fact that Jesus labored for me and there is no one that is unlovable.  I believe, from now on we must labor to practice giving God’s love in our church and out on our road of life, which is the training center of love.

By: Samuel Choi

Ruth 1:16-17  “Making A Good Home”

 

Beloved saints!  Today is parents’ day.  I pray God will bless your home with a beautiful and meaningful day.  A while ago, Harris, an American, made a questionnaire saying, “What’s the best thing you wish for.”  Among 85 percent of the participants answered that they would like to have a good home.  Fifteen percent answered that they want to make lots of money.  We can see even this answer’s ultimate goal is a means to pursue a good home.  In fact, we human beings can’t live outside of the boundary called “home.”  Naturally we all have wishes to have a good home and happy family, where we dwell together.  In the beginning, God, Who made the home, made us to live happily.  However, man committed sin and began to destroy the original good home by the fall.  In other words, the things God wants from us is to make a good home and live happily in it.  Then, how do we make a good home?  Therefore, today we receive grace through a sermon titled “Making A Good Home.”  I pray the grace of God fill your hearts.

 

First, to make a good home it must be a home which stands and rises up from the problems.  As long as the sea exists there will always be waves.  It is the same in our lives, as long as man has existed in life, problems have also existed.  Therefore there is no one without problems, in these problems, if a person does not learn the way to stand and rise up from the problems his home will be shipwrecked in the problems.  He never can make a good home.  Naomi from today’s text is a good example of a family who stood and rose up from problems.  Originally Naomi was from Bethlehem in Judea, where a famine came in that land.  Naomi went with Elimelech, her husband, and Mahlon and Chilion, her two sons, to the country of Moab and remained there (Ruth 1:1-2).  The first few years they were OK.  Their two sons grew up and they married, giving them daughters-in-law, even though they were Gentiles.  They were a happy family; however Naomi’s husband became sick and died.  How sad it must have been. 

Her husband left her in a foreign land, yet Naomi had two beloved sons.  However ten years passed and her two sons suddenly died also.  Now the three widows were left in the same house.  It was consecutive misfortunes, one after the other.  It was such a serious problem; if it happened to us like that we perhaps would give up hope to live on.  However, Naomi was not discouraged and rose up again.  She made the decision to go back to her homeland, Judea, where the temple of God was.  Naomi returned to the land of Judea with Ruth, her daughter-in-law.  Ruth married Boaz by the grace of God and Naomi became an ancestor of David and was blessed by being in the genealogy of Jesus Christ.  This is because Naomi’s daughter-in-law, Ruth bore a son from Boaz, who is a close relative of the house of Naomi (Ruth 4:13-17).  As the word says, it became a good home that stood and rose up to problems.  I believe this gives good teaching to us who are living now in modern days.  A good home does not come naturally, but we have to put effort in to make it.  When we learn the way to stand and rise up to problems, I believe we can make a good home.

 

Secondly, to make a good home we must love one another.  Naomi and Ruth in today’s text loved each other.  In 1 Corinthians 13:5B it says that love does not seek its own.  We can see that Naomi and Ruth had this kind of love.  Mother-in-law loved daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law loved mother-in-law so much.  As we see verse 12 in today’s text, “Turn back, my daughters,” Naomi loved her daughters-in-law as they were her own daughters.  She wished they would find new husbands and live happily.  Ruth 1:9A says, “The LORD grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband.”  What does this mean?  It means to remarry and live in peace with new husbands.  These kinds of words are the words from their own mothers, not the words from their mother-in-law.  Isn’t that right?  However Naomi, their mother-in-law, in the text encourages her daughters-in-law with such words. 

As a matter of fact, Naomi was a poor old woman with no one to rely on.  It was not like it is today when one gets welfare.  If she was with two young daughters-in-law, they would be of great help to her.  If they do that, the future of the two daughters-in-law would be hopeless.  Naomi gave up on her selfishness and greed and she made up her mind to return them to their own homes.  As they hear this, the Scripture says that they lifted their voice and cried with a warm heart.  I believe those who are mother-in-laws in our church are all mother-in-laws like Naomi.  I believe when we give up on our selfishness and wish for a better life for a daughter-in-law, this kind of love would make a good home.  At this time, think about the love the daughter-in-law, Ruth has.  What did Ruth say to an old mother-in-law?  Verse 17 says, “Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.”  Ruth made up her mind to die next to her old mother-in-law and gave up her future.  The love of Naomi is beautiful, further more, the love of Ruth, a young daughters-in-law is amazingly beautiful.  I believe the daughters-in-law in our church are daughters-in-law like Ruth.  When we do that we can make a good home.

 

Thirdly, to make a good home it must be a home which strongly believes in God.  Naomi and Ruth made a home, united by believing in God.  Of course Ruth was a very faithful daughter-in-law.  But we see that she was not humanly-minded faithful to serve her old mother-in-law.  If that were so, her faithfulness would not have lasted long.  The mind of human beings is cunning and easily changed by circumstances; in good times it is good and in bad times it can change.  We see in today’s text that Ruth served her mother-in-law with faith in God.  Verse 16B says, “And your God, my God” and verse 17B says, “May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.”  We see the determination of belief living before God.  At this point, one thing we need to consider is that God, Who Naomi believes in is considered by her daughter-in-law, Ruth as her God.  “Your God, my God,” how wonderful it is. 

Ruth is a Gentile from the country of Moab where people believe in idols.  However, Ruth must have been inspired by her mother-in-law’s faith while she was with her.  What kind of God is He Who the mother believed in and made her beautiful character by faith in Him.  I too want to believe Him and become like this mother.  It is like a hidden confession isn’t it?  Even though it was a short time that Naomi showed and planted in her daughter-in-law what faith is.  Today we ushered in the family Sunday of the year of 2009.  St. Paul counsels us with the word of God in Ephesians 6:1-4, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  "Honor your father and mother," which is the first commandment with promise: "that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth."  And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.” 

Beloved saints!  I finish preaching.  As we see outwardly, Naomi and Ruth had a misfortunate family and were poor and lonely.  However, they overcame tribulation and had strength to overcome the loneliness.  They had fervent faith by being united, loving and caring for each other.  Then they received a great blessing through overcoming all the trials and difficulties.  Ruth met Boaz, Naomi received a son (Obed), who was born between Ruth and Boaz, who carried his name, and Ruth became the grandmother of King David (Obed begot Jesse and Jesse begot David, Ruth 4:22).  Matthew 1:1 says, “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham.”  Ruth lived in such faith and became the grandmother of David, who was a man of God and can not be omitted from the Bible.  Through his blood the Savior came to this world.  As we ushered in family Sunday today, may our homes be made into good homes which God gave to us and be filled with blessings.


By: Rev. Samuel Choi

1 Corinthians 1:18-31  “If the Lord Is With Me”

 

Look at verse 26, “For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.”  These words were written by St. Paul in his perspective to the Corinthian church at that time.  What does verse 27 say?  Let’s read verse 27-29 together.  “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; 28and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, 29that no flesh should glory in His presence.”  Based on this word, let’s receive grace by a sermon titled “If the Lord is With Me.”  May God’s grace overflow in your hearts.

 

First, let us think about the viewpoint.  jWe need to see ourselves from different viewpoints, which can be identified in three ways a) ourselves seen by others, b) ourselves seen by us, c) ourselves seen by Jesus.  Even though ourself is one it is seen differently.  If we only pay attention to how other people see us there are times of joy and times of sadness.  Because sometimes others like us and therefore praise us, sometimes they hate us and despise and slander us.  However we need to know that there are our perspectives about ourselves and God’s perspective about us.  How is it?  What does the Bible say?  It says that God chooses those who are despised in the world and lowly and brings to nothing to put to shame the wealthy and make the strong weak.  Yes!  If the Lord is with us, the foolish person becomes wise, the weak becomes strong, and the poor become rich.  We know this from written facts in history in the scripture.  Jesus chose the fishermen from Galilee, who seemed foolish at that time but brought shame to the Greek philosophers.  God chose the Jewish people, a small nation who was mistreated (they were a colony under Rome) and made the strong kings of the Roman Empire kneel before them at the end.  This kind of work can only be done by God.  It not only happened at that time, but God is still continually working.  If we have a mind of how God sees us and live in that, then God will lift weak people like us and let us sit with the princes.  If our life is with the Lord before God He will lift us to glorious places.  In olden times, Hanna, the mother of Samuel, experienced this.  She prayed before God and lived before God, as a result she had Samuel and gave praise to God which is found in 1 Samuel 2:8, “He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the beggar from the ash heap, to set them among princes and make them inherit the throne of glory.”  If we live before God as He watches us we will sit in such a glorious place.  It is important that we, ourselves see us and others see us, but more importantly I believe is that we live our lives keeping in mind how God sees us.  kWhen Jesus sees a person, how does He see?  He tends to see a person as to what kind of person he would be in the future.  What did Jesus say when He called Simon Peter, who was fishing on the Sea of Galilee?  He said, “Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men.”  (Matthew 4:18-28)  When Jesus sees a man, He doesn’t see a person’s past or present, but sees the man’s future, what kind of person he will be. 

When Jesus called Peter, who was a fisherman in Galilee, Jesus saw the future of how Peter would confess his love for Him and preach the gospel and be martyred for Jesus in Rome.  It was the same with St. Paul.  If God only focused on Paul’s (Saul’s) past and present He would not have a reason to call him.  Jesus foresaw what kind of person Saul would be in the future (Acts 9:15).  When Ananias said to Jesus that Saul was a man who was trying to arrest and kill the Christians in Damascus and he didn’t want to go to him, what did Jesus say?  Acts 9:15 says, “But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.”  If Jesus only saw the present, He would not have called Saul (Paul).  However, He saw ahead that this person would be a great instrument, who would testify of the Lord later on.  So after he had changed he would preach the gospel, start churches, equip workers, and be used as a pen that would write the Bible.  Today, it is the same for us.  I believe Jesus calls us and He sees our future as He sees our present.

 

Secondly, let us think about the attitude of faith that Jesus is with us and the result from it.  jThe attitude of faith is one of completely coming back to Jesus and building our faith on Him.  If we don’t build our faith on Jesus we will always have fear and may feel all alone. 

*Examples that are given in the Bible; God called Moses in Exodus Chapter 3.  God says to Moses to go to Egypt and lead His people out of it.  At that time, Moses, rather than focusing on God’s call focused on himself and says to himself, “I ran away from Egypt so how can I go back to Egypt?”  This means he felt all alone (Exodus 3:11-12).  “But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?"”  What did God say?  “I will certainly be with you.”  After Moses trusts God with his whole heart he sees that he is not alone but God is with him. 

*And look at Jeremiah Chapter one.  We see God calls Jeremiah.  God says to Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:4-5) “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”  (Verse 6)  What did God say?  ““Do not say, 'I am a youth,' for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak.

8Do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you,” says the LORD.” (Verses 7-8)  After he heard the word from God Jeremiah did not think he was alone, he knew God was certainly with him.  After this he believed God was with him and he became God’s servant who prophesied to all the nations. 


*True faith is to see ourselves with Jesus.  Then why does man sometimes despair and become discouraged?  It is because man forgets (not understanding) that God is with him and feels alone.  In spite of Jesus being with us always we think we are all alone.  Satan makes our heart confused and blurry so that we can not see Jesus and makes us feel alone.  The beautiful attitude of our faith is the attitude of assurance that Jesus (Holy Spirit) is with us. 
kWhat is the result that follows?  That is we receive consolation from heaven and blessings.  Does Moses, who lived in faith, seem powerless?  Does Jeremiah, who prophesied in faith, seem weak?  What kind of blessing did Peter, Paul, and Hannah (who God knew beforehand) receive?  They all had their names remain as God’s great workers.  Let’s look at the world.  Abraham Lincoln, who lived in faith, and the martyr, pastor Polycarp of the Smyrna church, how beautiful is the name they both left.  The Lord says (1 Corinthians 1:27), “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty.”  Beloved saints!  Do you have trouble living in the world?  We are as unknown, but yet well known.  We are as chastened and yet not killed, we are as poor, yet making many rich.  (2 Corinthians 6:9-10)  May God’s grace fill your hearts.

By: Rev. Samuel Choi

1 Peter 1:13-23  “The Power of Salvation”

 

As we look closely at the current time in these days, it must be the end times which point to the last days.  Every shown-sign proves the time, especially pay attention to the increasing heresy.  And every day, as we watch the news, there is a new kind of virus found which threatens our lives.  In fact it is true that every new kind of epidemic threatens our lives, however the most fearful thing is the heresy which is hunting our souls.  The physical illness may be cured or if it is impossible to cure then the body dies, if the spirit is well there is no problem.  We all have fear of death because we only die once and the only difference is that some go earlier or some go later.  However, instead of that, I believe we must think that the most fearful thing is that the body and soul together enter hell.  Therefore we need to definitely learn about the doctrine of Salvation.  Then how do we receive salvation?  I believe that it is only through faith by believing in the precious blood of Jesus Christ.  Therefore today we will receive grace through a sermon titled “The Power of salvation.”  May God’s grace overflow in your hearts.

 

First of all, let us consider what kind of blood is Jesus’ blood?  Jesus’ blood is precious.  Then why is Jesus’ blood precious?  It is precious because it is jwithout blemish, kwithout spot, land as of a lamb.  Let’s read verse 19 together, “But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”  Then how is the blood of Jesus without blemish and without spot?  That is because Jesus’ blood is God’s blood.  In fact every man is born with a gene of the sinful nature.  Because of the original sin of Adam and the sin of our grandfather and grandmother and the sin of our father and mother we are born with a gene received from them.  But Jesus was not like that.  Because Jesus Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit, was born through the body of Virgin Mary, He is holy and spotless.  Do you believe this?  Isaiah 7:14 says, “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.”  As it says, the seed of God conceived in the body of the virgin, therefore it is Emmanuel; the seed of God, God became man.  The blood that flows in Him is pure and priceless blood and the blood of God and is precious blood.

 

Secondly, let’s consider the power of the blood of Jesus Christ reaching to man.  The blood of Jesus jit is the power of salvation.  Beloved saints!  We must become blessed saints who firmly believe that only the blood of Jesus Christ can save and redeem us from our sins.  Let’s read together verses 18-19, “Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”  If a man gets on board a train it doesn’t mean he goes to Seoul.  If you need to get to Seoul, you need to get on the train that goes to Seoul.  Likewise flying in an airplane, is getting on an airplane going to take you to Seoul?  Not at all!  Some airplanes go to L.A.  Some airplanes go to Hong Kong.  If you would like to go to Seoul, you must get on the airplane that goes to Seoul.  Isn’t this right?  Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” (Ref Proverbs 16:25)  For example, we know from the history of Israel that the Israelite people were slaves in Egypt for 430 years (Ref. Exodus 12:40-41).  We may easily say 430 years, but think about how difficult it would have been?  It became so miserable later on as each male child born was killed (Exodus 1:15-22).  Their cry came up to God because of the bondage (Exodus 2:23B).  God heard their cry and put a person, Moses, as their leader and saved them.  However, the interesting thing is in the process that the miracles and the signs Moses performed, the magicians of Egypt also performed the same thing.  Therefore when Israelite people and Pharaoh saw this they probably could not tell who the true servant of God was or who was the fake, finally the last plague from God upon the people was the death of the first born.  Death came upon the first born in Egypt, from Pharaoh to the first sons of servants, even the first born of the animals died.  At that moment, the genuine and the fake were clearly revealed.  The magicians and sorcerers of Egypt could not even imitate this.  Why is that?  It is because God Himself selected His people.  It was whether the blood of the lamb was on the two doorposts or not.  The standard by the angel of the Lord was the blood of the lamb, which God commanded.  The houses with the blood of the lamb on it were the ones the plague of the death angel of God passed over.  It was not a matter of who lived in the house; rich, poor, even Egyptian, as long as they were in the houses with the blood on the doorposts, they would all live.  This is the sign and standard for judgment by God.  No matter what religion there is in this world or how much wealth there is, they will not save us in the day of God’s wrath.  Only those who believe in the blood of Jesus Christ in their hearts will be saved.  I believe the blood of Jesus Christ becomes the power that can save us from death.  The world religions that don’t believe in the blood of Jesus Christ are fake.  kThe blood of Jesus Christ has the power to free us from sin.  Let’s read verse 16 of today’s text, “Because it is written, "Be holy, for I am holy."”  As we see this, God commands us to be holy, for He is holy.  Isn’t this true?  As we live in this world, we always commit sin instead of being holy.  Each time we do that we become troubled and discouraged.  At this time Satan condemns us and says things like this, “Do you as a believer of Jesus Christ commit sin?  Then you say you are children of God?  Do you think you can go to heaven even after committing that kind of sin?  Give up soon!”  As a matter of fact we are all sinners.  But we should not worry at all.  Committing sin is not right, however Jesus promised that if we repent and make up our minds to believe and follow Jesus, the blood of Jesus will cleanse us from the aimless conduct.  Isaiah 43:25 says, “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins.”  Please believe that when Jesus died on the cross, all our sins were forgiven.  There is great power in the blood of Jesus Christ which is more than enough to redeem all of our past sin, present sin, and future sin.  Therefore in Romans 8:2 it says, “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.”  And Romans 6:22 says, “But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.”  From now on we must not be slaves to sin.  I bless you in the name of our Lord that you all be blessed saints who receive freedom by the blood of Jesus Christ and trust remaining steadfast in the blood of Christ.

 

Thirdly, let us consider a few things about our attitude for the blood of Jesus Christ.  That is jwe must keep our faith firm and believe in Jesus Christ, kwe must have our spirits cleansed with the blood, lwe must be holy in the truth, mwe must live with hope in heaven, nwe must fervently love our brethren.  Why?  Because myself and my brethren are cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ and become children of God (Acts 20:28, 1 Corinthians 6:20).  Let’s read together verse 21-22 of today’s text, “Who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.  Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart.” 

Beloved saints!  I finish with this word.  This world is evil and is in the last days of the end time and compared to this wicked world we are weak.  Even though we are powerless, I believe the blood of Jesus Christ is our power, which saves and cleanses us from transgressions.  Therefore we are saved people.  From now on let us enjoy the freedom in the blood of Jesus Christ.  Our belief in the blood of Jesus Christ is the power that cleanses our soul.  May God’s grace fill your hearts.


By: Rev. Samuel Choi

Romans 6:5-11 “The Resurrected Christ Jesus”

 

Today is Easter, the day we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.  May God’s grace overflow you and your homes.  So many people have lived and died since the creation of the world, but in among them not even one opened the tomb and lived again.  Confucius and Buddha remained in their tombs.  Any King or any hero in world history remains locked in their tomb, there is not one who has come alive.  However, our Lord Jesus Christ’s tomb is empty.  When He was born, he was born in a lowly stable as a carpenter’s son and when He died, He was executed on the cross as one of the worst criminals of Rome.  Jesus seems born in the lowest of circumstances and died in the lowest of circumstances, but He becomes the center of history.  The historians divided time by B.C. and A.D. referring to Jesus Christ.  (Before Christ Jesus was born is called B.C. and after Christ Jesus was born is called A.D.)  Why is this?  It is because He was raised from the dead.  Therefore this morning we will receive grace through a sermon titled “The Resurrected Christ Jesus.”  May God’s grace overflow in your hearts.

 

First, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is an historical event.  Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures and He was buried and He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).  In fact, Jesus repeatedly told His disciples that after He died He would rise again.  The passages in the Bible that tell us this are John 2:19 where we find, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”  Verse 21 says, “He was speaking of the temple of His body.”  And in Matthew 12:39-40 it says, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”  And you certainly remember what Jesus said to Martha, the sister of Lazarus (John 11:25-26), “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.  And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.  Do you believe this?”  Jesus speaks of Himself saying, “I am the resurrection.”  As a matter of fact many historians, in order to refute this fact, seek and study to refute the resurrection of Jesus, but they can not find anything.  Rather, the more they look to refute this fact the more evidence they find for the resurrection of Jesus.  Not only this, they find evidence for the existence of Christianity and the church on this earth, what does itself prove?  That is, I believe it certainly proves the fact that Jesus our Lord has risen and is working in our lives.  The resurrection of Jesus is historical.  The historians testify and the word of Scripture testifies also.  So many witnesses and Jesus’ disciples prove it.  Also as we see Jesus’ empty tomb, it testifies to the resurrection.  The resurrection of Jesus, Who said, “I am the resurrection and the life” has been a fact to believers of the human race through out the many centuries.  The resurrection of Jesus is an historical event.

 

Secondly, let us think about the privileges the saints have who are united with the resurrected Jesus.  These are jthe power of the resurrection gives vitality to our lives.  The night in which Jesus was arrested and then crucified on the cross, Jesus’ disciples were gathered in one room and were trembling in fear.  They were fearful of when and what time the Jewish people would come in or the Roman soldiers come to arrest or kill them.  They could not even speak loud nor could they breathe deeply, they were so cast down with disappointment.  They believed Jesus would be their great ruler, so they gave up their boats and left their parents and relatives to follow Him.  But now what was left?  Jesus was arrested and killed.  All the disciples had to be disappointed.  Then all of a sudden they meet the resurrected Jesus.  They were suddenly transformed into different people, with strength and vitality, like a newborn Christian.  Therefore in Acts 4:19-20 we see them saying to the Pharisees, high priests, scribes, and Jews, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.  For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.”  They shouted this with courage and with a bold heart.  They were the ones in the room who had fallen completely powerless with fear and desperation and now were born again to be God’s powerful people with vitality and full of life.  It is the same in our life; is there anyone among us today in difficulty and disappointment?  Then I pray this is the time to meet Jesus, Who is the resurrection and the life.  Then you will receive new strength and be full of life in you heart.  I believe this is the new strength which is coming from the power of resurrection.  kThe second privilege is that the resurrection gives us the hope of eternal life.  John 14:19B says, “Because I live, you will live also.”  Jesus gave us the promise that we also will live.  For example, I remember telling you this story once.  There is Westminster, a conservative seminary in Philadelphia in America.  Professor Grasham Machen, who was one of the founders of this school, was on his deathbed.  So his beloved colleagues and students came to be with their professor in his last moments.  They surrounded his bed to see him.  At that time, the dying professor all of a sudden shouted, saying, “I see heaven’s gates open and I go to Jesus’ bosom Who has been with me and lead me into righteous ways all of my life.”  Then he silently closed his eyes with an expression of joy.  Beloved saints!  What a touching moment it must have been?  We who believe Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord have a promised resurrection from our Lord.  This is our privilege, that only in Jesus Christ, is there eternal life.

 

Thirdly, we who believe in the resurrection have a duty to perform before God.  What is that duty?  It is the duty to preach the resurrected Jesus Christ.  We must preach Jesus Christ Who is life Himself, Who leads us in life.  We need to tell others that whoever believes in Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord will be saved and have eternal life.  This is our duty.  What was the first action of the disciples who were eye witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus?  They witnessed Jesus’ resurrection, which they saw with their own eyes.  Many times they preached Jesus’ resurrection under difficulty and persecution by their opponents, even to their death.  Paul did it ands many other believers before us did it too.  Today, there are so many people who need to hear; in our homes, in our work places, and sometimes our neighbors.  It is OK for them to listen or not to listen, to listen or not is their responsibility not ours.  We need to be ready in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:2B).  I bless you in the name of our Lord as we celebrate this Easter Sunday.  We all become blessed saints who believe in the promises of the resurrected Jesus and live with fullness of life.

By: Rev. Samuel Choi

Isaiah 53:1-6, 1 Corinthians 11:26  “The Lord’s Supper and the Saints”

 

That night, before Jesus was arrested, He knew how He was going to die and He ate the Passover Feast with His beloved disciples.  Jesus gave thanks to God in prayer for the bread first and broke it and gave it to the beloved disciples and said, “This is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” (1 Corinthians 11:24)  In this, the word “remembrance” means not to forget and remember that I was whipped and My body was torn on the cross in agony for you.  Then after supper He took the cup and said, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood.  This do as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” (1 Corinthians 11:25)  We must remember the words He asked us.  According to His command we are to observe the Lord’s Supper.  May God’s grace fill our hearts.  In today’s text the Apostle Paul teaches us three things we must keep in mind every time we take the bread, which is a symbol of the Lord’s body and the cup which represents the blood of our Lord.  He speaks of those saints’ attitudes who participate in these observances.

 

First, we must believe Jesus’ death is for me.  In today’s text Isaiah 53:5 says, “But He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.”  Jesus’ death on the cross is not just for this person or that person nor someone else, but His wounds are for us, you and me, we must believe this.  For example, in the 18th century there was a famous painter named Schudenberg in Germany.  He was in the middle of painting a portrait of Jesus when a beautiful girl, who was his relative, came to visit and saw the picture he was painting.  She asked him saying, “Uncle he must have committed a lot of bad sins.”  When Schudenberg heard this he was stunned and said, “No, He is Jesus Who has nothing to do with sin, He carried the cross for others.”  The girl asked, “For others, who are the others?  He replied, “The others include you and me.”  As she heard this she was amazed and asked, “Is it true that He died for me and you?”  “Yes He did,” and as he answered he heard a great crying sound in his heart saying, “Schudenberg, do you truly believe that I died for you on the cross?”  Of course he knew in his head that Jesus died on the cross for everyone’s sin, but it never greatly touched his heart.  However the little girl’s one question turned into the voice of the Holy Spirit and touched deep inside his heart.  So Schudenberg kneeled in repentance and started to pray before the painting which he was working on, saying, “Oh! Lord, I am a sinner who deserves to die.  You suffered so much, please have pity on me and give me a right belief and uphold me.”  As he was weeping, he picked up his brush and completed the painting.  He wrote these words under the painting, “I gave My life for thee, what hast thou given Me?”  This is how his painting became a famous portrait of Jesus on the cross.  Later on this painting was hung in a museum in Germany.  Since then everyone who looks at this painting is inspired with a deep understanding of the spiritual truth that Jesus died for them.  Beloved saints!  We must be touched in our hearts that Jesus Christ is our savior and Lord.  I believe those who surely understand that Jesus suffered for them, they may participate in the observance of the Lord’s Supper.  This is the first attitude of the saints.

 

The second attitude is to remember the second coming of our Lord.  Let’s read together today’s text 1 Corinthians 11:26, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes.”  These words “Till He comes” means until Jesus comes the second time.  How blessed is this hope for us?  We believe in His second coming.  While we wait, continually observe the Lord’s Supper until He comes.  At that time we will see Him face to face.  When the time comes we will bow down at the feet of Jesus and weep with hot tears running down our faces with great emotion for Him, Who was whipped and crushed for us.  We will have deep gratitude as we look at Jesus’ hands that show how much He loves us.  And we will be led by Jesus’ hand into God’s eternal kingdom.  I pray that as often as we eat the bread and drink the cup we all will be blessed saints, who proclaim His death till He comes.

 

The third attitude is to carry out the mission to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.  We become the witnesses of Jesus and have the responsibility to preach the gospel.  After Jesus was raised from the dead what did He kindly ask the beloved disciples to do?  And at this present time what does He ask us to do?  That is, He asks us to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth.  (Acts 1:8)  And in 2 Timothy 4:1-2, how did the Apostle Paul record God’s word?  He records an imperative, let’s read together 2 Timothy 4:1-2, “      I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.”  This is called Jesus’ great command.  What do you think the meaning of the great command is?  This is a term used in the military.  It is a military command in war, just like when the commander says to charge forward, then everyone must charge forward, it does not matter how many bullets come our way.  This is not a matter of whether we want to do it or not.  It must be done.  Such an order as this is called a great command.  Likewise, we as soldiers of the cross must carry out the great command from Jesus, which is a command to testify of the gospel with all our strength till death.  After Jesus’ suffering, the saints of the early church didn’t spare their lives to follow the great command from Jesus did they?  In spite of many persecutions and trials, they went out and boldly testified for the gospel.  Stephen was stoned while testifying (Acts 7:54-60).  The Apostle James was beheaded (Acts 12:1-2).  St. Peter was crucified upside down.  Besides, how can I list all the names?  

Beloved saints!  I pray as we observe the Lord’s Supper that you may hear the voice of our Lord.  I pray that we all deeply contemplate about what we did for the Lord for His sacrifice on the cross for us and gave us such a great thing.  In other words, He gave me eternal life.  In a little while we will see Jesus face to face over there.  As we receive the Lord’s Holy Communion on this earth, I pray that we are able to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit.  May God’s grace fill your hearts and minds.

By: Rev. Samuel Choi

Luke 23:33-49  “The Cross and Those Men”

 

We now usher in the time of Lent.  It is the week that our Jesus suffered and died on the cross.  It is my prayer for our saints that we meditate on the Lord’s cross and give our hearts to Him for this one week.  For Jesus’ cross has great meaning for us.  It is true that without the cross Christianity would not exist.  Without the cross there is no glory of the resurrection or salvation for the human race.  Therefore the cross has great meaning for the human race.  I believe whoever understands and knows this fact correctly believes and is a blessed saint.  Therefore today we receive grace by thinking about the cross and those who were there at that time.  Those around the cross were disciples, the multitudes, Roman soldiers, and many women.  However, today we will think about three different kinds of people.

 

First, there are the Roman soldiers.  They are the ones who, after nailing Jesus on the cross, cast lots for all of Jesus’ garments to see who would win them (John 19:23-24).  Right then, our Jesus was hanging on the cross with blooding pouring out of His body and flowing down His head from the crown of thorns.  In front of the cross the soldiers were casting lots for Jesus’ garments.  Such tragic actions make us feel so ashamed as human beings when we see those who are low class human beings acting in such a manner.  Their acted against truth as they turned their faces from eternal life.  In other words, it is a model of the dirty conscience of human beings, with a warped and filthy conscience and eyes darkened by material things.  There is no need to give an example by making the assets of government officials public.  However the greediness of the soldiers wanting the garments, shown right in front of a person dying, represents the people who think money is everything.  They are poor people who know nothing of salvation.

 

Secondly, there are the religious leaders at that time.  They were standing around Jesus ridiculing and mocking Him as He suffered.  They said, “You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself!  If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” (Matthew 27:40)  “He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.” (Matthew 27:42)  The high priest, scribes, and elders together ridiculed and mocked Him.  How foolish and upsetting were the things they said?  They were ignorant people and their spiritual sight was darkened.  They said they believe God but were a disgrace to Him.  What does this fact teach us?  It is a model of today’s backslidden people who have changed their belief.  Look!  They were the ones who said, “Hosanna, son of David, praise Him,” just a short time before, now they poured our curses and mocked Him.  Beloved saints!  Is there anyone who comes to Jesus to exalt himself and receive glory?  The Bible says those kind of people are in palaces.  The cross is the gate that we must go through before the glory of resurrection.  Today we come before Jesus and sit beneath the cross of our Lord.  However I wonder if anyone is complaining about their difficulty and trouble and using words of ridicule.  If so, what difference is this from what the religious leaders did in their time?  If you and I were sitting among them at that time would we be any different than them?  We need to think about it.

 

Thirdly, there is Simon, a Cyrenian, who carried the cross instead of Jesus.  We can think about two ways Simon, the Cyrenian, carried the cross.  jHe was forced to carry Jesus’ cross.  Mark 15:21 says, “Then they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of the country and passing by, to bear His cross.”  The city of Cyrene was a small city in the North Africa.  The name Simon is a particular Jewish name which means he must have been a Jew living in Cyrene.  Perhaps he was a traveler attending the Passover, the great Jewish feast.  However, this Simon of Cyrene ran into Jesus’ procession.  People were murmuring and passing by him as he stopped and watched them.  Then all of a sudden a Roman soldier came and commanded him, by force, to carry the cross which Jesus was carrying.  At that time the Jewish nation was under Roman power so he could not decline.  Consequently, he had to carry the heavy cross up the hill of Golgotha.  Everyone, think about what Simon, the Cyrenian was thinking.  How regrettable and offensive.  He came a long way to worship God and participate in the Passover Feast.  However, he had to carry this humiliating cross for this wicked sinner.  He was at a loss.  He must have been out of breath and sweating as he carried the cross.  Then, the thing that made him angry was to carry someone else’s cross by force.  In fact, for human beings, the most unpleasant and hard thing for them is for one’s free will to be taken away and be forced by someone else.  Isn’t this true?  Originally human beings hate for their free will to be taken away.  Therefore some shout out saying, “Give me liberty or give me death.”  On top of this, a person who is forced to do things has their pride hurt and it seems like hard labor.  The things a person wants to do bring him joy and is not labor, therefore giving power.  However, when forced to do something, a person has bad feelings, is tired, and has a hard time.  This day, Simon, the Cyrenian, was perhaps like this.  Simon, who was without means, carried Jesus’ cross.  kSimon became a great and blessed individual.  Later on, Simon was greatly changed and became a Christian who followed Jesus.  Not only this, he became a great worker, who helped the Apostle Paul in the gospel ministry.  The Bible mentions him becoming a great teacher who taught Bible class.  In Acts 13 we see the names of those who worked hard for the Antioch church, helping it grow and mature, listed in among the names is Simon.  Let’s read Acts 13:1 together.  “Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.”  Many theologians put their thoughts together and identify Simeon as the one who was forced to carry Jesus’ cross.  In Romans 16:13, Paul says, “Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine.”  In this verse, who is Rufus?  He is Simeon’s son.  So who is the mother of Rufus?  She is the wife of Simeon.  In other words, the whole family of Simeon became believers and workers for Christ, becoming a blessed home. 

Then how did Simeon and his family change so much?  This is the lesson for today that we need to learn.  To carry the cross of Jesus even if it was by force, that is a blessing.  In other words, all the good works and every sufferings for Jesus sake, even if is by force, is a blessing.  Look!  At the time when Simeon was having a hard time carrying Jesus’ cross, Jesus perhaps looked at him with compassion.  In the past there was a miracle given by just touching Jesus garments, however Jesus, Himself, looked at him.  What would have happened?  Perhaps at that moment he experienced a great feeling that all of his sins had been pulled out with their roots and melted away.  Not only that, at that moment he saw and heard Jesus say to the Roman soldier who pierced Him, “Forgive them, for they do not know what they do,” how hot his heart must have been?  He must have really understood when Jesus said, “It is finished” and saw the things happening at the time of Jesus’ death (the darkness came, the rocks opened, lightening and thunder).  As he watched all of this happen he finally understood, Ah!, the cross he was forced to carry; how blessed that cross is?

 
Beloved saints!  I will finish preaching.  We too sometimes carry an unwanted cross by force.  However sometimes that can be the Lord’s consolation to us as the Lord’s comforts us.  Sometimes, we may be treated unfairly for the Lord’s sake.  Because our belief in Jesus we may experience loss.  However be patient and endure it.  I believe the Lord’s consolation will be with you.  May God’s grace fill your hearts and minds.

By Samuel Choi

Luke 15:1-7  “The Lord Finds the Sheep Which Are Lost”

 

In today’s text we read the parable of our Jesus searching for the sheep which are lost.  We learn from this that God sees everyone in this world as a lost person.  We can see the truth of Jesus’ love that He gives His life to find the lost ones in today’s text.  Today, as we think about this passage, I pray that you may be able to know the heart of God for human life.  May God’s grace fill your hearts.

 

First, there are lost sheep in this world.  Ezekiel 34:31 says, ““You are My flock, the flock of My pasture; you are men, and I am your God,” says the Lord GOD.'”  In today’s text “Was lost” means people in the world absolutely do not know where to go.  For example, let me tell you a story.  There was a big playground in a village and so many children were playing.  The playground was fabulous, with all kinds of different equipment on which to play.  All the children played on the different rides as they wanted and did not know time was passing.  As they all had fun playing and laughing, evening came.  The sun went down and the darkness came, so every child began to go back home to their father’s house.  A homeless child who was all by himself was standing in the dark.  During the day time many children were there to play together, however as the sun went down, this child had no place to go.  At that time, he was all alone and lonesome and became fearful with tears in his eyes.  He thought about this as he had no where to go and no one to welcome him in this darkness.  Beloved saints!  I pray that you understand this story well.  In these days, how many are lost such as this, in the multitudes of people in this world?  They enjoy worldly things, get married, make money, and become wealthy and enjoy amusement and entertainment, just like children fascinated with the equipment in the playground. 

However, somehow, the days of fun passes and the sun down of life comes, a person heart sinks down, how did the night come so quickly?  I think you know so well what I’m trying to say.  Before the sun goes down, before the late night comes we must accept the true Shepherd, Jesus Christ, Who leads us home.  I believe we must accept Him as our personal Savior and Lord.  If we see the world today, there are so many of the Lord’s sheep which are lost.  These poor spirits can not get out of the ditch which they have fallen into because of this world of fun.  Such are these spirits which are so numerous and they are very close to us; in our homes, next door to us, and on the streets.  Some sheep are suffering, caught by the thorn bush or some are caught between the rocks and can not get out, so they are crying for help.  Jesus says this in John 10:16, let’s read it together, “And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.”  He says there are some sheep which must come in to this fold (church).  Some sheep can not get out of the ditch of lust, some from between the rocks of arrogance, and all kind of the nets of sin.  These sheep need to come into Jesus’ fold.  Therefore Jesus says this lost sheep is more precious than the ninety-nine sheep.

 

Secondly, Let us think about why the sheep were lost?  It was because they committed sin.  In Genesis Chapter 3 we are shown the reason that Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden of Eden.  The reason is that they disobeyed the voice of God, the Shepherd and followed more the word of the devil, Satan.  This was where the problem began.  What has followed ever since then?  God’s wrath and death has followed after it.  Likewise for the sheep, the ninety-nine sheep were protected and cared for by the shepherd and eating grass next to Him, however why did the lost sheep lose the way by himself?  Why is this?  The shepherd says, let’s go then go, don’t do it then don’t do it, even though some grass looks delicious if the shepherd says don’t eat it then we should not.  However, this lost sheep boasts in himself, in other words disobeys the voice of the shepherd.  This is called “sin.”  The problem does not end here; after it gets lost the fact is that he will be downfallen forever.  For example, many years ago I read this in the newspaper.  It was reported that so many deer that roamed freely in the field died by eating fern in Jeju Island.  They could have saved their lives if they knew which ones were poisonous.  Those sheep who even ignored the voice of the Shepherd, how can they know which food is poison?  We need to look back and examine our lives.  Do we follow the word of Jesus Christ, the Shepherd?  It is very dangerous when we search a strange place for better pasture and wander around with a restless heart.  We need to know what seems good and pleasant to the eyes is not, but there will be a trap behind it.  What will happen if the sheep leave their shepherd and just follow after the grass they see and ignore the trap?  The Bible said that after Adam and Eve realized they were deceived by the snake they were afraid of meeting God in the cool of the day.  They sewed fig leaves together as they hid, trembling behind a tree.  Isn’t this the same experience that the lost sheep had when they left the shepherd?  Beloved saints!  I believe today, that we all listen well and follow the voice of Jesus Christ, our good Shepherd.  I bless you in the name of our Lord that you become blessed sheep who follow as Jesus says, “go this way” then you follow the same way.

 

Thirdly, find the sheep which are lost.  We see the shepherd rejoices for the lost sheep which was found.  Let’s read together Luke 15:5-7, “And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.  And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'  I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.”  Yes! It is like this.  Jesus carried the cross to find and lead us home.  I believe it is grace bestowed upon us for His labor as His body was ripped and broken.  When I think of Him; my heart is on fire.  Since we receive great love and grace, we too try our best to find the Lord’s sheep which are lost.  For example, let’s pretend we have lost our child.  How would our hearts be?  Who would there be to help us find our child?  It would be the one who physically comes to help us look for him, wouldn’t it?  Let’s pretend no one cared to come. 

How disappointed we would be that no one cared to find our lost child?  It is the same with our Lord.  There is a parable of the lost son in Luke 15:11-31.  The second son left the father with his portion of the father’s money and wasted his possessions in prodigal living.  The prodigal son left his father for a few long years.  However his father waited for his second son to come home, day and night without sleeping, looking in the direction he went out.  Today and the next day he waited for his son.  This is the father’s mind.  When the father saw his son returning home, he had compassion on him, ran and fell on his neck and kissed him (Luke 15:20).  The father did not ask about his past but killed the fatted calf and enjoyed it with his friends.  Our Lord’s heart is the same as this.  Luke 15:7 says, “I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.”  I believe while God allows us to have good health, we should keep Jesus as our Shepherd and give God the glory by finding the lost sheep which are out of the fold.

1 John 5:1-5  “A Saint and Spiritual Warfare”

 

As we look at the history of the world or the history of Christianity we know there is continuous strife and war.  In history we see there is always a winner and a loser in war.  In this aspect we obviously know that we must be winners in war.  If we are not, losing brings sorrow and death.  This is the same in our life of faith.  Today, we saints must remember that we are fighting on the battlefield everyday in our life of faith.  Then what kind of war is this, how do we fight, and how do we win?  Let us think about this.  I pray that we prepare to win in our battle as the Holy Spirit speaks to our hearts.

 

First, let’s think about what kind of war is going on in our lives.  We can see the whole world with one eye.  In other words, we see the communist side and the free world.  Look back once at both of these sides’ condition and history.  How are they?  The free world, in which we live in, has as its basic purpose to give the largest amount of freedom to everyone and to make a peaceable world.  They try to make the world peaceful and comfortable by helping poor people with their abundant material and freedom of faith.  That is why they make government housing and food stamps available, benefits for the seniors to ride free on the bus, and convenient parking spaces for the handicapped.  However, how is the communist world?  It is exactly the opposite in the communist world.  This is a dilemma for the world’s nations and its tragic fight has turned in to warfare.  Isn’t this true?  However, in the spiritual world it is totally different.  The character of warfare is totally different than this.  Our battle is not fighting with the world’s nations.  Our battle is spiritual warfare which is not visible with the eyes; it is a fight against evil forces in the heavenly places.  The apostle Paul says in Ephesians 6:12, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”  We human beings have flesh that is visible.  In this we have a spirit which is invisible.  This spirit dwells in our fleshly body and is led by the Holy Spirit.  With the Holy Spirit leading we are able to praise God and fight against the spiritual hosts of wickedness.  If the evil spirit enters our hearts, our spirit in us hates it and rejects it.  Hatred, murder, disputes, discord, and disbelief, when any of these enter one’s heart the spirit in one’s heart will fight against it and expel it with help from the Holy Spirit.  This is spiritual warfare.  Spiritual warfare is fighting against the spiritual hosts of wickedness with assistance from the Holy Spirit.  How is the war?  It is unseen.  Who is the enemy?  It is the devil.  These evil spirits in our hearts operate in secret by climbing in on the rope of unbelief.  Pride, jealousy, strife, malice, inferiority, disappointment, and a negative heart all move within our hearts and make us stumble.  We saints wrestle in a metaphysical war winning over the wicked power with our good hearts.

 

Secondly then, let’s think about how we fight.  First of all we need knowledge to fight the war.  This is jto know the character of the enemy, kto perceive the geographic condition of the battlefield and, lto establish the plan and strategy in order to fight the war.  A person going in to war has no guarantee to win because he has a gun and a sword.  He must have knowledge beforehand.  For example, in Joshua Chapter 8 we see the strategy to fight to win against Ai (Joshua 8:3-9).  Joshua led 30,000 mighty men of valor as he went up against Ai.  He took 25,000 men to Ai and prepared 5,000 men for an ambush (V. 12).  Joshua went that night into the midst of the valley, and when the king of Ai saw it he came with his men of the city to fight against Israel at the appointed place (Joshua 8:11-14).  However the king did not know that there was an ambush against him behind the city.  Joshua and his men made as if they were beaten before them and fled by the way of the wilderness.  So all the men of Ai pursued after Joshua and his men and they left the city open and pursued Israel (Vs. 15-17) and the city gate was not shut.  At this time Joshua stretched out the spear that was in his hand toward the city.  So those in ambush arose and entered the city and set it on fire.  Now Joshua and the army of 25,000 turned back and attacked them and the men of Ai turned back and saw the smoke of the city ascending to heaven (Vs. 19-20).  The men of Ai were surrounded by Joshua who struck all of them down.  This was the strategy of this war.  Then how do we fight in our spiritual war?  What strategy do we need to destroy and strike down the evil spirits?  Our strategy is similar; we have to draw away the power of wickedness from our heart like the men of Ai were drawn away from the city.  All the things that are evil (jealousy, envy, pride, lying, boasting, etc.) have to be drawn away to the outside.  It is the power of the word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit that draws the evil powers to the outside.  So the evil is removed by the power of God’s word and the power of the Holy Spirit.  Hebrews 12:15 says, “Looking diligently lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled.”  Therefore the root of bitterness is sinfulness which lies latent in our hearts and must be pulled out.  Then we will live and overcome in the spiritual world.

 

Thirdly, we must keep and believe in our hearts that the victory is ours.  Let’s read together       1 John 5:4 of today’s text together, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world.  And this is the victory that has overcome the world-- our faith.”  Also in Revelation 3:10 it says, “Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”  To summarize these words, if I firmly believe the word of Jesus Christ in my heart and follow them, then I will have victory because God will keep me.  There is an old Korean saying which says, “Find water by digging one well.”  If we believe and are not shaken in Jesus Christ, Who is our life and the author of blessings we will see good days in our lives.  For example, we all know of the famous musician (Wolfgang Amadeus) Mozart who died at the young age of 35.  He composed so many famous, classical masterpieces, just in the span of 10 years from the age of 25.  One day a publisher came and said in harsh word, “Sir, can you make easy songs when you compose?”  Please compose music to fit the time and trends.  If you don’t, our company will not publish your music.”  At this time Mozart and his wife were so poor.  They lived in a shabby room with not much to eat and sometimes even missed meals.  They did not have a heater in the room and when the cold wind would blow in the winter, he and his wife would dance a waltz to keep warm and thaw out from the cold.  Mozart would not permit hunger to drive him to break the principles he lived by and change the purpose for which he existed.  So he talked to the publisher and said that he could not compose music as he had requested even if he was going to die of hunger.  However the faith he held kept him standing fast.  If he had not overcome the temptation of hunger his name would have been among those who came and went in vain.  But he held on to what he believed and his music talents, which were God given, even after all these years have passed, the name of musician Mozart shines, as time goes on. 

Beloved saints!  I will finish preaching.  Today, we have had so many temptations and trouble in order to keep our faith.  In this difficulty we struggled greatly to hold on to faith which is to love Jesus.  We prayed to keep our faith during long suffering and kept our lives by holding to the cross of Christ.  As we did this, God kept us in His care, and because of His care, haven’t we become faithful believers today?  Because of this today’s choir is here, today’s saints are here and they attend church.  I believe we have become faithful people who give glory to God.  I believe as long as we live, until we have the final victory, we must fight well in spiritual warfare.  Crafty Satan came and tempted even Jesus, are we any exception?  I pray we all have victory in spiritual warfare, in sober thought, as we are mindful of God’s word and the guiding of the Holy Spirit.


By: Samuel Choi

Joshua 1:1-9  “God-Trusting Faith”

 

We don’t know our future well, so we are always fearful, but especially in times like these with days that bring a bad and hard economy.  What do we do in times like this?  Joshua was fearful in today’s text.  Moses, the leader who led the people of Israel from Egypt thus far, died.  Therefore Joshua was in a difficult situation in which he could not even see one step ahead.  In his difficulty God spoke (Joshua 1:6), “Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.”  In other words God does not want His people to collapse in disappointment and discouragement.  He wants His people to be strong.  Therefore today we will receive a sermon titled “God-Trusting Faith.”  May God’s grace be with you.

 

First, a person who has God-trusting faith has a courageous heart in front of trouble.  Let’s read verse 5 together, “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you.”  Yes, that is right.  Men are fearful when they are facing a difficult situation.  Joshua was in today’s text.  Canaan was in sight; however the Jordan River had to be crossed.  At this time the Jordan River was overflowing all its banks during the whole time of harvest because of the water added to it from the snow melting from Mt. Hermon.  And on top of this the people were complaining and resentful because they listened to the negative voices of others. 

It was really frustrating.  In this circumstance Joshua prayed and God answered and showed Himself to Joshua and gave him strength and encouragement.  In other words in time of despair, we must not be discouraged but depend on and trust in God.  Our strength to overcome the world comes by believing that God is with us and being courageous and being strong.  An old Korean saying goes like this, “Even when we are in the tiger’s mouth, if we have clear thoughts our lives will be spared.”  This has the same meaning here.  If we lose our courageous heart in difficulty we can not do anything, however with a courageous heart which is with God, there is no problem.  When Almighty God, in which all things are possible, is with us and helps us, what concern do we have?  What is there that you can not do?  There is nothing!  Apostle Peter says in 1 Peter 5:7, “Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”  And in Psalm 37:5 it says, “Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.”  I pray that we all become faithful individuals who take our worries to the Lord and trust Him, especially in this time of difficulty with a low economy.

 

Secondly, God is with those who trust Him.  Let’s read verse 9 together, “Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”  “For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”  Yes He is.  When Joshua crossed the Jordan River, God stopped the water.  God destroyed Jericho’s fortress with out one touch of man’s hand.  When God defeated Ai (Joshua 8), the neighbor nations were fearful since God was with Joshua (Gibeonites) and they made a treaty (Joshua 9), then the five kings of the Amorites were killed (Joshua 10) as well as their people.  “Wherever you go,” yes!  As the Lord promised the land wherever Joshua stepped with his feet, God gave it to him and was with him.  It is the same with us today.  God, Who was with Moses, and Who was with Joshua is the same God, Who is with all the saints that believe and trust Him today.  Look!  Paul and Silas were imprisoned for the gospel and so was Peter, but the door of the jails were opened because God was with them and they did not get hurt.  I believe a faithful person who trusts God, even in the midst of trouble, will be freed from it because Jesus is with him.

 

Thirdly, a saint who trusts God and is obedient to His word will be blessed since all things work together for good.  Let’s read verse 8 together, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”  In this, there is the secret that your way will be prosperous and you will have good success.  What is it?  That is not to have God’s word depart from your mouth and meditate on it day and night and observe to do it.  For example, as I say this, someone may say, “Pastor, how can a person follow the word of God?”  It is not that hard.  The way to follow the word of God is not to let it depart from our mouths and meditate on it day and night which is sufficient and what our church does with memory verses. 

We can not memorize and meditate on the whole Bible.  But we can memorize one verse at a time as we think, memorize, and recite it by mouth.  Even one verse of God’s word that you put in your heart and memorize, it becomes powerful.  Next, to follow and act upon it is also simple.  It only requires that you be in Jesus Christ.  Jesus is God’s word and the word became flesh.  If Jesus is in your heart, your life of faith can be right.  Jesus completed the law by love and makes it complete.  So when we are in Jesus we are in the law which is complete.  Is this difficult to understand?  Let me explain it in an easy way.  For example, there is a game being played on a ball field.  There are two teams playing, a blue team and a white team.  The white team had a great victory.  If I was on the white team I am a winner.  Even though I am not a great player I am a winner because our white team won the game and I am on that team.  I hope you understand this.  Our Jesus Christ overcame the world and won the victory over the power of death and completed the law.  Believing Jesus Christ is final.  How is the way for people that believe?  Their way will be prosperous and they will have success in all things. 

Then there are some people who ask saying, “Pastor what about the trouble I have today?”  You should not worry about it.  Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”  The trial I face today, God will change it into something good.  For example, there are two places everyone in the world wants to go, Disneyland in L.A. and Disney World in Florida, which were built by Walt Disney.  He was born very poor in Kansas City.  He barely made it to high school and could not study further even with his great artistic skill.  He wanted to get a job with a newspaper company but was rejected.  Walt Disney, who had no way to meet his needs, was allowed to live in the basement of the church he attended.  There were so many mice in the basement and he was lonely and hungry so he just watched the mouse’s activities.  At that time God gave him wisdom to draw a mouse as a cartoon character.  This became his main character who he called Mickey Mouse.  He turned the whole world because of this mouse he drew and became a wealthy person.  Look!  If he had not had this difficult trial, would he have lived with the mice in the church basement?  He wouldn’t have had that experience, would he? 

Beloved saints!  Don’t we all have a difficult and fearful trial which is hard to cross like the Jordan River?  Trust God.  Be strong and be courageous and trust God in order that you will experience God’s miracle in your life.  Trust in the Lord then I believe God will help you.  I pray that you hear the voice of our Lord saying “No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life.” (Joshua 1:5)

 
By: Rev. Samuel Choi

Psalm 31:1-8, 19-20  “Please Help Me”

 

David wrote Psalm 31.  When he wrote this Psalm he seemed to be fearful that he might even forsake his spirit because of the shame and disgrace of committing sin with Bathsheba, the wife of his faithful commander Uriah.   This is what it says in today’s text, verse 1 and 3, let’s read it together, “1In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame; deliver me in your righteousness.  3Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me. (NIV)  Of course, there are so many people among us who have never once made a mistake.  However, in human life we do have time to make mistakes unintentionally.  How do we deal in a blessed way with the mistakes we make?  Therefore we will receive grace through a sermon titled “Please Help Me.”  May the Holy Spirit speak to our hearts.

 

First, let’s find out from the Bible why humans make mistakes.  They are jthe mistakes coming from fear.  When a person’s heart is filled with fear he becomes absurd in his yardstick for judgment for living in this world.  So he makes mistakes and he does not do the things he is supposed to do, but he does the things he should not do.  For example, Abraham is one case (Genesis 12:11, 14).  A famine came to the land of Canaan and Abraham and Sarah, his wife, went down to Egypt.  The Bible said Sarah was so beautiful (Genesis 12:11, 14) that Abraham was fearful that he may die because of Sarah’s beauty when they faced Pharaoh in Egypt.  Because of this fear he lied to him saying that Sarah was his sister (Genesis 12:12-13).  This caused Abraham to be in real danger of almost losing his wife to Pharaoh, didn’t it?  This fearful heart could cause him to make a mistake.  kThe mistakes coming with a good motivation.  In other words good intentions can bring mistakes.  For example, we see in Exodus Chapter 2 Moses was raised in Pharaoh’s palace in Egypt.  At the time he was about 40 years old.  He was able to enjoy great glory and to obtain a high position since being educated and raised in Egyptian culture all that time.  However it seems that he had not forgotten in his heart that he himself was always a Hebrew.  He had been watching his Israelite brethren suffering in making bricks in Egypt.  One day he went out and saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew.  As Moses watched them he became angry and killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand (Exodus 2:11-12).  In this, Moses had good motivation to save his people but he committed great sin, murder is the result of this.  Moses thought all the people would understand him.  This is one characteristic of those who make a mistake by good intentions.  A person who makes a mistake with good intentions thinks that people will understand.  However how was it?  The situation was completely different.  This is the same in our experience. 

We too have a time when we raise our sleeves and act upon our desires of the flesh.  But the result of it, in fact, troubles us.  We must not make mistakes which do evil things even if it is by good intentions. 
lThe mistakes coming by carelessness.  The mistakes by carelessness come from a lack of interest, negligence, irrationality, etc.  For example, look at the story of Eli the priest in 1 Samuel (1 Samuel 2:10-17).  Eli had the responsibility for God’s temple at Shiloh which was to keep the temple clean and consecrate the offering.  However he did not take care of it.  He had two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, (1 Samuel 2:34) and the women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting (1 Samuel 2:22).  Some how he did not control the evil things happening in the temple and was careless (1 Samuel 2:15-17).  In spite of the evil things committed by his two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, their father Eli ignored them.  As a result of this, his two sons, his daughter-in-law, and he himself died and the ark of God was taken by the Philistines.  As we see this we must not commit sin from being careless or negligent.

 

Secondly, in God’s view, how does He deal with saint’s mistakes?  God sees us realistically; however He sees our poor spirit with eyes of compassion, like a father who loves his child.  A certain person said that we human beings have a dark side, like the moon, that we don’t want to show to others.  This is true.  We humans don’t like to show to others our true self so we struggle to hide it.  However, God knows our faults and bad habits.  He knows all of my growing process and wounds in my life and the bunch of mistakes in the past.  The Lord not only knows all my behavior but my thoughts and intentions, which are hidden in my behavior (Deuteronomy 31:21).  God knows all of my troubles and trials and sufferings.  We are uncovered before God and exposed as if we were naked. 

Dear saints!  In spite of God knowing everything about us He is still compassionate and helps us.  Even when we have trials from outside, make mistakes inside of us, I believe our Jesus understands us and loves us with compassion.  Let’s read verse 8 together (Psalm 31:8), “You have not handed me over to the enemy but have set my feet in a spacious place.”  Yes!  God did not abandon David even in his mistake.  Look at Abraham, God did not blame Abraham as he continued in his mistakes.  What does verse 8 mean?  “You have not handed me over to the enemy” means that God did not shut him in the hand of his enemy, the devil, rather He sets him free in a spacious place.  It is the same in out lives, even when we make mistakes, Jesus will guide us.  No one will understand our circumstances and show us compassion.  But it is only our Jesus Who understands and gives us compassion.  Why is this?  Because when He died on the cross, He paid for our sins in full (Isaiah 53:5A), “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities.”  Jesus was pierced because of our transgressions and our mistakes.  If we confess our transgressions, mistakes, and our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).  I believe this promised word.  Beloved saints!  I am going to finish preaching.  God knows we are made from the dust of the ground and also knows we make many mistakes and even Christians are not perfect, but still making lots of mistakes as mere men.  But thanks be to God.  He covers our transgressions and iniquities with great love.  For example there is no mother who makes fun of her son’s runny nose.  She rather wipes it off before someone sees it.  In olden days when there were no handkerchiefs, mothers used the end of their dress to wipe their children’s noses, why?  Because runny noses look dirty to others.  This is one of the expressions of a mother’s love and care for her children.  How long does she do this?  Until the children grow up and take care of it themselves.  Jesus has a great love like mothers using the end of their dresses, until when?  I believe He will help us until we grow up and mature, it could take 10 times or 100 times until the end.  Jesus says, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”  (Matthew 28:20B)  May God’s grace be with you.


By: Rev.Samuel Choi

Revelation 22:12-21  “I Am Coming Quickly”

 

In these days when many pastors give sermons emphasizing material blessings they raise worldly thoughts that result in saints pouring their hearts into the things of this earth.  Therefore I would like to preach the word from the Scripture as it is.  Since the 18th century scientists, in these olden days, thought the speed of natural sciences to continually and rapidly develop medical advances would prevent any one from suffering due to disease and keep them from dying.  As things became civilized, people would enjoy the benefits from this and therefore the world would become a utopian world.  However as we face the 21st century, how is today’s world?  As time goes by, the world gradually becomes harder and more difficult.  As we see this panorama of the world, it is not utopianism we see in which the world was suppose to be better everyday and it is not pessimism we see which has no hope but disappointment.  Then how do we Christians who believe Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord see this world?  As we contemplate this today, may the spirit of our Lord speak to us.

 

First of all, let us think about how do we saints see the world today?  Summarizing in one word, we live in the last days of history.  We are living in the word that was taught and given to the twelve disciples when Jesus lived in this world (Matthew 24:1-31).  We are living in the time when nations rise against nations and there are famines and earthquakes in various places, people bring tribulation to each other because of hate, and lawlessness abounds because the love of many grows cold.  The population has quickly increased and because of pollution from various gases, nuclear dust and chemical things in the air the earth is on the brink of crisis.  The world is in a critical situation.  The development of a scientific civilization, which human beings are so proud of, has brought this crisis and not the utopia to it.  More than 2700 years ago, God foretold about this through the prophet Isaiah.  Let’s read Isaiah 24:17-20 together.  “Fear and the pit and the snare are upon you, O inhabitant of the earth.  18And it shall be that he who flees from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit, and he who comes up from the midst of the pit shall be caught in the snare; for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth are shaken.  19The earth is violently broken, the earth is split open, the earth is shaken exceedingly.  20The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall totter like a hut; its transgression shall be heavy upon it, and it will fall, and not rise again.” (NKJ)  “For the windows from on high are open” means the changing of outer space.  “The foundation of the earth” means the whole earth in which we live.  “Shaken and broken” means shaken and broken by earthquakes which were prophesized approximately 2700 years ago.  The apostle Peter said in 2 Peter 3:6-7, “By which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water.  7But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.”  The meaning of these words at the time of Noah was that God judged the world with water, but now at this time it will be by fire.  During the time when the Old Testament and New Testament (scripture) were written they could not be understood because they were before the civilization of science.  However, how is it now?  It is this situation we live in, everything is prepared to brake the earth with great explosions with just one press of a computer key, now is the time, wait on the day of explosions (Ref. Revelation 16:12-21).  The Bible says those who don’t know this matter belong to darkness (1 Thessalonians 5:7).  We who know this belong to light and day (1 Thessalonians 5:8).

 

Secondly, let us think about how our attitude is as we live in a time like this.  For example, president Seong Man Lee’s first slogan, which you know, was “United we stand, divided we fall.”  It was during the time of the Korean War, June 25th.  After that he used the words “U-B-Moo-Hwan.”  It means if we want to bring victory in fighting with North Korea we must be prepared ahead of time, then victory will be brought without tribulation.  It is the same in our faith.  Prepared saints will bring victory in this awful generation.  Then in what attitude shall we prepare?  There are so many, but I will only point out a few things.  They are: jBelieve in Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord (John 3:16).  kWash your robes (Revelation 22:14A, NIV).  “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life.”  We need to be washed by having our dirty deeds washed in the blood of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 10:10).  The “fine linen” stands for the righteous acts of the saints (Revelation 19:8).  lBelieve in the promise of God (Revelation 22:7).   “Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”  It is said that those who keep each word and believe are blessed.  mProhibit lies and idol worship.  Exodus 20:3 says, “You shall have no other gods before Me.”  nDo not follow the beast and the false spirit (Revelation 19:20).  “Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.”  Revelation 20:10 says, “The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”  As we see, we know what to prepare for and what is forbidden.  Believe in Jesus as our personal Savior and Lord, wash our robes with Jesus’ blood, and believe in the words of promise.  Things that are prohibited are idol worship, false prophets (cults) and all things that are unclean.  I believe we, ourselves, must be well prepared in the last days (Matthew 25:1-11).

 

Thirdly, what happens when the second coming of our Lord occurs?  I will tell you according to scripture.  The end of this final conclusion in scripture is the Revelation, this final conclusion is, “He who testifies to these things says, "Surely I am coming quickly." Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20).  With the second coming of Jesus there will be two phenomena happening; jWar will break out in heaven and kthe saints will be assembled and they will enter heaven.  When war breaks out in heaven, Michael and his angels fight with the dragon (Revelation 12:7-8), verse 7 says, “And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought.”  Verse 9A says, “So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world.”  The Bible says that when God’s time comes Satan will be thrown into hell along with his servants and his followers.  The smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever (Revelation 4:11) and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever (Revelation 20:10).  Saints will be gathered and enter into heaven.  All the saints who went before us will rise from the grave (1 Thessalonians 4:16A) and those saints who are alive shall be changed (1 Corinthians 15:51-52).  At that time, the sea will give up the dead who are in it and Death and Hades will deliver up the dead who are in them (Revelation 20:13).  Those who drown in water and those who were cremated; they will all rise from the dead and stand before God.  Then we who are alive and remain shall meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17A).  This assembly will be the great universal gathering.  In that day we will see God our Father and Jesus as the bridegroom (Matthew 25:1-11) and we will be His bride and look on Him who we have longed to see all the days of our life.  In this assembly, we will see those saints who went before us in front of Jesus.  Then we will live in joy forever in heaven.  Daniel prophesied about this day saying in Daniel 7:17-18, “Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth.  18But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever.” 

Beloved saints, I will finish preaching.  The worldly people speak, teach, and live that this world will exist forever.  However the Bible doesn’t say so.  Rather, the earth is preserved for the last day by the word (2 Peter 3:7).  The scientists say that because every kind of improvement in medicine and civilization will be developed in the future, this world will be a utopia with peace and without any sick people.  But this is not true.  Look, there is more sickness and more wars instead of peace.  Why is this?  It is because the Bible says so.  The false prophets teach saints to believe in the blessings which focus only on the blessings that tickle their ears; as a result of this it seems that there is only life in this world.  All of this brings problems.  We must learn and teach the grace of Jesus Christ and the way of salvation so we may lift our heads toward God’s kingdom.  This world will be dissolved by fire, nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for a new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:12-13).  We must prepare with the wisdom of our belief to meet Jesus Christ Who will come again in His glory.


By: Rev. Samuel  Choi

 

I will read verse 25 in today’s text again.  “Who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.”  As you know the nature of death is varied, there is death by various diseases, natural death by age, death by accident, and death by execution for those in their sin. Isn’t this true?  Even to think about it does not bring a good feeling.  However in today’s text, Jesus was delivered up because of our offenses.  This means we all received the death penalty because of our sin, however Jesus was executed instead.  Therefore today we will receive grace from a sermon titled “Jesus Died For Me.”  May God’s grace fill your heart.

 

First, Jesus chose the way of His death voluntary.  John 10:17-18 says, “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again.  No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”  Hebrews 10:5B says, “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me.”  And verse 7 says, “Then I said, 'Behold, I have come-- in the volume of the book it is written of Me-- to do Your will, O God.'”  We can not understand Christianity rightly without understanding the meaning in the cross of Jesus.  We can not just blame those like the Jews who handed over Jesus to the Roman authorities and Judas Iscariot who sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver.  If we call this matter the sins of the Jewish rulers and the sin of Judas Iscariot they are not so great, or if they are the sins of the Roman soldiers who nailed Jesus’ hands and feet, they are not that important.  Why is that?  Jesus says “No one takes it (My life) from Me, but I lay it down of Myself” (John 10:18A).  In other words no one can kill Jesus unless He made the decision to die Himself.  Jesus made up His mind to die Himself to save sinners like you and me, who deserve to suffer in the fire of sulfur.  For example, people who were poor and sick lived in a certain village.  One day there was a land slide and a flood because of a sudden storm.  All of a sudden the flood’s current began sweeping the whole village and those poor and sick people away.  At that time the king of that country was passing by and began watching that miserable situation from a safe place.  He felt compassion for the sick people struggling in the water and jumped in to the flood and saved them one by one and brought them to safety.  As he did this time after time he lost his strength and on top of this he crashed in to a big rock which came with a strong current and he was swept away.  The strong and courageous king lost his life.  This sad story is not true.  But what do we learn from this story?  It is about the right the king had over his own life.  The king had the right to give up his own life to go in to the water to save others or the right to just watch it from a distance, didn’t he?  Therefore it is not that someone took the king’s life, but he gave up his right to keep his life.  I believe you understand this well.  As a matter of fact the sins of Judas Iscariot who sold Jesus and the Roman soldiers are nothing.  The motive and reason that the king jumped in to the water was to save the dying poor and sick people in the water.  Likewise Jesus, to save a perishing people, made up His mind and gave His life.  (John 10:17-18) “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again.  No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”  Do you believe this?  Our Jesus died for us and loves us.  I believe we need to become saints who serve the love of Jesus.

 

Secondly, Jesus was delivered up because of our offenses.  Let’s read verse 25 of the text together.  “Who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.”  (Let’s focus on the “delivered up.”)  In the first point I talked about how it was recorded that Jesus showed His power by actively saving us.  However this verse reveals Jesus as a passive and stricken person.  In this, there are dual reasons and results.  The Lord was delivered up for our sin.  Some Bible scholars translate that Jesus became a lamb for our sin.  In Isaiah 53:8 it says, “He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of My people He was stricken.”  And Isaiah 53:10 says, “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; he has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, he shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.”  In the process of law, the sinner who had committed murder is to be delivered up to the executioner for execution.  In this meaning, Jesus Christ was delivered up in the place of the murderer, dying as redeemer.  As it was written in the scriptures during the feast there was a custom of releasing one prisoner.  After Pontus Pilate questioned Jesus he could not find any fault in Him and intended to free Jesus since he was in an awkward situation himself.  However he had to release Barabbas who was a murderer.  Then who is Barabbas?  His name in Hebrew means “the son of the father.”  In other words spiritually speaking Barabbas represents all the sons of all the fathers.  That’s true.  Barabbas represents us.  We all are as the son of the father blaspheming and defiling God’s glory, murdering with our mouth and murdering in our thought.  Furthermore we are like Barabbas who trembles in fear and receives the death sentence but hopes to avoid the Day of Judgment.   For example, I have read a book about what those who are to be executed feel in their hearts.  Some people who have been sentenced to death by hanging hold on to the rope so tight and will not let it go, so they tie both hands first and then execute them.  Some people die in the gas chamber and before they enter it they take a big breath so as to live a little longer.  How awful it is that they try to extend their life a little longer since they know it is final.  Think about Barabbas.  As his execution time got near his mind was confused as he agonized and trembled in fear, he looked at both of his hands and feet, how would it be to have them pierced with nails?  He never saw a person die on the cross before.  He was agonizing as he thought of the scene.  Then, all of a sudden there was a noise and his prison door was opened.  He thought, “Oh, now I am dead” and he covered his eyes with both hands.  However, surprisingly the prison guards take off the chains from his hands and feet and say, “You are free, go wherever you want.  Jesus is going to be put on the cross in your place.”  At this, Barabbas did not know what had happened and went out and saw Jesus standing in the place where he was suppose to die.  At that time Barabbas understood.  “Ah!  At the feast there is a custom of releasing one prisoner, they released me and Jesus is taking my place and is about to die.”  He had deep emotion which he could not comprehend in his mind.  He dies for me . . . as he cried sobbing; the heavy cross was on Jesus’ shoulder as Roman soldiers dragged and whipped Him.  How did Barabbas feel as he watched Jesus’ body bleeding after the cruel beating?  What did Barabbas think as he watched as Jesus was whipped with a leather whip and Simon, a Cyrenian carried the cross because it was too heavy for Jesus?  And what did he think when he heard the sound of the hammer nailing Jesus’ hands and feet? 

Beloved saints, Jesus seems to physically die for one person Barabbas.  But in God’s sight, spiritually, Barabbas is us.  We are Barabbas, spiritually speaking.  Jesus was judged to save us.  Now we are free men and liberated.  Once paid, we don’t need to worry about the bill as long as we have the receipt.  There is no need to pay it again.  Jesus paid our price in full and we don’t need to worry.  Jesus is the receipt Himself for the payment of the price of sin.  We became free men and no one can condemn us (Romans 8:33-34).  I’m going to finish by reading Isaiah 53:5-6, “But He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”  May God’s grace overflow in our hearts.

By, Rev. Samuel Choi

Hebrews 12:1-3  “The Runners’ Attitude”

 

The writer of the book of Hebrews that we read today portrays a believer as a runner in a stadium.  In other words, faith running is not like an enjoyable walk on a warm spring day.  It means we must live like runners who run with all of their strength in a stadium.  It is not a run of 50 meters or 100 meters, but is a run for life, like a marathon.  We run a marathon which requires endurance.  We all stand in formation of faith and run, however the problem is that we are not all running well in the sight of Jesus Christ, Who is our judge.  Some run well but some don’t run appropriately in Jesus’ sight.  In this aspect, since we have already made a decision to believe in Jesus and started running the race, I believe we need to be runners in Jesus.  Therefore we will receive grace in a sermon titled “The Runners’ Attitude.”  May God’s grace overflow in our hearts.  Then let us think about what attitude the runners should have.

 

First, we must lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us.  Let’s read verse one of today’s text (Hebrews 12:1), “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”  There are no individuals who run in a race dressed in heavy clothes.  For example, think about this.  How would football players play with hats on their heads while wearing heavy long pants and coats?  They would have to lay aside every weight and obstructive things so they could run in light weight clothing.  Wouldn’t they?  For example, when I was a boy I could not go to school wearing shorts and a T-shirt.  I had to wear long pants with a uniform shirt in summer and winter.  However on school sports day I was allowed to wear shorts and a T-shirt.  Since I was allowed to wear a simple outfit my body felt so light.  On top of this I put on running shoes which cheered me up and I felt like I could run all day long.  It is the same in our spiritual life.  We must lay aside every weight and sin which so easily ensnares us.  Then we can run well.  Lay aside all weighted and obstructive things.  Then what are those things and how are they?  It can not be all the same, but basically it is the sin which ensnares us and disturbs our life of faith.  For David and Samson, lust was the weighted sin which easily ensnared them.  It made their lives difficult and was a fatal blow to them.  And for some people strong greediness caused them to stumble.  Achan in the Old Testament was greedy as well as Gehazi, the servant of Elisha.  It is the same for the people of today.  There are so many with ensnared sin which keeps them from growing further.  For example, a certain person had a dream.  He saw a tall stairway that reached up in to the sky.  And beyond the stairway there was bright, splendid heaven.  So many people were going up toward heaven.  He was with them.  Then he saw them closely, their ankles were chained.   Since the chain was not long in the beginning it was no problem going up the steps of the stairway.  So they went on.  However as they went on the chain grew longer and longer.  In the middle some of the people cut the chain off because it was too heavy.  But some of the people were still struggling with the chain as they went up.  The person dreaming also was struggling with the chain without thinking to cut it off his ankle.  Half way up the stairs the weight of the chain caused him to fall from the stairs.  He shouted in fear and woke up and realized it was a dream.  At that time he understood the meaning of his dream and he cut off his wrong doing and got back on the track of living by faith.  Likewise, we too have things to lay aside.  It is sin which is so heavy and easily ensnares us.  To someone it can be greed or lust.  To someone else it can be pride, doubt, jealousy, hate, laziness, or fame wanting to be higher than others.  All of these are fearful chains which drag us down on our way to heaven.  Beloved saints!  How are we?  Are we being obstructed and ensnared by sin in our life of faith?  If so, I pray for us, that we will have spiritual wisdom to put down all of that at the foot of the cross before Jesus.  Then I pray our Lord will help us.

 

Secondly, runners must run looking clearly to the goal.  Let’s read verse 2 together, “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”  Yes, this is it.  Someone said that a person forms and finalizes their character according to what he looks to.  It seems so true.  For example, look at the Taliban force, which has given America difficulty since 9-11, 2001 up to today.  Afghanistan and almost all the nations of the Middle East seem the same.  The problem is so great because they have wrong faith from the beginning.  Because they believe in Allah, they kill people of other faiths to bring glory to Allah.  It is a ridiculous act of religion and a foolish cult.  However Jesus was not like this.  Jesus, Himself, died on the cross to save others.  He sacrificed Himself to save those who were dead in their sin and made them children of God.  He opened the way of salvation that whoever believes in Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord will not perish but have eternal life.  According to what a person looks unto, his character is formed and finalized.  In this aspect we must look unto the great love of Jesus Christ.  The people of Jesus Christ need to look unto the love of the cross to be more like Him.  The partiality and negative views will never lead us to heaven.  There is a saying that worshippers follow after who they worship.  We believe in Jesus Christ and worship in praising God.  We must look unto Jesus and be like Him.  How is Jesus?  He fixed His direction for the future, Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame.  Those who look unto Jesus can fix their direction on the future.  What are the things we do today that will exert influence upon our children?  I believe we should think about this as we conduct ourselves and look unto our future.  Christians should not only look at the things on earth but also look unto the glory far beyond, which is God’s kingdom.  We must fix our eyes on the glory in heaven and live with strength.  Today so many people live only for things they see.  This is a big problem. 

Beloved saints!  Do you want to be beautiful saints who receive praise from God and rewards from the Lord?  Then, look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith – and then run!!  I believe when Jesus is our goal, our steps will be unimpaired.  This kind of person will never be discouraged or disappointed in the hard and difficult circumstances of this world.  I believe our running goal, for you and I, is only Jesus Christ, Who overcame this world and brought victory.  I bless you in the name of our Lord that you all become blessed saints who run the race in creative life by trusting in God’s power and in His strength.

By, Rev. Samuel Choi.

Psalm 119:6-16  “The Blessings Received From The Word of God”

 

Psalm 119 that we read today is the longest chapter in the Bible and has 176 verses.  The main subject of this chapter is the word of God and each verse and its content teaches the importance of the word of God.  As we read Psalm 119, it expresses the word of God in many different ways.  For example, it uses the law of the Lord, His Way, His testimonies, or His righteous judgment, etc.  Likewise various names are used, but they mean the same, God’s word.  I would like to read the whole chapter of Psalm 119, however with the short time we have we can’t, so read it at home and it will be a great blessing to you.  There are so many blessings we receive from the word of God; however I just chose a few from which to share God’s grace.  May our Lord’s great grace overflow in our hearts.  Then what kind of blessings can we receive from God’s word?

 

First, we receive the blessing of being delivered from affliction.  Reading verse 153 of today’s text we see, “Consider my affliction and deliver me, for I do not forget Your law.”  In this, we can find the way for the solution to our troubles.  That is I am not forgetting God’s word in my heart, therefore consider my trouble and save me from it.  What does this mean?  In the phrase “For I do not forget Your Law” gives the meaning of not forgetting, presuming that we have the law of the Lord, otherwise God’s word in our hearts.  If we do not have God’s word in our hearts from the beginning, is there anything to forget?  No, nothing.  Therefore a person who claims by saying “I have God’s word in my heart” means that the person believes in God’s word and emphasizes their privilege as God’s child.  Let me explain this further, everyone living in this world has had the experience of going into the furnace of affliction at least once in their lives.  This is the same for both believers and non-believers.  However, the result of affliction between those who believe in God’s word and those who don’t believe in God’s word is totally different.  The difference is like heaven and hell.  Affliction sometimes is used as a tool of judgment for wheat and tares.  The meaning of the word “affliction” is like what takes place at harvest time during the threshing.  The farmer beats the crops with sticks causing the chaff to fly away and the husked grain to remain.  Then the farmer gathers the grain in to the barn and burns up the chaff with fire (Matthew 3:12).  It is hard to discern the wheat from the chaff unless it is beaten with sticks.  It is the same with our physical bodies; it is hard to figure out who are with God’s word as wheat or who are without God’s word as chaff.  Therefore God the farmer (John 15:1) cleans out His threshing floor (Matthew 3:12).  Mental affliction, physical affliction, material affliction, affliction in disease, affliction in relationships . . . all of these God uses as a beating stick.  At this time, those who do not forget God’s word in their hearts will say, “Dear God, consider our affliction and deliver us, for we have not forgotten Your word.”  They will look to God in the midst of their suffering.  Then God will save them with His strong and mighty hand for they are His wheat.  Shadrach, Meshach, Abed-Nego, and Daniel in the Old Testament did that.  So did Joseph, David and Job (Job 36:15) as it says, “He delivers the poor in their affliction, and opens their ears in oppression.”  When God’s chosen people are in their affliction God delivers them from their affliction.  I believe the time will come for the afflicted ones, that their affliction will bring much benefit to them.  Verse 67 in today’s text says, “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word.” And verse 71 says, “It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes.”  This is a great and amazing confession.  Beloved saints!  To be afflicted is very difficult and hard for us; however we must believe it is a blessing for God is cleaning the husks from us.  The husks of arrogance, the husks of jealousy and envy, the husks of overindulgence, the husks of disobedience, all of these which are not pretty in God’s sight are removed, after we are cleaned up we become wheat I believe we will go into God’s barn.  Job says in Job 23:10, “But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.”  May this confession be our confession from our hearts.

 

Secondly, there is power for revival and life in the word of God.  Let’s read verse 50 and verse 159 together (verse 50), “This is my comfort in my affliction, for Your word has given me life.” (159), “Consider how I love Your precepts; revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.”  In this “Revive me” and “Given me life” the meanings are different.  “To revive” means the person is not completely dead, that person was sick and near death but recovered.  “To give life” means giving life to a person who was completely dead.  Isn’t this right?  We need to see the deep, spiritual meaning in this.  This means to live again, to be resurrected.  It means that God’s word will give life again to a human’s spirit and body.  It will revive a dying body in sickness and suffering as well as give life to a dead spirit in sin.  Beloved saints!  Love God’s word.  God’s word has the power of life.  The power to give life to an individual’s spirit and body and the power to revive a sick home and sick society is all in the word of God.  Whoever loves God’s word and believes will be revived and have blessings in his life.

 

Thirdly, there are answers in the word of God.  Let’s read verse 145 of today’s text, “I cry out with my whole heart; hear me, O LORD! I will keep Your statutes.”  We see the secret of the answered prayer.  jCry out with your whole heart.  We see people pray very lightly say “Hi God” in congregational prayer or meal time prayer.  It is not like that.  The prayer with the whole heart is holding on to God for life and death.  Jacob’s prayer at the ford of Jabbok, in the Old Testament, was with his whole heart and he received an answer from God.  Let’s look at Jesus’ prayer.  Before the cross He prayed with His whole heart in the garden of Gethsemane and His sweat become blood.  As a result of that prayer, He overcame the shame and the suffering of the cross.  The outcome of that was for you and me to be able to be saved and opened the way of salvation to everyone.  A saint who prays with the whole heart will receive answers.  kAnother secret is to keep His statues.  It means to obey.  In God’s word it says to do and do and don’t do and don’t do.  This is to keep His statues and the secret for the answer for our prayer.  For example, in Chapter 5 of 2 Kings we see Naaman the army commander of Syria.  He was a commander but he was a leper.  When he was suffering with this sickness he heard about Elisha.  So he went to see him in Israel.  However Elisha did not even come out of his room but sent a messenger to him and said go and wash in the Jordan River seven times (2 Kings 5:10).  When General Naaman heard this he felt bad since his pride was hurt and was about to go back to his country.  He thought that Elisha would come out and call on the name of God and would wave his hand over the place and he would be healed of the leprosy (2 Kings 5:11).  At that time his servants came near and spoke to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, 'Wash, and be clean'?”  (2 Kings 5:13)  This means even if the word is not right with our thoughts and our understanding it must be obeyed.  Then our prayer will be answered.  Finally General Naaman obeyed the word of God from the mouth of God’s servant and dipped seven times in the Jordan.  His flesh was restored. 

Beloved saints!  I am going to finish with these words.  God’s word has the power of life to save us.  How do we have victory and a peaceful life in this rugged world?  I believe that is only in the life which stands firm on the word of God.  May God’s blessing overflow in our hearts.

By: Rev, Samuel Choi

Philippians 4:10-13  “A Victorious Year”

 

Dear beloved saints!  Today is the first Sunday of the year 2009.  May God be with you and your family as we usher in the bright, hopeful new year.  I pray that God will bless you with the dew of heaven and the fatness of the earth, furthermore, the blessing of a healthy physical body.  Now we begin the year of 2009, the beginning of what it will be is very important.  The right start leads to the right destination.  We may lose wealth, treasure, fame, and position, such things we may gain again.  However, the things given to us like time and chance will not come back again if we miss them.  Therefore we must run well in the God-given time of 2009.  Therefore today we will receive grace through a sermon titled “A Victorious Year.”  May God’s grace fill your hearts.

 

First, if you want to have a victorious year, you must have a right and beautiful dream.  Every human being has desires and dreams.  If we look closely at them we may put them in to three different categories.  They are jdesires and dreams according to God’s will, kdreams according to human being’s greediness, and ldesires according to temptations from evil.  Let me explain this fact more closely; jdesires and dreams according to God’s will; Joseph in the Old Testament is a good example of this.  He had a dream that 11 stars and the Sun and the moon bowed down to him, which was not of his own making.  This was from God and according to God’s will.  The great dream that Joseph had from God finally came true.  It is the same in our lives.  If we have a beautiful desire and dream according to God’s will, it will come true by a beautiful blessing.  kA dream according to human being’s greediness is like that of wanting to be a great scholar, to be rich, to be a politician, or be a doctor, etc.  If all of these are for greediness they are dangerous.  If the desires come true or not, it does not matter, the greatest problem with these is the sinful nature in the heart of human beings.  A person who only focuses on his success, his spirit and conscience will get sick and his thoughts will get dark, the consciousness becomes dull and he speaks lies and becomes hypocritical in his conduct.  This kind of person, even if he gains the whole world, when he dies, the things he holds on to will only decay and his spirit will go to hell.  Then does this mean we should not become scholars, rich people, doctors or politicians?  No, it does not mean that.  All the dreams that are for the glory of God and lift up Jesus’ name are beautiful.  lDesires according to temptation, which comes from evil, such as the stories of David and Samson recorded in the Bible, are good examples of this.  And another example is that of Adam and Eve.  The desires of wanting to pick and eat or keeping things to ourselves when we should not are from the temptation of the evil one.  How do we discern this?  We can discern this by the word of God and the law of this world.  I believe we will overcome when we have a right and beautiful dream in Christ, like Joseph.

 

Secondly, if we want to have a victorious year we must have a enthusiastic attitude in our faith in every situation.  We should not give up easily nor be discouraged in our lives.  We should be more like this in our faith.  The apostle Paul in today’s text gives us great strength for our faith. (Philippians 4:13)  “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”  What does this mean?  It includes a strong message that we have a God Who strengthens us in our needs even though we are weak and weary.  I believe you and I would hold on to these strong words.  Look at Jesus, He was the most positive and affirmative person.  He created the cosmos, which is surrounded by darkness, into a beautiful, orderly form, with one world.  Jesus did not give up on the human race when they disobeyed and left God, choosing to die, but He had a plan to create them anew; He came to this earth in human flesh as the Savior and carried the cross, taking the penalty of sin for human beings (Romans 6:23).  He was not discouraged in the midst of suffering on the cross.  Therefore, whoever believes Jesus Christ has salvation.  You and I believed Jesus and have remission of our sins and are saved and became a new creation; therefore we too must not be disappointed or discouraged in any circumstances, but only follow Jesus with a positive attitude in our faith for a victorious year.

 

Thirdly, if we want to have a victorious year, we need to become a prayer person.  In this human life, we may have small or large difficulties like the storms and waves are, as long as the sea exists.  The boat Jesus’ disciples were in was in a storm.  The objective was how to control the storm and waves.  I believe that the only way for them was to pray to Almighty God.  Peter, who was walking on the sea, sank in the water because of fear.  However Peter said shouting, “Lord! Save me.”  Jesus immediately stretched out His hand and saved him in response to Peter’s cry for help (Matthew 14:30-31).  Yes it is true.  When we are in a crisis, sinking in the water of testing, if we pray to Almighty God, immediately Jesus saves us.  For example, in 1777, when America’s war for independence was going on, General George Washington was the commander of the military.  It was a very cold winter before the battle of Valley Forge.  Soldiers were sick and many of them were wounded.  On top of this there was little or no food supply and gun powder had not been re-supplied.  It was a devastating situation.  At that time General George Washington kneeled down on the cold, snowy field and prayed to God.  “Oh God! Bless our nation; we need freedom of faith and a faith in God.  Oh God, have pity on us and bless this battle.”  At that time, God answered his prayer; He turned over the battle totally and brought great victory for the U.S.A.  This historical fact was a great teaching which helped make the people of America a prayer people who trust God.  Abraham Lincoln was also a prayer person.  He was able to bring victory in the battle between the North and the South because he kneeled and prayed to God.  No one can deny this fact.  Therefore America was a Christian nation and they were prayer people when something happened.

 
Beloved saints! Do you want to have a victorious year?  Then I believe you need to become a prayer person who kneels and prays to God.  The victory or defeat of one individual or one nation is determined by prayer.  The fervent prayer of a leader of one tribe will change the fate of the nation.  It is the same for an individual and a family.  Our Jesus overcame the crisis of the cross by prayer.  We learn from Jesus that we too can overcome in our crisis.  I wish we would not have crisises and difficulties in 2009.  However if we do, I have confidence that our Lord will save us immediately with His hand of salvation if we pray.  May God’s grace over flow your hearts.

By Rev.Samuel Choi

Ephesians 5:15-17       Be a wise person

 

Dear congregation, year 2008 is behind us. It will never come back to us. Now, New Year 2009 is about to unfold before us. You and I tried to live our life to the fullest but there may be some things that we didn’t get to accomplish. Also, we may have some regrets for being lazy and not trying our best. As we worship the Lord for the first time this New Year, we want to lead our New Year to a winning year. I pray in the name of the Lord that with God’s blessings make this year the most blessed year in your lifetime. I pray that all your wishes come true and your prayers are answered this year. I pray that we win in Jesus Christ as we listen to today’s message. Then, how can we live a better life?

 

That is, first of all, let’s read today’s scripture verses 15-16. “Be very careful, then, how you live- not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” In our life, the time flies before our eyes. One hour, one month and one year just pass before our eyes. However, where is our destination? We have a definite destination. But if there are some people who think that they’ll live for thousands of year, they are a foolish person. We should learn the wisdom to not waste our time and live each day wisely.  I remember saying this sometimes. “Let’s not live in our past. Let’s put our past behind us whether it is good or bad.” Why is that? If we think too much about how well we lived in the past, we can easily be arrogant. Also, if we think too much about our mistakes in the past, we can easily be discouraged. Thinking about the past doesn’t help our faithful life. Also, someone who lives in the past has hard time growing as a person. The bible tells us that the Christians should be able to look ahead. St. Paul said in Philippians 3:13-14, “Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Take a look at our Jesus. Our Jesus was the man of action and he was the most positive person. The life that Jesus lived was very forward thinking. Instead of choosing the short pleasures in life, He chose God’s eternal kingdom. He set a good example for us.  How can we win in this evil time? That is, we shouldn’t be too attached to things in this world but we should hope for God’s kingdom. Someone who has this hope receives the new energy from God so that he can read more bible, spend more time in bible study, pray more and serve God more. Also, he can live life more diligently. Then, we won’t be wasting our time and we can become a wise person. What does it mean by being wise? Who is a wise person?

 

That is, second of all, a person who relies on God is a wise person. Psalm 32:10 says, “Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him.” The believer who trusts and faithfully prays receives the blessing of God’s response. On this New Year, we should trust God more than any other time. I believe that you will win because God will help you.

 

Thirdly, who is a wise person? Today’s scripture verse 17 tells us this. “Therefore do not be foolish but understand what the Lord’s will is.” It tells us the one who understands what the Lord’s will is a wise person. Then, what is God’s will?  John 6:40 says, “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” God’s will is for us to receive the salvation by believing in Jesus and to receive the eternal life. Receiving the salvation by believing in Jesus Christ, this is God’s will. Therefore, we should do our best to serve the Lord. The one who serves the Lord is a wise person. I pray all of you try your best to accomplish God’s will.

 

Dear congregation, I’ll end here. Do you want to have a winning life? Then, spend your time wisely. Also, rely on God and leave everything up to Him. One thing we should know is that we’re living in an evil time. At a time like this, we can easily fall into hardship. However, I believe as long as we stand firm on God’s Word and live according to His Words, we can have a winning New Year. I pray God

 

By: Rev. Samuel Choi

The day of affliction and praise  Psalm 77:1-12

 

In our journey of life, we’ve experienced many afflictions. There is probably not a single person who has not tasted the bitterness of life. Also, it’s probably rare for us, the believers, to not go through suffering and trouble as we lead a faithful life. That is because God leads us to walk through the valley of affliction in order to strengthen our faith. This valley is also expressed as the road of wilderness and in this wilderness God meets us and teaches us a lot of things. The author of today’s scripture met a day of affliction. He couldn’t think clearly. He just felt scared and hopeless. At that time, the satan shoot an arrow of doubt in his heart. He started to have doubt in his heart. “Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again? Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Did his anger stop him from being compassionate?” All of us go through affliction at one point or another but in a different degree. Then, why are we faced with affliction and trial? That is because the ancestors of mankind Adam and Eve went against God’s will. When God created Adam and Eve, He created them to look like him and they were supposed to live according to God’s will. However, they did not follow God’s fundamental purpose. They had followed the satan and they became the satan’s servant. After this, the mankind continued to live this way and the humans had lost the opportunity to have the eternal life. From the ancient times, the mankind struggled to live well, however, they couldn’t get out of life full of illness, pain, hatred, curse and death. Then later, the humans believed in Jesus as the Savior and the sins were forgiven. We found comfort in God’s arms and God became the center of our life. However, just because the humans came back to God that doesn’t mean that we always live according to God’s will. Although we try to live according to God’s Word, we can’t help but to go back to our old habits and thoughts and sin against God. This is the reality of mankind and it is our problem. Here, our will goes before God’s will. We try to accomplish God’s will with our own means and methods. Therefore, God let’s us experience the suffering in the wilderness. So, we should remember that from time to time we will experience the valley of darkness. No matter what position we hold in church, even pastors go through this process. As we know, to go through the life’s darkness is painful and it is an unbearable trial. Therefore, today I would like to think about some of the ways to overcome the day of affliction so that we can pass it successfully.

 

First of all, when we are faced with the day of affliction, we should remember the past. Let’s read today’s scripture verses 10-11. “Then I thought, ‘To this I will appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High.” I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.” Therefore, when we are going through the night of suffering, we should remember the time that God led us. Doesn’t the bible record all the deeds of the Lord? Therefore, we should remember the times that God blessed us or God saved us from despair and be thankful to God. When God sees us having this attitude, He gives us the blessing of winning with our faith.

 

Second of all, in the day of affliction, we should remember God’s miracle. We should never forget that “God performs miracles.” I heard a lot of testimony about being healed from diseases that are not curable with present day’s medical technology. This was only possible by praying. The only way to save a person who is in despair is through miracle. It is only natural for a believer to come to God expecting a miracle. Therefore, if there is someone who is in despair, you should be thankful for what God has done for you so far and remember God’s miracles. We should write down God’s miracles that are recorded in the bible and we should acknowledge them with our mouth and firmly believe that we can receive the same kind of blessing.

 

Thirdly, in the night of affliction, we should praise. Although it is easy to praise for a good occasion, it is not easy to be thankful and to praise in the night of affliction. However, we should overcome our emotions and we should praise to the Lord. God wants us to give praise to Him. What is so great about Christianity is that we praise a lot. Whether we are happy or sad we should praise the Lord. Then, God of ability will reveal himself.

 

Fourthly, in the night of affliction, we should be thankful to God unconditionally. The bible tells us, “Give thanks in all circumstances.” To be thankful unconditionally means to be thankful to God for His grace in good times and bad times, in other words, no matter what. Matthew 10:30 says, “And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” Therefore, we should leave all our problems to God and be thankful even if we are faced with death so that we can see God’s glory.

 

Lastly, in the day of affliction, we should try harder to pray. Let’s read today’s scripture verse 2 together. “When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night I stretched out untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted.” We should pray with all our heart and we should pray earnestly. After God hears our prayers, he answers them in different shapes and forms. Halleujah!  Thank you.

 

By: Rev.  Samuel Choi

Luke 2:8-20  “The Birth of Jesus and the Praise of Angels”

 

Beloved brothers and sisters!  Today is a glad and joyous Christmas Sunday.  I pray that God’s blessing fill you and your home on this blessed day.  There have been so many people who have come and gone who named themselves “wise as a sage” in history; among them there is not one who died for you and me that could give us true life.  However our Lord Jesus gave us true life and died for us.  Therefore, the birthday of our Lord Jesus is a joyous and glorious day for us, not only that, it is also glory to God in the highest, which comes from the praise of a multitude of angels.  As we see in verse 14, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”  Therefore today we will receive grace through a sermon titled “The Birth of Jesus and the Praise of Angels” based on these words.  May God’s grace overflow in your hearts.

 

First, the reason for Jesus to come to this world is for the glory of God.  Jesus came to this world itself becoming glory to God.  Yes it is true.  When we read the book of Genesis it shows the beginning of the human race and its fall.  The purpose of the human race is to give glory to God and have a love relationship established between God and man. (Isaiah 43:21, 42:8).  However the first man was tempted by Satan giving glory to Satan and bent his knee before the devil rather that give glory to God.  The consequence for man is he became sick and suffered, finally dying as punishment.  God loved mankind and to save man from punishment, He Himself came in the flesh, as the baby Jesus.  See this in the aspect of spirituality, the human race knelt before Satan and was dragged to hell, but Jesus, in the flesh attacked Satan and brought victory.  Jesus would never kneel down to Satan, not only that, He would free mankind from the prison of hell where they were to and bring them to God.  So after mankind got saved by the merit of Jesus and finally understood that they were deceived by Satan, they knelt and worshipped God alone.  This is the glory to God that God’s angels praised.  In today’s text, they praised God saying in verse 14A, “Glory to God in the highest.”  Beloved saints!  What is the purpose of our lives in Jesus?  That is that we give glory to God.  I believe that we understand well why Jesus’ birth is the glory of God.  If we understand it, I believe we must not be the slave to sin anymore.  The Bible says that we must give glory in everything, even in what we eat and drink.  If we don’t know this, we may give ourselves glory.  For example in Acts 12:20-23 we see that King Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne and gave an oration to his people.  They were so amazed.  At this time King Herod was so proud and puffed up and thought of himself as a god.  He gave glory to himself instead of God.  The result of this was that an angel of the Lord struck him and he was eaten by worms and died.  As we see this, it tells us that we must not steal God’s glory.  In another example, there were two brothers named John and Charles who lived in France.  The younger brother John was a godly person since he was little.  He made up his mind to live his life for God’s glory.  Every time as he prayed, his determination was renewed.  John shouted aloud saying, “Soli Deo Gloria, for glory to God alone.”  The older brother Charles was listening beside him and was disgusted by this.  So he said with a crooked mind, “For the glory of the wealth of the world” in response to his brother. After many years passed, the younger brother died, having lived what he said.  The older brother also lived pursuing after the glory of this world and died.  Many years later, the dictionary in France introduced the two brothers.  It said about the younger brother, whose name is John Calvin, that he was the father of Protestantism, wrote a masterpiece called “Institutes of the Christian Religion,” and greatly contributed to the democracy of the nation and constructing a free society.  His biography continued for three pages.  However, do you know how his older brother was introduced?  Charles Calvin, his older brother, was identified in the dictionary by an entry which read like this; He is the brother of John Calvin and was expelled from the church for his immoral life.  How immoral was his life that it caused him to be kicked out of church?  I don’t know for sure since he was expelled, perhaps expelled from heaven.  It is so shameful.  Beloved saints! What is your view of the value of your lives?  Is it Soli Deo Gloria, for the glory of God alone?  Or is it for your glory?  Today, the angels praise and sing for “Jesus’ birth is for the glory of God.”  As we usher in Christmas, we learn the praise from the angels and may our lives also give glory to God.

 

Secondly, it is on earth peace, goodwill toward men.  Everyone in the world wants peace.  There isn’t anyone who doesn’t want peace from the king to a single individual.  However unfortunately, the world is increasingly uncertain.  There is war and rumors of war, famine, disease, and everyone wants peace but there is no peace on earth.  Why is this?  It is because there isn’t God’s favor resting on man.  Matthew 10:34 says, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.”  Then what does the angel’s saying mean in today’s text?  Look carefully, “And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”  It is not to everyone on earth, but it is to those whose God’s favor rests, in other words, those who are chosen of God.  They are the ones, like you and me, who have the privilege of peace.  What does this mean?  It means that we can have the peace from above in Jesus Christ, which never goes away.  Even though this world is in so much trouble and we may hear rumors of wars, our heart in Christ is at peace.

 
Beloved brothers and sisters!  Would you like to have true peace in your hearts?  Then I pray that you will have Jesus Christ, Who is the Prince of Peace in your hearts.  John 14:27 says, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”  The world which we live in is so complicated and uncertain.  However, only those who come back to Jesus, Who is the Prince of Peace, may enjoy peace in their hearts.  The peace you and I, who are favored of God, enjoy is not like the peace from the world.  The refrain of hymn 469 says, “Peace, peace, wonderful peace coming down from the Father above!  Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray, in fathomless billows of love.”  The second verse says, “What a treasure I have in this wonderful peace.”  This wonderful peace in our hearts is treasure which we can not buy in this world and can not be taken away, why is this?  This is because the blessed peace we have came from the salvation of our souls and our flesh.  You and I are very special and precious children of God, different people from the people in the world.  I bless you in the name of our Lord and may the peace of God be with you and your home, which are favored of God.

By, Rev. Samuel Choi

Numbers 13:17 – 14:3  “A Saint With Faith”

 

Dear beloved saints!  As we live in today’s age, what is the most necessary and essential matter of life for us?   If I ask each of you individually what would your answer be?  Of course each person has a different background and different philosophy of life, so the answers won’t be the same.  To a person in poverty, it can be money; to a person who grew up with oppression, it could be fame or position; and to a person with a weak body, it can be health.  Therefore the answers may vary.  However all of these can not be the right answer to my question today.  Because these answers seem very beautiful and realistic like fog and rainbows, in fact they are not.  Then what is it?  It is an absolute faith in Jesus Christ.  Therefore we will receive grace through a sermon titled “A Saint With Faith.”  I pray that God’s grace fill your hearts.

 

Then why do we need faith?  First, absolute faith is necessary because the world is tough and man’s future is uncertain.  Our lives now days are uncertain, much like a small boat on the rough sea.  As we look at politics, the military, or the economy, not even one day is easy.  We may think that we had it easy yesterday, but today a trial came, we may have peace today, but tomorrow is uncertain, it is such an uncertain time in life which is just like a tidal wave (tsunami) in the Pacific Ocean.  It is the same in every individual’s life.  It is not always an easy road.  There comes a time with all kinds of difficulties; difficulty of poverty, difficulty of sickness, difficulty of failure, uncertainty and suffering in circumstances, and pain of betrayal.  There is a time in our lives when we have suffered in all of these.  Sometimes, the waves of suffering are too high and rough just like the sky covered with dark clouds all over, coming down, driving us in to trouble.  In this time, what do we do?  The key to overcome this without disappointment is faith to absolutely trust Jesus.  Why is this?  It is because Jesus counsels us.  In 1st John 5:4 it says, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world.  And this is the victory that has overcome the world-- our faith.”  Beloved saints!  In this wicked world, what is an essential matter of life, which we must have, to remain living in this age which is hard to discern day or night?  The answer is faith in Jesus Christ, Who has already overcome the world and is the gift of God to the believer, bringing strength.  Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”  I believe that when we believe in Jesus Christ, who strengthens us and is with us, He will be on our side and solve these problems.  I pray you have victory in Jesus Christ.

 

Secondly, a person with faith will demonstrate the strength to believe in the power of God while in the midst of difficulty.  A person with positive belief has a few distinctions.  The eyes of faith always see good things and only good things are seen.  However, the eyes without faith focus only on the things that are not good but bad.  For example in today’s text in the Bible, Moses sent 12 spies, one from each tribe, before entering Canaan, the Promised Land.  Joshua and Caleb were included in this.  12 Spies went to the same place and came back at the same time and accomplished the same task.  However the report from the 12 men was completely different.  The report from 10 men, including Shammua the son of Zaccur and the report from Joshua and Caleb was totally different.  The reports were totally opposite from each other.  They brought one cluster of grapes from Canaan which was so big they carried it between two of them on a pole.  The funny thing is that on the negative side there were 10 men and on the positive side that trusted God there were 2 men (Joshua and Caleb).  One thing hard to understand is that the cluster of grapes and giant people in the land were bad in the sight of 10 spies including Shammua.  They were strange.  They gave a bad report in Numbers 13:32-33, “And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, "The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature.  33"There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight."”  What do we learn from this?  The 10 spies saw things actually as they were.  In fact what they saw was true, the cities were fortified and people who dwelt in the land were strong and large, living well.  They reported what was true and their report was not wrong.  What is true is true, isn’t it?  However the problem was what was not included.  Faith, belief in God was excluded.  There was no faith.  Not to believe is like having contempt for God, isn’t it?  They only saw the land before them but they could not see and believe God, Who promised to give them the land.  What was the outcome of this?  Those who follow negative talk didn’t see the Promised Land (Numbers 14:22-23).  God said that those who saw My signs which I did in Egypt and put Me to the test and did not believe Me (v. 22), they certainly shall not enter the Promised Land (v. 23) (1 day x 40 days = 40 years, Numbers 14:33-34).  It is very interesting that people follow well negative words more than positive words.  Perhaps this is because we have negative thoughts in us which cause us to hear negative words as being more logical.  Consequently all the children of Israel complained against Moses and cried out and wept all night as written in Numbers Chapter 14.  Beloved saints!  This is the world.  When we do not have beautiful, positive faith we may listen quickly to negative words.  From then on our spiritual walk will be confused and bewildered.  An old Korean saying says, “If you are watchful when you are about to be devoured by a tiger you will survive.”  What does this mean?  This means if we have a right mind we can live in any kind of difficulties.  For the non-believers we have this kind of old saying, but how much more for the believers?  Since we decide to believe in Jesus we need to do it right from the beginning otherwise we may become a hindrance and be worse than a non-believer.  Beloved saints!  Which side are you on?  The choice is free, whether negative or positive.  However the result of that freedom of choice is your responsibility.  How blessed to have Joshua and Caleb who were positive, if they did not have them what would have happened to the Israelite people?  The trouble is not in the circumstances but it is in our faith.  A person controlled by the circumstances in his life has no faith.  Look, President Franklin Roosevelt of the U.S.A. in history, was elected president three times as a patient with infantile paralysis.  The famous leader in England, Sir Winston Churchill also had infantile paralysis and heart problems.  The apostle Paul prayed to God to take away the thorn as an incurable patient.  Likewise every man has a river to cross and has obstacles to overcome.  I believe at this time we must believe and look to Jesus Christ, Who is above and controls circumstances.

 

Thirdly, a person with faith gives up all things for the Lord.  Today, who are the people that are needed in our church, in our home, and in our society?  If the Lord gives praise, who would He give it to?  Before the Lord sees a person’s appearance He sees truthful faith in their heart.  He will give praise to the person who lifts up His name and devotes himself for God’s glory. 

In conclusion beloved saints!  In this time of corruption and confusion nation-wide and in personal and religious life what is the most necessary and essential matter of life?  I say again, it is absolute faith in Jesus Christ.  Why is it an absolute faith?  It is because no human being can do these things but “He can do.”  Yes because Jesus Christ can do, we believe Him.  Absolute faith is our strength to overcome the world.  May the grace of God and His blessing fill your hearts.

By, Rev. Samuel Choi

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