Pastor Ock Soo Park's Sermon
MEETING WITH A STUDENT
Once when I was ministering in Daegu, a sister who was attending high school brought a friend who was the vice president of another church’s youth group to have spiritual counseling, and that friend received salvation. And a few days later, that student brought another student whom she said was the president of her church’s youth group, and when I preached the gospel to him, he received salvation. I asked him where he lived, but the student appeared very uncomfortable and vaguely responded by saying that his house was around so-and-so.
Afterwards, I wanted to meet that student but there was no way that I could. When I told the brother next to me that I wanted to meet him, he said he thought he could find his house. So that day, I went to the student’s house with the brother.
There were about two houses around the place the student told us. We went into the first house and asked, “Is this by any chance the house of So-and-so Kim?” That moment, the very student came out appearing like he did not know what to do. Then he told us to get outside quickly in case his mother saw them. That afternoon, we sat under some trees by the street and had spiritual fellowship until it became completely dark. Upon finishing the fellowship, I said let’s pray, but the student found it very uncomfortable to pray on the street.
Afterwards, that brother started attending our church and told me what had happened all along. The brother’s father was hard of hearing, and while crossing railroad tracks, he could not hear the sound of an approaching train and died of a train accident. His mother had passed away before then, and his father had been living with his stepmother. But now that his father had passed away, his stepmother was very sad.
One night, his mother awoke him from his sleep and took him to the place of his father’s accident. At the place were Buddhist monks preparing to hold a memorial ceremony for his deceased father. As the monk gave the paper charm and the brother was told to burn all of it and say “Father, let us go to the temple,” so the brother did so. Then the family members went to a temple and bowed before a statue of the Buddha. The brother knew that a believer of Jesus must not bow and was about to say that, but everyone had already prostrated themselves and he had lost the opportunity to tell them. So he said to himself in his heart, “I just won’t bow down from the heart,” and he bowed twice before the statue of the Buddha. However, he felt great anguish afterwards because of the sin of breaking the Ten Commandments.
Meanwhile, he was very glad after having followed the youth group vice president of his church, heard the gospel, and received forgiveness of sin; however, he had been planning to continue attending his church, and when I asked him where he lived, he said that he felt very burdened.
The following week while leading the youth group service, he gave his testimony of how he had received forgiveness of sin, but the senior classmen yelled at him saying, “Where did you hear such heresy?” and there was a big commotion. He said that although he was the president of the youth group, not one person sided with him.
Having experienced such disappointment, he ended up not going to church for a month. Even then, there was no one who came to see him, and he said he was at the brink of tears wondering to himself whether this church is a true church.
Then one day, seeing us who had only met him once come to see him, he realized, “Seeing that these people come to see me, they really must care for me,” and following that, started to attend our church.
That brother was suffering so much from the sin of breaking the commandment that reads, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, . . . Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them. And he says that he is really grateful when he thinks about the fact that his sin was forgiven even until now, decades after he heard the gospel.
THE ROMAN CHURCH’S SALE OF INDULGENCES
I have previously been to St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, and I was completely shocked upon seeing the scale of it because even the most famous Korean architects say that it is not possible to draw up an estimate of how much it would cost to build St. Peter’s Basilica. The gold covering the walls is about four tons, and they say that the frescoes were not painted with brushes, but with colored stones. Moreover, pilgrims kissed the feet of the bronze statue of Peter so much that the statue got worn out, and it had to be placed in a glass case. Aside from that, as enormous amounts of money went into stones, paintings, decoration, etc., the Roman Catholic Church had believers buy indulgences and gathered offerings. Believers were told that the clanging sound that rings out when the silver coin drops into the coffer forgives their sins, and if they buy indulgences for their deceased parents, they were told that their parents would go from hell to purgatory, and later to heaven. In this way, many people sold everything they had and bought indulgences.
Martin Luther, who was a Roman Catholic priest at the time, had been suffering because of sin, but read the Words in Romans that say, The just shall live by faith, and received salvation. His spiritual eyes were opened and he criticized the wrongs of the Roman Catholic Church through his Ninety-Five Theses, one of which stated that sins are not forgiven through the purchase of indulgences.
However, what was worse than selling indulgences was that the Roman Catholic Church, in order to lead its believers in the way it wanted to, prevented believers from reading the Bible, telling believers that the Bible is spiritually difficult to understand and that it must not be incorrectly interpreted. If believers had known precisely the way to receive forgiveness of sin through the Bible, even though the Roman Catholic Church would tell them that their sins would be forgiven through the purchase of indulgences, they would not be ignorant and believe those words. Just as those who do politics led people to deify kings to make it easier to govern the country, religious leaders were deified so that believers would follow ministers’ words unconditionally.
WHAT DOES GOD’S JUDGMENT SENTENCE SAY?
When I went to the World Camp in the Dominican Republic last September, the mayor of Santiago said he wanted to hold an IYF World Camp in the Dominican Republic like the one in Korea, and all expenses were paid by the city. The hotel that I stayed at then was the most luxurious hotel among all the hotels I have stayed at. So I asked the mayor, “Did you reserve this hotel thinking that I was the president?” He replied, “I consider you to be someone more precious than the president.”
On the first day of the camp, the mayor invited the major pastors in the Dominican Republic. Those pastors had a negative attitude towards me. Knowing this, the mayor said, “I have personally been to Pastor Park’s church in Korea, and contrary to the rumors, I had a good impression,” and prepared an opportunity for them to speak with me.
One pastor among 47 pastors said, “According to what I have heard from Korean missionaries, they say that there is a problem with your perspective on salvation. We would like to hear your explanation about that.” Right then, I was so glad because I myself had been dying to talk about that anyway. I stood up and began to speak.
“Everyone, I attended church since I was young, but I was always in suffering, being tied and bound to my sins. At that time, regardless of how God saw my sins, when I committed many sins, I was miserable and when I did good works, I was glad and lived according to my standards. Then one day, I learned that my standards are not that important. No matter how great the crime of the accused may be, if the judge says he is innocent, then he is innocent. The words of the accused, prosecutor, and the defense lawyer may be taken into consideration, but those words are not the decisive factor.
However, in God’s judgment sentence are recorded these Words:
I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee. (Isaiah 44:22)
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:6)
By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. (Hebrews 10:10)
AND THEIR SINS AND INIQUITIES WILL I REMEMBER NO MORE.
Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin. (Hebrews 10:17–18)
And in 1 Corinthians 6:10–11 are recorded clearly the following Words: Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
I considered God’s Word to be more important than my own judgment, and because God said that He has washed my sins whiter than snow, I just believed those very Words.”
After about an hour passed, the expressions of the pastors started to change. And when I finished speaking, everyone opened their hearts towards me. One of them shed tears saying, “Pastor, I have come to believe this truth this day. I would like to learn the Bible from you from now on,” and embraced me. Another person took a picture with me and got my signature on my collection of sermons.
THE TRUE MEANING OF THE ALTAR OF BURNT OFFERING
What we read today is about the altar of burnt offering. The altar of burnt offering is made of acacia wood, also known as shittim wood. The dimensions are five cubits long, five cubits broad, and three cubits in height, so it is saying to build an altar about two meters all around. And then the whole thing was to be overlaid with brass, and horns were to be made on each of the four corners of the altar. This is the altar that Moses saw in heaven at the top of Mt. Sinai for 40 days, and Moses told Aholiab and Bezaleel to make the altar precisely according to what he saw. God told priests to kill sheep and oxen at the altar to give as an offering.
The first thing that is seen upon opening the door to the tabernacle is this altar of burnt offering. This altar is made of acacia wood, and acacia wood represents Jesus. It is five cubits long and broad, and here “5” represents grace, and the height “3” represents God. And the brass overlaid on the entire altar signifies that the judgment of God has been given. The brass serpent mentioned in, And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:14–15), also represents Jesus who has received judgment for our sin.
Just as people are scared and feel guilt because of their sin as they enter the holy place, but feel freedom from their sin as they see the altar of burnt offering covered in brass, the altar explains to us that Jesus has received the judgment in our place, whatever sins we have committed.
EVEN THE SIN OF HITLER WAS CLEANSED!
The dictator Hitler, who brought about World War II, is said to have killed 6,000,000 Jews. Many Jews were put in shower rooms and killed from poisonous gas that came out of the showers that were turned on, and it is said that those bodies were burned and used as fertilizer. If Hitler had known the true meaning of the altar of burnt offering in the holy place, he would have been able to have faith that even the judgment for his sin of killing 6,000,000 Jews was received by Jesus so that he has become clean.
In the Bible it says, Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin (Romans 3:20), but today, there are so many people who say “I have kept the Sabbath. I have tithed. I have given my Sunday offering,” and set their hopes on the fact that they have kept the law. That is how Satan deceives them. Do you know how you can know that you are becoming arrogant and evil? Considering your thoughts to be more important than God’s Word is arrogance.
THE RECORD OF MY SIN DISAPPEARS
Many people, because they cannot say they are justified as they look at themselves, take the stance that we are sinners but God saw us as being justified, and thus is merely “calling” us justified. However, that is a silly argument that profanes God.
Being a Holy and Just Judge, God would never see a sinner as being justified, and does not say that a sinner is justified. Therefore, in order for God to make us righteous, judgment was required. After judgment has been delivered, sin comes to an end. The death of Jesus was the judgment of our sins, and that is how we have become righteous. That is why after Jesus was nailed to the cross and died, God sees no sin at all inside of us when seeing us. When you go into the holy place of God and the first thing you see is the altar of burnt offering, you might say this:
“Because a lamb was killed and burned on that altar, the judgment for my sin is over. The moment that judgment was given, my sin was resolved. I have no sin. I have now become holy and justified!”
Through Jesus’ death on the cross, our sins were washed on that cross. That is why God has judged us justified and holy. Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:10–11)
When giving a sin offering, priests were to dip a finger into the sheep’s blood and smear it on the horns of the altar. And if he bring a lamb for a sin offering, he shall bring it a female without blemish. . . . and slay it for a sin offering in the place where they kill the burnt offering. And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, . . . (Leviticus 4:32–34)
I thought about this several times as I read this.
“Why do they have to smear the sheep’s blood on the horns of the altar when giving a sin offering?”
Then one day, I found the matching pair to this Word in Jeremiah 17:1. The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond: it is graven upon the table of their heart, and upon the horns of your altars; . . .
Because our sins are engraved on the horns at the four corners of the altar, whenever we go out before God and see those horns, we remember our sin. But the fact that we are told to smear the lamb’s blood on the horns of the altar means to erase the sins engraved on the horns of the altar with the lamb’s blood.
THE LORD HAS FULFILLED ETERNAL REDEMPTION
However, Satan makes it so that we feel as if sin is still within us whenever we commit sin in order to prevent us from striving towards faith. This is the same as Satan making us think that we can become justified by keeping the law, even though it is impossible to become justified through the deeds of the law. God placed the altar at the entrance of the tabernacle so that whenever we go out before God, we would look upon Jesus nailed on the cross, and know by the lamb’s blood smeared on the horns of the altar that the record of our sins is erased and that we are justified.
Everyone, Jesus’ death on the cross was not in vain. By this death on the cross, He has cleansed us from all sins. Do not be dragged around by whatever Satan says; you must believe in God’s Word.
Some people say that salvation is achieved through sanctification, but that is nonsensical and hypocritical. People are dirty and filthy until they die, so we absolutely cannot become sanctified. That is why God nailed us who are such to the cross. And God gives us the righteousness of Jesus, which we take with us when we go out before God.
In order to justify us, God handed over every little bit of our sins to Jesus and delivered judgment on it. Just as a person is innocent if the judge declares that he is innocent, if God says that we are justified, then we are justified. Insisting that we are sinners even though God says that we are justified is truly evil and arrogant.
Today we read about the altar of burnt offering. The blood of a sheep was smeared on the horns during the days of the Old Testament to erase the sins that were engraved. Likewise, Jesus, by dying on the cross, smeared His precious blood on the horns of the altar in heaven and fulfilled eternal redemption. Even now, 2,000 years since then, we have become holy through that blood.
Do not be deceived by cunning Satan and fall into your thoughts thinking,
“What if my sins are not forgiven?” Rather, I hope that you become glorious children of God who serve the Lord with thanks that Jesus has received all the judgment for our sins.
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