If you accept the Word of God into your heart...

Pastor Ock Soo Park's Sermon

The nobleman that believed the Word, “Thy son liveth”…

A nobleman believed that Jesus was the king of kings so he had the heart, “I just need to accept the Word of Jesus! The king I serve is the king of this land. If he commands something to be done, someone has to work to fulfill those words. But because Jesus is the king of all kings, once you accept his Word, the work is accomplished automatically!’

In the same way that he acknowledged the king because he was his servant, he acknowledged Jesus as king of all kings and accepted and believed the Word, “Thy son liveth.”

WHEN GOD SAID, “THY SON LIVETH…”
In John 4:46 Jesus went to Cana of Galilee. There was a nobleman there whose son was sick in Capernaum. He went to Jesus and pleaded, “Come down and heal my son.” Jesus said, “Thy son liveth.” He believed the Word of Jesus as it was and as he went back, his servants met him along the way and told him that his son was healed. He asked them when he was healed and the servants replied, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” He was healed at the exact moment when Jesus said, “Thy son liveth.”

JUST AS ALL ELECTRIC DEVICES ARE MADE TO WORK WHEN CONNECTED TO ELECTRICITY
When God made man, He also made his heart. There are many reasons why He made the heart. One is so that He can work once we accept His Word into our heart.

Washing machines are made so that if electricity is supplied to the motor, it turns the belt that spins the tub at a high rate of speed, which in turn loosens and separates the dirt from the laundry to be washed away. Washers can’t run without electricity; and if someone tries to run it with his own manpower, it will be too hard. However, if the washer is connected to electricity, the motor starts and the washer runs automatically. It washes away the dirt and wrings out the water.

Washing machines aren’t the only things that work that way. Televisions, refrigerators and air conditioners all rely on electricity to work. If there’s no electricity, no matter how good of a washer or refrigerator it is, it won’t work. As they are connected to electricity, the TV will display images, the washer will wash, and the air conditioner will blow cold air.

Just as all electrical devices are made to work with electricity, God made man so that when we accept His Word, He amazingly works.

“Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.”
What Jesus was trying to say was,
“Don’t look for signs and wonders, just believe my Word; then my Word will enter and work.”

Those who do not have God’s Word in their heart are led by thoughts from Satan and the desires of their flesh. So they try to please God by doing good deeds yet they are unable to because their fleshly desires lead them. But, when we accept the Word of God into our heart, the Word works inside of us and creates a heart that we didn’t have before.

BECAUSE JESUS IS THE KING OF ALL KINGS, ONCE I ACCEPT THE WORD, IT WORKS ON ITS OWN!
How sad the nobleman must have felt when his son was dying! Because he was a servant to the king, he had power and position but it was of no use in healing his son. Even though He was a servant to the king, he had to go to Jesus to plead with him to spare his son’s life. Jesus said, “Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.” What Jesus was trying to say was, “Don’t look for signs and wonders, just believe my Word; then my Word will enter and work.”

The nobleman didn’t resist the words thinking, “I am a powerful servant of the king; I know my son is sick but isn’t Jesus being unreasonable?’ Instead, he had the heart, “All this time, I have believed in signs and wonders, but Jesus doesn’t want me to look to those things. He just wants me to believe the Word!” So, when Jesus said, “Thy son liveth!” he believed the Word as it was. A king’s servant doesn’t work according to his own will. It is the king who makes all the decisions regarding the matters of the kingdom. The servant reported situations to the king and inquired of his will. When the king considered all the reports and made a decision, the servant worked in accordance to that decision.

The nobleman believed that Jesus was the king of all kings so he had the heart, “I just need to accept the Word of Jesus! The king that I serve is king of this land. If he commands something to be done, someone has to work to fulfill those words. But because Jesus is the king of all kings, once you accept his Word, the work is accomplished automatically!’

In the same way that he acknowledged the king because he was his servant, he acknowledged Jesus as the king of all kings and accepted and believed the Word, “Thy son liveth.”

WHEN WE ACCEPT THE WORD, GOD’S POWER APPEARS IN US
The nobleman heard Jesus’ words and believed that his son lived. While he was going back home, his servants met him on the way and told him that his son was healed. When he asked them when he began to heal, the servants answered, “at the seventh hour the fever left him.” The nobleman realized, ‘It was the same hour when Jesus said, “thy son liveth”!’ and had even greater faith in the Lord. It was not that the nobleman prayed hard or poured his heart that his son was healed; he simply accepted the Word of Jesus into his heart.

For a washing machine to work, it’s not important to find a good place to put it. It’s doesn’t matter if you make it lighter or put oil on the motor to make it run smoothly. If you connect the washer to electricity the electricity will power the motor and the motor will run the washer. And of course the laundry will be done.

When we accept the Word of God into hour hearts with faith, the very same power that is in God’s appears in us. Satan is very afraid of that.

What Satan fears the most is for us to believe the Word of God. When we accept the Word of God into hour hearts with faith, the very same power that is in God’s appears in us. Satan is very afraid of that. So Satan uses all measures at his disposal to remind us of the many the things we’ve experienced and the things we know, so we won’t accept the Word of God with faith. Because all this time we lived with our own methods rather than believing in God, we have our experience and knowledge that tell us, “for this we have to do it like this, and for that we have do it like that.” That’s why it’s very fearful and burdensome to follow a way that’s different from what we’re used to.

However, people who believe God know that whatever we did until now according to our experience and methods is evil so we have to beware of those things. We must know precisely that if we follow our methods and experience then we will be destroyed and so we must throw them away. Once we throw away our methods and experience, then we get to accept the Word of God and God works inside of us.

THE LIGHT THAT CAST OUT THE DARKNESS AND MADE THE WORLD BRIGHT

Even though the man with an infirmity for 38-years clearly knew that he couldn’t rise and walk, when Jesus said, “Rise, take up thy bed and walk,” a fight arose between his thought and Jesus’ Word. When he cast out the thoughts that he believed in for a long time, the Word of Jesus entered into his heart. It’s like Genesis 1, after darkness was upon the earth for thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of years. But when the Word of God entered, light came upon the earth, cast out all the darkness and made the world bright. Through the light, flowers bloomed on trees, fruits came forth and the earth changed beautifully. The Word of God itself is the light. Once we accept the Word of God, the darkness in our heart disappears and God works.

Temptation, disappointment, despair; all these things are fruits of darkness. They appear in people who are in darkness and drag their hearts. But if God’s Word enters, because the Word is light, despair, temptation and darkness go away and it brings peace, joy, faith and hope in us to bring forth fruits that are of God.

WE ARE JUST LIKE THE MAN WITH AN INFIRMITY FOR 38 YEARS AND THE NOBLEMAN
The nobleman was a person like us. The man with an infirmity for 38 years was also a person just like us. God made us the same way He made them. Just as God’s Word entered into the heart of the man with an infirmity and he was able to rise with new strength, and just as the nobleman’s son was healed the moment his father accepted Jesus’ Word, whosoever accepts God’s Word receives great and precious grace and God works in him.

God leads us to accept His Word. Regardless of who we are, once we accept the Word of God, God’s power appears and changes our lives. From then on, we are held by God’s hand and His amazing works are accomplished through us.