Good News Mission Blog

When We Believe and Serve Jesus, the King of Kings

Pastor Ock Soo Park's Sermon

And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. . . (Matthew 8:5–13)

“I’M ACHAN!”
After Christianity came into Korea, an event that left its mark in history occurred at a church in Pyeongyang in 1907. The pastor of the church preached about “Achan.” It was about how Achan stole what was to be given as an offering to God when the Israelites were capturing Jericho. As a result of that, God could not work in Israel, and many people were killed. That Word had a strong impact on the hearts of those who attended the service on that day.
In particular, there was an elder at the church. At one time, the elder’s friend was ill, nearing death, and the friend called him to give his final will. “This is as long as I’ve got, but I have a favor to ask of you. If my fortune is managed well, my wife will be able to live without much difficulty until she dies, but because my wife is a little dim-witted, I don’t think she’ll be able to avoid getting conned. You’re a church elder! I’d like for you to help my wife and manage my fortune.” The elder promised to do so.
After the friend passed away, the elder began to manage the fortune. Then he began to use some of his friend’s money thinking, “I’ll pay it back next time,” and the wife did not know about this at all. As more time passed, he could not pay the money back, but he thought, “I’ll just pretend like it never happened,” and just let it pass. As he continued in that way, little by little, he used up his friend’s wealth unbeknownst to the wife.
As he heard the pastor’s sermon on that day, the Holy Spirit strongly pointed out the elder’s sin, and he began to feel very guilty of his sin, realizing that God was unable to work in his church because of the sin he had committed. In the middle of the sermon, the elder stood straight up and shouted in a loud voice, “I am Achan!” The members of the church were completely surprised, and the atmosphere of the service turned strange. The elder came forward and started to confess his evil. As the Holy Spirit worked in the hearts of all the people who attended the service that day, they all came forward one by one, confessing their sins and praying before God. While doing that, they gained assurance in their hearts that their sins were forgiven through the blood of Jesus, and the Holy Spirit worked powerfully.
This work of the Holy Spirit spread to a neighboring church, and this work of the gospel spread throughout the entire nation. In particular, they say that the work of the gospel that took place in Suncheon was truly amazing. After a short while however, the work of the Holy Spirit all faded away, and what remains now in Korean churches is asking for forgiveness of sin in tears and in supplication. It has become a religion that has nothing to do with the Holy Spirit.

JESUS, KING OF THE JEWS
This morning, I read about the centurion in the Gospel of Matthew. A centurion is a military officer with enough power to rule all of Capernaum, and yet, we can see this centurion’s heart being concerned with his servant. And when he told Jesus about the problem, Jesus said, “I will come and heal him,” but he said, “Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.”
At those words, Jesus said, “I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.” Such faith is not found even among the Israelites, but how could this centurion, a Roman soldier, come to have such faith?
When you read the four Gospels in the New Testament, the four people Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John express Jesus through the revelation of God.
Since Matthew represented Jesus as the King of the Jews, the genealogy of the kings of Judah comes out in Matthew chapter 1. And there are many sermons Jesus delivers, such as the Sermon on the Mount, sermon on the boat, and several parables. It’s because a king does all things through his word. That is why when you read Matthew chapter 8, the power contained within the Word is revealed, and the leper is healed by the Word of Jesus.
In the Gospel of John, it describes Jesus thus: the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. If that Word of Jesus comes into my heart and my heart becomes one with it, the Word begins to work in my life from then on. Therefore, the source of all power is within the Word.
In living life, everyone faces hardship and tragedies. There are times when business gets risky, times when a healthy body gets sick, and times when children go on the wrong path. Due to various problems, we pray to God asking for help, but there are times when we don’t really feel that God has heard our prayer.

THE POWER OF THE WORD
However, once you discover the heart of the Lord that flows in the Bible while you read it, and if your heart and the heart of the Lord in the Bible become connected as one, the Word will settle in your heart. Then it’s not you who overcomes fear, but the Word that lets you overcome it. It’s not that there are no worries, but that the Word defeats them.
That is why I really like preaching. Before I preach, I have to read the Bible and meditate on it, and during the time I preach, the Word captures my heart, my worries disappear, and I find myself gaining new strength. If I wasn’t a pastor and didn’t preach, I might have flowed towards my flesh.
People ask me this question every now and then: “How are you able to meet the presidents and government ministers?” To be honest, not once did I ever try hard to meet those kinds of people. A few months ago when I was invited by the Kenyan Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and Prime Minister’s Office to deliver Mind Education for youth leaders, the President of Uganda sent the Minister of Youth to Kenya because he wanted to have Mind Education for the youth in Uganda just as in Kenya, so I said that we would make time.
We also hosted a World Camp in Nepal last November. The Nepalese minister who attended the Minister of Youth World Forum in July introduced the IYF to the President, and that was how the World Camp was begun. Pastor Hun-mok Lee went as the guest speaker, and I heard that the President wants to entrust all the youth of Nepal to IYF.
The year 2011 was the 10th anniversary of IYF. Seeing how God tries to give us land needed for IYF activities in several countries and how IYF is being entrusted with the education of youth, I can see that God is doing many new things through IYF as the years pass.

“SPEAK THE WORD ONLY.”
If you are in a position like the centurion in Matthew chapter 8, because you have actual power, you could despise those people under your command and care only for yourself, but this centurion was truly concerned that his servant had become ill and pleaded that Jesus solve the problem. More surprising is the fact that even though Jesus said that He would go and heal him, this centurion said, “Lord, there is no need for You to come all the way to my house. Please only speak the Word.” Why did the centurion say that? He is saying, “Are You not the King of Kings? Does a king go to see a vassal or servant at his house to ask a favor? Since he is a king, if he says come, he comes, and if he says go, he goes. Since You are the King of Kings, if You would only tell my servant’s illness to leave him, the illness will leave him.” Although this centurion is not an Israelite, the fact was that he had realized in his heart that Jesus is the King of Kings.
When I read the latest issue of the college student magazine Tomorrow, there was an interview of Brother Maxim, who is running a big business in St. Petersburg, Russia. The symbol of wealth in Russia is wearing a long coat made of leather and driving a Mercedez Benz, and one day before that brother believed in Jesus, he got to wear a long coat of leather and own a Mercedez Benz.
Being as happy as he was, seeing that he had become rich, he got off the car spinning the car keys around, but he ended up dropping the keys into the sewer. In trying to retrieve them, he fell into the sewers, and ended up being covered in sewage. He then realized how arrogant he was, and began to live a life completely different from that of the past. Although he is the president of a large company, in addition to being a vegetarian, he lives simply and is generous with donations. If people just live without thinking, they follow the first desires of the flesh that arise, and end up desiring a life of eating, drinking, and enjoying themselves. However, if one thinks a little more deeply, eating and drinking luxuriously is meaningless, and people who raise their voices saying that they have lots of money are also nothing but pitiful. That is why people who know how to think deeply do not live bound to their own flesh.

BY LEARNING OF JESUS
Although money, education, or rank may give us some degree of assistance, those things however can never make us happy. Money makes people dirty and evil, and even power is something you might have that can disappear in an instant. If we think more deeply about this, we eventually come to meet God.
The more I get to know Jesus, I come to feel that being recognized by others and having a lot of money is nothing. As I experience how precious Jesus is, I just cannot exchange Jesus with anything. Even though you may say that you are a saved brother or sister however, if you do not receive the guidance of the Holy Spirit and do not experience Jesus, you do not know Jesus well even though Jesus is alive.
There are a lot of functions on the latest smartphone I have, but because I do not know those functions well, I do not use them. It’s a too much of a bother for me if my phone is complicated. It’s because being able to make and receive calls is enough. When it’s necessary however, I do learn the functions and use them. Likewise, if we precisely learn of Jesus little by little, Jesus creates a new world in our hearts. That’s because Jesus has the power to overcome sin and temptation, sorrow and suffering, hardship and illness.

THE FAITH OF THE CENTURION
Jesus had become the King of Kings in the heart of the Roman centurion, but today in the hearts of many brothers and sisters, Jesus is not the King of Kings. With their mouths they say that Jesus is the King of Kings and the Almighty Lord, but in their hearts, Jesus is someone who cannot solve even one small problem. That is why Jesus becomes a small part of their lives, and they do not think at all about receiving the grace bus, and I would take one of them at a time in my car and preach the gospel to them.
One minister told me that he lived being so good since he was young that he would not even kill a single bug; however, after becoming a minister, he was treated with respect. While he gladly served in his position for about a year, he kept ending up doing wrong things that made him feel guilty in his conscience. Then he asked me what to do about this problem, and he spoke with his heart completely open.
I was so thankful to see a minister talking like that. It was because I felt, “God is making him realize his sin this way to lead him to salvation.” As I preached the gospel to him while he was in a state of having realized his sin, he received salvation right away.

DO YOU BELIEVE THE LORD AS THE KING OF KINGS?
The Roman centurion thought, “It would be overwhelming enough for the Roman emperor to come to my house, but if He, who is the King of Kings, were to come to my house, how could I bear it?” Because he was completely humbled before Jesus, he said thus to Jesus: “Lord, speak the Word only, and my servant shall be healed. When I ask requests of those under my command, I don’t go to see them; I just tell them to come or go.”
Because the centurion was with Jesus, the King of Kings, he was neither afraid nor worried. With that said, we say that we believe Jesus, but there are few who believe the Lord as the King of Kings. It’s because Satan has covered the eyes of our heart to see Jesus as the King of Kings. Regardless of how educated you may be, you will feel that raising children is not easy. You would think that you just have to clothe and feed your children, send them to school, and buy them good things, but it’s not like that. At times when your child has a heart different from yours, your heart aches as well.

There was a time when my daughter fell onto some burning coals when she was young, and at that time I thought, “How surprised must she have been and how much would she have cried? How scared would she have been? As the father who cannot do anything for my daughter, would I be able to raise my daughter well?” After that day, I didn’t feel confident about raising my children, and I didn’t try to do things well for my children.
“God, my son has two fathers. One is God the Father, and the other is me, but I’m just his father by title. There is nothing that I can do for my son. God, may You become my son’s Father and lead my son. I’m only a father on the outside, but in my heart, I’d like to submit my resignation.” I love my son and daughter and help them out with things, but in my heart, I entrusted my children to God. Then I saw God raising my son and daughter.
My aunt is a deacon at a Presbyterian Church, and she often says to me, “You’re a pastor of a big church, right? Once you get your salary, bring it to me. I’ll save it up and buy you an apartment. It’s a lot different from when you’re a pastor and once you retire. I’ve seen pastors having a hard time after retirement.”
One day I thought about what my aunt said. “It’s true that I am aging. Should I buy myself an apartment?”
However, immediately I had the heart that the Lord would say to me, “Pastor Park, you’ve made all the preparations for yourself in your old age, then I won’t have to help you,” and had goose bumps. So I have not prepared one cent for myself. The hymn, I’ d Rather Have Jesus, was written because whether it’s family, business, raising children, preparation for old age, or anything else, it won’t work if it’s withoutJesus. I speak to all of you today with an earnest heart. Jesus is the King of Kings, but there are many who do not regard Jesus as the King of Kings. There are many people who do not serve Jesus and follow the pleasures and desires of the flesh. How could such people receive the grace of the Lord?

THE LIFE OF SERVING THE LORD AS KING
When the kings of Israel became corrupt, and erected statues of the sun and Asherah in the Tabernacle in Jerusalem where God was to dwell, the kings perished. When Jesus becomes the King of your heart and you believe and serve Jesus, the Lord defeats your fear and hardships, giving you peace. When He is not the King of Kings, Jesus cannot do any work in you. Jesus shed His blood, died for you, and became the King of Kings, but don’t the desires and pleasures of the world hold a place in your hearts?
This morning, I hope that Jesus will become the King of all of your hearts. If you served your flesh, sexual desires, pleasure, or money and not Jesus, I hope you would repent before the Lord today. If you give your lives to serving the Lord, the Lord will become your King and lead all of you.

This Great Mercy, This Precious Salvation

Victoria W.Wollie (Good News Monrovia Church, Liberia)

I was born in a Christian family and trained to the doctrine of the Episcopal Church, but it could not lead me to the truth of the forgiveness of sin. I hated my life falling deeper into sin, but I did not have the willpower to change it. Rather, I fell into sin much deeper. On top of that, I had to take refuge abroad to escape the Liberian Civil War, and my husband abandoned and left me. On the verge of destruction, I was connected to a church and the Word I heard there taught me that I am already a sinner. I heard the gospel at the Bible Retreat and could be saved from sin. Now I want to share this pleasure with my loving children and everyone in the world.

BEING BORN INTO A CHRISTIAN FAMILY COULD NOT GIVE ME THE FORGIVENESS OF SIN

My parents are from a small town called Fish Town in Maryland County in South Eastern Liberia. Maryland is a county close to Liberia’s border near Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Fish Town is a coastal town making it a place easily accessed by early missionaries. My father told me that it was through the sea access that missionaries from America and England came with the gospel to this small town, Fish Town. My grandfather became a Catechist and shared the gospel with my father.

My father said this is how his Christian life began.

My father moved to the American rubber plantation, Firestone, in search for a job. There he met my mother and I was the first child borne. When I was growing up, my father told his children about God and salvation through Jesus Christ. I believe he must have told my mother about God because my mother went to the same church with him and she had no previous church affiliation.

We attended an Episcopal Church. My father was very passionate about worshiping God and he wanted me to be trained to the doctrine of the Episcopal Church so he enrolled us into schools operated by the Episcopal Church. I was baptized at an Episcopal Girls’ School, Bromley Mission and later became confirmed. We learned the Confession of Sins, and many other prewritten prayers that we recited at services. We never prayed our own prayers but we used the pre-recorded prayers. I learned the Ten Commandments and recited them clearly. I was taught that I needed to abide by the Ten Commandments. So when I realized I had failed in any, I needed to confess my sins to God and my sins will be forgiven through the blood of Jesus Christ.

I HATED MY LIFE BUT I DID NOT HAVE THE WILLPOWER TO CHANGE IT

We went to church frequently and prayed sometimes; and, my father would call for prayer every now and then. I wondered so many times whether God heard our prayers. My parents were poor and struggled to support us in terms of getting just one meal and even more to give us education. I heard my father sing hymns whenever he was alone or was in a contemplating state of mind. Even though my parents were Christians, in Côte d’Ivoire they went to fortune-tellers and sought blessings from the ancestors by paying homage to the dead. Whenever there was a problem, my father would get up early in the morning and called on the spirit of his mother to help him.

I disrespected my parents and followed friends into doing things that I knew were wrong but I did not have the willpower to stop. I had a very bad temper and I would use profane language. I went with my friends to parties and night clubs where we drank alcohol. I only went after earning money and satisfying my fleshly desires. My life became more and more miserable as I followed my friends. I went deeper and deeper into sin. I hated myself. I did not have the willpower to change it.

Yes, I had heard of Jesus. It was compulsory to memorize the Ten Commandments, and otherwise

I would fail the subject. I was encouraged to keep the Ten Commandments so that I can appear holy before God. I was told that Jesus took my sins away. At the same time, I was taught to say the confession prayer and repent of sin whenever I realized I have sinned. I read and studied the Bible as part of my school lessons and at church when the priest called for reading.

Whenever I read the Bible, I became frightened. I prayed whenever I had difficulty asking for God’s help. I doubted that God listened to my prayers and that scared me more. I could not find any way out of my sin and guilt. Satan put a thought in me,

“You better satisfy your flesh in the world. You cannot go to

heaven.” At this crucial point, I was at a crossroads and Satan was putting thoughts in me like; “You cannot live a Christian life. Just live and have fun. When you die it is finished.”

If God is there why did He make me this way? Why do I continue to do the things I know God hates even when I purposed in my heart I will not hurt God? Why can’t I find some answer in the church? I was disappointed in going to church because I could not find an answer to the problem of my sins. I felt the church was too holy for a person like me. I blamed myself for my sins and wanted to stay far away from God.

ON THE VERGE OF DESTRUCTION

I lived like this for many years and in my innermost part, there was something wrong with the way I was living my Christian life. I began to search for how I could live a life free from sins. I began moving from one church to the other. I tried to take the Holy Spirit like others. I would throw myself on the floor and roll, but I knew this was false. I tried to speak in tongues, but it was all falsehood.

I listened to many sermons and teachings but there was something still missing. And the problem was with sin. I read in the Bible that God is holy so we need to be holy. I struggled to attain a clean holy Christian life. I would repent and pray and at that moment I would believe,“OK, I have repented. God has forgiven me, and I am now free from my sins.” But, not even an hour from that point, I again found myself guilty. I would pretend that I was a good Christian in the presence of people. However, during my private time, when I did an evaluation of myself, I found out that I am like Naaman, the captain of the host in 2 Kings chapter 5. I realized that in the Bible, God is a just God. My falsehood was deceiving myself. My heart was heavy and I had notrue joy. In this desperation, the Liberian Civil War began and I traveled to Côte d’Ivoire as a refugee. Meanwhile, I had limited contact with my husband. During one of our conversations on the phone he informed me that he was now married in the U.S. because life was difficult for him so he needed a partner to help him. At the same time, I had to cope with my daughter who was seriously sick. I was disappointed and frustrated. I decided to solve the problems using my own method. I courted a man with marriage in mind, but finally we departed. It carried me further and further away from God and deeper and deeper into sin and degradation.

RESCUED BY THE TRUTH OF THE GOSPEL

Then I moved with my family to Ghana. My sister encouraged me to go to church to hear the Word of God. We worshipped once at a Ghanaian church, but because of the language barrier, we did not understand the sermons; so, we stopped going to church. One day my sister informed me that she had met a Liberian who told her that she was worshipping at a Korean church where the people spoke little English. Upon hearing this, we went to the church (Good News Mission Accra Church) the next Sunday.

I listened keenly even though the English that was spoken was very poor. Citing the Words in Romans 5:19 the pastor began his sermon by talking about how we became sinners.

For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.(Romans 5:19)

I became astonished at that information, “So, I was already a sinner?” My ears opened very wide so that even with the poorly spoken English, I wanted to know more and more about how I could put away sin. All along I was made to believe that the sins I committed made me a sinner. The pastor referred us to the book of Leviticus chapter 4, in which the laws of sin offerings were explained. I have never been told about this. My eyes began to open to the plan of God for us as the pastor led us through the Scriptures in Romans 3:19–24.

. . . But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

Then there was a one-week Bible Retreat in December 2003 in Tema, Ghana. I did not know that my journey to the Bible Retreat in Tema would be the turning point in my life. The pastor led us through the book of Genesis about creation and the fall of man. At the Retreat I was able to understand the passage: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.

I was always confused with this statement. If we all have sinned and come short of the glory of God then how can we qualify for heaven? Many of my friends and I justified ourselves with the kind of life we lived, but my mind was troubled. Deep down in my heart, there was a missing piece in the plan of God these many years I lived as a Christian.

During the Bible Retreat, Romans chapter 3 verses 19 to 26 came alive in me. I surrendered all of my efforts seeking my own righteousness, and accepted the righteousness of God through faith in Christ Jesus. It felt like a burden that I had carried became lifted off my back. I was glad to know that

Jesus finished my sins and the sins of us all. In order for us to share in His grace we only need to believe and have faith.

NOW SHARING THE TRUTH WITH MY CHILDREN

I am thankful to God who gave me the grace to participate in the Bible Retreat. Following this experience, I shared my experience of my new birth in Christ with my two sons and two daughters. It was hard for them to switch to the direction I had decided to take. I had led them for many years into different churches since they were young; now I am telling them I was wrong. They were confused and asked questions like

“How do we know that you are not wrong this time? Who knows where else you will be leading us?”

It took more than five years, but God led my children to receive salvation. They have participated in the IYF World Camp in Ghana and in Liberia. Now we are all attending the Good News Monrovia Church. I am so grateful to God for bestowing His great mercy upon me and gave me this salvation.

From the Goodnews Magazine

Happiness Trip to Mukono

Photograph & Testimony _ Uganda

The missionary sent me on a penniless witnessing trip to Mukono with Sister Monic. We planned to stay for a week at the house of a pastor of our acquaintance.

However, we unexpectedly got lost on the way. God revealed our heart that we sought an easy and comfortable way rather than relying entirely on God.

“Let us commit meals and residence to God and pour our heart only to the gospel.”

God gave us the heart to love and respect the gospel, and we witnessed the gospel to whomever we met following the given heart. Not only meals and residence, but also a vehicle for the way back, God prepared everything for us. Although I was poor at English, I could taste the happiness of witnessing during the trip, and I miss Sister Monic, who was my witnessing partner.

From The Goodnews Magazine

We All Must Believe That God Is with Us

Pastor Ock Soo Park's Sermon

THROUGH THE CONFERENCE AT KOREA UNIVERSITY
My son currently ministers in New York, but a few years ago when he was in Korea, we went on a trip. After driving for a while, my son spoke.

“Father, I have something to tell you.”

“Go ahead and tell me, whatever it may be.” I slightly closed my eyes and listened to my son’s words.

“We are preparing to hold a conference at Korea University, but students from the Christian clubs, who misunderstand us, bother us so much that I don’t think we can hold the conference. The students and teachers have all lost heart also.”

I said to my son, “Was there ever a time when we were not bothered when we preached God’s gospel? It’s because you haven’t seen the work of God. He will work, so don’t worry at all.”

My son heard my words and was strengthened. He then held the conference at Korea University. Many students were saved at the conference, and afterwards, IYF was registered as a club at Korea University, making it the first among universities in downtown Seoul to have the IYF as a registered club. I could feel my son having faith in God working as he witnessed the IYF club being strengthened and changing.

THE GOSPEL COMES AGAIN TO NEW ORLEANS
In 2005, 80% of downtown New Orleans was submerged in water due to Hurricane Katrina. The entire city was devastated, and the number of robbers increased as well. Since the robbers possessed guns, even the police could not come near them, so snipers shot down and killed many of them.

Once I told my son about New Orleans. “Yeong-kook, in 1989, a sister at the LA Church asked her friend living in New Orleans over the phone whether she would like to come to LA and listen to Pastor Ock Soo Park’s sermon. The friend said that if Pastor Park were to come to New Orleans, around 40 people could gather to listen to the Word. So I went to New Orleans and held a conference at a family home where around 40 people gathered, and they listened to the Word and were all saved. After that, it was great communicating with each other through letters. Upon hearing criticism about me from other established churches, they closed their hearts towards me, and we lost touch with them.”

My son heard my words and prepared for a conference. Since he didn’t have much money, he stayed at a vacant house that he had rented and witnessed with the short-term missionaries on the streets. Seeing them, the residents were worried and said, “It’s dangerous here. You shouldn’t walk around like that.”

However, the New Orleans Church began as the short-term missionaries met people, house-to-house, who had lost loved ones and were deep in sorrow, heard the gospel and rejoiced. The missionaries in the U.S. all wanted to be the one to do ministry in New Orleans.

BECAUSE OF A HEART TO TRUST ONESELF
The question of whether people become corrupt or live dwelling within the power of God has a common starting point. When people living their spiritual lives are told that someone became corrupt, most of them say, “How did they live their spiritual lives that they ended up like that?” and think that they themselves won’t be like them.

As I preached the gospel several times to inmates as a member of the Prison Rehabilitation Committee, what shocked me was the fact that there is a kind of heart that is set in those who end up in prison. People are normally reluctant to commit crimes because they are scared of going to prison, but the majority of the people in prison were people who believed in themselves, not thinking that they would commit crimes.

Meanwhile, I have become a lecturer on mind education, and as I read the Bible and looked at people’s hearts, I came to know that whether it may be someone who does drugs, someone who commits suicide, someone who gets a divorce, or someone who goes to prison, it all begins from a heart of believing in oneself. Likewise, when people who live a life of faith turn onto the path of corruption without themselves knowing it, it begins from a heart of believing in oneself.

Why have you all come to church this morning? Did you perhaps attend service out of habit? We must meet God through service. If you all meet God, you get to put down before God whatever problems you have and enjoy peace and freedom. Then the heart that you had before coming to service and the heart that you have afterwards absolutely cannot be the same.

The woman caught in the act of adultery was caught in the very act of adultery. She was in the state of being dragged to death by stoning, but she met Jesus. Was the woman still afraid after meeting Jesus? No, she was not. The woman changed.

This morning, Jesus is together with us. Why do you come to church with your problems and still take them when you walk out the doors of the church? Why do you live the life of a powerless Christian, unable to overcome a single desire of the flesh? Is it because Jesus is not living and at work? No, it is not. Living a life of following the thoughts that Satan gives, with a heart to believe in oneself saying, “This much is good enough,” is what is making us be the way we are. Then, they gradually fall into sins and their flesh, but there are so many Christians who live unable to feel that.

“IT IS FINISHED!”
After the Prime Minister of Kenya attended the IYF World Camp in Kenya this August, he sent his secretary stating, “The future of Kenya depends on its youth. Please deliver this mind education not only in Nairobi, but also to youth leader representatives from the 47 districts.” Then a couple of days later, they contacted us again saying, “We will send youth leader representatives from the 210 electoral districts of Kenya,” so we prepared a Mind Education Camp. And the Kenyan Minister and Deputy Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports happened to know IYF very well, so they took charge of the work, and we were able to deliver mind education to about 3,000 Kenyan students for one week. I was so thankful to the Lord, “God, who else would I believe but You?”

Everyone, do you see God working in our church? You believe in the God who lives and works in our church, but why do you not believe in the God who dwells and works in each and every one of you? The Good News Gangnam Church is a church formed of every single brother and sister gathered together. If anyone among you meets God and has the faith that “God will also dwell and work within me,” that person becomes the happiest person in the world.

In Genesis 2:1, God said “Thus the heavens and the earth were finished,” but one day, the serpent came to the woman (Eve) and said: “Ye shall not surely die. For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” The woman heard the serpent’s words and thought, “The heavens and the earth were not finished. I have to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and do something more,” and ate the forbidden fruit to be as the gods. Rather than becoming as the gods, she fell into sin.

The Words “It is finished” (John 19:30) spoken as Jesus died nailed on the cross are giving proof to the fact that Jesus has washed away all our sins and fulfilled all conditions for the Holy Spirit of God to work within us. When you realize that fact, you are liberated from sin, enjoy true freedom, and receive the grace of being able to go boldly before God.

However, in this day and age, Satan still deceives people once again saying, “No. Jesus washed away sins on the cross, but you still commit sins so that sin remains,” and many people are tied down by their sins, suffering and distressed, even though they read the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. In the same way, even as people who are saved believe that their sins have been forgiven, because they are deceived by Satan, they are unable to believe that God will dwell in them and work; as a result, they themselves bear their problems and become miserable.

FORWARD BY FAITH IN GOD
After God established Saul as king, He told Saul that He would surely be with him, stating, “God shall be with you.” If you look in 1 Samuel chapter 11, it says that the Israelites in Jabesh Gilead, which is to the east of the Jordan, went out to the king of Ammon and said, “Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee.” The king of Ammon said, “On this condition will I make a covenant with you, that I may thrust out all your right eyes.” Hearing this, the people of Jabesh Gilead wept, and King Saul heard their weeping as he was coming behind the herd from the field.

The Spirit of God came upon Saul, and when he cut a yoke of oxen into pieces and sent them to each tribe of Israel saying, “If anyone among you does not follow me, I will cut into pieces all of your oxen,” 330,000 gathered and went up to Jabesh Gilead, defeated the Ammonites, and gained a victory. At that time, Saul saw that God was with him, and the people also saw that God was with Saul.

Next, if you look in 1 Samuel 13:5, the Israelites trembled when they saw that the Philistines had 30,000 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude. Even though Saul had fought against the Ammonites and prevailed the last time, he was afraid, and also trembled, seeing the people tremble.

When you try to strive towards faith after being saved, Satan works. God also works when Satan works. Satan first gives us fear before a certain problem, making us hesitate, thinking, “Ah, I don’t think I can do this.” If I am about to witness, he gives us fear to prevent us from witnessing, and if I am about to give an offering, he gives us fear making us think, “If I give this as an offering, how do I live?” He gives us fear like that and blocks us from boldly going on the way of faith towards God.

But if you look in 1 Samuel chapter 14, Jonathan was in the same position as Saul was, but when he and his armor-bearer entered the enemy camp, God worked. If we only take a step forward and start running towards the enemy camp, God works in our footsteps.

IF WE HEAR THE VOICE OF SATAN

It was in 1987 that my collection of sermons, The Secret of Forgiveness of Sin and Being Born Again, was published for the first time. Because of the Basic Press Law at the time, approval of publications was not done freely, and I had to look for a place to publish the book among licensed Christian publishing houses.

Then one day, I happened to meet Dr. Young-ho Park of the Christian Literature Crusade. While he attended the WEC Mission’s theological seminary in England, he met WEC missionaries Kays Glass and Derek Earl, who had returned from doing missionary work in Korea. They told him to meet Pastor Ock Soo Park if he returns to Korea.

After Dr. Young-ho Park saw my manuscript, he said it would be great to publish it as a collection of sermons and called for the editor-in-chief. When that person saw me, he asked “Pastor Park, what brings you here?”

“Have we ever met before?”

“I’ve attended your conferences several times and am also saved.” He took charge of publishing my collection of sermons. In this way, as God accomplished these things that seemed difficult and unlikely to work out, He showed me the fact that He is God.

Let us look at 1 Samuel 16:1.

And the LORD said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? . . .

Even though God gave Saul many chances to repent, he did not listen to the voice of God, sank into fear and gave up. As God could not work through Saul, God forsook him, and anointed David as the king of Israel.

If those people, who were joyful after being saved, hear the voice of Satan, they lose heart thinking that it is burdensome and that they will be ruined when they actually try to begin doing the work of God, and just give up, saying “I have no faith.” If you just attend service, do not get persecuted, and pick out and do only those things that are not burdensome, and for which God does not need to work, you cannot experience God’s power.

Even though we are saved and are the children of God, Satan gives us fear to make us think we should not do the Lord’s work, and it makes us into feeble people through whom God cannot work.

WHOSE VOICE ARE YOU ALL LISTENING TO?
Once we come to 1 Samuel chapter 17, Goliath appears in the war between Israel and the Philistines. Saul and Israelites were trembling before the towering warrior Goliath. However, David said that he would fight against the Philistine. When Saul told him that he was too young, David spoke. “The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.” As Saul heard his words, he must have thought“Before when Nahash of Ammon invaded, I also was victorious because God was with me. What has happened to me?”

This morning, do you all listen to the voice of God? Or do you listen to the voice of Satan? God is speaking to each and every one of you. “I am with you. I will fight this fight.” But what does Satan say? “Who says God is with me? I have no faith.” Whose voice are you all listening to? It is here that believers are divided into two types.

One day, a sister called me on the phone. “Pastor, this is Washington. My husband’s lifelong wish was to learn the Word from you in missionary school, but I prevented him. My husband now has cancer and the doctor says he doesn’t even have six months left to live. Would you accept my husband into missionary school?”

I thought about it after hearing what she said. “If I call this brother to come, then all that’s left for me to do in four months is to hold a funeral. I’m so busy getting around preaching the gospel. Why would God send such a person in the U.S. to Korea and make me hold his funeral? God would never do that.” So I told that sister to come to Korea with her husband.

One day, when I went to the brother’s quarters, I saw his wife making some food in a small rice pressure cooker because most of the brother’s stomach had been cut off due to stomach cancer and he couldn’t eat properly. When I thought about this young man dying, it was such a pitiful sight, so I laid my hands on the brother’s head and prayed:

“God, I know that You love this brother more than I do. May You bestow grace upon him.” After that prayer, he did not die even after four months passed, and he is still living in the U.S.

ONLY BY BELIEVING THAT GOD WORKS
This is the living God we have. Everyone, unite your hearts with the church. Since you have been deceived by Satan and do not know that God is with you, do not arrogantly judge the servants and the church of God. You yourselves are also one part of the church of God. If the church is holy, all of you are also holy. If the church is able, then all of you are also able.

Let us look at 1 Samuel chapter 18 that we read today.
And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom? And Saul eyed David from that day and forward. (1 Samuel 18:8–9)

The Holy Spirit of the Lord was with Saul, but now, because Saul has abandoned the Spirit of the Lord and is being deceived by the spirit of Satan, he listens to the words of the evil spirit. A heart determined to kill David arose in him. When David was playing the lyre, Saul threw the javelin at him, but David got away. Later, Saul threw it again. In the end, Saul descended from the precious position God had given him to a position in which he was cursed.

Brothers and sisters, after being saved, if you accept all the thoughts that make you arrogant, you do not want to join in the work of the church and gradually become people who judge. Such people cannot experience the God who is with them, and we can see precisely that humanistic thoughts increasingly lead them towards a heart different from God or the church, and they go to a position in which they are cursed like Saul.

Whoever you may be, you have become holy through the blood Jesus shed when He was nailed on the cross, and all conditions were thereby met. As a result, God can work in all of you. God is together with all of you. Believe in that God. If you forsake the voice of Satan that gives you fear, saying “God may not work in me,” and walk boldly with faith in God’s Word, He will surely work powerfully in all of you.