The Lamb of God Bears the Sin of the World (Jn. 1:29-34)
Let us bless one another, “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.” The title of today’s message is, “The Lamb of God Bears the Sin of the World.” The “Lamb of God” means, this is the lamb that God Himself has personally prepared. Then what does the Lamb of God have to do with me? What do the problems and the circumstances that I face in my life have to do with the title of this message? It needs to be related in order for you to escape from your problems. If this Word has nothing to do with your life, then you will continue to fall more into problems, but if you do come to understand this, your problems will no longer be a problem. We can face so many different problems in our life; we can face problems with people, finances, and other difficult situations, but if you understand what the “Lamb of God” means today, then you can escape from those problems.
1. The one who reveals the lamb of God
1) John the Baptist (Jn. 1:19)
(1) I am not Christ (Jn. 1:20)
Today, we hear about a man named John the Baptist, and the whole goal of his life was to reveal the One Who is the Christ. The Jewish people knew that God had promised to send the prophet Elijah before He would send the Messiah, so the Jewish people asked John the Baptist, “Who are you? Are you a prophet, are you Elijah, are you the Messiah?” John the Baptist said, “I am not the Christ,” then they asked, “Who are you?”
(2) The voice calling “Make straight the way for the Lord” (Jn. 1:23)
(3) The voice of one calling in the wilderness (Jn. 1:22)
John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice that calls out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the LORD.’” This means that John the Baptist is the one who declares the Messiah is coming and to make straight the way for the Lord to come. What kind of life must we live? We are the ones who make straight the way for Jesus to come. We are the ones who proclaim that Jesus Christ is the solution to all problems. In order for us to do that, we must have the evidence. If Jesus Christ is not the solution to all of our life’s problems, we cannot tell anyone else that.
2) Baptize with water (Jn. 1:26)
(1) To reveal Christ (Jn. 1:31)
(2) The Spirit comes down and remains on Christ (Jn. 1:32)
(3) Testify the Son of God (Jn. 1:34)
John the Baptist also says, “I am the one who baptizes with water,” and then they ask, “Who are you that you are baptizing?” But actually, God had commanded John the Baptist to baptize with water, and when they receive the baptism, the one around whom the Holy Spirit remains upon like a dove is the Messiah, that the man you see the Spirit come down and remain upon is the Messiah.
3) The greatest (Mt. 11:11)
(1) All the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John (Mt. 11:13)
In Matthew 11:11, it says John the Baptist is the greatest of all those who are born of women. Why is John the Baptist the greatest? Mt. 11:13 says, “For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.” All the way from the Old Testament, there are prophets, and John is the last prophet, and John’s purpose is to reveal, “This is He, this is the Messiah.”
(2) Reveal Jesus through John (Jn. 1:29)
(3) Jesus Christ was before John (Jn. 1:30)
John the Baptist was born 6 months before Jesus Christ, but while Jesus was still in His mother’s womb, John the Baptist confessed, “You are the Lord, the son of God.” How is that possible? When the Holy Spirit works, even a baby who is in the mother’s womb can recognize the Christ. We might think with the knowledge that we’ve learned, how can a baby be aware of its outer environment when it’s still in the mother’s womb? And from our level, we might think that this is a problem, but when the Creator God works, it will no longer be a problem. That’s what happens when the Holy Spirit works. If the works of God take place upon us during worship, then all your problems will be taken care of.
2. Lamb of God
1) Reason for the lamb
This Scripture says that Jesus is the Lamb of God. Why does the Bible talk about the Lamb of God so frequently? We need to look at where the Bible first mentions the Lamb.
(1) Fear after Adam’s crime – Garments of skin (Gen. 3:21)
After Adam and Eve sinned against God by eating the fruit of knowledge of good and evil, they were embarrassed and ashamed, so God brought them clothes made out of animal hide to hide their shame. Before they were separated from God, even though they were still naked, they did not feel this embarrassment or shame, but after something happened, their eyes to see their shame and embarrassment opened. That incident is, once they were separated from God’s Word of the covenant, different eyes opened. Their eyes changed so that when they looked at the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, it seemed good to eat, pleasing to the eye, and desirable for gaining wisdom. In that kind of state, no matter how hard you try, no matter how diligently you live, it doesn’t matter. Ultimately, you are bound to live a shameful life. Even after you live all your life, you’re still ashamed. That’s what happens to life if you have a spiritual state that is separated from God’s covenant.
So they hid from God’s gaze; they were not able to worship or listen to God’s Word, because these different eyes, these eyes of the world, were opened, they were more focused on the world. So, even if the person is the exact same, depending on their spiritual state, the way that they see the world will be different. The fact that you believe in Jesus Christ and have become children of God and are able to worship means that the eyes that you see with are different, you’re able to see the solution inside the problem. Other people will say, “This is a problem and that’s a problem,” but this person is able to see the solution inside the problem. Even people who make money very well have the eyes to see the money. It’s the same thing for physical things, too. Even though they have the “wrong success,” people who have worldly success have a different kind of eyes. People who are good at money see the flow of money because they have a different pair of eyes. The way you see people will be opened, and the way you make decisions will be different. If the words of God’s covenant are with you, then you will no longer have fear. So, from our perspective, we may be full of shame, we might have nothing, and we might be a failure, but from God’s perspective, we can be bold if we have His Word.
Then, when Adam and Eve were hiding from God because of their fear and shame, God asked them, “Where are you?” They answered Him very foolishly, “We were afraid, so we hid,” but God was not asking them where they were physically, He was asking them where they were spiritually. Where is the spiritual address that we are currently at, that’s what we must correct first. If your spiritual address, your location, is wrong, then you’ll make all the wrong decisions. If Jesus Christ’s Word is inside of you, then your spiritual eyes will be opened to see, “I can do all things through Him Who gives me strength,” but if we are separated from God’s Word of the covenant, then even if we can do something, we’re filled with fear. Even after we succeed, there will always be fear inside of us, we are always filled with this anxiety; we cannot block this with money or success; we cannot block this with drugs. We cannot end this by committing suicide, either, because we need to shake in eternal fear and suffering in hell. It doesn’t just end with me because I relay this to the next generation, and then die. You must finish it.
How can we finish that? “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, how could I not be affected by that?” “I have nothing at all; how could I still be bold?” But when we drink alcohol, strangely, we become so bold. When we are high on drugs, we become strangely bold; we’re even able to drive our car backwards, but that is an incorrect boldness; that is a boldness that goes towards destruction. You know people like that, right? Every time they drink alcohol, they become strangely bold. Not that, a person must become very bold and confident with the Word of God. It could be the exact same person, but the moment they lose hold of God’s Word of the covenant, they become very ashamed and they try to hide. They don’t want to meet with people, and our lives continue to go like that. We have already gotten a spiritual disease. We must spiritually diagnose ourselves to realize we have that spiritual disease. You may say words that are correct. Adam said, “The woman You put here with me, she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it,” those words are correct, and the woman says, “The serpent deceived me, so I ate it,” those words are also correct. So, people don’t say words that are false; even though they say words that are correct, they are wrong in God’s eyes. People say words that are correct, but Satan works through those words.
What do they say? If you lose hold of God’s Word, then we cannot survive. When God says, “Where are you?” He is saying, “Why have you lost hold of My Word?” I am a child of God, that is your spiritual address. If you have a disease or if you’re weak or if you’re poor, it doesn’t matter because a child of God will be taken care of by God. Have you ever seen a child be afraid when their parent is taking care of them? Maybe the child is afraid when the parent is drunk and beating them. There was a pastor yesterday who came and gave his testimony that when he was younger, his father would drink and beat him, and he would be so afraid, and then his father passed away early, so he had to be the head of the household, and he found himself also getting drunk and beating his younger siblings.
“Where are you?” Am I within God’s Word? Then, without a doubt, God’s Word is fulfilled. Don’t believe anything else, you must not believe human words, you must believe God’s Word. If somebody says something to you just keep it as reference; “Oh, that person is speaking from their perspective.” Everybody has their own perspective and environment they grew up in, and they’re speaking in a way that’s right for them, but that’s just from their perspective. We must hold onto God’s Word. If you hold onto God’s Word firmly, then all of your decisions and judgments will see the fulfillment of God’s Word.
Because of these things, God curses mankind. For the woman, He makes childbearing very difficult, and for man, He curses the land upon which they work, because the land must be cursed in order for man to suffer to toil, to make a living. No matter how hard we work on earth, the most we can do is eat three meals a day, and that’s in God’s Word. There is nothing we can take with us when we die. You work so diligently in fear on this earth, and when you die, you can’t even take it with you because everything belongs to God but you’re under the misconception that it belongs to you. You think that your body itself belongs to you; that’s why you’re afraid when you’re sick. You think that your life is yours; that’s why you’re so embarrassed when your business fails and you can’t even show your faith. You think the only way you can show your face is if you have some material wealth, then does that mean Jesus didn’t have anything? Jesus was uneducated, but because God was with him, everything worked out. For us, where does our strength and our confidence come from? It comes from God’s Word being with us.
Then, when Adam and Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they were filled with shame and fear, and because of that, they tried to cover their nakedness with fig leaves, but leaves will wither away in one day. That’s the reason God slaughtered an animal and hid Adam and Eve with the animal’s hide. For us, if we hold onto the Word of God’s covenant, then our shame will go away. I am the child of the Creator God, what is there for me to be ashamed about? If God’s will is fulfilled in me, then that is prosperity and success. The success that the world talks about, being centered on humans, is wrong. If you’re shaking in fear and you’re successful, then that’s not really success. People are so afraid of losing their success, that they’re enslaved by their fear; that’s not true success. If we have the faith that our economic power will be used to proclaim the gospel to the entire world, then you’ll transcend money. If you have cancer, life and death are in God’s hands, why are you seized and dragged around by cancer? You’re dragged around because you want to live. I want to live and I think that this cancer might kill me, so I’m full of fear. But life and death are in God’s hands. Completely entrust everything to God and live your life for God. Before that point, your fear will not go away. If there are any of you like that, I hope you will resolve today. For us, even if we die, we live for eternity.
(2) Abel brought an offering of the firstborn lamb (Gen. 4:4)
Where is the second place where we hear about a lamb? Abel gave his sacrifice with a lamb in Gen. 4:4. Why do we have to keep giving worship? If we keep on worshiping, what’s going to happen? Will our business succeed, will our children succeed, will we be happy? If you give worship, your spiritual state changes, and unless your spiritual state changes, everything you see will be wrong. Cain gave his offering from the fruit of his harvest and God did not receive it. Success in worship means, in the sea of worship, you receive God’s Word and God’s covenant and grace; only then will that fear and shame be gone. The young lamb who has no sin, must die for me, that is how the problem of the curses of our sill go away.
(3) A ram for Abraham (Gen. 22:13)
Then in Gen. 22:13, God told Abraham to sacrifice his son as a burnt offering, but there was a ram whom God had prepared, so why do we keep hearing about this lamb? It is God’s method. It represents Jesus Christ who must die on the cross for my sin, as the lamb. In America, every year, 6000 churches are closing their doors. 6000 churches every year, not 600, are closing their doors. Is it because they’re not proclaiming the Word of God? Of course they are. But through the word of God, if they’re not able to testify of the meaning of the blood of the lamb, it doesn’t matter what people can try to do, it won’t work. It doesn’t matter how much people go to church; the entire Old Testament testifies of Jesus Christ. That is God’s method. If we hold onto that covenant, then we come to life. My spirit will come to life, the problems of your life are not financial; the problem is a lack of God’s work. If you’re in a spiritual state that God can work upon, then it wouldn’t be a problem anymore. That is why the most important thing is to have the spiritual state inside of us for the Word of God’s covenant to work upon us. In Egypt, there were ten disasters. Why is this world continuously facing disasters? It’s because we need to worship and believe in God, but instead, we are worshiping the creation God made, and that creates a disaster. Humans were created to worship God, so God will be with us and fulfill His will through us. Isn’t that right? For people falling asleep, open your eyes. As much as you fall asleep right now, it will be to your loss. Even if you’re falling asleep right now, your spirit will still hear it.
But why are there so many disasters in America? Because those people are not worshiping God through Jesus Christ, they are worshiping the things God created. What does it mean to worship those things? It means you live your life thinking, “This is the most important, valuable thing.” That’s what it means to serve an idol. We must serve God, but instead, we are serving the things God created, we’re serving success, or science, or philosophy as the most important thing. In America, we worship this idol of ideology, that idolizes individualism, individual rights, and individual freedoms, and that will turn exactly into disaster. We will be filled with mental illness to the point where we can no longer have individual freedom. Only when we serve Jesus Christ will we have true freedom within that.
(4) Blood of the lamb – Disaster passes over (Ex. 12:3-13)
I hope you will keep this in mind, yes, we need money but money is not the one whom we should serve. All of the Egyptians worshiped the Nile River as a god, because they needed the water from the Nile to eat and survive; that’s why the Nile became a disaster. At that time, any family who applied the blood of the lamb on their doorpost, the angel of death would pass over their house, and that’s called the Passover. If you believe in Jesus Christ, all disasters pass over you. You need to have the blood of the lamb first, and then do your business or anything else. Otherwise, it will just be a disaster. Getting married is so important for the young people. Your marriage must be blessed and covenantally prepared by God, it should not be a disaster. If you rely on and put your hope and faith in this person, that’s a disaster. If you say, “I can’t live with this person,” that’s your idol. That’s why people can’t live together. You must believe in Christ; people are the ones we must love, pray for, and support; it’s not somebody we need to put our faith in. No matter how close of a friend you are, they are not your god. “Oh, if my friend dies, I would die, I can’t live without them,” that would all turn into a disaster. And no matter how good of a relationship there is between a parent and child, if there is no God there, it’s all useless.
(5) Led like a lamb to the slaughter (Is. 53:7)
Isaiah 53:7 says that Jesus Christ is led like a lamb to the slaughter. So, they’re talking about Jesus Christ as the young lamb who will be slaughtered for our sins on the cross. Jesus’ death is actually my death. That death on the cross has finished all of my sadness, my curses, the wrath of God, and my individual transgressions. All of the spiritual suffering and the physical suffering that I should’ve received, the Lord received on my behalf.
2) Lamb of God who bears the sin of the world
(1) Death on the cross – My suffering, transgressions, iniquities, wrath (Is. 53:4-6,12, Eph. 2:3)
(2) Destroyed the devil (Heb. 2:14, Eph. 2:2)
(3) Life – With (Jn. 20:31)
In Heb. 2:14, it says Jesus Christ has overcome the devil, who has authority over death, and now, He is with me as life. Life is important. Your spirit must be alive. If your spirit comes to life, then your mind comes to life. Yes, we need to take medication because that was given to us by God as well, but that is not the only thing we must rely on. As we take our medication, we must rely on God. So, I am not the Messiah, I am one who reveals the lamb of God. But what does the world say? The world is in darkness. ”The darkness” means we cannot see. We cannot see the light. Christ is the solution to our lives, but the world cannot see that. Christ is the solution to all problems, but they cannot see that. Then, what can they see in the darkness? They live their lives as if they are their own god, that is the method that Satan uses to control and move this world. The standard of everything is “me,” and that’s why I’m really the problem; that’s why I suffer.
3. Those who reveal the lamb of God
1) World – Darkness
(1) Me – Like God (Gen. 3:5), flesh (Gen. 6:3), go against God (Gen. 11:4)
(2) Sorcerer (Ac. 13:8), fortune-teller (Ac. 16:16), idolatry (Ac. 19:24-28), transcendental meditation (Mt.
12:43-45)
That’s the way that Satan controls us. “I’m depressed, I’m full of fear and panic, I cannot see my future,” why? Because the ruler of the world, Satan, is dragging us in the direction of darkness. That’s why we only make alliances with people who can benefit us physically and financially, then of course, I should live for my benefit. Why should I live just to be at a loss? We must live following God’s Word, not making our decisions based on financial benefit. “If they help me, then they’re my friend. If they’re not a benefit to me, I don’t need them in my life.” That’s the way that Satan controls us, and you must escape from that me-centeredness, so that you’re centered on Jesus Christ and the words of God. If this is correct in God’s Word, I choose that. When the Word of God is established in me, that Word will be fulfilled so I follow that Word. Satan deceives us into thinking, “If I have enough power, I can live even without God.” But humans are not able to live like that, and that’s why in Acts 13, people turned to witchcraft, sorcery, and shamanism, the possession of evil spirits, so they could have the power to heal people. That existed 2000 years ago, and even today. European Aemricans will understand that very well. You may not understand what I’m saying, you may understand maybe if I say, “Shaman” or “fortune teller.” But, even before the Middle Ages in Europe, there were healers, and people who are possessed by demons, who would heal people, and those works are still happening in South America and America today.
Because people are separated from God, they turn to this. In Acts 16, they go to a demon-possessed girl to tell them their future. In America, even from 1960 every day, the newspaper would publish your horoscope. In China, in the past, they would take the shell of a turtle and light a fire under it and try to tell someone’s future by the way the fire moved. Even now, in America, there are fortune-tellers who call themselves, ”Counselors,” and they have so many books to back up that they are actually counselors. They have so many scientific books about the pyramids and it’s easy to understand that, and then they’re demon-possessed but they say they believe in Jesus. But that’s because the culture of America is based on Christianity, so everybody thinks that they believe in Jesus. Also, because people are not able to believe in God and the Word of God, they believe in the idols that they created. America is a capitalist nation, so we serve money as our idol. Some people have the idea of democracy as their idol; all of that is disaster.
We must serve God, we must serve the Creator God in order for us to live. Stop squeezing your own brain to force yourself to study and work, but instead, rely on God and have your studies and work take place. And this turns us towards transcendental meditation. Now, the world is telling us, “Empty your mind.” People know that their mind is what is diseased, so they try to empty their mind. If you empty your mind, something does go in. There’s only two options: will you be filled with the Holy Spirit or with evil spirits? This is in Acts 16. If somebody practices yoga as an amateur, then it’s not a problem, however, there’s a level of yoga where you listen to music and try to empty your mind, that’s when demons go in. You must be able to understand these words. Try staring at a blank wall and emptying your mind and heart, concentrating. Humans are spiritual beings, so we will be filled with demons, seven times more demons.
(3) Satan’s snare (Jn. 8:44), Idolatry (Ex. 20:3-5), Mental (Mt. 11:28), Physical (Ac. 8:4-8), Afterlife (Heb. 9:27), Future generation (Mt. 27:25, Ex. 20:5)
This is America today, and that’s why there’s so many problems in America that cannot be diagnosed by hospitals. As we continue down this path, we are ensnared by Satan’s snares, these are the spiritual snares, the mental snares, the physical snares, and then we go to hell to the eternal snare, and we pass on this snare to the future generations as well. When you think about a snare, imagine an animal trap, if an animal is caught in the snare, it cannot escape. That’s a slave, that’s a disaster. You cannot escape from the snare of drugs. You cannot escape from the snare of idolizing money, you live your entire life, chasing after money and that’s not freedom, it’s very uncomfortable. Humans are created to live entirely freely inside of the Triune God, but your spirit must get along well first. That is how to become strong, may all go well in the things that you do, as your spirit gets along well.
You must not think of today’s worship in a very simple way. In Old Testament terms, you need to be sacrificing that Lamb right now, you need to be giving that sacrifice and pouring the blood out as a sacrifice to God. If you don’t make that sacrifice, you will meet disaster. That’s why Jesus Christ came as the Lamb of God to finally finish the works of our sin. If that does not go into you personally, it doesn’t matter if you go to church, because immediately, you will not be able to block the works of Satan in America. Immediately, you are filled with curses and disasters you cannot block. That is why, even today and everyday, you must confirm the covenant of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who finished all the problems and the curses and disasters of my sin, and is with me forever. Then, why am I studying? Why am I working? Why am I living in America? You must not find your reason, you need to find God’s reason.
2) Me – Those who reveal Jesus Christ
(1) Light of the world (Mt. 5:14), Shine (Is. 60:1)
Matthew 5:14 says, “You are the light of the world,” the world is in darkness, that’s why we must shine the light. Isaiah 60:1 says, “Arise and shine” the light. This means that the posture and the goal with which you work and study is to shine the light of Christ.
(2) A royal priesthood, Prophet (1 Pet. 2:9)
That’s why 1 Peter 2:9 says, “You are a holy nation, a royal priesthood, the ones who will declare the praises of this wonderful light. ”Therefore, you have been called as the ambassadors of Christ. We are living our lives on earth as ambassadors of heaven. There’s a Korean Ambassador in LA and New York in America, why do you think these ambassadors from America are here? The ambassadors are in these places so they can carry out the role of the president as a representative here. If somebody is sent out as an ambassador, but they don’t know what they’re doing, they’re going to be fired by the government, because they need to get fired to come to their senses, and sometimes they’ll get their salary cut off; sometimes, their hospital bills will not be paid. If you’re sent somewhere as an ambassador, all your needs will be taken care of. That’s how it’s supposed to be. But if you’re an ambassador, and instead, you go out and get another job and work so diligently, you’re just working diligently on your own. You’re being smug all by yourself, thinking, “Oh yeah, I really lived a diligent life today,” And the world says that’s a good thing, but you and I are ambassadors of Christ and God. If an ambassador loses hold of their role and position, they’re useless. Through us, God desires to reveal the roles of the King, Priest, and Prophet.
(3) Love your brothers – Lives in the light (1 Jn. 2:10)
1 John 2:10 says that whoever loves their brother lives in light. “Oh, but there are people who inside the church, I really cannot love. Forget about the church, even in my family, there are people I cannot love. I first married this person because I loved them, but now, we are lifelong enemies,” and now, the child and the parent become enemies. What does the Bible say about? That if you remain in darkness, you will hate your brother. Hating your brother is not the problem, but that is the result of being in darkness. So, how does the ruler of darkness, the ruler of the world move us? By making us think that we are the center. Do not be centered on Christ or the Word of God, be centered on yourself, and because I’m centered on myself, If my spouse doesn’t treat me well, or if they make me suffer, I hate them. That person will say the words that are correct, but they are in darkness. We must escape from that darkness, and the only way for us to escape from that darkness is if we are centered on the words of Christ. There are people with whom you have a very difficult relationship, right? You want to go to church, but there’s someone you really hate, and you cannot go to church because of that person. Those words are correct, but it is in darkness. If you don’t escape from that darkness, those people will be there, no matter where you go. But if you’re in the light, you will love that person; instead, you will hate Satan and the sin inside of that person. Satan lies. You must love that person, but the bartizan of Satan inside of them, that is sin and that is what you must hate.
So the way for you to love this person is to pray for God’s grace and the gospel to shine inside of that person’s sin. That person will be good at business, too, because they have good human relationships. That person will be loved no matter where they go because they make peace. The people who are inside of darkness, everywhere they go, they will be competing and they will be killing without even realizing it. Even if they’re just staying still, they’re always thinking, “How can I kill the other person so I can come out on top?” And then when they get married, it’s the same thing, it’s the same thing, “How can I kill that other person?” It means I have to oppress the other person, that’s a person who is seized in darkness, no matter how much education you receive, it doesn’t change. It doesn’t matter how many marriage contracts you try to write, it’s not going to work. Your children will look at that, and learn exactly. I’m talking about myself right now, I’m talking about things I’ve experienced personally. I was completely trapped in darkness, and I didn’t know, everything was a competition, I had to kill her, that meant I was seized in darkness. I thought that was just life, but that’s how the Satan of the world bound me completely. So the only result was continuous conflict, judgment, and competition. Everything was a competition.
Are any of you like that? Then I hope that just like me, you will stop living in darkness and come out of that. I was disgusted by myself, I lived my life like that for so long and I thought that was the education of the world; I thought living like that was the point of life. Turns out later on, that was a life seized by the darkness. And now that I’ve come out of that darkness, there’s no competition; now that I’ve come out of darkness, there’s no reason for me to kill anyone else because I live with what God gives me. If somebody else speaks negatively from their perspective, I’m not offended by that because they’re speaking from their own perspective. If I’m holding onto God’s Word and someone keeps attacking me, who do you think will lose? The one who is attacking the one with the word will lose, God Gave Abraham a mission and says, “I will curse those who curse you, and those who bless you, I will bless.” Yes, sometimes I’m afflicted, but I quickly come out of that. “Why is that person like that?” Then I come to my senses, I’m still at that level, but most times, I come right out of it. Before we can live a good life on earth, we have to come out of the fundamental problem, and if we don’t learn this, how much will we live, deceived by darkness? It’s disgusting to think about my former self. I used to think that living a life on the offensive was life, but that was actually a life that was so seized by Satan that I could not escape.
3) All nations, people, to the ends of the earth
(1) Filling and working of the Holy Spirit (Ac. 1:8)
Now, we have been called as the ones who will testify of Christ, the Lamb of God, to the ends of the earth. If you’re filled with the Holy Spirit of Christ, then you will transcend your environment or situation. If you receive strength in your spirit, then even if you’re physically ill, you cannot overcome that. If you don’t understand my words, imagine people who are drunk or high on drugs, or people who have been demon-possessed before may understand. Even when they’re high or under these influences, they can go outside in the middle of a cold winter night and be completely naked and not feel cold. If you’re demon-possessed, or high on drugs, or drunk on alcohol, these are the things that can happen, but if you’re filled with the Spirit of God’s Word, then you can overcome any environment you face. Fanny Crosby became blind, and at first, she prayed for God to restore her sight, but later on, she prayed for God to not restore her sight, but she was able to see more than people who could see with their eyes. And I believe that’s the blessing God Has prepared for us and for anyone who believes.
(2) Power – Spirit, Physical, Environment – Witness (Ac. 1:8)
(3) Faith – Heal demons, disease (Mk. 16:15-20)
In Mark 16, it says, “These are the signs that will follow those who believe, they will place their hands on the sick and they will be healed.” In the name of Jesus Christ who has all authority in heaven and on earth, even diseases and demons have no power. “What if my disease isn’t getting healed right now?” God has a reason for blessing, either way, I hope you will pray in the name of Jesus Christ because in front of the authority of the name of Jesus Christ, your disease cannot budge.
Conclusion
1. Morning, Afternoon, Night: 3 Concentrations
In conclusion, as soon as you wake up in the morning, concentrate on the words of the covenant that changes your spiritual state.
2. Problem – Answer, Conflict – Renewal, Crisis – Opportunity: 3 Answers
In the daytime, we’re talking to people and we’re constantly hearing words that are centered on people, centered on their physical things and whatever is of benefit to them. At that time, our spiritual state cannot be stolen away from God’s covenant because only God’s Word will be fulfilled. You must hold onto that through prayer. Then, people who watch TV or dramas right before they go to sleep at night, their life will be hard because that’s what keeps on going into them. On the other hand, if your spiritual state is changed to be centered on God right before you go to sleep, then God’s Kingdom will be upon you even while you sleep. For us, we were created to concentrate on God’s Word, then when we face a problem, we can discover the answer. And when we face a conflict, we change that into an opportunity to renew and change ourselves. If any of you guys are in conflict right now, you have to change yourself quickly. God wants to bless you, but your vessel is so small; that’s why you need to change and renew yourself.
It’s so difficult for you to live in such a small space; you need to quickly make your space larger. Are you facing a conflict right now? Find your opportunity. Do you think your life is over? This is actually an opportunity for blessing. Are there people being destroyed by a physical problem in their family? I hope you will quickly find the opportunity for blessings. Because you’ve lived your entire life so focused on the physical things you see with your eyes, the spiritual problem has now become worse to be a physical problem. God is giving you that as an opportunity for the blessing to live regardless of that physical problem.
3. Courtyards for Multiethnic, Prayer, Future generations – Temple (Me, Church, Field): 3 Courtyards
God has made us His Temple, and inside of this Temple, He is creating three courtyards: the courtyard for the Gentiles, that is for all nations; the courtyard for healing, through prayer; and the courtyard to save the future generations. That must be inside of me, inside of my business field, and inside of the church. God destroyed every temple that didn’t have these three courtyards. Why are there 6000 churches closing their doors every year in America? because they don’t have these three courtyards. Why is nothing working in my business? Because it doesn’t have these three courtyards.
In Jn. 2, Jesus Christ went to the Temple of Jerusalem, and destroyed everything. Why? Because they were looking down on the courtyard for the Gentiles. This was supposed to be a house where people of all nations can come to pray, but they were using it as a marketplace, and Jesus said this kind of demon can only be cast out through prayer. When we pray, our spiritual state changes, and the demons are cast out. If the church is not praying and they keep on talking about finances and politics, God will close those doors. And the future generations, we must raise up our future generations, that is something that even nonbelievers will say. Even nonbelievers will say we need to raise up the future generations. If these three courtyards are not in our heart, then God will not work. If these three courtyards are not in my business, there’s no reason for God to work. May the church be the True Temple that has those three courtyards and works. Throughout this week, I hope you will be the ones to enjoy, believe in, and testify of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.
Message Prayer
We’ll have a very short prayer now, but let’s make it a prayer holding onto the Word of God’s covenant that He’s bound to work upon. Allow us to be filled with the light of Christ. May I be the one to enjoy and testify of this. Let us pray together.
Offering Prayer and Newcomer Blessing
God, we thank You. We confess that all things have come from You. We have returned Your material blessings as offering. May this offering be used to testify of that Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, and with this offering with the economy of light, we pray that You will break down the economy of darkness and curses, and may our studies and our businesses be used to save. We pray all of this in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Announcements
1. Online zoom early morning prayer (Mon.-Fri. 5:30, Sat. 6AM) – Raise the bartizan of prayer
2. Native American Navajo camp is on 6/23(Mon.)-27(Thurs.)
3. Florida camp (Anticipating end of July, beginning of August)
4. Regional Summer camp (Children’s) in May, June, July.
5. Children’s Spirituality Camp – 5/26-5/27.
6. Offering can be given to the church venmo: @Antiochmissionchurch
Benediction
Now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the unending love of God, and the indwelling, filling, and working, and guidance of the Holy Spirit, be upon the heads of all the people of God, the people of all nations, and the remnants who desire to hold onto, enjoy, and testify of Jesus Christ Who has finished all problems and is with them, be with them from now until forevermore always, amen.