Abraham’s Resolution (Gen. 13:18)
Intro
1. Daniel
Idol – Food
Back then, it was a big deal to not eat food offered to idols. Why would drugs and alcohol be a problem? If you try doing it once, you’ll keep getting sucked into it. It’s not neutral like breathing air; it actually medicates and numbs our minds and heart. How does it medicate that? It tricks our mind into thinking we can be very happy without God, with just alcohol. People drink alcohol and sit by themselves laughing, doing whatever. Once you get a taste for that, you have to keep drinking alcohol. Same thing with drugs. Even in difficultly, you must resolve in God alone, but if you start doing drugs in the face of difficulty, it feels good because it gives you this feeling of euphoria. So, you try to escape your difficult reality with this feeling of euphoria. Most normal people try it once and stop, but people who are not in their normal state of mind will do it once and keep getting sucked into it.
If you make a resolution, you resolve to live only by the Triune God. You can even fall into addictions to video games. While we study, we get so stressed and start playing games. But what does it mean when we tell you to study while you pray? It means to resolve all problems you face in prayer, meaning you study only by the Triune God. Otherwise, you can’t overcome. Even if you do accomplish it, you have to use another method. If you keep on allowing yourself to live with other methods, it becomes the state of your life. That determines the fate of your whole life.
Pray+Study
Many people are good at studying but if you’re unable to pray, any studies you do will be a slave to Satan, spiritually. How does Satan enslave us?
Money, Success, Despair
Make the resolution, “I will only study with the Triune God,”
Word, Prayer, Power, Conquer
The culture of the world is studying without God. I know about this so well because this is now nonbelievers live, thinking this is everything. Later, they have a spiritual problem, so even after they’ve succeeded, they have spiritual problems. This is why you must study while you pray; you must resolve. That’s why Daniel prayed three times a day, facing the Temple of Jerusalem where the Ark of the Covenant was, meaning he wanted to live by God’s Word. Because the Word of God told him not to bow down to idols or eat the food offered to idols, he resolved to live by God’s Word.
As Daniel did this, it says in Dan. 1 that God opened his eyes to have the wisdom and knowledge to study. Of course! If you study by God, God has no choice but to work. Then, God will work to continuously open Daniel’s eyes to see the work He is doing, then he stands as a witness.
Witness
If you don’t have this as your image of a Christian, you will just work hard. I don’t think studying is the answer at all because a lot of nonbelievers study well. Why would you believe in Jesus just to live as a nonbeliever? Why would you live like a nonbeliever if you believe in Jesus? You’re a believer, and you believe in God, then you need to make a resolution of your faith in God. This must go into you while you go to school.
Work
Through Daniel and Abraham, “If this is what the Word says, I will live my life following this.” Make the resolution, “If God wants evangelism and missions in the field, I will live for that.” The remnant who made the resolution, that’s a resolution of faith. It’s not like a nonbeliever who thinks, “I’m going to do this and make sure it happens,” but you follow in faith after God’s Word.
Death – God
As he worshiped, he faced death because the politicians made a law to only bow to the king of Babylon.
Ten Commandments, Idol Worship X
Law, King
In your brain, you must know idol worship is not right, even once. Even if your parents tell you to do it, you must know in your brain, that’s not right. Even if nobody in the church is saying that, you must know in your heart that that’s not the right thing. For me, I will only worship and praise and bow down to God, only God alone. But if you do that, you will be put to death. “If I die, I die.” How many remnants like that could overcome that situation? How many parents would? The children will grow up in the faith of the parent.
Most Christian parents would say, “Just keep your head down, if they tell you to eat it, just eat it because you have to succeed. Who do you think you are that you’re the only one standing up against this? Do you think the Holy Spirit is not upon everybody?” I don’t understand that at all because that’s what nonbelievers do, nonbelievers can be like this or like that, but we’re believers. If God says, “Do not have any gods before me,” Then we believe that word.
Whether you’re run over or have an accident or die at the end of your lifespan, we’re all going to die, but for the remnants, you need to have this boldness of faith while young. If you don’t have the boldness of faith, the devil goes in and you’ll start to get scared. Why do you get scared? You get scared because you don’t believe. If you truly believe in God, then your fear goes away. Why do you have panic attacks? Because you have something. However, if you have true faith in God, even as it comes, you won’t run away. Why are you so worried, anxious, and afraid? It’s because you don’t believe in God.
Even that fear inside of us, if somebody is bold in something, then that fear will be cast out. If you work out, you develop muscles. In the DMZ, you don’t need physical muscles; you need that courage. Sometimes there will even be minefields, and you have to keep post there to see who is going or leaving. Then, you need to always be staking your life. Why am I telling you this? Because if you go to a place like that, you will develop this. There’s no one and nothing that can help you. However, if you don’t have the boldness that comes from faith in God, then your heart will always be suffering because of worries and concerns. Whether it’s in the DMZ or when I first moved to America, I went near MacArthur park, everyone said it was dangerous, but if anything, I like walking around the park at night by myself. They say, “People drown to death in the lake,” but it didn’t affect me. I used to pay a dollar to play soccer with the kids. If somebody is so shriveled up in their heart, they are scared, thinking everything is dangerous. Those people cannot go to El Salvador, even if they get a plane ticket, they’ll cancel it. So, I wonder if God made me post up in the DMZ to prepare me from long ages ago, because if you’re stationed there, you can’t run away: either live your life, staking your life, or try to escape.
It’s the same thing about your faith in God. You can either live boldly with faith, or you can always be oppressed by your worries and concerns and then do drugs or drink, or live in your anger. You need to make that resolution. Even if I don’t have this, I will live like this, I will live with “only.” You must not use your brain; you must make the same resolution as Daniel, “I will not dirty my body with the food of idols.” Some people think, “You told me to evangelize, but am I the only one who evangelizes?” Don’t listen to their words; if you keep living a life like that, it’ll be so pathetic. What Jesus has requested of me, I will resolve for the work to make disciples of all nations. That was Daniel’s resolution. He didn’t see if someone else was doing it, or if someone else was doing it, he’d do it too. Slaves do that, always looking at what others are doing. You don’t need to do that. If you confirm this is God’s will, then you stake your life on it. “Oh, but what if it’s a loss to me?” Then be at a loss. Why would you worry about the losses in your life? It’s because you don’t believe in God. If I fail, I’ll fail but I’ll fail while believing in God. Will God let you fail? If allowing you to fail is what God wants, then it’s a resolution of faith. Do you understand? You need to hear the correct standard. If you’ve never heard the correct thing and you only hear this mixed faith, you think that’s your walk of faith.
Main
1.
In today’s scripture, Abraham went to Egypt in his disbelief. He wasn’t able to hold onto his faith in Canaan but reverted to his old ways, going to Egypt for something to eat. Have you lived without a penny? Have you lived without any money at all? You have to try where you have no one around you to help you. You have to, because God is alive. I’ve experienced that so much, I tried living without even a dollar, I have no money but God is with me. I’ve experienced so much, I would eat one box of ramen for a whole week, what happens if you always eat ramen? You’ll know when you go to the bathroom, and because I couldn’t even eat ramen normally, I would fry it or mix it with other things because I had to eat ramen every single day for the same meal. I had no money.
How did I get married with no money? I did. How can you get a house without money? How can you pay electricity bills without money? I do, even though I don’t have money. How can you tithe if you don’t have money? I do. I say, “I’m going to give tithes,” and God gives it to me. I resolved to do missions offering so God gives me money to do it. If you’ve never lived like that, you’ll shake and tremble even when you lose a little money. That’s not faith. This is very basic.
God is truly alive and will even rain down manna if you have nothing. Manna means it’s given to you by God, but nobody is there. I’ve lived very well until now and I’ll continue to live very well. It doesn’t matter. What’s important is, how will I live my life before God, making my resolution of faith? God desires that resolution from you. Abraham went down to Egypt to get more food instead of saying, ‘If I starve in the land of Canaan, I’ll starve here,” but I never saw anyone make that resolution, they say, “Sorry Pastor,” and change their way. Even though they’re not even starving to death, they imagine starving to death and worry.
Ever since you’re young, learn about offering. Instead of living poorly like a slave, live boldly with the things of God’s Kingdom. Receive the unlimited power of God and live for world evangelization. Try it. Start while young. If you get allowance, just don’t use it and give it. You just don’t have to buy crackers or hang out with friends. After you give the offering, use whatever you have left to live. Then you’ll experience it yourself. If you calculate everything first, it’s going to be a headache for you, then people like me will have already died. “How can I give offering if I don’t have any money?” If you need it, God will give it. I’ve experienced this for over 10 years, and I don’t even tell you about that.
Eventually when Abraham leaves Egypt, he leaves with a lot of possessions. Because now he has so many possessions, his people and the people of his nephew Lot begin to fight. Both Abraham and Lot have a lot of animals and servants and they fight over what land belongs to whom, and that’s when Abraham resolves, “I will hold onto the covenant of God and resolve, holding onto the land of Canaan.” Then he parts ways with Lot.
Why did he bring Lot to begin with? If he brought his nephew, he could use him for labor, but he makes a resolution, “I will resolve in God’s covenant, I will die here.” That’s what’s important. “I will study with God’s power,” and if you can’t, or you’re at a disadvantage, that’s okay too, because over time, God will win and the one who holds onto God and holds onto “only” will win. Through this person, God’s works of overcoming the devil and disasters will continually be revealed.
You must begin this. The 777 prayer is great for this, whether you read it or something else. Right before studying, pray. What is the content of this prayer? May the Triune God Who completely finished every problem on the cross completely fill me at this time so that I may be the remnant to save the 237 nations and the church. Pray this while you study and work, that was David and Daniel. We need another David and Daniel to arise in the field today, not someone who has knowledge, but someone who genuinely believes in this. After Abraham makes this resolution, truly God tells him, “Look to the north, south, east and west; I will give you whatever land you set your foot on,” and then Abraham builds an altar and begins to worship. That’s the normal way.
Then let’s say today you have worship and tomorrow you have a test, what are you going to do? Do you prioritize worship or your test? What’s your first priority? You’re not able to study that much, and so you think you can only have a chance to pass the test when you study on Sunday night, then should you come to worship or go and study? What must you do? Resolve, “I will give worship,” do you understand? You need to experience that. “God, I’m giving worship and I don’t have enough ability, please fill me with the Spirit of Your Wisdom and give me the strength to do this, and work so that I am a witness of Christ.” That’s a resolution of faith, do you understand? It’s possible that you may not need to make this resolution. “I worship every week, is it a big deal if I miss worship once?” Then your faith is stolen away and people become physical. In Gen. 6, it says these people became mortal, they are spiritually disconnected from God, then what happens? They have to live with their own strength; they don’t find God believable, and as this continues, they don’t believe in God at all. “I know I’ve received salvation but I don’t find it believable anymore,” so they live like nonbelievers and curses and disasters and suffering. No reason to live like that. For us, God is with us, we do everything and study while we work, while we pray. Experience this and make the resolution as you go to school so that you can make the resolution before bigger events later on. This is the way to overcome the bartizan of America that the devil has planted.
What happens if you keep going to church without this resolution? You’ll always prioritize yourself first. Because the education of America has rooted down that you are number one. “Because I am number one, my studies are important, then I don’t really have to go to worship because I’m important,” but that’s how America is becoming diseased. It’s the trap, the snare the devil has planted in America. That’s what I believe. If you believe something else, you can go somewhere else and believe that, but that is how God has led me. He has continuously given me evidence that that is correct, and the evidence of that is that you’re okay no matter where you are. “I’m okay here and I’m okay in Korea, because exactly according to God’s promises, it happens according to God’s time schedule.” It’s okay if I have money or not; God gives it to me, and I know the reason why He gives it to me, and I’m not smart, and that’s okay. If I pray for a situation in me, God opens the way. No reason for me to ask anyone. There are some people who are desperately looking for people for advice; why don’t you look for God instead? If you do that, then you’ll be able to give the answer to other people and save them.
May you begin these answers and this resolution. I’m sure that among you remnants, this faith will be given to you. It would be great if it were relayed to all of you, but according to God’s time schedule, it’s all in the Bible, the 66 books, that the result is determined by who is the individual and what is the color of the gospel they proclaim? Some people relay the Word, “You can do this or that,” but I’ve never done that. I think you have to do it according to God’s Word. I’ve confirmed that that’s the answer of holding onto God’s word, so I have no choice but to that. Even if I have no money, I’ve given offering, I’ve experienced that. DO you understand these words? How can you give offering if you don’t have money? If you just have a heart do to it, God will do it. IF you resolve in your heart to do the Temple Construction, God will pull it and if you don’t acknowledge or believe in that God? You’re so busy trying to live that you’ll die that way.
May the resolution of faith that Daniel and Abraham gave be upon you by God’s grace.
Prayer
God we thank You. Just like Abraham’s resolution, may the remnants have the grace to rely on only the Triune God. May they resolve to live with only the Word of God, salvation, and prayer. May you give them all of Your power. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, amen.