Decide What You Must Do First (Mt. 7:1-12)
I’m very happy because all the people who were baptized today are people of the future generations, and I believe God will be all the more happy because they’re people of all nations who have been baptized. Even among these people, there were those who did not know Jesus Christ at all and have come to accept Jesus Christ. I hope that you will believe God will work upon them with the background of each of their individual nations.
Even though all the content in Matthew 7 is important, today’s content is especially important. The title of today’s message is, “Decide What You Must Do First.” If you have wisdom, it means you know what you must do first. There are some people who are highly educated and well-learned in the world, but they don’t have the wisdom to decide what to do first. Through the Word, I hope you will be deeply rooted in your heart about what you should do first.
Jesus Christ called His disciples, and the first thing He did was to call them to the mountain and give them a sermon in Mt. 5 – Mt. 7, and we’re going through the content of this sermon in Matthew 7 today. Last week, we talked about, “Seek Christ’s Kingdom and His Righteousness First,” and it means that, when you seek the things of God, the things that God desires, the spiritual things that are invisible to the eyes, then the physical, visible things will follow afterwards. In order to determine that, you must determine what is most important in your heart, is it Christ or is it money?
Today’s message is about things pertaining to people and also about prayer. What should we do first?
1. What you do first
1) Judge
In today’s scripture, the first verse says, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” Only God judges, however, in Genesis 3, Satan tempted Adam and Eve saying, “If you eat of this fruit, you will be like God, knowing and judging between good and evil.” Just like today’s scripture, if I judge somebody else or criticize them, it will come back to me in the same way. That is how human relationships are broken down. Because the words of people can even transcend time and space to even kill someone else. Even if we speak poorly about someone all the way in Korea from here, that person will absolutely die. This is how powerful our words are.
However, even if you’re here and you speak words of blessings upon someone far away, that person will without a doubt come to life. The Lord knows this and tells you not to sit in the seat of judgment. There’s a difference between judgment and discernment. God judges, however, we must be able to discern. If you’re not able to discern a person, then you’ll be tricked by them. So, between those two, you must be able to discern a person, but if you start judging them, you’ll be on the side of Satan.
If your human relationships continue to break down, it is because you’re judging or criticizing the other person, whether you realize you’re doing that or not.
(1) Judge your brothers (Mt. 7:2, Rom. 2:1)
(2) You will be judged (Mt. 7:2, Rom. 2:1)
(3) Interpersonal relationships destroyed
Mt. 7:2 says, “For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” That is the standard by which we judge somebody. Everybody has their standard or ruler by which they judge someone else. Some people will measure other people based on how much money they have. Some people will judge or measure somebody based on their looks or facial appearance, or they measure them based on how well-educated they are. If they’re able to come within those measurements, they can be friends with them, and if they’re outside of those measurements, they will be far from them. But if you do that, it means that other people will measure you the same way. Simply put, it means to throw away all your standards that are not from the gospel of God’s Word.
2) My standard
(1) The measure you use (Mt. 7:2)
In other words, when you look at the speck in someone else’s eye, use that as an opportunity to look back at yourself. You can definitely see the speck in someone else’s eye, but as you look at that speck, use that as an opportunity to see the bigger thing inside of you. Because, without a doubt, there is a larger plank in your own eye, so take that out first. After you take out that plank, you’ll be able to see clearly. Then, you’ll be able to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
(2) The measure against others (Mt. 7:2)
What do you think this means? These are the words Jesus Christ said to the Israelites who were, at this time, looking at other people’s actions based on the law, and judging them. However, as these people are judging other people based on their actions of the laws that they see, use that as an opportunity to look at yourself instead, because if we have the standard of the law, there’s not a single person who can be righteous.
(3) Will be measured to you (Mt. 7:2)
I myself am a sinner before the law; only by holding onto the gospel am I set free from that. It is rightful because we are born, separated from God, and there’s no way for us to live without the gospel.
3) Me first
But everyone is bound to come to life before the gospel. Then, what is that gospel? The law reveals our sin, and the sinner has no way to escape from that, so you must quickly hold onto the gospel of Christ’s cross. It’s not about fixing something or not, it will repeat. That is why it is impossible with our actions and willfulness of the law. If we have a scar, it will not go away. It doesn’t matter how much you try to change your thinking with psychology; you cannot change it, because what happened in the past has happened. However, if you use that to discover the blessing of the gospel of Christ, that scar will transform into a blessing.
(1) Plank in my eye (Mt. 7:3, Gal. 6:1)
(2) After taking it out (Mt. 7:5)
(3) Will see clearly (Mt. 7:5)
(4) Remove the speck from your brother’s eye (Mt. 7:5, Gal. 6:1)
Even in the ways of the world, if you live such a difficult life, but because of that, you discover something so great, then you’re not so bothered by your difficult past. If anything, because of the pain and scars in my past, I was able to know Christ and receive God’s grace. Then, if you’re able to clearly take that plank out of your own eye, you’ll be able to see clearly in order to help other people take out their speck, and it means to help that person with the gospel as well.
2. What you do first – Gospel
1) Law
Everything that’s happening in your life, in the church, and in your family is because of your judgments and your criticisms, and that fight will not go away until the Lord’s second coming, because everyone is their own god and they have their own standards, so they have no choice but to continuously fight. How does this go away? Even if you see something in somebody else, use that as an opportunity to look at yourself and hold onto the gospel yourself. Then, instead of firing arrows at somebody else, it becomes a blessing to look at yourself.
For example, you may have someone you really don’t like when you go to church or school or work, based on your standards. That means that you don’t like them. Then what is the standard with which you don’t like them? “I just hate looking at them, I just hate the way they are.” Why are they so displeasing to you? It’s because you met someone like them in your past, and they created an incident. You may not even remember it, but it’s embedded in your subconscious, then you hate looking at this person. Then what do you think will happen? “I hate looking at this person so I cannot keep coming here.”
I hope this will become an important opportunity for you to look upon yourself, that is the blessing. Through that person, God is allowing me to see myself, I am not different from that person, so that person actually becomes an important person of blessing who allows me to see the gospel for myself. God raised up that person to play that important role. I hope you will enjoy that blessing or opportunity very well.
When I was in Korea as an assistant pastor or a pastor, there were people I really hated to see. They had done nothing good, but they were so confident and so boastful, and only by God’s grace, later on, I became close to them. Through this person, God allowed me to learn many things. Do you know what the devil will do? The devil will make me look at that person based on my own standards, making me think, “Oh, I hate this person, they’re just bragging,” but they’re just existing, and they became a very important coworker. God gave this person as a coworker to begin with, but everyone makes their own lives difficult by their standards, judging other people and stabbing them in the back.
3) Gospel – Sacred things, pearl (Mt. 7:6)
(1) Dog, Pig – Do not give (Mt. 7:6)
Then, when you try to help other people with the gospel, the Bible says in Mt. 7:6, do not give to dogs or pigs what is precious. If you have received so many answers and grace because of the gospel within yourself, and you want to give that evidence to someone else, but they don’t appreciate the value of the gospel, then don’t give it to them because it would be like giving precious treasures to pigs or dogs.
(2) Trampled under their feet (Mt. 7:6)
(3) Tear you to pieces (Mt. 7:6)
It’s not saying to not ever give them the gospel, but not at this time schedule. Because you’re only trying to do a good thing by sharing the evidence of this precious gospel that you have experienced yourself, but they will not realize the value of the gospel, so they will trample the gospel and tear you to pieces. I’m sure you’ve experienced this before, you try to help the other person with good intentions, but they don’t understand, so they actually attack you and hurt you more.
(1) Works of the law – Cannot be righteous (Rom. 3:20)
(2) Law – Sin (Rom. 3:20)
This is the content we’ve been continuously repeating, but what is the law and what is the gospel? The law is the Word God gave us, and that Word will not disappear. What’s important is you must know the reason or the goal with which God gave us that Word. In Romans 3:20, the Israelites thought they could be righteous by following the actions of the law, but the Bible says that no one can be righteous by observing the acts of the law. When we judge somebody else, it is because we think we’re better than that and we are more righteous, but the Bible tells us that there is not a single person who can be righteous by the actions of the law.
(3) Law – Elementary teacher who leads to Christ (Gal. 3:24)
So, instead of looking at the other person, look upon yourself because you do the same thing. I actually may do something worse than that person. Instead, the law reveals our sin. Because we have that standard, we become conscious of our wrongdoings. But you must not just remain at that level where you say, “I’m so bad, I’m so wicked,” but Gal. 3:24 says the law must act as our guide or our chaperone to lead us to be righteous by faith in the gospel.
2) Gospel
The Law is God’s Word, and when you look at other people with the law of God, you see, “Oh, they have a lot of problems,” but the Bible says, instead of looking at that, use the law to look at yourself because you’re actually sinning in a greater way than that person. So, taking out the plank in your own eye means look at your own sin by the law, then go back, holding onto the cross of Christ. This is the reason why Christ died on the cross for me. Then, by believing in that Christ, God calls me righteous, and because the Holy Spirit does this for me, my heart becomes peaceful, and then in that state, look at the other person with the eyes of the gospel to help them.
(1) Curses of the law – Redemption (Gal. 3:13)
Why is this gospel so good? Because Gal. 3:13 says, “Christ has paid all the curses I have created by sinning, for me.” But people who only have the law, their consciences are so guilty. Even for unbelievers, without the law, God gives them a sense of a guilty conscience so they know that they’re wrong. So, all of the sins of mankind have been redeemed by Jesus Christ dying on the cross. By believing in that Christ, God judges me as righteous, and God judges me as righteous so there is no human being who can judge me.
(2) Christ – Faith, righteousness (Gal. 3:24)
(3) Brothers – Gospel
If you bring the law to me or go against me with the law, it will not work, because we’ve already been set free. That’s Romans 8:2, where we have been liberated from the law of sin and death. Now, we are within the law of the Spirit of Life. If you fall over, then again, you can stand up, holding onto the cross of Christ. Because He has died on the cross for someone as weak as I am, I can just hold onto the covenant of the cross and stand back up, then you’ll be able to look at other people with those eyes and help them. That is called the Kingdom of God, the church. The church is different from the world, and what’s important is different.
3. What you do first
1) Ask, seek, knock (Mt. 7:7)
Then starting from Mt. 7:7, He talks about what we must do first. Ask, seek, knock. There are many people who are listening to the message in real-time, this message is being broadcasted and interpreted live in Spanish, starting today. For all the people who are listening, God is giving you the Word that, the one who asks receives, the one who seeks will find, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Even people of other religions will receive answers if they pray like that, so for children of God, for all of you, you’re bound to receive answers when you pray.
(1) Given, find, open (Mt. 7:8)
When you first start your walk of faith, you should pray to ask for the things you want, seek the things you want, and challenge towards the things you want, then it will be given to you, however, for someone with a little more mature faith, their prayer should be different.
(2) Give good gifts (Mt. 7:11)
You must ask, seek, and knock for the things that God desires, then He will give you good things.
(3) Give the Holy Spirit (Lk. 11:13)
What are the “good things”? Luke 11:13 talks about the same teaching, that the Father will give you the Holy Spirit. So, what is the greatest thing? The filling of the Holy Spirit. For people who first believe, they like money, so they ask for money and they get it, and if they try to open this door, it will open, but God will not keep on doing that. Now, I hope you will start asking, seeking, and knocking for the things God desires.
Knocking means you’re challenging towards it, you’re knocking on the doors of missions to the 237 nations. Then, it will be opened by the working of the Holy Spirit. I hope you will knock upon the business doors to the 70 regions and 70 nations. Instead of being at a beginner level where you just ask for the things you want, I hope you will knock for the things God wants, then without a doubt, the Holy Spirit works, and when the Holy Spirit works, it’s game over.
When the Triune God Who is spinning the globe without any kind of support system works, then it’s game over. That’s why the best prayer for you to pray every single day is for the Spirit of the Triune God to fill you completely. The greatest prayer to pray for your field is for the Holy Spirit to work upon everyone who is related to your life in your fields. There’s no reason for you to pray, “Do this or do that for my job,” just pray for God to work. There’s no reason for you to calculate on your own, either. Pray for the filling of the Lord’s Holy Spirit. There’s no reason to pray to change the other person; pray for the Holy Spirit to work upon the other person, then without a doubt, He’s going to work, and He’s going to work in the greatest way.
After Jesus Christ resurrects, He promises the same thing, the working of the Holy Spirit. This morning when I woke up, I prayed for the filling of the Holy Spirit’s power, for the Lord’s Holy Spirit to work upon first and second service, all of the trainings, the baptism, and the communion. That is the greatest prayer, there’s nothing else to think about, but if you’re not able to get this, you have to think a lot. You have to think so much about your human relationships, it’s a headache, and that’s how you get mental problems. Pray for God to work. “I’m not perfect, so work upon me.” Then you knock and you challenge for God to open the doors to the 237 nations and the 5000 unreached tribes.
Look at this, if you don’t pray for this, and you ask God, “Give me this, give me that,” God will give it to you. By my experience, He will give it to you, but that’s not the end. What will you do after you get it? What will you do getting something that rich people don’t even ask for? Today is the greatest prayer.
Do you have someone you hate? I hope you will look upon yourself because there is something bigger inside of you, and if it wasn’t for the other person, I wouldn’t get to know myself. Are there children who are suffering because of their parents? “Because of these parents, I’m able to hold onto the Christ. God is allowing me to be under these parents in order to raise me as a person of God.” That’s why you’re able to be thankful to your parents.
How else could you be thankful? If they’re always coming home drunk and they’re always causing fights, how could the child be thankful for their parents? The world may say, “Obey and respect your parents,” but they cannot. Only when you know the value of the greatest gospel will your situations not be a curse or a scar, but they will be a blessing and an opportunity. Joseph’s older brothers tried to kill him, but he was thankful for that, so the confession of a victorious person is different in one way.
The confession of a failure is correct. “My older brothers tried to kill me,” those words are correct but those are the words of a failure. However, the confession of a successful and victorious person, someone who influences the world, they will say, “This has been a blessing for me.” It says in Gen. 37:2 that Joseph was always tattling on his older brothers to his father, so he was attacked in the same way for tattling on his older brothers. He was attacked to the point of death. And God did use that for good, but on a human level, you’re bound to be attacked in the same way, and after that, Joseph finally stood before the gospel.
If he tattled on his brothers so much, did he do nothing wrong? He was told on to the point of death, and from then on, Joseph never said a word. Even if he was treated unfairly, he kept his mouth closed. As he looked upon Potiphar’s wife, he was able to see himself, and then he was able to see God’s plan and pray for that woman. How else are you going to overcome everything that happens around you? You will not be able to overcome with your correct words and your words of justice; all it will make you do is fight and end your life like that. You have to jump into the gospel, you need to change that into a blessed opportunity to look at yourself before the gospel. Then you need to change yourself into one that saves those people, then Godwill entrust the seat of the governor to these people.
2) First – Treat
(1) You would have them do to you (Mt. 7:12)
(2) Do to others (Mt. 7:12)
In Mt. 7:12, today’s last verse, it says, “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” There are some businesspeople who do this, there are many businesses where they give back to their shareholders whenever they make a profit, or there are people who even start their businesses in the beginning who want to give back to their community, and these are the people with the right business mind; they’re running their entire business to serve other people, and that’s why exactly according to God’s Word, those customers will serve that business back.
The second place person will say, “Once I get served, then I will give back,” but that’s only second place. When I meet with pastors, I always buy them a meal first, why? Because I have to serve them first. I’m not serving them just to be served. I’m happy to pay for them because I’m happy to serve the servants of the Lord, and I hope the elders will do this as well. I’m sure you’re not like this, trying to get handouts from people, but wherever you go, I hope you will serve them first, and if you don’t have that money, then just don’t go out. If you don’t have enough money to pay for them or serve them, then just don’t go out.
I hope you will absolutely pray for this, “God, I have to serve others,” then you will receive that answer. This is something I continuously repeat and train our future generations with, too. Whether you’re here as an immigrant with your parents or you were born here, if you receive the benefit from the nation, I hope you will serve the nation. There was someone who was going into a military school so they could go into West Point, so I called them over, “Don’t listen to your father, otherwise you’ll be in big trouble. Don’t go to West Point just so you can be in the mainstream, but go there to truly serve the nation.” First, think about it and pray, “How am I going to serve and save this nation by receiving this training?” But because you’re not rooted in this kind of thinking, you’re always trying to get handouts or benefits from other things.
I said, “Don’t listen to your father. Even if you listen to everything else he says, don’t listen to this. When you came as an immigrant here, did you come to serve or be served?” I hope you will ask yourself and answer. Most people came to America to get money from a rich nation, but it shouldn’t end with that. Especially for the future generations, if you’ve received something, I hope you will change your thinking to, “How will I raise up and save this nation and this society?” Then, the companies will want you, the nation will want you, and society will want you. I hope you will start practicing inside of this church to begin with.
I do not want to raise our children to live as slaves in the world; I don’t want them to always look to gain something or to get handouts from the world; that’s not biblical because God gives us everything, so that’s why it’s not that He has to do this, but to practice this first in the church.
(3) Law – Love your neighbors (Gal. 5:14)
When we first come to church, we receive help, we receive love and grace, but if you keep staying like that, it’s going to be hard. After a certain point, you should change to, “How can I serve this other person? How can I save them and love them in the gospel?” and that will be relayed directly to the world. You’re not just simply telling people the gospel, but you take this into the world and they will see. There are people who proclaim the gospel with their words, but there are other people who can notice, “There’s something different about them,” without even saying the words.
If you do exactly as the Word given to you today, other people will know, but if you don’t do what the Word of God told you today and you give them the gospel, it might get through to them, but most chances, they won’t. Because you might be talking about the gospel, but in the critical moments, you turn everything to benefit you? Then that gospel will not get through to them. That is why the Lord has given this Word to His disciples to evangelize to the world.
3) First – Save lives
(1) Only Christ – Satisfied (Ac. 1:1)
Then, what is it that you must do first? You must first be satisfied with Christ. You’ve been forgiven of all sins, even if you fall over, you can stand up again. You must be satisfied with the fact that through this Jesus Christ, the Triune God is with you forever, and you must be satisfied with and enjoy the fact that the Triune God is with you with the power to save the future generations, 237 nations and the 5000 unreached tribes.
(2) Only Kingdom of God – Mission (Ac. 1:3)
That must go into your thoughts, “I’m living to establish God’s Kingdom, I’m living to save people, I have no strength to do that,” that is why you pray for the power of the Triune God to work upon you and your field. There is a difference between what you do with your own efforts and the answers God gives you. But most people do a lot with their own strength and efforts. I’m not saying you shouldn’t do that, but I’m saying, that shouldn’t be it. Only when the working of the Holy Spirit will you be saved and other people will be saved.
(3) Only Holy Spirit – Authority (Ac. 1:8)
In Acts 1:8, it says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be witnesses until the ends of the earth.”
(4) Temple, field – Life (Ac. 2:46-47)
Then what happens in Acts 2:46-47? Whether they were in the temple courts or in their homes, they devoted themselves to the breaking of bread, praising God, and enjoying the favor of all people and the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Conclusion
1. First save me with the Gospel
The main point of today is the law cannot save anybody, I must save myself with the gospel first, and by seeing other people, you must look at yourself first.
2. First have the power and strength of the Holy Spirit to save
Then, once you’ve escaped with the gospel, you ask for the filling of the Holy Spirit to give you the strength to save.
3. First live life of saving people
And to have the life to save other people as your first priority. May you have that blessing.
Message Prayer
Let us pray.
Offering Prayer and Newcomer Prayer
God, we thank You. We pray You will receive the glory through today’s baptism and communion.We return our material blessings as offering. We pray that you will bless all the hands that has given the offering and where the offering is used so that we may be the ones to relay the teachings You have given us to obey out into the world.
Now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the unending love of God, and the indwelling, working, guidance, and communion of the Holy Spirit, be upon all the people of God, the multiethnic people, and the remnants who desire to first save themselves with the gospel, and then with the strength of the Holy Spirit, to save the rest of the world, be with them from now until forevermore always, amen.