Jesus Christ Who Saves (Jn. 12:44-50)
Let us bless and greet one another, “Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living God.” This is our final worship of 2024 we are giving to the Lord. This is the end of the calendar year 2024 for us. It might seem like humans are the ones who created dates and calendars, but everything in creation is centered on Christ. Regardless of whether they’re a believer or unbeliever, there was a meeting to determine the calendar year, so regardless of whether they believed in Jesus Christ or not, they divided “B.C.” and “A.D.” based on Jesus’ birth. So now, based on the years when Jesus Christ was on earth, it has now been 2024 years after that, so we’re not talking about, “What I did in 2024,” but how did God guide us throughout this year. I hope you will take away the focus from “What I did” or “me,” and instead focus on how God guided us. If you focus on “me,” then you always have to fluctuate between happiness and sadness, and usually there’s more despair. However, if we’re centered on the standard of God, then there is no such thing as “despair” for God; there is no “end” for God. Even if you’re in despair, it’s actually a new beginning. Something may seem like a crisis to me, but it’s a new beginning. That is God.
1. Jesus Christ
God sent us Jesus Christ, and what did Jesus say today? In today’s scripture, Jesus Christ is about to die on the cross, and He says His final words to the Jewish people. The Pharisees were saying, “Jesus Christ is claiming to be God, and we must kill Him for that.” All of those people who claimed they were living their lives correctly faced disasters because of their correct words, because they’re looking at Jesus Christ Who is the Alpha and the Omega, Who is the Creator of all things, incorrectly. Jesus Christ is speaking to those Jews in today’s scripture.
1) Whoever believes in me (Jn. 12:44)
(1) Believes not in me (Jn. 12:44)
(2) Believes in him who sent me (Jn. 12:44)
Jesus Christ says, “Whoever believes in me does not believe in Me only.” Jesus knows, “There are some of you who are believing in me in the crowd, but you’re not really believing in Me; in reality, you are believing in the One Who has sent Me.” In the Bible, it says that even a small cup of water you give to a child is not really given to the child, but you are doing that for the Lord. This is what Jesus is saying. Then, Who exactly is the One Who sent Jesus?
(3) Sent by God the Father (Jn. 17:18)
John 17:18, Jesus Christ says, “The Father has sent Me into the world,” so the reason Jesus Christ came to this world is because God the Father sent Him. So, during these times, the Jews said they believed in God, but they rejected Jesus, meaning that they actually rejected God. Jesus says, “I came to this earth because God the Father sent Me, so if you believe in Me, you believe in God. But the reason all of you claim to believe in God but you don’t believe in Me is because you don’t really believe in God.” All the foolish people did not understand.
2) Whoever sees me (Jn. 12:45)
(1) Sees him who sent me (Jn. 12:45)
Jn. 12:45 says, “The one who looks at Me, he sees the One Who sent Me.” So, how is it that I’m looking at Jesus but I’m really looking at God?
(2) I and the Father are one (Jn. 10:30)
In Jn. 10:30, Jesus Christ said, “I and the Father are One,” and Jesus Christ is the image of God. Why?
(3) Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? (Jn. 14:10)
John 14:10 says that Jesus is in the Father and the Father is in Jesus, and that “The Father, living in Me, is doing His work,” so what does that mean? Jesus is telling the Jewish people who don’t believe in Him, that they don’t really believe in God. They thought that, without a doubt, that they believed in the scriptures and they were worshiping God, but in John 8:44, Jesus says that their father is the devil and they don’t believe in God. “I go to church,” yes, you might, you just go to the church building. “I believe in God,” I’m sure you do, but do you believe in Jesus? You have to ask them that. People say they believe in God and we think that’s fine, but that’s not true, because the Jews also thought they believed in God. So don’t ask if they believe in God; ask if they believe in Jesus, because the one who believes in Jesus is the one who really believes in God. That Jesus is one with God. But there are heretical groups that say they believe in Jesus but they do not claim that He is God, those are heretics. The Jehovah’s Witnesses say that Jesus is not God; instead, Jesus is one of the angels. That is not believing in God. Just like the Jews, they are believing in something they imagined for themselves, and they think they believe in God, but Jesus clearly says, “You must believe in Me in order to believe in God.”
3) Come into the world as light (Jn. 12:46)
Jn. 12:46, Jesus says, “I came into this world as the Light.” Right now, Jesus is describing Himself in various ways. When we live our lives, we must be able to apply Jesus Christ in various ways.
(1) Light shines in the darkness (Jn. 1:5)
Jn. 1:5 says the Light has shone into the darkness, this is not talking about electrical light. It’s a different light. “The darkness of the world” is not talking about darkness at night; it’s talking about a spiritual darkness.
(2) Whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness (Jn. 12:46)
Jn. 12:46 says, “So that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness,” but there are people who go to church and remain in darkness, and even when they speak, it comes from darkness, but they’re under a misconception that they believe in Jesus. If you believe in Jesus Who came as the light, then our words should be that of light.
What is darkness? Let’s say you have a problem, “Oh, this is a problem, what do I have to do?” That’s darkness, do you understand? Let’s say there’s a mental problem in your family. “Oh, this is so hard,” yes, that’s true, but that’s darkness. If there’s a mental problem in the family, of course it’s hard, but inside of those words, there is no “Jesus” at all, there’s no word of light or life at all. That’s darkness. Do you understand? We need to have the words of Jesus’ Light. Let’s say you face a problem, yes, that’s a problem, then, what is the Word of Light? What is God telling us? That is the Word of Light. Let’s say you get cancer and if you’re in pain, yes, that’s true, but if you remain inside of that state, that’s darkness. What is God’s Word of Light? That is the Word of Light. Do you understand? May you understand by God’s grace.
(3) Dominion of darkness (Col. 1:13)
In Col. 1:13, it says this world is seized by the authority of darkness. America is ruled over by the physical President Biden, but that’s not what the Bible is telling us about. The Bible is telling us that, despite who’s in control or who has the power, actually, this world is under the dominion of darkness. The world is seized by the authority of dominion of darkness. If you don’t know this, the light is shining but you’re unaware of it. “I live so diligently, I live so earnestly, I live honestly, but why is this happening to me?” That’s darkness. What is the commonality? “Me, me, me, me, I don’t like my result. Is God alive? I live like this, is God even real?” That’s a person in darkness. Then, it’s possible that many people might believe in Jesus but they remain in darkness.
The child of Light must say the words of Light, how? Not me; God. “I wonder why God allowed me to be in this situation?” Those are the words of Light. If you say, “Why is this person making my life miserable?” then that’s darkness, but if you focus on God, “Why is this person making my life difficult,” then that is the Word of Light. You have to ask the question of Light to receive the answer of Light. This America is darkness; the education of America is the education of darkness. For people, it’s good education because it says, “Do whatever you want, do whatever you want,” they use the words, “freedom” and “human rights,” but the Bible tells us, “That’s darkness.” The Bible never told us to live however we want; the Bible tells us to live, following the Words of Light.
America may seem like there’s a lot of churches and it might seem like a Christian nation, but it’s been many decades since it’s been a Christian nation. Now, we’ve become a nation that is filled with all different ethnicities that are bringing multiple different religions and idols. Ever since the children are very young, they’re taught the ideology of individualism. What happens if your children grow up listening to the education they receive in school? They become a person who is centered on themselves and they’ll never listen to God’s Word. Even if they hear something, they only accept something if it aligns with their rationality, what does that mean? It means, “I’m the master, I’ll keep God’s Word just as a reference,” but that’s the beginning of mental problems. The reason why God gave us our thoughts and emotions is so we can think about God’s Word with our thoughts and we can have emotions according to God’s Word. But ever since Americans are very young, the American education system tells them, “You think, and your thoughts and emotions are there to serve you.” Then, by the time your kids are in college, they will never listen to you. That kid is not a bad kid, it’s because they follow the education of America so sincerely.
What is the type of person America wants? This person who can speak freely, however they want. Every person needs to live with power and authority. That’s America. “If you don’t want to do it, you don’t have to; that’s your freedom. There’s no one to force you because you’re more important than anything else,” it sounds good, right? But when you send your kids to school, it seems like they’re learning English, History, and math, but this is the ideology being taught in the background. So yes, they gain a lot of knowledge to live with from school, but they also gain the ideology that, “It’s only me. I am the standard for everything, and if someone bothers me, that’s a bad person. The standard of everything is me. A person who is good to me is a good person,” and then what happened? Now our neighborhood has no choice but to do drugs. Now, our neighborhood has turned where no one can live unless they’re drinking alcohol. That becomes the result, and that’s what we’re seeing today. People live however they want, and that’s the reason America is facing all these problems we don’t want. The reason we study the physical things in America is because we need to know those things, but if you follow after them, that’s darkness. You must know the light inside of this world and you must study and work in order to shine that light. If you are in America without knowing the reality, you might be okay, but the Bible is telling us that America is being controlled by the ruler of darkness and the kingdom of the air.
2. Jesus Christ
1) Words of Jesus Christ (Jn. 12:47)
(1) Hear
In Jn. 12:47, Jesus says, “If anyone hears My Word,” we cannot see Jesus with our eyes, God is invisible, but the very beginning must be, hearing His Word. Today, at this time, the devil is distracting you so you cannot hear. How does the devil distract you? The devil makes you think about what you need to do after this, and the devil makes you think about what happened in your past right now. There are some people who are thinking about useless things like, “Did I turn off my light this morning?” Or you’re thinking, “Where did I leave my keys?” It’s in my bag, but the devil makes you all of a sudden think these thoughts to stop you from hearing the Word. It turns out, it was fine all along, but this is how the devil works. All of a sudden, you start thinking about your kid, “They’re going to leave for the next week; are they going to be in trouble?” Why is it that while you’re listening to the Word of God, you automatically think these thoughts? If this keeps happening, you have to live inside of your worries. You need to start by listening to God’s Word. If you listen to the Word correctly, it’s not going to go into your head; it’s going to go into your heart, imprinted there. Yes, first, you must listen, and yes, first, you understand logically with your brain, but it doesn’t stay inside of your heart, does it? Then it’s nothing.
(2) Does not keep them
Without a doubt, the Word of God must be imprinted to remain in my heart. Why are you living your life without any answers from God? It’s because you’re listening to the Word but it’s not getting imprinted in your heart. If you don’t understand what these words mean, imagine your child, they do hear your words, but they don’t put them into their heart. Because they’re not placing your words into their heart, they keep on doing the same thing you told them not to do over and over again, because even though they heard it, it didn’t go into their heart. You need to hear the Word of God first, and then it needs to go into your heart in order to move accordingly. That’s what it means to keep the words of Jesus, that’s what it means to follow the words of Jesus. What happens if you listen to the words of Jesus, and they’re inside of your brain but not in your heart? Then you will move according to what is in your heart.
(3) I do not judge
Jesus says, “I do not judge people like that because I have come to save the world.” Then, when does the judgment happen? And what is the basis of the judgement? I’ll tell you later.
2) One who saves the world (Jn. 12:47)
Jesus says, “I have come to save the world,” then, what exactly is going on in the world that Jesus has to save it? You must be able to see this in America. If you don’t see this in America, then you can know all the history, all the laws, then you only know America physically, not spiritually. It might seem like you know so much of the world, but because you don’t know the world spiritually, you will be seized.
(1) Sin – Death (Eph. 2:1)
What does the Bible tell us about the world, what does the Bible tell us about the people of the world? Does the Bible tell us they’re living fine? Is the Bible telling us everything will be fine as long as everyone has human rights and freedom? The Bible never says that. The Bible tells us that we are dead in our sins and transgressions. “My life is fine, what do you mean?” We’re talking about the spiritual things, yes, you’re physically alive, but spiritually, you’re a walking corpse, and they’re living following the ways of America and the world, what’s that? Individualism.
(2) World – Method (Eph. 2:2)
They live, idolizing money, and that’s capitalism. Money should follow you; the Bible never says that we should chase after money, but Americans live their lives following after money. Then, in reality, you don’t believe in God, you believe in money. That’s an idol. Idolatry will bring curses for three to four generations because in reality, we’re not worshiping money; we’re worshiping the devil. Then, even if you make a lot of money, you’re still under disaster.
(3) Ruler of the kingdom of the air (Eph. 2:2)
The Bible also says in Eph. 2:2, we follow the ways of the ruler of the kingdom of the air. Why is America following the ruler of the kingdom of the air? America is following the rules or laws, following the government, but that is just physical. I’m talking spiritually. Spiritually, we’re following after the ruler that is controlling America. How are we following him?
3) State of the world
(1) Follow the cravings of the flesh (Eph. 2:3)
Eph. 2:3 says the way the Americans follow the ruler of the kingdom of the air is by gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and flesh. Following its desires and thoughts, we live according to our emotions and our desires. “If I’m in a bad condition today, then that becomes my standard for everything. If I’m feeling bad today, then the entire world is dark, that is the cravings of your sinful nature of flesh. “If I like that person, then they’re good, if that person benefits me, then they’re good,” but then afterwards, why do you break up with people? It’s because, “They said something bad to me, so I don’t like them anymore, so we broke up,” that is following the cravings of your flesh.
(2) Follow the fleshly desires and thoughts (Eph. 2:3)
It says they are following their thoughts and their desires. We live according to whatever emotions we get. My daughter told me once, “I don’t want to go to school today because I don’t feel good,” and during those times, even the teacher says that’s fine, but I told her, “Don’t listen to your teacher; listen to God. Quickly get up and go to school,” and she was making a face and she left. When she came back in the afternoon, she was feeling fine. I said, “Do you know what happens when you live according to how you feel? The devil just puts things into your thoughts and emotions. Are you going to follow those?” Your feelings are not the standard. Yes, when you get cancer, it is painful, but why is the cancer your standard? Let’s see what happens when you get cancer. Why would cancer be your standard? The Word of God must be our standard. For the people who have that, they receive spiritual strength. Then yes, even though they do have cancer, that cancer cannot control them.
(3) By nature deserving of wrath (Eph. 2:3)
“That person is making me feel so bad,” then why does that person’s word become my standard? God’s Word must be my standard. Is your life so meaningless that it goes back and forth, based on people’s words? “I don’t like the way that person is looking at me; it makes me feel bad,” is that right? Yes, it’s a fact, but why do you feel so bad about it? Let’s say that person made a terrible face at you and is looking at you in a way you don’t like. Now, you’re living according to what you see and what you feel. Instead, you need to live centered on God, and you need to ask God, “God, I wonder why you allowed me to see that terrible expression or to see that person glaring at me,” but if you live centered on your own thoughts and emotions, you might think you’re living a very smart life, but you’re controlled by your environment, and that has nothing to do with you. A marathon runner isn’t going to stop running because there are hecklers on the side. Is that what you’re going to do? If you go and fight with a heckler, that’s a spiritual problem. If those hecklers choose to say those words, let them; who cares? For us, we have a race we’re running. A marathon runner has an end goal. Let’s say there are hecklers from a different nation who don’t want me to finish the race, so they are saying terrible things to me. Why would you go to fight them, arguing, and suing them? Why are you arguing with them over whether they’re right or wrong when your goal is to finish the race? But that’s the way the world is living now. Then people say, “Then should I just let them do that?” Remember that God is the Judge, remember that God is looking at the good and the evil at the same time, so for those things, just pray about it and let it pass by, because that person will face the consequences of their words.
I can only give examples from my own family. In reality, it’s not even in the Bible. I just responded to her because that’s the age she’s in. I told her, “If you talk to other people that way, then actually, other people will hurt you in response.” When people are about to get married, they say things like, “I want to meet my Prince Charming,” and I asked, “Do you think that a prince would like you? There’s one way for a prince to start liking you; you have to become a princess in order for the prince to come,” but these people have no interest in becoming a princess themselves. They just live however they want and do whatever they want and think one day their life will change when their Prince Charming comes, but a prince is not interested in someone like you; a prince is attracted to a princess. Do you want to hear nice words from your partner? Then say nice words to them, isn’t that right? It’s so simple, isn’t it?
Our youth kids, when they go to school, there’s a lot of fighting, and there’s something that I wanted to tell one of our youth kids, I don’t know where they are. They say, “Everybody at school picks on me,” I don’t really think that’s what’s happening. I said to them, “I think inside of you, there is a desire to win and beat other people,” then, yeah, everyone who’s stronger than you is going to come and they’re going to seem like they’re attacking you, and I’m thinking, “It shows up on your face. I think in your facial expression, you probably have this look that says ‘No one can pick on me; I’m the strongest one,’” then the stronger people will come and try to pick on you. Then that person is going to think, “Why is everyone picking on me? Then I just can’t stay still, I have to fight back. Why is it that I go to school to study, but these people keep bothering me?” In reality, that thought is inside of you, the desire to fight, and sometimes that comes out in your words, in your expression, and in your behaviors, and that’s why strong people come and fight you. As long as that heart of yours doesn’t go away, that problem will keep coming. By fighting, later that person might become a gang member, but then later on, a stronger gang member comes and kills you. Then what’s the beginning of all of that problem? It’s the heart inside of me. If we don’t change that heart within us by the words of Christ, then we’ll always have an expression of fighting, and that’s the life that will result, then the fighting will never end in your life, just like wars will never end on earth.
For students who get top grades in their whole school, they say, “I will conquer everyone with my intelligence.” Those kids don’t fight with their fists, they fight with their studies, so if somebody is smarter than them, they become empty. If someone lives their whole life as first place and then becomes second place, they kill themselves. If somebody who’s worse than me is getting better grades than me, their pride is hurt. Let’s say you fight your entire life with everyone to be first place in high school, and then you go to college and it’s all the first place students, and now, among all these first place students, I’m in the middle. We think, “My life is over.” When I went to Seoul University, I saw all the kids like that. Everyone there was first place in their high school, and in their heart, they were always first place, but then when they went to college, everybody there was first place. Now, I’m no longer first place and I’m going crazy,” and what’s the evidence of losing themselves? Inside of their heart, they think, “I have to conquer and survive by being first place,” and now they go crazy. Then, how can this heart go away? Instead of fighting my way to first place, what must I do? Instead of revealing myself through my studies, what must I do?
You need to change it with the Word. “I will not fight; I will save people.” Then that’s what’s going to show up in your face, and other people who fight won’t fight with you, and even if you get second place, you won’t kill yourself. But if you hold onto this desire to be number one, then you’re building your own Tower of Babel, and it doesn’t end with that. Later, you go into society; you go into your company and you still can’t be first place there, and no matter what, you live so diligently to be first place in anything. But it turns out it’s actually Satan giving you those thoughts that you can live your life as first place without God, and then when you fall into second or third place, you think that your life is over. This is the way that Satan is ruling over the kingdom of the world and controlling people’s hearts. That is what happens when you live, following the cravings and desires of your sinful nature, and we must come out of that. You just have to break your desire to be first place. If instead you study and work to save yourself and save everyone in the world with the Word of Christ, then you will receive answers.
People don’t get mental illnesses by studying diligently. They get a mental illness because in their heart, they want to get first place, to do what? “So that no one can challenge me,” that is the reason for their mental illness. The “First place” itself isn’t what causes mental illness. You don’t become a gangster just because you’re good at fighting. There are some people who are champions in sports or who are in the UFC, but what is the state inside of that person? When you’re running a business or you’re working, what is the state of your heart that you are working in? Because that is what will completely oppress you. Your business or job itself is not what oppresses you, but your heart, or your posture or attitude regarding your job, that is what’s oppressing you. When the Word of God goes into your heart correctly, then there will be correction and restoration.
3. Word of Jesus Christ
1) Standard of salvation and judgement (Jn. 12:48)
(1) Those who reject will be condemned (48)
Then the third point, what is the standard of judgment, then? It is the words that Jesus said. The basis of all your decisions must be the Word. The one who does not receive the Word will be judged. There are people who say, “Oh, but I lived so diligently, I gave so much community service to the community, and I never lie,” you’ll still be judged because your standard is based on you, but Jesus says, “My standard is My Word.”
(2) Word – Eternal life (Jn. 12:50)
The one who receives Jesus’ Word will have eternal life, eternal life. What is “Eternal life?” It means we are living with Christ Who is eternal. How do we live? With Christ as my God, as my Lord. Then, it’s fine if I’m first place, second place, or even last place. What is the standard of, “It’s fine,” or, “It’s good”? The standard is not what place you get; the standard is, regardless of that, the Lord is with you. That’s where we get our happiness from. Are you happy? Are you not happy? We are supposed to be happy so I hope that you will discover your happiness. Is there still a lot of anger inside of your heart? “I did this, and that person ruined my life,” is there still so much anger in your heart? It’s not because of that person or that thing; it’s the standard inside of you, that greed inside of you, that leaves no other choice. Even right now, are you completely filled with anger because of the scars and the things that happened in your past? Then, what is your state? Because that results in the result. I’m telling you the words of the Bible right now, I’m not some kind of fortune-teller telling you what’s going to happen. I’m not drunk right now, saying nonsense, “What is he trying to say, this or that?” You have to understand these words in order to escape from all of your anger and your scars.
Why do you have so much wrath inside of you? “Because that person spoke like this to me,” or, “That person treated me like an animal,” and without a doubt, yes, they did say that, but what they say should not affect me, but inside of me, “I’m in a state where I’m so affected by other people’s words because I am my own God. I am my own God because my standard is not the Word of God, my standard is how I feel and my pride was hurt, so I cannot forgive them.” That’s darkness. The devil crawls into there. How does the devil control you? He controls you moment by moment. There’s cycles of it, for a little bit, it seems like you’re okay, but it comes back. Mental problems are continuously affecting you, and every day, there’s suffering. For people who have less severe mental problems, they’re affected maybe monthly, or they feel like they’re living their lives perfectly fine, and then again they’re afflicted with a spike of the past. For some people, they live their lives perfectly fine, and then once every three months, they’re completely afflicted. As you listen to the Word of God, the cycle time gets longer and longer because your standard begins to change. One day, you’ll only have those flare-ups once a year, and then eventually, you’ll wonder, “Oh, I forgot that used to happen to me.”
America is a great land, right? It’s a great land physically for people, but in God’s eyes, there’s a lot of evil because it is a nation that is centered on people, and that is not what God is pleased by. There seems to be so many churches, but inside of the churches, people are not centered on the words of Jesus Christ, but instead, centered on people and their emotions and desires; God hates that. Let’s say there’s a soldier in war, and the soldier says, “My leg hurts, I can’t go out,” and most people who haven’t gone to the army won’t know this, but if the commander tells you to go, you have to go because you’re a soldier, because that is how the war is won. If you say, “I’m not going to go,” then you have to die. That means, “My body is in pain,” or, “I have a cold,” or, “I’m sick,” it doesn’t matter. We’re fighting a spiritual battle, so what must we do? “Oh, I feel a little bad today so I’m not going to go to church,” the Word of God is your standard. “That person said some terrible words to me”? That cannot be your standard. What is God telling you right now? You need to live with your life based on the Word of God. Let’s say you keep getting sexually immoral or lustful thoughts, if that becomes your standard, it will become a huge problem, because the devil will bombard you with thought after thought, but that is not God’s Word. The Word must be your standard, and you must think about God’s Word.
(3) Light of all mankind (Jn. 1:4)
Jn. 1:4 says that Christ is the Life and the Light of men. Life, in other words, Light. The opposite of “life” is death, and the opposite of “light” is dark. This explains the field of America today. People are living but they’re dead. People seem so intelligent and knowledgeable, but they’re ignorant in darkness. How far do you think you’d be able to drive without headlights on a pitch-dark road at night? You might think you’re driving very diligently and very well, but later on, you’ll see you haven’t gone very far at all. I’m sure you drove very diligently and overcame a lot of obstacles and challenges on the way. What do you think happens to our lives in darkness? Yes, we do our very best, we live a diligent life, and because you can’t see, you have to try harder to work hard, and because you don’t know what dangers are coming your way, you’re always so nervous, that’s how the world is living now. But what happens if you’re living in light? You see up ahead, you see around you, Jesus is the Light, and the words of Jesus are the Light. When the Words of Jesus come into my heart, then my heart can see the future and I’ll be able to see many different situations.
Gen. 1:2 says there was darkness, emptiness, and chaos. It’s all the same. “Darkness,” we cannot see. “Chaos,” it’s confusing. “I work so diligently in order to fill that void, but it’s nothing, it’s empty, void.” That’s what happens when I live my life in darkness. But what happens when we live our life according to the words of Christ, according to light? That’s what we must restore in this last worship of 2024.
2) Sent me into the world (Jn. 17:18)
God the Father sent Jesus Christ into the world, right? Then what are we? It says Jesus Christ sent us out into the world, what does that mean? It means there is a goal for us. If I go into the world by myself, then I have my goal, but that’s darkness. You work on your own, right? That’s darkness; instead, the Lord sent you there into the world. Why does He send you? You have to know that reason in order for it to be fulfilled in your life.
(1) Authority of heaven and earth – With (Mt. 28:18-20)
After Jesus Christ resurrected, He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me; therefore, go and make disciples of all nations,” but people say, “Oh, that’s too hard for me; I don’t want to think about that,” that’s darkness. The Word of God doesn’t change; I have to align myself to God’s Word, and I’m sure your heart doesn’t want to move, then you have to take the word of truth and meditate on it in your heart because right now, it’s hard to digest these words, but just because I don’t understand it doesn’t mean the truth is not true. I have to change myself. I have to change myself so that my studies and business are really meant to make disciples of all nations.” For students, ask yourself, “Are my studies really aligned to make disciples of all nations?” Otherwise, you’ll be a slave to the world because Jesus sent us into the world with a goal.
Why did He send us? For all nations. Especially in America, we have hundreds of nations, all gathered here, then why am I in America? Why am I studying and working here? If you hold onto your own goal, that’s darkness; that’s why you can’t see your business, you don’t have fruits. If God becomes your goal, then God will do the work, but actually, the problem is the people who have gone to church for a very long time, because they say, “Oh, I’ve heard and known all of this since I was young,” and they think that that’s their walk of faith, “I know this, I know that.” But is that the reason why you’re working? No, then you don’t really know anything, that’s why you’re suffering so much. You understood it logically and rationally but it didn’t really go into your heart. May this time of worship be the time when the Word of God is imprinted into your heart.
What is that word, “Imprint”? You know a seal, right? It’s like a press, you press down on the template to make that perform. If you go to some libraries or something, they might have rubber stamps and the reason you can dip something into ink and stamp the same form is because it’s been engraved or imprinted into the rubber. But what happens if we don’t actually imprint the rubber with that shape but we just draw it on with a pencil? Then you can’t make that shape again. If you just know something with your brain, it’s not going to be imprinted in your life. The Word of God must be imprinted into my heart; based on what is imprinted into my heart, my life will come out of that. Then, God will work upon my job and business to make disciples of all nations.
(2) To declare the wonderful light (1 Pt. 2:9)
1 Pe. 2:9 says that God has called you to sing the praises of Him Who called you out of darkness, into His wonderful light. Ever since you were young, these words should come into your heart and really strike it, “So this is why I study.” Then, your studies will not be such a heavy burden, but you will receive answers and guidance from God. There’s a talent Go has given that child, and then, when they go into college, they have to develop their talent into a specialization by developing it. If you have a specialization, it means you’re able to monetize it. Because if you’re a specialist or expert, it means you’re a professional, and people pay professionals for their expertise. So, stop asking people to give you money; instead, raise up your specialization through your God-given talent, and monetize that. Why? God does all of that to save His people in the field.
(3) First His kingdom (Mt. 6:33, Ac. 1:3)
Therefore, first seek God’s Kingdom and His righteousness. Why did America become like this? It’s because people are moving to America, instead of living for the Kingdom and the glory of God, they’re living for their own visible things, so we’re in an age of mental illness. This is the kingdom of Christ, the Kingdom of Christ must be established in me first, meaning He must reign in me and control me through His Word, He controls me.
3) Holy Spirit (Ac. 1:8)
(1) With, guidance, works
Now, God promises to be with us forever, to work upon us and guide us.
(2) Filling – Authority
(3) Witness to the ends of the earth
To be a witness until the ends of the earth. How do I enjoy this prayer? I have to evangelize Hollywood, but I’m too weak. “God, establish your power upon me to save Hollywood.” Working professionals, you need to listen really well right now, because for business people, even if things are working well, it’s not really well. You need to work with the Word. You need to pray with the Word of God, “God, be upon me with Your power to save Hollywood and raise up the disciples in that field.”
For students, pray for God’s power to be upon “me” and “my studies,” to make disciples of all nations through my studies. Then God will give you His power to be a witness until the ends of the earth. “May the power to do Temple construction be upon me,” in other words, we have to receive God’s answers, because with your strength, it will go away.
Conclusion
1. Save myself
In conclusion, I must save myself. I cannot save myself, the Word of Christ must save me. Through worship, the Word must save me, and when the Word of Christ flows across the entire church, the church comes to life.
2. Save the church
3. Save the world
If your family is centered on or revolves around eating, your family will be destroyed. Your family must be centered on the Word of God for your family to be saved and come to life, and so the world field can also come to life when the Word of Christ comes in. Christ, Who saves. Do not try to live with your mental strength, but live with the words of Jesus Christ. May you have victory throughout the week.
Message Prayer
Let us pray together holding onto the Words we have received.
Offering Prayer and Newcomer Blessing
God, we thank You. Thank You for allowing us to be in an environment where we can give the final worship for 2024. We pray that the Word You gave us will be our guide path for the year 2025. As evidence, we pray You will use this year to save me, my family, my church, my region, my business, and my fields. We have returned Your material blessings as offering. We pray that You will give us the evidence that all money and everything comes from God. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, amen.
God, we thank You. I pray that You will bless our newcomer Jini so that the Word of God may be established within her heart, and allow her to be a witness of the Word of Christ. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, amen.
Announcements
1. Online zoom early morning prayer (Mon.-Fri. 5:30, Sat. 6AM) – Raise the bartizan of prayer
2. Hollywood camp – Temple
3. 12/31 (Tues.) 7PM, 1/1 (Wed.) 10:30AM New year’s message.
4. 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, guidance, working, and fellowship 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 Jesus Christ Who saves all of their family, their field, their church, their business, and upon their lives, be with them from now until forevermore always, amen.