Maintaining Missions and Blessings (Matt. 25:14-30)
Intro
1. Self – Spiritual State, Come to Life
2. Gospel – Christ-Centered
Legal-ism – religion
Action, me-center
1) All Areas – Success
2) All Areas – Discover
3) Problem – Answer, Plan
1. Mission
1) Pastor
2) Elder, Senior Deaconess / Deacon, Choir, Sunday Teacher, Finance Department, Evangelist, Helpers to Those Who Proclaim, Leaders
Faithful Stewards, Maintain Life
2. How
1) Talent
That is how immigrant parents educate their children without the Word of God, oppressing their children and pushing them to success in whatever way possible. But that child, because they’re oppressed by something that is other than the Word of God, has no choice but to be oppressed by an unseen spiritual problem. But those who have received the proper gospel education will receive talents. They discover and give back the glory of their talents to God.
If they continue to hear these words, wouldn’t they just pray a little bit about this? But even if the church does it, they don’t educate their children at home in this way, then what happens to that child? They already have to carry their heavy burdens at home, and they continue to study in college with this heavy burden. They still come to church, so it’s just a religious life. They use various methods to succeed like extracurricular activities and studying very well, but these children cannot maintain themselves spiritually. That becomes incorporated into this one talent that was buried into the ground.
2) Will
The reason God has given us this talent is not for us to use for ourselves. God has given us this talent for us to use for Him. For example, if a government official receives money for something, but they embezzle it, that’s wrong. There are many church officers like this because they haven’t been taught about this. Can they live a proper life? It’s not aligned with God. If it’s not aligned with God, they have no choice but to go according to their own will, so that’s why even though they go to church, they endure through useless sufferings.
3) Before God
In 1 Cor. 4:2, we must do it before God. There are children who think, “I don’t have any talents given to me,” but they’ve been taught useless things. All of God’s precious creation has been given this talent from God, and that is how this world and this society is able to function. According to God’s timing, all creation has this talent. But the difference is that unbelievers use it for themselves but believers use it to save lives.
That’s why our remnants must not spend their time uselessly on other things, trying to find their talents in their own methods and ways. When I interact with my child at home, whether she’s studying or doing all sorts of things, I am able to see and think about what her talent is. I can tell by the way she studies at school. You’re able to discern if they’re more into the STEM field or the humanities. You’re able to discern this based on how they use their brain.
For me, I learned statistics during college, and I went to medical school, but it didn’t suit me very well. But when I started going to seminary school, that’s when I started to realize it suited me very well, but it wasn’t that STEM wasn’t good, but humanities was better suited for me. Because I was an unbeliever, I had no choice but to study in fruitless ways. But personally for me, whenever I took these college courses, I leaned more towards the humanities, whether it’s politics, society, or culture, but when I learned theology, I had to know everything holistically. So, for some people, they usually focus on one thing like economics or politics or history or languages, but I had to focus on all of them. Many things are incorporated within this.
Just like that, all people have their talents. In other words, frankly speaking, you must play how you look. But who blocks this? The adults do. They block their child’s talents with their own scars. They tell them to do this or that, these things they weren’t able to do themselves. It’s given by God, used for world evangelization, so you just need to help them to naturally discover this talent on their own.
If they seem like children who don’t need to go to college, then they don’t need to, isn’t that so? They just need to follow the path of their talent. We do need to educate our children properly, but if we educate them with the improper goal, then they will just be oppressed.
Loyal
Doing this before God means we are loyal. If we have to be wary of other people, then already they have not succeeded, even in the world. Are there people who succeed by being wary of others? No. Even for unbelievers who work in companies and succeed, they are not wary of others, but they are loyal to their company.
I emphasize this a lot. When I realistically lived in the world, I had to be wary of others often because I was trying to preserve myself. But if I’m doing this before God, I’m able to give my all into this company, and those are the people who succeed. Where do we teach this? In the church because the family can’t. That’s why it’s before God.
4) Other people – Grace (1 Pet. 5:3)
We must influence others with this grace. With this talent I have, I can save other people. For the businesspeople, you must think very carefully. Are you running your business to save and help other people, or is it to fulfill your own gains and wants? I’m pretty sure a large portion of people will be like this, “I will invest some time in the church but I will live mostly for my will,” and they are just living a religious life. Why is this? They haven’t experienced what the gospel is. If they experience the gospel, things like this will change easily, and that’s why it’s important to educate the children from a young age about how to experience this gospel.
All people live diligently, and that’s why this inner character is very important. This is possible for those who have experienced and have been touched by the gospel. These are people who will surely succeed. But if they rely on their own thinking, calculations, thoughts, and ways, they are easily knocked down. Even for me, I have friends who have succeeded in the world and they all have a similar characteristic. Isn’t that right? They want to hire and keep people who are loyal to them, who want to give their all to the company. They want to fire those who talk behind people’s backs. Teach them this from an early age so they do everything before God.
Do your job before God. These are the people the world needs. The world doesn’t need those other people; that’s why people have no choice but to be ostracized by others. What about the Ukrainian war? Some people helped their country as much as possible so they won many awards and honors, because they were beneficial to the country.
God has given us this talent to fulfill His kingdom and to save other people. God will surely make it so that we use this.I have already become a child of God and I’m saved so I don’t need to live for myself. The Lord is already living united with me as my Lord and Master. That’s why we invest everything in saving lives. That’s why when you go to your jobs, don’t badmouth your company; otherwise you can’t succeed. In order to save the world and establish the kingdom of God, you must be loyal to them. You begin to be trained in this within the church. I hope you confirm and see whether my words are true or not. I hope that you will see how the remnants turn out once they go out into the field.
5) Count
There will be a time when we be held accountable before God, because the Lord will surely account for whether you’ve lived your life for yourself or for the Lord. That’s why we must stand before God and handle the world He has entrusted to us.
3. Blessing
There’s a blessing that follows this mission.
1) Happiness (Matthew 25:21)
It says we will partake in the Master’s happiness
2) Greater Things
The Lord will entrust us with greater things.
3) Crown of Life
Rev. says we will receive the crown of life.
4) Matthew 6:33, Mark 10:25-30
As we live this life on this earth, it says to seek His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you, and in Mark 10:25-30, it says we will receive a thousandfold blessings. Poverty is not a limitation for God, but if we aren’t using our resources properly, then I have not lived in the right way because I’ve invested my money and health in the incorrect things. In return I must receive blessings but those do not come; I use my money and health uselessly.
WIth money, I drink endlessly and because I have time and money, I wander around. I did this thinking it was beneficial to me, but later on, I realize it causes so many problems, but that’s actually our level and standard. We have no choice but to be like this because we don’t know. It’s just like how children need to be guided by adults because the children don’t know, and it’s the same with us.
Once we have money, we want to use it in our own way and that is our nature. It’s because, for us, we can’t think long-term so we live day-to-day. But God is leading us, thinking far into the future. That is why we need God’s grace every week, every day. For us, we don’t really know even though we think we do. We don’t know how to use money. We just think that we have assurance if we have money with us, but that’s not true. We think we just have to earn money ourselves, but it’s actually given by God. We think this time is ours, but one day, we will be called by God. All these things have been momentarily entrusted to us by God, but because we think these things are eternally ours, we have problems with our children, and even for spouses, you are not each other’s; you are God’s. Even the job you have has been entrusted by God. It’s the same with the church, it is momentarily entrusted to you by God, and you misunderstand thinking it is yours for now, and that is the unbeliever lifestyle.
4. Prayer
We must pray and God says we must be loyal with what God has entrusted to us.
1) Loyal
We must have sincere relationship and communication with others. When people grow up, they become parents and educate their parents based on how they lived. Even if they’re unbelievers, they educate their children. What have you heard when you grow up? Have this kind of education, what kind of education did you receive from your parents? What did you hear the most? Some parents say you must be mindful of others, and if they are not beneficial to you, you must leave. The unbelievers’ ideology includes, “Don’t be a disadvantage for others, but instead, live your best life. Don’t speak the right words first, or you’ll be hit in the head,” and they say this because they’ve lived a life without the gospel. This Gen. 3 is continuously relayed to the children.
We listen to these words in the church but the ideology goes into the children, and that determines the child’s spiritual state. So, even though you may speak the word of God to them, the things you’ve been imprinted with are being relayed to your children. Those inner things are revealed in the church as you do your church work. Most people think, “I will invest my time into my job more than in my church,” and they were educated in this way for a long time. “If I invest more time into my job, I’ll gain more money,” and that’s how they live. If something happens at their job, they will invest all their time and energy into it, but they think of their church as being of no benefit, so they just do it haphazardly.
Even if that’s the case, with the Word of God, you think about and follow His Word. Adults, don’t even worry about your talents, just live as you’ve lived. The things you’re able to do now are your talents, and how will you use that in order to save other people before you leave this earth? This will be relayed to your children, and that is worship.
Worship doesn’t cost money, it takes time. You have to come here and lay down all your things, but if this continues, then this is not just an ordinary training. You will receive God’s greatest grace that you cannot find in the world. Even if you read all the books in the world, this is a grace you can never receive. Those who know this are the ones who come to worship, because God will teach you all things that even your ancestors didn’t know, in worship. I belong to God and give worship to God and live my life for God surely.
It’s the same for your children. It’s not that the empty things are being relayed to your children, but other things are being relayed. The problems you have now aren’t coming from out of the blue; it’s the problems you have inside. If you think “I hate this person,” then the result will be trouble between you and the other person. Even if I don’t criticize that person to their face, but I talk behind their back, I will receive criticism in return.
If I have a problem before me, it’s a problem that appeared because of my inner things. If I received an answer, then according to God’s time schedule, that’s an answer God has given. That’s why there’s nothing else for you to say; it’s whether it’s God’s or yours, and that’s where the answers are revealed. Is this talent God’s or yours? If it is God’s, use it for God, and that answer will surely come. This blessing will surely be relayed to your children, and those children will surely live for the Lord. These are not just words; they are your realistic inner state.
2) Communication with God
What happens if you lose hold of this mission? What happens if you don’t handle this mission? What happens if you neglect this mission? Then everything will be taken away because you’re not fulfilling God’s mission. But something will come to those who handle and fulfillGod’s mission, then God will entrust different things to you, then it’s not just inside the church, but outside as well, you have these things.
3) Things We Have (1 Pet. 4:10)
This gift is given by God. Your spiritual state is important. You must stand before God always and confirm your inner state. This is what I shared when I went to Utah this week, “Trying to do something will not bear fruit; start with early morning worship. We did this early morning worship on Wednesday and Thursday, “There’s no other message you need, let’s watch the prayer journal message.” What must be revived first? It is my spiritual state. If you disregard the spiritual state but try to fulfill evangelism with your own actions and works, that won’t take place. What happens if you’re spiritually dead? Then spiritually dead answers will come, so that’s why the physical people of the flesh, this is Genesis 3, 6, and 11, what kind of ministry will these kinds of people have? You must be spiritually revived in your inner state for you to save other people.
That is how you save yourself with the gospel and we continuously talk about 3, 9, 3. It doesn’t end there, but God must realistically come upon me with the Holy Spirit. Everyone can talk about the gospel but we must have the prayer where the power of the throne realistically becomes mine. This power of the throne must be relayed to my field. Then I must save the church, the field, and the future generations, and that’s the answer of the three ages.
We must have this time in the early morning when we restore our spiritual state, while others are resting their physical bodies. I gave my testimony, this missionary came to our church for a year and came to our early morning service from Torrance, and he said that was when his spiritual state was the best. Time flew by, after that, he’d done many things as an evangelist, but that didn’t help him spiritually.
I explained to them about the beginning of our ministry with the Navajo and also Mongolia. There are times when the Holy Spirit comes to me in a rush. That’s how God had guided me to start this ministry with the Navajo. Even for the Mongolians, we had decided to do a camp with the Assistant Pastors, and as soon as we went down to do this camp, we met the Mongolians. They came to Koreatown to get a job, and the children live their own life, but this is what I saw.
I didn’t really know much about afterschool programs at the church, but because I saw this, I decided that we needed to gather these children to teach them academically and spiritually, so we got connected to Rise Kohyang Middle and High School, and that reached all the way to El Salvador. Even for Sedona, that’s how we got connected to the Navajo ministry and Camren joined us through that. When you receive God’s accurate guidance, the working of the Holy Spirit will take place.
Sometimes we may do things with our own diligence, but that has no meaning and useless. One time, Evangelist Lim said she received a kakao message from another children’s minister who shouldn’t really know much about it, and she said it was hard to handle all those messages, but those were the people who do their ministry with the Karin. Because they sent so many resources, they said, “I’m ok,” but I told her to continue to contact them because they are doors for evangelism, and among their young adults, there will be evangelists and disciples. Evangelist Lim talked about the children’s ministry, but I said, “Enough with the children, let’s focus on the young adults and get disciples from the young adults.” They say they’re no longer communicating with the young adults, so I told them to wait and see how the answers come. “Connect us through Kakao.” For a year, some of the ministers at our church connected with the Karin people through zoom, and that’s how two Karin people are here today.
Why do such things realistically happen? These are the sensitive works of the Holy Spirit and God makes it happen. It’s the same for your business, occupation, and studies. The time of prayer to save myself. The early morning time where no one can bother me. I told them, “This is where your ministry will be determined. This is where the spiritual war will be determined as a victory or a loss. God will work.
He was telling me, “God touched me immensely about this early morning time,” and that is the way to save myself. No one else can save you. I can’t save you. Only the Triune God within you can save you. That’s why I’m not very affectionate. I was originally not affectionate, but it was also because some people are accustomed to living before others, because the more you rely on people, even though it may be good relationship-wise, it won’t help you spiritually, so you must save yourself.
That’s why even for me, I still do this. I don’t need anybody’s help. I don’t need any ministers or anyone else’s help. That’s why I say, “I don’t need anybody.” But when we go together in oneness, that’s when we go together because I know the work God is doing through me. I hope that, among our future generations, a remnant will arise this way.
No matter where these remnants are, they realize that only the Triune God is their guidance and protector. That’s why, for people who do things, we push them to the max and when they can’t, we say, “Don’t do it.” For those who do very little, we may entrust them with a couple of tasks, but if they don’t, we take them away. The church is where remnants are trained, and if they’re untrained here, when they go into society, they’ll be in a difficult place. At this time, they must still learn and cry and break down their stubbornness, but start this in the church by God’s grace.
Do it joyfully and with gladness into the field. You must go every day to the field, but you think, “It’s an everyday life with work, I’m depressed,” but you should go out with joy. I hope you have no choice.
Prayer
God, we thank You. May You work upon us so we can enjoy this blessing and this scripture. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, amen.