The One Who Has False Success and the One Who Has True Success (Matt. 14:1-12)
Let us bless and greet one another, “Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living God.” May today’s answer be unprecedented and never-repeated. Answers are given to us by God, and when we are aligned with God, we are bound to receive answers. If I’m aligned with God, then why am I not receiving answers? Then I have to wait, because God is working even right now, and He is alive, and He is only working through the name of Christ. Through today’s main scripture, may you ask, “What is the way to true success, and what is the path to false success?” I believe that even if you are aware of this, you will go on the path of true success.
1. Family of the successful one
1) King Herod (Mt. 2:1)
(1) Tribe of Edom
Today in Matthew 14, there is a family line I need to introduce you to. In Matthew 2, it talks about King Herod who is of the tribe of Edom. Rome colonized Israel and they raised up a king to rule on Rome’s behalf. King Herod was of the tribe of Edom, which was the descendant of Esau, not from the covenantal line of Jacob, so in order to pull the Israelites hard, he created the temple construction.
(2) Temple construction – Political motive
The reason he did that was to secure his political position as the king of Israel. He created the temple that the Israelites desired the most. The way that King Herod became the king was that he was very political and he was good at networking with the Roman leaders, because the Roman emperor would only raise up a king who would rule their colonies who would listen to everything the Roman emperor says.
(3) Murdered to maintain position as king (Mt. 2:16)
When King Herod heard that Jesus Christ was born and that He would be the king of Judah, he was afraid that his throne would be threatened, so he commanded all babies under two years old to be killed. Even if he didn’t do that, he could be the king, but it means there was something inside of him that left him no choice but to do those things. Whatever is revealed today was already inside of us invisibly, before. There was something inside of him that was invisible that left him no choice but to kill baby Jesus. The problem you’re facing today, there was something inside of you that left you no choice but for that to happen. You have to change your inner state for that problem to no longer be a problem. We need to be in a state where, no matter what problem is in America, it is not a problem to me. That is the reason why Jesus Christ died on the cross. It’s very important: is that how we know Jesus Christ, or do we know Him in another way?
(4) After he died, his 3 sons reigned as the tetrarch
When King Herod passed away, he gave his land to his three sons and raised them as tetrarchs.
2) Herod the tetrarch
(1) Ruled the region of Galilee
One of the sons’ names was Herod, and he was in charge of the region of Galilee. And it was a region where Herod the Tetrarch had no choice but to part ways with Jesus.
(2) Remarried with brother’s wife (Mt. 14:3)
Herod the Tetrarch had a younger brother named Philip, and Philip’s wife was so beautiful. So, Herod the Tetrarch was always lusting after his younger brother’s wife, and as soon as Philip passed away, Herod divorced his own wife and married Philip’s wife, and Philip’s wife also had a beautiful daughter.
(3) Killed John the Baptist because of his wife (Mt. 14:8-11)
That daughter was dancing for Herod the Tetrarch for his birthday. He loved the dance so much and said, “I’ll give you whatever you want,” and she asked for John the Baptist’s head on a silver platter. The reason why that daughter asked for John the Baptist’s head was because of her mother’s request, and her mother wanted him dead because he was talking to her about the book of Levi, that it was illegal for someone to marry someone unless they were divorced because of adultery, and in order for her to marry the king, she had to kill John the Baptist.
Herod the Tetrarch had to maintain his control and all the Jewish people followed John the Baptist, so Herod the Tetrarch thought, “I have to quiet the mouth of John the Baptist in order for my rule to become more secure,” and while he was trying to kill John the Baptist, the Israelites began to murmur and grumble, so Herod had no choice but to imprison John. Then on the day of Herod’s birthday, his stepdaughter received the command from her mother to ask Herod the Tetrarch to kill John the Baptist because she didn’t like hearing those rumors, so he had to kill John.
3) Spiritual state
(1) Education of the physical elites (Gen. 3,6,11)
Because he was rising up as the tetrarch of his father’s land, he must have received the highest elite education. He was of the royal family, so ever since he was young, he received all sorts of education on how to govern and rule over people, but what is the core of that education? It is an education that does not have God. He was receiving the education of, “How can you have power without God, as if you are God Himself?” That is the education of America today.
When your kids go to school, they are being educated on how they can raise their own power as if they are their own god, without God Himself. “No matter what, you need to become stronger and succeed, and you need to rule over and subdue many people. Do not work under anybody else, but you must become the head and order others around.” There are many people who immigrated for that purpose and are educating their children for that reason, and they themselves received that education as well. They received that education, and even though they themselves are not God, they are trying to become powerful like God, so their heart is always filled with greed.
(2) Idolatry – Greed (Col. 3:5, Eph. 2:3)
Col. 3:5 says, our “greed, which is idolatry.” If we’re not satisfied with God, we have to fill ourselves with something else. That person’s state is in Eph. 2:3, they are gratifying the cravings of their sinful nature, following its desires and thoughts. They are by nature, objects of wrath. Then what is the education we must give? Yes, we need the education of the world as well, but what is the education that God desires? It is the education that finishes everything with Christ. What does that mean? It means the education that finds all answers within Christ.
If your focus is not set on this, you have no choice but to serve idols in order to fill your void. Then, the result will be a state of obsession. Because you’re always trying to fill your inner void with success, you must be obsessed with success. In order to succeed, you need knowledge, so you’re in a state of being obsessed with knowledge. In order to be successful, you must have money, so you’re in a state of being obsessed with money. We have no choice but to be like that. Everything must come from within Christ. We must do this work with the power of Christ. We need to hold onto the Word of success in our lives in order to glorify Christ.
(3) Satan’s snare – Fear (Mt. 14:5, Heb. 2:15)
Even if people go to church, if they’re not completely satisfied with Christ alone, then they will be in a state of obsession, resulting in division and addiction. So, Herod the Tetrarch was always in a state of fear and ended up killing John the Baptist. Heb. 2:15 says that those who are not satisfied with only Christ live all their lives in slavery by their fear of death. Whatever they think is a problem, they’re afraid. When they hear somebody say certain words, their heart drops. That is someone who does not have Christ. Even if they do know Christ, they don’t really know Him well.
Christ is the Creator Who has created all the Universe, and Christ is One with God. Christ is the nature of God. In Mark 3:15, it says, “If you pray in the name of Jesus Christ right now, all the forces of demons will flee.” It also says in Phil. 3 that all creation must bow to the name of Christ. So, everything must come from within the name of Christ. Our studies, our business, and everything must come from Christ. That is what you call a “Christian.” There are a lot of people who say they’re Christian, but they’re not. They are in a spiritual state that is not fully satisfied with the name of Christ alone. Because they are not satisfied with Christ and God alone, they are always placing their heart somewhere else. The devil knows this, and so he seizes that empty void. When that obsession becomes very strong, we are in a state of mental division.
There are some people who are very obsessed with girls or boys. Yes, being attracted is natural because we are human, but being obsessed is different. If we get to a point of success and then fail, that’s okay, but if we are obsessed with success, people even commit suicide when they fail. There is an inner void that leaves this person no choice but to be like this. They are completely ensnared by Satan’s snare. Even though Herod the Tetrarch was a king, he was just like his father and had no choice but to kill John the Baptist.
(4) Murder (Mt. 14:10)
When you received your elite education, you were not taught to kill others; you were taught to serve the country, and he must have learned to run the politics of his nation, but that doesn’t happen. If my pride and my success or advantage are threatened, we are educated to kill our opponent, that is the education of this world that does not have God. You, I, and all of our children have grown up, having received this education. In this kind of state, we have no choice but to face the visible results, and there’s no education that can correct that, because immediately when somebody corrects us with their words, we can’t handle it, because, “I am my own standard.” If somebody has thoughts that are slightly different from mine, we immediately fight with them. It’s because we have never been educated on how to stand before God.
He has never stood before God and wondered, “Why is God allowing me to hear these words from John the Baptist?” We are educated to stand before people and before success. We have no choice but to have sexual lust inside of us. Why would he lust after his younger brother’s wife? He forced his current wife to divorce him. But Herod’s old wife was the princess of Arabia, so her father was so upset that he brought the armies of Arabia and attacked Herod the Tetrarch.
So, Herod the Tetrarch forced his wife to divorce him, then there was a war. How do we fight that? It is the state inside of this person. He has a state that has no choice but to bring and to cause war. He had an inner state that had no choice but to divorce his current wife. That is his greed. It’s not satisfied with God. At first, he was doing well as the king, but later on, he was destroyed.
2. Downfall of the successful one
1) Heard the report about Jesus (Mt. 14:1)
How was this person destroyed? In Matthew 14:4, he read the reports about Jesus. In order to be a normal person, you should be interested, “Who is this Jesus?” and try to learn more about Him, but he thought differently. He was always very guilty of murdering John the Baptist, so he thought that John the Baptist’s power and soul resurrected and went into Jesus. Herod the Tetrarch had received elite salvation, but what are the eyes with which he saw? He saw the world with the fear in his heart. That’s a mental illness. Instead of just saying, “Oh, is this Jesus Christ?” His state was not like that.
All his life, he was living in a state of fear and guilt, and when the incident takes place, it exploded, and he was thinking, “Oh, this is the person I murdered, coming to exact revenge on me.” God places guilt inside of us so we are able to discern what is right or wrong, regardless of whether we are a believer or nonbeliever. Because John the Baptist died of no fault of his own, Herod the Tetrarch was always filled with guilt. So, even for Herod the Tetrarch, even a beautiful woman is not the answer. Even if he is always drinking and dating, it is not an answer for that person.
(1) Don’t want to know the Gospel – God of this age (2 Cor. 4:4)
(2) Guilty for works as John the Baptist (Mt. 14:2-4)
(3) Judas Iscariot – Guilt, suicide (Mt. 27:3-5)
Judas Iscariot sold Jesus Christ to be crucified, and ultimately he killed himself because of his guilt. When people kill themselves, it is not out of nowhere; they have an inner state that leaves them no other choice. There are many shootings in America, and this person had a state that had no choice but to kill others ever since they were young. It is not because they lacked education. The reason why Herod the Tetrarch had no choice but to kill somebody else was not because he lacked education. He was in a state that had no choice but to create war. That is why the leader is so important. The spiritual state of the parents in the family is very important. The state of the teachers in the schools is very important.
Why is it that Herod the Tetrarch saw Jesus Christ but did not go to Jesus Christ? It says in 2 Cor. 4:4 that the god of this age blinds the eyes of the nonbelievers so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ. For us, we have not met Jesus Christ, but God gives us the Word through the Bible. However, the god of this age knew that Satan was holding onto Herod’s heart and is now revealed.
2) Filled with the spirit of evil spirits – Revealed
(1) Obsessed with success – Not correct success
(2) Caught in the strategy of King Agrippa (Ps. 1:1)
(3) Died after being dethroned (Ps. 1:6)
In the end, there was a neighboring king named Agrippa who was rising to the ranks of king. He was not the actual king, but he was just filling in the role. Herod the Tetrarch was not the actual king at the time, so he took a lot of money and went to the Roman emperor to try to become king, and Agrippa heard this.
So, King Agrippa heard the rumor that Herod the Tetrarch was going to the Roman emperor to try and become the actual king, so he said, “I’m the only king here,” so King Agrippa went to the emperor and spread the rumor that Herod the Tetrarch was trying to overthrow the Roman emperor, so the emperor killed Herod and his family, and that was the end of his family line. Psalm 1:1 says that the one who is wise does not sit in the seat of mockers or walk in the way of the wicked. Herod the Tetrarch was not somebody who walked in the way of the Lord and His Word; he was always living by his own experiences and education, and he was always using his evil schemes. Whoever walks in the ways of these schemers, they will be caught in the schemes of someone else.
Psalm 1:6 says the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. Herod the Tetrarch was born in the royal family, but he had no choice but to fail because of the path he walked. His entire family line was destroyed, why was that? He had something inside of him that had no choice but for him to be like that. It was a state that was not satisfied with Christ and the Triune God alone. He was in a state where he had no choice but to go into the seat of mockers.
How many people in America do you think are like this? We immigrated here, thinking that the education of America is all we need, but after we immigrated, our children fell into drug use. People are falling into drug use and are even dying on the streets, and from the parents’ perspective, they are just crumbling inside. They don’t hear from their child at all, but one day, they hear that their child is dead on the street because of a drug overdose. The parents immigrated to America to receive an American education, but the child is dying now, so the parents are not in their normal state, because the mother was not on the path of the blessed. They thought American education was everything and entrusted everything here. So, yes, elite education is very important but we need another education; we need a spiritual education, and that must go into our kids while they are young. That is how this person will finish everything with Christ.
A problem is not a problem inside of Christ. Instead, you don’t believe in it, but that’s what Jesus is saying. If you are within the Christ, then a crisis is not a crisis; instead, it is an opportunity, and Paul said, knowing Jesus Christ is the greatest knowledge. That is how you must run your business as well. You need to run your business and study with the answers that come from knowing Jesus Christ for that path to lead to success. That is how this person’s state will always be peaceful because everything they receive is from Christ.
3) Successful one with the filling of the Holy Spirit
(1) Joseph (Gen. 41:38)
Inside of that education, we must receive the physical education of America. Then, this person will become like Joseph. Joseph was dragged as a slave to Egypt while he was 17. It didn’t matter at all because God was always with him. Joseph received the covenant of the successful one to save Egypt. If Joseph had received a different education, he would have failed. The wrong education is, “You need to succeed,” but God’s covenant tells us to save the successful. He went into Egypt, holding onto this covenant of Gen. 37, and in Gen 41:38, God’s power came upon him.
When does God’s power come upon us? “I will be the one who saves the successful. I don’t want to be the successful person of America, I want to be the truly successful person who saves the successful people of America.” Joseph did not try to succeed, but he was placed in the seat of success. He saved Pharaoh and all of Egypt.
(2) David (1 Sam. 16:13)
This was David when he was young. In 1 Sam. 16:13, he was anointed as the king of Israel which is the position that saves the nation. David never said, “I want to become the king so I can succeed,” but he said, “I will be the one to save Israel,” and God anointed him as such.
(3) Daniel (Dan. 6:10)
Same thing with Daniel, he was very smart, but being smart was not enough; he had God’s covenant. He knew his people were dragged as captives to Babylon because they lost hold of God’s covenant and worshiped idols. He said, “I will hold onto this covenant and live in this land for that purpose,” then he faced a situation where he was forced to eat food offered to idols. That’s what it means to say everything comes from inside of Christ. Daniel refused to eat that food, he said, “I will only live for things that come from God.” There was danger, he was facing death. “Even so, I will only live with the answers that come from God.” Exactly as he did before, three times a day, he knelt facing the Temple of Jerusalem, and faced God. And that resolution means, no matter what situation he was in, he would receive answers from God. God maintained Daniel as the governor at the highest position, serving four different kings.
3. I save the successful one
1) Spiritual energy – Filling of the Holy Spirit
(1) Within me (Ac. 1:8)
(2) Within my life (Rom. 12:1)
Even if you don’t become some kind of political leader like this, in whatever area or industry you are in, if you want to become the greatest successful person to save successful people, God’s power will follow you wherever you go. Lately, there are these guided missiles where, if you put in the target, the missile will navigate itself there with actuators or thrusters behind it. Just like that, when our goal is set correctly, God will guide us to that goal. The future generations did not listen to any other words; all of those words seemed correct, but they’re wrong. They say humans can do it with their strength, but you’ll only see in the end. They only heard of Napoleon when he was doing well; they didn’t hear of his exile and death. They only hear about Genghis Khan’s great successes, they don’t hear about his pitiful death being stabbed to death with a spear.
We need to see life to the end to know, within God’s Word. You receive the answer of everything within God’s Word. No matter what problem we face, do not fall into it, but look for God’s plan, that means you will receive your answer in Christ. For students, if you really want to study, then you should study while praying to receive all of your answers within Christ. Yes, we can study with our own brain, but that is how you create a life like Herod the Tetrarch. God never said that, and that’s how we need to run our business as well. If you’re just calculating with your brain, you will ultimately fail because you don’t acknowledge God. The devil works on you and the Lord lets him. “I will save people on the path of true success,” that is the real way to be successful.
Then, if I want to save other people, what state must I have? You need to have the strength to do so. If you don’t have strength and you just say the words, that’s useless. You need to be filled with this internal, spiritual energy. It doesn’t matter how great of a car you have, if it doesn’t have gas in it, it can’t be driven, so it’s useless, right? It doesn’t matter even if you have the newest phone with 5G technology, if you don’t have a battery inside of it, it is unusable. However, if you are filled with the spiritual strength of God that comes from heaven, one day it will be revealed visibly. That’s the spiritual principle, it’s the principle of life. It seems like worship is no big deal, but if you are continuously concentrating on the spiritual thing, one day, it will be revealed visibly.
Why is worship so important? What’s so important about God’s word? In that kind of state, those visible results will be revealed as well. It may reveal itself as a physical illness or a mental disease. The situation Herod the Tetrarch was in did not come out of nowhere, but it was continuously in progress until one day it was revealed. For people who have something else rooted deep into their hearts for a long time, it’s going to take them a long time. Stop trying to do something with just the word “Christ,” you need to give it time because for a long time, there was something else in you. You have something else inside of you that wants to accomplish things without Christ. You’ve lived a long time, being obsessed with something that is not Christ. And you’ve lived your life pouring all your energy in that direction. So, pray to get rid of all of that and receive the spiritual strength that comes from the throne of heaven, it was promised to you in Acts 1:8.
May the Holy Spirit of God completely rule over and fill my thoughts, emotions, heart, spirit, brain, and body. You pray that in faith. If you just do Bible study, it’s useless because you’re just knowing it as knowledge, you need to believe. Even if you become a theologian, because even if you know it, you don’t believe it. Even shamans received the work of evil spirits because they believed; if you don’t believe, then the works can’t take place, and I believe, this is when God promised it, He promised to give us this power; we need to receive this power within us.
(3) Prayer – Faith
If you do this every day in the early morning, one day, God’s works take place, and one day, you’ll be changed into a state where your weaknesses are no longer weaknesses. Your extreme anger, scars, depression, one day, they are gone. We all have a state where we hate seeing other people doing better than us. You have no choice but to be in that state because you’ve lived your entire life centered on yourself. You have to stand in front of God, but instead of doing that, you hate to stand people doing better than you. You’re not even in first place, but you think you are, so you can’t see anybody else being better, and if you see somebody else being wrong, you can’t stay still. That person is a child of God, but God is answering that person, then why are you being upset about that?
It is because there is something else inside of you that says, “It has to be me,” God works in every person but you don’t acknowledge that. God has His plan and His blessings for you, but instead of acknowledging that, you just keep trying to get acknowledgment from people by stepping on others to do well. And everywhere you go, in that state, you fight, and everywhere you go, you have indigestion because you can’t stand seeing others do well. You need to change that. God’s blessing and filling of the covenant is upon me. If you stand before God like that, those things go away. That’s why your internal problems can only be solved by the medicine of Christ; it can never be solved by any external medication.
2) Inner spiritual state
(1) Healing – Brain, spirit (Ac. 1:8, Heb. 4:12)
(2) Healing – Reveal in life
(3) Future generation – Talent, specialty (job), field
That’s why Heb. 4:12 says, “for the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” When you come to worship and you concentrate on the Word of God, then one day, without you even realizing it, the things inside of you are gone. There are things inside of you you’re not even aware of; they are rooted in your subconscious, and even if there’s no reason for it, you face the same result; that is because of something in your subconscious. You have no reason to be depressed but you are always crying. If there are some bad things that happen and you cry, that’s normal, but even if nothing sad is happening, you are always depressed and sad. That is something that has been imprinted in your subconscious, where you are not aware of it, from when you were very young.
If you’re not conscious about it, it means you don’t know about it, but it’s inside of you, and that’s why it keeps coming out. We cannot know all of that, that’s why it can only be solved by the Word of God. It is only possible by the name of Christ and the Word of Christ. “May the Spirit of Christ work and fill me.” Depression and mental illnesses are a problem of the brain, not of the heart. If you’re always getting headaches and migraines, that is a problem with your brain, and even if you go to the hospital, there is no answer because the doctors themselves do not know.
What is a Christian? Solving that problem with Christ. “May the Spirit of Christ fill and work upon my brain.” I hope you will try this. We keep knowing Christ so vaguely and haphazardly, but if you really know Christ, then His power and Spirit will be upon you, and then people say, “I tried in the name of Jesus Christ and it didn’t work,” Please just wait. In front of the name of Christ, God has His time schedule. Those things take place only when demons are broken down. The forces of darkness that bring you suffering with no reason will one day be broken down. So, I hope you will pray for the power of Christ to fill your thoughts, your heart, your brain, and your body. If there is a part of your body that hurts, may you place your hand on it and pray in the name of Christ because everything is possible in the name of Christ. If you pray in the name of Christ and nothing happens, then there is a greater plan and blessing of God.
3) Save the successful one
(1) Successful American field – To all nations (Mt. 28:18)
(2) Spiritually poor – Give the answer (Mk. 16:17-18)
God did not heal Paul, He gave him a greater blessing instead. May you resolve everything by only the name of Christ, not by the words of other people. Nothing is a problem in front of the name of Jesus Christ. If anything, you utilize the name of Christ, and He changes it into a blessing and opportunity. People of all nations are gathered in America, and we give them the answer of Christ because they don’t know this answer even though they go to church. To what extent? They don’t know Jesus Christ because they say, “Oh, I believe in Christ, I have all my sins forgiven, and I’m a Christian,” but they’re still obsessed with something else, so they still don’t have Christ. If you have Christ, you know that everything comes from Christ. But a Christian who knows Christ very vaguely is a fake, they’re not real. Because there are so many fake Christians, there are so many disasters in the world. That’s why we need to give them the true answer of Christ.
Evangelism is simply giving the answer. But because you yourselves are not coming to the answer of Christ, you are not able to give the answer, so evangelism is hard. We have the path to save the successful people but we’re not able to give them the answer. Everything is hidden within Christ, and revealing the name of Christ is the way to glorify God. People keep thinking, “Once I become an Olympic gold medalist, then God will receive glory,” but that’s not how it works. People think, “Oh, I just need to become the number one company in America,” but that does not glorify God. Exalting the name of the Son is the way to glorify the Father God.
(3) Raise as the disciples that save (Ac. 1:8)
Even if you’re a physical failure, you can still glorify God if you reveal the name of Christ. For the future generations you all have the talent given to you by God. So, do not ever be shaken if you’re not good at studying because there’s another path of success within Christ. For young adults, if you don’t have a job, just wait. God is allowing you to stop so you can get the correct blessings and answers from God. “Oh, “The reason I came to America is to save people here,” then God will begin to work. If there is anybody who is so discouraged because you know Christ in a very weak or vague way, I hope you will come to the answer of Christ yet again. I hope you will be raised as a disciple to save others. The Bible tells us this is the true path to success, and may you go into the spiritual state that has no choice but to enjoy these blessings.
Conclusion
1. Triune God – With
2. God’s power
3. Save the field that is spiritually desolate
Message Prayer
Let us pray together holding the Word we have received today.
Offering Prayer and Newcomer Prayer
God, we thank You. We thank You for allowing us to know and believe in Christ, Who is the greatest knowledge. We pray that You will guide us so we will live lives of true success that are able to enjoy, believe, and testify of the true answer to all problems that is Jesus Christ.
We have returned your materials as offering. We pray that You will bless the hands that have given this offering so it may be used for temple construction to save the 237 nations and future generations. We pray all of this in the name of Jesus Christ that makes no problem a problem, amen.
Benediction
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 heads of all the people of God, the people of all nations, and the remnants who know what false success is, and walk the path of true success, upon all their businesses and the remnants and their families and family line, and the people who gathered for the spirituality conference, be with us from now until forevermore always, amen.