The Ones Who See Only Jesus (Mt. 17:1-13)
Let us bless and greet one another, “Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living God.” May the unprecedented blessing and answer of God be upon each of you today. The title of today’s message is, “The Ones Who Only See Jesus.” How can we see “only Jesus”? The Bible is giving us the Word to only see Jesus. How is it possible that I’m facing problems, but instead of seeing my problems, I’m seeing “only Jesus”? This doesn’t mean what you see with your eyes. This means that you are concentrating all of your value and the center of your life on this one thing.
Then, the real problem in life is, not coming to the conclusion of Christ like this. We are bound to face many problems but the Bible is telling us the answer to those problems is Christ. However, the Jewish people in the Bible did not come to the answer of “only Jesus Christ”; they came to the answer of “only the Word of God.” There are many people today who believe but they don’t come to the answer of “only Jesus Christ,” they come to the answer of, “only the Word of God,” and that’s not right.
1. Led them up a high mountain
1) To pray (Lk. 9:28)
In today’s main scripture, Jesus Christ takes three of His disciples to a high mountain, and Luke 9:28 says they are going up there to pray.
(1) Transfigured Jesus (Mt. 17:2)
(2) Moses, Elijah, Jesus appeared before them (Mt. 17:3)
However, once the disciples got up there, they saw three people: Moses, Elijah, and Jesus. Then, Jesus’s face is transfigured and He shows Himself as this glorified image of God. Moses and Elijah have passed away but they are appearing now. Moses and Elijah are the two most respected figures to the Israelites.
(3) Talking to each other – Death (Mt. 17:3, Lk. 9:31)
It says they saw the three of them talking to each other. Lk. 9:31 says what they were talking about, “they spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.” This is something God has shown to the disciples, and this is the conclusion to all the words of the Bible. This is the entire content of the Old Testament, here. The entire Bible is telling us about why Jesus Christ had to die, and that He had to die and then resurrect back to life. But even though Peter was following Jesus around, he was saying that Jesus cannot die. So, God is showing them, even Moses and Elijah are testifying that Jesus Christ must die.
2) Elijah
(1) Elijah went up to heaven (2 Ki. 2:11)
What kind of person was Elijah? Elijah was a prophet, and 2 Kings 2:11 says he never died; he was just taken up into heaven in a chariot.
(2) That great and dreadful day of the LORD (Mal. 4:5)
400 years before Jesus Christ came to earth, God promised through the prophet Malachi, in Malachi 4:5, “See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes.”
(3) Send the prophet Elijah (Mal. 4:5)
This means that before Jesus Christ comes to earth as the great judge of the age, He will send the prophet Elijah. So, the Jewish people were looking forward to the prophet Elijah to come back because they were waiting for the Messiah. The reason why the Israelites continued to ask Jesus Christ if He was Elijah was because they were waiting for the Messiah to come.
(4) Has already come – John the Baptist (Mt. 17:12-13)
However, Matt. 17:12-13 says that Elijah has already come, and that Elijah was John the Baptist. John the Baptist was the one who prepared the way for Jesus to come, and they saw that “Elijah.” Elijah is somebody who appeared in advance for Jesus to come. What does this mean? It means that even though Peter is following after Jesus Christ, he doesn’t see “Only Jesus” yet. They still needed Moses and Elijah, whom they respected so much.
3) Moses
(1) The one who received the Law at Mount Sinai (Dt. 13:18)
What kind of person is Moses? Deut. 13:18 says that Moses is the one who directly received the Ten Commandments from God on Mount Sinai, and Moses was the leader who brought the people through the Exodus.
(2) Leader of the Exodus of Israel
(3) Died in an unknown location (Dt. 34:5-6, Jd. 1:9)
He was such a renowned leader that he passed away in the land of Moab, and no one could find his body. It says in Deut. 34:6, and then in Jude 1:9, it says the archangel Michael and the devil were disputing about the body of Moses. What does this mean? God made that happen so the Israelites would not concentrate on useless things like the body of Moses.
2. Peter
1) Good for us to be here (Mt. 17:4)
So, the fact that these disciples are seeing these three greatest renowned leaders of Israel and Jesus Christ, in their transfigured and holy form, Peter loves it so much, he says, “It is good for us to be here. Then he said, “Let me build three shelters, one for each of you. This means that he sees Moses, Elijah, and Jesus to be the same or equal. Are you potentially seeing success as equal to Jesus? Are you potentially seeing Jesus equal to getting a lot of knowledge in the world? Or, do you see that having fun and enjoying your life on earth is equal to believing in Jesus?
(1) Put up three shelters (Mt. 17:4)
(2) One for the Lord (Mt. 17:4)
(3) One for Moses, Elijah (Mt. 17:4)
Peter had another messiah he was imagining for himself. We also have a messiah that we want, that we are creating for ourselves. You’ve just confirmed your own version of Jesus, “If I believe in Jesus, then I should have a safe and comfortable life. If I believe in Jesus Christ, then I shouldn’t have many problems in life,” you’ve created your own reward for faith.
The three disciples on the mountain are following Jesus Christ in that state. They haven’t quite confirmed and realized why they must follow Jesus Christ. For you and me, we need to ask ourselves, “What is the reason why I am following and believing in Jesus Christ in my heart?” We need to break all of that down. Just “only Jesus Christ,” finishing everything with that, following only Him, that must come into us by God’s grace; that is what God desires. That is not something we can force; God must give us that grace. That is how our walk of faith is so simple but everything is contained within it. Otherwise, you’ll need money, you’ll need success, you’ll need people, and it’s going to be so hard like that. “I need a good personality, I need healing of my past, I need a guarantee for the future,” then your walk of faith will be so difficult. “He needs to heal my diseases, He needs to do this or that,” that is not really believing in Jesus. If you believe in Jesus, then it just ends with that. But that’s actually something we cannot understand with our mind. That’s why we must receive God’s grace.
2) God’s voice
(1) My Son whom I love (Mt. 17:5)
After the disciples said that, there was a voice from the cloud that said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” If the Israelite people meet God face to face, then they die. When they heard God’s voice, imagine how much they were filled with fear. God said, “This is My Son Whom I love,” which means, this is God’s one and only Son, it means, this is God Himself in human form. Do you not know this, that you are comparing God Himself to be equal to Moses and Elijah? Are you right now comparing the blessings of earth to the great and holy blessings of heaven? We can never receive the spiritual and great blessings of heaven on the efforts of man, but you have been given that. Are you trying to replace those with the blessings of earth?
People like that do exist, and Peter was like that back then, too. Everybody goes through a time schedule where there is the greatest and most holy blessing within Jesus Christ, but we don’t recognize that, so we chase after the blessings of earth. God is saying, “That’s not right,” this Jesus is the One with whom I am pleased,” the one whom God is pleased with.
(2) With him I am well pleased (Mt. 17:5)
Who is the one with whom God is pleased? It is the person whom God can fully work through. David was somebody whose heart was aligned with God. God could fully fulfill His work through David. Then you must not have your own assertions, and in order for you to not have your own assertions, you must believe in God fully. That is what we call the “image of God.” We are not God; we are created in the image of God, but we keep trying to live as our own god. You are living a life that listens to and follows the words of the devil, that you can be like God, judging what is good and what is evil.
“I make all of my decisions, what is right and what is wrong,” that person is hopeless. You make your own decisions like that, and God does not like that, that is actually a person who pleases the devil. David is somebody who believed in God ever since he was young. Everybody here believes in God, but to what extent did he believe? David believed to the point where God was surely the LORD of his life. Even when he was a shepherd, he was not shepherding his sheep with his own strength, but he believed in God to the extent that God revealed His works through the sheep. God’s works took place so that even when lions and wolves tried to take the sheep away, David was able to take the sheep back.
The person who pleases God is the one who is important. God doesn’t like people who please other people. If you guys are so swept up by artists and singers and celebrities, God does not like that.
(3) Listen to him! (Mt. 17:5, Jn. 17:7-8)
God said, “Listen to Him.” In John 17:7-8, it says, “They knew everything You have given me comes from You.” Jesus Christ does everything He does with whatever the Lord God has given to Him. Then Jesus says, “For I gave them the words You gave me and You accepted them,” so the words of Jesus Christ are the words of God. So therefore, listen to Jesus Christ’s words, because that is the Word of God.
I hope you will not listen to any other words, but listen to the words of Jesus Christ. If you’re reading the Bible but you listen to the words of Moses’ law, it’s going to be a big problem. Through the law of Moses, we need to hear the voice of Jesus, but if you just focus on the law, that’s a big problem. Yes, we read and listen to the words of the prophets in the Old Testament, but all of that should be in the direction of Jesus Christ. If you focus on anything else other than Jesus, it’s a big problem.
Faith and our walk of faith is not just any faith; it is the faith that concludes in only Jesus Christ within the midst of everything. The reason why I’m living in America, it’s for only Jesus Christ. The reason why I’m studying, why I’m working, it is for only Jesus Christ, that is how you must see and live. If you don’t see things like that, your life will be difficult. Matthew 11:28, Jesus says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,” you can only get rid of your heavy burdens. Even the reason why you have a family is for only Jesus Christ, it is a family that is reigned over by only Jesus.
3) Disciples
(1) Terrified (Mt. 17:6)
The disciples heard the Word of God and were terrified. We cannot hear the Word of God directly, without a doubt, God speaks to us through Jesus Christ. Even right now, after killing Jesus Christ 2000 years ago, the Jewish people are waiting for their Messiah. The reason why they killed Jesus was because Jesus did not keep their law. They still have not realized. The reason why God gave them the law to begin with was to hold onto Jesus Christ through that law, but they’re holding onto just the law, even now.
(2) Jesus – Don’t be afraid (Mt. 17:7)
So, the disciples fell down, terrified, but Mt. 17:7, Jesus came over to them and touched them. He says, “Get up, do not be afraid.” Jesus is the One Who sets us free from our fear and raises us back up, but the devil pushes us further into fear and despair. Moses and Elijah cannot do this work. No matter where you read in the Bible, it doesn’t happen. However, if through the Bible, you discover Jesus Christ, you’ll be set free from your fear because God is doing that work through Jesus Christ even now.
What is the first problem that people face? It is the fear of death. It would be great if there were a way to overcome that, but that does not exist on earth. If a student is bad at studying, the parent will be afraid first. If our business is failing, then we’re so filled with fear. Why do you think you’re filled with fear? It is a fear of death. If my business fails, then my life will be over. You’re afraid of death, you’re not afraid of the business itself.
When there was the coronavirus pandemic, people were afraid of the virus, but the fear took over all of the world. Do you think there was anybody who was not afraid? Who is the one who can overcome fear? Can you overcome fear if you receive special forces training? No, those people received the specialized training in order to live, they receive training so they can kill the opponent so that they themselves can live.
If you and I are living our walk of faith so we can survive, then we will lose hold of many things. If Peter is following after Jesus Christ so that Peter can get something for himself, that is an elementary faith. “Then of course, we should get something for ourselves; are we just going to give endlessly?” That is still a very young faith. That is somebody who doesn’t really believe in God. If you truly believe in God, you give everything of yourself because it’s not really yours; it all came from God and God entrusted it to you, but you say it is yours? That is why God is leaving you alone, and later on, God will continue to show you evidence that it doesn’t really belong to you.
Your life, it is not yours, but you’re afraid because you think your life belongs to you. You think your life belongs to you, so when there’s a celebrity or singer in town, you follow after them because you want to taste some fun in life? That’s difficult. It’s because the songs of that singer will touch your heart that was so filled with depression. We need to listen to the gospel that sets us free from depression, but you keep looking for these celebrities and singers. You fall deeper into them, and you cry over their songs, that’s still a difficult life. If you’re crying, watching these dramas, then it’s still a difficult life. It means you still are not set free. Jesus Christ Who has victory, Jesus Christ Who has finished all problems. You must be overflowing with victory and joy.
(3) Saw no one except Jesus (Mt. 17:8)
Jesus Christ says, “Do not be afraid,” and in Mt. 17:8, they say only Jesus Christ, no one except Jesus Christ. They didn’t try to see this; God just gave them the grace. If somebody truly believes, “All I need is only Jesus,” then that person has true faith. This is not talking about saying “only Jesus Christ,” because you’ve heard it in doctrine so much by knowledge, but someone to whom this is revealed by the Holy Spirit in faith, “Wow, all I need is this; in every single thing, only Jesus Christ must remain.”
When you face a problem, do you see “only Jesus Christ”? When something unfair happens to you, do you see “only Jesus Christ”? When you’re deep in depression, do you see “only Jesus Christ”? When you’re so afflicted by the scars of your past, do you see “only Jesus Christ”? When you see all these reports about the future pandemics that will continue to bring danger, do you see, “only Jesus Christ”? I’m not saying if you’re seeing the face of Jesus physically; I’m saying, “Do you see His plan? Do you see His plan within your problems?”
When you’re chased around by diseases and pandemics, do you see Jesus’ plan? When something so unfair happens to you, instead of just seeing the unfairness, do you see Jesus’ plan? There are people among us who are suffering so deeply from mental illnesses. Do you see Jesus’ plan there? If you see that plan, then you have victory, and the Lord desires to show you that. In 10,000 problems and situations, if you see only Jesus Christ’s plan, then you’ll have victory, but if you don’t see this, then you’re bound to look for something else, and with anything else, you’re never able to overcome the devil.
Even right now, in 1 Peter 5:7-8, it says the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Someone asked me, “Why do you talk about the devil so much?” It’s because they haven’t realized yet. Those are the words of demons. He’s saying, “Why do you keep talking about my dad like that? My dad is the devil; why do you keep talking about my dad like that?” That devil appeared to mankind in Gen. 3 and is working upon them even now, and he continues to push you into a direction that is not Jesus Christ, but is anything else.
(4) Prayer – Time to restore Only
But if you don’t know the spiritual problem, then even if you go to church, you’re afflicted with spiritual problems, and one day, you won’t believe in any of this. Do you know what that is? It’s the forces of darkness, he makes you completely powerless. But if you don’t understand the forces of darkness, you’ll wonder, “Why am I like this? I believed in Jesus my entire life,” but that is the forces of darkness, it is Satan. When you really see that as Satan, you will have “only Jesus Christ.”
He has finished it on the cross. Only Jesus Christ is the One Who has overcome the authority of the devil. The problem of your life is not even you; it is the thoughts and the things that Satan has placed inside of you. Then, why do you think God worked in today’s scripture? For them to see “only Jesus.” If you go to church and believe in Jesus, you need to know who Jesus is well. It doesn’t mean, “I’m a Christian, so I believe in Jesus.” Jesus is the Christ, Jesus is the name of the Savior, and “Christ” is the position, the role, the work He has done. It means that Jesus has done the work of the Christ; He has done that work for me. Christ has solved the problem that I had as soon as I was born.
As soon as we’re born, even in our mother’s womb, Paul and David confessed, “I was a sinner in my mother’s womb.” Every single human is born on earth with the spiritual state of Adam, it is the Original Sin we are born with. So, we grow up in a life that does not have God and chases after Satan. When we are young and newborn, we are so cute and the mothers love them so much, but the older we get, the more we look like the devil. Especially around 7th grade, you see this extreme form of the devil, I see it in my daughter even now. They don’t need God, they don’t need their parents, “If I don’t like it, I don’t like it.” Everything she says is, “I don’t care.” “You should listen to your parents’ words.” “I don’t care.” “Oh, God doesn’t like that.” “I don’t care,” everything is about, “Leave me alone.” “Whether it’s God, whether it’s my parents, why are you bothering me?” That’s normal. Somebody who has a little bit more gentle personality won’t express it like that, they express it in a more gentle way, but on the inside, they have the same heart. That is, every person who is born with Original Sin.
Every single person here has a stronghold within them. What is that? “Nobody can touch it; I am god. If somebody hurts my pride, I can forgive other things, but I cannot forgive that. Even if I stop giving worship, even if I stop going to church, I will never forgive anybody for hunting my pride.” On the outside, they may have a great personality, they might work very hard and have the greatest knowledge in the world, but everybody has that inside of them. The only difference is the personality, whether they show it directly or whether they show it in a more roundabout way.
For these kids, it’s hard enough for them to grow up under their parents because “I need to live by myself as my own god, but my parents keep telling me what to do,” and then they keep growing up and they get married that way? “Oh, my spouse keeps telling me what to do.” And then they have a kid, and now “This kid is bothering me.” That is the inner nation with which every single human is born. “I can’t forgive anybody for bothering or disrupting me.” Because every person is born with that state, it can never be resolved unless Jesus Christ comes into me and changes Himself to be my Lord.
We have our religion and we live our walk of faith, but the inner, most fundamental parts must change. That was the hardest part for me, and that’s actually what’s making it hardest for you. People who live their life as the elite, if they fall short, they can’t forgive themselves. For other people, they say they’re happy to get fourth place, but this person needs to get first place. They can’t forgive themselves even if they get second place, and so that individual makes themself suffer with whatever they have planned. If they cannot forgive themselves, then they commit suicide. The things inside of us, every single person is born with Original Sin, seized by Satan.
3. Everything inside of only (Col. 3:5)
1) Bible – Testify about Jesus (Rom. 3:21, Jn. 5:39)
(1) Law of Moses, the Prophets, the Psalms (Lk. 24:44)
Jesus Christ died on the cross to set us free from that, He resurrected and is with us as life. Luke 24:44 says that Moses’ laws and the Prophets and the Psalms all teach about Jesus Christ. However, there are many churches that use the laws of the Old Testament, and they say, “Why are you not able to live with this law?” That is not a church, because we cannot live following the law; we need the grace of Jesus Christ. The Church must relay the Word that God Himself has given. Did you fall over? Of course you did, if you were God, you wouldn’t have fallen over, that’s why you must receive strength through Jesus Christ. Did somebody do something wrong? Of course, they did. If that person could do it themself, it wouldn’t be that person. You need to allow them to hold onto the strength of Jesus Christ to stand up again.
If you use the laws of Moses to shove it in their face, “You’re a Christian, why are you only this ‘good’?” That is not a church. Because we cannot do that, we need to receive forgiveness for our sins and we need to receive the strength to live with God again. If there’s a church that uses the words of the prophet to speak about anything with the Word of God that is not Jesus Christ, that is not a church.
(2) All you who are weary and burdened (Mt. 11:28)
In Luke 24:44, Jesus Christ Himself appears to the disciples on their way to Emmaus after He resurrected and explains it to them. The two disciples were on their way to Emmaus and they’re talking about Jesus Christ Who resurrected, and Jesus is with them, but they don’t recognize Him as the resurrected Jesus, yet. Then as Jesus is walking with them, He explains to them how the laws of Moses, the writings of the Prophets and the Psalms, are all explaining about Jesus Christ, and as soon as they realized it, their eyes were opened, they recognized it, and he disappeared. Are you bearing your heavy burdens? You’re suffering because of the frame that you have designated. The frame that you have created may be very good in the world, but you cannot live with that and you cannot accomplish it with your strength.
When you look at the employees under you, there are so many things that upset you, and when you look at your customers or clients, there are so many frustrating things aren’t there? when you look at your children, they drive you crazy, don’t they? Why is that? It is because you have set up your own frame, and you are suffering because they refuse to go into that frame. You just want the clients or customers to buy your material and go, but instead, they just touch all your products and then leave without purchasing it, and it drives you crazy because you just want them to buy it. I’m telling you, instead of holding onto that standard, hold onto Jesus Christ. What does it mean to hold onto Jesus Christ? It means to find God’s plan. Instead of deciding everything yourself and shoving that forward, ask, “What is God’s plan?” If you have lost all your strength, then hold onto the name of Jesus Christ and stand up again. No matter how much sin and darkness you’re in the middle of, Jesus Christ has finished it on the cross, so hold onto His power and rise up. The Pharisees were holding onto the heavy burdens of the Old Testament laws, so Jesus Christ says, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” the standards and the frames you have will only burden you. “The church must be like this, the church must be like that,” it’s going to make your life so hard. “At the very least, a human should be like this.” It’s going to make life so hard for you because you’ve created your own standards and you’re not able to overcome the weight of your own standards.
One thing, a world that is reigned by Jesus Christ. It is the one where Jesus is the Lord and He is reigning and controlling all. If you dream of that, then you are liberated. But if you cover that up and you’re dreaming of your own frame, your own kingdom, and you’re trying to draft your own life and plans, that’s what is making you suffer. That frame, just because you’ve set it, does not mean it will be accomplished. “This is how human relationships should be,” that doesn’t exist; you need to find God’s plan. If you’re interacting with this person with your own thoughts and your own plans, then you have your own ulterior motives; it’s not a real interaction, is it? And things are not going the way you want, so you get angry, don’t you? Why are you angry? You’re getting angry because of what you’ve already determined. You need to escape from that. What is Jesus’ plan? You need to open it up to find Jesus’ plan and allow Jesus to reign.
(3) Garbage/Surpassing worth of knowing (Phil. 3:8)
Paul lived his own life following the law, and he said so himself in Phil. 3:6, that he was blameless in regards to the law. He was the greatest leader who trained under the greatest leader, Gamaliel. In that time, Israel was a theocracy, so if you had religious power, you had the most political and every power. One day, he met Jesus Christ and his eyes were opened to see Him. Before that point, he didn’t even see Jesus, and he thought he was living a legally and morally upright life by persecuting and killing Christians, but if you meet Jesus Christ and He opens your eyes, then you’ll realize that the way you’ve been living your life was all incorrect.
One day, after meeting Jesus Christ and his eyes being opened, he realized the way he was living his whole life was rubbish that has no value. He realized he was holding onto the things of the earth, the elementary and valueless things. He was holding onto the things of the earth, like education, success, money, fame, and he realized, “All of this is rubbish after I realized Jesus Christ.” He lived his life thinking those things were his walk of faith. After he met Jesus Christ, it’s nothing. Knowing Jesus Christ is the greatest, surpassing knowledge. These are not words he says because he memorized a lot of Bible verses, it was a confession that comes from the Holy Spirit within him. Bible study is a good thing, but it can also be a problem because you know the knowledge, you think you know it. “Jesus Christ is everything” must come from a confession deep in your heart, but you make that confession from the knowledge in your brain, and you’re under the misconception that you really think that. You might fool people, but the devil knows. When you say, “Only Jesus Christ,” the devil flees. But if your heart is not believing it, and you say it with your mouth, the devil will say, “Who are you?” and attack you.
(4) Jesus Christ – Finished all problems (Jn. 19:30)
John 19:30, before Jesus died on the cross, He said, “It is finished.” What did the incident of Jesus Christ on the cross really finish? Have you really thought about that? There is a problem that no human being could ever solve. It is the Original Sin caused by Adam. Because of that Original Sin, we have curses and disasters. Second is the problem of being seized by Satan, who planted the Original Sin into us, we cannot escape; we cannot change that with education. And third, the problem of the authority of hell and death, we cannot overcome. That is why we are always filled with the fear of death. When Jesus Christ died on the cross and resurrected, He finished all three of those problems at once. He has solved the fundamental problem, and in that fundamental area, Jesus Christ is with us as life. In the most fundamental part of our life, Jesus is with us and guiding us. That is why, if you believe in “only Jesus Christ,” everything is finished. He is the Creator God, even right now, Jesus can create something out of nothing. He is the One Who created us, so He is the only One Who can fix our broken parts. That fundamental one is with me now through the Holy Spirit.
2) Within me – God’s kingdom
(1) Christ lives (Gal. 2:20)
The “me” that was the master of my own life is no longer–I have been crucified on the cross. People who keep thinking, “My thoughts, my thoughts,” will be seized by their thoughts and suffer because of it. You must make your thoughts obedient to Christ. What does that mean? I cannot control the thoughts I get, but I must entrust those thoughts to Jesus Christ. If you hold onto your own thoughts, you’ll be controlled by them. People who have mental illnesses have thoughts that are very complicated, they think of the things in their past and their present. They keep seeing the scars they received decades ago, and it still grates away at them.
They’ve never even talked to that person, but they say, “I can tell from their expression that they’ll be like this person, and I hate that person, they’re my enemy,” without even talking to them. Where did those thoughts come from? Our thoughts don’t come from God, if they come from God, then they give us peace. Whatever thoughts you have right now, that is not from God. You need to give those thoughts to God. The moment you become God, deciding with your thoughts what is good and what is evil, you will be seized by your thoughts. You must entrust them to God for Him to rule.
Do you have bad relationships with people? You have to entrust that to God. “God, what is the plan with which you have allowed me to meet this person?” then it is actually a blessing of meeting. When you personally think that was a bad meeting, God actually gave you that person to meet as a blessing.
(2) Holy Spirit dwells – Temple (1 Cor. 3:16)
Now, the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ lives within me, but what’s important is allowing that Holy Spirit to work within me. Even if you have millions of dollars in the bank, if you don’t use it, it’s not yours, right? Because if you die, you cannot take it with you. You can see the effects of money when you use it. The Holy Spirit is with us, but the Holy Spirit must work in order for you to see those answers. But you just think about, “I have a lot of money in the bank,” and you’re happy about that, but you don’t use it when you need it, and then one day, God just calls you, but what is to your benefit, then?
There are a lot of grandmas like that. They gathered so much money by working hard all their life, but they keep it strapped around their belly when they sleep because they don’t want to lose it. They hide it under their mattress because they don’t want anyone to steal it, and after the old lady passes away, their mattress is full of cash. You have people around you like that, don’t you?
Money must be used for the Lord, and God continues to work upon the one who uses that for the Lord. The Holy Spirit is inside of you, but you need to keep making the confession of faith for the Holy Spirit to work. You’re a child of God, you shouldn’t allow God to not work within you. God is working 24 hours, so you need to open yourself up for God to work upon you. If you say, “God, You just stay still, I’ll do everything by myself,” those are the words of Peter. You think you’re devoting to the Lord. “Lord, You cannot die; I’ll do everything by myself,” that’s actually a misconception; that’s not faith. You need to open yourself up for the Lord to work; you shouldn’t intercede. That is how the Lord’s Kingdom is established and the Kingdom of God is perfect.
So, it doesn’t matter how much counseling your family receives, it will not be resolved. People just get used to each other and just endure each other, but it’s not resolved. You need to open it up so that Christ may reign. When people go into a job that has a lot of people working there, the interpersonal relationships are very difficult. If you’re trying to control people, nobody is going to follow you. They’re forced to follow you because of money, but without that, they just do whatever they want. You should never be under the misconception, every person is born under Original Sin, wanting to live according to whatever they want. You need to pray for God to work upon them, for God to work upon that family, for that Kingdom of God to be established. That is somebody who has faith.
(3) Filling of the Holy Spirit – Power – Witness (Ac. 1:8)
So, you must pray for the Holy Spirit and the power of God to work upon me and in every field that is within my sphere of influence. That is what I must do at the very first, but if you think with your thoughts first, then you are living your life backwards. First seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness.
3) Domain of life – God’s kingdom
(1) Meeting, Family, Business, Region – Power of the Holy Spirit
(2) Destroy Satan’s kingdom (Mt. 12:28)
(3) What to do first (Mt. 12:29, 6:33)
(4) All things that is needed will be added unto you (Mt. 6:33)
Mt. 12:29 says you must first tie up the strong man, for the power of the Holy Spirit to work upon me and be established in my field. Then all the people I meet will be changed into blessings of meeting by the work of God, and the happiest family is the family that is worked upon by God. The best business in the world is the business that allows God’s work and kingdom to be established through your business. You live in a very wealthy neighborhood? That’s not a good thing. The best region in the world is the region where God’s kingdom is established in that region through you. People move their houses depending on the schooling system in that area, and that might not be a bad thing; however, if the Kingdom of God is not established in the region you’re living in, it is bound to be overtaken by the Kingdom of Satan. For us, it’s okay no matter where we live, the only condition is that God’s Kingdom must be established first. Then, as you’re doing just that, all the physical things you’re thinking about will follow you. Whatever you’re worried about, God will take care of it, that is God’s Kingdom.
Conclusion
1. Only Christ, God’s Kingdom, Holy Spirit
Through you and I, I hope that in every aspect of your lives, you will see only Jesus Christ, only His plan, and only His Kingdom must be established by the work of the Holy Spirit.
2. 24 prayer
God is with you 24 hours a day, so you must enjoy that 24 hours through prayer.
3. Answer to save lives
Then you will come to life, and everyone related to your life will come to life as well. As you are doing this, money should come; as you are doing this, you should get promoted at your job. That is what God has planted. Everything else is not yours. Whatever God has not planted or God did not make to bear fruit, it is not yours. Throughout the entire week, may you see and confess, “only Jesus Christ, only the Kingdom of God, and only the work of the Holy Spirit.”
Message Prayer
Let us each hold onto the Word God has given to us and pray.
Offering prayer
God, we thank You. We thank You for leading us in a life that sees, testifies of, and enjoys only Jesus Christ. We have returned Your materials as offering, we pray that everywhere this offering is used, the Kingdom of God will be established, and may this be the offering for the temple construction to save the 237 nations, the future generations, and the church. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, amen.
God, we thank You. We pray that You will bless Gregory and Gayle so that, just according to the Word You have given them, they may see only Jesus Christ and live as the important ones to establish Jesus Christ in the field. 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. Sunday 3PM Bartizan camp around church.
3. Yakima, Portland camp: 7/17-19, 7/19-21.
4. WRC 7/27-28,8/2-4
5. 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, working, guidance, and fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be upon all the heads of all the people of God, the people of all nations, and the remnants who desire to live for only Jesus Christ, only the Kingdom of God, and only the working of the Holy Spirit, be with them from now until forevermore always, amen.