2014.01.12_Teach As He Commanded

The Source of Faith is the Word from the Beginning

God sent the Word. This Word is not a word with meaning, but it is the living personality (Heb. 4:12). (*There are no capital letters in Korean, thus there is no difference between ‘word’ and ‘Word’ in Korean, unless it is explained). John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The ‘beginning’ in Genesis 1:1 refers to the time when the heaven and earth were created, but the ‘beginning’ in John 1:1 is a time before the creation of Heaven, the eternity past. Therefore, the Word that was with God from the ‘beginning’ was God.

The word of God came to us and became our faith. That word is a promise that God swore by His name (Heb. 6:13).It is great deal that beings like us are able to hear those words of God. Whoever desires to receive life must respect the authority of His word. Obeying the Word that was with God in the beginning is obeying God, believing that Word is believingHim, and loving that Word is loving God.

There are many religions in the world. The common trait among these religions is that they are absorbed in giving devotions to their god according to their own feelings. Unlike this, Christian faith is being led only by God’s word, being judged only God’s word, and being ruled only by God’s word. Even if a person may seem to give his earnest worship to God, he is not a true Christian if his life is not ruled by the word of God. Jesus said, “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). The words, ‘in spirit and truth’ means in the truth and the Holy Spirit. Worship to God must be in obedience to the truth by the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus said, “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:8). Every Christian must be led by the Holy Spirit. However, the Holy Spirit does not do His own thing, but allows us to understand and remember the words of truth. John 14:26 says, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you,” and 16:13 says, “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”

We are people who believe in the Word. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us two thousand years ago. The world only saw this Word as a young Jew who lived in Nazareth, but Apostle John said, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory of the only begotten Son of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14), and said “And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son,who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him” (John 1:16-18).

Christians Are Those That was Towed

We are people who are led by this prestigious Word. We go to church and maintain our spiritual lives because we have been called by the Word. There is a study, which says that an average person has to be evangelized roughly two hundred times before he decides to come to a church. The method of outreach could be through a saint, a leaflet, a sermon on a radio, or any other media. By being exposed to the gospel repeatedly, a person is motivated to go to a church. Just like the saying, “Little strokes fell great oaks,” when they are continually exposed to the gospel, they will one day believe.

Faith must be founded on the Word. Trying to do anything without the Word is the characteristic of the fallen angel. After God made Adam into a living spirit, He said, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Gen. 2:16-17). Being unable to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil sparked curiosity and desire in the hearts of Adam and Eve. Catching on this, the Devil stimulated Eve by saying, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:4-5). God had commanded not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil because obeying that command was the path to life for the living spirit. However, Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s command and brought on the fall of humanity.

Abraham, the father of faith, was originally from the land of Chaldea. The land of Chaldea was a place full of idols. God told Abraham, “Get out of your country. From your family, and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you” (Gen. 12:1). Abraham crossed the river following God’s word, and from then on he lived a life of a sojourner. God promised that Abraham would become a great nation, and all the nations will be blessed through him. The blessing that Abraham received from God was passed down to his son, Isaac. Abraham had another son Ishmael through his slave Hagar, but God had promised that the son born through Sara would be his heir, and Isaac did become just that. When the time came, Isaac also blessed his son Jacob. However, Jacob was not his firstborn though. Jacob didn’t have the right to be blessed by Isaac as the firstborn, but Jacob possessed the disposition to overcome such circumstances. He bought the right of a firstborn from his brother who thought light of his birthright, and received the blessings from his father. When he was coming back to the promised land after twenty years in a foreign land serving his uncle, he received God’s acknowledgment for the blessings he had received. At that time, he received proof that he wrestled with God and won along with the name ‘Israel,’ and his descendants have been called ‘Israel’ from then on. Later on, God ‘towed’ the Israelites that numbered more than one million out of Egypt through Moses, and they reached their final destination of Jerusalem.

Towing is an important concept in a Christian’s spiritual life. There is no one that was not towed to faith by the Word. All of us have become Christians because we have in some way heard the gospel. This is how our faith is different from the superstitions that are based on personal convictions and devotions. Abraham received the testimony from God that he was righteous because of his complete obedience to God’s word. In the Old Testament times, the word ‘obedience’ was used in place for faith, and in the New Testament times, the word ‘faith’ is used in place for obedience. In other words, obedience and faith are two interchangeable words.

Our spiritual life is being towed by the word of God through obedience and faith.

Ecclesia, the church is the gathering of people who have obeyed God’s calling. In other words, church is a gathering of people who were towed by the word of God. There are billions of angels in Heaven, but God did not used them to bring people to salvation. Instead, He uses the saints to tow them to church. Just like how Philip said, “Come and see” to bring Nathanael to Jesus, God uses the saints to evangelize the unbelievers. For this the Lord said, “Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:20). A Christian has to not only learn what Jesus commanded, they have to observe what he has learned.

As we can see from the word ‘saint,’ a proper Christian is a disciple. If you are without a teacher, you are not a true Christian. Some people deny or hide having learned from a particular teacher, either due to some sort of fallout with that teacher, or because that teacher is persecuted in the church. This is an act that hurts one’s faith, because if you don’t have someone that had towed you in your spiritual life, you cannot be considered as a true Christian. Faith is not something that springs up from your heart; it comes from hearing the word of Christ (Rom. 10:17).

Some people say their faith started when they received a direct revelation from God. However, Ezekiel 13:2-4 clearly warns, “Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who prophesy, and say to those who prophesy out of their own heart, ‘Hear the word of the Lord!’ Thus says the Lord God: ‘Woe to the foolish prophets, who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing! O Israel, your prophets are like foxes in the deserts.’” We must never treat the thoughts of our hearts equal with God’s revelations. Always remember that we have come into Jesus Christ only when someone whom He had sent had towed us to Him.

Giving Offering by Our Own Discretion or by the Word’s Tow

Not only do we need to observe what the Lord has commanded, we also have to obey what we have learned. God commanded king Saul to strike the Amalekites and destroy every single living being; man, woman, child, even the livestock. However, Saul spared the best of the livestock so that he could give them to God. When Samuel saw this, he said, “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams.For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king” (I Sam. 15:22-23). Saul was the first king of Israel, but he was abandoned by God when he disobeyed Him.

Spiritual life is a life that is towed by the word of God. A Christian giving offerings to God must be from the word of God. In some churches, the preacher says, “This church does not tell you to give offerings. If you want to give, you give, and if you don’t want to give, then you don’t give. We do not force anyone to give offerings” to the congregation. This is a fragment of humanistic theology. When the Devil was seducing Eve, he emphasized that her life would be her own like God if she ate the fruit. Giving offering at your discretion might seem right to people, but teaching to do so is a clear distortion of the word of God.

Pastors must teach the word of God so that the congregation could possess the faith that pleases Him. Galatians 1:8-10 says, “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.”

People who are into humanism think that they are following God’s will when they serve God in their discretion. Ezekiel 14:3 says, “Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their hearts, and put before them that which causes them to stumble into iniquity. Should I let Myself be inquired of at all by them?” We have to let the word of God lead and tow us. We have to do things even if we don’t want to, and not do what we want to if the Lord has forbid it. This is the act of choosing life when the choice of either life or death is laid before us (De. 30:19).

Jesus Emphasized About Offering Too

Offering is one of the things that Jesus taught to observe. There was a time where Jesus sat in front of the treasury of the Temple and observed people giving offerings. When He saw a poor widow give an offering, He said, “For they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood,” (Mark 12:44) and praised her. Not only that, there was a time when Jesus commanded a leper to give an offering after he was healed. How much money would a leper have during those times? But Jesus still commanded him, “See that you tell no one; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them” (Matt. 8:4).

After hosting Jesus at his house, Zacchaeus said, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything form anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold” (Luke 19:8). Zacchaeus didn’t say that he will pay back fourfold because he was bold and courageous; it was because God had commanded to do so. When Zacchaeus decided to obey the command of God in faith, Jesus said, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham” (Luke 19:9).

Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:21). There is heart where there is treasure, and there is treasure where there is heart. Some people are faithful in their church, but they are very tightfisted when it comes to offering. This shows the person’s love toward God and his faith. As we have seen, Jesus talked about offering many times during His ministry. As His disciple, it is very normal for us to teach others about offering.

Building (Construction) Offerings

Some people say that people came up with the idea of building offering. However, building offering was commanded by God. Haggai 1:7-11 says, “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Consider your ways! Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified,’ says the Lord. ‘You looked for much, but indeed it came to

little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why?’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘Because of My house that is in ruins, while every one of you runs to his own house. Therefore the heavens above you withhold the dew, and the earth withholds its fruit. For I called for a drought on the land and the mountains, on the grain and the new wine and the oil, on whatever the ground brings forth, on men and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.’” People struggle all their lives to become rich. Sometimes they do make a lot of money. However, they discover that everything has left them in their closing days. These people must look back whether they were stingy towards God or not, because you reap what you sow before God (II Cor. 9:6).

Haggai 2:8 says, “The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine.’ Says the Lord of hosts” and verses 15-19 says, “And now, carefully consider from this day forward: from before stone was laid upon stone in the temple of the Lord—since those days, when one came to a heap of twenty ephahs, there were but ten; when one came to the wine vat to draw out fifty baths from the press, there were but twenty. I struck you with blight and mildew and hail in all the labors of your hands; yet you did not turn to Me,’ says the Lord. ‘Consider now from this day forward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, from the day that the foundation of the Lord’s temple
was laid—consider it: Is the seed still in the barn? As yet the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree have not yielded fruit. But from this day I will bless you.’” God promised that
the people’s situation will be different before and after the construction of the Temple. Just like this, God promised to bless those who gave their possessions for the construction of the Temple.

There are many who start a new church, but not all of them succeed in their ministry. There are many churches that close after only few years. The failure percentage goes up even higher if they do not have their own sanctuary within those years. Among the start-up churches, there are some pastors who say, “Our church will not bother building our own sanctuary.” However, for every church, a time to build always comes. When that time comes, the pastor won’t be able to take back his words, but more importantly he will prove himself that he had not been honest in the past.

When Jesus told His disciples that He has to go up to Jerusalem, be crucified on the cross, die and resurrect on the third day, Peter said, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!” Jesus replied, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men” and rebuked Peter. Then He said to the other disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Matt. 16:21-24). Jesus received the command to die from God (John 10:17-18). The people who desire to follow Him must receive the same commandment from God. Therefore, a pastor must tow the spirits in his congregation by teaching what the Lord had taught to observe with his life on the line.

Monthly Offerings

The monthly offerings are the source of clergy’s pay. I Corinthians 16:1-2 says, “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as

he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come.” People in the Old Testament gave offering to God on the first day of every month. People in the New Testament also give their promised offering to God every month, but for the saints that do not have to time to look after themselves since they only focus on God’s kingdom. Just like this, the offering promised before God must be given before the term’s end. Deuteronomy 23:21 says, “When you make a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not delay to pay it; for the LORD your God will surely require it of you, and it would be sin to you.”

II Corinthians 9:5-8 says, “Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren to go to you ahead of time, and prepare your generous gift beforehand, which you had previously promised, that it may be ready as a matter of generosity and not as a grudging obligation. But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” Because spiritual life is not by discretion, but by being obedient to the word of God through the Holy Spirit, it is normal for the flesh to feel pressure. However, for victorious spiritual life, the spirit’s desires must overcome the flesh’s desires.

Suggestions for the Givers

Even if you give a large sum of offering, if you give it with a stingy heart or give it reluctantly, it will not please God. Isaiah 1:11-15 says, “O what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?’ Says the Lord. ‘I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, Or of lambs or goats.’ ‘When you come to appear before Me, Who has required this from your hand, to trample My courts? Bring no more futile sacrifices; Incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting.Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; They are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them.When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; Even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood.’” Even though people pray for hours, they don’t get answers. Even though people are diligent in their church life, they feel empty. This is because they are not towed by the word of God.

Some people regret having given offerings to the church, and even criticize the church about offerings. We have to remember the words of Jesus, “Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come” (Matt. 12:32). The Holy Spirit is the one that convicts us to obey the commandment to give to God. Thus, we have to follow the words of the Holy Spirit and never speak against Him. Every single word uttered from our lips will be judged at the judgment day (Matt. 12:36-37).

The foundation of our spiritual life is not humanism, in which people act at their discretion, but God-centered ideology that obeys the word of God. The Lord said, “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak” (John 12:48-50). Even if someone promises liberty to us, if that promise is irrelevant to the word of the Lord, it will only lead us to destruction (II Pet. 2:19). This short life on earth is the opportunity for us to earn our eternal reward in Heaven (I Cor. 3:10-15). While we are in this world, we must be towed by the word of God through the Holy Spirit.