December 25, 2018 Immanuel (Matthew 1:23)_Christmas Celebration Service
Sermon Outline
God
is the One who abides in glory.
He
receives glory through His own Name (Jn 17:11-12),
receives glory through the truth (Jn 14:6),
and receives glory through the Son (Mt 3:17).
God loved His Son from before all eternity.
So that God would receive glory through the Son,
He created heaven and placed it,
also being His throne, at His Right Hand (He 1:3).
Furthermore,
so that He could judge the spirits who were corrupted
through the corrupting work of the fallen angels,
He went into Hades, resurrected, and then ascended to heaven (Ju 1:9).
Our faith is
to believe that He came into the world (Jn 1:18).
Just as was spoken in advance by the word of the prophets,
He was begotten through the body of a virgin.
He was called by the name of ‘Immanuel’ (Mt 1:23),
and this means, ‘God is with us’.
This is our faith.
Just who of all His generation would have
believed that He was God?
We, however, are those do who believe that He is God.
○ Jesus is God.
This is the faith that God has given us.
○ Even though the world may not believe this,
we are those who believe this.
The Holy Spirit has testified to it.
○ We are those who have experienced that He is God.
We have gained freedom through His blood.
※ ‘The Immanuel’ is our faith.
We are not the people of religion,
but we are the holy children of God.
Semuon’s Letter
Ah! I am so blessed and full of joy that I am a servant of Jesus Christ, and that I am doing His work. I am now great in years, and I am no longer interested in the affairs of the world. But I am full of joy in my soul that I have been entrusted with the works planned according to the will of God. I only earnestly desire that I could somehow please the Lord in some better way.
At this time, there may be those who would wish that I would quickly depart from this earth. But this will not happen according to their will, and this will not happen according to my own. It will only occur in accordance with the will of the Lord. There will be no way to speed this up. Again, there may be those who wish to deny my authority and name as Overseer, but this, also, will only happen according to the will of the Lord. I am the Overseer in accordance with the law of the Bible. From this time on, the position and authority of Overseer will eternally be preserved in this church.
The work of the Overseer is to show the God that cannot be seen by the people of this world. Even though the people of this world have rejected this name, the work of the Overseer is to sanctify the name of God, that is, the name of Jesus, and to make other do so. Therefore, I, and those like me, who obey the truth and are entrusted with the work to nurture many souls, have the faith given from God. And this faith is the name of Jesus.
The meaning of the name Jesus is ‘The One who will save His people from their sins’ (Matthew 1:21). And what does this mean? It means that those who believe in Jesus have already been set free from their sins. This is the faith of the Christian Church. I, Semuon, have preached this faith my whole life, but the world has still shut its ears to my words. But I am glad that the saints of Sungrak Church have received God’s inspiration, and that they hear the words spoken by the Holy Spirit. There is no time. There is so little time. Up until now, I have strived with all my strength to preach this truth and to teach it.
Are the saints of our church, by any chance, afraid of God? If this is the case, then you will immediately face judgment. Judgment will be the last punishment for those who are afraid of God. Those who are afraid of God and do not even love Him are those who have already received judgment. They are walking on the road that leads to destruction and will eternally never come back. What will be the outcome of their souls?
The moment the sound of their fleshly breath is no longer heard, the flesh will depart from the soul. And the moment the flesh has departed, these souls will become demons. As demons, they will roam around the breadth of the created universe, a universe that, like a prison, is most confined. This universe is also called Hades. And finally, without any judgment, they will go down into the abyss, and afterwards, be thrown into the lake of fire.
However, I, Semuon, have secured the name of Jesus deep within my heart. I live by this name, and I am not afraid of God. He is not the God to be afraid of. He is the Father of my soul, and He is the compassionate One. Therefore, I am not afraid of God, but I love Him most earnestly. To love God has been my life and my practice. This has become increasingly apparent day by day. The way that I walk is on the way to heaven.
Semuon