2017 Lord’s Day – Page 7

2017.09.17_God Betrothed Us

in 2017 Lord's Day

Senior Overseer Ki-Dong Kim

Outline

[Hosea 2:19-23]

God
is one
and He is the one and only God
who has betrothed us to Him.
Our faith is about
being betrothed to God.
Marriage does not only refer to
the carnal affection shared between a man and a woman,
but also friendship we have with the invisible One (Jn 15:15).
Only friendship is love,
for it is unconditional.
God sacrificed everything
to become the friend of our souls (Jn 15:13-14).
He has betrothed us to Him in righteousness and justice,
in loving-kindness and mercy (Hos 2:19-20).
Heaven and earth has acceded to it;
souls who once were enemies of God
became God’s brides,
and the One whom they feared and knew nothing of
became their God.
◌ O my soul,
be betrothed to God truly!
◌ God is love.
He became our true friend.
O my soul, seek the truth!
◌ Faith is about loving God;
it is about becoming God’s friend.
※ If we do not become God’s friend,
our faith is hypocritical and deceitful.
Let us become God’s friends, His brides.

Summary

Semuon’s Letter

For more than half a century I have stood behind a pulpit and preached. But I have never preached from a script. Nor have I preached like the false prophets who babble aimlessly, speaking whatever comes to their mind, claiming to be directly inspired by God. I have preached based on what I have known and prepared.

I am not saying that I am a genius. I do not memorize full sermons or large passages of scripture. A person is easily ignored in this time, so even though I preach with all my might and all my ability, I am not well heard. I preach not from any genius that comes from myself, but by the inspiration that God has given me.

That is also the reason I have been able to write so many books. Do you think I have written so many books because I am a genius? Water flows from the rock according to the scriptures, just as it has from the beginning. Why don’t some people believe this? The Bible records how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how He went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil because God was with Him (Acts 10:38), God has also anointed me, a poor boy from the country, with the Holy Spirit and power and given me the same inspiration.

Are they really willing to deny the promise of God just because they want to hate and reject an individual? Can’t they accept God’s promise that whoever believes in Jesus will do the things that Jesus did, and even greater things? (John 14:12)

I have lived my life by the inspiration God has given me. I have unashamedly sought after the inspiration of God in all things, no matter how mundane or urgent – in preaching, ministry, writing, building projects etc. If the inspiration had left me, I would have been an empty shell of a person, like a flat balloon with only my flesh remaining.

Just like a homeowner can clearly and accurately describe the contents of his house, including details about each room and even his pets, I can also describe what I have seen and experienced of God without having to rely on a script. God reveals all these things through me because I am in Him and He is in me. (John 8:31) I want you to believe the inspiration. I am the one who received it.

I have very limited knowledge and experiences about contemporary society, and even though I have some, my ignorance very quickly emerges. Nevertheless, if I could live another two hundred years, I would remain a preacher and author. I would continue my work only by the inspiration of God, so there would be no overlap in my sermons; It may seem at times that there is some repetition, but I am simply delivering fresh water that I drank today from the rock, which is different from the water I will draw tomorrow, even though they both taste the same.

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2017.09.10_Victory by Putting Faith to Work

in 2017 Lord's Day

Senior Overseer Ki-Dong Kim

Outline

[2Kings 7:1-20]

God
is the resurrection.
He revealed to the world about the resurrection (Jn 11:25).
Resurrection is the truth of being raised to life from the dead.
This is what our faith is about:
though we are dead at present, we will live again.
Righteousness will surely be raised to life (1 Co 15:16-19).
The world will eventually die and perish (He 9:27).
As a result of sin, man dies and perishes (Rm 6:23);
because a lack of life, man dies and perishes;
without grace, man dies and perishes.
There is nothing but despair (Ep 2:8).
Jesus is God (Jn 17:3).
He is the one and only Savior for those in despair.
The ruler of this world is not our savior.
There is only despair with no hope in sight.
Do not be deceived by the world.
Do not be deceived by your own conviction.
Trust in God.
He is our one and only Savior.
Faith is mighty power that came down from heaven.
◌ Rulers of this world cannot save your soul.
They are not gods but flesh
which will eventually perish.
◌ What the world has given is only a broken reality.
There is only despair with nowhere to turn to.
But faith that came down from heaven will be victorious.
◌ Realize how you have become a leper in both soul and body,
and do not despair but rise up.
Let us rise up with the faith from heaven.
※ God commends
and is pleased with the faith put into action.
God works only in those who have faith.

Summary

Semuon’s Letter

Now I am just crying out to the One True God. Everybody knows that I am a man of no skill. However, I have experienced a spiritual inspiration that no one has ever experienced. I have lived my entire life with only one inspiration. I know the inspiration only comes from the One True God, so I strive to hold on tightly to the bond that connects me with Him. He is my God, Jesus Christ.

I have sweat and toiled for the inspiration that God has given me. I pray earnestly for the inspiration day and night and it does not come without toil and sweat. My position as the overseer, which was given by the Holy Spirit, is also my inspiration. There are some who demand that I lay down the position. This demand means I would have to lay down the inspiration of Jesus Christ. I can never agree with that since I asked God for the inspiration and He gave it to me.

Satan showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor and said to Him, “All of this I will give to you if you bow down and worship me.” But Jesus, knowing not just his deception but his wickedness, rebuked him saying, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only!”(Matthew 4:9-10), and Satan left Him.

Likewise there were some who came to me with some flowery and deceitful words. But it was obviously a trick. Now I am not lonely. I have laid down all that I have so I can be with God. I am grateful that I have been with God, that I have met with Him, who is the One True God. Now I just pray earnestly for more inspiration.

I will strive and sweat great drops in prayer from my soul saying, “Give me, Semoun, a double portion of the Spirit!” Striving in the flesh is not enough, but I must strive with my soul. If I am examined and put on trial in a court, I will not care since Jesus also went through that. I will face it together with my God and my Lord Jesus Christ for my soul is bound up in Him.

The scripture that reads, “His sweat was like great drops of blood falling to the ground”, is the inspiration that I have been given. Those drops of sweat and blood dropped on my soul, and have become my inspiration.

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2017.09.03_Jesus is the One and Only God

in 2017 Lord's Day

Senior Overseer Ki-Dong Kim

Outline

[John 10:22-39]

God
is the one triune God.
He is the eternally-living God
who came to the world (Jn 3:16).
Do not despise Him, the Nazarene.
He is our one and only God (Jn 1:46-49).
Do not shun Him who was hung on the cross.
He is our one and only God (Jn 19:38-42).
Jesus is our one and only God,
before whose name even the demons tremble (Jas 2:19).
Jesus is our one and only God,
before whom even diseases disappear (Mt 11:2-5).
He who raises the dead to life is
our one and only God (Jn 11:43-44).
Jesus is our life,
our one and only God.
◌ He is our God,
of whom the Holy Spirit bears witness.
He has resurrected in us.
◌ Jesus is the immutable truth
and the way to life for us;
He is the one and only God.
◌ God is not elsewhere
but He who has come inside me by the Holy Spirit
is God.
※ Jesus is our one and only God
who appeared in this world to save us.

Summary

Semuon’s Letter

Jesus said, that the kingdom of heaven is like a child. Why did Jesus say that? We have all gone through childhood. Children usually think they have no power or ability. They only know that they wouldn’t be alive without their mothers. That is why they regard their mothers as their very lives, and do not want to part from them.

If you ask ten children how they would get along without their mother, they will all answer the same thing, “I cannot live without my mom.” This is not a rhetorical answer, but a simple statement of fact. Children are not interested in their mothers’ past, where she came from, or her bloodline. They just believe that she can keep them alive. That is why orphans are so pitiful.

Who is the one who is able to give life to my spirit and my flesh? Who is the one without whom I cannot live? The one, the only one, is God. The only eternal being for me is God. Where is God? He is Jesus. Jesus is the only life, and I know that I cannot live without Him. So, my life, my God, is Jesus. He died but was resurrected in me. His power, His inspiration, His wisdom, and His life were resurrected in my soul. Therefore I know that He manifested Himself though the Holy Spirit.

Ah! In my soul(which could not live without Him) He came and was resurrected. He is my life, my One and Only God who saves me and gives me life. I love God, and will strive to walk with Him all of my life. With gratitude, I look forward to the day when I will die behind the pulpit as I have longed for all my life, and I strive to be a more spiritual servant of the word even as I prepare to cross the valley of this life.

Those who spit on me flicker across eyes. But I do not hate them, but rather I feel sorry for them. I pity them who do not care for their souls, avoiding the good fight, which would be hard enough to win even if they started again this very moment. Just a few months ago, they were my beloved saints, why then are they scattered and wandering? Why are they wandering about, abandoning their home and family? If they were spiritual people they would lay down their emotions and only seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit. They will find no comfort for their souls as long as they wander about from place to place following their fleshly emotions.

I am the one who raised and loved them. They have come to hate seeing me and listening to my voice, and yet, doesn’t my soul still worry about them? My heart is like that of a mother who is waiting for her missing children. I hope they safeguard their spiritual lives wherever they are.

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