Subject 15 : The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the GALATIANS
[Chapter 6-5] Let Us Preach the Gospel Of the Water and the Spirit with a Proper Understanding (Galatians 6:17-18)
(Galatians 6:17-18)
“From
now on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the
Lord Jesus. Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your
spirit. Amen.”
God Said Not to Trouble Paul
In
the last part of Galatians, the Apostle Paul said especially, “From now
on let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord
Jesus” (Galatians 6:17). What Paul meant here is that people shouldn’t
try to receive the remission of sin through their legalistic faith, nor
claim to be sinless. He said that no one should trouble him anymore,
particularly since he explained sufficiently how it was a mistaken
belief for the circumcisionists to try to become God’s people by
receiving physical circumcision. In other words, Paul told them not to
weigh him down or exhaust him with such wrong beliefs.
Just
how frustrated the Apostle Paul must have been to say such words? Those
who tormented the Apostle Paul the most were not outsiders. Rather, it
was the advocates of physical circumcision and the adherents of
legalistic beliefs among the workers and the saints inside God’s Church
that tormented Paul’s soul. Pauline Epistles show clearly just how much
and incessantly the circumcisionists were tormenting him. As soon as the
Apostle Paul preached the gospel to the Gentiles and barely made them
believe in the Truth, the advocates of circumcision ruined his work by
saying to them, “You can become Abraham’s descendants only if you are
physically circumcised.” They preached such a different gospel when Paul
was away, making the Gentile believers receive circumcision in their
flesh, and, moreover, those who were physically circumcised denounced
their uncircumcised brethren. Not realizing how harmful this was to
God’s gospel, these circumcisionists ended up committing a great
wrongdoing.
Paul
was so anguished because of such people that he said to them, “From now
on let no one trouble me.” He was saying, “Don’t trouble me with this
issue. Stop the dissension and wasting your time with useless things.
Since God has saved us from sin through the gospel grace of the water
and the Spirit, all that you have to do is just believe in this Truth
and preach it faithfully. What is still lacking here, that you would
claim that the saints must be physically circumcised, and dishearten
them just because they are not circumcised? Don’t torment me with this
issue again.”
Some Christians Have Hypnotized Themselves
In
this age also, there still are such people who torment the saints.
These people now claim that their sins are remitted away by offering
their own prayers of repentance. Having hypnotized themselves, they also
believe that they are sinless even though they only believe in the
blood of the Cross. These Christians neither know the gospel of the
water and the Spirit, nor believe in it, nor surrender to this true Word
of God, but they still believe themselves to be sinless, blindly saying
that the Lord has saved them from sin by being crucified, shedding His
blood, and dying on the Cross. And inducing many others to self-hypnosis
to believe that they are sinless, they are spreading an imperfect
gospel.
Today’s
Christians with legalistic faith have hypnotized themselves into the
mistaken notion that they have somehow been saved from their sins.
Overwhelmed by their own emotion and clouded by their own self-hypnosis,
they believe that they actually have no sin. In short, they blindly
insist that they are sinless. They say that they have no sin because
Jesus has saved them from sin by shedding His blood and dying on the
Cross. But is this really the case?
It
is true that those who believe in Jesus properly have no sin. However,
only those who believe that Jesus Christ came to this earth and has
saved us from the sins of the world through the gospel Truth of the
water and the Spirit, are indeed sinless. Then, what about those who
believe only in the blood of the Cross? Have their sins also been truly
blotted out from their hearts? No, those who have this kind of faith are
only deceiving themselves, and sin clearly remains in their hearts.
They are tormenting God the Father and Jesus Christ, and they are
tormenting God’s Church and its saints who have the true gospel of the
water and the Spirit. They continue to deceive themselves, without even
realizing that they are actually “killing people who should not die, and
keeping people alive who should not live” (Ezekiel 13:19). Their faith
could not be more wrong.
Many
Christians believe not only in the doctrine of repentance, but also the
Doctrine of Incremental Sanctification. The Doctrine of Incremental
Sanctification teaches that when one believes in Jesus long enough, his
body and heart will be gradually changed to reach full sanctification.
Such a belief is of a mistaken belief, deed-oriented and legalistic.
It’s because these people do not know the gospel of the water and the
Spirit that they blindly believe that God has chosen them, just because
they have come to believe in Jesus. All this is nothing more than a
self-centered, deluded faith. Just as the circumcisionists had troubled
the Apostle Paul, today, the adherents of this kind of faith are causing
spiritual trouble to God’s servants and saints
What
righteous work did Jesus Christ do when He came to this earth? By being
baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus took upon our sins, and He paid off
their wages by shedding His blood and dying on the Cross. He has
delivered us from sin with His baptism and bloodshed. The Apostle Paul
therefore said that his faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit
was the mark of Jesus on his body. To preach the gospel of the water and
the Spirit, the Apostle Paul had been beaten with 40 lashes minus one—5
times, in other words—on no less than three different occasions, and he
had also been stoned almost to death from which he barely survived. In
our hearts also, we also have the mark of faith in the gospel of the
water and the Spirit, and in our bodies also, we have the mark of
spiritual and physical suffering that we’ve borne for the gospel of
Jesus Christ.
However,
Paul endured even more spiritual troubles because of the
circumcisionists. Paul had the mark of faith, believing in Jesus who
came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit. The Apostle Paul was a
true servant of God, for he had the mark of faith showing that he had
died spiritually with Jesus Christ and was resurrected with Jesus
Christ. His faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit made him
profess clearly that this gospel is the only Truth. His faith also made
him live for this genuine gospel no matter how severely he had to suffer
hardships for its gospel. Paul had such marks of faith.
As
I bring my sermons on the Book of Galatians to a conclusion, I would
like to make clear its core message: The Apostle Paul clearly bore
witness of the fallacy of those who claimed, “We can become God’s people
and Abraham’s descendants if we are circumcised.” The faith of the
circumcisionists among the Galatian saints is incorrect. The faith of
Apostle Paul is summarized in Galatians 3:27, where he said, “For as
many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”
This
passage from Galatians 3:27 is the very clear evidence that Paul
believed in and testified to the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
None other than this is the genuine gospel in which Paul believed. Why
did the Apostle Paul mention the baptism that Jesus received from John
the Baptist? That’s because Paul believed in the gospel of the water and
the Spirit. What then does it mean by the clause “for us to be baptized
into Christ”? This means to believe that our sins were passed onto
Christ when He was baptized by John the Baptist, and that we have been
cleansed from all our sins by faith.
Of
course, in any Pauline Epistle, we cannot find the words “the gospel of
the water and the Spirit” literally, as it is. If the gospel of the
water and the Spirit were explicitly stated so that everyone could know,
why would the Bible say that this gospel is the mystery of Christ?
(Colossians 4:3). Would God teach the gospel of the water and the Spirit
to those who stand against Him? If it were you, would you open your
treasure room to your enemies? Of course not! God has taught the gospel
of the water and the Spirit to those who obey and follow His Word. But
to those who don’t, God has hidden this gospel thoroughly from them as
His spiritual mystery (Isaiah 6:9-10).
I
hope my sermons on the Book of Galatians will be translated as soon as
possible, and serve as testimony to people all over the world soon. This
is because the Book of Galatians clearly points out the fallacies of
the circumcisionists, and in doing so, it enables Christians to realize
how the doctrine of repentance that prevails in today’s Christianity is
so wrong.
The
gospel given testimony to by Paul is the gospel of the water and the
Spirit, and only this gospel is the Truth. Therefore, any gospel other
than the gospel of the water and the Spirit is a “different gospel”
(Galatians 1:6). No one should preach a different gospel. Yet despite
this, today’s Christians preach a different gospel, saying, “Believe in
Jesus in whatever way. As long you believe that Jesus shed His blood and
died on the Cross for your sins, then you will be made God’s people.”
They try to whitewash people’s souls with a half-gospel, making them
believe in Jesus even as they still remain sinners, only to be cast into
hell. It’s better for them not to preach their gospel at all, for the
gospel they believe in and preach is a false gospel. So the more they
preach their gospel, the more evil they actually end up practicing
before God.
What
consequences have resulted from the prevalence of such a false gospel?
Even though there are many Christians professing to believe in Jesus,
the born-again are few and far between; as a result, more and more
people are actually standing against God, their love for God is lost,
and now we have even fewer people who want to believe in Jesus. Despite
the fact that there are many Christians, they believe in Jesus in vain
deceived by false prophets, and so even those who actually want to
receive the remission of their sins from God are unable to find the real
Truth of salvation. No false gospel ever saves anyone’s soul, but it
only kills him.
No One Should Preach a Gospel That’s Nothing More Than an Empty Shell
The
Book of Galatians records how the Apostle Peter was rebuked by Paul for
his hypocritical behavior (Galatians 2:11-16). Peter had shown a
legalistic life, saying to the Gentiles that they should live like the
Jews, when in fact he himself did not keep all the statutes that the
Jews had to keep. In fact, before Jesus came to this earth and washed
away every sinner’s transgressions, it was unlawful for the Jews to even
get together with the Gentiles and break bread with them. But Peter
happened to meet and eat with Gentile Christians. On such an occasion,
certain men from James came, and taken by surprise, Peter ran away.
That’s why Paul rebuked Peter, saying, “Why do you hide, now that James’
men are here? Why do you pretend to keep the Law? You have also been
saved by believing in the salvation of the water and the Spirit, and yet
why do you tell the Gentiles to keep the Law that you can’t keep
yourself?”
As
seen, were it not for the Apostle Paul, most people would have simply
passed by the circumcisionists’ teachings, not realizing that they were
fallacious. In other words, most people had no idea that the
circumcisionists’ teachings were blaspheming the gospel of the water and
the Spirit and throwing the Church into spiritual confusion. Peter was
someone who believed in the gospel of the water and the Spirit,
declaring, “There is also an antitype which now saves us—baptism” (1
Peter 3:21). Yet even as he believed in the baptism of Jesus, he still
succumbed to hypocrisy. Considering this, it’s more than clear that most
people were completely oblivious to the fallacies of legalistic faith.
Even
today, Christians in this age still continue to offer prayers of
repentance, thinking that they would somehow receive the remission of
their sins in this way. Few actually know how corrupt it is to rely on
their own prayers of repentance. Although they claim to have been saved
by believing in Jesus as their Savior, they still try to wash away the
transgressions they’ve committed while living in this world through
their prayers of repentance. They think that this is only too proper,
but that is a seriously mistaken belief.
Did
we receive the remission of our sins by offering prayers of repentance
to Jesus Christ? No, we were remitted from our sins through our faith,
recognizing ourselves as piles of sin, and realizing and believing that
the Lord had blotted out all our sins by being baptized and crucified to
death, and that He has thereby saved us from all our sins. With the
gospel of the water and the Spirit, our Lord has cleansed away all the
sins that were in our hearts. It is by believing in the gospel of the
water and the Spirit that everyone is made sinless. The true gospel of
salvation is the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
So
why on earth do people still think that they could blot out their sins
by offering prayers of repentance? This is nothing more than a religious
notion, not the real faith that comes from the gospel of the water and
the Spirit.
Do
you still think that your sins are blotted out through your own prayers
of repentance? You must grasp that the remission of sin cannot be
received through prayers of repentance. Yet despite this, most
Christians do not realize that it is wrong to offer prayers of
repentance. They think that just because they give prayers of
repentance, or they tolerate such prayers, this does not mean that they
won’t be able to be saved from sin.
Of
course, we must repent whenever we do something wrong. We should
obviously turn our acts around when we recognize our sins. But this is
far different from a life that relies on prayers of repentance.
What,
then, should the born-again righteous do when they commit sin? Far from
begging God in their prayers of repentance to forgive their sins, the
born-again should give prayers of confession, confessing their sins by
trusting in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. And they must turn
around from their wrongdoings whenever they recognize their sins.
However, it is very foolish for one to try to wash away his sins by
offering prayers of repentance.
Do
you now realize that prayers of repentances have originated from
foolish, legalistic beliefs? Do you now grasp properly that it is a
fallacious belief for today’s Evangelicals or legalists to try to wash
away their sins by offering prayers of repentance? Few actually know
that one cannot wash away his sin by offering prayers of repentance. Out
of every 100,000 Christians, there probably is only one or two who know
this. Even though some Christians have this knowledge, it would still
be useless. That’s because they have no other alternative way to wash
away their sins, and this lack of acceptance returns them to their own
prayers of repentance. Their consciences can’t help but accuse them of
their sins, and so they can’t bear them unless they offer prayers of
repentance. They cannot but pray to God, “Oh, God, I have sinned so and
so. I beg Your forgiveness. Please, forgive me once again. If You
forgive me for this sin, I’ll never commit such a sin again.” This kind
of faith is the officially sanctioned faith in Christianity. Such faith
is based on the so-called Doctrine of Justification.
That
is why the Apostle Paul is telling us that it is wrong to try to wash
away sin by receiving physical circumcision. Paul said, “From now on let
no one trouble me.” We need here to understand Paul’s heart here. Paul
went so far as to say this because he was so troubled by the
circumcisionists. This legalistic faith has passed down until now,
leading countless people’s faith to go astray. As a result, almost all
Christians are trapped by the fallacious faith of prayers of repentance,
trying to be washed from their sins by this means in vain.
It
was a completely fallacious doctrine to teach that one could become
God’s people by receiving physical circumcision. As such, today’s
Christians must realize just how wrong it is to believe in the doctrine
of repentance and the Doctrine of Incremental Sanctification, trying to
become righteous people down the road by this faith, made pure in both
body and spirit. They have to grasp how such beliefs are so troubling to
God and His servants, and those who have fallen into such fallacious
doctrines must realize that they have to be freed from these false
doctrines and return to the Truth as soon as possible.
Some Comments on Today’s Christians Who Claim Themselves to Be Sinless without Knowing the Gospel of the Water and the Spirit
A
few days ago, while on a walk, I came across some Evangelicals
distributing pamphlets in the streets. I took one of their gospel
newspapers and read it. They argued in the title of the gospel newspaper
that one could become a righteous person without sin if he believed in
Jesus. But I was greatly disappointed by its contents. The makers of
this newspaper were ignorant of the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
I
felt that it would have been better if such a gospel had not been
preached at all. Although it is true that God has blotted out all our
sins, this does not mean that anyone should blindly claim to be sinless
without the knowledge of the gospel of the water and the Spirit. No
one’s sins are blotted out by believing in this manner. Yet despite
this, this is how the Evangelicals believed and preached.
Given
the fact that God has blotted out the sins of mankind once and for all
with the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit, it is imperative for
us to know Jesus Christ as the Savior who has come by this genuine
gospel, and believe so with our hearts. Only then can we become God’s
people. We must realize and believe in this love of Truth out of which
the Lord has blotted out our sins with the gospel of the water and the
Spirit. When people, being ignorant of the gospel Truth of the water and
the Spirit, believe that Jesus blotted out all our sins at the Cross,
it’s akin to hypnotizing themselves to believe in their own delusion.
The
Evangelicals preach the gospel always saying that Jesus blotted out all
our sins hung on the Cross. They say that since God blotted out all
their sins on the Cross all on His own, they are made sinless if only
they believe in this fact. Their claim may seem plausible at first, but
it is completely corrupt. We need to realize here that just because they
know the results of the gospel, this does not mean that their sins are
blotted out, for they remain ignorant of the gospel Truth of the water
and the Spirit. The faith that saves us from sin is not attained just by
knowing the final answer to salvation, but it requires us to also know
the contents of this Truth.
To
receive the remission of sin, one must know both the contents that
compose the Truth of salvation and its results. Without understanding
the formula of the remission of sin, just knowing the final result does
not mean that we can be saved. Jesus said to all of us, “You shall know
the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). However, the
Evangelicals preach that people can become sinless just by believing in
Jesus, without knowing the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit. So
how this is frustrating? That is why I am so exasperated by the
Evangelicals’ faith.
The
difference in the faith between someone who knows the gospel Truth of
the water and the Spirit and someone who doesn’t may seem only
paper-thin. But even a sheet of paper, when put over someone’s eyes,
disables him from seeing the world. The difference in the faith between
knowing the gospel of the water and the Spirit and not knowing results
into tremendously different consequences: The former makes people
righteous, while the latter only leads them to remain sinners. The
consequences are gigantic. Depending on this paper-thin difference, you
can either see the whole universe or be completely blinded. This is how
significant the difference is, depending on whether or not you know the
gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit or not.
Anyone
who preaches the gospel must infallibly know the gospel Truth of the
water and the Spirit and preach only this gospel. He must believe in the
right, true formula that leads us to the correct answer—that we are
made sinless if we believe in Jesus—and preach the gospel of the water
and the Spirit as its contents to everyone. All those who claim to have
been remitted from all their sins without even knowing the gospel of the
water and the Spirit have a false faith. Their faith is entirely
incorrect. When God has blotted out our sins with the gospel of the
water and the Spirit, how could those who don’t even know this gospel of
Truth be saved from their sins? Their gospel makes no sense. They say,
“Whoever believes in Jesus is sinless,” trying to exploit people for
financial gains in exchange for comforting their hearts with their lies.
It’s such a frustrating tragedy.
When
souls come to their churches, these false prophets hypnotize them into
believing that they have received the remission of sin. And in doing so,
they kill the souls that should not die. After being weighed down by
their sins all this time, people are only too happy to hear that they’ve
now been made sinless, and so they are completely helpless before such a
deception. Just tell any sinner that he has no sin, and everyone
hearing this will be very happy. When the preachers of the false gospel
say, “Jesus blotted out all the sins of the world on the Cross, and so
although you were sinful, you are now sinless,” then all those suffering
under the weight of sin are bound to be only too happy to hear these
words, regardless of the reason, and irregardless or not whether they
know the gospel of the water and the Spirit. As such, false prophets
lead countless souls to be trapped in the web of a self-hypnotic gospel.
When people are thus trapped in the self-hypnotic gospel, they devour
them to feed their flesh.
Anyone
who has been tormented by sin is of course happy to hear that he is now
sinless. However, sin is infallibly present in any heart that believes
in Jesus without knowing the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Yet
despite this, the Evangelicals still continue to hypnotize people with
their blind insistence that they are now sinless, even as they do not
know the gospel of the water and the Spirit. All the while, they ask
their congregation to give testimonies and extol them to serve the Lord.
Not long ago, a certain evangelical denomination in Korea borrowed a
huge stadium to hold a revival meeting, and to draw people it ran
advertisements on TV and newspapers as well. To hold this type of event,
the advertising alone would cost at least $200,000 to $300,000.
So
where do they find this kind of money? They squeeze it out of their
congregation. When these false prophets say to them, “We ask you the
saints to participate in this precious ministry,” they can’t help but
take part. The smaller contributions range anywhere from $1,000 to
$10,000, and those who are wealthier donate several hundred thousand
dollars. After suffering under the weight of sin all this time, the very
moment they hear that they are now sinless, they are so happy that they
donate huge offerings to maintain that feeling.
Those
who are hypnotized give a lot of offerings, are tremendously devoted,
and go crazy with joy. However, after some time, their joy is completely
gone, and so they once again recognize that there still are sins in
their hearts. In fact, their sins have never been blotted out all in
this way. They just consider themselves to be sinless for a while
hypnotized by the lies of the false teachers.
Anyone
who has received the remission of sin through the true gospel cannot
once again turn sinful no matter how much time passes by, for in his
heart there is the Word of witness testifying that the Lord has blotted
out all his sins. However, those who blindly believe themselves to be
sinless even as they do not know the gospel of the water and the Spirit
have no foundation of faith, and therefore they are bound to eventually
turn sinful again. They are like drug addicts, who are momentarily happy
while the drug’s effect lasts, but when the effect wears off they once
again become miserable.
Once
these Christians lose all their money to the pastors of such churches,
they are dumped by these charlatans. Yet even after all this, they still
don’t realize that they have been deceived. They think that it’s all
their fault that they are left alone, because of their failure to live a
holy and godly life. This world’s Christianity is actually no more than
a religious group without the gospel, regardless of any denomination.
That is why Satan does not persecute Christianity.
The
Apostle Paul had been troubled because of the circumcisionists. They
claimed that one could become sinless without believing in the gospel
Truth of the water and the Spirit. They used to make groundless claims,
saying that people could become God’s children if they were physically
circumcised.
However,
did Abraham become one of God’s people by receiving circumcision in his
flesh? No, Abraham became one of God’s people by believing in His Word,
and it was as its mark that he was circumcised in the flesh. Therefore,
anyone who has become God’s child is someone who passed his sins to
Jesus Christ by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
Spiritual circumcision refers to cutting off the sins of the heart by
believing in the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit.
We Must Not Trouble God and His Servants
God
has saved us through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. However,
there are those who, even as they do not know this Truth, claim that
there is no sin in their hearts despite the fact that sin is clearly in
residence. Unless the true gospel Word of the water and the Spirit holds
one’s heart, no sin of anyone can ever disappear before God.
The
Apostles all believed in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. The
will of God is for everyone to be saved from all sins by believing in
the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Yet despite this, today’s
Christians are preaching only the blood of the Cross, not even realizing
the genuine gospel. They are now standing against God’s will. Such
people believe in Christianity only as a worldly religion. Christianity
is not just a religion. It is a faith founded on the gospel Truth of the
water and the Spirit.
Where
should the evidence be found that we have received the salvation of the
remission of sin by believing in the gospel of the water and the
Spirit? It should be in our spirits, in our hearts. How can we say that
we have been saved from sin, unless our hearts have the evidence of
salvation that has come by the gospel of the water and the Spirit?
Even
if you know the answer, “One has no sin if he believes in Jesus,” if
your hearts still remain sinful, then this means that you have not
received the remission of sin. That is because you cannot but continue
to commit sin in this world, and unless you have evidence of salvation
revealed in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, all these sins do
not disappear but torment your hearts incessantly. Then no matter how
hard you might try to find some comfort by hypnotizing yourselves into
believing that you are sinless, your sins still remain in your
consciences to bind you time after time, and this can only mean that you
are still sinful. How can anyone with sin be a saint? He is not a
saint, but a Christian sinner.
Our Remission of Sin Came by the Grace of God Found in the Gospel of the Water and the Spirit
Take a look at the Apostle Paul’s faith: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit” (Galatians 6:18).
The
grace of the salvation of Jesus Christ who has saved us through the
gospel of the water and the Spirit must be in our hearts. The foundation
of our salvation from sin is found in the gospel of the water and the
Spirit, not in any Christian doctrine. It is by knowing the gospel of
the water and the Spirit and believing in it with our hearts that we
reach our salvation. Yet despite this, so many people continue to
torment Jesus Christ. In particular, the very people who profess to
believe in Jesus are so foolish that they are actually making Him
suffer.
The
messages of gratitude for salvation are arriving from all over the
world everyday. Today, a pastor from Peru sent us his tidings. He said
that as a pastor, he had thought all this time that he was saved, but
after reading one of our books, he realized that he had believed
incorrectly. And he said in his letter that he wholeheartedly agreed
with us, that Jesus took upon the sins of all the people of this world
when He was baptized, shed His blood on the Cross, and has thereby saved
everyone all over the world. He was very frank in writing his message.
It is such honest people who are saved.
I
hope all of you would believe in God with discernment, realizing how
you should really believe to please God, and what it means to believe
according to the will of God. For us to believe in Jesus properly
according to God’s will is to believe in the gospel Truth of the water
and the Spirit, and thereby be remitted from all our sins and give glory
to God. I wish Christians would not turn into the kind of people who
torment God and Jesus Christ. I hope that everyone all over the world
would have the kind of faith that pleases God.
My
fellow believers, let us ponder here just how many people among
Christians in this age are actually tormenting Jesus. These people claim
to be sinless when they believe only in the blood of the Cross. They
neither know nor believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, and
yet they insist that if anyone believes in Jesus, then he is sinless
unconditionally. It is precisely these people who are tormenting God. We
must correct such people. It is only the saints who know the gospel
Truth of the water and the Spirit that can correct them.
Both
in Korea and throughout the world, it is among Christians that we see
so many people troubling Jesus. Since the Lord has saved us through the
gospel of the water and the Spirit, this is how we should believe, and
yet many people instead believe according to their own thoughts, only to
trouble Jesus. Such people must turn around from their mistaken faith.
They must repent. This does not mean that they should offer prayers of
repentance, but they should turn around from their mistaken way of
faith.
The
word “repentance” is “metanoia” in Greek, which means “turning around,”
or “changing heart.” This is what repentance is; just saying, “I’m
sorry,” is not repentance. Offering prayers of repentance is only
tinkering with words just to say, “I’m sorry.”
God
has given many blessings to us, who believe in the gospel of the water
and the Spirit. It’s all by the grace of God that we have been able to
achieve so much in such a short period of time. We have been able to do
these works because God has given us wisdom, helped us, and blessed us.
Whether it’s about spreading the gospel or supporting this ministry,
every work has been achieved by God’s grace. Now, we who have received
the remission of our sins have the duty to joyfully spread this gospel
of God to others, as God has saved us. And though we are insufficient,
it is a joy for us to carry out God’s work.
And
it is those who are willing that serve the work of the gospel. We will
never ask anything from anyone who regards God’s work even slightly
burdensome, annoying, or too constraining, and so do not worry about it.
I’m not saying that there are such people in our Church, but I am
pointing out that God’s work has to be served out of one’s own volition
and in joy.
Sometimes
I ask you to work, but I do this because for you and I alike, we cannot
keep our faith unless we do God’s work. When the righteous do not carry
out God’s work, they end up engaging in something completely absurd,
and their hearts get corrupted to turn very filthy. Their hearts turn
into something disgusting that God cannot use. That is why through the
Church our Lord gives us work to do, so that we would serve Him while
keeping our hearts.
If,
by any chance, there is someone who wants to say, “Give me freedom,”
concerning the work that is assigned to him, then say so frankly to me.
Such people don’t have to work. Even among our ministers and workers, if
anyone really doesn’t want to work, then I tell him not to work. That’s
the policy of our Church. I’m not suggesting that those of you who are
sitting here are like this. However, what is clear is that no one who
has become a saint should ever do the Lord’s work against his will or by
force. Rather, God’s work must be done willingly by faith, by only
those who have considered it themselves, examined it to see what is
right and what is beneficial, and set their minds on it. If we decide to
do God’s work, we should work by faith out of our own volition, and
only then does God accept everything we do to serve Him. Unless we labor
willingly by faith, how could God otherwise accept such services?
Of
course, there is a time when we work against our will. To be quite
honest, while I edit our books for publication voluntarily, to a certain
extent, some of it is forced on me. Why do I then still do it? That’s
because someone has do it. Even though my heart is happy to serve the
Lord in this way, it’s very hard to do so on my body, and that’s why I’m
saying that it’s forced on me. Since I have taken up on this task, I
have to finish it, yet even after spending a whole day, it’s rare to
finish editing a single sermon. After editing like this, I still find
something unsatisfactory. I am not good at this kind of work.
Nevertheless, one thing clear is that although my sermons tend to be
repetitive, they only say what is right, without any nonsense. Of
course, since it’s hard on my body, it’s a struggle to drag my body to
work, but I have now become someone who can work by trusting in the
gospel of the water and the Spirit, and so I willingly carry out the
work assigned to me with a joyful heart.
There
is nothing for us to do unless we do God’s work. Wouldn’t you also have
nothing to do, if you were to stop doing what has now been assigned to
you? If you don’t serve the Lord now, what would you do out in the
world? Wouldn’t you just end up drinking and committing sin? You will
live an even more wretched life than your parents, whom you had
disparaged, saying, “I won’t live like them.”
I
am happy. Are you also happy? I give my thanks to God. I do not think
that there are many days remaining for us to preach the gospel of the
water and the Spirit. That’s why I believe that we must preach the
gospel diligently while we can. As a proverb says, “Make hay while the
sun shines,” we must work while we are still able to work. Now is the
time when we can do God’s work. You and I must carry out God’s work now.
Let’s meet together in the presence of the Lord after running our race faithfully and diligently. Halleluiah!