Subject 13 : The Gospel According to MATTHEW
[Chapter 21-2] It Is Glorious to Be Used In the Work of the Lord (Matthew 21:1-11)
(Matthew 21:1-11)
“Now
when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of
Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, ‘Go into the
village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a
colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. And if anyone says
anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and
immediately he will send them.’’ All this was done that it might be
fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: ‘Tell the daughter of
Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, Lowly, and sitting on a
donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey.’’
So
the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. They brought the
donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them.
And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut
down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Then the
multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:
‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the
LORD! Hosanna in the highest!’ And when He had come into Jerusalem, all
the city was moved, saying, ‘Who is this?’ So the multitudes said,
‘This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.’”
I’ve
just been to the In-jae Discipleship Training Center. In-jae Center is
such a great place to spend a vacation and is a very nice resort if we
do not work while we are there. Even though we made preparations for the
Summer Discipleship Training Camp at the center, our efforts seemed
minimal, despite the fact that we worked very hard. First, we sterilized
the blankets that you are going to use. Then, we cleaned and dried the
floor mats, and plowed the patch and leveled the lot.
This
year, we finally made the pool, which had been our long cherished
desire. The pool was made exactly to our specifications. Its dimension
is about 60m² and is suitable for adults and children alike. We
installed a pumping station at the upper part which conserves a lot of
water. The water flows downward each time we open the valve. We also
made a bathroom beside the pool. Two days quickly passed as we did all
these things. The weather was hot. The sun was beating down
unmercifully. I could hardly walk under the sun even with my straw hat
on. But it is probably much worse here. The temperature there is much
better compared to here, probably, because of the mountains and valleys
there. Nevertheless, working under the heat of the sun there was still
very difficult for me because it was so hot.
After
we finished making the pool, we held an opening ceremony. We did not
save the water but we just opened the valve and let the water flow over
the pool. I felt so cool when I sat down where the water was coming out.
It felt better than immersing the body in the water. Every time we felt
hot while working, we would soak our bodies in the pool wearing our
clothes. And every time we soaked our clothes, they would repeatedly dry
up in less than an hour. Once again we would soak our bodies in the
pool.
All
the quarters were already prepared. This time, we had expanded the land
quite extensively. We excavated and leveled the land of 170m². The best
part of it all is that there is now a swimming pool at the Discipleship
Training Camp. My beloved saints, please remember this and make use of
the pool during the Discipleship Training Camp. I keep on boasting about
the pool because it is really nice and cool.
It
is such an attractive place because of the abundance of cool water.
Even though we worked for two days and nights with the pastors from
every branch church all over the country, we could not finish all the
work. I think we have to get together and work again by next week to
make your stay comfortable at the Discipleship Training Center. If any
of you want to come with me next week, then let’s go together. After
working and sweating, you can beat the heat of the sun completely if you
get into the valley water at the Discipleship Training Center.
Jesus Said, “Loose a Tied Donkey and a Colt with Her and Bring Them to Me”
When
Jesus drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, Jesus said to His
disciples, “Go into the village, and loose a tied donkey and a colt with
her and bring them to Me.” Jesus sat on the foal of a donkey according
to the Word prophesized in Zechariah 9:9 of the Old Testament, “Tell the
daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, Lowly, and
sitting on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey.” Jesus entered
Jerusalem sitting on the foal of a donkey because the Lord was lowly. He
then stayed there for some time. Soon after He broke the bread of the
Passover Supper and washed the feet of His disciples. The next day, He
died on the Cross. This is why I would like us to think over this part
of Today’s Scripture passage, ‘Jesus sat on the foal of a donkey’ and
share the grace with you.
The
Lord sat on the foal of a donkey because He was so lowly. As stated in
the Bible, Jesus was so lowly that He sat on the foal of a donkey and
not on any great horse or any other means of transportation when He
entered Jerusalem. Moreover, our Lord carries out the work of God
through His people who are like the foals of a donkey. I mentioned that
Jesus did not sit on any other great animal. Likewise, our Lord did not
carry out the work of God through some angels. Jesus did not use
spiritual beings or great beings to let people enter Heaven. The Lord
works through us, the born-again, the people of God who are imperfect
and haughtily stubborn. Jesus is truly lowly.
His
humility is shown by the fact that Jesus did not work through any other
people, but through us, the people of God. Truly, He is the really
amazing One. It is because He is the real God of this universe, the
Creator, and the God of redemption. How then could the Great one deliver
human beings like us from sins and fulfill the amazing work of saving
others through us, the redeemed? Even though we are imperfect, He works
through us who received the remission of sin because He is truly lowly.
We
know and believe that God works through us who have received the
remission of sin. Even though we lack the power and are stubborn like
the foal of a donkey, God works through us, the children of God. He
works in us, so that we will live, not for our own flesh, but for the
souls of the others and for the spiritual works. I have come to realize
how marvelous God is to work through you and me. We are so thankful to
God for using us. Then, what should we do for Him for the rest of our
lives? We must be donkeys, which carry the Lord in eternity. Donkeys are
for the transportation of something. Therefore, donkeys must carry
anything, be it persons, loads, or Jesus. Which donkey would you want to
be then?
Jesus
does the work of God through you and me who have received the remission
of sin. Thus, what kind of work should we really wish to do? We must
glory in the fact that we are the ones carrying Jesus on our back. And
we must desire to do the work of Jesus, that is, to serve the Lord.
Through this passage, we must reflect on what or who we shall carry on
our back.
We
are tremendously blessed to be used by the Lord. I am so thankful to
God for meaningfully using us and saving us from being used for the
trivial things of the world. I give thanks to God for giving us
opportunities to use our remaining lives in faithful service. I give
thanks to Him for making us know whether we must live for the flesh or
for the spirit, and for giving us all the opportunities to live for
Him.
And
yet, why are we truly serving? We, the redeemed, must carry Jesus or
the loads of the world on our back, because we are like donkeys. Then,
let’s reflect on this. We are the born-again, and Jesus definitely works
through us. Let us think of what kind of works God wants us to do
throughout our lifetime. I am so thankful to the Lord for using us. I
have realized how good it would be if we carried the Lord on our back
and lived as the Lord wishes, and then meet Him afterwards. We, the
born-again, are truly blessed if we live for the Lord who has redeemed
our souls, and not for the worldly work of flesh. We are to come before
the Lord after living out our faith by giving our bodies to Him. I think
of this as often as I can.
The
colt was welcomed because it carried the Lord. When the colt carrying
Jesus entered Jerusalem, the multitudes cried out saying, “Hosanna!
Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the
Lord!” The multitudes cried out “Hosanna” thinking, “He is really the
blessed One who comes in the name of the Lord and Hosanna in the
highest.”
How
long does a donkey usually live? It is said about 20 years. There is an
old interesting story from Germany. According to this story, a person’s
life span was 30 years by nature. God settled it to be 30 years; equal
with other animals when He created all things in the universe. However,
the donkey came to God and said, “God, my back would bend from work if I
live that long. Please shorten it.” So, He shortened the donkey’s life
span to 18 years, 12 years less than the original. Then, the dog came to
Him and requested earnestly saying, “Please shorten my life span as
well because I cannot run around that long.” So, He reduced it to 12
years shortening 18 years.
Now,
the monkey rushed to Him and said, “I live making people laugh and
doing amusing things. Please shorten my life span because I cannot do
those things if I get old.” So, He shortened it to be 10 years. But
then, man came to God and got into a rage saying, “My life span of 30
years is too short!” So, God summed all the difference of the shortened
life of the donkey, the dog, and the monkey which totaled to 50 years,
and gave it to man. Because of this, the life span of human beings
became 80. However, due to that, man has lived carrying heavy loads like
donkeys, running along panting and puffing like dogs, and acting
foolish in front of people who would throw something to eat as if they
were like monkeys.
However,
a donkey must carry either a person or a load everyday in the 20 years
that he lives. Sometimes, a donkey pulls a cart. When I was a child, I
saw a donkey carrying exorbitant loads of wood on both sides, with a
person on its back and pulling a heavily-loaded cart as well. Donkeys do
not even have a day to rest. They must carry the loads until their
backs bend and pull a cart until their 20 years of life comes to an
end.
Then,
how glorious it must have been for the donkey to carry Jesus on its
back just one time! When the donkey with Jesus on its back entered the
city of Jerusalem, the city of peace, the multitudes came out and
praised Jesus. When the donkey carried Jesus on its back, normally, he
was supposed to be whipped by his master. But instead, the multitudes
spread their clothes before the colt. I can say that the donkey enjoyed
the greatest glory of its lifetime. Even though there are numerous
donkeys in the world, I believe that the donkey chosen and used by Jesus
is the most blessed one.
How
many donkeys have been born in this world since 4000 years have passed
from the beginning of the Old Testament? Yet, there was only this donkey
among many donkeys that carried Jesus on its back. Therefore, see how
glorious the work was that this donkey did in carrying Jesus on its
back! I am so thankful for us to be used to bear Jesus. Jesus uses us
for He is lowly. If He were the same as us, would He use people like
us?
We
are like donkeys in character. By character, donkeys are stubborn. Rich
people never sit on a colt because it is stubborn and bad-tempered. So,
when they need to take a ride anywhere, they sit on the horse and not
on the colt. People think they degrade themselves if they sit on the
colt because the colt makes a poor showing. It is uncomfortable and
difficult to control. People want to ride on a great white or black
horse because they feel they would be seen as poor if they rode colts.
If
a king or a member of royalty wearing a white shirt and a black velvet
jacket rides an excellent horse, he would look great and elegant. But
imagine a well-dressed person riding a donkey. It would never look good.
How glorious it was for this donkey to be used by Jesus, the King of
kings! It is really a blessing to be used of God. I am so thankful that
He uses us, the lowly. I believe that there is no greater experience
than this.
I
am so thankful that I can put my heart into His work and give myself to
Him, and that He uses me. I feel the same when I see all of you. When I
see you, I am also thankful to God that He uses not only me, but also
all of you. Words are not enough to express how thankful I am. I feel so
grateful that I can serve the Lord, the saints, and that I can convey
the gospel to lost souls as well. How thankful are we to have this work
wherein we are like colts used by the Lord? How wonderful it is that God
uses someone like us. I am so thankful. I am so thankful that I do the
work of the Lord.
Because
we are just human beings, we always do either the things of the flesh
or the things of the Spirit (Romans 8:5). We do the work of the flesh
very well. We do it automatically, even when no one forces us to do so.
However, there is no good fruit for the work of the flesh. On the other
hand, there are great fruits when we devote ourselves to the things of
the Spirit. The most important thing is that we should care for the
things of the Spirit. We must concentrate our efforts on the things of
the Spirit. They can be accomplished only when we do them by faith and
with God’s grace, and by following the guidance of Lord. I desire
nothing else but to do the things of the Spirit with all my heart and
give myself for the work of the Lord until the day that the Lord comes.
Then I will give my gratitude to God and pray that God would continue to
use me.
Today,
meteorologists say, “The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
increases due to the excessive use of fossil fuel, and because of the
greenhouse effect, the ice of the North and South Pole are melting and
the sea level is rising.” The air temperature is rising sharply
throughout the world. This does not only concern a particular country
but is a dilemma that has to be dealt with globally. The unusual change
in the weather causes great natural disasters all over the world. One
state in America, Louisiana, was proclaimed a disaster area because of
the hurricane that hit and the heavy rain that poured into the area.
Also in India and France, many old and weak people have lost their lives
due to excessive heat. In many parts of the world, signs of the Last
Days are being revealed, so I believe that the Lord is coming soon.
How
blessed could we be if we could serve the Lord until that time, not
doing any undesirable things. We, the born-again, would pass away in
vain if we don’t work for the things of the Spirit, and if we do not
work with the church. But instead, we commit sins by doing the works of
the flesh. I give thanks to God for giving us His Church, giving us the
opportunities to serve the Lord, entrusting us with His works, making us
to preach the gospel to lost souls, and making us willing to serve His
people who have received the remission of sin. I truly give thanks for
allowing us, like donkeys, to do His works.
What
are we supposed to do if we do not serve the Lord? Probably, we might
just be doing unpleasant acts, evil deeds, and meaningless and fruitless
works. We once were doing these things, but God redeemed us and
entrusted us with His works. How wonderful that He has given us works of
service. If we do not have spiritual works, there is no way for us to
be fruitful. Instead, we will live completely meaningless lives. So,
thanks be to God for entrusting us with His works so that we can live
useful lives; for achieving His works through us; and for His grace that
He made us to do the spiritual works for the Lord throughout our life.
We,
as humans, are prone to become so spiritually lenient because summer
has come and the weather has become so hot. These days, the hot weather
suffocates me, enervates me, and keeps me awake until 2 o’clock in the
morning. During these times, I cannot read the Bible nor pray because
these times make me uncomfortable. But when I meditate on this, I am so
thankful that I can live for the Lord for the rest of my life. I am so
thankful that I can do the work of God. If I don’t, I know that I would
be involved with evil things. I am so thankful that I have plenty of
work to do for the gospel’s sake. Sometimes hot weather irritates and
hardens me. But, with the thought that God has called me, like the
donkey, to do His precious and noble work, I feel invigorated to work
and follow the Lord in spite of any unfavorable conditions. I believe
that you feel the same as I.
Do We Have Any Distinguished Character before God?
Indeed,
we are nothing before God. God uses us for He is lowly, not because we
are distinguished. Therefore, there is nothing for us to complain about
to God while we serve Him. A person, who knows himself and has become a
worker of the Lord, can never think that God owes him anything. We
cannot tell Him, “God, do this and give these things to me because I did
Your work.” We can never have this kind of mentality. We should be
truly thankful only with the fact that God uses us in His works. Only by
the grace of God do we serve the Lord and do His work. That is where
happiness comes from on our part. I recognize that Jesus uses us in His
works, for He is lowly. This is what we all believe.
What
else can you do aside from serving the Lord? What can you do throughout
your lifetime? You can’t do anything useful. If God’s Church had not
been given to us, what would we do? We will be like the donkey carrying a
load of wood, carrying a manure pail, pulling a cart, and serving its
master, working its fingers to the bone until he dies and then sold for
its meat. I am truly thankful that He delivered us. Otherwise, we could
have been like the donkey. We cannot serve the Lord if there is no
Church, and we cannot do right if we don’t serve the Lord. That is why I
am so grateful that God uses us and rides on us, who can do nothing
right without Him.
You
and I must reflect on this matter indeed. What are we going to do if we
do not serve the Lord? Whom are we going to serve? Are we going to
serve man, or not? Do you think, “Why should I serve man? I am not a
fool. It is not wise at all”? Then your thought is totally wrong. If we
do not serve the Lord, we have no choice but to serve man. If a man in
power commands us to serve him with a whipping rod, we have no other
choice but to serve him. A person cannot help being subservient to the
strong. Ultimately, we will then be serving man.
Why
did Jesus enter Jerusalem sitting on a colt? The reason that Jesus sat
on the colt was to teach us that the ones who were used by God were
greatly blessed. It is not that God became a debtor and we have
something to receive as creditors because we did the work of God. Jesus
entered into Jerusalem sitting on the colt to make us realize that.
When
there was no leader in Israel, Israelites thought that they could live
as they wished. However, one by one, other nations invaded Israel and
the Israelites became their slaves. They could not live as they wished.
Instead, they served the ruling nations by doing backbreaking work day
after day. What do we do if we do not serve the Lord? We serve man. If
someone asks us, “Are you going to serve man or not?” We affirm with
100% assurance that we will not serve man. However, we have no other
choice but to serve man. All forms of society are made up of prominent
individuals who eat and live only if they serve man. So, we serve man
due to inevitable circumstances. However, if we serve man, we barely
sustain our lives and we would be oppressed and exploited.
Therefore,
we must think before we decide how to live. It is wise to assess the
result first. When our country fights with the army of another country,
we must assess in advance before going to war. When we have 10,000
soldiers against the other country’s 30,000 soldiers, it is better to
come to an agreement if we feel like we would lose after our assessment
of the fight. If we have no prospect of winning the fight, it is better
for us to come to an agreement, because we expect to lose our lives, or
become slaves and live miserably in the end.
We
must consider which way of life will be worthwhile. In our lifetime, we
must consider whether we are going to serve the Lord carrying Jesus on
our back like the colt of today’s Scripture passage, or to pull a cart
carrying a load of wood, a manure pail, or a man on our back as the
donkeys’ original duties. Although we are people of God, we are, after
all, human beings. A person must carry out his or her duty to work. We
must reckon whether to serve the Lord or man, and then we must earnestly
decide. At the moment you determine to serve the Lord, you must serve
Him with a willing, desirable, thankful and rightful mind. That is
right. Life is miserable without reckoning these things.
I
tried estimating my life often in my teenage years. I always thought
these things: ‘Why is man born? Where does man come into birth? What
does he do from birth? What will happen to me?’ As I grew older, I
thought how I could earn money and how much I would earn. I considered
how much I would be able to save if I earned money as a salesman when I
reached 20 years of age. However, I realized that I could not accumulate
as much as I wanted to, even if I become a salary man anyway. When I
considered buying a small house, I realized I would not be able to do it
even if I saved my entire lifetime. I estimated completely at that
time, but it seemed hopeless after all.
Then,
after being born-again, I considered the work of serving the Lord. “How
much can I serve the Lord in a year? How many people will I preach the
gospel to in a year?” After considering all these things, I arrived at
this conclusion: “I will live for the Lord.” It would be fortunate for
me to purchase a small apartment as a low-income earner throughout my
lifetime. I decided that earning money in the world was useless and I
came to the conclusion that it would be fortunate for me to be able to
give a house to my children if I run a small business or work as a
salesman. It would be unlikely for me to run a big enterprise.
I
made up my mind that I would rather serve the Lord than to save huge
sums of money. Then, how worthless could life be? Suppose that I
accumulated property worth one million US dollars in my whole life. We
can say that a man is successful if he could hand over a million US
dollars to his son at the end of his life. An average man cannot hand
over that much. If one pays his loans at the end of his life, then his
property will be less. So, on an average, it is a successful case for
one to hand over a million US dollars to one’s children.
If
this is so, can you change your life with a million US dollars? I
cannot change my life with such trivial money, and I am determined to
serve only the Lord. I made up my mind that, “I will serve the Lord
rather than to live worthlessly.” I thought of it many times even after I
met the Lord. Then, I reached the conclusion that serving the Lord was
definitely the most valuable business. Therefore, I am serving the Lord.
I also encourage you to serve the Lord as I have been serving Him. I
believe that serving the Lord is truly the blessing and grace of God.
I
wish to serve only the Lord until the end my life. All I have wished
for is for all of us to be used by the Lord unceasingly. And I also
believe that this kind of life is a blessed life. Nevertheless, I wish
to live for the Lord until the day I die. And I wish you to be like this
as well. Though you make an effort and strive hard to earn money, still
there is nothing you can hand over to your children in this world.
There will be nothing left.
However,
if we serve the Lord, there are profits. It certainly has profits. The
business of gospel is definitely not an unprofitable business. Who knows
if some souls will come and receive the remission of sin at the time of
this Discipleship Training Camp? Who knows if they, who are fascinated
by beautiful scenery around our Discipleship Training Center, would
listen to the Word gladly and receive the remission of sin? And who
knows if they would bring many new souls to the next Discipleship
Training Camp?
We
have to consider the Lord’s work as a valuable business. And we have to
invest our all in this valuable business. There was a pearl merchant,
wandering from place to place, and he found the most valuable pearl in
the world. However, it was too expensive. So, this merchant went away
and sold everything he had and bought this valuable pearl (Matthew
13:46).
Dear
fellow believers, we have met the gospel. We have met the Lord. The
creature has met the Creator and has been delivered. After being
delivered from sin, we have met the most valuable work. Our souls feel
tired if we do the work of the flesh, but we feel very satisfied and
peaceful if we do the things of the Spirit and have come to offer
ourselves for that. Now, we should not keep this to ourselves, but we
must bring the Truth to other souls as well. I wish for you not to live
worthlessly, but to live a valuable life. This business of the gospel,
the business with great profits, the business of serving the Lord is the
most valuable work one can do. I wish you would be the donkey that
enters Jerusalem carrying the Lord on the back.
We
are drawing illustrations for our books. Sister Kim is learning to draw
the illustrations as well, and I know it is not easy. Students are
tired at all times. And now, some brothers and sisters at Seoul Church
are bringing the gospel in cartoon form. Have you seen the sample that I
sent to the Publication Department? It is good that we bring the gospel
in cartoon form, because it is humorous and conveys the gospel meaning
well. Regardless of the kind of work, the work of serving the gospel is
valuable. The works we are planning are not a means to earn money, but
to convey the gospel.
After
this Discipleship Training Camp, a couple of our workers will go to the
United States to open the way for our literature ministry. I also
applied for the visa. I want to meet the Korean residents and the
Americans there as well and tell them about the gospel. Bringing the
genuine gospel to the U.S is also serving the gospel. I want to do this
precious and valuable work with you until the end. This is not a matter
of doing more and performing more meritorious deeds. Everyone is equally
serving the gospel in God’s Church. I know this is the most blessed and
grateful work. My desire is for you to live contemplating by yourselves
to whom and to what you should give effort to, and whom you plan to
serve in this world. I pray that you would not live a worthless life.
I
am so thankful that our Lord sat on us who are the colts. I am so
thankful that God brought you from the world and made you to do His work
for your own sake. The Lord leads us the right way sitting on our back
saying, “Chuck, chuck! Go this way. And then go that way. Go faster.
Slow down. It is good to carry Me, but you should carry My works as
well.” It is really a blessing to do the work of God.
When
you listen to sermons, you must not only listen to them for the sake of
learning His Word, but you must apply its lessons to yourselves. While
listening to this sermon, you should apply its lessons as you seriously
consider your life. You have to listen to my sermon and think, “What
have I lived for until now? What am I going to live for from now on?
What will remain at the end of my life? Is the work of serving the Lord
going to be worthy?” At the end of the preaching, you have to decide by
thinking on it thoroughly, “I was like this before, and then I should
live like this with the new ideal from now on. I should always therefore
assess my life.”
Our
Lord has called you and me, and sat on us among so many colts. I know
the colt that carried the Lord was the most valuable colt in the world. I
know that the colt was used for the precious work and finished its
duty. Numerous colts have been born on the earth up to now; we must know
the colt mentioned in today’s Scripture passage was the only colt
selected for the task of carrying the Lord. Numerous people are born in
the world, but we know that there are not many people who are more
blessed than you and I who serve the Lord.
We
should not serve the Lord just because we beguiled by someone’s word
and not because of our own free will. We must discern what the most
valuable life is and contemplate with our own free will to serve the
Lord with faith until the end. Such is the most blessed life. I know
that serving the Lord is a valuable life whether you serve Him with
prayers, materials, or time.
What
do you live for now? What and who did you live for? What remains in
your life as a result? What will remain if you live more? You must leave
blessed things. I pray that you will do the work of the Lord and show
the precious results of living for the Lord to the master of Heaven when
He calls you. I wish for all of us, the righteous, not to live
worthless lives. Let us live blessed lives.
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