Subject 15 : The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the GALATIANS
[Chapter 6-2] We Ourselves Must Throw Away the Faith of Prayers Of Repentance Realizing That It Is Wrong (Galatians 6:1-10)
(Galatians 6:1-10)
“Brethren,
if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore
such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also
be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of
Christ. For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is
nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one examine his own work, and
then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For
each one shall bear his own load. Let him who is taught the word share
in all good things with him who teaches. Do not be deceived, God is not
mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows
to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the
Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow
weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not
lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all,
especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
I
have dealt with some issues in Galatians so far, but to address the
Book of Galatians more in-depth, I still need to give more sermons. It’s
because the Word in Galatians is that much abundant with spiritual
lessons that must be dealt with.
The
background that made the Apostle Paul inevitably write the Epistle to
the Galatians was as follows: As there were some circumcisionists in the
churches of Galatia who had come in from Judaism, they were confusing
the faith of the believers in the true gospel of the water and the
Spirit. That is why the Apostle Paul said, “The gospel which was
preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from
man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus
Christ” (Galatians 1:11-12), and he also described himself as “an
apostle (not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God
the Father who raised Him from the dead)” (Galatians 1:1). The Apostle
Paul made it clear that neither the gospel he had nor his apostleship
came from man, but from God.
Paul
confessed that he was crucified with Christ and resurrected with Him.
He said, “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on
Christ” (Galatians 3:27). In other words, Paul’s overall message was
that it is by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit that
everyone receives spiritual baptism to die with Jesus Christ and be born
again into a new life.
When
we read the Book of Galatians, we need to know and understand the
situation that the churches of Galatia were facing at that time, and
grasp that Paul was speaking about the fallacious faith of the
circumcisionists. Their mistaken, legalistic faith has been passed down
to this present age, and the result of its evolution is none other than
the faith of prayers of repentance. Strictly speaking, Christians in
this age believe that they are washed from their sins through their own
prayers of repentance, but Paul made it clear that this faith is also
corrupt.
We
have to realize here that the gospel preached by Paul is the gospel of
the water and the Spirit. Therefore, whoever wants to meet the Savior
Jesus Christ must first know the gospel of the water and the Spirit and
believe in it. It is when we believe in the gospel of the water and the
Spirit that we are able to die with Jesus Christ and be brought back to
life with Him. And those who believe in the gospel of the water and the
Spirit can lead their lives of faith according to this gospel through
their true faith.
While
interpreting and preaching on the Book of Galatians, I was once again
reminded of how we the believers in the gospel of the water and the
Spirit have received such tremendous spiritual blessings from God.
Moreover, the Epistle to the Galatians is the Word of Truth that shows
us that there is fallaciousness in the faith of today’s Christians, who
claim to wash away their sins through their own prayers of repentance.
This Word was written originally to explain why the legalistic faith
stemming from Judaism that had afflicted the Early Church believers was
in error, but it also was aimed at exposing the fallacy of the doctrine
of repentance that many Christians in this age believe in now.
It
is an extremely important and critical ministry for us to spread the
faith of believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit on the one
hand, and to point out people’s mistaken faith on the other. If God had
not written the Book of Galatians, it would not have been possible today
to realize how prayers of repentance constitute such a fallacious
doctrine. Without the Book of Galatians, in other words, we would not
have been able to successfully demonstrate that the doctrine claiming to
wash away people’s sins through prayers of repentance is inaccurate. In
that case, we could not have led countless people to the upright faith
of believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Very
fortunately, however, we do have the Word of Truth that enables us to
discern correctly what is right from what is wrong.
First
of all, we must understand the gospel Truth of the water and the
Spirit. We will then realize that it is an utterly fallacious belief to
think that people are washed from their sins by offering their own
prayers of repentance. By drawing an example from the fallacious faith
of the circumcisionists, the Apostle Paul is lucidly explaining to us
the fallacies of prayers of repentance. How fortunate are we that the
Apostle Paul is pinpointing the contradiction of prayers of repentance
and explaining it to us? We, too, are now able to explain to today’s
Christians who adhere to the mistaken faith of prayers of repentance the
errors of their faith. Since we the believers in the gospel of the
water and the Spirit have now come to be able to prove the fallacy of
the doctrine of prayers of repentance, it has now become a whole lot
easier to spread this genuine gospel.
In
the last chapter of Ecclesiastes, the Bible says, “Of making many books
there is no end, and much study is wearisome to the flesh”
(Ecclesiastes 12:12). That is indeed the case, for there is no end with
our literature ministry. Once we have begun this ministry, we have to
supply the next books in due time. Colloquial words can be quickly
corrected if mistakes are made, and as long as people can understand
each other, poor sentence construction is not such a huge problem in a
conversation. In contrast, writing requires us to use formal language to
ensure precise expression of the meaning we are trying to convey. Crude
sentences can lead the readers to the distortion of the meaning. That’s
why writing is so arduous.
Nonetheless,
such a literature ministry is still absolutely indispensable, and that
is why we are publishing our books. I have every confidence that the
literature ministry is the most effective means of spreading the gospel
of the water and the Spirit. And we are so happy and grateful that God
has entrusted this work to you and me. The literature ministry is very
useful for us to spread the gospel of the water and the Spirit. So we
can’t be lazy at this work, and we thank God even more for entrusting us
with this work.
An
uncultivated land is called fallow land. Many weeds grow on fallow
land. To resume cultivating a field that had lied fallow for several
years, a farmer must plow the old soil first of all, and then remove
weeds, shrubs, and thorns. If he sows seeds without doing this, then the
seeds won’t be able to put down roots because of the shrubs and thorns,
and even if some seeds reach the ground and plant roots, they will
eventually be crowded out by the shrubs and wither away.
Like
this, if we want to preach the gospel of the water and the Spirit all
over the world, we cannot just sow the gospel of the water and the
Spirit in the fields of people’s hearts that are in ruin. That’s because
people’s hearts are like fallow land, filled with many false doctrines,
and so if the seed of life, the gospel of the water and the Spirit, is
just sowed on top of this land, it will all perish away, no matter how
good it is. That is why, when we try to cultivate the realm of faith, we
also must first pull out weed-like fallacious beliefs, and then sow the
gospel seed of the water and the Spirit. We have carefully gone through
this step, preaching the gospel of the water and the Spirit all over
the world very methodically to this day.
Through
the sermons on the Tabernacle, we have testified in great detail that
only the gospel of the water and the Spirit is the real Truth. Like
this, only when we explain in detail exactly how the faith of today’s
Christians is wrong can they consent to our teachings and return to the
right faith. Therefore, in each language of every nation and tribe, we
must first explain from where their faith has gone astray, and we must
prove the gospel of the water and the Spirit to them. When we preach the
gospel of the water and the Spirit to them, it is wise to point out the
fallacies of their faith in detail. That’s because while everyone may
go astray in acts, no one should ever go astray when it comes to faith
in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
So
I would like to make it clear here just how wrong the faith of today’s
Christians is, who try to receive the remission of their sins by
offering prayers of repentance. And I also want to make it unmistakably
clear that through their mistaken faith, they can never be remitted from
their sins before God. Like the fallacious faith of the
circumcisionists in the churches of Galatia who claimed that the saints
could become God’s people only if they were circumcised, today’s belief
that prayers of repentance are indispensable is also a fallacious
belief. We must explain the fallacy of the doctrine of repentance to
everyone, and on those who accept our explanation, we must plant the
gospel seed of the water and the Spirit. Only then will the seed finally
be sown properly, sprout, grow, and bear fruit. While it’s hard when we
are doing this work, when we look at the fruits of our labor, we cannot
help but thank God.
When
we read the Book of Galatians, we can understand the fundamental
difference between the true gospel and the false gospels, and so it is
very helpful to our lives of faith. Through the Book of Galatians, we
have also made much progress in our faith. The Lord taught us to realize
how the other gospels sprang into being. I believe that God has blessed
His Church, and that He has enabled you and me to discern the true
gospel from the false ones and to guard against them.
There
is an order to everything. When someone builds a house, he first lays
down a firm foundation, and then works to lay bricks or raise pillars.
Likewise, there is also an order when it comes to the work of spreading
the gospel of the water and the Spirit. A gospel preacher should not
just preach the gospel in whatever way he wants, but he must explain it
step by step to ensure that everyone can fully understand. In other
words, we have to change people’s faith and hearts step by step in due
time.
First
of all, to do so we need to have sufficient knowledge of the Bible;
secondly, we need to explain the gospel in appropriate terms suitable to
our audience; thirdly, we need to teach them thoroughly in detailed
biblical terms; and lastly, we need to wait for them to cast aside their
fallacious faith by themselves and return to the gospel of the water
and the Spirit. And with those who thus return to the gospel of the
water and the Spirit, we should unite our hearts to share our common
faith in the Truth with yet more people and lead them appropriately.
I
am so happy that we are able to do these things. I am grateful that God
has allowed us to preach the gospel of the water and the Spirit all
over the world and that He has carried out such works through His
Church.
Cure the Misbelievers from Their Mistaken Faith
Let
us read Galatians 6:1 together: “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any
trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of
gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.”
Here
now, the Apostle Paul is bringing his letter to a close. Having
correctly pointed out the fallacious faith of the circumcisionists, Paul
is now concluding his letter with his words of admonishment once again
imparted to the saints. Paul’s closing words here are still mindful of
the advocates of circumcision. That is why he said, “If a man is
overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a
spirit of gentleness” (Galatians 6:1). When we deal with those who have
fallen into mistaken beliefs, rather than seeking to drive them all
out, we should also awaken them to their mistakes, teach them the Truth,
and admonish them to believe properly.
Paul
said, “Considering yourself lest you also be tempted.” He said this
because any of us can go astray. In fact, if God does not teach His Word
through His Church, anyone’s faith can go astray. Shortcomings of a
saint, in and of themselves, cannot actually be the problem because they
have all been resolved by the Lord Jesus. The biggest wrongdoing before
God is to corrupt His Word and spread fallacious beliefs.
As
a matter of fact, if anyone interprets God’s Word without realizing the
gospel of the water and the Spirit, then he may add his own thoughts to
the Word of God and misinterpret it based on his mistaken knowledge.
That’s why Christian sinners are prone to teach the Word fallaciously.
This will be more than enough to corrupt the gospel of the water and the
Spirit. However, God did not want to leave such people alone. So,
having raised men of faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit and
appointing them as His servants in His Church, God is now guarding the
gospel of Truth from corruption. That is how God ensures that His Church
marches on the spiritually correct path, and inspires it to preach the
gospel of the water and the Spirit properly to everyone.
As
the Apostle Paul said, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the
law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2), we must bear each other’s burdens. If we
have done something wrong, we must correct each other, and we must
fulfill the law of Christ by uniting with one another. To do so, we must
share the true fellowship of faith in the gospel of the water and the
Spirit. We have to help many souls to be saved from their sins, and
these souls in turn must preach the gospel to yet more people, so that
everyone in this world may be saved. When Paul told us to bear one
another’s burdens, he meant that we should bear one another’s burdens in
serving the gospel. In other words, he was telling us to share each
other’s burdens in leading the saints properly, so that we may enable
many to receive the remission of sin, and to avoid discord in God’s
Church.
The
Apostle Paul said in Galatians 6:3, “If anyone thinks himself to be
something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.” Put differently, if
anyone thinks that he is fully matured spiritually, when in fact
nothing of spiritual faith is reached, then he is deceiving himself.
The
notion during the Early Church period that people can somehow become
God’s people by receiving circumcision from the circumcisionists is
complete nonsense. The Apostle Paul said clearly, “For as many of you as
were baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27).
Compared to Paul’s faith, the faith of the advocates of physical
circumcision is indeed nothing. For Abraham also, it was not by
receiving physical circumcision that God approved his faith. It’s
because of his faith, as it is written, “Abraham believed in the Lord,
and He accounted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:6).
When
we believe in God’s gospel Word, we attain the clear evidence of
becoming God’s people, and that is none other than spiritual
circumcision. When God told Abraham to be circumcised, this may be
interpreted as physical circumcision, but God was actually speaking of
spiritual circumcision. Spiritual circumcision is to cut off our hearts’
sins by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit given by
Jesus Christ. That is the real faith of spiritual circumcision. As such,
we should realize that the belief that we must be physically
circumcised to become God’s people apart from believing in the gospel of
the water and the Spirit is a corrupted belief, and the belief
prevailing in this age that the remission of sin is received by offering
prayers of repentance is also corrupt.
Therefore,
if you think that you have become righteous, even as you have not
become anything at all, then you must now once again accept the gospel
of the water and the Spirit innocently, and be completely born again in
this genuine gospel. Placing your faith in the baptism Jesus received
from John the Baptist, you must pass all your sins to Jesus Christ and
be resurrected with Him. We all must die with Jesus Christ by faith and
rise from the dead again in order to truly become God’s people.
Today’s
Christians have the misconceived notion that they have been saved just
by believing in Jesus Christ’s blood on the Cross alone, and they also
believe that the sins they have committed after being saved can be
remitted away by offering prayers of repentance. This is a huge problem.
Do their sins really disappear, just because they offer prayers of
repentance? Their consciences can only say no. Yet even so, they still
believe like this, and therefore this is a self-deceiving, false faith.
They must now throw away such beliefs by themselves. This kind of faith
will not make them righteous.
The
faith that relies only on the precious blood of the Cross is inevitably
accompanied by the false doctrine of repentance, which claims that one
must be washed from his sins by offering prayers of repentance. That is
because if one believes only in Jesus’ precious blood, he has no choice
but to try to wash away his sins by himself all in vain, for he cannot
comprehend the power of the baptism of Jesus that takes away all his
sins, and therefore he has never passed them onto Jesus. If you can’t
believe that your sins were passed onto Jesus when He was baptized by
John the Baptist, then it is forever impossible for you to receive the
remission of your sins. And this will lead you to offer prayers of
repentance everyday, trying to wash away your sins. Furthermore, you
will come to also believe in the false Doctrine of Incremental
Sanctification that claims one is sanctified day after day and
completely transformed at his death. In contrast, however, if you
understand the gospel of the water and the Spirit, then you will
realize, “Oh, all my sins were passed onto Jesus when He was baptized by
John the Baptist!”
You
need to know why today’s Christianity has been so darkened. All this is
because to this day virtually all Christians have believed only in the
blood of the Cross and lived by the mistaken faith that their personal
sins are washed away through their own prayers of repentance. The
spirituality of today’s Christianity is getting darker and darker
because they have misconceived and misbelieved that they are gradually
sanctified by trying to live a godly life, and that they will thus go
and stand before God in a sinless state in both body and spirit. There
is no way that people can actually realize this. Such people’s faith is a
failed faith that cannot accomplish anything. Such a faith is one that
God cannot approve.
To
believe in a doctrine of man’s own making, instead of believing in this
Truth, that God has saved sinners through the gospel of the water and
the Spirit, is a faith that can never save anyone from sin. It is
precisely because today’s Christianity adheres to its own man-made faith
that despite the many sprawling church buildings and increasing
membership, it is not only completely devoid of any spiritual power, but
is constantly criticized by society. That is why even in Christian
countries, Christianity is unable to exercise any influence over the
declining societies. Christianity is capable of neither changing society
nor changing people’s hearts. At most, it exercises political influence
based on its large size of membership. Take a look for yourselves.
Aren’t the acts of Christians and non-Christians the same? It’s because
Christians believe in something else other than the gospel of the water
and the Spirit that their faith is incapable of exercising any power in
their actual lives, and that is why the age of darkness perpetuates.
Today’s
Christians who believe only in the blood of the Cross and are relying
on their own prayers of repentance must realize that they are nothing,
and even now, believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. All
those who believe that they have received the remission of their sins by
offering prayers of repentance have not seen in themselves any
spiritual changes at all to this day. If you have believed only in the
blood of the Cross so far, you have to realize that you have not
received the remission of sin and failed to achieve anything at all. And
you must believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit and thus
reach your true salvation from all sins. We must be able to discern the
true gospel from the false ones.
Let
us turn to Galatians 6:4-5. “Let each one examine his own work, and
then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For
each one shall bear his own load.” When we consider ourselves before
God, each of us needs to examine his own work. “Have I truly received
the remission of my sins from God? Did all my sins really pass onto
Jesus Christ when He was baptized by John the Baptist? Did I pass my
sins to Jesus through my faith in the gospel of the water and the
Spirit?” When one considers these questions, if he has indeed been saved
from sin by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, then
he will have rejoicing in himself alone, not in someone else. And as
Paul also told us here, “Each one shall bear his own load,” one’s
salvation from sin should also be received by each, and God’s work
should also be carried by each. After all, is there anyone else who
would believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit on your behalf?
No, there is none!
Even
though the Bible makes it clear that prayer of repentance is wrong, few
actually realize this properly and turn around from their corrupted
way. If someone knows that he cannot receive the remission of his sins
through his own prayers of repentance, and yet despite this he himself
does not throw away his misplaced faith in prayers of repentance, then
he will remain unable to be remitted from his sins until the end, for he
does not understand the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit. Even
though many people try to understand the gospel of the water and the
Spirit, they still do not cast aside their existing mistaken knowledge,
and that is why they cannot reach true salvation. Although you may be
able to say to others that you have been saved from sin, many of you
would not be able to say the same to yourselves. A sinner’s conscience
condemns his soul constantly, accusing, “You are still a sinner,” and
therefore he is incapable of having any rejoicing in himself.
That
is why Christians all over the world must turn around from the mistaken
belief that they are washed from their sins by offering prayers of
repentance. They must turn to the right place, so that they may have
rejoicing in themselves. So they must be able to say, “I may not know
much, but at least I believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
The gospel of the water and the Spirit is the real gospel, and all other
gospels besides this gospel are false gospels.”
Anyone
who has been born again must know and believe as follows: “Everyone who
preaches anything other than the gospel of the water and the Spirit is
compromised! Only this gospel of the water and the Spirit is the Truth.
Even though my acts are insufficient, at least I believe in this, and so
I can take pride in Jesus Christ.” The people of faith, in other words,
must be able to boast to themselves about their faith in the gospel of
the water and the Spirit, God’s gift, and the faith of salvation that
God has given them. We ourselves must believe, “The gospel of the water
and the Spirit is the Word of Truth and a precious gift,” and we must
have the faith that enables us to take pride in this gospel.
Do
you believe that the gospel of the water and the Spirit is the real
Truth? Are you now sure that the doctrine espousing prayers of
repentance as a conduit to the remission of sin is wrong? Do you realize
clearly the fallacy of the belief that the remission of sin is received
only through the blood of the Cross? You have to reach a clear
understanding of these facts. We have to know that the gospel of the
water and the Spirit that we believe in is the real Truth, but we also
have to know the reason why we say prayers of repentance are wrong.
Frustrated by the circumcisionists’ claim that one could be saved by
physical circumcision, the Apostle Paul said that they would all go to
hell. In this age also, God’s servants are also saying out of their
frustration, “You will be cursed to hell if you believe in prayers of
repentance.”
When
I see Christians, I realize just how empty their hearts are. As God
said, “The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the
face of the deep” (Genesis 1:2), Christians today indeed have no faith.
For those who believe that their sins are blotted out through prayers of
repentance, their hearts have no faith in the gospel of the water and
the Spirit, and therefore without the gospel of Truth, it is inevitable
for their hearts to be nearly empty.
Like
them, there was a time when my heart also sighed in emptiness. But
since lamentation alone could not achieve anything, I looked for the
Truth that could fill my void. In the end, I encountered the gospel of
the water and the Spirit from the Word of God, and when I believed in
this Truth, all my heart’s emptiness disappeared completely. The gospel
of the water and the Spirit is the Truth that everyone must find while
living in this world.
Today,
most Christians are leading their lives of faith in emptiness and in
vain, for there is sin in their hearts. A while ago, there was a
talented gospel singer. I once saw him on TV praising, and the lyrics of
his praise were simply wonderful. But not long ago, I heard the tragic
news that he committed suicide. Even though he had spoken about
salvation to others and sang beautiful praises, the Truth of real
salvation was not in his heart. He killed himself because his heart was
void. Those whose hearts do not have the gospel Truth of the water and
the Spirit can never fill this emptiness with anything else.
All
of us must believe, in each of our hearts, that Jesus Christ is our
Savior who came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit. We must
believe that only the gospel of the water and the Spirit is the Truth of
real salvation that God has given to us all. Therefore, we must have
the knowledge of the gospel of the water and the Spirit, and we must
also have faith in this genuine gospel.
Take
a look. Today’s faith in the blood of the Cross alone ultimately
rejects the Truth of the baptism that Jesus received from John the
Baptist. Didn’t the doctrine of repentance, which people today rely on,
come from this faith that’s placed only in the blood of the Cross?
Furthermore, didn’t the Doctrine of Incremental Sanctification also stem
from the faith of believing in the blood of the Cross alone? Can we
find any proper faith from the hearts of those who believe only in the
blood of the Cross? We can find another nonsensical doctrine, namely the
Doctrine of Unconditional Election, from their hearts: Many theologians
and pastors devotedly adhere to Calvin’s so-called “Doctrine of
Unconditional Election,” which espouses that God chose some
unconditionally while he did not choose others. Does such a doctrine
make any sense? Is God such an unjust God?
If
you put on the first button wrong, then you are bound to put on all the
remaining buttons incorrectly. You have to realize that if you just
believe in Jesus without knowing the fallacies of today’s Christian
doctrines, then your faith is only grasping for air, and you will lead a
completely useless life of faith for your entire lifetime only to be
cast into hell in the end.
Martin
Luther triggered the Reformation by bluntly criticizing the Catholic
Church’s claim that people could be washed from sin if they bought
indulgence. All that Luther did, however, was just pointing out certain
mistakes of the church to which he belonged at the time, not by
advocating the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Literally, he was
only the starting point of a “religious reformation” and not a
“reformation of faith itself.” If he had realized that the gospel of the
water and the Spirit is the Truth, and if he had launched a
“reformation of faith” in its true sense, Christianity would not have
remained only as one of the religions of the world as it is now. So
although the Reformation was carried out in many countries subsequent to
the sixteenth century, there were no people of true faith who preached
the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
A
lifeless church is inevitably destined to be institutionalized and
secularized. See for yourself. Aren’t Protestant clergymen increasingly
clothing themselves like priests nowadays, following the Catholic
Church’s dress code? Even worse, I heard that there are some
denominations that emphasize the ritual of Holy Communion so much that
it is performed at every worship service, and that some of them actually
believe in the Doctrine of Transubstantiation advocated by the Catholic
Church. All these are fake beliefs. And they are the evidence of the
fact that the Reformation has achieved nothing.
Jesus
said in John 6:55, “For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink
indeed.” Our Lord described His body as our bread of life. That’s
because through the baptism of John the Baptist, Jesus took all the sins
of the world upon His body once and for all, died on the Cross, rose
from the dead, and has thereby become our Savior. It’s because the Lord
blotted out all our sins with the gospel of the water and the Spirit
that He described His body as the bread of true life. As such, the
Doctrine of Transubstantiation, which teaches that the wafer actually
turns into the flesh of Jesus when the priest blesses it, and that
people can obtain the bread of life when they eat this wafer, is wrong.
Although we eat the bread and drink the wine in communion, this does not
mean that the bread of life is obtained through the acts of this
ritual.
When
Jesus’ disciples asked Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the
works of God?” the Lord said to them, “This is the work of God, that you
believe in Him whom He sent” (John 6:28-29). To believe in what was
fulfilled by Jesus whom the Father sent is to do the work of God the
Father. Who is Him whom God the Father sent? He is none other than Jesus
Christ. What did Jesus Christ do when He came to this earth? He was
baptized by John the Baptist, shed His precious blood on the Cross to
die, rose from the dead again, and has thus saved us completely. To
believe that Jesus Christ took upon our sins by being baptized by John
the Baptist, that He died on the Cross while shouldering the sins of the
world, and that He has thereby saved you and me is none other than
doing God’s work. The first requirement is that we believe in the gospel
of the water and the Spirit.
My
fellow believers, if you believe in the gospel of the water and the
Spirit with your hearts, then you will have something to be proud of in
each of your hearts. However, if you don’t believe, then you will have
nothing to be proud of. That is why each of us must bear his burden of
faith. Each on his own must know and believe in Jesus Christ as the
Savior who came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit. It’s because
you are unable to discern false doctrines or the words of frauds that
God has established His servants and through them taught you why these
things are untrue. Nonetheless, it is still your responsibility to know
and believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
You Must Be with the Believers in the Gospel of the Water and the Spirit
The
Apostle Paul said the following in Galatians 6:6. “Let him who is
taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches.” When
those who teach the Word of God believe in the gospel of the water and
the Spirit and preach this gospel to you, then you must also unite your
hearts with those who lead you. If those who are taught do not follow
the faith of their spiritual fathers who teach them, then they cannot
share in good things.
It
is clearly not the case that we are to become God’s children by
receiving physical circumcision. The Galatian saints had to throw away
their belief in such a false doctrine. You, too, need to realize, “So
it’s a wrong faith to believe that the remission of sin is received
through prayers of repentance.” And in your hearts, you must hold
steadfast to the gospel of the water and the Spirit and believe in it.
If you say, “But I don’t think so,” and reject the God-given Truth, then
you will be cast into the fire of hell. Heaven and hell depend on your
choice.
We
must acknowledge that God has established His servants inside the
Church, and follow them by faith. A true leader is someone who preaches
the gospel of the water and the Spirit, while someone who does not
preach this gospel is no more than a wage earner. I admonish you all to
realize that the leaders who preach the gospel of the water and the
Spirit are God’s servants who are appointed by God Himself. Do you
believe this? No matter how insufficient I might be, it is God who has
raised me to stand before you. It’s not because I am wise, but it is
because God has given me the gospel of the water and the Spirit prior to
you that I am doing His work, and it is God who has raised me as a
leader to preach His Word.
If
I believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit and preach it, you
need to recognize me as your leader and trust in me. And when I, who
believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit and preach to you,
say, “Prayers of repentance are corrupt. You must throw them away,” you
then have to understand so and believe so. That is a truly upright
faith. The Apostle Paul, a leader of the Early Church, preached the
gospel of the water and the Spirit, but some people rejected his
teachings by claiming that they could become God’s people if they were
physically circumcised. Was their faith the right faith? No, Paul
rebuked such people for their fallacy.
The
Apostle Paul said, “Let him who is taught the word share in all good
things with him who teaches.” What, then, are the good things that those
who teach the Word have? They are to believe in the gospel of the water
and the Spirit, reject the false doctrines, and follow the will of God
despite our insufficiencies. We must share in these things together.
While we obviously shouldn’t share in the bad things that the church
leaders have, we should share in the good things. This is only too
self-evident, yet there are many who can’t do this. Many people believe
each on his own, rather than emulating their leaders in God’s Church.
But does faith grow in this way? No, it doesn’t.
Why
do students go to school? If a student wants to study all on his own
without listening to his teacher, what’s the point of going to school?
It would be better for him to just go to the library and study all by
himself. The reason why there are teachers is so that those who learnt
first would lead the students as their guides. Once a student is led by a
teacher, he can understand more easily, and once he learns once, he
can, from then on, do it by himself.
Just
as teachers are needed at school, in God’s Church, God’s servants are
needed. Without such leaders, spiritual death will come. Without the
leaders, the congregation will be spiritually deceived, and exploited by
the wolf-like false prophets, they will be robbed of everything they
have, in both body and spirit. Therefore, it is good to abide in God’s
Church together with those who teach His Word. From the adult group to
the Sunday school, women’s fellowship, and youth gatherings, there must
be a leader to guide them. Each church must also have a leader. That’s
because without a leader, the flock will perish away in no time.
It’s
good that we have the state and government. Think about what would
happen in anarchy. Without the government, our society would not have
any order, degenerating into the state of nature ruled by the law of the
jungle. That’s why Plato said that even a bad government was better
than no government. A nation has its people, and there must be a leader
to guide this nation. Just as a president or a prime minister should
keep the duties of his office by maintaining social order and
guaranteeing the welfare of his people, so must God’s Church have a
leader to maintain its spiritual order.
If
the members of God’s Church do not recognize their leaders who guide
and protect them, they are no different from spiritual orphans. God’s
blessings cannot be bestowed on such people. I am not saying this just
to remind you of my position as your leader, but I am explaining a
simple principle of faith: When it comes to leading the life of faith in
God’s Church, while you should have God in your hearts, there must also
be a leader appointed by God for your faith to grow. I have every
confidence to say that without a leader in your hearts, your faith will
never grow.
My
fellow believers, do you find it hard to trust the leaders of God’s
Church? Are you thinking of bringing them down someday, so that you may
take up their positions? In my country, South Korea, the opposition
party could not bring itself to concede to the electoral results of the
last presidential election, and having planned to bring down the
president all along, last year, it took advantage of a flimsy ground and
ended up triggering an unprecedented constitutional crisis by voting to
impeach the president. In God’s Church also, if you cannot recognize
your leaders, you are bound to plot to bring them down someday to take
up their positions for yourselves. Such thoughts stand against God.
Here
in today’s Scripture passage, it is said that those who are taught
should share in all good things with those who teach. God told us here
to share in all good things, not in bad things. What, then, are the good
things that the leader has? First of all, faith in the gospel of the
water and the Spirit is a good thing. What would happen if I, though
believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, also believe in
something else? You would inevitably end up believing as I do. That is
why the Apostle Paul said that he considered as rubbish all the secular
philosophy and knowledge that he had learnt in the world before he was
born again (Philippians 3:8). Likewise, when Christians who had believed
wrong come to know the Truth and believe in the gospel of the water and
the Spirit, they must throw away all the doctrines of Christianity as
rubbish.
If
you recognize and trust me as your leader, who believes in and preaches
the gospel of the water and the Spirit, then you are blessed. You are
sharing in good things with someone who teaches the gospel of the water
and the Spirit. On the other hand, if you don’t believe in the gospel of
the water and the Spirit and if you don’t trust your leader and doubt
him, then you can’t share in all good works.
The
Apostle Paul said in Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived, God is not
mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” My fellow
believers, you must not deceive your own faith. You have to examine to
see if you really believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit or
instead some other gospel, making sure not to deceive yourselves. Paul
said here that God is not mocked. This means that God is not someone who
should be scorned. God says, “If you believe in the gospel of the water
and the Spirit, you have been saved, and you are then My children.” If
you believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit and say to God,
“Father,” then God will approve you as His children, saying, “Yes, I am
your Father.”
In
contrast, however, if someone says, “God, my Father,” even as he
doesn’t believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, then God will
say, “Are you mocking Me? You are taking My name in vain!” That is why
the Apostle Paul said, “Don’t deceive yourselves. God is not to be
mocked.” God is indeed not to be ridiculed.
Paul
went on to say in Galatians 6:8, “For he who sows to his flesh will of
the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the
Spirit reap everlasting life.”
What
is it that we sow? It’s faith that we should sow. What kind of faith
should we sow? It’s faith in the gospel of the water and the Spirit that
we should sow. In another way, this also means that we should not sow
man-made doctrines in our hearts. The Bible made it clear here that
those who believe in the God-given gospel of the water and the Spirit
reap everlasting life, while those who sow something else for their
flesh reap corruption.
The
Apostle Paul is now admonishing the circumcisionists not to deceive
themselves. Do you believe that you will become God’s people if you are
circumcised? Just as this is not true, God is saying to those who
believe in their own prayers of repentance not to deceive themselves.
Sin does not disappear just because one offers prayers of repentance.
Christians think that anyone who does not offer prayers of repentance is
a heretic, but they themselves know better than anyone else that their
sins are not blotted out no matter how fervently they offer prayers of
repentance.
It’s
only because they don’t have any alternative to solve the problem of
their sins that they offer prayers of repentance. They need prayers of
repentance precisely because they believe only in the blood of the
Cross; if they believed in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, why
would they need to offer prayers of repentance? Such prayers would be
needless, for they would have passed all their sins onto Jesus through
the gospel of the water and the Spirit.
Those
who believe only in the blood of the Cross are deceiving themselves and
mocking God. Of course, God is not really mocked even if people try to
mock Him. But if someone deceives his own faith and calls God as his
Father while he still has sin in his heart, then he is ridiculing God.
For anyone who has sin in his heart to call God, “Father,” is akin to
saying, “God, You are the Father of someone who is bound to hell.” It is
also to say, “You are incompetent, not even able to blot out my sins.”
Would God answer the calling of such a person? No, of course not. As
such, we must first believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit
and become God’s real children. It is only when we become God’s true
children that we can finally call Him as our Father and glorify Him,
instead of mocking Him.
One Reaps Whatever He Sows
If
anyone believes in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, then he will
reach his salvation, attain everlasting life, become God’s child, and
receive His abundant blessings. In contrast, if he believes only in the
blood of the Cross instead of this gospel of Truth, and offers prayers
of repentance, then he will be cursed to fall into destruction and be
cast into hell. One reaps what he sows.
So
what, then, should we sow? We should believe together with God’s
servants, exactly according to how they believe in and preach the Word
of God as it is. Only then may we receive the same blessings.
The
Apostle Paul said in Galatians 6:9-10, “Let us not grow weary while
doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to
those who are of the household of faith.”
My
fellow believers, if we carry out the work of the gospel united by
faith, countless people will be saved. When we think about how there
will be many people all over the world coming to believe in the gospel
of the water and the Spirit, we are indeed tireless.
And
we must treat the people of faith well. Those who reject the gospel,
deceive God and themselves, and advocate false doctrines are not the
ones whom we should treat with kindness, but it is those who faithfully
follow the Lord whom we should treasure. Let us, then, all serve the
Lord obeying the spiritual order established by God, and emulating our
leaders and our predecessors of faith.
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