Greetings from the Priest Academy!

Report from 2011 Summer Conference



Perhaps this year’s summer conference had actually begun on the Lord's Day, July 3, 2011. On this day, a sermon titled "the Confession of Faith Offered with the New Crops" was proclaimed:
"The feast of booths is the time the Israelites spent a week in booths to afflict themselves to remember the Israelite’s church in the wilderness. The feast of booths symbolizes the eternal rest, the kingdom of heaven. This was the day of mass migration when all people come to present themselves before God. As the people gathered with the same purpose, their awareness as chosen people of God became heightened, and they united to share comfort, courage, and blessings. The holy people were united in their love for God, love for the country, and love for one another.”



Monday, August 1
3,500 years after the ordinance of the feast of booths had been proclaimed through Moses, the 2011 Summer Conference commenced at Yeoju Pyungkang Cheil Retreat Center. This year’s theme was “Let us become the living, central figures of redemptive history in the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 7:17; Luke 20:37-38; Revelations 2:10).
The reinstatement of the four-night and five-day schedule after four years seems to resemble the original concept of the feast of booths. The paradigm has shifted from “man-centeredness” to “God-centeredness.” The conference took off with an extraordinary opening ceremony. There were no seats available at Moriah Sanctuary even if you were late by just a few minutes. Because the overseas members have either already attended the spring seminar or will be coming to the summer seminar, this summer conference was mainly for the Korean congregation. Yet, the attendants had notably increased. It was so exhilarating to know so many people have come for the assembly of the firstborn.



Tuesday, August 2
There were seventeen lectures during the four-night and five-day session. From 6 AM to 9 PM, we had five two-hourlong lectures, followed by either a musical, praise worship, or the great talent show from 9 PM. This retreat may well be a one-of-a-kind in this world. The lectures on the second day were: ▶”The redemptive administration that is revealed through Noah” ▶ “The chronology of the twenty patriarchs” ▶”The redemptive-historical administration hidden in the genealogy of Shem and Abraham” ▶ “The garments of the high priest” ▶ “Redemptive-historical meaning of Shechem.” This was probably the world’s foremost Bible forum. It wasn’t a banquet of mere knowledge. It felt like we were galloping at full speed through the 6,000 year-long history of both the Old and New Testaments in the Bible. The black letters on the white pages of the Bible came alive and danced before our eyes in living color, through its boundless height, depth, length and breadth. It was as if we could feel God’s breath at the tip of our noses. Has such high-level Word ever been proclaimed in mankind’s history?
Have you heard of the Davos Forum? Global political and business elites and selected intellectuals meet at Davos, Switzerland for a week to discuss global development plans. Its membership fee alone is 70,000 dollars. To put it nicely, it is about “global development plans,” but after all, the discussion is on “what is the way to make more money for a longer period?” Although the meeting is to gain insight, it actually lacks the spiritual voice, or the actual discussion of life to save people. Although they ponder on the ways to live better lives, such ways eventually end up in death and destruction. Mankind has grown accustomed to death and this shows in its expression of the highest accolade: “killer!” Mass media is searching furiously for “killer contents” to make a fortune.
“Yeoju Forum” is completely the opposite. Here, people learn about the way to save people and impart life unto mankind. The scene of the forum reaches beyond the abstract statement, “we go to heaven if we go to church,” excavating why and how the Bible saves people. Its proven results were demonstrated through the musical “The Covenant of the Torch” performed by the young adult ministry group, Hephzibah at 9 PM that same night. Such a production that provoked ceaseless bursts of laughter and tears had to be produced by those who actually understood the verses in the Bible in great depth. The deep suffering of Abraham who was leaving his elderly father behind, as well as his confession of faith in resurrection presented through sacrificing his one and only son Isaac, were revived into an audiovisual performance that traced back 4,000 years. The story in the Bible no longer remained as an ancient history; it was now the story of you and me. The crowd cheered and cried. When Joseph’s coffin entered Shechem and concluded the 692-year-long panorama of the covenant of the torch, tears welled up in people’s eyes. Senior Pastor Abraham Park sent his word of encouragement, “I was shocked as well. Pyungkang Cheil Church abounds in hope.” (Interview with the main characters of the musical is on pages 00.)



Wednesday, August 3
“Priest Academy” is a perfect term to describe this year’s retreat. It was a training camp that produced priests through focused teachings on the kind of life, clothing, and food for the priesthood. According to Moses’ law, people had to be 30 years old to serve in the tabernacle, but they had to be thoroughly trained from ten years earlier, as in a “Priest Prep School” (The Eternal High Priest of the Covenantal Oath, 106).
This year’s retreat also had such a “Priest Prep School.” 140 middle school students and 120 high school students attended the conference and managed through the tough courses for the adults. I attended the lectures behind the middle school students on the second floor throughout the four-night, five-day stay. On the first day, I headed downstairs after a while because I couldn’t imagine of being in a godly worship with these kids. It was a completely groundless thought, however. Their endurance was a mystery to me. While even adults found it difficult to withstand the two-hour long lectures from dawn to late night, these children did not talk or leave their seats. Kim Hyo-sun (a ninth grader), whose notes were more meticulously written than that of the adults, said “I thought the sixth book of the History of Redemption series was very difficult, but I was able to study a lot this time, so I was happy. Sometimes I got bored, but I was determined to stand in the order of the priests without death, that is, the order of Melchizedek.” Lee Chun-gook, an evangelist for the middle school ministry commented, “In my view, since these children have been training through the Bible studies on Saturdays, this year’s conference might serve as their examination period.” Evg. Lee Hu-sook added, “Teachers were worried on the way here, but we were so blessed ever since our arrival as we watched them adapting so well.”
It was the same with the high school students. They infused the assembly with their vitality at the Great Talent Show, through the offering praise, and diligent service as lifeguards at the children’s pool. Kim Bo-yung, an eleventh grader, said, “I appreciated the conference because we got to learn the Word at a higher level than when we would at our own retreats.”



Thursday, August 4
The author of the History of Redemption series preached three lectures of the total seventeen lectures. During the lecture titled “Chronology of the Twenty Patriarchs” in the morning of August 2, the ten generations from Adam to Noah and another ten generations from Shem to Abraham were portrayed so vividly, as if we could reach out and grab them with our hands. Those patriarchs who were seemingly non-existent before ? Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Lamech, Methuselah, Shem, Arphachshad, Shelah, Eber, Peleg, Reu, Serug, Nahor and Terah ? were resurrected in Yeoju. Although Adam lived 800 more years after the birth of Seth and fathered more children during that time, their names weren’t recorded in the genealogy. Why? The Bible says that the ten generations from Adam to Noah had lived (enjoyed life) and died, but it doesn’t say the same for the ten generations from Shem to Abraham. Has such question ever been asked in the history of mankind?
At the lecture title “God’s Covenanted People” in the morning of August 3, the fulfillment process of the covenant of the torch (Genesis 15) became clearer than ever. On the one hand we had a detailed portrayal of how Reuben could not overcome himself and was at last disqualified from the line of the firstborn. On the other hand, there was Joseph who received the blessings of the crown of the head by not forgetting the covenant and overcoming himself. These two characters represent the two paths laid before us today.
Throughout the morning lecture on August 4 titled, “Eleven days if we fully obey, but forty years if we disbelieve,” there were bursts of “Oh~ no!” from various places. It was the lament from recognizing the 3,500 year-old stories of the Israelites as our own. Sometimes from frustration and other times from fear, we all nodded our heads. Their unbelief, contrition and restoration all unfolded before our eyes like a National Geographic documentary. The warning against the massive grave of greed was a forewarning to mankind’s civilization that has already been giving off serious sounds of destruction (from the sermon summary in <Bread of Life> on pg. 00).
A unanimous statement from our ministers who visited Israel early this year was: “I now understand why God sent the pillar of cloud in the wilderness. Without the cloud, it was difficult to walk even for five minutes.” We, too, fully experienced the power of the pillar of cloud during the four nights and five days. It was more so on the fourth day. The thick cloud made everyone forget the summer’s heat. I looked up the night sky of Yeoju after it got dark. The sky that had been covered with thick cloud just a while ago was now sprinkled with beautiful stars that were shining so brightly. How mysterious and profound it was to see!



Friday, August 5
Having only an abstract image of “heaven,” mankind has always been in thirst. This explains the bestsellers such as the book written by an 18th century Swedish scientist, Swedenborg, who was known to have traveled to heaven for twenty seven years, as well as Randy Alcorn’s book filled with imaginations of heaven based on the Bible. But, the people who attend Yeoju conference every year comment that “right here is the model of heaven.” This also moved the heart of Pastor Cho Jung-soo from Kwang-ju who had been coming to the Yeoju retreat ever since last year’s seminar for the ministers. He said, “The endless pouring of the new Word is making me ashamed to say that I have studied theology and serve as a minister now. I don’t want to leave this place.” My seven-year old daughter whispers into my ear, “I want to live in Yeoju forever.” The five days in Yeoju are not so much about comfort and leisure. Elderess Suh Bok-hee who served to feed thousands of people at every meal at Zion restaurant exclaimed, “There is nothing harder than this.” The ministers and Hephzibah’s young adults soaked in sweat as they disposed amassing trash at the load of several dumpster trucks every day embarrassed my walk for a shower with a towel around my neck. But, after all, our hardship here makes us realize how much we have taken our comfortable lives for granted. Despite such hardships, every participant says, “I don’t want to go back. This is heaven.”
The finale of this year’s conference was yet again impressive. It was the first time to witness the busy scene in the men’s lodging area on the second floor of Moriah all the way until the last night. Because both the first and second floor of Moriah sanctuary was filled with congregation, the closing service didn’t emit the sense of “good-byes,” but rather, of an amazingly proper worship service. It was truly gratifying to have completed the Priest Academy. The majority of the congregation remained after the closing service to clean every corner of Yeoju conference center. Pastor Park So-ja (Senior pastor of New Stone Wall Church), who became familiar to us through Champyungan, expressed, “I am fully convinced that each member of this church can take on the work of thousands, ten thousands of people. Through this conference, I witnessed this majestic stream that is unstoppable by human power.”

What remains for the graduates of the Priest Academy is the actual warfare. The priestly duty is to fully preach the providence of redemption to east, west, south, and north of every province and state. Although we may fear that our evangelism may fail, in actuality, there is no “failure” in evangelism. It will be either “instant” success or “long-term” success. Even if we may not bear fruits right away, someone will one day make the winning goal through my assistance offered today.
What also remains for us is the battle for uprightness, faithfulness, and godliness. On the first day of the conference, Senior Pastor Abraham Park said, “when the bowls of the wrath of God is poured out on the earth after the period of silence, the saints must not have a foul and loathsome sore. Those sores are idol worshipping ? being fond of money and the opposite sex (Revelation 16:2; Colossians 3:5). The path of greed will end up in death, and the path of thanksgiving will end up in life. Which way will you take? The battle begins.

By Ho Jun-seok