John 14:6 / 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” (John 14:6).
All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

For the past year, we have not been able to live according to God’s will. We have missed our time of faithfulness. We have not devoted ourselves to reading the Bible, singing praises, praying, and giving offerings. We have led apathetic lives, giving one excuse after another. However, when saints begin to age, they must learn to have fear, for just as man is born once, he will surely also die once. After that, we will stand before God’s royal throne and be judged according to our deeds and faith. There is nothing that can be hidden from the eyes of God.
After the fall of man, God commanded: “For you are dust, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:15-17). This is the reason why mankind faces death. However, God is not chained by death. His soul is eternal; it is infinite. But the idea that mankind can only live up to 70-80 years is absurd because God originally had not made us to be this way. In 1 John 2:17, it is written: “But the one who does the will of God lives forever.”
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26)
This is the reason why we have hope. The people of this world may believe that everything ends with death, but it is not so with God’s saints. We have the hope that we will be transfigured in the blink of an eye. Transfiguration will be faster than the sudden flash of a lightning. When God created man, His will was not for us to live an ephemeral life and die. He created us to be eternal beings. We will not die if we believe and keep God’s Word. Adam and Eve saw death because they ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, which God specifically told them not to do. God has given us a heart that yearns for the eternal world (Ecclesiastes 3:11).

God has given mankind the Word that will enable them to live for eternity. This is the Bible. Those who disregard the Bible are not fit to live. The Word that gives eternal life has been given, so why the lack of faith? The person who immediately stands at attention when it comes to the Word is one who is greatly blessed. From the moment I began my life of faith, I have not gone one day without reading the Bible, no matter how busy my schedule was. There is only the Bible. The Bible is the Word of God.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (John 1:1).
Even if we forget everything in the year 2012, we must at least live a life that holds on to the Word of God and walk with Him. When we do, we will be blessed in our going out and coming in (Deuteronomy 28:6-7/ Psalm 121:8). God has said that the Holy Spirit will grant to those with dull minds the grace to understand the Word of God. The dull-minded ones will become more enlightened than the wiser ones. To refrain from reading the Bible and to have no faith is a terrible disease. When we believe in the Bible, our lives begin to change for the better. That’s because we begin to have thanksgiving in our lives. Thanksgiving is a panacea. Thanksgiving changes a poor person into a wealthy one. Romans 1:21 says, “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks.” If we have thanks, we will not complain or hold any grudges. We will hold others in a higher esteem than ourselves. We will neither grumble nor slander others. Those with thanksgiving come to church and devote themselves through doing God’s work. They are people who are able to even lay down their lives if it concerns the will of God. There has never been a martyr who laid down his or her life without having known the meaning of thanksgiving.

This year, our church has a new maxim: The only guide for a successful life in the year 2012 is the Bible, the Word of God. The new year’s first morning has arrived. Through God’s sovereign providence, we have greeted the year 2012 with a new day of living hope. It is a world yet untouched and unknown. We have not purchased 2012 with money but have, instead, made a contractual agreement to rent it freely. In 2012, we must make a vow before God in prayer and tell him our resolutions and determination on how we will lead our lives this year, and we must endeavor to make sure that our lives will be as we have vowed. If we do not live according to what we have vowed, we will be cursed.
In whose eyes a reprobate is despised, but who honors those who fear the LORD; he swears to his own hurt and does not change (Psalm 15:4).

People prefer new things over old ones. They fear the thought of getting old. It is human nature to desire never- ending youth and vigor, and immortality. They desire eternity. Nevertheless, there is nothing that is truly new in this world (Ecclesiastes 3:11). Everything becomes old and deteriorates. Only the truly new is with God because He is eternal and came to be of His own accord. Though we age as the days go by, God remains the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 1:12). We experience the growing onslaught of decrepitude once we are past our prime, but God remains at His prime for all of eternity. The fact that we know and believe in such a Being through the Bible is a great blessing, the blessing of all blessings. We, too, can become new people through a spiritual union with God (Hebrews 13:8, 1:12/ 2 Corinthians 5:17).
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come (2 Corinthians 5:17).
No matter how great our sin is, we will become new people if we repent and believe in Jesus Christ. We are all wretched sinners. We neither have uprightness nor faithfulness. Everything that comes out of our lips is unreliable, and if it looks like we may suffer losses, we offer up lame excuses and leave. We who have been conceived in sin and brought forth in iniquity are all sinners alike (Psalm 51). However, Jesus is the only one without sin. He was not conceived in sin but by the Holy Spirit. He was sent to this world in the form of a sinful man in order to carry our sins, but He had no sin (2 Corinthians 5:21). Let us greet the year 2012 together with Jesus Christ. We must look to Him and place our hopes in Him. Fleshly thought leads to destruction; it is death. There is no peace but only tribulation. Fleshly thought cannot glorify God, and neither does it have the right to even attempt to do so (Romans 8:5-9). In 2012, let us receive grace through the Word of God. The one who receives grace is in Jesus Christ (John 1:10). The one who is in Christ will receive thousands and ten thousands of blessings. The blessings are so great that even the wealth of a billionaire cannot compare to what God gives us.
Let our garners be full, furnishing every kind of produce, and our flocks bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our fields (Psalm 144:13).
Let us say that you have $10,000. If we multiply this by 1,000, how much would that be? And if we multiply that number with another 1,000, how much would that be? Multiply that with 10,000, and then another 10,000 to that total, and what would we get? It is more than we can count! Jesus Christ is the Lord of everything. God has said that He will give us the ability to acquire wealth (Deuteronomy 8:18). Thus, we have no need to worry.

Please read the Bible. The more you read the Bible, the deeper it gets. It is so profound and mysterious. You will comprehend literature and concepts after reading them once. The Bible, however, is different, for it remains profound even when one has read it thousands and ten thousands of times. Divinity, ability, strength, and authority all come from the Word. It is so great that it is almost impossible to manage. When Peter preached, 3,000 people beat their breasts and repented. Like a mattock, God’s Word digs in and splits our hearts. It drives us to confess our sins even when a part of us resists.
I hope you will not lie in the year 2012. The 144,000 people in the book of Revelation are people who have not lied with their lips. Liars are the cursed children of the devil. Lying leads to the path of death. There is no need for you to confess your sins to others. All you need to do is lay them before God and repent. Repent of all your thieveries, frauds, blackmails, and fabrications of your educational and work background. When we go before God without having repented of our sins, all of those sins will be laid bare before countless souls that have come and gone after the fall of Adam, as though we have been stripped naked. Mankind likes to cover things up. They like to disguise themselves. But please do not do that in the year 2012. Do not make beautifying and packaging the outer appearance your focus. Furthermore, do not exaggerate. If you don’t know something, say you don’t know; and if you do, then say you do.
We must make a spiritual bonding, union, and fellowship with God. How do we do this? Through prayer, thanksgiving, and righteous works. We live our lives in God by doing this. God desires His saints to have thanksgiving. It is because we don’t have thanks that there are problems and illnesses in the family. Give thanks and help those less fortunate than yourselves. God will see this and say, “I am in debt to you.” And when God borrows, He surely repays.
Be upright and honest in the year 2012. Do not package and disguise yourselves.
The Bible is perfect, transcending all ages. It is eternal and inerrant. It never changes. It is the only guide on how to lead our lives of faith and action. It is the absolute standard of judgment. The Bible’s views on creation, Christianity, salvation, the church, the end time, and life are inerrant. Therefore, those who believe in the Word of God must lead a life that is pure, precise, and holy. The absolute standards of consideration and judgment must be located in the Bible. The Bible’s power of divinity is found in the Bible itself. It is original. No outside work or entity can add to the power of the Bible. Even the interpretation of the Bible can be done through the Bible itself. The Bible can explain what’s in the Bible.

Seek from the book of the LORD, and read: Not one of these will be missing; none will lack its mate. For His mouth has commanded, and His Spirit has gathered them (Isaiah 34:16).
The unfolding of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple (Psalm 119:130).
The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb (Psalm 19:7-10).

In 2012, let us believe in the Bible, and let our thoughts and actions show that result. Those who do not completely believe the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments are anti-God, anti-Christian, anti-church, and anti-Bible. The Roman Catholic Church was condemned during the religious reformation due to their teachings that went against what was in the Bible. For instance, they worship Mary. Mary was a creation, not a creator. Yet Catholics worship Mary and bow before an image. Mankind is not righteous. Our corruption is so great that it produces a stench. Only Jesus Christ is our Savior. Jesus Christ is the Word and God Himself. However, Catholics are condemned through the Bible because they worship people. (Jeremiah 10:14-15, 17:9/ Psalm 51:5/ Ecclesiastes 10:11/ Psalm 144:8/ Habakkuk 2:4/ Romans 1:25, 3:23, 5:12, 7:18/ Ephesians 1:1-5, 2:3/ Job 14:4, 15:14/ Psalm 14:1-3/ Ephesians 4:22-24/ Romans 6:6/ 2 Thessalonians 2:11)

We must be careful not to have the wrong ideas of Christianity. It is a grave error to believe that a mere human can be our God and Savior. Jesus was the only one who died for our sins and destroyed the power of death by resurrecting both body and soul. The Bible specifically states that redemption can only be found through believing in Jesus Christ. Righteousness can only be gained through faith in God (Romans 1:17, 9:30). One cannot become righteous through one’s own ability. Sin does not vanish through penance and discipline. It does not disappear even if we were to wash it in lye, melt it, and throw it into the Pacific Ocean. However, the precious blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who is without sin has once and for all absolved us of our sins (1 Peter 1:18-19).

When someone gives you a small sack of rice during a particularly difficult time in your life, you never forget that act of kindness. However, God hung on the cross and died in place of our perishable bodies, and then proclaimed that we are without sin. We say we believe in our God with our lips, but do we truly believe with all our hearts and give Him our devotion? Thus, in 2012, let us throw away all our useless thoughts. This year, let us proceed onward with Jesus Christ who redeemed us from our sins, and believe only in the Bible, the Word of Jesus Christ. If we do, we will see great blessings of prosperity. The Word of life and the faith of resurrection can only be found in Christianity.

The name Jesus means “He who saves His people from their sins.” How thankful we must be! We must be in awe even when we hear His name. When Jesus entered Jericho, Zaccheus climbed up a sycamore tree so that he could see Jesus. The people who saw him cursed him and called him a thief and a sinner who took away the possessions of others. However, Jesus said to him, “Come down; from now on, you are also a son of Abraham. I must stay at your house.” That Jesus is our Jesus. He came to us so that we would not have sin in the end time. (Hebrews 9:26-28/ 1 John 3:5)

Even if we were to cast aside what we were doing and chase after Jesus to hold the hem of His robe, we would be blessed. Confess by saying, “Lord! Are You not He who came so that our sins would be no more?” The Lord will not stand still. It will be as you wished. Though Satan held the power of death over us so that we could not move, Jesus came to vanquish Satan through the Word (Hebrews 2:14). I feel my heart burning whenever I read this verse. We must not sell the name of Jesus just to earn an extra dollar or a meal. We must not fear dying for the sake of Jesus’ name. The devil will pounce on that fear and trick us by saying, “I will save you.” If we fall for that trick, we will forever be his slaves.
And might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives (Hebrews 2:15).
Jesus Christ has vanquished death. He has said, “Whoever believes in Me shall live even if he sees death.” He came to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8). Jesus is the one who has saved our parents, spouses, children, in-laws, and grandchildren. Thus, let us teach our children when they’re young by saying, “Let us read the Word of Christ that has saved our family.” When they grow older, they will begin to understand their parents’ feelings. Jesus Christ did not come to be served but to serve. He came so that He could be a ransom and die on behalf of mankind. How thankful we must be! Even if we are filled with fleshly thoughts and we greedily think about earning more money until our eyes turn red with weariness from thinking up all these useless ideas, we must have a heart that says, “God, I have done wrong,” whenever we hear this Word. Jesus is an offering that is without sin or blemish (Romans 8:3/ 1 Peter 2:22/ 1 John 3:5/ 2 Corinthians 5:21). Whatever you do in 2012, do it all by placing Jesus as the owner and king of your heart. If you do, everything will go well. You will not see ruin.

Let me conclude.
And saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel" (Mark 1:15)
When Jesus came to this world, He went all over the country, to the countryside or the city, in order to preach the Word. He preached even though no one gave Him a bowl of water. Though some people asked Jesus to stay and have food after seeing His pitiable state, He replied, “Thank you. But I have food which you know not of. God the Father sent Me so that I could preach the Word to those towns. I must go and preach this Word.” (Luke 4:42~44)
Are we leading such a life? Or are we thinking, “If I go, will they serve me food?” God desires to give us blessings. However, our lack of faith and inability to evangelize are serving as a wall between God and us. The blessings come, but they return to God because of the barrier between us (Jeremiah 5:25)
Mankind must think about the Word. They must not be tied down by money. Jesus Christ, the Creator of the universe, came to this world and became like the most wretched of beggars because of us. How can we then think about getting free food from others or ways in which to get money from them?
The end is near and God’s kingdom is at hand (Mark 1:15). In 2012, everyone in Pyung Gang Cheil Church must endeavor to preach the Gospel. Consider Jesus who rejected offers to stay back and eat, but said, “No. I will waste more time if I stay and eat.” To the family that offered, it was just a time to enjoy a meal, but Jesus did not even have time for that.
And He said to them, "Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while." (For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.)(Mark 6:31)
And He came home, and the crowd gathered again, to such an extent that they could not even eat a meal (Mark 3:20).

God has said that one soul is more precious than the universe. If He loses even one soul, He will cross the mountains and rivers until He finds him. This year, take the Word and find your parents, siblings, relatives, colleagues, and hometown friends. Pray with tears for your unbelieving loved ones and then evangelize to them. You will see your household brighten. Preaching the Word is a Christian law to those who believe. It is our duty. There is no separate or proper time for evangelism. We simply do it (Ephesians 1:9/ Matthew 20:8/ Mark 1:15). We must preach the Word until our life ends, and until the Second Coming arrives. When a disciple asked, “Lord, when will be the end of the age?” Jesus replied, “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14). For the world to come to an end, we must preach the Word. Only then will the world end.
The reach of the Gospel must be to the “ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). We are all debt-ridden sinners. The one who does not evangelize is a debtor (Romans 1:14). Let us repay all our debts in the year 2012. If we don’t evangelize, how can we have the audacity to live? How can a debtridden sinner stand before God and live?
The Word we must preach is the kingdom of God, a better and an eternal place. (Mark 1:15)
When we evangelize, the request we make is, “Believe!” (Acts 16:31) The promise of evangelism is eternal life.
This is the promise which He Himself made to us: eternal life (1 John 2:25).
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16).
The purpose of evangelism is to find the lost souls. It is to find the lost sheep among the hundred, the lost coin among the coins, and the lost prodigal son among the sons (Matthew 18:12, 14; John 6:39, 17:12; Luke 15:7, 10). If the children don’t believe, you must help them to believe. That is the parents’ responsibility.
Just as God the Father sent His Son to this world, Jesus is now sending us (John 17:18, 20:21).
When Jesus transfigured in body and soul and ascended to heaven on the Mount of Olives, His last words to us were to baptize all peoples and to preach the Gospel (Matthew 28:18-20). If it was profitable to God’s kingdom, Apostle Paul did not shrink away but went from house to house and stood before the public in order to preach the Word (Acts 20:20). He did not even regard his own life as precious if it meant preaching the Word of God (Acts 20:24).
I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word; be ready in
season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction (2 Timothy 4:1-2).
This is God’s command. We are sinners if we do not obey His command. This year, let us repent of the evangelism that we have not been able to do. Treat a friend to a meal. Then, if the situation permits, bring your friend to church. Tell your pastors so that they can pray for them, and so that your friend can be saved. Your neighborhood will change and it will seem brighter. Even if your parents hit you for evangelising to them, do not grumble but pray to God and give thanks. Is there a tree that does not fall after numerous strikes? See what happens when your parents, son, daughter, siblings, and grandchildren come to church and believe. Your household will become heaven. How wonderful is this?

My fellow saints, let this year be a year of thanksgiving. A family that has thanks will not dry up. There was a 3-year famine when Isaac stayed in the land of the Philistines. The land was so parched that the people could not farm on it. However, Isaac, who prayed to God with thanks, produced 100 times more than the others that year. Because God lives, He takes charge of our life and death, and our fortune and misfortune. In 2012, when we think about and give thanks for the pillar of cloud and pillar of fire that light and guide our path, may the blessing of riches be upon the families of the saints of Pyungkang Cheil Church. Jesus Christ is God’s mystery. When we welcome Jesus, we will know God’s mystery. When we believe in Jesus, we will also be able to live in the midst of the glory of hope (Colossians 1:26).
Repent if you have not read the Bible to this day; and in 2012, pray that the three blessings of reading the Bible, listening to the Word, and keeping the Word will be upon your family. I pray this in the name of our Lord.

January 1, 2012 ? Lord’s Day 2nd Service Sermon