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 Sermon > Sunday Morning Service |
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Title |
Glory - 35th Anniversary |
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Speaker |
Rev. Jaerock Lee |
Bible |
1 Corinthians 15: 10 |
Date |
2017-10-08 |
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[Passage]
[1 Corinthians 15: 10]
"But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me."
[Introduction]
Today is the 35th anniversary of our church. Let us give all thanks and glory to God the Trinity who has established this church and guided it until today in His good will for all peoples of the world. I welcome all the guests domestic and overseas who have come to celebrate this meaningful occasion together in the name of the Lord. I give thanks to all the pastors, missionaries, workers, and members who have been dedicating yourselves until today.
In the last Friday all-night service, I stood before the 35th anniversary cake as the senior pastor of the church. On this glorious podium, I gave glory to God the Father and the Lord and was congratulated by many people. But I had only one thought. "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me." This is my profession coming from the depth of my heart that I unchangingly have had for the last 35 years.
In this message, I will talk to you about how we, Manmin Church, have been able to give glory to God immeasurably for the last 35 years. I pray in the name of the Lord that you will be filled with grace and fullness of the Spirit in this service.
[Main]
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, and guests,
The first reason why we of Manmin could save numerous souls and give glory to God is that we didn't think we did anything at all.
People become proud when they have accomplished something, even though it's something small. They might even become overly confident and arrogant, thinking they can do anything. But I could never harbor such thoughts. Through my prayer, hurricanes, floods, drought and epidemics were driven away and the Lord's grace has fallen upon millions or even tens of millions of people, but I wouldn't dare feel lifted up. In order to receive God's deep and secretive words and preach them, I fasted more often than I ate and I prayed all-night more often than I slept. And yet, I couldn't become arrogant. It's because I know so very well that if God is not with me, I am nothing.
Before I met God I was only awaiting death with all my body parts sickened except my two eyes. I couldn't perform as a proper human being not to mention the head of the family. I was despised by many people. And yet God first came to me and met me. The moment I knelt before God, He healed me of all my diseases at once.
He also called me as a servant of the Lord. In May 1978, God spoke to me during my prayer saying, "My servant, whom I've chosen before the ages, I will use you. You will cross mountains, rivers, and seas, and wherever you go I will be with you, and you will let all the nations know that I am alive." In reality, it was very difficult to obey God's calling at that time. I was healed of my diseases, but I had a tremendous amount of debt from my 7 years of sickness. I was just an ordinary man raising 3 children in a one bed-room house. I wasn't confident I could study theology because I was already quite old and I had no memory power. I didn't feel I could stand before people because of my introversive personality. All I had then was my experience of being healed of my diseases and the spiritual life I received by being forgiven of my sins through the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Knowing my thoughts and situations, God continued to speak to me as follows: "I have chosen you since before the ages, and I have kept you with my blazing eyes until now. Your wife is to take care of your shop, and you will begin the way to become My servant. Then, you will earn more than the amount both you and your wife could earn. Your money will not run out; your rice box will not become empty; you will be able to help others. It is God who put you in the lowest place and it is also God who has guided and will guide you in the future. Now you understand why I led you to the lowest place of life. I will lift you up to the highest place with My power."
As He spoke to me, I was nothing yet He made me His instrument to preach the gospel all over the world, crossing mountains, rivers, and seas. Countless souls were delivered from the bonds of idolatry and were healed of incurable diseases. Today, many pastors and leaders carry the handkerchiefs on which I prayed and are winning many souls all over the world, also crossing the mountains, rivers, and seas. Furthermore, the holiness gospel and God's power are broadcast all over the world, adding to the numbers of those saved. Transcending time and space, my prayers manifest the works of re-creation in this world that has a lot of natural disasters, just as prophesied in the Bible about the end time.
When we gave glory to the Lord alone, He let us give Him glory even more greatly. Our Father God and the Lord have received glory through me, who is nothing, and through all the workers of Manmin who have been humbly dedicating themselves. Let us give all glory to God once again! I pray in the name of the Lord that you will also become precious instruments who give glory only to the Lord.
Dear brothers and sisters, and guests,
The second reason Manmin could win many souls and give glory to God for the last 35 years is that we didn't consider anything our own.
The apostle Paul gave up many things to fulfill the will of the Lord. Paul explained about it as follows: 1 Corinthians 9:4-5 says, "Do we not have a right to eat and drink? Do we not have a right to take along a believing wife, even as the rest of the apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas?" And in the latter part of verse 7 it says, "Who plants a vineyard and does not eat the fruit of it? Or who tends a flock and does not use the milk of the flock?" Paul was saying he had every right to take what he needed for his hard work as the Lord's apostle, but he wouldn't. It's because as he said in the latter part of verse 12, "Nevertheless, we did not use this right, but we endure all things so that we will cause no hindrance to the gospel of Christ." He gave up his rights because he was afraid that some believers might have had misunderstandings and reject the gospel, thinking he was seeking money and he considered personal matters more important than the ministry.
Brothers and sisters, I can understand this heart of Paul so very well. As for me, I've never considered even my personal time and my money my own, which I can use as I see fit. Until this day, I've always considered that everything I have belongs to God: even my wife and children, my life, and my heart. So, can you imagine I'd waste anything I have?
How can I use the time and money of the Lord for my personal gain? Whenever I had time, I prayed, fasted, and worked for His kingdom. I am concentrating on prayers in my prayer house in the will of God the Father, but before this began, I had never skipped preaching, even just one week, except for such occasions as overseas crusades or special mountain prayers. Also, whenever I had time, I had meetings with you to plant faith in you and to pray for you.
Even on my way to the church and back home, I didn't rest but held your hands with all my strength. I didn't mind if my hands were scratched and torn by holding hands of thousands of believers. When I had a short resting time, and even on my birthday, I thought about the ways to make such times of rest benefit the kingdom of God and the believers. So, many believers were healed of incurable diseases, like cancers, and other disabilities; and our church continually gave glory to God. The reason I live each day of my life is not to enjoy anything personal but only to accomplish the kingdom of God.
Of course, when I gave up my things, I didn't do it reluctantly. I willingly gave them up because I feel the happiest when I give glory to God. John 4:34 says, "Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work." Likewise, I could enjoy true satisfaction and happiness when I fulfilled the will of God. And it's not just me. Other pastors, leaders, and members have cultivated such faith, and for this reason we of Manmin have been able to accomplish world evangelism together with charitable works. For giving us this grace, let us give all thanks and glory to God the Father!
Dear brothers and sisters and guests,
The third reason why Manmin could save many souls and give glory to God for the last 35 years is because our hearts were only filled by the souls that are bought by the blood of the Lord.
In Colossians 3:1, the apostle Paul, who wrote most of the New Testament, advised the believers as follows: "Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God." As for me, too, since I was healed of all my diseases, I have been seeking only the things above.
I loved the Father God and the Lord who came to me, healed me, and saved me, when I was sick and lonely. I then began to see the many poor souls. I had a dream of becoming a rich elder of a church and help those who were sick and poor like I used to be. But God gave me words that I never expected. He said, "You loved Me foremost and Me alone, rather than your parents, your children, or your wife. Therefore, I will pay you back pressed down, shaken together, and running over and a hundred-fold." And He called me as a servant of the Lord.
To my surprise, the more I loved God, the more I came to love the souls, too. I had burning love for the souls that are created in God's image and for whom the Lord Jesus shed His blood. God gave His only begotten Son to gain true children who resemble God the Father perfectly and with whom He could share His love. And this heart of God was vividly delivered to me. I have been dedicating my whole life to lead countless souls to not just heaven, but all the way to New Jerusalem that has the thrones of God and the Lord.
As the apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 12:15, "I will most gladly spend and be expended for your souls," I never felt it wasteful to give everything I had, if only it was for the souls. No matter how great the toil and sufferings were, I willingly accepted it all if it was for the souls. When I laughed, I laughed because of the souls, and when I cried, I cried because of the souls.
Now, I pour out my heart before you by reading to you the profession of the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 11:27-29, which is my profession as well. "I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches. Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern?"
Dear brothers and sisters, and guests,
For Manmin to become what it is today, there were hardships too. We dedicated all our lives to the winning of the souls, but just because we had great revival in this church, some other churches got jealous and tried to destroy us. Even in times like that, the things that made me shed my tears were not the misunderstandings of the world about me. My greatest pain was to see the souls that left the truth due to their weak faith and to see those who committed unforgivable sins because their spiritual eyes were blinded by their own evil. While I, as the shepherd, was interceding for the souls so they could cast away sins and evil and receive blessings and answers, I was at the brink of death many times. But my greatest concern was not about my physical pain. I was only filled with such thoughts as, "Even after I did everything I could and gave everything I had, still there are souls that dwell in sins. What more can I do for them?" This was my greatest sorrow.
Of course, through those steps, God the Father, the God of justice, set me up as the shepherd of numerous souls in more than11,000 branch and associative churches around the world. He gave me even the power of re-creation that transforms the hearts of men. Isaiah 60:4 says, "Lift up your eyes round about and see; they all gather together, they come to you. Your sons will come from afar, and your daughters will be carried in the arms." As said, increasingly greater multitudes of souls are coming to this church as days go by.
Of course, it was possible thanks to many pastors, leaders, and members who have been dedicating their lives for the salvation of souls helping their shepherd. Let us give all thanks and glory to God the Father who has filled our hearts with the desire for winning the souls.
[Conclusion]
Dear brothers and sisters, and guests,
One of the songs given by God the Father is the "Heart of the Shepherd 2". Let me read a part of the lyrics. "There's not one thing that has been done on my own. It's the Father who's working instead of me. Every day I pray for the glory of the Lord and for the souls that He has given me.
My Father God, You are my everything. My precious Lord, You are God's gift to me. I pray each day that these souls will cling to Thee, hold You fast, and never let go of Thee."
Dear pastors, and members,
I hope you will only have the Father and the Lord in your heart. I earnestly hope that you will devote yourself to praying for the glory of the Lord and for the souls, and give glory to God the Father and the Lord and eventually enter the city of New Jerusalem in glorious heaven. I pray in the name of our glorious Lord Jesus Christ that all those who are working with Manmin's ministry will partake in this glory. |
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