St Timothy Presbyterian Church in Toronto: Sermons

Scripture Passage Romans 12:9-21 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Do Not Avenge These are beautiful words. We should read them daily and keep them in our heart. Paul is teaching us about how to live as a Christian. Or how to live as a good human being. These are marks of Christians. These are visible marks of being a good person. You don't become haughty but associate with the lowly. You extend hospitality to strangers. How beautiful it is to live like that. It doesn't matter whether you are Christians or not. It is what a good human being is supposed to do. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. It sounds simple and easy but people don't do that. Many times people are jealous with those who rejoice. They are indifferent to those who weep. We just don't know how to feel for others. St. Paul said to feel for others. That is a beautiful attitude. But Paul left the most important and the most difficult topic to the end. DO NOT AVENGE! Bless those who persecute you. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. This is what differentiates a good person from an ordinary person. What Paul is telling us to do is very hard. How can you bless your enemies? Those who did evil to you? How can you bless them? Our whole body protests against that. Every cell of my body shouts, NO WAY!!! At best, I can ignore what they did to me. But no way I can bless them. An Eye For An Eye Taylor Swift sang, There's nothing I do better than revenge! Yes, that is what I want to do. We can all identify with that. We don't need to practice to do that. We are already good at it. It is our automatic response when we are hurt. Somebody strikes you, you strike back. We believe that we are entitled to do that. We have the right to do that. Maybe we do. Paul is not saying that you don't. But Paul is saying, Don't do it. Why? BECAUSE IT IS NOT GOOD FOR YOU. Gandhi said, An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. Yes, it destroys both. It destroys you. And it destroys those who hurt you. Actually, Moses gave an eye for an eye instruction for the sake of telling them to be fair. When somebody takes your eye, just take his eye, not his nose and his ears. Don't be a savage. Just one eye, not two eyes either. That's fair. That was Moses' ethics. Ethics of being fair. But when it comes to Jesus, he introduced a higher ethics. You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. (Matthew 5:38-41) A very different idea and a very different standard. It was the same idea as what St. Paul said. Bless those who hurt you. Bless and do not curse them. That is Jesus' way of living our life. It sounds unreasonable. It doesn't sound rational. But I believe that there is a good reason behind that. A Vengeful Heart When evil is done to you, it hurts. Yes, it hurts. When you are betrayed, When you are back stabbed, When you are wrongfully accused, It hurts. No one is immune from the feeling of that hurt. You don't need to pretend that it doesn't hurt. It hurts. When I went to Ohio for a conference, I heard a minister telling us this story. He went to another town to preach and there he met a couple who used to come to his church. After the service, they came to him and so he greeted them nicely and talked to them. That night, when he came to his hotel room, he was covered with hives. And he was shivering. He didn't know why. He realized that he was still feeling the hurt. When this couple was at his church, they hurt him so much that he still felt it. The evil done to you hurts you. But it doesn't stop there. It often creates a vengeful heart and brings darkness within you. It does not just hurt you but takes you into a very dark place. When you are hurt, you want to avenge yourself. You feel that you have to do it. You feel that you need to release your negative emotions. So that you may not be destroyed by your negative emotions. But it doesn't. It doesn't help you. It makes you feel worse. The research found out that the revenge makes you feel worse. Kevin M. Carlsmith, Timothy D. Wilson, and Daniel T. Gilbert studied several participants about the revenge. In their studies, while participants thought they'd feel better after exacting revenge, the researchers found the very opposite. It wasn't just that punishing the transgressor didn't provide a release but that it in fact made participants focus on and ruminate about both the transgressor and the transgression more. Yes, momentarily, you may feel good because you can release your negative emotions within you. But in the end, it is not good for you. You will feel worse. Not only you feel worse, if the hurt turns into a vengeful

Scripture Passage Revelation 21:1-4 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Sioux Valley The writer of Revelation talks about the new heaven and new earth. He compares it to the old order. The old order consists of death, mourning, crying and pain. In the new order, tears are wiped away, and the things of the old are no longer. Sadly enough, we experienced so much of the old order during our mission trip this past week to Sioux Valley Dakota Nation. Sioux Valley is a beautiful place in southwestern Manitoba. They are a beautiful people with beautiful hearts. But the legacy of colonialism, residential schools, and everything else is visible in the lives of the people of Sioux Valley today. In Sioux Valley, every day seems to be like the old order of things. Everyday is a catastrophe waiting to happen. You never know what tragedy the next day will bring. There is a lot of pain. These days, there is a drug issue on the reserve. One evening we held a worship service at the local church building that's owned by the community. Some kids from the neighbourhood saw cars in the parking lot and were curious so they peeked in. Sarah went to talk to them and asked where their parents were. One girl said that her mom died so she was staying with her auntie, but she wasn't sure where she would be tomorrow. Another said her dad had died and she was staying with a grandma. And another girl with a similar story. They spoke matter of factly, as if it was a everyday occurrence. Prayer at Martha's house? Any one of these things would shake us to the core, and we would need a lot of time to process just one of these. But for so many people there, these are everyday occurrences. How can you function in such a world? We held a memorial service at the community cemetery. I looked around the cemetery. So many young deaths. Our norm these days is for people to live into their 80's at least. If they die during their 70's, there is a feeling that their lives were unfortunately cut short. But there, so many people die at a young age: adults in their thirties, twenties, teens, and even babies. There are so many health issues too. So many people there have diabetes The legacy of residential schools and other colonial policies destroyed families, their cultures, their way of life and even their bodies in the form of poor health. But the most lasting legacy is the legacy of damaged hearts A heart that is damaged cannot receive or give love properly. A damaged heart instead inflicts its damage onto others. It sees no hope or purpose What is needed is healing of damaged hearts. So they can love again. The ingredient that the heart needs to heal is love. Love Is All We Need As we began the trip, we weren't sure how it was going to go. Would people be open to us? Would they welcome us? But then an interesting thing happened: some of the first kids to come were children of those who used to attend the camp at Sarah and Joon's old church. A lot of people who attended these camps as kids came to see them and say hi, and they brought their own kids. After all these years, they still remember the love they received at these camps. It seems like a small thing for us, but the love they received has remained in them. As the days went on, word spread about our presence there and more and more people came. Door to door: you guys are the Koreans from Toronto? Our meals were obviously the most popular thing – at one point we had one hundred people come to eat. Our kitchen crew had their hands full the entire trip, and I'm so thankful for them. Jesus said the kingdom is heaven is like a mustard seed: it is the tiniest of seeds, but it grows into the greatest of shrubs where birds can build nests. Love is like a tiny seed. It is not visible when planted. But if it is nurtured and grown, it has the possibility of becoming a tree that bears fruit Love is what we all need. The kids came like magnets. Over 50, 60, 70 kids and youth. They cleaved to our young leaders, for whom I'm also so grateful. They developed the same bonds with the kids that were formed with their parents and others many years ago. A lot of Sioux Valley people move to the nearby city of Brandon to find jobs and opportunities. It's about half hour away. But they drove to Sioux Valley and back each day bc they treasured this camp. It was hard saying goodbye on the last night – there were many tears shed. Everyone kept asking: will you guys come back again? I had to keep responding: I really hope so There are a group of women who are faithful believers. But there is no congregation in the community. Speaking with these women, their desire is for a pastor who can shepherd a congregation. A place for children and youth to learn the Word of God. To hear the message of Jesus' love. Safe place for love and the Word to flourish – counter to what they see on a daily basis. They lament that there is no such place for them It made me realize the second thing that people need: the Word of God has the

Scripture Passage Romans 8:26-39 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script You Are Not Alone How beautiful these words are! So loving, so assuring, so hopeful. Every single sentence is touched with grace and love. There is not too much to add to this beautiful passage. It shows how much God cares for us. You are not alone. God is right there with you to take care of you. The Holy Spirit helps you in your weakness and prays for you with sighs too deep for words. Jesus Christ intercedes for you at the right hand of God. God the Father loves you with love that nothing in the world can separates you from. The WHOLE TRINITY is right there. They all work together to take care of you. What a wonderful news. You are blessed. You will be all right because behind the scene, there is God working hard for you. There is nothing to worry about. This is what St. Paul said. We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28) All things work together for good – because God is working so hard for you. Verse 31 comes to me as a loud declaration! If God is for us, who is against us? (Romans 8:31) If you believe in God, that absolute God is telling you, he is for you, not against you. That should give you confidence. If God is for me, who or what will be against me? No one can condemn you. No one can bring any charge against you. No angel, no ruler, no power can stop God who HAS DECIDED TO LOVE you. Even death cannot stop God from loving you. BUT THE IRONY IS WE ARE OUR WORST CRITIC. We don't love ourselves. We don't accept ourselves. So we have hard time believing that God loves us that much. No matter how much God loves you, if you don't accept the love, the power of love cannot have any effect on you. The Monster Last two weeks, we have reflected on the flesh and the evil. We saw that the flesh is our shadow self and it is deeply ingrained in us. And the evil is very much entangled with the good. We have been always surrounded by the flesh and the evil. We have been always surrounded by these dark forces. That makes it hard for us to love us. Yes, We were not untouched by these dark influences. We were influenced by these negative thoughts. We made it worse by ruminating and overthinking negative things about ourselves. We all experience failures and we all make mistakes. Instead of shaking them off and move on, we dwell on our failures and mistakes. They create anger, disappointment, fear, regrets, and heartaches within us. We have become our own prisoner. We have become our worst enemy. We have become incapable of loving ourselves. We have become slaves of the flesh within us and the victim of the evil around us. As Mena told me about the song last week, I listened to the song, Monster, by Justin Bieber. I could feel this tremendous pressure. You put me on a pedestal and tell me I’m the best Raise me up into the sky until I’m short of breath, yeah Fill me up with confidence, I say what’s in my chest Spill my words and tear me down until there’s nothin’ left Rearrange the pieces just to fit me with the rest, yeah But what if I, what if I trip? What if I, what if I fall? Then am I the monster? Just let me know And what if I, what if I sin? And what if I, what if I break? Yeah Then am I the monster? Yeah Just let me know, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah We deal with monster within us. And often we don't win. We just let the monster rule us and dictate us. And we become monster. Love Your Neighbour as Yourself Being perfect – it sounds good. But the thing is – It only leaves us with scars. It just makes us more disappointed about ourselves. We either give up or cover up. A French Enlightenment writer and philosopher, Voltaire said: Perfect is the enemy of good. I understand what he is trying to say. Perfectionism only leaves us with disappointment and bitterness. We become very uncomfortable with ourselves. JESUS SAID, LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOUR AS YOURSELF. It is quite a profound sentence. He didn't say, just love your neighbour. He said love your neighbour as yourself. He was saying that if you don't love yourself, you cannot love your neighbour. That is not possible. Love is like a flow of water. When it flows within us, it flows to others. When there is love overflowing within us, then it overflows to others. If you are judgmental to yourself, you will be judgmental to others. If you are abusive to yourself, then you are abusive to others. If you are gentle and kind to yourself, then you can be gentle and kind to others. Self-love is not selfishness. When you truly love yourself, you can overcome selfishness because you don't need to be so obsessed about yourself. You are so comfortable with yourself that you don't need to think about yourself so much. What you need is not self-esteem. What you need is self-love. Self-esteem is something you get when you do well and when your life is going all right. But self-love is being kind and gentle to yourself in all circumst

Scripture Passage Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script The Problem Outside Last week, we reflected on the flesh that is within us. The flesh is not just our body but it is our dark self, shadow self. We cannot get rid of it or remove it from us. It torments us and paralyzes us. Even though we don't like it, the flesh is us. It is like our self is attacking us. So as far as the flesh is concerned, we are powerless. Knowing that we are powerless about the flesh, Jesus gave us the Spirit and now through the power of the Spirit, the power of the flesh cannot control us any more. It is there within us but it cannot dominate our lives. Now we are in the Spirit, not in the flesh. Today, I want to talk about another big dilemma that we are dealing with in our lives. It is not a problem of the flesh. Now the problem is not just in us but outside of us. It is within our society. It is the problem of the evil. Jesus’ Parable To help us deal with the problem of the evil, Jesus gave us this parable. Let us look at the parable again. Someone sowed the good seed in his field. But when the plants came up and bore grain, the weeds appeared as well. So the servants asked this question. Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from? (Matthew 13:27) The world God created was good. God created EARTH AND SEA and he said it was good. God created PLANT AND FRUIT and he said it was good. God created THE SUN AND THE MOON and he said it was good. God created FISH AND BIRDS and he said it was good. God created ANIMALS and he said it was good. God completed his creation by creating HUMAN BEINGS and he said it was good. And yet, the world we live in is not always good. There is evil. There are suffering, hardships, agony, and sadness. We ask the same question. Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from? (Matthew 13:27) Jesus did not look at the world with utopian eyes. Jesus did not see you and your life with utopian eyes. He was not fooled by what looked good on the surface. He saw everything as it was. The Nature of Evil Jesus saw the evil working in this world. Jesus saw the evil working in what looked like a holy place and holy people. He saw the power of evil. He saw the intrinsic nature of evil. He saw that the evil is intricately connected with the good. The evil is entangled and intertwined with the good. Money is good when it is used for a good purpose, helping out those who are in need. But at the same time, the evil is right there and it uses money to destroy relationships and even humanity. Religion is good when it helps people to live with goodness and generosity. But at the same time, the evil is right there and uses the religion to create discrimination, wars, and bigotry. In everything, the good and the evil are intertwined. That's why Jesus said this. The servant came to the owner with a solution. Then do you want us to go and gather them? (Matthew 13:28) In other words, do you want us to go and pluck them out? The owner said, Oh no. Don't do that. No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. (Matthew 13:29) In other words, the weeds and the wheat are so intertwined and entangled that you may even hurt the wheat by trying to take out the weeds. From the roots, they are entangled. The Ultimate Victory Evil in our lives or in the world is not something you can easily or naively take out. That was what Pharisees did. They defined narrowly what was good life and what was bad. They used the law to define it. Then they separated the righteous people from the sinful people. Unfortunately, they categorized Jesus as a sinner and his work as evil. Their way of dealing with it was to get rid of him. So they crucified him. Plucking out the bad apple. Then what do we do? Do we do nothing? Just helplessly let the evil play its game? Jesus tells us one thing very clear. Ultimately, the evil will not prevail. The evil will not overcome the good. There will be a consequence of the evil. This is what Jesus said. at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn. (Matthew 13:30) He gives the interpretation later. the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen! (Matthew 13:39-43) In the end, the evil will be punished. The good will win. Keep that in mind. We have confidence in this ultimate victory. We persevere our hardships and difficulties because in the end, God will restore the good.

Scripture Passage Romans 8:1-11 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Spiritual and Worldly Life In today's passage, we see a clear contrast between the life according to the Spirit and the life according to the flesh. The spiritual life and the worldly life. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. (Romans 8:5) What does it mean to set the mind on the flesh? Does this mean to live morally sinful life? Does this mean breaking the law? Does this mean violating cultural norms? The most common understanding of the difference between the spiritual life and worldly life is. Spiritual life is living a moral and religious life and the worldly life is living a secular life. We think of it as something that you do or not do. Just a lifestyle on the surface. In today's passage, I think Paul is talking about something deeper than that. What is this flesh? The flesh is yourself. But a particular aspect of yourself. Your dark self. You can call it your shadow self. Do spiritual people not have it? No we all have it. We are all influenced by this flesh. It is not something that you can deal with by doing anything. It is not about doing anything. It is the condition of your heart. It is our dark side. It is a place we don't want to go, we don't want to be. Behind the social mask we wear every day, we all have this hidden side that we don't want to expose. It makes us feel embarrassed and shameful. That is what the flesh is. It is the self that torments us. It is not only unacceptable to others but also unacceptable to ourselves. It creates tremendous inner struggle within us. The flesh is the reason we hate ourselves. It takes away our joy and our confidence. It takes away light from us. We feel dark when we face this shadow. Unbearable guilt torments us. The Shadow We don't feel it most of the time because we hide it very well deep in our secret place. We put it in there and shackle it with a lock, thinking that it is dealt with. But just because we hide it away and lock it away, it doesn't disappear. We may repress it but it's there. It only goes deeper within us. You can never shackle it with a lock. There is no lock in the world that can lock up our flesh. This is what Swiss Psychologist Carl Jung said. Everyone carries a shadow and the less it is embodied in the individual's conscious life, the blacker and denser it is. (Carl Jung) Repressing it, denying it, and hiding it – that is what we do. We think that we can handle it by doing this. But what we are doing is just getting rid of it from our awareness. We are just turning a blind eye. Its effect is still there. The more you hide it, the more powerfully it will affect us. It creates anger, shame, guilt, fear, and a sense of worthlessness. We become cold, detached, indifferent, and self-centered. We become damaged. We cannot feel for others. We cannot feel life. This shadow can manifest itself collectively, then it becomes collective shadow. One good example is the Holocaust. It can affect the whole nation. They don't feel it and so they can do unimaginable things. It is a malady of modern society. They set fire on a person just sitting in the subway. They just shoot a person without reason. No feeling left any more. Jesus saw that very clearly. We reflected on this last week. We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn. (Matthew 11:17) You become emotionally dry. You become incapable of emotionally engaging with others. This dark self does not allow us to live an integrated and authentic life. We sense hypocrisy within us. Our smile is a fake smile. Our kindness is merely a social gesture. We are not real. Nothing matters except me. That is what the flesh looks like. That is what it means to live according to the flesh. Thing is you can never get away from the flesh. It is who you are. Your shadow self is also yourself. Your dark side is also you. Whether you like it or not, it is you. The more you try to hide it, the more it will control you. The more you try to get rid of it, the more it will make you feel helpless. The Flesh The solution is not to hide it. The solution is not to get rid of it. The solution is for the flesh to serve you, not to make it become your master. Don't give power to your flesh but let it serve you. There is a famous Argentinian writer. His name is Jorges Luis Borges. He said, All that happens to us, including our humiliations, our misfortunes, our embarrassment, all is given to us as raw material, as clay, so that we may shape our art. (Jorges Luis Borges) I think it is a good advice. Creativity does not come from only what is good. Creativity comes from both good and bad. Even our flesh, our dark side, when it is in God's hands, it changes its effects. Instead of destroying us, it will help us to be creative. It is possible because God gave us the Spirit. The Sp

Scripture Passage Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Unresponsive Numbness In just a few days, the City of Toronto will install a new mayor. This election was a milestone. The three leading candidates were immigrants or children of immigrants. Two of them were people of colour. For the first time in Toronto's history, we will have a mayor who is a racialized person of colour and an immigrant. It's a historic moment. It signifies the kind of place Toronto has become – as a city that draws people from all over the world It was also an important election because there are so many issues in the city: Acts of random violence have increased. The problem of homelessness and lack of shelters has grown. Our transportation system is facing issues. Cost of housing is through the roof. But when I think about it, I don't think any of this really mattered much to a lot of people. For most people, this news, if it even registered, was met with a collective shrug. Voter turnout wasn't terrible, but the level of emotional engagement was very low. I wonder if this is how Jesus felt during his lifetime. Jesus was Emmanuel – God with us. The living presence of God in the flesh. He came to usher in a new reign of God. He performed great deeds to signify the beginning of this kingdom. People should have marveled at these great deeds, see them for what they were – the beginning of a new era of God's good works – and changed their lives in response to it. I mean, if you see powerful deeds that mark the beginning of a new thing that God is doing, there is nothing else to do but change! But that's not what happened. Instead of wonder and change, Jesus encountered unresponsive numbness. This is what he says in today's passage: But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to one another, We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn.' (Matthew 11:16) Unresponsive numbness: Is this what life is like today? When things happen around us, do we just greet it with blank stares? Our Hearts Are Tired I don't think that people have no feeling. All of us have feeling. We all care about things. I am thankful for the people of our church: warm, kind, accepting. I think the problem is that people are just overwhelmed with all the things they need to care about It is not that people lack feeling, it's that people's hearts are tired. So many things weigh on their hearts. Many worries. Many anxieties Living day to day takes its toll on us. Bumping up against others in our daily encounters. Being in toxic environments. Feeling lack of purpose in what you do. Going through that daily grind without end. These things leave nicks and bruises on our hearts. They take a toll. They weigh on us. Even when we want to care, when we encounter indifferent numbness in others, it makes our hearts more tired. Sometimes we confuse the brain and the heart. Our work and daily requirements consume us. Our brains get tired. We want to shut down our minds. Shut them down and enjoy some pleasures to rest our minds. But our minds are different from the heart. Shutting off our minds does not give rest for our hearts. The heart is our spiritual center. It is what makes us human. It is the seat of empathy. It is the seat of care. It is the place where hope is born and our imagination comes alive. It is also the gateway to God. It is the place we encounter God. Our brains articulate our experience of God and process our understanding of God, but the heart is where we experience God When our hearts are tired, all of these capacities are diminished. When you don't get enough sleep, your physical and cognitive functions diminish. When your heart is tired, your human and spiritual capacities diminish. You lose capacity for empathy. To care. When your heart is tired, you are unable to concern yourself with anything beyond your own surroundings. There is no room in your heart for more. Everything feels burdensome. When your heart is tired, you become numb to things around you. Instead of being inspired, you become jaded, cynical and judgemental. This is how people responded to people like Jesus and John. For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He has a demon'; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' (Matthew 11:17) Jesus and John were sent by God. They were God's messengers and agents. But they could not recognize that. When your heart is tired, you cannot recognize God. You cannot feel life. Life becomes merely a string of activity with no meaning. No joy. Rest Sleep restores, regenerates and heals the body. In the same way, our hearts need rest. Rest that restores, regenerates and heals the heart. Rest that allows our hearts to feel again. Rest that makes room for others in our hearts. Rest that lets us see God at work. Rest that heals our hearts of s

Scripture Passage Romans 6:12-13 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Sin Sin – it is not a popular topic. We don't want to think about it or talk about it. We want to just sweep it under the rug. What is sin? Sin is breaking rules. But it is more than that. SIN IS A DARK FORCE THAT ENSLAVES US TO ITS POWER. That's why St. Paul often uses the language of SLAVERY AND FREEDOM when he talks about sin. Sin makes us feel powerless. This powerlessness is well expressed in Paul's letter to Romans. I am of the flesh, sold into slavery under sin. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. But in fact it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. (Romans 7:14-20) The last sentence shows the nature of sin very well. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. (Romans 7:20) Sin is not just breaking the rules. It is not just what we do wrong. It is not just our shortcomings. Sin is the dark power that dwells within you. Sin is the power that brings the worst of yourself. It destroys your self-esteem. It robs you of your confidence. It condemns you. It is not you who is doing this to yourself. It is sin within you that does it. It sounds like blaming sin, not yourself. That is not what Paul is trying to say. Paul is trying to show the powerful reality that exists very within us. You are deeply affected by this dark power. This dark power is so powerful that you feel enslaved. It is almost like cancer within you. It takes away the joy of life. It drives you to fear and darkness. It creates guilt within you and this guilt torments you. There is always a dark cloud hovering over you. We have noble visions, beautiful dreams, ideals and yet this dark power destroys them all. When sin convicts you, you become paralyzed and feel hopeless. The Laws By doing something good here and something good there will not be the way to deal with our sin. Trying to be a nice person will not be able to pluck out the sin that is within you. We all have laws within us. If you have grown up in Christian environment, you have God's commandment and Jesus' teaching. Even if you have not grown up in Christian environment, you have learned a moral code. You have these laws and try to follow them. These laws are good. They tell you what is good and what is bad. But having the law – does it help? Knowing what to do – does it help? When you don't have power to carry out, what good is it to KNOW what to do? It's like saying to a depressed person, Don't be depressed. It's like saying to a very angry person, Don't be angry. These laws are useless. Our conscience is not very helpful either. Do we have no choice then? Do we have to live, dictated by this dark and negative power? Can we ever experience true freedom? Freedom Freedom is not to do whatever you want. Freedom is to be free from this dark and negative power. Having enough money and not having to work – that is not what freedom is. You have time and money so that you can travel wherever you want to go – that is not what freedom is. That is Lotto 649 Freedom, not real freedom. Freedom is freedom from sin. It is freedom from fear. Freedom from worries and anxieties. Freedom from guilt. Freedom from greed. Freedom from hatred. Freedom from anger. Freedom from low self-esteem. Having enough money and not having to work cannot give you that kind of freedom. Travelling wherever you want to go will not give you that kind of freedom. St. Paul said this in today's passage. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. (Romans 6:14) Only the power that can destroy the power of sin is grace. When Jesus died on the cross, the power of grace was released. It is like a floodgate being opened. GRACE IS GOD'S DECISION NOT TO CONDEMN YOU BUT TO ACCEPT YOU. St. Paul realized this wonderful truth about God when he met Christ and reflected on him. He discovered the mysterious truth of God's grace. This was what he said. What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? (Romans 8:31) When God decided to love us in spite of our shortcomings, who will accuse us? When God decided to accept us, who will charge us? Who will convict us? Who will bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? ( Romans 8:33, 34) After saying this, St. Paul said this wonderful truth. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separ

Scripture Passage Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script The Beginning Recognizing that I need help is the beginning of everything. It is the beginning of change. It is the beginning of healing. It is the beginning of becoming righteous. It is a very simple statement and simple attitude that we can have. And yet the result is powerful. The woman who had been suffering from haemorrhages for twelve years experienced healing. She had nothing to show for and she did nothing to deserve healing. The only thing she had was this attitude. I need help. The result was phenomenal. She was not just physically healed. She became free from social isolation. During Jesus' time, woman's bleeding was considered dirty. So once a month, women had to go through the humiliation of feeling dirty. It was not a good thing to do to a human being. But this woman with haemorrhages had to live with it not just once a month but every day of her life. Sometimes our culture can be cruel and quite oppressive. If our culture is cruel and oppressive, then we should be bold enough to change that. Now she became free from the social stigma. She experienced a life-changing miracle. It was simple. Her attitude of I need help is all she needed. The same thing happened to the second story. The daughter of a leader of the synagogue. She was dead. But the father did not give up. He came to Jesus. He came with this simple attitude. I need help. His simple plea of I need help saved his daughter. He experienced the wonderful miracle of having back his daughter. The woman who had been suffering from haemorrhages and the leader of the synagogue had this simple attitude. I need help. This Simple Request Your prayer should be simple. Lord, I need help. You don't need to say anything more. You don't need to say a long prayer, using fancy words. When you live your life with this simple attitude, your life will become very simple and amazingly, you will experience the wonderful mystery of God. You don't need to impress anyone. You don't need to prove yourself to others. You don't need to show how great you are. You simply come to God and say I need you. You simply come to others and say I need you. Do you know how European church started? Very simple. It started with this vision. St. Paul's original plan was to go to Asia. But he saw this vision at night. This was the vision. During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, Come over to Macedonia and help us.'(Acts 16:9) Macedonia was Europe. Come and help us. With this simple request, the whole Europe became the Christian country. Lord, help me. That is the attitude of asking for mercy. I have nothing to give you. I have no sacrifice to present to you. I come simply because I need your help. But God likes that. Matthew tells us this. I desire mercy, not sacrifice. (Matthew 9:13) That was how Matthew felt when he was first called. Matthew was a tax collector. Everybody hated tax collectors. They took advantage of people financially. They were like thieves. To make money, to be rich, they threw away their dignity and personal integrity. They lived their whole life with this sense of being dirty and impure. Like the woman who had suffered from haemorrhages. The woman for the wrong reason. But Matthew, maybe, for the understandable reason. When Jesus called Matthew, he was quite surprised. He was so honoured. Jesus' calling was a pure honour. Matthew didn't deserve to be a disciple of Jesus. He did too many bad things to people. And he knew that too. And yet, this great teacher called him to follow him. He experienced the mercy of God. What Jesus said at that moment was so powerful to him. For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners. (Matthew9:13) Matthew remembered this moment so vividly. It was Matthew who wrote this gospel. That phrase cut to the heart of Matthew. Matthew changed forever. He was only a tax collector but he wrote this master piece, called the Gospel According To Matthew. It became the Bible for us. The power of mercy. He learned the power of mercy. True Righteousness Jesus said this. Go and learn what this means, I desire mercy, not sacrifice. (Matthew 9:13) Pharisees did not have the clue of what their own prophet, Hosea said. What I just quoted was quotation from Hosea. They didn't live with the attitude of I need help. They had the attitude of I am righteous. We are righteous not because we are clean and sinless but because of God's mercy, we can stand before God as a righteous person. True righteousness begins with I need help. From that true righteousness, the wonderful and powerful miracles can happen. There is a clear difference between the righteousness that I built with my own power and the righteousness that is given to me as a gift. Jesus explains this contrast with his parable. He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: Two

Scripture Passage Matthew 28:16-20 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Together in Partnership I told you last week that there is a project of translating the Bible in their tribal languages. It has been translated into two languages and they will do two more translation in the future. Each translation project costs U$100,000. One person donated U$100,000 and U$300,000 were raised. The Rev. Ohm said he would donate again. There are a lot of good and generous people in the world. People in Madagascar couldn't do this alone. We need a partnership. This world is deeply connected. It is not that western countries do the mission for the developing countries. The attitude of colonial mission should not be the model we should follow any more. We work together in partnership, using each other's strengths and resources. People in Madagascar are doing much better in terms of mission than those who live in North America. But they need financial resources. So we help them and enable them to do what they do well. We are enablers. We have to look at mission in a new way. It is true that there had been many problems with the idea of mission traditionally. But Jesus' Great Commission is still important to us. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19) Matthew 28:18-20 is often called the Great Commission. It is a term coined by the great missionary to China, Hudson Taylor, who said, The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed. Just as the sun does not forget a village just because it is small, we do not want to ignore the people of any small language group who have not heard the gospel. That's why we wanted to translate the Bible in their tribal languages. When I was a chair of the Asian Centre at Knox, there was a man who was translating the Bible into Hakka tribe in Taiwan. This Bible is specifically edited to reflect African situation in their commentaries and a little stories. The Rev. Ohm's name is written in the first page. Because this project was done by Leadership International which helps many African projects. The leader of the Leadership International came to Madagascar last year and he had a heart attack. We all prayed for his safety. With God's help, he was Ok. Gifts From God The Great Commission is a precious statement. It is what gives us the purpose of life. Because of this Great Commission, we have come to know Jesus Christ, and believe in him, and have eternal life. There were people who took this Commission seriously enough that they gave their lives to fulfill this Commission. That was how the good news came to us. We owe them. St. Paul lived with this indebted feeling. This was what he said. I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish (Romans 1:14) Of course, he didn't borrow money from them. He is a debtor of God's grace and his way of paying back the debt was to share the gospel with Greeks and barbarians, the wise and the foolish. He lived his life with this indebted feeling. Yes, we are all debtors. God has provided so much for us. All the good things that we enjoy – we have received from God. Material wealth, our children, our health, our good living condition, our security. Not only that. Peace we feel. Love that we experience. Forgiveness that we enjoy. The hope for the eternal life. These are all free gifts from God. We don't need to pay back. But deep in our heart, we have this appreciation. That appreciation is what Paul was talking about. He was so appreciative that he said he was a debtor. I think that is the best way to describe our deep appreciation. Yes, we are debtors. Not because we have to pay back, but we want to pay back out of gratitude. Those who are in difficult situations. We are debtors to them. Those who are experiencing injustice in life. We are debtors to them. The natural environments that was destroyed and exploited because of human greed. We are debtors to them. Those who don't know the good news. We are debtors to them. People in Madagascar live with that attitude. I thanked them personally for taking time out and helping me. They always said, No I thank you. They live with this indebtedness. And they all took this Commission seriously. I could see that. They gave their life to carry out this Commission. My translator was so happy seeing the students learning so much and he told me what students told him with excitement. Indebtedness Entitlement attitude should not be a Christian attitude. I am having what I am entitled to have. I am enjoying things that I am entitled to enjoy. That is not a Christian attitude. The attitude of indebtedness should be a Christian attitude. The disciples carried out the Great Commission with this indebted feeling. We sing this song. O for a thousand tongues to sing My great Redeemer’s praise, The glories of my God and King, The triumphs of His grace. Even if we have a thousand tongues, it is not enough to praise God with them. That is

Scripture Passage Acts 1:8 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script The Ends of the Earth Acts of Apostles was written by Luke. When Luke wrote this book, there was no such thing as Christians. They were all Jews. But they were different from the majority of other Jews. They believed that Jesus was the Messiah they had been waiting for. So, we call them Messianic Jews. They were a very small group. After Jesus died, only 120 people gathered together to pray. A very small, insignificant group. But Luke had a great vision. He had a vision that there will be God's witnesses not only in Jerusalem but to the ends of the earth. He believed in what Jesus said. This was what Jesus said. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. (Acts 1:8) What Jesus said came true. There were witnesses who went to the ends of the earth. What started with prayers of 120 people changed the whole world. Starting from Rome, the whole world changed. All Europe, Asia, North and South America, Africa, and Madagascar that I went to. FJKM Church Slide: Church Picture The picture you see is FJKM church in one of the villages where I taught. On the building, it says 1859. But the church officially began in 1968. FJKM means Church of Jesus Christ in Madagascar. It has been a member of WCC since 1969. This church is the biggest denomination as the reformed church in Madagascar. They have 6 million members. The Rev. Njato who organized this whole mission is a minister of 20,000 members. They have 5 separate services. It was 15,000 member church when I went last time and it grew. I don't know how Luke had this big vision. He was like a prophet. That itself was a miracle. He didn't believe in the power of 120 people. He didn't believe in the power of 4 million or 6 million people. He believed in the power of the Holy Spirit. You can see that in today's passage. He said, when the Holy Spirit has come upon you When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you become a witness. That is what the Holy Spirit does. When you receive the Holy Spirit, you want to be a witness. And you will live a life of being a witness. Being a witness means simply to share what God has done in your life. The Desire to be a Witness I went to two places: Ambatondrazaka and Fianarantsoa. Since we didn't have enough time, we had to take a small plane when we got there. It's only 400 Km but it takes 20 hours by a car. On the way back, we came by a car. Slide: Pilot from Sweden and a young mother from Holland. They are all there because they want to be witnesses. Every year, the church the Rev. Njato serves sends 50 lay missionaries. When they first started this project, they asked for help and so our church financially helped them. You see pictures on the way to the fellowship hall. Now, they are sending 200 people. They are just church members. Some of them are professors, engineers, teachers, and there are also who are not educated. They take vacation and go there to help establish a church. In Madagascar, there are a few big cities but there are also so many small villages. There is no road to get there. So, you have to go there by Helicopter and there is a Heli Mission. Or some places, you go by a boat. These lay people want to be witnesses and that's why they get trained and go to rural areas. I helped them again with the fund you provided for me. Just to take us around, two people took their vacation and drove us. One was a professional soldier and the other was a taxi driver by profession. One person took a week's vacation to do translation for us. They were all church members. For them, serving is their life. Serving for Christ is what they do. They do this with the desire to be witnesses. That is the proof of having the Holy Spirit within them. The proof of having the Spirit is not about having supernatural gifts or speaking in tongues but having the desire to be a witness. Luke believed in this power. And we have seen this power throughout Christian history. Passion I went to train seminary students. FJKM has 4 seminaries. And there is a Faculty of Theology in Antananarivo. You study 3 years in these seminaries but they have to study at the Faculty of Theology for their final year. Then you go out and practice one more year. Then you can become a minister. There are 7,200 churches in the national church but only 1,500 ministers. In Ambatondrazaka, there were 69 students and 77 students in Fianarantsoa. There were more female students in both seminaries. Their studying environment was not very good. They all live there. In a small room, 6-8 people live together. Not many facilities. Slide: Washroom But they all have this desire to be witnesses. They didn't mind their difficult circumstances. They had this passion to be witnesses. Slide: Students They could overcome all their difficult situations with this sole desire to be witnesses. When I taught them,

Scripture Passage 1 Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Fiery Ordeal Our passage today begins with this verse: Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. (1 Peter 4:12) Peter's community is going through something very difficult. To grasp what that is, we need to unpack the context a little bit. Peter is writing to a community of mostly Gentiles. Before they became Christians, they used to be a part of their communities. They lived the same way as them. They were insiders in the culture and community. But everything changed after they met Christ. After meeting Christ, they found their reason for living. The way they thought changed. The way they behaved changed. The people they hung out with changed. When people change, it disturbs those around them. It disrupts the equilibrium. It is unsettling. Their change attracted hostility. It aroused suspicion. They became marginalized in their own communities. The people are going through a very hard time. They are second guessing themselves. But Peter has a message for them: But rejoice insofar as you are sharing Christ's sufferings, so that you may also be glad and shout for joy when his glory is revealed. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you. (1 Peter 4:13-14) Rejoice. Your are blessed. Love and Suffering Peter is telling them to embrace suffering and hold fast to what they had found in Christ When you love something, you suffer. This is a universal truth. When you truly love something and give of yourself to it, it will bring suffering. Parents' suffering: parents love their children, but that love brings suffering. When your children suffer, you suffer. But suffering borne of love bears the fruit of life. God loved the world so much that he sent his only son, Jesus. Jesus' suffering in love saves us, gives us life. To meet Christ is to experience fullness of God's love – to be enveloped by love. Love is what brings life. Love makes things come alive. To really live, need to be driven by love. If you haven't found something or someone to love, then you haven't found a reason to live. Calling: unique way in which love is manifested. Love is universal, calling is unique. The shape that love is manifested in each person is unique. Calling is your special unique contribution of love to the world that only you can contribute. It's not about your job, but how you live your life and bless others. That is unique to you. I am a minister by job, but my calling is not so much about the duties I perform. It is about who I am. Who I am comes through in how I do my job and relate to others. Ultimately, it is me as a person who is called to love regardless of whether I'm a minister or not, not me as a minister. We are all uniquely created to offer our unique contribution of love to this world. When we are in Christ, we discover who we are. In Christ's love, we find our unique expression of that love. But that love brings about suffering. Peter's community found this love in Christ, but they were suffering from the hostility from others. Hostility When you experience hostility, it does something to you. Weakens your resolve. Makes you doubt yourself. Instead of feeling free to love, it makes you fear, becoming driven by the need to be accepted and blend in. Discrimination and prejudice have corrosive effects. It makes you feel like what you have to offer is not worth much. Not only that, but that it's undesired. When you're made an outsider, it eats away at your sense of self-worth. Many of you experienced that. That is what is pernicious about racism: you are made to feel that you are less valuable and have less to offer simply by who you are in appearance or background. Rejection and prejudice can distort who you are. You become very defensive: try to prove yourself and show how special you are, or hide who you are and try to blend in. Avoid difference and run away from what's unique about yourself. Bury your unique contribution of love. To be driven more by calculation than by love To live life that's true requires courage. You need to be willing to face the fire that can come your way. You need to face the fiery ordeals that Peter is talking about. These fires will test who you are and what you're made of. Peter is trying to forge a new identity for those who are in Christ. It's a new identity sealed in his blood. The blood that came from his suffering. We are those who share the sufferings of Christ. Those sufferings give us life. We too take up the path to the cross that Jesus took. We have faith that we will rise with him and share in his glory Yes, rejection by others takes its toll on us. Even the resurrected Jesus retained the marks on his hands and his sides he received during his crucifixion. We too rise again with Christ, but our marks remain

Scripture Passage John 14:15-21 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script An Anchor Happy Mother's Day. In our church, we celebrate our parents once a year, so I will say, Happy Parents' Day . We celebrate parents because they are anchors for their children. It is not so much what you do for them that matters. It is your presence. Your presence is the anchor for your children as they grow up. Your presence allows them to grow securely into who they are supposed to be. Your presence is the safe space in which they blossom. Your presence is the place from which they venture out into the world. Your presence is their anchor. That is the greatest thing you can do for your children – be an anchor for them through your presence. An anchor keeps a boat securely moored. It keeps the boat safe at harbour when storms hit. It keeps it from drifting out to sea and getting lost. It keeps the boat calm and steady so it can get ready to sail. Just like a parent, Jesus was the anchor for his disciples. They left everything to follow him. He was the one in whom they pinned all their hopes. They sat at his feet as he taught. They were beside him as he healed people. They felt purpose and meaning in his presence. He was their true anchor. But now, Jesus is talking about his departure. It's making them very uneasy. Jesus makes them a promise: I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. (John 14:18) To be orphaned is to lose the anchoring presence that parents provide. Orphans are very vulnerable. The disciples were feeling very vulnerable. What would they do if he was gone? But Jesus is promising that he will not leave them alone. He will come back to them. He will come back, but the manner in which he'll come back is very mysterious. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. (John 20:19) They didn't understand what Jesus meant. What Jesus says is very mysterious. What does it mean that the world will no longer see him, but that they will? Jesus is promising his continuing presence with them, but not in the way they had experienced up to now. Until now, they had been with him physically, and his physical presence had been their anchor. Jesus is talking about a different kind of presence. He's talking about a different reality. A spiritual presence in a spiritual reality. This was difficult for them to understand. It's difficult for us to understand. In our contemporary, scientific, technological age, reality for us has become only what we see with our eyes and what we can touch. Reality is what we experience on the surface. Reality is logical and what we can make sense of. So the anchors we seek are concrete, tangible, and make sense. Health, wealth, job, family and friends. These are anchors we can see and that make sense. But spiritual people have known that reality is not only what we can see or touch. It is not just what our analytical minds can deduce. There is a great reality beyond what we see. We may not see it with our eyes, but it is just as real. Spirituality is being in tune with what is real but not visible to our eyes. Spiritual growth is about cultivating eyes to see this greater reality. Pastor Dave is a very observant guy – maybe that's why he's a pastor. He went to Germany for his sister's wedding. He was at the airport for the first time since the pandemic began. There were so many people – everyone going off to their destination. When we're there, we're just focused on where we're going. We go, check in our luggage, wait, then board the plane. But in order for each person to get where they're going, there are so many things happening behind the scenes. There are so many people involved, so many systems at play, so much coordination that takes place, to get each person where they need to go. We don't really think about any of that. We don't see everything that happens behind the scenes. But all of what happens behind the scenes is real. We couldn't travel without all of that. Spiritual Reality That is what spiritual reality is like. It is all the things happening beyond the sight of our eyes. We may not see or notice it, but they are very real nonetheless. Being spiritual is to see what we don't see. Beneath everyday life, there are many things happening. There are things happening in your heart. Things based on your interactions and experiences. Someone around you might behave in a strange way, but underneath the surface, there's a lot happening. Beneath and beyond the reality we see is a spiritual reality hidden from our eyes but that is real nonetheless. A spiritual person learns to detect and discern these things. While Jesus was with the disciples, they were not very spiritual people. His physical presence was their anchor. They saw the wonderful things he was doing but did not understand the deeper meaning of them. But Jesus was preparing them to be spiritual people. He said this: And I will ask the Father, and he will give you an

Scripture Passage John 14:1-14 Worship Video Worship Audio The worship audio will be available at a later time. Thank you for your patience! Sermon Script Uncertainty Last few weeks, I have encountered many deaths. It is sad to witness the passings of people with whom I have had a close relationship. Not only that, I also have heard from people who are going through illness that makes their future very uncertain. I received a Kakao message from a person I haven't seen some time. He asked for prayer. He was diagnosed with cancer and asked me to pray for him. To all of us, life is very uncertain. More uncertain, especially for those who are going through a difficult time. But my friends, the truth is our life has been always uncertain. We always lived with the uncertainty. We don't know our future. That is what life is. God made it that way. Proverbs said, Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring. (Proverbs 27:1) James said, Come now, you who say, Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a town and spend a year there, doing business and making money.'Yet you do not even know what tomorrow will bring. (James 4:13, 14) We do not know what tomorrow will bring. That is the undeniable truth. Ancient people knew that. It didn't change in our modern time. Unfortunately, this gives us anxiety. It troubles our heart. We Don’t Know About Tomorrow In the last few days of Jesus' life, his disciples felt very uneasy. We see that very clearly in today's passage. Today's passage is called Farewell discourse. This is Jesus' final words to his disciples. He knew he was going to die soon and so he wanted to say goodbye to his disciples but at the same time, he wanted to say a few words to them. The disciples sensed that something bad was coming. Their future was not clear. Jesus kept talking about going to the father. This made them feel very uncomfortable. Finally, Thomas asked this question. Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way? (John 14:5) The disciples were scared. When something bad is coming, we all sense it. They all sensed dark clouds coming over them. They depended on Jesus all this time and now they sensed that he might no longer be with them. They could not think of their lives without Jesus. They all followed Jesus and Jesus showed them what to do. If Jesus were not with them, they wouldn't know what to do. Threats and dangers – they felt them. Sensing their anxiety, Jesus said this. Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. (John 14:1) Uncertainties of life will never disappear from us. You will always face uncertainties of life. No one lives with certainty. No one knows what holds tomorrow. We see a movie where people come from the future and know exactly what would happen in a few minutes. When we see that, we say, oh that's nice. But it is only a fantasy. We don't know about tomorrow. Everyone is on the same boat. Live With Faith FACING UNCERTAINTIES OF LIFE, ARE YOU GOING TO LIVE WITH ANXIETY OR ARE YOU GOING TO LIVE WITH FAITH? These are two roads ahead of you. You have to choose. Depending on which road you choose, your life will turn out very differently. Jesus clearly told us to choose to live with faith. Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. (John 14:1) Jesus is saying to the disciples to choose to live with faith when your future is uncertain. Don't let your hearts be troubled. Choose to live with faith. That is what Jesus wants us to do. I don't know what holds my tomorrow. But I know who holds my tomorrow. I may not know about tomorrow, but I am going to live today with faith in God who holds my tomorrow. I am going to Madagascar tomorrow. I don't know clearly what is waiting for me. I don't know what God is going to reveal to me. But I will go with faith in God who holds my tomorrow. When you have this faith, worries disappear. There is nothing to worry about tomorrow. Do what you have to do today. That is what our Lord Jesus taught us. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today. (Matthew 6:34) You have the energy only enough to deal with today's trouble. You don't have the energy to worry about tomorrow. When you start worrying about tomorrow, it will start damaging your soul. Confidence In God Don't you have to plan for tomorrow? Of course, you do. You have to plan for tomorrow. Planning for tomorrow is different from worrying about tomorrow. Planning for tomorrow means to take tomorrow positively. Worrying about tomorrow is taking tomorrow negatively. Planning for tomorrow means to invite tomorrow. Worrying about tomorrow is avoiding tomorrow. You can plan for tomorrow because you don't worry about tomorrow. When you have faith, you can use all your energies for planning not for worrying. But when you plan for tomorrow, keep this in mind. You plan it but it is God who makes it happen. The human mind plans

Scripture Passage John 10:1-10 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Abundant Life Life is about giving. It is not about taking. Good life is a life of giving. There is a joy in giving. There is a secret of happiness hidden in the life of giving. This is what Jesus said. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. (John 10:10) He gave us the abundant life. Abundant life is a life of giving. Your life is so filled with God's blessings that it overflows. That overflowing is giving. You don't give from scarcity. You give from the abundance. Abundance is not necessarily the abundance of material. That is not what Jesus is talking about. Those who followed Jesus did not become rich materially. But they had the abundant life. Abundance is the quality of your heart. It is the quality of your existence. This is what St. Paul said. Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:11-13) That is what abundant life looks like. It doesn't depend on the material abundance. The Path of Taking A few weeks ago, a person came to me and told me after the service. Rev., if there is anybody in HiC who needs help, let me know. I can help. I am a counsellor. That is the attitude of giving. Your heart is filled with God's blessings and it overflows. When you don't have abundance in your heart, you cannot give. All you can think about is taking. Because you feel you are lacking. You feel empty inside. That empty void within you drives you to want to take more. But the truth is it cannot be filled by having more. If you take the path of taking rather than giving, you will become very unhappy. The more you try to take, the more unhappy you will become. I don't know why this is the case but that is what I see both in me and in others. Someone said this. While reading books or articles, I have a habit of writing down phrases I like. I don't know where I read it but it was good so I wrote it down in my notepad. Gratitude flows from the recognition that who we are and what we have are gifts to be received and shared. The recognition that who we are and what we have are gifts – THAT FILLS OUR EMPTY VOID. When we have that recognition, we experience our deep void being filled and the gratitude follows. We often forget about the givenness of life. We did not make everything possible on our own. We did not achieve everything that we have. Important things in life are given. The air we breathe. Beautiful trees and flowers. Sunshine we enjoy. Rain that blesses the land. These are all given. These are gifts of God. We did not become who we are on our own. It is not all about our achievement. There were a lot of people who have helped you to become who you are. Your parents, your friends, your colleagues, and even strangers. When you recognize that who you are and what you have are gifts to be received and shared, you will thankfully share what you have. That is life of giving. That is what abundant life looks like. You give not because you have to or because you feel guilty. You give because you love to. As you received good gifts from life, you want to share these gifts with others so that they may also experience the goodness of life. When you take the path of taking rather than giving, you become smaller and smaller. Your existence will be shrunk up. You become a needy person. Very focused on yourself. Always think about yourself. You become a prisoner of yourself. That is not who we are. We are more than that. We are created in God's image. Our God is abundant God. All the good gifts overflow from God. God is always giving. For God so loved the world that he GAVE his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. (John 3:16) He even gave his only Son for us. Jesus came to give us life, the abundant life. God is all about giving. We are created in God's image. Overflowing abundance – that is who we are. You are much more than selfish people who always want to take. You are generous people who are filled with God's abundant blessings. Self-Transcendence There was an American psychologist who studied human needs. His name is Abraham Maslow He came up with a pyramid that describes the hierarchy of human needs. And he put self-actualization at the top. At the bottom, there are physiological needs. (Safety, Love and belonging, Esteem ) Physiological needs are predominant in infancy and early childhood. But for the mature adult, the need of self-actualization is strong. Self-actualization is living out your full potential. But near the end of his life, he amended his pyramid, realizing that there is another step to the top after the self-actualization. That is self-transcende

Scripture Passage Matthew 28:1-10 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Dawning Matthew chapter 28 describes the scene of the resurrection. Listen to the first verse. After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. (Matthew 28:1) These words catch my eyes. After the sabbath The first day of the week Dawning The first creation ended with the Sabbath. Now there is a new beginning. The first day of the week was dawning. It is the language of a new beginning. The resurrection is the new beginning. That's why Luke started another book, called the Acts of the Apostles. The resurrection of Jesus started a new movement. He recorded what this new movement looked like. All four gospel writers experienced the resurrection and that prompted them to write their gospel. And they all believed that Jesus' resurrection opened a new era, a new beginning, and a new world. So Mark started with this. The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. (Mark 1:1) John started with this. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1) They all experienced the new beginning in Jesus' resurrection. They experienced the resurrection. They saw it, heard it, and felt it. What they used to know maybe theoretically, now they experienced it. Until then, death controlled their lives. Now they realized that death was not the end anymore. They saw that in Jesus' resurrection. This gave them a new hope and their life changed. When we believe that there is resurrection, we can start a new life. We can look at our lives differently. Angel told the women this. He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him. This is my message for you.' (Matthew 28:7) On the way, they met Jesus and Jesus told the women this. Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me. (Matthew 28:10) The angel and Jesus both emphasized Galilee. Go there. I would be there. Why Galiliee? That was where Jesus began his ministry. Jesus wanted the disciples to start again from where he started his ministry. Jesus' ministry did not end at his death. Jesus' ministry started again with his resurrection. But this time, it will be done not by Jesus. But the disciples would carry out the ministry. But Jesus promised that he would be with them. That's why at the end of this chapter which is the end of the book, Matthew ended his gospel with this. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'(Matthew 28:18-20) Every Sunday We come together on Sunday. Do you know why? To celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Every Sunday, we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. And with that celebration, our week begins. So to us, Sunday is the beginning of our week. St. Paul had a new beginning of his life after he met the risen Lord on the road to Damascus. That's why he said this. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! (2 Corinthians 5:17) When you know that death is not the end, you can start a new life. You will have a new beginning. Jesus had done all he had to do. Then he died. On Sabbath, he rested. And on Sunday, he rose from the dead and brought a new beginning, new creation, and new life. The old has gone and the new has come. Every Sunday, we can begin a new life. That should be our life pattern. We might have failed during the week. We might have ruined our life for that week. We might have gone astray. But on Sunday, we can start a new life. That is what the spirit of resurrection is all about. We fall and we rise again. We fail and we try again. That is what resurrection is. Boast in Your Suffering Death cannot end our new beginning. Death cannot be the period of our life. We won't let death be the period. We always connect the next sentence with the and or but . I have finished the race AND the crown of glory is waiting for me. I have failed BUT I will try again because God gives me another opportunity. The resurrection is not just about the physical death. The resurrection is our life attitude. When you believe in the resurrection, your life attitude will be renewed. You won't be scared of losing everything. Because you know that it will be filled up again. It will be filled up more abundantly. It is so filled up that it will flow over. You cannot but be positive about your life. Even failure will only help you. This is what St. Paul said. we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope (Romans 5:3, 4) Even suffering will not end our life. S

Scripture Passage Matthew 27:11-26 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script He Was Silent When I read today's passage, two words come to my mind. SILENCE and NOISE There is a silence of Jesus and a noise of people The only thing Jesus said was this. You say so. (Matthew 27:11) This was when Pilate asked Jesus whether he was the King of the Jews. That was it. After that, Jesus didn't say anything. Until Pilate handed him over to be crucified, he said nothing. He was completely silent. When he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he did not say anything. when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he did not answer. (Matthew 27:12) He did not defend himself. He was silent. Pilate was frustrated and told Jesus this. Do you not hear how many accusations they make against you? (Matthew 27:13) He wanted to break Jesus' silence and make him say something. Say something to defend himself. But Jesus did not say a word. Total silence! he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed. (Matthew 27:14) Pilate was amazed because Jesus was different from all the people he experienced. They all begged him to save their lives. But Jesus was silent. It was not that Jesus had nothing to say. He had so much to say. He was a teacher. He taught so many great truths. When you read the Gospels, it was mostly Jesus who spoke. But not this time. Jesus knew when it was a time to speak and when it was a time to be silent. The Wisdom of Ecclesiastes That is the wisdom of Ecclesiastes. For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 6-7) Jesus knew that it was a time to be silent Why was he silent? Because he knew that it was no use. Jewish leaders already made up their minds to kill him. No matter what Jesus said, no matter what Pilate tried to do, they would push through their agenda and they would get it. Jesus knew that. They were so determined. They believed that they were doing God's will. When people think what they are doing is God's will, no one can stop them. Hear what they said. Then the people as a whole answered, His blood be on us and on our children!' (Matthew 27:25) Very determined. Their determination could be felt in their voices. Barabbas! Barabbas! Crucify Jesus! Crucify Jesus ! Pilate was not naive. He was a very polished politician. He knew people very well. He clearly knew that Jesus was innocent. For he realized that it was out of jealousy that they had handed him over. (Matthew 27:18) He almost defended Jesus. The more he tried to defend Jesus, the more violently people reacted. But they shouted all the more, Let him be crucified!'(Matthew 27:23) Loud Noise! Unfortunately, Pilate listened to the noise. Instead of hearing the voice deep within him, he gave his ear to the noise. His true desire was to release Jesus because he didn't want to kill an innocent man. Three times, he tried. Whom do you want me to release for you, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Messiah?' (Matthew 27:17) Which of the two do you want me to release for you?' And they said, Barabbas.' (Matthew 27:21) Why, what evil has he done?' (Matthew 27:23) He tried. Also, his wife had a dream and told Pilate not to do anything with this man, Jesus. Pilate knew what was the right thing to do. But he chose to listen to the noise. When you hear the noises, you end up doing what you don't want to do. That's why you can never be fully committed. You can never fully engage in your life if you follow the noises around you. That was exactly what Pilate did. he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, I am innocent of this man's blood; see to it yourselves.'(Matthew 27:24) He neglected his responsibility, sitting on the judgment seat. He ran away from his responsibility. In Silence Noises are here. (Pointing to your head) Not here (Pointing to your heart) You hear the noises because you fear. You hear them because they are just there. Following noises, you can never live a life of commitment. Don't listen to the noises around you. Noises will impose themselves upon you, whether you like them or not. They force you to hear them. They are the voices of fear. Jesus was silent. Not only because it was useless to speak. He was listening to the silence. He wanted to hear what was deep within his heart. He wanted to hear God because God speaks in silence. In silence, we hear our true voice, our true desire. In that sense, silence is not absence but a presence, a very strong presence. It's not running away. It is engaging in it. In today's Scripture, Jesus was very much present even though he was silent. In silence, we hear God very clearly. We silence our greed, our fear, our ambition, our worries and we listen to God. In silence, we become very clear about what we want to do w

Scripture Passage John 11:1-45 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Grace and Miracles Life is full of miracles. Miracles are not just supernatural events. Miracles are events where you experience God's grace. Sun rises in the morning. Babies are born. As you lie down, you get a good sleep. People learn to cope with unbearable suffering. People overcome incredible challenges to live happy lives. These are all miracles we see. We all experience God's grace. If you don't believe in miracles, you miss a big part of your life. Why do people choose to serve instead of being served? Why do people choose to love instead of hating? Why do people choose to forgive instead of staying angry? They are all miracles to me. They do that because they see God's grace in their lives. Experiencing miracles and experiencing God's grace: They go together. Last 7 weeks, we did a series of Knowing Christ from the 4 Gospels. It was a long journey for me. At first, I was very uncertain about this series. I was thinking about this series from last year but I didn't have a clear picture until the week before the series began. And just a week before, slowly all my studies started coming into shape one by one. It was all God's grace. Last Tuesday, after the series was over for the KSM, we had a take out lunch from Mandarin. I was drained. I got my food and there was a fortune cookie on my table. I don't know who put it there. I opened it and it said this. Your sparkling eyes shed a healing light on those you meet. I was so glad to hear that. It rejuvenated me. It was almost like God's comforting words. To me, it was a miracle. When you start seeing life as a miracle, you see a lot of good things happening in your life. Life is not all that bad, you realize. You can see the unlimited possibility of your life. You will feel that life is a dynamic experience. You can see life is a full of grace. Look around you. I see a teenager who overcomes insurmountable challenges of emotional changes. I see a single mother who doesn't give up but fights to survive with her children. I see old people who do not give up on living a meaningful life in spite of their frail bodies. Life is full of grace and full of miracles. Characterizing Life Believing in Jesus Christ means believing in miracles. John used 7 miracles to compose his Gospel. Through these miracles, John described who Jesus was. Interestingly, John doesn't use the word, dunamis which means power. From that word, the word dynamite came from. Often, the Gospels used dunamis for miracles. Mark used 10 times. Matthew used 13 times. Luke used 15 times. But John never used it. But John used, instead, Seimeion for miracles. It means sign. Sign points to something. Sign itself is not what is important. What it points to is what is important. These 7 miracles all pointed to Jesus. He fed 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fish and this miracle pointed to Jesus being the bread of life. He healed the born blind man which we reflected on last week. This miracle pointed to Jesus being the light of the world. Today, Jesus raised Lazarus who was dead. This miracle pointed to Jesus being the resurrection and the life. So believing in Jesus means believing in miracles. Miracles characterized Jesus' life. I pray that miracles characterize your life. Martha entered into a new world in today's story. She saw that life was a dynamic experience. Until then, Martha's life was pretty predictable. She lived her life, doing same things over again. But on that day, her life changed. She saw miracles. She experienced God's grace. Miracles and God's grace characterized her life from then on. It all began with her faith. Jesus said this to Martha. I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this? (John 11:25, 26 This was what Martha said. She said to him, Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.'(John 11:27) Through her faith, she experienced something she never experienced before. When you have faith, you will see wonderful things in your life. The Greatest Miracle Before Nathanael met Jesus, he was pretty pessimistic about life. Philip first met Jesus and was quite inspired and told Nathanael about Jesus. And this was what Nathanael said to Philip. Can anything good come out of Nazareth? (John 1:46) Can anything good come out of my life? That is the attitude many people live with. What happened to Nathanael after he met Jesus? He changed. He believed that yes, good things could come from Nazareth. Good things could come from his life. This was what Jesus said to Nathanael. Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man. (John 1:51) Today's miracle is the greatest miracle of the seven miracles in John. It is the last miracle of 7 and the ultimate miracle. Yes

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Scripture Passage John 9:1-41 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script But Now I See Salvation is seeing. It is very much being able to see. Through Jesus, our eyes are open. Now we can see hope in despair. Healing in sickness. Life in death. In today's Scripture, the born blind man was healed by Jesus and he was able to see. This was what he said. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see. (John 9:25) We are familiar with this phrase. I was blind but now I see. We heard that in our favourite hymn, Amazing Grace. Amazing grace! How sweet the sound That saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found; Was blind, but now I see. What happened to the man in today's story was more than a physical healing. At first, he didn't really know who healed him. He simply said, the man called Jesus healed me. The Pharisees kept asking him who healed him. And he said he was a prophet. Then finally after he was kicked out from the community, Jesus came to him. When he met Jesus again, he finally realized that he was a very special person and he got the full picture of Jesus. So, he called him Lord and worshipped him. His physical eyes were open but he could see more than what he could see with his eyes. Seeing is a Process Seeing – Yes, that is salvation. We recognize that we were blind but now we can see. That is what spiritual life is all about. This happens not just once but it happens every day. You were blind but now you see – This happens every day. It is like peeling one shell after another from your eyes. What you can see becomes bigger and bigger, deeper and deeper. You see more pure things and more beautiful things as you peel each shell from your eyes. Life becomes exciting. You get to know God more and more intimately. When I look back, I realize how blind I was. You don't know that when you go through it. Only much later, when you look back, you realize how blinded you were. Seeing is a process. We don't see it all at once. We see it gradually. At first we see only a partial picture and then we get to see a bigger picture. This is what St. Paul said in his famous chapter on love. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. (1 Corinthians 13:12) Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus came to give us the light. As we get to know Jesus, his light will shine on us. Our darkness will be removed and we will be able to see things more clearly. Your Eyes Can Deceive You Seeing is not what you do with your eyes. Seeing with our eyes is very limited and what we can see with our eyes can be very distorted too. This is what Obi-Wan Kenobi said to Luke Skywalker. Do not trust your eyes because your eyes can deceive you. Stephen Covey who wrote the famous book, The 7 habits of highly effective people , said, We think we see the world as it is when in fact we see the world as we are. We can see that very clearly in the Pharisees in today's story. They refused to see that the blind man was healed. They even brought his parents and heard from them but they could not see that this man was truly healed. So being able to see is not that simple. It is very much a spiritual process. That means it has a lot to do with the condition of your heart. What do you see all the time? Do you see only negative things? When your heart is filled with negativity, you will see negative things. And these negative things that you see will make you a more negative person. It is a very bad cycle. When you are an angry person, you will see easily things that frustrate you. And what you see will make you more angry. I live in downtown. I see all kinds of people. There is this guy I see often. Whenever I see him, I see him walking up and down the street yelling and swearing. He is always angry. His anger consumed him. So seeing has a lot to do with the condition of your heart. When what we see changes, then our life changes. Come and See Don't let your heart be filled with darkness, you will not be able to see what is bright and hopeful. This was what John said in the prologue of his book. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome (understand, see) it. (John 1:5) So, in the Gospel John, Jesus kept saying this phrase. Come and See. When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, What are you looking for?' They said to him, Rabbi' (which translated means Teacher), where are you staying?' He said to them, Come and see.'(John 1:38, 39) When you come to Jesus, what you can see changes. Your perspective in life changes. You see beautiful things around you. You see beautiful flowers and you hear birds chirping. I see trees of green, red roses too. I see them bloom for me and you. I see skies of blue and clouds of white The bright blessed days, the dark sacred nights Life is very much about what you see. Do you see hope in your life? Do you see beauty in people? Do you see grace in this harsh wo

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Scripture Passage Romans 5:1-11 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Rootless The Bible provides an image of the kind of people we should be: They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper. (Psalm 1:3) What a beautiful image of life. The word that comes to mind for me is rooted . People who bear fruit and prosper have strong roots and are firmly planted. Life today often seems to be the opposite. It seems rootless. So many things are out of our control. So many changes happen around us. So many things happen to us. We don't know what to root ourselves in. St. Paul Today's passage is written by St. Paul. As a young man, he rooted himself deep in his Jewish identity. This is what he says about his previous life: If anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. (Philippians 3:4-6) He rooted himself in the law. Being a righteous person was very important to him. For him, being righteous was to be blameless under the law. This righteousness was based on what he did. It was based on his effort. I realize that ultimately, this is how we live. Righteousness means right living, right standing, having a justified existence. After our basic needs are met, we want to know that we are living a life worth living. We are up at night because we are filled with worries about what we need to do. We feel pressure to be better parents, children and income earners. Even when we are still, we don't feel rest because our minds are active and our hearts are restless. We believe that our existence will be justified based on what we do and the effort we put in. We try to root ourselves in what we believe will give us right standing in life. When Paul met Christ on the road to Damascus, his whole belief system crumbled. Somehow, he realized that everything he had built his life on was wrong. When you realize that everything you've built your life on is wrong, that is not easy to deal with. It takes a long and difficult period of readjustment and reformulation. For three years, Paul went to Arabia. And then he spent 10 years in Tarsus, his hometown. We don't know exactly what he was doing. There is nothing written about these years. For me, he was reformulating his whole belief system. A new belief system that he would live out in his ministry to come. He eventually articulated this belief system in Romans. St. Paul realized that he had rooted himself in the wrong thing. He rooted himself in his own effort. His own righteousness. But that was so small and insignificant to what he discovered – the love of God for him in Christ. He discovered the righteousness of God. Righteousness is God's desire and work to save us. It is what God does. What God did was love him even when he was weak, when he was a sinner, and even when he was an enemy of God. Paul saw God's loving desire and will for him even when he did not deserve it and was even opposed to God's will. God’s promise He turned back to the example of Abraham. God made this promise to Abraham: I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. (Genesis 12:2-3) Somehow, Abraham heard this promise from God. He believed that God had a loving will for him and his future. He believed that God's promise would be fulfilled because of God's faithfulness and love. He trusted the promise and good intention of God. He rooted himself in the promise of God. It was this trust that made him a righteous person. Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become the father of many nations, according to what was said, So shall your descendants be. He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was already as good as dead (for he was about a hundred years old), and the barrenness of Sarah's womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. Therefore it was reckoned to him as righteousness. (Romans 4:18-22) The very core of Christian belief is that God's loving desire for us saves us. It is to root ourselves not on our own efforts, but in the love that God has for us. It is faith and trust in God's promise and good will for us. This is what St. Paul discovered. Believe in God’s Love When we were in Los Angeles last week, we had a front seat view of my kids. They would play and bicker, play and bicker – the whole week! The way they spoke to each other made me cringe. It was like a mirror reflected o

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Scripture Passage Genesis 12:1-4 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Immigrant Life Life is a combination of settlement and journey. We cannot always live out of a suitcase. We need to be settled. That's why immigrant life is difficult. You are uprooted all of a sudden and have to survive in a totally strange land. Too much change all at once. Too many unknown variables. Abraham was also an immigrant. He immigrated twice. His original home town was Ur. He went to Haran. And from there, he immigrated again. He left the place where he was well settled. It wasn't just his decision. He felt that it was God's calling. He was called to take the journey. So you can see his life was a mix of settlement and journey. That is what life is. A good harmony of settlement and journey. The question is when to take a journey and when to settle. How do you know that? The settlement gives us a sense of rootedness. It gives us a feeling of being grounded and we feel stable. You are quite comfortable when you are settled. For example, when your relationship is settled, you feel quite satisfied and content. When your job is settled, you feel secure. When you are settled with yourself, you feel confident and comfortable with yourself. That's a good feeling. I like that. But our reality does not let you stay there too long. Changes happen in your circumstances and also in yourself. Things are not the same anymore. Instead of feeling settled, you feel like you are stuck. Your life is going nowhere. You want to move but you can't. You should. You have to. But you can't. Feeling Stuck Feeling stuck and being settled are quite different. Feeling stuck is like a car stuck in a ditch and you cannot get out. You don't want to be there but you cannot get out. You are stuck in a rut. Why do you feel stuck? Because you don't find meaning in what you do. You have outgrown your current situation. Your current situation is so far from your values and from what you really desire. You don't get excited about your life anymore. It doesn't give you positive energy. It is not that there is any problem. You just don't feel like you are doing anything valuable, meaningful, and important. You are completely out of sync with what you want in life. This is when you need to take a journey. You cannot just sit there and do nothing about it. But the problem is – Recognizing that you are stuck, sometimes you make drastic changes just to feel free. Out of fear and out of desperation, you just make changes. Just making changes is not necessarily taking a journey. You need to think about who you really are at the core. If you don't know who you are and what you want and yet make all these changes, what good is that? In the end, you will be stuck more deeply. Take That Journey Taking a journey is not just about making changes such as quitting your job, leaving your relationships, or moving to another place. Taking a journey is taking a journey of really getting to know yourself, your values, your desires, and your life goals. It is finding out who you are at the core, what you want in your life, and what you like to do. It is more of an inner journey rather than an outer journey. God wants you to take that journey. Because God wants you to live a blessed life. God does not want you to live a life being stuck in a rut. There was a professor. He was a lecturer at Harvard but he couldn't get a full professorship there. So he went to a small college in a small town. When he marked students' papers, he always gave two sets of mark. One – their real mark. The other – the mark they would have got if they were in Harvard. He was stuck back in Harvard. He will not be happy with his life. If you are stuck, you cannot live a blessed life. This is what God said to Abraham. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. (Genesis 12:2) God wanted to make of Abraham a great life. God wants to make of you a great life. God wants you to be a blessing. Don't be stuck where you are. Whether you like it or not, change always happens. You will always outgrow your situations. Your needs, your wants, and your hopes all evolve. If you don't deal with these changes, you will be stuck. You will be unhappy, unproductive, and uncreative. Blaming your situations or other people, do not help. It just makes you feel worse. That is not a blessed life. Trust that you can make your life happy again. Trust that God can help you. You can live your life again with new enthusiasm, new excitement, new hope, and new energy. A little change in your attitude can bring about a huge difference. Once you are unstuck, you can fully drive your car with full speed. It doesn't matter how old you are. It is never too late to start over in life. For goodness' sake, Abraham was 75 years old. Until 75, I don't know what he did. The Scripture doesn't say it. The Scripture is not interested in how he lived those 75 years. Probably, he didn't

Scripture Passage Matthew 4:1-11 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Temptation We are in the middle of Lent. Lent is a period of 40 days, commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert before his ministry. Even though we may reflect on Jesus' suffering, it doesn't have to be always dark and gloomy. In Eastern Orthodox, it is known as the season of Bright Sadness. Bright Sadness. I like that. It is sad but it is not hopeless sadness. At the end of DARKNESS, there is a light waiting for us. At the end of TEMPTATION, there is a victory. At the end of DEATH, there is resurrection. Life is not always good but life is not always bad either. Life is not always bright. There are times when life can be gloomy. But there are times when things are good too. The secret is how we deal with each situation with graciousness, graciousness to yourself and to others. There are valleys and hills in life. Count Basie, American Jazz pianist said. Learn to deal with the valleys and the hills will take care of themselves. So you have to deal with your time of temptation well and that will help you find happiness in life. Even Jesus was tempted. He was tired, hungry, and weak after 40 days of fasting. Satan knows when we are vulnerable. That is when Satan attacks us. That's why he came to Jesus when he was at his weakest. Temptation was a reality even for Jesus. Jesus had to overcome the hard time. Jesus did not have an easy life. He had to overcome life's challenges. So, when you go through your own trials, don't get discouraged. Jesus had the same trials as you do. Living a good life doesn't mean to have a problem free life. Temptations are always around us. They always find our most vulnerable time and attack us. Three Faces I am gonna talk about three faces of temptation today. These three things affect our lives deeply. You see these three in the story of Jesus' temptation. These three things are: Worry, Doubt, and Greed. Temptation has these three faces. Nobody is immune from these temptations. They take away joy from us. They cause problems in our lives and can even ruin us. Worry First Worry. We worry about many things. Worrying has become our habit or lifestyle. It almost became a part of our lives. We worry about our health. We worry about our future. We worry about our children. We worry about problems. We worry about everything. Worries are endless. More than anything else, we worry about our SURVIVAL. When Jesus was very hungry and vulnerable after 40 days' fasting. He was not just hungry. 40 days' fasting? His survival was at risk. Satan knows when to attack. Satan told him to change stone into bread. In other words, stop your fasting and eat. You need to survive to do God's work, don't you? A very tempting suggestion. Satan was tempting Jesus to worry about his survival. Jesus said, One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. (Matthew 4:4) What Jesus is saying is: Satan, don't worry about my survival. God will take care of my needs. That is the best way to defeat our worries. Have a confidence that God will take care of your basic needs. There is nothing for you to worry about. This is what Jesus said. Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? (Matthew 6:25-26) And Jesus told us to do this. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:33) That was exactly what Jesus did in the wilderness. Many times, our worries are not real. Researchers at Penn State University had an experiment on worry. The participants were asked to write whenever the worries came up to them. They studied this for 30 days. The result? A whopping 91 percent of worries were false alarms. And of the remaining 9 percent of worries that did come true, the outcome was better than expected. Worrying is a habit. A very bad habit. We develop this habit and it will make us live constantly with fear all the time. Worrying doesn't do any good. It only makes you feel fearful. It makes you shrink. It makes you feel small. And it makes you feel gloomy. Since it is a habit, you can deal with it with a new habit. Whenever you worry, leave those worries in God's hands. Make them as your prayer topics. As God takes care of birds in the air, God will take care of you. Focus on God, not on your worries. Learn to focus on God. Hear God's word who tells you not to worry about your survival. We do not live by bread alone. We need God's word. Doubt The second temptation is DOUBT. Doubt is another huge problem for many people. We doubt about God. We doubt about ourselves. Doubt makes us become cynical. Doubting is like closing

The post Matthew Part 1 (Jesus in the Gospels) appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Scripture Passage Matthew 17:1-13 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Six Days later Matthew began with Six days later What happened six days before? This was what Jesus said six days before. From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. (Matthew 16:21) Jesus told the disciples what would happen to him. Then, six days later, Jesus took Peter, James, and John to a mountain to pray. There they experienced this wonderful divine manifestation. Theophany: Experience of God's manifestation. Jesus completely changed. Out of this world kind of experience they had. His face shone like the sun. His clothes became dazzling white. Moses and Elijah, two great prophets appeared. Silence When these amazing things happen, the usual response will be to be quiet. Silence that comes from being deeply immersed in the moment. That's what people do. SILENCE That was what happened when I went to Algonquin a long time ago. I think I told you before. We had a night hike. And it was a pitch dark. We went through the deep woods. Then we came to a point. All of a sudden, there was an opening and we saw so many stars. They were so close to us. I felt like I could touch them. The dark sky was filled with stars. We were all so amazed and nobody talked. Nobody dared to speak. For a quite while, everybody was silent and just savoured the awesome experience. There were more than 30 people. But not Peter. Even in that moment, he had to speak. He broke the silence and said. This is great. Lord, if you want, I will build three tents here for you, for Moses, and for Elijah. Even God could not be patient with him anymore. He cut Peter off. Matthew recorded it very nicely. WHILE he was STILL speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them (Matthew 17:5) Then God spoke. This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him! (Matthew 17:5) My Son and I am well pleased with him – very important recognition: Two things to remember. Then everybody was silent. Even Peter was silent this time. Luke recorded it in this way. When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen. (Luke 9:36) It was a phenomenal experience. They would have never forgotten this experience. It would have been always so vivid to them. This experience was always present, now experience for them. It was not something that happened in the past. I asked this question. Who was this experience for? Why did God change Jesus like this and let the disciples experience this wonderful experience? I realized that it was both for Jesus and the disciples. They all needed that. What was waiting for Jesus and for the disciples was a very gloomy reality. The suffering they would face soon would be very difficult. This experience they had was God's message that he cares. God is with you. It was to assure them that they were not alone in that suffering. YES, SUFFERING HAS TO BE EXPERIENCED IN THE CONTEXT OF GRACE. Even Jesus needed that glorious moment. Suffering is that hard. It is hard for anybody. Whether you are a saint or a sinner, it is hard. Whether you are the Son of God, or an ordinary human being like you and me, suffering is hard. Suffering With Grace That's why we are collecting donations for Turkey and Syria. How difficult it must be for them. Can you imagine? 40,000 people died from this tragedy. How many tears, heartaches, and sad stories will be there? They lost everything. We feel for them. We want to be with them in their sorrow. That's why we do donations. PCC already sent blankets and very basic things they would need. Suffering was hard even for Jesus. So in Gethsemane, he had the temptation to run away from it. Knowing how hard it would be, God showed them this wonderful experience. God manifested himself to them in a powerful way. God showed his glory. I think it is very important to remember that suffering has to be experienced in the context of grace. When you experience suffering without grace, you become damaged. You become hardened. You become too cynical and critical. So when I see people who overcome their own tragedies and come out even stronger, I admire them. Without faith, they would not have been able to get up again. Suffering is the inevitable part of human experience. We all suffer. Suffering of illness, suffering of loss, suffering of broken relationships, suffering of guilt, suffering of worries about our future, suffering of injustice, suffering of poverty, suffering of rejection, suffering of loneliness, and suffering of fear of death and so on. Endless suffering we experience in our lives. Simple Recognition What we need is to have glorious moments. Otherwise these sufferings will swallow us up. And we will be ruined. You all need glorious moments. To live meaningfully, you need thes

In this session, we reflected on the second half of Mark. This is where the question: “Who is this person?” gets answered. The post Mark Part 2 (Jesus in the Gospels) appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Scripture Passage Matthew 5:21-26 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script More than Cordial You shall not murder is the basic minimum level for us to live with one another. Yes, I should feel safe and assured that just because you and I have a beef, you're not going to take my life! We need basic limits on our behaviour to live peaceably with one another. We need minimum standards and expectations. But that alone does not make life good. We need more than just cordial and civil relations with one another. That is what Jesus is saying in today's passage. In the 1930's, a group of scholars at Harvard began a study on human happiness. They selected two groups: one, a group of students from Harvard from varying backgrounds; and two, a group of teenagers from a poor area in Boston. They kept track of them, their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. They were from all walks of life, and have had such varied experiences. But after 84 years, they've boiled down all of their findings to one conclusion about what constitutes a happy life, and that is: good relationships. They say that if there's one choice you can make, one thing to really invest yourself in, that is in cultivating good, rich, meaningful relationships. I agree with that finding. It is something we absolutely need. When we celebrate life at a wedding or a funeral, what is most central is the relationships we have. But it is the most difficult thing to achieve. We can become very good at our jobs. We can become very skilled at tasks and hobbies. But when it comes to our relationships with others, it is so difficult. What we need most in life is most difficult to achieve. Anger Everywhere Jesus went, he saw relationships that were damaged. He saw the hurt that arose from broken relations in families and among neighbours. Jesus abided by the law, but he saw that the law by itself does not bind people closely together. The law simply prevents us from harming one another. He saw that what separates people is not disobedience to the law, but what lies in the heart. But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment. (Matthew 5:22) It is the emotion in the heart that is the seed of division. Anger is a natural emotion. We get angry when we get hurt. When we experience injustice. When we feel scared and vulnerable. But if that anger controls us, it affects our relationships. Anger that remains in the heart does not just remain there. It grows and morphs into negative thoughts. These thoughts spill out and affect those around you. The anger and hostility in your heart creates a hostile environment for those around you. To use young people's language: the vibe that flows out isn't good. What takes place in the heart affects the whole environment around you. This is what Jesus said: It is what comes out of a person that defiles. For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person. (Mark 7:20-23) Anger darkens our hearts. The darkness of our hearts diminishes warmth, closeness and connection. We may not always be bursting out in anger. It may be quietly festering in our hearts like a fungus. Fungus does not need light, it survives and continues to grow in the dark. Anger can lurk quietly in the shadows of our heart. But whether it is loud on the surface or quiet underneath, it affects who we are. It affects our relationships with those around us. Our hearts are very sensitive and fragile. Our hearts should have warning labels: Fragile, handle with care! In our life in this world, we get hurt, we get offended. These things leave their marks on our hearts. They remain with us and are not easily healed. From our damaged hearts, we have damaged relationships. Reconciled Our relationships with one another were so important to Jesus. So important, that he even said to delay worshipping God in order to be reconciled. So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. (Matthew 5:23-24) It's not that worshiping God wasn't important. That was the most important thing to Jesus. But he said this to illustrate the urgency and importance of restoring our relationships with one another. He knew that as long as we have anger and animus in our hearts, our worship can never be pure. Instead of God, our emotions are at the centre. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny. (Matthew 5:25) People go to court be

This is the first study in an 8-week series on “Jesus in the Gospels”. In this first session, we reflected on the first half of Mark. The key question that emerges from the first half of Mark is: “who is Jesus?” There is nothing like the in-person experience of being there, but we hope this recording will bless you still! The post Mark Part 1 (Jesus in the Gospels) appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Scripture Passage Matthew 5:13-20 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Slat of the Earth Jesus said, you are the salt of the earth and you are the light of the world. That is a wonderful statement about us. He didn't say this lightly. This tells us exactly who we are. He didn't say try to be the salt of the earth or be the light of the world. He said you ARE already the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Since you are the salt and be the light, live like the salt and live like the light. Don't be something else. Don't lose that saltiness and don't live in your darkness. Salt and Light were the two most precious things during Jesus' time. During Roman period, the salt was so precious that they called it, white gold. Since it was so precious, and people knew that, sometimes soldiers in Roman Army were paid with salt instead of money. It was called Salarium. Sal is the Latin word for the salt. From that word, the word salary came out. Jesus used the most precious things around him to tell us that we are that. You are not just ordinary things. You are the most precious things without which the world cannot survive. You are indispensable. You are not just a screw in a big machine which is always replaceable. You are more than that. You Are Precious When Jesus came to this world, he felt bad because he saw that they lived their lives, not knowing how precious they were. They lived their lives as though they were nobody. Nobody told them that they were precious. Nobody treated them as though they were precious people. They abused each other, cut down each other, and treated each other with no respect. Jesus wanted to restore their honour. Jesus wanted to let them know how precious and valuable they were. My friends, you are the salt and the light. Don't forget that. You are precious enough for Jesus to die for you. Do you think Jesus would die for something worthless? Have respect for yourself. You don't need to do great things. You are already great. The ultimate life goal is to find that you are precious. To others, you may be only one lost soul. To them, you may be not 99, the majority that are important. But to God, you are the most precious thing and he goes out and searches all over the place to find you. Once he finds you, he comes home with joy and throws a party for the whole village. You are that precious. Realization Everywhere in the Bible, you see this message and yet it is so hard for us to believe how precious we are. You are precious to me, and I have given you a special place of honor. I love you. That's why I am willing to trade others, to give up whole nations, to save your life. (Isaiah 43:4) All the good things come from this understanding, the understanding that you are very important. When you realize that you are precious to God, that's when change begins. Your life changes. That's how David changed. It is not that he decided to live a good life. He realized how much God thought of him. Who am I that God thought of me this much. That changed him. How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can't even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me! (Psalm 139:17-18) He understood how deeply God thought about him. This was a shocking realization for him. Hear what he said in his poem. What are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honour. (Psalm 8:4, 5) St. Paul – the same thing happened. He realized how much he was meant to God and this realization changed him. He said, For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38, 39) This realization was what changed him. Life becomes precious when we realize how precious we are. No one can take that away from us. The Precious Self We can take the path of true righteousness when we understand how important we are in God's eyes. This kind of righteousness doesn't make you conceited. It doesn't make you arrogant. You don't need to use your pride to maintain your importance. It makes you rather humble. Knowing that you are very important to God humbles you. You don't need to follow moral standards others set up to feel important. You are not trying to live up to people's expectations to be appreciated. You don't need to prove to yourself how good you are. That kind of righteousness was the righteousness the Pharisees pursued. That was what the scribes pursued. They might have looked good in the eyes of others. But the true righteousness is not achieved in that way. It's not about following the moral standards. It is about being faithful to yourself who is so precious. You are not just following what is good in the eyes of other people.

Scripture Passage 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Real Wisdom The real wisdom doesn't come to your brain. The real wisdom comes to your soul. The real wisdom is not knowing what to do. The real wisdom is knowing who you are. The biggest problem we have is not that we don't have enough knowledge. We have so much knowledge. Especially with the development of the internet, so much knowledge is available and accessible to us instantly. Since we talked about searching God through a google search last week, I google searched God. It was endless. The first question was Who created God? I guess that's what people are interested in knowing the most. Interesting. Anyways, we have so much knowledge but they are all information, data, and factual knowledge. It doesn't give us wisdom. Because wisdom is more than having factual knowledge. Information, data, and factual knowledge are what people seek after, ultimately for their own benefits. To control and conquer. To have upper hands. Wisdom is not that kind of knowledge. We have so much knowledge and yet we have become more blinded. We have so much knowledge and yet it doesn't help us to become a better person. We are more confused about ourselves. We think we see it but we don't see it. We think we know what can save us but we don't know it. We think we understand what makes us happy but we don't really understand it. The Real Strength This is what Jesus said after healing a blind man. The Pharisees did not want to accept the fact that Jesus really healed this man because he did it on Sabbath. Their logic was how a person who broke the sacred law of Sabbath can do the healing. Because Jesus healed him on the Sabbath. So they even brought the parents of the blind man and they do all kinds of things to negate that Jesus really healed this man. The story ended with these words. Some of the Pharisees near him heard this and said to him, Surely we are not blind, are we?' Jesus said to them, If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, We see , your sin remains. (John 9:40-41) The Pharisees, the rulers, the educated people thought that they knew about themselves very clearly. They were very sure of that. But Jesus pointed out that they were blind. Because they thought they knew, they became blind – that's what Jesus meant. True wisdom does not tell you that you are wise. True wisdom tells you that you are not wise. Since truly wise people see much bigger things in life, they see their own foolishness. So there is always a room for them to grow. They always live with the possibility to change. They have no fear to recognize their own weaknesses, their foolishness, and their failures. They live with this confidence that they can cope with their own inadequacy. The real strength does not manifest itself through a raw power. The real strength often manifests itself through gentleness and even weakness. True Wisdom Truly wise people always know that there are wiser people. Truly powerful people know that there are more powerful people. They know their limits. They don't need to brag about their wisdom and their power. This is what St. Paul is saying today. For God's foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God's weakness is stronger than human strength. (1 Corinthians 1:25) God's foolishness reached its peak at the cross. The cross symbolized weakness, defeat, and total failure. At the cross, death prevailed. At the cross, evil power prevailed. At the cross, injustice prevailed. And yet, Jesus took the cross. Jesus took the way of the weakness. Jesus took the way of foolishness. The most powerful person laid down its power. Why? The wisest person took the foolish way. Why? Because he knew how God worked. He knew God's wisdom and God's strength. What Jesus did – St. Paul discovered. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God. (1 Corinthians 1:27-29) Jesus and St. Paul were the ones who had true wisdom and true power. Their wisdom was the wisdom that opened the eyes of others. Their power was the power that empowered others. Their wisdom and power are the wisdom and the power that bring salvation to all of us. They didn't use the wisdom and the power for their own glory. They didn't use them for their own benefits. They used them for uplifting others and saving them from their darkness. Why a righteous person died as a sinner? Why a powerful person died as the most vulnerable person? Why a wise person died without defending himself with reasons? BECAUSE HE CARED. The Caring Heart That was the most foolish way to live your life and end your life. Jesus chose the most foolish way because he cared and that was what God wanted. Ultimately through resurrection, God showed that Jesus was righteous. God s

Scripture Passage Matthew 4:12-22 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Calling Last week, we reflected that passionate life comes from having a sense of calling in life. When you realize that you are connected to something bigger than your life, you find new passion for life. When your life is deeply connected with the higher purpose, then your life becomes meaningful and you can find passion in life. How can you find this sense of calling? That is a very difficult question. It is not something that you can arbitrarily choose. Just to make your life meaningful and purposeful. But let's think about calling. You don't call yourself, do you? So, calling comes from outside of you. It is not something you decide. That's why we call it calling. That's what Jesus said. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. (John 15:16) Life is more than your decisions. We can see that in today's passage. The disciples didn't make a decision or choice as they liked. Jesus called them and they simply responded. They didn't initiate it. They didn't ponder upon Jesus' calling and made a decision. They responded immediately. They simply knew that it was the right thing to do. Immediately they left their nets and followed him. (Matthew 4:20) Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him. (Matthew 4:22) Into the Unknown In that sense, the gospel song, I have decided to follow Jesus is not exactly right. I am not saying that it is not a good song. I know its sentiment very well. The song tried to express my desire to respond to the calling. But strictly speaking, it is not I who have decided to follow Jesus. I just responded to the calling. I am not saying that careful examination is not important. I am not saying that impulsive and emotional response is a better option. We should always think about the cost of discipleship. But following Jesus is more than calculated decisions. We don't know everything about what is involved in following Jesus. The disciples didn't know either. They threw themselves into the unknown. That is what we experience when we approach God. You don't make a decision about God after searching everything about God in a google search. That's not how you come to God. When you approach God, God takes the initiative and calls you. Sometime that feels like being thrown into the unknown. God told Abraham to go to a place unknown to Abraham. He told him to leave his hometown but he didn't even tell him where to go. He didn't tell him why he had to leave his home either. He just told him to leave. So Abraham and his family left and they thought the place they were supposed to go was Haran. But it wasn't Haran. So they had to leave again until they came to the promised land. He didn't know anything when he left Ur, his hometown but as he looked back, he realized how blessed he was. How God has guided him and provided everything he needed. Actually more than what he needed. Abraham's life is a good example of a life of calling. The disciples didn't know what they were getting into. They simply threw themselves into the unknown without knowing what was waiting for them. But as a matter of fact, that is what we do every day, don't we? We don't know what is waiting for us tomorrow. We are facing the unknown every day. I like the old gospel song, I don't know about tomorrow. I don't know about tomorrow, I just live from day to day. I don't borrow from its sunshine, For its skies may turn to gray. I don't worry o'er the future, For I know what Jesus said, And today I'll walk beside Him, For He knows what is ahead. Many things about tomorrow, I don't seem to understand; But I know who holds tomorrow, And I know who holds my hand. That was what the disciples felt at that moment. They didn't know what held tomorrow. But they knew who held tomorrow. They knew that they were in good hands. That was why they could follow Jesus immediately. Running They didn't always do well in following Jesus. At the end, they all deserted Jesus. One denied him. The other betrayed him. And all others ran away from him. Running away is a part of our spiritual journey too. As disciples ran away from Jesus, sometimes we also run away from Jesus. There are times when we face so many troubles in life and we don't feel any sense of help from God. We run away. There are times when we feel like doing everything as we want. We run away. There are time when we don't feel like doing what God is asking us to do. We run away. That was what Jonah did in the Bible. And yet, Jonah came back to God and finished the mission. The disciples came back and carried on what Jesus started. That is what calling is. Our calling will be fulfilled not by our strength but by the strength of the calling. You are called and that calling will carry you even when you are not able to carry your life on your own. There is a good force

Scripture Passage Isaiah 49:1-7 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Calling It is wonderful to live with passion. It is also important to live with passion. Life and passion go together. Being alive means being passionate. It is sad to see people merely exist but not being alive. It is sad to see so many people live without passion. They may coast along without serious problems but they lack passion in life. Passion is a strong desire to live. Passionate living is living with clear knowledge of why you live. A mediocre lifestyle will not satisfy those who live with passion. What gives us passion for life then? What gives you a strong desire and what gives you clear reason to live? Calling. A sense of calling. It is not just your desire that makes you passionate. You somehow discover that you are chosen. Chosen to do something or to be somebody. That is the sense of calling. Seeing your life as calling gives you passion. This sense of calling will not come automatically. It is something that you discover. It is discovering that you are connected. Connected with something or somebody greater than you. You feel that you are not on your own in this gigantic universe. You discover that your life is not just a series of random events. YOUR LIFE IS CONNECTED WITH A PURPOSE. It is not necessarily about what you do in life. It is about you, the person. You are not necessarily called to do anything. You are called to be somebody. Of course, often who you are is connected with what you do. What I am saying is, you don't have to change your career to do something or something like that. Your whole existence is connected with the calling. You are not alone. You are connected with God and the purpose God has for you. That purpose guides you and leads you in a certain direction. That is calling. And when that calling is clear, passion comes alive. Connected That was what Isaiah said about this servant's life. The Lord called me before I was born, while I was in my mother's womb he named me. (Isaiah 49:1) Of course, he didn't know whether God called him or not before he was born. How could he know when he was not even born. He was saying that he discovered the deep connection between his life and God's calling. He realized that even before he was born, he was chosen. Almost predestined. That is our understanding of predestination. Predestination does not mean that your life is already decided but your life is deeply connected with God's calling. Jeremiah said the same thing about his life. Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations. (Jeremiah 1:5) He discovered that his life was deeply connected with God's calling. This connectedness gives us passion. Passion is more than doing what you want. Passion is more than living as you like it. You live your life as you are almost destined to live. Burden Of course, it is not always easy to accept that my life is called by God. We rather want to live as we like it. We don't like to feel burdened. We don't like to feel pressured. We are not the only ones who feel that way. Even the servant in today's passage says that. The great prophet Jeremiah said that. Even the greatest prophet Moses said that. The servant said this. I have laboured in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity (Isaiah 49:4) Jeremiah said this. Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy. (Jeremiah 49:6) Moses kept saying to God. Send somebody else. I can't do it. I don't know how to speak. They are too strong for me to handle. I am too old. What you are asking me is too much for me to take. Yes, accepting the calling is hard. To see our life in connection with God's calling is hard. We just want to limit our life to what we want to do. Anything beyond that is a burden. We have decided to make our life to be that way. We already put a boundary around us. No wonder it is hard to live with passion. You can live a passionate life when you realize that your life, and what you do is connected with a higher purpose, and deeper meaning. Spirituality You cannot live a passionate life no matter how great your hobby is, how luxurious your life is, how glorious your job is. You can live a passionate life when you realize that your life is deeply connected with a deeper purpose. That is how we human beings are created. That's why we can be spiritual. We cannot be satisfied just because we are well fed and well protected. We are created to be too spiritual to be satisfied with that kind of things. We pursue what is noble. We pursue what is worthwhile. We pursue what is meaningful. Usually, what is noble, what is worthwhile, and what is meaningful is to do with serving others. In other words, our calling has very much to do with serving others. That was what today's passage says about this servant. I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth. (Isaiah

Scripture Passage Isaiah 42:1-9 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Big Storms Last week, Rev. Kim introduced the image of storms. Over the last few years, we experienced many storms. We are slowly emerging from them, and we see many ruins. 2023 is the year to start rebuilding from the ruins. There were big storms that we all faced. We faced circumstances we had never experienced before. Some of you also endured difficult individual storms. Death of loved ones. Failing health. Strained relationships. Some of these storms made life very challenging and difficult. Some of them made us feel very weak and vulnerable. When just one storm hits us, we can endure it and wait it out. But when many storms come one after the other, it can take a toll on us. When we get battered by continuous storms, we lose heart. We lose vitality. We lose vigour. Instead of being positive, we can become more gloomy. Isaiah’s Storm When a very big storm totally destroys everything, where do we find the will to carry on? How do we find the desire and courage to pick up and rebuild? This was the issue that Isaiah faced. After Babylon came in and destroyed Israel, they lost everything. They lost their homes. They lost their land. They lost the institutions that gave them a sense of order and meaning. They were taken by force to a strange and foreign land. They were crushed. They were lost. They felt forgotten and abandoned by God. Many people lost heart and just wanted to survive without thinking. They didn't know what to rebuild, or how to go about rebuilding. Somehow, in this bleak setting, Isaiah heard God's voice. He heard words of soothing and comfort: Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the Lord's hand double for her sins. (Isaiah 40:1-2) He heard assurance that they were not forgotten by God: But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend; you whom I took from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest corners, saying to you, You are my servant, I have chosen you and not cast you off . (Isaiah 41:8-9) He heard words of affirmation that God still loved them: But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine. (Isaiah 43:1) He heard assurance that they would not be left alone: When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. (Isaiah 43:2) Isaiah's heart was revived by God's words of comfort and reassurance. In Israel's darkest hour, his hope was rekindled. That's why he was a prophet. He was able to offer words of comfort and hope to a crushed people. Mispat With this new hope, he saw a vision. God would send someone. A servant, chosen by God, given power with his spirit. That servant was given a mission: He will bring forth justice to the nations. (Isaiah 42:1) The original Hebrew word for justice is mispat. Mispat is not a mere legal remedy. It is not about merely making wrongs right. It is making all things right. More than a definition, the word evokes more of an image. An image of restoring God's order of compassionate well-being. Bringing about God's true way and intended order. Of healing. Wholeness. Mispat. This was the servant's mission. It was not just a nice idea. It was a promise that God made. He will not grow faint or be crushed until he has established justice (mispat) on the earth. (Isaiah 42:4) God's servant will not be stopped. He will be faithfully persistent. But God's mispat will not be achieved by force. It will not be coerced. It is not violent. A bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. (Isaiah 42:3) Sometimes when we are desperate, it doesn't matter who we hurt in order to get what we need. Sometimes, when we are so hurt, we don't notice the hurt we inflict on others. Sometimes the desire to undo wrongs and injustice leads us to commit the same wrongs on others who are even weaker than us. Our desiring often tramples over those who are weakest and most vulnerable. But this Servant will cause no further harm to those who are hurting. Instead, he will bring God's mispat and peace to all. The vision of the Servant gave hope to Isaiah and his people. It gave them hope in a new kind of world, where even weak and defeated people like them could live and flourish. It gave them a vision of the kind of world they could rebuild from their ruins. This vision revived their hearts. Many years later, a small group of Jews came to identify their leader with this servant – that leader was Jesus Christ. They were heavily influenced by Isaiah's words and imagery, and they interpreted the life of Jesus t

Scripture Passage Colossians 2:2-3 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Aftermath Happy New Year! It is wonderful to have the first day of the new year, worshipping God. What better way is there than starting the first day, praising God and thanking God? God has been good to us in 2022. We thank God for that. We have come here with a thankful heart. As God has been good to us in 2022, he will also be good to us in 2023. For those who love God, all things work out for good. As I look back last few years, I realize that we went through a lot. I feel like a big storm passed by. There were times when I felt very unsure about the future, not only the future of our world, but also the future of the church in general. 1.1 million Americans lost their lives because of Covid. Closing down the church? I could never imagine that and I have never experienced that. But we were very close to that. Do you remember? There was a time when only five people were allowed in the sanctuary. We were lucky to have something called zoom. But after a while, I felt that zoom service would not really give us the worship experience. I was concerned. I cannot say it is over but now the storm is slowly passing by. But I see its aftermath. It left us in ruins. It caused a lot of damages. Not just to our physical body but to our mind and our spirit. People are deeply affected. I see a lot of strange behaviours. For example, there have been many incidents at the subway. A woman was deliberately targeted and set on fire. An 85 year old woman was punched in the face and knocked out. A woman was pushed into the coming train. People who were waiting for the bus at the platform, were stabbed and one person died. We have never seen this. Our relationships also have changed. It is not the same anymore. Many relationships have fallen apart. It damaged the sense of community. 2023 is the year we have to repair the ruins that the storm has brought. We need to repair our mind. We need to repair our body. We need to repair our relationships. We need to repair our community. We need to repair our faith. The First Button To repair anything, we need to go back to the basic. Going back to the very basic is the wisest thing to do. When your life becomes complicated, difficult to handle, when things don't work out as well as you wish, when everything you do turns out to be not so good, go back to the basic. Start from the basic. There is a Korean saying. Button up the first button in a right place. Go back to the first button. Go back to the basic. When the basic is set right, everything else will find its place. Our basic is Christ. Our basic is our relationship with Christ. We have to ask ourselves. What is my relationship with Christ like? Where is God in my life? How well do you know Christ? How important is Christ in your life? Who is Christ to you? To St. Paul, Christ was everything. He said to live is Christ. For to me, living is Christ, (Philippians 1:21) To him, the most important thing is to know Christ and to have Christ. Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, (Philippians 3:7-9) Because of Christ, everything changed for him. His thinking changed. His perspectives changed. His relationship with God changed. His whole life changed. In Christ, he found the treasures of life. Wasn't that what Jesus said about the kingdom of God? The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. (Matthew 13:44) He found the treasure hidden in Christ. He found the kingdom of God. That was what he said in today's Scripture. in whom (Christ) are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (Colossians 2:3) He believed that in Christ, true wisdom of life is hidden. I believe that too. The deeper we know Christ, the more profound wisdom will be revealed to us. The deeper joy we will be able to experience. God’s Mystery This year's theme is Knowing Christ. It is going back to the basic. We are going to reflect on Christ. As we go through this journey, Christ will reveal the treasures of wisdom hidden in him. That wisdom is what we need to live a good life. 2023 will be an exciting year. You will discover God's mystery as we reflect on Christ together. St. Paul said Christ was God's mystery. so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding and have the knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ himself. (Colossians 2:2) Yes, Christ is God's mystery. In Christ, the secret of life is hidden. In Christ, the secret of happiness is hidden. In Christ, the secret of God is hidden. Danish philosopher and theologian, Soren Kierkegaard said, Life is not a problem to be solv

Scripture Passage Matthew 1:18-25 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Comfort An English Actress Imelda Staunton said, You can only do your best. That's all you can do. And if it isn't good enough, it isn't good enough. It sounds comforting. It sounds like a wise advice. What else can you do? You can do your best and just have to live with what is not good enough. But it is hard to accept that. Today is the World Cup final. All the teams did their best. But when their best was not enough, they felt so sad and disappointed. Many of them cried like children. When our best is not good enough, it is hard to swallow. But sometimes I wonder, Did I really do my best? Doing our best is a very subjective statement. Often, it is a convenient way of explaining away of not going further when we could. It is a comfortable excuse to close the door for new possibilities. It is rational justification for accepting the status quo and doing nothing about it. I hope that we don't use doing our best as a coverup for our laziness and our fear. Doing His Best Today, we see a very good man. His name was Joseph. We have different gospels telling different stories of Jesus' birth. Luke was very much focused on Mary and what she went through. We see her dilemma, her struggle, and her experience. Matthew sheds light on Joseph and what he went through. He had a woman whom he was engaged to. I am sure he was excited to have a new life with her. He was looking forward to marrying her. But one day, he found out that she was pregnant. He knew that it wasn't his baby because they didn't have that kind of relationship yet. He didn't sleep with her yet. His heart was crushed. He was disappointed and probably very angry. He felt betrayed. He could have exposed her to public shame. That could create a very bad situation for Mary. Not only would she receive public shame, she could have been stoned to death. But Joseph was a good man. He didn't want to harm Mary in any way. He swallowed his disappointment and anger. His best was to dismiss her quietly. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. (Matthew 1:19) That was doing his best, he thought. BUT HIS BEST WAS NOT GOD'S BEST. To show that his best was not God's best, God sent an angel to him. This was what the angel told him in his dream. Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.(Matthew 1:20, 21) What was happening was nobody's mistake. It wasn't Mary's fault either. It was all in God's plan. All this took place to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet. (Matthew 1:22) We have been reflecting on Isaiah's dream. It was another one of Isaiah's dreams. Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14) That was what Matthew quoted in today's passage with the explanation of Immanuel. Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means, God is with us.' (Matthew 1:23) Surprisingly, Joseph accepted that his best was not enough. But not only that. He accepted that his best was not God's best. This was Joseph's faith. When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus. (Matthew 1:24, 25) Joseph did not use doing his best as an excuse to take an easy way out. Joseph accepted what God wanted to do. Joseph accepted God's deeper plan for him and for his child and for the world. That was his faith. Wait for God That is what is beautiful about life. Our best is not everything. Our best is not the end. When our best is over, then God's best takes over. We should leave a room for God's best. Don't close the door at your best. Be ready to accept what God will do when you can't do anything about it. Life is not all about what we do. Our life is very much about what God does. That's why in an impossible situations, we still hope. That's why in our suffering, we still rejoice. Doing your best is important. Yes, once you do your best and your best is not enough, you have to accept the result. Don't blame yourself. Don't live with guilt. But don't close the door. That is when you wait for God's direction. Don't give up. Wait for God. God will show you the way. Bigger Things Reading and understanding God's way is more important than doing your best. Thing is: If you do your best, God will show you his way. If you don't do your best, God waits until you do your best. But if you do your best, then God will show you God's best. God will show you wonderful things in your life. You will see that life is full of miracles. Joseph experienced the miracle of having a baby

Scripture Passage Isaiah 9:2-7, Luke 2:8-14 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script A Special Christmas It is wonderful to celebrate Christmas together. It is special to have Christmas on Sunday. Every 7 years or so, Christmas falls on Sunday. Christmas is a special day for many people. Christmas brightens up December. It brings joy to all of us. May God's peace and joy fill you all. Your presence here brightens up this Christmas. Christmas is not a celebration of the few privileged. Christmas is a celebration of everybody regardless of who you are. Jesus Christ was born for all of us, especially for those who cannot help themselves. The First to Hear God revealed the message of Christmas to the shepherds. When we think about shepherds, we have this romantic image. But in reality, the shepherds were not necessarily romantic people who lived a romantic life. They lived a nomadic life, but not necessarily a romantic life. They were not considered as highly respected people in Jesus' time. They often attacked the lonely travelers. Many of them were robbers. They were disqualified from being legal witnesses. But they were the first ones who heard the message of Christmas. The message of Christmas was this: I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. (Luke 2:10, 11) God used those who are disqualified from being legal witnesses to be the witnesses of the birth of Jesus Christ. It was totally unexpected. The shepherds did not expect any of this. They thought it would be another boring night. But all of a sudden, the dark field was brightened up by the light of the glory of God. They heard the beautiful praise. Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favours! (Luke 2:14) The glory filled the field. The glory filled the heart of those shepherds. They experienced the glory of God. Their life was not the same any more. People who experience the glory of God – Their life changes forever. The shepherds didn't do anything. It was all God's doing. His Power in Our Lives Last week, we reflected on Joseph and we realized that our best is not God's best. Life is not all about what we do. Life is very much about what God does. We see that very clearly in today's passage. Shepherds were just there, doing what they had been doing all their lives. Nothing special they did on that day. And God brought glory to them. It was God who brought glory to them. That was how God brought his glory to the world. Our life has to be filled with God's glory. What is God's glory? God's glory is GOD'S POWER MANIFESTING ITSELF IN OUR LIVES. So, God's glory brings us victory. That's what God's glory is. This power becomes light and the light brings victory over darkness. This power becomes justice and God's justice brings victory over injustice. This power becomes joy and the joy brings victory over sadness. The light will shine on you and defeat the darkness. Isaiah saw that. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness on them light has shined. (Isaiah 9:2) John saw that in Jesus. In him (Jesus) was life, and the life was the light of all people. (John 1:4) Be Filled with God’s Glory On this Christmas Day, the glory of God may fill all of you and your family. The power of God may manifest itself to you and to your family. May the light of God chase away all darkness, all sadness, and all conflicts. May God's peace and joy fill all your homes. That's what Christmas is. I said this year, Christmas falls on Sunday. Usually, on Sunday, we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Now today, we celebrate both the birth and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Jesus' birth brought glory to us and this power of God's glory defeated the power of death. God's glory will never depart you. God's glory will always go along with you. With God's glory, everything will be all right. There is nothing for you to worry about. God's glory will raise you from the death. Now God's glory wraps you around and you are surrounded by God's glory. John saw Christmas in this way. And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory (John 1:14) Life is full of glory. That's why life is full of surprises. Be witnesses to God's glory as shepherds were witnesses. They were the ones who told Mary and Joseph about what they saw. Mary kept that in her heart. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. (Luke 2:19) Without God's glory, life is too harsh, too dark, too bland, and too sad. Now with God's glory, our life is filled with joy, peace, hope, and love. Jesus made that possible. May the Christmas glory bless all of you. Glory, glory, Hallelujah! Glory, glory, Hallelujah! Glory, glory, Hallelujah! His truth is marching on. Merry Christmas! The post Christmas Glory appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Scripture Passage James 5:7-10 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Moving Forward No matter how good life is at the moment, it is never complete. As long as we live, there is still more to live for. As long as I have breath, my work is not yet done. This is how St. Paul lived. He did not remain comfortable or complacent in the present. He continually strained toward what lay ahead. Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal, but I press on to lay hold of that for which Christ has laid hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider that I have laid hold of it, but one thing I have laid hold of: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal, toward the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:12-13) The expectation of what lay ahead fueled St. Paul. The expectation of something better, something more complete than the present. If we don't have expectations, something we're striving for, we're not really living. We just exist mindlessly day after day. Life has to move forward. If we stay still, we're dead. Even though we are wired to want more or expect more, we experience many disappointments. I am never the person I want to be. I keep making mistakes. No matter what I do, things are never quite right. No matter how hard I try, things just don't change. After a while, we are tempted to give up and lower our expectations. I see so many people living with lowered expectations. They just accept whatever life gives them. Losing Expectations This is the issue that James is addressing in today's passage. When his community first met Christ, they received the good news with joy. The good news for them was that Christ would come again. Christ coming again meant that God would come and make all things right. No one knew exactly what this would look like. But somehow, God would come and restore the world as it should be. There would be no more suffering. No more injustice. No more hard struggle that others take advantage of. The idea of Christ coming again raised expectations that life would get better soon. It gave energy and strength to endure difficulties. But over the years, nothing really changed. Their lives remained just as difficult as when they first received Christ. They became disappointed and disillusioned. They began to lose their expectation that God would come and make things right. James is telling them to not lose heart. Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. (James 5:7, 8) Strengthen your hearts. Do not lose heart. Do not lose faith. Struggle The foundation of hope is faith. Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1) Faith is belief in the thing you hope for. Without faith, there is no hope. Without faith, hope is merely wishful thinking. For hope to have any power, you need to believe it will happen. In that sense, faith and hope are deeply connected. Hope is what you expect or desire. Faith is the belief that it can happen. We need dreams and hopes to fuel our lives. But we need faith to keep those hopes and dreams alive. No dreams, no life. No faith, no dreams. St. Paul lived his whole life believing that God would fulfill his promises. Toward the end of his life, this is what he said: I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. (2 Timothy 4:7) Keeping the faith was like a fight and arduous race. Faith is not faith because it's easy. Faith is faith because it's a struggle. Faith cannot exist without struggle. One can struggle without faith, but one cannot have faith without struggle. God promised Abraham that he would have a son, but for many years nothing happened. He struggled to keep believing in that promise. He wavered in his belief at times. It was tested many times before the promise finally came true. But by the end of his life, his faith was secure. We call him Father Abraham because he is the father of faith. Jesus said: If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you. (Matthew 17:20) Faith has the power to move mountains. Faith keeps our hopes alive. Faith overcomes disappointment. Faith keeps on believing even when there is no reason to. Faith is the most precious and powerful gift because it keeps us going when nothing else does. We should ask for this faith more than anything else. We need belief that our hopes will come true. Our Eschatology The most basic, foundational Christian hope is that ultimately, God will make all things right. That is our eschatology – theology of end things and final destiny. If you truly believe this, then this hope gives you power for life. You don't need to worry – because God will make all things right. You don't need to fear – because God will make all things r

Scripture Passage Isaiah 11:1-10 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script A Beautiful Dream We reflected on the beautiful dream of Isaiah last week. They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. (Isaiah 2:4) It is a beautiful dream. Prophets are prophets not because they have the ability to foresee what will happen in the future, not because they are able to speak a strong moral message, but because they are able to dream when nobody can dare to dream. They are able to see the vision nobody can imagine. They have prophetic dreams and prophetic visions. Today, we hear another beautiful dream of Isaiah. The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder's den. (Isaiah 11:6-8) Another beautiful dream and vision of living in peace and harmony. His world was filled with hostility, greed, and selfishness, and yet he was able to dream the world of peace and harmony. He also said that this dream would be fulfilled by this mysterious person. We don't know exactly whom he was referring to. A shoot shall come out from the stock of Jesse (father of David), and a branch shall grow out of his roots. The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. (Isaiah 11:1-3) This person will bring the world of peace. How precious this message is. How relevant this message is for us after almost 3,000 years later. It is a dream of living together without hurting each other. We dream of a life where we can live together joyfully without hurting each other. The wolf will not hurt the lamb. The leopard will not hurt the kid. The lion will not hurt the calf. The bear will not hurt the cow. They will all get along together. They will enjoy each other. The child shall play over the hole of the snake and will not get hurt. They feel safe. I dream of this world. The Dividing Wall Living in peace and harmony is such a blessing. You don't see many people do that. It is rare to see people living like that. I see so much hurt, and so much pain. We hurt each other, not intentionally always. But through insensitivity, through indifference, through carelessness, we hurt each other. Instead of getting along with each other, I see dividedness. Parents and children are divided. Family is divided. Friends are divided. Nations are divided. I think the culprit is the HOSTILITY. There is hostility within us. When we have this hostility, peace is not possible. When we have the hostility, we will hurt each other. As a result, we become divided. Jesus came to put an end to this hostility. The hostility brought so much pain to this world. They destroy themselves and each other. Jesus came to break down the wall that divides us so that we can experience and enjoy the peace. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. (Ephesians 2:14) The dividing wall, St. Paul said, is the HOSTILITY. We put a wall against each other and against God. We don't trust each other. We are ready to pick a fight. We become enemies. Why? Why so angry? Why so much hatred? Why fight with each other? Jesus came to help us to be awake and to see what we are doing. St. Paul said, For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, (Romans 5:10) He died as a result of our hostility and animosity. But he was not just a victim of our hostility. As he died on the cross, our hostility also died with him. Jesus' death had the power to destroy our hostility. That is the power of love. Jesus embraced our hostility. Jesus suffered our hostility not as a powerless victim but as a loving friend. Love Overcomes John described his love in this way. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. (John 15:13) Jesus also said. You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:43, 44) For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax-collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? (Matthew 5:46, 47) He redefined what love is. Love is not feeling good. Love melts down the hostility. The power of love is stronger than the power of hostility. Jimi Hendrix said a very interesting statement. When the p

Scripture Passage Isaiah 2:1-5 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Expressing Visions People always live with dreams and visions. No matter how difficult life may be, they always come up with dreams and visions. We are built that way. We are built to be dreamers. Without dreams and visions, we cannot survive. No Dream, No Life Look around us. People express their dreams and visions through their art, through their songs, and through their speeches. John Lennon sang he was a dreamer in his song, Imagine. You may say I’m a dreamer But I’m not the only one I hope someday you’ll join us And the world will be as one. The other day, I watched Michael Jackson's video, Heal the world. Heal the world Make it a better place For you and for me, and the entire human race Create a world with no fear Together we cry happy tears See the nations turn their swords into plowshares Michael Jackson quoted from the prophet Isaiah. They all dreamt about the world where there is no more fight, no more war, no more violence, and no more hatred. That was Isaiah's dream. He expressed his dream through his prophecy. He said, they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. (Isaiah 2:4) You will see the sculpture in front of the UN building in New York. (Russian Sculptor) It is ironic that it was a gift from the USSR in 1959. What Prophets Do Isaiah did not have this dream when his world was peaceful. His world was devastating. His people deserted God. Foreign invasion was imminent. He foresaw the terrible fate of his people. He saw the imminent threat of war. Many people would be killed. Indeed what he foresaw happened. There were invasions and people were killed, temple destroyed, and people were taken captivity. They witnessed the horrible reality of war. Isaiah saw all that. Isaiah also saw corruption in his people. Isaiah saw selfishness of people. They didn't honour God; they just lived as they wanted. God did not like how they lived. God did not want their offerings. God would not answer their prayers, Isaiah said. He talked about all this in the chapter 1 of his book. The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master's crib; but Israel does not know, my people do not understand. (Isaiah 1:3) What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the Lord; I have had enough of burnt-offerings of rams and the fat of fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats.(Isaiah 1:11) When you stretch out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen (Isaiah 1:15) He gave them a moral message. learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow. (Isaiah 1:17) He saw the devastation. He saw the destruction. He saw the corruption of his people. BUT MY FRIENDS, ISAIAH WAS A PROPHET NOT BECAUSE HE SAW THE MORAL CORRUPTION, OR FORESAW WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO THEM, OR GAVE THEM A STRONG MORAL MESSAGE. Isaiah was a prophet because he was able to dream dreams for the new world even in that desperate situation. He had a vision of what God would do. That's what prophets do. They dream. We Must Dream He had this dream and vision so vividly, he said like this. The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. (Isaiah 2:1) He didn't say I heard the word. He said I saw the word. His dreams and vision were so powerful that he used the visual language rather than the auditory language. Even though he saw the corruption and terrible sins of people, Isaiah had this dream. though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. (Isaiah 1:18) Even though he foresaw that the war was coming, he said this. they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. (Isaiah 2:4) It is important to live with dreams and visions. It is not just important. It is must. If we cannot dream dreams, we die. No dream, no life. There is a Mexican artist. His name is Pedro Reyes. He did two projects: the first one – Palas for Pistolas. (Shovels for Guns) He made a series of TV ads and radio announcements to exchange firearms for vouchers and electric appliances. He received 1527 guns and he melted and remoulded into 1,527 gardening tools. The second project was Disarm. He received 6,700 confiscated guns and turned into musical instruments. And these instruments were used in a performance in 2012 at the Mexico City. You may say it did not make a huge change, but through this, the artist expressed his dream. He didn't give up dreaming for the world where there is no gun violence. It had a symbolic message. Turning guns that bring death into gardening tools that bring life. Turning guns that bring death into songs that give people joy. A Gather

Scripture Passage Joel 2:23-32 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Joel’s Prophecy We read Joel's prophecy today. Probably you never heard of the name Joel. Joel was a prophet in Israel. He lived near Jerusalem. We don't know exactly when he lived. But scholars estimate that he lived around 400 BC. Then, you can say he lived around the time Plato lived. Plato was born 427 BC. At that time, Israel went through the agricultural disaster. Not only they didn't have much rain but they had locust problems. Locusts are grasshoppers. They can be quite harmful to agriculture. They ate up all the crops. People starved to death. They were devastated. Their environment was beyond their control. They could do nothing with their own power. They felt powerless and helpless. That's when God sent Joel. Joel – It is a good name. Joel – You have a good name. Joel = Jehovah is (my) God. When we go through devastation, when we feel helpless and hopeless, when we have no power left in us, when we see only darkness ahead of us, often God says, I am your God and you are my people. And you shall be my people, and I will be your God. (Jeremiah 30:22) I will take you as my people, and I will be your God. You shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has freed you from the burdens of the Egyptians. (Exodus 6:7) Jehovah is my God St. Paul talked about the whole creation suffering and its existence becoming futile in chapter 8 of Romans. The whole creation was groaning with the desire to be free from the bondage to decay, he said. And St. Paul has reminded us that we are God's people. More specifically, we are God's children. it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God. (Romans 8:16) When you go through hardships, when you feel all alone, when you have no confidence left in you, when you feel like you are nobody, don't forget that you are God's child. God never forgets you. When Israel saw no hope for their future, God sent Joel to remind them that Jehovah was their God. You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I, the Lord, am your God and there is no other. And my people shall never again be put to shame.(Joel 2:27) God reminded them that when they could not do anything, God could do something. O children of Zion, be glad and rejoice in the Lord your God; for he has given the early rain for your vindication, he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the later rain, as before. (Joel 2:23) You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame. (Joel 2:26) When you go through hard times, don't forget this name. Joel. Jehovah is my God. There is nothing for you to worry about. His Prophecy When Jesus left and his disciples were all alone. They faced uncertain future. They saw threats all around them. They didn't have any power in them to fight against the oppression and threats. They just prayed. 120 people gathered together and desperately prayed. They were in devastation. That was when God sent the Spirit and helped them remember the name Joel. The Spirit came down and filled the whole room. Tongues of fire came down from heaven. They started speaking in different languages. A fantastic phenomena. They all wondered what this was all about. Some people accused them of being drunk. But Peter saw something different. Peter remembered Joel. Jehovah is my God. Peter remembered Joe's prophecy. It was the Spirit who reminded him of this passage. In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy. And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist. The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord's great and glorious day. Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. (Acts 2:17-21) That was exactly what Joel prophesied. Not Moses, Not Elijah, Not Isaiah but Joel. God reminded Peter of the name, Joel, and his prophecy. Remember Joel That was exactly what the early Christians needed. When they were terrified with fear, when they felt totally powerless, God told them I am your God. There is nothing for you to worry about. I will send you the Spirit. And the Spirit will give you the power. And with the power you receive, you can take any challenges in your life. We all experienced something very strange. The first time in our history, we have locked down everything for so long. I have also become a victim of this virus. Mine wasn't a mild one. I suffered for many days. I lost smell. My life was interrupted. I had to cancel everything. Tuesday Bible study, Friday morning Bible study, Fri

Scripture Passage Luke 18:1-8 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script God Answers Jesus wants us to pray. Jesus want us to pray always. And Jesus wants us to pray and not to lose heart. That is what this parable is all about. These three things are pillars of prayer life. First, Jesus wants us to pray because God answers our prayer. Without this faith, our prayers become meaningless. Jesus himself believed that. He prayed whenever he had to make big decisions such as calling disciples and accepting his death in Gethsemane. If we have faith that God answers our prayers, then we can pray to God. Jonah prayed to God. Elijah prayed to God. Jeremiah prayed to God. Moses prayed to God. Job prayed to God. Paul prayed to God. They all prayed to God because they believed that God would answer their prayers. This is what Jesus said. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. (Mark 11:24) This is what Jeremiah said. Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. (Jeremiah 33:3) Jesus had confidence in prayer. Jeremiah believed that there is mysterious power hidden in prayer. Prayer is something you have to experience. Without experiencing that your prayers are answered, you can never know what prayer does to your life. You can never learn to enjoy prayer. We cannot understand the reality of prayer with our brain. You have to experience it. You have to experience how God answers your prayer. Then you will see the power of prayer. That is the very first step of entering into the life of faith. God does not answer always in obvious ways. But as I look back, God answered my prayers and used my prayers to guide me and lead me. I used to write prayers. When I go back to my prayers, I can see how God has used my prayers to guide me. At that time, it didn't even look like answers. I didn't even know that my prayers were answered at that time. But gave me the best answer in his own way. That is the first pillar. Pray Always Second, Jesus tells us to pray always. That was what St. Paul said too. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18) He told us to pray without ceasing. Praying always means to make it as your lifestyle. In that sense, prayer is not your random activities. Prayer is a lifestyle. It is not that there is a time when you pray. It is rather that there is not a time when you don't pray. Don't pray habitually but make prayer as a habit of your life. Live a prayerful life. Approach all your problems with a prayerful attitude. You do that not only because you believe that God answers your prayer but also because you believe that you do not have all the answers. Do you know how helpful it is to know that you don't have to have all the answers in life? It gives you tremendous peace and calmness. We have this obsession that we have to take care of every problem. That stresses us out. But when you truly believe that you don't have to have all the answers, it gives you peace and calmness. That is what prayer does. Instead of worrying about things that you cannot solve, you know how to leave your life in God's good hands. You take a prayerful attitude to everything that you encounter. Prayerful life is a life of peace and calm. Joy, prayer, and thanksgiving go together. When you live a prayerful life, your life will be filled with joy and thankfulness. What more do you ask for in life? Do Not Lose Heart Third, Jesus said to pray and do not lose heart. If you start living a prayerful life, you will experience many disappointments. People who don't live a prayerful life, don't know that. But when you pray, you get disappointed and disillusioned. You feel like giving up. You feel angry even with God. You feel that God is like the bad judge. You get disappointed because you don't see God's movement in your life. Because you don't see any change. This is what Gideon said. But sir, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our ancestors recounted to us, saying, Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? But now the Lord has cast us off, and given us into the hand of Midian. (Judges 6:13) He was disappointed because he didn't get answers from God. St. Paul also prayed three times that his thorn may be removed but God didn't give him what he wanted. We do not always get what we want. That's why we get disappointed and frustrated. We feel like giving up. All of us will have a moment of losing our heart. So, to live a prayerful life, we have to know how to deal with our own disappointment. We have to learn not to lose our heart. This is where faith comes in. It is not faith that God answers our prayer. It is not faith that we don't have to have all the answers. It is faith to totally surrender to God. Like the faith Jesus had in Gethsemane. This is

Scripture Passage Luke 17:11-19 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script The Thankful Heart Happy Thanksgiving! We have gathered together this morning with a thankful heart for all the blessings God has bestowed upon us. We thank God for the family, friends, and the church. We thank God for providing what we need and more. We thank God for giving us peace and joy. We thank God for the wonderful life. There are so many things we are thankful for. The other day, I went to London for the induction of the Rev. Son. On the way to London, we saw leaves changing their colour. We thank God for the beautiful nature we enjoy. We should take care of our natural environment. More than anything else, we thank God FOR THE THANKFUL HEART we can have. The heart to be thankful – It is hard to have. Without a thankful heart, we cannot enjoy what we have. True joy comes not when you have the abundance but when you recognize your abundance. When you know how to appreciate the abundance you have, you will have the deep joy. True joy comes not when we are healthy but when we are able to appreciate the health we have. The True Blessing The true blessing is not the blessings themselves but when your eyes are open and recognize how blessed your life is. When you recognize that your life is a gift of God, that's when your blessings become true blessings. The power of salvation is released and can change you not when you have the salvation but when you deeply recognize the salvation you received. That is when your salvation is complete. If you take your salvation for granted, you won't experience the power of salvation. In that sense, thankfulness completes everything. Thankfulness completes our joy. Thankfulness completes the blessings. Thankfulness completes the salvation we have. Thankfulness completes our life. The Mercy of God Only one person knew this secret in the passage we read today. He was a Samaritan. He was treated as the lowest of the lowest. Not only was he a leper but he was also a Samaritan who was despised at that time. 10 lepers were all healed by the mercy of Jesus. They all asked for Jesus' mercy and they got it. Jesus, Master, have mercy on us! (Luke 17:13 They cried out for mercy and they got it! God's mercy has no discrimination. God grants his mercy to all those who ask for it. This is what Jesus said. for he (God) makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. (Matthew 5:45) 10 lepers, they all received the mercy of God. We don't know what kind of people they were. We don't know whether they were good or not. They all received the mercy from God regardless of who they were. But only one of them returned to Jesus to thank him. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him. (Luke 17:15, 16) They were all healed but only one of them knew how to appreciate the healing he received. Not only was he blessed with healing but he was blessed to recognize that everything good comes from God. That gave him the everlasting joy and peace. He not only experienced the power of mercy at that moment but he experienced the goodness of God. That's why he praised God with a loud voice. He had more than healing. He experienced more than healing. He discovered God's mercy and the goodness of God. Now he could live his life with this thankfulness. He received the thankful heart. Now he knew that there would be God's mercy in all circumstances. That was greater than the healing he received. That's why Jesus said this to him. Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well. (Luke 17:19) That is a strange expression. He was already made well. But Jesus said his faith had made him well. So, he was not just talking about the healing from leprosy he received. He meant his faith had made his whole life well. His thankfulness completed his healing. His thankfulness completed his salvation. That's what thankfulness does. It completes everything. It completes joy. It completes blessings. It completes salvation. Faith This thankfulness comes from faith. Jesus said to him that HIS FAITH had made him well. Jesus saw his faith. Because of his faith, he returned to Jesus and thanked him. Because of his faith, he praised God. He had faith that everything good comes from God. Yes, everything good comes from God. I pray that you all live with this faith. Even when you are struggling with your darkness, I hope that you have this faith. This faith will bring you out of your darkness and lead you into the light. Even when you are sick, I hope that you have this faith. This faith will bring you out of your sickness and lead you into healing. When we have faith that everything good comes from God, then we can be thankful in all circumstances. That was what St. Paul taught us to do. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ

Scripture Passage Luke 17:5-10 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script The Nature of Discipleship Today's passage is a difficult one. Right away, we're not comfortable with the language of slaves and masters. Jesus' story about the slave seems harsh. What is Jesus saying? Is he saying that we should treat those who work for us harshly? Is he saying that everyone in inferior positions should just keep their heads down and do as they're told? We shouldn't generalize this to apply to every situation. It's not a license for bosses to abuse and exploit their employees. It doesn't mean you should just accept any treatment from your bosses or superiors. In today's story, Jesus is talking to his disciples. He is talking about the nature of discipleship. He is telling them what their attitude should be when they serve others. This is what he said: Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!' (Luke 17:9-10) He is telling his disciples that when you serve, don't think that you're something special. Don't expect gratitude or recognition. Just do what you need to do because that's what you should do. Serve simply for the sake of serving, because that is what you should do. We have done only what we ought to have done! This is how Jesus lived his life. It was how he saw himself, and it was what he did. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve… (Mark 10:45) Jesus did not serve others to make himself feel more special. He did not seek recognition or appreciation. He simply served. He lifted others up. His service was humble. He tried to teach his disciples to serve in the same way. Near the end of his life, this what he did and said: Jesus got up from supper, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him… After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had reclined again, he said to them, Do you know what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for that is what I am. So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. (John 13:3-5, 12-14) The disciples had so much to learn about humble service. They all wanted recognition. They wanted to feel special for serving others. They argued among themselves who was the greatest. They wanted to enjoy the status of being alongside Jesus. They asked Jesus if they could be at his right hand and left hand in glory. Serving Jesus was completely different. He didn't seek any benefit from others. He didn't weigh or calculate who was worth his time and who was not. He just did what he believed he ought to do. He simply served. When I look at his life, he lived the most beautiful kind of life. I think that a life serving others is the most beautiful way to live life. At some level, we all wish we could be that way too. If it was easy, I think we all would. The fact is, serving others is not easy. When we serve, people don't appreciate it. They don't respond to what we do. Many times, people just don't care. If anything, you end up getting criticism and complaints. So we start to ask, why am I doing this? Life is busy enough trying to stay afloat. There is very little time and energy left after taking care of my responsibilities. Why should I spend what little is left over to serve others when no one even appreciates it? The easy thing to do is to forget about serving and just live for myself. The world is full of ways to enjoy and live for yourself. The pleasures of life are endless. The whole economy caters to our pleasures. We can literally spend our whole lives pursuing pleasure. I mean, it's great to enjoy life's pleasures. God has given us wonderful ways to enjoy life. But we drown in a sea of pleasure and we can't get out. Sometimes, we serve out of duty and obligation. I think it's better to do this than do nothing at all. But there is a danger when you serve only out of duty and obligation. The danger is self-righteousness. When duty and obligation are the driving forces of your actions, self-righteousness is a great trap. It inflates your sense of worth. You begin to think you are special. Self-righteousness demands affirmation and gratitude from others. It demands praise and recognition. Serving should bridge relationships and restore the gap between people. That is what Jesus did. By serving others, Jesus restored their place in the community. Those who had been outcasted, he healed and brought back in. The Antidote to Self-Righteousness But when self-righteousness is at the root of your service, it does not bring together, it divides and separates. It separates you and creates distance from those you're serving. You elevate yourself by putting yourself above others. You elevate yourself by putting

Scripture Passage Luke 16:19-31 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Blessed Are The Poor Why did the rich man go to hell and the poor man go to heaven? Was it because he was rich that he went to hell? Do the rich go to hell and the poor go to heaven? I don't think it is right to come up with this conclusion. We cannot generalize the ultimate fate of the rich and the poor from this passage. But it is true that the Scripture speaks quite a lot in favour of the poor. Especially in Luke. From the beginning of his gospel, he started with that. Listen to Mary's song, Magnificat: He has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. (Luke 1:53) Then Jesus' inauguration speech: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. (Luke 4:18) Then Jesus: Sermon on the Plain It is Beatitude in Luke. Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. (Luke 6:20) In Matthew's version, he said, Blessed are the poor in spirit but Luke simply said, Blessed are the poor. But he was harsh on the rich. Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God. (Luke 18:25) Is it because Jesus did not like the rich? I don't think so. But definitely he did not favour the rich over the poor. Not like what we see so much in the world we live in. Temptations and Recognitions Jesus was harsh on the rich because it is hard to be both rich and spiritual. Jesus didn't want us to fall into temptation by wanting to be rich. Money can bring so many temptations. St. Paul had the same warning for us. But those who want to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. (1 Timothy 6:9) When you are rich, you think you are self-sufficient. And this attitude of being self-sufficient doesn't go well with the spirituality. At the bottom of spirituality, there is a recognition that we are not self-sufficient. There is a recognition that I need others and I need God. There is a recognition that I am broken and vulnerable. There is a recognition that I don't know the way and show me the path I need to take. There is a recognition that I am scared and please help me. There is a recognition that I am in darkness and lead me to the light. All these recognitions are preconditions for cultivating spirituality. Without these recognitions, our spirituality becomes merely a religious decoration. You don't need to teach these things to the poor. They already have all of them. They live with those recognitions every day. But to the rich, these things do not come automatically. That need is not there. So it is hard to be spiritual. That does not mean that you cannot do it. But it is hard. If you are rich, why would you want these recognitions? You are very comfortable with your situations, yourself, and your ability. Unless you encounter some tragedies, you won't necessarily recognize these things about yourself. The Blind Man One of our ESM members sent an email to pastors and at the end, he said. The “Inner Voice” has been so helpful as I start each morning reading the email and a prayer. He is struggling with his issue right now. But generally if you are rich and if you are comfortable with your situations, it's hard to think about these things. God's word does not speak so personally and powerfully. You hear God's word with your brain, not with your heart, not with your gut. One of the worst things that our riches do to us: It makes us become blind. You become so focused on you, on your security, and your pleasure. You become self-absorbed that you become blind to everything else. You become blind to others around you. You become blind to those who are suffering. You become blind to who you really are and what you really need. You become so self-indulgent that you cannot see anything else. You live in the bubble of false security. There is a very good drama. If you have time, you should watch it. It is called – Hunting of Wild Boar. I won't spoil it. It is about how their lives are all tangled up because of money. They don't even know where it all started. Life becomes more and more tangled. When you look at today's story, the rich man was so self-indulgent that he couldn't see anything else but pleasing himself. There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. (Luke 16:19) Right after this verse, Jesus said this. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man's table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. (Luke 16:20, 21) He feasted sumptuously every day but he didn't even see a poor man right at his gate. He wasn't even aware of his presence. That's what the riches may do to you. All you care about becomes how to please yourself. As though, that is the purpose of life. As though, it can gi

Scripture Passage Luke 16:1-13 Worship Video Due to technical difficulties, the Worship Video is unavailable for this sermon. Worship Audio Sermon Script One Clear Message It is a very difficult parable. We are not sure what the message is. We are not sure what message Jesus wanted to get across through this parable. There is no obvious connection between the parable and Jesus' concluding message at the end. Let us start with Jesus' message at the end. We hear two messages Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. (Luke 16:10) No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth (Mammon). (Luke 16:13) But we are not sure how these two messages are related to the parable Jesus gave us. But there is one clear message. That is, Money and living a Christian life are directly connected. To live a good Christian life, we have to have a clear understanding about money. Enrich and Destroy Money is good but it is dangerous. Money can enrich our lives but at the same time, money can totally destroy our lives and others. God gave us money so that our life can be sustained. Not only to sustain our life but also to enrich our lives, God gave us money. God wants us to enjoy a good and abundant life. Money can do that for you. I said, GOD GAVE US MONEY. It is God who gave it to us to use it. So it is God's. That is what we believe about money. Like the manager in the parable, we are only a manager who manages God's money. The manager was given the authority to take care of the money. DURING THAT TIME, the economic system was different from now. There was no such thing as fee or payment. The owner set a certain amount to be collected and whatever the manager collected beyond what the owner wanted, it was his income. That was how tax collectors collected the tax. (Joseph Fitzmyer) So if the owner wants to get $50 from this olive oil, you sell it for whatever price. Let's say $55. Then you get $5. That's your income. It's like commission. The manager could enjoy a good and abundant life, by being honest and by being fair. But he was greedy. That greed brought him a disaster. He was about to lose everything he enjoyed. The master told hime that he would be fired. Money is good but it is dangerous, I said. Money can enrich our lives but at the same time, money can totally destroy our lives, I said. Greed When this GREED takes over, money is not any more good. Money will not enrich our lives, but it will destroy our lives. When God gave us money to bless our life, he put a warning label and that label is DO NOT BE GREEDY The Scripture clearly warns us, For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains. (1 Timothy 6:10) The love of money – that is greed. It is a root of all kinds of evil. It not only destroys your faith but it will also bring so much pain. Money cannot be mammon. The root word for mammon is money, wealth, profit but also it means to place trust in. The same root word for Amen – let it be so. Picture of Mammon Jesus said, No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. (Luke 16:13 KJV) Don't put your trust in money. Put your trust in God. When you look at US currency, this is inscribed. IN GOD, WE TRUST It is like a warning label. We shouldn't put our trust in money, but in God. When we put our trust in money, our greed will take over. When greed takes over our life, money can do harm. There is nothing as powerful as money. That's why money is so attractive. That's why Jesus compared serving God with serving money. The True Value The manager in the parable was greedy. He abused master's money. He also ripped off people too. Instead of properly charging them, he overcharged them to increase his profit. So when his scam was found out, he started reducing the debt people owed to the master. The person who owed 100 jugs of olive oil owed 50 jugs of oil to the master but the manager charged 100 jugs. He collected 50 jugs, which was, 100% profit. But when he was about to be fired, he let go of his portion, not just some of it but his entire income, so that he could get a favour from people once he got fired. By the inevitable situation, he had to be honest and share with others. He was forced to share. He let go of his greed and shared. For his survival. That's why the master commended him for what he did. He learned to share. This is a very important lesson about money. When greed takes over, you want to take and take. When you have that kind of attitude about money, money will do a lot of harm. It will destroy who you are. It will make you a very unhappy person. You will lose

Scripture Passage Exodus 32:7-14 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Stiff-Necked In his conversation with Moses, God refers to the Israelites in a peculiar way. He calls them a STIFF-NECKED people. The Lord said to Moses, I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. (Exodus 32:9) This term comes from an agricultural setting. It was used for animals that would IGNORE the farmer's tug at the reins to turn in a certain direction and instead go where it wanted to go. It refers to an attitude of our mind. If a person was described as being stiff-necked, it meant that they were STUBBORN and REBELLIOUS. In what way was the Israelites stiff-necked? From the context of the passage, it's not so apparent. All they did was to make the golden calf. They didn't make it for no reason. They were afraid. Moses went up to the mountain to speak to God, but showed no sign of coming back. They started to get worried. The longer he was away, they became more impatient. They wondered, Did Moses abandon us? Did God abandon us? Their frustration soon reached its peak. When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron and said to him, Come, make gods for us, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him. (Exodus 32:1) The Israelites did what seemed best to them. We can only wait so long. They had no idea what else to do. So they made the golden calf. They needed some kind of assurance that they'd be okay. At least the calf was VISIBLE and TANGIBLE. The Wilderness It wasn't the making of the golden calf that made them stiff-necked in God's sight. The calf was no god'. It had no power to do anything. It was what they did with the calf that made them stubborn and rebellious in God's eyes. They WORSHIPED it. They used it as an ANTIDOTE for their fear. Fear of uncertainty; Fear of not knowing their next steps; Fear of survival. The calf gave them a false sense of control and security. It was their means of coping with the wilderness. They were no longer concerned with God or what he had to say to them. With the calf, they only listened to themselves. What grieved and angered God was their REFUSAL to LISTEN. Yes wilderness is a difficult place. We don't choose it willingly. We prefer to avoid it as much as we can. It is a place of CHANGE and TRANSITION where nothing seems certain. Everything is in flux. We are given no guarantee as to when we will come out of it. We are experiencing the wilderness now. September is usually a time of change and transition. Some of us are heading back to school. Some of us are in-between jobs. Some of us are transitioning into the next stage of our lives. This week alone, we witnessed two major events that were unexpected and unsettling for many: tragedy in Saskatchewan, and the passing of Queen Elizabeth II. We are also seeing how the state of economy will affect us financially in the near future. It is an anxious and challenging time to be in. We don't know exactly what to do or how we ought to be. Refusing to Listen When we experience uncertainty, we CLOSE UP. We become RIGID. We stick to what we know. We resort to what is easy, logical, and predictable. We become reactive and controlling. In other words, we REFUSE to LISTEN. We stop engaging with our lives. Sometimes, we aren't even aware of how stubborn we are. Refusing to listen is never the solution for our wilderness. That's what the Israelites learned. They thought they knew their way around. But their stubborn refusal to listen led them circling the desert for 40 YEARS. It was during those 40 years that they learned how to listen. How to DEPEND on God who knows their way. Listening has to be cultivated. It is a DISCIPLINE. To truly listen, is difficult. It requires us to slow down. It makes us set aside what we are doing. It forces us to PAY ATTENTION. In that sense, listening is SPIRITUAL. That's why it's hard for us to listen. It's too tiring to do it well. We find ourselves too BUSY and DIVIDED in our daily life. But as long as we have the desire within us, we can cultivate our listening. That's what the Hi-C students experienced at the retreat. They learned how to listen. On the first day, I took their phones away. Some were NOT happy about it. Their one and only safety net was taken from them. They had nothing to hide behind. They had no one but themselves and each other. They had no choice but to ENGAGE. They looked lost for the first day or two. But they soon started paying attention. They became more IN TUNE and CONNECTED with their surroundings, with each other, and with themselves. Even during worship, they looked more FOCUSED than before. In the span of 3 days alone, I noticed them change. They had more ENERGY. They became more ALIVE. By the last day, they didn't even ask for their phones. Even though they faced an uncertain future, especially coming out of the pandemic, they came bac

Scripture Passage Jeremiah 18:1-11 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Shaped and Molded Being shaped and molded – that's how we become who we are. We are constantly being molded and shaped. Many times, we don't even know how we have come where we are. It just happened. Or we just let it happen. We are not aware of how we have become the kind of person we are. Yes, we were born to be a certain kind of person. I have 5 grandchildren but they are all so different. They were all born differently. Genetically, we have been shaped in a certain way. A lot of our diseases are genetic. Our certain personalities were given at our birth. Look at Jacob in the Bible. He was born to be a fighter. Afterwards his brother came out, with his hand gripping Esau's heel; so he was named Jacob. (Genesis 25:26) He wanted to come out ahead of his brother. That character brought him a lot of troubles. His character led him to trick his brother to get the birthright. He even tricked his father to get the birthright and ultimately this led him to have to run away from his home. But what shaped us is not just a genetic coding. We are not genetically predetermined, I am saying. Someone said this and it makes sense Various options are pencilled in by our genes, and our life experiences determine which get inked. We have been shaped by the way we have responded to our situations too. You can see that in Jacob. He became the kind of person he was because of his circumstances. Nothing came easily for him. Nothing came on a silver platter. He had to fight to get it. Even his wife, he had to fight to get her. He had to fight to get the riches he deserved. This shaped Jacob to be the person he was. Fighter. Sometimes sly and cunning. But he knew how to fight to win. This applies to us too. You were born to be a kind of person you are. This is how I was born. Whether you like it or not, you can do nothing about it. You can blame your parents all you want, but there is nothing much you can do. Also, you cannot do anything about how you have been shaped. It's already your past. Your circumstances have shaped you to be a kind of person you are. You cannot do anything about the kind of person you have become. Change But the good news is that you can always change. That is the Christian message. We can always change. We can always get better. That's what I believe. That is what freedom is. Do you believe what St. Paul said? I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13) If I apply this passage to what I am saying, it is like this. I can change through him who strengthens me. You can change. It doesn't matter how old you are. It doesn't matter how capable you are. It doesn't matter what your circumstances may be. You can always change. You can always be better. You can always be the person you want to be. If you don't like the person you have become, you can always change. That is a Christian attitude. Let us not be stuck in where we are. Let us not think that there is nothing much we can do. There is an old gospel song. Change my heart, O God, Make it ever true; Change my heart, O God, May I be like you. You are the Potter, I am the clay; Mold me and make me, This is what I pray. Free From the Burden Everything starts with the change of our heart. It is not our circumstances that have shaped us. It is how we have responded to our circumstances. How we respond has a lot to do with our heart. So, when our heart changes, our response to our circumstances will change too. God gave us freedom. Freedom is not to do whatever you want. Freedom is the power to change. Freedom is to overcome our helplessness. Freedom is to go beyond where we are. Yes, genetic force is strong. Yes, our environmental force is strong. But I believe that your freedom is stronger. I believe that your confidence is stronger. Jacob was born to be a fighter. His circumstances made him a fighter. At the end, he even fought God and tried to win. He wrestled with God. But this time, it was different. In the course of trying to fight God, he changed. Jacob became Israel. Israel means God prevails. We are not helpless with our situations. We are not helpless with what we are born with. We are free to overcome our situations and be the person we want to be. The power to do that. That is the freedom. God is the potter and we are the clay. God knows what we need. God knows what we desire. God knows the struggles we have. God works with us to mold us and shape us. If you keep going back to your helplessness and do nothing about it, then even God cannot do anything about you. Believing in your own power and believing in the power of God are very different. Your heart condition will be very different. Believing in your own power often leads you to devastation. But believing in the power of God leads you always to hope. Those two are very different. You will be molded very differently. If you trust in your own power, it gives you too much pressure. It gives yourse

Scripture Passage Luke 14:1-7-14 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script In or Out In or Out? This is very important to so many people. Nobody wants to be out. Everybody wants to be in. It is not a good feeling to be rejected. Everybody wants to be wanted and welcomed. Even among friends, we get hurt when we feel excluded. One of the greatest headaches in planning the wedding is to decide who to invite and not only that – where to seat them. I think It was the same 2,000 years ago. That's why Jesus used a parable of a wedding banquet. Not only people want to be in but they want to be at the highest place. Jesus said this, knowing what people wanted: do not sit down at the place of honour (Luke 14:8) People measure their worth by how well accepted they are. So people try so hard to be accepted. To feel important. To feel worthy. If that is the measure of your worth, Jesus did not do very well. He was rejected, hated, abandoned, and killed. But Jesus never measured his worth by how well he was accepted. He taught us to do the same. No Significance In today's Scripture passage, Jesus said. Do not invite those who are popular, who are well accepted, who are powerful and who are rich. Invite those who cannot invite you back. Invite those who are not usually invited. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. (Luke 14:13) Invite those who live their entire life, always rejected. That was what Jesus did. He was a friend of tax collectors, sinners, and the sick. He was a friend of those who were socially alienated. His disciples were mostly fishermen. Not important people. Not highly regarded people in their society. They didn't have any social status. Jesus was their friend. And Jesus did his ministry with those who were not that significant in their society. They were nothing in the eyes of powerful people. Jesus said, Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance. (Luke 5:31, 32) Jesus did not accept those who were already well accepted. But Jesus accepted those who were rejected. God accepts us not because we are great, not because we do so well. God accepts us even though we have nothing to show for. God accepts us even when we are nobody significant. Humility and Respect Last Thursday, I visited a person at St. Joseph Health Centre. His wife called me to say a prayer for her husband since he is in a critical condition. Probably my last prayer for him. When I visited him, he was barely conscious. He had his eyes closed but not much response. I called his name and there was no response. So I read Psalm 23 and told him that God accepts you not because you are good but because of his grace. Do you believe that? Do you accept God's grace? He was quiet and no response. And all of a sudden, he said, I believe. He passed away yesterday. The way God accepts people teaches us how we should live. Do you want to be around those who are popular, powerful, and well accepted? Or do you identify with those who are rejected and alienated? Do you want to take the spot light? Or do you want to give that spot light to others? Do you want people to listen to you? Or do you let others speak? When we have the attitude of being considerate of those who are rejected and alienated, we will be able to build this community. But when everyone wants to be at the centre of attention, the community will not be able to stand. Respect each other. Respect is a very important virtue of Christians. God respects us. We need to learn to respect others. Regardless of their social status, we need to learn to respect others. Don't judge them just because they are not like you. Don't judge them just because they don't share the same taste as you. Don't judge them just because they are different. Being different is not being deficient. Accept everyone with respect. Speak with respect. Treat others with respect. That's what humility is. Be humble. A Christian Virtue Jesus said, For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. (Luke 14:11) Humble people cannot be rude. Humble people treat others with respect. Humble people do not judge others in the way they see the world. Humble people are willing to learn to see the world in the way others see the world. So they always grow. Their understanding becomes deeper and broader. Humble people are patient. Proud people always look down and so they cannot see what is above. Humble people always look up and so they can see what is above and go beyond themselves. The desire of humble people is not to prove themselves. The desire of humble people is to learn and grow. That's why humble people are always open. They are confident enough to be able to see their own weaknesses and are willing to grow. Humble people don't need a spot light. Humility is a Christian virtue. Let Us Be Humble When pride comes, then comes disgrace; but wisdom is w