St Timothy Presbyterian Church in Toronto: Sermons

Scripture Passage 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script The Glory of God We all need the GLORY OF GOD. The question is: WHAT IS the glory of God? We hear it all the time. We use it quite often. And yet is it hard to put it into words, or define it. It is one of those words that we experience all the time and yet hard to say exactly what it is. It is like beauty , love , and so on. We know what it is and we use it all the time and yet, it is hard to say exactly what it is. Maybe it is a reality which is too big to describe in a few words. The Psalmist said, The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork. (Psalm 19:1) From the poetic imagination of the psalmist, I get a glimpse of what the glory of God is. Manifestation of God – THAT is the glory of God. When the invisible God manifests himself, we see the glory of God. Heavens are telling the glory of God. Heavens manifest the presence of God. Beautiful nature manifests the glory of God. In the Old Testament, we hear the cloud of Shekhinah. The cloud manifests the presence of God. When it comes to the New Testament, Jesus Christ, the Word Incarnate, manifested God. That is the glory of God. This is what John said. And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14) Two or three gather together in my name, I will be there, Jesus said. Shekhinah will be there. The glory of God will be there. When we pray, when we praise, God's glory will be there. The glory of God is the manifestation of God's presence. When you feel strongly the presence of God, you see the glory of God. It can happen during prayer, during worship, and during Bible studies. Or it can happen when you see a beautiful sunset. Or when you are in the hospital. Or even on your deathbed. It is not necessarily a miraculous and supernatural phenomenon. It is a moment of sensing God's presence in your life. That is a glorious moment. A Veil to Cover Our Minds Moses saw the glory of God when he received the 10 commandments in Mount Sinai. His face was shining. There was a glow on his face. Unfortunately, Moses put a veil on his face because he knew that the glow was only temporary. And he didn't want his people to think that the glory of God was there for a while and faded away. That was how Paul saw Moses' action. Paul was using this as a metaphor in today's passage. Moses covered the glory of God with a veil. That veil was still on the minds of the Israelites and they could not see the glory of God. That was his own personal experience. He knew God's commandments very well but these commandments could not remove the veil. Even though he knew the law well, he could not see the glory of God because of the veil. Do you remember when he first met Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus? This was what Luke said about Paul's experience on the road to Damascus. Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. For three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. (Acts 9:8, 9) So, God called Ananias and told him to reach out to Saul. So Ananias went and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul and said, Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.'And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and his sight was restored. (Acts 9:17, 18) His veil was removed from him, when he received the Spirit. Now he was able to see the glory of God. Even though he knew the commandment of God, he didn't see the glory of God. Seeing the glory of God is the work of the Spirit, not the law. That's why he said, for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. (2 Corinthians 3:6) Here, the letter meant the law written on stone tablets. Also, he said, Now if the ministry of death, chiselled in letters on stone tablets, came in glory so that the people of Israel could not gaze at Moses' face because of the glory of his face, a glory now set aside, how much more will the ministry of the Spirit come in glory? (2 Corinthians 3:7, 8) Having knowledge is not enough. Knowing the law is not enough. It can be a veil to cover our minds so that we cannot see the glory of God. Being a good person is not enough. Our righteousness can be a veil to cover our minds so that we cannot see the glory of God. Having power is not enough. It can be a veil to cover our minds so that we cannot see the glory of God. In Our Lives Our upbringing, our experiences, our education, and our environments shaped us to be who we are. Through these things, we have come to understand our reality better. But we have to realize that they can also limit us. They can be a veil that blinds our eyes and a chain that enslaves us. This week was a gloomy week. It was hurting to see one country invading a

Jonah 4 Introduction If the story ended at chapter 2, then it would be a great story of calling and repentance. If the story ended at chapter 3, then it would be a great story of calling, repentance and a heroic response to one's calling. In fact, a chapter 3 ending would be more parallel to the modern mythical story of our modern society: how one feels a calling, shrinks in fear, but then overcomes that fear to live out a glorious calling. In terms of results, Jonah was the most successful prophet. But the story doesn't end there. We have chapter 4. It's a very confusing chapter, it's mysterious and weird. But we have it. Which means that it means something. And because it's the concluding chapter of our short book, it is a very important chapter. It's perhaps the most important one. It is the key to the meaning of the whole book. So it's very important to reflect deeply on this last chapter. Jonah's Anger The word angry comes up 5 times in English, 6 if you include the Hebrew root for displeased Jonah's anger is a recurring theme, and one you identified in your questions. Jonah is angry that God changed his mind about Nineveh. He reveals the true reason that he ran away: he knew God was compassionate and would change his mind. This statement reveals his intimate knowledge of God. He knows that God is compassionate, merciful and slow to anger. But Jonah's reaction reveals that DP is right when he states that Jonah has no love for Nineveh. If you read his action in Nineveh carefully, you see that all he did was proclaim Nineveh's impending doom. Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown! That was it. He didn't offer any way out, anything they could do. Probably he was hoping that this prophecy would actually come true. Jinny asked why he went out to see what would happen. He probably did so to see if God might actually change his mind again at the last minute and actually destroy them. It was like he was giving God one more chance. So in line with some of the questions posed: Why is Jonah so angry about God's compassion and change of heart? What does his anger reveal about Jonah? The Bush Jonah was so happy about the bush. It's like he forgot his anger at God about letting Nineveh live It provided a nice shade and comfort. But God sends a worm that attacks the bush and makes it wither. The sun beats down on him and the wind chafes against his face. The dude is really uncomfortable. And his anger is kindled once again. It's to the point where he repeats what he said about God's change of heart to Nineveh: It is better for me to live than to die The interesting thing is that God asks a second time: Is it right for you to be angry? The first time, he didn't answer, he simply left town. But this second time, he responds: Yes, angry enough to die. What's different about his anger about the bush from his anger about Nineveh? What's the same? What do you learn about Jonah from this? What do we learn about ourselves? Jonah's Repentance and God's Calling When Jonah was in the belly of the fish, he had a deep moment of reckoning. He showed repentance. He said: As my life was ebbing away, I remembered the Lord; and my prayer came to you, into your holy temple. Those who worship vain idols forsake their true loyalty. But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Deliverance belongs to the Lord! Rockey asked if Jonah actually repented in the fish, or if it was superficial. What do you think? What's the difference between his repentance in the fish, and what you see here? On the face of it, it seems like Jonah's calling was to go to Nineveh and cry out against it. Was that it, or was it something more than that? What does this last chapter reveal about the nature of God's calling? What does this say to you? The post Jonah 4 appeared first on St Timothy Presbyterian Church.

Scripture Passage Luke 6:27-38 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Eye for an Eye The moral standard of the world is. Do to others what they do to you. It is easy to understand. It is rational. Fair. If they do evil to you, then you have a right to do evil to them. If they took $100 from you, then you have a right to take $100 from them. It makes sense. Logical That was what Moses said too. Anyone who maims another shall suffer the same injury in return: fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; the injury inflicted is the injury to be suffered. (Leviticus 24:19-20) We often misunderstand Eye for eye. We think that this means to revenge. Moses gave this rule not to revenge but to treat others fairly. Don't return with excessive retaliation. If they took your eye, don't take more than eye. But Jesus' teaching is different from the moral standard of the world. It wasn't Do to others what they do to you. It was this: Do to others as you would have them do to you. Treat others as how you want to be treated. How do I want to be treated? I want to be treated with respect and honour. I want to be treated without prejudice and discrimination. I want to be accepted. I want to be loved. Then treat others in the same way. Don't treat them as they treat you. Treat them as you want them to treat you. Just because they treat you badly, don't bring yourself down to their level. Don't let them control how you live. We cannot control how they treat us. But we can control how we treat them. We don't follow what they do to us. We follow what is good. We don't follow the evil they do unto us. We follow the good that is good for all. Understanding Love Understanding this is the first step of understanding love. Love is not about how you feel. Love is not our response to those who love us. Love is doing the good that each person needs whether that person deserves it or not. In that sense, even to our enemies, we do good – that is love. But come to think of it, that is how God loves us. God has been good to us. Not because we deserve God's goodness but because we need it. This was what St. Paul said. But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8) Then in two verses later, he said this. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. (Romans 5:10) While we were God's enemies, Jesus showed us God's love by sacrificing himself for us. Love your enemies – it is paradoxical. It is oxymoron. Enemies are those you hate by definition. But Jesus said to love your enemies and he showed us his example. Jesus died for us to save those who were enemies to God. In loving enemies, God's mysterious plan of salvation is hidden. God's love for us is like loving enemies. That is God's love. In loving our enemies, the essence of the gospel is hidden. Also, in loving your enemies, the essence of love is hidden. We will find love in its PUREST FORM in loving our enemies. In other kinds of love such as romantic love, altruistic love, love is mixed with selfish desire, selfish motivation, heroism, and personal gain. But in loving enemies, you will be able to see love in its purest form. From this pure love comes true power and confidence. Our enemies cannot intimidate us any more. They no longer become the object of our hatred. Hatred Hatred is hard. Hating somebody takes a toll on us. You don't know how many people live their lives trapped in the ugly feeling of hatred. When we have hatred within us, we can never be happy. Hatred brings evil to all of us. It creates a bad cycle. Hatred takes away freedom from us. We become paralyzed when we are trapped in hatred. Hatred poisons our soul. It is like a bug. When you catch it, you cannot sleep. It makes you feel down and depressed. It makes you angry. It makes you weak. It takes away joy. It damages our mind and our body. It is like a severe disease. It is a disease our enemies bring to us. It is like opening the door for the evil to come in and destroy us. That's what hatred does. What our enemies did was bad enough. Now if we hate them, we are doing what is worse to us than what our enemies did to us. We let the evil come in and take us into deeper darkness. That is not a very wise thing to do, is it? So love your friends and hate your enemies – it sounds logical and it sounds good but it is not really a wise thing to do. Do to others what they do to you – it sounds rational but not a very practical thing to do. Loving your enemies makes much more sense than hating them. It stops them from harming us more than what they already did. It is good to all of us. But the problem is we cannot do it on our own. We don't have that kind of love. Love From God This kind of love comes from God. When we experience this love from God, love enters into our soul. It touches every cell of our body, and strengthens and empowers each cell. It he

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Jonah 3 Paul asked the question: what does this story point to? Very relevant question The text of Scripture always points to a deeper truth In Gospel of John, he calls the miracles of Jesus as signs In other words, the focus was not to on the miracles themselves, but what they point to Not the finger, but the finger that points to the moon Every story in the Bible points to something beyond itself Our knowledge is like small islands in a vast ocean What we know is just a little part compared to the vastness of the ocean Stories in the Bible shed a glimpse into that broader ocean Little by little, our island grows But it will always be an island, never complete What people do is get scared by the vastness of that ocean Take what little knowledge we have, build systems of knowledge and belief We feel safe in that Everything then gets filtered through that system of knowledge and belief It helps us make sense of the world But stories of Bible reveal something different: Instead of fitting built up systems of knowledge and belief, they are stories of how those systems are broken down They reveal greater reality of God A greater reality that breaks systems of belief and knowledge Jesus himself came to break down systems of belief that were built up Returned to the essence of God's reality In Bible study, if we read it from our own existing systems of belief and knowledge, it might feel safer and more certain, but that is not that path to God's greater reality, which is always much vaster than ours Our posture must be one of humility, awe and openness to the vastness of God's universe and God's ways When we come before the Scripture with openness and humility to God's much greater reality, then our own thinking gets changed, our eyes are opened, and our hearts expand That is what we're trying to do here – be transformed by and into God's greater reality We have this wonderful gift of Scripture that was written, collected and passed down through centuries Background Info on Nineveh Last week Paul asked: is this story real or fictional? And does it matter? Related to what I said above, I think the more important thing is what this story points to In terms of historical accuracy, no one can say for sure. In 1 Kings there is a reference to a prophet named Jonah, son of Amittai It is just a reference, there is no story associated with him in the historical books of the Bible Likely there was a prophet of such a name And it's possible that he had some ministry related to Nineveh Nineveh was the capital city of Assyria Assyria was the first major empire in the middle east region It dominated the whole area for some time Assyria conquered the northern kingdom of Israel Policy: assimilation via intermarriage of populations So Nineveh represented the forces that destroyed Israel How do you think Jonah might have felt toward Nineveh? This question will become more relevant next week Nineveh was the largest city in the known world at the time, but it was not a three days' walk across. I think the writer wanted to convey that God thought Jonah's work was very important DP asked a question about whether our calling can have a massive impact on others. What a massive impact is can be subjective The point, though, is that going to Nineveh was Jonah's unique calling, and to God it was a very important calling We too have our unique calling – a unique life we're supposed to live Each will have a different impact, but to God, it is an important impact Second Time Rockey asked questions about v.1 – second time I think this is a very important thing to reflect on What was different about this second time compared with the first? What is this second chance really about? It's a second chance to do what? If the story ended in chapter 2, then it would be a nice story: a story of redemption Jonah refuses calling, goes down to depths, is rescued by God, commits to live differently End of story, nice But story continues and begins with second time What does this second chance say about salvation? Is salvation only about being saved from the bottom depths like in chapter 2? Repentance of Ninevites Jonah had a very simple message: Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown! Context: Nineveh being overthrown would have grave consequences Many enemies and subjects who would take revenge Basically, would wipe out No hope, no mercy, no way out It's a simple declaration 40 days: In Bible, time of great trials Great trials, difficult times, hardships But also times of becoming new Noah and the flood Moses spending 40 years in Midian Israelites 40 years in the wilderness Jesus' 40 days of temptations Sackcloth: why did they cover themselves in this? Did they believe in God? What is the prerequisite or criteria for repentance? What did the Ninevites' repentance look like? (DP: they didn't do anything extra. So what did they do?) Was it genuine or performative? What is repentance? What's the difference between repentance and guilt? God Changed

Scripture Passage Jeremiah 17:5-10 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Fraying the Bonds Friendship is more important than justice and the rule of law. That is what the Greek philosopher Aristotle said. When the bonds of friendship are strong, there is consent from the governed and trust in the rule of law. When these bonds of friendship break down, however, then there is mistrust in the system that governs them. We are living in a time where these bonds of friendship are breaking down. Instead of friendship, there is mistrust, suspicion and animosity. Instead of coming together with understanding and openness, people make enemies of those who are different. We see frustrations, anger, and tensions boiling over. We see this in the trucker convoys. We see it in the United States. We see it in places like Ukraine and Russia. We see it in leaders who gain power by targeting groups as scapegoats for their problems. We see it in news media that amplify divisions. We see it in social media that are echo chambers that drive further wedges among groups. We live in a time of rapid changes and uncertainty. This COVID-19 pandemic has just exacerbated all of that. There is a lot of anxiety and vulnerability. People are stressed out, overwhelmed and powerless to manage their circumstances. These things have been fraying the bonds that tie us together. The important question for our time is how we respond to all of these changes and uncertainties in life? Will they drive us further apart? Or will they bring us together in common purpose and unity? Fear What we've seen so far is not encouraging. All this uncertainty has bred fear. When fear strikes, the results are unpredictable. It can manifest in many unforeseen ways. What it does do is divide people. Fear destroys rather than builds up. Fear wreaks havoc rather than bringing peace. Fear creates more mistrust than goodwill. Fear is a truly scary thing. Fear can destroy this world. I think that President Franklin Roosevelt spoke a great truth when he said that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. The fate of this world depends on whether we can manage and control our fear. Fear resides in the heart. From our heart flows our actions. From our heart springs forth the kind of life we live. That is what the prophet Jeremiah is saying in today's passage. He asks a piercing question: whom or what do our hearts trust? When fear strikes, do you trust in God? Or do you turn away from God toward whatever might provide security? Depending on the answer, two contrasting types of life flow from that. The Shrub and the Tree He contrasts a shrub in the desert with a tree planted by water. Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals and make mere flesh their strength, whose hearts turn away from the Lord. They shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when relief comes. They shall live in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. (Jeremiah 17:5-6) Those whose hearts turn away from God are compared to a shrub in the desert. In other words, those who in their fear turn toward whatever might easily relieve that fear are compared to this shrub. The main feature of their life is that there is so little life-giving water. So they adapt and conserve water. Their whole energies are geared towards conserving what little water they have. Because there is so little water, they remain very low to the ground. They cannot grow large. They are isolated, because there is not enough water for many other shrubs. It is a barren, lonely existence. They have adapted and have survived. They are hardened survivors. But their life is small. They cannot see beyond the low ground, they have very little source of life, and they do not give life to others. This is the kind of life that results when one is gripped by fear. One seeks security in whatever, or whomever, might provide relief from that fear. One clings tightly to whatever security it can find. But this is a barren and lonely existence that lacks vitality. That is the life of the shrub. He contrasts the shrub with the tree planted by water. Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit. (Jeremiah 17:8) This life is blessed. It is planted with deep roots, so they are strong. Its roots are connected with the stream and have access to a never-ending source of life-giving water. When difficulties come, this tree will not fear. Its leaves will not wither, but stay green. When there is drought it does not become anxious. Rather, it continues to bear fruit. Is your life like a shrub in the desert or a tree planted by water? Jeremiah was proclaiming this to a people who were very afraid. In fear they turned to idols rather than trust in God. In fear they turned to str

Exodus 1-2Rev. Simon Parkshare Social: jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $('#facebook-player-share-37714').sharrre({ share: { facebook: true }, urlCurl: 'https://timothypc.com/wp-content/mu-plugins/rainmaker/library/external/genesis-simple-share/assets/js/sharrre/sharrre.php', enableHover: false, enableTracking: true, disableCount: true, buttons: { }, click: function(api, options){ api.simulateClick(); api.openPopup('facebook'); } }); $('#googleplus-player-share-37714').sharrre({ share: { googlePlus: true }, urlCurl: 'https://timothypc.com/wp-content/mu-plugins/rainmaker/library/external/genesis-simple-share/assets/js/sharrre/sharrre.php', enableHover: false, enableTracking: true, buttons: { }, click: function(api, options){ api.simulateClick(); api.openPopup('googlePlus'); } }); $('#linkedin-player-share-37714').sharrre({ share: { linkedin: true }, urlCurl: 'https://timothypc.com/wp-content/mu-plugins/rainmaker/library/external/genesis-simple-share/assets/js/sharrre/sharrre.php', enableHover: false, enableTracking: true, buttons: { }, click: function(api, options){ api.simulateClick(); api.openPopup('linkedin'); } }); $('#twitter-player-share-37714').sharrre({ share: { twitter: true }, urlCurl: 'https://timothypc.com/wp-content/mu-plugins/rainmaker/library/external/genesis-simple-share/assets/js/sharrre/sharrre.php', enableHover: false, enableTracking: true, buttons: { }, click: function(api, options){ api.simulateClick(); api.openPopup('twitter'); } }); }); Link: Embed: https://timothypc.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/audio1025781680.mp3 Download Audio Subscribe

Scripture Passage Luke 5:1-11 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Simon and Peter In today's Scripture passage, we heard about how Peter first met Jesus in a meaningful way. His life was changed totally by meeting Jesus. It is a wonderful story of conversion. He was a changed man. Jesus gave him a new name, Petros, Peter, the Rock. You know names are important. They tell us who we are. They give us our identity. But Simon was nothing like Peter. He was not rock. He was flimsy, emotional, impulsive and capricious. He was not at all like a solid rock. He didn't think about consequences before he spoke. A lot of times, he didn't know what he was talking about. He said he would never deny Jesus. He even compared himself with others. Even if everybody else deserts you, I will never do that. And he denied Jesus, not once, but three times. Knowing all that, Jesus still gave him the name, Peter, the Rock. That wasn't who Simon was but that was who Simon would be. Indeed, he became the rock. On him, church is founded. Today's story was the beginning of that journey. Even after this incident, he was still not like rock. But this was the beginning of that journey. For Peter, it was a journey of change. He found his life. He found what he wanted in his life. He found what was important in life. Finding Importance Finding what is important in life is what we all should do. Our life is beautiful and precious. We cannot waste it away. Every minute of it, we have to cherish it. We don't have time to waste it away. We cannot just follow what others do. We have to live life that is meaningful to us. Nobody can tell me what is meaningful to me. We have to find it on our own. The problem is it's hard to know. It is hard to know what is really important to us. We are shaped and molded by our environment in a significant way. If we were born in a religious family and surrounded by religious people, then being religious becomes important to us. If we were born in a musical family and surrounded by musical people, then being a great musician becomes important to us. So what is important and meaningful to us is very much influenced by our circumstances. In that sense, creating a good environment for our children is very important. In a good environment, they will learn what is important in life. Some time ago, our family met together. And Josh called Nolan and said, Tell granddad two things you learned when we had vacation. Nolan said, Be grateful and be generous. That's how they learn values in life. Peter grew up in a fishing family. Fishing was the most important thing for Peter. That was his value, his goal, and what gave him meaning. He had no reason to think about anything else. Yes, our environment is very important. It helps us know what is important. And it shapes us who we become. But at the same time, it can limit us. It can shape us so powerfully that it doesn't allow us to see anything beyond. We may not be able to see that life can be bigger. We have to provide a good environment for our children but at the same time, we have to also help them go beyond their small world. We should provide them with an opportunity to search for their own life, finding their own meaning. There is life we can teach. But there is life that they have to learn on their own. Callings From God There is life that is given to us. We have no choice for that. We didn't choose what kind of parents we would have. We didn't choose to be born in a certain family, like religious family, musical family, academic family, or an immigrant family. So there is life that is given to us. But there is life that we are drawn to, life that attracts us. There is life that is revealed to us. There is life that falls at us out of nowhere. There is life that shapes the direction of our life. Some people may call it destiny. I want to call it calling. There is calling from God. That was what happened to Peter. Fishing was important to him but he realized that there was something bigger than fishing. When he caught so many fish with Jesus' help, he saw something else, not fish. He saw something more than fish. He said this. I am a sinful man! (Luke 5:8) It was not a typical response we would expect. The typical response would have been, Wow, Wonderful, Thank you. You made my day. But he said instead, I am a sinful man! Was he reminded of a particular sin that he committed on that day? Or was he sorry for questioning Jesus when he told him to let down his nets into the deep water? Come on Jesus, I am a professional fisherman and I caught nothing all night and are you telling me to put down my nets again? I just washed them. Was he sorry for thinking that? I don't think so. It was not because of a particular sin that he committed. His eyes were open to a much larger world. He saw how small he was. He realized that he was nothing but a dust and yet he mistakenly thought that he knew it all. He recognized his shortcomings. That's why he said, I am a sinful man. Jes

Jonah 1 Our Unique Existence V.1: Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah Jonah received a distinct word from God. The Bible doesn't say exactly how this word came to him. Just that it did. Do you hear any such word spoken to you? How do we know when this happens? How can we hear it? How does God speak to us? Today's context is very difficult to hear God's word spoken to us. So many distractions. Don't even have blank moments where we just stare at the ceiling lost in our thoughts, because we're too busy staring at our screens. Just like the theme deep calls to deep – God speaks to us in the recesses of our hearts. But to hear God's voice, we need to listen to the inner voice in our hearts. Jonah was called to go to Nineveh. This was a unique calling just for Jonah. God did not call a whole bunch of people. This was a special calling reserved for Jonah. Each of us have a unique life to live. Just like the DNA of each individual is entirely unique, the pattern and shape of our lives are meant to be unique. Irreplicable. We are not all meant to go to Nineveh. Each of us have our own Nineveh to go to. When we think of calling, often we might think of it in terms of a job or career. But calling in the biblical sense is much more than that. It is about the shape and pattern of our existence. That shape and pattern might affect our jobs, but not necessarily. It is much greater than our job or career. It is the overall direction and shape that our lives take. There is no ready-made template for your life. God has fashioned you uniquely, to live a life that only you can live. But what often happens is that instead of pursuing our unique life, we try to follow a template. We seek to go down paths that have been prescribed for us. Jonah was uniquely called to go to Nineveh. But he chose to flee to Tarshish. Tarshish is a city near Spain. Which is the complete opposite direction of Nineveh. Instead of a life pursuing his unique calling, he chose to run away. More specifically, he chose to run away from the presence of the Lord. (v.3 – twice) It's an interesting way the author explains it. By running away from his unique calling, he is running away from the presence of the Lord. In other words, living the unique life that you are called to live is to live a spiritual life in intimacy with God. When we are running away from our own unique existence, we are running away from God. Are you pursuing your own unique life, one that God has fashioned you for? Or are you running away from your unique existence? Perhaps trying to fit your life into a template that is not uniquely yours? Life of Running Away The life of running away: that is what we see here in Jonah. This can depict our lives too. There may be many reasons why we run away. It will be a good exercise to reflect together why we do that. My sense is that the underlying reason is fear. Fear of insecurity. Fear of loss. Fear of well-being. The specific fears we have are as unique as each person. The way these fears manifest are unique to each person too. Part of living your unique existence is discovering and uncovering these unique fears. What are the fears that lead you to run away? Many people say: Well, I don't know what my unique calling is. That's why I'm not pursuing it. That's the most common sentiment today: I don't know my calling. That makes sense: how many of us actually hear a word from God saying this is what I'm to do, or this is where I'm to go? Not many I would say. But here's the question: is not knowing your calling pushing you even more to live out your unique existence, or is that not knowing an excuse to run away? Jonah went into the hold of the ship and fell asleep. Running away and falling asleep. Are these things two sides of the same coin? When we say we don't know our unique calling, it can be an excuse to fall asleep in life. If we don't know the unique path of our calling, then we should be seeking all the harder. Jesus said: Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened. Our modern, technological society says we need to know everything. We have algorithms that predict with great accuracy many things. They know about our tendencies and can predict what we want. We can be deceived into thinking that our spiritual life is like this too. But the true spiritual life is all about not knowing. It is accepting the great mystery and unknown nature of God. It is being humble. It is entering by faith into a trusting relationship with God. While we don't know, we continually ask God to reveal, to make more known just some of the mysteries of God. But instead of asking and searching like how Jesus says, somehow we choose to fall asleep. Are you asleep in life? In what ways are you sleeping through life? Storms …such a mighty storm came upon the sea that the ship threatened to break up. (v.4) A mighty storm came and threatened to break the ship up. In our lives too, we face many storms. That is a fact of life. Stor

Jonah 2 Background Info on Jonah Jonah = unique book Historical figure named Jonah son of Amittai in 1 Kings. But no historical reference to story. Most successful prophet, but most scholars have thought that Jonah is a metaphorical book. Life in the Boat vs. Life in the Ocean Thoughts from TBS Members: Jinny: was confused at first – thought the prayer related to things that happened while in the fish, but after realized that maybe the prayer related with what he experienced in the ocean. Think this is correct. He’s recounting his experience in the ocean. Rockey: asked if he felt more safe on the boat than in the fish. Daniel: feel like Jonah was more awake now than last week. Last week, Jonah was on the boat. This week, Jonah is recounting his time in the ocean. Compare: Life in the Boat vs. Life in the Ocean. What is the difference? What was Jonah doing in each? What’s the difference in the two scenarios? What about your life: where are you? Boat = running away, sleeping through life Ocean = fully engaged, awake Ocean = chaos, disorder In modern life, we life orderly, controlled lives. We don’t handle disorder well. See a lot of anxiety amidst breakdown of orderly, controlled life. Prefer sleep and running away because we fear the ocean. But the ocean is where everything becomes real – where life becomes real. How do we know whether we’re on the boat or in the ocean? In the Belly of the Fish V.2: Jonah’s cry from deep in the water: was it more than just from being deep in the water? What was this “more”? V.4: during his descent, he thinks about God. What does this say about his faith? When your life is “ebbing away”, what or whom do you think of? What does this reveal to you about your faith? V.8 – What are “vain idols”? What do people forsake? The whole chapter takes place in the belly of the fish. 3 days/3 nights. Jonah was all alone. He had time to think. He had nothing else to do but confront his life. Downward journey of descent. “Cast me into the deep” “Waters closed in over me …” “Weeds wrapped around my head at the roots of the mountains.” Jonah is at the very bottom of the ocean. His prayer is recounting what happened. But not just what happened. His prayer was his understanding of what happened. History is not just a recount of what happened. It is an understanding of what happened. An understanding of how events are connected and lead to certain results. We do this in our lives, whether we’re conscious of it or not. Jonah’s prayer reflected his understanding of what happened. DP asked: Did God cast Jonah into the deep? That was his understanding: that God compelled him out of his sleep into the ocean. An interesting thing is that in his descent, he thinks about God (V.4). Not just that but if you look carefully, his despair is not in his actual situation. His despair is in how the situation is driving him away from God’s sight, that he will not be able to see God. Holy temple = where God resides. What does this say about his faith? In his downward spiral, he interpreted it as being driven away from God. At the centre of his understanding was the importance of the presence of God. To be close to God was at his core, so to be driven away was the ultimate despair. God was at the centre of his understanding. His understanding of the past shaped his hope for the future, and that impacted his present. History is not for the sake of the past. How we understand the past affects our view of the future, which affects our view of the present. If God shapes how you understand the past (how God rescued me and was present), then God shapes your hope for the future (God will be with me), and that shapes my present (God is with me). Life in the ocean reveals what our faith truly is. Our prayer is for real faith. Images & Metaphors of the Belly What are some images or metaphors for the belly of the fish? What do those images or metaphors say? Use your imagination. Metaphors are powerful images that convey meaning and help us understand. Concept of Trinity is a metaphor: Father, Son, Spirit metaphor helps us understand God better. In a similar way, come up with some images or metaphors that give us more meaning for Jonahs experiencing in the belly of the fish. 1. Ark – God provided a large fish. Saved him from the dangers of the ocean. Gave him space to think. Psalm 121 God does keep us. But, for many people it stops there. God is merely one who keeps my comfort. God does not merely comfort us. 2. Womb V.6 – “I went down to the land whose bar closed upon me forever; yet you brought up my life from the Pit, O Lord my God!” Place of new birth. Thrown into the ocean is chaos and disorder. Our former well-ordered life is thrown in disarray. But God creates something new – we are reborn. This is the central Christian message isn’t it? Death and resurrection. God creates us anew. St. Paul – Behold, I am a new creation. Calling: to become a new person. New heart. New view of the world. New person. 3. Sanctuary He’s

Scripture Passage 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Division and Immaturity The Corinthian church was a metropolitan church which consisted of very capable people who had many excellent gifts. Not only were they smart but also they seemed to assume that they were very spiritual. They experienced the wonderful manifestations of the Spirit. But somehow the church had a lot of problems. There were all kinds of moral problems. There were quarrels and fights. The church was divided at least in 4 ways. In his letter to the Corinthians, right after the greeting, the first thing Paul addressed was the problem of division in the church. Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you should be in agreement and that there should be no divisions among you, but that you should be united in the same mind and the same purpose. For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. What I mean is that each of you says, I belong to Paul', or I belong to Apollos', or I belong to Cephas', or I belong to Christ.' Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? (1 Corinthians 1:10-13) They had wonderful spiritual experiences and yet they didn't know how to live together in peace and harmony. They were gifted people but they lacked maturity. They were childish. They didn't know how to uplift others and recognize others. They didn't know how to honour each other. They were obsessed with themselves. They were busy boasting about their gifts and they insist on their own ways without listening to each other. Their spirituality was very self-centred and it was toxic. The self-centredness – That is the sign of immaturity. As we reflected last week, they didn't know that the best gift was each other. They didn't yet know how beautiful and precious other people were. That's why they easily criticized each other and put down each other with no hesitation through their words and actions. That's immaturity. It was because they didn't have the love of Jesus Christ in their hearts. They knew Christ and experienced the wonderful power of the Holy Spirit but they didn't have the love of Christ. It is strange but it can happen. I saw a lot of that. That's why St. Paul wrote a whole chapter about love. This chapter is famous. It has been used at the wedding quite a lot. I used it too. But this chapter is not about romantic love between two people. It was written in a totally different context. Paul saw the immaturity in the Corinthian community and it took away peace and harmony in the community. Their spirituality didn't help; it made the problem worse. That's why St. Paul started with this. What's the use of speaking in the tongues? What's the use of having faith that removes mountains? What's the use of sacrificing oneself? If there is no love, it is nothing. If I have no love, I am nobody. The Greatest Illusion My friends, Narcissism is the greatest illusion we human beings have. We are nobody alone. I am who I am because of you. We have not become who we are on our own. There were our parents who gave birth, raised us and helped us when we were helpless. There have been people who have prayed for us, supported us, and taken care of us. Narcissists will not see that. They will not recognize that. They are in their illusion and have become a slave to their self-centredness. That is immaturity. A sign of immaturity is self-centredness. That's why St. Paul talked about being a child, in his teaching about love. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. (1 Corinthians 13:11) I put an end to childish ways, he said. That means he stopped being self-centred. love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful (1 Corinthians 13:4, 5) It's all about how you treat others. It is not about you. Love is being considerate of others. Maturity Through Love Love makes us mature. Until we know love, we are like a child. Our age doesn't make us mature. Love makes us mature. Children don't know what parents are going through. In the same way, self-centred people cannot know what others are going through. When we have love, our eyes will be open. Everything becomes clear. We can see ourselves clearly and we can also see others and their needs, their hurts, and their pain. That's why we can empathize with them. That's what love does. It gives us the ability to be able to feel what others feel and know what others go through. Immature people cannot have this ability. That was what was going on in the Corinthian church. So, St. Paul said, 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) When lov

Scripture Passage 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Principle of Life We just heard a beautiful principle of life. On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and those members of the body that we think less honourable we clothe with greater honour, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect; whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honour to the inferior member (1 Corinthians 12:22-24) How nice it will be if our world is like this! There will be no discrimination because of who you are. Every person will be respected and appreciated. You don't need to be somebody special to be honoured. There will be caring, uplifting, forgiving, and understanding. In this principle, I see that all human beings are equally precious in God's eyes. I see that all human beings are respected and protected. That is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of UN. All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. We can see this spirit in Paul's thinking. It doesn't matter what you are going through It doesn't matter how you may feel about yourself. Every one of you is so precious in God's eyes. So we should treat each other with respect. That's how we human beings are supposed to live. We should honour each other's dignity. That was what God wanted when he created us. We are supposed to take care of each other. If you have more, you share with those who have less than you. If you have gifts, you use them to help and uplift others. Unique and Connected We talked about unique gifts we received two weeks ago. Each gift is unique and it is beautiful and precious. So each person is unique. We should honour and celebrate each person's uniqueness. We are unique but we also have to remember that we are interconnected. We are not alone. We are not supposed to live in isolation. We are connected. Last Thursday, I visited In Ha and Hank's sister at St. Michael. She was in a palliative care. She looked very peaceful. She knew that she would die soon. She asked Hank to call me. So I visited her. She said she was ready to die. She said she was ready for a long time. I have a lot of memory with the couple. It was hard to see her suffer and die at such a young age. It was hard for me to take it.On the way home, I felt very down. She passed away yesterday morning. Yes, that's who we are. We are unique, but we are also deeply connected. That's what St. Paul said, If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together with it. (1 Corinthians 12:26) This world makes us become cold and indifferent. We are good only to those who matter to us. We honour those who are useful to us. Our relationship has become functional and calculating. We have lost the ability to connect with each other simply as brothers and sisters. We have to understand that without you, I am not complete. I am glad that you are in my life because without you, my life is not complete. The Greatest Gift The greatest gift is not what we have. The greatest gift is not the gift of wisdom, the gift of knowledge, the gift of prophecy, or the gift of tongue. The greatest gift is each other. You are my greatest gift. God gave you to bless me. You are my blessings. That's why St. Paul concluded his teaching about the gifts with this. Last 3 verses of chapter 12. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? BUT – A big BUT. Strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way. (1 Corinthians 12:29-31) Then he talks about love in chapter 13. That is the very famous love chapter. If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:1-3) The greatest gift is each other. Your family is the greatest gift. Your friends are the greatest gift. Your sisters and brothers in this community are the greatest gift. How hard it is to understand this message. Because in this world, we never experience this. We never think that people around me are the greatest gift. WHEN WE HAVE LOVE IN OUR HEART, WE SEE HOW BEAUTIFUL AND PRECIOUS OTHER PEOPLE ARE. When you have love, people around you become your gifts. All One Body That was what was lacking in the Corinthian community. They had many gifts. All kinds of gifts were there in that community. But they were not mature enough. They were not yet transformed by the love of Jesus Christ. So, their gifts were not used to edify and uplift others. Instead of serv

Scripture Passage Acts 8:14-17 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script In Our Lives 2022 did not start off the way we wanted. Back in 2021, we were looking forward to a more normal life. A life where we could do more of what we wanted, with whomever we wanted, where we wanted, when we wanted. Sadly, this has turned out not to be the case yet. The interesting thing is that the circumstances of this new year have been met with shrugs and resignation. The need to switch gears was familiar. It was no longer shocking or traumatic We're not as affected on the outside. But when we peel back the layers, the ongoing nature of this pandemic has taken something from us. We don't feel the acute emotions of these changes like they did at first, but instead, we're starting not to feel much of anything now. Instead of shock and sadness, we feel more numbness. Many people just stare at their screens all day and walk around their house in a daze, mindlessly going through the routines of the day. Somehow, the sense of joy, awe, wonder and excitement of life has been taken away. It will take a long time afterward to process everything, but this is some of what I sense is going on. If anything, the pandemic has shown us how little life is in our control. It has shown us that life can throw anything our way at any time. It'll often lead us to undesirable situations that we cannot escape. We don't want to be in this pandemic, but we cannot avoid or escape it. Our lives are like this too. Each of us face things that make life difficult. There are difficult things we don't want to have, but we cannot simply escape them. The deeper I go into ministry, the more I realize that we all face unique challenges that make life difficult or weigh down on us. We may often ignore it, but it is there. This difficulty is an inescapable part of human life. For me, the important question is how we respond to such difficult and unavoidable situations. Do these difficulties make us shrink? Or are we able to overcome and rise above them? How we respond makes all the difference in the quality of our lives. Over the course of this pandemic, we've seen many people shrink. Shrink their social circles. Shrink from communication with others. Shrink the excitement they feel. Shrink the joy they experience. Shrink the size of their hearts. Shrink in their empathy and understanding. Shrink into their own little world. When difficulties first hit us, we might feel confident to handle it. We feel that we can overcome them with our resilience. positive thinking and can-do attitude. But the longer these difficulties remain, the more they wear down on our souls. And as they wear down on us, they make us shrink. Power to Overcome What we need is the power to overcome and rise above our difficulties. Power to endure. Power to fight against numbness and apathy. Power to feel joy. Power to hope. Power to imagine new things. Power to transcend our difficulties and turn them into something beautiful. We need this kind of power in our lives. Without it, our lives cannot flourish. Without it, we cannot remain whole. Without it, life in this world simply drains away our vitality. We need a power that is greater than what we have. This was the power that Jesus promised to his earliest followers. 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) This was the last thing Jesus said to them before he ascended into heaven. This was a promise that Jesus gave. That promise was fulfilled at Pentecost. The Holy Spirit came, and filled with power, they began to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. People were drawn by the power of the message. The movement grew and poured out into Jerusalem. They did indeed become witnesses in Judea and Samaria and beyond. But you know the interesting thing? It was not by intentional plan and design. It's not like some mission efforts today, where there is very strategic and intentional planning to evangelize certain places. No, they became witnesses in these far-flung places by being scattered through persecution. Jesus' promise was fulfilled through intense suffering and hardship. In the chapter before today's passage, Stephen was the first Christian martyr, stoned to death. After that event, Saul began going house to house, dragging people off to prison. This dangerous persecution caused followers to scatter. They scattered out into Judea, and then beyond to Samaria. Philip and Samaria Today's passage takes place in Samaria. Philip was one of the scattered Christians who ended up there. He went there not intentionally or by design. He went there because he was fleeing for his life. He was running away from danger and persecution in Jerusalem. But the amazing thing is that he did not shrink in fear. Instead, he began to proclaim the good news there! The people of Samaria experienced healing, miracles and great joy. In

Scripture Passage 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script The Work of the Spirit After meeting Christ on the road to Damascus, St. Paul realized that he was not alone. He realized that the Spirit was with him. At that time, he knew well about the law but he didn't really know about the Spirit. He was foreign to the world of the Spirit. The whole world of the Spirit opened up for him. It was the Spirit who opened his eyes and when his eyes were open, he was able to see who Jesus really was. That's why he said in his epistle to Corinthians, no one can say Jesus is Lord' except by the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:3) Believing in Jesus Christ, knowing Jesus, and understanding him – they are all the work of the Spirit. On our own, we cannot know Jesus. We cannot know God. Unless God reveals himself to us through the Spirit. In that sense what our brain can do is limited in terms of knowing God. Knowing Jesus is not cerebral activity. Knowing Jesus is not an intellectual process. It is totally a different process. The Spirit is with us. The Spirit is given to us. The Spirit guides us to go beyond our personal limitations. The Spirit gives us more understanding than what we can acquire through our intellectual process. The Spirit opens our eyes so that we can see beyond our mundane daily living. The Spirit gives us deeper understanding of our reality. The Spirit helps us to understand the meaning and purpose of our daily living. With the Spirit, we can see amazing things in life. With the Spirit, life becomes interesting. Never boring and dull. The Spirit empowers us so that we can handle challenges that are beyond our ability. The Spirit gives us hope in hopeless situations. The Spirit gives us new strength when there is no power left in us. With the Spirit, we will soar like an eagle. The Spirit brings miracles and wonders. Life is full of wonders and amazement when the Spirit is with us. The Spirit brings healing in our body, in our mind, and in our soul. When the Spirit is with us, our body finds its restoration and equilibrium. Our body becomes alive. When the Spirit is with us, our mind finds peace and calmness. Our mind finds quiet confidence. When the Spirit is with us, our soul becomes free from bondage. Our soul flies with freedom. That is what the Spirit does. The Gifts of God St. Paul called these things the gifts of God. I think he named it very well. The gifts of God. The Spirit brings God's special gifts to us. These gifts make our life beautiful. There are many different boxes of gifts and one person does not possess them all. The Spirit distributes these different gifts to different people accordingly. But together we have them all. So in the community as a whole, we have all the gifts of the Spirit. When we look at each person, each person is so unique. They all have very unique gifts. We should respect and honour each person's uniqueness. When we start seeing how the gifts of the Spirt work in each person in a unique way, we can respect and honour each person's unique existence. Each gift is beautiful and precious. St. Paul lists some of those gifts. To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. (1 Corinthians 12:8-10) Beautiful gifts! But these are not an exhaustive list of gifts of the Spirit. St. Paul talks about different gifts in other letters. There are many, many different gifts. Gift of empathy, gift of hospitality, gift of generosity, gift of leadership, gift of organization, gift of sharp insights, gift of encouragement, gift of sharing the good news, gift of prayer, gift of music and praise, gift of giving inspiration. I am saying all these different gifts because I see them in all of you. These are the gifts I see in my own congregation. Individually I do not have them all. But together as a community, we have them all. The key is we have to use these gifts for each other. That's why St. Paul said, To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. (1 Corinthians 12:7) Each gift is given for the common good. We cannot be selfish about our gifts. We have to share our gifts for each other. Then we can benefit each other. We can edify each other through our gifts. But in return, we become edified through their gifts. You may not have a gift of healing but others who have the gift of healing can bring healing to you. You may not have a gift of encouragement but others who have the gift of encouragement can comfort you and give encouragement. You may not have a gift of knowledge but others who have a gift of knowledge and insight can open your eyes. So when we start sharing our gifts willingly for the comm

Scripture Passage Philippians 3:12-14 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Getting lost I believe that life should move forward. Our life should not be just circling around, going nowhere. Once I got lost in the woods. For an hour, I walked and walked, thinking I was going somewhere. But I realized that I was circling around. I came back to the same place over and over again. That was scary. Sometimes we feel that our life is circling around, going nowhere. I am sure that was what the Israelites felt when they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years. Feeling stuck, feeling that your life is circling around – that is a sense of helplessness and many people live with this sense of helplessness. They feel powerless to change anything. Everything seems to be already determined for them and there is nothing they can do to change anything. Helplessness and powerlessness. It is one of the most common symptoms of modern life. No sense of direction, no sense of purpose, no sense of fulfillment. Like the myth of Sisyphus, you push a boulder up a mountain, only to see it roll down again. Life of meaningless repetition with no change. Some people say that it is a fact of life. They say that we cannot do anything about it. That's what life is. They give up expecting any changes. To me, that is a very unchristian and unspiritual attitude. Jesus clearly said our life can change. He compared our life with the kingdom of God that changes. Change is Possible The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches. (Matthew 13:31, 32) Change is possible even if we have faith the size of a mustard seed. He said to them, Because of your little faith. For truly I tell you, 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) The problem is not in the fact that there can be no change in life but that we don't have faith even the size of a mustard seed. Yes, I agree that sometimes we have to accept our situations. We can't just complain about our situations and live constantly in dissatisfaction and anger. But accepting our situation does not mean just sitting around, doing nothing. We can always change. We can always become better. We can always move forward. Yes, change is hard. Real change is rare. We see a lot of pseudo changes. We don't see real changes around us. So I understand that people are skeptical about change. But my friend, God is with us. With God, change is possible. God is the agent of change. God always creates. God always renews. God always restores. In other words, God always changes. Changes us, changes our life, changes the world. That's how God wants us to live, making changes. God wants us to go beyond where we are. The Heavenly Call We heard St. Paul's beautiful words about change today. I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14) His life was not just sitting where he was. He was pressing on. Korean translation is interesting – . Running towards the goal. He didn't stay where he was. He pursued towards the goal. Nobody forced him to do so. He found his self-worth. He realized that he was worth so much more than he could just settle for. That's why he pursued to become better. His life was too precious to just waste it away. You have to remember that he didn't write Philippians when his life was going well. You know, when things are going well, it is easy to be positive. We feel like we can do anything. We can have a very positive attitude about making changes. We feel empowered. But when things are not going very well, it is hard to push ourselves. We just want to dig a hole and hide. Never come out of the hole. Paul's situation was not that great. When he wrote these words in Philippians, he was in prison. Not only was he in prison, his fellow believers attacked him and spread false rumours about Paul. But Paul did not dig a hole and hide. He pressed on. He didn't focus on his gloomy reality and sat there in self-pity. He pressed on towards the goal. How could he do that? What was pulling his life? What enabled him to press on? He had a strong sense of calling about his life. He saw his life as calling. I press on towards the goal for the prize of THE HEAVENLY CALL of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14) It's like his sense of purpose and meaning. That kept him going. To him, calling was his purpose of existence. That was what Nietzsche said: He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how. (Nietzsche) A why to live for is calling. When you have a strong sense of calling, you will not easily give up. You will pursue. Because the moment you stop pursuing, you stop living. The moment you give up trying to bec

Scripture Passage Colossians 3:12-17 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script The Last Sunday Today is the last Sunday of 2021. In a few days, we will enter into 2022. It was another year that wasn't easy. We expected that the crisis of Corona Virus would be over this year and go back to normal life. But the virus will not go away easily. We got the highest number of Covid infection since the beginning of this pandemic on Christmas Eve. Yesterday, it went over 10,000. I feel like this crisis is just beginning again. Also as a pastor, it wasn't an easy year. Because of the decision of the Presbyterian Church in Canada regarding the homosexual marriage and ordination, I saw many people struggling with the decision, especially the KSM congregation. Some people left the church. Even though they are here, they are not like before. They seem distant from the church. As a pastor, I know that this is an important issue but I don't believe that it is an issue that should divide the church and people's relationships. I don't think it has decisive effect on our spiritual growth and spiritual life. There may be people who have different opinions on this matter. But I don't believe that whatever we think should be a reason for us not to be able to coexist. We can respect each other's opinions and live in harmony. That was the spirit of the General Assembly's decision. I may have more open attitude towards this issue than some of you, but that does not mean that my preaching and teaching have been away from the Scripture. I have tried to be faithful to the teachings of the Scripture and will continue to do that. Personally, I read many books and encounter many opinions on various issues, but I don't teach and preach anything without carefully examining it. I select what to teach carefully so that it is beneficial for all of you and it is Scripturally sound. I believe that is my responsibility and my calling. I have preached and taught for last 30 years at this church but I can confidently say that I gave my whole heart to study the Scripture, understand it and teach what is the best for you. I hope that our hearts may not be divided because of this issue. I hope that we can all work together, respecting each other. Peace of Christ St. Paul said today. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. (Colossians 3:15) St. Paul said we are all called in the one body. I pray that the peace of Christ may rule in our heart. It shouldn't be anger or hatred that rule in our heart. It has to be the peace of Christ. And it is the peace of Christ that unites us. God clothed us with holy characters. As God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. (Colossians 3:12) Compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience – that is what God clothed us with. We should not take off these clothes. When we take off these clothes, anger, hatred, and darkness will flood in and fill our heart with negative emotions. God clothed us with these good qualities so that he may protect us from evil desires. Even when times are difficult, we should be kind and gentle. We should be always humble. And we should practice our patience. This is what believers do. Of course, we all fail once in a while. We make mistakes. We sometimes take off clothes God clothed us with. But we should clothe ourselves back again with God's good characters. Forgive One Another St. Paul said again. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. (Colossians 3:13, 14) He said, forgive each other. When you forgive each other, then reconciliation is possible. If we have the attitude of self-righteousness, reconciliation is not possible. Behind every broken relationship, there is hurt, pain, disappointment, and misunderstanding. We do that to each other many times without really knowing what we are doing. It's not because we want to hurt others intentionally. Sometimes we just do and we don't know that we do. We all need to forgive each other and experience the joy of forgiveness. I see a lot of broken relationships around me. During this Covid time, I have counselled more people than before. It saddens me. How much they must have gone through during that process. When we are willing to forgive each other, I believe that our relationships will get better. Forgiveness is something weak people cannot do. Only strong people can forgive. But that doesn't mean that forgiveness comes from a sense of superiority. The strength that I am talking about is the strength that comes from humility. It is the confidence that comes from the experience of being forgiven yourself. When we experience that forgiveness ourselves, we can forgive others. That is the kind of f

Scripture Passage Luke 1:46-55 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Who was Mary? During this Advent season, I did Advent series on Luke's understanding of Jesus' birth. To Luke, Mary was the central figure in the story of Jesus' birth. Mary was a very interesting person. She was born and grew up in a small town, called Nazareth. Nazareth was so small that it was not even mentioned in the Old Testament. Maybe a few hundred people at most. She was a peasant, poor and very low in her social status. One day, she had this divine moment. An angel came to her. The Angel's name was Gabriel. The meaning of angel is messenger. The angel gave her the message of God and the message was that she would give birth to a son. Mary was only a teenager. We have HiC with us today. Can you imagine that you would receive this kind of message? How would you feel? Scared. Won't you be? Of course you would be scared. It is a good news to all of us. We sing, Joy to the world . But not to Mary. It wasn't a simple good news to her. It was a devastating news. The implication was too horrible to even think about it. If the angel told her that you would have a new land or a new house, then it is obviously a good news. But to a teenage girl, you say you will be pregnant! How can it be a good news? In what way? She resisted too. I don't know a man. How can I be pregnant? But in the end, after hearing everything the angel said, what Mary said was totally shocking. Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word. (Luke 1:38) How could a young girl respond like that? Even Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, could not do that. He was not only an adult but also a priest. He had a wife, Elizabeth, even though they were both old. When the angel told him that his wife would have a baby, he couldn't believe. He had nothing to lose when Mary had everything to lose. There was no devastating consequence for Zechariah and Elizabeth. And they knew very well that their ancestors Abraham and Sarah were in the same situation as they were and they had a baby. But there was no incident of a virgin having a baby. Zechariah would not have been in scandal even if they had a baby. But still he could not accept the message of the same angel. Yes, Mary was a young peasant girl, but she was not just a young girl. She was a poet. She was a theologian. She was a prophet. And she was a revolutionary. Magnificat Today's reading is called Magnificat, Mary's song. She prophesied what the child in her womb would do. She knew exactly what Jesus was about to do. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. (Luke 1:51-53) That was very similar to what Jesus said before he started his ministry. Jesus quoted what Isaiah said in his prophecy. What Jesus said was all in Mary's song. This was what Jesus quoted. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour. (Luke 4:18, 19) Mary knew this. Her song was filled with quotations from the Old Testament. Psalms 22, 44, 103 and many others. There is an allusion to Samuel's mother, Hannah's song. In other words, Mary knew the Scripture inside out. She was not just an ordinary farm girl. Her thinking was revolutionary. All the Israelites were under the oppression of the powerful people, like Roman emperor and Herod the king. They experienced the abuse daily from the powerful people, from the rich people, especially as a poor peasant. She dreamed that someday, God will lift up people like her. She gave this dream speech in her song. God will scatter the proud. God will bring down the powerful. God will send the rich away empty. It was a revolutionary thinking. No wonder her song was banned being sung or read in India under British rule. Also, in the 1980's, it was banned in Guatemala when the military took over the government and illegally arrested the farmers, tortured them, raped them, and killed them. She was not just an ordinary peasant girl. She was very devoted and her consciousness was fully awakened. For Good Reason God did not randomly choose anybody. God chose a very specific person for Jesus' birth. It was not just physical birth that was important. The whole process of accepting the message of God, giving birth, and raising Jesus – The whole process was very spiritual and very difficult. You know what Jesus' birth brought turmoil in the world. You know how the Son of God would suffer and die. Mary saw all that. Mary was at the cross, seeing her son dying like that. Luke records that Mary was there when the early Christians gathered together and prayed after Jesus ascended into heaven. W

Scripture Passage Zephanaiah 3:14-20 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Joy Joy is one of the most important qualities that make our life meaningful and worth living. Life is to be enjoyed. How else do you live your life? If there is no joy in life, why do we live? You don't want to just sustain your life, you want to live fully tasting and enjoy the treasure of your life. We may not be able to extend our life span too much. I know, living a healthy life is important. But we won't be able to extend our life span too much. What is important is living our every moment to the fullest with a sense of joy and happiness. How well you live is more important than how long you live. The quality of life is not just about what you do or what you have. It is about who you are and how you feel about yourself and your life. Are you comfortable with yourself? Do you feel good about your life? What you feel in every moment of your life, that matters. The Joy of Jesus Jesus saw people in his time and he was very sad because they weren't very happy. This was what Jesus said. But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market-places and calling to one another, We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn. 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 11:16-19) They couldn't feel anything about their life. They could not dance with those who were happy. They could not weep with those who were sad. Their emotions dried up. They felt numb. They were just filled with a lot of negative emotions. They saw John who neither eat nor drank and they said, He has a demon. They saw Jesus who enjoyed his life eating and drinking and they said that he was a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners. They weren't very happy. That's not how God wants us to live. God wants us to enjoy our life. Rejoice or Joy is the word you see everywhere in the Bible. Both in the New Testament and the Old Testament. Joy is also very much a Christmas theme. When the angel announced the birth of Jesus to the shepherds, he said, Do not be afraid; for see I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people. (Luke 2:10) Even unborn John the Baptist leaped with joy in his mother's womb. This was what Elizabeth, John's mother, said. For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. (Luke 1:44) When three wise men saw the star, they rejoiced. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. (Matthew 2:10) And of course, you all know the famous phrase from St. Paul. Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. (Philippians 4:4) Living With Joy Living with joy is God's desire for all of us. God designed us to live with joy. That's what life is. LIVING WITH JOY. The reason we cannot do it is because we are somehow damaged. Our spirit is damaged. That's why God sent us Jesus Christ. Jesus came to repair us who live with the damaged self and restore our joy. Jesus himself really enjoyed his life. Jesus came to deliver us from things that take away joy from us. Sin, hatred, fights, and wars – They are all around us. Fear, worries, doubts, disappointment – That's what we experience every day. All these things take away joy from us. Zephaniah spoke to Israelites. Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem! (Zephaniah 3:14) The Israelites brought darkness upon them because of their corruption. They followed their own idols, their own desire. They followed their own greed. They didn't pay attention to what God desired, which was justice and love for the weak and the vulnerable. They ignored God's desire. In the end, all they experienced was unhappiness, fear, and disaster. They felt helpless. They wanted to feel the joy but they didn't know how. It came to a point where they felt condemned. To these people, Zephaniah proclaimed. The Lord has taken away the judgements against you, (Zephaniah 3:15) He also said, The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall fear disaster no more. (Zephaniah 3:15) Yes, we have made many mistakes. We ourselves have brought disaster to our lives. In the process, we have lost the joy of life. We have become filled with guilt, worries, and fear. Even if we want, we cannot go back and fix our life. That's not how life works. We cannot simply undo what has been already done. That's why so many people live with regrets, guilt, and helplessness. I wish that our life so far was a test run and we can now live a real life. But we can't. But you know what. What we cannot do, God did for us. Zephaniah said that God took away the judgements against us. God gave us a new life, a new chance to start again. A clean slate. We don't need to live with

Scripture Passage Malachi 3:1-4 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Faithfulness Today I would like to reflect on faithfulness. Faithfulness is a way of life, and it is the best way to live. There is something wonderful about faithfulness, that makes life more beautiful. A faithful person is loyal, committed and unwavering, even and especially when things get very difficult. Faithfulness brings about deep relationships and community. Faithfulness is enduring. Faithfulness is the word used very often to describe God throughout the Bible. God is faithful to his people, even when they have turned against God and done wrong. God continually forgives, takes care of, comforts, and pursues his people. God is faithful. Faithfulness grows out of love. Faithfulness is the steadfast living out of love through any circumstance. That is how people experienced God throughout the Bible. This is how we experience God too, when we look back on our lives with faith. Because of God's steadfast love and faithfulness, we experience salvation. Jesus was the ultimate example of faithfulness. Jesus was faithful to God and to loving others. When he got persecuted, rejected and abandoned; even when he was crucified, Jesus was faithful. Because of Jesus' faithfulness, we are saved. When we are surrounded by faithful people, we find comfort in it. We feel comfortable, assured and solid. Faithful people bring about trust. Faithful people bless those around them. Faithful living is how we should live life. It's the most beautiful way to live life. In This World But we know that life in this world often lacks this kind of faithfulness. Our own lives lack it. We live in a world driven not by faithfulness, but by seeking the greatest advantage in each situation. We are not constant in our commitment, but shift according to the circumstance. We often believe that those who get ahead in life are those who take advantage of each situation and take care of themselves first. Being faithful seems futile or naive. Living in a faithless world affects us. It makes us more cynical. More jaded. When we see others looking only after their own interests, we too start thinking we should just take care of ourselves first. Living in such a world affects our faith. God doesn't seem present in this kind of world. Faith seems kind of naive and doesn't make sense. We can't see how God is faithful, when everyone else is unfaithful. When faithfulness is not present, there is cynicism and cold-heartedness. Malachi’s Story This was the situation that Malachi was addressing. The fathers and grandfathers of his audience were those who had come back to Jerusalem and Judah to rebuild the Temple after living in exile in Babylon for 75 years. They came back with great hope and expectation of restoring the Temple and the former glory of Israel. But more than a generation had passed since that hopeful return, and the Temple wasn't rebuilt. It still lay in shabby ruins. Not only that, Jerusalem and the land surrounding it remained but a small province of the mighty Persian empire. They didn't have their own independence or autonomy, let alone any of their former glory. The generation that Malachi spoke to lived in a world in which they were small and insignificant. They were surrounded by a much larger world driven by power. They saw those with power using it for their own advantage. They lived in a world not of faithfulness, but one where everyone looked out after their own interests. They knew about the God of their ancestors, but that God seemed distant and irrelevant to them. Malachi begins with God's declaration of love, but they question it. I have loved you, says the Lord. But you say, How have you loved us? (Malachi 1:2) They were cynical when it came to God. This is what they said: It is vain to serve God. What do we profit by keeping his command or by going about as mourners before the Lord of hosts? Now we count the arrogant happy; evildoers not only prosper, but when they put God to the test they escape. (Malachi 3:14-15) In their jadedness, they had no passion for life, and they saw no point in things. When it came to worshipping God, they were half-hearted and faithless. What a weariness this is, you say, and sniff at me, says the Lord of hosts. You bring what has been taken by violence or is lame or sick, and this you bring as your offering! Shall I accept that from your hand? says the Lord. (Malachi 1:13) Not only with God, but with other people too, they were faithless. Have we not all one father? Has not one God created us? Why then are we faithless to one another, profaning the covenant of our ancestors? (Malachi 2:10-11) They had become a faithless generation. This faithlessness affected their life together. It broke down their sense of community. It eroded warmth and goodwill for one another. It took away joy and passion for life. The psalmist describes two kinds of life: one that is faithful, and one that is not. He describes the faithful life

Scripture Passage 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Early Christians I am very curious about what the early Christians were like. What did they feel? What really opened their eyes to see their life in a radically new way? What did they discover that they didn't know before? What gave them the strength to go on in spite of all those persecutions? For example, what changed St. Paul and gave him this conviction? He was fine as he was as a faithful Jew. He had all the privileges he could enjoy in his life. He had enough money. He had enough clout. He was well accepted and respected. He was a good man, as good as any human beings could be before God. He even boldly said that he was blameless as to goodness under the law. What changed him? What made him so excited about his new life and Jesus that he would give his life for? I was thinking about it. I think it is LOVE. He discovered love. God he knew, before Jesus Christ, was God of law. He knew God who gave commandments. But Jesus taught him that the greatest commandment of all was love. He knew God of fear. But through Jesus Christ, he discovered the God of love. St Paul What we read today is Paul's concluding prayer for the church in Thessalonica. The first Thessalonians is the earliest letter of St. Paul and it is the earliest document of all New Testament books. So if you order the New Testament by the order of what was written first, it would have been before Matthew. So, we can read Paul's earliest thought. There he said this. And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we abound in love for you. (1 Thessalonians 3:12) Love was what St. Paul found and everything else became secondary. He heard Jesus' message correctly. Because Jesus said loving God and loving your neighbour is the greatest commandment. That was exactly what he said. If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:1-3) He said all these important things like understanding of all mysteries and all knowledge, prophetic powers, even faith that removes mountains, the sacrifice of all your possessions, even of your life, they are nothing if there is no love. He said love is the greatest thing. That was what he discovered. Love made all the difference for Paul. God's love was what made salvation possible. God's love defeated the power of darkness and the power of death. God's love was what made everything alive and connected us to God in inseparable unity. He said, No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 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 8:37-39) He said, I am convinced It came to him as conviction. It was what he discovered. This discovery came to him so powerfully that it became the core of what he believed. God's love made us inseparable from God. Discovery of God's love is the greatest discovery. It is hard to see love because we experience so many things that are not love. They blind our eyes from seeing love. Rejection, alienation, hatred, failures, self-condemnation, judgement, and abuses. These things blind our eyes and so we cannot see love. We live in darkness. We live condemned. We live in loneliness. Love in its Purest form We need to DISCOVER LOVE. When we discover love in its purest form, that is God. That's why John said, Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, FOR GOD IS LOVE. (1 John 4:7, 8) Jesus' death on the cross describes the unfathomable love of God for us. There is no greater love than that, Jesus said. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. (John 15:12, 13) Once we discover this love, we get enormous energy and strength. It is the strength that overcomes our fear. That was what propelled the early Christians. That was what propelled St. Paul. Why do we live powerlessly? Why do we have no passion and no energy? Because we live in fear. We don't live in love but in fear. The word that is opposite of love is not hatred. It is fear. That's why John said, There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. (1 John 4:18) Advent Today is the first Sunday of Adve

Scripture Passage 2 Samuel 23:1-7 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Leadership Leadership is very important in our lives. It doesn't matter what we do, we are all leaders. Leadership is not limited to certain people who have important positions. Leadership is needed for everyone. If you are a parent, you need leadership over your children. At work, you need leadership. We also need leadership over our life. We cannot let our life be influenced helplessly by our external circumstances. To live a good life, we need to have good leadership over our life. You don't need to be perfect to be a good leader. Leaders have shortcomings too. No one is perfect and flawless. Trying to be perfect may be even hindrance to good leadership. You can be easily discouraged. Or you may try to become somebody you are not. Trying to emulate a certain leader will not make you a good leader. Everyone is unique and therefore every leadership is unique. Leaders don't have to be always at the forefront and take control. Leaders don't have to be always assertive and demanding. Leaders don't need to have a domineering, take-charge charismatic personality. Each person's unique individuality will shape that person's unique leadership. Leadership is about who you are. You don't have to be somebody you are not to be a good leader. We need to be faithful to who we are to be a good leader. But that does not mean that we get stuck in being who we are. God accepts us as we are but God does not leave us there. God always challenges us, changes us, and transforms us. So, being a good leader is not just being who we are. It starts from there but it does not end there. Acceptance Accepting who I am means to have courage to become who I can be. Accepting who I am means to go beyond our weaknesses and shortcomings. Accepting who I am means I am ready to deal with my own weaknesses and shortcomings. Accepting who I am means to have CONFIDENCE in who I am in spite of my weaknesses. This confidence is a very important quality in leadership. And this confidence does not come from us but it comes from God. King David had this confidence. That was David's characteristic. He had confidence in himself not because he trusted his own abilities but he trusted God. He was by no means perfect and yet his imperfection did not let him down because he knew that God was with him. He wanted to build a temple for God but God did not let him build a temple for God. And David knew why. This was what he said. David said to Solomon, My son, I had planned to build a house to the name of the Lord my God. But the word of the Lord came to me, saying, You have shed much blood and have waged great wars; you shall not build a house to my name, because you have shed so much blood in my sight on the earth. (1 Chronicles 22:7, 8) Was David angry because of that? Was David discouraged? Did he doubt about himself? No. He knew his own weaknesses and shortcomings. But he never doubted God's love for him. He knew why God did not want him to build the temple for him. But he didn't stop there. He prepared everything so that his son, Solomon could build the temple for God. Solomon's temple was beautiful. Historically in Israel, there were three temples and Solomon's temple was the most beautiful one. David knew his own weaknesses and shortcomings but they did not let him down. He was not stuck in his weaknesses. He didn't doubt about himself. He believed in God. He believed in God who accepted him with all his weaknesses. He believed in God who loved him unconditionally. That's why he didn't shrink in spite of his shortcomings. What we read today is David's last words. After many experiences of his life, this was what he said as a conclusion of his life. We all need to have our last words. What will be your last words that summarize your life? David said, For he has made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and secure. Will he not cause to prosper all my help and my desire? (2 Samuel 23:5) David trusted in God and his promise. That was how he overcame his weaknesses. His weaknesses could not paralyze him anymore. He was confident in spite of his weaknesses. Being Comfortable In leadership, having confidence is crucial. Once we lose confidence, we lose everything. David was so confident that he didn't need people's approval. His family had prejudice against him. When Samuel came to the house of David, he was looking for a candidate for a king. Jesse didn't even show David to Samuel. He told him to go and take care of the sheep while he and his sons were doing an important business with Samuel. That didn't bother David. He had the inner confidence. Even when he encountered Goliath, a much more powerful man than himself, he wasn't scared. He had confidence. This was what he said. But David said to the Philistine, You come to me with sword and spear and javelin; but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. (

Scripture Passage Hebrews 10:19-25 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Worship I want to talk about worship today. Worship is the most important thing for Christians. Since it is important, we do it every week. Many of you are very faithful to attending the worship service every week because it is very important to you. I believe that making worship as the priority of your life is the wisdom. When we make the worship at the centre of our lives, everything else will fall into its place. We will find a balance in life. We will find order in life. We are creatures we confess. We did not create ourselves. God created us. Then it is a right thing to do for creatures to worship the creator. That is the natural order. So, making worship at the centre of our lives is to find the order in our lives. When your life is chaotic, when you are not sure where your life is going, don't panic. Come back to the heart of worship and make worship as priority of your life again. You will find the order in your life. Worship is not what you do only on Sunday at the church. Worship is not about what you do. Worship is the mode of our existence. Worship is our life. What does it mean to have religion? It means you give your whole life. That is what religion is. When people say, Oh I do that religiously what does this mean? It means you give your whole thing. That's what religion is. Worship is not limited by time and space. That was what Jesus taught the Samaritan woman. But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4: 23, 24) God is spirit and the spirit is not limited by space and time. True worship is not about WHERE AND WHEN you worship. True worship starts from here, the heart. The worship begins not at 12; it begins when your heart is ready. The Right Heart That does not mean what we do on Sunday is not important. It is important but behind what we do, there has to be a right heart. What is the right heart, I was thinking. It is a heart of HUMBLE GRATITUDE. That is the heart of worship. We are all sinners and we are not even worthy to call God's name and worship him. And yet Jesus cleansed our sins and purified us. That's why we can enter the sanctuary with confidence. That was what the Hebrew writer said in today's passage. since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. (Hebrews 10:19, 22) We have evil thoughts and selfish desire. But God purified us by forgiving us. That is why we have humble gratitude, and with the humble gratitude, we worship God. That is what true worship is. God does not accept what we do for him. God accepts our brokenness. That's what God sees. Proskuneo In Greek, the word worship is proskuneo. Pros = Towards Kuneo = Kiss You can see an image of a person approaching Jesus, kneeling down and kissing his feet. This was exactly the image of a woman in Luke. She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair. Then she continued kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment. (Luke 7:38) That is the image of worship. We see an attitude of humble gratitude. We see her brokenness. In worship there has to be an ABUNDANT SENSE OF GRATITUDE for God's overflowing grace. When we look at our lives, we can only confess, O Lord, it is your grace and nothing else. I am who I am by your grace. My life that I enjoy now is because of your grace. When we see the grace of God working in our lives, our heart is then ready to worship God. Then everything that we do becomes worshipful. Our praise, our prayers, receiving God's words, our offering we do all these things in a worshipful manner. When we see the fullness of the grace of God working in our lives, our worship will not be limited on Sunday at this place. Wherever we are, that place and time will become a place and a time for worship. How much more meaningful your worship will be when you get together with sisters and brothers at the same time and the same place and worship God. It is good to worship God alone. But when we do it together, it is much more powerful. Seeking God Worship is not a spiritual entertainment where you just feel good. Worship is not just to observe. It is seeking God. When you seek God with humble gratitude, you will find God because God will reveal himself to those who seek. That was what the prophet Jeremiah said. Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, I will let you find me, says the Lord (Jeremiah 29:12-14) So seeking is important. Seeking with humble gratitude. Worship is not observin

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Scripture Passage 1 Kings 17:8-16 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Helping Others I believe that people want to help others. It's how we're wired. Helping others connects us with others, gives us purpose, meaning and joy. Helping others is a beautiful part of being human. We see this in children. Children are very eager to help out. My son was telling me this week how he and a few other students volunteered to skip recess to help out their teacher set up the classroom. We were very proud of him. When crisis hits, our instincts are to come together to help one another. Our desire to help others is a big part of who we are. But somehow, on a day to day basis, that desire to help others gets dulled or snuffed out. It's not that we don't want to help, but we feel like we don't have anything to give. We don't have time. We don't have the energy. We don't have the resources. The demands on our time, energy and resources leave us numb and exhausted. We are tapped out. The Widow This was the case of the widow in today's story. Widows were extremely vulnerable in a male-dominated world. Not only that, she had a son to take care of. And to make matters even worse, they were in the middle of a great drought. I see in this story a widow who has been scratching and clawing to survive and provide for her son. I see a tenacious mother, doing anything she can to keep her and her son alive. She reminds me of many of our immigrant mothers, who work day and night, scratching out a living to support their children. They give everything they have for the sake of their children. The drought was devastating, and the widow was at the end of the rope, with almost nothing left. But in this dire situation, God had his own plan. This is what God says to Elijah: Go now to Zaraphath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there; for I have commanded a widow there to feed you. (1 Kings 17:8-16) Elijah the Prophet Elijah would become the greatest prophet that Israel ever had. But in today's passage, he is at the very beginning of his prophetic career. He is unknown. He is on the run from the King of Israel. He has no allies and is extremely vulnerable. He is so desperate, that the only one who can keep him alive is a vulnerable widow who herself has nothing to give. When Elijah asks her for a morsel of bread, she talks about her plight: As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die. (1 Kings 17:12) Isn't it amazing that in Elijah's desperate, vulnerable situation, God calls another very vulnerable, desperate person to help him? The fate of Elijah and his future ministry depend on this vulnerable woman responding to his need. The widow probably had no idea about who Elijah was or what he was going to do in the future. It shows us that we don't know God's plans when we are called to help. That's not for us to know. The question is whether we respond to the need in front of us. I think the widow wanted to help Elijah, but what she had was so scarce, so little, so small. It was not even enough for herself and her son. She had nothing to give. In this situation, what Elijah said seems kind of crazy: Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son. (1 Kings 17:8-16) Who among us would do this? But here, while we and the widow see scarcity, God sees abundance. This is what God said through Elijah: For thus says the Lord the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth. (1 Kings 17:8-16) That is what God says. But for us, our jar of meal and jug of oil seem to always be on the verge of running empty. We feel inadequate, incapable, depleted, and not having enough to make a difference to others. We're always saying that once I have enough, THEN I'll give. What do we Have to Give? Our circumstances and our fear tell us that we have nothing really to give. But is this really the case? If you take the time to look more closely, you'll see that this is not the case. There is actually much more in us than we realize. While I was Hi-C pastor, one message I said continually was that each of us have something unique to offer to the world that only you have. It might seem small, it might seem insignificant, but to God it is precious. Inside each of us is a source of deep richness, beauty and abundance. Our sin is that we have allowed ourselves to diminish it, be blind to it. The widow believed what God said. She responded with faith. Her jar of meal and jug of oil became a lifeline for Elijah. She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days. The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the

Scripture Passage Isaiah 43:16-21 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Anniversary! Today is the 25th Anniversary of this church. God has been good as I look back. We didn't even have the church building when we started. But God has given this beautiful building. We were renting Victoria Royce church at Annete and Keele and we used to come to West Deane Park and had a picnic after the service. I could see this church on the hill from the park and it was so beautiful. I just thought to myself, how nice it would be if that were our church. Who would have expected that we are worshipping right here? God has been good. You all worked so hard to build this community. I remember all those who did so much for the church. Together we have built a beautiful history. As we look back our own personal lives, God has been so good. There were times when we didn't know what to do. There were times when our future was so uncertain. There were times when we felt lost. God didn't give up on us. God never abandoned us. God never left us orphaned. God did not leave us alone. As the gospel song goes, even when I don't see it you're working, even when I don't feel it you're working, God never stopped working. God showed us the way. God made a way for us. That was what Isaiah confessed in today's passage. Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters, who brings out chariot and horse, army and warrior; they lie down, they cannot rise, they are extinguished, quenched like a wick. (Isaiah 43:16, 17) This reminds us of Exodus. He reminded the Israelites how God had brought them out of Egypt. He parted the sea and brought the Israelites out of the life of slavery. We should never forget what God has done for us. If you write a journal, once in a while, go back to what you have written. You will see the trace of God right there. The Israelite prophets always reminded the people of the Exodus. The people remembered the Exodus event by making festivals and celebrating them like Passover. As We Look Back Our present does not exist in isolation. Our past, our present, and our future are all connected. God who was with us, is with us and will be with us. So, remembering our past is very important. As we look back, we can learn a lot, both from positive experiences and negative experiences. Somebody said, people who don't know the history are damned to repeat it. That's why Isaiah said in chapter 46, Remember this and consider, remember the former things of old (Isaiah 46:8, 9) But in today's passage, Isaiah said something totally opposite. He said, Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. (Isaiah 43:18) Why did he say that? He explains in the next verse. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. (Isaiah 43:19) Our past is good to remember and be thankful and learn from it. But we cannot dwell on our past. When we dwell on our past, it will become a dead weight. It will shackle our minds and prohibits us from going further. God wants us to go further. God doesn't want us to stay where we are. We cannot live exactly in the same way as we have lived before and expect a change. Wasn't that what Einstein said about insanity? The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. God will not repeat the same thing over again. God is the Creator. God is creative. God is innovative. God always creates new things. Be thankful for what God has done, is a beautiful thing to do. But don't let that be an excuse to stay where we are because we are scared of facing our future. God who has been good to us, will be good to us in the future too. There is nothing for us to be afraid of. There will no challenge that is too big for us to overcome. Greater things are awaiting for us. Be Open to The Future The Israelites were taken as captives and lived as captives in Babylon. While they were there, Babylon was destroyed by Persia. And the king of Persia, Cyrus had a new policy. He told the Israelites to go back to their home. But by then life in Persia was so comfortable. They didn't want to go back. They didn't want to face the uncertainty of their destroyed homeland. They were scared of facing new future. Cyrus even offered to give them money but they were scared of returning to their home country. Isaiah said God would make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. God was about to do greater things. New things that God would do are so wondrous that you will not even remember your former things. That is who our God is. God wants to do greater things through you. But you need to be ready. You need to have faith in God. What God will do in our lives is far beyond our imagination. What God will do through this church is far beyond our imagination. What we need is faith. Be open to the possibility. Be open to the future. Have courage to face your futur

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Scripture Passage Mark 10:46-52 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script A Doorway to Faith Desperation! That is a doorway to faith. No one can come to faith through intellectual reasoning. Faith is not something you choose or conclude as a result of your intellectual exploration. Unless we have a desperate need, faith is hard to come by. So, when everything is going all right, faith is pretty hard to get. Even if we have faith, it is a kind of faith that remains on the surface level. It is something that you merely choose to believe. This blind beggar, Bartimaeus was desperate. As soon as he heard the name, Jesus, he began to cry out. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!' (Mark 10:47) No one could stop him. People tried to stop him because he was so loud and it was unpleasant to hear him. The outcry from desperation is not pleasant to hear. It is raw. Not only is it loud, but it is also mixed with a lot of raw emotions. So, it can be unpleasant. So, people around the beggar didn't want to hear it. They tried to stop him also because they thought he was not worthy enough to get Jesus' attention like that. By then Jesus was already a celebrity. People thought that he had no time to waste to pay attention to people like Bartimaeus, a beggar. He was going into Jerusalem to do something greater than hearing this obnoxious outcry of a poor blind beggar. But no one can stop the outcry that comes from one's desperation. Bartimaeus shouted louder. Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, Son of David, have mercy on me!' (Mark 10: 48) The Scripture says that Jesus stood still. Stood still! It gives me an image of Jesus standing there and observing all that was going on. I can also see Jesus' compassion. Jesus stood still and said, Call him here.' (Mark 10:49) Jesus saw this man not just as another poor person in the crowd. He saw that there was something special about this man. To him, Jesus was the only hope. I don't think he was a born blind because he said this. My teacher, let me see again.' (Mark 10:51) There was a time he was able to see. But we don't know how he became blind. But his life was miserable right now. He had no choice but to live as a beggar. He didn't want to live as a beggar. No Option Sometimes life does not give us any option to choose. We just have to accept it and live through it. That's hard. There are people who are struggling with their poor health condition. They just have to live through it. At the last session meeting, we talked about how young people have lost the appetite of life. They lost the zeal and passion, even the purpose of living. They have everything and yet they don't know why they feel that way. Do you think they want to do that? I don't think so. They feel helpless. But it's not just young people but many people feel that they are stuck and life gives them no option to choose. That was what Bartimaeus felt at that time. It wasn't that he enjoyed begging. As a blind man during that time, he had no choice but to beg to survive. To him, the only hope was Jesus, the Son of David. Out of desperation comes hope and our hope turns into faith. My friends, when you feel desperate, don't give up. When you give up, the only thing that is left is helplessness. Helplessness doesn't do anything. It destroys your desire to want something better in life. It kills your spirit. That is when you lose life. Hope We need Bartimaeus' outcry. Bartimaeus' outcry meant he did something about his life. He didn't just sit there helplessly. He shouted out. He refused to just sit there and take his life situation. He shouted out. That was all he could do. He heard about this Jesus before. He heard the rumour that Jesus cured the sick, chased out the demons, and even healed the blind. As a Jewish man, he also had this hope for the Messiah. This was Messianic hope Jewish people had. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy. For waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert (Isaiah 35:5, 6) He knew about Isaiah's messianic hope. And he felt that this Jesus might be the one. He wanted to see this man Jesus. But as a blind beggar, there was no way he could see Jesus. It was impossible for him to visit Jesus and see him. That was when he heard that this man Jesus of Nazareth was walking by. He was overjoyed. People said he was Jesus of Nazareth. But to him, he was not just Jesus of Nazareth. He was the Son of David. That was the Messianic title. That's why he shouted like this, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! (Mark 10:47) Who taught him that? No one. This is the evidence that he heard about Jesus before and he connected him with his messianic hope. Even in his desperation, he didn't lose hope. He was waiting and waiting and waiting. Even though

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Scripture Passage Job 38:1-7 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Job, a Man of Suffering We all know about Job and heard about him. We remember him as a man of suffering. We need to know a little bit of his background to understand about his suffering. Job was a righteous man. Even God recognized his righteousness. This was what God said, The Lord said to Satan, Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man who fears God and turns away from evil.' (Job 1:8) This was the beginning of all his problems. Satan asked this question to God. Then Satan answered the Lord, Does Job fear God for nothing? Have you not put a fence around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.' (Job 1:9-11) There is an important question this raised. Is there a person who loves God purely for who he is? Or we all honor God because there are benefits?Is our faith simply our response to the blessings given to us? That is the question Job had to ask. Job lost his children, his possessions, and at the end even his own health. Seeing all that his wife cursed him and left him. Can Job still believe in God? Who Can Suffer The book of Job is a book about a man who lost everything and talks about what he went through. His friends tried their best to conclude that these sufferings came upon him because there was something wrong he did. They tried to lead conversation into the conclusion that Job was a sinner and therefore all these bad things happened to him. It is the easiest way to say that our suffering is punishment for our sins. Jesus' disciples did the same thing. As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?' (John 9:1, 2) But the book of Job says otherwise. The book of Job says that righteous people can suffer too. Just because you go through your own suffering right now, don't automatically assume that there must be something wrong with you or you did something bad. Do bad things happen to good people? Yes, bad things happen to good people. Our Lord Jesus showed that very clearly. Jesus was a righteous man. But people crucified him on the cross. Seeing suffering death of Jesus, a Roman soldier who was in charge said this strange confession. The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, Surely this was a righteous man. (Luke 23:47) Seeing the suffering of Jesus, this man saw the righteousness of Jesus, not his wickedness. We don't know why bad things happen to good people. That is mystery. Even God doesn't answer that. After the suffering, there is a whole bunch of conversations between Job and his three friends. And finally, God appeared to Job for the first time. That was what we read today. He didn't give Job a clear answer for his suffering. But instead he let him see the beautiful creation he made. And asked Job. Did you do any of these? Were you even there? Do you even know how I created all these? God’s Gift God created the beautiful world. We heard Darren beautiful perform that. O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder Consider all The works Thy Hand hath made, I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder, Thy pow’r throughout The universe displayed, Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee How great Thou art, how great Thou art Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee How great Thou art, how great Thou art God made this beautiful world but we don't know how he did it. God is saying that he will also make a beautiful life out of our suffering. And we don't know. Why we suffer is not as important as what God will make out of our suffering. As God created the beautiful world out of chaos and darkness, God will create a beautiful life out of our suffering even though we may go through chaos and darkness when we suffer. When we suffer, we ask this question. Why me? But there is no answer there. Instead of asking why me, let us see what God will make out of our suffering. God is good. God granted to us all the good things. God gave us beautiful gifts. Beautiful family, friends, good job, good health – We should be thankful. But if these good gifts become what we expect and what we demand, then they become no more good gifts. When these things are not given, we will be disappointed and discouraged. We will be even disillusioned. Our good God will make a beautiful life out of us no matter what circumstances we may be in. We should be joyful and thankful in all circumstances. Nothing will be able to take that joy out of us. No suffering can take the joy out of us. The early Christians sang praises and gave thanks even in prison. No suffering could take that joy away from them. Suffering has no power over us. Suffering cannot even harm us. Suffering will only help us. When

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Scripture Passage Job 1:1, 2:1-10 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Why Do We Suffer? Suffering is a reality of life. That is the truth of life that Buddhists recognize. People either live with suffering, or they live in fear of suffering. That is the truth that Satan in today's passage recognized. He saw this truth about people: All that people have they will give to save their lives. (Job 2:4) In other words, people live in fear of suffering and will do anything they can to avoid it. Religious and upright people like Job appear faithful because deep down they fear the suffering that can come upon their lives. He takes that further when he says this: But stretch out your hand now and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face. (Job 2:5) He is exposing how fragile and weak our faith is. He is wagering with God that once suffering hits us, we will turn away from God. The issue posed by this passage is: how do we respond to suffering? How should we respond? The question of why people suffer has always been with us. When we suffer, or we see others suffer, the first question is always why ? Why must I suffer? Why must others suffer? Why did little children have to be taken from their homes and sent far away to schools where they would be taught that they were inferior, where they were abused, and even died and placed in unmarked graves? Why? One response to the question of suffering has been that suffering is punishment for sins. This is something I've never been down with. When we consider the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation we just had, I cannot accept the idea that all of those innocent children suffered for their sins, or because of their parents' sins. Most people today cannot accept that. That makes for a very cruel God. The more common response is that God cannot exist because of all the suffering we see in the world. This has become the general operating belief for most people today. We live as though God doesn't really exist. Even if we say with our lips that we believe in God. A World Full of Suffering When suffering and difficulties arise, people try to overcome it by using everything in their power and ability to save themselves from it. The Korean show The Squid Game has taken this world by storm. I haven't seen all of it, but the premise has touched a core nerve in people. The show illustrates the extent to which people will go to survive when they are pushed to the furthest edges. People will indeed give all that they have to save their lives. The show depicts a world that is full of cruelty, unfairness and suffering. It depicts a world absent of God. And because God is absent, people are on their own. In a world without God, people have to use their every wit, skill and trickery at their disposal to survive. The great paradox of faith is this: how can a God who loves and cares for us coexist with a world full of suffering and evil? The conclusion many people make is that this paradox cannot hold. A loving and caring God cannot coexist with a world full of suffering and evil. The biblical writers struggled and grappled with this paradox. All throughout the book of Job, he asks the question that lies at the core of our souls: why must innocent people suffer? Why does God allow that? In the end, he concludes that he cannot understand why such suffering and evil exist. In the Bible Biblical writers do not provide a clear answer for why suffering exists. When Jesus was on the cross, he himself asked the question at the heart of suffering: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46) When we suffer, when evil is inflicted upon the innocent, we feel alone and as if God has abandoned us. Many of the psalms lament the seeming absence of God in the face of suffering. Biblical writers do not answer clearly why there is suffering. What the Bible does witness to, though, is that God responds to human suffering. God responds compassionately and does not leave people alone. Yes, many of the psalms ask why they feel alone in their suffering. But many psalms also declare with joy of how God brought them through out of their suffering. Biblical writers do not avoid the paradox of the presence of suffering and evil coexisting with a loving God. But rather, they declare that God does care about people, and that God does come to comfort and deliver people from their suffering. The Central Point of the Paradox Real faith does not avoid this paradox. But faith focuses primarily on what God does in the face of evil and suffering. We experience difficulties and hardships. We see the great suffering in the world. Yet we also see how God has comforted us. When Jesus was crucified on the cross, all the hopes and dreams of his followers were shattered. They scattered and ran away in fear. That's what the cross represented. Defeat. Humiliation. Death. But somehow, his followers eventually came to see the cross not only as that, but more powerfully, the place where n

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Scripture Passage James 1:22-27 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Conflicting Desires We struggle with double mindedness. We have two sides: one positive and the other negative. Sometimes our positive side can be also our negative side. We have a bright side and a dark side. Within us, we have these TWO CONFLICTING DESIRES. We want to be good for others and live more wholesome life. We want to be pleasant, kind and loving. We want to stand up for what is good and right. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, we see ourselves being easily angry, negative, lazy, timid, and not care. We are sometimes dark, cynical, and critical. Jesus asked the disciples to stay with him when he was praying in Gethsemane, probably the most difficult time in his life. The disciples could not be with Jesus. Jesus said, the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. (Matthew 26:41) The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak! This description is so true. Yes, we have a conflict between the spirit and the flesh. Here the flesh does not mean just a physical body. It is more than that. This is what St. Paul said about the flesh. For we know that the law is spiritual; but I am of the flesh, sold into slavery under sin. (Romans 7:14) The flesh is self that is controlled by our human weakness, and also by our sins. We have the spirit that is willing to do what is good. But we also have the flesh that desires the opposite. Our task is not to deny that we have these two sides but to let our bright side take over the dark side. That is what spiritual journey is all about. See Our Raw Self Being spiritual does not mean to DENY that there is this double mindedness within us. When we are spiritual, we SEE MORE CLEARLY that this DISCONNECTEDNESS EXISTS within us. We see our struggle more clearly. Spirituality helps us to get to our RAW SELF before it reshapes us. In our spiritual journey, we will see the disconnectedness between faith and doubt, hearing the word and living out the word, good desire and evil desire, thinking and action, knowing and living out what we know, fantasy and reality. So our spiritual journey is not necessarily pleasant to go through but we have to do that to grow and also to find who we really are and to be more truthful to our self. It is much easier to divide the PUBLIC SELF that you show to the world and the PRIVATE SELF that is disclosed only to yourself. But living like that does not give us chance to grow and to be real. The more we do that, the more we will deceive ourselves. We should not play blind eyes to this disconnectedness. We should not use our faith as a way to ignore and conceal this tension and make us feel better. We may feel better but that is not who we are. Good faith doesn't do that. Good religion doesn't do that. This is what James said, If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. (James 1:26) If you think you are religious and yet you do not even know that you hurt others by what you say, then it is not a good religion. He said, that kind of religion is worthless. You think you are religious but you don't even know that you are hurting others. You live in your own world. Good faith does not do that. It does not blind us. It does not paint us with a false image. When we have good faith, we have a pretty good idea of who we are. Bad faith does the very opposite. It misguides us and blinds us. This is what James said. But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act they will be blessed in their doing. (James 1:22-25) The Book of James The book of James has been MISUNDERSTOOD for a long time. People like Martin Luther, the reformer, even considered taking it out of the cannon at first. He emphasized that faith alone can save us. Not our good works. But James said faith without good works is dead faith. That's why many people misunderstood James, thinking that he was DOWNPLAYING the importance of faith. They think James is saying that faith alone is not enough. You have to do the good works. That is not what James is saying. James also believes that faith is the most important thing. Faith alone can save us. But he is saying that your faith has to be good faith, real faith. Not fake faith. Not bad faith that blinds you and deceives you. James saw his community losing real faith, the good faith. He saw that they were struggling with their faith. The external pressure was too much. Their life was hard. Some of them were losing their faith and left the community. Even those who remained in the church, they did not have living faith. Their faith existed merely in their brain. It was just agreem

Scripture Passage Ephesians 6:10-20 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Strength We have to be strong to survive. We have to be strong to deal with challenges of life. We have to be strong to live a good life. We have to be strong to live out our calling. We have to be strong to be happy. St. Paul said in today's passage, Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. (Ephesians 6:10) Be strong in the Lord What does it mean to be strong in the Lord? Be strong in the Lord means NOT TO BE SHAKEN. No matter what situation we may encounter, we have to be solid like a rock. That is what it means to be strong. We need to have a solid existence. We cannot be like chaff that the wind drives away. We should be like a tree planted and deeply rooted by streams of water. To live a fruitful life, we should be strong. To be strong means to be CONSTANTLY positive, thankful, joyful, and hopeful. The key word is constantly. We have to be consistent. It is easy to be positive once in a while, thankful once in a while, joyful once in a while and hopeful once in a while. But it is hard to be constantly that way. To be constantly that way, we need to be strong. To make these positive qualities constant and consistent, we need to have spiritual discipline. You practice it so much that it becomes a part of you. Just thinking about it is not enough. Just knowing that it is important is not enough. We need to prepare ourselves spiritually so that we are constantly positive, thankful, joyful, and hopeful. St. Paul said, Therefore take up the whole armour of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. (Ephesians 6:13) Unpredictable Times Life is unpredictable. We don't know what situation may come to us. Uncertainty is a part of what life is. We all have learned that very clearly through this Covid crisis. This crisis is not over. We are now in the fourth wave. Nobody knew that we would be affected for this long. This crisis affected all of us in a very profound way. It changed our life style. No one ever imagined its devastating effect. It is something we saw only in movies. Now September is not even two weeks away. School is going to start soon and the daily rate of delta variant Covid cases are doubled in two weeks in US. On Friday, we had 650 new cases in Ontario. And 689 on Saturday. And the kids are not vaccinated. No one can predict what will come in September. We are living in a very unpredictable time. This creates anxiety, anger, and fear. It makes us shaky. It makes us weak. We can easily allow darkness to enter into our soul and let it control our life. It will weaken us. You know what. It is not just corona virus that throws our life into chaos. Life is always full of challenges and it will always be that way. That won't change. We cannot live our lives wishing that there is no problem. Wishing that there is no problem is a very passive attitude. Wishing that there is no problem in life is a sign of weakness. Instead of wishing that no problem may come your way, pray that you may have strength to take these challenges and face them. Pray that you may not fear these challenges. We cannot run away from our problems. We have to be bold to take on challenges of life. That is what it means to be strong. Instead of running away from the flaming arrows of our problems, we need a shield, the shield of faith. Our faith becomes the shield to protect us from the attack. Yes, we all get attacked sometimes. Negative thoughts fill our heart. We are so fearful that we become paralyzed. We get tired and get easily temperamental. Sometimes even meaninglessness of life attacks us. We say to ourselves, What is the point? We cannot let these things enter into our soul and poison us. We need to protect ourselves from the attack. We cannot just sit around, hoping that these feelings will go away. They won't just go away. Even if they go away temporarily, they will come back. We need the shield that protects us from these attacks. That is faith. When these attacks come, we believe that we will be all right. We believe that God will give us strength. God will not let these things destroy us. We are precious children of God. Believe that with God, these attacks will only make us stronger. That is what faith is. When we have faith, our problems will make us stronger, not weaker. Comfort and Luxury We are called to live a fruitful life. We are called to love. We are called to be truthful. We are called to serve. We are called to resist the evil. We are called to fight the injustice. God gave us comfort and luxury as a gift and we are very thankful. Comfort and luxury – They are just God's gift. But they are not our calling for us to seek after. If you live your lives, seeking comfort and luxury, if they become your goal, you become weak. When God gives you comfort and luxury, be thankful but remember that our calling is bigger than seeking comfort and luxury. We are

Scripture Passage Mark 6:14-29 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Power What is the most important power that we should have? I asked myself this question. What is the most important power that I need? What is the power that makes my life happy and meaningful. What is the power that I need to follow Jesus? My conclusion is that I need the power that CAN DEFEAT MY FEAR. We need the power that helps us overcome our fear. This PANDEMIC killed many lives and it drove many people into fear. This virus has gripped the whole world with fear. It has affected our life in the most profound way. It was real fear, not just imaginary paranoid. As of July 9, it killed 4,025,765 people worldwide. Real Fears But it is NOT JUST THIS VIRUS that causes fear within us. Fear is what we experience every day in our lives. Fear is very much A PART OF OUR LIFE. Of course, there are also neurotic fears, I admit. That's why we have all these phobias: acrophobia, aerophobia, arachnophobia, claustrophobia, and so on. But fear is always with us. We have fear about the unknown future, fear about our finances, our health, our children, and unforeseeable accidents, and fear about death. These are real fears. Whatever we do, we will encounter our own fear. When we are gripped by fear, we make all kinds of mistakes we wouldn't usually make. Euro Cup Soccer is going on right now. COPA America just finished yesterday. Also Wimbledon Tennis is going on and a Canadian Shapovalov went up to the semi-final, but lost to Djokovic. I saw some games of both soccer and tennis and I saw clearly what fear did to them. They choked. They made mistakes they wouldn't usually make. It's not just in sports, but in every aspect of our lives, when fear grips us, we make mistakes. We cannot think clearly. So, it is important to learn how to deal with our fear. We can never get rid of fear. It's not even healthy to try to get rid of fear. When we do that, we fall into denial and denial can do worse things than fear. Appropriate fear is all right. But we need to have power to deal with our fear. We need power greater than the power of fear. Mark's Message That was what the disciples needed to learn. Mark had a very creative way of communicating his message. Today's story was inserted right in between these two statements. Verse 13: They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them. Mark 6:14-29: John the Baptist Beheaded (flashback) Verse 30: The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. The story we read is right in between verse 13 and 30. Mark uses this sandwich method quite a bit in his writing. Jesus sent out the disciples for a mission. He told them to take nothing. Jesus wanted them to totally depend on God's power, not their own power. They experienced God's power. They never experienced this kind of power in their lives. Actually, it was the first time the disciples did anything themselves. It was all Jesus who did anything fantastic. Until now, the disciples just observed what Jesus did. But this time, they truly experienced God's power for themselves in a tangible way and they did wonderful things. We can see their excitement. Verse 13: They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them. They were able to experience the power of exorcising demons and healing people. They never experienced this kind of power in their lives. So, with the excitement, they shared what they experienced with Jesus. Verse 30: The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. But in between these two verses, Mark inserted the story of the head of John the Baptist being beheaded. Power of Overcoming Fear What was Mark trying to say? Mark was trying to say that there was a greater power than the power of exorcising demons and healing the sick. IT WAS THE POWER OF OVERCOMING FEAR. That was the kind of power JOHN THE BAPTIST HAD. He didn't do miracles. He didn't exorcise demons. He didn't heal the sick. But he had the POWER to be faithful to God to the end. Even fear of death could not break him. Mark 6:14-29 is a long passage. You hear about Herod, his wife, and his stepdaughter. It describes how John's head came to be beheaded. Even though it was a story of John the Baptist, JOHN WAS VERY QUIET. We don't hear anything about him. He was completely silent. But his silence spoke volumes. He didn't try to run away. He didn't try to save his life. He didn't try to persuade Herod. But he had the power to live out who he was. He was a voice in the wilderness and he did his job. And when imprisonment and death came as the result of his voice, he accepted them. Imprisonment and death could not break him. He had the power to overcome his own fear. Herod was different. He had all the power in the world. He had the power to execute people. He had the power to kill John the Baptist. But he was a coward. He was completely controlled by his own fear. Whe

Scripture Passage Mark 4:26-34 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script The Key Jesus gave us a wonderful parable. The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. (Mark 4:26, 27) He does not know how. This phrase strikes me. It inspires me. It gives me a sense of freedom. I don't need to know everything. I don't need to control the result. I am not talking about not preparing thoroughly and expecting a good result. I am not talking about that kind of laziness. But we all know that we cannot control the result in everything that we do. We are trying to live a good life that builds the kingdom of God but we don't know how the kingdom of God is established in our life. Nobody knows. What Jesus is trying to say is that we are not the ones who build life that reflects the kingdom of God. It is ultimately God who builds the kingdom of God. The key is God, not us. That's why St. Paul said, I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. (1 Corinthians 3:6, 7) Jesus lived like that. He showed us how we should live by his example. He didn't do his work all by himself. He always let God work through him. Because he knew ultimately it is God who would bring about God's kingdom. We are not God. Let us not try to be god. We don't know what the final outcome of the kingdom of God will be like and how God will bring that about. Broken Vessels What is the implication of this truth about our life? It gives us tremendous confidence. We do our best to live a good life. But sometimes we feel that even our best is not good enough. We don't see the result and when we don't see the result, we get discouraged, we get anxious and we even lose hope for going further. We say to ourselves, What's the point? But ultimately God will bring about the mysterious result in the way we don't know. Listen to St. Paul and see his attitude towards his life. We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28) God will ultimately shape a good life out of us. We are broken vessels and yet God brings good life out of these broken vessels. Not because you are good, you produce a good life. Don't be mistaken. Not because you are a good vessel, God puts his treasure. St. Paul said. But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us. (2 Corinthians 4:7) Until he met Christ, he didn't realize that he was a broken clay jar. He thought that God's work would be done through him because he was great. But he realized that that was not true after meeting Christ. He said more clearly this wonderful truth when he talked about the resurrection. Resurrection is not the reward for our good behavior. So it is with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body. (1 Corinthians 15:42-44) The Smallest Seed Jesus articulated this thought more clearly in his second parable about the kingdom of God. It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.' (Mark 4:31-32) The mustard seed is the smallest of all the seeds on earth. That means it is insignificant. But when it is sown it grows and becomes the greatest of all shrubs and the birds of the air can come and rest. But we don't know how. We don't know how the smallest seed becomes the tree where the birds of the air can come and rest. Often when we see ourselves, we see only the smallest seed. We see ourselves very small and insignificant. Sometimes we even feel we are worthless. But don't ever forget that the smallest seed has the potential in it to become the greatest tree. That's what the seed is. It has that potential. That's why Jesus used the example of the seed. We only see the smallest seed. Why? Because we have eyes of fear. Last Wednesday, I reflected on the King David for the Korean Wednesday service. Even when he was merely a shepherd boy, he had this confidence to defeat the gigantic Goliath because he had not the eyes of fear but the eyes of faith. Terrible Events Recently, we have witnessed two terrible events. One is the discovery of the remains of 215 indigenous children. We are confronted again with the evil that was done to the indigenous people in this country. They have been saying this all this time. Just think about how you would feel when your children are taken away against your will and some of them never come h

Scripture Passage John 15:9-17 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script Love Today is Mother's Day. At our church, we celebrate it as Parents Day. The first word that comes to my mind when I think about mothers or parents is LOVE. We all received tremendous love from them. We thank them for their love, their sacrifice, and their many tears for us. They took care of us. They prayed for us and they always worried about us. They taught us what it means to suffer because they love. I saw my mother suffer more when I was suffering. So whenever we think about our parents, it makes us emotional. Because our parents did so much for us. During this Covid period, we heard many sad stories. So many seniors died at nursing homes during this Covid period. Some of them died alone without being able to say a proper goodbye. People could not even visit their parents in a nursing home and spend time with them. They had to meet their parents in the nursing home from outside of their room. Not being able to take care of lonely parents is painful because all their lives they did so much for us. Our parents are not perfect. They may not have social status or hold an important position in our society. Especially in an immigrant society, our parents suffered quite a lot. The immigrant life was not easy but they were willing to suffer for the sake of their children. They felt bad because they could not provide what normal parents would do for their children. Instead of helping their children, they had to depend on the help of their children because they couldn't speak English. But how influential they are, how helpful they are, how capable they are that's not that important. They taught us love, the most important thing in life. What is More Important Than Love? Isn't that what is the most important in life? What is more important than love? We have become who we are by love we received. Didn't St. Paul say that I am who I am by God's grace, by God's love? Without love, we will be lost. Without love, life will be miserable. Having love is more important than any social skills we may acquire. Being able to love and being loved. Isn't that what Jesus taught us? Jesus told the scribes – ALL WE NEED IS LOVE. Jesus said it before the Beatles sang. All the commandments are summarized into one: LOVE – LOVE God and LOVE your neighbour. That summarizes our Scripture today. The last verse we read today summarizes our passage. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another. (John 15:17) Love is powerful. With love, we can deal with challenges of life. With love, we can persevere through our difficult times. Love makes life worth living. It makes our life full and abundant. Love makes our relationships joyful and fruitful. We are successful if we are full of love. We are successful not because we are doing well in our lives. We are successful because we are able to love. Those who love – They are the ones who live their life to the fullest. Who taught us that love? Our parents. From the moment we came out into this world, they were there. When we were helpless, they made sure that we received that love. They stayed up all night to take care of us. They changed diapers and they made sure that we would survive. And we learn from them how important it is to love. Our parents taught us the most important thing that we need, to survive and flourish in our life. What was our parents' love like? They made us feel so special, so precious, and so valuable. That is what love is. When you love somebody, you treat that person as the most precious being in the world. When you are loved, you feel valued, appreciated, and important. That was what parents did to us. We are always special and precious to our parents. You know, feeling valued is very important for our survival. That is a very basic thing that all human beings need for their survival. Value Dr. Joseph Shrand, a Psychiatrist at Harvard talked about why being valued is so important. He said, millions of years ago, we human beings were very weak alone. We were physically inferior to other mammals. We could have easily eaten up by other animals who were faster, stronger, and bigger. And then we formed small groups and we got stronger together. But to stay in the group, we have to contribute something. In other words, we have to have value. Otherwise we will be kicked out and become alone and we will be prey to other animals. So, a sense of being valued has become so important. Being valued is our survival. And our parents gave that to us. Through our parents' love, we have learned to value ourselves. I want to tell you, all young parents. Make your children feel valuable. That is the best you can do for them. That is the best parenting you can give to them. Especially when they go through troubled times and hard times, let them know how valuable they are. They need to know that. That doesn't mean that you let them be whatever they want. You can discipline them, you can say difficu

Scripture Passage John 12:20-33 Sermon Video Sermon Audio Sermon Script Suffering is Part of Existence Suffering or pain is not something that we can choose or not to choose. Is it? We don't have an option on this matter. Suffering is a very much part of our existence. Suffering and pain will always be there. I am not talking about a huge, dramatic suffering. I am talking about what we experience in our daily living. We get hurt. We get disappointed. There are things that frustrate us and annoy us. Worries and Anxiety. Illness. Lack of confidence. Guilt Difficulties in relationships. All of these are what cause suffering in us. Suffering is not something we can avoid. It always comes to us like an uninvited guest. It intrudes our lives. It takes away joy from us. When we Suffer Suffering makes us weak. When we suffer, we question, Why do these things happen to me? Did I do something wrong? We wonder whether God loves us. When we suffer, we feel lonely. We feel distant from people. Maybe it's not them. Maybe it's us. We may distance ourselves from them. We don't want to meet people when we suffer. The extreme suffering makes us feel that we are abandoned, abandoned even by God. Jesus cried out on the cross, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? That shows the extreme suffering Jesus experienced. It is more painful than saying, I am hurt . When we suffer, we feel small. To inflict suffering on Jesus, that was what they did. They try to make him feel small. They humiliated him. They ridiculed him. They put on a false crown made with thorns. They put on a royal robe. They bowed before him, calling him Majesty. Then they slapped him, spat at him and punched him. They tried to make Jesus look most pitiful. Losing to Suffering That's what suffering does to our lives. It takes away our dignity. It makes us feel small and pitiful. We lose confidence. We feel like we are nobody. When we let suffering oppress us, dominate us, and control us, we lose ourselves. We lose confidence. We lose dignity. We lose even our identity. We lose everything. That is when suffering destroys us. And suffering wins. That's when suffering intimidates us. It makes us run away from it. Overcome Suffering It is one thing to say that suffering is an inseparable part of our lives but it is another thing to say that we have to live under the dictatorial control of suffering. We don't have to let suffering do that to us. That is not what God wants from us. God taught us to OVERCOME OUR SUFFERING. Jesus came to us to show us the way to overcome our suffering. Jesus went through greater suffering than most of us. But he didn't let suffering control his life. HE OVERCAME SUFFERING. In John, he said, I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you face persecution. But take courage; I have conquered the world! (John 16:33) Conquering the world means to have victory over suffering. He defeated the suffering. Conquering suffering does not mean that there is no more suffering. Jesus still went through it but it could not dominate him. It could not paralyze him. Suffering could not intimidate him. It could not control him. That is the strength of Jesus. And we need that strength. We will experience suffering but the important question is whether we let it control us or we LET SUFFERING SERVE US. Be prepared. Be prepared to take on the challenge of suffering. St. Paul St. Paul went through a lot of suffering. We can see that in his confession. Are they ministers of Christ? I am talking like a madman I am a better one: with far greater labours, far more imprisonments, with countless floggings, and often near death. Five times I have received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked; for a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from bandits, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers and sisters; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, hungry and thirsty, often without food, cold and naked. (2 Corinthians 11:23-27) He went through a lot. But we see that even this much suffering could not control him. We can see that in his confession. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed (2 Corinthians 4:8, 9) We cannot avoid suffering but we can defeat it. The more you try to run away from suffering because of fear, the more it will control you. If we let the suffering control us, we will lose life. We cannot live anymore a meaningful life. It will scare us. It will make our life dark. And it controls our daily thinking. What kind of life is that? Let Suffering Serve Us What we need is the power to defeat our suffering. Instead of letting the suffering control us, we let the suffering

Scripture Passage Genesis 9:8-17 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script After the Flood What we see in today's Scripture is God's aching heart. God felt so bad after the flood. Aching heart comes from love. Where there is no love, there is no suffering. We suffer because we love. We become desperate because we love. What we see in today's passage is God's pain and his anguish. Who am I that God is so brokenhearted about my fate? Am I that important to him? God saw how evil human beings were. Their wickedness was destroying them. God saw that and felt so desperate. He didn't know what to do. But after the flood, God changed his mind. He said he would never destroy the earth with water. He repeated this word never a few times. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.' (Genesis 9:11) and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. (Genesis 9:15) Describing God We see God regretting. I like how the Genesis writer described God. God is like us. God is sad. God repents. God regrets. God is not like a distant super being up there who has no feeling. God is like parents who blame themselves for the suffering of their children even if it was their own faults. I think this describes God more accurately than analytic description of God such as immutability, omni-present, omniscience of God. Trying to come up with an analytical definition of God's attribute through this kind of passage is misreading the intention of the author. Genesis writer tried to describe God's aching heart for us, in the way we human beings could understand. God changed his mind and declared that he would never destroy the humanity like that. It was more a declaration than a covenant. It was not an agreement of both parties like a contract. God simply let Noah know what he would do. What Noah might do had no bearing on God's decision. Regardless of human behaviors, God said he would not destroy them. He knew that we feeble human beings are too weak to keep their promises. We are too flimsy. Our heart may desire but our flesh is weak. We want to do good with our heart but we do evil with our flesh. St. Paul discovered about himself after meeting Christ. Let us listen to what he said. So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin. (Romans 7:25) When we go back one chapter before today's passage, we see this. I will never again curse the ground because of humankind, for the inclination of the human heart is evil from youth (Genesis 8:21) Evil From Youth Evil from youth. This means evilness is embedded in our very being. It is a part of us. So deeply ingrained, God knew that punishment wouldn't do any good. Look at what they did after the flood. Did they change? They committed a worse evil. They built the Babel tower and said let us build the tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves. That's what human beings are like. If God punished human beings every time they committed evil, no one would have survived. That's why God changed his mind. What human beings could not do on their own, God wanted to do. That is the Good News. We are saved not because we changed and became righteous. We are saved because God changed because of his love for us and that love is God's righteousness. By God's righteousness, we are saved. The World we Live in When I see the world we live in, I see hostility that comes from greed. This world is operated not by righteousness but by greed. People who have power try to have more power, and in the process, they exploit those who don't have much. Isn't that greed? Because of greed, people fight with each other, compete with each other, and hate each other. They validate themselves and invalidate others. God becomes merely inconvenient presence. Greed is deeply embedded within us. Greed invokes violence. And it harbors hostility within us. This hostility divides us and separates us from God. Punishment has no power to destroy this greed. It makes our greed worse. It only enflames our greed. Greed and hostility go together. The ultimate hostility of human beings was manifested at the cross. This hostility killed the Son of God. This hostility put a wedge between God and human beings. Jesus came to put an end to this hostility. This was God's will. God's will is hidden in today's passage and beginning from Noah, God chose to relate to human beings differently with a different attitude. Hostility cannot destroy hostility. The Bow In today's scripture, it says, I have set my bow in the clouds. (Genesis 9:13) Yes, it is a rainbow. But it is also a bow of battle. We can imagine a deity with bow and arrow but in today's story, there is no arrow. And God hung up the bow in the clouds. In other words, there is no more battle, no more fight. Only peace. God knows all our sins, all our shame, all our wickedness,

Scripture Passage Mark 9:2-9 Worship Video Worship Audio Sermon Script A Glorious Scene We see a beautiful and glorious scene in today's Scripture. I love it. It is surreal. Jesus' clothes became dazzling white. It was radian. There appeared Elijah and Moses who died long time ago. Their appearance was not like a hologram. They talked with Jesus. And a cloud overshadowed them and the disciples heard a voice that came from the cloud. It was not something we experience in our mundane life. The disciples experienced something very special. They could not explain what they experienced with their language or logic. Much later, Peter recounted what he experienced on this mountain but he had hard time to describe it. The words he used were Honour , Glory , Majestic glory. He tried his best to describe what he experienced. Unfortunately, his words could not fully capture what he experienced. They didn't just feel that it was wonderful. They were terrified. Peter said, Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings. But soon Mark said this, He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. They liked what they experienced but they were scared. Their response was a typical response of those who experience the deep mystery of life. And they experienced exactly that. What do you see? My friends, what we see, touch and experience is not everything. There are things that we cannot explain with the language we have and the logic we operate with. I find that very comforting, though. If what I see is everything about this world and about my life, then I will feel hopeless. What I see is that the powerful use their power to exploit the powerless. The strong always look down upon the weak and treat them with contempt. People who are different from those who have power experience discrimination. That is what I see but I am very thankful that life is more than what I see and touch. I am thankful that we experience sometimes the mysterious hands of God that take care of us. God is still working among us and yet we do not see God. Jesus told Thomas, Do you believe because you see? Blessed are those who do not see and yet believe. Six days later Today's story begins with the phrase, Six days later. Sometimes when you watch a movie, they say, one year later , or one week later . That means what is going on now is related to what happened one year ago or one week ago. When Mark began with six days later , he relates this story on the mountain with the event that happened six days ago. What happened six days ago? Six days ago, Jesus was with the disciples in Caesarea Philippi. There Jesus asked the disciples, Who do people say that I am? And then again, Jesus asked them, Who do YOU say that I am? That was what happened 6 days ago. In today's story, we get the answer for that question. Today's story is about who Jesus is Jesus' Identity. The answer we get is this: This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him! (Mark 9:7) Mark tells us that Jesus is the Son of God. What does it mean that Jesus is the Son of God? It means that Jesus is the presence of God. Jesus was the presence of God in this world. Peter felt that. That's why he wanted to build a tabernacle and the tabernacle was where God dwelled in the desert in Exodus. He knew that before he heard the voice from the heaven. Peter That's Peter. Many times, he said things that he didn't completely understand. Six days ago, when Jesus asked the disciples, Who do you say that I am? , no one dared to answer his question. But Peter knew the answer and I don't know how. But somehow, he knew. When other disciples were pondering on the question, Peter immediately said what came to his mind. You are the Messiah. (Mark 8:29) He didn't understand what he was saying but he felt it. He knew it. He was spiritually connected with Jesus. That's why Jesus loved him, in spite of his shortcomings. The Identifications of Jesus Mark records three incidents where Jesus was identified as the Son of God. The first one was when Jesus was baptized. Then in today's passage on the mountain. Then finally at the cross. First two times, God said that but the last one, a gentile, a Roman soldier said it, not God. Now when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, Truly this man was God's Son!' (Mark 15:39) It was God who revealed that Jesus was the Son of God. It was God who started it. But at the end, it was a human being, not even one of chosen people, but a gentile who said that Jesus was the Son of God. It was proclaimed not in the temple but at the cross. The tabernacle Peter wanted to build on the mountain was built at the cross. The Cross: Where God Is The cross became God's dwelling place. Even though Jesus cried out on the cross, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? , God did not forsake Jesus. God was right there. The world did not see it but God was there. When we suffer, that is a place where God is. When we suffer, sometimes we won

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