[Then the King will say to those on His right hand, `Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world'] (Matt. 25:34).
This is what Jesus will say when He comes to this earth upon the Father's second request, to those on His right hand. [All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats, and He will set the sheep on the right hand, but the goats on the left] (Matt. 25:32-34). He will also say, [Seek first the kingdom of God] (Matt. 6:33). [Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father] (Matt. 13:43). The day has now come when this word is to be fulfilled.
Our Father of infinite love so loves His children who have been as obedient to His words and commandments as a lamb, that He gives them eternal life, His throne, and His royal authority. Moreover, He sends us a message through Christ His Eldest Son, to inherit His kingdom now which is all that is left of Him.
Oh what a love! What love our Father has! Our Father's unselfish love, its depth incomprehensible to any human mind or any heart of selfishness and covetousness. It cannot possibly be understood or appreciated! What words can I say, how can I find the suitable language to describe this incredible love? In my heart, I feel like putting my pen down and running somewhere because I cannot sit still at the thought of God's immeasurable love.
But as I hear the cries of my brethren wandering in this desolate world without the knowledge of His love, I cannot help but continue writing.
Jesus said to His little flock who followed His word faithfully, [Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom] (Luke 12:32) [and bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may ... in My kingdom ... sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel] (Luke 22;29, 30). [And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations... as I also have received from My Father]( Rev. 2:26, 27). Therefore [seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness] (Matt. 6:33). [Not everyone who says to Me, `Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven] (Matt. 7:21). But it will be [given to a nation bearing the fruits of it] (Matt. 21:43). [The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control] (Gal. 5:22, 23). For [blessed are the poor in spirit ... (and those) persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven] (Matt. 5:3, 10).
[The saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever] (Dan. 7:18). Amen!
Praise the Lord! Glory to our real Father who has also given us His kingdom forever and ever.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
22. Our Real Father Who Has Given Us An Everlasting Sign
[Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: You, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it] (Ex. 20:8-11).
(1)The Foundation Day of the Universe
The Sabbath day is the foundation day of the universe in which He rested after He had made all things in heaven and on earth. Thus, it is the birthday of all His creation.
[Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it; because in it He had rested from all His work which God had created and made] (Gen. 2:1~3).
Every nation in the world has its own foundation day, independence day, or birthday. This vital day of importance cannot be removed or changed as long as the nation stands undestroyed. In the same way, the seventh day of the week is the Foundation Day of the universe that the Creator God has established in the beginning, which cannot be replaced nor abolished as long as the universe continues its existence.
That is why Jesus said, [Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled] (Matt. 5:17, 18). [For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it] (Ex. 20:11).
(2) The Sacred Identification (Sign) of Heavenly People
Every nation has its own unique identification card for every citizen. It is the unique sign that distinguishes her people from other people wherever they are in the world. Likewise, God in heaven has imparted to His people, His children, a unique identification sign that the people of the world do not have; it is the holy Sabbath, a sign between God and His people.
[The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak also to the children of Israel, saying: 'Surely My Sabbath you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you ... Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed] (Ex. 31: 12, 13, 16, 17).
[Hallow My Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God] (Ezek. 20:20).
[Moreover I also gave them My Sabbath, to be a sign between them and Me, that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them] (Ezek 20:12).
(3) The Day that God, Jesus and Angels Keep
* God Keeps It
Our heavenly Father has not only hallowed the seventh day to be the holy Sabbath but keeps it holy Himself.
[And on the seventh day God ended His work ... and He rested on the seventh day ... in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made] (Gen. 2:2, 3).
[For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed] (Ex. 31:17).
He calls it [My Sabbaths] (Lev. 19:30), [My Sabbaths] that I keep (Ex. 31:13). He makes it clear that this holy Sabbath is outside our authority and solely within His power, saying, "It is [My holy day] (Isa. 58:13), the [holy Sabbath to the Lord] (Ex 16:23) that I have established."
Today also in heaven, He keeps it with His angelic host. He is truly (the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last,] [with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning] (Rev. 22:13, James 1:17).
[For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His] (Heb. 4:10).
[Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest] (Heb. 4:11).
* Jesus Keeps It
Our Lord Jesus, the Son of God kept it and still keeps it today with His Father in heaven. He says, [This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome] (1 John 5:3), [If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love] (John 15:10). [Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill] (Matt. 5:17).
In His life on earth, He kept the Sabbath day holy [as His custom was (in) the synagogue] (Luke 4:16). The Scripture says that He kept the Sabbath day always "as His custom was," and after He had been crucified He rested on the Sabbath day in His tomb and rose up [very early in the morning on the first day of the week] (Mark 16:2).
He still keeps it in heaven with His Father and angels, for [Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever] (Heb. 13:8). [Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest] (Heb. 4:11).
(4) The Disciples Kept It
As we look into the lives of the disciples after the crucifixion of their Master, we can see how thoroughly He had instructed them to keep the holy Sabbath as well as setting an example for them.
[That day was the Preparation, and the Sabbath drew near. And the women who had come with Him from Galilee followed after, and they observed the tomb and how His body was laid. Then they returned, and prepared spices and fragrant oils. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment] (Luke 24:54-56).
[Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared ... But they did not find the body] (Luke 24:1, 3).
[Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, so that they might come and anoint Him. Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. And they said among themselves, 'Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?"] (Mark 16:1-3).
Even in hours of such deep sorrow, they kept the Sabbath as thoroughly as Jesus had taught them.
[Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ] (1 Cor. 11:1), said the Apostle Paul who also kept the Sabbath [as his custom was] (Acts 17:2), as Jesus kept it [as his custom was] (acts 17:2), as Jesus kept it [as His custom was] (Luke 4:16).
(5) The Disciples in the Last Days Keep It
Jesus [the Lord of the Sabbath] (Matt. 12:8) who had established the Sabbath in the beginning with His Father commands us, His last disciples, to keep His holy Sabbath to the end of the world: [Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath] (Matt. 24:20).
[For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be] (Matt. 24:21). [Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life] (Rev. 2:10).
[Here is the patience of the saints: here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus] (Rev. 14:12).
(6) The Only Identification Card for Re-Entry to Heaven
[Thus says the Lord: 'Take heed for the sake of your lives... hallow the Sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers'] (Jer. 17:21, 22).
[If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, and shall honor Him, not speaking your own words, then you shall delight yourself in the Lord; and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth (heaven), and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the Lord has spoken] (Isa. 58:13, 14).
[Thus says the Lord: 'Keep justice, and do righteousness, for My salvation is about to come, and My righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who lays hold on it; who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and keeps his hand from doing any evil ... then I will bring them to My holy mountain (heaven), and make them joyful in My house of prayer'] (Isa. 56:1, 2, 7).
Do not let the son of the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord speak, saying, :The Lord has utterly separated me from His people,' nor let the eunuch say, 'Here I am, a dry tree.' For thus says the Lord: To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbath, and choose what pleases Me, and hold fast My covenant, even to them I will give in My house (heaven) and with in My walls (new Jerusalem) a place and a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off] (Isa. 56:3-5).
In ['the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make ... from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before Me,' says the Lord] (Isa. 66:22, 23).
Dear brothers and sisters! What makes us hesitate? Let us join the holy day that God and Jesus, all angels and all heavenly beings observe in heaven. It is a festival day of heaven that God has kept from the beginning and Jesus kept on earth and that we will keep forever with everlasting joy and happiness in the new paradise. Today, He says that those who keep it holy and honorable on earth will enter heaven's eternal rest. I hope that you all enter and experience that eternal rest of heaven beforehand here on earth.
[Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it] (Heb. 4:1).
[For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall after the same example of disobedience] (Heb. 4:10, 11).
[Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts] (Heb. 4:7).
Praise the Lord! Glory to our real Father who has given us His everlasting holy Sabbath so that we might enter His rest first here on earth! Praise the Lord!
< Question >
Hey brother Park!
You seem to assume an air of intelligence on various subjects of the Bible, so then what do you say about these verses:
[Therefore, let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths] (Col. 2:16).
[The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it] (Luke 16:16).
He [abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances] (Eph. 2:15).
[Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes] (Rom. 10:4).
[For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness, for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God] (Heb. 7:18, 19).
[One person esteems one day above another, another esteems everyday alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind] (Rom. 14:5).
The above verses confirm that the law and the Sabbath were abolished completely in the time of Jesus and John the Baptist, so we need not argue about it any longer but just pick any day that we are convinced of and make it honorable. Why do you then brother Park, still argue about the Sabbath question as the Pharisees and hypocrites do?
< Answer >
I am grateful to my heavenly Father and all respected faithful elders for providing someone so petty as me such a precious opportunity to make a brief answer to such an important question.
First of all, I pray that God will look into our hearts at this time and lead us to the true and only way of life; for He said His [word is truth] (John 17:17), and those who add to or subtract from it, distort or teach it falsely to others will be cursed (Rev. 22:18, Peter 3:16).
There appears not one but six kinds of Sabbath days in the Old and New Testaments. These Sabbath days have been abolished in His (Jesus') flesh (Eph. 2:15) and become useless since the crucifixion of Jesus the Son of God, except for one, which is the "Sabbath of the Lord," the Foundation Day of the universe that can neither be abolished nor removed as long as God and the universe exist.
Since then we have a [better hope] (Heb. 7:19), for the various inconvenient Sabbath days that had been observed until then become useless, and through the grace and merits of the blood of Jesus on the cross, we are able to draw near to God. Therefore the "law of ordinances" (ceremonial law) and the words of the prophets of whom are written in the book, had availed until the time of John the Baptist who came just before Jesus' First Advent, and from then on, a new law (covenant) that teaches salvation through faith in Christ has begun to be engraved on the tables of the human heart (Jer. 31:33, Heb. 10:16).
Now let me tell you more about the laws that are abolished and those that are not abolished, about the abolished Sabbaths and the changeless and eternal Sabbath.
The abolished laws are written in Moses' five books: the numerous ordinances pertaining to offering burnt sacrifices are the [ceremonial law,] [the custom of Moses] (Eph. 2:15, Acts 15:1), that has been abolished. This ritual law with its sacrifices and ordinances was to be performed until the death of Christ. [The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!] (John 1:29). In order to reveal the symbolic meaning of the sacrificial rites and ceremonies of Christ's mission in God's plan for redemption, Jesus Christ, the sacrificial offering as the Lamb of God, came and shed His blood. From then on, all the complicated ceremonial laws were abolished along with their various Sabbaths. The various Sabbaths that have been abolished are as follows:
Passover Sabbath (Lev. 23:5, 7, 8) ... the 15th and 21st day of the first month (Jewish calendar)
• Pentecost Sabbath (Lev. 23:15, 16, 21) ... One day after the seventh Sabbath (50th day) from Jan. 16 (a day after the Passover Sabbath)
Feast of trumpets (Lev. 23:24, 25) ... the first day of the seventh month (Jewish calendar)
Atonement Day Sabbath (Lev. 23:27-32) ... the tenth day of the seventh month (Jewish calendar)
Feast of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:34-36) ... the 15th and 22nd day of the seventh month (Jewish calendar)
These are the Sabbaths of which it is written, [Therefore let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival, or a new moon or sabbaths] (Col. 2:16) which were observed until the days of John the Baptist (Luke 16:16) and abolished by the sacrifice of Christ. On these Sabbath days long ago, God's people killed lambs and offered sacrifices to Him. These seven Sabbath days had been valid from the fall of man until the crucifixion of Christ, and had been temporarily given through a human agent (Moses), to be strictly observed by the Jews seven times every year.
But the "Sabbath of the Lord" contained in His Ten Commandments is not that which He has given for a time but as an everlasting monument, that which He Himself established in the beginning and keeps always, written not by human hand but by God Himself, engraved upon [the tables of the Testimony, tables of stone] (Ex. 31:18). It is "the Holy Sabbath of the Lord," the Foundation Day of the Universe, a commemoration day of His vast creation that has nothing to do with the blood of the lamb, the fall of man, nor the crucifixion. It is given to all inhabitants of the universe, that all fallen men will always keep with joy and gladness in heaven with God, Jesus, the host of angles, and all heavenly beings; and day that everyone in the universe will gladly and joyfully observe.
I, Myung Ho, bow down to pray with my whole heart that all of my respecting seniors should have a clear understanding of this plain truth and join the great joy and glory of the heavenly kingdom.
I am thankful to you all for listening to the brief account of this unworthy person.
[Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work; you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it] (Ex. 20:8-11).
(1)The Foundation Day of the Universe
The Sabbath day is the foundation day of the universe in which He rested after He had made all things in heaven and on earth. Thus, it is the birthday of all His creation.
[Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it; because in it He had rested from all His work which God had created and made] (Gen. 2:1~3).
Every nation in the world has its own foundation day, independence day, or birthday. This vital day of importance cannot be removed or changed as long as the nation stands undestroyed. In the same way, the seventh day of the week is the Foundation Day of the universe that the Creator God has established in the beginning, which cannot be replaced nor abolished as long as the universe continues its existence.
That is why Jesus said, [Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled] (Matt. 5:17, 18). [For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it] (Ex. 20:11).
(2) The Sacred Identification (Sign) of Heavenly People
Every nation has its own unique identification card for every citizen. It is the unique sign that distinguishes her people from other people wherever they are in the world. Likewise, God in heaven has imparted to His people, His children, a unique identification sign that the people of the world do not have; it is the holy Sabbath, a sign between God and His people.
[The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak also to the children of Israel, saying: 'Surely My Sabbath you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you ... Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed] (Ex. 31: 12, 13, 16, 17).
[Hallow My Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God] (Ezek. 20:20).
[Moreover I also gave them My Sabbath, to be a sign between them and Me, that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them] (Ezek 20:12).
(3) The Day that God, Jesus and Angels Keep
* God Keeps It
Our heavenly Father has not only hallowed the seventh day to be the holy Sabbath but keeps it holy Himself.
[And on the seventh day God ended His work ... and He rested on the seventh day ... in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made] (Gen. 2:2, 3).
[For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed] (Ex. 31:17).
He calls it [My Sabbaths] (Lev. 19:30), [My Sabbaths] that I keep (Ex. 31:13). He makes it clear that this holy Sabbath is outside our authority and solely within His power, saying, "It is [My holy day] (Isa. 58:13), the [holy Sabbath to the Lord] (Ex 16:23) that I have established."
Today also in heaven, He keeps it with His angelic host. He is truly (the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last,] [with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning] (Rev. 22:13, James 1:17).
[For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His] (Heb. 4:10).
[Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest] (Heb. 4:11).
* Jesus Keeps It
Our Lord Jesus, the Son of God kept it and still keeps it today with His Father in heaven. He says, [This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome] (1 John 5:3), [If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love] (John 15:10). [Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill] (Matt. 5:17).
In His life on earth, He kept the Sabbath day holy [as His custom was (in) the synagogue] (Luke 4:16). The Scripture says that He kept the Sabbath day always "as His custom was," and after He had been crucified He rested on the Sabbath day in His tomb and rose up [very early in the morning on the first day of the week] (Mark 16:2).
He still keeps it in heaven with His Father and angels, for [Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever] (Heb. 13:8). [Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest] (Heb. 4:11).
(4) The Disciples Kept It
As we look into the lives of the disciples after the crucifixion of their Master, we can see how thoroughly He had instructed them to keep the holy Sabbath as well as setting an example for them.
[That day was the Preparation, and the Sabbath drew near. And the women who had come with Him from Galilee followed after, and they observed the tomb and how His body was laid. Then they returned, and prepared spices and fragrant oils. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment] (Luke 24:54-56).
[Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared ... But they did not find the body] (Luke 24:1, 3).
[Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, so that they might come and anoint Him. Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. And they said among themselves, 'Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?"] (Mark 16:1-3).
Even in hours of such deep sorrow, they kept the Sabbath as thoroughly as Jesus had taught them.
[Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ] (1 Cor. 11:1), said the Apostle Paul who also kept the Sabbath [as his custom was] (Acts 17:2), as Jesus kept it [as his custom was] (acts 17:2), as Jesus kept it [as His custom was] (Luke 4:16).
(5) The Disciples in the Last Days Keep It
Jesus [the Lord of the Sabbath] (Matt. 12:8) who had established the Sabbath in the beginning with His Father commands us, His last disciples, to keep His holy Sabbath to the end of the world: [Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath] (Matt. 24:20).
[For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be] (Matt. 24:21). [Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life] (Rev. 2:10).
[Here is the patience of the saints: here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus] (Rev. 14:12).
(6) The Only Identification Card for Re-Entry to Heaven
[Thus says the Lord: 'Take heed for the sake of your lives... hallow the Sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers'] (Jer. 17:21, 22).
[If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, and shall honor Him, not speaking your own words, then you shall delight yourself in the Lord; and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth (heaven), and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the Lord has spoken] (Isa. 58:13, 14).
[Thus says the Lord: 'Keep justice, and do righteousness, for My salvation is about to come, and My righteousness to be revealed. Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who lays hold on it; who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, and keeps his hand from doing any evil ... then I will bring them to My holy mountain (heaven), and make them joyful in My house of prayer'] (Isa. 56:1, 2, 7).
Do not let the son of the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord speak, saying, :The Lord has utterly separated me from His people,' nor let the eunuch say, 'Here I am, a dry tree.' For thus says the Lord: To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbath, and choose what pleases Me, and hold fast My covenant, even to them I will give in My house (heaven) and with in My walls (new Jerusalem) a place and a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off] (Isa. 56:3-5).
In ['the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make ... from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before Me,' says the Lord] (Isa. 66:22, 23).
Dear brothers and sisters! What makes us hesitate? Let us join the holy day that God and Jesus, all angels and all heavenly beings observe in heaven. It is a festival day of heaven that God has kept from the beginning and Jesus kept on earth and that we will keep forever with everlasting joy and happiness in the new paradise. Today, He says that those who keep it holy and honorable on earth will enter heaven's eternal rest. I hope that you all enter and experience that eternal rest of heaven beforehand here on earth.
[Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it] (Heb. 4:1).
[For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall after the same example of disobedience] (Heb. 4:10, 11).
[Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts] (Heb. 4:7).
Praise the Lord! Glory to our real Father who has given us His everlasting holy Sabbath so that we might enter His rest first here on earth! Praise the Lord!
< Question >
Hey brother Park!
You seem to assume an air of intelligence on various subjects of the Bible, so then what do you say about these verses:
[Therefore, let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths] (Col. 2:16).
[The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it] (Luke 16:16).
He [abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances] (Eph. 2:15).
[Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes] (Rom. 10:4).
[For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness, for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God] (Heb. 7:18, 19).
[One person esteems one day above another, another esteems everyday alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind] (Rom. 14:5).
The above verses confirm that the law and the Sabbath were abolished completely in the time of Jesus and John the Baptist, so we need not argue about it any longer but just pick any day that we are convinced of and make it honorable. Why do you then brother Park, still argue about the Sabbath question as the Pharisees and hypocrites do?
< Answer >
I am grateful to my heavenly Father and all respected faithful elders for providing someone so petty as me such a precious opportunity to make a brief answer to such an important question.
First of all, I pray that God will look into our hearts at this time and lead us to the true and only way of life; for He said His [word is truth] (John 17:17), and those who add to or subtract from it, distort or teach it falsely to others will be cursed (Rev. 22:18, Peter 3:16).
There appears not one but six kinds of Sabbath days in the Old and New Testaments. These Sabbath days have been abolished in His (Jesus') flesh (Eph. 2:15) and become useless since the crucifixion of Jesus the Son of God, except for one, which is the "Sabbath of the Lord," the Foundation Day of the universe that can neither be abolished nor removed as long as God and the universe exist.
Since then we have a [better hope] (Heb. 7:19), for the various inconvenient Sabbath days that had been observed until then become useless, and through the grace and merits of the blood of Jesus on the cross, we are able to draw near to God. Therefore the "law of ordinances" (ceremonial law) and the words of the prophets of whom are written in the book, had availed until the time of John the Baptist who came just before Jesus' First Advent, and from then on, a new law (covenant) that teaches salvation through faith in Christ has begun to be engraved on the tables of the human heart (Jer. 31:33, Heb. 10:16).
Now let me tell you more about the laws that are abolished and those that are not abolished, about the abolished Sabbaths and the changeless and eternal Sabbath.
The abolished laws are written in Moses' five books: the numerous ordinances pertaining to offering burnt sacrifices are the [ceremonial law,] [the custom of Moses] (Eph. 2:15, Acts 15:1), that has been abolished. This ritual law with its sacrifices and ordinances was to be performed until the death of Christ. [The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!] (John 1:29). In order to reveal the symbolic meaning of the sacrificial rites and ceremonies of Christ's mission in God's plan for redemption, Jesus Christ, the sacrificial offering as the Lamb of God, came and shed His blood. From then on, all the complicated ceremonial laws were abolished along with their various Sabbaths. The various Sabbaths that have been abolished are as follows:
Passover Sabbath (Lev. 23:5, 7, 8) ... the 15th and 21st day of the first month (Jewish calendar)
• Pentecost Sabbath (Lev. 23:15, 16, 21) ... One day after the seventh Sabbath (50th day) from Jan. 16 (a day after the Passover Sabbath)
Feast of trumpets (Lev. 23:24, 25) ... the first day of the seventh month (Jewish calendar)
Atonement Day Sabbath (Lev. 23:27-32) ... the tenth day of the seventh month (Jewish calendar)
Feast of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:34-36) ... the 15th and 22nd day of the seventh month (Jewish calendar)
These are the Sabbaths of which it is written, [Therefore let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival, or a new moon or sabbaths] (Col. 2:16) which were observed until the days of John the Baptist (Luke 16:16) and abolished by the sacrifice of Christ. On these Sabbath days long ago, God's people killed lambs and offered sacrifices to Him. These seven Sabbath days had been valid from the fall of man until the crucifixion of Christ, and had been temporarily given through a human agent (Moses), to be strictly observed by the Jews seven times every year.
But the "Sabbath of the Lord" contained in His Ten Commandments is not that which He has given for a time but as an everlasting monument, that which He Himself established in the beginning and keeps always, written not by human hand but by God Himself, engraved upon [the tables of the Testimony, tables of stone] (Ex. 31:18). It is "the Holy Sabbath of the Lord," the Foundation Day of the Universe, a commemoration day of His vast creation that has nothing to do with the blood of the lamb, the fall of man, nor the crucifixion. It is given to all inhabitants of the universe, that all fallen men will always keep with joy and gladness in heaven with God, Jesus, the host of angles, and all heavenly beings; and day that everyone in the universe will gladly and joyfully observe.
I, Myung Ho, bow down to pray with my whole heart that all of my respecting seniors should have a clear understanding of this plain truth and join the great joy and glory of the heavenly kingdom.
I am thankful to you all for listening to the brief account of this unworthy person.
[Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work; you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it] (Ex. 20:8-11).
23. Our Real Father Who Will Live With Us in a Mansion Forever
[And I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, `Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away'] (Rev. 21:1-4).
[And He showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives the light. And they shall reign forever and ever] (Rev. 22:1-5).
Ah! How long until we get to heaven ... we have wandered from place to place, suffering trials and spending our lives in sorrow and tears! But all the painful wandering has now ceased and we are already in our Father's heavenly paradise of eternity. We will never leave from here, never leave our loving real Father's bosom again. From now on we will enjoy everlasting happiness, walking beside the river of the water of life, building our beautiful homes in paradise.
[My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.] [Violence shall no longer be heard in your land, neither wasting nor destruction within your borders; but you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.] [They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, and My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands] (Isa. 32:18, 60:18, 65:21, 22).
[The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose.] [Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree] (Isa. 35:1, 55:13). [The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the young lion and the fatting together; and a little child shall lead them.] [They shall not hurt nor destroy in all MY holy mountain] (Isa. 11: 6, 9).
From now on, there will be no more grief, vexation, tears, funeral ceremonies, or mourning. [And the inhabitant will not say, `I am sick'] (Isa.33:24). We will dwell in everlasting happiness, and however long we may live, no one will say, "I am too old to live any longer." We will enjoy our Father's everlasting life with fresh vitality and happiness always. Just to give us this life of everlasting happiness, He went through so much trouble and suffering, giving up His only Son to die and sacrifice Himself for us.
Oh how can we express our thanks to Him who has given us this eternal life!
[Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God] (Rev. 21:3). But why does God choose to live in the same house with His fallen children who have caused Him such great distress and torment, and not with His sinless children of other worlds who have never tormented nor grived Him? What a great agony these fallen ones caused Him! Did they not crucify His only Son on the cross and create the great hole in His heart? Then why? He does not leave them alone in a far corner of the universe in abhorence, but rather choose to dwell with them forever who do not even deserve His painstking corncern and care. Our Father's infinite heart of love is beyond our understanding.
Years ago when I was living in a little village in the country, I was acquainted with a sincere and pious elder sister who was in charge of a small church in the area. She had lost one of her eyes by accident when she was very young. And I remember her telling me of the following story: she was the youngest daughter of a poor farmer in the country who had three daughters. When she got married, she was given something by her father that her two other other sisters never received at the time of their marriage. Her compassionate father gave her a portion of his rice field as a dowry that the other daughers were not privileged to have. One day, her father gathered all the members of the family and said, "Now my poor youngest daughter who lost one of her eyesight is going to get married. Let us give her a portion of the rice field. My heart does not allow me to send her away empty handed." The father pitied her enormous suffering and difficulty as a result of the irorevocable injury inflicted on her eye in her early childhood. He therefore decided to grant her a portion of his farmland which none of the other children received.
In the same way, our merciful Father has made up His mind to live with His fallen earthly children, having pity on them - although He was wounded and tormented beacuse of them - due to their many hardhips having gone through all the bitter tears, grief, curse, sickness, and even death that the inhabitants of the other worlds had not. [God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, (they shall be comforted forever, and) there shall be no more death nor sorrow nor crying and there shall be no more pain for the former things had passed away] (Rev. 21:3, 4).
What unlimited love and mercy our heavenly Father has for His most tormented and bruised children! With His immense love, He has completely erased away all our distress and painful wounds that we caused Him as a result of our ingratitude and disobedience. He is deeply touched with the toils that we have brought upon ourselves and therefore, binds us up, embraces us in His bosom and wipes away our tears. What a boundless love it is! Only parents who have raised children can have perhaps even a dim understanding of this love of God.
[Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself wil be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying, and there shall no more pain for the former things have passed away] (Rev. 21:3, 4). And so the children who have fallen most deeply, suffering the most bitter wounds and sorrows, will receive the greatest love and favor above all the other children of all the other worlds in the universe. My dear brothers and sisters! Let us meet together in that glorious place under His love and favor.
Let us not be discouraged by trials but persevere until the day He wipes away our tears with His hand. Let us not disappoint Him anymore who loves and cares for us so much. Let us render Him the greatest joy by keeping ourselves courageous in times of trials, patient in times of sorrows, and strong in times of distress. Praise the Lord!
[For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you. With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment but with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you] (Isa. 54:7, 8).
[You shall no longer be termed Forsaken nor shall your land any more be termed Desolate: but you shall be called Hephzibah (My delight is in her), and your land Beulah (Married) ... For as a young man marries a virgin ... and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you] (Isa. 62:4, 5).
Praise the Lord! Glory to our real Father who loves us so much and lives with us forever! Praise the Lord!
[And He showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. And there shall be no night there; They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives the light. And they shall reign forever and ever] (Rev. 22:1-5).
Ah! How long until we get to heaven ... we have wandered from place to place, suffering trials and spending our lives in sorrow and tears! But all the painful wandering has now ceased and we are already in our Father's heavenly paradise of eternity. We will never leave from here, never leave our loving real Father's bosom again. From now on we will enjoy everlasting happiness, walking beside the river of the water of life, building our beautiful homes in paradise.
[My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.] [Violence shall no longer be heard in your land, neither wasting nor destruction within your borders; but you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.] [They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, and My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands] (Isa. 32:18, 60:18, 65:21, 22).
[The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose.] [Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree] (Isa. 35:1, 55:13). [The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the young lion and the fatting together; and a little child shall lead them.] [They shall not hurt nor destroy in all MY holy mountain] (Isa. 11: 6, 9).
From now on, there will be no more grief, vexation, tears, funeral ceremonies, or mourning. [And the inhabitant will not say, `I am sick'] (Isa.33:24). We will dwell in everlasting happiness, and however long we may live, no one will say, "I am too old to live any longer." We will enjoy our Father's everlasting life with fresh vitality and happiness always. Just to give us this life of everlasting happiness, He went through so much trouble and suffering, giving up His only Son to die and sacrifice Himself for us.
Oh how can we express our thanks to Him who has given us this eternal life!
[Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God] (Rev. 21:3). But why does God choose to live in the same house with His fallen children who have caused Him such great distress and torment, and not with His sinless children of other worlds who have never tormented nor grived Him? What a great agony these fallen ones caused Him! Did they not crucify His only Son on the cross and create the great hole in His heart? Then why? He does not leave them alone in a far corner of the universe in abhorence, but rather choose to dwell with them forever who do not even deserve His painstking corncern and care. Our Father's infinite heart of love is beyond our understanding.
Years ago when I was living in a little village in the country, I was acquainted with a sincere and pious elder sister who was in charge of a small church in the area. She had lost one of her eyes by accident when she was very young. And I remember her telling me of the following story: she was the youngest daughter of a poor farmer in the country who had three daughters. When she got married, she was given something by her father that her two other other sisters never received at the time of their marriage. Her compassionate father gave her a portion of his rice field as a dowry that the other daughers were not privileged to have. One day, her father gathered all the members of the family and said, "Now my poor youngest daughter who lost one of her eyesight is going to get married. Let us give her a portion of the rice field. My heart does not allow me to send her away empty handed." The father pitied her enormous suffering and difficulty as a result of the irorevocable injury inflicted on her eye in her early childhood. He therefore decided to grant her a portion of his farmland which none of the other children received.
In the same way, our merciful Father has made up His mind to live with His fallen earthly children, having pity on them - although He was wounded and tormented beacuse of them - due to their many hardhips having gone through all the bitter tears, grief, curse, sickness, and even death that the inhabitants of the other worlds had not. [God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, (they shall be comforted forever, and) there shall be no more death nor sorrow nor crying and there shall be no more pain for the former things had passed away] (Rev. 21:3, 4).
What unlimited love and mercy our heavenly Father has for His most tormented and bruised children! With His immense love, He has completely erased away all our distress and painful wounds that we caused Him as a result of our ingratitude and disobedience. He is deeply touched with the toils that we have brought upon ourselves and therefore, binds us up, embraces us in His bosom and wipes away our tears. What a boundless love it is! Only parents who have raised children can have perhaps even a dim understanding of this love of God.
[Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself wil be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying, and there shall no more pain for the former things have passed away] (Rev. 21:3, 4). And so the children who have fallen most deeply, suffering the most bitter wounds and sorrows, will receive the greatest love and favor above all the other children of all the other worlds in the universe. My dear brothers and sisters! Let us meet together in that glorious place under His love and favor.
Let us not be discouraged by trials but persevere until the day He wipes away our tears with His hand. Let us not disappoint Him anymore who loves and cares for us so much. Let us render Him the greatest joy by keeping ourselves courageous in times of trials, patient in times of sorrows, and strong in times of distress. Praise the Lord!
[For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you. With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment but with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you] (Isa. 54:7, 8).
[You shall no longer be termed Forsaken nor shall your land any more be termed Desolate: but you shall be called Hephzibah (My delight is in her), and your land Beulah (Married) ... For as a young man marries a virgin ... and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you] (Isa. 62:4, 5).
Praise the Lord! Glory to our real Father who loves us so much and lives with us forever! Praise the Lord!
24. With What Shall I Come Before My Lofty Father?
[With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the High God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams or ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body?] (Micah 6:6, 7).
[He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God] and to establish the kingdom of God in your heart (Micah 6:8). The kingdom of God cannot be said,[‘See here!' or, ‘See there!' For the kingdom of God is within you] (Luke 17:21).
We have so far learned of the love of God, our real Father which has been unknown to the world, and unexpressed in human words. This is the knowledge which gives eternal life to sinners and the key that opens the gate of heaven which Jesus mentions in John 17:3 and Matthew 16:19.
Now, "How shall I recompense my Father for all this?" is our heart's desire, is it not? But He who [made the world and everything in it (and) gives to all life, breath, and all things] (Acts 17:24, 25) does not want anything from us or material goods that He has already given to us, but only wants us to build this kingdom in our hearts. This is His greatest expectation and desire from us.
Then how can we build the kingdom in order to give Him the greatest joy? This is the question. We well remember that in Eden, there was a tree of life and a river of the water of life, that all who ate of the tree and drank from the river neither died nor grew old. Therefore, if we prepare this ground in the middle of the world of our heart, upon His chosen spot, and establish the paradise of Eden upon it, it will be the kingdom that He would be best pleased with and desire most.
When the Son of God, Jesus, lived on the earth, He was a walking garden of Eden. He was truly the garden of Eden walking upon the earth,the supplier of heaven's abundant living water and the fruit of the tree of life, that all sinners in the world could have free access to and freely drink of and eat in order to gain eternal life. It is our Father's unique desire that we all, like Jesus, become walking gardens of Eden on earth, the suppliers of the fruit of the tree of life, and living water to the perishing world.
Now, let us stand up and set our heart on building the everlasting garden of Eden, that all the world can freely come and obtain eternal life from us, as our Father eagerly desires us to.
* The Tree of Life
First we need the tree of life in our heart's garden. So, where can we find it and how should we plant it.
Oh! The tree of life standing over there on the hill of John 15 of the Bible mountain is shaking it's branch-hands toward us to take itself, "I am truly the tree of life. Take and plant me and you will bear much fruit. If you don't, you will not be able to obtain the fruit of the tree of life or anything else" (refer to John 15:1,5).
Now the tree of life that we planted in the garden of our heart's Eden just now is truly the tree of life-Jesus Christ- who will "yield its twelve kinds of fruit each month" (Rev. 22:2), the fruit of the Spirit.
* The River of the Water of Life
Second, we need the water of life in our hearts' Eden which has been desolate and arid for six thousand years.
Oh look! At the foot of the "Revelation mountain" [The Spirit and the bride] are motioning us to come, exclaiming, [`Come!' And let him who thirst come. And whoever desires] (Rev. 22:17). Jesus who is standing by them is exclaiming, [If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink (from the river of life) and out of his heart will flow rivers of living water] unceasingly! (John 7:37, 38).
The source of the river of living water we just asked for is the Holy [Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive] (John 7:39), from which shall flow to the ends of this desolate world. He from whom the rivers of living water flows out from is [like a tree planted by the river of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper] (Ps. 1:3).
* The Fine Gold
The third is the fine "gold" that was in the land of the first Eden (Gen. 2:12).
Oh! Look over there! The Lord is coming with a big lump of fine gold in His hands, beckoning toward us to take it from Him, [Buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich] and your garden will be beautiful and rich (Rev. 3:18).
This gold tried in the fire is the faith actuated by love that loves God and all mankind as a family - the agapeic love, which is God's light and life. [And now these three remain: faith, hope, love. But the greatest of these is love.] [Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail' whether there are tongues, they will cease] (1Cor. 13:13, 8).
* The White Garment of Glory
Lastly, if we can only cover our "naked" bodies (Rev. 3:17) with the white garment of glorious light that we forfeited by the deceiver's temptation in the first Eden, we will not flee from God when He visits our new Eden like Adam and Eve did but rather joyfully welcome His approach and walk along with Him in the garden. Then where can we find the white garment of glory?
[Look ... the heaven opened] and the Lord standing [at the right hand of God] (Acts 7:56, Mark 16:19) is exclaiming to us holding the white garment in His hand, [Let not your heart be troubled. Buy from Me ... white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with Me; He who walks in a perfect way, he shall serve Me] (John 14:1, Rev. 3:18, Ps. 101:6). This white garment is the holy character that is as "perfect" (Matt. 5:48) as our heavenly Father, the sanctified character with which all His children must be clothed and is the only property we can bring to heaven. This is the very garment with which we must be clothed when we participate in the marriage feast that the King of heaven will soon hold (Matt. 22:11, 12).
Now in the hearts of His children who have completed their hearts' Eden which will be carried to heaven, [there shall be no more curse; but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face; and His name shall be on their foreheads. And there shall be no night (in their hearts) there: they need no lamp, nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. (And in this world and the world to come) they shall reign forever and ever.] Hallelujah! (Rev. 22:3-5).
* Blessed People
But those who have not reestablished the garden of Eden today, as mankind was buried by the water in the days of Noah, so shall they all be swallowed up by fire. They are nothing but flesh, like the passing wind never to return again. Their hearts are unstable and wavering. They were sleeping in the days of probation and counsel.>
Dear brothers and sisters! I earnestly wish that we all build the paradise of Eden today to enjoy His special love, favor and protection which keeps us [as the apple of His eye] (Deut. 32:10), to be carried to heaven forever. Praise the Lord!
Things To Memorize for Complete Regeneration
I appreciate every one of my brothers and sisters for reading this book up to this point. Closing this chapter, I would like to make a request. The knowledge of God's love which we have received is our heavenly Father's final light and gift for us in these last days of earth's history, and I believe it is this knowledge which gives us eternal life (John 17:3) and the keys of heaven. Therefore, although it is good for you to read through this book once and put it away. I believe that this knowledge of God's love must never be lost but be a theme of meditation in your daily lives, for this is the sacred knowledge which gives life to sinners. Then your life and character will not only be transformed to the image of God in a miraculous process, but your life will also become a succession of unspeakable joy and peace of heaven. Your life will be uplifted so high that it will be as if you are embraced in His arms. This is the life of unity with God, walking with Him as Enoch did.
If you cannot memorize all the contents of this book, I will show you how you can keep this knowledge of eternal life in your mind and meditate upon it all the time.
First, read through this book as many times as you need so that the whole content of each subject may flash through your mind clearly whenever you look up any one of the 24 subject headings.
Second, write down the entire subject headings on a sheet of paper or in your pocket book and while you are employed in your busy duties of life, look them up at every odd moment and meditate upon them one by one.
The Only True God
1. My Father's Lovely Form and character
2. My Father's Love Thicker Than the Blood of the Cross and Stronger Than the Death of the Cross
3. My Real Father Who Has Personally Borne Me
4. My Father Who Made Me a Sweet Home as a Branch Family of Heaven
5. My Daddy Who Has Chosen Me and Made Me a Partner with Jesus, My Eldest Brother
6. My Daddy Who Personally Answers All My Prayers
7. My Daddy Who Has Forgiven Me My Iniquity, Transgression and Sin
8. My Daddy Who Heals All My Diseases
9. My Daddy Who Is Working Diligently for Me and My Brothers and Sisters Gift
10. My Daddy Who Gives the Holy Spirit to Us Sinners
11. My Daddy Who Has Given Me Another Fruit of Life
12. My Daddy Who Sanctifies Me and Makes Me Bear Fruit
13. My Daddy Who Has Given Away Jesus His First born Son Just For Me
14. My Daddy Who Was Tormented With My Eldest Brother on the Cross to Save Me
15. My Daddy Who Comes Into My Heart and Dwells with Me Personally
16. My Daddy Who Raises Me from the Dead and Gives Me Eternal Life
17. My Daddy Who Weeps on His judgment Seat
18. My Daddy Who Disciplines Me with Love
19. My Daddy Who Has Given Me His throne
20. My Daddy Who Has Given Me His Royal Authority
21. My Daddy Who Has Given Me His Kingdom
22. My Daddy Who Has Given Me An Everlasting Sign
23. My Daddy Who Lives with Me in a Mansion Forever
24. With What Shall I Come Before My Father, the Lofty God?
Third, memorize these 24 headings completely and meditate upon them every day and night. In due time, a great change will take place in your life, and you will find yourself reaching to the high, uplifted state of sanctification that you could neither imagine nor experience before, a state of transforming into perfection [as your Father in heaven is perfect] (Matt. 5:48).
In this way, to all of God's children on earth who have accepted Him as their personal Father who is [not far from each one of us] (Acts 17:27), and dwells with us everyday (refer to Isa. 57:15), He becomes their eternal Father individually, the real, merciful Father who gives them eternal life.
[The people who know their God shall be strong and carry out great exploits] (Dan. 11:32). [But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go forth leaping like calves from the stall] (Mal. 4:2 R.S.V.). And they [shall shine like the brightness of the firmament ... like the stars (in heaven) forever and ever] (Dan 12:3). [For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea] (Hab. 2:14). [The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you; but the Lord will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory. Your sun shall no longer go down; nor shall your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning shall be ended,] [says the Lord of hosts] (Isa. 60:19, 20, Mal. 4:3).
Praise the Lord! My loving Father! My Father in whom is all my delight! Glory forever! Praise the Lord!
HYMN
OH! ROUND LOVE OF GOD
1. O love, our Father's love, round and holy love
How can the world know it or angels understand?
O Our Father's love is so intense
Neither the earth, nor man, nor angels know this love
Wonderful Father's love except His only Son
O so intense and deep is His love
I cannot repay His love even by giving my life
Our Father's love is so good and divine
2. O love our Father's love, round and so big
How can the sun or moon know this great love of God?
Only the Son can manifest His love
O holy Spirit come and teach me His love
O so great and lofty is His love
We cannot understand with all the knowledge jo the world
Our Father's love is sweet and great to me
3. O love our Father's love, round and so wide
How can the firmament or the stars understand?
O Our Father's love is so endless
It is even greater than the agony of the Son
And it is even worse than the pains of the Son
I cannot help sobbing with silent cry
I cannot repay His love even by giving my life
Our Father's love is so good and boundless
4. O love our Father's love, round and wonderful
How can heaven know or the earth understand?
Our Father's love is so wonderful
It is thicker than the blood of the Son's cross
And it is stronger than the death of the cross
I cannot help wailing with a loud cry
Angels cover their faces and weep with deep sorrow
Our Father's love is so good and wonderful
5. O love our Father's love, round and everlasting
Do you, brothers and sisters, know of His love?
Our Father's love is immeasurable
It is higher that the sky and heaven, also
Broader than the big and vast universe
Which cannot possibly be measured
No matter how high I climb I cannot still reach it's height
Our Father's love is so good and lofty to me
6. O love our Father's love, round and forever
Wo you, brothers and sisters, know of His love?
Now I wipe away my tears
Running down my face and will run toward the dark world
To save my poor brethren deceived by the enemy
I'll spread His wonderful love by sacrificing my life
Our Father's love is so everlasting
7. O love our Father's love, round and eternal
How can the world know it or stars understand?
Now I go up to see my Father
And bury my face in His wide bosom
Pouring my tears I thank Him for His kind love
So wonderful is the love of our Father Loving and merciful,
He wipes away my tears Embracing me in His bosom,
He gives me comfort
[He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God] and to establish the kingdom of God in your heart (Micah 6:8). The kingdom of God cannot be said,[‘See here!' or, ‘See there!' For the kingdom of God is within you] (Luke 17:21).
We have so far learned of the love of God, our real Father which has been unknown to the world, and unexpressed in human words. This is the knowledge which gives eternal life to sinners and the key that opens the gate of heaven which Jesus mentions in John 17:3 and Matthew 16:19.
Now, "How shall I recompense my Father for all this?" is our heart's desire, is it not? But He who [made the world and everything in it (and) gives to all life, breath, and all things] (Acts 17:24, 25) does not want anything from us or material goods that He has already given to us, but only wants us to build this kingdom in our hearts. This is His greatest expectation and desire from us.
Then how can we build the kingdom in order to give Him the greatest joy? This is the question. We well remember that in Eden, there was a tree of life and a river of the water of life, that all who ate of the tree and drank from the river neither died nor grew old. Therefore, if we prepare this ground in the middle of the world of our heart, upon His chosen spot, and establish the paradise of Eden upon it, it will be the kingdom that He would be best pleased with and desire most.
When the Son of God, Jesus, lived on the earth, He was a walking garden of Eden. He was truly the garden of Eden walking upon the earth,the supplier of heaven's abundant living water and the fruit of the tree of life, that all sinners in the world could have free access to and freely drink of and eat in order to gain eternal life. It is our Father's unique desire that we all, like Jesus, become walking gardens of Eden on earth, the suppliers of the fruit of the tree of life, and living water to the perishing world.
Now, let us stand up and set our heart on building the everlasting garden of Eden, that all the world can freely come and obtain eternal life from us, as our Father eagerly desires us to.
* The Tree of Life
First we need the tree of life in our heart's garden. So, where can we find it and how should we plant it.
Oh! The tree of life standing over there on the hill of John 15 of the Bible mountain is shaking it's branch-hands toward us to take itself, "I am truly the tree of life. Take and plant me and you will bear much fruit. If you don't, you will not be able to obtain the fruit of the tree of life or anything else" (refer to John 15:1,5).
Now the tree of life that we planted in the garden of our heart's Eden just now is truly the tree of life-Jesus Christ- who will "yield its twelve kinds of fruit each month" (Rev. 22:2), the fruit of the Spirit.
* The River of the Water of Life
Second, we need the water of life in our hearts' Eden which has been desolate and arid for six thousand years.
Oh look! At the foot of the "Revelation mountain" [The Spirit and the bride] are motioning us to come, exclaiming, [`Come!' And let him who thirst come. And whoever desires] (Rev. 22:17). Jesus who is standing by them is exclaiming, [If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink (from the river of life) and out of his heart will flow rivers of living water] unceasingly! (John 7:37, 38).
The source of the river of living water we just asked for is the Holy [Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive] (John 7:39), from which shall flow to the ends of this desolate world. He from whom the rivers of living water flows out from is [like a tree planted by the river of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper] (Ps. 1:3).
* The Fine Gold
The third is the fine "gold" that was in the land of the first Eden (Gen. 2:12).
Oh! Look over there! The Lord is coming with a big lump of fine gold in His hands, beckoning toward us to take it from Him, [Buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich] and your garden will be beautiful and rich (Rev. 3:18).
This gold tried in the fire is the faith actuated by love that loves God and all mankind as a family - the agapeic love, which is God's light and life. [And now these three remain: faith, hope, love. But the greatest of these is love.] [Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail' whether there are tongues, they will cease] (1Cor. 13:13, 8).
* The White Garment of Glory
Lastly, if we can only cover our "naked" bodies (Rev. 3:17) with the white garment of glorious light that we forfeited by the deceiver's temptation in the first Eden, we will not flee from God when He visits our new Eden like Adam and Eve did but rather joyfully welcome His approach and walk along with Him in the garden. Then where can we find the white garment of glory?
[Look ... the heaven opened] and the Lord standing [at the right hand of God] (Acts 7:56, Mark 16:19) is exclaiming to us holding the white garment in His hand, [Let not your heart be troubled. Buy from Me ... white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with Me; He who walks in a perfect way, he shall serve Me] (John 14:1, Rev. 3:18, Ps. 101:6). This white garment is the holy character that is as "perfect" (Matt. 5:48) as our heavenly Father, the sanctified character with which all His children must be clothed and is the only property we can bring to heaven. This is the very garment with which we must be clothed when we participate in the marriage feast that the King of heaven will soon hold (Matt. 22:11, 12).
Now in the hearts of His children who have completed their hearts' Eden which will be carried to heaven, [there shall be no more curse; but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face; and His name shall be on their foreheads. And there shall be no night (in their hearts) there: they need no lamp, nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. (And in this world and the world to come) they shall reign forever and ever.] Hallelujah! (Rev. 22:3-5).
* Blessed People
But those who have not reestablished the garden of Eden today, as mankind was buried by the water in the days of Noah, so shall they all be swallowed up by fire. They are nothing but flesh, like the passing wind never to return again. Their hearts are unstable and wavering. They were sleeping in the days of probation and counsel.>
Dear brothers and sisters! I earnestly wish that we all build the paradise of Eden today to enjoy His special love, favor and protection which keeps us [as the apple of His eye] (Deut. 32:10), to be carried to heaven forever. Praise the Lord!
Things To Memorize for Complete Regeneration
I appreciate every one of my brothers and sisters for reading this book up to this point. Closing this chapter, I would like to make a request. The knowledge of God's love which we have received is our heavenly Father's final light and gift for us in these last days of earth's history, and I believe it is this knowledge which gives us eternal life (John 17:3) and the keys of heaven. Therefore, although it is good for you to read through this book once and put it away. I believe that this knowledge of God's love must never be lost but be a theme of meditation in your daily lives, for this is the sacred knowledge which gives life to sinners. Then your life and character will not only be transformed to the image of God in a miraculous process, but your life will also become a succession of unspeakable joy and peace of heaven. Your life will be uplifted so high that it will be as if you are embraced in His arms. This is the life of unity with God, walking with Him as Enoch did.
If you cannot memorize all the contents of this book, I will show you how you can keep this knowledge of eternal life in your mind and meditate upon it all the time.
First, read through this book as many times as you need so that the whole content of each subject may flash through your mind clearly whenever you look up any one of the 24 subject headings.
Second, write down the entire subject headings on a sheet of paper or in your pocket book and while you are employed in your busy duties of life, look them up at every odd moment and meditate upon them one by one.
The Only True God
1. My Father's Lovely Form and character
2. My Father's Love Thicker Than the Blood of the Cross and Stronger Than the Death of the Cross
3. My Real Father Who Has Personally Borne Me
4. My Father Who Made Me a Sweet Home as a Branch Family of Heaven
5. My Daddy Who Has Chosen Me and Made Me a Partner with Jesus, My Eldest Brother
6. My Daddy Who Personally Answers All My Prayers
7. My Daddy Who Has Forgiven Me My Iniquity, Transgression and Sin
8. My Daddy Who Heals All My Diseases
9. My Daddy Who Is Working Diligently for Me and My Brothers and Sisters Gift
10. My Daddy Who Gives the Holy Spirit to Us Sinners
11. My Daddy Who Has Given Me Another Fruit of Life
12. My Daddy Who Sanctifies Me and Makes Me Bear Fruit
13. My Daddy Who Has Given Away Jesus His First born Son Just For Me
14. My Daddy Who Was Tormented With My Eldest Brother on the Cross to Save Me
15. My Daddy Who Comes Into My Heart and Dwells with Me Personally
16. My Daddy Who Raises Me from the Dead and Gives Me Eternal Life
17. My Daddy Who Weeps on His judgment Seat
18. My Daddy Who Disciplines Me with Love
19. My Daddy Who Has Given Me His throne
20. My Daddy Who Has Given Me His Royal Authority
21. My Daddy Who Has Given Me His Kingdom
22. My Daddy Who Has Given Me An Everlasting Sign
23. My Daddy Who Lives with Me in a Mansion Forever
24. With What Shall I Come Before My Father, the Lofty God?
Third, memorize these 24 headings completely and meditate upon them every day and night. In due time, a great change will take place in your life, and you will find yourself reaching to the high, uplifted state of sanctification that you could neither imagine nor experience before, a state of transforming into perfection [as your Father in heaven is perfect] (Matt. 5:48).
In this way, to all of God's children on earth who have accepted Him as their personal Father who is [not far from each one of us] (Acts 17:27), and dwells with us everyday (refer to Isa. 57:15), He becomes their eternal Father individually, the real, merciful Father who gives them eternal life.
[The people who know their God shall be strong and carry out great exploits] (Dan. 11:32). [But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go forth leaping like calves from the stall] (Mal. 4:2 R.S.V.). And they [shall shine like the brightness of the firmament ... like the stars (in heaven) forever and ever] (Dan 12:3). [For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea] (Hab. 2:14). [The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you; but the Lord will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory. Your sun shall no longer go down; nor shall your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning shall be ended,] [says the Lord of hosts] (Isa. 60:19, 20, Mal. 4:3).
Praise the Lord! My loving Father! My Father in whom is all my delight! Glory forever! Praise the Lord!
HYMN
OH! ROUND LOVE OF GOD
1. O love, our Father's love, round and holy love
How can the world know it or angels understand?
O Our Father's love is so intense
Neither the earth, nor man, nor angels know this love
Wonderful Father's love except His only Son
O so intense and deep is His love
I cannot repay His love even by giving my life
Our Father's love is so good and divine
2. O love our Father's love, round and so big
How can the sun or moon know this great love of God?
Only the Son can manifest His love
O holy Spirit come and teach me His love
O so great and lofty is His love
We cannot understand with all the knowledge jo the world
Our Father's love is sweet and great to me
3. O love our Father's love, round and so wide
How can the firmament or the stars understand?
O Our Father's love is so endless
It is even greater than the agony of the Son
And it is even worse than the pains of the Son
I cannot help sobbing with silent cry
I cannot repay His love even by giving my life
Our Father's love is so good and boundless
4. O love our Father's love, round and wonderful
How can heaven know or the earth understand?
Our Father's love is so wonderful
It is thicker than the blood of the Son's cross
And it is stronger than the death of the cross
I cannot help wailing with a loud cry
Angels cover their faces and weep with deep sorrow
Our Father's love is so good and wonderful
5. O love our Father's love, round and everlasting
Do you, brothers and sisters, know of His love?
Our Father's love is immeasurable
It is higher that the sky and heaven, also
Broader than the big and vast universe
Which cannot possibly be measured
No matter how high I climb I cannot still reach it's height
Our Father's love is so good and lofty to me
6. O love our Father's love, round and forever
Wo you, brothers and sisters, know of His love?
Now I wipe away my tears
Running down my face and will run toward the dark world
To save my poor brethren deceived by the enemy
I'll spread His wonderful love by sacrificing my life
Our Father's love is so everlasting
7. O love our Father's love, round and eternal
How can the world know it or stars understand?
Now I go up to see my Father
And bury my face in His wide bosom
Pouring my tears I thank Him for His kind love
So wonderful is the love of our Father Loving and merciful,
He wipes away my tears Embracing me in His bosom,
He gives me comfort
Chapter III Jesus Christ (The Holy Son)
[This is eternal life that they might know... Jesus Christ].
A Word of Request
Now in this chapter we will learn the second condition for eternal life, that is [to know Jesus Christ](John 17:3). The precious knowledge of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the hidden mystery that no one in this world nor angels in heaven can impart, but only the Father who has been with Him from [the beginning of His way, before His works of old;] [no one knows the Son except the Father]{Matt. 11:27)
I wish that before before we begin, we may have a brief time to kneel humbly before our Father that He may unfold the sacred and mysterious knowledge of His Son, Jesus Christ, clearly to us.
1. Christ's Outward Appearance and Inward Heart
(1) His Outward Appearance
There are various opinions and descriptions in regard to Jesus' outward appearance as He was on earth. Let us now look at the testimonies of the Bible and two eyewitnesses to find out what He was really like.
Lentulus, who was a candidate for the governor of Judea in the days of Jesus, described His face and figure as follows: "A man of great power called Jesus is living in our days in this region. People call Him a prophet of truth, and His disciples, the Son of God. He raises up the dead and heals the sick. His body and stature is medium and well-balanced. He is a man of such virtuous features that those who glance at Him are forced to feel both fear and affection toward Him. His hair is chestnut-brown and curled, waving smoothly around His ears; it covers His shoulders slightly like waves of water and is parted in the middle of His head in harmony with the customs of the Nazarites. His face is tender and calm, without wrinkle or wound, and a little ruddy. His nose and mouth are good-looking. His beard is much and not shaved, the same in color with His hair, not too long and parted from the chin. His eyes are impressive and glittering. While He can reprove in a severe tone, He is also gentle, meek and so cheerful that it takes effort to be solemn when He advises. He rarely ever laughs but weeps sometimes. His body is slender and of upright posture; hands and arms look fine. He speaks in an earnest tone and not much, and that, thoughtfully. He must be the most elegant among the children of men."
Here is also a testimony discovered from a trustworthy and thoughtfully recorded report that Pontius Pilate - who once met Jesus face to face and also took charge of His final judgment - sent to the Emperor Caesar.
"One day, as I was pushing my way through a crowd in a place called Shilo, I came to notice a young man addressing a crowd while leaning on a tree. Someone informed me that he was Jesus. He looked about thirty years old. I never saw such a serene face to captivate one's heart... (Later) I sent a letter to Jesus to request a meeting at the Government-General Hall. Jesus came. As Your Majesty may already know, I come from a mixed background of both Roman and Spanish blood who know no such fragile emotional element as fear, but when the Nazarite came in, I had been strolling about in the reception room when all of a sudden, my feet became immobilized as if iron hands adhered them to the marble floor. The young man of Nazarite was standing rather calmly and yet my whole body was trembling as if I were a guilty criminal. Though he did not speak a word, he drew near me as if telling me "I am here." For a while, I gazed at this extraordinary person with respect and fear. He had the kind of features that have not yet been portrayed by countless artists who have attempted to draw portraits of gods and heroes in the past. There was nothing in his traits that might reveal any such defects in character.
Another Witness. God the Father testifies in the Bible. [He has no form of comeliness] of world's hypocrites(Isa. 53:2) but [My beloved is white and ruddy, chief among ten thousand.] [He is altogether lovely](Song. 5:10,16). [This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased](Matt. 3:17 K.J.V.).
To put these testimonies synthetically, we find that the general features of Jesus were altogether very beautiful and well-balanced. They were so lofty, blameless and holy that those who looked at Him were seized with fear by His dignity and personality overflowing with God's love and grace. He was the express image of God who came to make manifest the invisible God.[No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him](John 1:18)
(2) His Inward Heart
Jesus was a man of unspeakable humility; He [though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross](Phil. 2:6-8, R.S.V.). Truly [He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed](Isa. 53:5). Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted](Isa.53:4). He is despised and ejected by men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him... He was oppressed and He was afflicted yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He was taken from prison and from judgment and who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of my people He was stricken. And they made His grave with the wicked - but with the rich at His death, because He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth](Isa.53:3,7-9).
[Who committed no sin, nor was guile found in His mouth; when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten; but He committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree that we (sinners) having died to sins, might live for righteousness](1Peter 2:22-24).
In the world [scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us](Rom. 5:7,8)
The life of Jesus was one of persecution and insult who, in order to save sinners, abandoned His heavenly Court and came down to this earth in human form. Driven from Bethlehem by a jealous king, rejected by His own people at Nazareth, condemned to death without a cause at Jerusalem, Jesus with His few faithful followers found temporary asylum in a strange city. He who was ever touched by human woe, who healed the sick, and restored sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and speech to the dumb, who fed the hungry and comforted the sorrowful, was driven from the people He had labored to save.
[Though He was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich](2Cor. 8:9).
Voluntarily, He went through poverty and shame. He was often hungry, thirsty and tired from physical labor, yet He had nowhere to lay His head(refer to Matt. 8:20). In cold dewy nights He often laid on the wet, bare ground to sleep. But lying on the bare ground He blessed them that had rejected Him a moment before.[He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own and His own did not receive Him](John 1:10,11). Truly He who abandoned heaven and came to save sinners was [despised and rejected by men... and we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised](Isa. 53:3). The disciples could not understand the loneliness of Christ in His true state, who left His Father's bosom and spent a life as a man on earth. He was at times sorrowful that He did not receive the appropriate treatment even from His own disciples, yet He never spoke a word of anger or displeasure with His lips.
He said, [The Son of man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many](Matt. 20:28).
A spirit of self-pity could ever be found in Him. It was solely to bless others that He lived, thought, and prayed. Oh!If the witness for Christ in the world had kept the mind of Christ Jesus in their hearts(refer to Phil. 2:5), what a great change could be seen today! How many children of God would have returned to the ranks of the redeemed!
As long as a bit of selfishness, evil thought or self-pity remain in our hearts, we cannot become perfect witnesses for Jesus. Rather, we will represent Jesus as someone different from His character thus leading the world to perceive Him as selfish, arrogant, bigoted, destitute of love, mercy, compassion, and as unforgiving as we are. Jesus says, [If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me](Matt. 16:24). [If anyone comes to me and does not ate ... his own life also, he cannot be my disciples.][Whoever ... does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciples](Luke 14:26,33). [Love your enemies, do good to those who spitefully use you](Luke 6:27,28).
[If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same](Luke 6:32,33).
[But I tell you not to resist evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you, do not turn away.][Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them.] [that you may be sons of your Father in heaven](Matt. 5:39-42, 7:12, 5:45). This was His inward heart, His character and His life.
Therefore, if we His followers cherish jealousy in all sorts of trifling matters, take defensive attitudes against any loss, or strive to maintain the spirit of self-dignity in heart, we give evidence that we are not noble-minded people. In spite of false accusations, we are to submit ourselves and love our enemies (refer to Matt. 5:40,44). If any one would exploit us a mile, we are to avail ourselves two miles. [Why do you not rather accept wrong? Why do you not rather let yourselves be defrauded?](1Cor. 6:7?. By so doing, we shall become true sons and daughters of God the approved disciples of Jesus.
The only work that He accepts is the work that reflects His image. His followers are to bear, as their credentials to the world, His image, the ineffaceable characteristics of His immortal principles. In choosing men and women for His service. God does not ask whether they posses worldly wealth, learning, or eloquence. He asks, "Do they walk in such humility that I can teach them my way? Can I put My sacred words on their lips? Do they have faultless, sanctified lips? Will they perfectly represent My character? How much of my Spirit do they posses?
As God sent Jesus as the Savior of the world who would perfectly represent His character, so is Jesus seeking for those who will perfectly represent His character, in order to send them into the world. He says to them. [As the Father has sent Me, I also send you](John 20:21).
The Jews cultivated a spirit of retaliation. In their hatred for the Romans, they gave utterance of hard denunciations and pleased the wicked one by manifesting his attributes. Jesus bade them not to deceive themselves with the thought that they could in heart rise up against their oppressors and cherish the longing to avenge their wrongs. He was to do His work not by overturning thrones and kingdoms or with pomp and outward display, but by speaking to the hearts of men through a life of mercy and self-sacrifice.
The kingdom of God does not come with outward show. It comes through the gentleness of the inspiration of His word, through the inward working of His Spirit the fellowship of the soul with Him who is its life.
Human effort will be efficient in the work of God according to the consecrated devotion of the worker - by revealing the power of the grace of Christ to transform life.
There can be no more conclusive evidence that we posses the spirit of Satan than the disposition to hurt and destroy those who do not appreciate our work or who work contrary to our ideas.
The servants of Christ are not to act out the dictates of the natural heart. They need to have close communion with God, lest under provocation, self rises up and they pour forth a torrent of words that are unfitting and are not as the dew or the still showers that refresh the withering plant. This is what Satan wants them to do; for these are his methods.It is Satan that is wroth; it is the spirit of Satan that is revealed in anger and accusing. But God's servants are to be representatives of Him.
They are to fix their eyes upon Christ. Then they can present the Gospel with divine tact and gentleness. The spirit that is kept gentle under provocation will speak more effectively in favor of the truth than any argument, however forcible.
Strength of character consists of two things - power of will and power of self-control. The strongest man is he who while sensitive to abuse will yet restrain passion and forgive his enemies. Such men are true heroes in the sight of God and Jesus.
Jesus is glorified through them channels of His power and He will bring them as His attendants wherever He goes(Ps. 101:6).
[Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus](Phi.2:5)
A Word of Request
Now in this chapter we will learn the second condition for eternal life, that is [to know Jesus Christ](John 17:3). The precious knowledge of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the hidden mystery that no one in this world nor angels in heaven can impart, but only the Father who has been with Him from [the beginning of His way, before His works of old;] [no one knows the Son except the Father]{Matt. 11:27)
I wish that before before we begin, we may have a brief time to kneel humbly before our Father that He may unfold the sacred and mysterious knowledge of His Son, Jesus Christ, clearly to us.
1. Christ's Outward Appearance and Inward Heart
(1) His Outward Appearance
There are various opinions and descriptions in regard to Jesus' outward appearance as He was on earth. Let us now look at the testimonies of the Bible and two eyewitnesses to find out what He was really like.
Lentulus, who was a candidate for the governor of Judea in the days of Jesus, described His face and figure as follows: "A man of great power called Jesus is living in our days in this region. People call Him a prophet of truth, and His disciples, the Son of God. He raises up the dead and heals the sick. His body and stature is medium and well-balanced. He is a man of such virtuous features that those who glance at Him are forced to feel both fear and affection toward Him. His hair is chestnut-brown and curled, waving smoothly around His ears; it covers His shoulders slightly like waves of water and is parted in the middle of His head in harmony with the customs of the Nazarites. His face is tender and calm, without wrinkle or wound, and a little ruddy. His nose and mouth are good-looking. His beard is much and not shaved, the same in color with His hair, not too long and parted from the chin. His eyes are impressive and glittering. While He can reprove in a severe tone, He is also gentle, meek and so cheerful that it takes effort to be solemn when He advises. He rarely ever laughs but weeps sometimes. His body is slender and of upright posture; hands and arms look fine. He speaks in an earnest tone and not much, and that, thoughtfully. He must be the most elegant among the children of men."
Here is also a testimony discovered from a trustworthy and thoughtfully recorded report that Pontius Pilate - who once met Jesus face to face and also took charge of His final judgment - sent to the Emperor Caesar.
"One day, as I was pushing my way through a crowd in a place called Shilo, I came to notice a young man addressing a crowd while leaning on a tree. Someone informed me that he was Jesus. He looked about thirty years old. I never saw such a serene face to captivate one's heart... (Later) I sent a letter to Jesus to request a meeting at the Government-General Hall. Jesus came. As Your Majesty may already know, I come from a mixed background of both Roman and Spanish blood who know no such fragile emotional element as fear, but when the Nazarite came in, I had been strolling about in the reception room when all of a sudden, my feet became immobilized as if iron hands adhered them to the marble floor. The young man of Nazarite was standing rather calmly and yet my whole body was trembling as if I were a guilty criminal. Though he did not speak a word, he drew near me as if telling me "I am here." For a while, I gazed at this extraordinary person with respect and fear. He had the kind of features that have not yet been portrayed by countless artists who have attempted to draw portraits of gods and heroes in the past. There was nothing in his traits that might reveal any such defects in character.
Another Witness. God the Father testifies in the Bible. [He has no form of comeliness] of world's hypocrites(Isa. 53:2) but [My beloved is white and ruddy, chief among ten thousand.] [He is altogether lovely](Song. 5:10,16). [This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased](Matt. 3:17 K.J.V.).
To put these testimonies synthetically, we find that the general features of Jesus were altogether very beautiful and well-balanced. They were so lofty, blameless and holy that those who looked at Him were seized with fear by His dignity and personality overflowing with God's love and grace. He was the express image of God who came to make manifest the invisible God.[No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him](John 1:18)
(2) His Inward Heart
Jesus was a man of unspeakable humility; He [though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross](Phil. 2:6-8, R.S.V.). Truly [He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed](Isa. 53:5). Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted](Isa.53:4). He is despised and ejected by men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him... He was oppressed and He was afflicted yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He was taken from prison and from judgment and who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of my people He was stricken. And they made His grave with the wicked - but with the rich at His death, because He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth](Isa.53:3,7-9).
[Who committed no sin, nor was guile found in His mouth; when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten; but He committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree that we (sinners) having died to sins, might live for righteousness](1Peter 2:22-24).
In the world [scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us](Rom. 5:7,8)
The life of Jesus was one of persecution and insult who, in order to save sinners, abandoned His heavenly Court and came down to this earth in human form. Driven from Bethlehem by a jealous king, rejected by His own people at Nazareth, condemned to death without a cause at Jerusalem, Jesus with His few faithful followers found temporary asylum in a strange city. He who was ever touched by human woe, who healed the sick, and restored sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and speech to the dumb, who fed the hungry and comforted the sorrowful, was driven from the people He had labored to save.
[Though He was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich](2Cor. 8:9).
Voluntarily, He went through poverty and shame. He was often hungry, thirsty and tired from physical labor, yet He had nowhere to lay His head(refer to Matt. 8:20). In cold dewy nights He often laid on the wet, bare ground to sleep. But lying on the bare ground He blessed them that had rejected Him a moment before.[He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own and His own did not receive Him](John 1:10,11). Truly He who abandoned heaven and came to save sinners was [despised and rejected by men... and we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised](Isa. 53:3). The disciples could not understand the loneliness of Christ in His true state, who left His Father's bosom and spent a life as a man on earth. He was at times sorrowful that He did not receive the appropriate treatment even from His own disciples, yet He never spoke a word of anger or displeasure with His lips.
He said, [The Son of man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many](Matt. 20:28).
A spirit of self-pity could ever be found in Him. It was solely to bless others that He lived, thought, and prayed. Oh!If the witness for Christ in the world had kept the mind of Christ Jesus in their hearts(refer to Phil. 2:5), what a great change could be seen today! How many children of God would have returned to the ranks of the redeemed!
As long as a bit of selfishness, evil thought or self-pity remain in our hearts, we cannot become perfect witnesses for Jesus. Rather, we will represent Jesus as someone different from His character thus leading the world to perceive Him as selfish, arrogant, bigoted, destitute of love, mercy, compassion, and as unforgiving as we are. Jesus says, [If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me](Matt. 16:24). [If anyone comes to me and does not ate ... his own life also, he cannot be my disciples.][Whoever ... does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciples](Luke 14:26,33). [Love your enemies, do good to those who spitefully use you](Luke 6:27,28).
[If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same](Luke 6:32,33).
[But I tell you not to resist evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you, do not turn away.][Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them.] [that you may be sons of your Father in heaven](Matt. 5:39-42, 7:12, 5:45). This was His inward heart, His character and His life.
Therefore, if we His followers cherish jealousy in all sorts of trifling matters, take defensive attitudes against any loss, or strive to maintain the spirit of self-dignity in heart, we give evidence that we are not noble-minded people. In spite of false accusations, we are to submit ourselves and love our enemies (refer to Matt. 5:40,44). If any one would exploit us a mile, we are to avail ourselves two miles. [Why do you not rather accept wrong? Why do you not rather let yourselves be defrauded?](1Cor. 6:7?. By so doing, we shall become true sons and daughters of God the approved disciples of Jesus.
The only work that He accepts is the work that reflects His image. His followers are to bear, as their credentials to the world, His image, the ineffaceable characteristics of His immortal principles. In choosing men and women for His service. God does not ask whether they posses worldly wealth, learning, or eloquence. He asks, "Do they walk in such humility that I can teach them my way? Can I put My sacred words on their lips? Do they have faultless, sanctified lips? Will they perfectly represent My character? How much of my Spirit do they posses?
As God sent Jesus as the Savior of the world who would perfectly represent His character, so is Jesus seeking for those who will perfectly represent His character, in order to send them into the world. He says to them. [As the Father has sent Me, I also send you](John 20:21).
The Jews cultivated a spirit of retaliation. In their hatred for the Romans, they gave utterance of hard denunciations and pleased the wicked one by manifesting his attributes. Jesus bade them not to deceive themselves with the thought that they could in heart rise up against their oppressors and cherish the longing to avenge their wrongs. He was to do His work not by overturning thrones and kingdoms or with pomp and outward display, but by speaking to the hearts of men through a life of mercy and self-sacrifice.
The kingdom of God does not come with outward show. It comes through the gentleness of the inspiration of His word, through the inward working of His Spirit the fellowship of the soul with Him who is its life.
Human effort will be efficient in the work of God according to the consecrated devotion of the worker - by revealing the power of the grace of Christ to transform life.
There can be no more conclusive evidence that we posses the spirit of Satan than the disposition to hurt and destroy those who do not appreciate our work or who work contrary to our ideas.
The servants of Christ are not to act out the dictates of the natural heart. They need to have close communion with God, lest under provocation, self rises up and they pour forth a torrent of words that are unfitting and are not as the dew or the still showers that refresh the withering plant. This is what Satan wants them to do; for these are his methods.It is Satan that is wroth; it is the spirit of Satan that is revealed in anger and accusing. But God's servants are to be representatives of Him.
They are to fix their eyes upon Christ. Then they can present the Gospel with divine tact and gentleness. The spirit that is kept gentle under provocation will speak more effectively in favor of the truth than any argument, however forcible.
Strength of character consists of two things - power of will and power of self-control. The strongest man is he who while sensitive to abuse will yet restrain passion and forgive his enemies. Such men are true heroes in the sight of God and Jesus.
Jesus is glorified through them channels of His power and He will bring them as His attendants wherever He goes(Ps. 101:6).
[Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus](Phi.2:5)
2. Jesus Christ, theTrue God Who Came in Human Form
[Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, God with us.](Matt.1:23)
[He, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant being born in the likeness of men] - while being a true God(Phil. 2:6,7 R.S.V.) [In as much then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage... Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people](Heb.2:14,15,17).
Jesus Christ who was born as a baby two thousand years ago, was not the man Jesus who began His existence at the time, but was God who had been from eternity and had come down to this earth in human likeness the true God who was clothed with humanity(1John 5:20). His flesh was the Son of God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, abundant with divine power and might. As for His humanity, He was the man Jesus. And as for His divinity, He was the Son of God representing God; He Himself was the Almighty God.
Centuries before He came to earth as a man, the prophet Isaiah prophesied. [For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace](Isa.9:6). He is the Everlasting God[without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life.] who has been with God the Father from the days of eternity(Heb. 7:3).
As He seek on this earth, He said, [The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost](Luke 19:10). [What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains and seek the one that is straying?] [The Son of Man has come to seek and save that which was lost] - this earth(Matt. 18:12, Luke 19:10).
As He was in the synagogue, He said to the multitude, [Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day and he saw it and was glad](John 8:56). Then the Jews said to Him, [You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?](John 8:57). [Jesus said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was I AM'](John 8:58). In this way He made it clear to the blind Jewish leaders that He had existed from before Abraham, before the foundation of the world, from eternity.
Truly He was the God of infinite love who came down to save His children on earth,[who being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant.] It was not at anyone's urging or counsel that lead Him to come down to save even one lost sheep (the earthly children), in the form of a humble man. He voluntarily sacrificed Himself. He could have remained by His Father's side, to received the glory and reverence from angels. But that He might give light to the world of darkness and life to His perishing earthly children, He decided to give up His throne to His Father and come down.
Two thousand years ago, a mystic voice spoke from the throne of heaven. [Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for me.] [Behold, I have come - in the volume of book it is written of me - to do Your will, O God] (Heb. 10:5,7). In this word is proclaimed the fulfillment of the purpose which had been hidden from eternity. Christ was to take upon Himself human nature to come down to this earth. He said, "A body You have prepared for me." If He had come with the glory that He had with the Father from the foundation of the world, we could not have withstood the dazzling light of His presence. So in order that we might see and not be consumed by it, He covered His glory of God) with His flesh. His divinity was covered with humanity and invisible glory appeared visible in the form of a man. He did not have any outward beauty or attractiveness in the sight of men, yet He was God transformed into flesh, the Light of heaven and earth. It was to approach His earthly children surrounded with sorrow and temptation that He covered His glory, grandeur, and majesty. At the moment Satan seemed to have gained full victory, but [when the fullness of the time had come](Gal.4:4), the Son of God appeared with heaven's mission of grace. [The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth](John 1:14).
Jesus came from heaven to reshape the character of His earthly children who had been ruined by sin. He came to drive out the devil who had been taking possession of men's will. He came to deliver us from the dust and dirt, transform our ruined characters into His holiness and clothe us with the beauty of His glory.
The story of Bethlehem is an exhaustless theme. We marvel at the Savior's sacrifice in exchanging the throne of heaven for the manger, and the companionship of adoring angels for the beasts of the stall. Yet this was the beginning of the wonderful condescension. It would have been an almost infinite humiliation for the Son of God to take man's nature even when Adam stood in his innocence in Eden. But Jesus accepted humanity when the race had been weakened by four thousand years of sin. As every child of Adam, He accepted the results of the great law of heredity, to share our sorrows and temptations, and to give us the example of a sinless life.
As I see maggots in a cesspool I think about our Lord God Jesus who gave up heaven and came down in the very form of a filthy sinner into this world full of the terrible stench of sin,and I ask myself, "You, Myung Ho If you were told to go into the cesspool and become a maggot and live there forever, could you do it?"
"Oh! Never never could I do it."
"Then how about just for one day and return?"
But my answer would still be the same."Oh, no!"
However, the highest, lofty and holy God, our Lord Jesus, left His lofty status and position as God and came down to this cesspool earth, incomparable to the heavenly court, and became a man-maggot.
What a sorrowful fact His amazing sacrifice is! It is that which neither sinners nor angels can understand; only the Father who is equal with Him knows the length, height, and dept of His sacrifice!
It would have been an almost infinite humiliation and insult for the God of heaven even to become a glorious, holy angels, but what a startling sacrifice He paid in becoming a man in this sinful world lower than angels! Oh, He is still sitting at the right hand of God as a man! (Mark 16:19,Ps 110:1). He did not become a man temporarily, but He became a man forever. It is His (God) unending sacrifice and humiliation.
Oh what should I say, how should I lament for God, my Father whose infinite humiliation and sacrifice was paid all for me, to save me alone! When I see my Lord, my Father"s face in heaven, what will I be able to say to Him, How can I even face Him? With what words will I comfort and thank Him? Oh I am a sinner, the chief of sinners!
[He, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant being born in the likeness of men] - while being a true God(Phil. 2:6,7 R.S.V.) [In as much then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage... Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people](Heb.2:14,15,17).
Jesus Christ who was born as a baby two thousand years ago, was not the man Jesus who began His existence at the time, but was God who had been from eternity and had come down to this earth in human likeness the true God who was clothed with humanity(1John 5:20). His flesh was the Son of God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, abundant with divine power and might. As for His humanity, He was the man Jesus. And as for His divinity, He was the Son of God representing God; He Himself was the Almighty God.
Centuries before He came to earth as a man, the prophet Isaiah prophesied. [For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace](Isa.9:6). He is the Everlasting God[without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life.] who has been with God the Father from the days of eternity(Heb. 7:3).
As He seek on this earth, He said, [The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost](Luke 19:10). [What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains and seek the one that is straying?] [The Son of Man has come to seek and save that which was lost] - this earth(Matt. 18:12, Luke 19:10).
As He was in the synagogue, He said to the multitude, [Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day and he saw it and was glad](John 8:56). Then the Jews said to Him, [You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?](John 8:57). [Jesus said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was I AM'](John 8:58). In this way He made it clear to the blind Jewish leaders that He had existed from before Abraham, before the foundation of the world, from eternity.
Truly He was the God of infinite love who came down to save His children on earth,[who being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant.] It was not at anyone's urging or counsel that lead Him to come down to save even one lost sheep (the earthly children), in the form of a humble man. He voluntarily sacrificed Himself. He could have remained by His Father's side, to received the glory and reverence from angels. But that He might give light to the world of darkness and life to His perishing earthly children, He decided to give up His throne to His Father and come down.
Two thousand years ago, a mystic voice spoke from the throne of heaven. [Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for me.] [Behold, I have come - in the volume of book it is written of me - to do Your will, O God] (Heb. 10:5,7). In this word is proclaimed the fulfillment of the purpose which had been hidden from eternity. Christ was to take upon Himself human nature to come down to this earth. He said, "A body You have prepared for me." If He had come with the glory that He had with the Father from the foundation of the world, we could not have withstood the dazzling light of His presence. So in order that we might see and not be consumed by it, He covered His glory of God) with His flesh. His divinity was covered with humanity and invisible glory appeared visible in the form of a man. He did not have any outward beauty or attractiveness in the sight of men, yet He was God transformed into flesh, the Light of heaven and earth. It was to approach His earthly children surrounded with sorrow and temptation that He covered His glory, grandeur, and majesty. At the moment Satan seemed to have gained full victory, but [when the fullness of the time had come](Gal.4:4), the Son of God appeared with heaven's mission of grace. [The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth](John 1:14).
Jesus came from heaven to reshape the character of His earthly children who had been ruined by sin. He came to drive out the devil who had been taking possession of men's will. He came to deliver us from the dust and dirt, transform our ruined characters into His holiness and clothe us with the beauty of His glory.
The story of Bethlehem is an exhaustless theme. We marvel at the Savior's sacrifice in exchanging the throne of heaven for the manger, and the companionship of adoring angels for the beasts of the stall. Yet this was the beginning of the wonderful condescension. It would have been an almost infinite humiliation for the Son of God to take man's nature even when Adam stood in his innocence in Eden. But Jesus accepted humanity when the race had been weakened by four thousand years of sin. As every child of Adam, He accepted the results of the great law of heredity, to share our sorrows and temptations, and to give us the example of a sinless life.
As I see maggots in a cesspool I think about our Lord God Jesus who gave up heaven and came down in the very form of a filthy sinner into this world full of the terrible stench of sin,and I ask myself, "You, Myung Ho If you were told to go into the cesspool and become a maggot and live there forever, could you do it?"
"Oh! Never never could I do it."
"Then how about just for one day and return?"
But my answer would still be the same."Oh, no!"
However, the highest, lofty and holy God, our Lord Jesus, left His lofty status and position as God and came down to this cesspool earth, incomparable to the heavenly court, and became a man-maggot.
What a sorrowful fact His amazing sacrifice is! It is that which neither sinners nor angels can understand; only the Father who is equal with Him knows the length, height, and dept of His sacrifice!
It would have been an almost infinite humiliation and insult for the God of heaven even to become a glorious, holy angels, but what a startling sacrifice He paid in becoming a man in this sinful world lower than angels! Oh, He is still sitting at the right hand of God as a man! (Mark 16:19,Ps 110:1). He did not become a man temporarily, but He became a man forever. It is His (God) unending sacrifice and humiliation.
Oh what should I say, how should I lament for God, my Father whose infinite humiliation and sacrifice was paid all for me, to save me alone! When I see my Lord, my Father"s face in heaven, what will I be able to say to Him, How can I even face Him? With what words will I comfort and thank Him? Oh I am a sinner, the chief of sinners!
3. Jesus Christ, the Creator God of the Universe
[In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth](John 1:1,14).
Jesus Himself says, [The Lord possessed me in the beginning of His way, before His works of old. I have been established from everlasting from the beginning, before there was ever an earth, When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled, before the hills, I was brought forth; while as yet He had not made the earth or the fields, or the primeval dust of the world. When He prepared the heavens, I was there. When He drew a circle on the face of the deep, when He established the clouds above, when He strengthened the fountains of the deep, when He assigned to the sea its limit so that the waters would not transgress His command, when He marked out the foundations of the earth, then I was beside Him, as a master craftsman, and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him](Pro. 8:22-30).
When He was on the earth the Father said, [This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased](Matt.3:17, 17:5); the Son said to His Father, [And now O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was](John 17:5).
Truly [He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities - all things were created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together](Col. 1:15-17). But [He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him](John 1:10,11).
I remember a story I heard when I was a little boy. Once there was a benevolent king in Korea called "Seong Jong the Great," who used to leave his royal throne at times and travel incognito, dressing himself as a commoner in order to observe the circumstance of his people. One night, as he was walking around Seoul, the capital city, he heard a loud banging from a blacksmith's shop though it was already past midnight. He drew closer towards the shop and making a sudden appearance, he addressed the smith, who was deeply absorbed in his work.
"Hello! why is it that you are working so hard this night?" And the smith answered without even casting a look at him.
"I have to work hard in order to pay debt and lay debt." But the king did not catch his meaning. If he has to pay off debts, he must be a debtor; then, how can he "lay" debt being a debtor himself? And he asked again, "How can you 'lay debt' being a debtor yourself? And the smith, displeased with this annoying, uninvited guest, replied coldly, "How are you so dull-brained that you cannot even understand this? To pay off to lay debt means to practice filial piety toward my parents,and to lay debt means to bring up and educate my children." And the king nodded, saying, Oh! Is that so? Now I see. I am very sorry for hindering your work. May you succeed in what you do." And the king went back to his court.
The next day, the king sat on his royal throne dressed in his kingly robes as usual and commanded that the blacksmith be brought to him. Now someone so lowly and unknown as himself to be present before the king immediately ceased his work, dressed quickly and went to the king. Falling prostrate before him he said, "Your Majesty, I present myself before you."
"Lift your face and look at me. I am the man who visited your shop last night."
The smith was exceedingly frightened and thinking about how bluntly he had talked to the stranger the night before without realizing he was the king, he fell to the ground and begged for pardon.
"I have committed a death-deserving sin against you, your Majesty."
"No I will greatly reward you for you filial piety and diligence."
Thus the Great King Seong Jong sent the humble and industrious smith back granting him a large and abundant reward.
Likewise Jesus, the King of the universe, the Majesty of heaven who made the universe and all the worlds in it with His Father, having dominion over them, exchanged His royal throne and robe for the plain clothes of a carpenter. And He came into this dark earth devoid of light and life into the land of Judea as an uninvited Guest. And like any other human being, He talked with people, ate with them, slept with them, labored with them, and personally tasted and experienced their hardships and difficulties before He returned to His royal throne in heaven.
[He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not receive Him](John 1: 10.11). Now everyone upon the earth will see how he (or she) treated the holy, benevolent King of heaven. In the near future He shall [sit on the throne of His glory] and call [all nations before Him] as with the case of the blacksmith, and everyone will see Him clearly face to face finding out who it was that appeared two thousand years ago in plain clothes(Matt. 25:31,32).
Indeed, our God Jesus was [the true God] sitting on the throne of heaven, who had taken compassion on His children of earth. He come down to save them [who were all their lifetime subject to bondage] under the power of the enemy Satan and his agents, and who were destroyed under the [power of death](John 5:20, Heb. 2:14-16). He is the One whom all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him](Col 1:16). And our earth-Eden was also His handiwork, made and decorated by Him who had been with the Father from the beginning of His works, and given to us as a gift to be our haven.
And so our heavenly Father says, [This is My Companion,' in whom I am well pleased' says the Lord of hosts](Zech. 13:7, Matt. 3:17). Indeed, our Lord Jesus is the true God, the Creator, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity [who being in the form of God... equal with God] who has been "a Companion" with God the Father from everlasting to everlasting(Phil.2:6). There is none in heaven nor on earth who can deliver the children of earth from the power of the furious devil and his agents except for the mighty power and precious blood of this God Jesus. His hand has hung the worlds in space and made the beautiful flowers of the fields. [Who established the mountains by His strengths?] [The sea is His, for He made it](Ps. 65:6, 95:5).
As He filled the earth with beauty and the air with singing, He wrote the message of His Father's love upon everything on earth, in the air, and in heaven.
He says, ['I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End says the Lord, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty'](Rev. 1:8). [And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give everyone according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.] [Surely I am coming quickly. Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus!](Rev. 22:12, 13:20).
Praise the Lord! Glory to our God Jesus, our Creator, our benevolent King forever! Praise the Lord!
Jesus Himself says, [The Lord possessed me in the beginning of His way, before His works of old. I have been established from everlasting from the beginning, before there was ever an earth, When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled, before the hills, I was brought forth; while as yet He had not made the earth or the fields, or the primeval dust of the world. When He prepared the heavens, I was there. When He drew a circle on the face of the deep, when He established the clouds above, when He strengthened the fountains of the deep, when He assigned to the sea its limit so that the waters would not transgress His command, when He marked out the foundations of the earth, then I was beside Him, as a master craftsman, and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him](Pro. 8:22-30).
When He was on the earth the Father said, [This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased](Matt.3:17, 17:5); the Son said to His Father, [And now O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was](John 17:5).
Truly [He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities - all things were created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together](Col. 1:15-17). But [He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him](John 1:10,11).
I remember a story I heard when I was a little boy. Once there was a benevolent king in Korea called "Seong Jong the Great," who used to leave his royal throne at times and travel incognito, dressing himself as a commoner in order to observe the circumstance of his people. One night, as he was walking around Seoul, the capital city, he heard a loud banging from a blacksmith's shop though it was already past midnight. He drew closer towards the shop and making a sudden appearance, he addressed the smith, who was deeply absorbed in his work.
"Hello! why is it that you are working so hard this night?" And the smith answered without even casting a look at him.
"I have to work hard in order to pay debt and lay debt." But the king did not catch his meaning. If he has to pay off debts, he must be a debtor; then, how can he "lay" debt being a debtor himself? And he asked again, "How can you 'lay debt' being a debtor yourself? And the smith, displeased with this annoying, uninvited guest, replied coldly, "How are you so dull-brained that you cannot even understand this? To pay off to lay debt means to practice filial piety toward my parents,and to lay debt means to bring up and educate my children." And the king nodded, saying, Oh! Is that so? Now I see. I am very sorry for hindering your work. May you succeed in what you do." And the king went back to his court.
The next day, the king sat on his royal throne dressed in his kingly robes as usual and commanded that the blacksmith be brought to him. Now someone so lowly and unknown as himself to be present before the king immediately ceased his work, dressed quickly and went to the king. Falling prostrate before him he said, "Your Majesty, I present myself before you."
"Lift your face and look at me. I am the man who visited your shop last night."
The smith was exceedingly frightened and thinking about how bluntly he had talked to the stranger the night before without realizing he was the king, he fell to the ground and begged for pardon.
"I have committed a death-deserving sin against you, your Majesty."
"No I will greatly reward you for you filial piety and diligence."
Thus the Great King Seong Jong sent the humble and industrious smith back granting him a large and abundant reward.
Likewise Jesus, the King of the universe, the Majesty of heaven who made the universe and all the worlds in it with His Father, having dominion over them, exchanged His royal throne and robe for the plain clothes of a carpenter. And He came into this dark earth devoid of light and life into the land of Judea as an uninvited Guest. And like any other human being, He talked with people, ate with them, slept with them, labored with them, and personally tasted and experienced their hardships and difficulties before He returned to His royal throne in heaven.
[He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not receive Him](John 1: 10.11). Now everyone upon the earth will see how he (or she) treated the holy, benevolent King of heaven. In the near future He shall [sit on the throne of His glory] and call [all nations before Him] as with the case of the blacksmith, and everyone will see Him clearly face to face finding out who it was that appeared two thousand years ago in plain clothes(Matt. 25:31,32).
Indeed, our God Jesus was [the true God] sitting on the throne of heaven, who had taken compassion on His children of earth. He come down to save them [who were all their lifetime subject to bondage] under the power of the enemy Satan and his agents, and who were destroyed under the [power of death](John 5:20, Heb. 2:14-16). He is the One whom all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him](Col 1:16). And our earth-Eden was also His handiwork, made and decorated by Him who had been with the Father from the beginning of His works, and given to us as a gift to be our haven.
And so our heavenly Father says, [This is My Companion,' in whom I am well pleased' says the Lord of hosts](Zech. 13:7, Matt. 3:17). Indeed, our Lord Jesus is the true God, the Creator, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity [who being in the form of God... equal with God] who has been "a Companion" with God the Father from everlasting to everlasting(Phil.2:6). There is none in heaven nor on earth who can deliver the children of earth from the power of the furious devil and his agents except for the mighty power and precious blood of this God Jesus. His hand has hung the worlds in space and made the beautiful flowers of the fields. [Who established the mountains by His strengths?] [The sea is His, for He made it](Ps. 65:6, 95:5).
As He filled the earth with beauty and the air with singing, He wrote the message of His Father's love upon everything on earth, in the air, and in heaven.
He says, ['I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End says the Lord, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty'](Rev. 1:8). [And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give everyone according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.] [Surely I am coming quickly. Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus!](Rev. 22:12, 13:20).
Praise the Lord! Glory to our God Jesus, our Creator, our benevolent King forever! Praise the Lord!
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