1 Chromicles 4:10

1 Chronicles 4:10 New International Version (NIV) 10 Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request. Everyone who reads the prayer of Jabez delights in it. “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” These are great words. I will comeback to this scripture at the end. Now I will discuss something of a different matter. Today the world is focusing a great deal on the Olympics. The kind of records which will be broken? What events will take place? Which country will take the most gold medals? We spend a lot of time thinking about these things. The Olympics, which are about the spirit of competition have now become a way to make money by a certain kind of people. Can you guess who? It used to be that those who could participate in the Olympics were only amateur athletes, but now the rules have change and professional athletes are also allowed to compete for their country. Unfortunately, this has brought with them people who wager on these events. They will wager on athletes, countries and events to see if they can win or end up losing money. I am informing you that this is what is happening currently in the world. These gamblers gather and try to predict the outcome of the games. For example, they might think that the country of Korea may medal in swimming, and Tae Kwon Do. They will be trying to predict the number of medals for the country. In yesterday’s news, I read and article that said Korea will not get a gold medal in swimming. The article said that the Korean athlete will not win, and is not even capable of coming close. This is what they have predicted and published. I share this with you because there are people who hear these things and feel good about it and those who hear it and feel bad. There are those who hear these things make a judgement and wager money. They can either win money or lose it. Depending on how an athlete hears these words and reacts, he can either overcome and succeed or he can believe what has been written and not succeed. It would be great if one could read these words and be more determined to win rather than be a person who uses it as an excuse to fail. An entire country can read and hear the same thing and be united to overcome that attitude or succumb to it. People can also get caught up in the news and information to make wagers and either win or lose. I am trying to explain to you that many times in our lives we get caught up in the moment emotionally and make choices that effect our lives greatly. The oddsmaker who uses cunning and deceit to steal someone else's money through gambling rather than working honestly, or the one who gets caught up in the moment and gambles it all away, or the one who wins it through gambling, do any of these people live well in financial stability? Generally, we know that they do not. Life teaches us this lesson. but many of us fail to realize that we must learn from this lesson and apply it our lives. We think nothing of associating ourselves with these people and getting caught up in the moment and amusing ourselves with them. We don’t realize how foolish it is. When we entice people we create problems. I am speaking about myself. When I was around these children’s age we had no TV in our house. There were only a few TVs in the entire neighborhood. We had our first TV in our house when I was in high school. When we had our TV, I did not watch what I wanted to watch but I watched whatever my father wanted to watch because he had the power. When he wanted to watch it he turned it on and turned it off when he wanted. I never really watched TV when I wanted and having to work, I really never had the time to watch it. Later, when I had immigrated I finally had my own TV. Now that I had my own TV I wanted to watch it. I did not understand the language and did not have much else so I started to enjoy watching TV especially sports. I am not sharing this story to tell you about TV but to let you know that when I was enjoying myself watching TV, I was also teaching my children, who were about 6 years old , to also watch TV. Now they are much older and restrain themselves, but as teenagers as soon as they woke up, as a habit they went straight for the TV or computer. Who made them this way? I taught them. The children were consumed in their shows and games and could not be taken away from it. Who taught them? It is the parents who have shown the children by example and now the children can’t get away from these things. We don’t think about it. What I considered as harmless and enjoyable has damaged those around me whether it be our children or others. When I am the center of my life and do things how I want, the seeds I sow will be reaped by others. There are many people who ruin their lives over drugs and entertainment. Just to do whatever is their pleasure they create problems, they don’t study, they throw everything away. Do you learn about life in front of the computer? No. Can you just live only through entertainment? No. You need to stop playing and live your life to acquire the necessary things to be able to live in peace and enjoy life. If you cannot break this habit, then for that brief satisfaction your body will get sick and you will lose your life. Yesterday, when we all gathered for dinner, the person who always controls what I eat had left. I openly expressed to you my desire to want to eat more, but I stopped myself from eating too much. If I do not stop myself, then the urges to keep eating will take over. I must decide that I will not overdo it. The decision must be made by myself. I expressed to Dr. Shin the emotions that were inside me. I can hide them and pretend as if they do not exist, or I can be open about it, and though embarrassing, I can make the decision to stop. If I stop, then I have accepted it and acted upon my decision. But if I hide my true feelings and go away and satisfy myself when no one is watching then I can never correct my problems. Many of us refuse to acknowledge our problems in order to save face. When no one is around we go and do whatever we want, and when people are around we pretend that we don’t behave a certain way. You can never correct yourself. For example, if there is food and I act as if I don’t eat it, but when no one is around I go and eat it secretly, can you fix this problem? You cannot. What you don’t realize is that what you do for your comfort and pleasure is hurting others around you. You may think that you are doing a good job, and argue that it is the others person's responsibility if they are being hurt by your actions. Yesterday, something happened, but it was not the only time. This has happened many times before. I understand that being busy that these things can happen. When someone is aware things can be fine, but when someone is unaware, someone can be hurt. Yesterday, the dishes were done and people all left. Common sense tells me to put the spoons with the spoons and the knives with the knives. The knives should be placed with the blade down so that someone will not get hurt. I am saying that this is common sense. But there was a fruit knife placed with the spoons with the blade placed up. They are about the same length. I went to grab the spoons to put them away and grabbed the blade of the knife. Did the person who put the knife there think about what they were doing? They could say that that they were doing their job, but when you realize that your lack of judgement could hurt someone do you do think and act with more caution? There are many things that you can do easily without care and thought. Even when you speak you can do so without realizing that what you are saying can have consequences, even though you may not have a problem with what you are saying. Yesterday, someone posted on an internet blog about something that angered them. When we go play soccer we clean the field of dog poop. Someone posted on their blog that a customer had allowed there dog to poop in front of their store and people had stepped in it and walked into the store and made a mess. They commented that people who raise dogs should carry with them bags and clean up after their dogs. It is easy for the someone to take their dog outside and not clean up after them, but they don’t realize the trouble that they are causing others. They are only thinking about their own comfort. Another person blogged about how they were driving with the window down, and someone next to them threw out a cigarette and the ashes hit their face. They commented that it could have been more problems if the the lit part of the cigarette had hit them or entered into the car. They posted multiple picture of people and their bad behavior. All people want to be free of trouble and live comfortably. The bible teaches us basic principles to live by. Are you living according to these principles? Or are you living how you want? Are you living how you want to live but telling your children how they should be living? If you are not showing them how to live a life of faith, then how will they be able to do so without anyone showing them? The grandparents, parents and children all know in their head what they are to do. The reason no one is able to do what they know is because no one has seen it to be able to follow the example. They end up thinking that all they need to do is know it in their head. The children think that to get to heaven all they have to do is say that they believe in God because that is what their grandparents showed them and what their parents showed them. The children assume that they can go do whatever they want with their friends and come on Sunday and pray to God and everything is fine. There is no change because the parent showed no life of change. The parent does not change, so the children do not change. Because I do not change, I am unable to change the world around me. And because I am unable to change I cannot be the light to this world or the fragrance of Christ. No one can look at me and call me a Christian, but I ignore what others think about me and think that I am myself a good believer. I am living in my own stubborn way, but the bible says that I am not the judge, but God is the judge. The bible tells us that the things I have spoken will judge me, and the life I live will be judged and the word of God will be the standard to which I am judged. If we forget these things and have become prisoners in our own thoughts will we be able to live the life that others will call as Christ like? Let us examine ourselves. Even the world tell us that if we are able to be careful one time, restrain ourselves one time, we will keep ourselves from harm, others will take notice of our hard work, and people will consider us well, but we have a hard time restraining ourselves that one time. Because we are unable to restrain ourselves, not only will we be judged negatively but we will fail at making the necessary changes to improve our lives and we will be exposed. Rather than bettering your life it will get worse. In today’s hymn we sang about the blood of Jesus. It used to be the blood of Golgotha and then the blood of the cross. The problem is that both Golgotha and the cross is wrong. We assume that whenever we sing about the cross that it is automatically Jesus. But in truth anyone can hold a cross. Even the two sinners that were crucified with Christ both held crosses. Whose cross are you talking about? Unless you specify the cross of Jesus, then one can assume any cross even the cross of the thief. In one’s own life their own blood gives them life. Does it not? If one can make an argument like this, then you must be specific. I am not the only Kyung. Nor am I the only Kyung Jin Park. If I am in a room with other people with the same name then you must specify Pastor Kyung Jin Park if you are talking about me. If we talk about the blood, then we must specify the blood of Christ. If we specify the blood of Jesus that He shed on the cross then there can be no confusion. When we speak we must be clear so that there is no miscommunication. Between spouses and parents and their children you cannot just assume that the other person understands. You cannot expect a child to know when it is what they did not know that got them into trouble. Unless you specify exactly what you mean they will never understand. You cannot assume they will know what you mean. It is easy for you to tell them to go figure it out but you are making more trouble for them. It would have been better had you not said anything in the first place. Through the word we are taught everything and through Jesus we were shown how to live our lives. The disciples followed Jesus and recorded all these things. It is difficult for us to follow Jesus when we do not see Him. It is not easy. Jabez was born through difficulty. His name means sorrow. Was it because Jabez was born and his mother felt sorrow for the child, or was it that his mother was going through a sorrowful time in her life. We do not know for sure. What we do know is that Jabez’s prayer and the answer to that prayer is recorded. There is no other mention of Jabez. Even if there is no other history or record of my life, though I live in sorrow and difficulty, I am able to live my life in a way that will allow God to answer my prayers and be evident for others to see. I may come from a family that does not believe or maybe I am able to change my life from one of pursuing my own pleasures to pursuing God, and God answers my prayer and he expands my territory and keeps me from harm. Then I will be able to speak boldly of God and how He has answered my prayers. Are you prayer warrior? If you want to live like this, then you must cut yourself off from the pleasures of this world. You must decide that you will no longer chase after the things of this world but pursue only God through prayer and His word. Rather than watching TV you will use that time to get closer to God. You must decide to stop chasing pleasure, going after entertainment, cut out TV, or pursuing the pleasures of the flesh. Y must decide that you will use that time to pray, to sing praises, to read the word, to unite the family as one, to live your life centered around God’s word and stand up and go forth and live it. When you live like this then your prayer will be answered. I spent all week meditating on this verse. What do you see when you read the verse? 10 Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request. Is it where God granted His request? Or where He enlarged His territory? I would like to share with you other translations of this verse. In one translation it states that "Jabez cried out to the God of Israel," If you are going to bless me, then enlarge my territory... Another translation states "Jabez cried to to the God of Israel, "I want you to bless me and increase the blessings... The King James Version states, "And Jabez called on the God of Israel, saying, Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast..." Yet another translation states, "Jabez called out to the God of Israel, 'God bless me and enlarge my territory..." What is the difference? Do they say the same thing? That is why I keep emphasizing to you that when your mind has been conditioned a certain way you will pass by the words and not truly understand the meaning of it. In the past the translations were from a standpoint where one would ask God, but now if we see the newer translations they seem no longer to ask but rather demand from God. It is not enough to demand, now we demand more and more from Him. We tell God that we will do things with our own strength, and if He is going to bless us, then not only do we want what He is going to give us but we demand everything as well. When the meaning of these words are embedded into our hearts, will we humble ourselves before God or will we start raising ourselves up to Him? By raising ourselves up we bring God down to our level. Is this not the way we use words when we pray? Is this not the way we speak to each other between husband and wife, children and other people as well? We say things in passing without thinking that the consequence of what we say is hurting someone else. The things we say are what separates us as either Christian or part of the world. This is very important. Do you realize that the words are showing you the truth in you about the things you must change as you desire to get closer to God? Or do you keep changing the meaning of words to make it easier for yourself to live the way you want? Will God answer that prayer? How can anyone think that we are Christ like if when we pray rather than asking God, we are demanding of Him, and rather than being humble, we are rude? People will realize that we are not real Christians, but that we have been tainted by some other belief. We have changed the truth.This is is how people are considered cults because it starts with twisting the truth. If everyone jumps off the bridge will you also jump? That is foolish. It does not matter that someone may deem me worthy, if before God I am unable to stand before Him justly then I have failed. It does not matter that others will persecute me and bring me down, as long as I live by His word and am acknowledged by Him, then I can stand confident before any man. Our problem is that we want other people to notice us and acknowledge us. If our focus is on others then just like the spirit of the Olympic games is being effected by outside influences, we too will be effected by our desires or the desire to please others rather than to live our lives focused on Christ and worshipping God and giving Him glory. What use is it to make huge sums of money by gambling? If I become wealthy and accumulate much land and receive much praise, in the end I will stand before Him with nothing and end up going to hell. Let us live centered around the word of God. Let us live glorifying God. Let us live proclaiming that Jesus is our Lord and Savior. Let us live in obedience to the Holy Spirit. Unless I decide to die to myself everyday we will end up being like the rest of this world. We must avoid living this life. We must be people who use each word with the proper meaning, and be one who is acknowledged by Jesus as a true Christian. Examine yourself and see if you have any habits that you are showing your children as bad examples and cut them out of your life. You must cut them out so that your children can remove them, also. Then others can see the example of Christianity and you can be acknowledged by God. Lay your life before Him and live the life of change. May you live the life that allows you to be one with Jesus by using your strength and humbling yourself before Him. May you and your family be one in Jesus. Sermon by Pastor Howard K.J. Park translation by Miguel Park

2 Samuel 3:1; Matthew 10:34-38

2 Samuel 3:1 1 The war between the house of Saul and the house of David lasted a long time. David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker. Matthew 10:34-38 34 "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to turn " 'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law — 36 a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.' 37 "Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Many of us think that the old testament and the new testament are different. The OT is thought of as the time before Christ and therefore has no bearing in our lives. The NT is thought of as the time of grace, apart from the law. Many people think that the OT binds us to the law and unnecessary because now we live in the new time of grace. Many people think that the ways of the OT are more difficult and that the NT is easier. We are heading down the wrong path. Though we sin we think that we are easily forgiven. We think we can do what we want and that God will forgive us freely. Many people have this personal easy? belief. What I want to ask you is, today, if you call yourself a Christian or if others call you a Christian, if you confess that you believe in Jesus, and are living your life before God, what kind of life is it that you live? What is your life like as a Christian? Is it blessed? Is it peaceful? Is it a life where you are achieving your goals? Is it filled with conflict? Let us reflect on this. Ask yourself this question and answer it for yourselves. As you sit here before God today, is my life blessed? Is it blessed? Is my life well and headed in the direction I want it to be going? Jesus came to give us peace, is there peace in our family? Are you able to answer these questions positively. Answer these questions for yourself and now I will speak on it. In today's OT passage, 2 Samuel 3:1 we see that there was a war between David's house and Saul's house. David was getting strong while Saul was was getting weaker. The house of David and the house of Saul was at war. This is a record after the death of Saul. Saul was anointed by God and was the first king of Israel. David also was a king of Israel anointed by God. Why was one king, who was anointed by God, getting weaker and going down a path of ruin, and another king getting stronger and taking a path that was blessed? Even though I don't explain it, you have all read the bible and everyone knows the reason. In Matthew 10:34-38 Jesus says: 34 "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. We think that because of Jesus we should have peace but Jesus tells us he came to bring a sword. 35 For I have come to turn " 'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law — 36 a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.' He further says: 37 "Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. So I ask you again, do you acknowledge yourself that you are a Christian? If truly so, then is your life comparable to that of a beautiful spring day where you can take the family out to play? Because of Jesus, because as a Christian and you believe in Him, is your family life like a beautiful spring day, does you family enjoy each other? Or, is your family a war zone, where you don't have a moments rest being constantly bombarded by artillery. Is your family like a beautiful spring day or a war zone that is shelled by artillery. Having been saved by Jesus and being a child of God, and now having my Lord who handles all my problems, do you say that I am at peace. I will enjoy life. I have been forgiven my sins. I have been guaranteed heaven, and everything is going to be great, so what is there to worry about I just have to live in peace. I will live the way I want and then call upon Him and then He will forgive me. If I say that I believe in Him, come to him like a child then he will take care of everything. What do you think? Do you have financial problems? They say all you have to do is pray to God. Are you sick? Then ask Him and He will heal you. If your children have problems, all you need to do is ask Him to let your children be well and He will take care of everything. We are told that God will take care of all our problems, so why should I worry? If I think a certain way and call upon Him, I was told that I would receive all the blessings because of Jesus, so why should I worry? I should just enjoy life. Look at how blessed I am. Of course, there are others who have more money than me, and may be healthier than me, and have nicer things but to put it simply, I have been given the freedom am able to forget about all my problems do nothing about them. Is there anyone who has a greater blessing because of believing in Jesus? Is this the life that you are living? Do you compare yourself to someone else and think that you have more faith than that person, that you pray more than that person, that you have spent more time at the church, that you have a high position in church, that you have important responsibilities, that you volunteer, and go on missions. You do everything that you can. So what is left that you should worry and live life in difficulty? Or when you pray and your prayers are answered, you are shown things, and you hear things. Because of being able to see and hear do you think that your faith is good enough? Do you comfort yourself by telling yourself that you have attained enough? Is this how you are living your spiritual life? I want to ask you where did this foundation of comfort and self-satisfaction come from? You say that whenever you pray, your prayers are answered, and you are shown things, even if you do not want to be shown, you are shown things in the word and you are given visions, even when you do not want to be shown, you hear things and you have met Him, is it not enough? How did you decide that it is enough? What is the measuring rod you used to make that decision? Who told you that that was enough and made that decision for you? Who did this? Who told you that because you have met him in prayer, and that your prayers are being answered, and because you have visions that you have passed the test of faith in Jesus? Who? Because you believed in Jesus for 10 years which is more than someone who has believed him for 9 years, because you have had more faith, and better faith, and because you have made sacrifices, who has given you recognition? Who told you that you would be recognized because you have gone to church your entire life? Who? Where does it say that you are recognized for such things that you would put pride in such things and live your spiritual life believing this? Who fed you this and where does it say so in the bible that you are living your life of faith in this manner? Did Jesus teach us that because we have been going to church our entire lives, since we were in our mother's belly, that he will be pleased and that we will be guaranteed heaven? Did Jesus teach this way? Or, did he teach that because for Him, you competed in growing a big church, or gave much in offerings, or did many works at church, and even went on missions, and because of such sacrifices, did Jesus teach us that He would take you to heaven? Is this in the bible? Did His disciples teach this way? Neither Jesus nor His disciples taught this way, but we, in order to bring people to God, have taught that believe in Jesus and be blessed, believe Jesus and be prosperous. We teach people to "believe in Jesus"...and then... we attach the things of this world to tempt them so that we can tell God that we have brought many people to Him. Did you teach the word correctly or did you change it? You have changed it. Of all the countless teachings of Jesus, you change a word here and there to bring many souls to God and having done so, you ask God because He teaches us to seek, knock and ask and everything will be given to us. So you tell him, Lord, I have prayed, I have knocked, and I have sought so now you have to bless me, give me health, open up the path before me, you must do everything for me. Did Jesus tell us to pray so that we may receive the blessings of this world? Did Jesus teach us to knock so that we may be healed from our sicknesses? If we miss the point of Jesus' teaching and change the meaning of his words then is what is being said right or wrong? No one argue against you if you interpret it your way. You can be right in your own interpretation, but unless you compare right and wrong with what Jesus teaches. Though you may think you are right, and if you compare it with what Jesus teaches and you are wrong, then at the final judgment, no matter how much you will argue that you are right, you will be found wrong. Is this not the foundation of our belief? Today the media outlet has advanced greatly. Where before a competition was seen from one angle, now we can see many angles. Where from one view things seem right, from another view we can see the error in the play or call of the referee. Do they change the call because of what we see? They do not. There are some sports that use the instant replay like american football, but until recently, the call was never changed because in the game the final call depended on the call of the referee. Who had the greatest power? The referee did. If all 7 billion people on earth, or all the people from the start of Adam, or all the people that will be from the beginning until the second coming, if all thee people say 'no' but Jesus says 'yes' then it is yes. If everyone says 'yes' and Jesus says 'no' then we did to acknowledge that what Jesus says is correct and follow Him. But rather we say, I have done enough. In your own pride you think that you have taken one step closer to our Lord than another person, and you think that you have prayed one minute longer than that other person. You have read one more chapter in the bible, and you have served in the church longer than that other person and in your self-satisfaction, if you do not live the life that of obedience to our Lord, then the referee of our lives will say 'no' to you. If I say to you that I was raised and served in the church my entire life, and I stand before you today. Am I able to tell you that I follow Jesus better than you? Can I say that? No one can tell me otherwise. But who must be the one who acknowledges me? God must be the one who calls me a good servant a faithful servant. If He does not acknowledge me then I have failed. But we, when we compare ourselves with others, you may say that you are better than that pastor, better than the elder, better than a deacon, and you keep comparing yourself with your neighbor and is this not the reason that there are problems? In our prayer for worship, the representative prayed that the fields in our hearts be completely turned over. I speak frequently about the garden. Many times I have turned over the dirt, over again and again, there are those who have learned much and those who have learned little. If I turn over the dirt, but if I do not remove all the roots of the weeds, what will happen? What will happen? It will have been no use. In the dirt that you have turned over, the roots will grow back the deeper you dig, now the roots that were once shallow will be turned over into deeper ground. Soon the weeds that grow will be more harmful than before. They will be more difficult to remove than before. If I stand before God led by the spirit and experience a revival and I cry, have a runny nose and have a physical experience and with my mouth I confess everything but unless I live my life and decisively remove the root of sin, then all those sins which I have confessed under grace will only grow itself again but deeper in me. So when you come before God, and you pray, and when you have received grace, you seem diligent, and you seem to have changed but there is no change rather, the roots of sin are causing you more problems in your life but you don't understand that. Why is there no change? You turned over the dirt, but you fail to see that you are actually putting the sin deeper with yourself. If you turned over the dirt, then all the roots, even the very small ones, that come out of me from all that I see, hear and think must all individually be taken out and thrown away, but you do not take them out and you do not throw them away. You have not made the decision. This is the life that you live where there is no clear spiritual victory. That is why even though Saul was an anointed servant, and although he was humble and acknowledged by God and raised as king, but after he was made king he was unable to remove the roots his sin and therefore everything was given to David. What about David? He came from place that was lesser than Saul. He was a shepherd, that was called from the fields. His brothers were dressed in nice clothes, but David was called while he was working. Even Samuel when he saw the brothers thought to himself that there would be someone worthy of anointing, but God said no. Rather they called the shepherd boy who was out tending the sheep and anointed him. From that day forth, when faced with difficulties David lived a life where he drew closer to God whereas Saul, whenever he faced trials lived to protect himself and did what was easy and chose the path of sin. Both David and Saul received the same anointing but as time progressed whenever there was war, the house of Saul who left God could only get weaker, but the house of David only became stronger as they went color to God. Today as we come before God, He tells us that he came not to bring peace but a sword and to make enemies within the household, who is the reason that this should happen? This is for those who choose to draw closer to God and must decide that no one will get in their way of doing so. So if anyone will stand in the way of this you must decide that they are a stumbling block and decide to fight anyone who will stop you. Rather than trying to stand up and lead the way for your family in this spiritual war, you try and pull back your spouse or child who is going ahead of you, or your parents who are doing well. Telling them to satisfy your need before they go after God. Is this not how we are? Even though it may be difficult for you, you do not try to support your spouse in achieving closeness to God. You don't try to encourage your spouse to pray a bit more even though you may be having a difficult time praying. Rather you prefer that your spouse lay in bed in your arms and sleep than pray. You desire comfort. You prefer that your spouse would could you something you want to eat rather than spend time in prayer. Rather than spending time in the word you desire that you and your spouse go spend time shopping. You desire that you a satisfied first, according to your needs and ask that your spouse meet your demands. By doing this you are making yourself a spiritual enemy, but you don't think of yourself as an enemy. Rather you think you are comfortably headed toward God and have let go of the things that you should be concerned about. Let us take a look at ourselves and if this is so, if I am the one who is hindering my wife or husband from getting closer to God, if I am the stumbling block, then I will be the one who will be judged accordingly. You may say as an excuse that you were trying to go as one, that you are one in body, one as a family, but in light of God's word it will show that you have changed the meaning of the word to believe what you want. In a spiritual war, as in any war, we all dislike it. Many people die because of it. In all history many people have died because of wars, but as today or in the past, there are wars that seem to be lost but have won, and there have been wars that have seemed to be won but have lost. How can this be? There is always a representative in war. One hundred thousand in war against one hundred thousand. One side has ninety thousand dead but lives their king, the other side has none of their soldiers lost but the king is dead, then who has won the war? We see it as the country with the king who is alive is the victor. This is an example. If the representative of the country, the king lives then the war is won. For a war there are many necessary things, including information, weapons, supplies and organization. But most important is the survival of the representative, the king, to live and succeed for there to be victory. What we mean by spiritual war is the fight between Jesus who is in me and Satan who tries to make me fall. If I live, and the king of my life, Jesus is no longer in me, if he is dead, then can I win the spiritual war? I have already lost the spiritual war. But in my body, if I have been persecuted, cursed upon, slandered, called evil things, been mocked, ignored, treated inhumanely, and have been called unbelievable things, but if I decide inside that I will live a life that follows Jesus, and Satan has been killed within me, physically I may feel as though I am dead, but spiritually I have become the victor. This fight is the spiritual battle that must go on inside me. But rather, we fight where we decide how I will live. Because you live, you think Jesus also lives together in you. If the battle you fight is decided upon you then you will lose. Jesus says he did not come to bring peace but to bring a sword, means that to follow Jesus there will be a time where you will have to forget about your wife, forget about your children, forget about your husband and your parents. It says that there will be such a time, but within us there is not such a time. You think about your wife first, yourself first, your children and whenever your family is first in your life, then you have been defeated spiritually. Do you think this way? Nobody thinks this way. Rather you think that you are blessed because of Jesus, because He answers your prayers, because you heard his voice with your ears you think that you have victory in God. You are mistaken. Why? You don't realize that you have fallen into a trap and made to think that you have had your prayers answered. You did not listen to the words that require obedience but instead you listened to what you wanted to hear, because you are your own king, and Jesus who should be king does not reign in you. Whose flag is flying in your heart? Whose voice are you listening to and following? If you are trying to win a war that has already been lost, maybe you should rethink the situation. In a spiritual war, as we use the example of kings, and we talk about Saul and David, what I am telling you today is that the New Testament time after the Old Testament, the spiritual life is more difficult because you yourself, individually are a nation that represents a king. Your individual battle is comparable to a nation going to war. When I fail once, when I say something that I should not, and hinder God's glory and crucify Christ, like Judas if I betray Jesus through my actions or speech, then I have killed the king of the nation, Jesus and losing the war. If I lose the war then the rest of my life I am already defeated. That is why the New Testament life is more difficult. In the Old Testament, when the king represents the country and one hundred thousand go to war and half of them die, if the king still lives then they all are victorious. It does not matter that there is only half, if the king succeeds then they all succeed. This is how it is when you go to war representing someone. When the victory depends on the life of the king, my is insignificant for victory. But in the New Testament, I am the representative, when I die then it is all over. The decision to live or die is based on what I choose to see, hear, speak, and act. That which I decide today will either take me to the left or the right. The seeds I sow will be that I which I reap. If I make a mistake, it can affect those around me. But they too must decide for themselves the choices they will make. It does not matter what I do, if the person next to me looks and says that I am wrong and they choose not to do what I do, then the matter is irrelevant. We have a video on our website that is a documentary about people's behaviors. It is called the double face of humanity. They approached people on the street and asked them directions but as soon as they asked, the person that did the asking was changed with a different person while creating a little distraction. So the person who asked the question was switched after asking the question. The person who was asked the question had no idea that someone else was standing in front of them. So if I asked a question and suddenly if Charles came and stood in front of them they would continue on with giving the directions not realizing that the person who asked we no longer there. So they did this a few times and then made more drastic changes. Where they had originally changed people of a similar age, late they had changed people from someone in their twenties to someone in their fifties or sixties, still people did not realize that someone else was standing in front of them. Even more surprising when a man had asked and switched for a woman, the people did a double take but continued with giving the directions. No one stopped and commented that there was someone different standing in front of them that was not the person who they had first encountered. They concluded that people will see what they want to see and hear what they want to hear. When someone asks us a question, our focus becomes the task to answer the question but we don't realize that there is someone else in front of us. Even when a man is replaced by a woman people just carry on. So they took that test to the next level and took it to a hospital and had three doctors with two of them hiding under the desk. So three doctors would examine a patient. While they were interviewing the patient they would pretend to drop a pen and go down and then a different doctor would come up, then after a couple of questions drop something and then the third doctor would come up. So as the doctors kept changing the patient would pause for a second but then continue with answering the questions and say what they needed to say. No one ever questioned why there was a different doctor. The patient was only concerned with what they wanted to say and answering the question. What do we learn from this? 80 percent of the people have no concern about what is in front of them and 20 percent of the people may sense that something has changed, but people will speak what is on their mind without regard for the circumstance. You say you live a life of faith, but it doesn't matter what the pastor says to you, you only hear what you want to hear and do not listen to the things that you choose not to hear. No matter how much time you spend reading the bible, you only read the things that you want and the things that you do not want to read you ignore. You are shaping your life this way. This is the double face of humanity. You think that by thinking positively everything will be positive and therefore you only look for scripture that has positive words. You don't think about changing your life and living according to the scripture. Is this not the reason why you have problems in your spiritual life? You cannot have victory in your spiritual life, if you do not consider yourself a nation representing Jesus as your king, but rather you keep trying to force your will in your own life. Also in the documentary, they asked the viewers how many thoughts can one have in one second? Is it two, three? How many? I am only repeating their study and the science that they used. In one second a person has 11 million thoughts. Of those 11 million the person is aware of about 40 and acts on those thoughts. The brain is capable of processing 11 million thoughts in one second. Who made it so? Of all the millions of thoughts that occur in a 24 hour period, I am the one who listens sees, remembers, decides and chooses and the result of that will decide my life. Who decides? Who chooses? You are told that by what you decide, choose and judge the result of that will effect the outcome of my life but you don't really think about it. You live life thinking that you can do whatever you want. By making the right choices I can live a life that glorifies God. But when I am only focused on myself and my desires, then eventually I will end up in ruin. The reason is because I fail to realize who I am. I think that I am the master of my life so I do what I want and it is this stubborn attitude that leads me to ruin. I am going down the path that Saul went down. Because Jesus has saved me and God is answering my prayers, I determine that I am doing the will of God even though I am my own master walking down the same path of destruction that Saul has gone. I was sinner called by God to be saved from my sin, to be anointed, to be a king, to be a priest, like David, to live a life that glorifies God by following Him in obedience, then I would be able to receive the blessings as of a king. But it is because I refuse to decide to turn from sin, but rather I choose to follow Saul and live for myself. It is a useless battle that will end in defeat. Another way to look at the double face of humanity is people do not know what the other person is thinking, they are only concerned with what they want to say. When you are trying to explain something and the other person is unable to understand, you get angry. You don't realize that you are the one speaking incorrectly. When pray to God you don't pray the way God desires, you pray for your own satisfaction. Then when you are done praying you tell Him to bless you because you have done what was required. Will your prayer be answered? Will your life be right with God? You may think your life is right, but those around you will see that you have yet to be right before God. You cannot change if you do not see the standard to which God is setting. You may think that your child is the best, but it is the people around you who must acknowledge that for it to be truth. It does not matter what the parents think, you need to listen to what other people see and think. If I think that I am good looking, humorous, make plenty of money and have many great qualities and consider myself a 90 out of 100, but other people look at me and think of me as only 60 then that is the reality of my life. I refuse to accept the truth. As I must change my life do that others may know that I have changed, I must live my life not by my standards but by God's standards. But it is because I do not change that my spiritual life has never progressed and it is stagnant. That is why people look at me and ridicule Christianity and I have nothing to say in response because I have been living for my own satisfaction and have not changed. I must live the life that God acknowledges. It is a life that others look at and do not praise me, but it is a life that they realize is difficult to live and praise God 42:35 Unless you are alert at every moment in this spiritual war, you will be like Saul who fell into the trap and could not let go of the sin in his life, even though he knew of it. All the outcomes of wars are in the hands of God. Since this is so, all the wars have already been won. David, Hezekiah, and Jehoshaphat all went to war believing this. When David went to war he fought according to God's method. Hezekiah used God's method and killed 185,000. Jehoshaphat went to war singing praises to God and God gave him victory. When Elijah was on Mt. Carmel it was the same. The battles fought by the disciples were not ones that had them singing but where they were beat, imprisoned,suffered hunger, and much persecution, but they lived the life that gave their king victory. Though my body be beaten, tortured, and hungry, though I experience incredible pain, I gain victory by living the life that gives victory to my king and that is done following in obedience to God. Today we have been called by God and are in a spiritual war. Your homes are not places of peace, but a place where an incredible amount of artillery in being dropped, by the actions of your spouse, by what they watch, by the things they speak, your children's actions. Things are constantly attacking you trying bring you down, and if you are not alert, of you are not awake in this spiritual war, you cannot win. Though all the attacks ravage my body I cannot win this war unless I am determined to stand firm in God's word and bring victory to Jesus my king. I must decide that no matter what happens to me that I will bring glory to Jesus. This is the decision that will allow me to blow the horn of spiritual victory. If I decide that I will live for myself, my desires, then Jesus will not reign in me but Satan will reign. I may live but I will be spiritually defeated. Know that you stand in the battlefield of a spiritual war. Think about what kind of life you must live. What it means to be anointed by God. Think about what you must do and how you will lead your country, your family. Are you going down the path that Saul did, or are you following the path that David has gone. In this spiritual war, is following Jesus more important than your parents and your children? You must decide for yourself. In living your life victoriously, may God receive the glory. May you all be victorious and he acknowledge you and give you entrance into His kingdom. Sermon by Pastor Howard K.J. Park translation by Miguel Park

John 21:15-22

July 8, 2012   John 21:15-22 15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?" "Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my lambs." 16 Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep." 17 The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my sheep. 18 Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go." 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, "Follow me!" 20 Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is going to betray you?") 21 When Peter saw him, he asked, "Lord, what about him?"  22 Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me."   We are familiar with this passage. We always focus on the part where Jesus tells Peter to feed His sheep. Today we will focus on the part where Jesus tells us to "follow me." Jesus in his ministry said "follow me" many times. Matthew 8:22, 9:9, 19:21, Mark 2:14, John 1:43. But here in this passage he is telling Peter that even though he will no longer be with them, he is told to follow him with the same purpose. What did Jesus mean by "follow me?" Is it the purpose he meant or the method to follow? Was heaven the purpose, to follow Jesus to heaven? Or is to learn about Jesus, or is it to believe in Jesus? What do you think he means by "follow me?" If heaven is your purpose then you must decide how you will attain it. If the world is your purpose then you must live accordingly. If you decide to attain heaven but live for the world, then you will not achieve your goal. What is your goal? Is it heaven, is it the world, is it Jesus? In our daily life, we have many moments where decide things continually about what we must do, but also there is a greater purpose that overshadows our entire life that will decide how we choose in our moments, because in the end we will have to answer to God. When things are cheap we use the things once and get rid of them. The more expensive the product we cherish it and use it well to keep it for a long time. If you call on God, he will work in you to make you worthy of him through trials. It is during these trials that you must persevere in order to be what God desires to make of you. It is good to learn the word of God, but if there is no change in your life then it is useless. What good is a fruit tree that does not bear fruit? Will you not cut it out and throw it away? Have you not done so in your homes? If Jesus comes to you to see if there is fruit and if there is none, he will get rid of you. Even of you try to maintain a perfect garden things will happen that will get in the way of everything from being perfect. In your spirit, as you try to live according to what is taught, Satan will come and try to ruin everything that you have worked for. How alert do you think that you must be to maintain and cultivate what you are trying to do? You must first get rid of the sin in your life. You must acknowledge your sin confess it to God and repent. If you do not acknowledge your sin then you do not see it keeping you from God though it is. You cannot get rid of your sin because you study the bible or spend time reading it. Even if you only knew one verse, it is living the life and doing all that you can to live the life that is taught in the bible. You do not see that every time you get angry and lash out at those around you, you are uprooting everything that you are trying to plant and grow. When you move a tree from one place to another, it will not immediately bear fruit. It will take time. Because you say you will change, or that you will follow Christ, it does not happen suddenly. There will be trials and difficulties. But with determination and perseverance your are to continue in faith and not lose sight of what is happening to you. Peter was told that he was going to die following Jesus. If I say that I am going to follow him, I must decide to relinquish my life and surrender it to him and do so until the end. When you were married or will get married you have goals about what you will do. You decide how much money you will make, what you will do for your children and how you will raise them. When you decide for the welfare of your children do you consider the sacrifice that is required to raise them? There is much more sacrifice, effort and unity required if you want to raise your children according to God's way. If there is any disagreement among the parents then you will not be able to do so. Did you get married to make money? Did you get married just to have a spouse? In faith, if you are not united you cannot make a good family. If you truly want to be one in Christ, with that one purpose, you must believe in what you are doing and follow the path that is set before you. Noah's family. How was it for his family? Do you think that his children had friends? Do you no think that they were ridiculed for over 100 years? How could his family achieved what they had done if they were not one? They were united in God's word and did not care about what they world said to them. When you decide to follow God the world will try to stop you and ridicule you, but you must decide what you will do. If Isaac did not see his father as the person he was, could he have obeyed Abraham and laid on the altar to be sacrificed? The life you live is teaching you children how to be. Isaac understood that in life you are to surrender all to God, because he saw his father live that way. If the is anything in your heart that satisfies you more than God then you will not be able to follow Him. Noah's family communicated well. They all understood that the word of God was the focus. It is this central point that allows the family to be one. David was anointed as king and was given the opportunity to be king by killing Saul, but David did not do it according to his purpose but waited for God to do his will in his time according to his purpose. Are you to live your life and make decisions how you want or how the bible teaches you to do? Did Paul go and do as he pleased? Paul could have stood behind his citizenship but stayed quiet and suffered beatings and being jailed. Why did he do so at the other time and say he was a citizen? It was so that God could use him to save the people around him according to His plan. If you are living your life so that you can sit in your throne and be raised up then to must asses what Jesus means by "follow me." Do you think that Jesus wants you to follow him to attain riches? When David tried to bring the Ark back he did it his way and Uzzah died. While the Ark remained in transit at the home of Obed Edom he was blessed by God. When David was to bring back the Ark the second time he did it the way God had taught them. God is not calling you to do what you want and for you to be lifted up. If you decide to overcome your problems by doing it your way, will God be glorified? The bible teaches us if we try to solve our problems through our own wisdom we will not be successful. If God tells us to say yes, but we say no , then we will not succeed. Jesus did not call Peter to be lifted up for himself but that through his death that God would be glorified. If God is calling you, then there is a path that he wants you to follow. Is it for you to be rich and praised by others? It may not be so. If God desires at he be glorified by following him unto death, then shall I say yes to Him or no to him. You cannot be victorious in your spiritual doing things the way you want. If the path I am to take is to follow Jesus, then are the blessings I seek for this present life or the after life? To follow Jesus and to go where he is, is then to live for the after life. If I do not succeed in my spiritual battles here, and I lose all the spiritual battles with Satan then I cannot go to heaven. Unless I surrender my will and ask Jesus to help me because I cannot do it on my own, I will never be able to follow Jesus. You can only overcome by doing it the way that Jesus teaches. If you have received the calling to follow Jesus then are you going to say yes to Him or no? If you decide yes, then there is only one way and that is obedience to his word. Unless I die, I cannot go on this path nor succeed. I must obey and die to myself. May you live a precious life that bears the fruit of obedience.   Sermon by pastor KyungJin Park Translated by Miguel Park http://cafe.daum.net/truelightchurch1004

Deuteronomy 11:1-9

  July 1, 2012   Deuteronomy 11:1-9 1 Love the Lord your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always. 2 Remember today that your children were not the ones who saw and experienced the discipline of the Lord your God: his majesty, his mighty hand, his outstretched arm; 3 the signs he performed and the things he did in the heart of Egypt, both to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his whole country; 4 what he did to the Egyptian army, to its horses and chariots, how he overwhelmed them with the waters of the Red Sea as they were pursuing you, and how the Lord brought lasting ruin on them. 5 It was not your children who saw what he did for you in the wilderness until you arrived at this place, 6 and what he did to Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab the Reubenite, when the earth opened its mouth right in the middle of all Israel and swallowed them up with their households, their tents and every living thing that belonged to them. 7 But it was your own eyes that saw all these great things the Lord has done. 8 Observe therefore all the commands I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and take over the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, 9 and so that you may live long in the land the Lord swore to your ancestors to give to them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey. In our Christian walk there are many times where we lose sight of the basics. First, is that it is Christ who saves us from death but we forget that we are to live a life that shows that we have been saved. Last week I talked to you about whether it is better to be an heir or to be a servant. If it is true that you desire that God is glorified in all the world, then what does that mean? Can you give God glory only in your private life and not do so when you out to live in the world? Or must you live a life that is giving him glory no matter where you live so that God truly is glorified? How you use a word changes the entire meaning of what you say. In today's passage Moses is simply telling the people to observe the commands of God. He is telling them all that to do whatever it is, whatever position you are in to be an representative of God. If you raise daughters as if they were boys how would those girls end up? A daughters or as sons? Do you not teach accordingly? As a Christian are you taking all the responsibility of all your positions and doing it well? As a parent, church member, business person. Moses tells them that if they want to live long and blessed then they are to follow God and his commands. Do people want to succeed? There can be no success without discernment. If you do not know what your goal is and what the purpose of what you are doing then there can be no success. So what do you use to decide what is important or not? Is it based on your emotions? Children use their emotions to decide what they want. What will they learn? If they see their parents in a loving relationship what will they learn? If they see their parents always arguing and fighting, and hearing one parent speak evil of the other, what will the children learn? Do you realize that everything you do, you are teaching your children to do? Moses speaks to the people and tells them that they had learned all about God and His commands from their parents. He tells them to go forth and live the life that will give the success by obeying God and his commands. When the people crossed the Jordan did those occupying the land freely give the Israelites what they wanted? They went to war. If I do not take what is promised I cannot receive. If I do not walk the path that God has shown me in obedience and Iive that life, I cannot receive the land that is promised to me. In Canaan there will be enemies that want to take what is mine. In all of heaven, there is not a bit of evil or hell. In the promised land, I must wipe out all that is evil. If I do not I cannot be completely victorious. I must fight that Spiritual battle daily with the word of God. I must decide to stand up and fight. If you think that you can freely cross the Jordan and easily walk into the promised land, will you succeed in taking what it yours? Without the battle will your life be representative of that of Christ? After their first battle, Joshua used man's method and lost. When they turned back to God they were given an even greater victory. We must follow God and use His ways to fight our battles. The only way you will be remembered in you family history as one who was great in serving God then you must seek God everything that you do everyday. The family was given to you so that you can find all the blessings God has for you through it. To make the family complete each of you must do your part as one who follows Christ. Jesus says he does what he saw the Father do. Then you must do what Jesus did so that you can please the Father also. The day we are raptured is the day of judgement. We forget that we all will be judged. The five foolish brides had lamps and had oil, but they lacked the oil to participate in the banquet. Do you live the life that keeps burning? Are you living like the disciples? If you do not turn from your sin and live in obedience, you will not make it in the end. I cannot hide the sins in my heart and think that I will be one with Christ. I must confess openly to him all that I have done and turn from all of it. When the one you love desires to see you but you make excuses and do not meet them, the that relationship will be broken. If Christ desires to meet with you then it does not matter the time or place, meet with Him. If Christ tells you to forgive, to love why do you keep being stubborn and refusing to do so. If you keep it up there will be no relationship with Christ. Through the family you are to learn to practice the teachings of Christ, but you do not do it. You waste so much time doing useless things rather than trying to communicate with your spouse. Some people golf, watch TV or do whatever it is but do not try to listen to their spouse. Are you using all your strength to do what God commands? Why do you refuse to apologize for your mistakes, you think that by buying a gift or taking the other out to eat the problem is resolved but it is not. Our relationship with Christ is reflective of our relationships in our family. Can the things you desire be achieved through your stubbornness? We must take a look at ourselves and see if we are truly living a life that follows God. Or families are to be holy, clean and perfect so that God will accept our worship. It is in our struggle to make the family complete that God can be seen in our lives. May you live the life that gives glory to God.   Sermon by pastor KyungJin Park Translated by Miguel Park http://cafe.daum.net/truelightchurch1004    

Genesis 15:2

Genesis 15:2 2 But Abram said, "Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?" Acts 2:47 47praisingGodandenjoyingthefavorofallthepeople. AndtheLordaddedtotheirnumberdailythosewhowerebeingsaved. Acts 5:13 13 No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. Last week we learned about Abraham's servant and his prayer. Tolstoy said that people try to change the world but do not try to change themselves. People try so hard to change their world but they don't put in effort to change themselves. Abraham prayed for one thing and that was an heir to his family. He only had one person to give it all to and that was his servant Eliezer who he named in his prayer. What kind of servant was he that he caught the eye of Abraham and that he would consider leaving all he had to him? We know how wealthy Abraham was. When Abraham and his servants went out to war, have you ever considered how disciplined they must have been to be able to lay down their life and go to war at the command of their master? Have you ever thought about what kind of person Eliezer must have been to be the one that is recognized of all his servants? Do you live the life to be recognized by God? In Acts, the people were blessed by God. The believers were not associated by the nonbelievers but the nonbelievers still acknowledged them. The believers were shunned by them but still received praise. Are we living the life like them? We say that we need to witness to others and rather than drawing the line of what we will and will not do, we rather participate in the life of the world and bring shame upon myself and Jesus. We do not separate ourselves and that is the problem. What were the servants able to see that allowed them to follow their master to battle without regard for their own lives and what caused them to obey him and ask for God's help in finding favor to please their master? The life of the servant must be different that others will look upon them and say that they live a godly life and receive praise for their actions. What is your purpose in life? Is it to be the master of your own life? Are you the master of your own life? When you look at yourself you will see that you lack somewhere in your life. Why is it that if I am my own master and I eat to please myself, why do we get sick and have disease? It is because you did not listen to the wisdom to follow how to take care of yourself and now you suffer for the poor choices you make. If you realize this then you need to make the change now, but rather than turn and change we say that we will do it next time. If you say that you serve God then are you his servant? We say that we are his servant but we also want to be his children. What is easier, to be a servant or to be e children? The head of Samsung gave his company over to his 3rd son. He did so because the third one had more potential than the others. We are commanded to be holy but are you? We are told to rid ourselves of sin, but have you? It is our faults that the Christian religion receives a bad name. We are the reason that people look at us and say bad things about us. When the servant is told to do one thing then all the servant needs to do is that one thing. If you fail then you will be punished and if you do it well you will be praised. The life is simple. If you say that you will live your life as a servant of God, and do so in obedience, then the life that you live will be one that gives glory to God. But we make excuses, we ask for material blessings so that we can do our will and that is why suffering and difficulties surround us. Just as Abraham's servant got up and returned the very next moment to give the news to his master, we too must live to please God. Just like Eliezer must have been shunned by others because he stood apart from the rest, we too must be separate from the rest. We must be acknowledged by God and live a powerful life that shows that God is our master. We are to live a life that God will acknowledge. We are to live a life that others will look at and say that is hard to follow and that is the life that goes glory to God. Then you can be blessed here in this world and the next. We must overcome the sins of this world. May you be victorious in living the life that glorifies God.

Genesis 24:9-27

Genesis 24:9-27 9 So the servant put his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter. 10 Then the servant left, taking with him ten of his master's camels loaded with all kinds of good things from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim and made his way to the town of Nahor. 11 He had the camels kneel down near the well outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water. 12 Then he prayed, " Lord , God of my master Abraham, make me successful today, and show kindness to my master Abraham. 13 See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water. 14 May it be that when I say to a young woman, 'Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,' and she says, 'Drink, and I'll water your camels too' —let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master." 15 Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milkah, who was the wife of Abraham's brother Nahor. 16 The woman was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again. 17 The servant hurried to meet her and said, "Please give me a little water from your jar." 18 "Drink, my lord," she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink. 19 After she had given him a drink, she said, "I'll draw water for your camels too, until they have had enough to drink." 20 So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels. 21 Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the Lord had made his journey successful. 22 When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels. 23 Then he asked, "Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room in your father's house for us to spend the night?" 24 She answered him, "I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milkah bore to Nahor."25 And she added, "We have plenty of straw and fodder, as well as room for you to spend the night." 26 Then the man bowed down and worshiped the Lord, 27saying,"PraisebetotheLord,theGodofmymasterAbraham,whohasnotabandonedhiskindnessandfaithfulnesstomymaster. Asforme,theLordhasled me on the journey to the house of my master's relatives." Why is conversation important and why is it important to know the other person? In today's passage we read about Abraham, his servant, Isaac, Rebekah and her relatives. Who is the main character of today's story? Why is important to know how to converse and understand the point of conversation? All of Christ's teaching was given as parables. If you do not understand what he was speaking then all he taught means nothing. If you do not understand the person who speaks to you then what does it matter? Jesus taught us about heaven and how to get there, but we must be able to understand the point of his teaching, to know what he was saying and to achieve it. When we study history we know that war is won by understanding the enemy and knowing what their purpose and thoughts are. When we behave in a certain way in front of others our true thoughts and intentions are seen by everyone. In business, if we fail to sell the things that customers will buy we cannot succeed. If I give service the way I want and do not think about the customer then my business will fail. If I do not have Christ in my heart then I will never be like him. Unless Christ shines in my life then I can never be the true follower of Christ. It is not about raising my voice and interjecting my opinion, but it is listening to the end what the our person desires to say and at the end, with a calm voice saying what will give that person new and clear insight. A turtle can never beat the rabbit, but why do we say the turtle wins? It is all about perspective. The turtle saw the goal and ran his best race. The rabbit did not look at the goal but saw his opponent and was filled with pride. Looking at his opponent he lost sight of the goal and lost the race because he did not see the purpose. If you look at the world and think that you have done enough, you have prayed enough, fasted a few times, that you have been going to church since you re in your mother's belly, then you will fail. Because of your pride you will not succeed in this race to pursue Jesus. In today's passage let us look at the servant. His prayer was to please his master. He asked God to bless his work to please his master. We profess with our mouths that God is our master and that we are his servants. Then why is it that when we pray that we keep asking God for our needs? Why are our prayers focused on us and not for God's glory. We ask for strength, for blessings for all things that we can do for God but who are we really praying for? When Elijah prayed, he asked God to fulfill His word and God answered with fire. When we pray for God to do His will, then He will answer the prayer. The difference is small but the result is either the prayer is answered or not. If God is the focus then the prayer is answered. If you are the focus then the prayer will not be answered. If you are the child of God, as Jesus is His Son, then why do you think that you will only receive blessings when His own Son was crucified on the cross? Is it possible that you are missing the point? In bible times of you had premarital sex, you were stoned. In today's time we look at it as if it is part of the times. Mary put her life on the line to have Jesus. When we pray. We are not to ask for material blessings but we are to seek the things of the spirit, for strength to overcome our weaknesses so that we can do the will of God and transform our lives. It is not about material blessings we are to seek. Like Mary who submitted herself as a servant and risked her own life to bear Jesus as her son, we too need to submit to God so that we can find the strength of the cross in our lives. The bigger the crown the heavier it is. You may want it then you must bear the weight of it. As the world keeps attacking us, we must overcome, if we fail then it is our weakness. If I am not able to receive all the blessings that God desires for me then it is I who fail to to do so. I must have God as the focus of my life and from that focus all my thoughts and actions must be to give God, my master all glory. Just like the servant prayed to for success to please his master, we too must pray to God to help us succeed in pleasing Him. We must start with the very people who are closest to us. May you live the life that gives God glory.

1Peter 3:8-18

1 Peter 3:8-18 8 Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 10 For, "Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech. 11 They must turn from evil and do good; they must seek peace and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." 13 Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear their threats ; do not be frightened." 15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, 16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 17 For it is better, if it is God's will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. Last week I spoke to you about how easy it is to overlook sin in our lives and because of those sins we are not able to receive the blessings that God desires for us. In life there a things that can be known generally and other things that are to be known specifically. What is the most important thing in a conversation? It is listening in order to understand the main point. Without understanding you are just wasting time. When we interact with people it is possible to know the heart of someone without even speaking to them through body language. In war, it is possible to know the enemy through their actions and that can be the difference between victory and defeat. When someone comes to you, depending on the time they come, and how they come to you, you already know why they have approached you. When you are at work, and your boss approaches you, if you are quick to understand why he is speaking to you, and if you are able to move upon that knowledge, then you can succeed. The word of God has been given us so that we are able to receive all the blessings that God desires for us. If you a able to satisfy the need of your spouse, then they in turn will satisfy your need. God desks for us to submit to him, but before we do so, we ask Him to bless us. In today's passage it says that we were called to inherit a blessing. Who receives blessings? It is one who has prepared to receive it, the one who has done something worthy to be blessed. When you take an exam, will you receive a good grade when you refuse to answer the question?  If you think that you a better than the teacher and do not fill out the exam will you pass the class? If you do not do according to what the word says, can you receive the blessings that God has for you? The word of God is not only pastors, or elders, or some other believer.  It is for all.  For all who believe. All of us are to be one and like minded.  We are to turn from evil and to do good. We are to be compassionate and humble.  It stays to not repay evil with insult but do we live like this? How easily we argue with our spouses and say things that are evil to each other. It says that whoever would love life and see good days, then we are to keep our tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech. Do you need more clarification? It says to turn from evil and do good, to pursue peace. Have you ever thought that when you do not do these things that of a living in rebellion? You are being disobedient if you do not pursue peace.  Have you thought about this? It says that God has his eyes on the righteous and he hears their prayers. But what about those who are evil, their sin will be shown them on the day of judgement. It says that you are blessed when you suffer for what is right. How much did Paul suffer for Christ?  How many days did he suffer beatings, being shipwrecked even death for Christ? Peter suffered the death on the cross and he was crucified upside down. We think that we need to protect our lives.  We think that we are important because God is using us, but we fail to see that it is God who does His will and God is important not us. When God has provided us for us to share but we use it for our own pleasure, we will be punished.  How much more does one person need? When we are tempted by the things in this world, if we are lazy, or if we become complacent we are facing trials, but if we fail to see this and fall into it then our spirit goes numb to the truth. We fail to see the sin in our lives, we become unrepentant and then our relationships suffer because we have sin in our lives. We cannot be blessed because now there is sin in our life that is hindering us from drawing close to God. If your child asks for forgiveness is all forgiven, or do you wait to see the change in behavior to verify that the child is repentant? You cannot fool God into forgiving you. If there is sin in your heart that you refuse to repent of, then you cannot be blessed by God.  The sin in your life is destroying you. If Christ really is in you, then there must be repentance. The blessings you receive are not for you, but they are to be used by you to be a witness for Christ. You do not always have to go out a proclaim Christ. Your life should be intriguing to make others wonder what makes you so blessed, so that others will want to come to ask you why your life is so, then you can share the gospel of Christ. We need to see that God is speaking to us and that these words are for us to change our lives and then to receive the blessings.  We cannot ask God to give us the blessings first. It is useless to say that you are a Christian if my life does not follow the behaviors of one. When someone is speaking to me, to give me advice so that I may receive the blessings of life, then I must understand what they are saying and put those things into action. If you have things in your life that you need to change, then make the changes so that you can receive the blessings that God desires for you.

Colossians 3:5-6

Colossians 3:5-6, 5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. Last week I said that when we read the bible you should not open your heart to only the things that you like and close it to the words you do not like. Depending on our moods we either accept the words of someone or let them burden us. Are we not like this? We are all sinners before God. You can think of yourself this way or you can think that you are righteous before God. How do you see yourself? It is said that the one who thinks highly of themselves are the easiest to fool. The one who think that they are the smartest are easily taken advantage of. These are sayings of people who are not believers. We have the word of God that tells us these things but we refuse to listen. We don't listen to God or even the teachings of others. So who are you living your life after? Where are you going? What are you doing? We think that people are attacking us and we don't have the heart of humility to listen to the words that are spoken to us. We are told to love others as ourselves. We are told that the entrei law is summed up in love. If I truly love God can I withold my tithe offering? If I realize what God has done for me I should be willing to give everything to God, but rather we demand that God gives us more. The perspective is wrong. We should be giving thanks and not asking for more. If you are reading the bible with you as the focus then you are not seeing things properly. When we judge rather than love it is because we see with our eyes and not the heart of God. Do you further yourself from the temptations of this world, or do you do what you want to do first and then seek God after? Is God who you seek first, do you make time to worship Him, or do you seek Him when you have time left from having done everything else that you desired to do? 5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. You may think that you do not do any of these so you may think that you are fine, but what about greed? Greed is not only the desire for more, but it is the lack of contentment. If you lack gratitude then you a greedy. Rather than thanking God for allowing us to have work, even though we may not have benefit that day, you complain that you did not get what you wanted. You have no gratitude in difficult times, even though you say that God is sovereign. Rather than looking at yourself you grumble to God. Rather than getting closer to Him, you start to calculate the cost of what you need and refuse to humble yourself before Him. You know that you must sacrifice all to follow Him, but you refuse to do so. You only want more from Him, without sacrificing anything. When I was married, my wife told me never to put my hands in my pockets or things into them. The reason is when you hands start to go into your pockets you start to slouch and your posture suffers. The more you put things into them, the more you hands go into them. Clothes that you care for last much longer and are more presentable. My wife told me many times, not for her sake, but for me. So that I may be more presentable to others. I was also told by an uncle to never cross my arms. He told me that it gives others bad impression to others of weakness and separation. I was also told once, as I was using a toothpick, to never leave it in the mouth, because others will find it dirty and wil be repelled by it. All three examples are of me, when I did not think that others were looking at me. I only thought of my comfort, but others are judging me and I am leaving an impression on them. If you are young, then start making the changes, so that you may be presentable to others and others may see you at your best. It will not be easy and it may bring you much struggle, but commit to making the changes so that you will reap the rewards. Abraham Lincoln before he became president recieved a letter from young girl who had suggested that to her, she felt that if he were to grow a beard, he would give a better impression because he was thin and did not leave an impression warmth to her. He took her advice and changed his image. We know what happened to him after. If a king leaves his palace without his clothes who would know that he was a king? Not many. If you are a Christian, how will people know that you are? Have you put on the clothes of Christ? Are you living the life that follows him? Peter says that the one who does what he reads is the one who is blessed. You cannot expect God to bless you when you are not following what He tells you to do. Refusing to change is pride. It is because of this that you will recieve the wrath of God's judgement. God will bless you to the degree that you do. That is His way. You can pretend that you are a Christian but if you keep refusing to do what God tells us, then you will recieve punishment and not receive the gift of eternal life. If you fail to realize that you are being punished in order to be blessed then you will never enter into His blessing. We must rid ourselves of laziness, judging, giving up, and the thoughts that God will bless us even though we do nothing. Everything that is not right must be thrown away. God will discipline you and break you until to agree right with Him because He desires that you recieve His blessings. You must change all that is keeping you from receiving God's blessing. Compare your life to the words of the bible and see what it is that is keeping you from receiving the blessings of God and make the decision and commit to doing the things that will allow you to be blessed by God.

Psalm 23

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name's sake. 4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Last week we learned about meditating on God's Wrod. What should be the focus on today's passage? Is it that the Lord is my shepherd? Is it that you will lack nothing? Depending on what you focus on the meaning will be different. If you call Jesus your shepherd, then what do you become? You are confessing that you are nothing more than an animal. Do you see yourself as this? Do you call out to God so that you will get what you want, to be led by quiet streams to be lacking in nothing? Do you see that when you call out to God to get what you want you must let Him lead you first? Do you lack nothing? Does that mean you really have everything? Does it not mean that you are abandoning yourself to Him, so that even if you are hungry that you are not concerned about yourself, but you are concerned about what He wants? We say that we will go where He leads us, but the moment things get difficult how much is it that you complain? We love this Psalms but do we really understand it? Do you know why it is that you will fear no evil even though you are in dark valleys? It is because your eyes are only on Him who leads us, but we do not live like this, we let the worries of the world consume us. We desire that God does His work in us that will lift us up, to put us above others and to be recognized by others. In 2 Corinthians Paul tells us of his suffering that he endures for Christ. He abandons his life for Jesus and realizes that Christ alone will decide when he will die or live and whatever he does until he is called will be to do His will. Where is Jesus in your life? You complain when things do not go your way. You argue and fight because you are not content. We are called to proclaim Jesus. Stephen was stoned for his confession of Jesus. You, in your own families, do you represent Christ? You think that you can act holy, but your spouse knows how you really are. Have you ever stood up for the gospel? Have you ever taken a stone for Christ, or do you leave and cower when the opportunity rises? You may see Stepehen as a failure because he lost his life, but we know that God was pleased. Are you one who can call upon the name of our LORD? We do not believe to reap rewards here on this earth. We follow Christ so that He may be glorified through our lives. When God saves us He will do so according to His will. Like Peter who was freed from prison twice. The first time to go to the temple area to preach and the second time to flee and save his life. It is God's desire to free you for His purpose. David had two enemies. Goliath and Saul. He did not take on both enemies in the same manner. Depending on the enemy the way you address them is different. When you have difficulties in your life the way you address them depends on what God desires. You must do it according to God's will so that He way be glorified. In our garden the hot peppers have been doing what they were created to do, even though the weather has cooler than normal. The peppers do not give up, they do what they can with all there might so that they will pass in their seeds and keep living. They would normally grow about 6 inches but because it has been cold they stopped at an inch. They did not die, but turned red as if mature to spread their seeds. Do you have the discipline to do all that you can to fulfill your purpose and follow God with all your strength? Like the peppers, although they did not reach full potential, they struggled to do their best, do you struggle to give God your best? To be victorious in this life means you will be victorious in the next life. I pray that you will be able to achieve the life that God has purposed for you.

Psalms 1 Pastor Howard Park

Psalms 1. 1 Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, 2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. 3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers. 4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction. The hymn we sang Nearer My God to Thee confesses to God that we will bear the cross and still sing nearer my God to thee. This is the song of a true believer. In our walk when we face difficulties those moments are when we are to persevere and keep going forth, but rather we give up and put the cross down. Why do we do this? It is because we are being fooled by the devil to think that this is not the way. When we look at a situation we can see it either as a challenge or something to complain about. The cup is either half full or half empty. You are here in a country of abundance but rather than giving thanks for what we have we complain of what we lack and continue to want more and more. The life I have been given by God, the place I have been put, if I am able to see the hand of Gd doing His work in me I can go forth with gratitude but if I only see what I am lacking then the path I go down in destruction. Today's passage says "blessed is he" if we are blessed then why do we complain? Do you step with the wicked, stand ithe way of sinners or sit in the company of mockers? It says the one who is blessed will meditate on the law of the Lord day and night. If you remember all the things that you have been doing wrong, and those thoughts are binding you and you cannot free yourself from the worries of life, could it be that you are failing to do what the blessed one is supposed to do? I frequently give examples of the gardening that I do. I spend hours clearing out the weed to plant the vegetables but the next morning the weeds will come back. The plants that start to grow are eaten by the birds and the insects that feed on them. If I am not able to remove the weeds completely they will grow back. If the plants I desire to grow are not deeply rooted into the ground then they will die quickly. The world is against you. It is dangerous. We are told to love but we don't love completely. We are told to forgive but we don't forgive completely. Instead of following God completely we pick and choose how we will follow Him. Is that then the right way? In the study of genetics if we change the genes is the product the same? If we are changing the truth is it the truth? If the bible is specific but I interpret it in my own way what do you call that? If the bible does not specify a certain matter and I am free to become the measuring line, is it not a dangerous situation? Are you prepared to answer for the choices you make? Are the choices that you will make be according to what God desires or what you desire? Do you look to God to show you the way that will give Him glory or do you look for solutions to your problems that make it the most comfortable for you? Do we not call it grace when we follow the path that God shows us and find comfort in doing what He says is right rather than what we think is right? Grace is undeserved. It is God's love for us given to us freely. God's love was given to us when He sent His Son to die on the cross for us. Grace is not something that you feel, it is the revelation of knowing that God has forgiven you for your sins and that you a now free to have eternal life through Jesus. If all I do is recieve the gift of Jesus dying on the cross but do not participate in the death and resurrection then there is no use. I must be convicted in my heart and seek to find the path that will glorify God for the gift of grace. That is conversion. To know the depth of God's love I must do all that is within me to pursue it though mind, spirit and strength. We all desire to satfisfy ourselves. It is foolishness. We would rather hurt ourselves pursuing our pleasures rather than restrain ourselves and receiving the blessing from it. When I am hurting because of physical negligence, then those around me also suffer. If I am able to restrain myself and keep myself well, then those around me are free to not worry about me. I must be able to let go of the things of this world and jump freely into the grace that God has given me so that I am able to live free in Him. Grace does not mean that we can use it as an excuse to do what we want. Grace affords us the opportunity to do what God wants when we surrender to Him. The bible has no record often at we are to recieve grace. It is recorded that we are to recieve teachings, sufferings, faith, healing....but it never mentions grace. We misunderstand what grace is and it causes us to live a life that does not give God glory. Instead of being transformed by the gift of grace we think grace is continuously given to us daily and instead of changing we sit in confort and use grace as an excuse to do nothing. If grace does allow us to do nothing then what use is it? I has no power, it means nothing. But if it does cause us to change, then we can say we have recieved the gift of grace. If I do not meditate on the law of God, and do not discipline myself I will not recieve the blessings that God has for me. Peter acted on His faith and jumped onto the water. The cripple was healed when he stood up to walk. You must act upon your faith. The blessing will only come after you act upon your faith. Even Peter doubted and started to drown. Do not believe 99.9 %. That is not complete faith. You must believe 100%. If you read things in the bible that do not make sense to you but you put all your strength into doing it, you will be blessed. When you do the things that God desires, God will receive the glory. It is for God's glory that we are here. It is for His glory that we are to live free of worry and stress. Though no one else follows after me, I must follow God and live the life that proclaims His love. May you all live the life that will give God he glory and recieve the blessings that He desires for you.

Ruth 1:17 Pastor Howard Park

Ruth 1:17 1 In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab. 2 The man's name was Elimelek, his wife's name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to Moab and lived there. 3 Now Elimelek, Naomi's husband, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4 They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years, 5 both Mahlon and Kilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband. 6 When Naomi heard in Moab that the Lord had come to the aid of his people by providing food for them, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there. 7 With her two daughters-in-law she left the place where she had been living and set out on the road that would take them back to the land of Judah. 8 Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Go back, each of you, to your mother's home. May the Lord show you kindness, as you have shown kindness to your dead husbands and to me. 9 May the Lord grant that each of you will find rest in the home of another husband." Then she kissed them goodbye and they wept aloud 10 and said to her, "We will go back with you to your people." 11 But Naomi said, "Return home, my daughters. Why would you come with me? Am I going to have any more sons, who could become your husbands? 12 Return home, my daughters; I am too old to have another husband. Even if I thought there was still hope for me—even if I had a husband tonight and then gave birth to sons— 13 would you wait until they grew up? Would you remain unmarried for them? No, my daughters. It is more bitter for me than for you, because the Lord 's hand has turned against me!" 14 At this they wept aloud again. Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye, but Ruth clung to her. 15 "Look," said Naomi, "your sister-in-law is going back to her people and her gods. Go back with her." 16 But Ruth replied, "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. 17 Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me." Today we celebrate Mother's Day. We call it Mother's Day but it is actually the Lord's Day. I have a problem with this because why is it necessary to call it Mother,s Day when it is actually the day to worship our Lord? Is it possible that this can be twisted and the focus taken away from God? We should look to worship God and see how as a mother one can give glory to God. In today's passage we see the story of Ruth and her mother Naomi. We see that they are in the midst of making a decision of where to go. Ruth is decisive in her decision to follow her to the end. Do you as a mother have this kind of decisiveness? Ruth confesses that the God her mother in law serves will be her God and her people will be her people. What kind of life did Naomi show Ruth that gave Ruth the decisiveness to follow her? Let us add the fathers into this also. Do you as a father live a life that makes others desire to follow the God you serve? If you did not then you have failed. On Friday we learned that Jesus is our Master. We are His servants. Then why is it that we do not live according to the way the Master desires but rather we live the way we want. We have been deceived by Satan and live recklessly and without focus. Our society has been deceived and now we can see why our society is falling apart. We have lost the heart of service and rather we are only concerned about ourselves. It is our selfishness that lacks regard for others and in this disregard we do not care about how the st of the world ends up as long as one is doing well. If we were to care for others as we cared for ourselves then we would have a better family, community and country. Instead of being selfish we should serve others. Naomi lived a life that showed Ruth how to live a life that pleased God. It is so much so that her name has been recorded in history for us to see. Is there any greater gift than the gift of faith? When we hear things that bother our conscience we get angry because why we hear is contrary to what we desire to do. If everything were to be the way you wanted you would never get angry. You get angry because you are the deciding line of what is right and wrong. You pretend to not hear the truth, you act as if the word does not apply to you, you come and go to church when you feel Ike it. If you say that you serve God, then do you truly believe Him when He tells you that He will show you the way to find life and help you with all your problems? There a times when the word gives you such relief, at times such hope, and at times it convicts us. When it convicts us rather than forgetting what it says you should read it over again and apply that conviction into your life. There is a man in Korea who owns 62 patents. He says that when he sees a problem he will keep staring at it until the solution presents itself. He says that he is not highly educated, but the answer is not in the education but in finding the answer to the problem. Do you have a purpose that you desire in your life? Is it to be a followeer of Christ? If that is your goal, then are you doing everything in your power to live the life and make the changes that will bring about the change? Are all you actions in line with you goal? If you live this life that is completely devoted to serving God then you will be victorious in your pursuit of God. The God will give you all the blessings that your heart desires. You will have a happy home. The reason you do no is because what you desires and what your actions show are not working together. Y say you want to follow God but you pick and choose what you will do and not do. You pick and choose what you believe and not believe. Do you have any less than Naomi? Are you still complaining to God? Do you know when the most important time in your life is? It is now. It is the people you are with now. If you see this then you should live your life as it is the most important opportunity to do the things that will make the difference tomorrow. Rather than complaining about your spouse, work, and others, lie your life and make ue of this time to make the changes that will impact your life. Stop wasting time complaining and arguing. You accomplish nothing. You are being foolish. What has changed in your life? Naomi lived in complete obedience to God. Is the Old Testament easier to follow or the New Testament? The OT is easier because all you. Had to do was show acts of obedience, but the New Testament showed that it was not only your actions but the condition of your heart. In the OT even if you killed someone you were able to be forgiven but in the NT even if you had hated someone you were guilty of murder. Do you see this? Can you come to worship before God when you constantly argue with your wife? Will God accept your worship? Why do we worship on Sunday rather than Saturday? It is easier to come to God after the week is over and ask for forgiveness, but we have changed the sequence. Now we worship God first on the first day of the week and say that we will live a life that glorifies God. How much more are we responsible for our actions? The NT says that God looks at our hearts. God sees everything. The OT was concerned with outward appearance but now we are held to a higher standard. God desires those who worship Him I spirit and truth, but how many times do we worship out of our emotionally driven motives. We must be able to be discerning. We must live like Naomi did, and to obey God in everything. We all have the ability to do so, but you can only do so when you surrender completely to Him. May you all live your life to be a blessing to the who follow after you.