Giving Thanks to God
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November 04, 2007 |
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 "Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting" (Psalm 136:1).
When we offer to God hearts of sincere gratitude, He will accept our fragrance of thankfulness, give us greater causes to be grateful, which in turn will serve as a foundation to bear even more fruit.
In celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Manmin congregation, let us examine three reasons for which we must be thankful to God.
1.We must thank God for establishing this church Himself.
Twenty-five years ago, God established this congregation amidst His special Providence. This church was to greatly reveal His glory among the nations in the last days and close out His cultivation of mankind on the earth. God's Providence is found even its name "Manmin" (which means "all creation" or "all nations").
Beginning in my first year at the seminary, I began praying for the naming of the church and God told me to name it "Manmin." In time, He added, I would find out why it had to be "Manmin," and indeed I discovered the reason while on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1989. Standing at Gethsemane where Jesus prayed so fervently that "His sweat became like drops of blood" the night He was captured, I learned, was Church of All Nations built early in the 20th century with offerings gathered from 16 different nations.
Just as the Church of All Nations was built in this way, God also gave us the name "Manmin" and commanded us, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation." (Mark 16:15). He also called me as His servant and revealed to me the far-reaching visions He was to accomplish through the Manmin congregation. "You will climb the mountains and cross the rivers and the oceans, and manifest signs and wonders," God said. "In the last days, this church will spread the gospel of sanctification to the ends of the earth and accomplish the world."
As I placed all my trust in God's Word of promise, I began praying for world mission since the founding and in 2-3 weeks of the founding of Manmin, I started supporting other fledgling churches. It was difficult to come up with and pay the rent every month but as the congregation sowed seeds of faith, God made sure that we did not lack anything and His blessings have lasted to this day.
With a dozen massive overseas crusades starting in Year 2000, God has led Manmin to bring to salvation countless souls. In Uganda, Japan, Pakistan, Kenya, the Philippines, Honduras, India, Russia, Germany, Peru, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the United States, He has plainly revealed Himself as the Creator and the fact that only Jesus in the Savoir of mankind through manifestations of the power of the Holy Spirit. As a result, God has employed this church to give salvation to the countless around the world and set it atop the world.
Manmin has also begun preaching the gospel of sanctification to the ends of the earth through the Global Christian Network (GCN), while the works of God's power brought together physicians from around the globe through the World Christian Doctors Network (WCDN). In response to requests from pastors and church leaders scattered across the world desiring to learn the gospel of sanctification in depth, the ministry of Manmin International Seminary (MIS) is also in full gear.
Furthermore, Manmin has devoted itself to mission work through literature and newspapers and by its 25th anniversary, it has grown to a vast body of more than 7,000 branch and associate churches throughout the world.
This is the fruit of the way in which Manmin members strove to pray every day and obeyed God's Word without swaying of the heart since the founding. According to the purpose which God established this church, Manmin has actively spread the Gospel to all nations, all people.
2.We must thank God for a shepherd proper for Manmin.
As a good shepherd, Jesus healed the sick, made perfect the weak, and gave people hope with the gospel of heaven. By sacrificing His own life, He gave mankind eternal life.
Ever since being called upon as a servant of the Lord, I have prayed fervently to become a good shepherd like Jesus and lead the flock of sheep to green pastures and quiet waters.
After devoting myself to learning the Word and to prayer for an extensive amount of time, I could receive God's power and with it give all glory to Him. Even in times of harsh trials, God poured upon me greater power when I passed each of them only in goodness and love. That is how I could lead the souls He has committed to me more safely to life and on the path to heaven.
Early on in the ministry, when I personally looked after each of the church members, I made sure to fast when I did not see one of them on Sundays. I also stayed up all night in prayer or fasted when another member grew thin during his trials. By visiting the church members at their homes and through intercessory prayer, I drove out the enemy devil and Satan and gave them with the spiritual strength with which to overcome trials.
Although I am unable to look after each Manmin member today, my heart and passion for the souls have never changed. I have repented on behalf of those who have committed grave sins against God and never forgotten those stricken with illnesses and tormented until they received healing. For those suffering from financial difficulties, I have always tried to help and look after them even if I were to eat and spend less.
From the Bible, we find many forefathers whose faith was so great that like Jesus, they would willingly lay down their own lives for others. Among them was the apostle Paul, who said, "For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh" (Romans 9:3). Here, by "my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh," Paul is referring to the Jews, who had condemned Paul as "a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes" and interfered with his ministry. Still, Paul wished that "I myself were accursed" if that would ensure their salvation.
I pondered, 'Could I be like Paul said he would do?' As I had been accomplishing God's kingdom to this day, there were many people who could not believe in the works of the Holy Spirit and even interfered with God's work, but I never for once hated them. As Jesus pleaded, "Father, forgive them," for the very people who were crucifying Him, I could only harbor compassion and pray for them. In addition, I often gave large sums of propitiation offerings to God on their behalf.
A few months ago, I asked myself, "If God said, 'The salvation of a thousand souls who are to go to hell depends on your going to hell,' could I do it?' Even though I know about the anguish and torment of hell better than anyone else, I could confess from the bottom of my heart, "Yes, I will take that road," without skipping a beat.
As I have led souls with such a heart and attitude, God has blessed Manmin Central Church, which began its history with 13 people including children, has blessed with a staggering sum of members at 7,000 branch and associate churches around the world. On top of that, God is increasing the number of people receiving salvation as they hear the gospel of sanctification and witness the works of God's power on television and other forms of mass media.
3.We must thank God for performing all that He has promised.
At the founding of Manmin, God had given this congregation many dreams and visions and most of them have been fulfilled. As He said, "You'll become a church accomplishing the world," the world mission work at Manmin is in full swing.
Another promise God has given us is that many of Manmin members will enter New Jerusalem, the best dwelling place in all of heaven. New Jerusalem is only for people who have accomplished whole spirit, have become sanctified, are faithful in all God's household in fullness of goodness and love, and in whom no traces of evil can be found. God has allowed the currents of whole spirit and spirit, revealed the sinful attributes of the heart in His righteousness but at the same in His love given us grace and strength so that we would be victorious against sin.
To ensure the fulfillment of God's promises, I have partaken in the agony Manmin members underwent during their trials and have striven to set myself as an example so that they would come into spirit and in goodness. Today, a great number of Manmin members are taking after the heart of Our Lord and coming into spirit and into whole spirit.
By wholly trusting in God and obeying His will, may each of you become an heir to His marvelous promises, in the name of Our Lord I bless!
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