We Are United in the Lord
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May 27, 2018 |
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"But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. If they were all one member, where would the body be? But now there are many members, but one body" (1 Corinthians 12:18-20).
Dr. Jaerock Lee,
Senior Pastor of Manmin Central Church
Chairman, The United Holiness Church of Jesus Christ
Permanent President, The World Christianity Revival Mission Association
Founder & Board Chairman, Global Christian Network
Founder & Board Chairman, World Christian Doctors Network
Founder & Board Chairman, Manmin International Seminary
Founder & Board Chairman, The Alliance Holiness Theological Seminary
Doctorate of Ministry, and Honorary Doctorate of Divinity
His sermons were broadcast by the Far East Broadcasting Company and the Asia Broadcast Station.
His Christian columns appear in The Chosun Ilbo, The JoongAng Daily, The Dong-A Ilbo, The Hankook Ilbo, The Seoul Shinmun, The Hankyoreh Shinmun, The Kyunghyang Shinmun, The Korea Economic Daily, The Shisa News, and The Christian Press.
He conducted crusades in New York City, Washington D. C., Baltimore, Maryland, Los Angeles, and in Hawaii of the USA; Japan; India; Pakistan; the Philippines; Argentina; Honduras; Peru; Russia; Germany; Kenya; Tanzania; Uganda; the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Jerusalem of Israel; and Estonia.
The God of love placed all pastors, missionaries, elders, senior deaconesses, teachers, choir members, and other members "for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ," just as recorded in Ephesians 4:12. And, when these members are united, the body of Christ can stand straight and upright.
Manmin's members have been united since the start in 1982. Consequently, this church has been able to give great glory to God. I will now explain to you what has made it possible for Manmin to be united.
Firstly, it is because Manmin has followed the teaching and guidance of the true Shepherd, the LORD our God.
Psalm 23:1-2 says, "The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters." Manmin has followed the word of God, our Shepherd, and that is what has allowed Manmin to be united. Manmin has followed the word of the good Lord who sacrificed His life for the sheep, and it has made it possible for Manmin to be united.
During the preparation for my ministry before I started this church, I offered up countless prayers and fastings to receive God's explanation of the Bible. I was desperate to know what God truly desires of us through the Bible. When I had piled up 7 years of prayers, I started receiving the answers. The Lord began to explain the Bible to me among which was the compilation of 'The Message of the Cross. ' This message contains the God's ultimate reason for the creation of human beings. That is, God created human beings and began human cultivation in order to acquire true children He could share love with forever. This message also explains the passion of Jesus who is the Son of God for the providence of salvation through the cross and the principles of the spiritual growth of those who are born again of water and the Spirit.
Based on this, God explained the five levels of spiritual growth. These messages on spiritual growth are now the compilation of messages found in "Measure of Faith" (Romans 12:3). This message explains in great detail the processes of spiritual growth from the 1st level, which is the faith of being born again by the Holy Spirit, to the 5th level, which is the highest level of faith that pleases God. From this message, you can find that your eternal dwelling place in Heaven that is decided by an individual's measure of faith achieved while on this earth.
The contents of these messages can provide a clear goal for your life. You can set up a goal of casting off all evil from your heart and accomplishing the level of faith that is reaching the fullness of Christ while on this earth (Ephesians 4:13). In other words, you can earnestly want to become a true child that God truly desires. You can learn to be loved by God in this life and will hope to stay close with God in the life to come.
You may find that those who follow these teachings are one as 'Manmin' regardless of their age, sex, race, or nationality. This holiness gospel that I received from God and preach has been broadcast all over the world by GCN that covers approximately 170 countries. Countless people have watched and heard the messages, received grace, and have come to have the same hope as that of our members. In every corner of the world, people set 'sanctification' as the highest value and goal in their lives and are fulfilling this goal.
Recently, a Manmin branch church was set up in Moldova, Eastern Europe. A brother listened to the holiness gospel on YouTube and TBN Russia. He was greatly touched by the sermon 'Hell' and he began to share the grace with people around him. The number of people was added to continually, and they eventually had to find a place for a sanctuary and began to worship together in April 2014. Though there was no missionary dispatched to them, they began the church on their own just by listening to the messages of this church.
Not only Moldova, but we have many other Manmin families who join our worship services via the Internet all around the world. Since they became united with us, their wish is the same as our members in the central church. That is, they wish to be able to quickly grow up in faith to be qualified to enter New Jerusalem. As you can see, those who have been united in the teachings of God will bear truly full and abundant fruits.
Secondly, it's because Manmin has put on love that is the perfect bond of unity.
Romans 5:8 says, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." To save sinners, God allowed His only begotten Son, Jesus, to be the propitiation for our sin. Whoever believes in the redemption in the cross of the Lord can be forgiven and become a child of God. Therefore, Christians all over the world can call God 'Father', and hence, they become brothers and sisters bound by the blood of the Lord.
Before I met God, I suffered from many diseases for seven years. But I was healed of all my diseases by meeting God. When I was healed and began my Christian life, I was so glad whenever I saw someone on the street who had a Bible in hand. I was also so touched by the cross on the rooftop of a church building. It was the grace that the Lord gave me.
Those who received this great unrepayable love from the Lord can become one in the love of the Lord. It is love that can unite all the hearts of people with different thoughts, different personalities, and different backgrounds. Colossians 3:14 says, "Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity." It is love that can unite the hearts of people. Just as the love of the Lord who sacrificed His life for sinners has bound souls in unity, the love that can sacrifice all things for the souls was needed for Manmin to be united.
From the moment I met God, I have loved God foremost of all, and I have loved souls following the desire of God. To have one more soul saved, to help one more soul reach New Jerusalem, I have devoted everything I have without sparing anything. I have helped the poor and the mission work. Not only materially, but also in the investment of time, I have spent it all for the work of God and for the souls. I have never thought to myself, "I've done enough. It's OK to rest."
Since 2010, to fill up the justice for souls' salvation and change, I have paid the price like giving in my life. As its result, I lost all the strength from my entire body, and all my body parts became weak. As my vitality was drained away from my marrow, there were moments I could not even stand up. Countless nights, I could not sleep even when I wanted to.
Yet, what I was more pressed by was concern over whether our members are deceived into committing sin or whether they lost heart in thinking that it is too hard to become sanctified. That is why I wanted to reveal the spiritual realm all the more clearly, and to increase their faith by manifesting signs and wonders with even greater power.
As Jesus said in John 4:48, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you simply will not believe," I have tried to show them the spiritual realm as if they saw it and touched it. Now, many church members understand the love contained in the power and they run earnestly to achieve the heart of the Lord with hope for heaven. I am so thankful for that.
Thirdly, Manmin has always sought after the glory of God.
For the glory of God, Jesus manifested countless signs and wonders. He made the blind see, the mute speak, the crippled be restored, and the lame walk. Those who witnessed the Lord's ministry all glorified God. As Jesus unfolded the power of God the Almighty on this earth, He let God receive all the glory. After He revived Lazarus who had been dead for four days, He said it was "...for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it..." (John 11:4).
Since Jesus glorified God, people of that time knew that Jesus belongs to God. The man who was born blind but later able to see after meeting Jesus said in John 9:32-33, "Since the beginning of time it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. If this man were not from God, He could do nothing."
Just as Psalm 62:11 says, "...power belongs to God," if someone manifests such power, he belongs to God. Furthermore, the one who manifests the power of God does not glorify oneself, but glorifies God, so it proves that the one belongs to God. I earnestly prayed to receive the power of God because I wanted to achieve the good will of God who desires all men to be saved.
And to complete the power of re-creation, which is the highest level of power, I have been under the harsh training which is hard for an ordinary man to bear. Consequently, however, not only healing of various diseases, but also countless wonders have been manifested.
Specially in Summer Retreat 2017, God made me pray for those demon-possessed to become normal, and the works of demon-possessed people being set free took place. The power of changing the weather is being manifested much more quickly.
Right before the retreat, the typhoon 'Noru' was moving toward Korea. The forecast said that it would affect Korea beginning August 7, which was the first day of the retreat. On August 3, I prayed that the typhoon would disappear or change its course. Then, the typhoon changed its course toward the east. The venue of the retreat was no longer to be affected by the typhoon. I prayed once more at the request of a member who is running a ferry line service from Pohang and Ulleung-do, and then the typhoon moved 100 kilometers farther east of the forecasted course. The entire East Sea was out of the typhoon's influence. I then prayed for those who were about to fly from Japan to attend the retreat, and then the typhoon decreased in intensity. As a result, the members from Japan could safely arrive and enjoy the summer retreat.
Since 2016 in particular, God has allowed me to adjust the temperature by power so that Manmin could enjoy a pleasant Summer Retreat at the temperature of 25-26 in Celsius in August which is the hottest month of the year. Through the spiritual space, God sent dragonflies; they sat on our bodies to give us another summer of beautiful memories. That is why so many people from the world wish to attend Manmin Summer Retreat. They want to witness the glory of God with their own eyes. And, it brings Manmin together as one all the more.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, Jesus said in John 14:12, "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father." Those who can truly believe in this by faith can manifest signs and wonders just as Jesus did, and they can do even greater works.
Jesus said in His prayer, "The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one," as written in John 17:22. Just as the Lord and God are one, He wants all of us who believe in Him to become one with God and the Lord. I pray in the name of the Lord that all of you – pastors, workers, and all members – will become one in the Lord and the fruit of the answer to the Lord's earnest prayer.
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