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Pray that this pandemic will end soon and the resumption of the postal service.
Subject 23 : The Epistle to the HEBREWS
[Chapter 11-5] The Righteous Are Those Who Believe in The Word of God (Hebrews 11:6-7)
(Hebrews 11:6-7)
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”
This Wednesday evening I will be preaching from the Book of Hebrews, and I will be speaking to you about having faith in God. As we all have read the Word of God together today, it is saying to us, “Faith is the evidence of things not seen.” It is telling us that “faith” is to lead a life of believing, by the faith in the Word of righteousness as spoken by God which isn’t visible to the naked eye. It is necessary for us to lead our lives of faith by properly knowing what it is. In other words, for us to lead this kind of life we must know what kind of faith is the true faith.
Do You See Scripture as the Word of God?
If we want to discuss about having faith and believing in God in the right way, we cannot but first speak about knowing the Word of God, and about the correct faith of believing in the righteousness of God. Our God is a God that cannot be seen with our naked eyes, but He indeed lives and exists for all eternity. This God is written about in the Bible. Hence, we as Christians should put our faith in the written Word of God.
When we watch some Christian TV programs, it shows us about the Old Testament in images during its Bible hour. When we watch a program like this, we must consider the custom and the historical background as shown in the Bible.
This passage of Scripture that we read has 400 writers. The Bible was recorded by the scribes who were appointed of God and wrote things as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. They were human beings just like us, but they recorded the Words of God having their hearts moved by the Holy Spirit. And so, when we read the Scriptures we can see what God, the author of the Bible, and the servants of God have recorded for us.
The person who recorded Genesis through Deuteronomy was Moses. If so, was Moses someone who was born during the creation of the heavens and the earth? No, of course he wasn’t. God merely had Moses record His will by speaking to his heart through His Spirit. And we, who believe in the Word regarding the gospel of the water and the Spirit, should once again think about whether or not this passage of Scripture is in fact the Word of God. Because it was recorded by the servants of God, having been moved by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, how could we say that this is not the Word of God? We can see that the Scripture was recorded by those who have been moved by the Spirit of God, and it is the Word of God, not the words of mere human beings.
Let’s look at an example. When thinking about the Apostle Paul’s ministry; if he was a married man, could he have carried out the ministry like us today, and would he have been able to fully fulfill the duties of an Apostle as sent by God? He would not. What would have happened to his ministry if he had not fully carried out the work of God through the guidance of the Holy Spirit? Have you ever thought about this? The Apostle Paul could have very well been able to marry and carry out the ministry, but God had wanted to fulfill His will by using Paul in a special way. Because Paul was a man who was set aside by the Spirit of God, he couldn’t spare the time to think about fleshly things, and even if he had occasionally come across some spare time to do this, he was a man who couldn’t dwell on such things.
Paul, a servant of God was being used by God for a special purpose. While he lived, he wrote letters to the Churches of God and his fellow workers when he was carrying out ministry work among the Gentiles, and he made sure that when people read the content of his letters, they would know that these words were the will of God. What the Apostle Paul said to the Churches in his letters lacked nothing but for us to accept them as the Word of God. Having turned a mere man into an instrument of His righteousness, God found joy in showing His will through this man.
Is this passage of Scripture the Word of God, or is it not? If someone were to challenge us about this subject asking if it were true, we could say, Yes, without any hesitancy that this passage of Scripture is the Word of God, for it was spoken by the servants of God who were being moved by the Holy Spirit. Why? It is because God had shown His will through His people, that is, through His servants by holding onto them like that. However, today’s neo-theologians and the followers of higher criticism are surging up a chaos, for they do not understand the Word of God, as the Word of God.
Among Those Who Believe in Jesus as a Religion, What Is Their Purpose for Believing?
Right now, there are many believers in Christianity who are unable to believe properly because they do not know the righteousness of God, as revealed in the Word of God. We can see many of them putting in much effort into preventing people from knowing about God and His righteousness rather than trying to know about the righteousness of God. The Jehovah’s Witness organizations are especially like this. Even though they say they believe in Jesus as their Savior, and are trying to preach about Jesus, we can see that they are actually carrying out work of dissuading people from believing in Jesus.
What we know is that this Scripture passage is the Word of God. As I have mentioned before, through God’s servants like Paul and David, God has been giving us words that are extremely necessary for us. God is telling us that He is revealing His will to us within the words spoken by His servants. Therefore, we are able to know this passage of Scripture is the Word of God, and we can have faith and believe in it.
The Old and the New Testaments, starting from the Book of Genesis, through the Book of Revelation, speaks about Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is clear that these passages of Scripture do become the Word of God. The only single theme of the Bible has been about Jesus Christ for 4,000 years, and these Scripture passages are the Word of God, not the words of any human being. Yet people keep trying to breakdown the faith of believing in the Bible as the Word of God.
Furthermore, in the past, and the present, we find people professing that there are the words of the Satan within the Scriptures and that not all of them are the Word of God. And so, we find on occasions people making labels for various Scripture passages using several colors. There were times when these people made divisions using various colors, for example: “These words are spoken by Jesus; and these are words spoken by people; and these words are spoken by the Devil.” My thoughts are that these people were spiritually ignorant. God found joy in revealing His will through people who were evil as well as people who are virtuous. Thus, we must understand that all the passages of the Bible are the Word of God, all in all, and we must believe in it.
All Scripture as recorded in the Bible is the Word of God. If say, the Scripture as recorded in the Bible were not the Word of God, then from that moment on, our faith of believing in God would crumble. In other words, our faith of believing in God, having saved us from all our sins, and all the judgments of sin, by the gospel of the water and the Spirit, and having faith of knowing and believing in the righteousness of God, would all crumble away. For this reason, Satan is trying to blur the will of God through deceitfulness even as we speak.
A certain doctor of Divinity rejected the Only Savior by declaring, “Salvation can be found in other religions.” But despite this, there are people in this world who believe in the written Word of God just as it is. I express my deep grief that among the believers of Jesus, there are those who think that salvation exists in other religions besides Jesus. It is clear that they are nothing more than people of a vulgar religion. In this world, there are many people who do not know that Jesus is God. And it is also deplorable that there are many more people who believe without the knowledge of the Jesus-given righteousness of God.
Yet, thankfully, there are many who hold onto the Word of God, and believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior. What we must know, without any doubt, is that God has set it forever that those who believe in His righteousness can live under the blessings of God. For these kinds of people, God is their LORD. For we are those who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, and we are those who have received the remission of sins before God. But there are people who do not believe in the God-given gospel of the water and the Spirit, and continually speak lies.
These days, there are many organizations trying to witness the New and the Old Testament using visual media. But many of them in their ignorance have devalued the righteousness of God. Rather than to witness about the righteousness of God, as revealed to us, they assert things that are of their own sect. Images that are shown on TV these days must be seen from the view point of recognizing the background of the period when Jesus was on the earth. In this world, there are many people who try to believe in the righteousness of Jesus in their own notions and ways, instead of believing in the Word of God, just as it is written.
What is religion really? Religion is something used to create a false image that one can rely on and believe in. Then, what is the true faith? It is to believe in God, it is to think and believe in accordance with His recorded Word. This is what we must know and believe in. God created the universe, and when humankind was caught under sin, in order to save them from the sins of the world, He came down by taking on human flesh, received the baptism from John the Baptist, vicariously died on the Cross, and was resurrected from that death. But these so-called religions is to create a god with one’s own thinking and then rely on it.
Among the Christians around us, many of them are religious people. What a lot of Christians believe in is a mere religious faith. They think that Jesus is the Savior, and thereby, arbitrarily, rely, on Jesus. Christianity wasn’t created by some high human thought process. Rather, it exists in its true sense because God has saved us by His righteousness. Every religion is something that was created by some thought and then later it gets thrown away. In other words, it is something that one can believe on one’s own and then discard it later.
But if you do not have faith in the Word of God, your entire foundation of faith will crumble away. This is why you must know and believe in the righteousness of God as revealed in God’s Word by faith. This Word says, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). If we know this, then how can we give the true faith to those who are moving towards God? We can do this by first knowing, and believing, in the righteousness of God, as revealed in the Scripture. And we must also believe that God is the One who rewards those who diligently seek Him.
God Exists, although He Is Not Visible to Our Naked Eyes
We believe in the Living God, and pray to Him. Because God listens to our prayers, He takes care of the problems of the sin we commit in the flesh, He takes care of the illnesses of our flesh, and He takes care of our futures, and takes care of our current problems, whatever they may be. This is why we must go to Him, and ask Him to solve all these problems that we have. I’m exhorting you to believe in God, who is the Rewarder of those who come before Him believing in Him. This is what genuine faith is all about.
I believe in the Triune God – God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit–as my Savior. Although He cannot be seen with our naked eyes, I believe in God who actually is alive. And so, although He isn’t visible to my naked eyes, I often go before this very God by faith and pray. And so, should someone among the people of God be sick, I pray to God and ask Him to heal that person. Thus, although He isn’t visible to our naked eyes, I am able to know that He lives inside the hearts of the righteous by His Spirit, grants our requests, and grants us many blessings. Thus, because I believe in this very God, I carry out this precious ministry work.
Because we believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, and The Lord is The Savior, we witness this to people. What do we witness? We believe and witness that Jesus Christ is our God, and that He has saved us perfectly by the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Because we believe in God and His Word, we take on this precious ministry work. Because we believe in this righteous God, we carry out His work on the earth. God is pleased with us when we spread His gospel throughout the world.
Whenever we are in need of help, we pray to God. We pray, saying, “Lord, we lack in these areas. Please help us solve these problems. Please fill us with Your Holy Spirit.” We pray to God because we believe that He lives and know that He will help us. God said we must believe that He is the Rewarder of those who come forth before Him by faith. God said that He will indeed reward us. We believe, and God answers our prayers. We believe that God answers our requests, resides with us, and carries out His work by using us. Thus, we plan and carry out all His work by faith. Do you believe also?
All those whose hearts are pure believe in God. Those whose hearts are pure and clean believe in the Word of God, just as it is. However, those who are not like this do not even believe in the facts that are written in God’s Word. For this reason, under the pretence of believing in Jesus, they go on committing fraud against others. They make me laugh; they are so ludicrous. They carry out acts that are so deplorable. Just as Jesus said in the Gospel of John chapter 10, “A hireling comes to steal and kill, for the sheep are not his,” they go on speaking wild lies repeatedly so that their flesh may prosper. Trying to gain fame and wealth for themselves, they are killing those who aren’t supposed to die because of their sin.
I believe in the Lord’s righteousness which has saved us from all sins. Our Lord lives and answers all our prayers. I believe in the living God who answers our prayers. Because I believe in Him, I am able to carry on in the ministry. If I hadn’t believed in the righteousness of God, I would not have been able to carry out the work of God.
Noah Prepared for the Next Life by Building an Ark for One Hundred Years
Let us read Hebrews 11:7 together. “By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.” Like this, the people of faith are telling us about God’s being alive, and rewarding those who diligently seek Him. In other words, God answers what is asked of Him, but He does not answer what is not proper before Him.
Noah was able to save his household by having been warned of things not yet seen, and thereby prepared an ark by faith. Because of that very work, Noah was able to condemn the world and become the heir of righteousness which is according to faith. Noah, as well as all those like him, is made into a useful tool for preaching about the faith of believing in the righteousness of God. Because Noah also believed in God and His Word by faith, he carried out that righteous work.
He had prepared an ark for having been warned of things not yet seen. God said that He would kill off all living things that dwell on the earth, including all those people who did not believe in the Word of God. Yet despite these things, Noah believed in God’s Words entirely. And so by faith, he went on to build that ark for 100 years, as commanded by God. This refers to the people of faith in God building the church of God. Because Noah believed in the Word of God, he built the ark for 100 years and thereby saved his family members. Hence, they became those who would deliver the gospel of the true righteousness to you and me of today. The people of the faith, who believe in God, are very precious people. But if something goes wrong, those who do not have this precious faith can be used for evil, and make others cursed, and furthermore, kill others in spirit and flesh.
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). Those who have faith please God, do righteous work, save many people, make people blessed, and lead them on the blessed and righteous path. However, those who do not have faith cannot please God, and not only that, they prevent people from meeting God, and make them be cursed. You and I today are in absolute need of having faith in God and His righteousness. Although God is not visible to our naked eyes, He actually lives and exists for all eternity. We must believe this. We must believe in this passage of Scripture as the Word of God.
Dear fellow believers, you must understand just how much God loves humankind. Because God so loves us, He spoke through His servants for thousands of years, had them record His Words, and had it in safekeeping, so that it would forever not be lost. God gathered together all His Words by using His servants down through the ages, and laid it down before us by compiling it into a single Book. The Word of God and the righteousness of God as written in the Bible are evidence that shows God loves you and me. Such love is a love which simply cannot be carried out if not by God.
The faith of believing in God and in His righteousness isn’t something that is okay for us to have, or not have. The faith of believing in the righteousness of God isn’t something that we can do without, but rather it is something that is indispensable. If we do not have faith in the righteousness of God, we will surely die, lose the God-given blessings, and receive curses from God, and become the wicked that lives without God. And in the end, we will be used to do evil works. For us, having faith in God and in His righteousness is something we must absolutely have.
Because we, including our junior high and high school children, young men and woman adults; all our brothers and sisters; all those in ministry work, and their wives; and all the people throughout the world—were born into this world as human beings. All of us must have the faith in God and in His righteousness without fail. If we do not have this faith, we will not be delivered from our sins. If we believe in the existence of God, and what He said, we must come before this very God by faith, and make known our requests, and God will answer. God is like that. We all must become those who believe in God who is the One who will take responsibility for all that is ours.
Some people say they attend God’s church because their wives come to the church. And they say they come because they have nothing to lose by coming to church. Another reason for coming they say is for maintaining the peace and harmony of their household. They shouldn’t be doing this at all. And others think, “Because I have received the remission of sins by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, I don’t have to serve you or do anything further. So, don’t ask anything more from me.” If there is perhaps someone who thinks like this, I want that person to know that his thoughts are mistaken. You must know that it is not you who loved God first, but God who loved you. He is God who cannot be seen with our naked eyes. He is the God whom we believe in, who is alive.
If we have come before this very God and received the remission of our sins by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, we have become God’s children. Then, as God’s children we can come before Him and make our requests known. Then this very God will answer our prayers. When we believe in the righteousness of our God, we must have faith that God will provide us with eternal life and bestow upon us all His blessings. There has to be such knowledge and such faith within us.
Like this, the people of faith in the righteousness of God please this God of the Truth. The people who believe in the Word of God receive blessings from God. Such faith allows, not only ourselves to receive God’s blessings, but allows others to receive them as well. Therefore, having faith in the righteousness of God is an absolute necessity and a must for us. It is an absolute must. What you need more than your beating heart is possessing faith in the righteousness of God, and furthermore, this faith based on the Truth is more precious than your very soul.
You must have inside your soul something that is absolutely necessary, and that is, having faith in the righteousness of God. Therefore, do not ever speak such words like, “My faith in God is weak; I have no faith in God,” before God. If you do not have faith in the righteousness of God, you must again listen to the Word of God with your ears and learn. You can become a true person of faith in God when you listen carefully to the righteousness of God; it isn’t something you can gain by any other means.
When you believe in God as your Savior and LORD, you must also be concerned with the work of understanding the righteousness of God; for taking interest in other things would only lead to emptiness. When we do not have faith in God, it means, we do not possess the knowledge of understanding the righteousness of God. Thus, if you wish to receive many blessings from God, I would like for you to learn more about the righteousness of God.
If you want to receive blessings from God, know the Lord-given righteousness of God, and have faith in it. If we possess faith in the righteousness of God, we will receive blessings both in spirit and in flesh, but if we do not have this faith, we will not receive God’s blessings. Because this is an absolute truth, we must know it well. Because we believe in God and His righteousness, we spread the gospel of the water and the Spirit all over the world. We do this because we believe in our Lord Jesus Christ who has become our Savior and the Savior of all humankind.
We Are Not a People of Religion, But We Are the People of Faith Who Believe in the Righteousness of God
We believe in God who created the universe. We believe this because this very God loved us, even while we were under sin. He saved us, with the gospel of the water and the Spirit, by coming to this earth, and delivered us from all our sins. We believe, not only that God has made us His children by saving us from our sins, but also that He has become our Shepherd for all eternity. We also believe that He has given us eternal life and eternal blessings.
Up until now, we have lived by having faith in God, but from now on, I want you to go on living with that kind of faith. Not your thoughts but your hearts must first be like that. Our hearts must be pure before God. We must know that we are the Lord’s creation; we must know and believe that the Bible is the Word of God. Furthermore, we must know that God exists, although He isn’t visible to our naked eyes; we must believe in this living God by faith. We must have faith in the Living God, by having it in our hearts. Only when we do this, we can live out our lives by faith, and receive blessings. For this reason, what do you and I need the most? It is none other than having faith in the righteousness of God.
We can divide all things that are of the flesh into various categories, but having faith in the righteousness of God is something that only the faithful can possess. Such faith is something indispensable, and we all must possess it. In your thoughts, what must we believe in so that we may be well off, both in spirit and in the flesh? We could be well off both in spirit and in flesh if we truly believed in God and in His righteousness. If we do not have faith in the righteousness of God, we will become poor both in spirit, and in flesh. Because God is good, I can say that He guides us to the most blessed path, and gives us blessings. Is there anything that we can achieve just by our own efforts? Psalms 37:5 says, “Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.” I believe in God who has come by the gospel of the water and the Spirit. I know that you all believe in this God too. I know that you have also become God’s children and His faithful workers by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit, and receiving salvation from your sins. I say to you, and to me, that we must possess faith in God. We must follow our predecessors who are in the lead with faith in the righteousness of God. Only when we do this, can we save others from destruction in these end times. We have become heirs to God’s righteousness. Noah became someone who preached the righteousness of God to sinners.
Dear fellow believers, brothers and sisters, including all our ministry workers, throughout Korea and the world, I want you to know that to live a life as a servant of God is a great blessing. If you do not have faith in God, then unite together with those who do have, and carry out the work of God. When you do this, you will be able to learn, “on-the-job training” what faith is genuine faith and truth. Without uniting together like this, you will never be able to learn it. It is because faith isn’t something that can be learned only as knowledge. Even if it’s taught, it will never enter into your heart.
What is it like to have actually lived a life of faith? When you do this, you will come to realize what the Word of God, as preached by our predecessors of faith, who are in the lead, really means. The Truth that you have come to know only in theory cannot become yours unless you get to experience it properly. Accept the whole Word of God by faith. What I am saying is that God wants all of us to become the people of faith, who believe in God and His Word explicitly. God wants us to believe in Him, and become those who believe in all His Words and in His righteousness. God expects such faith from us.
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