Sermons on important subjects by Rev. Paul C. Jong

With What Kind of Look Did Our Creator Visit Us?

<John 1:1- 13>

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

Who is Jesus? Jesus is the Master who has created the universe with His Word. Who is Jesus to us? Jesus is our Savior. Jesus is the Lord and Savior who came to this earth as our Redeemer and saved us from all the sins of the world with the gospel of the water and the Spirit.

It is written in John 1:3, “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” Jesus created the universe. When God said in Genesis chapter 1, “Let there be light,” there was light; and God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth,” it was so. All the plants, people, and all the things in the universe came to exist through the creation of Jesus Christ.

The amazing thing is that this Creator God came to this earth. The reason that Jesus came to this earth was to allow each of us to receive the eternal life of the remission of sins by giving us the gospel of the water and the Spirit, which is the true light of salvation. So, John the Apostle testified about Jesus, “That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name” (John1: 9-12). In other words, in order to blot out all our sins once and for all, including those that were inherited from the ancestors of the mankind, our Lord came to drive away the darkness of all sins by giving us the gospel of the water and the Spirit that is true light to this world.

Jesus, the King of kings did not come to this earth with attractive looks that would be welcomed by people. Many people refuse to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior because they do not throw away their fixed ideas. People live without knowing that they are still sinners and therefore are beings destined to hell. They have lived without realizing why they must believe in Jesus as their Savior and that they still don’t know the gospel of the water and the Spirit. There are many people who don’t know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God living on this earth. How ignorant are these people about the gospel of the water and the Spirit, and they do not even try to believe in Jesus who came by the water and the blood (1 John 5:6). They don’t even recognize that they are sinners destined to hell for their sins. After all, they are not able to receive Jesus who came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit as their Savior because they do not know Him properly.

Jesus came to this earth as the Lord and Savior, but the Israelites and many sinners on earth did not accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. Though Jesus came to the land that He Himself created for His people, they still not accept and receive Jesus as their Savior. Jesus was born in Israel, in a small countryside village called Bethlehem. Jesus was born in a barn where the livestock were living; the reason He came was to save us, all of the lowly sinners of this world from sin. However, the sinners living in this world insisted to live in darkness by rejecting to receive Jesus and choosing to suffer for their sins. These people wanted to go to Heaven saved from their sins, but, because of their false knowledge and thoughts, they could not enter the line of people who received the salvation.

The Lord is the Savior who came to save all sinners from all the sins of the world. However, many people living in this world did not recognize that Jesus is the Savior. People in Jesus’ time could not recognize that Jesus Christ was the Son of God and the Creator who created all the things of universe including them. That is why the Israelites and the Gentiles did not accept Jesus as their Savior.

So, we have to know the truth that Jesus Himself, at the age of 30, received the baptism to blot out the sins of mankind from John who was giving baptism at the Jordan River. We have to know why Jesus did so. Jesus had to receive the baptism to take all the sins of this world once and for all. His arrival on this earth was to cleanse all the evils and wrongdoings committed by all the sinners of all time.

Jesus commanded to John the Baptist at that time, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15). This passage is the evidence that Jesus took the sins of the world by receiving the baptism from John the Baptist.

These words mean that it is ordained for Jesus to take the sins of all people by receiving the baptism and blotting out their sins once for all. Jesus said to John the Baptist, “I have to be baptized from you in order to take all the sins of the sinners and to save them. I must take all the sins that people are committing because of their weaknesses by receiving the baptism- the sins of the present, of the past, and all of the sins of the people who will be born until the day this earth stops to exist. Then, you John the Baptist obey my commandment and lay your hands on My head.” So, to take the sins of mankind, Jesus received the baptism from John the Baptist, the representative of all mankind. Therefore, Jesus could cleanse the sins of mankind once and for all by receiving them through the baptism.

The baptism that Jesus received was as follows. It was performed in the same manner as the laying on of hands in the sacrificial rules of the Old Testament. God has set up this sacrificial system, and if its statutes were followed correctly, people of those days could pass their sins to a sacrificial animal, by the placing their hands on the animal’s head. Then, the sacrificial animals had to be killed to draw their blood, and the people would burn their meat and fat on the altar and give it before God in place of their own death. This was how the people of the Old Testament could receive the remission of their sins. 

Likewise, Jesus received the baptism from John the Baptist in order to take all the sins and the curses of all the people in this world. This is the Truth of Jesus’ baptism that was revealed in the Word of the New Testament. Jesus received the baptism from John the Baptist to take all the sins of the Israelites once and for all like the Lamb in the Old Testament. That is why we had to be enlightened with Jesus’ saying, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3: 15).

Jesus is the true Savior to all mankind. Jesus has given the light of salvation with the gospel of the water and the Spirit to all mankind. The Lord is God of power and salvation. The Lord is God of mercy. Jesus has the power to save all the mankind from sin.

Jesus came to this world and shed the light of salvation on our minds. All of us cannot help but live in the dark world because of our sins. The Lord shed the true light of salvation in our minds with the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Jesus tells us, “I have taken your sins through the baptism. I have borne all the judgment of all the sins instead of you by shedding My blood on the Cross. I am your Savior. I have blotted out all your sins.”

The Lord God lets us hear this beautiful and blessed news by shedding the true light in our dark minds. Jesus brightly illuminated our dark minds by giving us the delightful news of salvation that enables us to receive the remission of sins. Our Lord blotted out our sins clearly to transform us into sinless children of God. So, we can profess now, “Jesus became my Savior. Jesus blotted out all my sins.”

Jesus gave the true light of salvation to all mankind. There is no true Savior in this world before or Jesus came. There has been no other Savior except Jesus Christ. No one could save the people in the world from the sins of this world. All people are unable to save themselves from their weaknesses, from their wrongdoings, from their sins, and from their eventual judgment. Therefore, it is only Jesus Christ who is able to save all the people from all their sins.

It is written in Isaiah,

“He saw that there was no man,
And wondered that there was no intercessor;
Therefore His own arm brought salvation for Him;
And His own righteousness, it sustained Him” (Isaiah59:16).

The Lord Himself planned the salvation of mankind, came to this earth to save all the sinners from their sins with the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit. Thus, the Savior of mankind Jesus came as the Mediator between God and us, and He took all the sins of mankind on His body to break down the wall of sin that had separated God the Father from us. He took the judgment for all the sins of mankind by shedding His blood on the Cross, and then He rose again from the dead to give us new life. This righteous act was enough to give us the blessing to be called the children of God to all of us who believe in Jesus Christ as the true Savior. Our mind is pleased with the faith because our Lord came as the Savior with that kind of salvation.

We have to know that Jesus is our Savior through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Jesus came to this earth to save us from the sins of the world. Jesus lowered Himself to human flesh, took all the sins of the world by receiving the baptism from John the Baptist, received the judgment by shedding His blood on the Cross, and therefore He fulfilled the salvation of mankind completely by rising again from the dead in three days. And, He is sitting on the right hand of the throne of God the Father still to this day. Now, whoever believes in the fact that Jesus is our Savior can become a child of God and enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Now, whoever knows and believes that Jesus took our sins when He received the baptism from John the Baptist and that He has fulfilled all righteousness of God once and for all by shedding His blood, that person will receive the remission of sin, no matter how weak and deficient the person is, and no matter how many sins he has committed. It is the truth that you will be saved from all sin only if in your mind you believe in Jesus Christ who came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit.

We cannot enter the kingdom of heaven with money, but we can enter by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. We become the righteous by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit in our hearts. By believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit with our mind, we become the children of God and we can be blessed. That is why the only true Savior in this whole world is Jesus. The name Jesus means ‘the one who will save His people from their sins’ (Matthew 1:21). Therefore, the name Jesus Christ is most appropriate to He who is the Savior of mankind.

The same Jesus who came to this world, also is the very Lord who previously made man out of dust, and breathed into nostrils of Adam the breath of life to make him a living being. And the Lord also made Eve from a rib of Adam. Why did He make a woman and give her to Adam? It is to make us humans perfect.

I would like to teach you a funny thing. The Chinese character for person is “人(Ren).” This character is composed of two separated lines that imply two persons. If there is only one line “ノ” in “人,” it falls down. It cannot stand. Therefore, the fact that the Chinese character “人(Ren)” needs two lines means that two persons, a man and a woman, have to make one to become perfect. So, people say if a man marries a woman, he has become a complete person.

It is written, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:24). This verse is talking about how a man and woman should marry and live happily together giving birth to their children, and it is the standard that God has set for us., The Apostle Paul teaches us about the mystery of the marriage system, saying, “This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church” (Ephesians 5:32). God wants to cleanse us from all our sins to make us His bride and marry us. In short, God has set up the marriage system to help us understand His will toward us: He wants to make us righteous by blotting out all our sins so that we can live with Him in His Kingdom forever.

My fellow believers, can we go to Heaven our own actions? Can we go to Heaven by living virtuously? No. Even though these are complex questions, approach them as if you were a child. Children think in simple terms. That is why Jesus loved the children. Adults also must be simple like children to be blessed by God. Now, I ask you to be simple in answering the following questions.

My fellow believers, can a sinner enter Heaven? No. Whoever has sin in his or her heart will be cast down to hell. Is it possible for us not to commit sin even for one moment after we have born in this world? No. No person can prevent himself from committing sins. Then, is it possible for a person who committed a sin even one time  to enter Heaven, or not? No, it is not possible. Then, it is only just that no one in this world should be allowed to enter Heaven.

Then, does that mean that there is no way to go to Heaven? No, it is does not. That is why the Savior is necessary for all of us. We can only go to Heaven through the Savior who saved us from all sins. So God made us, and He became a Man to blot out our sins after we had fallen into sin. Jesus is God Himself who came to this earth wearing the same body as us.

That Jesus has taken our sins, and the sins of all the people in this earth without any exception. Jesus was passed the sins of the world onto His body by receiving the baptism from John. Just as the High Priest of the Old Testament passed the sins of his people onto the scapegoat by imposing both his hands on the head of the sacrifice, John, the representative of mankind, laid his hands on the head of Jesus. Jesus commanded to John. “Permit it to be so now. I commend you. Pass the sins onto Me by imposing your hands on My head.”

“The laying on of hands” means “to pass over.” Jesus received the laying on of hands from John who is the representative of all mankind. The sins of the world passed onto Jesus at that exact time.

My fellow believers, even though you do not know what this thick Bible is all about, if you understand and accept the gospel of the water and the Spirit even in this short time, you can be saved from all your sins. I am preaching the core of salvation now with the gospel of the water and the Spirit. You will become the children of God by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit in your mind. Even if you have never given an offering, even if you have never done a good deed even once in your life you will go to Heaven by the faith of believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit.

It is written, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name” (John1: 12). God gives the blessing of salvation to those who believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit in their mind. God also blesses such people to be the children of God. We the sinners do not have any merits on our own; and it is just for me to go to hell after receiving the judgment. But God so loved us and He gave us His only begotten Son. His only Son came to this earth and took all our sins by receiving the baptism at the Jordan River and received all the judgment for our sins by shedding His blood on the Cross. And we are blessed to be the children of God by believing in this Truth. I wish for you to receive Jesus as your Savior by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit with your mind, and to be saved from the sins of the world.

“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name” (John 1:12). Have you received Him? Receiving someone is only possible when we know the visitor well. If someone knocks at the door outside, we say, “Who is it?” If that person is one of our acquaintances, we say and open the door widely, “What’s up? Nice to see you. Come inside.” This is how we receive our friends.

Even we haven’t met Jesus personally, we can still receive Him in our hearts because we have come to know Him well through the gospel of the water and the Spirit. We know that Jesus has taken all our sins by receiving the baptism at the Jordan River. I can guarantee that you can receive the remission of your sins by doing so before God. I cannot guarantee things of this world, but I can guarantee your salvation, your going to Heaven, being blotted out of your sins, joining the righteous, becoming the children of God, receiving the eternal life, and receiving heavenly blessings. I can guarantee you all these wonderful things by believing in Jesus who received the baptism from John. With this faith, I can guarantee you that Jesus took not only your sins, but also the sins of your descendants, your ancestors, all the sins from Adam to the people who will be born until the last day of this earth.

Your heart is the most Holy Place where God can dwell. Receive the gospel of the water and the Spirit with the mind. Believe with your heart that Jesus is your Savior. I have nothing to be proud of by myself. However, the reason that I can bluster and be boastful sometimes is all because of the grace of Jesus and the gospel power of the water and the Spirit that Jesus has given me. Anyways, I truly wish for you to be the children of God today by believing in this in your own hearts.

You become a child of God only if you know and believe in the gospel Word of the water and the Spirit. You have to know the Truth of salvation correctly. If you believe in Jesus without knowing the Truth of salvation, you will end up becoming a hypocritical religionist. How many churches today are only intent on collecting money just like a corporate enterprise? There are rights and wrongs in Christianity doctrines. But, if you do not know the gospel Truth of the water and the Spirit but just believe in the doctrines of Christianity, you cannot help but become a hypocritical religionist. I wish for you not to fall into these false Christianity doctrines.

I am preaching the gospel of the water and the Spirit before God. I do not preach other things except the gospel of the water and the Spirit. It is clear that God wants to give; He does not want to receive from us. God gives us the salvation with the gospel of the water and the Spirit. He blots out our sins, allows us to be the children of God, gives the blessings of God, and He wants to give all these blessed things.

God blesses and saves us. We have to know this. I can guarantee your salvation before God without doubt. Jesus took all your sins when He received the baptism at the Jordan River, and He bore all the judgments and the punishments for the sins that you have committed in your lifetime on the Cross. And then He rose again from the dead in three days. He rose again from the grave and He sat at the right hand of the throne of God the Father.

My fellow believers, our Jesus is still alive. And He still looks for people to believe in Him by believing in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. Jesus is looking for the people who were born not of blood, not of the will of the flesh, or not of the will of man, but of God, and only of God. One cannot be saved because his father is an elder or a pastor. Even the son of a pastor cannot go to Heaven owing only to his faithful father. Anyone can be saved from sin and go to Heaven only when he believes in the gospel of the water and the Spirit in his mind and receives the remission of sins.

It is written, “That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world” (John 1:9). If you receive the true Light, the darkness in your heart will fade away in no time, and you will become the children of Light. If you believe in your mind that Jesus came by the gospel of the water and the Spirit, you will be saved from all your sins without fail. I mean to say that Jesus came by the Savior for each one of us. Even though you do not know much about the Scriptures, you can be saved from your sins by believing in the fact that Jesus has taken all the sins of the world and thus He has fulfilled all the righteousness of God by receiving the baptism at the Jordan River. God remits our sins because we believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. I wish for you to believe in the gospel of the water and the Spirit. When Jesus was dying on the Cross, He said, “It is finished!” (John 19:30) I wish for you to believe this Word. He surely has completed all our salvation with His baptism and blood on the Cross.

We cannot see Jesus with our physical eyes. But we can believe in Him with our minds. Clearly before, there was pitch darkness in our mind. However, we came to escape from the darkness because someone has shined the true Light in our mind. This giver of Life is Jesus. We have to accept Jesus in our hearts knowing that fact.

And we also have to remember that we cannot live forever in this world. It is written, “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). We live for 70 to 80 years on average, and will die someday. Moses also declared,

“The days of our lives are seventy years;
And if by reason of strength they are eighty years,
Yet their boast is only labor and sorrow;
For it is soon cut off, and we fly away” (Psalm 90:10).

We will die someday. But it is not the end for us after that. There is God’s judgment after our death and Heaven and hell await us after. Therefore, we have to receive the blessing of salvation while we are living on this earth by believing in Jesus and receiving Him with our mind. Only then, will there be no bad judgment for us on that day. And we will also be able to enjoy lots of blessings in this world. It is because God will change your mind and your family.

Someone might say, “Not me. I can’t do it. I am not a person who will believe in Jesus. Why? A person like me must not be allowed believe in Jesus because I was born with the human nature of committing sins. The church will be ruined.” Don’t worry about it. Only if you believe in the fact that Jesus took all your sins and received the judgment for those sins, then Jesus will enter into your mind and change your sinful mind to the righteous and virtue-loving mind.

My fellow believer, I wish for you to entrust all your sins to Jesus. I wish for you to entrust God with your evil and weak mind that you cannot do anything about. If you entrust Him, He will take all your iniquities and weaknesses. It is because our Lord is an all-powerful God to whom nothing is impossible.

All of us have to live preparing in our mind to go to Heaven at any time while we are living in this world. After we have received the remission of sins with the gospel of the water and the Spirit we have rightly prepared to go to Heaven. And if we believe in Jesus, we will receive the heavenly blessings, not only the blessings this world, but also the blessings of the coming world. I also wish for you to know that God’s grace does not end at your generation but it will be endowed to your children. If we believe in God, He protects us as our Shepherd. He protects us from the evil spirits so that they cannot touch us (1 John 5:18).

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