Sunday Worship Service April 13, 2025 (Passion Week)
Prelude
Call to Worship Isaiah 53:3
Hymn JBC # 232 On the cross of Calvary
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 230 On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross
Offering
Scripture Mark 15:16～32
Prayer
Sermon “Saviour who is insulted”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 327 Lead on, O King eternal
Doxology JBC # 674
Benediction
Postlude
Welcome & Announcement
In Christianity, we believe that God, who created heaven and earth and all things in the world, became a man, that is, God the Father came into the world as the Son, Jesus Christ.
We commemorate and celebrate the fact that Jesus Christ was born as a human at Christmas. In the tradition of the Protestant Church, we commemorate Christmas every year on December 25.
The birth of Jesus Christ was the coming of great hope that people had been waiting for.
In order to thank and rejoice that the One who is the true hope and true light from God has been born into the world, the church places great importance on Christmas.
And the Christian church has also kept Easter, which commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ after his death, as a very important anniversary.
This week (April 13-19) is called “Passion Week,” or “Holy Week”. Passion Week is the one week before Easter Sunday.
Unlike Christmas, the date of Easter changes each year. The date of Easter Sunday is determined by the relationship between the vernal (spring) equinox and the date of the full moon that follows. This year, Easter is Sunday, April 20.
The resurrection of Christ (that is, his rising from the dead) may sound in terms of the common sense like an incredible, even absurd, event to many people.
But because of Christ's resurrection from the dead, the gospel of Jesus Christ was believed by people as news of great hope and joy, and that news was shared throughout the world.
The Lord Jesus Christ has risen. So, how did Jesus Christ die before His resurrection?
As you probably know, Jesus died by crucifixion, which was the most cruel method of execution in the Roman Empire at that time, about 2,000 years ago
It usually should be assumed that Jesus was guilty of a serious crime that deserved that sentence.
So, what kind of crime did Jesus commit that led to his crucifixion?
To get to the point, Jesus did not commit any sin that would warrant crucifixion.
The Bible tells us that the very person in authority who ultimately sentenced Jesus to be crucified clearly stated, “I find no sin in this man [Jesus].”
Today's scripture is from Mark 15. In Mark 15:14, Pilate, the then governor of the Jews, asks the Jews who demanded that He (Jesus) be crucified, “What evil has [He] done?”
It was the Jewish leaders of the time (the chief priests, the scribes, and the members of the Jewish council) who strongly demanded that Jesus be crucified and killed.
They accused Jesus of “blaspheming God,” and in fact, they were jealous that “many people believed in Jesus and followed him,” so they insisted that “this Man [Jesus] be killed.”
We can imagine from the biblical account that a large crowd of others too gradually joined the Jewish leaders in calling to kill and crucify this Man (Jesus).
As I mentioned earlier, Pilate, the governor, said to the people who were calling for the crucifixion,
“What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty.” (Luke 23:22)
Pilate himself could not find any crime in the man named Jesus.
Pilate, however, finally gives his approval for Jesus' crucifixion. Pilate finally gave in to the voices (demands) of the multitude.
Pilate sentenced to death a man whom he himself believed to be innocent.
Pilate thought, “This man has done nothing wrong,” and he said so in his own words too. What made Pilate say that?
We all have a conscience. We also have a reason to try to judge things correctly. We are equipped with a heart that seeks justice.
All of these things are given to us by God. The mind hoping that things should be right, the mind that hates evil and seeks to oppose evil (conscience), were given to us by God.
And that God-given conscience led Pilate to correctly judge, “This Man (Jesus) has done nothing wrong.”
However, even if our conscience tells us that “this Man has done nothing wrong,” whether or not we can actually act in accordance with that conscience, the voice of God, is a different matter.
This is because there are forces and temptations of evil that try to pull us away from our God-given conscience. Our human weakness is also there.
A man of faith named Paul said in the Bible
Romans 7:15
15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.
The verse 17 says as follows.
17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.
What is right and how we should act is informed to us by our God-given conscience and by God's loving heart.
However, we have a conflict because of the sinful nature that lives within us, which prevents us from obeying it.
Pilate put an innocent man to death, preferring to obey the voice of the people and thereby safeguard his position as governor, rather than obey the voice of God, his conscience.
We must face up to the fact that we ourselves have that weakness and sin that Pilate's actions demonstrate, and the sin and evil nature of man that Paul moaned about in his letter to the Romans.
We cannot eliminate nor deal with that sin by ourselves. This sin must be forgiven by someone other than us, someone truly powerful and totally sinless.
To forgive us of such sins, the Bible tells us, Jesus Christ went to the cross and laid down His life on the cross.
Today's passage, beginning in verse 16, describes how the soldiers drew Jesus inside the governor's palace, where the entire troop was called together.
What was the reason for so many soldiers to gather there? They wanted to have fun together, making fun of and insulting Jesus.
It is written that they dressed Jesus in purple. The purple clothes were a symbol of the authority as king. And instead of a gold crown, they insulted Jesus by putting a crown of thorns on him.
They dressed him in purple, but instead of gold crown, they put a crown of thorns on Him, saying and mocking, “He is a fake king!”
They saluted Jesus, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” They beat him on the head with reed sticks, spat on him, and even kneeled down to worship him.
The soldiers who insulted Jesus show us the evil nature and emotions of us human beings who “seek to confirm our superiority over others by insulting and attacking those who are in a weaker position than we are.”
The One who is truly God has suffered so thoroughly the insults and mockery of people. It means that God took our evil nature, our sin, in His shole person. Till the end.
And in today's passage, we read that two rebels (robbers) were also crucified with Jesus.
It says in the Old Testament in Isaiah 53:12, “He was counted as one of the sinners.” Jesus' crucifixion along with other criminals was the very fulfillment of that biblical prophecy and the will of God.
Even after His being put to the cross, people continued to curse Him. Let me read verses 31~32 of today's passage.
31 In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! 32 Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.
The words “This man saved others, but he cannot save himself.” were thrown at Jesus.
Jesus could have saved Himself if He wanted to. He could have easily come down from the cross if God had so willed.
However, it was necessary for our salvation that Jesus continued to hang on the cross with a figure of “saved others but can not save himself” without saying a word.
In order to save us, Jesus remained to the end in the midst of all the insults from people.
Here is the person who did not seek to save Himself but to save us, who gave up everything for us, who endured everything, who loved us to the end, and who sought to save us.
“Come down from the cross now. Then we may believe when we see it.” - Despite hearing such voices from people, the Lord Jesus Christ still offered His life on the cross for the salvation of sinners.
In that figure, there was no image of the Savior that the Jewish people of that time had been waiting for and expecting for so long. He was not the hero who would overthrow the empire that ruled their country with strong military force.
There was no figure of a strong man who came down from the cross and struck down the soldiers. There was only the figure of a man who continued to suffer on the cross without saying a word.
We have to see ourselves in “the people who crucified the Savior and continued to insult Him.”
We are led to repentance with the thought, “It was I, we, who crucified Jesus.”
We are also taught that people created by God should not act in such a way.
We should not have put the Saviour Christ to the cross nor insulted Him. Still now should not we.
In this week of Passion Week, let us continue to reflect on that event of the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the ultimate insults He suffered there from the people.
Through the Lord Jesus Christ, who endured everything and laid down His life on the cross, we have been forgiven of sins that we could not handle on our own.
Let us walk through the days of this week, keeping in mind the last week of suffering that the Lord Jesus Christ went through for the forgiveness of our sins and the attainment of our salvation.
Saturday, April 5, 2025
Sunday Worship Service April 6, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Luke 2:14
Hymn JBC #227 Up Calv’ry’s mountain
The Lord’s Prayer
The Prayer Time
Hymn JBC # 230 On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross
Offering
Scripture Psalms 21:13 (NIV)
Prayer
Sermon “The Glory be to the Lord God”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 213 Tell me the story of Jesus
Doxology JBC # 674
Benediction
Postlude
Welcome & Announcements
We thank God for the blessing of being able to offer this first Sunday service of the new fiscal year (2025) that begins in April.
Today's scripture is from Psalm 21:14 (verse 13 in the English NIV).
Be exalted in your strength, Lord;
we will sing and praise your might.
This verse has been chosen by our church as our annual scripture for the current year (2025). And the annual theme chosen with this verse is "All for the glory of the Lord God.”
We hope to experience the significance of this scripture and theme given to us through our prayers and discussions.
To glorify God, to praise and glorify the name of the One who is our Lord, is the very purpose of the believer's life.
We are the ones who live our lives worshipping something. Something in ourselves becomes the most important thing, the purpose of our life, and we live seeking (praising) it.
Various things become the object of our worship/praise. Many things can be the purpose of our daily lives.
It can be the possession of more things, or social status, or money, success, or how much ability or talent we have.
But the Bible says, “Let the Lord be praised,” and “Let us live praising the Lord our God.”
Jesus Christ taught His disciples the words of the prayer.
When Jesus' disciples asked Him to “teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1), He taught them the words of prayer.
The words of the prayer that Jesus taught His disciples at that time became the basis for the Lord's Prayer, which we pray in worship services today.
The first words of the Lord's Prayer are
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed (*to be made holy) be thy name.
The first words of the Lord's Prayer affirm that the One who is in heaven, the One who made everything in the world, is our Father (God).
”Father" does not mean that God is male. God is the One who transcends human gender.
The words of the Lord's Prayer follow, "hallowed (made holy) be the name of God the Father.”
Jesus first taught his disciples that the first words of the prayer should be, "hallowed be the name of God and sanctified be the name of the Father.”
This is an urge to "recognize how special it is that God's name is given to us, and let us praise him [God].”
Words must be accompanied by substance (facts). It is possible for a believer in Jesus Christ to say the Lord's Prayer without praising God (without sanctifying Him) and with himself sitting in the center of his being.
Nevertheless, the words of prayer that Jesus taught us, the words of our prayer based on the Scriptures, are very important in shaping our faith.
We may say, “Hallowed be the name of the Lord,” or “Let us praise Him,” but deep down inside, we may still be our own king and master.
However, with such sins (sins that do not make God our Lord, but make ourselves or something else God), we should live our lives of faith always hoping that the words “Praise be to the Lord” will become our true words of prayer.
In Psalm 21:14 (NIV 21:13), we are told that the Lord God is powerful, "Be exalted in your strength, Lord.”
How does our Lord God express His power?
We are now in the time of the Passion (Lent) when we especially remember that Jesus Christ walked the road to the cross Himself, to die on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins.
Jesus did many mighty works while living and evangelizing in the land of the Jews. He healed the sick and cast out demons from those who were possessed by them.
Jesus even calmed storms. These are also powerful works that Jesus demonstrated.
But the ultimate powerful work that Jesus Christ showed us was His sacrificial work in which He bore the sins of all men and offered Himself, who was completely sinless, on the cross.
At the end of His life, Jesus said no more, but simply bore the cross in silence and was led to the place where He was to be executed.
The Lord Jesus Christ on the cross is a figure that is totally in conflict with the image of “strength” that we usually think of.
But when we lower ourselves and look up to the Lord Jesus Christ of the Cross with the eyes of faith, we see the true power of God in Him.
It is on the cross that the work of the ultimate power of Jesus Christ, who overcame all the powers of evil and death, was conducted.
On the cross, Jesus Christ bears our sins, our weaknesses, our shortcomings, and everything else.
Therefore, as forgiven sinners, we are led to a life of worship of the Lord God with great joy. We are invited to rejoice in God and praise Him.
The Bible tells us that "no man is righteous or justified before God on his own.” It tells us that we are all sinners, lacking and weak.
Still such us, we are given the grace to gather in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to praise and worship Him.
In this respect, we can say that the Christian church has truly received a special treasure.
Let us rejoice together that we have such a treasure, the grace to be able to praise the Lord.
Psalm 21 is considered to be a continuation of the previous Psalm 20. In Psalm 20, it is prayed that the king should achieve the victory in battle.
In Psalm 21, people praise God in thanksgiving for the fulfillment of their prayers and wishes for the king’s victory.
Psalm 20:7 (verse 6 NIV) reads, “The LORD gives victory to his anointed,” and Psalm 20:10 (verse 9 NIV) reads, "LORD, give victory to the king! Answer us when we call.”
Thus, while the psalmist wishes for the king's victory, it is the Lord God who gives that victory to the king.
In verse 8 of Book 20 (20:7 NIV) we read
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
It is not by the king's own strength or the strength of his chariots and horses that he can win. It is the Lord our God who gives the victory," he confesses here.
And in verse 2 of Book 21 (v. 1 NIV), we read.
The king rejoices in your strength, Lord.
How great is his joy in the victories you give!
In verse 8 of Book 21 (21:7 NIV) we read. The king depends on the Lord.
For the king trusts in the Lord;
through the unfailing love of the Most High
he will not be shaken.
Our Lord God is the One on whom we can always count on. Our Lord God is the one who gives us love and mercy.
And when our king is granted victory, the source of that victory (success) is the Lord God, and the words of the psalmist express his desire that "the king will not be puffed up with victory, but will always praise the Lord God.”
It also expresses the desire that all men, kings and people alike, may humble themselves before the Lord God and worship Him alone, not themselves or their kings.
It is the desire of their faith that they may not take the glory of their victory (success) for themselves, but may return the glory of their victory to the Lord God.
We, too, wish to cherish the faith of those who have been protected and given victory by the Lord's mighty works, so that they may return all glory to the Lord God, without boasting of ourselves and attributing glory to ourselves.
And today's scripture, and our yearly scripture for this year, continues by saying, "In praise of mighty works, we will sing and praise your might.
It is shown from here that being encouraged by the work of God's love, we will be given songs of praise to the Lord.
Usually, the hymn after the worship message is called the "hymn of response”. It directly means a response to God's message (grace) that was spoken that day.
However, today's scripture teaches us that all our praises are “response” in the sense that they are a response to God's great work that has already been accomplished for us.
Songs of praise to God do not come from within ourselves.
God's works of power and love come first, and only as a response of thanksgiving can we offer songs of praise.
Let us rejoice that the name of the true God has been given to us, the name of the One whom we praise and honor with all our hearts.
And let us always humble ourselves before the Lord, asking that the mighty works of God, the works of love and mercy, the pure joy that our sins have been forgiven by the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross, may motivate us to praise.
Let us live our life of faith together in the new year, hoping that everything we say and do will be a thanksgiving to the Lord God and a return of glory to Him.
Prelude
Call to Worship Luke 2:14
Hymn JBC #227 Up Calv’ry’s mountain
The Lord’s Prayer
The Prayer Time
Hymn JBC # 230 On a hill far away stood an old rugged cross
Offering
Scripture Psalms 21:13 (NIV)
Prayer
Sermon “The Glory be to the Lord God”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 213 Tell me the story of Jesus
Doxology JBC # 674
Benediction
Postlude
Welcome & Announcements
We thank God for the blessing of being able to offer this first Sunday service of the new fiscal year (2025) that begins in April.
Today's scripture is from Psalm 21:14 (verse 13 in the English NIV).
Be exalted in your strength, Lord;
we will sing and praise your might.
This verse has been chosen by our church as our annual scripture for the current year (2025). And the annual theme chosen with this verse is "All for the glory of the Lord God.”
We hope to experience the significance of this scripture and theme given to us through our prayers and discussions.
To glorify God, to praise and glorify the name of the One who is our Lord, is the very purpose of the believer's life.
We are the ones who live our lives worshipping something. Something in ourselves becomes the most important thing, the purpose of our life, and we live seeking (praising) it.
Various things become the object of our worship/praise. Many things can be the purpose of our daily lives.
It can be the possession of more things, or social status, or money, success, or how much ability or talent we have.
But the Bible says, “Let the Lord be praised,” and “Let us live praising the Lord our God.”
Jesus Christ taught His disciples the words of the prayer.
When Jesus' disciples asked Him to “teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1), He taught them the words of prayer.
The words of the prayer that Jesus taught His disciples at that time became the basis for the Lord's Prayer, which we pray in worship services today.
The first words of the Lord's Prayer are
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed (*to be made holy) be thy name.
The first words of the Lord's Prayer affirm that the One who is in heaven, the One who made everything in the world, is our Father (God).
”Father" does not mean that God is male. God is the One who transcends human gender.
The words of the Lord's Prayer follow, "hallowed (made holy) be the name of God the Father.”
Jesus first taught his disciples that the first words of the prayer should be, "hallowed be the name of God and sanctified be the name of the Father.”
This is an urge to "recognize how special it is that God's name is given to us, and let us praise him [God].”
Words must be accompanied by substance (facts). It is possible for a believer in Jesus Christ to say the Lord's Prayer without praising God (without sanctifying Him) and with himself sitting in the center of his being.
Nevertheless, the words of prayer that Jesus taught us, the words of our prayer based on the Scriptures, are very important in shaping our faith.
We may say, “Hallowed be the name of the Lord,” or “Let us praise Him,” but deep down inside, we may still be our own king and master.
However, with such sins (sins that do not make God our Lord, but make ourselves or something else God), we should live our lives of faith always hoping that the words “Praise be to the Lord” will become our true words of prayer.
In Psalm 21:14 (NIV 21:13), we are told that the Lord God is powerful, "Be exalted in your strength, Lord.”
How does our Lord God express His power?
We are now in the time of the Passion (Lent) when we especially remember that Jesus Christ walked the road to the cross Himself, to die on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins.
Jesus did many mighty works while living and evangelizing in the land of the Jews. He healed the sick and cast out demons from those who were possessed by them.
Jesus even calmed storms. These are also powerful works that Jesus demonstrated.
But the ultimate powerful work that Jesus Christ showed us was His sacrificial work in which He bore the sins of all men and offered Himself, who was completely sinless, on the cross.
At the end of His life, Jesus said no more, but simply bore the cross in silence and was led to the place where He was to be executed.
The Lord Jesus Christ on the cross is a figure that is totally in conflict with the image of “strength” that we usually think of.
But when we lower ourselves and look up to the Lord Jesus Christ of the Cross with the eyes of faith, we see the true power of God in Him.
It is on the cross that the work of the ultimate power of Jesus Christ, who overcame all the powers of evil and death, was conducted.
On the cross, Jesus Christ bears our sins, our weaknesses, our shortcomings, and everything else.
Therefore, as forgiven sinners, we are led to a life of worship of the Lord God with great joy. We are invited to rejoice in God and praise Him.
The Bible tells us that "no man is righteous or justified before God on his own.” It tells us that we are all sinners, lacking and weak.
Still such us, we are given the grace to gather in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to praise and worship Him.
In this respect, we can say that the Christian church has truly received a special treasure.
Let us rejoice together that we have such a treasure, the grace to be able to praise the Lord.
Psalm 21 is considered to be a continuation of the previous Psalm 20. In Psalm 20, it is prayed that the king should achieve the victory in battle.
In Psalm 21, people praise God in thanksgiving for the fulfillment of their prayers and wishes for the king’s victory.
Psalm 20:7 (verse 6 NIV) reads, “The LORD gives victory to his anointed,” and Psalm 20:10 (verse 9 NIV) reads, "LORD, give victory to the king! Answer us when we call.”
Thus, while the psalmist wishes for the king's victory, it is the Lord God who gives that victory to the king.
In verse 8 of Book 20 (20:7 NIV) we read
Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
It is not by the king's own strength or the strength of his chariots and horses that he can win. It is the Lord our God who gives the victory," he confesses here.
And in verse 2 of Book 21 (v. 1 NIV), we read.
The king rejoices in your strength, Lord.
How great is his joy in the victories you give!
In verse 8 of Book 21 (21:7 NIV) we read. The king depends on the Lord.
For the king trusts in the Lord;
through the unfailing love of the Most High
he will not be shaken.
Our Lord God is the One on whom we can always count on. Our Lord God is the one who gives us love and mercy.
And when our king is granted victory, the source of that victory (success) is the Lord God, and the words of the psalmist express his desire that "the king will not be puffed up with victory, but will always praise the Lord God.”
It also expresses the desire that all men, kings and people alike, may humble themselves before the Lord God and worship Him alone, not themselves or their kings.
It is the desire of their faith that they may not take the glory of their victory (success) for themselves, but may return the glory of their victory to the Lord God.
We, too, wish to cherish the faith of those who have been protected and given victory by the Lord's mighty works, so that they may return all glory to the Lord God, without boasting of ourselves and attributing glory to ourselves.
And today's scripture, and our yearly scripture for this year, continues by saying, "In praise of mighty works, we will sing and praise your might.
It is shown from here that being encouraged by the work of God's love, we will be given songs of praise to the Lord.
Usually, the hymn after the worship message is called the "hymn of response”. It directly means a response to God's message (grace) that was spoken that day.
However, today's scripture teaches us that all our praises are “response” in the sense that they are a response to God's great work that has already been accomplished for us.
Songs of praise to God do not come from within ourselves.
God's works of power and love come first, and only as a response of thanksgiving can we offer songs of praise.
Let us rejoice that the name of the true God has been given to us, the name of the One whom we praise and honor with all our hearts.
And let us always humble ourselves before the Lord, asking that the mighty works of God, the works of love and mercy, the pure joy that our sins have been forgiven by the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross, may motivate us to praise.
Let us live our life of faith together in the new year, hoping that everything we say and do will be a thanksgiving to the Lord God and a return of glory to Him.
Saturday, March 29, 2025
Sunday Worship Service March 30, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Isaiah 55:3
Hymn JBC#21 Worthy of worship
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering
Scripture Revelation 22:16～21
Prayer
Sermon “Come, Lord Jesus”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 301 Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
Doxology JBC# 673
Benediction
Postlude
Today, we have come to the last Sunday worship service of the 2024 fiscal year. (Generally speaking, the new fiscal year in Japan begins from April)
Let us sincerely be grateful to God that our church has worshipped, that our life of faith has been protected under His grace this year as well.
Along with the annual theme [Stand on the Word of the Lord] this year, our church has kept its walk of faith.
It might sound like to [Stand on the Word of the Lord] seems like “to do our best to keep on standing on God’s Word of the bible on our own feet by our own will and effort”.
Certainly, the point that we ourselves should strive is undeniable even in our life of faith.
However, to [stand on the Word of the Lord] is primarily to confirm the solid foundation which is “the Word of the Lord (God)” that is already given to us, rather than us trying an effort.
And it is a grace that, to stand firm on that absolute Word of the Lord, we can receive unwavering peace of mind on that foundation.
That Word of the Lord, which is the absolute foundation that we can always rely on throughout our life, is already given to us.
By always listening to the “Word of the Lord” that guides our journey, having His Word as a guideline to conduct our life, we can walk the certain way of faith, even if it’s slow (and even if at times we tend to lose our way)
The Word of the bible is God’s Word, and it gives us spiritual encouragement and strength.
Just by oral reading the Word of the bible and even just heard simultaneously by many people,
it’s quite possible that that Word resonates very uniquely.
Jesus said [For where two or three are gathered in My Name, I Am there amidst them] (Matthew 18:20)
If even two or three believers that believe Jesus Christ gather, and there the Word which is God’s Word is shared, the Spirit of Jesus that was promised to be with us turns the Word of God into something special.
Let us believe the promise of Jesus that said He will be with us where we gather in His name.
Let us at always stand on God’s Word, be sustained and guided, share His Word together, move towards the direction His Word reveals and walk together even from now on.
This fiscal year, we have shared with each other over the course of a year the entire bible from the beginning of the Old Testament in the worship service sermon.
Of course, the scriptures that we could take in the worship service message was just a portion of the entire bible.
However, I believe we have confirmed that [both the New and Old Testament testifies of Jesus Christ], and [The Bible is absolutely God’s message]
We hear [the Gospel of Jesus Christ (the Good News)] from the entire bible.
Today’s scripture, the last Sunday of this fiscal year is the last portion, chap. 22:16～21 of [Revelation] which is the very last book of the Bible.
“Revelation” means “what is concealed will be revealed”, that is, “God’s truth will be revealed”.
Why can we human beings come to know about God? We cannot reach God nor gain knowledge to know Him from the human side.
And yet, why can we come to know God?
It’s because God Himself has revealed Himself to us through Jesus Christ. It’s because God became human being and lived with people in this world.
Jesus was crucified, died and resurrected. After that, Jesus promised [I will come again] and ascended to heaven.
To this day, Jesus is not visible, but we can hear and share His message through the words of the Bible.
We can know who Jesus Christ is through the Bible.
Today’s verse 16 is written as follows.
16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
Jesus calls Himself [the Root of David (branch, meaning descendant)]. David is the name of a king of Israel that appears in the Old Testament.
To the Israelites, King David is a character that may well be said to be a historical as well as a hero of faith.
And in accordance with the prophetic words of the Bible (Old Testament), the Israelites believed that “in due time, their own Savior (the Messiah) will be born from the descendants of David”.
And exactly, Jesus was born into this world with Joseph of the House of David as his father.
Jesus calls Himself [the bright Morning Star]. Morning star refers to the bright Venus in the East at dawn.
Jesus calls Himself here [the Morning Star], meaning hope that “After the night, morning will surely come. That means, new morning comes along with the star (morning star) of Jesus Christ” as well.
Venus is not visible from the earth at night due to positional relationship. Although unseen, however, of course Venus exists. Similarly, though not visible in our sight, Jesus Christ is surely present.
And even when to us, it seems like dark night (in times of pain and sorrow) appears endless, it is well for us to believe through Jesus’ words, that new morning will surely come with His light (star).
In the latter half of verse 17 is written as follows.
Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.
“One who is thirsty” refers to one who is spiritually thirsty. If we are not spiritually filled, we always thirst in our heart.
It is because man, by nature, receives spirit from God and lives spiritually. It is written in [Genesis], which is the beginning of the Old Testament that, God created man of dust from the ground, by breathing “breath” into man, He made him into living being.
That “breath” also means “spirit”. Man being breathed in with God’s spirit becomes a living being, and even now, for man to live in its true sense, it is essential to always receive the” spirit” from God.
If we don’t receive the spirit from God, we become spiritually thirsty, perpetually unfulfilled, empty, and in a feeling of uncertainty.
However, Jesus promises that [Anyone who is thirsty, “can drink” without value (it’s free) the water of life that I give], that no one will spiritually thirst.
Should one thirst, should one desire for the water of life, let us go to Jesus. He says [Come to Me] anytime, He invites and waits for us.
Concretely, to go to Jesus is to read God’s Word of the Bible, come to church and listen together to the message of God’s Word of the Bible in the worship service, read and share the Bible together with other believers and pray.
The pathway to Jesus is open. Even our church always welcomes the thirsty, and I wish to always keep the church’s gate open that we can walk together with them to Jesus.
Let us respond to Jesus’ calling, receive the spiritual nourishment, the water of life which is the Word of God and go to Jesus together with us.
In today’s passage, is also written extremely severe words that we should listen seriously. Let me read verses 18～19.
18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. 19 And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.
We can say that the [words of the prophecy of this scroll], in broader sense, refers to the words of the entire Bible. The Bible is the Word of God that was written through the inspiration of God.
And each word of the Bible bears the weight of the Lord Jesus Christ’s cross. Jesus who bore the sins of us human beings, crucified and died, says that the Word of the Bible is certainly true and testifies about Him.
It says here that we should not modify, add human thoughts or take away significant matters arbitrarily from the words of the Bible.
Surely, there are passages in the Bible that are hard or difficult to understand, or unacceptable in our view of the present age. However, the Word of the Bible is, in any case, the Word of God that should be earnestly studied through Jesus Christ.
I repeat, it is because God’s Word of the Bible is the Word in which the One who has offered everything on the cross for our sake said, “this Bible testifies about Me”.
The most important thing in my work as a pastor, is to explain/ interpret God’s Word of the Bible.
It’s not just theoretically or historically explaining its content as [this Word means this], [the historical background of this passage is this] (but that includes as well)
It isn’t that way, but it’s the role of the pastor to reinterpret and convey the words of the Bible that it may become words to make us at the present time live, and it is also our role as a whole church.
When God’s Word of the Bible is explained clearly at church, and each one of us who hears lives that Word of God in real life, the word of the Bible is reinterpreted to the world through us.
At that time, the Word of the Bible will be spoken as a vibrant and abundant thing, exactly as a “Living Word of life”.
Let us rejoice that we are being made to live in such Word of God, moreover, let us abundantly receive and share His Word, and together live the life of faith.
Let me read the last portion of today’s passage, verse 21 which is the concluding remark of the entire Bible.
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.
This utterance “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people” condenses the purpose of the written Word of the Bible into one sentence.
It is concentrated in this sentence, how much God loves us, how He longs for us to live the abundant life under His grace.
And in this single sentence is summarized the calling of evangelism that our church must fulfill.
Let these words of prayer and hope [The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people], be our earnest prayer and hope.
And let us live ourselves to the joy and happiness of being made to live in the Word of Jesus Christ and convey God’s Word to the world as well.
Prelude
Call to Worship Isaiah 55:3
Hymn JBC#21 Worthy of worship
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering
Scripture Revelation 22:16～21
Prayer
Sermon “Come, Lord Jesus”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 301 Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
Doxology JBC# 673
Benediction
Postlude
Today, we have come to the last Sunday worship service of the 2024 fiscal year. (Generally speaking, the new fiscal year in Japan begins from April)
Let us sincerely be grateful to God that our church has worshipped, that our life of faith has been protected under His grace this year as well.
Along with the annual theme [Stand on the Word of the Lord] this year, our church has kept its walk of faith.
It might sound like to [Stand on the Word of the Lord] seems like “to do our best to keep on standing on God’s Word of the bible on our own feet by our own will and effort”.
Certainly, the point that we ourselves should strive is undeniable even in our life of faith.
However, to [stand on the Word of the Lord] is primarily to confirm the solid foundation which is “the Word of the Lord (God)” that is already given to us, rather than us trying an effort.
And it is a grace that, to stand firm on that absolute Word of the Lord, we can receive unwavering peace of mind on that foundation.
That Word of the Lord, which is the absolute foundation that we can always rely on throughout our life, is already given to us.
By always listening to the “Word of the Lord” that guides our journey, having His Word as a guideline to conduct our life, we can walk the certain way of faith, even if it’s slow (and even if at times we tend to lose our way)
The Word of the bible is God’s Word, and it gives us spiritual encouragement and strength.
Just by oral reading the Word of the bible and even just heard simultaneously by many people,
it’s quite possible that that Word resonates very uniquely.
Jesus said [For where two or three are gathered in My Name, I Am there amidst them] (Matthew 18:20)
If even two or three believers that believe Jesus Christ gather, and there the Word which is God’s Word is shared, the Spirit of Jesus that was promised to be with us turns the Word of God into something special.
Let us believe the promise of Jesus that said He will be with us where we gather in His name.
Let us at always stand on God’s Word, be sustained and guided, share His Word together, move towards the direction His Word reveals and walk together even from now on.
This fiscal year, we have shared with each other over the course of a year the entire bible from the beginning of the Old Testament in the worship service sermon.
Of course, the scriptures that we could take in the worship service message was just a portion of the entire bible.
However, I believe we have confirmed that [both the New and Old Testament testifies of Jesus Christ], and [The Bible is absolutely God’s message]
We hear [the Gospel of Jesus Christ (the Good News)] from the entire bible.
Today’s scripture, the last Sunday of this fiscal year is the last portion, chap. 22:16～21 of [Revelation] which is the very last book of the Bible.
“Revelation” means “what is concealed will be revealed”, that is, “God’s truth will be revealed”.
Why can we human beings come to know about God? We cannot reach God nor gain knowledge to know Him from the human side.
And yet, why can we come to know God?
It’s because God Himself has revealed Himself to us through Jesus Christ. It’s because God became human being and lived with people in this world.
Jesus was crucified, died and resurrected. After that, Jesus promised [I will come again] and ascended to heaven.
To this day, Jesus is not visible, but we can hear and share His message through the words of the Bible.
We can know who Jesus Christ is through the Bible.
Today’s verse 16 is written as follows.
16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
Jesus calls Himself [the Root of David (branch, meaning descendant)]. David is the name of a king of Israel that appears in the Old Testament.
To the Israelites, King David is a character that may well be said to be a historical as well as a hero of faith.
And in accordance with the prophetic words of the Bible (Old Testament), the Israelites believed that “in due time, their own Savior (the Messiah) will be born from the descendants of David”.
And exactly, Jesus was born into this world with Joseph of the House of David as his father.
Jesus calls Himself [the bright Morning Star]. Morning star refers to the bright Venus in the East at dawn.
Jesus calls Himself here [the Morning Star], meaning hope that “After the night, morning will surely come. That means, new morning comes along with the star (morning star) of Jesus Christ” as well.
Venus is not visible from the earth at night due to positional relationship. Although unseen, however, of course Venus exists. Similarly, though not visible in our sight, Jesus Christ is surely present.
And even when to us, it seems like dark night (in times of pain and sorrow) appears endless, it is well for us to believe through Jesus’ words, that new morning will surely come with His light (star).
In the latter half of verse 17 is written as follows.
Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.
“One who is thirsty” refers to one who is spiritually thirsty. If we are not spiritually filled, we always thirst in our heart.
It is because man, by nature, receives spirit from God and lives spiritually. It is written in [Genesis], which is the beginning of the Old Testament that, God created man of dust from the ground, by breathing “breath” into man, He made him into living being.
That “breath” also means “spirit”. Man being breathed in with God’s spirit becomes a living being, and even now, for man to live in its true sense, it is essential to always receive the” spirit” from God.
If we don’t receive the spirit from God, we become spiritually thirsty, perpetually unfulfilled, empty, and in a feeling of uncertainty.
However, Jesus promises that [Anyone who is thirsty, “can drink” without value (it’s free) the water of life that I give], that no one will spiritually thirst.
Should one thirst, should one desire for the water of life, let us go to Jesus. He says [Come to Me] anytime, He invites and waits for us.
Concretely, to go to Jesus is to read God’s Word of the Bible, come to church and listen together to the message of God’s Word of the Bible in the worship service, read and share the Bible together with other believers and pray.
The pathway to Jesus is open. Even our church always welcomes the thirsty, and I wish to always keep the church’s gate open that we can walk together with them to Jesus.
Let us respond to Jesus’ calling, receive the spiritual nourishment, the water of life which is the Word of God and go to Jesus together with us.
In today’s passage, is also written extremely severe words that we should listen seriously. Let me read verses 18～19.
18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. 19 And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.
We can say that the [words of the prophecy of this scroll], in broader sense, refers to the words of the entire Bible. The Bible is the Word of God that was written through the inspiration of God.
And each word of the Bible bears the weight of the Lord Jesus Christ’s cross. Jesus who bore the sins of us human beings, crucified and died, says that the Word of the Bible is certainly true and testifies about Him.
It says here that we should not modify, add human thoughts or take away significant matters arbitrarily from the words of the Bible.
Surely, there are passages in the Bible that are hard or difficult to understand, or unacceptable in our view of the present age. However, the Word of the Bible is, in any case, the Word of God that should be earnestly studied through Jesus Christ.
I repeat, it is because God’s Word of the Bible is the Word in which the One who has offered everything on the cross for our sake said, “this Bible testifies about Me”.
The most important thing in my work as a pastor, is to explain/ interpret God’s Word of the Bible.
It’s not just theoretically or historically explaining its content as [this Word means this], [the historical background of this passage is this] (but that includes as well)
It isn’t that way, but it’s the role of the pastor to reinterpret and convey the words of the Bible that it may become words to make us at the present time live, and it is also our role as a whole church.
When God’s Word of the Bible is explained clearly at church, and each one of us who hears lives that Word of God in real life, the word of the Bible is reinterpreted to the world through us.
At that time, the Word of the Bible will be spoken as a vibrant and abundant thing, exactly as a “Living Word of life”.
Let us rejoice that we are being made to live in such Word of God, moreover, let us abundantly receive and share His Word, and together live the life of faith.
Let me read the last portion of today’s passage, verse 21 which is the concluding remark of the entire Bible.
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.
This utterance “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people” condenses the purpose of the written Word of the Bible into one sentence.
It is concentrated in this sentence, how much God loves us, how He longs for us to live the abundant life under His grace.
And in this single sentence is summarized the calling of evangelism that our church must fulfill.
Let these words of prayer and hope [The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people], be our earnest prayer and hope.
And let us live ourselves to the joy and happiness of being made to live in the Word of Jesus Christ and convey God’s Word to the world as well.
Saturday, March 22, 2025
Sunday Worship Service March 23, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Psalms 31:5 (NIV)
Hymn JBC # 3 Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness
The Lord’s Prayer
The Lord’s Supper
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering
Scripture 1 John 3:19～24
Prayer
Sermon “We belong to the truth”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 92 Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee
Doxology JBC # 673
Benediction
Postlude
Today's Bible passage is from ‘1 Epistle of John”. It is said that the John who wrote this letter was John, one of the twelve direct disciples of Jesus, who also wrote ‘the Gospel of John’.
John recorded in the form of a Gospel the life of Jesus, whom he lived together with, the words that Jesus spoke, and Jesus' crucifixion, death, and resurrection.
In this letter, on the other hand, John focuses on how believers in Jesus Christ should live their lives of faith, especially how believers should love one another.
It is believed that John wrote this letter about 60 years after Jesus died.
If 60 years had already passed since Jesus left the earth, was He a distant memory in John's mind?
Had Jesus become someone that he would remember, thinking, “Long ago, Jesus was our teacher, and He taught us about the wonderful kingdom of God. I remember Him fondly.”?
That was not the case at all. To John, Jesus, who had died 60 years earlier, was still alive as the Christ (the Savior).
Each word of the letters of John shows that John was receiving the power of Jesus Christ working through the Holy Spirit.
Even though Jesus Christ, as a human being, no longer lived on earth, He certainly continued to live in John and among those who believed in Christ with him.
Christ still continues to live now and to tell us the living Words of God. We still now can receive the living Words of God together.
Just before today's scripture passage, in chapter 3, verse 16, it says:
1 John 3:16
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.
In the Gospel of John, chapter 3, verse 16, it says:
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Both are chapter 3, verse 16. Essentially, they both say the same thing: Jesus Christ died for us. God gave His only begotten Son to us. Through Him we now know love.
But John's letter says, “And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”
Even 60 years after Jesus' death, the fact and truth that “the Lord laid down His life for us” was not just a memory of the past for John.
Rather, it (Jesus' laying down His life) remained the driving force of his (John's) life of faith, to the point that he said, “And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”
We cannot die for humans as God died to save humans from sin. For humans cannot save humans from their sins.
However, John is saying that if we truly believe that God laid down His life for us, then that faith should take concrete form in a way of life that practices love for others.
Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. In doing so, we have come to know love. This remains the central message of the Bible.
And the Bible continues to urge us to this day, saying, “Now that we have known this true love, let us love one another. For Jesus first loved us, so much so that He laid down His life for us.”
Because Jesus laid down His life on the cross, we can know how much God loves us and values us.
If any of us thinks, “I am worthless” or “I am not loved,” I urge you to look up to Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ on the cross.
It is Jesus Christ, who gave His life on the cross, who teaches us true love, He teaches us, “how loved and precious in the sight of God this person who I am is.”
At the beginning of today's passage, it says, “This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his (God’s) presence.”
The truth is Jesus Christ.
Specifically, it is the Word of Jesus Christ and the love of Jesus Christ. Because it is the truth, it will not change with the times, and its power will not weaken.
The one thing that is certain, the one thing that never changes, the one thing that is absolute, the one thing that will always have power, the one thing that will always encourage us, is the Truth. It is the Word of Christ and His love.
If you can believe that you belong to that Truth, then there is true peace.
Things in this world change. People's hearts, trends, ways of thinking, common sense, and so on all change with the times.
But Jesus Christ never changes. His love and His Word never change. We belong to the truth of Christ. And there is security and peace in that.
If the unchanging Word of Jesus Christ continues to be spoken in the church, if that Word is shared, and if love is practiced based on the Word, there will be a firm hope.
Nowadays, the number of people gathering in churches, the number of Christians, is very small. Our church is also a small flock. It is my hope that we will pray together that we may be given good wisdom and methods to preach the gospel of Christ.
But above all else, let us remember the truth that the Word of Jesus Christ never changes, and that Word is always with us, and let us continue to stand on that truth.
We can rest assured knowing that we have been given the unchanging treasure that is the Word of God.
Verse 20 says, “If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.”
When we face ourselves honestly, we may at times blame ourselves.
I think there are times when we are made aware of our own unpleasant aspects or shortcomings, or when we make a mistake, and find it difficult to forgive ourselves or even start to hate ourselves.
When we are made aware of our sins, we may think that as we are we will never be able to stand before God. It is important to face our sins to the extent that we feel this way.
However, even if we find ourselves blaming ourselves in these ways, we can still feel secure because God is greater than our hearts.
For God, despite our shortcomings, despite our unpleasant aspects, has invited each of us to live in His love, forgiving us nonetheless.
Some of Jesus' first disciples, such as Peter and John, were the first to experience the great joy of being forgiven by God after facing their own shortcomings and unpleasant aspects.
When Jesus was arrested, all of His disciples, including John, the writer of this letter, abandoned Him and fled.
The disciple Peter remembered the words that Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times,” and when this actually happened, he broke down in tears.
Such disciples met the resurrected Jesus Christ, learned that their sins were forgiven, and from then on became powerful evangelists who spread the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The driving force behind their evangelism was the conviction that people are not saved by their own efforts or achievements. Humans that are weak, flawed, and even cowardly can be forgiven and saved only through God's mercy.
The gospel is not about boasting about ourselves, it is about the fact that it is only by the love and mercy of Christ that we are forgiven, kept alive, and loved. This gospel is our true strength and hope.
And it is this hope that changes the way we live.
Verse 22 of today's passage says, “receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him.”
The next verse, verse 23, reads:
23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.
The Name of Jesus Christ describes the essence of Jesus Christ, including that He is God, what He has done, and His Word.
Believers believe in Jesus' words, His love, and everything He has done, and live their lives trusting in each of these things.
And when believers believe together in the name of Christ and gather together in His name, the love of Christ is shared and put into practice.
In this way, in a community of faith where we believe in the name of Christ and love one another by faith, we are promised in today's scripture passage that if we join our hearts together in prayer and ask God for something, whatever we pray for will be granted.
When we hear, “whatever we ask God for, He will grant it,” we might think, “Is that really true? Aren't there some wishes and prayers that cannot be granted?”
When we have such doubts, especially when we have such doubts, let us focus our hearts on the fact that Jesus Christ gave His life for us on the cross.
And let us once again take confidence in the great love that God has for us.
Surely God, who gave his only Son for us, would not fail to hear our prayers as we pray together in unity and love for one another.
Let us continue to receive Christ's love abundantly through His Word.
And receiving Christ's love in abundance, let us cherish the faith that enables us to cherish and love one another.
Prelude
Call to Worship Psalms 31:5 (NIV)
Hymn JBC # 3 Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness
The Lord’s Prayer
The Lord’s Supper
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering
Scripture 1 John 3:19～24
Prayer
Sermon “We belong to the truth”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 92 Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee
Doxology JBC # 673
Benediction
Postlude
Today's Bible passage is from ‘1 Epistle of John”. It is said that the John who wrote this letter was John, one of the twelve direct disciples of Jesus, who also wrote ‘the Gospel of John’.
John recorded in the form of a Gospel the life of Jesus, whom he lived together with, the words that Jesus spoke, and Jesus' crucifixion, death, and resurrection.
In this letter, on the other hand, John focuses on how believers in Jesus Christ should live their lives of faith, especially how believers should love one another.
It is believed that John wrote this letter about 60 years after Jesus died.
If 60 years had already passed since Jesus left the earth, was He a distant memory in John's mind?
Had Jesus become someone that he would remember, thinking, “Long ago, Jesus was our teacher, and He taught us about the wonderful kingdom of God. I remember Him fondly.”?
That was not the case at all. To John, Jesus, who had died 60 years earlier, was still alive as the Christ (the Savior).
Each word of the letters of John shows that John was receiving the power of Jesus Christ working through the Holy Spirit.
Even though Jesus Christ, as a human being, no longer lived on earth, He certainly continued to live in John and among those who believed in Christ with him.
Christ still continues to live now and to tell us the living Words of God. We still now can receive the living Words of God together.
Just before today's scripture passage, in chapter 3, verse 16, it says:
1 John 3:16
16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.
In the Gospel of John, chapter 3, verse 16, it says:
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Both are chapter 3, verse 16. Essentially, they both say the same thing: Jesus Christ died for us. God gave His only begotten Son to us. Through Him we now know love.
But John's letter says, “And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”
Even 60 years after Jesus' death, the fact and truth that “the Lord laid down His life for us” was not just a memory of the past for John.
Rather, it (Jesus' laying down His life) remained the driving force of his (John's) life of faith, to the point that he said, “And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”
We cannot die for humans as God died to save humans from sin. For humans cannot save humans from their sins.
However, John is saying that if we truly believe that God laid down His life for us, then that faith should take concrete form in a way of life that practices love for others.
Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. In doing so, we have come to know love. This remains the central message of the Bible.
And the Bible continues to urge us to this day, saying, “Now that we have known this true love, let us love one another. For Jesus first loved us, so much so that He laid down His life for us.”
Because Jesus laid down His life on the cross, we can know how much God loves us and values us.
If any of us thinks, “I am worthless” or “I am not loved,” I urge you to look up to Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ on the cross.
It is Jesus Christ, who gave His life on the cross, who teaches us true love, He teaches us, “how loved and precious in the sight of God this person who I am is.”
At the beginning of today's passage, it says, “This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his (God’s) presence.”
The truth is Jesus Christ.
Specifically, it is the Word of Jesus Christ and the love of Jesus Christ. Because it is the truth, it will not change with the times, and its power will not weaken.
The one thing that is certain, the one thing that never changes, the one thing that is absolute, the one thing that will always have power, the one thing that will always encourage us, is the Truth. It is the Word of Christ and His love.
If you can believe that you belong to that Truth, then there is true peace.
Things in this world change. People's hearts, trends, ways of thinking, common sense, and so on all change with the times.
But Jesus Christ never changes. His love and His Word never change. We belong to the truth of Christ. And there is security and peace in that.
If the unchanging Word of Jesus Christ continues to be spoken in the church, if that Word is shared, and if love is practiced based on the Word, there will be a firm hope.
Nowadays, the number of people gathering in churches, the number of Christians, is very small. Our church is also a small flock. It is my hope that we will pray together that we may be given good wisdom and methods to preach the gospel of Christ.
But above all else, let us remember the truth that the Word of Jesus Christ never changes, and that Word is always with us, and let us continue to stand on that truth.
We can rest assured knowing that we have been given the unchanging treasure that is the Word of God.
Verse 20 says, “If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.”
When we face ourselves honestly, we may at times blame ourselves.
I think there are times when we are made aware of our own unpleasant aspects or shortcomings, or when we make a mistake, and find it difficult to forgive ourselves or even start to hate ourselves.
When we are made aware of our sins, we may think that as we are we will never be able to stand before God. It is important to face our sins to the extent that we feel this way.
However, even if we find ourselves blaming ourselves in these ways, we can still feel secure because God is greater than our hearts.
For God, despite our shortcomings, despite our unpleasant aspects, has invited each of us to live in His love, forgiving us nonetheless.
Some of Jesus' first disciples, such as Peter and John, were the first to experience the great joy of being forgiven by God after facing their own shortcomings and unpleasant aspects.
When Jesus was arrested, all of His disciples, including John, the writer of this letter, abandoned Him and fled.
The disciple Peter remembered the words that Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times,” and when this actually happened, he broke down in tears.
Such disciples met the resurrected Jesus Christ, learned that their sins were forgiven, and from then on became powerful evangelists who spread the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The driving force behind their evangelism was the conviction that people are not saved by their own efforts or achievements. Humans that are weak, flawed, and even cowardly can be forgiven and saved only through God's mercy.
The gospel is not about boasting about ourselves, it is about the fact that it is only by the love and mercy of Christ that we are forgiven, kept alive, and loved. This gospel is our true strength and hope.
And it is this hope that changes the way we live.
Verse 22 of today's passage says, “receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him.”
The next verse, verse 23, reads:
23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.
The Name of Jesus Christ describes the essence of Jesus Christ, including that He is God, what He has done, and His Word.
Believers believe in Jesus' words, His love, and everything He has done, and live their lives trusting in each of these things.
And when believers believe together in the name of Christ and gather together in His name, the love of Christ is shared and put into practice.
In this way, in a community of faith where we believe in the name of Christ and love one another by faith, we are promised in today's scripture passage that if we join our hearts together in prayer and ask God for something, whatever we pray for will be granted.
When we hear, “whatever we ask God for, He will grant it,” we might think, “Is that really true? Aren't there some wishes and prayers that cannot be granted?”
When we have such doubts, especially when we have such doubts, let us focus our hearts on the fact that Jesus Christ gave His life for us on the cross.
And let us once again take confidence in the great love that God has for us.
Surely God, who gave his only Son for us, would not fail to hear our prayers as we pray together in unity and love for one another.
Let us continue to receive Christ's love abundantly through His Word.
And receiving Christ's love in abundance, let us cherish the faith that enables us to cherish and love one another.
Saturday, March 15, 2025
Sunday Worship Service March 16, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Psalms 148:5
Hymn JBC # 513 Walking in sunlight, all of my journey
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering
Scripture James 1:12~18
Prayer
Sermon “Trials and Temptations”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 552 Day by Day
Doxology JBC # 673
Benediction
Postlude
Today’s Bible passage comes from the book of James, Chapter 1, in the New Testament. This book is a letter, written by a person called James.
In the first verse of Chapter 1, he describes himself as “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ”.
It is believed this is the same James who was one of Jesus Christ’s brothers. After Jesus’ death (and resurrection and ascension to Heaven), he took up a leadership role in the Jerusalem church.
As Jesus’ brother, James would have grown up seeing Jesus as his human brother from a young age. He would also have seen with his own eyes when Jesus began his ministry at about the age of 30.
Even though Jesus was his brother in his earthly family, through Jesus’s words (teachings) and actions, as well as His death on the cross and resurrection, James came to believe that his own brother was in fact the Christ, the true Lord and Savior.
As Jesus’s brother James calls himself “a servant of Christ”, we can see that everyone is a servant before Jesus Christ,
This is because all of us, regardless of our birth (even those who were related by Jesus by blood), or our status, everyone is a “servant of Christ” through faith.
We are servants of our Lord Jesus Christ. This means that our master and teacher is Jesus Christ alone. Under Christ, all of us are servants of the Lord.
We are all people who serve the Lord as servants. And serving the Lord also means that we are also serving each other.
If we put what Jesus commanded us to do in simple terms, it would be to love each other, and to support (serve) each other.
We may have been asked questions like “Are there any commandments in Christianity?”, or “Are there any things you cannot eat or drink?”
For Christians, there is no specific food that is prohibited, nor is it prohibited to drink alcohol.
In Judaism (in the Old Testament), the religion out of which grew Christianity, there were detailed rules over what could and could not be eaten (clean and unclean food).
However ever since Jesus Christ became a man and offered himself as atone for the sins of all mankind, He made everything new again.
Jesus said:
11 What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.” (Mark 15:11)
Jesus taught that it is not a question of what we eat, but what comes out of our mouths, meaning what thoughts come from our hearts as words.
This shows the importance of not hurting others with our words, but using our words to show love and consideration for others.
Then, if we really try to live out the principle of Jesus’ commandment that is, “to love others and support each other”, I think we see just how difficult and challenging this teaching is.
How can we really follow Jesus’ teaching?
To follow Jesus’ teaching, we need to know the heart of our heavenly Father through Jesus, and believe and trust in God.
We need to know who God is, and know the gifts he has for us.
What we can fully trust in through Jesus is that the Lord God gives us good things, the best things.
In verse 17 of today’s passage it says “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,”.
Sometimes we are not always happy with what God has given us, and may even feel we are suffering. These are times when we are given trials.
We go through many trials in life. We are faced with difficult times, times of suffering and times of sadness.
To know whether these trials are truly given to us by God, we need to prayerfully use discernment.
But today’s passage says “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial”. If it is a trial sent us by God, this passage says it is good for us to persevere through the trial.
Verse 12 says “having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love Him”.
One of the points made by this passage is that to persevere through trials is linked to loving God.
Going through trials is difficult, but they also help us to understand how other people feel when they are going through the same kind of trials and suffering.
I think some of us here must also have experience with this, where we wouldn’t know the feeling if we hadn’t also experienced a similar trial.
One such example is suffering from illness. Suffering from illness is a tough experience, however, when we lose our good health and fall in, we come to appreciate the value of having good health.
In becoming sick, we also come to understand the feelings of others around us who are suffering from illness.
If we were always healthy, it would just be normal, and we may not even be thankful to God for that.
But when we temporarily lose our health and come to know the value of regularly having good health, we truly appreciate being healthy, and give thanks to God who gives us that good health.
If we experience these trials and persevere through them, coming to be thankful to God and see the good gifts He has given us, then we see the truth that ““Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial”.
Let us keep believing that when we face trials given to us by God, through those trials we will learn perseverance and come to have love and trust in God.
Let’s look again at verses 13 to 15.
13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
God would never tempt us into evil. According to this passage, if we find ourselves being tempted towards evil, it is our own desires giving birth to sin.
Through trials, God helps us to grow into people who love God and love others. This God would never tempt us towards evil.
If we are being led towards evil, being drawn towards a path of sin and death, that is because of our own desires within us, that is to say, it is we ourselves that are responsible.
Jesus’ teaching and the teaching of the Bible are very strict on this point. This isn’t about upholding a commandment on the surface, such as what not to eat or what not to drink.
Whether or not we persevere through trials, overcome temptation, and become people who love God and love others is important for our salvation.
And the Bible tells us that this salvation is given to us through Jesus Christ.
Verse 18 says this:
18 He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.
The “word of truth” is the Word of Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ himself.
This means that through the Word of Jesus Christ, our heavenly father makes us anew.
Each day, God is making us anew through the Word of Christ.
When we believe in the Word of Lord above all else, believe in Jesus Christ who is the Word and follow Christ, we are transformed from our old sinful natures into people who are forgiven of our sins with pure love.
The second half of verse 18 says “that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created”.
Firstfruits are offerings made to God of the best one has to offer. This passage shows the ultimate purpose we have for living.
We are made new through the Jesus Christ who is the Word of our Lord God.
We are forgiven of our sins, and are transformed into people who love God and love one another. In this way, we give ourselves as an offering to God and to others.
Those who truly know God’s love do not live for themselves or for their own gain, but come to live their lives for God and for others. They live their lives as an offering.
This is not something that can ever be achieved through our own human strength or effort.
The One who is truly God became a man, and suffered through the most painful trial on the cross. Through this act, we are able to know Christ’s love, and to be transformed ourselves through this love into people with love within us.
We receive the love of Christ who suffered in our place, and are transformed into people who persevere through trials, love God, love others, serve God and serve others.
Jesus went to the cross for us so that we could become people with love within us. We are now in the time of Lent, when we remember that road of suffering Jesus took.
Let us now reflect on the burden Jesus bore and the path of suffering he walked.
And shall we not also today offer up our heartfelt gratitude and repentance for all that Jesus has taught us and the love He has given us?
Prelude
Call to Worship Psalms 148:5
Hymn JBC # 513 Walking in sunlight, all of my journey
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering
Scripture James 1:12~18
Prayer
Sermon “Trials and Temptations”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 552 Day by Day
Doxology JBC # 673
Benediction
Postlude
Today’s Bible passage comes from the book of James, Chapter 1, in the New Testament. This book is a letter, written by a person called James.
In the first verse of Chapter 1, he describes himself as “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ”.
It is believed this is the same James who was one of Jesus Christ’s brothers. After Jesus’ death (and resurrection and ascension to Heaven), he took up a leadership role in the Jerusalem church.
As Jesus’ brother, James would have grown up seeing Jesus as his human brother from a young age. He would also have seen with his own eyes when Jesus began his ministry at about the age of 30.
Even though Jesus was his brother in his earthly family, through Jesus’s words (teachings) and actions, as well as His death on the cross and resurrection, James came to believe that his own brother was in fact the Christ, the true Lord and Savior.
As Jesus’s brother James calls himself “a servant of Christ”, we can see that everyone is a servant before Jesus Christ,
This is because all of us, regardless of our birth (even those who were related by Jesus by blood), or our status, everyone is a “servant of Christ” through faith.
We are servants of our Lord Jesus Christ. This means that our master and teacher is Jesus Christ alone. Under Christ, all of us are servants of the Lord.
We are all people who serve the Lord as servants. And serving the Lord also means that we are also serving each other.
If we put what Jesus commanded us to do in simple terms, it would be to love each other, and to support (serve) each other.
We may have been asked questions like “Are there any commandments in Christianity?”, or “Are there any things you cannot eat or drink?”
For Christians, there is no specific food that is prohibited, nor is it prohibited to drink alcohol.
In Judaism (in the Old Testament), the religion out of which grew Christianity, there were detailed rules over what could and could not be eaten (clean and unclean food).
However ever since Jesus Christ became a man and offered himself as atone for the sins of all mankind, He made everything new again.
Jesus said:
11 What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.” (Mark 15:11)
Jesus taught that it is not a question of what we eat, but what comes out of our mouths, meaning what thoughts come from our hearts as words.
This shows the importance of not hurting others with our words, but using our words to show love and consideration for others.
Then, if we really try to live out the principle of Jesus’ commandment that is, “to love others and support each other”, I think we see just how difficult and challenging this teaching is.
How can we really follow Jesus’ teaching?
To follow Jesus’ teaching, we need to know the heart of our heavenly Father through Jesus, and believe and trust in God.
We need to know who God is, and know the gifts he has for us.
What we can fully trust in through Jesus is that the Lord God gives us good things, the best things.
In verse 17 of today’s passage it says “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,”.
Sometimes we are not always happy with what God has given us, and may even feel we are suffering. These are times when we are given trials.
We go through many trials in life. We are faced with difficult times, times of suffering and times of sadness.
To know whether these trials are truly given to us by God, we need to prayerfully use discernment.
But today’s passage says “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial”. If it is a trial sent us by God, this passage says it is good for us to persevere through the trial.
Verse 12 says “having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love Him”.
One of the points made by this passage is that to persevere through trials is linked to loving God.
Going through trials is difficult, but they also help us to understand how other people feel when they are going through the same kind of trials and suffering.
I think some of us here must also have experience with this, where we wouldn’t know the feeling if we hadn’t also experienced a similar trial.
One such example is suffering from illness. Suffering from illness is a tough experience, however, when we lose our good health and fall in, we come to appreciate the value of having good health.
In becoming sick, we also come to understand the feelings of others around us who are suffering from illness.
If we were always healthy, it would just be normal, and we may not even be thankful to God for that.
But when we temporarily lose our health and come to know the value of regularly having good health, we truly appreciate being healthy, and give thanks to God who gives us that good health.
If we experience these trials and persevere through them, coming to be thankful to God and see the good gifts He has given us, then we see the truth that ““Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial”.
Let us keep believing that when we face trials given to us by God, through those trials we will learn perseverance and come to have love and trust in God.
Let’s look again at verses 13 to 15.
13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
God would never tempt us into evil. According to this passage, if we find ourselves being tempted towards evil, it is our own desires giving birth to sin.
Through trials, God helps us to grow into people who love God and love others. This God would never tempt us towards evil.
If we are being led towards evil, being drawn towards a path of sin and death, that is because of our own desires within us, that is to say, it is we ourselves that are responsible.
Jesus’ teaching and the teaching of the Bible are very strict on this point. This isn’t about upholding a commandment on the surface, such as what not to eat or what not to drink.
Whether or not we persevere through trials, overcome temptation, and become people who love God and love others is important for our salvation.
And the Bible tells us that this salvation is given to us through Jesus Christ.
Verse 18 says this:
18 He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.
The “word of truth” is the Word of Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ himself.
This means that through the Word of Jesus Christ, our heavenly father makes us anew.
Each day, God is making us anew through the Word of Christ.
When we believe in the Word of Lord above all else, believe in Jesus Christ who is the Word and follow Christ, we are transformed from our old sinful natures into people who are forgiven of our sins with pure love.
The second half of verse 18 says “that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created”.
Firstfruits are offerings made to God of the best one has to offer. This passage shows the ultimate purpose we have for living.
We are made new through the Jesus Christ who is the Word of our Lord God.
We are forgiven of our sins, and are transformed into people who love God and love one another. In this way, we give ourselves as an offering to God and to others.
Those who truly know God’s love do not live for themselves or for their own gain, but come to live their lives for God and for others. They live their lives as an offering.
This is not something that can ever be achieved through our own human strength or effort.
The One who is truly God became a man, and suffered through the most painful trial on the cross. Through this act, we are able to know Christ’s love, and to be transformed ourselves through this love into people with love within us.
We receive the love of Christ who suffered in our place, and are transformed into people who persevere through trials, love God, love others, serve God and serve others.
Jesus went to the cross for us so that we could become people with love within us. We are now in the time of Lent, when we remember that road of suffering Jesus took.
Let us now reflect on the burden Jesus bore and the path of suffering he walked.
And shall we not also today offer up our heartfelt gratitude and repentance for all that Jesus has taught us and the love He has given us?
Saturday, March 8, 2025
Sunday Worship Service March 9, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Proverb 16:20
Hymn JBC # 40 O Thou, in whose presence
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering Scripture Hebrew 4: 14-16
Prayer
Sermon “Jesus, the High Priest”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 297 I hear the Saviour say
Doxology JBC# 673
Benediction
Postlude
Today's Bible passage (Hebrews 4:14-16) says, "Jesus Christ is the great high priest".
The priests were the people who served God as representatives of the people of Israel.
The priests also performed duties such as offering to God for the forgiveness of sins on behalf of the people and blessing the people on God's behalf.
Today's passage describes Jesus Christ as " a great high priest who has ascended into heaven; the Son of God”.
"Has ascended (going through layers of )into heaven" refers to the fact that after Jesus Christ's crucifixion, death, and resurrection, He ascended into the highest place, where He is now seated at the right hand of God.
Romans 8:34 says, "Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.”
A human priest cannot meet God face to face, because no human can meet God face to face.
However, Jesus Christ is now with God the Father in heaven and still conveys our requests and prayers to God the Father on our behalf.
Because Christ is now in heaven, we are allowed to pray with faith that our prayers will be heard and that Jesus will convey our prayers and requests to God.
Jesus Christ, God who became man, descended to the lowest place among men, to where we humans dwell.
Why did God become man like that? Why did God come down to the lowest place among us? And why did God have to go to the cross?
The Bible tells us that our sins have been forgiven because Jesus Christ died on the cross.
Christians always remember this, are thankful, and live their lives giving thanks to God for forgiving our sins and giving us new life.
God had no need or obligation to come to this world as Jesus Christ to forgive our sins. That’s because we humans have chosen to live apart from God by ourselves.
God could have saved us or not save us, but the God of love chose to become a human being and reveal himself to us, because that is how much God loves us.
The fact that God became a human being was a miraculous event in which God's love was clearly and visibly demonstrated. Through Jesus, God showed us, "Here is love. Here is salvation."
Jesus was born as a human being to Joseph and Mary, and lived in a village called Nazareth in the region of Israel called Galilee until he was about 30 years old.
It seems that Jesus took over the work of his father Joseph, who was a carpenter, and worked as a carpenter himself. This became a stumbling block for people when Jesus preached about the kingdom of God to them.
In Gospel of Mark Ch.6, we read about when Jesus began to teach about the kingdom of God in the synagogue of his hometown. The people were amazed at what he was teaching.
But some people refused to accept Jesus' great teachings, saying that He was the carpenter and that He was the son of Mary and that they knew His brothers, too.
They may have thought, "There is no way that the carpenter's son, someone from a family we know well, could have such great teachings."
The people who stumbled on Jesus at that time represent our tendency to place more importance on external, non-essential things, such as where a person comes from or what they look like, rather than on who they are and what they have to say or do.
It is very significant for us that Jesus grew up in Galilee as a carpenter's son and a laborer.
This means that Jesus Himself experienced the difficulty, hardship, and challenges that come with working every day.
Working can give you a sense of purpose and the joy of contributing to society, but I think it's hard to earn a living by working every day.
I believe that there are people who suffer hardships in their daily work, who experience things not going as they planned, and who feel overwhelmed.
Our Lord Jesus Christ also experienced the hardships of daily work and labor, so we can trust that He truly knows and understands us.
Jesus is always with us because He Himself has experienced the difficulties of work and the difficulties of daily life.
Today's verse 15 reads:
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.
Jesus can empathize with our deepest hearts, our pain, and our sorrow.
Empathy here means "to genuinely worry along with another person and to accept their sadness and suffering as your own."
We humans cannot have that much compassion for anyone other than ourselves, but Jesus can.
In Luke 10, we find the story of "The Parable of the Good Samaritan."
When an expert in law asked Jesus, "How can I inherit eternal life?" Jesus told him the following parable:
A man was traveling and he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.
The priests and the Levites (who also performed the role of priests) were passing by and when they saw the man who had been attacked by the robbers and lying on the ground, they simply passed by on the other side of the road and continued on their way without doing anything.
At that moment, a Samaritan, who was despised by the Jews, happened to be passing by.
The Samaritan treated the man's wounds, put him on his donkey, and took him to an inn, even giving the innkeeper money to look after him.
The man who was attacked by robbers was a Jew, and by right, his fellow Jews, the priests and Levites, should have come to his aid, but they did not.
There are many possible reasons why the priests and Levites did not help the man, They may have thought if they had touch a dead (or dying) man, they would be defiled. But the main reason is probably that they were not able to fully empathize with the suffering of others.
We cannot fully identify with the suffering of others.
But Jesus is able to identify himself perfectly with the suffering of others.
The Samaritan who took on the man's plight after being attacked by robbers and extended a helping hand to him is a perfect example of Jesus Christ.
Why is Jesus able to empathize with us to that extent? Why is he able to empathize so deeply with the pain and sorrow of others?
The reason for this is also given in verse 15. It is because Jesus has been “tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin" (verse 15).
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was tempted just like us, even more than we are, and He endured the most severe temptations.
The suffering of a completely sinless and perfectly holy person who were put into temptation is beyond our imagination.
The Son of God, who is equal to God and was without sin, was crucified for us and at the end cried out with a loud voice, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Mark 15:34).
I think we have experiences where we only can cry out in pain, saying, "God, why?" Even Jesus Christ, the Son of God, cried out in such pain.
Therefore, Jesus Christ can completely empathize with us humans in all the suffering, sorrow, and pain that we experience.
We have received faith that such a person is our Savior and Redeemer of sins, and we continue to confess this faith in our words and actions.
Jesus Christ, the sinless God, died on the cross to atone for our sins.
And let us continue to stand in the faith that "Christ is able to empathize with our suffering in all things."
Let's read verse 16, the last verse of today's passage.
16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Today's passage ends with, "Let us approach God's throne of grace with boldness (confidence)."
How come we can approach God, in His throne, with confidence?
That is because through Jesus Christ we can trust that God will never reject us.
Because we can believe that Jesus Christ is with God and is interceding for us.
Jesus has prepared the way for us to go to the place where God is, where God is seated.
Jesus is the way. He said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6).
To believe in Jesus Christ is to go to God through the way called Jesus. You can go to God through Christ, and God will never reject those who believe in Christ.
In God we can receive His mercy and grace.
It is not that we give God something in exchange for His mercy and grace.
Rather, if we simply believe in Christ, if we welcome Him into our hearts, and if we draw near to God through Christ, God will give us His mercy and grace freely.
In the face of such blessings, what could possibly make us hesitate?
Let us rest in the mercy and grace of God given to us through our great High Priest, His Son, Jesus Christ, and live our lives with joy and gratitude.
Let us be thankful for God's mercy, who accepts our pain, sorrow, and suffering as His own, and who always cries and grieves with us.
Prelude
Call to Worship Proverb 16:20
Hymn JBC # 40 O Thou, in whose presence
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering Scripture Hebrew 4: 14-16
Prayer
Sermon “Jesus, the High Priest”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 297 I hear the Saviour say
Doxology JBC# 673
Benediction
Postlude
Today's Bible passage (Hebrews 4:14-16) says, "Jesus Christ is the great high priest".
The priests were the people who served God as representatives of the people of Israel.
The priests also performed duties such as offering to God for the forgiveness of sins on behalf of the people and blessing the people on God's behalf.
Today's passage describes Jesus Christ as " a great high priest who has ascended into heaven; the Son of God”.
"Has ascended (going through layers of )into heaven" refers to the fact that after Jesus Christ's crucifixion, death, and resurrection, He ascended into the highest place, where He is now seated at the right hand of God.
Romans 8:34 says, "Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.”
A human priest cannot meet God face to face, because no human can meet God face to face.
However, Jesus Christ is now with God the Father in heaven and still conveys our requests and prayers to God the Father on our behalf.
Because Christ is now in heaven, we are allowed to pray with faith that our prayers will be heard and that Jesus will convey our prayers and requests to God.
Jesus Christ, God who became man, descended to the lowest place among men, to where we humans dwell.
Why did God become man like that? Why did God come down to the lowest place among us? And why did God have to go to the cross?
The Bible tells us that our sins have been forgiven because Jesus Christ died on the cross.
Christians always remember this, are thankful, and live their lives giving thanks to God for forgiving our sins and giving us new life.
God had no need or obligation to come to this world as Jesus Christ to forgive our sins. That’s because we humans have chosen to live apart from God by ourselves.
God could have saved us or not save us, but the God of love chose to become a human being and reveal himself to us, because that is how much God loves us.
The fact that God became a human being was a miraculous event in which God's love was clearly and visibly demonstrated. Through Jesus, God showed us, "Here is love. Here is salvation."
Jesus was born as a human being to Joseph and Mary, and lived in a village called Nazareth in the region of Israel called Galilee until he was about 30 years old.
It seems that Jesus took over the work of his father Joseph, who was a carpenter, and worked as a carpenter himself. This became a stumbling block for people when Jesus preached about the kingdom of God to them.
In Gospel of Mark Ch.6, we read about when Jesus began to teach about the kingdom of God in the synagogue of his hometown. The people were amazed at what he was teaching.
But some people refused to accept Jesus' great teachings, saying that He was the carpenter and that He was the son of Mary and that they knew His brothers, too.
They may have thought, "There is no way that the carpenter's son, someone from a family we know well, could have such great teachings."
The people who stumbled on Jesus at that time represent our tendency to place more importance on external, non-essential things, such as where a person comes from or what they look like, rather than on who they are and what they have to say or do.
It is very significant for us that Jesus grew up in Galilee as a carpenter's son and a laborer.
This means that Jesus Himself experienced the difficulty, hardship, and challenges that come with working every day.
Working can give you a sense of purpose and the joy of contributing to society, but I think it's hard to earn a living by working every day.
I believe that there are people who suffer hardships in their daily work, who experience things not going as they planned, and who feel overwhelmed.
Our Lord Jesus Christ also experienced the hardships of daily work and labor, so we can trust that He truly knows and understands us.
Jesus is always with us because He Himself has experienced the difficulties of work and the difficulties of daily life.
Today's verse 15 reads:
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.
Jesus can empathize with our deepest hearts, our pain, and our sorrow.
Empathy here means "to genuinely worry along with another person and to accept their sadness and suffering as your own."
We humans cannot have that much compassion for anyone other than ourselves, but Jesus can.
In Luke 10, we find the story of "The Parable of the Good Samaritan."
When an expert in law asked Jesus, "How can I inherit eternal life?" Jesus told him the following parable:
A man was traveling and he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead.
The priests and the Levites (who also performed the role of priests) were passing by and when they saw the man who had been attacked by the robbers and lying on the ground, they simply passed by on the other side of the road and continued on their way without doing anything.
At that moment, a Samaritan, who was despised by the Jews, happened to be passing by.
The Samaritan treated the man's wounds, put him on his donkey, and took him to an inn, even giving the innkeeper money to look after him.
The man who was attacked by robbers was a Jew, and by right, his fellow Jews, the priests and Levites, should have come to his aid, but they did not.
There are many possible reasons why the priests and Levites did not help the man, They may have thought if they had touch a dead (or dying) man, they would be defiled. But the main reason is probably that they were not able to fully empathize with the suffering of others.
We cannot fully identify with the suffering of others.
But Jesus is able to identify himself perfectly with the suffering of others.
The Samaritan who took on the man's plight after being attacked by robbers and extended a helping hand to him is a perfect example of Jesus Christ.
Why is Jesus able to empathize with us to that extent? Why is he able to empathize so deeply with the pain and sorrow of others?
The reason for this is also given in verse 15. It is because Jesus has been “tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin" (verse 15).
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was tempted just like us, even more than we are, and He endured the most severe temptations.
The suffering of a completely sinless and perfectly holy person who were put into temptation is beyond our imagination.
The Son of God, who is equal to God and was without sin, was crucified for us and at the end cried out with a loud voice, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Mark 15:34).
I think we have experiences where we only can cry out in pain, saying, "God, why?" Even Jesus Christ, the Son of God, cried out in such pain.
Therefore, Jesus Christ can completely empathize with us humans in all the suffering, sorrow, and pain that we experience.
We have received faith that such a person is our Savior and Redeemer of sins, and we continue to confess this faith in our words and actions.
Jesus Christ, the sinless God, died on the cross to atone for our sins.
And let us continue to stand in the faith that "Christ is able to empathize with our suffering in all things."
Let's read verse 16, the last verse of today's passage.
16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Today's passage ends with, "Let us approach God's throne of grace with boldness (confidence)."
How come we can approach God, in His throne, with confidence?
That is because through Jesus Christ we can trust that God will never reject us.
Because we can believe that Jesus Christ is with God and is interceding for us.
Jesus has prepared the way for us to go to the place where God is, where God is seated.
Jesus is the way. He said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6).
To believe in Jesus Christ is to go to God through the way called Jesus. You can go to God through Christ, and God will never reject those who believe in Christ.
In God we can receive His mercy and grace.
It is not that we give God something in exchange for His mercy and grace.
Rather, if we simply believe in Christ, if we welcome Him into our hearts, and if we draw near to God through Christ, God will give us His mercy and grace freely.
In the face of such blessings, what could possibly make us hesitate?
Let us rest in the mercy and grace of God given to us through our great High Priest, His Son, Jesus Christ, and live our lives with joy and gratitude.
Let us be thankful for God's mercy, who accepts our pain, sorrow, and suffering as His own, and who always cries and grieves with us.
Saturday, March 1, 2025
Sunday Worship Service March 2, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Isaiah 46:4 b
Hymn JBC # 493 God sent His Son
The Prayer Time
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering
Scripture 1 Timothy 1:12～17
Prayer
Sermon “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 255 Face to face with Christ, my Saviour
Doxology JBC # 673
Benediction
Postlude
Our scripture today is from the New Testament’s ‘1st Timothy.’
The Letters to Timothy (I and II) are letters believed to be written by the evangelist Paul to his protégé (disciple) Timothy.
Timothy was from a region called Galatia (located in present-day Turkey), and his mother was a Jew and his father was a Greek, according to the 16th chapter of ‘Acts.’
In 1 Timothy 1:2, we read, “To Timothy my true son in the faith.” These words indicate that Paul had a special affection for Timothy, even though he was not related to him by blood.
Even though they were not blood relatives, through the grace of Jesus Christ, Paul and Timothy were father and son (parent and child) through faith.
In the church, we too are invited into a familial relationship through faith that transcends blood relationships.
By the grace of Christ, we have been invited into fellowship with the Church. Through Christ, we have been made children of God.
What a great joy it is to be made children of God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Christ, through His grace, invites us into His church. Therefore let us build strong relationships as a family of faith and accept each other as we are.
Verse12 from today's passage says the following.
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service.
Here we are told, first of all, that “one is strengthened by Jesus Christ.” Paul himself has felt and experienced Christ giving him strength throughout his life as a believer.
The strength that comes from Jesus Christ is not our own strength, but the power of Christ who lives in us. It is also the love of Christ.
It is the reassurance that even though we are weak, we can be strong in any situation thanks to Christ who lives in us.
In his letter to the Philippians, the same Paul writes the following. It is a bit long, but I will quote from Philippians 4:11-13.
I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Everything is possible for me, Paul says, through the One (Jesus Christ) who gives him strength at all times.
This does not mean that we should put up with any unfavorable circumstances without complaints.
If someone is being treated unfairly, discriminated against, enduring prejudice, etc., then of course that situation must be corrected.
We, the church of Christ, must be close to, support, and pray for those who are being treated unfairly and are vulnerable.
However, it can happen that people suffer in situations that are not anyone's fault and that we have no control over. For example, a person may suddenly become ill or suffer an unexpected accident.
At such times, what should one rely on?
The Bible tells us that God gives us strength to live. And when we don’t have strength to walk ourselves, Christ will carry us.
In the Old Testament book of Isaiah, chapter 46, verses 3-4, it says
you whom I have upheld since your birth,
and have carried since you were born.
Even to your old age and gray hairs
I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain you and I will rescue you.
This is the eternal promise given to us by God. This promise, “I (God) will carry you, bear you, and deliver you,” has been fulfilled through our Savior Jesus Christ.
And Christ still bears us, carries us, and delivers us to this day.
There exists a God who walks together with us through every circumstance, and who carries us when we do not have strength to walk by ourselves, or when we fall.
Let us remember this and give thanks to God as we live our lives.
Let's go back to the first half of verse 12 again.
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength,
Paul says that the “One who has strengthened me” is our Lord Jesus Christ.
This God who has strengthened him is not his God alone, but OUR Lord, the Lord of all humanity.
There is the idea that “faith is personal.” In a sense, that is true. God has a personal relationship with each of us.
However, faith in Jesus Christ cannot be confined to the individual believer. Jesus Christ is not only “my Lord” but also “OUR Lord.”
We pray the Lord's Prayer together in worship. In the Lord's Prayer, we say, “Our Father who art in heaven.”
By praying and declaring “Our Father who art in heaven,” we declare that Jesus Christ is our Lord.
In other words, through the Lord's Prayer, we express our faith that Christ is the Lord and Savior of the world, even of those who are not believers.
By praying, "Our Father, who art in heaven," it is revealed to us that "my Father" is actually "our Father." This transforms us, enabling us to transcend our own needs and become able to pray for others.
We all share in the joy of believing and praying that “there is a Father for us, a Father for all” in the Church.
Let us be a church where everyone feels the joy of being a member of this community of faith (family) through praying together to “Our Father”.
Let’s look at verse 15. This verse is also the title of today’s message.
15 Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners
Here is a truth that we simply must accept. “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.”
Jesus himself said the following while He was alive on earth. Jesus ate with those who were called sinners.
Some people asked Jesus, “Why do you eat with sinners?” Everyone, think about this for a moment. The people who asked Jesus this question do not actually consider themselves sinners.
Jesus answered them.
“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17)
Jesus Christ came into our world to invite and to save sinners. God Himself became man and came into our world for the salvation of sinners.
The Bible also tells us that “There is no one righteous, not even one;” (Romans 3:10)
Some may hate it when the Bible condemns people for being sinners this, sinners that. But we are still forced to confront our sins when we are truly honest with ourselves.
We live while weighed down by sins that we cannot get rid of by ourselves. But the Bible says, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.”
The Bible tells us emphatically that there is One who takes away sin and shows us the way to a life of joy.
Salvation is found in Jesus Christ, and no one is excluded from His salvation. Whether or not we believe in this salvation and walk in it is up to us.
The biblical news that there is forgiveness of sins despite us all being sinners is the most joyful news. That is our “good news”―the gospel.
Another truth that we must accept besides that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” is that “there is no salvation apart from Jesus Christ.”
In the book of ‘Acts’, chapter 4, verse 12, we read Peter, who was preaching about the resurrected Jesus, said these words when he was being interrogated by the assembly.
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”
“Salvation is found in no one else.” Salvation cannot be obtained by anyone or anything other than Jesus Christ.
Today's passage, and the Bible as a whole, asserts that this is true and deserves to be accepted as is.
No Christian, and no real Christian church, can compromise on the point of salvation through Christ and that there is no salvation for man except through Him.
If we compromise on this in any way, it renders meaningless the death of the One who laid down His life on the cross for us.
And by compromising, we also throw away the grace that was given to us through the cross.
Nothing would grieve our Heavenly Father more than giving up the saving grace that Jesus Christ, His Son, gave us in exchange for His life.
Let us firmly grasp the salvation and eternal grace given to us by Jesus, and walk together on the path of salvation, and continue telling the world about this salvation.
Let us continue to stand on the Word of Jesus Christ, on the words of the Bible, on the Word of God, on its truth, and let us encourage one another with the Word and live out our faith.
Prelude
Call to Worship Isaiah 46:4 b
Hymn JBC # 493 God sent His Son
The Prayer Time
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 388 Lord, lay some soul upon my heart
Offering
Scripture 1 Timothy 1:12～17
Prayer
Sermon “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 255 Face to face with Christ, my Saviour
Doxology JBC # 673
Benediction
Postlude
Our scripture today is from the New Testament’s ‘1st Timothy.’
The Letters to Timothy (I and II) are letters believed to be written by the evangelist Paul to his protégé (disciple) Timothy.
Timothy was from a region called Galatia (located in present-day Turkey), and his mother was a Jew and his father was a Greek, according to the 16th chapter of ‘Acts.’
In 1 Timothy 1:2, we read, “To Timothy my true son in the faith.” These words indicate that Paul had a special affection for Timothy, even though he was not related to him by blood.
Even though they were not blood relatives, through the grace of Jesus Christ, Paul and Timothy were father and son (parent and child) through faith.
In the church, we too are invited into a familial relationship through faith that transcends blood relationships.
By the grace of Christ, we have been invited into fellowship with the Church. Through Christ, we have been made children of God.
What a great joy it is to be made children of God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Christ, through His grace, invites us into His church. Therefore let us build strong relationships as a family of faith and accept each other as we are.
Verse12 from today's passage says the following.
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service.
Here we are told, first of all, that “one is strengthened by Jesus Christ.” Paul himself has felt and experienced Christ giving him strength throughout his life as a believer.
The strength that comes from Jesus Christ is not our own strength, but the power of Christ who lives in us. It is also the love of Christ.
It is the reassurance that even though we are weak, we can be strong in any situation thanks to Christ who lives in us.
In his letter to the Philippians, the same Paul writes the following. It is a bit long, but I will quote from Philippians 4:11-13.
I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Everything is possible for me, Paul says, through the One (Jesus Christ) who gives him strength at all times.
This does not mean that we should put up with any unfavorable circumstances without complaints.
If someone is being treated unfairly, discriminated against, enduring prejudice, etc., then of course that situation must be corrected.
We, the church of Christ, must be close to, support, and pray for those who are being treated unfairly and are vulnerable.
However, it can happen that people suffer in situations that are not anyone's fault and that we have no control over. For example, a person may suddenly become ill or suffer an unexpected accident.
At such times, what should one rely on?
The Bible tells us that God gives us strength to live. And when we don’t have strength to walk ourselves, Christ will carry us.
In the Old Testament book of Isaiah, chapter 46, verses 3-4, it says
you whom I have upheld since your birth,
and have carried since you were born.
Even to your old age and gray hairs
I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain you and I will rescue you.
This is the eternal promise given to us by God. This promise, “I (God) will carry you, bear you, and deliver you,” has been fulfilled through our Savior Jesus Christ.
And Christ still bears us, carries us, and delivers us to this day.
There exists a God who walks together with us through every circumstance, and who carries us when we do not have strength to walk by ourselves, or when we fall.
Let us remember this and give thanks to God as we live our lives.
Let's go back to the first half of verse 12 again.
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength,
Paul says that the “One who has strengthened me” is our Lord Jesus Christ.
This God who has strengthened him is not his God alone, but OUR Lord, the Lord of all humanity.
There is the idea that “faith is personal.” In a sense, that is true. God has a personal relationship with each of us.
However, faith in Jesus Christ cannot be confined to the individual believer. Jesus Christ is not only “my Lord” but also “OUR Lord.”
We pray the Lord's Prayer together in worship. In the Lord's Prayer, we say, “Our Father who art in heaven.”
By praying and declaring “Our Father who art in heaven,” we declare that Jesus Christ is our Lord.
In other words, through the Lord's Prayer, we express our faith that Christ is the Lord and Savior of the world, even of those who are not believers.
By praying, "Our Father, who art in heaven," it is revealed to us that "my Father" is actually "our Father." This transforms us, enabling us to transcend our own needs and become able to pray for others.
We all share in the joy of believing and praying that “there is a Father for us, a Father for all” in the Church.
Let us be a church where everyone feels the joy of being a member of this community of faith (family) through praying together to “Our Father”.
Let’s look at verse 15. This verse is also the title of today’s message.
15 Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners
Here is a truth that we simply must accept. “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.”
Jesus himself said the following while He was alive on earth. Jesus ate with those who were called sinners.
Some people asked Jesus, “Why do you eat with sinners?” Everyone, think about this for a moment. The people who asked Jesus this question do not actually consider themselves sinners.
Jesus answered them.
“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17)
Jesus Christ came into our world to invite and to save sinners. God Himself became man and came into our world for the salvation of sinners.
The Bible also tells us that “There is no one righteous, not even one;” (Romans 3:10)
Some may hate it when the Bible condemns people for being sinners this, sinners that. But we are still forced to confront our sins when we are truly honest with ourselves.
We live while weighed down by sins that we cannot get rid of by ourselves. But the Bible says, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.”
The Bible tells us emphatically that there is One who takes away sin and shows us the way to a life of joy.
Salvation is found in Jesus Christ, and no one is excluded from His salvation. Whether or not we believe in this salvation and walk in it is up to us.
The biblical news that there is forgiveness of sins despite us all being sinners is the most joyful news. That is our “good news”―the gospel.
Another truth that we must accept besides that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” is that “there is no salvation apart from Jesus Christ.”
In the book of ‘Acts’, chapter 4, verse 12, we read Peter, who was preaching about the resurrected Jesus, said these words when he was being interrogated by the assembly.
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”
“Salvation is found in no one else.” Salvation cannot be obtained by anyone or anything other than Jesus Christ.
Today's passage, and the Bible as a whole, asserts that this is true and deserves to be accepted as is.
No Christian, and no real Christian church, can compromise on the point of salvation through Christ and that there is no salvation for man except through Him.
If we compromise on this in any way, it renders meaningless the death of the One who laid down His life on the cross for us.
And by compromising, we also throw away the grace that was given to us through the cross.
Nothing would grieve our Heavenly Father more than giving up the saving grace that Jesus Christ, His Son, gave us in exchange for His life.
Let us firmly grasp the salvation and eternal grace given to us by Jesus, and walk together on the path of salvation, and continue telling the world about this salvation.
Let us continue to stand on the Word of Jesus Christ, on the words of the Bible, on the Word of God, on its truth, and let us encourage one another with the Word and live out our faith.
Saturday, February 22, 2025
Sunday Worship Service February 23, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Zephaniah 3:9
Hymn JBC #260 Set my soul afire, Lord
The Lord’s Prayer
The Lord’s Supper
Hymn JBC #384 I love to tell the story
Offering
Scripture 1 Thessalonians 4:13~18
Prayer
Sermon “The Lord will come”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 216 King of my life
Doxology JBC #672
Benediction
Postlude
Today's Bible passage is part of the fourth chapter of “1 Thessalonians”.
In the first half of verse 14 of chapter 4 of today's passage, it says, “For we believe that Jesus died and rose again”
A Christian is one who believes that Jesus Christ was born as a man, died on the cross, and rose again.
And also a Christian is one who understands that he or she is made alive because of Christ's cross and resurrection.
Because Christ died and rose again, and because He is still alive today, we can live with hope every day.
Those who believe in Christ's resurrection and live daily by His power indeed testify to the Lord's resurrection.
As Christians and as a Christian church, we wish to testify daily that it is Christ, the Risen Lord, who truly makes us alive and gives us strength and joy.
The resurrected Christ revealed Himself to many people and then ascended into heaven. We read about this in the first chapter of the “Book of Acts”.
Jesus ascended to heaven with the promise that He would come back to earth again.
Those who witnessed the event and those who came to believe in Jesus Christ after hearing about it believed that He would return while they were still alive.
However, before Jesus returned from heaven to earth, there were people who ended their lives on earth while believing in Him.
One of the very big questions that confronted the disciples of Christ at that time was what would happen to those who believed in the Lord but left the world (died) before Jesus' return (since they were no longer on earth) when Jesus returned.
In fact, there were those who scoffed at the Christian faith and the idea of Jesus' coming again, saying
2 Peter 3:4
“Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.”
“You say that the Lord will come again, but He never comes”. “Nothing has changed in the world”. The first Christians were being thrown at by those questions, even “Is there really a God?”
However, in the same epistle of 2 Peter, chapter 3, verses 8-9, it is written as follows.
8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
From the human point of view, “The Lord Jesus promised that He would come again, but He never came. The promise may have been a hoax (fake). The faith in Christ itself may also be untrue. Such a doubt would come up.
But with the Lord, “a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.
Since the Lord God is eternal, we must understand His promises in terms of His eternity through faith.
Because we are finite human beings, we cannot fully understand the eternal One (God) and His plan.
However, we can believe through the Word of Bible that the Lord is faithful to fulfill His promises.
Even though we cannot fully understand God's eternity, we can live our lives believing in the eternal God and trusting in His faithfulness.
We want to live our lives always believing in the greatness of God who makes us live in eternity, and in the faithfulness of the Lord who always fulfills His promises.
We also want to remember and give thanks for the blessing of being able to walk together with other believers, believing in the eternal Lord and choosing to live our lives trusting in Him.
Paul, who wrote this letter to the Thessalonians, wrote the following in verse 15.
15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
Paul says here, “According to the Lord's word.” That is to say, he is not saying something he arbitrarily came up with on his own.
He says it based on the Word of the Lord Jesus Christ, and as a result of his seeking prayer.
Paul, a believer, based on what he himself has heard from his predecessors in the faith, and what has been made known to him as the Word of the Lord by revelation from the Lord God, says that “those who were called first will be resurrected, and those who are still alive will be caught up together with them to heaven. Paul is saying here.
What is being said in today's passage may seem somewhat fantastical, and it may be difficult for us to accept it as reality.
However, we are all going to end our lives on earth someday.
Therefore, I believe that it is a great blessing to have faith in the hope that “even though our life on earth has ended, we have been given resurrection life through Jesus Christ.
Even though we may not know for sure, we have been given hope through Jesus Christ that we too will be made alive to God's eternal life, which is far beyond our thoughts and ideas.
We only know of the earthly world in which we now live. On the contrary, there are so many things that we do not know even about this world that we can see.
We live in a world of instability, a world in which many things happen that we do not know where there is a sure hope.
However, when we see this world through the eyes of Jesus Christ as communicated through the Bible, when we see this world through the power of Christ's resurrection, we can find in it a certain hope and strength to live.
At the end of today's verse 17, it is written, “And so we will be with the Lord forever.”
“And so we will be with the Lord forever.” - this is a promise that will be given to us in the future and will be fully realized in the future.
But also, the promise that “We will be with the Lord forever.” is a promise that has already been fulfilled now. (This may sound contradictory, but it is.)
The Lord is invisible to our eyes, but He has given us faith in Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit.
Through the Holy Spirit, the Lord gives us faith that the words in the Bible are the words that God still speaks to us.
By the Holy Spirit, the Lord continues to guide us to share and live the Word of the Bible as our spiritual nourishment.
By His Word, and by His Word being shared, we are shaken and given great encouragement and joy.
In this sense, we can say that the promise that the Lord will be with us forever is a promise that has already been fulfilled.
The following is written in verse 18. the last verse of today' chapter.
Therefore encourage one another with these words.
These words that were mentioned are words spoken by Paul, a believer, based on the Word of the Lord.
In other words, they are words that the Lord's words were spoken in another language and sayings through the life of one believer.
Thus, we are assured that even through the words of another believer, the Word of the Lord God is indeed what keeps us alive and gives us strength.
At a recent our worship service, two sisters and a brother gave testimonies and a message. I was unable to hear them in person because I attended a service at another church that day.
However, I was able to read their testimonies and message in advance through manuscripts.
I read the manuscripts, imagining how they would sound when they were actually delivered by voice.
In those testimonies and message the Lord's words were indeed spoken through the life of faith of each person who delivered them.
And with the guidance of the Holy Spirit beyond our thoughts, I believe that the words of each person who spoke them ultimately became one and became the grace of the entire service that day.
Our Lord God desired that His Word be preached to the world through the way of living and words of the faithful.
We have been made Christians and we have been established as one church so that we may preach the gospel to the world and so that we may be kept alive by the word of the Lord spoken to us by one another.
Let us continue to live our life of faith together, encouraging one another by the word of the Lord.
We hope to serve Christ's gospel missionary work, being kept alive by the sure hope of the Lord's resurrection.
Prelude
Call to Worship Zephaniah 3:9
Hymn JBC #260 Set my soul afire, Lord
The Lord’s Prayer
The Lord’s Supper
Hymn JBC #384 I love to tell the story
Offering
Scripture 1 Thessalonians 4:13~18
Prayer
Sermon “The Lord will come”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 216 King of my life
Doxology JBC #672
Benediction
Postlude
Today's Bible passage is part of the fourth chapter of “1 Thessalonians”.
In the first half of verse 14 of chapter 4 of today's passage, it says, “For we believe that Jesus died and rose again”
A Christian is one who believes that Jesus Christ was born as a man, died on the cross, and rose again.
And also a Christian is one who understands that he or she is made alive because of Christ's cross and resurrection.
Because Christ died and rose again, and because He is still alive today, we can live with hope every day.
Those who believe in Christ's resurrection and live daily by His power indeed testify to the Lord's resurrection.
As Christians and as a Christian church, we wish to testify daily that it is Christ, the Risen Lord, who truly makes us alive and gives us strength and joy.
The resurrected Christ revealed Himself to many people and then ascended into heaven. We read about this in the first chapter of the “Book of Acts”.
Jesus ascended to heaven with the promise that He would come back to earth again.
Those who witnessed the event and those who came to believe in Jesus Christ after hearing about it believed that He would return while they were still alive.
However, before Jesus returned from heaven to earth, there were people who ended their lives on earth while believing in Him.
One of the very big questions that confronted the disciples of Christ at that time was what would happen to those who believed in the Lord but left the world (died) before Jesus' return (since they were no longer on earth) when Jesus returned.
In fact, there were those who scoffed at the Christian faith and the idea of Jesus' coming again, saying
2 Peter 3:4
“Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.”
“You say that the Lord will come again, but He never comes”. “Nothing has changed in the world”. The first Christians were being thrown at by those questions, even “Is there really a God?”
However, in the same epistle of 2 Peter, chapter 3, verses 8-9, it is written as follows.
8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
From the human point of view, “The Lord Jesus promised that He would come again, but He never came. The promise may have been a hoax (fake). The faith in Christ itself may also be untrue. Such a doubt would come up.
But with the Lord, “a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.
Since the Lord God is eternal, we must understand His promises in terms of His eternity through faith.
Because we are finite human beings, we cannot fully understand the eternal One (God) and His plan.
However, we can believe through the Word of Bible that the Lord is faithful to fulfill His promises.
Even though we cannot fully understand God's eternity, we can live our lives believing in the eternal God and trusting in His faithfulness.
We want to live our lives always believing in the greatness of God who makes us live in eternity, and in the faithfulness of the Lord who always fulfills His promises.
We also want to remember and give thanks for the blessing of being able to walk together with other believers, believing in the eternal Lord and choosing to live our lives trusting in Him.
Paul, who wrote this letter to the Thessalonians, wrote the following in verse 15.
15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
Paul says here, “According to the Lord's word.” That is to say, he is not saying something he arbitrarily came up with on his own.
He says it based on the Word of the Lord Jesus Christ, and as a result of his seeking prayer.
Paul, a believer, based on what he himself has heard from his predecessors in the faith, and what has been made known to him as the Word of the Lord by revelation from the Lord God, says that “those who were called first will be resurrected, and those who are still alive will be caught up together with them to heaven. Paul is saying here.
What is being said in today's passage may seem somewhat fantastical, and it may be difficult for us to accept it as reality.
However, we are all going to end our lives on earth someday.
Therefore, I believe that it is a great blessing to have faith in the hope that “even though our life on earth has ended, we have been given resurrection life through Jesus Christ.
Even though we may not know for sure, we have been given hope through Jesus Christ that we too will be made alive to God's eternal life, which is far beyond our thoughts and ideas.
We only know of the earthly world in which we now live. On the contrary, there are so many things that we do not know even about this world that we can see.
We live in a world of instability, a world in which many things happen that we do not know where there is a sure hope.
However, when we see this world through the eyes of Jesus Christ as communicated through the Bible, when we see this world through the power of Christ's resurrection, we can find in it a certain hope and strength to live.
At the end of today's verse 17, it is written, “And so we will be with the Lord forever.”
“And so we will be with the Lord forever.” - this is a promise that will be given to us in the future and will be fully realized in the future.
But also, the promise that “We will be with the Lord forever.” is a promise that has already been fulfilled now. (This may sound contradictory, but it is.)
The Lord is invisible to our eyes, but He has given us faith in Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit.
Through the Holy Spirit, the Lord gives us faith that the words in the Bible are the words that God still speaks to us.
By the Holy Spirit, the Lord continues to guide us to share and live the Word of the Bible as our spiritual nourishment.
By His Word, and by His Word being shared, we are shaken and given great encouragement and joy.
In this sense, we can say that the promise that the Lord will be with us forever is a promise that has already been fulfilled.
The following is written in verse 18. the last verse of today' chapter.
Therefore encourage one another with these words.
These words that were mentioned are words spoken by Paul, a believer, based on the Word of the Lord.
In other words, they are words that the Lord's words were spoken in another language and sayings through the life of one believer.
Thus, we are assured that even through the words of another believer, the Word of the Lord God is indeed what keeps us alive and gives us strength.
At a recent our worship service, two sisters and a brother gave testimonies and a message. I was unable to hear them in person because I attended a service at another church that day.
However, I was able to read their testimonies and message in advance through manuscripts.
I read the manuscripts, imagining how they would sound when they were actually delivered by voice.
In those testimonies and message the Lord's words were indeed spoken through the life of faith of each person who delivered them.
And with the guidance of the Holy Spirit beyond our thoughts, I believe that the words of each person who spoke them ultimately became one and became the grace of the entire service that day.
Our Lord God desired that His Word be preached to the world through the way of living and words of the faithful.
We have been made Christians and we have been established as one church so that we may preach the gospel to the world and so that we may be kept alive by the word of the Lord spoken to us by one another.
Let us continue to live our life of faith together, encouraging one another by the word of the Lord.
We hope to serve Christ's gospel missionary work, being kept alive by the sure hope of the Lord's resurrection.
Saturday, February 15, 2025
Sunday Worship Service February 16, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Joshua 23:14
Hymn JBC # 124 This is my Father's world
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 384 I love to tell the story
Offering
Scripture Colossians 3:12～17
Prayer
Sermon “The Peace of Christ”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 330 Far away in the depths of my spirit tonight
Doxology JBC # 672
Benediction
Postlude
Today’s Bible passage is from “the letter to Colossians Ch. 3” that we just read.
The key term of this passage, and of today’s message title too is “the peace of Christ.”
The Son of God, Jesus Christ, has given us immeasurable grace.
One form of Christ’s grace is “peace.” I think that we all understand that peace is precious (no one is against peace).
If everyone desires peace, then why are the world and the things around us constantly in situations that are not peaceful (wars and other major/minor conflicts)?
We are often pushed toward despair feeling from hearing about precious lives being lost through atrocious crimes and tragedies of war reported daily in the news.
We may want to give up and say that “peace is nothing but wishful thinking.”
However, in the words of the bible, and in Jesus Christ told through the bible, we have a message of hope that “peace is here and it is never lost.”
How has Jesus given us peace? Colossians 1:19-20 (same letter to Colossians as today’s passage) says the following:
19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
It states clearly here that “God made peace through his son’s (Jesus Christ’s) blood, shed on the cross.”
Therefore, even when in our eyes it seems as if peace has not been achieved, if we look at what Jesus Christ has done on the cross, we know that God has already succeeded in making peace.
Christ’s blood on the cross (in other words, His death), was an event of grace that we human can reconcile with God.
We were made by God to have our joy in our bountiful relationship with Him in His glory.
However, we fell to sin and separated ourselves from God. Biblical sin began because we disobeyed God and separated ourselves from Him, desiring to live a self-centered life.
And we were made to be in relationship with God, but when we separated ourselves from God to live for ourselves, we also distanced ourselves from true peace.
We can be nourished by God’s words and God’s wisdom and live spiritually rich lives, but when we depend on things other than God, we cannot find true peace there.
Now we want us to have a conviction and trust in the bible’s message that through Jesus Christ’s deed on the cross, God has made peace for us.
Through Christ’s cross, God invites us to true peace. We believe that in Christ there is true peace.
In verse 15 of today’s passage, it says the following:
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.
Today’s passage tells us to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts. It also states that we are invited into one body to receive this peace (the peace of Christ).
The one body it is mentioning here is the church. It is the Christian church. Why are we to connect to the church? It is because by becoming a part of the body (a member of the church), we can receive the peace of Christ as our own.
Because we believe in Jesus Christ of the cross, and we believe the peace that has been made through the cross of Christ, then we connect to the church, become a part of it and live out our faith together to receive that peace.
God loves us so much that He gave His only Son for us. Through this love of Jesus, we can understand just how special we are.
When we understand how special and precious we are through Christ and His love, it changes us into people who love others and not just ourselves.
The bible teaches us that when we give thanks to God for the fact that Christ forgave our sin, reconciled us with God, and made it possible for us to live in peace with God again, it makes it possible for us to have hearts of love and forgiveness for others.
The church, which is the body of Christ, is where the love and peace of Christ is practiced.
When I look back to when I was accepted into the church and became a member, I must acknowledge that God’s love, forgiveness, generosity, and patience were shown to me through the people in the church.
When I first went to church, I was quite rude and curt to everyone, because I felt a lot of antagonism toward Christianity.
The woman I was dating with at the time (now my wife) strongly recommended I attend church, so I reluctantly started attending worship. Putting it nicely, I was very honest so that I was unable to hide my antagonism, and it probably showed in my behavior quite clearly.
The church I first attended together with my wife when she invited me was a church in America where we were studying. Years later (after I became a Christian), the pastor at that time told me, “When you first came to the church, you were so blunt that I actually gave up on you.”
However, it was the other brothers and sisters at that church who truly welcomed me. Both at the church in America, and at the church I attended when I returned to Japan, I was shown tolerance, patience, and forgiveness through the brothers and sisters who accepted me.
In America there were people of church who invited me into their home to patiently teach me about the bible.
In the church in Nagoya, there was a person who, right in front of me, prayed for me so earnestly that “God, may you please tell him Jesus in a way that he could understand”, even though I was such an impertinent young man.
In these churches that I was led to, I have seen brothers and sisters who were surely making the love and forgiveness of Christ their own, then practicing to share it with others.
Today I cannot go without giving thanks to God and those brothers and sisters for all those things.
Even if I reflect on those people’s faith now, I can see that they first truly understood that they were loved by Jesus.
Because they were convinced that they were loved by Jesus Christ and that they were given a rich life through Christ, it was natural for that love to overflow from them to other people.
It was also those brothers and sisters at my home church who, in love and conviction, prayerfully sent me out from their flock to devote myself (so that I could follow the path of becoming a pastor).
And now all of you brothers and sisters here at Beppu International Church allow me to continue to be here as the spiritual leader of this church, even though I have so many flaws and shortcomings.
The reason the church can let another person become the spiritual leader of the flock is because they trust in the Lord and have faith that His love and forgiveness is shared in the church. Otherwise, such a thing would not be possible.
When people who believe in the love of God that was shown through the cross of Jesus Christ and are bound together spiritually, that is what forms the church.
Let us continue to work together as the body of Christ, building each other up in Christ’s peace, being bound together by His words, and holding each other as precious in love and forgiveness.
Let’s read verse 17, the final verse in today’s passage.
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Those who receive God’s incredible, extravagant grace, love, and forgiveness are also given a befitting responsibility. That responsibility is also a privilege.
That is that whatever we do, whether in word or deed, we are to do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus.
In other words, we are ambassadors of Christ who He sent out to be representatives of His name.
This means that every word that we speak as Christians are words that we speak as Christ’s representatives. Every action that we take as Christians are actions we do as representatives of Christ.
This is a frightening reality because many of the words we say and actions we do are not what we would expect of a representative of Jesus Christ.
However, whatever we may think, our heavenly God through the faith in Christ is giving that great privilege (and simultaneously great responsibility) to us.
This is how great God’s expectations are for us.
When we, as those who are loved and forgiven by Christ, live out our lives here on earth, we are representing Christ every day.
“What would Jesus say in this type of situation?”, “What would Jesus do at times like this?” As we reflect on these types of questions, we can try to live with Jesus Christ as our guideline and leader.
May the peace of Christ our Savior rule our hearts and may Christ’s love and forgiveness spread to the world through us.
Through us may the name of the Lord Jesus Christ be praised more and more. Let us remember the great grace and what an honor it is to be able to live serving Christ, and offer our thanks.
Prelude
Call to Worship Joshua 23:14
Hymn JBC # 124 This is my Father's world
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 384 I love to tell the story
Offering
Scripture Colossians 3:12～17
Prayer
Sermon “The Peace of Christ”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 330 Far away in the depths of my spirit tonight
Doxology JBC # 672
Benediction
Postlude
Today’s Bible passage is from “the letter to Colossians Ch. 3” that we just read.
The key term of this passage, and of today’s message title too is “the peace of Christ.”
The Son of God, Jesus Christ, has given us immeasurable grace.
One form of Christ’s grace is “peace.” I think that we all understand that peace is precious (no one is against peace).
If everyone desires peace, then why are the world and the things around us constantly in situations that are not peaceful (wars and other major/minor conflicts)?
We are often pushed toward despair feeling from hearing about precious lives being lost through atrocious crimes and tragedies of war reported daily in the news.
We may want to give up and say that “peace is nothing but wishful thinking.”
However, in the words of the bible, and in Jesus Christ told through the bible, we have a message of hope that “peace is here and it is never lost.”
How has Jesus given us peace? Colossians 1:19-20 (same letter to Colossians as today’s passage) says the following:
19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
It states clearly here that “God made peace through his son’s (Jesus Christ’s) blood, shed on the cross.”
Therefore, even when in our eyes it seems as if peace has not been achieved, if we look at what Jesus Christ has done on the cross, we know that God has already succeeded in making peace.
Christ’s blood on the cross (in other words, His death), was an event of grace that we human can reconcile with God.
We were made by God to have our joy in our bountiful relationship with Him in His glory.
However, we fell to sin and separated ourselves from God. Biblical sin began because we disobeyed God and separated ourselves from Him, desiring to live a self-centered life.
And we were made to be in relationship with God, but when we separated ourselves from God to live for ourselves, we also distanced ourselves from true peace.
We can be nourished by God’s words and God’s wisdom and live spiritually rich lives, but when we depend on things other than God, we cannot find true peace there.
Now we want us to have a conviction and trust in the bible’s message that through Jesus Christ’s deed on the cross, God has made peace for us.
Through Christ’s cross, God invites us to true peace. We believe that in Christ there is true peace.
In verse 15 of today’s passage, it says the following:
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.
Today’s passage tells us to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts. It also states that we are invited into one body to receive this peace (the peace of Christ).
The one body it is mentioning here is the church. It is the Christian church. Why are we to connect to the church? It is because by becoming a part of the body (a member of the church), we can receive the peace of Christ as our own.
Because we believe in Jesus Christ of the cross, and we believe the peace that has been made through the cross of Christ, then we connect to the church, become a part of it and live out our faith together to receive that peace.
God loves us so much that He gave His only Son for us. Through this love of Jesus, we can understand just how special we are.
When we understand how special and precious we are through Christ and His love, it changes us into people who love others and not just ourselves.
The bible teaches us that when we give thanks to God for the fact that Christ forgave our sin, reconciled us with God, and made it possible for us to live in peace with God again, it makes it possible for us to have hearts of love and forgiveness for others.
The church, which is the body of Christ, is where the love and peace of Christ is practiced.
When I look back to when I was accepted into the church and became a member, I must acknowledge that God’s love, forgiveness, generosity, and patience were shown to me through the people in the church.
When I first went to church, I was quite rude and curt to everyone, because I felt a lot of antagonism toward Christianity.
The woman I was dating with at the time (now my wife) strongly recommended I attend church, so I reluctantly started attending worship. Putting it nicely, I was very honest so that I was unable to hide my antagonism, and it probably showed in my behavior quite clearly.
The church I first attended together with my wife when she invited me was a church in America where we were studying. Years later (after I became a Christian), the pastor at that time told me, “When you first came to the church, you were so blunt that I actually gave up on you.”
However, it was the other brothers and sisters at that church who truly welcomed me. Both at the church in America, and at the church I attended when I returned to Japan, I was shown tolerance, patience, and forgiveness through the brothers and sisters who accepted me.
In America there were people of church who invited me into their home to patiently teach me about the bible.
In the church in Nagoya, there was a person who, right in front of me, prayed for me so earnestly that “God, may you please tell him Jesus in a way that he could understand”, even though I was such an impertinent young man.
In these churches that I was led to, I have seen brothers and sisters who were surely making the love and forgiveness of Christ their own, then practicing to share it with others.
Today I cannot go without giving thanks to God and those brothers and sisters for all those things.
Even if I reflect on those people’s faith now, I can see that they first truly understood that they were loved by Jesus.
Because they were convinced that they were loved by Jesus Christ and that they were given a rich life through Christ, it was natural for that love to overflow from them to other people.
It was also those brothers and sisters at my home church who, in love and conviction, prayerfully sent me out from their flock to devote myself (so that I could follow the path of becoming a pastor).
And now all of you brothers and sisters here at Beppu International Church allow me to continue to be here as the spiritual leader of this church, even though I have so many flaws and shortcomings.
The reason the church can let another person become the spiritual leader of the flock is because they trust in the Lord and have faith that His love and forgiveness is shared in the church. Otherwise, such a thing would not be possible.
When people who believe in the love of God that was shown through the cross of Jesus Christ and are bound together spiritually, that is what forms the church.
Let us continue to work together as the body of Christ, building each other up in Christ’s peace, being bound together by His words, and holding each other as precious in love and forgiveness.
Let’s read verse 17, the final verse in today’s passage.
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Those who receive God’s incredible, extravagant grace, love, and forgiveness are also given a befitting responsibility. That responsibility is also a privilege.
That is that whatever we do, whether in word or deed, we are to do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus.
In other words, we are ambassadors of Christ who He sent out to be representatives of His name.
This means that every word that we speak as Christians are words that we speak as Christ’s representatives. Every action that we take as Christians are actions we do as representatives of Christ.
This is a frightening reality because many of the words we say and actions we do are not what we would expect of a representative of Jesus Christ.
However, whatever we may think, our heavenly God through the faith in Christ is giving that great privilege (and simultaneously great responsibility) to us.
This is how great God’s expectations are for us.
When we, as those who are loved and forgiven by Christ, live out our lives here on earth, we are representing Christ every day.
“What would Jesus say in this type of situation?”, “What would Jesus do at times like this?” As we reflect on these types of questions, we can try to live with Jesus Christ as our guideline and leader.
May the peace of Christ our Savior rule our hearts and may Christ’s love and forgiveness spread to the world through us.
Through us may the name of the Lord Jesus Christ be praised more and more. Let us remember the great grace and what an honor it is to be able to live serving Christ, and offer our thanks.
Saturday, February 1, 2025
Sunday Worship Service February 2, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Exodus 29:45～46
Hymn JBC #102 Marvelous grace of our loving Lord
The Prayer Time
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 384 I love to tell the story
Offering
Scripture Ephesians 3:14～20
Prayer
Sermon “Christ dwells in our hearts”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 94 We are called to be God’s people
Doxology JBC #672
Benediction
Postlude
Today's passage (Ephesians 3:14–20) begins with the words, "For this reason I kneel before the Father."
The author of this letter, Paul, states that he kneels before the Father, that is, God, in prayer.
In the following verse 15, Paul writes, " from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name."
These two verses reveal how profoundly Paul was transformed before and after coming to faith in Christ.
Before encountering the risen Jesus Christ and becoming a follower of Christ, Paul was a devout Jew, known for his zeal, as recognized by both himself and others.
As we have shared several times in our recent worship messages, Paul fiercely persecuted those who believed in Christ before his conversion.
How was he transformed, and how is this revealed in the words of the first two verses of today's passage?
Firstly, at that time, standing was the usual posture for prayer in Judaism.
In Luke 18:9-14, there is a parable titled "The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector."
The Pharisee, known for strictly observing the laws of Scripture, “stood” and prayed in his heart as follows.
"God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get." (Luke 18:11-12)
On the other hand, the tax collector “(he too “stood”) at a distance, not even willing to lift his eyes to heaven. Instead, he beat his chest and said the following.
"God, have mercy on me, a sinner."
Jesus said, “It was the tax collector who was justified (found righteous by God) and went home, not the Pharisee.
There, both Pharisee and tax collector “stood” and prayed.
Paul was so rigorously educated in Judaism that he studied under a scribe (teacher of the laws).
Therefore, I imagine that Paul too, before believing in Jesus, must have “stood up” (proud in his heart as well) and prayed like the Pharisee we have just read about in the Gospel of Luke.
But Paul, having met Jesus Christ and having been transformed by Him, is now a man who kneels before God in prayer.
To encounter Christ is to be informed that “there is nothing in myself that I can boast of with confidence before God.“
Knowing that we have nothing to boast about before God, and like the tax collector in Jesus' story, who could only say, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” and ask for God's mercy and forgiveness, isn’t that the true prayer we can offer to God?
And, I believe that the attitude of kneeling in prayer also expresses humility before God and gratitude, “I am not qualified to ask or pray to you, but by the grace of Christ, I am permitted to pray to you.”
By believing in Christ, Paul was transformed into one who prays with such a humble heart, and such his broken heart was accepted by God.
The words in verse 15, “from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.” also indicate a significant change that has occurred in Paul's faith.
At the time, the people of Israel believed that God's salvation was available only to the Jews.
From that viewpoint, the idea that “every family in heaven and on earth derives (has been given) his name [the name of Jesus Christ]” is a great change.
It was a faith that was clearly demonstrated through Jesus that God saves not only Jews, but anyone who repents of their sins and seeks to turn to God, Jews or not.
The faith that “I am saved in the name of Jesus Christ. And that salvation through the name of Jesus Christ is available not only to the Jews but also to all people, to all nations, and to all who believe” greatly changed Paul from what he had been before that.
The faith that God's salvation was given to this sinful me, and that God's salvation is given to all peoples other than me, other than the Jews, made Paul an evangelist to the Gentiles (foreigners) other than the Jews.
We, too, as forgiven sinners, wish to humble ourselves before God (whether or not we actually kneel in prayer), and with broken hearts, we would like to be the one who prays fervently, with gratitude for our salvation, for other people as well as ourselves,
Paul's prayer for the Ephesians was as follows. (verses 16-17)
16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,
We are truly strengthened when our “inner being” is strengthened by the Spirit of God.
I think it is well to say that the “strengthened inner being” is “spiritual new life given to the heart and soul of a person through a spiritual relationship with God, regardless of outward strength, beauty, or outward appearance of faith”.
We become truly strong only through our relationship with the true God. It is not through our own experiences or self-discipline that we gain strength.
We are strengthened by being nourished through God's Word, conversing with Him always in prayer, and receiving the power of the Holy Spirit.
Then, through faith in God, He causes Christ to dwell in our hearts and firmly establishes us upon the foundation of Christ’s love.
Even though I am weak, God’s strength and Christ’s love uphold me from beneath, even when I lack love. This unshakable foundation in Christ’s love is the peace given to believers.
Paul prays that “the Father: God, through faith, may cause Christ to dwell in your hearts”.
The prayer here is for Christ to “dwell” in our hearts. The word "dwell" does not mean a temporary stay but rather a permanent residence.
Here, it means that Christ may permanently dwell in your hearts, making His home within you.
And, "through faith” Christ may dwell" means that God does not forcibly open our hearts or compel Christ to reside within us.
No so, but it means that we respond to God's calling, willingly open the door of our hearts by our own decision, and receive Christ into our hearts. That is the meaning of "through faith."
To be a Christian means to respond to God's calling and invitation, allowing Jesus Christ to dwell in our hearts permanently.
Jesus Christ dwells in our hearts through faith not only when we come to church and worship but also as we go about our daily lives outside the church.
As long as we open our hearts and welcome Jesus, He will always dwell within us and establish us upon His love.
May we never let go of this faith, but by humbling ourselves before God, and we wish continually to pray together that Christ may always dwell in our hearts.
And, since Christ always dwells in our hearts, let us walk each day without fear and without losing love, holding firm to this assurance.
Let’s read verses 18-19.
18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
The width, length, height, and depth of Christ’s love are so great that we cannot fully comprehend them.
However, the greatness of God's love is undeniable, and it is clearly revealed in the fact that Jesus Christ was crucified and died for us.
And the fact that the salvation brought by Christ’s cross continues to sustain us with great hope and joy assures us that "God’s great love is (even though we cannot fully understand it) certainly real."
We "together" come to know such love of God, "together" partake in His overflowing fullness, and "together" are filled with His love.
Paul, in today’s passage, is praying for the believers in the Ephesian church, addressing "you" (plural). He is not praying only for one individual.
The love and salvation of Jesus Christ are shared first within the fellowship of the church, among believers who share faith in the same God.
As the church, the body of Christ, may the prayer "that we may be filled together with God's overflowing love" become our shared and united prayer among one another.
I believe that the grace of God's love filling us together, of God's love being shared, is truly a gracious privilege given only to the Church.
In today's verse 20, Paul describes God as "the one who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us."
Our God is the one who hears our prayers and desires through Jesus Christ.
And God is the one who, "according to his power that is at work within us," is able to fulfill far beyond what we pray for, seek, or imagine.
The One to whom we now offer our worship is the One who works His divine power in us (human beings) and through it accomplishes works far greater than we can ever hope or think.
Through Jesus Christ, we are made known the true God who is so great and so loving that He gave the life of His Son, Jesus Christ, for our salvation.
And each of us, and our church, as the body of Jesus Christ, is also to be used as a vessel through which such great divine power can work within it.
Such a precious and surprising work is entrusted to us, the believers in Christ, and to the Church. What an honor and what a work that brings us strength and joy.
Let us therefore walk, day by day, for God's power to be increasingly manifested and for all glory to be returned to Him.
Prelude
Call to Worship Exodus 29:45～46
Hymn JBC #102 Marvelous grace of our loving Lord
The Prayer Time
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn JBC # 384 I love to tell the story
Offering
Scripture Ephesians 3:14～20
Prayer
Sermon “Christ dwells in our hearts”
Prayer
Hymn JBC # 94 We are called to be God’s people
Doxology JBC #672
Benediction
Postlude
Today's passage (Ephesians 3:14–20) begins with the words, "For this reason I kneel before the Father."
The author of this letter, Paul, states that he kneels before the Father, that is, God, in prayer.
In the following verse 15, Paul writes, " from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name."
These two verses reveal how profoundly Paul was transformed before and after coming to faith in Christ.
Before encountering the risen Jesus Christ and becoming a follower of Christ, Paul was a devout Jew, known for his zeal, as recognized by both himself and others.
As we have shared several times in our recent worship messages, Paul fiercely persecuted those who believed in Christ before his conversion.
How was he transformed, and how is this revealed in the words of the first two verses of today's passage?
Firstly, at that time, standing was the usual posture for prayer in Judaism.
In Luke 18:9-14, there is a parable titled "The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector."
The Pharisee, known for strictly observing the laws of Scripture, “stood” and prayed in his heart as follows.
"God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get." (Luke 18:11-12)
On the other hand, the tax collector “(he too “stood”) at a distance, not even willing to lift his eyes to heaven. Instead, he beat his chest and said the following.
"God, have mercy on me, a sinner."
Jesus said, “It was the tax collector who was justified (found righteous by God) and went home, not the Pharisee.
There, both Pharisee and tax collector “stood” and prayed.
Paul was so rigorously educated in Judaism that he studied under a scribe (teacher of the laws).
Therefore, I imagine that Paul too, before believing in Jesus, must have “stood up” (proud in his heart as well) and prayed like the Pharisee we have just read about in the Gospel of Luke.
But Paul, having met Jesus Christ and having been transformed by Him, is now a man who kneels before God in prayer.
To encounter Christ is to be informed that “there is nothing in myself that I can boast of with confidence before God.“
Knowing that we have nothing to boast about before God, and like the tax collector in Jesus' story, who could only say, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” and ask for God's mercy and forgiveness, isn’t that the true prayer we can offer to God?
And, I believe that the attitude of kneeling in prayer also expresses humility before God and gratitude, “I am not qualified to ask or pray to you, but by the grace of Christ, I am permitted to pray to you.”
By believing in Christ, Paul was transformed into one who prays with such a humble heart, and such his broken heart was accepted by God.
The words in verse 15, “from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.” also indicate a significant change that has occurred in Paul's faith.
At the time, the people of Israel believed that God's salvation was available only to the Jews.
From that viewpoint, the idea that “every family in heaven and on earth derives (has been given) his name [the name of Jesus Christ]” is a great change.
It was a faith that was clearly demonstrated through Jesus that God saves not only Jews, but anyone who repents of their sins and seeks to turn to God, Jews or not.
The faith that “I am saved in the name of Jesus Christ. And that salvation through the name of Jesus Christ is available not only to the Jews but also to all people, to all nations, and to all who believe” greatly changed Paul from what he had been before that.
The faith that God's salvation was given to this sinful me, and that God's salvation is given to all peoples other than me, other than the Jews, made Paul an evangelist to the Gentiles (foreigners) other than the Jews.
We, too, as forgiven sinners, wish to humble ourselves before God (whether or not we actually kneel in prayer), and with broken hearts, we would like to be the one who prays fervently, with gratitude for our salvation, for other people as well as ourselves,
Paul's prayer for the Ephesians was as follows. (verses 16-17)
16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,
We are truly strengthened when our “inner being” is strengthened by the Spirit of God.
I think it is well to say that the “strengthened inner being” is “spiritual new life given to the heart and soul of a person through a spiritual relationship with God, regardless of outward strength, beauty, or outward appearance of faith”.
We become truly strong only through our relationship with the true God. It is not through our own experiences or self-discipline that we gain strength.
We are strengthened by being nourished through God's Word, conversing with Him always in prayer, and receiving the power of the Holy Spirit.
Then, through faith in God, He causes Christ to dwell in our hearts and firmly establishes us upon the foundation of Christ’s love.
Even though I am weak, God’s strength and Christ’s love uphold me from beneath, even when I lack love. This unshakable foundation in Christ’s love is the peace given to believers.
Paul prays that “the Father: God, through faith, may cause Christ to dwell in your hearts”.
The prayer here is for Christ to “dwell” in our hearts. The word "dwell" does not mean a temporary stay but rather a permanent residence.
Here, it means that Christ may permanently dwell in your hearts, making His home within you.
And, "through faith” Christ may dwell" means that God does not forcibly open our hearts or compel Christ to reside within us.
No so, but it means that we respond to God's calling, willingly open the door of our hearts by our own decision, and receive Christ into our hearts. That is the meaning of "through faith."
To be a Christian means to respond to God's calling and invitation, allowing Jesus Christ to dwell in our hearts permanently.
Jesus Christ dwells in our hearts through faith not only when we come to church and worship but also as we go about our daily lives outside the church.
As long as we open our hearts and welcome Jesus, He will always dwell within us and establish us upon His love.
May we never let go of this faith, but by humbling ourselves before God, and we wish continually to pray together that Christ may always dwell in our hearts.
And, since Christ always dwells in our hearts, let us walk each day without fear and without losing love, holding firm to this assurance.
Let’s read verses 18-19.
18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
The width, length, height, and depth of Christ’s love are so great that we cannot fully comprehend them.
However, the greatness of God's love is undeniable, and it is clearly revealed in the fact that Jesus Christ was crucified and died for us.
And the fact that the salvation brought by Christ’s cross continues to sustain us with great hope and joy assures us that "God’s great love is (even though we cannot fully understand it) certainly real."
We "together" come to know such love of God, "together" partake in His overflowing fullness, and "together" are filled with His love.
Paul, in today’s passage, is praying for the believers in the Ephesian church, addressing "you" (plural). He is not praying only for one individual.
The love and salvation of Jesus Christ are shared first within the fellowship of the church, among believers who share faith in the same God.
As the church, the body of Christ, may the prayer "that we may be filled together with God's overflowing love" become our shared and united prayer among one another.
I believe that the grace of God's love filling us together, of God's love being shared, is truly a gracious privilege given only to the Church.
In today's verse 20, Paul describes God as "the one who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us."
Our God is the one who hears our prayers and desires through Jesus Christ.
And God is the one who, "according to his power that is at work within us," is able to fulfill far beyond what we pray for, seek, or imagine.
The One to whom we now offer our worship is the One who works His divine power in us (human beings) and through it accomplishes works far greater than we can ever hope or think.
Through Jesus Christ, we are made known the true God who is so great and so loving that He gave the life of His Son, Jesus Christ, for our salvation.
And each of us, and our church, as the body of Jesus Christ, is also to be used as a vessel through which such great divine power can work within it.
Such a precious and surprising work is entrusted to us, the believers in Christ, and to the Church. What an honor and what a work that brings us strength and joy.
Let us therefore walk, day by day, for God's power to be increasingly manifested and for all glory to be returned to Him.
Saturday, January 25, 2025
Sunday Worship Service January 26, 2025
Prelude
Call to Worship Psalm 62:8
Hymn JBC # 125 All Creatures of our God and King
The Lord’s Prayer
The Lord’s Supper
Hymn JBC # 261 Dear Spirit, lead me to the Saviour’s side
Offering
Scripture Galatians 1:6～10
Prayer
Sermon “There is No Other Gospel”
Prayer
Hymn JBC #492 My hope is built on nothing less
Doxology JBC # 671
Benediction
Postlude
The Christian faith, that is, the faith that believes in Jesus Christ as God and Savior, is given to us as "grace."
God has invited us to live in the grace of Christ. Our faith in Christ began with "God's invitation to us."
It's a free invitation. It is not something that we have attained through our own efforts or wisdom.
We may receive various invitations from people in our daily lives. Sometimes we receive invitations to weddings or other events.
When we receive such invitation, we will then decide whether we will accept the invitation and attend or not.
When we receive an invitation, it means that the recipient of the invitation (guest) is seen by the inviter (host) as "I want this person to participate" or "This person is the right person to participate."
The inviter (host) chooses who to invite based on some thoughts and conditions, so to speak.
At the inauguration ceremony of the President of the United States held last week, it seems that invitations were sent to some foreign dignitaries in positions that are not usually invited according to diplomatic customs, and it was unusual and made the news.
Invitations to such political events may be accompanied by a strategic idea with an eye on future profits.
I think we were often told by people to "choose the friends you hang out with". I think I have said to myself (I don't think I said it that explicitly) and also to my own children things like “Choose good friends and hang out with them" , "Don't be friends with bad people".
I do hope that friendship between people should be pure bonds, but when I look into my own heart, I think to myself that I probably choose even friends based on calculating profit and loss.
Then, how does God choose people and invite them to believe in Him as God, to the path of grace in Jesus Christ?
Will those who are worthy, excellent, religious, and pious in God's eyes (or in the eyes of others) be chosen, and only they are invited to become Christians who believe in God (or in Jesus Christ)?
This is not the case. The more Christians deepen their faith, that is, the more they have trust and gratitude to God, the more they are made aware that "I am not worthy of God's grace at all, and I have been chosen by God to be saved."
Paul, who wrote the Epistle to the Galatians, which is today's scripture, also says, "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners —of whom I am the worst. " (1 Timothy 1:15)
As Christians, we can say that we can truly know God's grace by whether or not the words, "I am the worst sinner" have become our own words.
Gratitude and humility to say that God's forgiveness and grace have been given to me, the worst of sinners, must accompany our faith in Christ.
At the beginning of today's passage, it says, "I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel"
The background to this writing is a problem and event that occurred between Paul, who wrote this epistle, and the church in Galatia, to whom this letter was addressed.
In the past, Paul's evangelism led to the establishment of a Christian church in the region of Galatia.
However, after Paul left Galatia, it is said that other people came there and preached a "different gospel" that was different from the one Paul preached. They were the so-called "Judaizers".
"Judaizers" were Jewish Christians. But they were the ones who insisted that "in order for a non-Jewish Gentile to become a Christian, he must first convert to Judaism and then obey the Jewish laws."
To believe in Christ is to respond to the invitation of Jesus Christ, the One whom God has become man, and to return to Him.
God revealed Himself through His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. In other words, through Jesus Christ, we can know "who God is."
Christ's invitation is unconditional. If we dare to say that there is a condition, it is only that we accept the invitation. All we have to do is open our hearts and let Jesus come into our hearts.
But it’s true that it may also be difficult to just open our hearts and ask Jesus to come, and give thanks for God's unconditional grace.
This is because it is difficult for us to open our hearts and welcome Jesus to be at the center of our hearts.
Because at the heart of us sits our stubborn (and arrogant) selves who are unable to surrender their place, even to the Savior.
And even if we believe and accept the gospel of Christ once, we can let go of that faith and leave it after a while.
Such things happen when something else comes into our hearts, things other than pure trust and faith in Christ.
The Judaizers considered "the observance of the Jewish law" to be the condition of faith and salvation.
In a way, they were serious and enthusiastic people, we can say.
For us Christians today, this would apply to "attending worship services," "making offerings," and "serving."
And the idea that if you don't do these things properly, you can't become (you are not) a Christian, is modern Judaizers, so to speak.
But it's the other way around. If we know the gratuitous grace of Christ and receive that grace with gratitude and repentance, it will show itself in the practice of a life of faith. (Not the other way around.)
In his sermon, the pastor of my home church would sometimes share these words of a Buddhist monk.
"Arranging shoes is not faith, but faith is arranging shoes."
Last year, our sister S testified that she was impressed by the way her sister's friend, Christian, silently arranged everyone's shoes at the wedding.
The basis of the act and appearance of silently arranging others’ shoes (not showing it off loudly) was the person's faith in Jesus.
Therefore, I believe that her action (the natural way of living her faith) touched Sister S's heart and remained in her memory for a long time.
Jesus said to His disciples:
27 For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. (Luke 22:27)
Jesus said “But I am among you as one who serves.” And Jesus lived according to His words.
Jesus was equal to God, but He made Himself extremely low. He even became a servant to others at the dinner table.
Then, He died on the cross, bearing the disappointment, ridicule, and insult of the people.
In this way, Jesus offered His life as a sacrifice for each of us who cannot worship God as God, who drift away from God, always want to be the center of our own lives, and always want to be served rather than serving others.
If, in addition to faith in Jesus, outward things such as our good deeds, keeping the law, and observing religious rules are the conditions for our salvation, then Jesus' death on the cross is meaningless.
Our church has a cross at the roof spire. The window above the Baptistery (baptismal tub) is also in the shape of a cross.
The Christian church, as a group of Christians who believe in being saved by Christ, believes and testifies that "our salvation is due solely to the atoning work of Jesus Christ on the cross, which is pure grace (free, unconditional) and always expresses this faith.
If, in addition to the redemptive work of Christ's cross, we add any other conditions of salvation (or, conversely, if we deny the redemptive work of the cross), it would mean we are giving up Christ's salvation and being against God.
Verse 8 says：
8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse!
"If anyone who tries to preach to you a false gospel that is not the gospel of Jesus Christ, but of anything other than the gratuitous grace of Christ, even if it is us, let them be cursed." – such a strong word is used in this verse.
I think the part “Even if we" is very important, This teaches us that the words of the Bible are not for us to condemn others, but to rebuke ourselves who hear it first.
In other words, Paul, who wrote this epistle, is expressing that, "Even I, too, have the possibility to preach the wrong gospel. I carry such sin and have such weakness always."
There is always a danger that we will boast of something other than the gospel of Jesus Christ (e.g., our own abilities, experiences, achievements, etc.) and pass on such things to others as if they were conditions of salvation.
Paul left his words of faith here with a desire for self-discipline so that when we drift and tend to make such mistake, we ask Jesus Christ to correct our ways.
Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins. He was resurrected and is still alive and working for our salvation (receiving true life and born again living that true life).
That salvation through Jesus Christ is given to us simply by opening our hearts, turning to God, believing and accepting Him.
In order to receive that salvation, there is no action, character, or any other criterion or condition that we must achieve.
May only Christ alone, and faith in Him, be always shared and spoken among us, and that Christ alone may be exalted among us. Let us pray that thanksgiving, joy, and praise to Christ may be abundantly expressed among us.
Prelude
Call to Worship Psalm 62:8
Hymn JBC # 125 All Creatures of our God and King
The Lord’s Prayer
The Lord’s Supper
Hymn JBC # 261 Dear Spirit, lead me to the Saviour’s side
Offering
Scripture Galatians 1:6～10
Prayer
Sermon “There is No Other Gospel”
Prayer
Hymn JBC #492 My hope is built on nothing less
Doxology JBC # 671
Benediction
Postlude
The Christian faith, that is, the faith that believes in Jesus Christ as God and Savior, is given to us as "grace."
God has invited us to live in the grace of Christ. Our faith in Christ began with "God's invitation to us."
It's a free invitation. It is not something that we have attained through our own efforts or wisdom.
We may receive various invitations from people in our daily lives. Sometimes we receive invitations to weddings or other events.
When we receive such invitation, we will then decide whether we will accept the invitation and attend or not.
When we receive an invitation, it means that the recipient of the invitation (guest) is seen by the inviter (host) as "I want this person to participate" or "This person is the right person to participate."
The inviter (host) chooses who to invite based on some thoughts and conditions, so to speak.
At the inauguration ceremony of the President of the United States held last week, it seems that invitations were sent to some foreign dignitaries in positions that are not usually invited according to diplomatic customs, and it was unusual and made the news.
Invitations to such political events may be accompanied by a strategic idea with an eye on future profits.
I think we were often told by people to "choose the friends you hang out with". I think I have said to myself (I don't think I said it that explicitly) and also to my own children things like “Choose good friends and hang out with them" , "Don't be friends with bad people".
I do hope that friendship between people should be pure bonds, but when I look into my own heart, I think to myself that I probably choose even friends based on calculating profit and loss.
Then, how does God choose people and invite them to believe in Him as God, to the path of grace in Jesus Christ?
Will those who are worthy, excellent, religious, and pious in God's eyes (or in the eyes of others) be chosen, and only they are invited to become Christians who believe in God (or in Jesus Christ)?
This is not the case. The more Christians deepen their faith, that is, the more they have trust and gratitude to God, the more they are made aware that "I am not worthy of God's grace at all, and I have been chosen by God to be saved."
Paul, who wrote the Epistle to the Galatians, which is today's scripture, also says, "Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners —of whom I am the worst. " (1 Timothy 1:15)
As Christians, we can say that we can truly know God's grace by whether or not the words, "I am the worst sinner" have become our own words.
Gratitude and humility to say that God's forgiveness and grace have been given to me, the worst of sinners, must accompany our faith in Christ.
At the beginning of today's passage, it says, "I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel"
The background to this writing is a problem and event that occurred between Paul, who wrote this epistle, and the church in Galatia, to whom this letter was addressed.
In the past, Paul's evangelism led to the establishment of a Christian church in the region of Galatia.
However, after Paul left Galatia, it is said that other people came there and preached a "different gospel" that was different from the one Paul preached. They were the so-called "Judaizers".
"Judaizers" were Jewish Christians. But they were the ones who insisted that "in order for a non-Jewish Gentile to become a Christian, he must first convert to Judaism and then obey the Jewish laws."
To believe in Christ is to respond to the invitation of Jesus Christ, the One whom God has become man, and to return to Him.
God revealed Himself through His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. In other words, through Jesus Christ, we can know "who God is."
Christ's invitation is unconditional. If we dare to say that there is a condition, it is only that we accept the invitation. All we have to do is open our hearts and let Jesus come into our hearts.
But it’s true that it may also be difficult to just open our hearts and ask Jesus to come, and give thanks for God's unconditional grace.
This is because it is difficult for us to open our hearts and welcome Jesus to be at the center of our hearts.
Because at the heart of us sits our stubborn (and arrogant) selves who are unable to surrender their place, even to the Savior.
And even if we believe and accept the gospel of Christ once, we can let go of that faith and leave it after a while.
Such things happen when something else comes into our hearts, things other than pure trust and faith in Christ.
The Judaizers considered "the observance of the Jewish law" to be the condition of faith and salvation.
In a way, they were serious and enthusiastic people, we can say.
For us Christians today, this would apply to "attending worship services," "making offerings," and "serving."
And the idea that if you don't do these things properly, you can't become (you are not) a Christian, is modern Judaizers, so to speak.
But it's the other way around. If we know the gratuitous grace of Christ and receive that grace with gratitude and repentance, it will show itself in the practice of a life of faith. (Not the other way around.)
In his sermon, the pastor of my home church would sometimes share these words of a Buddhist monk.
"Arranging shoes is not faith, but faith is arranging shoes."
Last year, our sister S testified that she was impressed by the way her sister's friend, Christian, silently arranged everyone's shoes at the wedding.
The basis of the act and appearance of silently arranging others’ shoes (not showing it off loudly) was the person's faith in Jesus.
Therefore, I believe that her action (the natural way of living her faith) touched Sister S's heart and remained in her memory for a long time.
Jesus said to His disciples:
27 For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. (Luke 22:27)
Jesus said “But I am among you as one who serves.” And Jesus lived according to His words.
Jesus was equal to God, but He made Himself extremely low. He even became a servant to others at the dinner table.
Then, He died on the cross, bearing the disappointment, ridicule, and insult of the people.
In this way, Jesus offered His life as a sacrifice for each of us who cannot worship God as God, who drift away from God, always want to be the center of our own lives, and always want to be served rather than serving others.
If, in addition to faith in Jesus, outward things such as our good deeds, keeping the law, and observing religious rules are the conditions for our salvation, then Jesus' death on the cross is meaningless.
Our church has a cross at the roof spire. The window above the Baptistery (baptismal tub) is also in the shape of a cross.
The Christian church, as a group of Christians who believe in being saved by Christ, believes and testifies that "our salvation is due solely to the atoning work of Jesus Christ on the cross, which is pure grace (free, unconditional) and always expresses this faith.
If, in addition to the redemptive work of Christ's cross, we add any other conditions of salvation (or, conversely, if we deny the redemptive work of the cross), it would mean we are giving up Christ's salvation and being against God.
Verse 8 says：
8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse!
"If anyone who tries to preach to you a false gospel that is not the gospel of Jesus Christ, but of anything other than the gratuitous grace of Christ, even if it is us, let them be cursed." – such a strong word is used in this verse.
I think the part “Even if we" is very important, This teaches us that the words of the Bible are not for us to condemn others, but to rebuke ourselves who hear it first.
In other words, Paul, who wrote this epistle, is expressing that, "Even I, too, have the possibility to preach the wrong gospel. I carry such sin and have such weakness always."
There is always a danger that we will boast of something other than the gospel of Jesus Christ (e.g., our own abilities, experiences, achievements, etc.) and pass on such things to others as if they were conditions of salvation.
Paul left his words of faith here with a desire for self-discipline so that when we drift and tend to make such mistake, we ask Jesus Christ to correct our ways.
Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins. He was resurrected and is still alive and working for our salvation (receiving true life and born again living that true life).
That salvation through Jesus Christ is given to us simply by opening our hearts, turning to God, believing and accepting Him.
In order to receive that salvation, there is no action, character, or any other criterion or condition that we must achieve.
May only Christ alone, and faith in Him, be always shared and spoken among us, and that Christ alone may be exalted among us. Let us pray that thanksgiving, joy, and praise to Christ may be abundantly expressed among us.
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