Like a chestnut tree

  • The problem with Heidelberg Catechism Q1

    I once mentioned that the church was born when Christ died and was resurrected. And she has been growing spiritually since. The church already existed in the OT era. However, the purpose and existence of the church became clear when Christ died and was resurrected. Thus, the church era started.

    We humans judge everything by what we see. Christ told us that people are blind. Christians pay much attention to appearance. But the true church is the invisible church. It is the assembly of true believers which only God can recognize. We do not know who is a true Christian by looking at what we see with our eyes. Although the true church is invisible, it does not mean that she does not have flesh and blood. Each saint has flesh and blood just as Christ has flesh and blood. Although our physical body perishes when we die, we will be given an imperishable body when Christ comes back. God is spirit and we worship Him in Spirit and Truth. We, who are anointed with the Holy Spirit and are united with Christ, receive an imperishable body just as Christ lives forever without His body decaying or aging. Therefore, the church is God’s body.

    … in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. (1 Corinthians 15:52)

    False prophets claim that we must build God’s kingdom on earth. This notion is strong in those who think they can make everyone a Christian and make their nation a Christian nation. The kingdom is a spiritual kingdom. It stays invisible until the last day. People get tempted by the devil because he is the prince of the world. The devil wants to make his kingdom on the earth. By using the words of God, he entices many. He attracts people and accumulates wealth. And he builds something that people can see because the blind judge only by what they see with their eyes.

    … for in one hour such great wealth has been laid waste!’ And every shipmaster and every passenger and sailor, and all who make their living by the sea, stood at a distance, and were crying out as they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, ‘What city is like the great city?’ (Revelation 18:17-18)

    The city Babylon described in Revelation 17 and 18 is contrasted to the city Jerusalem described in Revelation 21, which comes down out of heaven from God.

    And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among the people, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:2-4)

    God taught the church on the earth. At first, she was taught about the Trinity, which the Three Ecumenical Creeds explain. She was taught about TULIP during the second reformation. Although God taught the saints, they were not perfect. We learn from our ancestors’ mistakes. We now see the limitations of the second reformation because the third reformation has come. The second reformation focused on the salvation of a person.

    The Heidelberg Catechism Q1 shows us a limitation of the second reformation.

    Q. What is your only comfort in life and in death?
    A. That I am not my own, but belong—body and soul, in life and in death — to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. He also watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven; in fact, all things must work together for my salvation. Because I belong to him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him.

    When we focus on individual salvation, the law as the written code is overly emphasized. Question 2 and 3 prove this. However, we must see a bigger picture. The purpose of all creation is the kingdom of God. Christ came to preach the kingdom of God.

    But He said to them, “I must also preach the kingdom of God to the other cities, because I was sent for this purpose.” (Luke 4:43)

    The law does not give us eternal life. However, that is what theologians and ministers teach. God does not exist for my or your salvation. God made us for a reason.

    “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.” (Revelation 4:11)

    However, theologians and ministers changed God to idols. Churches around the world no longer preach the grace of God. Their idea of grace is crooked. People focus on the church life on the earth and fail to see the reality. The irony is that they do not keep the law while judging others by the law.

    You who say that one is not to commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who loathe idols, do you rob temples? (Romans 2:22)

  • Predestination and Grace

    I have been writing blog posts for more than a year. I tried to point out the significant flaws in the Reformed theology concerning the covenants. I believe that God is displeased with the Covenant Theology and the Active Obedience of Christ. That does not mean that God approves Dispensationalism. All of them are bad theories. At present, there is no theology that accurately explains the covenants. Understanding the covenants is important because they explain God’s will in creation, which is the kingdom of God.

    When I started this blog, I believed that God would bring people to my blog. I did not seek money or fame. I did not use social media to promote my blog. My job was to tell people that the third reformation has started. The church era is ending because churches have been treacherous and rebellious. Theologians and ministers take people back to slavery. And I found the cause in the Covenant Theology and the Active Obedience of Christ. With my limited English, I tried to explain why they were wrong and what went wrong after the Reformation.

    God gives wisdom to His people. Regardless of our backgrounds, we understand God as the God of the Bible. The Bible explains who God is. But those who do not know God understand Him as an idol. They use the Bible to explain their gods. But their gods are no better than the golden calf that the Israelites made in the wilderness. They think that they must do something to receive blessings. They invent ways to please their gods. They convince others that they must do something to receive God’s grace. They put much emphasis on the law but they do not keep the law. They do not understand the law as self-sacrificing love. Almost all theologians and ministers preach that the law as the written code gives eternal life. They say that Christ had to keep the law perfectly to earn eternal life. With their theories, the saints are tied to the written code. They are wrong. On the outside, they appear to preach TULIP. But their wrong understanding of the covenants and Adam lead people back to slavery. Eventually, they deny predestination. Predestination is directly linked to God’s total grace. It is not strange that most Protestant churches hate predestination at present.

    Predestination does not make God cruel. Without predestination, we must work to receive God’s grace. Many Christians think that they can earn grace. They do not know God. They have not received the Holy Spirit.

    Predestination explains that God has chosen some to be saved and others to be eternally punished before they were born. God can do anything He pleases. We must not judge God by our understanding of righteousness or the law. But rebellious people do. Only God is righteous. Being God is righteousness. Everything He does is righteous. Only those who have His Spirit understand Him. He wants to train His people through suffering and make them into His kingdom. Who can say to Him that He is wrong? We are nothing but dust. The world we live in is only a prelude to the real world that is coming. The world is not about me or you but about God. God does not exist for your or my salvation.

    Peter turned around and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them—the one who also had leaned back on His chest at the supper and said, “Lord, who is the one who is betraying You?” So Peter, upon seeing him, said to Jesus, “Lord, and what about this man?”Jesus said to him, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!” (John 21:20-22)

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  • John 21 (4) “Do you love Me more than these?”

    Now when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?” (v. 15)

    Luke 4:1-13 and Matthew 4:1-11 tell us that the top priority in everyone’s life is food and wealth and power that secure food. From birth, people need to work for their food. As soon as we can, we get a job or jobs to prepare for our retirement. We are slaves to food and money. All humans need food to maintain physical life. God cursed the ground after Adam’s rebellion and we all have to work hard to feed ourselves. People go after idols that they think can give them food and wealth. They also need to work for their idols. They do not realize that they are slaves.

    In the last 100 years, we experienced an abundance of food. But now we face the consequences of our greed. Climate change is real and threatening our lives. We eat toxins every day because soils, rivers, and oceans are contaminated. We eat to die. What the prophets in the Bible tell us is not far from what the scientists say.

    The first sounded, and there was hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up. (Revelation 8:7)

    It is not that God foresaw all the calamities we are about to face and wrote them in the Bible. The destruction of the earth is God’s decree. God actively destroys the earth and people as we read Zephaniah 1. Yet, humans have brought calamities just as the Bible tells us. Humans have no control over nature although we think we do. Instead, humans destroy everything out of greed. On top of this horrible sin, they deny the existence of God who created all things.

    For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their reasonings, and their senseless hearts were darkened. (Romans 1:21)

    I want to think that Christians are different from those unbelieving destroyers. But I know we Christians are the same. We all go after wealth and prosperity. None of us can say that we have nothing to do with climate change. We ourselves brought this calamity. We, like the unbelievers, have no vision of the coming kingdom. Churches are after money. They are happy as long they have people donating money.

    Joshua 7 tells us about an Israelite called Achan who rebelled against God and the cursed valley of Achor where Achan, his children, and all his belongings were stoned and burned. He did not believe that God would provide necessities for him. So he became his own god and took what did not belong to him. For the same reason, Judas Iscariot rebelled. As an Israelite, he was supposed to believe in God and love Him. But he hated God. Likewise, there are many Christians who hate God.

    Although everyone deserves eternal death, God shows His mercy and love to those He chose before the foundation of the world. God does not save us because we have great faith. He knows that we have little faith. It is impossible to believe in Him unless the Holy Spirit enters us and makes us born again.

    “Sharon will be a pasture land for flocks, and the Valley of Achor a resting place for herds, for My people who seek Me. “But as for you who abandon the LORD, who forget My holy mountain, who set a table for Fortune, and fill a jug of mixed wine for Destiny, I will destine you for the sword, and all of you will bow down to the slaughter. Because I called, but you did not answer; I spoke, but you did not listen. Instead, you did evil in My sight and chose that in which I did not delight.” (Isaiah 65:10-12)

    God saves us from the curse of the old covenant. His kingdom is free to those who love Him. Everything is free in the kingdom because we are no longer slaves but children of God. We do not work for our food. Our Father wants His children to seek His kingdom and righteousness. God provides us with food out of His love. The real food is Jesus Christ.

    But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided to you. (Matthew 6:33)

    For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. (John 6:55)

    Love (agape) is the fulfillment of the law. Love is the foundation of the kingdom. Love is the eternal law. Any Christian who boasts of their faith and deeds should be silent. The saints confess that we are no worthy servants and rely on God’s total grace.

    I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth? (Luke 18:8)

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  • John 21 (3) How we recognize Jesus

    But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. (v. 4)

    But their eyes were kept from recognizing Him. (Luke 24:16)

    Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Thinking that He was the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you put Him, and I will take Him away.” (John 20:15)

    After that He appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep. (1 Corinthians 15:6)

    To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of things regarding the kingdom of God. (Acts 1:3)

    We know that Jesus Christ truly resurrected because the disciples and the women could not find his dead body. And they saw Him alive. But we need to understand that the disciples did not recognize Jesus Christ because of his physical body but of His words and power. And they recognized Him only when God made them recognize Him.

    I also was with you in weakness and fear, and in great trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of mankind, but on the power of God. (1 Corinthians 2:3-5)

    As I grew up in the Roman Catholic church, I became familiar to the face of Jesus that the church had made – a handsome white man with big brown eyes and light brown hair. The appearance of Jesus in Revelation 1:12-16 is not that of Jesus made by the church.

    People judge everything by what they see, hear, touch, and taste. Those who are spiritually blind judge everything by what their blind eyes see. For them, big church buildings and a large crowd are important. They want handsome-looking Jesus. False ministers and theologians seek approval from many people. They want fancy clothes and good seats. But true Christians meditate on the words of God day and night.

    What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life— and the life was revealed, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was revealed to us— (1 John 1:1-2)

    Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. (John 6:68)

    God dwells in each saint. And when we speak the truth of God, we are like Jesus Christ, who did not take the authority of God by His will and might. With this in mind, we understand the work of the Holy Spirit.

    Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, as He already existed in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but emptied Himself by taking the form of a bond-servant and being born in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross. For this reason also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:5-11)

    Obedience was not the condition for Christ’s successful mission. The power came from the Father’s love. We also do not need to meet a condition to become God’s children. Those who receive God’s love obey Him naturally. Yet, God rewards us for our faithfulness when we do not deserve any rewards.

    … the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and they will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.” (Revelation 4:10-11)

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  • John 21(2) Agape (love) vs. phileo (love)

    So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love (agapas) Me more than these [others do—with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love (philo) You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My lambs.” Again He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love (agapas) Me [with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love (philo) You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me [with a deep, personal affection for Me, as for a close friend]?” Peter was grieved that He asked him the third time, “Do you [really] love (philo) Me [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend]?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know everything; You know that I love (philo) You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep. (vv. 15-17)

    For many years, I thought this passage was about Jesus giving Peter a chance to undo his denial of knowing Him in John 18:25-27. Peter’s denial of knowing Jesus is written in all four Gospels.

    Not many theologians or ministers explain why Jesus mentioned agape (love) while Peter used phileo (love). We do not know if Jesus and Peter were speaking in Greek at that moment but John wrote that Jesus and Peter used different words to mean love. Jesus wanted agape from Peter but Peter loved Jesus with brotherly love.

    I mentioned several times that only God can love us with self-sacrificing love. If you look up the meaning, you will find that agape is the highest form of love, which Paul explained in 1 Corinthians 13.

    Peter later realized what agape meant and said that we also love (agapao) God.

    …and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy
    inexpressible and full of glory, …     (1 Peter 1:8)

    Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him as He loved him. God’s love for us is always self-sacrificing love. But Peter denied that he loved Him as He loved him simply because he did not yet understand the love of God. But later he realized the meaning of love (agape). We also love God and His people with self-sacrificing love. Only those who are truly united with God through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit have self-sacrificing love. Shepherding and feeding God’s sheep requires self-sacrificing love. It is not something that the world can fathom. In fact, unbelievers and false Christians criticize true Christians for not loving.

    John referred to himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved. John understood that love (agape) is what binds God and His people. John was given much wisdom and knowledge.

    God wants His people to become like Him. He wants us to be one with Him. He gave us His only begotten Son to be our head. Not only do we escape eternal punishment, we also rule the coming world with God.

    The Levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, shall not have a portion or inheritance with Israel; they shall eat the LORD’S offerings by fire and His property. They shall not have an inheritance among their countrymen; the LORD is their inheritance, as He promised them. (Deuteronomy 18:1-2)

    and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. (Romans 8:17)

    Then the sovereignty, the dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One; His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the empires will serve and obey Him. (Daniel 7:27)

    The Reformed theology focuses mainly on sin and punishment. Some of their ministers think that the saints are lower than the angels because the angels did not sin as Adam did. If we are lower than the angels, Jesus is lower than the angels, which the writer of the Book of Hebrews denies.

    And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become so much better than the angels, to the extent that He has inherited a more excellent name than they. (Hebrews 1:3-4)

    The Roman Catholic church believes that people who have done great things are considered saints and they are different from other believers. They also worship angels. But we know that the Roman Catholic church is wrong.

    And he said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and of your brothers the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God!” (Revelation 22:9)

    It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look. (1 Peter 1:12)

    By worshiping men and their philosophy, the Reformed church has become just like the Roman Catholic church. The pandemic was the white horse.

    … and they said to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the sight of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; for the great day of Their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” (Revelation 6:16-17)

    For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? (1 Peter 4:17)

  • John 21 (1) A hundred and fifty-three

    So Simon Peter went up and hauled the net to land, full of large fish, 153; and although there were so many, the net was not torn. (v.11)

    The water prevailed upon the earth for 150 days. (Genesis 7:24)

    Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” (John 2:19)

    For Christ also suffered for sins once for all time, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which He also went and made proclamation to the spirits in prison, who once were disobedient when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water. Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you—not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him. (1 Peter 3:18-22)

    When we read John 21:1-11, we often focus on the fact that the disciples caught so many fish that they were not able to haul the net. Many fish may indicate that the disciple would save many people and fulfill God’s command/prophesy.

    And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will have you become fishers of people.” (Mark 1:17)

    John wanted to draw our attention to the number of the fish God made them catch. The end of the world will be like the day when the great flood came in Noah’s time. The world’s end is symbolized by the number 150. But the children of God are given the number 153. We all know where the number 3 came from. Christ’s death and resurrection save us. The church died and was resurrected with Christ. When Peter talked about baptism in 1 Peter 3:18-22, he did not refer to the ceremonial baptism. Peter knew it very well that the ceremonial baptism was only a shadow. It was one of the ordinances given to visible churches by God for the church era. Ceremonial baptism is only a shadow of the real baptism just as the visible church is a shadow of the invisible true church. Peter warned others of false teachers within churches. These false teachers received ceremonial baptism but did evil and enticed others.

    It is by faith in God we are justified. But faith is not a condition. It is a feature of the children of God who are anointed with the Holy Spirit. Paul knew this very well. The kingdom’s foundation is love which God has given us through Jesus Christ. That is why Paul wrote 1 John 13.

    If I have the gift of prophecy and know all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:2)

    Peter, John, Paul and other disciples focus on agape. It appears that many Christians think faith is the new condition for salvation. They think that the law was the condition in the OT and the faith is the new condition in the NT era. Unless we are born again in the Holy Spirit, we cannot be the children of God. Without the Spirit, God’s love is not applied to us and we cannot love Him back.

    There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He first loved us. (1 John 4:18-19)

    Those who think they know the Reformed theology rarely talk about love, the kingdom of God, or the Holy Spirit. I know that many heretics have been misusing these words. Some people try to avoid using the words because heretics often use them. Still, it is strange that these words are rarely talked about in the Reformed denominations. The Reformed theologians and ministers focus on the law and punishment instead. This tells us that their theology is strange. And I find the issue in their understanding of the covenants and Adam. The nature of the kingdom is not forensic. The saints keep the true law of God, which is the law of liberty that came from God’s love shown on the cross of Christ.

    Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus, knowing that His hour had come that He would depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. (John 13:1)

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  • John 20 The meaning of the Tabernacle

    You shall make two cherubim of gold; make them of hammered work at the two ends of the atoning cover. Make one cherub at one end and one cherub at the other end; you shall make the cherubim of one piece with the atoning cover at its two ends. And the cherubim shall have their wings spread upward, covering the atoning cover with their wings and facing one another; the faces of the cherubim are to be turned toward the atoning cover. Then you shall put the atoning cover on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony which I will give to you. There I will meet with you; and from above the atoning cover, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, I will speak to you about every commandment that I will give you for the sons of Israel. (Exodus 25:18-22)

    But Mary was standing outside the tomb, weeping; so as she wept, she stooped to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. (vv. 11-12)

    And the Word became flesh, and tabernacled among us (and we ourselves beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten with the Father), full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

    We often think that the Book of Exodus is about the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt and the Ten Commandments. The most of the Book is about the law and the Tabernacle. The laws to govern the Israelites may have some similarities to the laws of other nations. If we focus on the law, Christianity is not different from other religions or nations. The Israel nation in the OT was a visible church where their king was God. The nation’s failure as we read the latter part of the OT tells us that the kingdom of God is not on earth. And this truth was made clear when Jesus Christ came. However, many Christians do not understand the difference between the OT and the NT and still seek a ruler who can make God’s kingdom on the earth. Their kingdom’s end is total destruction.

    God gave the Israelites the law so that they would eagerly wait for the Son of God to free them from the conditional covenant. Slavery to sin is the curse of the conditional covenant. The Son replaced the old covenant with the new. Christ is the new Tabernacle. This was what Stephen preached before his death as we read Acts 7. The new covenant is not the extension of the old covenant. Rather, the old covenant was a shadow of the new. Therefore, we reject Dispensationalism and the Covenant Theology. Only through the Son, God dwells with His people. We will see Him face to face.

    Philip said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? The one who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? (John 14:8-9)

    Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. (1 John 3:2)

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  • John 19 Christ died as the head of the church

    Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over Me at all, if it had not been given to you from above; for this reason the one who handed Me over to you has the greater sin.” (v. 11)

    Many theologians and ministers explain that Jesus died as a man but did not die as God. But I am not sure if this is the right explanation.

    Christ is from heaven while we are from the earth. Yet, Christ is the head of the church. Christ has clothed with humanity and became God-man. The invisible church is clothed with Christ and became man-God. The church has become like Jesus Christ although her beginning is a sinful human.

    and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. (Romans 8:17)

    Christians around the world focus on Christ’s humanity because they want a god who is a human. This idea can be found in many fictional stories and movies. People want a human savior. People reject Christ because he is not entirely like them.

    For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things just as we are, yet without sin. (Hebrews 4:15)

    Some people ask: Can a man who does not sin represent mankind? The Bible tells us that Christ did not even think of sinning because sinning from the heart is also sin. Adam had the intention of sinning before he ate the fruit. This means that Christ is not like Adam before the fall. I do not think Paul was preaching that Christ died for all people as everyone fell because of Adam. Many people misinterpret Romans 5.

    I think that Christ came to the earth as the church completed and perfected when He became a man. Therefore, the church died when Christ died. This event is linked to the Lord’s Supper before His death.

    I do not completely disagree with the idea that Christ died as a man, not as God. But I’d like to warn people when understanding this. Significant errors and confusion came when people separated Christ’s two natures.

    It is more accurate to say that Christ died as the head of the church and His death and resurrection apply only to those who are chosen in Him before the foundation of the world. The Israel nation in the OT was a shadow of the church but many Israelites rejected Jesus Christ as the Son of God.

    He came to His own, and His own people did not accept Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of a man, but of God. (John 1:11-13)

    Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this purpose I have been born, and for this I have come into the world: to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to My voice.” (John 18:37)

    Christ did not die and resurrect for all mankind but only for the invisible church. As the head of the church, Christ could not share His suffering with other people. No one could die for Christ.

    Jesus replied, “Will you lay down your life for Me? Truly, truly I say to you, a rooster will not crow until you deny Me three times. (John 13:38)

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  • John 18 God’s kingdom is not of this world

     Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.” Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this purpose I have been born, and for this I have come into the world: to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to My voice.” Pilate said to Him, “What is truth?” And after saying this, he came out again to the Jews and said to them, “I find no grounds at all for charges in His case. (vv. 36-38)

    Through the mouths of the prophets in the OT, God said that the Israelites were destroyed because they disobeyed the law. If righteousness came from obedience, the Covenant Theology and the Active Obedience of Christ would be right. But we know that righteousness does not come from obedience because of what God said concerning the new covenant.

    Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and bring it about that you walk in My statutes, and are careful and follow My ordinances. (Ezekiel 36:25-27)

    Only God is righteous and He is the definition of righteousness. Everything He says and does is righteous. No one is righteous until he/she is reborn from God. In other words, one must be washed by the blood of Jesus Christ and receive the Holy Spirit.

    Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life, and may enter the city by the gates. (Revelation 22:14)

    Obedience comes as a result of God’s grace. A son’s obedience to his father does not earn him the sonship. A father shows his love to his son. Obedience follows naturally. Because of the Father’s love for His Son, Jesus Christ obeyed Him. Because of His complete and absolute obedience, we are saved.

    And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death: death on a cross. (Philippians 2:8)

    As you can see, it is not Christ’s obedience that saved us but it is God’s love. Those who follow the Covenant Theology and the Active Obedience of Christ do talk about God’s love. But their understanding of righteousness makes God’s love sound strange. They do not think that God’s love is the foundation of His kingdom. They focus on the law and punishment. On the other hand, we focus on God’s love.

    When we talk about the cross of Christ, we must not think that it is from Christ’s own initiative or will. The Father loves His only begotten Son eternally. The Father enabled Him to do all His will. His ultimate will is the kingdom, the church. And His will is for the church to become one with Him. Only through the Son, the Creator and His creation are in complete unity. With this in mind, we understand the fall of mankind.

    I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. (John 5:30)

    The church’s relationship with God may be summarized in one word: faith. Faith is based on the knowledge of God and God’s love for His people. Anyone who has true faith knows God and His love. Faith is a gift of God. Otherwise, grace is no longer grace. Those who believe in God and understand His will are His people. We are one with Him and confess that He is the only God. Therefore, we are considered righteous in the sight of God. He is the God of the Bible. He is the God of the Word. He is the God of Truth.

    Anyone who tries to build God’s kingdom on the earth is false. Many Christians think that they need to help God to build His kingdom on the earth. These people typically initiate wars, disorder, and violence. They try to conquer others by their power. But true children of God do not associate with them or help them.

    When His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and destroy them?” But He turned and rebuked them [and He said, “You do not know what kind of spirit you are; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”] And they journeyed on to another village. (Luke 9:55-56)

  • Year 2024

    In a few of my dreams, I heard a voice telling me things. The last time I heard a voice was near the end of 2020. In the dream, I was told about the year of the great earthquake. I was also told that I would go to the three other corners in four years to strengthen people. I could not understand what four years meant. But I recently realized that the year 2023 is the seventh year since I started working. On the 1st day of January 2017, I started to go to the Presbyterian church. There, I warned the minister for his wrongdoings. I unintentionally told him the reason why God hates him and the Protestant church. Basically, the Protestant church has become no different than the Roman Catholic church. I saw a mother who has gone mad and does not feed her children. And I saw that God took the matter into His own hands. He will feed His children abandoned by their mother, the church.

    At the time of the fall of Jerusalem in the OT, there were two prophets – Jeremiah and Ezekiel. At the time of the fall of Jerusalem in the NT era, there were two prophets – Paul and John. They wrote most of the NT Bible. I think that they are like mirrored images – Paul as Jeremiah and John as Ezekiel. And there were two prophets during the Reformation – Luther and Calvin. Likewise, there will be two prophets for the third reformation. Although there are two, there is only one. That is what I saw in my dreams. I am yet to understand what it means. Thinking about it, only Ezekiel and John were given the vision of the new Jerusalem.

    There are three key words (or four) for the third reformation. They are grace, righteousness, kingdom, and adoption. We must understand what they mean. God is concerned that churches are no longer preaching grace as grace. Their understanding of God’s grace is partial. It is connected to their understanding of righteousness that comes from the law (works). And it is connected to their understanding of the kingdom of God. Theologians and ministers praise Anselm, Aquinas, and Arminius who made God’s grace partial and conditional. People are pleased with their lies because they are not God’s children. Because of these people, the visible church always has the incurable disease. My cancer will not be cured. It will be with me as long as I am on the earth. People worship people. They worship a system, a building, and themselves.

    Why has my pain been endless And my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? Will You indeed be to me like a deceptive stream With water that is unreliable? (Jeremiah 15:18)

    I think that the year 2024 will be important. We must always remind ourselves that God’s will is in making His kingdom. The characters of the kingdom explain the person of Christ and vice versa.

    The Jews who studied the OT Bible did not recognize Christ as the Son of God. They expected a prophet like Moses. Even now, many people refuse to recognize Jesus as the second person of the Trinity. But Nathaniel did recognize the Son of God.

    Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel!” (John 1:48-49)

    God made the fig tree fruitless. Figs are flowers. No one can bear fruit under a conditional covenant. Jesus did not make the vine out of the fig tree. Jesus is the vine from the beginning.

    I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. (John 15:1)