Leader of leaders in solving problems
Matthew 16:13~20 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (16)
Hymn for scheduled worship: Korean/English Hymnal #425 Have Thine own way, Lord (#217 in previous version)
We confess that God is with us all the time, but there are many time when we are being influenced by other things of the world. That is why we as children of God must taste the Gospel, prayer and evangelism in order to stand as the leaders to save people who are crumbling because of problems. If so, then what must we as children of God do first to stand as the leader of leaders to revive our church, lead this age, and solve the problems of the world?
1. Taste of the Gospel
The word Christ is the word of the very best blessing on the face of the earth. It is the name that completely resolved the problems of sin, Satan, and hell that we as mankind could never resolve. God sent Christ to us and solved all our problems, and that is the core essence of the Gospel. Going beyond just knowing the Gospel, we must taste the Gospel. Without knowing the taste of the Gospel, we may know what Christ means but we will be thrown into confusion when we face problems in our life. First, we must have the eyes to see all events and problems with the Gospel. When we see unbelievers with these eyes, we will come to know that they need Christ. Second, the Gospel must be found when we read the Bible and hear the messages. It is at this time that our pulpit message comes to us as answers. From this time on, we will uncover the tremendous blessing in Christ and get a taste of it.
2. Taste of prayer
It is important to have time to meditate once every morning and evening every day. Make a conscious effort to stop what you were doing and quietly meditate upon the Word and deeply meditate. When we have deep meditation and deep prayer in the Gospel, the barren state of our mind and our hidden spiritual problems will be healed. We can taste prayer through continuous prayer through which we can uncover God’s time schedule for every event in our lives and we can pray concentrated prayer and deep prayer in the face of problems. It is at this time that we will gain tremendous spiritual power.
3. Taste of evangelism
A witness is someone who possesses, someone who has seen, and someone who knows. Most importantly, it is someone who has, and it is easy to show and speak about what you have. Do you remember Peter’s confession? “What I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!” This is the confession of a man who has the mystery. All people came to know that God was living as they saw Joseph. This is evangelism. Starting then, the doors of evangelism will open very easily in all our relationships. And we just need to share the answers that have come to us with those we meet in our schedule.
- We have many things around us that deceive us. Do not be deceived but begin important prayer so that you can get a taste of the Gospel, taste of prayer, and taste of evangelism, and take up the challenge with faith to receive answers.
PK Retreat Lecture 1 / 2010.8.5