October 13, 2019 The Bereans
/in 2019 Lord’s Day /by Youhyun ChangSenior Overseer Kidong Kim
[Acts 17:10-15]
God
is the truth.
He
revealed His word to the world. His word is the truth (John 14:6).
The Law and the Prophets anticipated the truth.
They were parables and shadows of the truth (Hebrews 9:9-10).
Jesus is not a shadow or parable.
He is the truth.
After Jesus fulfilled all things, He ascended to heaven,
and sent the Holy Spirit (John 16:7-13).
The Holy Spirit wrote about the truth in the Bible.
The Bible is the writings of those who were inspired (2 Peter 1:19-21).
When we look at the Bible,
we look directly at the public ministry of Jesus Christ (John 20:31).
Therefore,
the reality and gospel of Jesus Christ is the truth (John 8:32).
Jesus is the Lawgiver. His word is truth (James 4:12).
Though the world views everything as either black and white,
the Bible contains true words – they are the truth.
The final judgment is the word of the Bible alone (Acts 17:11).
A person can abandon his own wisdom and knowledge,
but the truth is the word of eternal life.
○ The words of a pastor are precious,
but the words of the Bible are much more precious.
○ The common sense and philosophy of the world are precious,
but one must examine and see if they agree with the Bible.
There is no knowledge that can be raised above the Bible.
○ Let us follow the Bible.
Believe and rely on the truth.
Life and freedom are found only in the truth.
※ As we follow the example shown by the Bereans,
we are people of the truth as described in the Bible.
Let us become true Bereans and follow the truth!
Coming Soon
God is spirit (John 4:23-24). Spirit is truthful (John 17:3). That which is truthful is the truth (John 14:6). The truth is the Word (John 1:1). The Word is the Person of the spirit of God (John 6:63). Jesus is the Image of God (John 1:14, 18). Those who acknowledge these things are spirits belonging to God. But those who deny them are spirits of the antichrist. They are spirits belonging to the world (1 John 4:1-4). The spirits belonging to God speak the words of God. Those who belong to God listen to these words. But spirits who do not belong to God will speak the words of the world, and those who belong to the world will listen to these words. This is how we recognize the spirit of truth and the spirit of the antichrist. The Word of God is the Image of God’s Person. He received baptism in immersion and came out of the water. Heaven opened and God said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17). The world understood for the first time that the young man from Nazareth was the Son of God. They saw the Image of God’s Person for the first time through Him (Matthew 16:15-17). Instead of hearing Moses and Elijah (the Prophets), God’s word teaches us we are to “Hear Him” (Matthew 17:5). Jesus said we are no longer to believe in Mount Sinai (Moses) or believe in Jerusalem (Elijah), but we are to “believe Him” (John 4:21-22). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth. He reveals the words Jesus spoke, reminds us of them, and makes us understand them (John 14:26). The Holy Spirit alone testifies to Jesus (John 15:26). Jesus does not need the testimony of man (John 5:34). This is why Jesus said, “Wait for the Holy Spirit. You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). No one can acknowledge Jesus is Lord except through the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:3). The Holy Spirit must flow from within us (John 7:37-39). If the Holy Spirit comes upon us, He will guide us into all the truth (John 16:13-14). This is the true and absolute faith of the Bereans. The Bereans have received the Call to ‘Return to the Word’ (Acts 17:11-12). Dear Sungrak people, when we protect the Church, we protect the truth. This must not be done only in one generation. It must continue until the next generation and the generation after that. It must continue until the Lord comes again. The Bible teaches us the devil (the dragon) stood on the shore of the sea to wage war against those who have the testimony of Jesus Christ (Revelation 12:17). We are not those who merely listen to the word. We testify to what we have heard and believed. Those souls who do this and give their lives for this purpose are they who will partake in the First Resurrection (Revelation 20:1-5). Take this message and put it in your Bibles. Put it in your smartphones. Look at it again and again. We are those who have taken up this Calling from God. We are true Bereans. At all costs, please listen to these words like they are my last. Thank you. Semuon, 13th October 2019
Coming Soon
Outline translated by John Kim
Letter translated by John Kim
Interpretations by John Kim
Korean Summary by Ki-Taek Lee