January 27, 2019 Jesus is the Head of the Church (Ephesians 1:17-23)

Sermon Outline

God
is the One that has raised Jesus from the dead.
God
has sent His Word to us,
and through this Word, we have gained faith (Eph 2:8).
Those who believe can live by His power and wisdom,
and, in this way, He has established His Church (Acts 20:28).
The Church is His Body, and He is the Head of the Church.
Jesus has become Life to us (John 14:6).
God has given power to the Church,
and has placed the Body of Jesus over all creation (Eph 1:22).
He is the One who is over all rule, authority, power and dominion.
The name of Jesus is the name that is glorified over all other names,
not just in this age, but also in the age to come (Eph 1:21).
Furthermore,
God has placed all creation under Jesus’ feet,
and has placed the Church over all creation.
Jesus is the Head of the Church,
and the Church is His Body.
It is the fullness of Him who fills all things in every way (Eph 1:23).
The Holy Spirit controls all things within the Church.
○ Let us know God.
God is our Father.
God enables us to know Him within the Church.
○ Jesus is the Head of the Church.
The Church has Him as its Head for all eternity.
The Church keeps the Theocentric Faith.
○ If the Church prospers, all souls will prosper.
The whole creation can become abundant through Him.
The Church is the fullness of Him who fills all things in every way.
※ One must know why he has to purse an active life of service in the Church.
If one is successful in his service to the Church,
he will be prosperous in Heaven and on earth, and he will have eternal life.

Semuon’s Letter

Through the 2nd Special Healing Crusade that has taken place as of late, we have come to know what the Christian Church is, we have come to know that the One who receives glory through it is God, and we have come to know that the One that God had raised from the dead now sits at His Right Hand. We now understand that God has placed Jesus Christ over the whole creation for the sake of the Church, which includes us. To put it another way, as those who have received baptism, as those who follow the word of God, we have become the Church. The Church is His Body and Jesus is the Head. The Church is over all creation. It is ‘the fullness of Him who fills all things in every way’.

If we believe in God, we come to believe in Jesus, whom He had sent. If we believe Jesus, we come to love His Body, which is the Church. And if we love His Body of the Church, then God puts us over all creation. We have received Heaven and earth through Him. In order to truly gain Heaven and earth, our souls must live. But if our souls are dead, we will end up receiving nothing.

Our church has recently experienced many difficulties because of the harm that some people have done to it. Because of these people, those who have little or no faith have become corrupt. They believe that their faith is godly, but their faith has all but collapsed. Just as the account of the Tower of Babel teaches us, those who gather in the wisdom of man will end up failing. On the other hand, those who gather in the wisdom of God will be saved, just like the ark of Noah had done.

For the sake of our souls, God had given us His Word, which we need above all else. Through this Word, we have received grace and truth without limit. He has given us the Holy Spirit and power. This power arms us so that we can finally become His Church. The Body of Jesus is like the very temple of God.

The faith that we possess is a God-centered faith. We know for sure that Jesus is our God, and we know for sure that God has given Jesus Christ as our Head. We give thanks to God and we have absolute faith in Jesus. If we ever doubt Jesus or reject Him, we become like those without a head, like those who still breath in their lungs but are brain dead. Essentially speaking, it is no different from being dead.

He who is the Head of our faith has Resurrected and dwells at the Right Hand of God. From there, He has given us the word of life, which comes to us through the Holy Spirit. From this time on, we must strive to become the Church that is set firmly on the Rock and strive to become the Church that can surely prevail and maintain obedience no matter what kind of trial comes our way. Our souls have all received the promise that God bestows, so we must never disappoint Him. Instead, we must love God the Father and obey Him until death, just as Jesus Himself had done.

What I have been thankful for my whole life is that I have become part of the Body of Jesus. Jesus has become my Head and He lives in me always. I have received this testimony by the Word, the Holy Spirit and all the power He gives. Now that we have received so much grace, we must never depart from the Church. Instead, we must steadfastly keep our faith and our souls until the end. Amen.

Semuon