Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!  “But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? “For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. “Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.” (Luke 1:38-45, NKJV)

Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.” (Luke 1:38–45, NKJV)

There is an order to how we come to experience what God does. We must first hear the Word, and then come to God in faith. When we do, we receive the evidence God gives and come to possess the blessings He gives. We must first hear and believe. God could simply act right away, but He does not usually do so. Instead, He first gives His Word when the circumstances still seem hard to believe, and then calls us to believe it. Once we believe, we begin to experience what He does, and what follows unfolds from there.

Even the mother who was used when the Son of God came into the world had to hear and believe. She gave birth to the child, but she first heard and believed who that child was. The shepherds came and told her. Isn’t that remarkable? Mary was not the one saying, “This is who the child I gave birth to is.” Rather, the shepherds came and told her, “This is who the child you have given birth to is.” Then where did the shepherds hear it? They did not figure it out on their own. Angels came and told them. They could have chosen not to believe. When the angels spoke to them, they could have thought, “Were we dreaming?” or simply dismissed it as nonsense and stayed where they were. But because they believed, they went to see for themselves and then told others. No one can bypass this step of believing.

Faith is believing when the circumstances do not yet give us reason to believe. God does not ask us to believe what is already plainly visible before our eyes. He asks us to believe what we have not yet seen. We have not seen the resurrection ourselves, and yet we believe it. That is where blessing lies. We hear the news that “Jesus has risen,” and although we have not seen it, we are to believe. Some, however, later saw Him for themselves. Because they wanted to believe only after seeing, Jesus said that those who have not seen and yet believe are more blessed. Of course, whether someone believes after seeing or without seeing, it is good to believe. Even so, those who believe without seeing are more blessed. This is why God seeks to lead us into that kind of faith. He does not first arrange every circumstance and then ask us simply to acknowledge that something will happen. He gives His Word before the circumstances are in place and calls us to believe. Then time is needed. A certain amount of time is needed, along with endurance and even persecution. When we endure to the end, God acknowledges, “You truly have faith.”

During that period when faith is being tested, a person may try for four days and then say, “It is not working.” But in the Old Testament, God often made those who believed wait for about forty years. After giving Abraham the promise, He waited forty years and then acknowledged his faith, saying, “Now I know you.” Moses was also called and then made to endure hardship for forty years before God entrusted him with His work. There are many examples like this. The people of Israel also wandered for forty years before entering the land of Canaan. It was as though God was saying, “Now you are ready.” This is why faith requires endurance. But faith is not believing blindly. The Word comes first, and faith is believing that Word.

Then where do we find that Word? It is not a word that I happen to realize or something that suddenly comes to mind. For us, the basic standard is the Word written in Scripture. We do not go beyond what is written. Everything comes to pass according to that written Word.

Mary answered, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her. Before the Word, we acknowledge that we are servants. We do not become servants in order to be saved, but in order to be used by God. Since we have already been saved, we now take the place of servants before the Word. So we say, “I am the Lord’s servant. Speak to me.” Whether we will accept even what we do not want to do is a choice we make, but the better choice is to receive it. When we desire the Word to be fulfilled even when it asks something we do not want, good ultimately follows. Persecution may come with it. Yet in the end, something good comes to us. The difficulty is that there are many obstacles along the way, so the choice is not easy. This is why we obey the Word when our faith in what Jesus has prepared for us in heaven is truly firm.

In the end, the question is whether we really believe or not. When persecution comes, whether we deny Jesus, listen to the Lord’s Word, or listen instead to those who persecute us ultimately depends on whether we believe in what the Lord will give us on that day.

After hearing the angel’s words, Mary went to Elizabeth’s house. She hurried there right away because of what the angel had told her. “You will have a child.” But that was hard to believe. “How can I have a child when I have not known a man?” It seemed impossible. Yet the angel said that she would have one, and then gave her this as evidence: “You know your relative Elizabeth, the one who was said to be barren? She is an old woman who could not have a child, but she is already pregnant. I will tell you something no one else knows. She is already six months along.” Anyone might have said, “Come on, that cannot be true. How could that old woman be pregnant now?” But the angel was telling her, “No. She has not told anyone yet, but she is pregnant. God has done this.” Then the angel departed.

Something extraordinary was happening to Mary, and now she had been told that something similar was happening to Elizabeth. So all she had to do was find out whether Elizabeth was really pregnant, and she would know, would she not? The Word had just come to her, and she went to see whether what she had heard was true. That is why she hurried there. She must have wanted to ask Elizabeth, “Are you really pregnant?” And Elizabeth might have said, “How did you know? Is it already showing?” She had not told anyone yet. Or she might have said, “What are you talking about?” Mary went to Elizabeth thinking, “She is going to be surprised.”

But the moment Mary entered, Elizabeth spoke first. What did she say? “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!” She was several steps ahead of Mary. Mary had gone there thinking she would surprise Elizabeth, but as soon as she walked in, it was as though Elizabeth said, “You are pregnant, aren’t you?!” And then she said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!” She went on to say, “But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” She was calling the child in Mary’s womb her Lord. Isn’t that remarkable? “For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.” In other words, “The baby inside me saw the baby inside you—my Lord—and leaped for joy.” That said it all. Elizabeth told her several things all at once. Mary must have been astonished.

Then Elizabeth even said, “Blessed is she who believed.” She clearly knew what this child meant. And she continued, “For there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.” She already knew everything the angel had said to Mary. It was as though she were saying, “Everything the Lord has spoken to you will be fulfilled. You are blessed. Why? Because the Lord’s Word is being fulfilled in you.” The two women were so overcome with joy that they broke out in praise together.

When the time came, Elizabeth gave birth to her child. Of these two women, one carried the last of the Law, while the other carried the beginning of the gospel. And now the two had come face to face. They rejoiced together. It was as though the Law and the gospel had met, joined hands, and rejoiced together. The Law and the gospel are not at war with each other. Rather, each truly recognizes the value of the other. Imagine how joyful the Law must have been when it saw Jesus: “At last! The Lord I have been waiting for has come!” And with the coming of the gospel—Jesus Christ—the work the Law had been doing all along finally bore fruit. This is how the two come together as one. Elizabeth is like the people of Israel, for she was the woman carrying the last of the Law. Mary, on the other hand, conceived Christ by the Holy Spirit, so she is like the human spirit receiving Christ. What a beautiful and wonderful picture it is: these two pregnant women joining hands and praising God together. The Word spoken long ago was now being fulfilled exactly as it had been given.

This is how faith works for us as well. God first speaks, and then He works in us. Faith is not simply acting because we feel moved by the Spirit, apart from any word previously spoken by God. We are blessed when things are fulfilled according to the written Word. That is why Elizabeth said, “Blessed is she who believed.” Why was she blessed? Because what God had spoken was being fulfilled in her. In the same way, we are blessed when the Word God has spoken is fulfilled in us.

Then how far back does this Word go? It is the Word that was there from the beginning, and it was planted in Abraham. God promised Abraham a blessing, and now that promised blessing had finally come. Through Jesus, the blessing of Abraham was now spreading to the Gentiles. We can say that it finally bore fruit through Jesus—but where are its roots? They go all the way back to Abraham.

Imagine a flower standing in a vase. It is beautiful. It looks wonderful. But it has no roots. So it cannot bear fruit. The flower itself may be beautiful, but no fruit will ever come from it. Bees will not gather around it either. In the same way, someone may say that he believes in Jesus without knowing what it means to believe in Him. He does not know the Law, and he does not know Abraham. Then his belief in Jesus becomes something of his own making; he cannot really know whether he is believing in the Jesus whom God told us to believe in. No fruit comes from that. There is no direction. It is like placing a single point on a page. You need two points to make a straight line and see which direction it is going. A person believes in Jesus and receives the Holy Spirit, but does not know where the roots of that faith lie. Then he does not know where to go. This is mystical excess.

Our faith must begin with Abraham. Abraham, then Jesus. And if we place one more point between Abraham and Jesus, that point is David. Connect those three points, and a straight line appears. Now the direction is clear. We can see the way we are meant to go.

But those who have no roots cannot see the way. So they are always asking, “God, which way should I go? What is Your will for me?” They may sound very spiritual, as though they are close to God, but they are not. In the end, they simply do what they want. This is man-centeredness. From there, man-centeredness can grow in any number of ways, because everything is ultimately done according to one’s own desires. Eventually, even divisions like the one we have seen in the church can happen, because man-centeredness continues to remain at the heart of it.

Can man-centeredness and God-centeredness be mixed together? No. In the end, the root of all this comes down to one question: Will we hear God’s Word from what is written, or will we take it from our own feelings? This does not mean that we deny being moved or inspired by the Spirit. But that has meaning only when the foundation is already in place. Without that foundation, we will only fall into mystical excess and end up going in a completely different direction.

Even Jesus did not go beyond the written Word.

“After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, ‘I thirst!’ Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit” (John 19:28–30, NKJV).

At the winter retreat in February 1997, Pastor Ki-Dong Kim preached from this passage under the title “Receive Power,” and that sermon changed my life. Everything changed. Retreats had a tremendous impact on my life. While I was in the military, I would get leave to attend a retreat and then return to the military, and each time, another major change took place in me. But this time, my life turned completely around. This Word was decisive. Who in the world would interpret this passage this way? That alone amazed me, but I also came to see clearly that the way I had been living my faith was wrong. It was not something I had come up with on my own. It was what I had learned from those before me and from pastors. I had been taught that way. But Semuon was teaching something very clear, and the difference struck me immediately.

Once I understood and received this Word, my growth in faith took off like a rocket. My whole way of thinking changed, and so did my attitude before the Word of God. Suddenly, I began to be led by the Word. Four months after receiving this Word, I went to China. Once this became clear to me, I could finally begin to follow the leading of the Word.

Does that mean I had not been reading the Bible before? I read it every day. But no matter how much I read it, it had nothing to do with me. Why? Because I had not been personally moved by it. I would read it every day, but unless something struck me personally, I did not regard it as a word spoken to me. If nothing struck me, if I felt no inspiration, then it meant nothing to me. So I simply kept reading, hoping that one day something would move me. Until then, it had nothing to do with me. I did not understand it either. I did not even know what the Bible was really saying. So I was always taking passages and using them from my own point of view. But once I understood this, I realized that everything written in Scripture is to be fulfilled in me.

Why did Jesus deliberately say those seemingly insignificant words, “I thirst”? Because they had been written by the prophet. Jesus remembered what had been written and deliberately spoke those words so that Scripture would be fulfilled. That is very active, is it not? It goes far beyond the attitude of saying, “Lord, if You speak, I will obey.” “That the Scripture might be fulfilled”—Jesus Himself took the initiative to fulfill it. He spoke those words in order to fulfill Scripture, even though He did not have to. And “I thirst” was hardly something that would preserve His dignity. They were not words we would expect the Son of God to say. Yet He said them. Why? To fulfill what had been written. Even though He was the Son of God, and even though those words had been spoken through a prophet—through the mouth of a man—He did not say, “God spoke directly to Me.” Instead, He deliberately acted so that the written Word given through that man would be fulfilled. Jesus showed us by His own example that this is how we are to live our faith.

I was deeply shaken when I heard this. Until then, whenever I read something written in Scripture, I kept asking, “How do I know this Word was given to me?” But at that moment, that question disappeared completely. “Ah, this Word is simply meant to be fulfilled.” And who fulfilled it all? Jesus did. And I have been united with Jesus. Then what does God expect from me now? That I live so that this Word is fulfilled in me. He wants all of Scripture to be fulfilled in us in Jesus Christ. There is no need to keep asking, “God, is this Your will or not?” We already know. The only reasons I fail to do it are that I am not yet able to live up to it or that my own desires get in the way. If I am able to do it, God wants me to. If I can, then I should. Of course, I need to be careful not to force myself beyond what I can bear and end up causing harm. But if I can do it, I should. So this is what I need to pray: “Help me to do it.”

Then I read the words, “I will make you fishers of men,” and for some reason they pierced me deeply. Does it not say that they “left the boat and their father, and followed Him”? What is the boat? Your job. What is the father? All your relationships, traditions, and things like that. It means leaving all of those behind and following the Lord. In the past, I would have said, “How do I know this Word was given to me?” and pretended not to know until I felt some special inspiration. I would have said, “I never received a word like that.” But now it was different. Now I knew I was to act so that the Word would be fulfilled in my own life. From that point on, I could not sleep. Even when I tried to work, I could not concentrate. I knew perfectly well that all I had to do was step forward and let that Word be fulfilled, yet I was pretending not to know. I could feel that very strongly. So I tried desperately to deny it, but once this had entered my heart, I could not deny it anymore. The more I tried, the more my head hurt, and I became miserable. I lost all enjoyment in life. Even when I was working hard, I would suddenly lose my concentration.

So I told my section chief, “I think I may have to quit.” He said he would pretend he had not heard me. “I am a pastor’s son too, so I know exactly how you feel. Everyone goes through a time like this. Do not say anything like that again for the next five years.” In one sense, I felt relieved because now I had an excuse. But that did not solve anything. It only became more painful. Every time I prayed, it grew stronger. During ordinary moments, I would not think about it, but whenever I prayed, it would grow and grow until it felt as though it were going to burst. Things like that do happen. Some thoughts come to mind in everyday life but disappear when you pray. Yet there are other things you try to forget, but the moment you begin praying, they keep coming back. It became unbearable. So I prayed, “If You want me to leave this job, and if that would truly be better for me, please let it happen naturally through that man.”

Then, within a week, something happened at work. The organization where I worked was a Christian social welfare center run by a Methodist foundation, and a division broke out there as well. Divisions like this were already happening even back then. Because of a legal dispute, all but one of the centers belonging to the Methodist denomination ended up being taken over by the other side. After that, the treatment of those working at the main office became very different from that of those who had ended up on the other side. The main office offered much better conditions, and that was where I was working. Yet I was only a newly hired employee. Imagine how resentful those who had been sent to the other side must have felt. So the main office gave them a choice: “Either resign and wait, or continue working where you are. Even if you wait, there is no guarantee that we can hire you here right away. If a position opens, we may take you back, but whether that will take one year or two, we do not know. The choice is yours.” So they were stuck. They could not simply quit, but they were left hoping that a position would eventually open. Meanwhile, a brand-new employee like me happened to be working comfortably at the main office. What would have helped them most? If even one person left.

The following week, my section chief called me in. “What you said last week—is it still valid?” I immediately remembered my prayer and clapped my hands, saying that it was. “Yes, it is still valid.” The moment I said that, he ran straight to the department head without even looking back. Then the department head called me upstairs, took my hand firmly, and said, “Ki-Taek Lee, thank you!” And that was how I left the job. They even held a farewell party for me, and when they heard that I was leaving to do mission work, they blessed me warmly as I went. I left with their blessing, and the answer to my prayer could not have been clearer. Now I was going to China. I chose a school and only then went home and told my parents. After that, I spent a month evangelizing. I thought I might never return to Korea, so I preached the gospel to every relative I could. Since I thought I would never see them again, I went to them even when they protested and told me they did not want to hear it. I even visited one of my wife’s aunts whom I had never met before. I did not know her at all, but I went to her house, ate with her, and kept talking even when she became irritated and told me she did not want to hear it. I thought I would never have another chance. But during that time, my parents changed. Within that one month, both of my parents came to believe in Jesus and received the Holy Spirit, and my mother-in-law also received the Holy Spirit. They all changed like that. So when the time came, I was able to go to China and begin ministry with nothing holding me back.

All these things happened because I did not simply ask, “What is God’s will for me?” Instead, I said, “I will let this Word be fulfilled,” and I began by leaving my job. Then I went to China. How could I know whether China was God’s will for me or not? But once I got there, I immediately saw God at work. I went to one place and saw thirty people receive the Holy Spirit right there at once. I thought, “Ah, this is the place,” and prayed, “God, I will come here.” There was a great need for workers. So I prayed, “I cannot even speak Chinese, but I will come. God, help me.” I did not ask, “Is this Your will or not?” I simply said, “Help me.”

At that time, one Word struck me deeply: “You are My friends. I have made known to you everything I heard from My Father, so you are no longer servants.” He called us friends. A servant would ask, “What should I do?” But a friend can say, “I am going to China to minister. Where else in the world would thirty people receive the Holy Spirit at once like this? So I am going to work here. Please help me.” Is that not what a friend does? I know the Father’s will, and I know the Lord’s will, so I am asking within that will. If a friend says he is going to do something within the Father’s will, would God curse him for it? Would He go out of His way to stop him? He knows the Father’s will and makes his choice within it. So I said, “I will work here. Please help me,” and God began helping me tremendously. As I went from place to place, powerful works began to happen. I had never preached before, but once I began, extraordinary things happened. Signs and wonders took place, and even a blind man received his sight. I was shocked myself. “What do I do now? What am I supposed to do next?” When the blind man could see, people rushed toward me as though I were God and started bringing others to me. “What am I supposed to do now?!” I was terrified. So I prayed, “God, I seem to have gotten myself into this by mistake. How am I supposed to handle it? What just happened was not something I did, so You take responsibility for it.” Then I kept going. The next day, something even greater happened. Again I found myself thinking, “What do I do now?” It kept happening like that. And each time, God continued to work through the Word.

Through all of this, I saw so much. I thought, “Ah, so this is what the Berea Movement is. If this is what it is, even one book could accomplish something tremendous.” That is why I came back to Korea and am doing this work now. Do you think God would now say to me, “My child, My will for you was not China. It was Africa. Everything you have done until now is invalid. You are cursed”? Of course not. God is our Friend, so He helps us.

Therefore, when God tells us, “Let that Word be fulfilled,” He is not treating us like servants. He is giving us great authority. So now let us leave behind the timid, passive, mystical ways of the past and let the Word of Scripture be fulfilled. Because we are in Jesus, we can see where everything in both the New Testament and the Old Testament fits within Him. Now all of those words are to be fulfilled in us. So let us pray, “Help me to live so that the Word written in Scripture is fulfilled in me. Help me to do so actively.”