The Truth Must be Revealed

Mark 4:21-25

Overseer Sung-Hyun Kim

Jesus preached the Gospel in Galilee and encountered a problem. It was that many rejected the Gospel. Though some people openly rejected it on the outset, the bigger problem were people who showed outward deeds as believers but had hearts nowhere near what God expected.

God expects those who accept the Gospel to understand the value of the grace they receive. The Lord threw His life away to save us, and He will preserve us to the end and lead us to heaven. The fruit which God expects is the heart which understands this great grace and repays it.

God wants us to understand the system of His kingdom, and become people who are worthy of it. Believing the Gospel does not mean you just save information in your head. It refers to living a new life, since you are connected with God. As God gave us the rights of heaven, He wants us to fulfill our responsibility as those called by God.

Furthermore, God wants us to be greatly inspired by His love. This inspiration enables us to continue our new lives to the end. It is the driving force to successfully preach our gospel to other people. Preaching the Gospel is not about preaching some content you came across. It is about preaching the testimony which is in your heart to another person’s heart.

If you do not accept the truth with your heart, you will be unable to fulfill the responsibility of your heart, despite showing action. This is hypocrisy. The Jewish leaders plainly showed the results of hypocrisy. They continued to store God’s word in outward deeds and not the heart. As a result, they became religious people, unable to communicate spiritually with God. They even attacked the Messiah and blasphemed the Holy Spirit.

This is why Jesus stopped ministering God’s word from the heart and began to use parables. The disciples wondered if the mystery of the word would be shown to the world any longer, and if it would be concealed. But the Lord said the mystery of God’s kingdom would be revealed in due time and all would come to know it – since nobody lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl.

He then emphasized the attitude and responsibility that those who accept the truth should have. No matter how much people claim that they know God, a day will come when He reveals everyone’s heart. For those who receive God’s word as mere knowledge – this is when they will lose everything. But for saints who are sincere – this is when they will be praised. Therefore, let’s receive God’s word in the heart. Let’s not be hypocrites, but let’s accept the impact of God’s grace and become saints who bear their holy burden.

ON 3Minute Sermon
(Lord’s Day Service on May 9, 2021)