THE INTERNATIONAL MISSION OF THE WORD
‘Return to the Word’ International Mission of Sungrak Church
The ‘Translation Mission’ is one of the three pillars of ‘Return to the Word’. It is not simply a mission that is translating or a mission related to translation. The ‘Translation Mission’ is the mission of the Word. Some might reply by saying, “Isn’t all missionary work about the Word?” Of course, all missionary work is based on the Word, but not all of them are directly related to the duty of teaching the Word. There is a missionary who helps patients in underdeveloped areas through medical treatment, and there is a missionary who promotes Christian culture. There is a missionary who constructs a chapel abroad, and there is a missionary who sponsors materials to help local churches to build a chapel. All these missions are of their own value, but the responsibility for ‘the mission of the Word’ is particularly heavier for Bereans.
How many people in the world see the Bible in three dimensions and generally experience the present nature of the Word as Bereans do? How many people would know clearly about the relationship between the Law and the Gospel and live their faith with joy and gratitude?
Bereans see through the relationship between the three spiritual beings in the Bible. Bereans penetrate the fact that God made the whole creation for the Son, the fact that the Son of God who came out of the Father’s bosom entered into the Heaven taking the universe as a front door, the fact that the judgement on the Devil is over, the fact that the humans are getting a chance to be saved because punishment of the Devil has not been done yet, the fact that the name of Jesus is the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the fact that the universe is Hades, the fact that I am not my flesh but my soul, the fact that the church, the paradise and the Father’s house are one member of the Heaven and etc… Who else in this world knows such amazing spiritual realities and enjoys the divine power and happiness of the Heaven?
God has allowed us all these, not just because Bereans are lovelier than others, but because He has the expectation on us. This is what one of the lepers who filled his hunger in the fleeing Aram camp said, “What we’re doing is not right. This is a day of good news and we are keeping it to ourselves” (2 Kings 7:9). People are hungry not because there is no food and thirsty not because there is no water. What they really need is the Word. It is clear that Bereans who had a feast should know what to do.
Semuon poured the Word of life like a waterfall for decades. The Word from Semuon changed many souls, the sick were healed, and countless ministers were produced. People in the world need the Word. But there is a work to be done first in order to teach the nations to obey the Word as the LORD commanded. A variety of methods of missionary work are necessary, but in order to maximize the value of everything and produce meaningful fruits, a system must be set up to provide a continuous supply of the Word to people who crave the Word, and also there should be enough material available to deepen their learning. The result is obvious for the war without having a sufficient armament or proceeding an industrial activity that ignores basic industry. The ‘Translation Mission’ is like infrastructure in the Berea mission.
Pastor Ki-Taek Lee
The Director of Sungrak Mission Center