2017.11.05_Weep for Yourselves and for Your Children
in 2017 Lord's Day[Luke 23:26~29]
God
is love.
He
loved the world that He sent the Word (Jn 1:14),
which became flesh
and suffered death on the cross (Lk 23:44-49).
As He was being led to be crucified,
He said to the people of Jerusalem,
“Do not weep for Me,
but weep for yourselves and for your children” (Lk 23:28),
for He was concerned for those
who are in Jesus and those outside of Jesus.
Those who are in Jesus will be saved,
but those outside of Jesus will perish.
Hence where should you and your children belong to?
Weep, in order to come into Jesus;
weep for the troubles you will suffer outside of Jesus.
First, weep for you to live,
and later you will weep for death.
God sent His Son to the world to shed His blood.
◌ God is precious and so is the Son.
In the same way, our souls and our children are precious.
Thus we must weep for them.
◌ The reason tears do not come out is because of hypocrisy.
If it were an immediate problem we were faced with,
we would weep.
We must weep and wail.
◌ Do not shed tears of sympathy for Jesus
but rather for your own souls.
Weep and shed tears of sympathy for your own children.
※ Without having wept bitterly in repentance,
one would fall away again.
Let us weep bitter tears.
And those who weep will be comforted.
Coming Soon
To the former members of our congregation, Time has flown by so fast that we are once again facing winter already. It is most regrettable that you are lost, wandering like the prodigal son. What are you trying to achieve by wearing working gloves and carrying hammers, chain saws and crow bars? What have you gained from breaking in and damaging the worship places which is God’s temple? The temple is sacred, for it was dedicated to God using the offerings dedicated through hard efforts by the saints who were purchased by God’s blood. It is unthinkable for even non-Christians to do what has been done to the church. So should these things continue to happen again? What have you let your children see? What have you demonstrated to your neighbors? What memory have you left to your soul? Finally, what have you done before the Triune God? No matter how one looks at it, what has been done is shameful. And that will not lead to any solutions whatsoever. The church that’s supposed to win many more souls who are more precious than the whole world, has actually lost them. The longer this continues, more souls will fall away like the autumn leaves. And there is nothing gained from that. The dream to seize the church building is merely a dream. No one can take hold of the church’s properties. They have already become God’s and God will not allow such a thing to happen. Though people might be able to take away Semuon’s life from him, they can never seize the church properties. Do not be deceived by a vain dream. If you are a so-called pastor, then quickly choose the path you must take. For the saints who are mistakenly taking part in this without knowing, please revive your love for your own souls and go where you can lead your spiritual lives well as soon as possible for the sake of your souls. Sungrak Church is waiting for you with prayer, love and patience. We are always ready to sincerely welcome you like we did at first. Don’t you think it is shameful that you, who once showed reluctance when encouraged to evangelize, are now enthusiastically putting on masks and gloves as if showing off your power when urged to break into the worship building? Time is fleeting and the time you have for your souls is also passing very quickly. This is not what you should be doing in your spiritual lives. Please think about your souls which God has purchased by His own blood. Semuon’s dignity has been trampled upon account of you. Now I do not have any honor but only my soul lives on to give all my strength. Today, I am most spiritually filled than I have ever been in my entire life. Only streams of living water will come from the mouth of Semuon. Thank you. [gmedia id = 82]
Outline translated by Sarah Lee Chief Editor: Helen Nam
Letter translated by Sung-In Hong
Interpretations by Sarah Lee
Korean Summary by Ki-Taek Lee