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 Sermon > Official Service |
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Title |
Be perfect before God |
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Bible |
Ro 12:2 |
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There are many organizations and workers in the church that bring many souls to the way of salvation and care for them. They lead church growth and accomplish the kingdom of God. Now we will have a look at the importance of the mission of caring for other souls and how we should guide souls and bear abundant fruit.
1. Importance of the Mission of Caring Other Souls
There are many jobs and duties to accomplish God's kingdom. Among them, leading of cells, groups and areas are very important duties that are in the front line of the spiritual battles to keep our members from the enemy Satan devil and guide them to Heaven. Then how can we fulfill this duty well?
First, leaders of cells must look after members delicately and help their faith grow as if parents bring up their children. Namely, they should teach and help the new comers until they attend the services and pray by themselves and become mature believers. In addition, they should share joy and sadness and be united with them and try the best to make them keep their faith.
Secondly, leaders of groups must check the faith of leaders of cells and help them grow as spiritual warriors who realize God's will and follow it. They should look after many cells, and solve problems that cell leaders cannot solve by themselves alone, and make the foundation for the cells to grow overall.
Finally, leaders of areas must check how the leaders of groups and cells fulfill their duties. They should not work compulsorily, but care for them privately with God's and the shepherd's heart and set an example of faith to them.
When they fulfill their duty well, their members prosper in soul, and they are prosperous and successful in their homes and workplaces and give glory to God. So the devil cannot peep over and harm them as they are united by love and truth.
Ecclesiastes 4:12 says, "Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." When leaders of cells, groups and areas are united, it is like the three strands and they can keep their church and sheep from the devil. Therefore, we should keep in mind that it is the most direct source of power to save many souls for workers to be united and fulfill their duties.
2. To Be Perfect Before God
Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will."
First, it says 'His good will' and the word 'good' here means God's Words themselves, the will and thoughts of God. Next, 'His pleasing will' means to listen to His words and keep them. Finally, 'His perfect will' means unchanging good heart and deeds.
In this immoral world full of sins, we must realize what His good, pleasing, and perfect will is in order to accomplish His kingdom. Especially speaking, workers like leaders of cells, groups, and areas who save and care for souls must be perfect before God to fulfill their duty. How can we become perfect before God then?
1) We Must Become Holy by Casting Away Our Sins.
When believers attend the services and read the Bible, they come to know that 'I lack these things,' and determine 'I'll do better.' If they keep their determination, it is not long before they can be holy and become spiritual warriors that God is pleased with. In fact, however, they often stay the same for a long time. Why is that? After realizing God's words, we must repent of our sins deep inside our hearts by prayer and fast until we get rid of the roots of sins. But we just stay in thoughts and don't practice.
If we really do have the goal to achieve holiness and go to New Jerusalem where God's throne is, we must keep whatever we have determined and cast away sins to the point of shedding our blood. If the leaders do not cast away sins, they are not so different from newcomers even if they have been believers for many years. God will not be pleased with this kind of leaders.
The reason why the matter of holiness is important is that it is directly related with fulfilling their duties. Leaders of cells, groups, and areas don't only keep their faith, but also have the duty to help their members' faith grow by leading them to green pastures and beside quiet waters. We receive the power to defeat the devil and control and rule over the enemy devil Satan as much as we achieve holiness in our hearts and recover God's image. Thus, unless we become the light, we cannot defeat the darkness and guide many souls who belong to darkness to God.
Therefore, we must pray hard hoping for holiness and recover God's image perfectly through His grace and ability. Namely, we must get rid of the sinful natures like hatred, jealousy that haven't yet come out by action, but can lead us to sinful action any time. We must also get rid of all sins that have already come out by action. In other words, we must get rid of all kinds of evil. So we can resemble Lord's heart and prepare a vessel for receiving the great power.
Dear brothers and sisters,
When Apostle Paul became renowned, he brought many souls to the way of salvation with the power of God. He could preach the gospel to Europe and Asia. He was persecuted for a while, but even the Emperor of Rome that ruled over the world kneeled down before the name of Jesus Christ.
God wants the leaders to fulfill their duty like Paul and bring huge number of souls to the way of salvation. That is why He shows many signs and wonders written in the Bible to us so that we experience the living God. He also teaches us about the Heaven and Hell in details and explains the spiritual secrets. It is because He wants us to have true heart and perfect faith and fulfill our duty perfectly.
2) We Should Obey Spiritual Order And Have Virtue and Love
People keep an order by compulsory commands, rules and awards and punishments in the world, but it is kept by virtue and love in God's kingdom. Jesus was God's begotten son, but humbled himself and obeyed God and was crucified on the cross for His creatures human beings to bring many people to the way of life(Philippians 2:5-11).
Like so, we should obey according to the spiritual order, but people in higher position should not command and direct people in the lower position, misusing the authority. When we follow the example of our Lord Jesus and serve others, they can dwell in our bosom and feel peace and comfort.
When we don't have this heart, we might think we are teaching the flock with the truth, but the members may feel discouraged. Namely, this is when our own righteousness gives hard time to other members.
For example, if one has his own righteousness, he tends to persist his opinion rather than trying to consider others' opinions. He not only forces others to obey him without considering their faith, but also he dislikes them or sets them aside if they don't obey him. Then the people of lower position have to read his face and even if they obey him. It's not from the true heart, so they feel uneasy.
When Jesus was crucified on the cross without any sin, he prayed for sinners, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." While people were stoning deacon Stephen, he also prayed for those who were stoning him, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them."
Therefore, workers should care for their members with love and virtue and bring them to the way of life with perseverance even if they make things difficult and become like thorns to them. In addition, they should set a good example by obeying spiritual order first.
When they lead a meeting, for example, they should not seek for their will but follow God's will and church's rules considering carefully how the Lord and the senior pastor of the church would act. When we obey according to the spiritual order, works of the Holy Spirit appear and God helps workers bear abundant fruits.
3) We Should Fulfill Our Duties and Bear Fruits
Workers make up their minds to try to fulfill their duties in the beginning of the year. But, a few months later, they get cooled down. They think that they tried very hard and it's time to take a rest. These workers cannot show abundant fruit before God at the end. Then what is the use of having passion to try hard in the beginning? We should realize that it is really true only when we keep the mind we had in the beginning to the end, and we can bear valuable fruits.
Then how can we keep the passionate mind of the beginning to keep working hard so that we can bear abundant fruits?
Above all, we must pray fervently without ceasing. When we pray, we can drive the devil away and fulfill our spiritual duty with the fullness of the Holy Spirit. And we can receive the power and rule over the camp of darkness and guide our members spiritually. Also when we visit members and give sermons, the result is very different between doing it with human thoughts and by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit on how to preach what kind of sermon. Therefore, if we fulfill our duties spiritually with passionate prayers, many homes can be evangelized and be prosperous and successful in all aspects of the life.
Next, we should spread the gospel hard. When they were newcomers, they used to spread the gospel well, but after becoming workers, they don't do so. But when leaders of cells, groups, and areas spread the gospel hard and set an example, God is pleased and sends many souls and gives grace and fullness of the Holy Spirit in the whole cell, group or area.
Finally, it is more important to look after newcomers and guide them well. At first, those who led the newcomers to the church should care for them, and along with that, the leader of the cell should be responsible for looking after them. When it's hard only for the cell leader to look after a particular member, the group leader, area leader, and the ministers for the perish and perish group must look after that soul so that even one soul in the church is not lost.
When members don't keep the Sunday service, workers should visit them during that very week. So leaders should solve their problems and stand firmly with faith. Workers also have to connect the members to the ministers of parish and parish group so that we don't lose any soul. Even when their members leave the church by diseases or tests, workers should save them from the devil by prayer and fast. God will be pleased at their efforts and send those souls back to the church again.
Dear congregation,
Paul the Apostle said in 2 Timothy 4:7-8, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."
Church workers received their duties not from men but God, so they have to fulfill their duties well. It is because God, who pays back according to what we have done, is preparing our eternal glory and blessing in heaven. God, who watches over our hearts and deeds with eyes that are like blazing fire, knows every single moment of all our lives. When we try our best to preach the gospel to many people and guide them with true love for them, He makes our souls and all the things prosper. He also gives us His great power to let us accomplish His kingdom with the Holiness gospel.
Therefore, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ that you have the qualifications of a good guider of souls and fulfill your duty not only to be blessed on the earth, but also to gain eternal glory and prizes in Heaven. |
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