삼위일체 하나님의 구원사역

삼위일체 하나님의 구원사역 The redemptive work of the Triune God (Zechariah 12:10)

summary

In this sermon, Pastor emphasizes the transformative power of God's grace and the profound sorrow we experience for our sins. He highlights that grace is a free gift, given by God to rebellious sinners, and it is through the Holy Spirit that we truly understand and experience God's love and forgiveness. This understanding leads to a deep sorrow and grieving within us, as we recognize our role in piercing and crucifying Jesus Christ with our sins.

Pastor encourages the congregation to allow the Holy Spirit to work within them, bringing about a genuine transformation of holiness and obedience. True faith is not merely intellectual knowledge but a heartfelt response to the love and sacrifice of Jesus. The sermon concludes with a reminder to cultivate a deep love for the Lord, guard against the enemy's deception, and persevere in the race of faith.

Overall, the sermon calls the members of the church to embrace God's grace, allowing it to transform their lives through genuine sorrow for their sins and a deep love for the Lord.

scrript

The passage you provided is from Zechariah 12:10 and talks about the content of God's new covenant being fulfilled among the Israelites. However, the term "new covenant" that Christ established is not only for Israel but also an everlasting gospel that is proclaimed to all nations, tribes, peoples, and languages, representing the kingdom of God. Therefore, these words are applicable to us, who live in the present age.

If we carefully examine the structure of this passage, we can understand that the Triune God is simultaneously present and coming in these nine verses. The reason I love this verse is that, to my knowledge, it is the only verse in the Bible that speaks of the Triune God simultaneously and reveals the content of saving a sinner like me.

"I" - God the Father"Look to me" - Jesus Christ"I will pour out the Spirit" - the Holy Spirit comes forth.

Looking at today's passage:

The work of this Spirit of grace is when the love of God's forgiveness is given to a person, and when the person truly feels in their heart that God forgives and loves even someone like them, who deserves to die, their response is prayer and supplication. So, "repentance" is the fruit of God's love, the fruit of God's forgiveness, and it is not about repenting hard to receive forgiveness.

In 2 Timothy 1:9, it says, "He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given to us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time...“

When did He give us this grace? He gave us this grace before the beginning of time. Pay attention to the timing. It was before the beginning of time; we didn't exist then. It was from eternity past. From that time, He already "gave" it to us. The word "gave" is significant. He didn't say, "I will give it to you when you repent. I will keep it for you. So, repent and return to me, and then I will give it to you." It's not about us repenting hard so that we can receive it.

Previously, how did I understand this passage? "Ah! God, in eternity past, had grace waiting for me. It was the grace that He was waiting to give me when I returned to God, when I repented fervently." Isn't that how most of us understood it?

However, this passage does not say that. How much more repentance do we need to do to completely repent of all our sins? If we repent all our lives, will we completely repent of all our sins? We only repent to the extent of the sins we are aware of, such as saying bad things or doing bad deeds. That's the extent of our repentance. But Jesus considers our thoughts as "sin." In Matthew 15:19, it says there are evil thoughts within us.

To repent of that, we need to repent for our entire lives. We need to do nothing else but repent all our lives. We have a factory within us that produces sin, and it doesn't disappear.

Before we learn about the amazing grace of the cross, we need to first understand what sin is. Because we don't know what sin is, the word "grace" has become so abused and easy these days.

That's why the apostle Paul, when writing the book of Romans and starting to explain the gospel, takes three chapters—Romans 1 to 3—to explain sin in detail. I encourage you to read Romans chapters 1 to 3 when you have a chance. It talks about various types of sins: disobedience to parents, murmuring, jealousy, lack of love, unforgiveness! We think of these sins as nothing special, right? But in Romans 1:32, do you know how it describes these sins? It clearly states that they are sins that deserve death penalty before God.

We consider sin too lightly. In many cases, we commit such sins that deserve the death penalty, yet we do not fear God. Doesn't that mean our conscience has become paralyzed?

A missionary who serves among a cannibalistic tribe in Papua New Guinea told me that when the tribal people heard the word of God and learned about the commandments "Do not covet" and "Do not commit adultery," it was the first time they heard that coveting or committing adultery is a sin that God judges. So, when they heard those words, they were trembling and afraid. They were so scared that they ran back to their homes and didn't come out. But when the missionary chased after them, he realized that he, as the one teaching those words, was not living in fear of God despite committing such sins. So, he repented there, truly met the Lord, and testified that he came to know the true gospel.

Unless God's grace and the Spirit of supplication are poured out upon us, we will never truly know what I, what my sins have done to Jesus. The one who reveals and makes us understand and experience God's love and forgiveness is the Holy Spirit. Without the presence of God's Spirit, we cannot feel His love. So, even when we look at Jesus on the cross, we just glance at Him without truly grasping the depth of His love.

Why is it that we don't feel this love so deeply in our hearts? It's because head knowledge is not enough. It's merely information stored in our minds that cannot bring about transformation in our lives. It is through the living Word and the Holy Spirit that we can truly feel and experience our Heavenly Father's love. That is what we call grace.

We need to understand that having intellectual knowledge about the truth of salvation is not the same as having true faith. The evidence of false faith is a life that remains unchanged. If I have truly received Jesus in my heart and repented, but my life remains unchanged, it is impossible.

Having understood and comprehended the truth of salvation intellectually is not the same as having a genuine faith. True faith in the Lord will inevitably bring about a transformation of holiness and obedience in our lives.

There's a saying, "The picture of bread." Grace is like that picture. We can talk about it, saying, "It's good to have bread. It's delicious, satisfying, I wonder how it's made." We can explain it in detail. But unless it enters our mouths, it's not bread. It remains a picture of bread.

Unless we receive the grace and the Spirit of supplication, prayer is impossible. That's why some people find prayer difficult. Prayer is the fruit of God's love being planted in our hearts, the result and manifestation of the Holy Spirit moving within us. That is what the Bible refers to as prayer. It's not just going to God and saying, "Give me, give me" with only our own problems in mind. That is what pagans do.

Grace is not something we receive by striving hard and making God pity us. It is not about our efforts. It is the unconditional gift given to us, sinners who rebelled against God, by the loving God Himself.

Grace is free for the recipient. But is it free for the giver? No, it is not free. I hope you know that it cost the life of God's Son! When we perceive the value of His sacrifice and love through the Holy Spirit, what comes forth from our hearts? It is prayer and supplication.

When God pours out the Holy Spirit, what happens? In today's passage:

In John 19:34, it is recorded that one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, and blood and water came out. This fulfilled the Scripture that says, "They shall look on Him whom they pierced" (John 19:37). So, it is not just one soldier who pierced Jesus, but it refers to all of us who have pierced Him.

In Revelation 1:7, it also states, "Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him." So, everyone, including those who pierced Him, will see Him. This shows that we are responsible for piercing Jesus.

Therefore, the tears shed here are not just tears of gratitude for Jesus' sacrifice, but they represent an intense grief, comparable to the anguish of losing a beloved child. It is the sorrow that arises when we realize that Jesus died for us. Can you imagine the magnitude of pain if your only beloved child, son, or daughter died before your eyes? It would be an unbearable, agonizing grief.

To summarize, what is happening and how does it occur?

When God pours out His grace and the convicting Holy Spirit upon us, a phenomenon occurs within us. We come to realize that we have pierced and crucified Jesus Christ with our sins. The Scripture says, "But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out" (John 19:34). It also states, "They shall look on Him whom they pierced" (John 19:37). This piercing of Jesus Christ refers to our own sins, and it brings about a deep sorrow and grieving within us.

This sorrow is not merely a reflection on our wrongdoings or a feeling of guilt in our conscience. It is an experience that touches the depths of our hearts. We gaze upon the One we have pierced, Jesus Christ, and we feel the immense pain and anguish that He endured for our sake. We realize how much He suffered and how lonely He must have felt. It is a sorrow that goes beyond comprehension.

In summary, when the Holy Spirit of grace and conviction is poured out upon us, we will experience the phenomenon of looking upon Jesus whom we have pierced. We will feel a profound sorrow and grieving, not for ourselves, but for Him. We will understand the depth of His love and sacrifice. Our tears will be a reflection of the sorrow that arises within us, as if we have lost our only son. We mourn for Him, not because He is weak, but because He willingly bore the weight of our sins and loved us unconditionally.

Therefore, the "blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted" (Matthew 5:4) is the second blessing of the Beatitudes. And the comfort we receive is the gift of eternal life.

What does this comfort mean exactly? It means that as a wretched sinner, completely hopeless and deserving of death, I look upon myself as a venomous snake, bitten and controlled by the devil. I am overwhelmed by pain and despair, feeling that there is no hope left and that death is inevitable. But now, I turn my gaze towards the crucified Jesus Christ, who took all my sins upon Himself and offered forgiveness and salvation. In this moment, a deep sense of mourning and anguish arises within us, as if we have lost our own beloved son.

Though our sins pierced His heart and caused His blood and water to flow, He embraced us with forgiveness. He now looks upon us, wretched and denying ourselves like Peter, and says, "It's okay. I have accomplished everything for you, My son! My daughter! You are redeemed by My precious blood, and you are precious and holy in My sight..." As a result, can we, who have become the righteousness and praise of the Lord, harbor hatred, jealousy, or envy? As the Lord has loved and forgiven us, we are now called to forgive, cover each other's faults, and love one another.

About a week ago, while having breakfast, the words from Zechariah came to my mind, and I asked my wife, "Honey, do you truly understand that you crucified Jesus with your sins?" After a moment of thought, she nodded and said she understood. So I asked again, "Honey, do you truly understand that you pierced Jesus' heart with a spear? Can you feel it?" It was the first time I asked such questions, and after a brief moment of reflection, she nodded again, indicating that she truly understood. She realized that she pierced Jesus' heart. While having breakfast, my wife and I looked at each other and wept for a long time because of the love of our Lord.

This is something that cannot be comprehended merely intellectually. Even when hearing the Word for the first time, those who have received the Holy Spirit can understand it instantly. Belief is not about understanding it with our minds and then saying, "I believe! I believe!" It is about being filled with the assurance of the Word that has been fulfilled in our lives as sheep of the Lord.

In conclusion, when our love for the Lord grows, it is not just love that increases. Rather, we must be cautious not to become idols ourselves, detached from the world. The devil stealthily steals and deceives the love of the Lord within us. Unwittingly, we fall prey to the theft of our first love and find ourselves in the midst of unknown suffering and confusion. Why do we experience such anger? Why do we become so self-centered? Why do we feel jealous and envious over trivial matters? Why does the sin of lust seem unbreakable? These are not the fruits of the Holy Spirit; they are the fruits of sin, the consequences of obeying the flesh and the devil.

I understand that you are emphasizing the defeated devil who, knowing his time is short, roams the earth with his followers, seeking to bring even the chosen ones to hell. It is a sobering fact that during the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have departed from the Lord. But even more frightening is the fact that as the day of the Lord's second coming draws near, there will be greater temptations, trials, deceptions, and tribulations to test our faith.

Indeed, our lives are a race of faith. In the spiritual realm, we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses who have triumphed in this race, cheering us on and saying, "Fight on!" Unfortunately, we also witness many who start the race of faith but fail to finish. There are countless reasons why people fail in the race of faith.

However, those who successfully complete the race of faith have one common characteristic: they wholeheartedly, with all their being, strength, and will, truly love God. In the book of Revelation, they are referred to as the "overcomers.“

I urge you to honestly reflect on yourself. Are you an overcomer? Are you truly prepared before the Lord at this very moment? I hope you awaken to this reality.

Therefore, I encourage you to draw near to the Lord, who is the source of our existence and the nourishment of our lives. May you partake in His eternal forgiveness and life, which He has provided for us. I pray this for all of you in the name of the Lord!