Welcome, all of you!
Here. This is the beginning point because
Paul was talking about that we are all in
a race. We are all running a race toward
the goal. As soon as the gun is shooting
you don't just sit down on a couch and
just laying there and just relaxing.
No. We have a race to run. I often
have seen that. I have deceived myself
or people deceive themselves by sitting
and waiting for God.
"God, what is my calling? I'm waiting
for my special calling."
It is here.
He said to them all, "Whoever wants to be
My disciple must deny themselves
and take their cross daily and follow Me."
Ladies and gentlemen, that is your
calling. God has called every one of us
to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. We
don't have to wait for the gun to shoot.
The race has already started. You, who are
designed with your calling, are to become
like our Master Jesus Christ. Our calling
is to become more like Jesus.
Jesus said, "Truly, I tell you, no one who
has left homes or brothers or sisters
or mother or father or children or fields
for Me and the gospel will fail to receive
a hundred times as much in this present
age, along (together) with persecution.
We read in the Bible where it says,
everyone who wants to live a godly life
will be persecuted. Amen?
I didn't hear that so much in my church.
But that's...this is not my word. This is
the word that we read in the Bible.
As much as we are called to bear fruit,
because Jesus said, "As the Father
has sent Me, now I send you. Go out
and bear much fruit."
How many people love fruit? How many
people would love to see their lives
bear fruit? I love it. Because it really
encourages me to keep on going.
But as much as we are called to bear
fruit, we are also called to go through
hardship, trials and persecution. The
breakthrough, the fruit, will not come
without hardship and trials. Well, let's
come back to this life. Let's come back
to this--what we read in the Bible.
Because we are always focusing on
We need something new. We need something
brand new. We need more things and so on.
No! We don't need something new.
We just need to come back to this.
This old thing! This real thing!