A MAN OF PRAYER

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ood morning. Yesterday we learned that Elijah rendered perfect obedience to God. He only said “Yes” to God’s commands even if he could have been killed hundreds of times; that’s why God loved him so much. And God could not let Elijah die on this earth so He took him up to heaven to live with Him forever. Elijah ascended to heaven as the only man without a grave on this earth. Whatever God requests of us, we should always reply with a “Yes,” not with a “No.” Sometimes when we pray, we don’t receive a “yes” as an answer, but in order for us to receive “yes” as an answer, we must always also say “yes” to God’s commands. In this way, love must be reciprocated. This morning we will learn that our Father also said, “Yes” to all of Elijah’s prayers.

Let’s look at James 5:17-18. [Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.]

Elijah was a man just like us with a nature like ours. He was no better than us, but as he prayed, heaven shut its windows and did not give rain for three and a half years. And as he prayed again, heaven gave rain. All those so-called servants of God, those professed servants of God, prayed so earnestly for three and a half years but heaven never gave rain. Heaven gave not even a drop of dew. However, with Elijah’s prayer, heaven started giving rain again. He could open and shut the window of heaven at will. Wasn’t he a splendid man? He is the type of person you would call a splendid man; not someone who wears gold necktie pins or drives around a fancy car. Those kinds of people are nothing. Splendid people are the ones who can move God’s heart. May you also become such splendid people. Although those countless numbers of clergymen prayed so earnestly and fervently, heaven did not answer any of their prayers. Only Elijah could bring rain. This is the kind of person who was truly favored by God.  

Next, let’s look at 1 Kings 17:21-22. [And he stretched himself out on the child three times, and cried out to the Lord and said, “O Lord my God, I pray, let this child’s soul come back to him.” Then the Lord heard the voice of Elijah and the soul of the child came back to him, and he revived.]

To the widow, her only hope and happiness was her son. But suddenly, while Elijah was living with them for three years, the son died. The son of this friend of Elijah died so how could he just walk out and leave? She had lost all hope so Elijah prayed for her son. “O Lord my God.” Whose God? O Lord, my God. He should not be our God but He should be my God. We should accept Him as our personal God, and that’s how we can gain eternal life. So Elijah prayed, “O Lord my God, I pray, let this child’s soul come back to him.” “O Lord.” Whose God? “O Lord our God” cannot have any power but “O Lord my God” can exert power. So our Father answered Elijah’s prayer immediately and revived the child. And that is the kind of relationship that we should have with our Father. With this kind of relationship, it is fun for us. When we pray and there’s no answer, it’s not much fun.

Please read 1 Kings 18:36-39. [And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that You are the LORD God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.” Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench.]

On Mt. Carmel, we saw the direct confrontation between the truth and the false. The truth and the false will again have a direct confrontation on this earth, and at that time, God will show everything clearly in front of all people.

So at that time, it had come to the point where there was a direct confrontation between the truth and the false. When Elijah fought with the countless number of enemies on Mt. Carmel, it was a tremendous confrontation. There were so many clergymen and priests, the so-called servants of God, who cast out demons and healed diseases. They were people who performed such great miracles at that time. So on Mt. Carmel, Elijah told them to pray first since they were greater in number. And they started praying so fervently and loudly, jumping up and down around the altar. However, though they kept on praying from morning until lunch time, heaven did not send fire in answer to their prayers. They prayed all morning long but there was no answer and their voices grew hoarse.

So Elijah mocked them saying, “Your god is probably sleeping! Or maybe he is away from home! Why don’t you pray even louder?” But there was no answer though they prayed all day long. Their god could not give them anything, never mind an answer to their prayers. Also, those clergymen and priests could have just killed Elijah on the spot, but since everyone was watching, they couldn’t dare do anything though they were being so shamed and disgraced.

Their god was proven to be a false one, yet they would not allow Elijah his turn. They just kept on praying until the evening sun began to set. And the people watching were so bored. Later, in order to deceive the people, while hundreds of people were twirling around the altar, some tried to use matches to start a fire. But because Elijah was watching from the top, he yelled at them and told them not to do that, so their plan failed. They had bragged about their number and about their authority and power, but it was shown that they were all false, so they finally quit.

Finally, someone else came out to the altar. It was Elijah. And everyone stared at him. He said, “Pour water on it.” And of course, there wasn’t any water. It was during a drought so you could imagine what they were thinking. But next to Mt. Carmel was the sea. So he said, “Get water from the sea and pour it on the altar.” “Again.” “More water, more….” They poured twelve buckets upon the altar. So everything was wet, even the pit that they had dug. And the people’s eyes were wide open. “What is he doing?” Those religious leaders, 850 of them, had all prayed for rain without an answer. They had prayed for fire on a dry altar and nothing had happened. So the people asked, “How is it that Elijah dares to put water all over the altar and expect fire?” That salty sea water was now covering the entire altar and the sacrifice as well. 

Elijah then prayed very calmly with a bright face. Everyone was surprised and astonished at the way he looked. His prayer was also very calm and gentle. He said, “LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, that I have done all these things at Your word.” It was a very short prayer. And as soon as he finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven. It was evening and the sun was going down, so all of Mt. Carmel became bright with the fire from heaven. Even people who were not on Mt. Carmel, who were watching from a distant place, could see from afar the fire falling down on Mt. Carmel. So the sacrifice – the calf, and even the altar – was totally consumed.

Finally, those blind, deceived people were able to know who the true God was. They all said, “Ah, the Lord God of Elijah, He is the true God.” They realized how wrong they had been up to then. They had called him a fanatic, a lunatic, and cursed him so much. But they realized that they had been wrong, and repenting with tears they returned to the God of Elijah.

I have told you over and again that when you want to discern between the true and the false, never look at the numbers. God does not go by size or number to show which side is true or false. Everyone says that what is the majority must be the real and the true, but all you have to do is see where the fire of the Holy Spirit falls and which people’s lives are changed. That is how you can tell what is the truth and what is the false. If we were to consider numbers, then of course it would be the Catholic Church. There is no other church that can even compare to them in numbers. We must follow the truth and not look at numbers or church authority or history.

1 Kings 18:42, [So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees, and said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.”] All Ahab did that day was eat and drink. The false religious leaders ate, drank, and enjoyed themselves, whereas the true leader of God was not able to eat or drink anything, not even water. All he did was risk his life and pray for rain to fall for those people that had returned to God. It says that he bowed down on the ground and put his face between his knees. How earnestly he prayed. Those false religious leaders didn’t fast; they were fat, always eating and drinking. But for Elijah, he was not even able to eat or drink anything. He went to the top of Mt. Carmel and bowed down on the ground with his face between his knees.

Here, we can see the difference in how one should pray. If you look at people who come here, there are some who just sit down cross-legged when they pray to God. If they were non-believers or atheists, it would be understandable, but they are people who attend church. And even pastors pray like that. I don’t know where they learned to pray like that. Though Elijah was considered one of the greatest prophets of all time, how did he pray? “He knelt and put his face between his knees.” He was so hungry without having eaten anything all day long, yet he bowed down and put his face between his knees and knelt in prayer. Even though children are loved by their parents, they must still show their respect to them. However, there are clergymen and even pastors these days that do not even kneel down as they pray. They just sit down with their legs crossed. If they were to come before a president of this world, they would kneel down, but though they profess to be God’s servants, they don’t even kneel down when they pray. I have no idea where they learned that kind of habit in praying. We must kneel down when we pray. Of course we can pray while sleeping or traveling, but whenever we are in a situation where we can kneel down to pray, then we must kneel. We must have manners before our Father. Although our Real Father loves us so much, we must still have respect and keep our manners before Him. Even this great Elijah the prophet knelt before God. Daniel and Jesus also knelt when they prayed. Then who are we to dare act differently when we pray. Even angels kneel before our Father.

So Elijah knelt down and prayed earnestly to God for rain. Then he sent one of his disciples to the seashore to see if there was any sign of rain. When he came back, he said, “Ah, there is no sign in the sky.” So Elijah said, “Okay, I am going to pray again.” After praying so earnestly, he sent his servant again. When he came back, there was still no sign of rain. “Teacher, let’s go back home. Let’s go down and eat, you starved all day. The people here have been so wicked, they had sought to kill you, so how could God give them rain? None of them acknowledged and recognized our Father, so how could He give rain to such a wicked people? Let’s go back.” “No, I have to pray again.” So Elijah earnestly prayed again and did not even think about the fact that he had not eaten anything all day long. He was praying for the people even though they had acted like an enemy to him for three and half years.

The reason why this world has continued even up to now is by the earnest prayers of Elijahs all throughout history. So he prayed a third time and sent his disciple to the seashore to see if there was any sign of rain. And again he came back saying, “Teacher, there is no sign. He is not going to give rain. What I say is right, believe me. Let’s go back.” But God had promised Elijah that if the people returned to Him, He would bring down rain. And because they had obeyed and repented, Elijah continued praying because he knew that God would answer. He prayed four times, five times, six times, but there was no sign of rain. His disciple said again, “Teacher, there is no sign. What I say is right. Let’s go back. You might collapse from fatigue. You don’t have to keep praying.” However, as he prayed the seventh time, the disciple came back saying, “Teacher, there is nothing, just a small, tiny cloud in the sky. That’s it.” And Elijah exclaimed, “That’s it!”

When we attach our faith upon a little tiny sign of His promise, that little sign will fulfill all His promises. We must be able to focus all our faith into just one tiny little sign of His promise. Here, what we can learn is that even though he was Elijah, his prayers were not always answered immediately. It says he prayed seven times. Seven is a perfect and complete number. In other words, he prayed with all his heart until God gave the answer. If we obey God’s words, we don’t have to worry about not receiving an answer, but just keep on praying until He gives us the answer. However, even though we obey God’s commands and His words and do exactly as He says, sometimes it will not be fulfilled right away. Our Father says, “Ask, and you will receive.” There is nothing that He cannot accomplish. If we only obey His words, then we should just pray with faith until the end.

Just as Elijah believed according to his faith, that little tiny cloud soon covered the whole sky and rain began to pour. So much rain poured down that even the chariots were about to be flooded away. Because of one righteous person’s prayer, all of the Israelites were saved. Had he not prayed for them, had there not been one person as Elijah in Israel, the Israelites might have been destroyed completely forever. The value of one righteous person is immeasurable. Due to this one person’s prayer at that time, the world was saved. The prayer of one righteous man is so important. You cannot exchange the whole world for that one man. And as long as there is that one righteous man in this world, it will not be destroyed. Once that righteous man is taken away from this earth and there are none left, then this earth will be destroyed.

So how could they have tried to destroy this one man and get rid of him? How foolish they were. They were digging their own graves. After Elijah prayed for those people who were once his enemies and the rain fell, Elijah even guided Ahab’s chariot all the way to his palace. He became so exhausted because he had not eaten anything all day long. As he became so exhausted, Satan came to him through that woman, Jezebel, Ahab’s wife. When the Israelites were about to be destroyed forever, Elijah brought rain and they survived. From then on they could live happily. But instead of thanking him, Jezebel tried to kill him. And being afraid of her, Elijah ran away. After he ran away he prayed, “Father, please let me die.”

This wonderful warrior of God ran away from a woman. There is something we have to learn here. Elijah was also a man who can be afraid just like us. When he held firmly onto God, even when he was in front of all the enemies, he was able to overcome them. But once he released the hands of God, he was just a man who was filled with fear. We should never let go of our Father’s hand for even a moment. I hope that you will be victorious to the end.

Let’s read 1 Kings 19:4, [But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough now, Lord, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!”] After running away from his appointed place, he prayed to God for death. “Oh Father, please let me die.”

This prayer was completely different from the prayer of Jonah. Jonah prayed to God because He did not send fire to destroy Nineveh and said, “Father, why do you not send fire to destroy this city? I have preached that if they did not repent, God would destroy them with fire. Why do you not send fire?” He was upset with God that He had not brought down fire to destroy those people. Jonah said, “I knew You would forgive them. I knew that You would not destroy them and now I am a liar. If You are not going to bring down fire and destroy them, then kill me.” He prayed and complained to God for the sake of his own prestige. He had no love for the people. Do you know why God used Jonah and made him a prophet? It was as an example to tell us not to become like Jonah but become like Elijah.

Elijah prayed, “Father, please let me die.” Jonah also prayed, “Father, please let me die. I cannot go out. I cannot display my face to them anymore.” Although the prayers were the same, Jonah prayed for the sake of his prestige. But Elijah did not pray with that kind of purpose. If you look in the Bible, there were only a very few people who followed God to the end. They would follow God and obey Him but betray Him in the middle. And because Elijah knew that, he wanted to be different from his ancestors and live his whole life glorifying God. Before being called by God, Elijah had decided to render perfect obedience and perfect glory to God. Once he realized he had permitted himself to be defeated by that one feeble woman, Jezebel, he was so ashamed and so sorry to God. That’s why after running away, he prayed, “O Father, please let me die. I am extremely sorry to You. I resolved to render perfect obedience and glory to You, to be different from my ancestors, but I also failed, so please let me die. I am too ashamed and sorry to You.” As a result, our Father was so pleased with his heart of regret. He answered all the prayers of Elijah, but this time instead of answering his prayer literally, He rather took him up to heaven on a golden chariot.

Sometimes we ask our Daddy for the wrong things but He gives us the right answer in the right way. He rather gives us the right things for our sake because He is our Real Father.

There was a time when I asked for death as well. When I was young, I was chased out of my house because I was determined to believe in Jesus. I left the house and moved to an orphanage. I was the evangelist there. I felt sorry for my parents and my brothers and sisters because I realized that they did not know what they were doing in persecuting me. So I wept for them and then I wrote a will. I prayed like this, “Father, if my other three brothers and my father accept You, then rather than me doing Your work by myself, they will be able to glorify You four times more, so please allow me to die and let them receive You in my stead. May they receive my last letter and return to You and be faithful to You.” I wrote the will and closed my eyes and thought I would not awake. But when morning came, I was still alive. I guess my Father needed me more than my three brothers and my father. So even though we may offer incorrect prayers, He answers them in the way that will benefit us the most. I hope that you will never depart from Him.

Now Elijah was a great of man of God who was also the most humble. 1 Kings 18:45-46, [Now it happened in the meantime that the sky became black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel. Then the hand of the Lord came upon Elijah, and he girded up his loins and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.]

All the people had returned to the true God because of that one man, Elijah. Animals and people were dying because of the drought, but after Elijah’s prayer, heaven poured down rain and the whole nation was saved. Those false religious leaders had only taken the people’s money and property with everyone absolutely submissive to them; they had ruined the church and the country. When Ahab saw everyone repenting, he also repented, and Elijah was so grateful. And because of Ahab’s momentary repentance, Elijah led the chariot of Ahab all the way back to his palace. Nowadays, we have flashlights and lamps, but at that time there was nothing like that. In some countries, when it rains, or when night comes, people can find their way because the mountain, grassy areas, or the road can easily be distinguished. However, because there had been no rain for three and a half years, all the trees and plants had dried up and died; there was no way to distinguish the road anymore. That dark night, Elijah became a guide. He guided Ahab’s chariots all the way back to his palace. Because Ahab repented together with the Israelites, Elijah was so thankful to him and served him as a king.

Likewise, we must also respect and serve pastors or clergymen in the world if they were to repent and return to our Daddy. Elijah was the greatest prophet in the sight of God at that time. But just because that stupid king repented along with his people, Elijah became Ahab’s guide. He guided his chariots all the way to his palace. How modest Elijah was in guiding Ahab’s chariot getting soaked from the rain while Ahab stayed dry and comfortable. Could any great man in the world do such a thing? They would probably shout, “How can a servant of God do this kind of work?” Only those who are truly humble are the true servants of God.

In a city called Po-hang, I held a seminar in a deaconess’s house whose relatives were all Protestant Church members. At that time, I was traveling alone and I was staying at the house of the family who invited me. While we were having the meeting, one of her sisters came and asked her, “What are you doing at your house?” “We are having a seminar with a guest speaker.” “Oh, then what are you preparing for him?” “We just give him fresh fruits and other natural foods.” “What are you talking about? Fresh fruits and vegetables! If you do that, you cannot receive blessings from God. In our Protestant Church, if a preacher comes to hold a revival meeting, we slaughter a dog to eat and also cook pork and beef and prepare all kinds of tasty foods. We give him a thick envelope with lots of money. That’s how you can receive blessings from God.”

Yes, Protestant brethren entertain God’s servants sincerely with their whole hearts even though the way they do it is wrong. If you truly respect and honor the servant of the Lord, you will be blessed. The only reason why they are not blessed is because they are showing respect and honor to false servants of the Lord. If you treat the servants of the Lord well, then you will receive all the blessings of heaven. Do I seem to be a servant of the Lord? Then you must also treat me well. Isn’t that so? Shall we all stand up and collect an offering then? (Audience laughter)

I will teach you how to treat God’s servants well in a true sense. The best way to treat the servant of the Lord is to listen to the words of life that he brings. When the servant of God brings the message of truth to you, and when you accept his message and receive eternal life through his message – that is how you can be most hospitable to him.

Do you know why Jesus visited prostitutes’ homes so often? Why did He visit Mary’s house so often? Most people were saying to themselves, “Oh, I did not commit adultery. I did not steal anything. I have lived a righteous life so far in the sight of God,” and they always compared their lives with the life of Jesus, saying, “Oh, You are living a beautiful life, I also have lived that kind of beautiful life.” They always compared Jesus with themselves. They always scrutinized Jesus to see whether He was a true servant of God or not. That’s why Jesus could not enter their hearts. However, with Mary who was a prostitute, she always said, “Oh Lord, my Teacher, without You I could never be saved. Please come to my house.” Whatever Jesus spoke to her, she completely accepted and became regenerated and sanctified. That is the reason why Jesus visited her house so often.

One day, Jesus came to Mary’s house. Mary had an elder sister named Martha who was a little bit smarter than Mary. Since Jesus came to visit that day, Mary and Martha were so happy. Martha said to herself, “My Teacher must be so tired. I will cook some nice food for Him.” So she went to the kitchen and started cooking all kinds of food for Him while her younger sister Mary was not helping at all. With her hand on her chin, she was just listening to Jesus’ sermon saying, “Amen, amen, amen!” At that time there were no gas stoves or good cooking utensils. She had to make a fire and put the firewood into the fireplace continuously while the soup was boiling over. While Martha was so extremely busy in the kitchen by herself, Mary was not helping her but only saying, “Amen, amen!” at the feet of Jesus. So Martha became so upset and said, “Teacher, please have Mary come and help me. I’m so busy here. The soup is boiling over now!” And whom did Jesus scold? Jesus said, “Martha, how come you are so busy cooking all kinds of things for Me? Just one or two things are enough. Mary has chosen the better way. To receive the message from the Son of God and receive eternal life through His words is the best hospitality you can give to the servant of God.” When Mary received His words saying, “Amen, amen,” at His feet, Jesus was already satisfied even without eating any food.

Those who are the true servants of God do not ask anything from people, they only want them to live. So if there are people who are working in the kitchen to cook for me and are not listening to the messages, then I will not speak. They must all come in and listen so that I can start the seminar. What’s the point of killing the person who is preparing the food for me to eat? It’s no different than drinking their blood and their life. So do not try to give me anything. You don’t even have to pray for me. Just listen to the words that I have brought and live by those words. That’s all I desire. I do not care for riches or fame. I don’t know anything about that. I’m someone who doesn’t care about money. It doesn’t matter what people do for me – I just want you and your families to follow the true God and receive eternal life.

So Elijah was a true servant of the Lord. Because of that momentary repentance of Ahab, he ran in front of the horses and guided Ahab’s chariot back to the palace. If Elijah were not the true servant of the Lord, he would not have been able to do that. Actually, upon seeing the man of God bring down fire and rain from above, Ahab, who had ruined the country and the church, should have said, “Elijah, I’m sorry. I’ve ruined the country and I’ve ruined the church. Thank you for bringing down the rain for us.” He should have said to Elijah, “Oh, why don’t you sit in the chariot and ride together with me?” But he just left Elijah alone to guide his chariot in that pouring rain. He was so stupid in spite of being a king because he did not have God in his heart.

And while Ahab had eaten all day long on Mt. Carmel, Elijah had not eaten anything. He was so exhausted. Ahab should have been grateful to him because he brought rain from heaven. It was because of this one person Elijah that Israel could live and survive. As Elijah guided his chariot all the way to the palace, Ahab did not even suggest that he stay one night with him in the palace. He just left Elijah alone outside the palace while he went right in by himself. What a stupid king he was. He was so ungrateful. That’s why those who do not have God in their hearts are foolish. This man had come to save Ahab and how did he treat him? He tried to kill him. And in the end, after all that Elijah did, he still did not treat him well. That’s why it’s written in the Bible that there will be two groups of people – the seed of the beast and the seed of man.

Let’s look at Jeremiah 31:27. [“Behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and the seed of beast.”] What is the house of Israel and the house of Judah? This is speaking of the church. [He will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and the seed of beast.] The seed of man is speaking of those who can understand their Father’s voice. Just as it says in Genesis 1:26, [Let us beget man in Our image.] So the seed of man are those who have the image of God and can understand His voice. The seed of the beast is speaking of the seed of Satan. Even though the heavenly Father is speaking so plainly, they still can’t understand Him. I hope that you will become the seed of man.

This Ahab was the seed of the beast. Even though Elijah had saved him, the nation, and the church, and even though he had guided his chariot back to the palace, he did not even thank Elijah. There were so many rooms in the palace. What was wrong with letting him rest in the palace for a day? But he just went inside by himself. Maybe he was afraid that he would get in trouble by his wife. However, instead of cursing him, Elijah just lay down on the ground with his wet clothes and prayed blessings for Ahab. He blessed him while lying on the ground! Was he truly God’s servant? He was a true servant of God. The man of God does not ask to be treated hospitably or respected by people. Whether they acknowledge him or not, he just loves them to the end. That is what a man of God is.

When Jesus came to this earth, there were many people who were touched by Him and some of them were quite rich. He spoke to them all day long and they heard the sweet words of life. Their souls felt like dancing and they were filled with joy and happiness. All the churches at that time taught the people not to go to Jesus’ seminars because He was a heretic. But still many went to His meetings – about a thousand or so people. At that time, there was a certain person in the Jewish church. One of his friends who attended Jesus’ seminars came to him saying, “Hey my friend, I attended Jesus’ seminar. All the rumors about Him and the preachings by our church are wrong. Why don’t you just come and follow me there?” So this person followed his friend to Jesus’ seminar. As he listened, he was so greatly moved by His sermons. He repented completely and was so sorry to Jesus for having cursed Him until then. To receive forgiveness, he was longing to invite Jesus to his house. So he said, “Oh, Jesus, Teacher, I cursed You so badly up to now, but I have found that You are the very true Teacher from heaven. I want to invite You to my house tonight as a show of repentance.”

Jesus did not particularly want to go to his house, but because that man so earnestly wanted Him to, Jesus followed him. As Jesus was sleeping in his house, the Jewish leaders came and knocked on the door. So the owner of the house came out. “Who is staying at your house?” “Oh, my Teacher Jesus came. He is now sleeping.” “Teacher Jesus? You call Him a teacher! Do you know what kind of person He is? Do you know how abominable and foul a person He is? He was born without a father and His mother committed adultery. He was born from adultery. He destroys and breaks up families. And He is full of lies and takes away all the money from the church. He encourages people to donate money to Himself. He even visits prostitutes’ houses so often. Don’t you realize what an abominable and foul person He is! If you will not chase Him out right away, we are going to erase your name from the church records.” And they added, “If your name is erased from our church records, then your name will be erased from the Book of Life in heaven as well and you will go to hell.” This man was so dismayed and became distraught with fear as he heard that his name would be erased from the Book of Life in heaven. “He did not even come out of elementary school. How is He a teacher?” and those priests intimidated him.

This is how churches today trap people. Has the Bible ever said that if our names are erased from the church records, our names will also be erased from the Book of Life in heaven? Has the Bible ever said that? You can just regard that church record as junk. It’s nothing. Jesus said that only a few people would be saved, just like in the days of Noah.

So when this man heard that his name would be erased from the Book of Life in heaven, he was so appalled and said, “Ah, I am sorry. Please don’t, please don’t erase my name. I am going to chase Him out right away.” So he knocked on the door of the room where Jesus was sleeping and entering the room, he said, “Hey Jesus.” He was not calling Him “Teacher” anymore. “Hey Jesus, wake up. I was so moved by Your sermon today, but my pastor and the leaders in my church say that Your life is so abominable and that You are a foul person. I don’t want to keep somebody like You in my house. Please, please leave now.” So Jesus left his house. He had nowhere to go that dark night so He just lay on the ground and blessed that person who cast him out. Yes, He just laid on the ground and blessed that person. That is the kind of person you would call a true servant of God. Inside the body of Elijah was also the spirit of Jesus. Such are the kind of people who will be called the last Jesuses.

After you receive this truth of our Real Daddy and you return to your homes and to your churches, the pastors in your church may cast you out, and other church members may give you a hard time and curse you. But at such times, I hope that you will not complain and curse them back. Rather, may you be the ones who will pray for them and bless them as you leave the church.

Next, 1 Kings 19:15-16, [Then the Lord said to him: “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; and when you arrive, anoint Hazael as king over Syria. Also you shall anoint Jehu the son of Nimshi as king over Israel. And Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel Meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place.]

Elijah had run all of God’s errands risking his life, but because of just a single mistake, God was telling him, “Now return, go back to your place and transfer your position to another person, Elisha. Because you made a mistake, I cannot use you anymore.” Even though he had run all of God’s errands which always put him in harm’s way, for making just a single mistake God was telling him to transfer his position to somebody else. If he had been like Jonah, he might have been filled with complaints, but Elijah only said “Yes,” and obeyed. Then he went to Elisha who had been working and enjoying himself until then, and gave him everything, saying, “I must decrease and you must increase.” Then he prayed for Elisha to receive blessings. As he left Elisha’s house with nowhere to go, he was just satisfied with having been used by God until then. What a wonderful, selfless man. That’s why Jesus said, “If you want to follow Me, you must first deny yourself, then you can follow Me.” This was the first condition to follow Jesus.

In the Christian world today, if there is any election for a conference president or a union president, they organize election movements and slander one another. They try to bring others down. They spend money to lobby against one another. Do you think such beings are pastors? They are sons of the devil. They are Satan’s servants. They are not God’s servants at all. That is something presidents and congressmen in the world do. How can so-called men of God do such things! If they are truly God’s servants, should they not say, “Ah, you must be elected this time. I don’t deserve this position. You deserve to be elected this time.” They should give up the position and let the other person take the job. How can they be God’s servants when they slander one another saying, “Ah, he is so bad in this point so you must not elect him. You must only elect me.” You don’t have to try and distinguish who is better among them, they are all the same. God’s true servants are supposed to serve all others from the lowest place. When we follow God and Jesus, we have to follow Them selflessly. Those who have self cannot follow Them.

One time, the disciples went to the attic room and closed the door behind them. But even though the door was closed, Jesus was able to enter, announcing to them that He was alive as He asked for some food. Do you know why He was able to do that? It is because He was selfless. We must also become selfless so that we can travel freely throughout this universe.

“Those who are true to their calling as messengers for God will not seek honor for themselves.” If they are truly the messengers of God, whether there are a hundred or a thousand of them, they would never seek honor for themselves. But because they are false, that is why they seek honor for themselves. “Love itself will be swallowed up in love for Christ. No rivalry will mar the precious cost of the Gospel.”

Let me tell you about the second Elijah, John the Baptist. “John the Baptist looking to the Redeemer in faith, sought not to attract men to himself, but to lift their thoughts higher and still higher, until they should rest upon the Lamb of God. He himself who had only been a voice, a cry in the wilderness, now accepted with joy silence and obscurity.” 

John the Baptist did not even make one mistake in his life. He forsook all the things of this world. His father had been an educated man in religion, but his father also knew that the theological schools were corrupt and rotten, so he had his son educated in the wilderness. He was very smart. And so John the Baptist learned from God in the wilderness. That’s why he was able to become the Elijah to prepare the way for Jesus. But who acknowledged him? All he did was work in the countryside while telling people to repent “for the kingdom of God was at hand and the Son of God, the Messiah, was coming.” But the people in the churches were saying the Messiah would be coming later, so who would believe John the Baptist? And so he received all kinds of misunderstanding and was called a lunatic, a fanatic, and a heretic. Yet John did his work to the end despite all of that. Then God said, “Okay, now I will not use you anymore, I will use Jesus.” God not only made John the Baptist quit, but even permitted him to be imprisoned. And later, he was beheaded.

If you were faithful to God like that up to then and did not make even a single mistake, and you were told to go to jail and then be beheaded, would you be willing to accept that? See, there’s no one who says “Amen.” But I would. I would say “Amen” and take that path.

Don’t you think this was strange? Though Elijah had made one mistake, John the Baptist hadn’t made any mistakes at all. However, instead of taking him to heaven, John the Baptist was told to retire. How? By being beheaded in prison. He was beheaded alive though he had not made a single mistake – unlike Elijah. Even though John the Baptist did not make a single mistake but rendered perfect obedience, God told him to retire and be beheaded instead of taking him to heaven. It was written that though John the Baptist was beheaded, it did not make him a worse prophet than Elijah – actually, it made him better than Elijah.

One important lesson we must learn here is that though Elijah made a mistake, he was taken up to heaven in a golden chariot. Meanwhile, John the Baptist who did not make a single mistake went to jail and was beheaded and killed. There was a reason for this. It was also our Real Father’s love.

Most of God’s children, the last Elijahs in the last days, will ascend to heaven in the clouds alive. But then, there will also be some Elijahs who will lose their lives for the Gospel like John the Baptist. If our Father had taken John the Baptist, who never made a mistake, up to heaven, and allowed Elijah, who made a mistake, to be martyred, then the people who go to prison and are killed in the last days for our Father’s sake would be tempted to think that they were being forsaken because of their mistakes. They would end up doubting God’s love. The reason why our Father took Elijah and not John the Baptist was to prevent His children, who may be killed in the last days, from thinking that they were being forsaken for their mistakes. It is to show us that even though John the Baptist was obedient, he died, that we would have the courage to die for our faith as well. So it is for the last Elijahs who may be martyred in the last days that our Father allowed that faithful son John to die. Even if you may lose your life for this Gospel and become a martyr though you did not make any mistakes, will you give up your life like John the Baptist?

So while John was in prison, somebody else, another person called Jesus, had appeared, leading all the people who used to follow him. All those people who used to follow John the Baptist began to follow Jesus when he was put into jail. So John’s disciples became so angry. They said, “Our teacher went through such suffering and now Jesus is the one receiving all the glory.” They were so angry with God for this unfair dealing with them. They became jealous. Only people who are not envious or jealous are ready to go to heaven. They are perfect. His disciples did not understand why their Teacher John, who did not make a single mistake, had to go to jail and die, while another man, Jesus, received all the glory. When they saw Christ taking over the work, they were jealous and dissatisfied. The same dangers still exist today. The disciples of John the Baptist were upset, so they all flocked to the prison to see John. “Teacher, Teacher.” “What?” “Can you believe how unfair God is? You have gone through so much trouble to start this work. You have fought with the Jewish people so many times. Through all kinds of hardships and difficulties you eventually established this work. But now although you did not make any mistakes, you are imprisoned here. Somebody named Jesus is taking over and leading all the people who used to follow you. He is receiving all the glory and even baptizing people. This is so unfair, isn’t it? What’s going on? What did you do wrong? How come God is so unfair?” Even John’s closest disciples were saying this. But it was actually Satan using them to make John fall and lose faith.

At that time, if John had said, “Ah, yes. God is unfair. What did I do wrong? How come He put me in prison like this?” Had John doubted God’s love, then he would have been an eternal failure. He would not have been saved. But – Elijah never fails! This second Elijah, John, said, “Hey, my disciples, it doesn’t matter. He must increase and I must decrease. He deserves to be glorified and I deserve to be imprisoned and die.” With those few words he overcame the temptation of Satan. With a few words he utterly defeated Satan. In such situations, we must always give the glory and the path of life to our brethren. We should say, “He must increase and I must decrease,” and we should choose the path of death.

When this Elijah Gospel Missionary Institute first begun, who helped me? No one. I would have already disappeared but my Father asked me to continue this work a little longer. I didn’t want to continue this work. Some people think that I want to be their leader, but no … even if they should give the whole earth to me, I would not want do this. I don’t like to do this kind of work, not for any kind of reward. I don’t like to be cursed at and derided by the people of this world. My only desire is to farm and live quietly in the countryside as I used to in the past. I don’t like standing in front of many people like this.

“God calls a man to do a certain work; and when he has carried it as far as he is qualified to take it, the Lord brings in others, to carry it still farther. But, like John’s disciples, many feel that the success of the work depends on the first laborer…. From time to time the Lord will bring in different agencies, through whom His purpose can best be accomplished. Happy are they who are willing for self to be humbled, saying with John the Baptist, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

While on the path that God leads His children on all the way to heaven, sometimes He will call some people and use them to lead others. When a person is finished being used, then God may choose someone else to continue the work. And He might tell the first person, “Go over there,” and use another person. Then after He uses this other person, He could tell another person to continue the work. This is His way of leading all His people to heaven. But because the leaders of those churches are not regenerated, they fight and say, “I did the work until now, why should you take over?” And they fight and argue. Will God’s work be deterred in its fulfillment because such people fight about it? No, it will be fulfilled no matter what. Only those who complain will end up dying.

When the time comes, we must say, “He must increase and I must decrease.” God loves more the person who gives up. Those who are not regenerated cannot be a leader of God’s people. Even today, God is looking for those like Elijah and John the Baptist – those who are willing to sacrifice themselves for others and not be jealous or envious.

Nowadays, people fight over the pulpit. In order to make this pulpit, what must be done? First, you need a saw to cut the wood. After the saw cuts the wood, you need a plainer. In other words, several tools are needed to complete the work. If the saw says, “Wait a minute. I cut the wood, you’re not needed.” Then if the saw tries to do all the work, can it make a pulpit? So when our Father says, “Rest. I’m going to use this other person,” then we should just say, “Okay, he must increase but I must decrease.” We must have that kind of beautiful heart like Elijah and John the Baptist.

So we learned two things today. First, we learned that Elijah who always said “Yes” to God and always obeyed also received a “Yes” from God for whatever he prayed for. We could see the good relationship between Father and son. Also, though Elijah was the greatest prophet born among women, he was humble enough to guide and lead the chariot of Ahab. He was truly a selfless man. And when someone else came to take over God’s work, we saw the life of John the Baptist who gave it up willingly, because he also was selfless. When the work was transferred to Elisha, Elijah was the same. When the work went to Jesus, John the Baptist was the same. These are the kinds of people you can call the people of God. Let us all be the people of God, the people of heaven, and live with Him there for eternity.

DOALNARA (GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE DECALOGUE STONE COUNTRY)

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