Skip to content
Home
About Us
Ministries
Activities
Resources
Contact
Ctrl K
EN
ES
Give
Plan Your Visit
Meat Offering
Ch. 3 · Audio in EN
EN
ES
Chapter 3
Shall Be Unleavened
69:37
0:00
Shall Be Unleavened
0:04
Leviticus 2:1-16
And when any will offer a meat offering unto the Lord, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon: And he shall bring it to Aaron's sons the priests: and he shall take thereout his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord: And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the Lord made by fire. And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baken in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil. And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in a pan, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil. Thou shalt part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon: it is a meat offering. And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the frying pan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil. And thou shalt bring the meat offering that is made of these things unto the Lord: and when it is presented unto the priest, he shall bring it unto the altar. And the priest shall take from the meat offering a memorial thereof, and shall burn it upon the altar: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord. And that which is left of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the Lord made by fire. No meat offering, which ye shall bring unto the Lord, shall be made with leaven: for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the Lord made by fire. As for the oblation of the firstfruits, ye shall offer them unto the Lord: but they shall not be burnt on the altar for a sweet savour. And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt. And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the Lord, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of thy firstfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears. And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meat offering. And the priest shall burn the memorial of it, part of the beaten corn thereof, and part of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof: it is an offering made by fire unto the Lord.
3:21
People Who Live in Their Own Different Standards
3:26
Now, I want to talk to you about the leaven in regards to the meat offering. When you give the meat offering, you pour oil on top of the fine flour and then do the offering. There, you use all the sulfur and put salt on it. However, you definitely must not include leaven or honey. Once, I went to Germany with Pastor Hun Mok Lee and we went to Goslar to have a summer retreat. We rented a youth hostel. We thought many people would come, so we reserved a lot of rooms. However, only half of the expected number of people attended. In return, the youth hostel asked, "Can we accept other guests into the vacant rooms?" We said that it would be okay. The first plan was to have brothers use the first floor and sisters use the second floor. Because I was the main speaker, they gave me my own room that had its own bathroom. However, everyone else who stayed in the first and second floors had to use the public bathrooms. If we had used the first floor for the brothers and the second floor for the sisters, as planned, it would not have been an issue. However, because other guests were accommodated, it did not go according to our plan. It is uncomfortable for men and women to use the same bathrooms. On top of that, the people of Germany have different concepts than we do. They dia not have any doors within the bathrooms, and the men and women shared the same showers. Pastor Hun Mok Lee went to the bathroom, and saw this several times, and he did not know what to do. He asked one of the German brothers to tell the manager to please have the women use the second-floor bathroom in the youth hostel. This is something that is very normal in Korean society, but it does not necessarily make sense in German society. Before we went to the manager, we asked the German guests, who were staying on the first floor, but they replied, "Why should we have to go to the second floor to use the bathroom?" They would not accept it. Even when we explained everything to them, it did not work. Pastor Hun Mok Lee sincerely asked them for their consideration. Our brother from Germany did not know what to do. He relayed the message again to the youth hostel, but ultimately, it did not go as we had wished. People from western culture have the mindset, "Men and women are the same. What is the difference?" Often times, they are unable to understand and do not know what to do when people from the East say these kinds of things. Especially in Germany, they are even freer than the United States. Germany is a country where people can do anything they want. Maybe because they are so free, sexually, sometimes it looks like they are living without any discernment at all. We go into that kind of a society and testify about God. That is why what we say sounds so tedious to them. When we do mission work abroad, our pastors are often exposed to countries where there are sexual problems. There are people in those countries trying to live clean and healthy; on the other hand, there are many people who become divorced easily. Because we start our churches where this is a social norm, what our church teaches does not fit their customs. Because we say things that do not fit them, people have a lot of hardships getting used to the church. For example, there is a person who just got saved and is starting his life in church. He is not a married person, but sometimes, he stays with his girlfriend. In those kinds of incidents, we cannot tell that person to stop coming to church, but we also want to lead that person to a proper life of faith. However, that kind of a life in itself goes against that life of faith, so it is not easy. In such cases, pastors go through many hardships. Recently, I read a newspaper that stated the number of AIDS patients in Korea is on the rise. I feel that there is no need to be afraid of the increase in AIDS. Usually, when people get AIDS, they die within a few years. If a husband and a wife are living the normal life of a married couple, then there is no need to get AIDS. Patients who have AIDS will die within a few years, so AIDS will eventually disappear. If people returned to the Bible, then AIDS would disappear within a few years. Of course, this is completely my personal opinion. We would not have to study AIDS more, or worry about AIDS. Of course, if experts hear this, they would laugh at me. So, I guess I say things that make them laugh, and they say things that make me laugh. That is how they and I are different. If you want to hear what they say, you can read the newspaper. But it you want to hear what we are saying, you can come to our church. The amazing thing is, although this is not true with everyone, the lives of Americans or Germans change and become holy after salvation. Before being born again, they were tied down to sin and lived according to their own heart. After being born again, we see their lives becoming clean and holy and changing. There were people whose lives were quite promiscuous before receiving salvation in Korea, too. I did not tell them, "Well, now that you are saved, please fix your evil life and live a clean one." However, I could see that they live changed, truthful lives. Actually, if you are saved, it is fitting to live a holy life.
10:04
The Leaven, Which Blows up Bigger Than the Actual Thing
10:11
Right now, we want to talk about the meat offering and leaven in Leviticus chapter 2. The Old and New Testaments talk a lot about leaven. In Matthew chapter 16, Jesus told the disciples to be careful of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees. At that time, the disciples did not know the meaning of Jesus' words, and said, "We did not bring bread." This was immediately after Jesus had fed 4,000 people with seven loaves of bread. Although His words were not about bread, the disciples did not understand what Jesus was saying. The leaven is the enzyme that makes bread fluffy. The baking powder that we know very well is also a type of leaven. If you add leaven and make bread, that bread is called leavened bread. The bread with no leaven is not fluffy and is called unleavened bread. When I first read the Bible, I did not know what leavened bread and unleavened bread were talking about. Later on, I realized that the bread made with leaven is leavened bread, and the bread without any leaven was called unleavened bread. The Israelites put leaven into their kneaded dough and kneaded flour. They made fluffy, soft bread and ate it. There were times when they ate bread that did not have leaven. In the Jewish calendar, January 14th is the Passover, and from the 15th, they are not allowed to eat any kind of leavened bread for one straight week. That feast is called the Feast of Unleavened Bread. During the feast, you cannot eat bread with leaven in it, and you are not allowed to keep any leaven in your home. I thought, "What does the Feast of Unleavened bread represent? Why is God teaching us that He made a tradition where you have to eat unleavened bread?" At the time when Jesus was speaking to His disci-ples, it was not even during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, but He told them to be careful of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees. In Korea, they use leaven when they are making liquor, but they do not do that in Israel. If you leave wine as is, it will just ferment on its own, so you do not need leaven. That is why when the Israelites think about putting in leaven, they think of bread. That is also why when Jesus mentioned leaven, the disciples were worried that they had not brought any bread. Once again, Jesus said to His disciples, "Did I not feed 5,000 people with five barley loaves? How many baskets were left over? Do you not remember that we had baskets of bread left over after I fed 4,000 with seven loaves? How is it that you have not realized that what I am talking about is not about bread? Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees." Right then, the disciples said, "Oh, when Jesus was telling us to be careful of the leaven, it means to be careful of the teachings of the Pharisees and the Sadducees." They realized what Jesus was saying. Why did Jesus not say to be careful of the teachings of the Pharisees and Sadducees directly? And why did He say to be aware of their leaven? Leaven becomes fluffy. It is like the teachings of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, where they exaggerate and make little things fluffy and turn them into bigger things, which is what leaven does. People have the talent to exaggerate and puff up what they say. When we have missionary classes, we have times where students share what they realized from the word. Once, a student gave a presentation. He said that something was such a great joy and thankfulness to him. So, I said to the brother, "Brother, if you use all of those kinds of words for something like that, then later on, when you have to express your heart about the Lord, what words are you going to use?" Words should not be used in any way in any incident. There are words that are appropriate when expressing Jesus. When you use the largest expression for something that you went through, what will you use to express the Lord? You have no choice but to use the same kind of expressions for Jesus. If you do that, Jesus is relatively the same as your own experience. When I use certain expressions, I say, "I will use these words to talk about such and such a pastor. This word will be good to use to speak about my son. This word is fitting for the Lord, and it does not fit the way man is. I think about those things. Should we not think about these things as we use our words? When you watch TV, you say, "Oh, that was so good!" But then you say, "When I got saved, it was so good!" Is that okay? When you watch TV, you should just say that it was good. If you say, "Oh, it was so good," then there is a chance that there is leaven in it. Search yourself to see if you have the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees blended in you. If you do, then remove that leaven. No matter what words you choose to use, it does not cost you any money. For you to decorate your home, you are going to need construction materials and paint. On top of that, there are all kinds of additional costs. It does not cost money to speak. However, since that is the case, if you pick and choose only good words, that would also be a problem. The Hypocrisy of the Leaven of the Sadducees and the Pharisees
16:40
The words, "leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees," mean that in their teachings, there are things that are different from the truth. Their words are exaggerated. Jesus said to refuse those kinds of teachings, so what kind of teaching is it? Because we are absolutely not perfect in front of God, we cannot keep the law. However, if we mix in a little leaven into our lives, and if we exaggerate our actions, it appears as though we can keep the law very well. The Pharisees and Sadducees were people who taught that one has to act like he or she is keeping the law well, and that you had to keep acting like that. Because there are such people, a lot of people today are trying to keep the law. When a pastor stands at the pulpit, he must clearly tell his church members, in front of God, what an imperfect human he is. If the church members do not know that, they will think, "I am busy running a business, and I commit sins every day. But my pastor does not commit sins and he lives such a pure life." They become fooled into thinking, "Then I, too, should quickly make a lot of money, and stop running a business, so that I can live without committing sins." That is why the pastors must admit their shortcomings in front of their church members. They have to acknowledge that they are no better than their church members. The Bible talks about how Peter denied Jesus three times. The Bible also describes Jacob's mistakes, how David committed sins, and how Abraham deceived people saying that his wife was his sister. How graceful these stories are! If Abraham were perfect, and David had no flaws, then wouldn't we say, "I am full of blemishes, so a person like me cannot receive grace?" If so, living spiritual life would be very burdensome. However, David had wrongdoings, Abraham had blemishes, and Noah made the mistake of drinking wine and being naked. Because of this, we can have the heart, "Since these people received grace, a person like me can receive grace, too!" When a pastor leads his church members, it is not that he should try to lead their hearts to a perfect place. But because they are lacking, the pastor must guide their hearts to a place where they can receive grace. And since the pastor is also weak and has shortcomings, he, too, must receive grace. However, there are pastors who mix in leaven and speak with that. "Everyone, do not sin. I fasted for forty days and prayed. Temptations of sin did not arise in me at all. Even pure gold looked like stones to me. Even though I looked at women, they looked like statues of stone." Unfortunately, there are many pastors who give these kinds of sermons. The church members who listen to these sermons feel burdened in their spiritual lives, and they fall into despair. They feel, "Wow! How could I ever reach that level? There is no way I could ever be like that. That kind of faith and spiritual life is only for pastors, revivalists, or people who have received special grace. It is not for a person like me." Otherwise, they become hypocrites. Inside, they are not so, but they behave like people who are clean, on the outside. That is what makes the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. When I was ministering in Daegu, every Monday, I gathered with pastors of many different denominations and we had Bible studies together. At those times, I always talked about my shortcomings and my weaknesses. The pastors who heard this from me, said, "Pastor Park's words are so graceful. When I listen to my senior pastor, he says that if you fast and pray, you will not be able to sin. However, when I listen to him, I find that I am unable to do that, and my heart would always be very heavy. But when I hear about how weak and full of shortcomings you are, Pastor Park, It gives me the heart that you are a person who is just like me.
21:23
That strengthens my heart so much." I heard this so many times from pastors who I had Bible studies with. The Passover, where the children of Israel put the blood of lambs on the side and upper doorposts of their homes and were saved, was approximately on January 14th. After they were saved, for one week, starting from January 15th, there was the Feast of Unleavened Bread. During that time, no one could put leaven in the bread. It means that after we are saved, the holy life that has nothing to do with sin must begin in us. People who do not know us well, claim that we say that since our sins are all forgiven, we can sin however much we want to from now on. There are people who say this about us, and criticize us. It is true that even though you commit sins in the future, they are forgiven. To say that, "Just because that's the case, you can sin however much you want," doesn't make sense. There are some people who say that. Some people, after they get saved, they say, "Well, since I'm saved, now I'd better not sin anymore." That also does not make sense.
22:45
One or the Other: Man, Which Only Knows These Two Options
22:52
People are so simple, that they either know this or that: only these two options. The scribes and Pharisees brought the woman taken in the act of adultery, and tried to tempt Jesus. What did they say? "Master, this woman was taken in the act of adultery. Moses, according to the law, commanded that such a person should be stoned. Master, what do you say?" Even though He were to say to stone her, He would be tripped up. And even though He were to say not to stone her, he would be tripped up as well. If Jesus were to say, "Stone her," they would have said, "You said you came to save sinners, but you are telling us to stone this woman who committed sin?" If He were to say, "Do not stone her," then they could say, "You say that you are a man of God, and yet, you break the law that God gave us?" So whether He answered this way, He would be tripped up, and whether He answered that way, He would be tripped up. They thought there was no way for Him to get out of this trap they had set in front of Jesus. Then Jesus gave a third answer. "He that is without sin among you let him first cast a stone at her." This did not mean for them to stone her, nor did it mean for them to not stone her. Isn't that correct? These people used their own methods to put Jesus into a trap. But then Jesus said words that were completely outside of their thoughts. One time, a leader of the people came to Jesus, and said, "Is it right to give taxes to the emperor of Rome or not?" At that time, Israel was a colony of Rome. The people of Israel had to pay Rome taxes that they would take to the emperor of Rome. This was a great hardship for the people of Israel. The leader of the people asked Jesus about this problem. If Jesus were to say to go ahead and pay the taxes, then it meant that He was taking Rome's side, so that would become a problem. If He were to tell them not pay the taxes, then that is rebellion against Rome, and that would trip Him up as well. It was another trap that they laid before Jesus, so that He would be tripped up. On top of that, they spoke to Jesus, acting like they were good. "Master, we know that you speak and teach well, and you do not treat people by the outside. But you only teach the true ways of God." They put Jesus on a false pedestal. After that, they revealed their true intentions. "Is it fitting that we pay taxes to Caesar or not?" Right then, Jesus said to bring a piece of Roman currency, which was a penny. As they gave the penny to Jesus, they continued to push him. "Are we to pay taxes or not? Hurry, and tell us." Jesus asked, "Whose face is on this?" They answered, "Of course, it's Caesar's face." Then Jesus answered, "Therefore, give unto Caesar, that which is Caesar's, and give unto God that which is God's." They never dreamed that this answer would be given. In this way, people only know this or that, only one out of two options, and that's it. To certain natives, who live in the jungles of Brazil, they only have two words to count their numbers. One is, "kana-kana," two is, "hari." So three is, "kanakana, hari," and four is, "hari, hari." Just as they only have two words they use to count, we only know two options. Is it okay to sin, or should we labor not to sin? That is all we know. However, Jesus has a third answer. When we read the Bible, the really interesting thing is that Jesus does not only have a third answer. He has many, many answers. If the law and the law of The Holy Spirit disappeared. The Passover represents the salvation, which 1s the moment we were delivered from sin. The Feast of Unleavened Bread, which takes place after the Passover, represents our lives that do not contain any leaven in it. In other words, we have received a pure life of a Christian that is lived only through the word, not our thoughts. After you were saved, have you ever worried or suffered because of sin? Do you think that if you are saved, it is okay to sin? Many people do not know that much when it comes to these problems. This happened a long time ago. A certain person from Busan came and asked me, "Pastor, please come to our church one time." I asked, "Why?" He replied, "Please lead us out from sin." I did not want to go, but they were begging and begging me to come just once, so I went to that church and I was shocked. There were rooms on both sides of the entrance to the chapel. On one side of the chapel, there were two deacons playing Chinese chess. The pastor was next to them, watching them play. He was giving tips to them as he was watching. Next to the church board was an ashtray, full of cigarette butts. Even to this day, I still remember that pastor's name. For a moment, I was so stunned, that I was at a complete loss for words. This pastor had been ministering, met a missionary from America, and received salvation. If he just received salvation, then is he a pastor or just an ordinary church member? In that state, you are not a pastor. If you are ordained a pastor before you received salvation, then what good would that be? Even though you are pastor, if you just received salvation, then you are just a newborn child. However, he wanted to continue to hold his title of pastor. He did not know that he was a small child, and he did not know that working as a pastor was ruining him. He preached the Gospel at his church, and people started to receive salvation. He did not know how to lead the people who got saved. He led them according to his own thoughts. During his sermon, he preached that saved people do not sin. Upon hearing that sermon, the church members said that he was right. He said, "For a long time, I used to tell many lies. After getting saved, I don't lie anymore. I quit smoking." He preached the Gospel, and people received the forgiveness of sins. Their lives were changed. The church began to grow very, very quickly. However, after about 6 months, the atmosphere of the church turned very heavy. He said that saved people do not sin, the church members, one by one, began to sin. He said that if you are saved, you do not sin. He was afraid that if he said that he also sinned, people might say that he was not saved. He could not even say those things. If his church members only sinned once in a while, then they could be encouraged again, but they sinned continually, so they lost all strength in their hearts. One day, during service time, a courageous young man stood up and spoke. "I have sinned, but I am saved." Right then, all the church members said that they were like that, too. There was nothing that this pastor could say. This time, he answered that it was okay for saved people to sin. So they don't have the law nor the law of the Holy Spirit in their hearts. As a result, people began to boldly sin. They said it was okay to smoke. They said it was okay to play Go and Chinese chess. They said, "Let's go dancing." The church said that it was okay, so they fought, lied, and even committed adultery. After service, the pastor would go out dancing with his church members, and they would go to the cabaret and drink. It quickly became a church that was criticized. In this way, Satan leads saved people in a very deceiving way, onto a path of destruction. That is why the church members need a leader. That is why, when people are saved, no matter who they are, even pastors, they need to be nourished under a true leader. The people from the church I mentioned earlier, became people who went against God and defiled the salvation of God. The Corinthian Church, Which Had Fallen into Sin After we are saved, is it okay to sin, or should we not sin? Have you ever had that question? In Leviticus chapter 2, it says to not put any leaven into the meat offering. It means that when we give ourselves to God, we are not to include sin. It means that God has not only given us the forgiveness of sins, but He has opened a certain path before us so that we can be freed from sin. In the Bible, we can see the image of the Corinthian church, which had fallen into sin. Apostle Paul pinpointed the sins that were being committed within the Corinthian church. Later on, a person who called himself a brother in the church took his father's second wife. It was his stepmother, and he committed adultery with her. Paul said that these are things that do not even occur among the Gentiles. In 1 Corinthians chapter 5, Apostle Paul says, "Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us." (1 Corinthians 5:6-7) The people of the Corinthian church were surely born again people. They did not want to commit the sin of fornication, but they ended up committing sins. There was a reason for that. Let us think about the word, "Ye are unleavened..." Let's think about the words, "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump..." Are You Righteous or a Sinner? After we are saved, we meet people who are not born again and we clash with them on the issue of either being righteous or sinners. People who strongly exert that they are sinners, their basis for this are the words of Romans chapter 3, verse 10, "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one." However, in the 66 books of the Old and New Testament, the word, "righteous," is mentioned approximately 200 times. In Romans chapter 1, verse 17, it says, "The just shall live by faith." In James chapter 5, verse 16, it says, "The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." In Genesis chapter 6, verse 9, it says, "Noah was a just man." Abraham was righteous, and Job was also righ-teous. In Psalms chapter 1, verse 6, it says, "For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish." And in Hosea chapter 14, verse 9, you'll find, "For the ways of the Lord are right, and the just shall walk in them: but the transgressors shall fall therein." I looked up the word, "righteous," in the Old and New Testaments, and it came out exactly 197 times. On the other hand, it says, "There is none righteous," only once in Romans chapter 3, verse 10. It means that people look at that one verse, and ignore the almost 200 other places in the Bible where it uses the word, "righteous." It is because Satan has blinded people's eyes. To the people who exert, "There is none righteous, no, not one," when I ask them, "Have you seen the words, 'The just shall live by faith?' most of them say they that they have. However, Satan did not allow those words to remain in their hearts. In the doctrine of the Presbyterian church, during a question and answer session about baptism, there was a question that asked, "Who was the righteous man that went through pain?" The answer to that question is Job. They heard that Job was a righteous per-son, but because it has nothing to do with them, people are unable to make that connection to themselves.
36:53
Did You Become Righteous Through Works or by Faith? Satan teaches that for man to become righteous, they must reach a certain standard. That standard is to not sin, keep all of the Ten Commandments, and live according to the words of the Bible. People then try to fulfill that standard in order to become righteous through their works. I'm sure you also experienced a time when you tried not to sin and be good in order to achieve that standard. Well, did it work out that way or not? If our labor and effort had to be included in making us righteous, then we are people who become righteous through our works. However, the Bible says that we absolutely cannot reach the standards of righteousness through our works. Therefore, there is a way for us to become righteous not by our works, but through faith. The way to become righteous through works is to establish a standard of righteousness, and try to make yourself reach that standard. You must not lie. You must not steal. You must no commit adultery. You must not commit murder. We must keep every word in the Bible, never sin at all, and then we reach that level. A person who has no flaws in anyone's eyes, whatsoever, is a person who has become righteous through his works. However, there is no human, whose works are perfect. There is not a single person who can become righteous through his works. That is why God opened a way for us to become righteous through faith and not by works. This is the path to becoming righteous by faith and accepting the work Jesus has done as our own, regardless of what our works are. With your own works, you can never arrive at righteousness. However, by faith, we accept the works of Jesus as our own. Therefore, becoming righteous through faith in Jesus has nothing to do with your works. Whether we steal, commit adultery, or murder, regardless of our own works, we have accepted what Jesus has done as our own works and can gain the righteousness of Jesus. That is why we can say we are righteous. That is how all people become righteous. People, who do not accept the righteous. ness of Jesus as their own, are people who cannot get saved. On the other hand, no matter what your actions are, people who receive the righteousness of Jesus as their own, receive salvation. What is the reason that people do not receive sal-vation? It is because they do not accept Jesus' righteousness as their own, and they continually try to obtain righteousness through their works. Therefore, righteousness is never obtained in their hearts. I have talked to you about the difference between becoming righteous through works and becoming righteous by faith. People who are saved by faith know that their works are completely irrelevant. If I take a train to Seoul, no matter how much of a piece of junk my car is, it does not matter. On the other hand, if I'm driving my car to Seoul, whether the railroads are all disconnected, or the trains are missing wheels, does not matter. In the same way, if I go to heaven with the righteousness of Jesus, it does not matter how my righteousness is. If I go to heaven through my righteousness, the righteousness of Jesus does not matter. Becoming righteous through our works is us becoming righteous by being good. Becoming righteous by faith is through accepting the righteousness Jesus achieved for us, even though we did not do righteously. Even Though You Are Saved, the Reason Your Works Are Still Not Perfect I was saved a very long time ago. There must be people who are saved today. To make what we are talking about more interesting, suppose that we are all saved. Now I will give you a problem. Did you receive salvation because your works were good and right? Or did you receive salvation regardless of your works? The answer is that you were saved by faith. Surely, you were saved by faith. If so, then why are a saved person's works still, just like before, not perfect? If we were saved through our works, then there would be a need for our works to be changed. Then, if our works were bad, there would be a real reason for us to doubt our salvation. However, the salvation received by faith has nothing to do with our works. Our works still remain at the bottom. And therefore, if you say that I am righteous because I am saved, people say that you're arrogant and even go as far as calling you a heretic. But, even though your works are evil, if you say that you are righteous, it does not fit their thoughts at all. If you do not know the will and promise of God, it is only natural to think that way. We got saved, we have no sins, and we were made righteous. However, with our works we could commit sins. If so, how are we to interpret and understand that? One: a saved person does not sin. Two: it is okay for a saved person to sin. Three: neither. Everyone, which one is you? Should we be trying not to sin? Or is it okay to sin? To teach us about this, God gave us the Feast of Unleavened Bread. If we say that we have no sin, people respond, "That person thinks it's okay to commit sins." There are also people who speak against us saying, "Those are people who say you can go to heaven, even if you have committed sins." Throughout my ministry, I have met many different kinds of people. I have met people who say they heard the Gospel from me, and received salvation. I have also met people who say they received a lot of grace after receiving salvation. There are people, who say, 'In the Bible, it says to obey one another, so Pastor Park, you should obey me." I have really met all kinds of different people. I really think preciously of our brothers and sisters in the church. When they go to work, they hear, "You're into your church too much." When they come to church, they are scolded saying, "You are not crumbled down enough." However, they still, always come to church, and listen to the word. During the retreat season, they get days off from their work, which is very difficult to do. They attend and receive a lot of grace. They listen to many hours of sermons, and even though you may tell them, "You may get up and leave now," they still do not want to get up and leave. We see that they have fallen deeply into listening to the word. If you were to release 500 people in the world into one place, many different problems would arise. I once heard a highranking officer from the Army say, "No matter how strictly you discipline soldiers, the effects only last one day. After one day, there will be soldiers who go around stealing food and getting drunk. There are all kinds of different soldiers." But it's so amazing to see these people, who are attending our retreats, keeping the order like this. We can see that this is only because the Holy Spirit is ruling over them. Regardless of our works, we got saved through receiving the righteousness of Jesus. That is why, even after salvation, we continue to be humanistic, and fleshly thoughts continue to arise from within us. If we did get saved through our works, then even after receiving salvation our works would be perfect, and there still would not be many problems. However, because we were saved by faith, even though we are righteous, our works still remain ugly and not perfect in any way. It is the problem of a born again and saved saint to figure out how to take care of this. To Be Freed from Sin God wants to teach us how saved saints must live from now on. So He gave us the Feast of Unleavened Bread. During the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which starts the day after the Passover, all the people must eat unleavened bread. It also says that you shall not put the leaven into the meat offering. So, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, where you eat bread with no leaven, and give the meat offering also with from sin. no leaven, is explaining to us how we live a life, being freed It is easy for many people, who became freed from the pain and fear of sin, to enter a state of indulgence afterwards. In reality, there are lots of people like this. I will read from 1 Corinthians 5:1-7. "It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife. And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:" It tells us what Apostle Paul said we should do to fornica-tors. To take care of the problem of sin when the sin of fornication entered into the Corinthian church, Paul said this: "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:" In these words, it says that you are people without leaven. "Purge out therefore the old leaven." Isn't that weird? You are unleavened. So what leaven is there to be purged out? If a person receives salvation, comes to church, but continues to fornicate, then that person should not be accepted. Such a person should be kicked out of the church. However, Paul also talks about accepting people who have made mistakes. The true cause of them falling inside of sin is not that they were lacking in determination or effort in trying not to sin. It is because there is one thing that they do not know. Apostle Paul discovered what that one thing is. There are saints who commit sins after receiving salvation. They were very embarrassed to have committed those sins. They were very afraid of their flaws being revealed to the church, and to the brothers and sisters. They labor once again not to sin. But just because we labor not to sin, it does not mean we will be that way. We do this because we have not realized one thing: that we commit sins. In other words, through realizing one truth, you become able to overcome sin. "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:" (1 Corinthians 5:7) Let us talk about these words in a little more detail. Suppose a person lied, pick-pocketed, stole, and committed adultery. What should this person do to not commit such sins? If a prostitute lives in a brothel, how can she not commit adultery? If a pickpocket belongs to a pickpocketing organization, how could he not do such things? If a thief lives in a den of thieves, how would he be able to keep from being a thief? For a pickpocket to not pickpocket, he should not try to be strongwilled or increase his determination. He must first become freed from where such people are gathered. This is very, very obvious. While he is staying there, for him to cry and be determined not to be a pickpocket is completely pointless. He must first come out of there. "I better not lie. I better not hate. I better not commit adultery." We are not supposed to become more determined, and strongwilled to not commit sins. You must first become freed from the power of sin. To live a life free from sin, you must first receive the forgiveness of sins through faith. And your heart must be moved to a position of righteousness. Then your heart can be freed from sin. The next important thing is our lives. When Jesus was crucified on the cross, not only was He punished for our sins, but He also destroyed sin. It means He defeated the power of sin. Sin has a strong power. Just like if a person gets typhoid, he will have a fever and his hair will fall out. If a person gets leprosy, his eyebrows fall off, and his nose collapses. When we catch the disease of sin, the heart of wanting to lie, steal, hate, and commit adultery arises inside of us. When Jesus was crucified on the cross, He not only bore all the sins we committed and then resolved them, He also freed us from the power of sin that used to drag us around. This means that He has completely freed us from sin. Sin Shall Not Have Dominion Over You In Romans 6:14, the word says that sin shall not have dominion over you. Everyone, do you believe that this is the precise word of God? How amazing are these words that sin has no dominion over us? From the day Adam and Eve ate from the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, everyone who has lived on this earth became servants of sin. They do not commit sins because they want to commit sins. They are dragged around by sin. And therefore, whether they want to or not, they commit sin. In Romans chapter 7, Apostle Paul says that we continue to sin even if we do not want to commit sins. Then he said that it is not we who are sinning, but the sin inside of us that is causing us to commit sin. "For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me." (Romans 7:15-17) So, it is sin that drags us around and makes us lie, steal, commit adultery, and commit murder. That's what makes us commit all kinds of sins. Until Jesus Christ came to this earth, even though man had the freedom to commit sins, man did not have the freedom to not commit sins. All people do not sin because they want to sin. Even though they do not want to sin, because they are tied to sin, they cannot help but to. A long time ago, I was scolded very badly by the missionary who used to train me. Once, I was riding on the bus with the missionary on the way to Apkokdong. There was no place to sit, so we stood. On the way there, a seat became available, so I had the missionary sit there and I continued to stand. But then, there was a person who began to search my bag, which was on the shelf. So, I went close to that person, tugged his sleeve, and smiled at him. But I guess that person looked at me, and assumed that I was a pickpocket just like him. Maybe that is what I look like, but he told me, "This is not even my territory, but I was out here pickpocketing. I apologize." He apologized to me. Inside the shaky bus, we talked. At first, I did not tell him that I was a person who believed in Jesus, but I just told him that a long time ago, I had served a bad master and I did many bad things under him. I told him that now I have a good master, and I don't live like that anymore. Right then, he pulled out a cigarette and handed me one. We were talking so I did not refuse it, but just held it in my hand. He was about to light his cigarette, but I did not care and continued to speak to him. I said, "I'm a person who believes in Jesus. You, too, should believe in Jesus." After talking for a good while, we arrived at Apkokdong, where we needed to get off. When I told that person, "I need to get off here." He said, "One more stop is Gwonbin. I want to treat you at a little store there. Why don't we get off at the next stop?" I told him, "No, it's okay," and I was about to get off at Apkokdong, but there was a cigarette in my hand. I did not know what to do with it. There was an old man sitting in the front who smoked a lot, so I handed him the cigarette. The missionary saw me do that. He then said to me, "You should have given him a flier. Why did you give him a ciga-rette?" and he harshly scolded me. I could not make any excuses because I was caught in the act. Because the missionary does not know everything that happens on the bus, I guess he thought that I give out cigarettes whenever I meet people. He scolded me, and said, "Hurry up and change that bad habit of yours." At that time, I was so grieved, that I could not speak English. If I were good at English, I would have said to the missionary, "From now. on, I will hand out fliers, and I will never hand out cigarettes." But it was the first time in my life to be scolded that badly. I thought it would not be good for the missionary to see me give it to him, so I tried to give it to him very quickly. However, the missionary saw me. Satan creates these kinds of subtle incidents in our lives to lead us to sin. However, because we are saved by believing in the blood of Jesus Christ, regardless of our actions, we are righteous. Additionally, because Jesus has gotten rid of the power of Satan that leads our hearts, sin can no longer have dominion over us. Suppose you were Satan. When there's someone who receives salvation and wants to live a new life of faith, you would probably have bitterness and jealousy arise in your heart. You would try to make that person fall into sin, just like before. However, now sin can no longer drag us around. It means that sin can no longer drag us around to make us steal, lie, commit adultery, or commit murder. The Virgin in the Field, and the Virgin Who Lives in the City God has made it so that Satan can no longer have dominion over our lives. Even so, Satan tries to deceive us in order to lock us in sin. The Bible says, "Sin shall not have dominion over you." But Satan says, "Sin can have dominion over you. Why not? It can have dominion over you. You have a hateful heart. Don't you have the desire to steal other peo. ple's stuff?" Desires for sin arise in us and Satan whispers to us. People hear those words, and say, "Yeah, that's right. The Bible says that sin cannot have dominion over us. But sin is still dragging me around." And people are deceived. In Deuteronomy, it says that if a man rapes a woman that is espoused to marry another man, the rapist shall be stoned to death and the woman shall not be put to death. Because out in the field, even if the woman cried out loudly, no one will come to help her. However, it says that if such a thing happens in the city, then both of them should be stoned and put to death. This is because when the man is trying to rape her, the woman can scream and receive help from the people around her. The fact that she did not scream means that the woman had agreed to that sin. That is why she, too, should be stoned to death. Out in the field, even if you scream, no one will come and help you. However, if you scream in the city, then the person would run away. That is the difference. Before being saved, you are the virgin out in the field. That is why when sin comes and drags us around, there is nobody who can save us even though we scream and struggle. But after salvation, you are the virgin inside the city. If you want to, you are more than capable of overcoming sin. Before being saved, you were servants of sin, and sin had dominion over you. After being saved, sin can never have any kind of dominion over you. After salvation, you must agree to sin for it to come about. Before you were saved, Satan dragged you around by sin. However, after salvation, He will never accept His children, who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, being dragged around by sin. God said that the power of sin is destroyed, therefore sin can no longer have dominion over you. On the contrary, Satan says, "Sin cannot have dominion over you, but how are you any different from before?" Satan deceives us to make us think that we have not changed since the times sin had dominion over us. That deceives us, and we end up committing sin like we used to. That is exactly like the sins that occurred in the church of Corinth. That's why Apostle Paul told them, "You are unleavened." Because sin cannot have dominion over you, the Bible says, "Purge out the old leaven." It means to throw away the old leaven, meaning our old habits. Before receiving salvation, sin led us around strongly. But, after we were born again, we still receive the same temptation of sins. If we stand inside of faith, sin can no longer have dominion over us. That is what you will experience. The Feast of the Unleavened Bread, which is held after the Passover, shows us how Christians should live after receiving salvation. Even after we receive salvation, as we grow under the guidance of the church and His servant, Satan will continue to tempt us to try and make us fall. To not become a pickpocket you must come out from the den of pickpockets. It is not that we should labor or try hard not to sin, but we must become free from the power of sin. The person who lives in the den of pickpockets, whether he wants to or not, must pickpocket. However, a person who has at least come out of the den of pickpockets, if he does it because he wants to, you can't do much about that. But if he doesn't want to, he is more than able to not do it. If the prostitute remains in the brothel, then regardless of her own will she must commit adultery. However, if she becomes freed from the brothel, she may commit adultery if she wants to, but if she does not want to, she is able to not commit adultery. When we got saved, God freed us from all sins. Also, God freed us from its power. Because we are no longer people bound to the power of sin, there is no need for us to be dragged around by sin anymore. Now we can truly live a holy life, and we have become people tied down to the Holy Spirit of God. Many people become freed from their old lustful and dirty life after receiving salvation. We can see their lives changing to become holy. It's not because that person was more diligent, or loved the Lord more. It is because the Holy Spirit has broken the chains of sin that used to drag him around. Some people, even after receiving salvation, continue to live a sinful life. God has already freed that person from the power of sin. But he is deceived by Satan, and still thinks that he is tied to sin. So, he just lives, being tied to sin. We Must Believe That We Are People Without Leaven We are the holy children of God. We, like Jesus Christ, are glorious children of God. Just as God Himself is holy, He has told us to be holy. God has made it so that we can live holy. Is there anybody among you who still has not quit drinking? God has made it so that drinking cannot have dominion over you. After receiving salvation, is there anybody who still has not quit smoking? After receiving salvation, there is nothing that can have dominion over you. Whether it is stealing, or is there anyone who still has their old habits of hating other people? Everyone, do not try to stop doing those things. Realize the fact that you have already broken free from that. We must know that sin can no longer have dominion over us. We are freed from sin. In the past, we were tied down to sin. Even though we did not want to commit sins, we had to. The freedom to not commit sins was not inside of us. However, it has changed now. Now, we have the freedom not to commit sins. Even though we have changed, Satan deceives and condemns us as if we have not changed at all. "What's so changed about you? Your desires are still there. You have filthy thoughts in your heart." That is what Satan says. Even though all of our sins have been forgiven, Satan deceives us, telling us that they are not all forgiven; only our original sins are forgiven. In the same way, that is how deceitful Satan also exists in our daily lives. If you look in Exodus chapter 12, after the Israelites received salvation during the Passover, through the blood of the lamb, the Feast of Unleavened Bread can start. In Leviticus chapter 2, it says do not put the leaven inside of the meat offering. That is because as we live our life being led by the Holy Spirit, do not include the sin of your heart into it. It is not that we should work to refrain from committing sins. By believing that God has made us free from the entrapment of sin, we can be freed from sin. If a virgin is raped by a man in the field, no matter how much she screams, there is no man to save her. If she screams when she is raped in the city, someone can save her. If she was raped in the city, not only did she not scream, it means that she agreed to the desires of the man. Unless we agree to sin, sin cannot violate us. God is clearly telling us that in the Bible, God has more than enough power to deliver us from sin. The Bible says to not put leaven into the meat offering. Let us no longer be tied down to our old image. It means to throw away your sinful life. Jesus Christ, the Lamb of the Passover, went through the sacrifice. You may have received salvation, but are you struggling because of sin that nobody knows about? You are this way because you have been deceived. The blood of Christ has made you holy and I hope you will believe that you are people without leaven. From then on, I hope that you would become people who live a life that has nothing to do with sin by faith. We no longer need to labor not to commit sins. You do not need to try and fight and defeat sin. Jesus has already fought against sin, and He was victorious. The Lord has destroyed the power of sin. All we have to do is accept the things that Jesus has accomplished by faith. No matter what kind of life you have lived until now, Jesus has freed us from sin. Sin can no longer have dominion over us. I hope that by believing this fact inside of your heart, you can begin to live a holy life and give that life to God.
End of chapter
Shall Be Unleavened
Ch. 3 / 3
0:00
−69:37
15
30
Speed
1×
Ch. 3
/ 3
0.75×
1×
1.25×
1.5×
Stay Connected
The week, in your inbox.
Sermon recaps, prayer needs, and events — every week.
Email address
Subscribe
Shall Be Unleavened — Meat Offering | Good News Orlando
