The church is a place where we can show an image of the unseen God to the world, but it is often subject to criticism. Christians who aren't able to fulfill their duties as a believer are responsible for the criticism. Another reason for the criticism it receives is the misconceptions of the church that have long been embedded in people's minds.
The first misconception VIPs have of Christians is that 'Christians are fanatics'. They can be seen as a group of people that are excessively involved in the church.
The second misconception is that 'Christians are pitiful people'. To them, Christians are always begging for God to bless them. Thirdly, Christians are misunderstood as being 'hypocritical'. Their actions are different to their words and they are different inside and out.
The media, such as the internet, has had an influence in creating the misconceptions and some TV shows and documentaries tend to focus on negative images of the church. We as Christians are also individually responsible. We have failed to show the world how happy we are as a Christian. Our mokjangs are a place for us to show the true image of the church to those who have never been and never will go to church because of the misconceptions and prejudice they have of the church. Therefore, our mokjangs should display the following three to our VIPs:
First, we need to show that we are not fanatic Christians but are dedicated to our everyday lives. Honestly share with others the battles you have faced in the past week, including what you are grateful for in the midst of it all. This shows that you are not only devoted to church-related activities but also to your family and career.
Secondly, we need to show that Christians are not pitiful, but very happy people. Our desperate prayers to God does not make us unfortunate, but through it, God's power is revealed and we need to be able to share prayer topics, small and big, that have been answered, in our mokjang gatherings. When people experience the power of answered prayers, they realise that the piteous prayers are in fact a pathway to happiness that reveals God's power.
Thirdly, a mokjang is a place where we can show that Christians aren't hypocritical. We must try our utmost best to serve others wholeheartedly, avoid exaggeration and deceit in our speech, and keep others' secrets and keep promises.
The above should come naturally in mokjangs that are running the way they should be, because people experience things in a mokjang that Christians who only come to church with a mask on, concealing themselves, cannot imagine. I hope that there are many VIPs that are able to resolve their misconceptions of God through mokjangs at Crystal Church and experience happiness in their lives as Christians.
This week's message
Our faith does not grow by thinking, but by praying. If you lack training in prayer, it's difficult to pray by yourself at home. I suggest coming to either the Wednesday prayer service or Saturday dawn service and training yourself to pray.
NB: The column was written based on an article written by Vancouver Sarang Church's Pastor Lee Eunjin
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김지나 2018.11.03 05:33
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The church is a place where we can show an image of the unseen God to the world, but it is often subject to criticism. Christians who aren't able to fulfill their duties as a believer are responsible for the criticism. Another reason for the criticism it receives is the misconceptions of the church that have long been embedded in people's minds.
The first misconception VIPs have of Christians is that 'Christians are fanatics'. They can be seen as a group of people that are excessively involved in the church.
The second misconception is that 'Christians are pitiful people'. To them, Christians are always begging for God to bless them. Thirdly, Christians are misunderstood as being 'hypocritical'. Their actions are different to their words and they are different inside and out.
The media, such as the internet, has had an influence in creating the misconceptions and some TV shows and documentaries tend to focus on negative images of the church. We as Christians are also individually responsible. We have failed to show the world how happy we are as a Christian. Our mokjangs are a place for us to show the true image of the church to those who have never been and never will go to church because of the misconceptions and prejudice they have of the church. Therefore, our mokjangs should display the following three to our VIPs:
First, we need to show that we are not fanatic Christians but are dedicated to our everyday lives. Honestly share with others the battles you have faced in the past week, including what you are grateful for in the midst of it all. This shows that you are not only devoted to church-related activities but also to your family and career.
Secondly, we need to show that Christians are not pitiful, but very happy people. Our desperate prayers to God does not make us unfortunate, but through it, God's power is revealed and we need to be able to share prayer topics, small and big, that have been answered, in our mokjang gatherings. When people experience the power of answered prayers, they realise that the piteous prayers are in fact a pathway to happiness that reveals God's power.
Thirdly, a mokjang is a place where we can show that Christians aren't hypocritical. We must try our utmost best to serve others wholeheartedly, avoid exaggeration and deceit in our speech, and keep others' secrets and keep promises.
The above should come naturally in mokjangs that are running the way they should be, because people experience things in a mokjang that Christians who only come to church with a mask on, concealing themselves, cannot imagine. I hope that there are many VIPs that are able to resolve their misconceptions of God through mokjangs at Crystal Church and experience happiness in their lives as Christians.
This week's message
Our faith does not grow by thinking, but by praying. If you lack training in prayer, it's difficult to pray by yourself at home. I suggest coming to either the Wednesday prayer service or Saturday dawn service and training yourself to pray.
NB: The column was written based on an article written by Vancouver Sarang Church's Pastor Lee Eunjin