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\u201cOur Father who is in Heaven!\u201d
\nJune 16, 2024<\/p>\n
In the book, \u201cWhat\u2019s So Amazing About Grace\u201d by Philip Yancey, there is a story about a man named Will Campbell who worked for the abolition of racism in the 1960s. He is a Mississippi native from the South who faced much opposition and attack for his work in support of Dr. Martin Luther King\u2019s civil rights movement.<\/p>\n
A newspaper reported named East, who had been unable to understand Will\u2019s Christian faith, once challenged him with this question. \u201cKeep it simple. In ten words or less, what\u2019s the Christian message?\u201d In response to that question, Will said.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019re all bastards but God loves us anyway.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\nEast did not say what he thought of these words, nor did he change his expression, but Will\u2019s words did strike a chord in East\u2019s heart. Will did not know. East grew up without knowing his father and has had a hard time with it ever since he was born. The words Will chose not only had a shock effect, but were theologically correct.<\/p>\n
\u201dWe are all parentless bastards.\u201d<\/p>\n
I know there are some who will be repulsed by these words. I know some of you may take these words literally and think, \u201cI have parents\u201d. Some may think, \u201cDon\u2019t call people bastards\u201d so lightly. But here is what Campbell is trying to say.\u201dWe all don\u2019t know the True Father and we don\u2019t live according to His heart. But God still loves us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Who is the True Father?<\/p>\n
Our True Father is the One who gave us to our parents. In this sense, He is truly our Heavenly Father. Keeping this in mind today, on Father\u2019s Day, I would like to talk about God our Heavenly Father.<\/p>\n
Some 3500 years ago, an Israelite leader named Moses received the Ten Commandments from God at Mount Sinai. Within the Ten Commandments is the commandment, \u201cYou shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Israelites who received these Ten Commandments took these words literally.<\/p>\n
In other words, to their own God, they no longer called that being \u201cGod\u201d. They accepted is as a truly fearful thing to even invoke that name. Many years had passed since then, and because of this they do not even know what to call God.<\/p>\n
Jesus Christ appeared among them and began to call their God, a name that had been forgotten, \u201cFather\u201d. People could no longer forgive Jesus for calling God, \u201cFather\u201d when they were too afraid to even speak the name \u201cGod\u201d themselves. John records this matter in the following manner.<\/p>\n
John 5:18,\u00a0<\/sup>For this reason they tried all the more to kill him;\u00a0not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.<\/strong><\/p>\nLikewise, what the Jewish leaders said regarding Jesus\u2019 words being worthy of death is recorded in John 19:7, \u201cHe must die,\u00a0because he claimed to be the Son of God.\u201d As clearly stated here, the fact that Jesus took God as His Father and Himself as the Son of God was one of the things that drove Him to the cross of Calvary.<\/p>\n
A few weeks or so ago, I told you that Jesus gave His life to speak of His \u201csecond coming, that He would come again, to this world.\u201d In the same way, Jesus \u201ccalled God the Father,\u201d and he put His life on the line for that as well.<\/p>\n
What is even more amazing is that Jesus did not just call God, Father, but called out, \u201cAbba, Father\u201d. Hours before His crucifixion, Jesus was in deep agony that He was sweating blood and His voice was strained as He prayed the following.<\/p>\n
Mark 14:36,\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cAbba,\u00a0Father,\u201d\u00a0he said,\u00a0\u201ceverything is possible for you. Take this cup\u00a0from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\nThis \u201cAbba\u201d is an Aramaic word used among Jews. These are the words a young child says while sitting on his father\u2019s lap, \u201cDaddy, Otouchan, Appa\u201d Paul writes something remarkable about this \u201cAbba\u201d that Jesus called out.<\/p>\n
Romans 8:15, The Spirit\u00a0you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again;\u00a0rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.\u00a0And by him we cry,\u00a0\u201cAbba,\u00a0Father.\u201d\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\nThe Bible says to me and to you that we can call this God, \u201cDaddy, Otouchan, Appa!\u201d<\/p>\n
When my children were small, we often went to a neighborhood park. There, many children were playing freely. The park had a sandbox, and benches surrounding it, where parents sat and watched their children with kind eyes.<\/p>\n
One day, a boy was making a sand pile using a toy shovel in the sandbox. He was trying his best to stay engaged in it, but every once in a while he would look up as if remembering something, and look in a certain direction. His father was at the end of his gaze. When the boy confirmed that his father was there, he was relieved and created another sand pile. This was repeated several times.<\/p>\n
When the child got tired of playing with the sand, he started playing something else. At that time, he hit his head on a piece of playground equipment. It seemed to hurt him quite a bit that he was about to cry.<\/p>\n
The moment he hit his head, the child immediately looked for his father. Then, with tears in his eyes, he walked up to his father and said, \u201cDaddy\u201d. No, before he could walk up to him, his father saw the child, ran to his own son, and hugged him.<\/p>\n
Dear people, our Christian life is like this child playing in a sandbox. We live there with our own thoughts. In that place, at any time, the Bible says, we too can call God the Father, \u201cDaddy\u201d.<\/p>\n
What do you think God is like? Is He the One who is always watching you strictly? Is He the One who is counting every mistake you make in detail? No, you can run up to Him at any time and say, \u201cDaddy, Otouchan, Appa\u201d. That is the God the Father that we believe in.<\/p>\n
A couple weeks ago, I spoke about Paul\u2019s own readiness for the church. In other words, it is what is written in Galatians 4:19.<\/p>\n
Galatians 4:19, My dear children,\u00a0for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you,<\/strong><\/p>\nPaul says here, \u201cuntil Christ is formed in you\u201d. What does it mean to \u201chave Christ formed in us?\u201d It means that we, like Christ, make ourselves God\u2019s children, and like Jesus, we recover that Father-child relationship, a heart that longs and seeks God in heaven as our Abba.<\/p>\n
I have children as well, but if they were to get nervous every time they see me, and were to be ruled by fear, then I think I would become very uncomfortable to be with them. If it means that when they see me, they sit on their knees with backs straightened saying \u201cHonorable Father,\u201d that would not be pleasing to me. I would wonder. \u201cWhy are you being so formal?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I don\u2019t do something good, I won\u2019t be accepted by God. If I don\u2019t become acceptable to God, I cannot become a Christian. I cannot become a child of God.\u201d Dear People, we must get serious, and free ourselves from this spell (cursed thinking). The fact that the child is a child, that alone qualifies them to be loved by their father.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nAs many of you know, I was raised by my mother. To borrow the words I spoke earlier, I am truly a child who has never known his father. My father went to heaven soon after I was born. Hence, I have no memories of being hugged by my father, touching his rough post-shaven skin, or hanging on to his thick arms.<\/p>\n
However, God is true. I never lived with my father, but I had a \u201cFather\u201d to call my own. And at my age, I think that even my mother, who has already been called to heaven, had a \u201cFather\u201d that she could call her own. In other words, we, mother and child, had a common \u201cFather\u201d to rely on. We, mother and child, were saved, because through Jesus Christ giving up His life to call God, \u201cAbba,\u201d we too were allowed to call that same One as \u201cFather\u201d.<\/p>\n
I visited Japan with my family in May. On our first Sunday there, we worshiped at the Tokyo Chuo Church in Shinjuku. It is the church where my Korean father and Japanese mother were married on April 2, 1968. And, exactly 30 years later, on April 2, 1998, Mika and I were also married in that church. My parents were married in this church and later moved to Seoul, where I was born.<\/p>\n
Three days after visiting this church, we flew to Seoul. It was to meet my older brothers and their families there. My father\u2019s previous wife died, and my father\u2019s side of the family had four children, including two older brothers who are still in Seoul. Being able to have these older brothers and their families meet my family was the highlight of the trip.<\/p>\n
Why did my Korean father and Japanese mother get married in 1968, at a time when the situation between Japan and Korea was difficult? As I looked into this matter, it led me to my grandfather.<\/p>\n
My grandfather, Lee Myong Jik, studied at the seminary in Japan where I studied, returned to Korea, and there, he was involved in founding a seminary and what is now the Korea Evangelical Holiness Church.<\/p>\n
My grandfather\u2019s university is still in Seoul, and I visited that university on this occasion. I was able to meet with professors who have been researching my grandfather, and with the president of the university I don\u2019t remember my grandfather, but by the grace of the Lord, it seems that he made some contribution to the Christian community at that time.\u3002And his son, Lee Sou Kei, would be my father.<\/p>\n
Through this visit to Korea, I learned things about this grandfather\u2019s son, my father, that I did not know before. According to my brother and nephew, my father used to fight as a professional boxer in Japan. For me at the age of 55, it was quite a surprise to learn about my father\u2019s career, which I had not known before.<\/p>\n
It was 1945, just as World War II ended, and my father was 23 years old. When I looked into it, I found that with the end of the war, there were many boxing events sponsored by the Korean Residents League of Japan and consolations for the U.S. Occupation Forces. My father may have been in the ring in Japan during that time period.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
At the time, my father was seen as the son of Lee Myong Jik. I am sure that wherever he went, he was called, \u201cLee Myong Jik\u2019s son\u201d. How many times was he asked, \u201cAre you going to follow in your father\u2019s footsteps?\u201d However, my father went to Japan and became a professional boxer.<\/p>\n
In Japanese, pastor is called \u201cBokushi\u201d. My father did not follow in my grandfather\u2019s footsteps, but became a \u201cBokusa\u201d (Boxer). Word-wise, it is the difference between \u201cshi\u201d and \u201csa,\u201d but the difference in significant.<\/p>\n
I have a desire to meet my father and ask him why he became a boxer. My grandfather lectured at the seminary. He stood in the pulpit every week for worship services. Even though my father saw this up close and personal, he continued to punch sandbags in Japan . . .<\/p>\n
When I spoke with elderly Korean pastors who knew my grandfather, they all said in unison, \u201cYour grandfather was a saint.\u201d They all said, \u201cBecause he was involved in theological education and the beginnings of the Korean Holiness Church, and poured all his time and possessions into it.\u201d However, no one mentioned the family behind that grandfather at that time.<\/p>\n
Did the hard life he was forced to lead behind the scenes make my father turn to the boxing ring? What was on his mind as he continued to hit the sandbag? Why did my father leave Seoul for Japan?<\/p>\n
Without actually hearing that feeling from my father, I would not know his heart, but when I heard about it, I was reminded of the parable of the prodigal son that Jesus told. I thought my father left home to turn his back on my grandfather, who sacrificed everything for the sake of evangelism and the seminary, and to establish the denomination. I have a great respect for my grandfather. I think what he accomplished was extraordinary. But needless to say, no one is perfect.<\/p>\n
Today, there are those of you here who are called fathers. I am also one of them.\u00a0 I am sure you have gritted your teeth to provide for your families. However, we are not perfect.<\/p>\n
I think that sometimes what we do with the best of intentions \u00a0actually becomes the source of the family\u2019s troubles. We are the only ones who do not know.<\/p>\n
Fathers are mentioned in the Bible. Many of them lived truthfully before God. In their homes, however, they had many troubles. Adam, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, David, and Solomon, Their family troubles were serious, and in David\u2019s case, his own son tried to kill him. David himself said.<\/p>\n
2 Samuel 3:39, And today, though I am the anointed king, I am weak,<\/strong><\/p>\nThey must have hoped to be good leaders among their people and good fathers at the same time. But they are human beings just like us. It was very difficult to make both of these things come true. Brothers in the Lord, we may overlap with this image of them.<\/p>\n
But here is the Good News. We have the potential to be better fathers than we are now. However, there is one condition for this to happen.<\/p>\n
It is a heart that knows its own imperfections and humbly tries to learn. Who will we learn from? From God our Father. From Jesus Christ. From the Holy Spirit.<\/p>\n
I think the hardest thing for us men to do is to become teachable men. In our own way, we are doing our best, so changing our way of life feels like a defeat. We have the pride of saying, \u201cWe have come this far.\u201d But how does that \u201cwe have come this far\u201d look in the eyes of our Heavenly Father?<\/p>\n
To have one\u2019s way of life changed by this Father does not mean defeat. This attempt is not a defeat, but the beginning of our real victory. This victory is given to those who recognize their imperfections.<\/p>\n
My father, then after, took of the gloves, and became a pastor. The Korean War breaking out in 1950 seems to have been one of the triggers for this. As a boxer, he may have come to the realization that there is no resolution in punching down his enemies.<\/p>\n
And in the midst of all this, I am sure that my father met the Heavenly Appa (Daddy). I imagine . . . that this saved my father And I imagine that my grandfather must have found comfort in this fact and was saved. I am now looking forward to hearing from my father and grandfather about this matter at leisure when I get to heaven.<\/p>\n
Fathers, we cannot receive respect from our families by buying it with money or showing off our power. In this sense, it is extremely difficult for us to remain fathers and husbands. However, we have hope. It is to learn from our Father who is in heaven from this day forward.<\/p>\n
As a brother in the Lord and a family leader, why don\u2019t you come here every Sunday with your wife and children. Unburden yourself here of the burden you carry, and confirm each week that you are a child of God the Father. Let us take to heart each week that God the Father has given you a wife and entrusted you with your children. Confirm that you are indeed in the Father\u2019s sight, and return back to your homes and workplaces.<\/p>\n
There is only one way to reach a great goal. Many of us forget what that is, and dream only of that goal. The way to reach a great goal is to keep on doing what you need to do on the road to get there. We are to learn diligently how to live a fatherly life, as our Heavenly Father teaches us. Then, we receive the inexhaustible blessings and wisdom that our Heavenly Father gives us and generously give it all back to our families. Brothers in the Lord, what better legacy can we leave to our loved ones?<\/p>\n
The world may praise you for the successes in your work. They may be awed by the status you have risen to and your wealth. Right now, you may be frantically pursuing those things. However, there is no greater medal we can receive than to have our own child think, \u201cI\u2019m glad I am my father\u2019s child.\u201d<\/p>\n
If anyone makes some kind of a decision today, June 16, 2024, I return all the glory to my Heavenly Father. Our Father in heaven will not withhold anything from us in continuing to teach us how to be a father. Let us live in the tender eyes of our Heavenly Father, who watches over us and desires nothing but the best for us. Together, in humility, let us ask our Father to teach us how to live.<\/p>\n
On this Father\u2019s Day, may the grace and blessings of our Heavenly Father be poured out in abundance on all fathers and their families throughout the world.<\/p>\n
Let us pray.<\/p>\n
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