"I will bless you. You will be a blessing!"
- Believe Active ! –
Genesis 12:2-3: "I will make you a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who blessyou, and wohever curses you I will curse; and all people on earth will beblessed through you.”
God says to you: "I will bless you. You will be a blessing!"
This word enables us to active in faith. "Action in Faith!” means: "God began to work in you, and you need to act accordingly.”
Abraham was born in Ur and grew up there. His father moved then with his wife and his children to Haran. Abraham’s father and his relatives worshiped gods. The worship of gods is a sin to hell. God began his work in Abraham’s life. In order to use him, he called and kept him in God’s plan and purpose. It was God’s salvation for Abraham. He commanded Abraham to leave his hometown and home country, and go to the land of Canaan with his wife.
God gave him a promise of His blessing: "I will make you a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and wohever curses you I will curse; and all people on earth will be blessed through you.”
Simply the promise of God’s blessing meant: "I want to bless you. You should be a blessing for all people on earth."
In realty, this promise of God’s blessing was fulfilled through the gospel of Christ. Thus the promise of God’s blessing means: "I will bless you through the gospel of Christ. Through the gospel of Christ you will be a blessing for many people "(s. Acts. 3:25; Rom 9:7-8). God gave the blessed promise to Abraham. Abraham believed in God’s blessed promise. And his faith in God gave him courage and strength to leave his homeland and friends, and to migrate to a foreign country. When Abraham had arrived with his wife in the land of Canaan, God said to him: "I will give this land to your descendants." The land was however already occupied by the native people completely. But Abraham believed simply in God’s promise and built thanksgiving-altars for God: one in Shechem and one in Bethel (12:6-8). Abraham had come not as a gold-searcher to Canaan, but because of God’s mission as a blessing. Abraham and his wife were missionaries in its truest sense. Abraham had language difficulties in the new world. He was also fearful of hatred by native inhabitants. Isaac was a kind of the second generation. He had no language difficulties, but was nonetheless subject to the hatred by the native inhabitants. Isaac learned the Bible from his parents. He believed simply in God and his promise. He was a faithful man of prayer. Because of his faith he was merry and peaceful. Native people noticed soon that Isaac was a man of God and a blessing for them. Jacob was a kid of the third generation. He learned the promised blessing through his mother, Rebecca. He disguised himself as Esau and stole the blessing from his father. On his escape from his brother at Bethel, he heard of God who promised blessing personally for the first time. Ever since then, Jacob had a clear identity as a man of God, chosen for His purpose and blessings. For example, he blessed the Pharaoh, the king of the world power.
Joseph was a kind of the fourth generation. He learned God’s promise and blessings through his parents. Although he came as a slave to Egypt, he believed firmly in God and his promised blessing. His faith helped him to overcome all crises and all seductions and became the Prime Minister of Egypt.
The second and later generations of Abraham received God’s blessing and the word of God’s promise through the life of mission through their parents. Afterwards they learned and experienced the personal faith in God.
Although God promised for Abraham to be a source of blessing for all people, the house church had only two church members at the beginning of the ministry. After 25 years it grew to a church of three members. About 200 years later - in the time Joseph – the family church had 70 male members. God made out of it a large church, Israel. And out of the Israelites the Christ came. Many people of the world have been blessed through the gospel of Christ.
Historically there are three roots of our CMI church: The faith in Jesus Christ and in God’s promised blessing is the first and most important root of this church. The second root is the faith of the first Christians in Korea. They had simple faith in God and God’s word. They had prayer spirit. They were sacrificial for the world mission. They also were able to form a friendly Christian fellowship. The third root is the faith of the puritan Pilgrim Fathers of the USA.
Im Summer last year Ellen Ross was a guest-preacher on the CMI Youth Conference in Seattle. She had worked from 1962 to 1964 in Korea in our church in Kwangju together with Sarah Barry. She has worked in Korea as a missionary altogether for 25 years. She speaks Korean perfectly. She has raised three Korean adopted children. During her preaching she suggested the youth to discover the spiritual treasures of their missionary parents.
At the beginning our mission church was called, "Christian Students Center". Originally our church was established by some American missionaries. The student mission of our church was begun first in April 1961 in Kwangju by Sarah Barry, later on in Jeonju by John Folta, and then, in Daejeon by Missionary Melicent Huneycutt. These American missionaries were spiritual descendants of the puritan Pilgrim Fathers. It is meaningful for us to learn the puritan faith root of our church.
After the discovery of America the Europeans began to emmigrate to America. According their motive of immigration we can divide them into two groups: The first group came to America in order to find gold. The other group came however in order to build a God’s kingdom. They were puritan "Pilgrim Fathers". They were persecuted however in England and Europe by the governments and by the national churches. The Pilgrim Fathers were relatively small, in terms of size. These few believers and their second and following generations became great blessing and influence for all Americans and for the whole world.
American history textbooks say that two foundation spirits of the USA were the Frontiership and the belief of the Pilgrim Fathers (puritanism).
The first immigrant group of pilgrims were members of the puritan Church in Leiden, Holland. Before the departure of the ship from Delfthaven/Holland, John Robinson, the pastor of the church, preached. The ship came first to England, in order to fill it with more normal emigrants. The ship left then in September 1620 the English port Plymouth. On the board were altogether 102 emigrants. 41 of them were puritan Pilgrim Fathers. The number of 41 means however including the children of the puritan pilgrims. For example Mr. Isaac Allerton took his whole family members: his wife Mary, Bartholomew (8 years-old son), Remember (6-years-old daughter) and Mary (4 years-old daughter).
They reached in December 1620 the East coast of America. They settled down there, and called their new town, “Plymouth”.
During the sailing all male passengers of the “Mayflower” signed a compact named “the Mayflower Compact” ("The Mayflower Compact"). In the compact all of the emigrants signed that they would select in the new world their own leader democratically, establish laws and uphold the laws. They proclaimed that all people are equal before God and before the law. That was the first document of the Americans for the principle "Government of the people, by the people, for the people." The Mayflower Compact became actually the constitution of the Plymouth colony.
The first winter in America was very hard for the Pilgrims. 53 from the 102 Pilgern had died in the first winter due illnesses, among them 11 of the 31 Mayflower children. Despite of many dead they found enough reasons to hold a thanksgiving celebration in September 1621 for God. They got their health back again. They had gotten the conviction to overcome the hardness of the new world. Above all they were very grateful to God that they could worship God freely. They held a three-day thanksgiving celebration with the American Indians, because they had good friendships with the Indians.
10 years later - from 1630 - an organized emigration movement of the puritan Pilgrims began. John Winthrop was the leader and organizer of this movement. This Pilgrims regarded English national church as the lukewarm Laodicea church in Revelation 3:14-16. They wanted to build in America such a church which pleases God well. The new church should be a "City upon a Hill", thus a model and a blessing for the English and European churches. In March 1630 Pastor John Cotton preached before the departure of a pilgrim ship. John Cotton had preached nearly 20 years long in his church in Boston/England (the St. Botolph's Chruch). He was a pious minister and a powerful preacher. He was also a professor of the University of Cambridge. At that time he was one the best scholar in England. He researched every day 12 hours long, in order to preach. His lecture was so powerful that city mayor, officials and nearly all inhabitants of the city were changed into pious, puritan Christians.
In the city only tiny few people had remained unchanged. But John Cotton was known by England as a public enemy and chased by the police. Therefore he emigrated 1633 secretly to the USA. As he came to a city in Massachusetts/new England, he was appointed as the Pastor of the city church. Originally the city was called Trimountain. They renamed it however as Boston with the desire that this American Boston would become a blessed city like the English Boston.
Boston/Massachusetts was at that time quasi like the capitol of the USA. The first governor of the Massachusetts State was John Winthrop, the organizer of the Pilgrim emigrant movement. The whole officials in Boston and citizens celebrated every Thursday the worship service first, and heard the biblical preaching of John Cotton. After the worship they held the meetings and regulated their state affairs in accordance with the teaching of the Bible. John Cotton talked in his preaching simple, understandable, direct and apt words, and all of his hearers could understand his preaching well. His preaching had the God’s power to save the people and to change them. For example a woman was so affected by his preaching that she admitted her well protected secret of their poison murder of her former husband publicly. John Cotton errected also the Harvard University, in order to raise the future national leaders of the USA in the Biblical sense. He worked 20 years long in Boston as a preacher and died.
The puritan Pilgrims and his descendants were pious and happy Christians. They were very active in their occupation or in the society, in order to be blessings for others. In the education, in the policy, the economy and in all areas of the society, they were very active. They did their best, in order to build America in such a way, to please God. You know Abraham Lincoln. To Americans he is the best president in the American history. He read the Bible with a joyful and glad heart. He prayed to God intensively even during a wartime. Due to the teaching of the Bible he decided to liberate slaves.
Spiritual inheritance of the puritan Pilgrim Fathers became a blessing for all Americans and for the world. At the present time, the USA has sent out the most missionaries. Korea received the gospel mainly through the American missionaries. Korea is now in the second place of missionary-sending countries. Most of youths here are missionary children - the second generation of the Korean missionaries. Since the end of 1960s, Germany began to receive immigrants from Korea. Korean miners, nurses, and students came to Germany.
According to the motive of their emigration there were however two groups: One group moved to Germany with the intention of making much money or to write doctorate dissertation. The second group of Koreans moved to Germany as missionary intention to build the kingdom of God in Germany. They came as blessings for Germany and Europe. These Korean Pilgrims were actually talented people in Korea. They could have stayed in Korea and could have had good careers in Korea and enjoy their lives. If Jesaja Lee or Joseph Kim would have stayed in Korea, they could have been university presidents or famous professors. Isaac Lee would have been a rich business man in Korea. Paulus Kwon would have been a high judge or public prosecutor.
But the Korean Pilgrims paid high costs for God’s mission willingly. They gave up their home land, career, richness and secured life. They had to fight for visa. They had to learn German. But German is for the first generation of the Korean Pilgrims a difficult language. They had to work hard for small wages. But the first generation of the Korean Pilgrims have precious inheritance for their descendants. That is the simple faith in God and in the blessing-promise to be a blessing in Germany and Europe and to build a wonderful kingdom of God. God uses believers who believe firmly in God and his blessing-promise and are active as blessings.
Joseph in the book of Genesis believed in God and his blessing-promise simply. He did not envy the powerful Egyptians. He had always a clear identity as a blessing. He feared God and led a pious life. He did his family duty, vocational and social task with wisdom his best. He was successful and became even a prime minister of Egypt. He loved however neither money nor power. He loved God and God’s people. He was a blessing for all. He testified God everywhere.
We are Pilgrims of today. We must be a blessing for other people through the pious, happy Christian life. On the other hand, we are to do our school work, family and vocational task our best with wisdom in order to be blessings for others.
Our young generation will be pious, happy believers. You will do your task in your family, in your occupation and in the society to the best of your abilities. Some of you can work in the future as pastor or preacher. For example some of you can visit the Martin Bucer Seminary every Saturday along with your university study. Many of you will work in the future as a professor, businessmen or as politicians. Everyone will do his best with his task. God will assist you. Everyone can do his best in his family, in his school or his job world as blessings and testify God. Their faith in God and his promised blessings will give you courage, joy and success. "Believe active" means: "God becomes active, and you are activated by God." God’s word: "I will bless you. You will be a blessing!" applies to you and me.
Now I want to tell you the most important secret as to how your faith can become active. The faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ is the secret. This faith makes us dynamic and active. See the picture of loaded men. Without faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ our situation looks like that. We are burdened by the loads of the past, of the future and of the present. The sins and unhappy experiences are the loads of the past. We are burdened with the loads of our future: for example, our job or marriage. Without the gospel we are burdened through our future to stand before the judgement of God to hell. And our present problems are already heavy enough for us. We have no strength to carry our burdens. What are we to do? We are to admit our sin and our helplessness to God. We must think of what God has done.
See the picture. God sacrificed his son for us. Literally Jesus Christ lost his blood and died in order to save us. His blood and his death have made us totally free from all loads of the past, of the future and of the present. When you and I believe in the sacrifice of Christ, God will take you and me in his loving hand in order to lead us surely into heaven. That means God has guaranteed us to give victories over all distresses at the present and in the future and to bring us surely in heaven.
Because of this promise we can have deep peace in our heart and conviction of our victory. Therefore we Christians are true optimists. If we think of the sacrifice of Christ and God’s love, our hearts are filled with gratitude, joy and strength. We Christians are thus grateful people. This gratefulness, joy and strength make us to be active with joy and to be successful for God will. Our gratitude and our faith in the gospel make us to be active as blessings for others. Thus we Christians are activists. Christians are prayer activists. We Christians are activists of the love and serving. Christians are activists of the mission. God speaks to you and me: "I will bless you through the gospel. You will be through the gospel a blessing!" Amen!
Questions for the Bible study
1. Abraham: With what intention did God Abraham let emigrate into Canaan (12,1-3)? What does it mean to be a blessing or to be a great nation? How does God develop Abraham’s faith (12:-9; 15:; 17:; 21:; 22:5-18)?
2. Isaac: See Chap. 22 u. 24; 26:-6 and 26:8-29. What are the characteristics of the faith of Isaac? Which role did his parents influence for his faith growth? In what respect did Isaac learn the personal faith?
3. Jacob: See 25:1+22; 27:8-29; 28:-22; 32:3-33. In what respect does Jacob receive the blessing inheritance from his parents? How did he get the personal faith?
4. Josef: Read 37:3; 37:6-9; 39:2 and 45:7. How does God help Josef to become a blessing?
5. Puritan "Pilgrim Fathers": What do you know over God blessing work in the USA through the puritan "Pilgrim Fathers"?
6. In what respect can we (we and our children) find the comparable situation with the situation of the family Abraham and his descendents?