We cannot see Him, but God is present among us. I want you to be aware of this.
“Have you seen God?”
“No, I haven’t.”
“Then how could you believe in Him?”
Have you seen air? We cannot see air, but we believe it’s there and no one doubts it. We can breathe because the air is everywhere. We cannot see Him, but God exists, so we live.
The wind is invisible, but is there any way we can tell it’s blowing? We can tell by looking at the waving of the leaves or the swaying clothes on the clothesline. When we see those we can tell, “Oh, the wind is blowing.” Likewise, we can’t see God, but when you notice peace or changes in the believer’s heart, we can tell God exists.
A person who used to get drunk, was violent or was always selfish, but then he changed to become a good person. That will be evidence of God’s existence. Yesterday I mentioned that there are few things that we can’t change by ourselves. And one of them is our destiny. But if God exists He can change our destiny. So, that is why we should depend on Him.
Let us read Psalm 126.
“When the LORD brought back the captives to Zion, we were like men who dreamed. Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, ‘The LORD has done great things for them.’ The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. Restore our fortunes, O LORD, like streams in the Negev. Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.” Psalm 126
This chapter talks about the day that we will enter Heaven. It describes, “That day will be like a dream.” This is the scene where all the Heavenly hosts will be lined up to welcome us and we will be walking in through this magnificent scene. I will walk in to that street!
How about you? Have you experienced any joyous moments like this dream? If you have not that is unfortunate. As I listen to New Start lectures, I hear them saying, if we could have a dream like this even once a month we won’t have any serious illness. When we have joy in our heart, even though we do some hard work or eat some unhealthy food, it won’t affect us too much. Some are very choosey eaters, yet they are having all kinds of illnesses.
Why is that so? We do not experience the dream of happiness, or joy even a few times in a year. Would you agree with this?
I remember the moments like a dream, when I was very young. When the New Year got closer we experienced similar feelings of happiness. In those days when I was young we did not have a calendar as we have now. The lunar farmer’s calendar was the only available calendar at that time. Without a calendar how was it possible to guess that the New Year was getting closer? The one handed disabled popcorn popper always came to our town about a month before New Year. So when we heard the loud “Pop!” all the kids knew that New Year was fast approaching, and we were getting excited. Soon we smelled the sweet aroma of taffy made with rice or sweet potatoes coming from all over the town. In those days having sweets was not very common. We were so anxious to know when the sweets would be ready. In the kitchen under the large pot the firewood was burning while it was snowing outside. We kids were running around the whole town, checking every now and then to see if the taffy was ready. But the sun would set and it still wasn’t ready so we finally had to go to bed without tasting the sweets. We had to sleep in a very hot room because they cooked all day long. We were disappointed the next morning because the taffy was not ready.
When it was done, the next item to cook was rice cakes. By that time, we were so excited and couldn’t wait for another day. A few days before New Year’s Eve, every house in town started to prepare delicious chicken dishes, and chicken fat was used to make panfry patties. The delicious smell spread all over the town and we could tell the festival was very near.
When mother came from the marketplace she brought new shoes and new clothes. In our town buses came only 5 times per day. When my mom left to go to the marketplace I was most anxious for her to come back. So I would go to the bus stop an hour before and wait wondering when would she be back. When my mom showed up I ran toward her to see what special items were in her bag.
At that time I felt like I was dreaming. But what are our feelings towards a holiday now? Whenever holidays come we are stressed because of traffic jams. “How am I going to get through the congested traffic and get back home safe and on time?” The holiday seasons are stressful for us most of the time. Is a life of ease really good? I wonder? I have often thought that this has caused us to lose our imagination, expectation and excitement. Namely, it is like when we open one door and the other door shuts, or when we grab this then the other slips
away.
We surely enjoy abundance in our life, but are we not losing some precious things because of that? We used to have very close relationships between neighbors and friends, but we are losing those beautiful moments of interaction.
Now we just pick up the phone and call our friends at any time so we don’t miss each other. There are no more needs for writing beautiful letters to each other. Sometimes I wonder if we are really living well, advancing or improving our quality of life.
Everyone has had happy moments like a dream, imagining whom I shall meet and marry.
After we got married, my wife got pregnant. We were so excited as we were expecting our baby. But for me those dreamy days are passed away. My son is all grown. There is nothing to be excited about anymore on earth. But if we believe in Jesus, even though we may die tomorrow, the exciting and dreamy day is yet to come.
In China, I did not see any senior community centers. During summer days the elderly people brought their fishing chairs to the park and sat there all day long, under the tree where it was shady.
And during the winter days they still came to the park, they moved their chairs to the warmer and sunnier side. Some played poker or mahjong all day long. If they were too old to play any games, then they would just sit all day long observing other people. The next day, I would see them at the same spot. I was curious to know what they were thinking all day long.
Seniors who came to the Salem institution were very blessed. At this institution, the residents do not have to sit and stare at people all day long. They hear lectures and learn good news that there is a better place for us. I really liked this Salem institute where the children, students, and adults all mingled very well.
What is a family? I suppose a family should eat, play and meet together. But in these days even though we are under the same roof, we are all separated. We have breakfast, go to work and return home all at different times. We seldom have time to talk and interact with each other. How could you say this is a real family? As I watched those elderly people in the park, I often questioned myself,
“What are they thinking all day long?” When they get older and weaker and when they can’t come to the park, then they will end up lying in bed just to wait for the time to die. I could be like one of them sooner or later and that is not what I look forward to.
When I realized that I have to face that kind of future, it made me so sad. But I am so thankful that I have hope in Heaven. How thankful am I? No matter how old I am or even if I were to die tomorrow, joy like a dream is waiting for me. We must be thankful to God who made the way for us to go to Heaven.
You will experience the joy and euphoria like a dream so that you won’t be able to stop laughing. Once I had the chance to tell the same story to a North Korean. Mr. Lee and I were the same age. Mr. Lee’s wife and two sons died because of starvation. He just lost all interest in staying in North Korea, so he escaped to China.
This nice gentleman was hiding with two other orphans. We happened to meet. So I taught him about the Bible just as I am telling you now. He asked me, “Could I meet my wife and my children in Heaven?”
So I told him “Of course you will.” At that moment I thought I should answer him like that. He told me he understands what it is like to have a joyful dream. So I asked him, “How is it?” and
he told me this story.
Mr. Lee’s wife and children died of starvation when they were living in North Korea. Between the years of 1994 to 2004, approximately 3 million people died of starvation. In the early fall, deep in the mountain, Mr. Lee was gathering some wild weeds to make porridge. To his surprise, there were a lot of precious pine mushrooms. No one knew this route or passed through this way. He couldn’t believe his eyes. He quickly picked the pine mushrooms, ate a few of them and hid the rest under his jacket, and hurriedly went down the hill.
On the way back down the hill he was so happy, so he thought he was walking on a cloud. He asked, “Would you say this was something like a dream?” I said, “Yes, I believe so.” At that time I didn’t realize why he was asking me such a question. He thought for a long time and he said to me, “I should go back to North Korea.”
“Why?” I asked.
“The North Koreans are living in deplorable poverty; they are not only starving to death, but also have never heard of this wonderful message. I must go back and deliver this message to them.” I really thought this was not a good time to go back, so I told him, “If you go back and share the message now, you will get caught and be executed.”
But he insisted and went back. It has been 4 years since I have heard from him. I fear that he must have been captured and executed.
During the 7 years of my stay in China, several of my North Korean friends were killed because of their faith in Jesus Christ.
Whenever these things happened to someone I knew, I often pondered on our mission and asked, “Am I doing the right thing?”
My only comforting thought was that we both were doing the same thing and we believed it was right. I knew that someday we will be reunited in Heaven where there will be no danger of arrests or persecution.
Today I have been with a North Korean friend in my home. Mr. Jahng was held prisoner and attempted to escape from North Korea many times. He got caught in the middle of his religious presentation and was sent to a concentration camp in room number 22. No one had successfully escaped from that place, but he did.
Mr. Jahng observed and found out the only way that he could pass through the camp without inspection was to hide inside a barrel filled with dung. So he used a long pipe in his mouth and submerged himself into the barrel and sat there and waited for about an hour. That’s the way he finally escaped from the prison and found his freedom. How drastic and exciting! He must have felt it was a dream. A joyous day like a dream is waiting for us.
Someone asked me, “Do you go to church because of Heaven?
Wouldn’t it be true that people go to church to feel more secure and to learn more good things?” Some have attended church for a long time and still doubt there is a Heaven. So today we are going to talk about Heaven.
Here is a Haru-saree (mayfly). Why is it called Haru-saree? It is because it was thought they only live one day. We find them a lot in cow stables.
This mayfly played all day long with the cicada and when the evening came the cicada told the mayfly “See you tomorrow,” and the mayfly asked, “What is tomorrow?” “When the sun goes down and comes up again, that is tomorrow,” replied cicada.
The mayfly (Haru-saree) said, “That is not funny, there is no such thing as tomorrow!” Why do you think the mayfly said that?
Because the mayfly knew no more than today. Therefore, the mayfly doesn’t know anything about tomorrow. Whether the mayfly knows or not, tomorrow will come anyway no matter what.
Again, the cicada played with a frog all summer long and when autumn winds started to blow, the frog told the cicada, “See you next year,” and the cicada asked, “What is next year?” “When the weather gets warmer and new buds spring up, then it is the next year.” But the cicada never believed in next year, because it was beyond the cicada’s world.
People act the same way and ask, “What is everlasting life?”
“How can the dead rise again, where is this place called Heaven?”
People don’t want to believe it. Why is it? Because with our limited experience, technique or knowledge, it is not possible to understand what Heaven is. But God is more powerful than we are, so He can do what humans can’t do. That is why we need to believe in Him.
Some people say that Christian beliefs are not scientific and cannot be proven, therefore they are not true. With human scientific understanding, it is natural that they cannot understand the spiritual truth. But with spiritual understanding, it is possible.
For instance, in physics a single line is called the first dimension. In a first dimension world, there is only length but no width. Do you understand this concept?
When we bend the single line to make it a square, then there is width and length, but no height yet. The flat plane world is called the second dimension.
If we bend a plane and make a block of space, then we have a cube, and that is the third dimension.
If we can possibly curve or bend matter to fill all the space in which we live, modern physics agree that naturally, there is a 4th dimension.
Einstein’s theory of relativity tells us that space is not linear but curved. Space is so vast the curved aspects of space are not obvious to us.
For example, if it were possible to go in a straight line, then we would come back to where we started. Why is that? That’s because our space is in the shape of a ball. Also, if we were to fly in a straight line by plane, we would finally arrive at the very same point from where we took off. If we had a powerful telescope to see to the end of space, we would end up seeing the back of my head. The light, which started right in front of my eyes, would continue going past me, until finally I would be able to see the back of my head.
Some people call this space Heaven, or the 4th dimension, the place we eventually want to go. Do you understand? But if we do not understand the character of this space, we won’t be able to go there. Why? Let’s look at this watermelon.
An ant is sitting on top of this watermelon. An ant is an insect that moves along by touching the surface with its antenna. This means that ants understand only the 2nd dimension. If an ant determines to go all around the watermelon, he will keep on going around and around endlessly. Is there any end? No. “Oh boy, it is much bigger than I thought. Am I too slow or what? Let me run faster!” Yet there is no end. Is it a speed problem? No. Finally the ant will think the watermelon is an endless space! But to us, the ant sounds very foolish.
An ant sitting on top of the watermelon thinks it is living in an endless space. But the surface is only the 2nd dimension and the inside of it is the 3rd dimension. If he does not understand the structure of space he will never be able to get inside of it. He has to understand that it is not a speed problem.
Just like this ant, we are living on the surface of the 4th dimension, which is Heaven or space. And the surface of the 4th dimension is the 3rd dimension.
If we do not understand the structure of this space we will also fail to enter into Heaven or the 4th dimensional world. No matter how fast we fly with an airplane, no matter how thoroughly we search this world, we won’t find it. Americans are searching to find extraterrestrial life, but no matter how persistently they search they will not find it.
Then what are the characteristics of this space? First of all it is everlasting. I personally think workers at NASA are foolish. Inside their own circle they may seem smart. However, like acorns comparing their heights with each other, they fail to know the next level. Only searching how fast they can fly, they fail to grasp the truth. It is because they do not know the Bible.
There is a borderline between the 3rd and 4th dimension. At school we learned this limit is the speed of light. If we move faster and faster, time gets slower and slower. Eventually, if we could reach the speed of light, time would theoretically stop. Please excuse me to show you a difficult physics equation.
The speed of time T equals to the product of ‘t’ which is our commonly used time multiplied by square root of 1 minus square of C which is speed of light dividing into V which is the speed of travel over 1.
This is very the famous Einstein’s special relativity principle of the speed and the time.
With this equation Einstein became a top physicist in the 20th century. In this equation when we reach the speed of light it finally reaches the point where the speed and the time become even and time is not passing any more.
So, the space that goes beyond the speed of light is where our time stops or doesn’t run. In this space it is very natural that all the things there are everlasting including our life. Do you understand? This is a mathematically proven fact. Because our time doesn’t exist or continue to run in this space, all things in it are everlasting.
But below the speed of light, time continues to move on. As it does so, our lives will eventually pass away and even the Great Wall will someday deteriorate.
The theory of everlasting time and speed is the first characteristic of the 4th dimension world.
The 2nd characteristic of this space is speed of thought. When we think of an apple it will appear in front of us immediately. Isn’t that wonderful? Oh, yes. Everything will be done at the speed of thought.
Shall we read Matthew 5:27?
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Matthew 5:27-28.
This means that if a man looks at a woman with lustful eyes, then he has already committed adultery. Let’s read one more verse.
“Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.” 1 John 3:15
If we hate someone, what have we done? We have killed that person. Have we killed someone in the past? Yes, we’ve done a lot. Sometimes a husband and wife kill each other without knowing it.
The Bible is not a book that deals only with our world, but it talks about everlasting time and space. In the Bible, thought itself becomes presence at once. So we won’t need to fight for money, land, housing or anything like that. That’s because when we want something, it becomes ours already. Do you understand? Heaven is where God is, and the Holy Spirit and the Word of God are dwelling there as well. In the beginning we were there with them happily, but to be with them our mind has to be filled with love.
But sin has entered into our mind and contaminated our thoughts with greed, hate, and pride.
If any corrupted beings were to live in Heaven it would become a big problem. For example, if I wished for a man to fall then he would fall. Wouldn’t it be a big problem? Yes, it would be. So, God decided to expel us to this earth.
That is why we are living here. After we were driven out of Heaven, we forgot about Heaven. All we care about is eating and living a better life than others.
Jesus came down from above to this earth in human form. He came to introduce us to the world up above, because we live on this corrupted and adulterated earth.
Then why did Jesus come to earth in a form of a human being?
Let’s see, if we make a hole in the watermelon and tell the ant
“Come on in, you can do it” will he understand us? No. Then how can we make the ant understand?
In order for the ant to understand, we must become an ant and speak to him in his own language. For the same reason Jesus had to come to earth and became a man and spoke the same language we use to tell us about Heaven. The message that Jesus was telling us was all these things are in vain and so He is introducing us to a better place, no matter how well to do we are on earth.
On earth everything is temporary. There are many problems and suffering to deal with. We work hard to accumulate wealth and yet it will be gone soon or later, so all the struggles through life will be in vain. Jesus is pleading with us to seek the Kingdom of God, and that is Heaven.
The Bible tells us that no matter how poor and neglected we are on earth, we will be blessed when we go to Heaven. In the times past we never knew the way to Heaven from here. But do we know it now? Let’s read from the book of John 14:1-4.
“Let not your heart be troubled: you believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And whither I go you know, and the way you know” John 14:1-4
Two thousand years ago, on a Thursday evening, right before Jesus was to return to Heaven, He told the disciples, “I am leaving, but you know the way to follow me because I have been with you for 3 ½ years.”
“No, we don’t” they replied.
“I am the way.”
He told us that He is the way. On the cross Jesus made the way for us to go to Heaven. Now we know the way to Heaven. Heaven is a dream-like wonderful place, and it is not an imaginary space of human assumption, but it is the space that practically and mathematically has been proven to exist. Heaven is the real thing and we will meet again in that place.
I met some North Koreans and I was amazed at their knowledge of the outside world. They would say something like: “China is a nice place to live and it is Heaven.”
“Why do you think so?”
“There are vast corn fields in Manchuria, and tons of corn is ready to be picked, but no one bothers to steal it. Isn’t that Heaven?”
“What about your country?”
In North Korea, guards with guns are standing there to keep the cornfield from looters. Some hungry kids who snuck into the cornfield to steal so they could fill their hungry stomachs, were spotted by the guards and killed. They felt that China seemed to be no different from Heaven. I told them South Korea is just as good as China, but they did not believe me at first.
He told me, before he escaped from North Korea he thought president Kim Jung–Il and his father, Kim Il-Sung were wonderful leaders and that the country’s living standard was pretty good. But, after he escaped and he compared his country and other countries, the comparison was like Heaven and hell.
Why did he believe that his countrymen lived well and his country leaders were pretty good? It’s because ever since nursery school all he had heard and seen was praising their leaders.
Just as that North Korean, we are thinking that this earth is the only place with inhabitants. We were fooled by the devil and sinned against God, so we were driven out of Heaven. Isn’t this right? The devil fools us over and over again. The devil is whispering in our ear, “Out in space there is nothing, so why don’t you have a good time on earth!” To explain again, the devil is telling us, “Heaven or everlasting life, there is no such thing, so don’t you even dream about it. You’ve got to live better than others on earth, so why don’t you compete with them and push away those who are better than you. Remember this world is all there is to life.”
Just like the North Korean didn’t know much about South Korea, we have been cheated by the devil’s theory all this time. But the Bible says, “There is no one except Jesus, He is the only one who will let us know about Heaven.” Do you think you could find the way to Heaven by getting a medical degree at Seoul University? No, let me ask you one thing. What could be the perfect exemplary thing of the 2nd dimensional world that has no depth but only flat surface? Paper? No. It looks very thin but when you pile it up it would be a thick book.
The shadow is the right answer. When you stand on the sunny side the shadow drops right under you. It has width but no depth.
So we can see it, but can’t grab it. Have you ever heard angels are around us? Or God is with us? Sometimes we ask foolish questions.
If God is with us why can’t we see Him? It is the same way as we can see the shadow, but the shadow can’t see us.
Angels and God clearly look on us, but we can’t see them. Why? It’s because we are in a different dimension. Because the characteristics of this space are different than theirs, even though we try to touch
them, we can’t touch them. That is why we think they are not there. But it is foolish for us to think they are not there just because we can’t see them. Under the 3rd dimension there is the 2nd dimension, which is a shadow. Do you understand this clearly? And we are a shadow
of the 4th dimension world (Heaven).Let’s read Hebrews chapter 8:5.
“They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what
is in Heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle.” Hebrews 8:5.
The book of Job described this world as, “Our days upon earth are a shadow” (Job 8:9; 24:2: 17:7). .
The psalmist said, “I am gone like the shadow” (Psalm 39:6; 109:23; 144:4).”
We find that kind of expression a lot in the Bible. We are the shadow of Heaven.
This is the big reason for us to be in Heaven, because we will be able to see our real self when we get there. Now we are only seeing our self through a mirror or pictures, which is only the shadow of our self. Yes, it is only a shadow. When we go there we will finally see our real self, and what a surprise that will be when we see the difference.
Can we talk to a shadow, “Your eyes are bright!”? We cannot because a shadow doesn’t have any eyes. You would not say, “Your complexion looks fair”, or “flower pattern looks good on you!” We can’t express such things to a shadow. Just as the shadow looks quite different from us, our appearance in Heaven will be so different from how we look now. In Heaven we will be surprised to meet our own real self.
Salvation is so wonderful and Heaven is so beautiful, it will be beyond our imagination. The Bible says when we go to Heaven we will reign as a king. Let’s read from Revelation 22:5.
“And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign forever and ever.” Revelation 22:5.
Here it says, “They shall reign forever and ever.” By the end of this year we will have presidential elections. Few people are dreaming of being president to reign in our country for five years. How many years? For five years. As I am looking at myself now, I don’t think I can be either a king or the chief magistrate. But, when I can see myself after I am changed, then I will have confidence to reign as a king forever.
When I see you in Heaven (pointing at a lady audience), you will be the most glorious being in the universe. We will look at each other with a sense of admiration. Let me tell you grandmas and grandpas, you look elderly now, but when we meet in Heaven you will be changed to a young man and young lady. You will look so much prettier than now, perhaps ten times or even more than what you used to be.
In the 2nd dimension world, how many colors are there? Black and grey are the only two different colors there. How many different colors do we have in the 3rd dimension world? There are at least 7 different colors; red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and purple.
How many different colors are up in Heaven? Maybe 7×7=49 different colors? I really do not know that now. If I asked you what is the color of happiness, would you be able to answer me?
The abstractionists are trying hard to express their thoughts and feelings through many different colors. The most famous abstractionist is Pablo Picasso. But when we go to Heaven we do not have to try so hard to express anything. All we have to do is just color the happiness. We will be able to color the patience, kindness and all others in color right away.
We sing with 7 different notes in an octave, Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti. I do not know for sure, but when we get to Heaven, we will sing with more than 50 different notes. If we heard the music of Heaven, sung by the angels and the Heavenly hosts even once, the earthly songs would be compared to a dog barking or chickens chirping, even the songs that the famous pop singer, Mi-Ja Lee, would sing.
We must go to Heaven and all things will be clear. If we miss Heaven it will be a big loss. Jesus did not pay that enormous penalty to take us to a meager place. We must go and see.
Ladies and gentlemen: I encourage you to be courageous, no matter how sick you are or if you are having hardship now, please don’t get discouraged. Our life is short and it will pass away in the blink of an eye. Time will pass away even though you want to grab it. And we believers will be in Heaven soon. Let me tell you about a man who has been up there.
We were deceived by the devil so we sinned against God. Because of that we were driven out to the earth. The devil is continuously deceiving us, so that we are thinking that the earthly life is all there is to it, so let’s enjoy our life. In such circumstance, Jesus came and explained all about Heaven to us. 2 Corinthians 11: 24-28
“Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.” 2 Corinthians 11:24-28
This man had a very hard time. Some people greet me and say, oh we appreciate your hard work in China. But I feel I do not deserve to hear that kind of compliment. Who is this man? Yes, this is the apostle Paul. Forty stripes save one means thirty nine stripes. It means he was almost killed.
When I was in the army I remember that I was beaten till I was bleeding, but not thirty nine stripes. In the period of the apostle Paul, almost half of the people who were beaten with thirty nine stripes died.
Besides that he faced hunger, cold, nakedness, lack of sleep. He couldn’t sleep well because of the burden that he had towards the young churches, which he established.
Why did he bear all these persecutions? As you know he was, so to speak, a graduate from the Seoul National University. At a young age he was already a congressman. Namely he was a successful rising star at that time. Success was wide open to him as a highway. Why did Paul choose this hard life? The answer is in the 2 Corinthians 12:1-4.
“I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third Heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know–God knows. And I know that this man–whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows– was caught up to paradise. He heard inexpressible things, things that man is not permitted to tell.” 2 Corinthians 12:1-4
Apostle Paul says, 14 years ago he was at the 3rd Heaven. Yes, the 3rd Heaven! There must be not only the blue sky above the cloud, but also the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Heavens are up there.
What is the 1st Heaven? The 1st Heaven is the blue sky. It wraps around this earth. Outer space is the 1st Heaven.
What is the 2nd Heaven?
The 2nd Heaven is the Milky Way, where there are numerous stars scattered, right? To reach to the throne of God where the river of life is flowing, we have to travel 20 billion light years and go through the Milky Way, which is the 3rd Heaven. Paul was there. But he does not brag about that, but humbly says, “I knew a man who was there”. Actually that someone is Paul himself.
Paul was a humble man so he always chose his words carefully. “I knew a man in Christ about fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knows) such a one was caught up to the third Heaven.”
He is trying to say something that he has seen and heard. Verse four says, “And heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.” He is trying to describe it, but there are no human words to describe it.
I do not have any problem to describe whatever I have seen in China. Soon after I came back, I got busy talking to others. In China I had ridden the train for more than 10 hours, yet I had not seen any mountains. It sounds unreal to us, but it is true.
In China there is gigantic taro root, some of the roots are as big as my head. They told me it used to belong to the Emperor for his food, but now everyone eats it. Taro roots are as big as a rugby ball.
People who visited the United States are too busy to talk about what they have seen.
“America is a wonderful country.”
“Why?”
“ Even the three year olds can speak English well.” (Laughter)
Whatever we’ve seen on earth, whether it is in America or in China, there is no problem to express it and we can talk or write about it. But what Paul saw and heard in the 3rd Heaven, there were no human languages to utter it. As I told you earlier, if he saw the color of kindness, how could he find the right words to express it?
For instance if someone from the world of shadow came and saw a yellow dandelion, or a red apple and went back to the world of shadow, how could he describe them?
“Oh, the dandelion? It was not black or white, but it looked pretty.”
That may be all that he could describe. Just as the apostle Paul wanted to describe Heaven, but there was no language to describe it. After Paul had seen the 3rd Heaven, nothing on earth was interesting to him.
Often we try to sermonize not to drink or smoke as they are bad habits to our health, or not to cling to earthly things and so on. But if we let them know what Heaven is like, they will look at all the earthly pleasures as “earthly things”. They will find they have no more interest in them. Whether it is the gold medal or the top 10 wealthiest among 100 ventures of the world, no matter what kind of pleasures there could be, it will be possible for them to look at them as “earthly things”.
Paul described all those earthly things as “Dung.” After his vision of Heaven he thought, if I can go to Heaven, I won’t refuse any hardship on earth. So he did not mind all the troubles. “Now I am whipped, cold, naked and having all kinds of troubles, but when I am thinking of Heaven I do not mind this at all.”
Does anyone have the same thought among us? Do you agree with him? Some of you may think if I start to believe in Jesus, my friends will turn away from me, and I will be the odd ball at the drinking party. I won’t feel like going to karaoke any more. I feel more comfortable where I am. Shall I believe God or not?
You may still hesitate because you haven’t reached the higher level yet. Because they have not seen Heaven, most people just want to stay where they are, that is why only a few people will find the way and enter into Heaven.
Jesus said, “Come unto me ye who are heavy laden, and I will take you to Heaven”, and He opens the Heavenly gate wide, but we do not want to go in.
The Noah story is a good example. He made a big ark and preached a lot that there would soon be a flood. “Please be prepared and come into the ark. You don’t need a ticket just come in please.”
But they refused to get in the ark. The second coming of Jesus will be the same way. So Paul thought, “If I can get into Heaven, there is nothing to be spared on earth.”
Between the ages of 21 and 26 I was a lost boy. I wasted those 5 years of my life by drinking all day. It’s because I couldn’t find the direction of my life.
“Where did I come from, why am I here and where am I going?”
I did not have any reason to live. Many young people have these serious questions in their mind.
There are two important questions. “How shall I live?” and “Why do I live?” The question “How shall I live?” may be easier to answer, such as business, farming or other pursuits. But, “Why do I live?” that question isn’t that easy to answer.
“How do we go to Seoul? Should I go by airplane, train, or bus? There are many different modes of transportation, Which one is the best for me? “
When asked “Why do you go to Seoul?”, you answered, “I don’t know.”
How can you not know why you are going to Seoul? If you answer like that you will sound strange. But most of us are living in that fashion.
In my early 20s, I attended a Philosophy lecture, trying to make some sense of life, but it always ended up at a point where I started with no hope or meaning. Oh my, why do I have to live a meaningless life? That was the reason I started to drink alcohol.
My friends were concerned about my drinking behavior and offered this advice, “If you drink too much you will die before the age of forty.” Then I answered, “If we do not know why we are living, it is meaningless so why do I care?”
About this time God looked upon me and took pity. As I was traveling in the countryside one day I came across a small church. I do not know why I was there, but all of a sudden I was curious to know what they believe. It was so strange because in the past I was so arrogant about going to church. I felt good behavior of any sort could be taught by Confucius or Mencius, and it didn’t have to be in a church. I could even teach the same thing. Why do I have to go to church for that? That was my attitude back then.
But something strange happened as I sat in the church for 6 hours a day to study the Bible and attended prophecy seminars regularly. Instantly I could tell that the answers to most of my questions could be found in the Bible. The answers regarding life, matter, space, world, history are all in the Bible. I was very impressed by the teachings, and so I stayed there to study and learn about the Bible for two more years.
The result was very clear. Eventually I was kicked out of college and my family rejected me. My parents worked very hard to send me to college and they thought that I had gotten hooked into cult teachings. So I had to quit college. They could not understand all this that was happening to me.
That was the way I learned about church at first. My whole family was against me and treated me as a crazy one, so I couldn’t go back home for a long period of time. Something happened, and Praise the Lord, today most of my family members are following after me. God led them all in a marvelous way. My father had cancer and all he could think of was he would die soon. But I took him into my own home and cared for him. He followed the New Start program and survived for seven more years.
Since that time the way they looked at me was different. In the past I was considered as a “wretched boy”, but now whenever they get sick, everybody in town comes looking for my help. (Laughter)
I don’t claim to know everything, but in a way I understand some of the reason why Paul took that difficult route. He wanted to be an example and let the people know the way of life through him. Is it easy for us to go to Heaven from here? Yes, it’s very easy. All you have to do is believe in God, and accept that He died for our sins. The Apostle Paul contemplated how he should devote the rest of his life, and he chose to proclaim the truth to the people.
During Paul’s time, the Roman emperor was looked upon and worshiped by the citizens as a god. The Romans persecuted, and executed Jesus, and if anyone had said that this Jesus you killed is your Savior, they would have been executed.
If Paul thought that it was not a good time to spread the gospel, and was selfish and kept the message just to himself, then what could have happened? Would the gospel have reached us? No, but because he delivered the message to us in spite of the danger, we who live on this small peninsula, South Korea, also have received this beautiful message of salvation, just because of Paul’s sacrifice.
When we all meet in Heaven, we need to acknowledge Jesus first and Paul for what he did for us. Please tell him, “We have come here because of your sacrifice” and thank him with all your heart.
Before we finish our lecture, let’s read 1 Peter 2:9 to see what we will do in Heaven.
“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” 1 Peter 2:9.
What does it say who we will be? It says we will be a chosen generation. How could we be called the chosen generation? We are sinners on earth and in the universe, yet because of God’s unconditional love for us he has accepted us as His chosen people.
Let me illustrate this. There are 56 different ethnic groups living in China. During the 9 o’clock Evening News broadcast, the ethnic background of the president Kang, Taek Min was found to
be a Korean. Then the next day they announced, “Dung Shao Ping is a Korean, too. And the following day they announced that Mao-Tze-Tung is also a Korean. All of a sudden, the Chinese people will treat the Koreans very well and say, “The Korean race is great.”
How could we be called a God race? It was because among the three in the Godhead, one became a man, which means He became part of the human race forever. Can you fathom this? In the book of Revelation we read that He is still “The Son of Man.”
Because one of the Godhead stepped down to become a part of the human race, all of a sudden the ugliest human race were transformed and became a part of the God race. When we visit other stars in Heaven, they will be surprised to see us and ask,
“Oh, how has a God race come to visit us? We welcome you to our star” the residents of the star will greet us. And they will brag about, “Our star is very special.”
“Why is that?”
“Oh, it’s because Jesus stayed on our star for 30 minutes.” Now these days, we easily call Him Jesus and use His name so frequently. But He is a great God who created the vast universe, which is bigger than two hundred thousand light years. The residents of the universe already know that, so they would brag about the 30 minutes that He stayed with them.
“Where do you come from?”
“We are from earth.”
“Did Jesus visit your star too?”
“Yes,….”
“How long?”
“33 and a half years.” They would be very surprised to hear that.
“33 and a half years! Wow! How did you treat Him?” (Laughter)
What would be our response to them? We will answer,
“Well, we did not know that He came to us. So we ignored Him and neglected Him. Finally we despised Him and killed Him on the cross.”
“We lived in great darkness. But He came to us and went through all the shame for us, and He died on the cross to pay for our penalty, that is how we are able to come and visit your planet.” We will advertise Him like that. That is how our long testimony would start there. We will spread His good news to them.
Of course we are delivering the message on earth. But most of all we will give our real testimony to Heavenly hosts when we go there.
Ladies and gentlemen, it has been shown that Heaven is real. Geometrically proven, the time that seems like a dream will come for sure. Therefore, if we stay healthy on the earth that’s very good, but if not, don’t let that discourage you, because you have found the treasure called Heaven. Just like that farmer has done, “Since I found this enormous amount of precious gems in the field, why should I be discouraged?” If you could do so it will make your burdens so much lighter. We are bound to be there someday by the grace of Jesus. When we meet there together with Him, let us make some grape juice with what we harvest in the garden of Heaven, nd have a drink with Jesus.
