▶Today, we will look at Lessons 71 through 74.
In our first session, we will focus on rescuing those trapped in idol worship, because there are many such people. Also, can people be saved by living a good life? It may seem insignificant, but it is important. Today, I must first speak a little about idol worship. You must understand this in order to receive answers to prayer. Anything outside of what Christ has taught is an idol.
①No answers, spiritually diseased people – Therefore, there are two things you must absolutely remember first. There are those who receive no answers. They continue living a life of faith, yet there are no answers. They continue holding onto the Word, but nothing happens. In the end, nothing works.
②Colossians 3:5, 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 – If your thoughts become greater, that is an idol. In Colossians 3:5, it says, “Greed is idolatry.” Paul was speaking of something on a very deep level. Physical idols are an obvious matter, but if the thoughts of your heart become greater, that is idol worship. Should that really be the case?
③7/7/7 – There is also this (7/7/7). And there are many spiritually diseased people. You must know the standard for how much you should fight for these people. This is not simply a matter of heart idols — in 2 Corinthians 10:4-5, it says that they have established bartizans of idols. These must be destroyed. Once you do so, that is enough. Christ came because God Himself came, didn’t He? Right? What Christ spoke is God’s Word. When Christ expressed anger, it was God’s anger. Christ revealed God’s heart in everything He spoke about changing. This (7/7/7) is what Christ left for us. This (7/7/7) must be sufficient. Anything beyond this is idol worship. So you must always remember this.
▶Once you understand this, answers will begin to come upon your work, no matter what anyone around you or in the church says. People speak and act based on their own thoughts without knowing this. You must firmly hold onto God’s Word.
Now, your church must begin receiving answers powerful enough to carry out world evangelization. Right? It is already happening, and has happened, but there must be even greater answers. I don’t know what concerns you may have, but perhaps, in God’s eyes, what you are concerned about may actually be an idol. Right? God will destroy it, yet we cling to these things and hesitate to let them go. This is the difference between Paul and Peter. Peter, frankly speaking, was somewhat ignorant, wasn’t he? He kept doing foolish things. Simply put, he had this attitude of, “Hey, do you know who I am?” He had that in him. So when Paul rose up, Peter responded, “Fine!” He seemed to imply, “I’m one of Jesus’ direct disciples; I’m the top disciple among them, you know that, right?” There was this dynamic. At that point, Paul responded: “I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” That was the answer he gave. If you are not careful, this can become an idol bartizan. You, who must carry out world evangelization, must absolutely remember this.
▶Introduction – Now then, how can we enjoy this blessing? There are three things we must do. From now on, you can start applying them.
First, ①Follow the fulfillment of the Word — not the fulfillment itself, but follow the fulfillment of the Word. Most people don’t do this. Elites, especially, are prone to fixing their plans and pushing forward accordingly. But you must have enough discernment to realize how much of a loss that brings. It’s a great loss. Follow the fulfillment of the Word.
Second, ②Follow the flow of answered prayers — the fulfillment of the Word also has a flow.
And third, ③Follow the flow of evangelism answers. This is essential. Follow this flow. No matter how correct your arguments are, if you deviate from the essence, there will be no answers. No matter how great a church leader’s suggestions are, if they do not align with the essence of the evangelism movement, I’m sorry to say this, but in God’s eyes, it is subject to destruction. You must know this. If you do not, you may work tirelessly, yet end up with no fruit at all.
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Follow the fulfillment of the Word
▶So, there are many passages about following the fulfillment of the Word…
(1) Acts 2:1-47 – They completely followed the fulfillment of the Word. From start to finish, “When the day of Pentecost came,” fifteen nations gathered there. At that time, Peter proclaimed God’s Word, and the promise spoken through Joel was fulfilled. He delivered the greatest sermon. Then it says they “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching,” and afterward, “every day in the temple courts and from house to house.” That’s how it went. So, even if it’s not this exact phrase, you should recognize, “Ah, I can see the Word being fulfilled here.” Go in that direction. No matter how small your congregation is, it’s okay. If the Word is fulfilled even in one or two people, history will take place. But if 1,000 people gather and it doesn’t align with the fulfillment of the Word, that is failure.
(2) Acts 3:1-12 – When Peter saw the lame man sitting by the Beautiful Gate of the temple, he didn’t just see an ordinary person. Where did Jesus first tell them to begin? From Jerusalem, then Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. That is what Jesus said.
(3) Acts 8:4-8 – In Acts 8:4-8, the work in Samaria began…
(4) Acts 19:21 – And then from Antioch, Acts 19:21 shows us the direction toward Rome. You must always keep this in mind: follow the fulfillment of the Word. Otherwise, the declaration, “Thus says the Lord,” will have no meaning at all. Right? The Word of God is alive and active, but it must have relevance to you. I’ll talk more about this tomorrow during the RTS special lecture, but if the Word is truly living and active, what becomes most important?
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The flow of answered prayers
▶Then, we see that answers to prayer continue to occur, don’t we?
(1) Acts 13:1-12 – That’s why you must always explain this: when they went out for the first evangelism, it was the complete work of the Holy Spirit. This is not simply repeating the same content. You must keep teaching this principle, and you must enjoy it yourself.
(2) Acts 16:6-10 – After reaching a turning point in Macedonia, up to verse 40, God led them there — Lydia, the demon-possessed slave girl, and the incident at the prison — all of these events unfolded. Right?
(3) Acts 19:1-21 – In Acts 19:1, up to verse 7, what happened in the Upper Room of Mark’s house was repeated exactly. Up to verse 21, tremendous things happened — the flow of answered prayers came. Paul then boldly proclaimed the kingdom of God, and this is precisely what we see on Mt Olive and in the Upper Room of Mark. Naturally, miracles happened, and the sick were healed. And what came next? “You must also testify in Rome.” That’s right. That’s the direction they went. If you enter this flow, you have truly entered the highest blessing. No one can block you. Right? In fact, there is nothing to worry about.
▶Now, if you do not follow God’s Word and you do not follow the flow of answered prayers, you are among the people described in the introduction. One day, when you grow older, you will realize that your life has failed. It won’t be too late, but at that point, that’s it. Then, after barely holding on, you’ll just go to heaven. What else can you do? But there will be no fruit. The global church is showing us evidence of this right now. Even massive churches in the U.S. have collapsed because they did other things instead of focusing on this (7/7/7).
When I first visited the U.S., I went to one of those famous churches — the Crystal Cathedral, founded by Robert Schuller. You’ve probably heard of it, right? Some Korean pastors have strongly criticized his sermons. I went there with interest, and I saw that the church building was truly magnificent. As I walked through the courtyard, the ground was lined with marble tiles, and engraved on each tile was the name of the person who donated. I thought, “Wow, incredible!” Anyone would want to give if their name would be displayed there. They even color-coded the tiles based on how much you donated. It was truly impressive. I’m not criticizing them — I’m concerned.
If you only break free from this (introduction), you’ll realize it’s not about “I can do it.” Schuller taught that there’s no such thing as despair and that “you can do it.” Sounds wonderful, right? But then, why would we need Christ? Despair exists. That’s why God sent Christ. Right? This is what’s truly important.
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The essence of evangelism
▶Follow the essence of evangelism. That’s why we must hold onto these three things:
①Consideration, ②Communication, and ③God’s guidance.
(1) Consideration (7 Bartizans) – The greatest secret to consideration is the 7 bartizans. We can afford to be considerate because we possess this (bartizan). Without this, you cannot afford to be considerate — because being considerate would lead to losing everything. But if you have this (bartizan), none of that matters. Therefore, those who are considerate are truly powerful. Right? Those who forgive have a future. With the 7 bartizans, you can’t help but be considerate.
(2) Communication (7 Journeys) – What is the secret to communication? Why must we communicate? Because we must walk the journey. Once communication happens, everything is resolved, but we must communicate because we’re on this journey. This journey is tremendous, and it belongs to you.
(3) Guidance (7 Guideposts) – What is the secret to God’s guidance? These are the 7 guideposts.
▶You must clearly enjoy and relay these blessings. Once you do, everything becomes an answer: sitting is an answer, standing is an answer, even breathing becomes an answer. And those who block the gospel? Even their breathing is sin, and their eating is sin. Why? Because they breathe and eat in order to hinder the gospel. If someone boards a pirate ship, whether they’re good or bad, they’re still pirates. Right? In fact, the “good” pirate is worse, because he uses his morality to deceive others. If you’re on a pirate ship, you shouldn’t act righteous, right? Aboard Satan’s ship, even being “kind” causes greater damage.
You must enjoy these truths now and relay them clearly to your members and the disciples you meet. From here, answers will begin to come. Do not worry because of your personal goals or circumstances.
▶Field Gospel Message, Lesson 71: Rescue Those Trapped in Idol Worship (Mark 5:1-10)
Now, let’s look at Lesson 71. How should we understand this? Naturally, people fall into idol worship, don’t they? If true disciples and believers do not understand the introduction, of course unbelievers will be trapped. That’s why, in the end, they end up completely possessed and lose their senses. This is the result we see. So what must we do? We must rescue these people, but in order to rescue them, we need the spiritual power to do so. This is precisely what the introduction is about. Never lose hold of this. Even now, God is fulfilling His Word. Right? Even now, God is answering prayers. Correct? Even now, God is accomplishing His work of salvation. Therefore, I must remain inside this flow (Word / Prayer / Evangelism). But this (introduction) must be destroyed. To have an idol bartizan inside of you is unacceptable — it must be torn down. Many people still hold onto these things.
▶Satan (evil spirits) delight in idol worship (Satan worship)
So when we look at this part, we must understand clearly. In one word, idol worship is doing what Satan likes. And the scary thing is that people don’t even realize they’re doing it. Without knowing it, they are worshiping Satan. Naturally, destruction follows. Now, if a church engages in Satan worship, what will happen? Of course, it will collapse. You must understand this so you can save people in the field and give them the correct answers. It’s very clear: if you just destroy these bartizans, the fact that you are alive itself becomes an answer. This is how it must be.
And in the church, when the congregation grows larger, all sorts of unnecessary things come in. None of that matters. If they do not realize this, they are bound to collapse. Right? You don’t have to go out of your way to harm them, but neither should you be overly desperate to help those who are already collapsing because of idol worship. Right? They’re falling because of idol worship anyway.
▶Personal testimony
I experienced something like this in my early ministry days. I used to travel around and hold revival meetings. One time, I went to a big church to preach at their revival. I happened to look at the church’s history booklet and saw something written there. On the very first page, it said: “This church was founded when a certain elder donated land and built the church.” Of course, that was just recording history.
But because my sermon that day was about idol worship, I mentioned it during the message. After the meeting ended, we went to have a meal together. At the dining table, one of the elders wasn’t eating at all. He was one of the key elders in that church. I asked him, “Elder, why aren’t you eating?” He looked upset and replied, “Pastor, I was so shocked by today’s sermon. Our senior pastor must have told you to say that, right?”
I said, “Elder, it has to be one of two things: either I made a mistake, or God told me to say it. If I was wrong, I will repent before God. But if God told me to say it, then it’s a different matter.”
The truth is, most people live their life of faith entirely for themselves. That has nothing to do with this introduction. Naturally, there are no answers. And if there are no answers, we begin living like unbelievers. The problem is, we don’t just live like unbelievers — we end up serving unbelievers. That’s exactly what happened to Israel. They ended up serving Egypt, and Egypt, in turn, served Satan. The same principle applies today.
So I told our important team members this today: “When we work overseas, do not try to force what we want. Do what they can do. Don’t try to make us the main actors. Help them become the main actors instead.”
▶Main point — Why does the Bible forbid idol worship?
Now, let’s get into the main point of this passage. Why does the Bible repeatedly warn us not to engage in idol worship? That’s important. Every religion teaches idol worship. Every religion practices it. Then why does God alone tell us not to do it? This is a crucial point.
1. It brings disaster (Exodus 20:4)
▶First, idol worship brings disaster. If it brought blessings, God would command us to do it, right? But idol worship brings curses. Why is that?
1) The purpose of the Exodus (Exodus 9:1)
▶In Exodus 9:1, God says, “Let My people go, so that they may worship Me.” That’s a terrifying statement when you think about it.
2) The purpose and promise of God calling Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3)
▶God called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldeans, a land filled with idols. He told him, “Leave your country, your relatives, and your father’s household.” Completely leave everything behind. “Go to the land I will show you. I will make you a great nation. I will bless you, and whoever blesses you, I will bless. Whoever curses you, I will curse. Through your offspring, all nations on earth will be blessed.” That’s how serious idol worship is. We must rescue these people. That’s why we evangelize and do missions.
3) Idol worship is easy for all people and nations, but why did God forbid it?
▶Why did God forbid it? Because idol worship brings destruction. Any nation, any people can easily fall into it, so the Bible specifically says, “Do not do it.” Why?
(1) Matthew 4:8-11 — Worship that should go to God ends up going to Satan
In Matthew 4:8-11, Satan tempted Jesus, saying, “I will give you all the kingdoms of the world if you bow down to me.” Incredible, right? Satan dared to say that to Jesus Himself. But Jesus replied, “Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.” So, for believers, the most critical thing is worship. Satan’s main goal is to replace your object of worship. He wants to steal your worship from God. That’s why when you fail in worship, you lose everything. If you cannot receive answers in worship, you’re already off track.
(2) Exodus 20:4 — Destruction upon the third and fourth generations
And what else? Those trapped in idol worship face problems up to the third and fourth generations. Even if a child did nothing wrong, if the parents engaged in idol worship, the child suffers. Even the grandchildren suffer. If the parents served shamans, demonic problems are passed down to their descendants. This is Satan’s work. That’s why God commanded us not to worship idols. You must explain this cause clearly to people.
And yes, idol worship does bring answers — but not from God. Satan works there, so supernatural things happen. Just look at criminal gangs — they have power. Does that make them righteous? Of course not. Even thieves and violent people have “power,” but that is the power of darkness. If you mistake that for God’s power, you are in deep trouble.
2. It leads to constant suffering
▶And then what happens? From this point on, strange pains and suffering begin to come.
1) The suffering of the idol worshipper himself (Mark 5:1-10)
▶In Mark 5:1-10, we see a man completely seized and possessed, losing all control over himself. That’s the state idol worship eventually brings you into.
2) The suffering passed on to others (Acts 16:16-18)
▶And it doesn’t end there. In Acts 16:16-18, we see how demonic possession spreads — this girl brought confusion and suffering to many others.
3. Suffering accumulates more and more (Matthew 12:43-45)
▶What’s even more frightening is that suffering begins to pile up endlessly. You must explain this clearly. In Matthew 12:43-45, Jesus speaks of this, though the Pharisees didn’t understand a word He was saying.
1) The condition of church members without life (Matthew 12:43)
▶In verse 43, the evil spirit wanders through arid places, seeking rest. In simple terms, these are spiritually dry, complaining hearts — and evil spirits invade them, attacking relentlessly.
2) The foolishness of idol worshippers (Matthew 12:44-45)
▶And what happens next? It gets worse and worse. People perform rituals and exorcisms, but instead, seven more demons come in. Jesus explained this clearly, but the Pharisees couldn’t understand Him at all. They said, “What is He talking about? Why is He talking about demons? Is He the prince of demons or something?”
Isn’t it amazing how identical this is to today’s churches without the gospel? They speak using exactly the same arguments as the Pharisees, word for word. When you see denominations today that block the gospel, their language mirrors that of the Pharisees. It’s shocking.
That’s why, to save these people, you must be filled with the Holy Spirit, as Jesus commanded. In other words, you must arm yourself with what Christ has given. That is what being filled with the Holy Spirit truly means.
4. To save those possessed by demons
▷Refer to the detailed diagram in the Field Gospel Message textbook, p.124.
▶There is an illustration there. Demons constantly attack us, don’t they? Satan attacks us. Can demons enter believers? Yes, they can. The Bible says so. In Ephesians 4:27, it says, “Do not give the devil a foothold.” In Acts 5:3, Peter says, “Why has Satan filled your heart?” Demons can enter.
▶If you look at the diagram, you’ll see that although we have our will, demons are always trying to invade us. When we keep giving them opportunities, we eventually get entangled. Once entangled, we become trapped. Over time, we are seized entirely. That’s why the very first thing Jesus said when calling His disciples was: “I have called you so that you may be with Me, so that you may go out and preach, and so that you may have authority to drive out demons.” That’s the order. You must explain this to others.
Long-term unbelief, long-term oppression, long-term torment from demons — none of that matters once the bartizan is built. “The Son of God appeared to destroy the works of the devil.” That’s what has been established.