2026.03.22 District Message Week 12
「The State of Man」(Ge 4:10-15)
We can easily get water. There are many countries where people cannot get water. If we give them a single bottle of the bottled water we carry, they are so incredibly grateful. Because we have so much of that water, we don’t feel grateful at all. However, if you think, “This water is precious and good,” and enjoy it while drinking, your health will be restored. Because the blessings of our salvation are so immense, we might not realize them. Enjoying those blessings is prayer and worship.
「The Appearance of Humanity」
Therefore, today we must look at the appearance of humanity as many are living now and be thankful to God. People don’t even know what they should be thankful for.
▣ Introduction
1. People Who Left God
First, looking at the Bible, the people who left God are recorded most prominently.
1) Genesis 3:4-5: This is the Genesis 3 incident. It is the incident in the Garden of Eden. In other words, is it possible to “leave” God? It means they left the promise. Can you go anywhere by running away? They left the Word of God. That is what leaving God is. They left God’s covenant. If so, it is the same as leaving everything.
2) Genesis 6:4-5: Then, they held onto things thinking “this is mine,” but that was the Nephilim.
3) Genesis 11:1-8: And they thought, “this is on my side,” but those things became enemies and crumbled. This is what happens.
2. Spiritual Problems — Disasters
So, although the shapes differ, spiritual problems come to all these people. For some, it is visible; for others, it is invisible. It has no choice but to come. Because they left God, terrifying disasters begin to strike without them even realizing it. For some it is spiritual, for some mental, and for some it hits the body. A person can be sick, of course. But there are many people suffering because so much spiritual difficulty has come.
3. Persistence — Fortune-telling, Shamanic Rituals (Matt 12:43-45)
The problem is that it isn’t resolved and it persists. Because it persists, some people begin to struggle desperately. Then they fall into even deeper difficulty. Because of this, some people go to get their fortunes told because it’s so hard. Others do shamanic rituals (gut). The more they do, the harder it gets. In Matthew 12:43-45, Jesus says it gets harder as it goes. Seven-fold more demons enter.
▣ Main Body — Opportunity
At this time, God does not just leave us be. Why? Even though we have left God now, God has given us an opportunity. This is very important. What kind of opportunity did He give?
1. The Cause
What is the cause of all problems?
1) Romans 3:10, 23 — Suffering, Curse: Romans 3:10 says, “There is no one righteous, not even one.” What does that mean? Verse 23 says it is because they left God. Because everyone left God, they cannot meet God. They have fallen into Original Sin. That is why they fell into great suffering in Genesis 3:1-2. Not only that, but the land and the field receive curses.
2) Satan — Motive (Background): What is the motive behind this? It’s not “because” of Satan, but rather they were tempted by Satan and crumbled. Now, we aren’t making excuses about Satan. They were tempted by Satan. Because they left God, they were destined for destruction, and they were tempted by Satan.
Many people still do not believe God’s Word, yet they listen to the words of those possessed by demons and follow them. It’s not a small amount of money either. They spend enormous amounts of money on shamanic rituals, and thus enter further into destruction. But the reason we must know this and pray is that they can’t help it. It’s in the lesson, right? John 8:44, “You belong to your father, the devil.” But that father is a liar and a deceiver, and they cannot escape. If you don’t tell them, they cannot escape and have no choice but to worship idols. They shouldn’t do shamanic rituals, and they know it won’t work, but they can’t stop. Why? Because they belong here (Main Body 1). While the cause is here (Rom 3:10, 23), the motive they get caught in is here (Satan). That is why it’s scary. Eventually, spiritual problems come. A little later, mental problems come. It’s a natural result, but then it comes to the body. No matter what they do, it isn’t resolved. Why? Because the background is different. Without knowing this, it goes to the posterity again. If a spiritual problem comes and you become a shaman or do things like that, you must absolutely overcome it. It goes to the next generation.
2. Persistence — The Next Generation
So then what kind of problem arises? This has continued until now, persistently. How? To the next generation. If you know this, you will realize how great it is to be saved and how great it is to pray today.
Cain and Abel: Cain and Abel appear. Cain was the first to kill Abel. He could not live because of anxiety.
3. Opportunity
So God gave Cain an opportunity. Giving him a mark, He gave him an opportunity to avoid death.
4. Solving Life’s Problems
What does this mean? It means God gives the answer that solves our life’s problems.
1) Genesis 3:15: The first phrase that appeared was: “The offspring of the woman will crush the serpent’s head.” That word “Christ” promised by God will break all the darkness of Satan.
2) 1 John 3:8: “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.”
3) John 1:12: “Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”
Perhaps I am a child of God but difficulty has come? That is a different story. People who are not children of God perish because of it. For a child of God, it is worlds apart. They live because of it. When God sent the flood during Noah’s time, the people who left God died because of it. Noah lived because of the flood. This is the difference. You don’t know how big a difference it is.
▣ Introduction (Transition) — Child of God (Throne) vs. Child of Satan (Hell) (John 8:44)
Why? Because it is one of the two. There are only two kinds of people. You might feel very offended, but this is how it is. Child of God. Child of Satan. You might feel very offended, but Jesus said it. He looked at the Pharisees, who were living their religious lives well, and called them children of Satan. They had no choice but to face difficulty.
There are things in life we don’t necessarily need to know. Right? But there are things we must not fail to know. We must absolutely realize this. Because we are children of God, the Throne is the background. Right? It is worlds apart. Because you are a child of God—or because you are not—Hell is the background. That is the difference. You don’t go to heaven because you are outstanding; a child of God just goes. A person may have done only good deeds their whole life, but if they are a child of the devil, they go to hell. You don’t go to heaven because you have no sin; you go because the problem of sin has been resolved. You don’t go to hell because you have many sins; you go because it wasn’t resolved. When kids play in the village, they go to their own house when the sun sets. We live our whole lives and finally, what? We go to our home. We go to our heavenly home. There is no doubt.
Among you, things like “having luck” or “being unlucky”—that doesn’t exist for a child of God. “Because of someone”—there’s no such thing. That is for a child of the devil. For a child of the devil, even picking the wrong day is a big deal. Right? We don’t have that. It is all finished. “Christ has finished it all.” Those are not ordinary words. “But why did this difficulty come?” No. Absolutely not. Is anyone’s body aching? It is a time schedule to experience God’s great spiritual grace. You must make it so. Right? When the 7 Remnants faced suffering, what was it? It was a time schedule to find great concentration toward God. When people who are not children of God face a big problem, they are seized by Satan and commit suicide. And they even kill people. A child of God cannot do that. Someone guided by the Holy Spirit cannot do that. Because people are guided by Satan, they kill and keep on killing. “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.”
5. Witness
So we evangelize and do missions. That is why we pray and deliver the Word. As witnesses. I hope you hold onto the covenant and pray today. You are a child of God, so you must throw away being deceived. You must change it. If there is a difficulty you are facing, it is likely not a difficulty. Pray. God’s good plan is inside. Someone might be unable to move and just lying in a hospital for a long time. Many people say, “Look at that, how much suffering must that be. I mean, you should just live vigorously until 99 and then die.” Many people say that. That is not a blessing. Having a long time of being sick means that person has a great deal to pray about. Right? There is much for God to leave and prepare for the posterity. If God wanted to take someone, He could take them without them being sick. Right? He could take someone without them getting cancer, but the reason they got cancer is because they are people with an important reason to pray.
People don’t really know. A long time passed before Joseph’s brothers realized, “Ah, so that’s what it was.” God answers accurately, and one day Joseph stood exactly in the place of world evangelization. Most people don’t believe in God. They must have been shocked. I don’t mean they were shocked because Joseph succeeded. He was within the fulfillment of God’s Word.
Today, change all the words of your position and environment. “It is okay even if my body aches. I need God’s grace. It is okay even if difficulty comes. I need God’s Word.” you must make that decision. The people gathered for the district service must tell them. They are being deceived. “The Remnants are wandering”—they are doing well. Without wandering, they don’t know who they are. Right? It looks like they are wandering, but they aren’t.
I bless you in the name of Jesus Christ that today will be an important day for you. Let us pray.
Prayer. May today be a day of gaining strength all day long, may thoughts be changed, may it be a time to change the environment, a time to change the spiritual atmosphere, and a time for the Word to be fulfilled. We pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.