Prayer Journal: October 20, 2025
19. Jan. 2025 Immanuel Church Sunday Worship 2nd Service
Scripture Reading: Genesis 37:1-11
Thank you. Today, for the first time, we will go out to a missions field and it is the story of Joseph who received an answer. We must check how he received the answer, mustn’t we? Joseph had very many hardships. When he was young, his mother died while giving birth to his younger brother. But that younger brother’s name is Benjamin. Yet because Benjamin’s mother passed away at his birth, he does not know her face. But Joseph knew. So how painful must that have been? It was the age when one likes one’s mother the most, and at that time his mother passed away. Yet with Joseph, a strange thing happened then. From that time on, Joseph overcame every hardship that came to him. That incident became a very important incident to him. What happened? It came out in today’s text. It says that the sun and the moon and the stars bowed.
He received the light that saves the world. So afterward tremendous hardships came. At that time he was not shaken at all. Why was that?
▣ Introduction: Light
1. Darkness
He received this light, and the opposite word of this light is darkness. Especially our remnants and our believers, when living the life of faith, there is no need to be shaken when you see hardships.
1) Genesis 1:2
In Genesis 1:2 we see that we are living in the midst of darkness. Thus, “the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep.” Because Joseph saw the light, he knew this. At the most difficult time. It was the most difficult time when his mother passed away, yet normally at such a time a person becomes discouraged. One also falls into hardship. But God shone upon Joseph the light that saves the world. He must have prayed.
2) Isaiah 60:2
So from then on, in Isaiah 60:2 it says, “Darkness covers the peoples, and thick darkness covers the earth.” Before darkness you have no need to fear at all. But usually our remnants, because they are young, when they go outside and see something big, they become shaken. It is the same when we look at history. In our nation many difficult things are happening now. Just wait and see. Our nation is a nation that must do world evangelization. God will surely break the darkness. You must have that assurance. Because light can overcome darkness. Conversely, darkness is not afraid of anything. Because it is darkness. No matter how much effort you put into darkness, it will not work. When light comes in, it disappears. Joseph experienced this when he was young.
3) Genesis 3, 6, 11; shrines, idols, religion, the six snares
So you must not fear at all. This beginning started in Genesis 3, 6, and 11. And to drive people into ever-increasing hardship, Satan made shrines, made idols, and kept making strange religions to make them die. So they continued in idol worship, and later even their children became caught in the six snares. There is no need to fear at all.
2. Light
Therefore what God promised was that He would send this light.
1) Genesis 1:3
This light, in Genesis 1:3, is the “light of creation.”
2) Isaiah 60:1
Thus in Isaiah 60:1 it says, “Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.”
3) John 1:11
In John 1:11, “Jesus came as the light.”
4) Matthew 5:14
Therefore, in Matthew 5:14, “You are the light of the world.”
5) 1 Peter 2:9
What is the reason He called you, giving you great blessing? It is unbelievable, isn’t it? Why did He call you as a chosen people, a holy nation? It is to proclaim this light. It is to reveal this light. Our evangelism committee dedication worship today, and those doing world missions, must hold this covenant.
▣ Main: [ Sun, Moon, Stars ]
Now, look at what blessing was given to this Joseph. The sun bowed, the moon bowed, and the stars bowed. This can be misunderstood. The statement that the sun bowed means that the father Jacob bowed; the statement that the moon bowed means that the mother bowed; and the statement that the stars bowed means that the eleven brothers bowed. So the brothers misunderstood, and they hated him and such. In reality it is not that. He saw a definite light that conveys the tremendous light of life. So the very first thing that happens to you:
Direction
In this part, when the work of seeing the light that saves the world takes place for me, from then on your direction matches with God. Our remnants must surely remember. No matter how well you study, if your direction does not match, it will not work.
Disaster
And you cannot overcome disaster. Right now the whole world is entirely in the disaster of darkness, is it not? You cannot overcome it. If you receive this light, not only will your direction match, but He gives you power to overcome disaster.
So when Joseph went, the brothers first tried to kill him and then sold him. He went as a slave, but he did not go as a slave—he went carrying this (sun, moon, stars). You must surely keep this in mind. You must not be shaken then. He went to Potiphar’s house, and it says God gave blessing even to the fields of Potiphar’s house. Potiphar saw and said, “The Lord is with you.” This is the true answer that remnants and you will receive. It is not that it is okay not to evangelize your relatives, but it is okay. They will see and say, “The Lord is with you.” Later, Potiphar saw and said, “The Lord blesses you in everything.” That is the standard of evangelism. Such evidence will come. Joseph was not shaken at all.
Then he was falsely accused and went to prison. He was not shaken. A man who came into the prison saw Joseph and saw what God’s power was. As it turned out, this person was a minister. A minister had come into the prison. Then he cleared Joseph of the misunderstandings, was released from prison, and returned to the king.
The time surely comes. The king, sleeping, had a nightmare. He had a strange dream. You too can have a dream while sleeping, can’t you? You can dream while sleeping. Some people, thinking a war had broken out, were startled in their dream and ran out—only to find it was just the alarm clock. That can happen. When your heart is impatient you dream of being chased. Right? When you are stifled you dream stifling dreams. Sometimes you dream the exact opposite. That is what they call a “nonsense dream.” There are many like that. But what happened with Joseph was that exactly the same very clear dream came to the king. This is a different matter. For example, if you keep having exactly the same dream, what happens? That is a problem, right? So the king became distressed. “What is this?” A nonsense dream is something you dream once in a while and it passes.
The king came to the point of getting sick over it. “What in the world is this?” Only then did the minister remember. “Ah, Joseph. Joseph who interpreted my dream.” He must have remembered. So he said to the king, “There is one person who can interpret Your Majesty’s dream.” That is it. The king, greatly astonished, asked, “Who is it?” “He is a Hebrew, but he is not here.” “Where is he?” “He is now in prison.” The king has that authority, doesn’t he? “Bring him at once.” At that time Joseph’s age was thirty. He had suffered for a dozen or more years. At that time he was thirty, and by Egyptian law one must be over thirty to become prime minister. It is strange, isn’t it? At that time the king called for Joseph. And he interpreted this dream. Not only did he interpret it, he also presented what to do in the future. The king was deeply moved. What was even more surprising was that he said, “It is the Lord who makes the dream known.”
Even when you evangelize unbelievers, there is no need to try to use very difficult words. If you talk complicatedly, it becomes even more complicated. If you happen to evangelize, just tell it simply. Do not say messy things like, “Have you ever been to church?” If you do, they will think of a strange church from the past—so do not say it. When I went for evangelism—at that time we went to the countryside for medical evangelism—what I did was go straight in and say, “While I was praying last night, God told me to go to your house, so I came.” I said this. The person trembled. “Why?” I spoke of the six states of the unbeliever. The person was astonished and accepted Jesus. In another place, when our team spoke about the state of the unbeliever, the person listened and became so startled that he said, “Why are you saying that to me? Who are you?” And he threw a pot. You know, the pot that was next to him. He threw it. And when asked, “Did it hit you?” they said it did not. He threw like this. But the funny thing is, after throwing it he said, “Come and see.” Such strange things took place. When we went and explained, this person accepted Jesus. Strange happenings took place.
Look at the monk in Taiwan who accepted Jesus. Our car took a wrong turn and went into a temple, and a work arose there. “God sent me to you, so I came.” I said this. “It is written like this in God’s Word.” That is far better. “God made the dream known to me, and God will make Your Majesty’s dream known. For seven years there will be a worldwide abundance. Then make all the land into storehouses. Then store all the grain from the seven years in the granaries.” Thus, to keep it from spoiling, store it underground. “After seven years there will be a great famine. Worldwide. At that time sell this grain.” The king was utterly astonished—even in economics. He made Joseph prime minister.
This is the story of Joseph’s life. What do the sun and the moon and the stars mean? In your evangelism and missions, what blessing do you receive first?
1. The bartizan of light
The bartizan of light is made first. You must surely believe this.
2. The sanctuary of light
For you to receive the blessing to do missions, the sanctuary of light is made first.
3. The economy of light
This came out this time. Your evangelism and missions make you receive first the economy of light. So from now on, when you evangelize, you must surely remember this.
Answer
What do you receive first when you evangelize in the future? You receive the answer first. You must surely remember this. All church leaders must remember this.
[ Receive the blessing first ]
When you do missions, God makes you receive the blessing first. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me, and I am with you always, to the end of the age.” “In My name cast out demons.” “They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” He gave these first. You must believe. God gives the answer first.
1. The bartizan of light
And He gave blessing on the journey you go—the bartizan of light. And what happened?
1) Evangelization of Egypt
The evangelization of Egypt took place.
2) World evangelization
Then he became prime minister; selling grain to the whole world, he proclaimed the covenant—world evangelization. When this (bartizan of light, sanctuary of light, economy of light) bartizan is established, it cannot help but come.
3) Evangelization of the family line
At last Jacob’s sons, Joseph’s brothers, went to buy grain. Because there was none. To buy grain, they had to bow to the prime minister, pay money, and buy grain. Picture the scene. Joseph’s brothers came to buy grain, but they could scarcely look closely at Joseph. The prime minister. He wore an awe-inspiring garment and they did not recognize who he was. Joseph recognized right away. “Ah, my brothers have come.” He recognized them, didn’t he? Joseph felt somewhat glad in his heart and so he used his head a little. They bought grain, and it would be put into sacks. He put an item into the sack. And when he sent them off, after receiving the money, he said, “It seems you have stolen. Our item is missing.” So when they opened the sack, there it was. “Ah, it is not us. Absolutely not us.” “Where is your hometown?” “Our hometown is such-and-such.” “What is your father’s name?” “Our father’s name is Jacob.” “Tell me about your brothers.” Joseph kept confirming it, since they were indeed his brothers. They told everything. “Ah, we have such-and-such number of brothers; one is at home, and one is gone.” Later Joseph revealed himself. The brothers were so astonished. In this way, the evangelization of the family line began to arise.
[ Answer ], liberation, 7·7·7, [ path ]
You must change your thinking. The moment you hold to the covenant, answers come first. You just follow that. But people do not do this. I will say it again. You have been liberated from darkness. An enormous answer, a blessing, has already come upon you. Then surely the guideposts, the paths, concerning this will be revealed, will they not? You follow this path. You must never miss this. So if you truly see this answer, there is no need to ask, is there? Right? You must understand what I am saying now. Because there are so many believers who cannot understand this. If this (path) is seen, there is nothing to worry about. If God’s blessing is seen, my thoughts are not important. Conversely, if God’s blessing is not seen, my thoughts become important. Right? If I do not know God’s plan, my judgment is important. If God’s blessing keeps appearing on the road you take, then my thoughts are not important. This is the key.
Surely our remnants, while praying this (answer, liberation, 7·7·7), will hear God’s voice, will see the path. Go that way. All seven remnants did this. So we are saying Joseph did this.
2. The sanctuary of light
The sanctuary of light came completely.
[ Three courtyards ]
There were three courtyards in the places Joseph went.
1) Many nations
Joseph alone, while selling grain, saved the many nations.
2) Healing
Joseph alone, while selling grain and acting as prime minister, completely healed.
3) Posterity
He saved all the posterity. This is missions and evangelism. Receive the answer and blessing first.
And what else?
3. The economy of light
At last the economy of light is restored.
1) Potiphar’s house
Wherever Joseph went, the economy of light came upon Potiphar’s house. This is the believer. Remnants must be assured. Wherever a remnant goes, there the economy of light comes. When you go to your workplace, do not overthink—just unconditionally save. Until when? I do not know. Do not calculate such things. You must produce ten times, a hundred times the effectiveness of an unbeliever. He saved Potiphar’s house. Who will say anything against that?
2) The king – the prime minister
He went before the king. From then on he began to save Egypt. Not only that.
3) The prime minister – the world
He became prime minister. He came to save the world’s economy. This is the economy of light. So do not think complicatedly; if you do not miss this (answer, liberation, 7·7·7, path), it will be fine. Surely so.
[ Blessing ]
What is evangelism? It is to receive the answer first. What is blessing? Before missions, it is what God gives first. Move according to this.
[ Salvation ]
We have been completely liberated from the curse. It is the same. Then the statement that we have been liberated from the curse means we have been saved.
[ Trinity ]
Within us, God—the Triune God—is working by His Spirit. You must not miss this.
[ Lord ]
Our Lord is God. The Lord of my work is the Lord God. The Lord of our church is the Triune God. Then works arise.
Therefore, all who received answers said the same words: “Because the Lord is with me.” David said, “The Lord is my shepherd. He is my fortress and my refuge.” Such words come out when you receive answers. And when you receive answers, you may speak proudly. He has become your Lord. Therefore David needed nothing. Because He is my Lord. To what extent must we go? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were about to die. Daniel and Esther also. They were about to die in Babylon. How did they respond? “God will save us. But even if He does not save us, it is okay.” That is how they responded. This breaks all darkness. You must surely keep this in mind. This is the life of faith.
What is evangelism? It is to receive the answer first. What is missions? It is to receive God’s true blessing first. It is to go out following that path. The tremendous blessing of the three courtyards will come to us first. Therefore you, confidently, as witnesses—to those who are in darkness, as witnesses.
▣ Conclusion
1. Assurance
You must have assurance. Right? What is certain, you must have assurance of. To what extent? To the point it appears in a dream. Diagnose yourself. What dreams do you dream the most? You can check yourself, can’t you? Which dream do you dream the most? It cannot be helped. What would be the dream I dream most? The dream I dream most is one thing in two forms. What is it? I always dream that I am preparing a message. And in about half of them, because the message preparation is insufficient, I go up to the pulpit with the message not prepared, and the congregation is packed. Truly. So out of ten times, about three times I dream such a dream. So:
1) Dream
He had assurance to the point it appeared in a dream.
2) Brothers
To what extent did he have assurance? To the extent that his brothers could completely revile him. Even if you are blamed, it is okay. You must hold to the certain covenant.
3) Father
Even his father reproved him. He had assurance to that degree. This is not about good or bad. The word to you is: have assurance. Have assurance of this (answer, liberation, 7·7·7, path, blessing, salvation, Trinity, Lord).
2. Suffering – important answers
And what is even more important is when suffering comes. The time when this suffering comes is important. You do well like this and have assurance, but when this (suffering) comes, you are shaken again. Without exception, in times of suffering, He gave important answers.
3. Answers – missions
And there is something you must remember at the last. There are times when God’s unimaginable answers come. They will come, will they not? At that time there was only one thing—only the Lord, only missions. He boasted of this. In your life’s path, do so.
People in the metropolitan area, compared to those in the provinces, in any case study more and teach their children, do they not? I earnestly ask. If you do not teach your children this (light – answer, liberation, 7·7·7, path, blessing, salvation, Trinity, Lord) blessing, you will make your children suffer for a lifetime. You must teach them. I earnestly ask the remnants. If you do not go now, as you grow older it will become increasingly difficult. Light. Joseph saw it from the beginning. During this week, as you pray, I bless you in the name of Jesus Christ that there will be works by which healing, summit, and the economy of light are all restored. Let us pray.
Prayer. We thank You, God. We thank You for giving us the light of life that saves. Let a life of receiving the answer first arise, and let the work of saving the world be restored by first receiving God’s blessing. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.