The Word Given Before a Blocked Path

2026.06.14 Sunday 1st Service
「The Word Given Before a Blocked Path」(Jer 33:1-3)

Jeremiah 33:1-3

01 While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the Lord came to him a second time:
02 “This is what the Lord says, he who made the earth, the Lord who fashions and establishes it, the Lord is his name:
03 ‘Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.'”

Summary

1. The beginning of answered prayer – hearing God’s word as a voice.

2. 99% of people in the world don’t believe in God and don’t know the gospel. They say success comes through effort. They say you must do your best. They say you must fight and win. That’s why problems come.

3. People say it’s hard to get answers to prayer. God is the almighty Creator — why are we powerless?

▣ Introduction_ Why We Must Hear God’s Word as a Voice – Background

1. The same problem occurring from the beginning until now
1) Genesis 3, the Garden of Eden incident – “Don’t believe God, believe yourself.”
2) Genesis 6, the Nephilim captured by Satan – spiritism movements, meditation
3) Genesis 11, the Tower of Babel movement – “Let’s unite around ideology, ideas, and hegemonic spirit.”

2. Israel received the gospel first but did not preach it – they suffered seven calamities.

3. God’s word came to Jeremiah – God’s word has never failed to be fulfilled.
1) The wrong message can have momentary power because it matches reality.
2) Be confident that the time you hear God’s word as a voice is the best time.
3) Hear God’s word in your heart and grasp it as a covenant.

▣ Main_ How God’s Word Came, and How It Was Received

1. Of Course – When a problem comes, first discover the “of course” aspect.
1) Since 99% of people don’t believe God’s word, it’s only natural that Jeremiah was imprisoned.
2) “The Lord who fashions” (don’t be shaken), “the Lord who establishes and fulfills” (don’t be afraid), “the Lord is his name, who says this” (guarantee)
3) The beginning of the blessing seen by the 7 Remnants, the beginning of hearing God’s voice, is “of course” – Joseph’s brothers, Saul, the persecution by the Jewish priests and scribes.

2. Inevitable – God called you at this very time.
1) “Call to me” – do the 24. Wait for the 25. Don’t be discouraged until the eternal work emerges.
2) “I will answer you” (assurance) – humans have limits and cannot be trusted. There is an eternal world.
3) “I will tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know” – He called you with an inevitable plan in mind.

3. Absolute – God’s absolute plan that must be carried out has been revealed.
1) Verse 6 “I will heal this city.”
2) Verse 7 “I will bring my people back from captivity and restore them as they were before.”
3) Verse 8 “I will forgive all their sins.”
4) Verse 9 “The nations will hear of this blessing and praise the Lord.”

▣ Conclusion

1. If you find the “of course,” the “inevitable,” and the “absolute,” the way is not blocked but opened.

2. Those who grasped this covenant saved the world.
1) Daniel
2) Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
3) Esther

3. Those who grasped this covenant saved emperors who moved the world.

Transcript

▣ Introduction

Thank you. Today we must grasp the covenant of receiving God’s answer.

There used to be many people who attacked Geumnan Church, Myungsung Church, and Yoido Church viciously. They all lost. These days many people viciously attack our church too. Because we have the duty to protect the church, I ask the whole congregation to gather and participate in prayer for the joint council.

1. The beginning of answered prayer – hearing God’s word as a voice

This message is especially for our Remnant all over the world, and for those who guide the Remnant. In our life of faith, the most important thing is to hear God’s word as a voice. Many people devote their lives to the wrong message. About twenty times, a person emerged who heard God’s voice. That person is Jeremiah. About twenty times in the Bible, “the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah.” This is extremely important.

From childhood until now, I’ve confirmed that answered prayer always starts from here. We must hear God’s word as a voice. I always say this because for me, that’s where the answer comes from. I saw my parents go through hardship. Through that, I realized God’s word. “Ah, our parents were so diligent that they didn’t really experience the power of the gospel. The unnecessary suffering our parents went through must be removed.” Really.

I went to church from childhood. You hear many stories from many church members. Of course there’s a lot to learn. But for most of it, if I wanted to live my faith properly, I had to make sure I didn’t listen to those voices.

Now, how should Remnants live in this world? 99% of people don’t believe in God. Even among those who believe in God, 99% don’t know the gospel. It’s true. Among them, 99% think, “Just like unbelievers, I have to make it through effort. I must fight to win. I must do my best.” That’s a correct statement — practically speaking. But spiritually, it’s not correct. So problems keep coming. What message should we listen to and live by? This part is extremely important.

3. People say it’s hard to get answers to prayer. God is the almighty Creator — why are we powerless?

Many people say getting prayer answered is difficult? No. What message should we hear? Some pastor said in his sermon, “God is the Creator — why do we say we have nothing?” “God is the almighty God — why is His child, me, powerless?” I thought that statement was right. I’m the one who’s wrong, not God. Just thinking that way, the answers started coming.

▣ Introduction_ Why We Must Hear God’s Word as a Voice – Background

Why must we hear God’s word as a voice? There are several major background reasons.

1. The same problem occurring from the beginning until now

The same problem occurring from the beginning until now. You know this, right? The same thing from the beginning until now.

1) Genesis 3, the Garden of Eden incident
“Don’t believe God, believe yourself.” That’s the Garden of Eden incident in Genesis 3. It’s a dangerous statement, but it sounds appealing. “You’re important.” “You must find the king within you.” That’s a terrifying statement. “You must practice.” “You must become a Buddha.” “You must become like God.” It’s terrifying. It’s still happening now. The place where this happens most actively is America. Almost all of these messages come out of America.

2) Genesis 6, the Nephilim captured by Satan
You’d think things were going fine, but they got captured by Satan. The Nephilim. Genesis 6. It’s still continuing now. What are the three groups doing right now? They’re doing spiritism movements. At a very sophisticated level. Doing it in a truly American way, a truly European way. And through it, capturing the world with meditation. Almost everyone is being deceived. Since people have no choice but to listen to wrong messages, the number of mentally ill people can only increase. Listen, today you must hear God’s word as a voice. That alone is enough.

3) Genesis 11, the Tower of Babel movement
“Let’s unite around the same ideology, ideas.” “Let’s unite around hegemonic spirit.” Isn’t that the Tower of Babel movement? It’s still continuing now.

2. Israel received the gospel first but did not preach it – seven calamities

So God didn’t give the gospel only to Israel. He gave the gospel to Israel first. They never once preached it. So what message should we listen to and live by? What message should Remnants listen to and live by, I mean. They never once preached it. So God forcibly sends Jonah. “Go.” “I won’t go.” That’s the response. Funny, right? He ran away. Later he ended up in the belly of the fish, and barely survived and went and did it. Nineveh repented. What did Jonah say at that time? It’s really a ridiculous thing to say. What did he say? “God, look. I didn’t want to go, but you told me to go, so I went and preached the gospel, and those people are repenting. They shouldn’t be allowed to repent.” Really ridiculous, right? You shouldn’t grow up listening to talk like this. That’s why world calamity struck. Israel suffered calamity seven times. It’s astonishing.

3. God’s word came to Jeremiah – God’s word has never failed to be fulfilled

So how is it now?

1) The wrong message can have momentary power because it matches reality.
This wrong message can have momentary power because it matches reality. At this time, Jeremiah, who heard God’s voice, spoke. He spoke the word he received from God. What was the core of it? “Soon Babylon will come and take our nation captive.” That was the core. So the powerful people in Israel heard that statement and condemned Jeremiah. They labeled him as pro-Babylon. They put this false charge on him. He was bearing witness on God’s behalf to God’s word, and instead of listening, believing, and praying, they called him pro-Babylon. So they imprisoned Jeremiah. They planned to have him executed and put him in prison.

2) Hear God’s word as a voice — the time you confirm that this is the best time.
At this time, God’s word came to Jeremiah. We must be confident that the time we hear God’s word as a voice is the best time. He was imprisoned in the “courtyard of the guard.” There are various types of imprisonment. “Courtyard of the guard” — this is an extremely frightening place. Simply put, it’s where they imprison those guilty of rebellion against the state, insurrectionists trying to overthrow the nation. Jeremiah was imprisoned there. That’s when God’s word came to Jeremiah.

3) Hear God’s word in your heart and grasp it as a covenant. It has never once failed to be fulfilled.
Today you must hear God’s word in your heart and grasp it as a covenant. Don’t be deceived. It has never once failed to be fulfilled.

“There are pastors everywhere, but evangelism isn’t happening” — you must grasp this precisely. With so many servants of God, does it make sense for churches to close and church membership to decline? It doesn’t make sense, does it? Why, with so many important seminaries in America and Europe, do churches close? Most kids fall into mental problems and drugs. You must hear God’s word as a voice. Right? What to do? That’s the next topic.

▣ Main_ How God’s Word Came, and How It Was Received

Now, how did it come and how was it received?

1. Of Course – When a problem comes, first discover the “of course” aspect.
First. It came while he was imprisoned in the courtyard of the guard. He explained the fulfillment of an event that was natural, scriptural, and historical. Now, this is natural.

When a problem comes to you, what’s the first thing you must discover? The “of course” aspect.

1) Since 99% of people don’t believe God’s word, it’s only natural that Jeremiah was imprisoned.
Since 99% of people don’t believe God’s word, it’s natural that Jeremiah was imprisoned. You must catch onto that quickly. Then the response is different too. Do you know what was said?

2) “The Lord who fashions” (don’t be shaken), “the Lord who establishes and fulfills” (don’t be afraid), “the Lord is his name, who says this” (guarantee)
“The Lord who fashions” — it said. Who did this work? The Lord. Don’t be shaken. That’s what it means. “The Lord who establishes and fulfills.” Don’t be afraid — that’s what it means. When problems come, you panic, but it’s natural. After that comes an important guarantee. “The Lord is his name, who declares this.” A neighbor could say it too, but it’s “the Lord is his name who declares this.”

3) The beginning of the blessing seen by the 7 Remnants, the beginning of hearing God’s voice, is “of course” – Joseph’s brothers, Saul, the persecution by the Jewish priests and scribes.
What was the beginning of the blessing the 7 Remnants saw? What is the beginning of hearing God’s voice? “Of course.” Joseph’s brothers, who knew nothing but eating, persecuting Joseph is “of course.” Saul, who only learned competitiveness, becoming demon-possessed is “of course.” Those crowds of Jewish priests and scribes, who thought their profession and success was everything, persecuting the right thing — that’s “of course.”

But to resolve this, God did it — “the Lord who fashions.” We don’t know. “The Lord who establishes and fulfills. The Lord is his name, who declares this.” This is the first one. This is the first thing in hearing God’s voice, hearing His word.

2. Inevitable – God called you at this very time.
The second thing came out. The “inevitable” came out. Why? “He called you at this very time.” Some people say, “Why am I the only one getting sick?” “He called you.” That’s the answer. Some people ask, “Why do these things happen to me?” That really throws people into confusion. “God called you.” That’s it. Inevitability.

1) “Call to me”
“Call to me” — it said. It didn’t just say “pray,” it said “call out.” “Don’t do anything else.” That’s what it means. “Do the 24.” That’s what it means. “Wait for the 25.” That’s what it means. “Don’t be discouraged until the eternal work emerges.” That’s what it means. “Call to me,” it said.

2) “I will answer you” (assurance)
If Remnants can pray, everything else is settled. Those who know how to pray have assurance about it. Finished. With what? “I will answer you,” it said. Listen, what we cannot do is far more than what we can do. So much more. We humans hit our limits. So we cannot trust ourselves. A person hits their limits. So do you trust that person? Humans have an eternal world. “Call to me. I will answer you.” God says He will answer. The people of the world cannot know this.

3) “I will tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know”
“I will tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” “Why does this happen to me?” — that’s how we react. To you, God called you with an inevitable plan in mind. Nothing to fear. Something natural happened. It’s natural for those who don’t know God or the gospel — 99% of people — to act this way. Right? But why am I among them? That’s what’s important. That’s why God called Jeremiah here. An inevitable event. Then God’s word comes as a voice.

3. Absolute – God’s absolute plan that must be carried out has been revealed.
Third. The absolute response came out. “Of course,” “inevitable,” “absolute.” Ah, this is God’s absolute plan that must be carried out, revealed. Do you know what He said?

1) Verse 6: God will heal the city.
In verse 6, “Behold, I will restore and heal this city.” God says He will heal the city. So He called you to convey this covenant, to pray. Being imprisoned now isn’t the problem. He’s conveying the absolute.

2) Verse 7: My people will return from captivity and become as before.
In verse 7, He said, “I will bring my people back from captivity and restore them as before.”

3) Verse 8: He will forgive all your sins.
In verse 8, “I will forgive all your iniquity.” If God doesn’t forgive, it doesn’t disappear.

4) Verse 9: The nations will hear of this blessing and praise the Lord. The nations will tremble in fear.
In verse 9, “The nations will hear of this blessing and praise the Lord. Hearing this news, those who persecuted you, the nations, will tremble in fear.” All 7 Remnants heard God’s word as a voice within “of course,” “inevitable,” and “absolute.” That is bound to be fulfilled.

▣ Conclusion

It’s funny. Right after my father passed away, there was a woman in our neighborhood similar to someone possessed by a spirit. Without being called, she came to our house. She said this to my mother. “You’re ruined because you go to church.” Something like a strange shaman. At that time, my mother’s response — we were watching — was, “I believe in God, but aren’t you possessed by a spirit? You’re the one who’s ruined.” “I have a future, and I have children too. You don’t even have that — you’re the one who’s ruined.” My mother said this, perhaps out of anger. Inside, I looked at that woman thinking, “Mind your own business,” but couldn’t say it. And then she left. People do that. Our mother never lost the covenant. No matter what hardship came, she never lost the covenant. Truly remarkable. Regardless of that hardship, she grasped the covenant and prayed.

1. If you find the “of course,” the “inevitable,” and the “absolute,” that is not the way blocked but the way opened.
The way is not blocked. Today’s title is “The Word Given to One Whose Way is Blocked,” but it’s not blocked — it’s opened. When blockage or hardship comes on your path, look. If you find “of course,” “inevitable,” and “absolute,” that’s the way you see. That’s the way, I’m telling you. It’s not blocked. It’s opened. It looks like imprisonment, but today God explained to Jeremiah something completely open. “I will do this work.” Right? “Call to me. I will tell you great and unsearchable things. I will heal this city. I will bring back the captives. The nations will hear this news and praise the Lord.” All the answers came out. Jeremiah grasped this and conveyed it.

2. Those who grasped this covenant all saved the world.
Those who grasped this covenant all came to save the world. Among those taken captive to Babylon, most died there, but those who grasped the covenant changed the world.

1) Daniel
Going there, how did God fulfill His word? He gave Daniel the wisdom to help and transform King Nebuchadnezzar.

2) Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
He gave it to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego too, right? And the one who gave wisdom and help to King Belshazzar was Daniel.

3) Esther
The one who moved King Ahasuerus was Esther. Why? Because she grasped the precise covenant, God’s word, as a covenant. Grasp it today. A problem has come? That’s perfect for grasping it. No problems at all? Hard to grasp. A problem came? Perfect. Try grasping it as a covenant.

When I was young, my parents both passed away. I quickly went and gave the answer. Many people pretend to comfort, but with their mouths they’re mocking. I gathered a list of people who lost their parents young and became successful and gave it to them. And I wrote out a Bible verse too. For a child, that becomes God’s voice. Why would that be difficult? It’s not difficult.

3. Those who grasped this covenant saved emperors who moved the world.
All 7 Remnants did that. So those who grasped this covenant save kings, I’m telling you. Not just ordinary kings. They saved emperors who moved the world. And what’s this year’s theme? The true spiritual emperor who saved the emperor. This power of the gospel is endless.

At that time, Persia invaded. Bassa. The Bible calls it Bassa. The person who invaded there was named Cyrus. That person was the emperor of Persia. He came and said, “Israel, return and rebuild the temple.” So the Persian era began. What people do is all wrong. So what did they do? They made all sorts of idols. At that time God struck them down.

The Mongol era came. And so Persia, after 800 years, started to completely collapse. Then it revived because of oil. Then something more terrifying than idols — Islam — took over and seized that nation. I’m talking about Iran. That’s Iran. Why am I talking about Iran? Because it was Iran that conquered Babylon and moved the world, I’m telling you. I’m talking about the event that happened in Babylon. What will happen going forward?

To those who hear God’s precise word as a voice — “Call to me.” It’s not just an answer. “I will accomplish great and secret things you do not know.” Grasp this covenant today. Just look for it and that’s enough. I bless you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us pray.

Prayer. We thank You, God. Let today be a day of grasping God’s covenant. Let it be a day of casting away the wrong things of this world. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.