South Korean tour: Sansung Church, Daejeon

This March, I had the unexpected opportunity of visiting Sansung Church in Daejeon, South Korea. This was thanks to Pastor Ban of Shonan Community Church in Japan. I heard about how, through Sansung Church, Pastor Ban decided to become a missionary to Japan. It was an amazing story of God’s leading and His great plans. Sansung Church is Methodist in affliation and has over 3,000 members. I will try to summarize what I learned about this church: 1) Led by a senior pastor and 14 assistant pastors and staff members, Sansung has grown to two church sites. Not centered merely on programs, the church focuses on making disciples — that

1 Kings 22 sermon, Part 1 of 2, “Our Attitude to God’s Word”

We are almost done studying the book of 1 Kings. Today, we will read chapter 22, which ends the story of Ahab, king of Israel. From this story, I would like to suggest 3 points: 1) We need to check our attitude toward God’s Word, 2) We must be faithful to God’s Word, and 3) We may suffer for holding on to truth. Let us pray. [Read 1 Kings 22:1-40] We need to check our attitude toward God’s Word My first point is about our attitude towards God’s Word. Let’s reread verses 19-23: Micaiah continued, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord : I saw the Lord sitting on his

1 Kings 21 sermon, “God’s People and Injustice”

From a sermon series on 1 Kings by See Huang Lim, a missionary at IBF. Today’s passage is 1 Kings chapter 21, in which we continue the story of King Ahab of Israel. From this chapter, I want to us to think about 3 points: 1) God’s people will experience injustice, 2) God will judge the unjust and yet extend mercy to them, and 3) God’s people should be prepared to stand for justice. Let’s pray. [Read 1 Kings 21] God’s people will experience injustice The passage doesn’t say much about who Naboth is. We only know from that Naboth cared more about treasuring God’s gift to him than pleasing

1 Kings 20 sermon, Part 2 of 2, “Seeing God Correctly”

From a sermon series on 1 Kings by See Huang Lim, a missionary at IBF. We are continuing 1 Kings chapter 20. Previously, we read about how God saved the helpless king Ahab from Ben-Hadad. Ben-Hadad, king of Aram, had a superior army and after failing to get tribute from Israel, decided to attack Israel. In today’s sequel, we will look at the Arameans misunderstanding of God, and also Ahab’s continuing disobedience. We will reflect on two questions: 1) Do we have misconceptions about God?, and 2) Why do we disobey God sometimes? Let us pray. [Read 1 Kings 20:23-43] Do we have misconceptions about God? In verse 23 Ben-Hadad’s

1 Kings 20 sermon, Part 1 of 2, “God Helps the Helpless”

From a sermon series on 1 Kings by See Huang Lim, a missionary at IBF. Today’s story in 1 Kings 20 is the beginning of King Ahab’s eventual demise. In spite of how he rebels against God, God shows Ahab mercy upon mercy. If anything, this chapter demonstrates 3 characteristics of God: 1) God helps the helpless, 2) God helps the undeserving, and 3) God helps to gain our attention and response. Let’s pray. [Read 1 Kings 20:1-22] Surrounded by the Syrian army, King Ahab of Israel has nowhere to run, and Ben-Hadad’s victory over Israel is guaranteed. Suddenly, a prophet of the Lord appears out of nowhere, in verse