The scripture for this sermon comes from the Gospel of John, 20:19-31. In today’s sermon the disciples are hiding in a room three days after their Master was brutally beaten and killed.

Then, Jesus appears to the disciples and offers them peace and gives them a mission … to spread the Good News that He is alive. Yes Jesus died and paid the price for the sin of all mankind. But, just like He said He would, He is risen to live forever more. The disciples are to tell the whole world so that whoever hears the Good News, and believes in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, will be blessed with new life, power over sin through the Holy Spirit, life everlasting, and a love that is beyond description. Our mission is to do the same. Our mission is to proclaim the Good News so that others can receive, believe, and be blessed … all to the glory of God. Like Thomas, we are to exclaim “My Lord and My God”.

Today, based on John 20:1-23, Pastor Choi conveys the Easter message of the Risen Christ. They are: 1. Stop crying, for I am with you. 2. Peace be unto you. 3. Receive the Holy Spirit.

Two thousand years ago, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey’s back. It was a fulfillment of prophecy on how the Messiah would come to His people by prophet Zachariah about 520 B.C. The same Christ still comes, as a humble King and Lord, into the believer’s heart.

Text: Matthew 26:36-41

Today Pastor Choi talks about three lessons from Jesus’ prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane: 1. In the throes of stress, pray more and ask for prayer support. 2. Pray for an hour because God knows you can do it. 3. Pray so that you may not enter into temptation.

Today Pastor Choi talks about the importance of thanksgiving in worship: both in Heaven and on earth. He explains what’s going on in heavenly worship and ends his sermon with the importance of thanksgiving in the believer’s life, worship, and prayer.

Today Pastor Choi talks about Manna the heavenly food from God for God’s people. The sermon explains the origin of manna, how it was provided, and the ultimate goal God had in mind for His people: to understand that they cannot live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

Today Pastor Choi talks about the importance of forgiving each other even up to 490 times! The sermon points out the problem of the unforgiving servant: Ungrateful, unmerciful, and unwise. The pastor exhorts the congregation to forgive by being grateful, merciful, and act with eternal perspective in mind, because our eternal destination depends on our forgiveness of those who trespass against us.

Today Pastor Choi talks about the foundation of Christian faith and practice: Jesus the Messiah and the Son of the Living God. He explains A-B-C-D’s in faith in Christ: Acknowledge-Believe-Confess-Do.

Today Pastor Choi talks about things that strike us on a societal level and make us shocked and puzzled. Expounding on Jesus’ call to repent in Luke 13:1-5, he shares three lessons for us to remember: 1. Suffering is no sure determiner of guilt. 2. Repentance is required of all without reference to accidents of life. 3. Time to repent is Now. Time is short. He exhorts God’s people to pray for our nation as Abraham did on behalf of Sodom.

In his sermon today (read by Sarah Choi), Pastor Choi talks about joy, particularly true joy that lasts eternally. There’s only One who can give us true joy–the LORD God. Pastor Choi also talks about two kinds of joy: worldly joy and godly joy. He finally talks about three ways to obtain and abide in true joy: believing in the Name of Jesus, pursuing God not joy itself, and experiencing the living God in life.

Today Pastor Choi talks about joy in God’s heart in Heaven. When one lost soul comes back home, God is delighted. His joy over one repentant soul is greater than that over 99 righteous people who don’t need to repent.

Today Pastor Choi talks about Shalom (Peace) with God through Christ. Christ and Christ alone brings us back to God through His redemption of our sins. When we obtain Peace with God through Jesus, we can also obtain Shalom in all other areas of life.

Text: Luke 4:1-13

Today Pastor Choi talks about Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. He points out that we too experience temptations in our lives such as bread alone, worship other gods, and pride. Pastor Choi also presents three ways to ward off temptations.

Today, Sarah Choi, guest speaker expands on the topic of Shalom – peace with God and peace in every part of our lives. She uses the text of Jeremiah 17:5-8 as an illustration of Shalom.

Today Pastor Choi talks about three reasons why God created His children. For worship, for love, and for good works. When God’s people do all three, they will find fulfillment and satisfaction in their lives while they glorify the Lord.

Today Pastor Choi designates 2019 to be the year of Shalom. In his message, he explains the meaning of Shalom in the Bible, Shalom in all respects in spirit, soul, and body (in that order), and exhorts the congregation to pursue God’s will for His children–Shalom—throughout this year.

Tonight Pastor Choi shares one of his deepest concerns for the families in America: the lack of forgiveness. He then explains the root cause of unforgiving spirit and how to forgive one another in the name of Jesus.

Text: John 1:1-2, 14, 10:22-39

Today Pastor Choi delivers a sermon on the Trinity. After telling the congregation why he chose this sermon topic during the Advent season, he explains the doctrine on the Trinity. He points out that the Son of God, being equal to God, came down in human form to save us from our sins.

Text: Hebrews 2:18, 4:14-16

Today Pastor Choi talks about Jesus’ birth known to us as incarnation (literal meaning, into flesh).  Jesus was incarnated God.  He was the God-man.  He was equal to God yet He came in human form to save us from our sins.

Text: Luke 1:46-56

Today Pastor Choi talks about two lessons from Mary the mother of Jesus: humility and blessedness.  True humility before God means courage to embrace God’s will and plan for the believers.  As far as blessings go, we need to learn to look at blessings from God’s perspective not from that of the world.

Text: Luke 1:5-25

Today Pastor Choi talks about God’s time vs. Our time.  He points out three lessons from the story of Zacharias and Elizabeth–the parents of John the Baptist.  First, the delayed answers to our prayers may have nothing to do with us but have everything to do with God’s divine purpose and plan for our lives.  Next, God’s time is different from ours.  Thirdly, we must persevere in prayer without losing heart or faith in God.

Text: Revelation 21:1-4

Today Pastor Choi explains what is Heaven, who is going to be there and who’s not, what is going to be there and what’s not, what we are going to do in Heaven, and so forth.  Jesus is the only way to Heaven (John 14:6), the eternal home of God and the saints in Christ.

Texts: Psalm 12:6, 18:30

Today Pastor Choi expounds on the meaning of “the Word of God is tried/tested” in two ways: 1. It has been tested by God’s people for 3,500 years and proved strong, true, dependable, and relevant.  2. It also tests our hearts and refines our character.

Text: Luke 9:23-27

Today Pastor Choi talks about the meaning of discipleship in three ways: reality check, the nature of discipleship, and the marks of Christ’s disciple.  He concludes his message with Christ’s own reminder: Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter (Matthew 7:21, New American Standard Bible).

Text: Ephesians 6:4

Today Pastor Choi talks about God’s command for fathers: do not provoke your children to anger (Ephesians 6:4).  Pointing out the reality in America, he exhorts both children and fathers to reconcile with each other not by feelings but by will.  He recommends a two step reconciliation process: Be determined to forgive.  Be proactive in Love.

Text: 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Summary: Pastor Choi gives three pieces of advice to young believers (confirmands) in Christ.  If they practice his advice, they will lay out the foundation of their faith in Christ and harvest and enjoy the fruit thereof.  1. Take God’s Word seriously:  Read God’s Word daily.  2. Keep the Sabbath holy: Worship the Lord weekly.  3. Do tithing: Give tithing to the Lord monthly.  And, they will be secure and content in the Lord.

Text: Jeremiah 1:4-10

Today, Pastor Choi talks about the nature of prophecy in the following ways: who is a prophet, what is their role, do we still have prophets in the 21st century, can anyone be a prophet of God, and ways to tell true and false prophets.

Text: Ephesians 5:15-21

Today, Pastor Choi talks about the meaning of being filled with the Holy Spirit.  He explains what it means to be filled with the Spirit, how we can be filled with the Spirit, the signs of the Spirit-filled life, and what keeps us from being filled with the Spirit.

Text: Exodus 20:1-17

Today Pastor Choi talks about Torah-God’s Law.  He states that the spirit of Torah is the 10 Commandments.  The spirit of the 10 Commandments is the love of God and the love of neighbors.  He exhorts the people of God to keep obeying the 10 Commandments until Christ comes.

Text: Genesis 3:20, Matthew 15:21-28

Today Pastor Choi talks about three things we all owe to our mothers: life, nurturing, and prayers.  He exhorts the mothers to pray fervently on behalf of their children for their salvation, protection, and deliverance.

Text: Matthew 5:1-12

Pastor Choi defines the biblical understanding of blessings: Blessing is anything, any event, or any person that brings us closer to God and vice versa.  He exhorts God’s people to see blessings as God does in an eternal perspective such as the Beatitudes.

Texts: Genesis 1:28, Romans 8:19-22

Pastor Choi talks about Creation care.  He points out that sin of the inhabitants of land causes the whole creation to groan and suffer.  The creation waits eagerly for the children of God who would take good care of them as God would.  By being faithful to God, merciful and forgiving to each other, we can be a true steward of God’s creation.

Text: 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Today’s sermon provides a brief overview of Bible’s history both on the Old and the New Testament (covenant).  Pastor Choi exhorts God’s people to get into God’s Word by pointing out that the God of Bible still speaks to God’s people today through His written Word.

Text: Luke 24:1-12

Today, talking about Christ’s physical resurrection, Pastor Choi points out that God provides no other means but His angels and human witnesses for us to proclaim and believe in it.  We believe in His resurrection because of the witnesses’ accounts based on their integrity.  We believe in Jesus’ physical resurrection because of Jesus’ own integrity.  We also believe in Christ’s body resurrection because it withstood the fiery trials for centuries sealed with the blood of martyrs. He is risen!  He is risen indeed!