After my much-needed shower, it was time for dinner. After such a workout, I ate a mass amount of food. Afterwards, Gwangjin, Hana, Seol, and I came upstairs to practice for worship service. Once again, it was just a powerful time. Joseph gave the sermon. While I don't understand enough Korean to get everypoint, I got the basis of it. He spoke out of Daniel, where Daniel neither opted to eat the royal food, or bow down to his king in worship.
The basis was this: We should do what's right in God's sight, not what's right in our own, or even our country's. We're all faced with those situations at some point. In America, we're faced with this in smaller scale, among friends, colleages at work, school, and people we meet on the street. Sometimes, we're even faced with it at church. I remember fund raising for missions, and someone told me I should do so a different way, telling me to work multiple jobs. However, that was not what God was telling me to do. I did what was right in waiting on God, and not trusting in myself.
However, we may, one day, face pressure from our own governments regarding our faith, that we should renounce it or die. The thing is, these people have already faced it, and if God called them to cross the border again for evangelism right now, would face it again. It didn't even end with their faith, but their very existance and hearts were attacked. Like I mentioned before, the dreams and hopes of a North Korean are deferred for the party betterment. So, let's just say for instance, that a North Korean wanted to be a scientist. If the party doesn't think they should, but should be something else, such a soccer player, then they have no say in the matter. If the party says you are a soccer player, then that's what you are. You could hate soccer, but if North Korea wants you to be a soccer player, then you are. If you aren't, you are insubordinate, and face punishment. If God has called you otherwise, then that's too bad, because the government is God in North Korea. You do what they say.
But God calls us higher than this. He asks us to honor our government, but when he has called us to do something, we do it. If the government stands in our way of this, then we do it anyway. At judgment, we are not answering ultimately to king and country, but to God alone. Barack Obama will not open the book of life. Kim Jong-il can sentence someone to execution, but he cannot condemn someone to Hell. When we are called by God to something, and our earthly government contradicts this calling, who are we to follow?
We have to follow God. This is becoming an unpopular choice, and certainly is to North Koreans. When we choose to follow God, we follow him, no matter the circumstance, and God never said our circumstances are always going to make it easy to follow Him. In North Korea, you are told to bow in reverance and worship to the statue of Kim Il-sung. You are taught from an early age to worship him as God. If you worship any other, you are against your country, and imprisoned. But God called us to be like Daniel. Daniel faced the lions, and Daniel knew what the implications were and what the judgment would be if he refused to worship the king. He worshipped God anyway.
Even facing certain death, persecution, and hatred, we should worship God. We should answer his calling, and not the world's.
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