Sunday, February 20, 2022

“Who to Look at in a Storm”

Pastor Joey Anjiki

1. Faith in Jesus’ words

* Mark 4:35 (See above)

* Apollo 13’s miraculous safe return

* 1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” (NIV)

2. Faith in Jesus’ ability

* Mark 4:41 (See above)

* Psalm 89:8-9 “Who is like you, Lord God Almighty? You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you. You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, you still them.” (NIV)

* Psalm 8:3 “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,” (NIV)

* John 1:3 “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” (NIV)

* John 1:14 “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us...” (NIV)

3. Faith in Jesus’ presence

* The story of a couple who met Jesus amidst sadness

* Hebrews 2:18 “Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” (NIV)

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. Have you ever experienced God speaking to you through His Word?

2. Think about how Jesus is the one who created Heaven and earth.

3. Where is Jesus when we are suffering?

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Sunday, February 13, 2022

“The Judgment of the 6th Trumpet”

Pastor Hiroyuki Anjiki

1. The righteous judgment of God against evil

* Revelation 9:13 “…a voice coming from the four horns of the golden altar…” = the voices of those martyred in the Great Tribulation (refer to Revelation 6:9-10)

* James 4:8 “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (NIV)

2. The true character of those used for God’s judgment

* Revelation 9:14 “bound” = verb in perfect form (complete form)

* Jude 6 “And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling - these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.” (NIV)

* Revelation 9:16 “twice ten thousand times ten thousand” = 200 million

3. The invitation to repentance

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. What does the Bible say about the “Devil” and “demons (evil spirits)”? Read James 4:8.

2. What kind of judgment was that of the “judgment of the 6th trumpet”?

3. Why can it be said that the “Great Tribulation” is both the “time of God’s judgment” and the “time of God’s salvation”?

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Sunday, February 6, 2022

“The Spreading of God’s Kingdom”

Pastor Joey Anjiki

1. God is who enables growth to occur

* Mark 4:26-28 (See above)

* 1 Corinthians 3:6-7 “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” (NIV)

* Seeds of the Gospel sewn amidst persecution in Russia

2. The Kingdom of God spreads, covering the world

* Mark 4:31-32 (See above)

* Ezekiel 17:22-23 “This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will take a shoot from the very top of a cedar and plant it; I will break off a tender sprig from its topmost shoots and plant it on a high and lofty mountain. On the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it; it will produce branches and bear fruit and become a splendid cedar. Birds of every kind will nest in it; they will find shelter in the shade of its branches.” (NIV)

* The spread of the Gospel over 2,000 years

* Matthew 24:14 “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” (NIV)

* Mission work report from seminary student Takara Shibusawa in Tanzania

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. What is the area entrusted when telling others the Gospel?

2. Confirm about the spread of the Gospel over 2,000 years, the rapture, and Christ’s second coming.

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Sunday, January 30, 2022

“The Judgment of the 5th Trumpet”

Pastor Hiroyuki Anjiki

1. The star that fell from Heaven

* Revelation 9:1 “I saw one start that was dropped on the earth.” = direct translation

“fallen” is a verb in perfect form meaning “it fell in the past and that state still continues now”

* Isaiah 14:12-13 “How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon.’” (NIV) “morning star” = “Heylel” in Hebrew = Lucifer

* Revelation 9:1 “the Abyss”

* Luke 8:31 “And they begged Jesus repeatedly not to order them to go into the Abyss.” (NIV)

2. Locusts that came out of the Abyss

* Revelation 9:11 “Abaddon” & “Apollyon” = “the Destroyer”

* 2 Corinthians 11:14 “And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.” (NIV)

3. The disaster caused by the locusts

* Ephesians 1:13-14 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession - to the praise of his glory.” (NIV)

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. What is the origin of the “Devil” (Satan)?

2. What kind of seal does God mark those who believe in Jesus Christ with?

3. Have you been marked with that seal?

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Sunday, January 23, 2022

“Good Soil That Produces an Abundant Crop”

Pastor Joey Anjiki

1. Seed that fell on a path

* A heart that doesn’t try to receive God’s Word from the start due to pride, fear, or prejudice

* Romans 7:19 “For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.” (NIV)

* Kazuo Inamori, founder of Kyocera

2. Seed that fell on shallow rocky soil

* A heart that accepts God’s Word, but quickly tosses faith away when difficulties or persecution arises

* Romans 5:3-4 “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” (NIV)

* Psalm 145:18 “The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.” (NIV)

3. Seed that feel on thorns

* A heart that doesn’t bear fruit because the cares of this world and deception of wealth block God’s Word

* “The Paradox of Our Age” by Pastor Bob Moorehead

* John 4:14 “…but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (NIV)

4. Seed that feel on good soil

* A heart that hears God’s Word, is enlightened by it, and bears fruit

* The foundation of trust: The love of the cross of Jesus Christ

* The testimony of a 99-year-old woman living in Ethiopia

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. Which of these four soils does the status of your heart apply?

2. Where is the foundation of our trust in God?

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Sunday, January 16, 2022

“The Judgment of Trumpets No.1-4”

Pastor Hiroyuki Anjiki

1. 1st trumpet (Revelation 8:7)

* “AMBIO”: Swedish environmental issue research magazine

Special edition: “The Result of Nuclear War”

2. 2nd trumpet (Revelation 8:8-9)

3. 3rd trumpet (Revelation 8:10-11)

* Revelation 8:10 “great star” = singular form

* The nuclear accident on the No.4 reactor in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant on April 26, 1986 about 100km north of Kiev City, Soviet Union (present day Ukraine)

“Chernobyl” = young mugwort/wormwood (in Ukrainian)

4. 4th trumpet (Revelation 8:12)

* 2 Peter 3:3-7 “Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.’ But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.” (NIV)

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. How does Jesus look upon experiencing disasters and hardships?

2. What will happen to us if we do not repent?

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Sunday, January 9, 2022

“Because of Worse Sin?”

Pastor Kenichi Osumi

1. A viewpoint on disasters

* Luke 13:2 “…Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way?” (NIV)

* Luke 13:4 “Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem?” (NIV)

2. The two problems

* Causal retribution thought

* What the Bible claims

* Ecclesiastes 9:2 “All share a common destiny - the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the clean and the unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not. As it is with the good, so with the sinful; as it is with those who take oaths, so with those who are afraid to take them.’” (NIV)

3. Another year as is

* Genesis 18:32 “Then he said, ‘May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?’ He answered, ‘For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.’” (NIV)

* Luke 13:3 & 5 “I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” (NIV)

* The cause of dementia

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. How does Jesus look upon experiencing disasters and hardships?

2. What will happen to us if we do not repent?

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Sunday, January 2, 2022

“The 7th Seal”

Pastor Hiroyuki Anjiki

1. Silence for about half an hour

• Revelation 8:1 “silence” = be utterly silent

• Psalm 46:10 “He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be

exalted in the earth.’” (NIV)

2. The 7 angels with the 7 trumpets

• How trumpets were used in the Old Testament

(1) When informing about a sign (promise, decision) of God (2) When praising God

(3) When guiding soldiers in battle

(4) When announcing the judgment of God

• 1 Thessalonians 4:16 & 1 Corinthians 15:52: The trumpet God uses to summon the Christians at the time of the rapture

Revelation 8: The trumpet is that of God’s wrath

*Do not confuse these 2 trumpets

3. Another angel with a golden censer

* Revelation 8:3 “...the prayers of all God’s people” = the prayers of those martyred in the Great Tribulation as seen with the 5th seal

4. Another angel with a golden censer

• 2 Peter 3:6-7 “By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.” (NIV)

• Dr. Whitelaw of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

“There was a time in the past on earth when the number of organisms worldwide drastically decreased. Around 2500BC (the time of Noah’s flood) the number of people, animals, vegetation, etc. suddenly decreased.”

• “Science News” magazine, October 4, 1975 edition

“Various evidence proves that there was a massive flood encompassing the entire world.”

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. Think about what happens during the 7-year Great Tribulation in chronological order.

2. If Noah’s flood is a historical fact, then what is the next global scale incident that will take place?

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Sunday, January 1, 2022

“Walking Around the Length and Breadth”

Pastor Joey Anjiki

1. Look up out over

* Realization of gospel evangelization in Japan

* Genesis 13:15 “All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever.” (NIV)

* The faith when constructing the sanctuary at Minemachi Christ Church

2. Walk around the length and breadth

* Genesis 13:17 “Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.” (NIV)

* Mark 16:15 “He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.’” (NIV)

3. Blessings flowing from trivial things

* 2004 Orange Revolution in the Ukraine

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. How do you see the land of Tochigi?

2. Why do we want to tell the gospel to others?

3. What do you think Minemachi Christ Church will be like 50 years from now?

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Sunday, December 26, 2021

“The Purpose of Jesus Christ’s Birth”

Pastor Hiroyuki Anjiki

* Why and for what purpose did Jesus Christ come to this world?

1. To take away fear

* Luke 2:10 “Do not be afraid.” (NIV)

* Luke 1:30-31 “But the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.’” (NIV)

* Matthew 1:20 “But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.’” (NIV)

2. To be the “Savior”

* Ernest Hemmingway (American novelist)

* “Sin” = “missing the mark”

3. To resolve the problem of death

* Luke 2:12 “sleeping”

* Luke 23:53 “Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid.” (NIV)

Thoughts to share at mini church:

1. What are you afraid of? Be relieved of that fear by believing in Jesus Christ.

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