Vision

1. Humans experience the world through five senses: sight, smell, touch, hearing, and taste. When one sense, such as sight, is weaker, the other senses can compensate and support it. Thus, human knowledge and perception are fundamentally built on these five senses working together. For example, we can engage with the Bible through both reading and listening. If reading is not an option, we can still hear it and gain knowledge of God. When we join in worship, we sing songs, share our emotions and prayers, and listen to messages from the speakers. These practices underscore the importance of knowing God in our lives.

Psalm 119:105 (NRSV)

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

2. Recently, I had the opportunity to discuss visions and dreams for our lives with a young man. He was eager to understand how to discover God’s vision for his life. As we talked, I realized the importance of exploring the meaning of vision and how we can discern it throughout our lives. To start, let me share a few verses.

Proverbs 29:18 (NRSV)

Where there is no prophecy, the people cast off restraint, but happy are those who keep the law.

Hosea 4:6 (NRSV)

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

3. In the Bible, two key terms are essential when discussing visions or dreams. The first term is prophecy (NRSV), revelation (NKJV), or divine guidance (NLT). In Hebrew, the word for vision or dream is “Ha Zon,” which means divine guidance, revelation, dreams, visions, or word of revelation. This implies that such visions or dreams are special messages from God, not originating from ourselves.

4. The second key term is knowledge. In Hebrew, it is “Da’at,” which encompasses knowledge, understanding, wisdom, learning, discernment, and ability. This term implies that knowledge of God, or from God, forms the foundation of wisdom, learning, and the discernment needed to respond to God.

5. Based on these meanings, we understand that a vision or dream involves receiving divine guidance or revelation from God. This is rooted in the knowledge of God, enabling us to discern His will and plan for our lives, and to respond to His invitation for the sake of His kingdom. Defining vision in this way suggests that discovering God’s vision is not inherently difficult, as the Bible, being the Word of God, provides guidance. However, the challenge lies not in the Word of God, but in ourselves. Often, when we speak of vision, we tend to focus on fulfilling our own desires rather than seeking God’s true plan for our lives.

6. The younger generation often seeks to understand God’s calling and vision for their lives. This raises an important question: Is following God’s calling and vision easy? Today, we read Hosea 4:6. Have you ever considered what God’s calling for Hosea entailed? Let’s read Hosea 1:2-3 together.

Hosea 1:2–3 ESV

When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord.” So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.

7. Is it easy to marry a prostitute? On the surface, this command seems outrageous, as no one naturally desires such a marriage. However, Hosea obeyed God’s instruction to reveal God’s heart. Hosea’s actions were not about fulfilling his own desires but about following God’s will to demonstrate His love and intentions to Israel, who had turned away from Him. The story of Hosea reveals the essence of the gospel. God loved the world, even though it turned away from Him, much like Israel did, losing its heart to God and becoming like a prostitute. To demonstrate His love, He sent His only Son to be with us. When we consider sin, we often think of moral failings or crimes. However, the Bible teaches that losing our heart to God, akin to infidelity, makes us sinners because we lack fidelity and loyalty to Him.

8. Another example is Jonah when he received God’s vision. God called him to go to Nineveh to deliver His warning. However, Jonah resisted because Nineveh was Israel’s great enemy. He didn’t want them to repent and be saved. It’s easy to understand Jonah’s perspective—who would want to share God’s love with their greatest enemy? Thus, Jonah initially chose not to follow God’s command.

Jonah 1:1–3 NASB 2020

The word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, the great city, and cry out against it, because their wickedness has come up before Me.” But Jonah got up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. So he went down to Joppa, found a ship that was going to Tarshish, paid the fare, and boarded it to go with them to Tarshish away from the presence of the Lord.

9. Imagine God called me to go to Winnipeg to deliver His warning. Instead of obeying, I chose to head in the opposite direction, traveling 2,200 km to Vancouver instead of the 600 km to Winnipeg. From Vancouver, I took a ship to Seattle. This clearly illustrates how much Jonah did not want to go to Nineveh. Despite his resistance, God persuaded him, and he eventually went to Nineveh. However, Jonah was still angry with God and only preached for one day, even though it would take three days to cover the entire city. Remarkably, the message spread, and the people of Nineveh repented, turning their hearts back to God.

10. What do you think? Does it seem easy to follow God’s divine guidance when it is given? It can be incredibly challenging. Therefore, we must deeply consider it when pursuing God’s vision. This requires a profound knowledge of God. In Greek, the word “Logos” means knowledge, word, or reason. This teaches us that when we have certain knowledge, a word from someone, or a reason to do something, we are guided by these principles.

John 1:1–3 NIV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

11. The word “Logos” teaches us that people seek a reason for their lives. In this context, motive or desire can be seen as interchangeable with reason. The younger generation often searches for a reason, motive, or desire for their life and next steps, as these drive our actions and give life purpose. However, if we look within ourselves for this reason, our limited experience, knowledge, and wisdom may prevent us from finding a truly fulfilling purpose.

12. Therefore, under God’s divine guidance and revelation, we can find the true reason for our lives, which is Jesus Christ. This allows us to discern the truth and choose the right path to follow. Recently, I was asked how and why I became a pastor. My decision to become a pastor was made after returning from a six-week visit to Iran in 2005. During this trip, I visited many places and met with Korean missionaries. At that time, there were about 19 missionaries in Iran.

13. During our meetings, the missionaries joined us and expressed their frustrations, not with their mission work, but with the church support system. Hearing their complaints, I became curious about their prior experiences with church roles, such as being a pastor or church staff. When they answered that they had no such experiences, it prompted me to consider church ministry. I realized that if I wanted to go into the mission field, I needed to first experience and understand church life and ministry.

14. After finishing my studies in Toronto, I wanted to serve a Canadian church due to my English education and the limitations I observed in Korean churches. I began searching for a pastoral position in Canada and was accepted by a church in Pelly seven years ago, prompting my move here. The reason I chose to become a pastor after my studies is my deep love for serving the church. While some are drawn to the pastoral role because they love preaching, my passion lies in serving and building the church, which I see as the body of Christ. When I visited Pelly for the interview, I felt a profound sense of joy and excitement while exploring the area. In that moment, I felt God saying, “Because you are happy and pleased, I am also happy and pleased.” This affirmation confirmed my calling to serve as a pastor.

Luke 10:17–20 (NLT)

When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!” “Yes,” he told them, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning! Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you. But don’t rejoice because evil spirits obey you; rejoice because your names are registered in heaven.”

15. Therefore, vision is about seeing, feeling, and experiencing God’s mind and heart in our lives. It is not about our actions or achievements but about understanding God’s heart. When we grasp God’s mind, we can accomplish His work, no matter what He calls us to do. If we know God through His Word, which gives our lives purpose, we can follow Him and perform His work for the sake of His kingdom. So, don’t focus on our own efforts or creations. Instead, let us embrace Jesus as the reason for our lives and pursue God’s way throughout our journey. God is our vision, and Jesus is our purpose. In Him, there is life. Praise the Lord.