Young Man, Get Up!

Spring Retreat 2019 - Morning devotion 1 by M. Steven Lee
Luke 7:11-17

Key verse Luke 7:14 “Then he went up and touched the bier they were carrying him on, and the bearers stood still. He said, ‘Young man, I say to you, get up!’”

Don’t cry
Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. When Jesus approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out. He was a young man and an only son of a widow and her only hope. She could not find the meaning of life without her son.

A large crowd from the town was crying with her. They loved this widow and wanted to help her. But they could do anything to comfort her. Nobody could overcome the power of death. The only thing they could was crying with her.

Jesus saw her and his heart went out to her. Jesus understood her sorrow. Jesus said, “Don’t cry.” “Don’t cry” means Jesus would help the widow. Even death could not block Jesus. Jesus is God and in Jesus there is Life. It is very easy to sit and cry when we encounter our limit and high obstacles. But in Jesus, we don’t need to cry. In Jesus, we can ask his help rather than crying. Psalm 121 sings, “I lift up my eyes to the mountains - where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip - he who watches over you will not slumber.” (Ps.121:1-3)

Young Man, get up!
After Jesus told a widow, “Don’t cry”, he went up and touched the bier they were carrying her son on. They stopped and saw Jesus. People wondered, “What can he do?” The bier (or coffin) symbolizes desperation, the end, period. Nobody can overcome death. Even youth can’t do anything when he is in the bier.

But Jesus wanted to put new life in the young man. Jesus said to him who was laying down in the bier. “Young man, I say to you, get up!” When he heard Jesus’ voice, the dead man sat up and began to talk. The power of death obeyed Jesus and gave the boy his life back. Jesus gave the young man back to his mother. The young man did not need his coffin anymore.

I wanted to be rich and be recognized. I established a company with $20,000 USD and worked hard. I got 7 patents and my company revenue multiplied year by year. Many officials of Korean government recognized me as a good engineer. I controlled 80% of the electronic security market. 6 years later my company revenue was over $50,000,000 USD. I became a millionaire, I travelled to 21 countries to do business. I moved my company to the richest part of Gangnam. I became a idol of young people. Many people came to me and imitated me to get success.

But I was very arrogant and went far from God. I treated high government officials to drinking parties in Gangnam spending $10,000 USD easily every night. I stayed out drinking from one end of Gangnam to the other until 5 am, went to a coffee shop, and started work again at 6 am. I only saw my family on Sundays, and out relationship grew worse. One Christmas morning, I woke up after having passed out on a bench at a bus stop in Gangnam. Two young woman were laughing down at me, saying “Look at his expensive tie and messed up hair, and snowflakes falling down on him.” I was so humiliated, but I could not stop my wickedness from spiraling out of control.

In 2005, I sued the Korean government for infringing on my patent and I won. As a result, some government officials lost their positions. Some of them gave information to the police and I was the focus of a police sting involving government bribes in 2008. The police arrested me in my office and froze my assets and carefully watched my bank accounts. I spent 1 day in jail. Many of my colleagues and government contacts were also arrested. Still, I did not repent but only I tried to fight back in court while continuing my business. Yet many colleagues, bankers, and government officials avoided me, because they did not want to be caught also in the police sting. My company could not grow, but shrank. To overcome, I designed a new system, putting all my resources into this project. I made a contract with Korea Telecom, but they stole my technology and made a patent with it and made a lot of money. Though I was so frustrated but I did not return to God.

In 2010, the doctors stopped treatment altogether for my wife’s lung cancer. She was dying. Nobody could help me. I was desperate and cried myself to sleep. That night I had a dream in which a person stood far away from me. He was waving his hands to me. I felt he was calling me to come back to UBF. After this dream, my wife and I repented and I brought my family to Sunday worship service. Shepherd Phillip Lee and all co-workers welcomed us and accepted us with love. Shepherd Phillip announced: “Welcoming them with a handshake is not enough. Let’s welcome them with a big hug one by one.”

A couple months later, my wife returned to heaven, and my daughters were baptized. But I was in the coffin of money. One day, I stood up on a bridge and was looking down at Han river. I tried to jump in the river because of my financial issue. At this moment, from deep inside my heart, I heard Jesus say, “I’m your Shepherd. What more do you need?” I had nothing to say. I found I am so arrogant, selfish, and sinful. God already had sacrificed his one and only son Jesus on the cross to give me new life. But I was laying down in the coffin. I did not come out of the coffin.

I remembered Psalm 23:1 “The Lord is my Shepherd. I shall not lack anything.” And I repented of all my sins. Then God filled my heart with peace, love and grace. I had a huge debt of 35 million USD, but God gave me peace. After that, God led Yvonne to me. God resolved all my financial issues and brought me to America as a missionary. God prepared a good job for me and I am working as engineer. When I was in the coffin of money, I could not do anything. There was only one way - death. But when Jesus came to me and said, “I am your Shepherd,” his voice raised me up and I do not need the coffin anymore. Thank God who is the best Shepherd for all of us!

What kind of coffin do you lay down? Money, honor, victory of study, and so on? It doesn’t matter what kind of coffin, Jesus says to us, “Young man, get up!” When we hear Jesus voice, we can sit up. Jesus want us to get out of the coffin and have new life in Jesus. Through this Easter season, may God bless our life and give us abundant life.

One word: Young man, get up!