Father in heaven, we thank you that you are so good, so great. We thank you for the freedom that we have politically here in Korea to worship you. Lord, we know that there are people around the world that do not enjoy the same freedoms we do. So thank you for freedom. Thank you for the chance to worship you in spirit and in truth. Thank you for freedom from sin. from Satan. Thank you for freedom that we have in Christ. Thank you for the chance to worship you this morning. We pray that you would help us to worship you in spirit and in truth. We pray that you would be glorified in our time together. We pray that you would, Lord, enjoy our singing as we enjoy singing to you. In Jesus' name, amen. All right. All right, good morning, guys. So strange to have everybody on one side of the room now. Wow. All right, Pastor Bright just prayed for us, so we're going to go ahead and right away get into our singing. Our first song, as you can see, is Our God is So Big. I think most of us know this, but let's check and stretch our arms a little bit. If you know this song, raise your hand. If you've never heard of this song before, you don't know it, raise your hand. And that's okay. You'll learn it today. All right, I need two volunteers to help me sing this song. I'm looking for someone from third and fourth grade and first and second grade. Let's see here. First of all, let's go with Shiloh. Let's go Shiloh. And let's see here. I'm going to pick someone from first and second that I haven't picked before. Xiyang, thanks for coming to everybody's fun up here. Make sure she's up. All right, Shiloh, I'm going to put you right here, actually, girl. Thank you. Any day now, buddy, you got this. Okay, so right here, sir. Okay, all right, so let's make a review of these hand motions, all right? We're talking about God, and God is, like, in this little space. No, God is big, so we're gonna need to spread out a little bit. There, okay, perfect. Actually, you're not supposed to wave your hands. Perfect, okay. All right, so our God is so big, okay, almost like you're trying to hug a big bear, right? So strong, show your right biggest muscle. And so mighty, with our other muscle, there's nothing our God cannot do. One more time. Our God is so big, so strong, and so mighty, There's nothing our God cannot do. Then we talk about what God owns. The mountains are His. The valleys are His. The stars are His. And He works too. Our God is so big, so strong, and so mighty. There's nothing our God cannot do. OK? All right, I'm going to let you guys lead us. You got those motions? Do you want to get locked and loaded? Should I lock? OK. Are you going to play the piano? OK, Ms. Fonz is going to join us with the piano. All right, here we go. Ready? So big, so strong, and so mighty, there's nothing our God cannot do. Our God is so big, so strong, and so mighty, there's nothing our God cannot do. The mountains are hills, the valleys are fields, the stars are always standing up to you. All right, thank you, my volunteers. You guys can go have a seat. Thank you, Shiloh and Sheila. All right, we're going to go ahead and go on to our next song. This is one that I'm 99.9% sure that none of you guys have heard before. Maybe some of the teachers. This song is called Across the Land. This is a song about how we can share about God, share about what Jesus has done for us in all parts of the world. We can share here in Korea, in our homes, in our churches, but we can also go to other places maybe where people haven't heard about God. We're going to sing today about the story of the gospel, thinking about how we can share that with other people. I'm going to let Mrs. Kwon play this for us one time, and then I'm going to go ahead and lead us. If I have any fifth or sixth grader, however, who wants to help lead with us, I will ask for volunteers after Mrs. Kwan has played through it one time. Let's first listen. I'm going to play through the slides so you guys can see the words as you hear the music while Mrs. Kwan plays. Mrs. Kwan. So now that you've heard through it one time, are any of my fifth and sixth graders feeling brave enough that they'd like to try leading with us? Okay, that's okay, that's okay. This is a new song. Maybe we'll sing it another time. You guys might feel ready to join in. All right, so Mrs. Kwan is going to play it with us. We're going to sing the first verse, and then there's a chorus, the second verse, and then that same chorus again. And again, the words are on the screen. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. Born of God. ♪ Let your heaven's peace rejoice ♪ ♪ Through the earth and all creation ♪ ♪ Through the dawn of heaven's birth ♪ ♪ And the crown of glory, crown of glory ♪ ♪ Christ the Lord is risen from the dead ♪ ♪ Yet above the knees of angels ♪ ♪ Keep their sick and sacred hearts ♪ ♪ And exchange their joy and praise ♪ ♪ In the anguish of the cross ♪ ♪ In the pain you feel the pain ♪ ♪ In the burning of the city ♪ ♪ In the sight of Venus and Earth ♪ ♪ In the beauty we were free ♪ ♪ We are from God, we are children of the Lord ♪ All right, not too bad. That was pretty good for a first time. Maybe we'll practice it again another time. I'm going to go ahead and call Pastor Wright up to give our message. I know that song is brand new to us. I'm going to ask Mrs. Quarley to stay there for just a minute. You know, as we sang that second verse, I was thinking, we've been through the gospel of Mark this year and last year. If you remember, here in the second verse, you left the gaze of the angel. So Jesus, God's son, was in heaven with God, the Father, Angels watching. He became a man, came to seek and to save the lost. We've said Mark 10, 45 is the theme verse, right? The Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many. So he came to serve and to save. He exchanged the joy of heaven where there was no sin, no pain, just God, the angels, the wonderful glory there. He exchanged the joy of heaven with the peace of the cross, with the prayer that the Holy Spirit delivered. We talked about the peace, 5,000, 4,000. With the word, you calm the sea. You remember the stormy sea. Peace, be still. Yet how silently you suffered. It was as a lamb that was silent. You did not defend yourself. We'll see that today. that the guilty may go free. Who are the guilty ones? That is the world's action. That's who we are. We are guilty. We say that we are free, even if you're hungry, you're still free. It's over. Our God, Jesus Christ, is the author of creation. He's the creator. He's the Lord of everything. In the pride of love. Go ahead and stand up. I know it's still early, so maybe you're a little tired. We'll sing together the second verse. Try to sing out. We've sung it once. You know the melody a little bit now, so. All together. Yes, you have the answer, yes. If you sing, yes, you have the answer. of the cross. With her many family, with her many policy, we have sought the peace of God. We have lived in humility. To the Lord, the Lord, we show. To the Lord, the Lord, we go. To the Lord, the Lord, we go. Turn in your Bibles to Mark chapter 14, please. Mark 14. This is where we were last week. Mark 14. We're dropping down to nearly the end of the chapter. We're going to read to the end of the chapter. So Mark 14, starting with verse 53. And what we're going to see is that Jesus was accused by many. They said all kinds of bad things about him. He was cross-examined by the high priest to ask him some more questions. And then we see he was denied by Peter. So that's where we're looking today. Mark 14, verses 53 through 72. Mark chapter 14 dropping down to verse 53 Found it great if you haven't found it yet Wonderful listen carefully And they led Jesus away to the high priest and with him were assembled all the chief priests the elders and the scribes But Peter followed him at a distance right into the courtyard of the high priest and he sat with the servants and and warmed himself at the fire. Now the chief priests and all the council sought testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but none. For many bore false witness against him, but their testimonies did not agree. Then some rose up and bore false witness against him, saying, We heard him say, I will destroy this temple made with hands, And within three days, I will build another temple made without hands. But even then, their testimony did not agree. Or as this version says, not even then did their testimony agree. We're now in verse 60, Mark 14, verse 60. The high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus saying, do you answer nothing? What is it these men testify against you? But he, he's Jesus. Jesus kept silent and answered nothing. Remember in our song, he kept silence. Again, the high priest asked him, saying to him, are you the Christ, the son of the blessed? And Jesus said, I am. Let's basically say Yahweh. I am Yahweh. Is it blasphemy? Yes, it is. I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the power coming with the clouds of heaven. Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, what further need do we have for witnesses? You heard the blasphemy. What do you think? And they all condemned him as being worthy or deserving of death. Verse 65. Then some began to spit on him, and to blindfold him, and to beat him, and to say to him, prophesy. And the officers struck him with the palms of their hands. Now, as Peter was bowing in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came. And when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, you, you also were with Jesus of Nazareth. But he denied it, saying, I neither know nor understand what you're saying. And he went out on the porch and a rooster crowed. Verse 69. The servant girl saw him again and began to say to those who stood by, this is one of them. But he denied it again. And a little while later, those who stood by said to Peter again, surely you're one of them, for you are a Galilean and your speech shows it. Then he began to curse and swear. I don't know this man of whom you speak. a second time the rooster crowed. Then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said to him. Before the rooster crows twice, you will cry three times. And when he thought about it, he wept and sprang. Father, as we see, the trial of Jesus Christ. Lord, here is one who was innocent. He never sinned. He was in all points like we are, yet without sin. He was guiltless. He was sinless. And Lord, he took the blame for my sins, for our students' sins, for our teachers' sins. Our guilt was given to him so that we could have eternal life. Lord, as we look at the trial of Jesus, as we see how he suffered denied by his own friend, betrayed by Judas Iscariot, mocked and spat upon, tried and accused of blasphemy for proclaiming that he is the Christ, the Son of the Blessed. Father, you are the Father of your Son, your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Teach us of the cost of our religion. Lord, you love us greatly. You sent your son to die for us. Help us, Lord, to trust you and to love you because of what you have done for what he has done as well. In Jesus' name, amen. So as you can see from the title screen here, In this section of scripture, we see three things about Jesus. He was accused. People said a lot of bad things about Jesus. They were not friends of Jesus. They were willing to lie in order to kill Jesus. He was falsely accused. And yet, we also see that even as he was falsely accused, They could not pin anything on him. It was clear that the people talking about Jesus were liars. They couldn't even get two people to agree to the same lot. It was ridiculous. It was tragic. It was evil. And so the high priest cross-examines him. And then we see his own disciple, the rock. This is what Jesus went We see him accused He's been arrested there in Yosemite Taken to the high priest house From parallel passages. We know that he actually went to two high priests One was the former high priest, one was the present high priest. Here in Mark, we just find out about one. And so, as he's there at the high priest's house, both high priests spend some time trying to get Jesus to be found guilty, trying to find reason to accuse him. And we see that to make this legal to make this something that appeared right. They gathered together the religious leaders called the Sanhedrin. So there in Mark 14, verse 53, we see Jesus led away to the high priest and with him were assembled all the chief priests, the elders, and the scribes. This is the Sanhedrin. All about 70, at least representatives of the 70, were all there in Jerusalem to hear Jesus for this trial, this court, to hear what they were going to accuse Jesus of doing. And so they have all these people lined up to say, Jesus did this. Jesus said this. And we see they were saying all kinds of nonsense. They couldn't get their stories straight. And so we see there, in verse 55, maybe 57, we see in 56, many more false witness against him. They were seeking testimony, verse 55, against Jesus to put him to death. But all these witnesses, they were putting their, have you ever heard of putting your foot in your mouth? Sounds pretty disgusting, doesn't it? It means you're not able to speak clearly. These guys are liars, their lies are catching them. And so Jesus was accused of many, many things. It says many bore forth witness. So there were many liars, many people saying things about Jesus that were not true, but they couldn't get two people to say the same thing, which was very frustrating because you have to have two witnesses to convict. And so finally, we have somebody One of them rose up, verse 58 there, and said, you know, Jesus said, I will destroy this temple made with hands. So they were thinking about the temple. And in three days, I will build it again. Now that was actually kind of based in truth. In John 2, they were looking at the temple And Jesus said, destroy this temple, pointing to himself, meaning his body. And in three days, I will raise it up, speaking of his resurrection. That was a sign that Jesus is the Messiah. That was a sign he would give people. But you see how they twist it. They say, destroy the physical temple. Destroy the temple where everybody is. And so they're, again, false witnesses. And so they were twisting Jesus' words. Boy, have you ever had your words twisted before? Have you ever had your words misrepresented, and you hear them say it, and you're like, I didn't say that. Maybe I said something like that, but I didn't mean it like that. And here is Jesus, who is the truth, being lied about. False things are being said about you. and the leaders only wanted an excuse. They had already decided, he's guilty, he's going to die, we're going to kill him. Notice that they sought testimony there in verse 55 to put him to death. They already knew what they wanted to do. They'd already paid Judas Iscariot to betray Jesus. They knew they wanted to kill him. They needed an excuse. to make it look good, to make it look like it was right. They wanted to look good, and they needed a reason, an excuse to kill the Lord of Glory, to kill the author of life. Jesus is the resurrection and the life, but they wanted to kill life, the one who gives life. So that's Christ accused. As we continue on, we see the high priest is frustrated that none of his liars have agreed together about the same law. And so he steps in and he takes a look at Jesus and says, OK, you heard what she said. You heard what she said. You heard what he said. You heard what he said. Why are you so silent? You're supposed to answer. Defend yourself. And now, you know, the high priest is getting frustrated because this does not look good. Jesus looks like someone who is innocent. No one can agree about the bad things he's done. And so he thinks back to some of the things Tell me, I adjure you by God. You tell me in God's name, are you the cross, the son of the Lord? Now, number one, this is illegal because a defendant, in American law, we say we have a constitutional right to remain silent. And legally, the high priest was not supposed to make someone on trial testify against himself. So the high priest, in conducting the trial as the judge, is doing an illegal act by saying, you tell me, are you the Christ? Are you the Son of the Blessed One? So Christ had used his right to remain silent. This fulfilled Old Testament prophecy. And when Jesus asked, was asked, are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? Notice he replies, I am. Which, as Hajin mentioned, is the name of God, Yahweh. And so he promised to fulfill Daniel's prophecy. We see there, you will see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power. That's found in Daniel. about one who is gone. Coming with the clouds of heaven, again, one who is gone. And so the high priest in the center says, oh, that's blasphemy. That's something that only God can do. And it is something only God can do, but this is Jesus who is God. So they spat on Jesus. Have you ever had anyone spit on you? That's disgusting, isn't it? They spat on him. They beat him. They went on to hit him. The Roman soldiers there hit him, we were told. And then to make things worse, not only were Jesus' enemies, the hypocrites, the jealous people, trying to trap him, trying to betray him, trying to accuse him, Jesus was abandoned by his disciples. There in Gethsemane, when the soldiers came, when Judas Iscariot brought all those crowds, you remember one disciple left a rope behind, trying to escape. Everyone just runs for it. Run for the hills, try to get safe, right? There were two disciples that did not run for the hills. One was the Apostle John. The other was Peter. Peter, we're told in verse 54, followed at a distance. And he does go to the courtyard of the high priest. And so he sits with the servants. He warms himself there by the fire. And unfortunately, as he's there by the fire, as he's making himself comfortable, he begins to fear Not for Jesus, but for his own skin. And he wants to kind of not be the enemy of Jesus in this. And so there's a girl, maybe like Annabelle. Annabelle just comes up to Peter and says, weren't you weren't you with Jesus of Nazareth? You got the wrong guy. Don't know what you're talking about. And so we see that in verse 66. She saw Peter warming himself. You also were with Jesus of Nazareth. And he's like, I have no clue what you're talking about. That doesn't compute. And so then Annabelle comes back. And now she's not talking to Peter. She starts to talk to Serene and to Daniel. And she goes up to Hodgin and says, do you see that guy over there? He was with Jesus. And so now it's not just talking one-on-one. Now it's like, now Peter's really starting to get nervous. It's not just some girl talking. It's this girl spreading the news to everyone all around him. This is not safe. This is not making me feel good. And so she identifies Peter to the others. So Peter denies Jesus to others too. A second time. She says, he's one of them. He followed Jesus. And then we have a... This time it's the people that perhaps that the girl was talking to. So Moses speaks up to the prophet and says, you know, that's right. That's right. This guy, this guy was with Jesus. I mean, just listen to him speak. Obviously he's from Galilee where Jesus was from. This has got to be a follower of Jesus. And then Peter tries to show he's no Jesus follower. He begins to let all kinds of trash come out of his mouth as he curses and swears and takes God's name with him. The Lord told Jesus, look at me. He heard his disciple, did not hear him. We are told that our minds Our God is true. He keeps his word. Sometimes we don't even know. Peter warned Jesus. His spirit was one with Jesus. His flesh was one with God. Maybe you can think of some times when you've denied Jesus. Maybe you haven't spoken about Jesus To someone who was taking God's name away. To someone who was doing something. Maybe like Peter you felt, you looked at him, but it wasn't him. Maybe you were something you shouldn't have. Maybe you said something you shouldn't have. But you know what? Jesus died for you tonight to forgive this and promise for the next. And the wonderful thing is, Jesus still loves you. He still loves you. Father, we thank you for the wonderful love of God. We thank you that Jesus Christ, this spotless lamb of God, laid down his life for us. So sinners such as us, to be forgiven, to have a home in heaven, to partake of the love of God. Thank you for loving us, Jesus. Thank you for the love of God that sent Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. Help us to love you more and share in your love. Jesus,