My good friend Samad, who is ethnically half Korean and half Pakistani, invited me to visit Kansas City Korean Baptist Church. While it was preferable to attend a church that worships in English, I did not want to pass upon the opportunity to hear the saints worship in a language that I did not speak. Therefore, Samad offered to translate the service for me in order that I may understand, learn, and be edified by the church, which was not a part of my own culture yet living in the midst of it. 

When I arrived, I met the pastor of the congregation whose name is John. I must admit that he seemed a little shocked when I walked through the door, and furthermore, he laughed when he realized I did not speak Korean. I told him that Samad had invited me and that he offered to translate the service. From then on, I could not have felt more welcomed in the church. From the start, the atmosphere of the church and all of its Korean members radiated the love of God. It was recognizable to me because I had witnessed it so many times before in my church back home in Amarillo, Texas, and at Northside Fellowship, where I am currently pursuing membership. The room and the people’s atmosphere that would last throughout the entire service made me realize something quite profound. I realized that even though we speak different languages, are from different countries, and are participants in different cultures, we serve and worship the same Lord, the same Spirit lives in us, and we have been purchased with the same blood: the blood of our Savior, God, and King, Jesus Christ. This means that we worship similarly, for God has made it clear in the Scriptures how He wishes to be worshiped. Both the congregation members and I hold the Word of God in high regard. Therefore, I believe we worship as we ought to worship, yet not to the extent that we will worship together in heaven as we still struggle with sin in our flesh. We sang hymns, both familiar and new, which was comforting to me as I knew some of the words and have kept them deep within my heart. One of the hymns, “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing,” begins with this stanza:

Come, thou Fount of every blessing;

tune my heart to sing thy grace;

streams of mercy, never ceasing,

call for songs of loudest praise.

Teach me some melodious sonnet,

sung by flaming tongues above;

praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,

mount of God’s unchanging love!¹

This verse or stanza could not have been any truer when we sang it. We, both Koreans and I (a hodgepodge of ethnicities), pleaded with the Lord to bless us and teach us a song to sing unto Him. Moreover, we pleaded to sing of His grace and mercy, which extends to all nations and never runs dry. His love was our focus, and for a moment, I experienced heaven where the saints of all tribes and tongues worship before the Lord. To put it plainly, despite the language barrier, I was edified by the church’s worship and reading of the Word.

The main text of the sermon was Ephesians 4:29-32 and Pastor John asked the question, “what does it mean to grieve the Holy Spirit?” He mentioned that the Greek word λυπέω (lupeō) means “to distress, to grieve, or to cause pain or grief.” Therefore, when we sin, grieving the Spirit means that we deeply sadden the Spirit. Our sin causes the Spirit anguish, for the Spirit does not want to see us rebel against God and desires to build up holiness in us, hence the name “Holy Spirit.” Pastor John then reminded us of the Spirit's role in the Christian life. He turned to John 14:26, which states, “[t]he Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” The Holy Spirit teaches the Christian how to live a holy life that is dependent upon Him. Moreover, the Spirit causes regeneration in individuals by teaching and “bringing to remembrance all that [Jesus] said to [the disciples]” and to us today through His Scripture. The Spirit also promotes unity in Christians according to Romans 15:30: “I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me.” Paul declares that the love of the Spirit that proceeds from the Son enables us to strive together and even to unite in prayers. That is what I saw at the church. All believers, regardless of the language spoken, were enveloped in the love of the Spirit in our prayers. Our prayers were indeed one. This unity is so evident that Paul calls believers “sons [and daughters] of God” (Rom. 8:14) and that we “have received a spirit of adoption as sons [and daughters]” (Rom. 8:15). The Spirit joins us to Christ, the Son of God, and to each other. Hence, we collectively become the children of God. Pastor John concluded by urging us to “walk by the Spirit, [so that we]  will not carry out the desire of the flesh” (Gal. 5:16). A practical way of doing this by being “kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you” (Eph. 4:32). While these characteristics and actions are the fruit of a Spirit-led life, they are also a practice of being led by the Spirit. 

In conclusion, Kansas City Korean Baptist Church is not too different from my own church. They love and worship the Lord, preach and heed the Word, and fellowship together through the power and love of the Holy Spirit. It is such a wonderful thing to have unity with those of another culture because of our great God, and I witnessed just that during my visit.