THE FACENDAS TO KOREA
A Heart for God A Burden for Gwang-Ju
Introduction to Korea
Korea is a land that has a rich and long culture of tradition and history. From ancient times until 1910 Korea was ruled by powerful dynastic clans. From 1910 to 1945 the Japanese invaders dominated the peninsula. Then from 1945 until the present Korea has been a growing democracy.
When many people think of Korea they envision mud huts and a primitive culture. While ancient Korea was, to our way of thinking, rather primitive; today Korea is a thoroughly modern country with such industrial giants as Hyundai, KIA, and Dae-Woo.
Like many Asian countries Korea is a densely populated country; with a population the size of California and Ohio combined in a land mass the size of Indiana.
Many people have heard that Korea is a Christian country. Unfortunately this is not an accurate statement. The majority of Koreans, while professing to be “Christian”, have never truly been born again. They are taught to give money, be good, love others and if they do this God will let them into heaven. This false Christianity is lulling millions into a false sense of security and a Christ-less eternity
With such a large need it is easy to identify with the passage where our Lord says “The harvest truly is plenteous”.
Our Family
Rachael and I grew up in Christian homes and were saved at early ages. We both sought to follow the Lord’s will in our lives.
Rachael went to Pensacola Christian College and I went to Bob Jones University. After graduation, God led Rachael to South Korea in February 2003. After I graduated, God led me to minister at my home church in Nags Head, NC for a year and then led me to Korea in September 2003.
The first time we met was the day after I landed in Korea. We met at the Haven church where we attended. After several months of dating we were married on April 3, 2004.
Thirteen months later God blessed us with the birth of our first son Yae-Chan. His name is Korean for “Praise Jesus”. Then in October 2006 God blessed us with our second son. His name is Yae-Sun. His name is Korean and means ‘The Prophet of Jesus’. Then God finally blessed us with a daughter. Her name is Hyae-Lan. Her name means "Flowering Wisdom".
God has been so good to bring us together so we can serve Him in Korea. We are truly excited about the opportunity of reaching the Korean people for Christ.
Our Mission Board
God has led us to serve under the family of Baptist World Mission (BWM) in Decatur, AL. BWM is a solid fundamental Baptist board that has a great track record of assisting God’s servants in fulfilling the great commission. We look forward to many years of service with them.
Our Previous Ministry
While we were in Korea we were involved in several aspects of ministry.
Christian ESL - Both Rachael and I taught English in a Christian Language Institute. We taught children from kindergarten to middle-school age Monday through Friday. We used Bible verses, ACE Christian curriculum, other English curriculum, and the Bible itself to teach English as an avenue to win the children to Christ.
Village Evangelism - We were also involved in reaching the interior of Korea for Christ. In the mountains of Korea there are hundreds of small farming villages. Each village has a Buddhist temple but no gospel witness. We went up into the villages once a month to pass out tracts, evangelize, and disciple as best we could.
Church Planting - In November 2003 we helped found the Calvary International Baptist Church. The leader of our institute, Jim Taylor, was the pastor and I was the assistant pastor. Rachael also helped in many of the ministries of the church. We saw many children make professions of faith. We also saw adults make great strides in their Christian life.
Bible College Teaching - I was also involved in teaching in our Bible College. We were the Asian branch of Victory Baptist Bible College. We had about 10 Korean men and women training to enter the ministry. We also saw the Lord expand the ministry when we welcomed a student from India.
Statement of Faith
I: The Bible
I believe that the Bible is the Word of God. It is verbally (every word) and plenary (every part – Old and New Testament) inspired (breathed out by God) and without error as written in the original autographs (II Timothy 3:16, I Peter 1:21). I also believe that the Scriptures are preserved by God and thus incorruptible (Psalm 33:11, Psalm 100:5). The finished revelation of God is unchangeable and should not be added to or taken from (Psalm 119:89, Revelation 22:18-19). This inspired Word is the believer’s sole authority for faith and practice (II Peter 1:19). Each believer is a priest before God and is, with the aid of the Holy Spirit, capable of interpreting the Bible for himself (I Corinthians 2:7-10).
As regarding the question of translations: I do not believe that any one translation of the scripture is inspired. God inspired only the original writings. As I mentioned earlier God did promise to preserve His word to all generations. The method of preservation, however, is never delineated for us in scripture. I believe that we have the inspired infallible preserved Word of God today.
II: God
I believe that there is One God (Deuteronomy 6:4; Ephesians 4:6). He is Holy (Leviticus 11:44-45; Isaiah 6:3) Eternal (Deuteronomy 33:27, Psalm 90:2) Almighty (Genesis 17:1; Revelation 19:6,15), Omniscient (Matthew 6:8) and Omnipresent (Psalm 139:7-10). He is the creator and supreme ruler of heaven and earth (Genesis 1; 18:25) He alone is sovereign and worthy of all our worship, and praise (Exodus 20:3; Matthew 4:10). I believe in One God in three Persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit. Each person of the Godhead is eternal and co-equal in deity, glory and majesty. Each executes distinct yet harmonious offices in the world and redemption.
While there is no direct verse stating the doctrine of the trinity it is clearly taught in scripture. The other members are recorded as having divine attributes (see Christ and Holy Spirit). The use of the plural name for God in Genesis 1 as well as the use of the words ‘we’ and ‘us’ in Genesis 1:26 ‘let us make man in our image’ and in Genesis 11:7(note the contrast found in this Genesis 11 between the singular speaker, ‘Jehovah’ in verse 6 to the plural ‘us’ in verse 7) ‘let us go down and their confound there languages’ indicate the doctrine of the trinity.
God is a Spirit (John 4:24-25) and as such has no corporeal being. However He is a person. The scripture clearly states that God has a will (Ephesians 1:11; Romans 12:2), mind (I Corinthians 2:16) and emotions (anger - Psalm 7:11; joy – Zephaniah 3:17; sorrow – Genesis 6:6). As a person he can know and be known by other personalities (Jeremiah 1:5; 9:24).
III: Christ
I believe that Jesus is the Christ (Matthew 16:16-18). He is the creator of heaven and earth. (Colossians 1:16) Co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and Spirit in deity, glory and majesty (John 1:1-4; Philippians 2:6). As God he possesses the attributes of God the Father. He is Holy (Mark 1:24; Acts 4:27), Omnipotent (Isaiah 9:6; Matthew 28:18) Omniscient (John 16:30, 21:17) Omnipresent (John 1:48, 3:13) and eternal (Isaiah 9:6-7). He is, and was, the eternal Son of God (Hebrews 1:5). As the eternal Son of God He was made incarnate through a virgin birth (Isaiah 7:14), lived a sinless life (I Peter 2:22), died on the cross, was buried and rose again bodily (John 20:14-16; I Corinthians 15:5-8) thereby becoming the vicarious atonement for the sins of all mankind (I John 2:2, 4:10) He then ascended up to the majesty on high and is now our intercessor and advocate before the Father (Hebrews 1:2-3; 7:25; I John 2:1). He is the only way of salvation (John 14:6; Acts 4:12), and the final judge of all at the end of times (Matthew 7:21-23; Acts 17:31; Revelation 9:5). Christ occupies three offices. He is the Prophet (Deuteronomy 18:15) Priest (Psalm 1 10:4, Hebrews 5:6,10; 6:20; 7:11,17,21) and King (I Timothy 6:15; Revelation 17:14; 19:16).
IV: Holy Spirit
I believe that the Holy Spirit is God and co-equal with the Father and Son in deity, glory and majesty. As God he possess the same attributes of God the Father and Jesus Christ. He is Holy (90 times referred to as Holy Ghost, 7 times referred to as the Holy Spirit), eternal (Hebrews 9:14), Omnipotent (he was involved in creation – Genesis 1:2; He removes evil spirits - Mt 12:28; He preformed signs and wonders -Romans 15:19), Omniscient (I Corinthians 2:11) and Omnipresent (Psalm 139:7-10). He is the creator (Genesis 1:2; Job 33:4) As God He is a person. He has emotion (grieved – Ephesians 4:30; joy – I Thessalonians 1:6) He can be treated as a person (grieved – Ephesians 4:30; insulted – Hebrews 10:29; lied to – Acts 5:3; blasphemed and sinned against – Matthew 12:31-32). Personal pronouns are ascribed to Him (John 16:7,8,13-15); He convicts the world of sin righteousness and judgment (John 16:8). He is the agent of new birth (I Corinthians 3:16). He indwells and sanctifies the believer until the day of redemption (Romans 8:9; Ephesians 1:13-14). He guides, teaches and empowers the believer. (John 16:13, Acts 1:8, Romans 8:14; Galatians 3:3) It is the privilege and duty of every believer to be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). Concerning the gifts of the Spirit I believe that the sign gifts were given by the Holy Spirit to the Apostles and early church to verify the message and messenger (II Corinthians 12:12; Mark 16:17) but ceased at the completion of the written revelation of God (I Corinthians 13:10) and as such should not be practiced today (II Peter 1:17-19).
V: Man
I believe that man was made in the image of God having intellect, volition, and emotion (Gen 1:26-27). Man was the chief of God’s creation made for the purpose of fellowship and glorifying God (Genesis 3:8; Psalm 86:9). Man chose to reject God’s law in Adam and every subsequent generation has been born sinners (Romans 5:12). After birth man chooses to sin (Romans 3:10-18,23) and therefore is a sinner by birth and by choice. As a sinner, man is destined for death, both physical and spiritual (Genesis 2:17; Romans 6:23a) Because of his sin man is also deserving of eternal judgment (Romans 3:19; Hebrews 2:2-3). As a sinner man can do nothing to save himself (Romans 3:20, Isaiah 64:6). Man can only be saved through faith in the vicarious atonement of Jesus Christ on the cross (Romans 6:23; John 3:16). I believe that those men who receive Jesus Christ will be resurrected in the last day to eternal bliss and to live with Christ forever (John 3:16; I Thessalonians 4:13-17); and those without Christ will be resurrected to eternal damnation and separation from Christ in Hell. (Matthew 7:23; John 3:18,36)
VI: Sin
Sin is a transgression against the law of God. (I John 3:4) Sin causes a breaking in fellowship with God (Habakkuk 1:13 contrasted with Psalm 24:3-6). Man is a sinner both by birth and by choice (Romans 5:12, 3:23). Because God is holy He must judge every sin (Hebrews 2:2-3). The only way for man to have his sin forgiven and to be restored to a right relationship with God is through repentance and faith in the work of Jesus Christ on the cross.
VII: Salvation
I believe that Salvation is only found by grace through faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ on the cross (John 3:14-18; Eph. 2:8-9; Acts 4:12) and repentance toward God (Acts 20:21) Man, as a sinner, is found unrighteous and unholy before God and not fit for heaven (Romans 3:23, 5:12) Man in his natural state has no desire for God (Romans 3:11). He can only desire God if the Father draws him (John 6:44). However, this does not negate the responsibility of man to believe (Mark 1:15; Acts 17:30). Man is only made fit for heaven by having the righteousness of Christ imputed to him (Romans 3:21-26). At salvation we are removed from the family of Satan and born into the family of God (Acts 26:18; Colossians 1:13). This new birth is instantaneous and occurs at the moment of faith (Acts 16:31, Romans 10:9). Both Faith and Repentance are gifts from God (II Timothy 2:2; Ephesians 2:8-9). I believe in the eternal security of the believer. Man, once saved, is kept by the power of God till the day of redemption and can never be lost again. (John 10:28-29)
VIII: Satan and Angels
I believe in the existence of angels created by God to do His will (Daniel 10:11-13; Luke 1:19, 26) and minister to the saints under the direction of the Father (Hebrews 1:14). I also believe in the existence of Satan as a distinct and real person. He is the adversary of Christ, the church, and the work of God (I Peter 5:8; Rev 12:10). Satan was the chief of God’s angels but fell through pride and rebellion against God (Isaiah 14:12-15). During His rebellion he lead a number of angels with him. They were all cast out of heaven. Some are bound with chains of darkness till a future time, and some are active in the world today doing the work of Satan (Jude 6).
IX: The Church
Founding – I believe the church was started on the day of Pentecost. There are two mentions of the church before Acts chapter 2. In Matthew 16:18 Christ promised to build His church. In this text the Church is yet future. In Matthew 18:15-17 Christ gives instructions for handling offenses and sin in the church. While there is no conclusive proof it would seem Christ is giving instructions as to behavior when the church is founded – therefore here the church is future as well. The next mention of the church is found in Acts 2:47 where Christ is adding people to the church every day. Here the church is obviously already established. It would seem that the disciples were very organized in Acts 1 (they had a meeting place, they had a counted number that were with them) however they were missing the essential element of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5), which did not arrive until the day of Pentecost. I also believe it is significant that the Holy Spirit does no use the word “ekklesia” until after the day of Pentecost had come and the church was established. There being no other logical time for the founding of the church between Matthew 18 and Acts 2:47 other than the day of Pentecost I believe that is when the church came fully into being.
Make-up – Church is made up of regenerated and baptized persons (Acts 2:41,47). The Church is the body and Bride of our Lord (I Corinthians 12:27). It is distinct from the nation of Israel (Luke 5:36-39). Its mission is to edify the saints, prepare them to do the work of the ministry, then to go into the entire world and preach the gospel to every nation (Eph 4:11-13; Acts 1:8, II Corinthians 5:18-19).
Ordinances - Christ gave the church two ordinances: Baptism and The Lords Supper. Baptism is a picture of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is a command of Christ for all believers (Matthew 28:19) This is to be administered to a believer as soon as possible upon regeneration (Acts 2:41,8:12,13,36, 9:18, 10:47-48, 16:33). The Lord’s Supper is a commemoration of the Lord’s death. Christ commands us to observe this until He comes again (I Corinthians 11:26). This ordinance is open to all regenerated persons living in fellowship and obedience to God. (I Corinthians 11:27-32)
Offices – I believe the church has been given two offices: the office of Pastor (also called Elder and Bishop) and the office of Deacon. The qualifications for these offices are found in I Timothy 3 and Titus 1
Autonomy – I believe that each local church, according to the Scriptures, should be independent, autonomous, and not rightly subject to any ecclesiastical or political authority. This is seen in the fact that each church in the New Testament acted independently and operated as they felt God leading them. I believe that church and state should be kept separate having distinct functions, each fulfilling its duties free from the dictates of the other (Matthew 22:21; Romans 13:1,7).
X: End Times
I believe in a literal, bodily, personal (Acts 1:11), pre-tribulational (Romans 5:8, I Thessalonians 1:10), and imminent (Rev 3:11,22:7,12,20) coming of our Lord in the air to catch away his church (II Thessalonians 4:17). At this time the dead in Christ and all living believers will be caught out of the world to be with Christ forever more. (I Thessalonians 4:16-17) After the rapture of the church there will be a period of tribulation upon the earth. This period of tribulation will last seven years. During this time Anti-Christ will ru3le on the earth. He will set himself up as God and demand worship (Revelation 13:1-17). HE will make a covenant with Israel, which he will break at the mid point of the tribulation period at the abomination of desolation (Daniel 9:27) He will persecute believers on the earth. After the tribulation period Christ will make a personal, visible and glorious return with his saints to set up his kingdom for a thousand years on the earth (Matthew 24:29-30; Revelation 19:11-14; Daniel 7:21-22; Zechariah 14:3-9). During this thousand-year reign Satan will be bound (Revelation 20:6). After this millennial reign Satan will be loosed again for a time when he will organize his final rebellion against God (Revelation 20:7-9a). God will send out fire from heaven and destroy this rebellion and then cast Stan into the lake of fire for all eternity (Revelation 20:9b-10). After this the lost of all the ages will be gathered before the throne of God and final judgment will be pronounced (Revelation 20:11-15). I believe that no man knows the day or the hour that these events will begin (Matthew 24:36).
Our Future Plans
Contact Us
If you have more questions, feel free to contact us through any of the following:
Home Address:
Jonathan and Rachael Facenda
5111 Lunar Drive Kitty Hawk, NC 27949
Phone: (252) 573-9868
E-mail jfacenda@baptistworldmission.org
Sending Church:
Still Waters Independent Baptist Church
P.O Box 148 Nags Head, NC 27959
Phone: (252) 255-1835
Mission Board:
Baptist World Mission
P.O. Box 2149, Decatur, AL. 35602
Phone: (256) 353-2221
