Title : The Fourth Dimension Volume 2
Author : Dr David Yonggi Cho
Review : This sequel of The Fourth Dimension reveals in greater depth the theology behind the fourth dimension phenomenon of Volume One. Dr Cho explains the inner workings or ‘behind the scenes’ occurrences that cause the 4-D way of praying to work. Stressing the importance of partnering with the Holy Spirit, he explains the role of the Holy Spirit, as the third person of the Trinity, in our lives. As Christians, not only do we need to allow Him to work through us, we also need to understand the sphere of spiritual existence we have as Christians that will propel us to tap into the power of the Holy Spirit. This is because as His name implies, He operates in the spiritual realm, and the sooner we learn to operate like Him in that arena, the more effective we will be as Christians in the kingdom of God.
Dr Cho also writes at length on the make-up of man, that we are made up of body, soul and spirit, to explain how God uses us according to the very way He has created us. That we are able to use every faculty and function of our body, soul and spirit, to work with the Holy Spirit to dream and visualize, and to confess our prayers and the promises of God by our words. Dr Cho also draws on theories from other philosophers and even scientific studies to create a discussion to substantiate his points. While volume one is packed with interesting stories and testimonies that inspire us, this sequel is pitched at a more intellectual level, aiming more to educate us on the theories behind his conclusions than to glavanise us into action. For the first-timer who reads this book, I would advise him to read Volume one first. Without the background reading of Volume one or if the reader is totally unfamiliar with this type of faith teaching, he will at best be a little lost and at worst, think that it is a New-Age philosophy that Dr Cho is advocating. But far be it the case, by drawing many parallels between biblical principles and scientific theories, Dr Cho succeeds in narrowing the gap between the two schools and shows us just how scientific the spiritual can actually be.
Pastor Yonggi Cho was born on February 14, 1936 in Korea. During his childhood he was greatly influenced and trained in Buddhism, Confucianism, and eastern studies.
When he was 17 and a sophomore in high school, Yonggi Cho contracted tuberculosis, which put him at death’s door. Then his sister’s Christian friend visited him, and he accepted Christ as his personal Savior.
As the disease continued to plague him, Yonggi Cho went to his hometown to continue receiving treatment for the disease.
One day he attended a crusade in Pusan led by missionary Ken Tize, and he received the blessing of God.
After that he began helping missionary Tize with interpretation as well as reading various Christian books, which helped him understand the Christian truth in greater depths.
However, since he lacked firm conviction, Yonggi Cho struggled inwardly and began to fast and pray.
Then one night while fasting and praying he met Christ through a vision of light.
Through the vision, he was filled with the Holy Spirit. The night he met Christ, Yonggi Cho was called by God to study theology. He came to Seoul in 1956 and entered Full Gospel Bible College on a scholarship.
It was here that he met his future partner in ministry and his future mother-in-law, Pastor Choi Ja-shil.
After graduating from the theology school, Pastor Yonggi Cho along with Pastor Ja-shil Choi and her three children held the first worship service at her home.
The home church began to grow more and more and had a membership of fifty.
Then a tent was pitched out in the yard. At night, even in winter, church members prayed all night and then went out to witness all around the Daejo area during the day.
Amid the chaos and destruction of the war’s aftermath which brought great hardship and poverty to the people of Korea, Pastor Cho proclaimed the message of the Three-fold Blessing: the well-being of the spirit, body, and circumstances.
With the fullness and the miracles of the Holy Spirit, many suffering from various illnesses were healed and Christians who came to church were filled with hope.
The church had grown to a membership of 400 within three years of its founding and had just purchased a plot of land to build a church.
By November of 1961, a church was constructed to accommodate 1,500 people and on February 18th the following year, the dedication was held to commemorate the church sanctuary as the Full Gospel Revival Hall.
On April 26th of the same year, Pastor Cho became an ordained minister, and the church became officially registered as the Full Gospel Central Church.
Pastor Cho had been working without proper rest and without regard for his health, and he finally succumbed to overwork and fainted as he was leading a baptismal service for several hundred church members.
During his second stay in the hospital, he began to realize the physical limitations in his ministry.
He further realized, “The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone” (Exodus 18:18).
He began to understand the necessity of delegating work to others as Moses had delegated work to various appointed persons among the Israelites to lead them through the desert.
The Holy Spirit gave him the understanding of how the members of the early church, especially the women of the church came to work and have fellowship together (Romans 16).
Home cell groups became the launching pads for the explosive growth of the church.
A week later after his discharge, Pastor Cho informed the leaders of the church about his vision and began formulating cell groups.
He divided the city of Seoul into 20 areas and encouraged the members of the church in given areas to come together in the homes of the members for worship and fellowship during the week.
Today the cell leaders in various organizations, (women, men, young men, young women, children and so on), number 32,500. In 1968, three years after the formulation of home cell groups, church membership stood at 8,000, and there were three worship services on Sunday.
Even with three Sunday services, it became harder to accommodate all the members of the church.
This led to the purchase of land at Yoido for a new church building.
Consequently, the construction resumed in spurts and finally resulted in a completed sanctuary; this accommodated 10,000 people.
The first tear-filled worship service was held on September 23, 1973.
Following the church’s relocation to Yoido Island, church growth skyrocketed. By 1979 the membership numbered 100,000, and by 1981 the membership had doubled again to 200,000.
In 1984 the official registration of the church name was Yoido Full Gospel Church.
The church membership stood at 400,000, and by 1992 the membership had reached 700,000.
For those living great distances from YFGC, satellite sanctuaries were built. Many independent churches were established and supported for reaching greater areas throughout Korea.
In his 42 years of ministry, the church grew to the present 780,000 registered members of the church today.
The goal for the new millenium is to establish 500 to 5,000 satellite churches and 500 prayer houses throughout the peninsula within the next 10 years, to expand the evangelical reach to the world through the support of the internet, and finally to expand evangelical missions work to the third world- including North Korea.
