11, The City of Riches
"Keeping the Truth in a World Full of Money"
Secular Wrappings over Faith
Today, we live in a world where even birth and genetics determine one’s qualifications for success.
Silver-spoon families, superior genes, prestigious schools—
all these factors define a person’s value in reality.
John Bunyan exposes this spirit of the age through the inhabitants of the “City of Riches.”
They wore the garments of faith while fully conforming to worldly values.
Even today, the church cannot escape this shadow.
A preacher who delivers good sermons gains more members;
more members bring higher offerings;
higher offerings build larger sanctuaries and pay bigger salaries.
And all of it is wrapped up as “glory to God.”
Fig. 11-1: Obsession, Love-of-Money, and Pride from the City of RichesDisciples of Greed
On my pilgrimage with the storks, I met the disciples of the “Master of Riches.”
They bore names like Obsession, Love-of-Money, and Pride.
The “Market of Greed” where they dwelled
was a city where lies and flattery, hypocrisy and violence
were treated as mere survival skills.
They regarded faith as a commodity and God as an investment.
Their Conversation
Christian overheard them speaking:
Love-of-Money: “Why don’t those ahead even glance at us?”
Pride: “They’re too rigid. They think only they are righteous.”
Obsession: “But we believe in God.
Managing and enjoying the things He has given us
isn’t that also bringing glory to Him?”
Love-of-Money: “Exactly. If pastors preach well, it’s only natural they earn more.
If the congregation grows, offerings increase, and a bigger church is built,
that is all bringing glory to God, isn’t it?”
Their words were clever, rational even.
But there was no fragrance of truth.
Christian’s Rebuttal
Unable to hold back, Christian spoke:
"Those with true faith—even children—could answer a hundred questions.
Jesus condemned following Him just to get bread,
so how detestable is it to use faith as a means for worldly gain?"
He gave the example of Hamor and Shechem in the Old Testament.
They received circumcision to obtain Jacob’s daughter and livestock—
turning religion into a tool for wealth.
"How different is this from those today who run churches as businesses,
using the gospel as a means of profit?"
Can Truth Overcome the World?
After this conversation, my heart remained heavy.
Their words were not exaggerated.
They spoke of today’s world, today’s church:
a world that values skill over faith, achievement over service, profit over the gospel—
a world in which “faith alone” is increasingly marginalized.
Even God Himself is reduced to the “giver of blessings.”
This was the reality of the City of Riches.
Whose Disciple Am I?
Walking with the storks, I suddenly asked myself:
"Am I a disciple of the Master of Riches, or a disciple of the Lord Jesus?"
Were the achievements of my research,
the things people praised,
all nothing more than greed dressed in the garb of faith?
Now I am determined to leave that city.
Passing through Vanity Fair,
departing the City of Riches as well,
I seek to remove every trace of ambition and possessiveness within me.
"Lord, uproot completely the seeds of greed in my heart."
Treasure in Jars of Clay
The Apostle Paul said:
"We do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord." (2 Cor. 4:5)
He compared humanity to jars of clay—
fragile on the outside, yet containing the treasure of God within.
Meditating on this, I was deeply moved.
True gospel is not about outward splendor,
but about Jesus’ life being manifested within me.
Yet today, “Pride of Wealth” still decorates churches as enterprises,
measuring God’s blessings by the size of congregations and offerings.
I cannot agree with this mindset,
for at the end of that path, there is no trace of Jesus.
"We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus,
so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our bodies." (2 Cor. 4:10)
Even our sufferings, enveloped in the life of Christ—
that is the mystery of the gospel.
Storks in the City of Riches
When I was working on the stork reintroduction project,
what began as pure scientific research gradually became a “business of vested interests.”
Love-of-Money, Obsession, and Pride’s disciples seized control of the project.
They used the lives of the storks to gain fame,
turning environmental efforts into awards and accolades.
Under the names of “Environmental Awards” and “International Honors,”
the deaths of storks were concealed.
Fig. 11-2: A professor painting a stork on a passer-by's T-shirt in Insa-dong.Before this corrupt reality, I wept uncontrollably.
Storks caught on fishing lines with broken legs,
storks electrocuted on utility poles,
storks fallen from pesticides…
"God, the storks are dying because of human greed.
Where is the path that preserves both truth and life?"
That question became my prayer.
A Mission That Looks Like Failure
Eventually, I faced criticism at the university and risked having to abandon my research.
Yet even there, God held me firm.
I took to the streets of Insa-dong, painting storks,
sharing the story of life with people.
During the pandemic, even in solo protests in front of the National Assembly,
I continued walking that path.
Although the law was not enacted,
I trust that its purpose was recorded in heaven.
Fig. 11-3: “Do you know my grandfather?”I see in my dreams
my future granddaughter asking in front of the National Assembly:
"Do you know my grandfather?"
Someone answers:
"He was the one who stood there every day to make the Stork Protection Act a reality."
When that day comes,
I will finally understand that my “failure” was God’s “answer.”
A Childlike Heart
One day I sighed,
"If only I had been a Nobel Prize-winning scholar,
people would have looked at me differently…"
But God’s Word corrected my heart:
"Do not try to be anything other than what you are." (Rom. 12:6, MSG)
He reminded me that the Lord does not delight in lives spent envying others.
"Does not the potter have the right to make some vessels for honorable use and others for common use?" (Rom. 9:21)
Jesus said:
"Whoever welcomes one child in my name welcomes me." (Mark 9:37)
Fig. 11-4: Jesus saying, “Welcome even one child.”When His disciples argued about who among them was the greatest,
Jesus held a child in His arms.
That pierced my heart gently.
True greatness is not measured by competition or honor,
but by the love that embraces the small and the vulnerable.
Only then did I realize:
caring for the storks is ultimately about caring for one “small life.”
A Pilgrim’s Reflection
Is the life of Jesus breathing within me?
Are His traces evident in my daily life?
As the world flows deeper into the City of Riches,
I long to return to a soul like a child’s.
Even if the path appears to be a failure,
if it is the way the Lord has given, there is life at the end of it.
"What is seen is temporary,
but what is unseen is eternal." (2 Cor. 4:18)