Former Gay Godfather Now Holy Life Leader

I’m a pastor of Seoul Calvary Chapel and the leader of Holy Life, an ex-gay movement. I became attracted to men since I was in adolescence for no reason and I started living as a homosexual. I thought that I was born gay. I was ashamed of myself and felt guilty so I didn’t tell this to anyone. I drifted into the gay lifestyle. 

I did some work in the theater in my 20s and I was also the owner of a dress shop and the designer. After failing in my business, I decided to be a Buddhist monk,. When I was 27 years old, my mom who knew my identity, left a desperate message and committed suicide because she was not able to persuade me to come back. I lived as a loser after she died. When I was 30 years old, a woman introduced me to Christ and I met Jesus. I became a Christian but still lived as a homosexual. Nobody taught me what the word of God said about homosexuality.

I started to run a gay bar and a transgender club in Itaewon and it was successful. I became famous for conducting disco and host clubs. There were 70 gay people in my club and I opened a transgender club in Japan making a lot of money. I was a gay godfather in Korea and I led 200 homosexuals. At this moment I was a Christian loving God. My passion for God didn’t stop in my heart.I entered a seminary but I was still a homosexual and was not aware that it’s a sin. I burned with the passion to be an evangelist to help homosexuals.

After the Seoul Olympic in 1988, the government in Korea determined Itaewon as an area of crime and started closing up all the clubs because the sons of big politicians did drugs in Itaewon. The four clubs I had were out of business and my apartment was under attachment. So finally I fled to Japan. I ran the club with transgenders in that place as a Christian.

Some day in the evening, an angel of the death started choking my neck and I felt like dying. I had the chance to have a counseling with Yonggi Cho, the Pastor of Yoido Sunbokeum Church, who was visiting Tokyo. He told me to be a pastor and to put everything behind. And for this reason, I knew it was God’s calling. So I entered a theological school and cleaned up the all the clubs. 

I met Pastor Hirano Koo E Chi there. I heard of Calvary Chapel Church in the US from him. He opened the Bible and taught me that the homosexuality is a sin, and He said that we cannot come the kingdom of God unless it is clear of our life. By then I realized that the homosexuality is not inborn and I started exploring only the truth of the Bible to get out of the sinful habit. 

After the third year, I’ve got a special experience with the holy spirit during a class at the school on July 4th 1991. This experience was like all the evil spirits in me were cast out and I became new person. I was 43 years old at the time.

After coming back to Korea, I pioneered the Seoul Calvary Chapel Church and only focused on seeking the truth of the word of God. Just like the apostle Paul who spent three years dedicated only to the word of God in Arabia after He accepted Jesus. To know more about it, for 12 years I started writing footnotes from the book of Genesis to Revelation. 
 
In Korea as homosexuality became a social issue, Korean Churches started campaigning against it, and I joined in but God gave me a different direction. So I built up an ex-gay movement called “Holy Life” and I started the restoration movement to reach out to homosexuals. Every year I have been doing the movement of human rights for ex-gay people by doing holy festival standing against the queer festival. I have counseled 2,000 gay people, and opened the Bible College for them because only the truth will restore them.   

Homosexuality is a cardinal sin which destroys life. It is the work of Satan to make the people whom God chose fail. So we are not supposed to regard them as an object of criticism, but as sheeps to tend, and to preach the Gospel and to recover them in order to become harvesters in the end time. That is God’s will.

The Bible tells us that, "See that you do not look down on one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 18:10 NIV) Homosexuality is a sinful habit which can be overcome. But the sin of homosexuality needs forgiveness in the name of Jesus Christ because it is a spiritual problem which needs to be dealt with God. And so, they will receive the Spirit of God as a gift.

From a servant of Jesus, Jonah Lee.