구주대망 1956년 1월 1일, 울산교회를 개척하기로 합의한 교우 6명이 정옥수 씨 가정에서 배영복 씨의 인도로 가정예배를 시작한 날로부터 오늘은 꼭 50년이 되는 날입니다. 그해 2월에 김의장 전도사님이 부임하고 4월에는 학산동에 교회당 건물과 대지를 구입해서 5월에 입당하여 울산교회는 착실한 터를 내렸습니다. 그러나 백 명의 교인이 모이기까지 10 년이 걸렸고 그것도 박두욱 목사님이 부임한 후 3년 째 되던 해였습니다. 그리고 16년 만에 200명, 20년 만에 300명, 그리고 1980년, 25년째 되는 해에 600명에 달성하는 급성장세를 타기 시작했습니다.
그리고 보면 80년대 이후 공업도시 울산으로 유입되는 인구의 증가와 함께 꾸준히 성장해서 이미 90년대에는 울산에서 제일 큰 교회로 자리매김하게 되었습니다. 돌이켜 보면 그 때쯤 또 다른 도약을 위한 하드웨어적 준비를 해야 했다는 아쉬움이 남습니다. 만약 그 때쯤 요즈음 일각에서 시도되는 분립개척이 있었다면 분명 오늘쯤은 현재 울산교회 규모의 교회가 또 하나 광역시에 자리 잡았을 것으로 생각됩니다. 하지만 늦다고 생각할 때가 가장 빠른 때 일 수 있다는 말을 음미하면 설립 50년을 맞이한 우리에게 새로운 도전이 됩니다.
예배당 크기가 교인 수효를 떠나서 희년을 맞이한 울산교회에 시도할 목회적인 꿈은 잘 양육하고 훈련된 성도들과 더불어 세상을 변화시키는 일입니다. 우리가 배운 하나님의 크신 사랑을 나누므로 우리가 사는 세상을 바꾸어나가는 일입니다. 진리는 깨달을 때 기쁨을 우리 마음에 가져다줍니다. 그러나 깨달을 진리를 실천하면 그 기쁨이 계속되고 배가되며 확산됩니다. 그러므로 지금껏 우리가 듣는 “교육과 훈련을 잘하는 교회”에서 받은 훈련대로 살아가는 모습이 아름다운 성도들로 특징 지워 지는 교회로 발 돋음 하기를 소원합니다.
그러기 위해서 지금껏 남아있는 전통에 의한 교회의 모습이나 특정 인물에 의해서 교회가 움직이던 옛 모습을 탈피하고 하나님이 교회에 주신 거룩한 비전에 의해서, 하나님이 이 땅에 교회를 세우신 분명한 목적에 의해서 움직이는 교회를 만드는 일에 최선의 노력을 하려고 합니다. 그리하여 광역시 울산도 인구 천 명당 교회가 하나씩 세워지고 세워진 교회가 잘 성장하도록 돕는 일과 아직도 남은 복음을 알지 못한 백만 시민에게 복음을 전하는 일에 주력하는 교회가 되기를 여러분과 함께 꿈꾸어 봅니다. 그렇습니다. 우리가 나누는 사랑, 우리가 만드는 세상은 서로 분리할 수 없습니다. 예배를 통해서 배우고 체험한 사랑을 나누므로 우리가 꿈꾸는 세상을 만들어가는 울산교회 성도님들 되기를 소원합니다. 아자! 아자!
In the year of our Lord, on January 1, 1956, six believers who agreed to plant Ulsan Church gathered for a family worship service at the home of Ok-soo Jung, led by Young-bok Bae. Today marks exactly fifty years since that day. In February of that year, Evangelist Ui-jang Kim took up his post, and in April, the church purchased land and a building in Haksan-dong, moving in that May. In this way, Ulsan Church laid down steady roots. Yet, it took ten years before a hundred congregants gathered—and that was in the third year after Rev. Doo-wook Park assumed the pastorate. Then, it grew to 200 members in 16 years, 300 members in 20 years, and by 1980—its 25th anniversary—it reached 600 members, embarking on a wave of rapid growth.
Looking back, alongside the population influx into the industrial city of Ulsan after the 1980s, the church grew steadily, establishing itself by the 1990s as the largest church in Ulsan. In retrospect, there lingers a slight regret that we ought to have prepared the physical infrastructure around that time for another leap forward. If church planting through daughter-church division—something being attempted in some quarters these days—had taken place back then, surely another church of Ulsan Church's current scale would have taken root in this metropolitan city today. Nevertheless, reflecting on the saying that "the moment you think it is too late is actually the earliest time," this becomes a fresh challenge for us as we celebrate our 50th anniversary.
Setting aside the size of the sanctuary or the number of congregants, the pastoral dream to pursue for Ulsan Church as we welcome this Jubilee is to transform the world together with well-nurtured and well-trained saints. It is to reshape the world we live in by sharing the great love of God that we have received. Truth brings joy to our hearts when we come to understand it. However, when we put into practice the truth we have understood, that joy continues, multiplies, and spreads outward. Therefore, my heartfelt prayer is that we step forward from being known as a "church that educates and trains well" into a church characterized by saints whose lives radiantly embody the training they have received.
To achieve this, I intend to do my utmost to move away from old church patterns governed merely by remaining traditions or centered around specific individuals, and instead build a church driven by the holy vision God has bestowed upon His church, and by the clear purpose for which He established the church on this earth. Thus, I dream together with you that our church will focus on seeing one church established for every thousand people in the metropolitan city of Ulsan, helping those planted churches grow soundly, and proclaiming the Gospel to the one million citizens who have not yet heard it. Indeed, the love we share and the world we build cannot be separated. I earnestly hope that the saints of Ulsan Church will create the world we dream of by sharing the love we have learned and experienced through worship. Let us press forward! With courage and grace!
In die genadejaar van ons Here, op 1 Januarie 1956, het ses gelowiges wat ooreengekom het om Ulsan Gemeente te stig, vir ’n huisgodsdiens by die woning van mnr. Ok-soo Jung bymekaargekom, onder leiding van mnr. Young-bok Bae. Vandag is dit presies vyftig jaar sedert daardie dag. In Februarie van daardie jaar het evangelis Ui-jang Kim sy bediening hier begin, en in April het die gemeente ’n kerkgebou en grond in Haksan-dong aangekoop, waarby hulle in Mei ingetrek het om standvastige wortels te skiet. Tog het dit tien jaar geneem voordat honderd lidmate byeengekom het—en dit was eers in die derde jaar nadat ds. Doo-wook Park as leraar bevestig is. Daarna het dit 200 lede binne 16 jaar bereik, 300 lede binne 20 jaar, en teen 1980—die 25ste bestaansjaar—het dit 600 lidmate bereik en vinnig begin toeneem.
As ’n mens terugkyk, het die gemeente saam met die toestroming van mense na die industriële stad Ulsan ná die tagtigerjare bestendig gegroei, sodat dit reeds in die negentigerjare stewig gevestig was as die grootste kerk in Ulsan. Nabetragtend bly daar ’n tikkie verlange dat ons destyds die fisiese infrastruktuur gereed moes gekry het vir ’n verdere sprong vorentoe. As ons destyds selfstandige dogtergemeentes geplant het—soos sommige gemeentes deesdae beproef—sou daar vandag sekerlik nog ’n gemeente van Ulsan Gemeente se huidige omvang in hierdie metropolitaanse stad gewees het. Nietemin, wanneer ons die spreekwoord oordink dat "wanneer jy dink dit is te laat, dit dikwels die vroegste oomblik is," word dit vir ons ’n nuwe uitdaging noudat ons ons 50-jarige bestaan vier.
Afgesien van die grootte van die kerkgebou of die lidmaatgetalle, is die pastorale droom wat ons vir Ulsan Gemeente by die ingang van hierdie jubeljaar wil nastreef, om saam met goed versorgde en toegeruste gelowiges die wêreld te verander. Dit behels om die wêreld waarin ons leef te hervorm deur die groot liefde van God wat ons ontvang het, met ander te deel. Waarheid bring vreugde in ons harte wanneer ons dit begryp. Maar wanneer ons daardie waarheid uitleef, bly daardie vreugde voortbestaan, vermeerder dit en straal dit na buite uit. Daarom is my innige verlange dat ons van ’n gemeente wat bekend staan as "’n kerk wat goeie onderrig en toerusting bied," sal voortbeweeg na ’n gemeente wat gekenmerk word deur gelowiges wie se lewens ’n pragtige weerspieëling is van die toerusting wat hulle ontvang het.
Om dit te bereik, wil ek my uiterste bes doen om weg te breek van verouderde kerklike patrone wat bloot op oorgelewerde tradisies berus of rondom spesifieke individue draai, en eerder ’n gemeente te bou wat gedryf word deur die heilige visie wat God aan Sy kerk geskenk het, en deur die duidelike doel waarvoor Hy Sy kerk op hierdie aarde geplant het. So droom ek saam met julle dat daar in die metropool Ulsan een kerk vir elke duisend inwoners geplant sal word, dat ons sal help om daardie nuwe kerke gesond te laat groei, en dat ons ons kragte sal toespits om die Evangelie te bring aan die een miljoen stadsgenote wat dit nog nie gehoor het nie. Voorwaar: die liefde wat ons deel en die wêreld wat ons bou, kan nie van mekaar geskei word nie. Mag die gelowiges van Ulsan Gemeente die wêreld van ons drome gestalte gee deur die liefde wat ons in aanbidding geleer en ervaar het, met oorgawe uit te deel. Komaan! Laat ons met moed vorentoe beur!