Sun Myung Moon
May 8, 1977
Belvedere, New York
Translator - Bo Hi Pak
The religious way of life and way of faith is the way of sacrifice, and the necessity of sacrifice came into being because of the fall of man. According to the Divine Principle, the fall prevented Adam from standing on the side of either God or Satan. Fallen Adam was not in a position where God could fully claim him; therefore, throughout history God has worked to separate the good and evil in Adam through the providence of Cain and Abel. By Cain and Abel making a proper offering together, God would be free to claim Adam.
According to the Principle, the purpose of a sacrifice is to enable God to deter-mine the ownership or possession of a particular level of creation. Therefore, we come to the conclusion that unless we can make an acceptable sacrifice, from the individual through the universal levels, by which God can claim the entire creation then we will not have the Kingdom of God on earth. The sacrifice offered on the altar of God must be separated or cut in two. The altar symbolically represents the entire universe, upon which the sacrifice is cut into two parts to show that good and evil are separated in purity. In order to be accepted by God the blood of the offering must shed, demonstrating that the impure blood of Satan is drawn out.
The Old Testament era is the period in which man must make offerings of all the things of creation. All the creation was employed for making offerings. The things of creation will purify the altar, and upon that foundation man himself can rest upon the altar. The most important aspect of the offering is that it is not for God's sake but for man's sake. A great distance between God and man was created by the fall, and man is destined to indemnity his way into heaven; thus the offering is not for the sake of God but is the opportunity for man to become closer to God.
God's role is to judge whether a sacrifice is acceptable or not; when God is presiding over a sacrifice He is approving it. It is man's heart in making the offering that needs to be approved by God. Man must be completely united with the spirit of making the sacrifice as a conditional offering on the altar. All throughout history man has made many kinds of offerings, including superstitious offerings, thinking to please God by bringing Him something. That was a wrong understanding.
The true meaning of offering a sacrifice is to enable man to come closer to God. On each level of restoration-individual, family, society, nation, and world-man must represent himself and make an offering to come closer to God. From this we can also conclude that the making of offerings should not be continued for eternity, and that the day will come when man will have no further need to make offerings.
The Messiah needs man to complete the sacrifice
God has a final purpose in restoration, and the symbolic altar on the individual level has been expanded onto the level of one tribe and one nation. After making a successful offering on the worldwide level, man can finally eliminate the necessity of further sacrifices or offerings. The key principle in making an offering is this: the man and the sacrifice must become one.
During the Old Testament era man used the things of creation to make offerings. The physical offering by men was supposed to be made on the national basis with the symbol of the universal sacrifice for men being the Messiah. Why is the Messiah needed as the physical consummation of the sacrifice? Jesus Christ as the Messiah came as the sacrifice upon the altar of the nation of Israel, but the Messiah needed man to complete the sacrifice because man was to be benefited, not the Messiah. The Messiah does not come for himself but for man. The universal Messiah came to the nation of Israel, the universal altar, and the people of Israel were supposed to completely unite with him and thus be offered together on that altar. However, that unity was not there. Jesus was offered as the sacrifice on the altar, but there was no man to offer that sacrifice to God. There was no one united with Jesus.
When Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross, none who accepted him were there, and the priests and all the disciples had disappeared. No one was there to offer Jesus as the sacrifice on the altar. An offering and sacrifice is presented to God for the sake of man, but if there is no man there to be benefited then how can the offering be given value? The only possible way that the sacrifice could still be effective was to consider that Jesus was separated between spirit and body.
In that way Jesus' body represented the people of Israel, whereas Jesus' spirit took the position of the actual sacrifice. By having his spirit and body united, Jesus made his sacrifice acceptable in the sight of God. For this reason the dispensation of the New Testament era has been separated into the spiritual and the physical dispensations. Jesus' offering was accepted as a spiritual offering; the sacrifice he offered was a spiritual one. Therefore, Jesus has been working on that base to establish the spiritual foundation, from the family to the society, nation, and world, until the time when the physical offering could be made.
The divided body of Christ
We frequently hear that the church is the body of Christ. Does this mean that those buildings of wood or stone are the body of Jesus? What is the body of Jesus? Not the building but the people of the congregation are the body of Christ. What right do people have to say that they are the body of Christ? When Jesus was crucified 2,000 years ago Jesus' body was in the position of the people. Ever since the crucifixion Jesus' body has been represented by the people who have united spiritually with Jesus. Those people were not there 2,000 years ago, but all through the New Testament age believers in Jesus have served in the position of the body of Christ.
If the believers are the body of Christ, then could there be more than one church? There are many different denominations and kinds of Christianity, which indicates that Jesus' body has been divided up. This is not acceptable in the sight of God. When we see the current situation from the viewpoint of God and Jesus Christ, the existence of so many denominations in the name of Christ is heartbreaking. It is just as though Jesus' body itself had been tom apart.
Under God there must be one more universal, physical offering that is not separated between spirit and body. This must be accomplished by people united together to offer a living sacrifice which can be accepted by God. In order to serve as a foundation Christianity must be united into one body. That is the first and most important condition to be achieved. The heart of Jesus Christ is grieved when he sees that his own body has been so shamefully divided. Christianity today is in the position of Jesus' body, but when there is one mind, how can there be 1,000 bodies? There should be one mind and one body.
Are all the hierarchies in Christianity really the one body of Christ? Can the Pope in Rome claim that he is completely one with Christ, and that the mind of Jesus and the body of the Pope are one? Originally God intended for the Pope to be the one symbolic body of Jesus, representing all Christians of the world.
If Jesus' mind and the body of the Pope had become completely one then the Roman Catholics uniting with the Pope could have been one with Jesus. By thus having all Christians represented by one central figure Christianity could have set the tradition to become one with Jesus. However, even the unity between Jesus and all Christians together would still not complete the necessary conditions for making the final universal offering to God. If that one condition could consummate everything then there would be no prophecies needed for the Lord of the Second Advent.
In reality there is a permanent gap between Jesus and the people that cannot be closed, however much they try to unite. Because Jesus' own mind and body were not sacrificed together 2,000 years ago it is impossible for Christians today to completely unite with Jesus. One more gigantic step is needed in order to complete the universal offering which was predicted, in which the body of Jesus and the mind of Jesus are totally united to become the living sacrifice on the altar.
Because of the faithlessness of the people the body and mind of Jesus were permanently wrenched apart. Consequently, in the future someone representing the body of all Christianity or mankind will receive the spirit or mind of Jesus, and become one completely united entity offered to God as a living sacrifice. This is the course of restoration.
The conditions which were permanently broken by the crucifixion of Jesus must be restored and consummated. That is the role of the Second Coming of the Messiah. Do you think the Messiah could fulfill that role by coming as some fantastic celestial body up in the air? It is ironic that in this modem, scientific age people harbor the idea that some day Christ will appear up in the air and ask Christians on earth to join him there.
In view of the extensive division and conflict within Christianity today, do you think being lifted up in the air is going to suddenly bring about unity? Maybe Christians would arrive there and stand back to back while trying to meet one Lord! Can you imagine men who are that unprepared to receive Christ begging God to send His son? A revolution in religion must come and we must change ourselves and prepare for the coming of the Lord in a different way.
Without unity man need not think about receiving the Messiah
What does God want from the Christians? Would God encourage them to become even more divided? Instead, God would say, "Don't worry about the Messiah. I will send him when you are ready, which won't happen until you become united!" It is what God wants. Unless a spectacular movement for the unification of Christianity unfolds here on earth there is no way that God can send the Messiah. Could God allow His son to be crucified once again?
What will happen if Christianity fails to become united? In that case God would allow it to become so weakened as to render it powerless. If this were not the case the denominations would still fight among themselves and would inevitably crucify the Messiah again. If Christianity declines, however, it would not have the energy to crucify the Christ. Furthermore, people would be much more open to receive new direction and when Christ did come it would be much easier for him to work in such an environment.
When will the end of the world come? It will come when the Christian churches have been weakened by fighting among themselves to such a degree that they have absolutely no effectiveness here on earth. When will that day arrive? When the individual is separated from the Principle of God, the family, society and nation will break down. The whole world of Christianity will then be weakened to an impossible degree. This is exactly what America is experiencing today.
Christianity in America has become so weakened and fragmented that nothing could possibly restore the existing pieces into one whole. It resembles a pottery vase which has shattered into so many pieces that it is impossible to put it together again. Any movement for unity must begin by melting all the broken pieces together and re-molding them into an entirely different shape, rather than attempting to piece together the original form. Our goal is unification by the revolutionary tactic of melting and remolding mankind according to the concept of God. The emergence of a movement of unification in this particular era is the most remarkable work of God.
If God sees that there is one movement that is suited to His purpose, then will He nurture that movement or will He break it down? Certainly God will nurture this movement until it grows sufficiently to absorb and influence the entire religious world, and eventually the entire world itself. Why are you here? What kind of gangsters are you? The Unification Church has many denominations -- Korean, Japanese, American, black, white -- are you fighting among yourselves?
If you are truly united then God will smile upon you. Unification is the most important qualification for meeting the Messiah. Until the foundation of unification is prepared you need not think about receiving the Messiah. Who wants that unification? First God wants it and then you unification soldiers want it. What God wants is actually what man wants. If the whole stage is ready when the Messiah comes then he can fulfill his mission without any inhibitions or delay. If a heavenly army is ready when the Messiah comes then the he will say, "Let's go liquidate the satanic world and bring the people and the world back to God." At that time will the Messiah be working to restore the family and society, or the world and universe?
Our goal is world unity in order to make the universal offering. For this purpose we must gather heavenly champions from all five races, black, white, yellow, red, brown. What would fulfill the ultimate ideal of God? Neither the individual, family, society, or nation is the problem. The problem is how to unite all men together as brothers and sisters, creating one family of God. That is God's ideal.
A mediator is needed between races and religions
Imagine a Texas rancher who owns an enormous cattle ranch. He will probably own different kinds of cattle. Will he want to have all those different cattle dividing by breed and courageously fighting among themselves, brown against red, black against white? Would he be satisfied by seeing this most daring scene? As rancher of the entire universe, would God be happy to see you Unification Church members fighting instead of uniting to go out and restore the satanic world?
I have seen many cattle ranches, but I never saw the cattle fighting among themselves because they had hides of different colors. But in some cases you are fighting, and Christians are definitely divided, so in the sight of God we are far inferior even to cattle. In many cases man's actions indicate that he is inferior to animals, doing things they would never do. Could such people seriously imagine going to heaven? How could God accept all those people who have such wickedness in their hearts that they are even inferior to animals? God vomits when He witnesses these things, and would tell such people, "Don't even talk about your heaven. It does not exist for you." The heaven that I know does not accept such people.
Could Americans who hate races other than their own truly be entitled to heaven? It is impossible. In order to be admitted to heaven white people must receive a citation from black people, and black people must be cleared by white people, "Yes, these people are truly entitled to heaven." Unless you are approved here on earth by your brothers, you will never end up in heaven. When I came to this country, Americans witnessed an Oriental man suddenly becoming influential, particularly among young people. Either subconsciously or consciously many white people harbor suspicion of Orientals and they have been trying to retaliate against me at every opportunity.
One reason that white people might resist me is that they view me as a guardian of minority groups. If there is conflict between blacks and whites, then who can qualify as a mediator? It does not make sense for either a white or black person to stand between them because one of the two sides would never listen. Therefore, the mediator whom God would send must be a yellow man.
If the present situation in America were left alone this nation would polarize into two extremes; eventually whites and blacks would come to the point where there could be no harmony or coexistence, and one group would exterminate the other. The American government should budget millions of dollars just to prevent that occurrence, yet I have come as a mediator without asking even one penny of the government.
Without realizing what I am trying to do, Americans have been trying to kick me out rather than accept me. I have brought a God-given solution for the impossible division among the Christian churches, yet those same churches have bitterly criticized and opposed me. Judaism and Christianity are just like oil and water and without accepting some mediator from God they cannot resolve their conflicts. There is no reason for Judaism and Christianity to oppose me.
You must have heard about my courtesy visit to our neighbor, Bard College. I did not go there to bomb the buildings or to steal anything. At Barrytown we welcome not only Bard College people, but also the local villagers. We even made a special nature trail where they can walk when they want to visit. Barrytown is for the benefit of all. We would welcome the visit of the President of Bard College. Who ultimately owns Bard College? It belongs to God. Has anyone ever gone to Bard College with credentials from God? Who appointed the judge and the police? The Bard College land was originally owned by Indians, not white people. Was it bought from the Indians?
It is commonly known that Jews have very good minds, but actually so far they seem to lack common sense. Why do I say dais? This Unification Church movement will grow and win millions of members, including Jews. They are taking a hostile position towards us at the outset of our movement; if Jews were really clever they would become friendly instead of trying to make one more gigantic enemy for themselves. If they continuously attack us then we have a right to self-defense, but I know that a most serious situation could develop out of that. I have been humiliated by the Jews over and over again and accused of anti-Semitism, but I am not interested in fighting back. If I were to do that then a most formidable barrier would be created. In the future will there be more Jews or more Unification Church members?
This Church has no boundaries and many of our members are Jewish. The Unification Church is a rising sun and has a vision of the future; it will grow and eventually embrace the world. We have to persevere and be patient. We will just swallow all of our wrath and fulfill our purpose of existence by bringing unity among Jews and Christians and people of all religions and races. We will go that way because God wants it and we have no other choice than to accept. Do you know my character? I have an iron will and a fearful mind; nobody can control me except God. Only because I know that God wants me to do things in a certain way can I persevere and be patient.
God needs to find a man with guts and a single-minded will; otherwise it would be simply impossible for Him to deal with Satan. Are you also the type that can totally grab a situation with both arms and not release it under any circumstances? If that is so then the lump in my throat is all gone. You are my hope and because of you I can forget everything. I have that same relationship with God, and because of me God can be patient and persevere. "My son is withstanding all those impossible trials. My son is still hanging on and I should be patient."
America's economy has no guarantee of permanent prosperity. This country has lots of potential problems with all its different peoples and cultures, and if some day its economy crumbled this nation would degenerate into a most savage, primitive and barbaric society. At that point the communists would grab their chance and ignite a fire in the oil of confusion. America is more vulnerable in this way than any other country.
Americans are pretty much convinced that because we are a group of monsters the Unification Church will decline. But in reality we always harbor the greatest hope and joy; we have a standard and determination to go on sacrificing ourselves for the purpose of God. Which would you prefer, to be inside or outside our Church? Your faces are telling me that you like being inside. Whatever God likes, I like too, and when God sees your bright faces God is certainly happy. I want you to know you are the hope of God and also my own hope.
The other day Mr. Kamiyama told me that some members delivered newspapers in the morning by bike. One member parked his bicycle for just ten minutes in order to deliver a few copies, and when he came back the bike was gone. Even a semi-truck was stolen which was locked up outside our garage. The best way to deliver newspapers is to use # It transportation! For that reason I think we made the right decision to start the paper in New York; the population is so concentrated that going door-to-door does not involve walking long distances.
A living sacrifice does not offer beggar's prayers
My topic today is "Living Sacrifice." Of all the sacrifices offered in the history of the Old and New Testaments, none were completely successful. Today, however, God is putting His hope in you, and you are going to be in the position to fulfill. Will you indemnify the wrong doings of history? In other words, will you become a living sacrifice in the position of a living animal?
Do we belong to the animal kingdom? We are animals yet we are different because we know God. We belong to the animal kingdom because we have all the functions of animals, yet because we know God we must put ourselves in the position of a living sacrifice. Jesus came to do the same, to unite everything into one through his sacrifice. You must understand one thing very clearly; when Jesus came as a living sacrifice, should he have come down to unite with the people, or should the people have gone up to unite with him as the sacrifice?
Would you ask Jesus to come to you, promising that you would faithfully wait for him, or would you say, "Lord, you just sit right there. I will dash to where you are?" We are the ones to move and take action. This is what God and Jesus are expecting of us. Jesus did not say that he would do our repenting for us and then bring the Kingdom of heaven to us while we sat still. He said, "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!" We are the ones who must adapt. Jesus did not come to be changed; we are the ones to be changed. This point must be absolutely clear.
Ultimately Jesus will not save you; Jesus brings the power of salvation but only you can save yourself by reaching out to Jesus. All the Christian denominations are praying and waiting for God to come and rescue them from the evil and despair of the world by taking them up into the air. That will not work. God is waiting for a man to come who will say, "God, You stay right there. I will change myself, then I will change the world by bringing the people to Your throne and Your way of life."
Do you think God would want to have one final showdown at one altar, with mankind making one offering that would finally establish universal salvation? Or would He want to accumulate little offerings here and there, bit by bit, day by day? Trivial prayers are offered here and there every day and after listening to just ten people you would get tired. God has to listen to billions of people trying to talk to Him, with everyone saying, "God, can You give me a little more blessing? Can You give me my salvation?" If all of a sudden someone comes up to say, "God, don't You worry about me. You rest right there and let me go down and take over Your job," God's eyes will pop out!
God's life has been so tedious, listening to the same old prayers for thousands of years. I know very well that God blocked His ears many years ago. Put yourself in His position; wouldn't you want to block your ears if you heard the same kind of nagging wherever you went? I knew this a long time ago and I decided not to pray such prayers.
The only prayer I can offer to God is, "God, don't You worry about me. Go ahead and rest and let me take up the fight as Your representative. Let me fulfill Your ideal." God can sense such a prayer coming and then He listens closely, pulling all the cotton balls out of His ears. A selfish prayer is just a dirty prayer, a beggar's prayer. We ought to offer the prayers of comfort and inspiration and encouragement to God, not the prayers of beggars.
God's heart has been broken over and over and pierced by people's faithlessness and distrust. He has been suffering so much that if He hears someone say, "God, I know Your heart has been broken. We cannot afford to let Your heart be broken another time. Let me take over Your burden; let me take over Your sorrow," how wonderful He feels! Even though that man may not be able to fulfill his promises, God is still looking at him like a Daddy, "What a nice son I have! He has so much heart, so much giving."
When you go out fund raising, don't ask God to send people to you and give you your goal. Instead of praying that kind of prayer get down to work and at the end of the day bring God your result, "I had a wonderful day God, and I offer this money for Your purpose. You have suffered so much. You wanted to see Your ideal fulfilled right away and I'm going to work continuously to fulfill Your dreams. Leave it to me."
You could be one of two kinds of people. One kind of person says, "Boy, I worked so hard but nothing came. Maybe God has left the Unification Church. What can I do?" But the other kind says, "God, no matter how difficult my experiences are they are still far less than Your own suffering. I am glad to have a chance to taste Your suffering, and I am going to go on and ultimately win the victory for You. You can rest assured." Would you like to be the second type? You are certainly greedy, aren't you? All right, now you translate that into action.
Actually I am the greediest and the most impossible person. Using my own hands I am trying to save America; most people do not think of more than themselves, much less the world or the liberation of God. If I am just standing still and thinking about these things, do you dank they will all get done? No, I have to get down to work and get my hands and feet wet.
I decided that during the first six months of 1977 I would he in the forefront, going faster, working harder, and suffering more than any other member of the Unification Church. I hardly get any rest; I go to bed at 2 or 3 o'clock in the morning, then at 4:30 or 5 o'clock I wake Mother up, "Mother, it's time to go." Then Mother tells me, "Father, it's only 4:30 now. You just went to bed a few minutes ago. Won't you rest a little bit?" But I insist, "No, it's a bright early morning. Get up. Let's go." Mother has a hard time keeping up with my pace. I just cannot lie down on the bed and be idle. I rest a little, then even if it is too early to go out I read the newspapers or find something to do, just running around in the house. You laugh, and it is funny in a way; however, it is also a serious matter. Looking down, God is so serious.
Yesterday I had several plans. I wanted to go to Barrytown, but after the incident there, all kinds of people would just crowd around me. That little incident at Bard College shook up the entire world! I wanted to go to New York or Boston, but the news had spread everywhere. Instead I put on dark glasses and took the children to Philadelphia. I took them to Independence Hall and Valley Forge, and in walking around those battlefields where George Washington fought I thought about our battle. When God thinks of me He is comforted that He found the right person here on earth. God's standard is very high and it is not easy to keep Him feeling that way.
The Bard College incident was truly amazing, and it was at the top of the news everywhere. It was Arbor Day, and President Carter planting a tree was the tenth news item, while my going to Bard College was #I! I only made a nice visit to a neighbor and that made world news. What kind of news would it have been if I had murdered someone! Actually university campuses are essentially public places. I have been to visit many university campuses like Harvard and Columbia, if all these schools had acted like Bard College then I would have been arrested countless times!
In the last three years there has been a great deal of fellowship between the seminary and Bard College. Actually I did them a favor by visiting them because it put them in the news. When I thought about it I was comforted; I am such an unusual man that the entire world jumps at the slightest little thing I do.
Jesus' inheritance from God
You have a choice. Would you like to become the sacrifice itself, or the person who offers the sacrifice? The sacrifice? Are you sure? Not too many are speaking with confidence; your yes is shaky. Because of unavoidable circumstance, Jesus' body and soul were divided and offered separately as he died on the cross. Was that Jesus' desire or did he want to become a living sacrifice offered in one unified manner? What about you? How can we become like the mind and body of Jesus offered together?
Think of your situation the same way that Jesus thought about his. In walking through the valleys of Israel Jesus did not think of them as belonging to someone else. He thought, "God is my God. Israel is my nation. These are my people." There was always an intense seriousness in his heart. Are you of the same frame of mind? Are you thinking, "God is my God. Mankind are my people, and I am here to save them"?
What was the conviction and philosophy of Jesus? Did he just routinely eat good meals and idly pass his days, planning to live a long life? Jesus thought, "God is my God. Mankind are my brethren, and this whole world is waiting to be re-created by the son of God. I am here for that mission." God thought in the same way that Jesus did. Both God and Jesus were pursuing the same ideal and ideology, and for that reason God could give His inheritance to His son Jesus.
Jesus wanted to give his inheritance to the Christian world, to his brethren. He wanted to give each Christian the conviction, "God is my God, mankind are my brothers. This land belongs to me and I am responsible to God to re-create it in God's way." Those people who are denominational and sectarian leaders and only interested in promoting their own sectarian purposes are outrageous. We must inherit Jesus' philosophy and ideology instead. Denominationalism is just a roadblock for God. We must break away all the barriers of sectarianism in order to really reach the people.
We may abolish the national and cultural boundaries, but more than that we must work to re-create the world as one unit, and the people of the world as one family of men under one God. This is not only God's ideal and Jesus' ideal, but it is the deep hope of all who are struggling in this crumbling world. People may be convinced that such an ideal is impossible yet still they think about it. Even in the world as it is people talk about peace, don't they? The peace they are seeking will be the result of having parents, children and relatives united together in harmonious, joyful unity. Doesn't everyone desire this unity as parents, husbands and wives, and children?
What do you think about?
If the ministers and clergymen who preach sermons on Sunday morning cannot talk about God as ,'my God," or about mankind as "my people," or about this world as the home of one family of men, they are heretics. They are frauds if they cannot talk with conviction about these things.
Who are you then? Do you feel that God is "my God"? Beyond the boundary of America, have you thought about all lands belonging to you? Have you ever thought, "I am responsible for this land. I have to invest myself in restoring this land in the sight of God"? This is the kind of religion God has been waiting for. Therefore, we in the Unification Church cannot be aloof of the world situation. We must feel totally responsible, as if this world belonged to us, for nobody else will take care of it. "I must take up responsibility because the Christian churches are crumbling today. The young people are morally corrupted so I must take up the responsibility. I can see the world crumbling because of the infiltration of communism, and so I must be responsible for communism." We each have to think in this way.
Since this is our determination we must revive Christianity, liquidate the communist ideology, and work with young people to bring back God-centered morals. Are you dating and having a good time with other young people? Do you want to brush aside responsibilities and just pray and wait for wonderful reforms to appear as a blessing? No, you must be different. What do you think about while you are eating? You must think, "The world, Christianity, communism, the young people." What do God and Jesus think about when looking down at this world? Those same things.
Do Jesus and the saints and disciples sit idle and do nothing in spirit world? No, they are always working, constantly looking at the world situation and thinking and laboring in the same way that God is thinking and working. What do you think about? The blessing? Your every word and every deed must be permeated with the thought, "God and world, God and world." In that context you must speak, act and work.
Until now you may not have thought about this, but in listening to me you can clearly understand Jesus' philosophy and God's philosophy and now you can see clearly how you can become a true Christian and champion of God. Have you come to that realization today? Even unto his death, Jesus was absolutely unmindful of his personal loss. Instead he was worrying about his mission, God and the world. In the 2,000 years since his death Jesus has been continually working for God and the world.
Christians should inherit Jesus' philosophy and conviction, but instead they are often fretting only about their own denomination and church. Instead of feeling concern for the rest of the world they are concerned about securing their own heaven. They are thieves! It is ludicrous to see such people opposing me when I have totally given myself to bring the world back to God! Which side is God standing on?
We arrive at a simple conclusion: Any movement that God approves will be prosperous no matter what, and its opponents will inevitably crumble. Our job is to bring salvation to Christianity while there is still some sign of life. When God sees a man who is desperately pursuing this mission all day long He is inspired and cheers, "My son, you are even better than I!" Don't you want to live that kind of life?
So far have you been worrying about yourself, about what kind of marriage you will have, and what you job will be? Jesus proclaimed so clearly, "Do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or put on ... Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness." He said that the gentiles worry about themselves, but the chosen people need to worry about bringing the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth.
Can you firmly determine to inherit Jesus' philosophy as your own, and live and act and think precisely as he does? Then you will become one with him as his younger brother. If you try to become a Christ yourself, then will Jesus say, "You blasphemer! How could an ordinary man try to be like me? I am King of kings!" Or will he say, "My brothers, God bless you"?
Those who only live to fill their own stomachs shall not succeed. How about you? Is your mind completely filled by God and the world? Is there even a little bit of room left over for anything else, or with all your heart, all your mind and all your soul are you absolutely centered upon this mission? You who can say, "God and True Parents, I can pledge that I am absolutely like that," raise your hands. Amazing! Are you really? The problem is that you constantly go up and down like a roller-coaster. Instead you have to continuously go up.
Your hard work is to benefit yourself and your descendants
Why do you come down? I have no personal reason to chase you out to witness or fund raise; I myself do not need the money or the people. You are the ones who need them. In God's sight I am certainly entitled to inherit God's kingdom, but what am I doing? Every penny I get I use for the sake of world restoration; every member who comes I mobilize for the sake of world restoration. World restoration is my only thought and constant hope.
Until my hope is realized I cannot get tired. It is impossible for me to break down. If anyone can live up to God's standard then without any hesitation I am willing to give my entire inheritance to him. Such a person is absolutely entitled to God's kingdom. I did not come to America to be indebted to this country or jealous of those who live here. I do not have to worry about my own circumstances, and America does not have to help me. I came to help save America.
Unification Church members should never think, "I am witnessing and fundraising to help Reverend Moon." Not at all. You are doing all those things for your own salvation and to benefit your own children. Strictly speaking you are not even doing it for God or Jesus. You are doing it for yourself and it will benefit you more than anyone else.
Man was supposed to be born for God, for humanity, and for this world. That is his original purpose. Everybody wants to bring a gift to God; what kind of gift would you bring? Neither an entire world of treasure nor titles of power are gifts that God will accept. Instead God will cherish the deeds you did here on earth out of your love for Him, and how much you precisely lived His own philosophy when on earth. That record here on earth is intangible, yet that is the only gift that God can recognize as meaningful.
Do not even think of your own family from a selfish point of view. When you sisters look at your husbands you should think, "My husband is representative of all men of the universe." When you brothers look at your wives, think, "My wife is representative of all the women of the world. When we have unity between us we bring unity to the universe and unity to mankind. I am serving by living as a true husband." As you serve your husband or wife you are serving the entire world of men or women. Men and women together in marriage are an example of service for the world. In marriage there is no barrier of heart so there could be no barrier of race or nationality. There are no barriers in the world of love. That is Jesus' ideology.
Jesus wanted to plant that philosophy within the nation of Israel 2,000 years ago; however, the people and nation together were centered on their own selfishness, thinking about Israel's glory and the glory of Judaism. They did not accept Jesus' vision, but even now the Jews must repent and live according to Jesus' ideology.
Today's Christians are no better than the Jews in this sense. They do not care about the rest of the world, but are more concerned that they will be lifted up in the air when the Lord comes, abandoning the rest of the world to be judged and cast into unquenchable fire. They do not care if the world burns to the ground as long as they have their millennium up in the air. But God's true heart is to use all of Christianity as a sacrifice that the world might be saved.
It is indeed my ideology that we have the Unification Church become a total sacrifice as we reach out to save the world. If this is wrong then there is no such thing as God and we do not even have to worry about finding hope in this world. In these Last Days God sent me to teach His people, not with symbols and parables but with the absolute truth, not in a mirror dimly but face to face. There is no excuse now because the broad daylight is here.
What is your mind filled with when you are eating? By loving God I make God mine. By loving the world I make the world mine. No matter what the world may do to us, we will love this world and these people more than anyone else here on earth. Nobody can be greater than we as far as loving our mission and loving God is concerned; nobody can beat the standard of the Unification Church.
I may perish but I must leave the indelible footprint of my tradition and ideology behind. You must think, "Even if I die I will achieve this goal and ideology through my own children and posterity." Then true liberation can finally take place; the agony and sorrow of Jesus' heart can be rectified and God's broken heart shall be liberated. Do you know this clearly now? Before you even eat, what are your thoughts? While you eat what are you thinking? After your meal what would you think about?
Why did God give you your own eyes? To see the world from the viewpoint of God; your eyes are God's windows. God gave you your ears to hear music as a resounding inspiration to love God. Your nose was given to breathe the air of love, air of harmony, service, and sacrifice. All your senses were meant to reach out to love everything and revolve around one central figure -- God and the world.
In using a fish net you have the weights to draw the net down and anchor it. Love is like the weights of the net; we just follow the path of those who went before us in love, drawn behind them. There is no line above love. You must not pursue a love that will be shameful in the eyes of God or mankind. Americans have tried everything in their quest for fun and carnal pleasure; they have tried a hippie life of unconcern, free sex, and even streaking. Was that for God? They did it for selfish, carnal pleasure, and living that kind of attitude will only bring the destruction of mankind and the world, and the destruction of God's tradition. Fostering that kind of life is like murdering billions of people and spreading their blood over the land.
If you become a living sacrifice the world will see resurrection
There is no room for dancing or rejoicing in a world filled with that destruction because there would be no joy. That is the mind of Jesus and of the True Parents. Your body lives according to your mind and obeys your mind. Through living, your mind and body become one. When you harbor Jesus' mind and live accordingly then Jesus will say to you, "You are my soul. Indeed you are my body and you represent me totally."
How wonderful Jesus would have felt if his disciples had followed him that closely! If the disciples had really shared his mind and lived up to his mind with their actions, how victorious his mission would have been! That was exactly what Jesus wanted, but that tradition was not created 2,000 years ago. But now I am proclaiming precisely the same ideology of Jesus and God and we can live that ideology for the first time in history. Would God brand us as heretics or would He be grateful?
Regardless of opposition we must go on, and we must become one with Jesus by doing so. We must really pledge to God, "Nobody will deter me. I am going to inherit Jesus' own ideology and I want to live it." So far this has been hazy in your minds perhaps, but at this moment can you say, "God, this is absolutely clear, and I am going to live it." Can you make that pledge?
If your goal is real then it has been worthwhile for me to come here and really speak my heart. I am a representative of Jesus and my life is a living sacrifice on the altar of God. Since I am in that position then I am living the life of Jesus and anyone who helps me and follows me shall receive salvation. If this is also your conviction and faith then you are the physical resurrection of Jesus and his ideology, and through you the entire world will see resurrection. You will bring salvation wherever you go, and anyone opposing you will in reality be opposing God.
The showdown shall be made before your life is over. You will see that anyone who goes against God cannot last long. I have witnessed many occasions when people who made a wrong relationship with me simply perished. I prayed for their forgiveness and prosperity, yet in spite of that they suffered. Once anyone comes against God and His ideology they are in a most serious position, even though I may pray for their blessing.
I am alone but not isolated or weak at all. Would you like to be me? When you lie down you must think that you are Jesus lying down: "My body is the resurrected body of Jesus. I am reviving Jesus' breath that was stilled 2,000 years ago." Is this criminal in light of the Bible? Not at all. The Bible is teaching us to become one body with Jesus; Jesus taught, "I am in the Father and the Father is in me." He also said, "You are in me and I am in you." Jesus meant that everyone can become a representative of the Messiah, a part of the Messiah. Your becoming the physical manifestation of the Messiah is the essence of God's ideology and Jesus' ideology. Are you heretics by claiming to be messiahs? Not at all! God created everyone to be a messiah. As long as there are people who need to be saved the title of Messiah is needed.
With this teaching in your mind you can go out to the world and proclaim, "I am the messiah." That is not a sin at all, instead you will be welcomed by God. This morning I have been speaking to you very clearly about how Jesus came to be a living sacrifice, but instead became a dead sacrifice. Today we are the resurrection of Jesus, the living sacrifice; in his place we are going to consummate the mission that he left undone here on earth.
Three days ago we had a precious sacrifice. One of our brothers died in action when he was run over by a subway car while out selling newspapers. Whether you are killed is not a problem; the important thing is how you die. What do you think about the moment your death strikes? Your own misery, or God and mankind? You mission? That is what will determine your place in spirit world. If that brother lived and then died for God and mankind then his death was a glory and he inevitably went to Jesus' realm at the throne of God.
At the moment of your death you should be able to say to God, "I lived for You and for the world. I have done my absolute best, and You know that I spent every ounce of my energy for You and the world. God, please receive my soul." Then you are indeed a son of God, and shall be gloriously accepted at the throne of God; you shall remain as an elder brother or sister of the world for eternity. Because you lived the highest credo under the sun no one can exceed your position. Step by step we want to bring the family, society, nation, and world to be transformed into the altar upon which we can present ourselves as a living sacrifice. When God can accept our offering then the world shall be revived and resurrected. At each stage we are expanding the Kingdom of God here on earth.
Everyone has pledged today to become a champion of God in that respect. Members of all five races are assembled in this room. Those who can say, "God and Father, without any mistake I am absolutely going to live that life. Until I die I shall not change my course. I am going to live for you, God, and mankind." Let us make that pledge once again.
My Heavenly Father, please accept this pledge of our young people to give their heart and soul and life for You and Your mission. Give them Your blessing so that they shall become a living sacrifice on Your altar. They shall bring the world into resurrection and they shall bring this world into the Kingdom of God here on earth.
This is a historical moment that you shall remember. I want you to live your life as a living sacrifice. May 8, is a day of new beginning and from now on you must not voice complaints. The world is tired out but we cannot be tired out. God has not rested yet; I have not rested yet; you cannot rest yet. There is nothing you cannot face, nothing you cannot do for God. If you really are what you pledged then America will live. No matter how much sacrifice you pay, you must sell the newspaper.
Let us face whatever shame may come and the victory of God will soon be proclaimed here on earth. Your deeds and your way of life shall be raised up; the world is waiting for your offering, having only one thread of hope, which lies in you. If you live with that faith and conviction then God will always be with you, never leaving you alone for one moment. May God bless you in your victory. Let us pray.