SECOND ADVENT Jesus clearly spoke about the Second Advent (Matt. 16:27). But he said that no one knew of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven (Matt. 24:36). Therefore, up to the present, it has been thought reckless even to try to know when, where and how the Lord would come.
By examining the words of Jesus, "Only the Father knows." (Matt 24:36), and the verse, "Surely the Lord God does nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets." (Amos 3:7), we can understand that God, who knows of the day and hour, will surely let His prophets know all the secrets concerning the Second Advent of the Lord before actualizing it.
Therefore, Jesus said that Lord would come like a thief (Rev. 3:3), while, on another occasion, he said that, for those in the light, the Lord would not come as a thief (I. Thess. 5:4). It was true that Jesus came as thief to the chief priests and scribes, who were in darkness, but, to the home of John the Baptist, which was in light, God revealed Jesus' birth beforehand. At the time of his birth He revealed the fact to the wise men of the east, Simon, Anna, and the shepherds. Again, Jesus warned the people, telling them to watch at all times, praying that they might have the strength to escape all those things that would take place, because the day of the Second Advent would come upon them suddenly like a snare; so, it is evident that He will reveal it beforehand to the saints who are in the light, so that they may prepare for the coming day of the Lord.
From the examples appearing in the course of the providence of restoration, we can see that God always did things after having revealed the facts to His prophets beforehand; for example: the judgment in Noah's time, His destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the Messiah's coming. Therefore, it is evident that, at the Second Coming of the Lord, God will speak to those who have ears to hear and eyes to see so that they may be enlightened by the saints about what would take place, as He promised that in the Last Days He would pour out His Spirit (Acts 2:17).
SECTION I - WHEN WILL CHRIST COME AGAIN?
We call the time of the Lord's Second Advent the "Last Days". We have already clarified, in the "Consummation of Human History", in Part I, that we are at present in the Last Days. Accordingly, we know that now is truly the time for Christ to come again. We find in the history of the providence of restoration that Jesus came after the 2000 years of the "providential age of restoration by indemnity". Therefore, seen from the principle of restoration through indemnity, we may understand that the Lord will come at about the end of the 2000 years of the "providential age of the prolongation of restoration through indemnity" (the New Testament Age), which restores through indemnity the previous period, through the substantial time-identity.
As we have discussed in detail concerning World War I, Kaiser Wilhelm II, the Adam-type personage on the side of Satan, perished with the defeat of Germany in the First World War, and Stalin, the personage in the type of the Lord of the Second Advent on the side of Satan, realized the world of communism; this fact foreshadowed that Christ would come again, and restore through indemnity the world under the principle of coexistence, co-prosperity and common-cause. Consequently, we can understand that the period for the Second Advent began right after the First World War.
SECTION II - IN WHAT MANNER WILL CHRIST COME AGAIN?
1. VIEWPOINT CONCERNING THE BIBLE
God has always revealed important matters of His will in parables and symbols, so that by looking for what would come in the future, any person might understand the demand of the age of God's providence, according to the degree of his intellect and spirituality (John 16:25). Therefore, the Bible has caused the establishment of many different viewpoints by various interpreters. The main cause for denominational divisions lies here. Consequently, the most important matter of all is the viewpoint from which one interprets the Bible.
The matters concerning John the Baptist supply us with a good example (cf. Part I, Ch. 4, Sec. II, 3--157). Since we have viewed the Bible for the 2000 years since Jesus from the standpoint that John the Baptist fulfilled his responsibility, the Bible has consequently appeared to support this. But when we consider the Bible again from a different standpoint, we can clearly understand that John the Baptist failed to accomplish his responsibility (cf. Part I, Ch. 4, Sec. II, 3--157). Likewise, since we have viewed the Bible from the standpoint that the Lord must come on the clouds by literally interpreting that the Bible says this, the Bible has appeared to us only in that way, up to the present time. However, since it is absolutely incomprehensible to the intellect of modern men that the Lord would come on the clouds, it is necessary for us to consider the Bible in detail a second time, from a different standpoint, in order to grasp the true meaning of what the Bible literally says.
We propose a new viewpoint in the section in the Bible concerning John the Baptist. Malachi prophesied that Elijah, who had ascended into heaven, would come before the advent of the Messiah (Mal. 4:5). Consequently, the Jewish people of Jesus' day believed that the very person of Elijah who had once ascended into heaven, would come again, and they were looking forward to the day of his coming down from heaven, But, most unexpectedly, Jesus said that John the Baptist, the son of Zechariah (Luke 1:13), was Elijah (Matt. 11:14). Here, we came to know, according to the testimony of Jesus himself, that the second advent of Elijah was realized by the birth of John the Baptist, not by his coming down from heaven, as the Jewish people of that time had all expected. In like manner, although many Christians up to the present have believed that Jesus would come on the clouds, there are no grounds to deny the possibility of the Lord being born in the flesh on the earth at the Second Advent, just as the fulfillment of Elijah's second advent by the birth of John the Baptist has shown us. At this point, we need to consider, once again, the numerous Biblical records concerning the Second Advent from the viewpoint that the Lord might come on the earth by being born in the flesh.
At the time of Jesus' coming, many scholars knew that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem of Judea as the offspring of David (Matt. 2:5-6). But on the other hand, it is not difficult to imagine that there were many saints who believed that the Messiah would come on the clouds, according to the Biblical record that said, "I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man...." (Dan. 7:13). Therefore, the Jewish people, even after the crucifixion of Jesus, aroused an anti-Christian movement, saying that Jesus, born in the flesh on the earth, could not be the Messiah. The apostle John named "antichrists" all those who denied that Jesus was born in the flesh, saying:
For many deceivers have gone out into the world, men who will not acknowledge the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. (II John 7:8)
There are scholars who insist that Daniel 7:13 is the prophecy of what was going to happen at the Second Coming of the Lord. However, in the Old Testament Age, God was working His providence to fulfill the whole purpose of the providence of restoration with the coming of the Messiah, as we may clearly see from the words, "For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John." (Matt. 11:13), and also "For Christ is the end of the law, that every one who has faith may be justified." (Rom 10:4). Therefore, it was the situation that no one could ever imagine the second coming of the Messiah, who had once come, until Jesus himself later said that the Lord would come again. In consequence, none of the Jews of Jesus' day could ever think that the prophecy of Daniel 7:13 was concerned with the Second Coming of the Messiah. Therefore, the Jewish people of that time thought that this prophecy would be that which was going to happen at the first coming of the Lord. In this way, even at the time of Jesus' coming, there were many believers who had believed that the Lord would come on the clouds, from Biblical grounds. However, Jesus was actually born in the flesh on earth, and we are compelled by this knowledge to study the Bible from the viewpoint that the Lord may come again in a like manner.
2. THE LORD'S SECOND ADVENT WILL BE REALIZED BY HIS BIRTH ON THE EARTH
We read in the Bible (Luke 17:25) that Jesus, anticipating what was going to happen at the Lord's Second Coming, said, "But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.". If the Lord should come again, as the Bible literally says, on clouds from heaven, in the glory of God, with the trumpet call of the archangel (Matt. 24:30-32), would there be any man who would not serve and exalt the Lord coming in such a manner, not matter how sinful a generation this may be? Therefore, if the Lord should come on the clouds, it could never happen that he would suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. Why, then, did Jesus said that the Lord would become so miserable at the time of the Second Advent? The Jewish people of Jesus' day were looking forward to the day when Elijah would come again from heaven before the Messiah. Consequently, Jesus, who was seemingly insignificant, suddenly appeared as the Messiah, like a thief, when the Jewish people had not yet heard of the news of Elijah's coming. Therefore, they despised Jesus and treated him badly (cf. Part I, Ch. 4, Sec. II, 2--155). Jesus, who knew he was in a such a situation, anticipated that if, at the Second Advent, the Lord is born as a man and appears like a thief to the Christians, who, waiting for the Messiah, would be looking at the sky alone, just as the Jews did at the coming of Jesus, the Son of man would again be condemned as a heretic and suffer many trials. Therefore, Jesus said that the Lord would be rejected by that generation. Accordingly, we must know that this Biblical verse would only be fulfilled when Christ would come again in the flesh, and never if he should come on the clouds.
Again we read in Luke 18:8 that Jesus said:
I tell you, he will vindicate them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth?
Why should the saints fall into such faithlessness where no faith could even be found when the Lord would appear on the clouds, in the glory of God, with the archangel's trumpet call? This verse, too, can never be fulfilled if the Lord comes on the clouds. Let us recall the situation in Jesus' day. The Jewish people believed that the Messiah would be born as their King in Bethlehem (Matt. 2:6) only after Elijah would come down from heaven. Meanwhile, though Elijah had not yet come, a young man, born and raised as the son of a carpenter in Nazareth, suddenly appeared, calling himself the Messiah. It is understandable that there was not to be found among the Jews any so devout that they would follow him at the risk of their lives. Jesus, who grieved over the situation, lamented in such a manner, anticipating that when the Lord would again appear on the earth in the flesh, the people would also fall into faithlessness to such a degree that nothing like faith would be found, as in the case of the Jewish people, because at the Second Advent all the saints would also be looking up at the sky alone, believing that Christ would come again on the clouds. Therefore, Jesus' words in Luke 18:8 could never be fulfilled unless Christ is born on the earth.
Meanwhile, there are some scholars who interpret the verse to mean that this situation is going to occur because the tribulations for the latter day saints to suffer will be so bitter as to cause them all to fall into faithlessness. But, in the course of restoration, no tribulation could ever block the way of the saints' faith. Then, how much less will it be in the Last Days, when the saints will go through the last barrier of faith? We must understand that it is the reality of our life in faith that the more bitter our tribulations and trials become, the greater the ardor of our search for God and for the saving grace of heaven.
We again read (Matt. 7:22-23) that Jesus said:
On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?'. And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.'.
For the saints with such good faith as to be able to perform miracles and signs in the name of the Lord, would it not be that they would follow and serve the Lord as well when he comes on the clouds in the great glory? Why, then, did Jesus say that they would be rejected by the Lord in such a way? If saints of such devout faith should be rejected by the Lord, there will not be a single saint in the Last Days that can be saved. Consequently, this too will never be fulfilled if the Lord should come on the clouds.
Even in Jesus' day, there must have been many saints whose faith was so ardent as to be able to perform miracles and signs. However, the people who believed that Elijah would first come from heaven before the Messiah did not recognize John the Baptist as the Elijah whom they had long awaited (John 1:21); they even rejected the Messiah, who had already come. Therefore, Jesus also had to reject them, in tears. In like manner, at the time of the Second Advent, the saints with the faith that the Lord would come on the clouds would also certainly reject the Lord born on earth. Therefore, Jesus said that however ardent the saints might have been in faith, they would be rejected as evildoers by the Lord.
The view on the consummation recorded in Luke 17:20 also could not be fulfilled if Christ would come again on the clouds. Consequently, only under the premise that the Lord will be born on earth could the following Biblical verses be interpreted fully. Let us then closely study the contents of these verses.
"The Kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed." (Luke 17:20). If the Lord comes on the clouds, the Kingdom of God would come with signs to be observed. However, even at the time of Jesus, it was true that the Kingdom had already come with the birth of Jesus, it was true that the Kingdom had already come with the birth of Jesus, but the Jewish people, who had believed and waited for Elijah to come again from heaven, were unable to believe in Jesus and failed to see the Kingdom that came at long last. Likewise, at the time of the Second Advent, the Kingdom of God will come with the birth of the lord on earth, but the Christians who believe that he will come again on the clouds will not believe in the Lord, who will have come again in the flesh on earth, and thus they will not be able to see the Kingdom.
"The Kingdom of God is in the midst of you." (Luke 17:21). At the time of Jesus, those who believed him to be the Messiah and who followed and served him had already realized the Kingdom of God in their hearts. In the same manner, at the Second Advent, the Lord will be born on earth. Therefore, centering on those saints who will recognize and serve him first, the Kingdom of heaven will first be realized in their hearts, and when such individuals increase in number, forming societies and nations, the Kingdom of God will gradually appear as a world with signs to be observed. Therefore, we must know that the Lord will not come on the clouds, realizing a Kingdom of God to be observed all of a sudden.
"You will desire to see one of the days of the Son of man and you will not see it." (Luke 17:22). If the Lord comes on the clouds, with the trumpet call of the archangel, everybody will see him, so there will be no reason why they will not see the day of the Son of man. Why then did Jesus say that they would not see the day of the son of man? At Jesus' coming, the day of the Son of man had already come with his birth on earth, but the Jewish people, who fell into faithlessness, failed to see the day. In the same manner, at the time of the Second Advent, the day of the Son of man will come with his birth on earth, but the Christians, who believed that the Lord will come on the clouds, will not believe in and follow him as the Messiah, even though they may see the Lord. Therefore, it is true that, though the day of the Son of man may have already come, they will not be able to see that day as "the day".
"And they will say to you, 'Lo, there!' or 'Lo, here!'. Do not go, do not follow them." (Luke 17:23). As we have already discussed in "Resurrection", the latter day saints whose spiritual standards have reached a certain point may receive a revelation saying "you are the Lord", but, if they don't know the principle of how they came to receive such a revelation, each would call himself the "Lord of the Second Advent", thus becoming an antichrist before the Lore to come. Therefore, Jesus warned the people with these words in order that they might not be tempted by such people.
"As the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of man be in his day." (Luke 17:24). When Jesus was born, the news that the King of the Jews was born reached even to King Herod in the Satanic world, and the whole of Jerusalem was troubled, as the Bible says (Matt. 2:2-3). At the time of the Second Advent, the news of Christ's coming will be transmitted between East and West as rapidly as a flash of lightning, because, at that time, the means of transportation and communication will be highly developed.
We have previously discussed the verse, Luke 17:25. "As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of man." (Luke 17:26). Noah, who knew that the flood judgment was coming, called to the people to repent, but they would not listen to him, and finally all were destroyed. In the same manner, Christ will come again in the flesh on earth and call to the people to come into the ark of truth. Nevertheless, the saints who are looking up at the heavens alone for the Lord to come on the clouds will not listen to the words coming from him on the earth; by repelling him as a heretic, they will all fall into the position of having failed to serve the will of God's providence, just as the people in the days of Noah failed.
"Whoever seeks to gain his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will preserve it." (Luke 17:33). There would be no reason to risk our lives if the Lord were coming again on the clouds of glory, with the trumpet call of the archangel. Since Christ will come again, born in flesh on the earth, he will look like a heretic to the saints who believe in his coming again on the clouds. Therefore, anyone believing and following him will have to risk his life. When anyone is ready to believe in and follow him with such resolution, he will preserve his life, but those who repel him as a heretic, in cooperation with unfavorable circumstances, turning their backs to him in search of present life, will fall into the darkness of death.
"Where the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together." (Luke 17:37). Thus Jesus answered the Pharisees who asked him about the place of the Second Advent. We recall that a bird of prey alighted on the pigeon not cut in two on Abraham's altar (Gen. 15:11). This indicates that Satan is always looking for an opportunity to take anything that is not sanctified. Therefore, this last answer of Jesus signifies that, just as the evil spirits will be gathered where there is a body of death, the Lord who is the source of life, will come where there is life. This means that the Lord will appear among the devout saints. As already discussed in the "resurrection", at the time of the Lord's Second Advent many devout saints will be gathered together in one place through the cooperation of many spirit men. This will be the place of life where the Lord will appear. At the First Advent, Jesus was born among the chosen people who had best served God, and he appeared as the Messiah especially to his disciples, who believed in him and followed him.
Concerning the fact that Christ will come again, born in the flesh on the earth, the Bible says, "She brought forth a male child, one who was to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne." (Rev. 12:5). A rod of iron here signifies the Word of God, with which to judge the sinful world and to restore the Kingdom of God on earth. As we have stated in detail in the "Consummation of Human History", judgment by fire is judgment by the tongue; that is, the judgment with words (James 3:6). Therefore, it is said that the words Jesus has spoken will be man's judge in the Last Days (John 12:48), that by the same Word, the heavens and earth that now exist have been reserved unto fire (II Peter 3:7), and that the Lord Jesus will slay the lawless one with the breath of his mouth (II Thess. 2:8). Therefore, the rod of iron is veritably the rod of Jesus' mouth. It is the breath of his lips and tongue, or the very word Jesus speaks (Is. 11:4). That is why it is said, "He shall rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces." (Rev. 2:27). It is clearly said that this male child is born of a woman and is caught up to God and to His throne. Then, who could be the male child who is born of a woman with the qualification of sitting on the throne of God and who will rule all the nations with the words of God? This can be none other than the Lord of the Second Advent who is to be born on the earth as the King of Kings, and who will realize the Kingdom of God on earth.
Up to the present, there have been many people interpreting the woman in the above-mentioned Biblical verse (Rev. 12:5) as the "Church". They could not but interpret it as the church, trying to interpret this Biblical verse under the premise that Christ would come on the clouds. In a following passage, "The rest of her offspring" (Rev. 12:17) means those who bear testimony to the Lord by believing in him; that is, the saints in the capacity of adopted sons (Rom. 8:23).
As for the Second Advent of the Lord, some scholars believe that his Second Advent is when Jesus comes through the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:16-17), to live in our individual hearts (John 14:20). In that case, since Jesus would be present in the heart of any faithful believer from the time of the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost to the present, we must believe that if this is really the Second Advent, then it has already taken place in the remote past, some 2000 years ago.
Some Christian denominations believe that Jesus will come again in a spiritual body. However, immediately after his resurrection from the tomb three days after his death, he visited his disciples, assuming the same appearance without a bit of difference from that of his lifetime (Matt. 28:9); and from that time until the present date, he has freely visited and taught, at any moment, any believer with a high spiritual standard. Therefore, we must think that this type of Second Advent also took place 2000 years ago. If this was the Second Advent, it would not be necessary for us now to look forward anew to the day of the Second Advent of the Lord as the historical day of our utmost desire.
From the fact that the disciples of Jesus were waiting for the day of the Second Coming even though they could meet him in spirit at any moment, we know that they did not envision the Second Advent which they were so eagerly looking forward to as his return in the spiritual body. Jesus said, "Surely I am coming soon." (Rev. 22:20), to the apostle John, whom he often met in spirit. John, who heard this, answered him saying, "Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!". Here, we find that Jesus, himself, well expressed that his coming in a spiritual body was not the Second Advent, and it is evident that the apostle John also did not regard his appearing in spirit as the Second Advent. Therefore, if the Second Advent is not Jesus' coming again in a spiritual body, it is an undeniable fact that Christ must come again in the flesh, just as in the first coming.
As stated in detail in the "Principle of Creation", God created both the invisible and the visible worlds, and created man to have both spirit and body, in order to have him dominate the two worlds, according to His words of blessing. Nevertheless, due to Adam's fall, man failed to enjoy dominion over these two worlds. Therefore, the creation, which had lost the dominator, came to wait in lamentation for the revealing of the sons of God, who could dominate it (Rom. 8:19-22). Therefore, Jesus, having come as a perfect dominator of these two worlds, in the capacity of a perfected Adam (I Cor. 15:27), intended to make all his saints (believers) the dominators over the whole creation, making them one body with himself by engrafting them to his body (Rom. 11:17). Nevertheless, due to the Jewish people's rebellion against him, the physical body of Jesus was delivered into the hands of Satan as the condition of ransom for the restoration of the Jews and the whole of mankind back to God's bosom; his body was invaded by Satan. Naturally, the physical salvation of mankind was left unfulfilled, and Jesus died, promising it would be realized when the Lord would come again (cf. Part I, Ch. 4, Sec. I, 4--147). Therefore, up to the present there has not been a single man who, having become perfect both spiritually and physically on the earth, could help harmonize the invisible world and the visible world by dominating both.
In consequence, that Lord, who is to come as a perfect substantial being on that standard, will not come in a spiritual body alone. As in Jesus' coming, he must come as a man perfected both spiritually and physically. Making the whole of mankind become one body with him by engrafting them to him both spiritually and physically (Rom. 11:17), he must make them become perfect both spiritually and physically, thus making them able to dominate both the invisible and the visible worlds.
Jesus, by restoring the Kingdom of God on earth, should have become the True Parent of restored mankind and the King of the Kingdom on earth (Is. 9:6, Luke 1:31-33). Nevertheless, he failed to fulfill this will due to the faithlessness of the people; he died on the cross, promising the Lord would come again later and surely fulfill it. Consequently, at the Second Advent, he must realize the Kingdom of God on earth as intended at Jesus' coming and become the True Parent of mankind and the King of the Kingdom as well. Naturally, even at the Second Advent, the Lord must be born in the flesh on the earth, as in the First Advent.
Besides, the redemption of man's sin is possible only through man's life on earth (cf. Part I, Ch. 1, Sec. VI, 3.2--60). In order to fulfill the purpose of redemption, Jesus had come as a man. However, since the salvation through Jesus' cross is only spiritual, the original sin still remains inherent in our physical body. Therefore, Christ must come again in order to complete the physical salvation. Accordingly, the Lord will come in the flesh as in Jesus' coming because he would not be able to attain this purpose if he would come again in a spiritual body alone. We have previously clarified, in many ways, that the Lord should come at the Second Advent in the flesh, as in Jesus' coming, and not in a spiritual body.
If the Lord would come again in a spiritual body, it would be illogical that the spiritual body, which can be seen only by spiritual eyes, transcendent of time and space, should come on the clouds, which is a kind of material. Moreover, if the Second Advent will surely be realized not in a spiritual body but in the flesh, where has the Lord been staying in the air as a physical body and how can he come on the clouds? About this question, one may ask what miracle would be impossible for God, almighty and omnipresent, to perform. However, God cannot ignore the laws which He has set up. Consequently, God need not and cannot work His providence in such a non-principled way that Christ, coming again in flesh the same as ours, should come on the clouds, after having waited in the air among some worlds other than the earth. Based on the proof that we have hitherto dealt with, we can admit with no doubt that the Lord's Second Advent will be realized by his birth in the flesh on earth.
3. WHAT DOES THE BIBLICAL PASSAGE SAYING CHRIST WILL COME ON THE CLOUDS SIGNIFY?
If the Second Advent of the Lord is to be realized by a birth on the earth, we must know the significance of the Biblical passage saying that he will come on the clouds. To know this, we must first understand the meaning of the word "clouds". We read in Revelation 1:7:
Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, every one who pierced him; and all the tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so, Amen.
From this we know that all men will surely see Christ coming again. Meanwhile, at the time when Stephen was martyred, only the saints whose spiritual eyes were open could see Jesus sitting at the right hand of God (Acts 7:55). Consequently, if Jesus, who is in the spirit world, should come in a spiritual body as he now is, he will be seen only by those whose spiritual eyes are open; so it would never be that every eye will see Christ coming again. Therefore, we can understand that it is because he will come in the flesh that the Bible says every eye will see the Lord at his coming. The Lord, in the flesh, cannot come on the clouds, so the "clouds" are surely symbolic.
The same Biblical passage goes on to say that every one who pierced him will also see him. Those who pierced Jesus were the Roman soldiers of his days. However, those Roman soldiers, of course, cannot see the Lord coming again. It is because, if the Roman soldiers are to be able to see the Lord coming again on the earth, they must be resurrected, but it says in Revelation 20:5 that those who will be resurrected at the time of the Lord's Second Advent are only those who will participate in the first resurrection, and the rest of the dead would not come to life until the thousand years (the millennium) are ended.
Therefore, we must interpret "those who pierced" as a parable, regarding it to be the appellation for those who, having believed Christ will come again on the clouds, will disregard and persecute him when he comes again most unexpectedly through a physical birth on the earth. If "those who pierced" should be interpreted as a parable in this way, there would be no reason why we cannot interpret the word "clouds" in the same passage, also, as a parable.
What, then , is the word "clouds" likened to? "Clouds" would denote that which is vaporized (purified) from the dirty water on the earth. Water symbolizes the fallen man (Rev. 17:15). Then we may understand that the clouds would signify the devout saints, whose minds are always in heaven and not on earth, completely reborn from the fallen race of men. Again, "cloud" is often used, either in the Bible or in the classics, as a word representing a crowd (Heb. 12:1). We may see that the word is also used in that way, even today, in the languages of both East and West. The pillar of clouds by day which led the Israelites in Moses' course represented Jesus, who was to come later as the leader of the same nation; the pillar of fire by night represented the Holy Spirit, who, as the object of Jesus, was to lead the Israelites by the fire of inspiration. From the above, we know that Christ's coming on the clouds means that he will appear as the leader of the Christians, the Second Israel, amidst a group of reborn saints. As we have previously studied in detail, when Jesus answered the Pharisees' question as to where the Lord would come again (Luke 17:37) by saying that where the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together, he meant that the Lord would come to the place where the devout saints would be gathered together, which signifies the same thing as the coming on the clouds.
If we should thus interpret the cloud as a parable, we may as well think that the Lord came on the clouds at the time of the First Advent. This is because Jesus, though he was in fact born on the earth, was surely one who came from heaven, seen from his significance and value, just as the Bible says, "The first man [Adam] was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man [Jesus] is from heaven." (I Cor. 15:47); "No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of man." (John 3:13). This is the reason why it was believed that the Lord would come on the clouds, even at the first coming (Dan. 7:13).
4. WHY DID JESUS SAY THAT THE LORD WOULD COME ON THE CLOUDS?
There are two reasons why Jesus foretold that the Lord would come on the clouds. First, it was to prevent the delusion of antichrists. If it had been clarified that Christ would come on earth in the flesh, the confusion caused by the delusions of many antichrists could not have been prevented by any means. Since Jesus appeared as the Messiah from a low and humble position of life, any humble man who had attained a certain spiritual standard could arise, calling himself the Lord of the Second Advent, thus dazzling the whole world into a great delusion. But fortunately, this kind of confusion has been avoided because all the believers, knowing that Christ would come on the clouds, have looked up into heaven. However, since the time is now full, God will surely tell us, straightforwardly, that Christ will be born again on the earth.
Second, it was to encourage those saints who were walking the difficult path of faith at that time. There are numerous other examples in which Jesus said things in such a way that they sounded illogical in order to encourage the saints to fulfill God's will as rapidly as possible. To draw examples, Jesus, in order to make his disciples believe that the Second Coming would be fulfilled right away, said, "...for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel, before the Son of man comes." (Matt. 10:23). Again, when Jesus had told Peter of his approaching martyrdom, he asked Jesus what would become of the disciple John; then Jesus replied, "If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?" (John 21:18-22). According to this word of Jesus, some of his disciples were looking forward to the Second Advent, which they thought might take place during John's lifetime. On another occasion, Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of man coming in his Kingdom." (Matt. 16:28), which made his disciples think that they could possible see the Lord coming again in their lifetime.
In this way, Jesus spoke as if the Lord were coming very soon; this encouraged his disciples so much that even under the oppression of the Roman Empire and the persecution by Judaism, they were all filled with the Holy Spirit (Act 2:1-4), and then they could found the early Christian Church, all from the ardent hope for the Second Advent, which they thought was imminent. It was also to stimulate and encourage the saints who were under severe tribulations that he told them he would come on the clouds from heaven in the power and glory of God with the trumpet call of the archangel, and fulfill all things like a flash of lightning.
SECTION III - WHERE WILL CHRIST COME AGAIN?
If Christ is to be born as a man in flesh on this earth, and not to come again in a spiritual body, he will surely be born in a certain nation of God's elect, some place of God's predestination.
Where, then, would the place of predestination be, and which nation would be God's elect?
1. WOULD CHRIST COME AGAIN AMONG THE JEWISH PEOPLE?
Some Christians believe that Christ will come again among the Jewish people, based on the following Biblical records: at the time of the Second Advent, the number of the sealed would be a hundred and forty-four thousand out of every tribe of the sons of Israel (Rev. 7:4); Jesus said to his disciples, "...truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of man comes." (Matt. 10:23). Jesus said to those listening to him, "Truly I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of man coming in his Kingdom." (Matt. 16:28). However, in order to know the truth of the matter, Christians must know the fundamental providence of God.
On another occasion (Matt. 21:33-43), Jesus clearly indicated, in his parable of the vineyard, that the Lord would not come again to the nation that would persecute and kill him, but take the Kingdom of God (the heritage) from them and give it to the nation producing the fruits of it (at the time of the Second Advent). In this parable, Jesus meant God, by the owner of the vineyard; God's heritage, by the vineyard; the chosen nation of Israel in charge of God's heritage, by the tenants; His prophets, by the servants; the Lord, by the owner's son; and a certain other nation which will be able to fulfill God's will in receiving and serving the Lord of the Second Advent, by another nation producing the fruits.
Why, then, did Jesus say that the Lord was going to come again to the sons of Israel? In order to elucidate this question, let us first study what the word "Israel" really means.
Israel is a name meaning "he prevailed", which Jacob received from the angel of the Lord after he had prevailed in wrestling with the angel at the ford of Jabbok, which he did in order to establish Abel's position for the substantial offering (Gen. 32:28). Jacob, by succeeding in the substantial offering after thus establishing Abel's position, could lay the family-level foundation for the Messiah. Therefore, his offspring who succeeded this will on that foundation are called "Israel". God's elect, Israel, thus means the people of God who have triumphed in faith, and does not necessarily mean the lineal descendants of Jacob.
This is why John the Baptist said to the Jews, "Do not presume to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham." (Matt. 3:9). Paul said, "For he is not a real Jew who is one outwardly, nor is true circumcision something external and physical. He is a Jew who is one inwardly and real circumcision is a matter of the heart, spiritual and not literal." (Rom. 2:28-29). Again, he testified, saying, "not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel." (Rom. 9:6). These were Paul's words to reproach the Jews who were proud of being the chosen nation just because they were lineal descendants of Abraham, even though they did not live in accordance with the will of God.
Therefore, it can be said that Jacob's descendants had been the chosen people of Israel at the time of their departure from Egypt, but they were no longer "Israel" when they rebelled against God in the wilderness. Therefore, God abandoned all of them to perish in the wilderness, and led into Canaan only their descendants who followed Moses, as the real Israel. Of the descendants who went into the land of Canaan, those of the Northern Kingdom, which consisted of the ten tribes that rebelled against God, perished because it was no longer the chosen nation of Israel; only the Southern Kingdom of Judah, which consisted of the two tribes which followed God's will, could, as the true chosen people of Israel, receive Jesus. Nevertheless, these Jewish people, too, completely lost their qualification as the chosen people when they crucified Jesus.
Who, then, would be the chosen people of Israel after Jesus' death on the cross? They are the devout Christians who, taking up the faith of Abraham, have succeeded to the mission which his lineal descendants have failed to carry out. Therefore, the Bible clarified that the center of God's providence of restoration has been shifted form the Israelites to the Gentiles (Acts 13:46), by saying, "Through their [the Jews] trespass, salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous." (Rom. 11:11). Therefore, we may understand that the chosen people of Israel, who are to establish the foundation for the Messiah of the Second Advent, are not the lineal descendants of Abraham, but the devout Christians who have taken up the faith of Abraham.
2. CHRIST WILL COME AGAIN TO AN EASTERN NATION
As Jesus said in Matthew 21:33 in a parable, the Jewish people, by delivering Jesus to the cross, fell to the position of the tenants who killed the son of the vineyard owner. Which nation, then, shall be the one that will succeed to God's heritage, taken away from the Jewish people, and produce the fruits of it? The Bible teaches us that the nation is in the East.
We read in the Bible (Rev. 5:1) that in the right hand of God there was a scroll, written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals, "...and no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or look into it.", and John, seeing it, wept profusely. Then, the Lamb went and took the scroll from the right hand of Him who was seated on the throne (Rev. 5:7) and opened each of the seven seals (Rev. 6:1).
We read the record of the Lamb having opened the sixth seal (Rev. 6:12) and, as an intermediate scene before the opening of the last seal, there is the record in Revelation 7. The Bible goes on to say in Revelation 7:2-4 that another angel ascended from the rising of the sun with the seal of the living God and sealed the chosen servants of God on their foreheads, and the number of those sealed was one hundred and forty-four thousand. It is again written that there stood the Lamb, the Lord, and with him one hundred and forty-four thousand who had been sealed (Rev. 14:1).
From these Biblical verses, we may know that Christ will be born in a country in the East--that is, from the rising of the sun--and place a seal on the foreheads of the hundred and forty-four thousand, the first chosen among the people of the land, with his name and his Father's name (Rev. 14:1). Therefore, we see that the nation which would take over God's heritage and produce the fruits of the Second Advent of the Lord is in the East. Then, which of the many nations of the East will be the very nation?
3. THAT NATION OF THE EAST IS KOREA
Now we know, as previously elucidated, that Christ would not come again among the lineal descendants of Abraham, but to the nation that would take their heritage and produce the fruits of it; that the nation which would produce the fruits should be one of the Eastern nations. From ancient times, by the "Eastern nations", we refer to Korea, Japan, and China. Meanwhile, Japan, among the three, is the nation that has worshipped Amaterasuomikami generation after generation; moreover, she entered the period of the Second Advent as a totalitarian nation, and as will be discussed later, she is the nation which persecuted the Christianity of Korea. China, being a communist nation, is on the Satanic side, together with Japan.
Therefore, the nation of the East where Christ will come again would be none other than Korea. Now, let us prove, from several viewpoints based on the Principle, that Korea should be the nation that can receive the Lord of the Second Advent. The nation where the Messiah will come must meet the following conditions.
(1) This Nation Must lay the Nationwide Foundation for the Restoration by Indemnity
In order for Korea to become the nation that can receive the Messiah, she must lay the nationwide 40-day foundation for the separation from Satan for the cosmic restoration of Canaan.
What, then, are the grounds for the Korean people to lay this foundation? If the Lord should come again, in Korea, the Korean people will become the "Third Israel", God's elect. Abraham's lineal descendants, who had been persecuted in Egypt while serving God's will in the Old Testament Age, were the "First Israel", while the Christians, who, branded as heretics by the First Israel, having taking over the providence of restoration while serving the resurrected Jesus, were the Second Israel. Meanwhile, we have already learned through previous statements that the Lord will be branded as a heretic, even by the Christians, the "Second Israel"; just as it is prophesied in Luke 17:25 that the Lord must first suffer many things even at his Second Advent, as in Noah's days. If so, God will have to abandon the Christians when they persecute the Lord of the Second Advent, just as He abandoned the Jewish people who refused Jesus (Matt. 7:23). Then, the Korean people, who are to accomplish the third providence of God by serving the Lord of the Second Advent, will become the Third Israel, the chosen nation.
The First Israel suffered the 400-year slavery in Egypt, which was the Satanic world at that time, in order to establish the 40-day foundation for the separation from Satan to start the course of the nationwide restoration of Canaan. Likewise the Second Israel also struggled and overcame the 400-year persecution by the Roman Empire, which was the Satanic world at that time, in order to establish the 40-day foundation for the separation from Satan to start the course of the worldwide restoration into Canaan. Naturally, the Korean people, being the Third Israel, must suffer slavery for a certain length of time corresponding to the number "40" under a nation of the satanic side in order to establish the 40-day foundation for the separation from Satan to start the course of the cosmic restoration of Canaan. This was actually the 40-year period in which Korea suffered persecution as a vassal state of the Japanese Empire.
Under what circumstances did the Korean people come to suffer the 40-year slavery under the Japanese Empire? Japan's imperialistic and aggressive control of Korea was extended according to the "Eul-sa Treaty of Protection", which was a treaty committing Korea's entire diplomatic rights to the care of the Foreign Affairs Ministry of the Japanese Empire, and which was concluded in 1905 between Hiro-humi Ito of Japan and Wan Yong Lee of Korea, a pro-Japanese Minister of Education at that time. Japan, in fact, deprived Korea of rights in all fields, such as politics, diplomacy and economics, by interfering with the entire domestic administration, through the governor and secretaries whom the Japanese placed in every district. This was the "Eul-sa Treaty of Protection".
Japan, after her annexation of Korea by force in 1910, completely deprived the Korean people of their freedom, imprisoning or slaughtering numerous patriots, and worst of all, invading the royal palace and even killing the Queen. During the Korean Independence Movement on the first of March, 1919, Japanese killed countless good citizens of Korea. Moreover, at the time of the great Kanto Earthquake of Japan in 1923, the Japanese people, by fabricating groundless rumors, massacred innumerable innocent Koreans living in Tokyo. Meanwhile, countless Koreans, who could not bear the Japanese tyranny, had to immigrate into the vast Manchurian wilderness in search of freedom, leaving the fertile soil of their fatherland in the hands of the Japanese. There, they struggled for the liberation of their fatherland, undergoing unspeakable hardships and privations. Japanese soldiers, searching village by village for patriotic Koreans, detained sometimes whole villages, including the aged and young, in one building and massacred them by setting the building on fire. Japan continued such tyranny until the day of the fall of the empire. Koreans who died either at the time of the Sam-il Independence Movement or in the wilderness of Manchuria were mostly Christians. Further, towards the end of the Imperial Government, Japanese forced Korean Christians to worship at Shinto shrines and imprisoned or slaughtered countless Christians who objected to it. Besides, the oppressive policy of Japanese Imperialism toward Korean Christianity shortly before her August 15 liberation was atrocious. However, with the admission of defeat in World War II by the Japanese Emperor Hirohito, the Korean people were finally liberated from bondage.
In this manner, the Korean nation, during the 40 years after the "Eul-sa Treaty of Protection" in 1905 until their liberation in 1945, went through persecution, not less severe than that which the "First Israel" and the "Second Israel" suffered respectively in Egypt and in the Roman Empire. Since the Independence Movement arose chiefly among the Christians at home and abroad, it was mostly the Christians who suffered the persecution.
(2) This Nation Must be God's Front Line and Satan's Front Line
Since God in the beginning blessed Adam to have dominion over the whole creation, He had to allow Satan to realize, ahead of Him, the non-principled world in the pattern of the blessings. Meanwhile, God has been restoring this world to the Heavenly side. Therefore, at the consummation of human history, as previously stated, this world is necessarily split into two worlds: one of democracy and the other of communism. Since the Lord is coming in order to restore the fallen world to the original world of creation, it is evident that God should work His providence to restore the communist world to the Heavenly side, centering on the country where the lord of the Second Advent is coming. Therefore, Korea, where the Lord will come, should become the front line of God's immense love and, at the same time, that of Satan's growing hatred; in other words, where the two powers of democracy and communism should conflict with each other. The 38th parallel of Korea was formed according to this providence of restoration.
That which lies on the line of rivalry between God and Satan, for the condition as to which is right, is the offering of sacrifice. Since the Korean people are the offering of sacrifice as a nation placed on that line for the universal restoration, God has to cut this nationwide sacrifice in two, just as He had Abraham cut his offerings. This is why Korea is cut in two by the 38th parallel separating her into two nations--one of Cain-type and the other of Abel-type.
Naturally, this 38th parallel is the very front line for both democracy and communism, and, at the same time, the front line for both God and Satan. Therefore, the war which broke out on June 25, 1950 across the 38th parallel of Korea, was not merely a conflict between fellow countrymen caused by the severance of the land, but the confrontation between the two worlds of democracy and communism, and, further, the confrontation between God and Satan. Since this agitation assumed a worldwide nature for the purpose of the providence of restoration, the mobilization of many U.N. member-nations in the Korean War helped them to unconsciously participate in God's providence by working for the liberation of the fatherland.
At the moment of the fall of the first human ancestors, the Heavenly side and the Satanic side were split apart at this one point. Therefore, life and death, good and evil, love and hatred, joy and sorrow also were split apart at this one point and have been in conflict for the long period of history ever since. The conflicting pairs were respectively divided into the two worlds of democracy and communism. These, again, came to conflict on the worldwide level, centering on Korea. Therefore, Korea has confronted a great chaos with religions and ideologies, politics and economics conflicting here; all of these gradually influence the whole world. This is because these kinds of phenomena, rising first in the spirit world, are to develop substantially centering on Korea, the center of the providence of restoration, and to further expand to become worldwide. However, we must know that the coming of such chaos is the sign of the coming of the world of a new order, just as it was written, "...as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near." (Matt. 24:32).
When the Pharisees asked Jesus about the place of the Second Advent, Jesus answered by saying, "Where the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together." (Luke 17:37). Eternal life and eternal death are to confront each other in Korea, which is both God's front line and Satan's front line. Therefore, Satan, symbolized by the eagles, is supposed to gather here in search of the people of death, while the Lord is also coming to this land in search of the people of life.
(3) This Nation Must be the Object of God's Heart
In order to become the object of God's heart, we must first walk the path of blood, sweat and tears. By being under Satan's domination, man came to stand in opposition to God. Therefore, God, with a parental heart, full of sorrow over the loss of His children, has wandered in the sinful world to save the children of corruption. In order to save mankind, who had rebelled against Him, God had His living children sacrificed by Satan, finally suffering the sorrow of having to give His son, Jesus, to the cross. Therefore, since the fall of man up to the present day, God has grieved day after day, while any individual, home or nation which has struggled against the Satanic world for the will of God, has not been able to avoid the way of blood, sweat and tears.
How can we expect to be comfortable and complacent as children walking the path of filial piety and loyalty as the object of the parental heart in such grief? The nation that can receive the Messiah must walk the way of blood, sweat and tears, because its people must become children of filial piety by standing as the object of God's sorrowful heart. Since the First Israel walked the path of tribulation, the Second Israel did the same. The Korean people also, as the Third Israel, must necessarily walk the same path. The historical course of untold misery, which the Korean people have gone through, was the necessary way for them to walk as the people of God's elect. As a result, the path of affliction has led the Korean people to a great blessedness.
Next, the nation to be the object of God's heart must necessarily by a people good in God's sight. The Korean nation is a people of homogeneous lineage, having a long history of more than 4000 years. Even during the dynasties of Kokuryo and Silla, when the national power was in the prime state, Korea only repelled aggressive foreign powers and never once invaded other countries. Considering that Satan's first nature is his aggressive arrogance, it is evident, seen merely from this aspect, that the Korean people are on the Heavenly side. God's strategy has been that of winning victory from the position of being attacked. Therefore, even though countless prophets and good men have been sacrificed in the course of history, and God allowed His son, Jesus, to be crucified, the result has always been a victory for God. Both in the first and second World Wars, the Satanic side was always the first to attack, but both times the victory was won by the heavenly side. In like manner, the Korean people have been invaded by innumerable nations in the course of history. Nevertheless, this was only to win the final victory as the nation on the Heavenly side.
The Korean people are, by nature, endowed with a religious gift. Their religious nature has always tried to pursue, apart from reality, that which is more than reality. Therefore, the Korean nation, which is endowed with a strong God-revering thought, from very ancient times when her cultural standard was low, until the present, has never valued any religion which pursues everyday happiness by worthlessly deifying natural objects. The Korean people, as a whole, have a national character which highly values loyalty, filial piety and virtue, in that this nation, as a whole, loves such noble stories as "Chun Hyung" and "Shim Chung".
(4) This Nation Must have Prophetical Testimonies Among the People
Concerning the prophetical testimony revealed to the Korean nation, first, we learn that this nation has a Messianic idea according to the revelation given to its people. The First Israel believed, from the testimonies of its prophets (Mal 4:2-5, Is. 60:1-22), that the Messiah would come in the future as its King, and, establishing the Kingdom, would save the people. The Second Israel went through the difficult path of faith in the hope that the Messiah would come again.
Likewise, the Korean nation, as the Third Israel, has believed since the 500-year reign of the Yi Dynasty the prophecy that the King of Righteousness would appear in that land, and establishing the Millennium, would come to receive tributes from all the countries of the world. This faith has encouraged the people to undergo the bitter course of history, waiting for the time to come. This was truly the Messianic idea of the Korean people which they believed according to "Chung Gam Nok", a book of prophecy. Since it includes the prophecy that a new king would appear in Korea, the rulers have outlawed this ideology. Moreover, the rulers during the Japanese regime suppressed the idea by burning the books in order to annihilate this ideology. After Christianity was introduced, this idea was trodden down as a superstition. Nevertheless, this Messianic expectation, which is deeply rooted in the Korean soul, has continuously been handed down until the present time. Interpreted correctly, the King of Righteousness--Chung-Do Ryung (the person coming with God's right words)--whom the Korean people have so long waited for, is a Korean-style name for the Lord of the Second Advent. God revealed through Chung Gam Nok, before the introduction of Christianity in Korea, that the Messiah would come again, at a later time, in Korea. Today, many scholars have come to ascertain that most of the prophecies written in this book coincide with those in the Bible.
Secondly, the reality is that the believers of every religion within this nation are receiving revelations that the founder of their own religion will come again in Korea. As we have stated in detail in Part I, Chapter 3, it is true that, seen from the history of development of the cultural spheres, all religions are being united into one religion; namely, Christianity. Christianity, in the Last Days, is the final religions which have appeared until now. Consequently, Christ, who is coming again as the center of Christianity, is supposed to accomplish, wholly, the purpose of all religions, which the respective founders intended to realize during their lives on the earth. Therefore, the Lord of the Second Advent, seen from the viewpoint of his mission, represents the second coming of the founder of every religion (cf. Part I, Ch. 5, Sec. II, 4--187). Naturally, the founders of many religions, who the respective followers think will come again in Korea to fulfill their expectations, according to what they received by revelations, will not return as different individuals, but, in fact, will return through one great personage, the Lord of the Second Advent. Each religious body has received revelations different from others concerning the Second Coming of the Lord. Buddhism is saying the Miruk-Bul (Buddha) is coming, while Confucianism says Jin-In (True Man), Chun-Doism says Choi Su Un (its founder), and the Chung-Gam-Nok group says Chung-Do Ryung (Man with True Words) will come.
Third, we can denote the fact that many spiritual signs regarding the Lord coming again in Korea are appearing like mushrooms after a rain. God's word of promise that He will pour down His Spirit upon all flesh (Acts 2:17) is being realized among the Korean people today. Therefore, countless men of religion are receiving very clear revelations concerning the Lord's Second Coming in Korea in many different ways, but contacting many spirit men of various levels; from the realm of miscellaneous spirits to the realm of the paradise level spirits. Nevertheless, the leaders of the present Christian world, due to their spiritual ignorance, are still unresponsive, and have refused to pay heed to such things. This is similar to what happened in Jesus' day, when the chief priests and rabbis, who should have been the first to know of the coming of the Messiah, were entirely unaware of the fact due to their spiritual ignorance, while, on the other hand, the astrologers and shepherds knew of the message through revelation. Jesus said, "I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding, and revealed them to babes." (Matt. 11:25). By this, Jesus lamented over the spiritual ignorance of the leaders of Judaism at that time, and, at the same time, he thanked God for His pouring down grace, by revealing heavenly things to the believers of that time, who were innocent like babes, though not learned.
(5) All Aspects of Culture and Civilization Must Bear Fruit in This Nation
As already mentioned (cf. Part I, Ch. 3, Sec. V, 1--129), only with the unification of religion and science, or spiritual civilization and material civilization, which have been developed to overcome man's two aspects of ignorance, could the fundamental problems of man be totally solved and the ideal world of God's creation naturally be realized. The world which the Lord should realize at the Second Coming must be one where science has developed to the utmost degree so that all cultures which have developed on the vertical course of history in the providence of restoration can be restored at once horizontally, in the society centering on the Lord of the Second Advent, thus realizing the cultural society of the highest degree. Therefore, all religion and science--and accordingly, the two aspects of culture, spiritual and material--must be absorbed and harmonized under one truth centering on Korea, bearing fruit which belongs to the ideal world of God's desire.
First, all the aspects of civilization concerning development on the land must also bear fruit in Korea. Accordingly, the Continental-culture of the ancient age, born in Egypt, was shifted to be the Peninsular-culture of Greece, Rome, and Iberia. This Peninsular-culture was again shifted to be the Island-culture of England. Then the Island-culture became the Continental-culture of Japan. Now, this cycle of the pilgrimage of culture must be completed and finalized as the Peninsular-culture in the land of Korea, where Christ should come again.
Second, the aspect of civilization concerning rivers and seas must bear fruit as the Ocean-culture of the Pacific where Korea is located. The River-culture, which first developed on the Rivers Nile, Tigris and Euphrates, was shifted to be Mediterranean-culture centering around Greece, Rome, Spain and Portugal; then, this Mediterranean-culture was again shifted to be the Atlantic-culture centering on England and America; this culture will finally bear fruit as the Pacific-culture, where America, Japan and Korea are equally situated on the coastal line.
Third, the aspect of civilization which concerns the climate must also bear fruit in Korea. From the standpoint of climate, the action and multiplication of all living things begin in spring, flourish in summer, bear fruit in autumn, and, after the harvest, are stored away during the winter. The cycle of spring, summer, autumn and winter is not repeated solely by the year. Examining the unit of a day, we find that morning corresponds to spring, noontime to summer, evening to autumn, and night to the winter. Again the childhood, youth, manhood, and old age of a man's life also follows this pattern; and all human history, too, unfolds like this. This is because God created the world by the principle of climatic change.
God created Adam and Eve in the spring-season. Accordingly, the civilization of mankind was supposed to start as the temperate-zone civilization of Eden, be shifted to the tropic-zone civilization of Eden, be shifted to the tropic-zone civilization as of the summer season, and, after shifting itself to the cool-one civilization of the autumn season, it was finally to return to the frigid-zone civilization of the winter season. But, due to the fall, man fell to the status of a savage. Without being able to produce the temperate-zone civilization, he came to live a primitive life in the tropic-zone. Thus, he produced the tropic-zone civilization on the ancient continent of Egypt. This civilization, shifting from the Continent to the Peninsular (Greece, Rome, and Iberia) and the Island (England), produced the cool-zone civilization. Transferred back to the Continent (Russia), it came to produce the frigid-zone civilization. Now is the time when the temperate-zone civilization of the New Eden should be produced in the Peninsular-culture. This must necessarily be realized in Korea, where all aspects of civilization must bear fruit.
SECTION IV - JESUS' DAY AND TODAY FROM THE STANDPOINT OF TIME-IDENTITY
The period of the First Advent and that of the Second Advent are the periods of providential time-identity. Therefore, all the situations developing centering on the Christianity of today are similar to those which developed centering on the Judaism of Jesus' day.
To take examples: first, there is the point that today's Christianity, like Judaism, is attached to the authority and rites of the church, while the inner contents are corrupt. The leading class of people, the chief priests and rabbis of Jesus' day, enslaved by the conventional principles of the Mosaic law, were all corrupt in their spiritual lives. Therefore, the more conscientious the people were in their faith, the more they desired to relieve their spiritual thirst by following Jesus, who was at that time branded as a heretic. In like manner, the leading class of today's Christianity, including the priests and ministers, is captive to the traditional church rites and authority and is becoming spiritually darker every day. Therefore, it is the actual situation today that devout Christians are wandering in the spiritual mountains and plains in search of new leaders and true ways to experience the inner light of faith, apart from external circumstances.
Next, as previously discussed in detail, Christians of today will be the first to persecute the Messiah at the time of the Second Advent, as did the followers of Judaism at the First Advent. Jesus, who came to fulfill the Old Testament words according to the prophets, and on that foundation to establish a new age, did not merely repeat the Old Testament words, but had to necessarily give new words for the new age. The chief priests and rabbis, who criticized Jesus' words and conduct, according to the limits of what was allowed by the Old Testament words, ended by delivering Jesus to the cross because of their mistaken standard of judgment.
Likewise, the purpose of Christ's Second Coming is to establish the new heaven and new earth (Rev. 21:1-4), on the foundation of the spiritual salvation belonging to the new Testament Age, laid by the Christians. Therefore, at the time of the Second Advent, the Lord will surely not simply repeat the New Testament words, given 2000 years ago, but will give the new words necessary to establish the new heaven and earth. However, the Christians of today, who are captives to scriptural words, will surely criticize the words and conduct of the Lord of the Second Advent, according to the limits of what the New Testament words literally state. So, it is only too clear that they can be expected to persecute him and brand him a heretic. This is the very reason Jesus said that, at the Second Coming, the Lord would first suffer many things (Luke 17:25).
On the other hand, the same manner of things will happen, just as at the time of Jesus, in our reception of the revelations concerning the Second Advent, or the words the Lord will give us at the Second Advent. At the time of Jesus' coming, God did not give the message of the Messiah's arrival to the chief priests and rabbis, but to the gentile astrologers and innocent shepherds. This is like the case of the father who, due to the ignorance of his own child, has to confide in his step-child. God may not reveal the message of the Second Advent to the Christians of today, who are blindly keeping the conventional attitude of faith, but rather to the laymen, to the heathens who are thought of as gentiles, or to men without any religious faith, but who are very conscientious. Those who accepted the Gospel of Jesus were not the leading class of Judaism, who called themselves God's elect, but people of lower classes, and gentiles. Similarly, at the Second Advent, the laymen or the non-Christians may be the first to accept the Lord's words, rather than the leading class of Christianity who consider themselves the "chosen people". That is why Jesus in lamentation said that those who would enjoy the marriage feast which he would prepare may not be those invited, but those called in at random from the street (Matt. 22:8-10).
Next, at the time of the Second Advent, as at the time of Jesus, there will be many believers who will be going to Hell in place of Heaven, for which they headed at the start. The chief priests and rabbis, who had the mission of leading the people of God's elect, should have been the first to know of the Messiah's arrival and should have taken the initiative in leading the chosen people before him. In order to make them fulfill this mission, Jesus visited the temple first and taught them the Gospel. Due to their disregard for this teaching, he was forced to wander about the seashore of Galilee, making the fishermen his disciples and dealing mainly with the people of a lower standard, such as sinners, tax-collectors, and harlots. Finally, the chief priests and rabbis delivered Jesus to the crucifixion. Then, they continued, believing that they had done a righteous thing by punishing the traitor of God, to devote their loyalty to the sacred office, to recite scriptural passages, to contribute tithes and to offer sacrifices for the rest of their lives. They never imagined themselves headed for the place they went after their physical death, which was, most unexpectedly, Hell. Unfortunately, they deviated into Hell through the path which they believed would lead them to the Kingdom of heaven.
When we truly understand the fact that these are the phenomena that could happen in the vary same manner in the Last Days, each and every one of us should contemplate the matter most seriously. Innumerable Christians of today are dashing on the way which they think will lead them to the Kingdom of Heaven. Nevertheless, this very road is apt to lead them into Hell. Therefore, Jesus once said that the Lord would be compelled in the Last Days to reproach many saints who had faith strong enough to cast out demons and do almighty works in his name, by saying, "I never knew you, depart from me, you evildoers." (Matt. 7:23). To reflect on the matter with a deep understanding, no one else is placed in a more dangerous position than the saints living in such a transitional period of history as today. If they, like the Jewish leaders of Jesus' day, should take the wrong direction in their faith, everything will end in naught, no matter how devout their life in faith may have been. That is why Daniel said, "...those who are wise shall understand." (Dan. 12:10).
SECTION V - THE CAUSE OF THE CONFUSION OF LANGUAGE AND THE NECESSITY FOR ITS UNIFICATION
If man perfected himself without the fall and had realized the world of one great family resembling a human body with God as the head and all men as the members, there would have been no reason for many languages to have come about on the earth. Those who speak different languages cannot communicate with each other. The confusion of human language came about because men's vertical relationship with God was cut off due to the fall. Since this caused the severance of their horizontal relationship with one another, all men have long been separated and have formed many nations according to different geographical circumstances. On the other hand, there is a scriptural record concerning the confusion of language which suddenly came about among Noah's descendants, who had all been speaking the same language in the beginning. The following are the particulars of the story. The Canaanites, descendants of Noah's second son Ham, who had sinned before God, once began to build a high tower of Babel, exalting the will of Satan. Meanwhile, the descendants of Shem and Japheth, who had been on the side of God, came to cooperate with the construction. Therefore, God confused their language in order to prevent them from helping the work of Satan, by making it impossible for them to communicate with one another (Gen. 11:7).
Nothing could be more miserable than the fact that we, as the same offspring from the same parents, having the common feelings of joy and anger, cannot share them with one another because of the difference in the languages which express them. Therefore, in order that the ideal world of one great family, under the Lord of the Second Advent as the True Parent, might be realized, all the languages of all nations must now be unified, according to the principle of restoration by indemnity, centering on the heavenly tower, and exalt the will of God. In this way, the whole of mankind will become one people speaking one language, thus establishing one world of one culture.