Some of us prepared flowers and corsages, and should have been sitting at the Fort Lee Hotel last night, right? [For the postponed Ambassadors for Peace Awards Banquet.] But because of God’s grace, and the weather, now we are enjoying these beautiful corsages, aren’t we? I don’t think I ever gave a sermon before where everyone was wearing flowers. And also, we have food.

From Friday evening, until Saturday ? yesterday around noontime -- I was really struggling. Should go forward with the banquet in light of the terrible weather? I asked Rev. Geller to call the hotel. When I heard that the hotel manager said we should pay $1,500 to postpone the banquet, I was really angry. I thought, anyone should be able to understand this kind of weather situation. I thought that with this kind of weather, they were not supposed to charge for a cancellation.

But they said that "we prepared everything and we already have the food. So at least we have to charge for the food." I said, "If you charge for the food, then we should get the food." That’s common sense to me. If they’re charging for the food, it should be eaten by us. But they’re planning to charge us for the food, without giving it to us! That’s wrong. So I said, "Okay, if you charge, then we should get the food." At first, the manager didn’t agree with that.

I pushed Rev. Geller: "We should get the food." When he checked, they explained that we might sue them if there was something wrong with the food. So we signed a contract that we’re not going to sue them.

Anyway, please enjoy -- and don’t get sick from the food.

The past 24 hours was a very good experience for me. Many members called and asked me, "Rev. Kim, should we have the event?" Other members pushed me -- "Rev. Kim, we SHOULD have the event!" It was so difficult. Because even though I prayed to God, nobody knows. So I tried to research the whole situation. Then finally around noon yesterday, we decided to postpone the event. Afterward, many people told me that was a good decision. So now we got the blessing, right? Outside. (the banquet meal in doggie bags).

There may be another very important meaning to why we had to postpone the Ambassador for Peace Annual banquet until next year. At this time we may not be able to figure it out. But when it comes time for the banquet next year, I think it will become clear why God and spirit world worked to push us to postpone this event.

Over much of our lives, we have observed our True Parents at work. Whatever Father is doing, he always calls us to join God's providence. However, when Father initially gives the direction, we don't clearly understand. But with our faith, we follow Father’s direction. Later we come to understand why Father called us, and why I should join Father's providence at this time.

In that sense, when we are dealing with Father’s providence, the most important point is our faith. As Father emphasized, we have to demonstrate absolute faith, love and obedience. The three absolutes. But the first step is absolute faith.

As I say this, it may be a good time to reflect: How many times in all my past life, how many times did I show absolute faith to True Parents and God’s providence? How many times did I fail to do that? Calculate in your mind, right now -- How many times was I able to do that?

But at this time, I would like to share, what are the elements we need in order to show and keep absolute faith? God and True Parents don’t ask us to show absolute faith just one time, right? If we were just asked to show absolute faith one time -- and then everything was finished and we could go to the next level -- it might be very easy to deal with.

But as we know, "the way" of showing absolute faith is eternal. It’s an eternal job. That means without practicing absolute faith in our daily life, it’s very difficult to act with absolute faith. In that sense, I want to examine, what are the elements to be able to convey absolute faith?

The first is: we have to apply Divine Principle in our daily life. When we joined our movement, when we became Unificationists, I’m sure more than 90 % of our motivation came from understanding and trust in the Divine Principle. "When I heard the Divine Principle the first time, it shocked me. It hurt my conscience, and made me make a certain contract with the truth. That is what made me decide to change my life."

Let’s think about that point carefully. When we joined the church, we believed that the Divine Principle changed me: my thinking, my concept -- everything. But that change, itself, might be in my BRAIN. In other words, it was an intellectual change. How many of you really think that that change initiated a change of your heart? In other words, an intellectual understanding. The Divine Principle hit my structure, or concept. But once that Divine Principle hit my mind, we should be able to apply it in my daily life. Which means I should be able to change my character. Which means, I should be able to change my fallen nature. Otherwise, the power of Divine Principle in my life has been limited.

Here, everybody knows the power of Divine Principle. But not everybody feels the full power of Divine Principle in myself, through my daily life. If we truly become one with Divine Principle, I should be a totally different person. Why? The Divine Principle guides me to get rid of my fallen nature. That's why many of us may have a very clear memory of "when I joined the Church." But we should have an even more strong memory of "how I tried to apply the Divine Principle, and how I tried to change my fallen nature."

According to Dae Mo Nim, what are the fallen natures? Jealousy, right? And then what? Rage. And what else? The misuse of heart or love? Well, that fallen nature initiated the process of the Fall between the Archangel and Eve, and the Archangel and Adam, and these fallen characteristics originated. Jealousy, rage, what else?

Well, let's look at even just those two words: As long as we express our jealousy and rage very easily, it means the Divine Principle has remained only in my brain. It never progressed into my life. The Divine Principle didn’t go down even one inch from my brain to my heart. How many inches from the brain to the heart? 10 inches? 24 inches? Let’s say it's 21 inches. Once you know the Divine Principle, you should be able to apply it in your daily life to get rid of these fallen natures. I know, it is not so easy to accomplish this in one year. But, how about 21 years? One inch per year!

How many of you have already been in the Church more than 21 years? More than half. How many inches has your understanding and application grown downward to meet your heart? 21 inches? Ten inches? How about five inches? Oh my gosh! No one is raising their hand. This is very serious.

If the Divine Principle cannot change my life, then the Divine Principle is not the absolute truth. It is only a theory. If you got an intellectual shock, and this shock cannot change your daily life, then this is not the truth. But if the Divine Principle has the power to change people through their daily life, but you didn’t change -- then that’s your fault.

So which is it? Is the Divine Principle just another theory, or is it our fault? So we have to become accustomed to apply the Divine Principle in our daily life. I should be able to see every day that I have changed my character. If we cannot confirm that "I have changed my fallen nature, and developed and improved my nature," then we cannot embody our faith.

So from now on, let us try to move this shock of understanding the Divine Principle down from our minds to our hearts, by applying the Divine Principle in daily life.

Rev. Kim, you may ask, what does this mean exactly? What should we do?

There are so many parts of the Divine Principle. Portion of responsibility, Cain and Abel, indemnity. What else? Give and take action. So many things. For example: How many of you really apply Cain and Abel relationships in your daily life? In other words, how many of you really have this issue in your minds as you navigate relationships? Or just when I have some problem, or I feel I need some advice or counseling, "Oh -- then I have to do this way, centering on Cain and Able relationship."

How about give and take action between husband and wife? Do you try to apply give and take action -- not from your understanding, but from the teaching of the Divine Principle, the original meaning of give and take action in your conjugal life. In other words, how many times do you really focus on that issue when you as husband are confronted with your wife? Or wife with husband? I’m sure, we are more often acting based on my fallen nature, isn’t that true? And then we repent: "Oh my God, I shouldn’t have reacted that way." Right? Why can’t we change that kind of fallen nature?

That’s why we need to change our concept. Whatever we do, always our focus should be to connect with the Divine Principle concepts, such as give and take action, Cain and Abel relationship, portion of responsibility. Then we will improve, one fallen nature at a time. Building this kind of Principle foundation in our daily life will be the great basis to keep our momentum of acting with absolute faith. If we are not accustomed to living this Principle way, it is very difficult to make decisions showing absolute faith.

"I’m struggling. I have to think --I have to calculate: Should I do this , or this?" THEN finally we decide.

Let’s apply Divine Principle in our daily life. Then change our fallen nature. And, finally, change our daily life.

Then what are the next elements to show our absolute faith? The next is providential understanding.

If we can clearly understand what’s going on with Father, and our Church, and headquarters -- i.e., if we are able to clearly understand the meaning of the current providence -- then we will get the power immediately to follow the providence, and support the providence. That will be the way of absolute faith.

But as I already said, whenever Father gave the direction, it’s very difficult. For us, everything is abstract. Almost nobody knows what’s going on. So instead of understanding, we usually can act based on one concept: Because True Parents gave the direction, we must follow. That’s good. But this "way of faith" cannot help all of our members to follow. For very vertical members, or very trained members, it may be okay. But those who are not trained, or those who are not accustomed to look at things like that, will have a very difficult time to follow that direction. Because that direction may not in itself appear understandable. That’s why, once Father’s NEW direction comes, as a church leader I’m very concerned, "How can I interpret the current situation, and Father’s will, and God’s providence?"

For example, this time we have a rally in Israel, right? Last week, I tried to examine, "What is the meaning? What is Father’s desire? What is God’s providence at this time of the Israel providence, at the end of the third year of Cheon Il Guk?" Then once we have a clear understanding intellectually, we may find motivation. We may be able to motivate ourselves to show absolute faith.

So in that sense, we need to escape from our former attitudes of faith, or life of faith. Especially those who have Christian backgrounds. The concept of the Messiah may be very abstract. Is that true? Jesus came 2,000 years ago. Now Jesus is in Heaven. As Christians did we learn in the Bible that Jesus is just another human being? Or did we learn that Jesus is God?

That Jesus is God. Jesus is Superman. He is not an ordinary human. This is Christian teaching. Even for our members -- those who came from a Christian background -- it is not easy to have a real relationship with True Parents as the Messiah.

(end Part I)

 Download entire page and pages related to it in ZIP format
Table of Contents
Copyright Information
Tparents Home