The Words of the McCarthy Family
|
|
The Words of the McCarthy Family |
Rev.
Kevin McCarthy
There are various expectations and doctrinal agendas with regard to the events of the Last Days. For example, is Christ coming imminently or will there be events that will precede his coming? We cannot resolve everything here, so let's focus on three areas of Unification eschatology: when, how, and where Christ will come again.
Some scripture seems to suggest we cannot know that day and hour when Christ will come and that we should not make a prediction or prophesy. Yet other scripture like Amos 3:7 says that God does nothing without revealing His secrets to His servants, the prophets. One thing is clear, though: Jesus definitely spoke to that generation of Christians who would be alive on earth to participate in and experience the day of the Second Coming. He warned that generation not to be asleep, for he would come at an unexpected time and in an unexpected way. Yet he was very explicit about what the environment would be like at the time of the Second Coming, describing the Last Days in Mark 13 and Matthew 24. We need to ask ourselves: Why does Jesus want that one generation to be awake? It should realize: "Hey, we must be that generation. Look, the signs are being fulfilled!" We have to know when Christ comes, not to face the final judgment or the rapture, but to rise to the responsibility of being the ones to recognize the Christ at his second coming.
Let's think about a parallel time 2,000 years ago, when a particular generation of chosen people had to deal with Jesus face to face. What made them different from any other generation up until that moment? Were they any better, more spiritual, more prepared than any previous generation? No, not at all. What made that generation of chosen people unique is that all previous generations had been judged by how they related to the law -- how they kept God's decrees, commandments, and traditions. Then Jesus arrived. No one alerted them that the criterion by which their faith would be judged had changed. They had to recognize that now the criterion was their relationship with the man from Galilee. Look what happened! The scholarly, the devout, the well–trained all those who knew the letter of the law and could recite the scripture -- passed by the wayside. It was the humble, the meek, the prostitute, the publican, the fisherman, the uneducated, and the undoctrinal who recognized that Jesus was the Christ. Isn't that amazing? What have we to learn from this? That generation of chosen people expected Christ to come and exalt their nation. They thought that they, by being devout, would have automatic entrance into God's Kingdom. But Jesus indicated that there was one more qualification -- the responsibility to transpose their faith in the expectation of Christ's coming into recognition of and participation with Christ. That's where those who were proud of their faith stumbled and failed in their responsibility.
The important lesson is that no one followed Jesus as a natural conclusion of doctrine. Jesus was recognized only by humble, pure-hearted people who could receive testimony from God that Jesus was the Christ. Hence, Jesus warned the generation of people who would be alive in the Last Days not to make the same mistake when he said, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'Depart from me, you evildoers; I never knew you."' (Matt. 7:21-23) Jesus isn't referring to backsliders but rather to people who are faithfully awaiting Christ's coming. But that faith of itself will not automatically translate into the faith of recognition and participation. Will those people at the time of the Second Coming fulfill the will of God and the global responsibility of that era? It will be by this criterion that Christians in the Last Days will be judged.
When is that time, according to the historical parallels? The signs of the times in biblical prophecy are being fulfilled now in the 20th century. You and I are that generation to whom Jesus was speaking. Will we repeat the failure of the past or will we change and make the right choices?
How will Christ come? Matt. 24:30 says, "They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." Did Jesus mean literal clouds? We should definitely pray about this question, because 2,000 years ago in Israel it was also an issue of much argument. Some of those who were awaiting Christ's coming pointed to Daniel 7:13 which said he would come on the clouds. Others pointed to Micah 5:2, which said he would "come forth" from the city of David. Still others, as we see in John 7:27, believed that no one could know from where Christ would come. In such an environment of debate and confusion, Christ appeared. There were even many other figures who thought that they themselves were the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant prophesy. One of the most famous was another man named Jesus (or Yehosua) whose large movement thought that he was the Christ. A lot of folks were saying that other figures were the Christ. When the Pharisees sent delegations out to John the Baptist to ask him if he were the Christ, they actually never considered that he could be the Christ; they only wanted to pin him as a false Messiah. Why did God send Christ into such a confusing environment?
The key point is that each chosen person of that generation was individually responsible to recognize who Jesus was.
Because it was such an issue 2,000 years ago, it will absolutely be an issue today. The reason why there are so many different expectations of how Christ will come has more to do with the parallels of history than with someone being right or wrong. Some believe that his coming is imminent. Others believe certain events must precede the Second Coming, such as the rapture, or the rise of the Antichrist. Some believe that the Second Coming already took place on the day of Pentecost as spoken about in Acts; still others believe that the Second Coming will be a general Christ consciousness that will suddenly rise in the world. There are three options to consider, given such different viewpoints. Option number one is: Somebody's got it right, and everybody else is wrong. Option number two is: Everybody's wrong. And option number three is: Everybody has got it mostly right, but everyone has something that's not exactly right. I'm sure everyone here would say, "It's option number one, and it's my church, my doctrine, that's got the agenda right." If you're right, the problem is: How much anguish must Jesus feel looking at his body -- the church -- if your doctrine is the only correct one? He must be feeling really sorrowful that only one denomination has it right, especially in view of his prayer in John 17:20-23 that we should be one as God and Christ are one. Certainly God and Christ don't just tolerate each other! We all know there is no doctrinal schism between God and Christ! Another thing we can all agree upon, no matter who is right: Jesus must feel urgent to end the confusion in his body because it means the body is not ready for the Second Coming.
I believe that Jesus will send a revelation of clarification that will prepare us to unite to receive the Second Coming. I believe the Principle is that revelation from Jesus, and its purpose is to help all of us resolve the doctrinal schisms that have divided us and prevented Christianity from fulfilling its global responsibility. The result of this failure is that real people in the world today lose their opportunity to hear the gospel.
This point was brought home to me when I looked over the DMZ and saw a schoolyard in North Korea filled with children. I realized that because we Christians failed and allowed this line to be established, those children not only don't get to hear about the love of God, but also are systematically taught that there is no God. The message of Rev. Moon is that we all must feel the responsibility to let everyone know about the love God feels for them and all mankind. That's one reason why so many people don't like him. We want to be told that were all right and just be taken home to heaven. But when Jesus comes back, he's not going to be satisfied with everything that we've done, for we stand in violation of his word and his prayer that we be united. If the desire to resolve this disunity is not burning in our hearts daily, then we need to repent. Whether it's this revelation or another one, Jesus will bring words just as challenging and just as difficult as the ones brought by this Unification movement.
Christ will not come back for the purpose of fulfilling everyone's doctrinal agenda, but rather to establish his Kingdom. If Rev. Moon is praying more, working harder, giving more to bring people together and to God than the one who has the "correct word," then how will Jesus feel? Won't he wonder how you could allow a "heretic," an ignorant man, to shed more tears, to give more of his blood, sweat, tears, money, manpower and family to build the Kingdom than you did?
Whether Rev. Moon is right or wrong, this is a serious moment in history. If you're feeling right now, "I'm the only one that has it right," then you should also be feeling, "Oh, my God, what should I do about that? How urgent Jesus must feel, being dependent on me!" If we all feel that way, then Jesus will certainly be able to bring us into full knowledge of God's will. On that day prophesy and tongues will cease, doctrines and knowledge will cease, and we will be standing in front of Christ face to face with no doubt and clear hearts. That's the age we are on the threshold of today. It will be a great blessing if we fulfill our responsibility. But it will be a terrible curse if we cast it aside.
Will Christ come on the literal clouds? In Daniel 7:13, Daniel predicts that Christ will come on the clouds. Many people today read this and say, "Daniel is talking about the Second Coming already!" But Daniel was speaking about the first advent of Christ -- that Jesus of Israel would come on the clouds of heaven. How can we know that? This seventh chapter of Daniel is about a dream and its interpretation. Four beasts appear in this dream, and during the reign of the fourth beast Christ comes on the clouds of heaven. The 17th verse tells us that the four beasts represent four kingdoms that will rise between the time of Daniel and the time of Christ's coming on the clouds. The first kingdom (lion), which existed in Daniel's time, was Babylon. It declined and gave rise to the Persian Empire (bear) which then declined and was replaced by the Greek empire (leopard). After the third kingdom came Rome -- the strong beast with iron teeth. Therefore, the Christ prophesied to come on the clouds of heaven is Jesus, who we know actually was born of a woman during the time of the Roman Empire.
Many historical theologians just can't believe that anyone could prophesy the historical events leading up to Jesus so perfectly as Daniel describes in the second and seventh chapters. They feel that parts of Daniel were written with hindsight after the coming of Christ. Now I believe that Daniel was definitely an accurate prophet. What cannot be disputed is that Daniel was referring to the first coming of Christ Jesus in Israel and that Jesus was born of a woman.
Therefore we have to think carefully about the meaning of the Lord coming on the clouds a second time. When Jesus repeats the same prophesy of Daniel, he isn't saying that this time it will be literal, but simply that the second coming of Christ will be the same way as the first coming was. So what is the meaning of "clouds"? Heb. 12:1 refers to the gathering of saints as a "cloud" of witnesses, a foundation of believers, a group of people gathered together who are in a state of righteousness. Conversely, Rev. 17:15 declares that waters symbolize people, nations, multitudes, and tongues who are in the state of unrighteousness. Jude 1:13 uses the wild waves of the sea as a symbol to mean unrighteous people. Therefore clouds symbolize a righteous people who are lifted up from an unrighteous foundation. This doesn't mean physically lifted up but rather spiritually sanctified, becoming a part of the "cloud" of enlightened, sanctified believers awaiting Christ's coming.
Now where was the cloud that Jesus appeared upon? It was the mission of John the Baptist to create this "cloud" or foundation of laborers ready to receive and follow the Lord (Luke 1:17). Jesus waited for 30 years for that "cloud" to be established. When the time was right, Jesus was to be revealed to the nation on that foundation, but it was lost. Jesus himself then tried to erect that very necessary foundation; he desperately prayed for laborers for the harvest was great (Matt. 9:37-38).
When Jesus quoted Daniel's prophesy, he could only mean that the Second Coming of Christ as well should be to a unified, sanctified foundation of believers. It is why he also prayed that we must be one as God and Christ are one. In Ezekiel 37, we see that Israel and Judah are united, and it is on that united foundation that Jesus Christ is received and the new covenant is established. Contrary to this, we see in Zechariah 11:13-14 and 13:7-14 that when the king is rejected and the unity between Judah and Israel is broken, the covenant isn't established. Christ must come on a unified foundation; therefore, Jesus prayed for that unity. That foundation is the "cloud" upon which he will appear.
What about the scripture in Acts 1:11 which seems to suggest otherwise? The angel appears and says to the men of Galilee as they were watching Jesus ascend into the spiritual heaven: "Why do you stand there looking into heaven? This same Jesus who has been taken from you into heaven will come back in the same way as you see him go." What does he mean here? In the Greek text, the same Greek word uranos can be used to mean sky or spiritual heaven. If the sky is the correct place for the men of Galilee to be looking at, then the angel should say, "Well done, men of Galilee. Yes, keep looking up in the sky, for one day, Christ will appear up there." But instead, the angel's statement indicates looking into the sky is superfluous and needs to be corrected. Also in John 3:13 Jesus says, "No one has gone into heaven except the one who came down from heaven, the son of man, who is in heaven." Jesus did not mean that no one has gone into the sky except the one who came down from the sky, the son of man who is floating in the sky. Jesus went into heaven in a very internal way, just as he came down from heaven in a very spiritual, internal way that was not perceivable with the physical eye. The angel in Acts 1:11 is testifying to that very process by which Christ will come -- in the same internal way that he was seen to go.
Elijah is described as going up to heaven in a very dramatic way. Therefore, the chosen people were expecting him to come down in the same cataclysmic and obvious way -- just as we hope that Christ will come now in an easy and obvious way. But in fact, Elijah returned in a totally unexpected and very subtle way, surprising even Zachariah himself.
So how will Christ come? Rev. 12:5 tells us, "She brought forth a male child, one who is to rule all nations with an iron scepter, and her child was snatched up to God and to His throne." Therefore we see that Christ will be born on earth in the flesh in the same way as he was the first time. He will walk among us as our contemporary. Our age parallels the time of Jesus' first coming. The first chosen people were expecting an obvious, very cataclysmic coming; in fact, the Israelites were confident that his coming for them was already guaranteed; they merely had to wait around until it happened and they would automatically be saved. It's in the midst of that same expectation and same attitude that Christ will return today. He is not coming to fulfill everyone's doctrinal agenda or expectation; he may appear as unorthodox as he was 2,000 years ago.
Will the religious leaders of this age repeat the failure of history? When God placed Esau in exactly the same environment and position as Cain, the feelings, the consternation, the anger, the hatred, and the bloodlust of Cain came into Esau. God set that up not so that Esau could kill Jacob but in the hope that Esau could reverse the failure of Cain. God has placed Christianity -- the New Israel – in the same position as the Old Israel in order to indemnify its failure. In the midst of our doctrinal expectations, Christ will come again in a very unexpected way. The tendency will be for religious leaders and people to hurl invectives, to vilify his name, to cast him out of the congregation and throw him into prison.
We have to realize our position and responsibility to reverse this tendency. Standing in the position of the Sadducees or the Pharisees, we must ask ourselves: When Christ comes, what role will I play? Will I, like the unrighteous Pharisees, search the scriptures just to find a way to entrap the Lord in a contradiction? Or will I, like the righteous Pharisee, welcome Jesus to my table? We should not be arrogant or lighthearted toward anything new that we hear.
The Second Coming of Christ is not just the coming of Christ alone. It's the second coming of Israelite history reflected in Christian history. The Second Coming of Christ is the second coming of all the institutions, attitudes, struggles, and figures that existed 2,000 years ago. And this time the New Israel -- you and I -- must fulfill the responsibility that was left undone 2,000 years ago. It is indeed a great and terrible day.
The Kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed, Jesus said in Luke 17:20. It will start as small as a mustard seed, as small as a piece of yeast that is placed in the dough, and will multiply, subtly. Jesus was speaking of the Second Coming in Luke 17:25: "But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation." Although Jesus predicts his own death three times, he was not predicting his own death in this statement. His topic here, toward the end of his life, is the Second Coming. Let's ask ourselves: If Jesus came back in the flesh to some churches today, how would they treat him? They might be shocked that he didn't speak English. And that he wasn't American, and that he wasn't a white man. They would be shocked that his name wasn't Jesus. I'm using the Greek name we gave him, by the way. Of course, he doesn't mind; he knows whom we're addressing. But it is possible that he would prefer to address himself by his Hebrew name, the name that God gave him, Yehosua.
Sometimes our concepts and our expectations are more a result of "Well, that's the way it's always been" and tradition rather than real truth. And that's why when Christ comes and faces the very people whom God prepared, they, not the sinner, are the first to stand in the position of resistance and opposition.
When Jesus came, the sinners, the uneducated, and the simple-hearted could ascertain that he was the Son of God. It was the doctrinal and the scholarly who rejected Jesus so haughtily because he didn't fit their expectations. Such a scenario is repeating itself in this age.
Then why must Christ come to the earth again? Scripture tells us that he is certainly not coming again to die for our sins but to complete the dispensation of salvation and to usher in God's Kingdom. This is verified in Hebrews 9:28: "He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for it," and in 1 Peter 1:5: "... who, through faith, are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." If we're not ready for a new message with regard to the completion of salvation in the Last Days, then we will be committing the same error as the chosen people who felt it was sufficient to cling tenaciously to the Old Testament. When Jesus said he came not to destroy but to fulfill the law, it created such anger in them that they hurled stones at Jesus. When I say that Christ will return to fulfill the New Testament and to reveal the completion of salvation, please watch your hand -- that it doesn't begin to grapple for a stone! That angry spirit will come, but it didn't start with our generation. It comes to us from a generation of long ago that is seeking restoration in us.
Jesus came to the earth to establish God's Kingdom, just as Adam would have established God's Kingdom beginning on earth if he had kept faith. Jesus also states that what is sown on earth is reaped in heaven -- the foundation must be made on earth if it is to be reaped in heaven. When Jesus said, "My Kingdom is not of this world," in John 18:16, he didn't mean that there should not be a visible, earthly manifestation of the Kingdom. For he also goes on to say, "But my Kingdom is not now of this world." In other words, his Kingdom is meant to be of this world, but because of Israel's faithlessness, Jesus' Kingdom as he is approaching the cross could not now be of this world. The vision of the Kingdom of God in a visible, earthly manifestation is laid out in prophesy in Isaiah, chapters 2, 9, and 11 and Psalms 72. Here is a clear expression of a world under the universal acceptance of Christ's authority: They will study war no more; he will judge between the nations and settle disputes between many lands; they will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks; all kings will recognize and bow down to him. All those prophesies that were to be realized 2,000 years ago are now finally to be fulfilled in this age. Christians who are merely looking for that spiritual heaven and have no concern for this world are badly mistaken. Before we can expect the Kingdom in spirit, we have to work to build that Kingdom in this world.
When God's will -- to create the Kingdom of Heaven on earth -- couldn't be fulfilled at that time, Jesus had to atone for the people's faithless condition by shedding his blood on Calvary. He then told us that the Kingdom would arrive in the future with his second coming. When man is faithful, God's original will can be fulfilled; if he is not, a secondary course becomes necessary in order to bring man back to the faith needed to fulfill the original will. For example, during the Babylonian exile, if the Israelites kept faith no prophets would ever have come. When they turned from faith, prophets would appear telling them, in essence, "Repent and you can remain in the land. God takes no pleasure in the sin of the wicked." (Ezekiel 33:11) When that faith and repentance is not forthcoming, the curse in the law is invoked, as Jeremiah announced in Jer. 25:11.
The ultimate goal of Christian history is to return to the position where the New Israel, by recognizing and responding to Christ's second coming, can establish the Kingdom of God on earth. Therefore we can fully expect that he will come in an unexpected way and we will have the same responsibility to recognize Christ's return. We've inherited the wrong attitude and the wrong doctrinal thinking from 2,000 years ago. We cannot think that it's enough to be a comfortable Christian. No, we must do what was not done 2,000 years ago. I know this is not an easy message, but it must be this way.
Because of the faithlessness of Israel, the cross and the shedding of Christ's blood became the basis of our salvation, and certainly on the day of Jesus' resurrection death was conquered. Through the Pentecost, the channel for the regenerative powers of God was instituted for man. So now we are no longer in the age of law but are standing in the age of grace through faith, and Jesus is expecting a whole lot more from us than he did from the first Israel.
We are individually saved through the salvation that Jesus and the Holy Spirit provide for us. Yet Jesus tells us that he must remain in heaven (Acts 3:21) until the time comes for him to restore everything. We are told in Heb. 9:28 and in Peter 1:5 that salvation will be completed when he returns. We are told in Romans 8:23 that with our salvation is a future hope for a future glory -- the redemption of our bodies. When Jesus said, "It is finished," he didn't mean that the dispensation for salvation was over, only that the atoning work at Calvary was finished. The dispensation for salvation will not be over until his Kingdom is firmly implanted.
What was the Kingdom, and how was it to be established? Adam and Eve were to be perfected in the Garden and would have been if they had kept faith in God's word. Then as parents centered on God, God would have been fully present in their relationship. Therefore, their children would have been born without the taint of original sin, without the stain of fallen nature. They would have been born in the same purity as Adam and Eve, and would have multiplied a sinless foundation from the family to the nation to the world. This was to be the Kingdom on earth that would graduate to the world of spirit.
But through the fall of Adam and Eve, Satan took a position of god and ruler (2 Cor. 4:4; John 12:31), and Adam and Eve bore children who inherited the nature and consequences of original sin. Now we continue to be born as descendants of the spiritually dead Adam. Therefore, salvation involves changing our lineage from the dead Adam to the living Adam. By changing our lineage, we receive the grace of God rather than the degeneration of sin and death.
Why then must Christ come back? I, as an individual, can come to Christ through repentance and be saved, and so can my wife. But when we give birth to a child, we have to ask ourselves a very hard and difficult question: In spite of our personal salvation, are our children born as descendants of the dead Adam or the living Adam? Even though parents have come to Christ, still the children are, by heritage, linked to the dead Adam. That's why Christ must come -- to establish the original standard of parents and marriage so that children are born fully under the heritage of God, and have no connection spiritually or otherwise with the dead Adam. Then the inheritance of original sin and its consequences will cease, and children will multiply as they should have multiplied in the Garden of Eden: from the family, to the society, nation, and world. The first man and woman who can pass on the inheritance of God to their children and extend salvation from the individual level to the family level are called the "True Parents" of mankind.
Then how does Jesus return in the flesh to give his blessing to mankind? Let's examine the biblical trend of second comings. Cain and Abel had a second coming in Esau and Jacob. The second coming of Elijah was in the spirit and power of Elijah, not Elijah him- self. Therefore, just as the return of Elijah meant that the mission of Elijah was to be fulfilled by a representative of Elijah, Jesus will anoint a representative on earth to share the blessing of the Kingdom with his followers and the world. That figure will not be a replacement for Jesus, or in competition with Jesus, or Jesus himself. Jesus will anoint an individual who is most trustworthy and who is willing to go as difficult a course as Jesus himself went while he was on earth. Jesus will call that individual and send him forth in his own spirit, power, and authority.
In Rev. 2:17, Jesus is speaking about this figure: "I will give some of the hidden manna and a white stone with a new name written on it." What does a white stone symbolize? It symbolizes Christ with a new name, a name that is known only to him who receives it. Again, in Rev. 2:26, Jesus speaks about this figure: ''I will give him authority over the nations." Then Jesus quotes the messianic psalm in Ps. 2:9: "He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery." Jesus doesn't mean this figure will literally do that; he says this to indicate that this chosen figure on earth will receive his authority from Jesus' hand. He will be exclusively linked to Jesus in that authority. "Just as I have received authority from my Father," Jesus is saying, "I will also give him the morning star" (Rev. 2:27-28). What is the morning star? In Rev. 22:16, the morning star is Jesus. Therefore, Jesus is indicating that he will share his messianic authority and role with this figure. He will not be a replacement for Jesus, but Jesus will be with him. This connects to Rev. 12:5, she gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all nations." He will be born of a woman on earth. In Rev. 3:12, Jesus says, "I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the New Jerusalem, and I will write on him my new name." What does it mean, "new name"? Just as Elijah had the new name of John, the return of Christ also will have a different name. Just as the return of Elijah brought the return of the role of Elijah, so the return of Christ will bring the return of Christ's role.
Finally, we see the testimony of Rev. 19:11-16: "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one but he himself knows...." Most Christians assume that the rider on the white horse is Jesus himself, but in fact, this figure is the one appointed by Jesus. Notice especially the 12th verse: "... he has a name written on him that no one but he himself knows." Who has written this name? In Rev. 3:12, the spirit of Jesus says to John the Revelator: "... and I, Jesus, will write on him my new name." It is Jesus who has written the new name on the person in Rev. 19:11-16. Then clearly the person with the new name written upon him could not be Jesus himself, but the person called by Jesus to fulfill the role of Jesus. Rev. 19 goes on from the 12th verse to the 16th verse thusly: "... He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written on him: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS"
Therefore Jesus will anoint this figure -- a man in the flesh whom Jesus will be with more than any other man -- to fulfill the Three Blessings and to begin the heritage of God with the generation alive at his coming, establishing the Kingdom of Heaven on earth. The internal foundation for the Kingdom is the cleansing of the lineage of man, so that the inheritance of God can pass from parents to children. Once that foundation has been made, then external efforts to change our society and world will bring about the external manifestation of God's Kingdom.
Then from where will this figure chosen by Jesus come? Will it be someone from Israel? Probably not, because in Matthew 21:43 Jesus said, "The kingdom will be taken from you and given to another nation that can produce the fruits." Christ will come amongst Christians.
There is an important parallel to the example of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Because Abraham did not fulfill his mission, it was passed on to Isaac, who then produced one who could actually get the victory -- Jacob. The same relationship exists between the first Israel, which did not fulfill its mission, and the second Israel, which is Christianity. Out of Christianity will emerge the new Israel, which is Korea. Korea is in the position of Jacob. God sees three Israels: the first Israel, which is the nation of Israel; the second Israel, which is the 2,000-year history of world Christianity; finally He sees the third Israel, which is the nation of Korea. It's not by coincidence that in 1948 the nation of Israel was reformed and in the same year the nation of Korea was formed and officially chartered.
Why did God choose such a small nation as Korea? I thought for sure he was going to choose America! However, once before He also chose a small, seemingly insignificant nation called Israel. One reason is messianic prophesy. There's a long history in Korea of Christian prophets who have received messages from God -- in the same way that Anna and Simeon received the message -- that Christ will be born in Korea, where the dispensation of the Second Coming will be fulfilled. These prophets were devout, faithful Christians, as pure in their faith as was Anna the prophetess.
Korea is a microcosm of our divided world. The battle of Armageddon taking place right in front of us is the struggle between the world that believes in God and the world that believes there is no God, the so-called free world and communist world. Communism is the Antichrist! How amazing that the Antichrist has been swallowing up nation after nation right under our noses! As Satan's strategy is being implemented and the world Christian foundation retreats daily, we sit waiting for someone to appear with 666 on his forehead. We're in trouble because Satan has us looking to our reward and overlooking our responsibility.
Where is communism rising most? It's in those areas of the world where Christians have failed and Marxism appears as a viable alternative -- especially among the third world where people are desperate for a better way of life. Unfortunately, some Christian ministers and missionaries came into these nations and gave the people the word of God with their right hand and with their left hand sent all the nation's wealth and resources back to their home nation. This happened all the time. Our missionaries have gone to places in the world where Jesus' name is loved and respected, but the word "Christian" invokes immeasurable resentment. This is the environment where Marxism rises.
Who's going to take responsibility for that? Who is going to say, "We have to reverse that"? We must take responsibility for the rise of communism. We must not hate the communists; they are people who missed their opportunity to experience the true vision of Christianity because throughout history too many missionaries became embroiled in the self-interests of their own nation. Rev. Moon's vision is for every missionary to carry out two responsibilities: one, to give the word of God to the people, and two, to resurrect the economic and social base of every nation. Rev. Moon wants every nation to have the economic means to determine its own national destiny centered on God. A man with such a vision, and who is actually carrying that out, will have every evil in this world come against him.
Probably the greatest reason why God chose Korea is because of the fervent faith and the history of suffering of the Korean Christians. There are churches in every village that have a recent history of martyrdom. There's a church not 10 miles from Seoul that was burnt to the ground during the time of the Japanese occupation with the congregation inside singing and praising God. You can go to any of these villages and they will give you testimonies of their church's martyrs. Their devout faith and the incredible passion of their prayer life are indicative that God is working in a very special way in Korea.
I urge you in your remaining time in Korea to walk into some of these hills and pray. See if you don t feel a special anointment, a special holiness and sacredness, in this nation. This is a nation sanctified by the blood of its many martyrs.
Finally then, who is Rev. Moon? Once Rev. Moon was asked by an eminent theologian if he, Rev. Moon, was the Messiah. Rev. Moon answered by saying that if loving God with all your heart, all your strength, and all your soul means you're the Messiah, then he must be the Messiah -- but he went on to say that by that definition we should all become a Messiah.
Who is Rev. Moon? Last year Rev. Moon spoke to one of our ICC gatherings for about 30 minutes. Many ministers remarked that Rev. Moon said more in 30 minutes than in all the hours of lectures that they had heard from me! He concluded his talk by posing the very question here before us now: Who is Rev. Moon? Everyone perked up excitedly, waiting to hear what he would say. Rev. Moon smiled and then answered his own question: "Rev. Moon is... nobody." It was an unexpected answer. He smiled very warmly and continued by saying that all he knows about himself is that every day, in every cell of his body, he feels the love of God and the burning desire to share that love with others in faithful obedience to the direction of God. This was not theology -- this was a self-evident truth. Everyone in that room was bound together by the warmth and sincerity that emanated from this man.
Who is Rev. Moon for me? After I heard this lecture for the first time, I prayed deeply and for a long time about all the things I had heard. It was a very serious moment, and I knew that my prayer would have to be as serious as the prayers of Anna the Prophetess or Simeon had been. God confirmed for me that indeed Rev. Moon is the man that Jesus has anointed, is the man that I this lecture is revealing. I'm not proclaiming this to you; I'm reporting what God put in my heart and confirmed for me. No man could confirm such a thing, only God.
The question for us then isn't, "Who is Rev. Moon?" The question we should be asking is, "Did Rev. Moon really meet Jesus on that Korean mountainside on Easter morning of 1936?" and the question we should ask after that is, "Is it possible for me to talk with Jesus? Can I meet Jesus? Can Jesus talk to me a., vividly as he did to his apostles after his resurrection?" We can agree that Jesus knows if he, Jesus, has called this man to fulfill the role described in this lecture. He knows -- ask him! One thing is for sure: the more we live like Jesus, the more we will be like him, and the more we are like him, then the more we can recognize his voice.