The Words of Sun Myung Moon from 1973
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The Words of Sun Myung Moon from 1973 |
Ladies and gentlemen, first of all I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation for your coming tonight. I thank God for this opportunity because I have been looking forward to visiting this city and meeting all of you.
Because we speak different languages, even though I can speak, from your standpoint I am dumb. And from my standpoint, even though you can hear, you are deaf. In order to correct this dumbness and deafness, we need the man standing next to me as my interpreter. However, as you know interpretation from one language to another is not an easy task. So this man beside me really needs your sympathetic understanding.
My topic tonight is "God's Hope for Man." This subject is vast in nature and rather complicated in content. I will try my best to stay on the central point of my topic.
If there is a God, He definitely needs human beings. God created all things, but in all His creation man occupies the supreme and central position. It is therefore very important for us to have a clear understanding of the relationship between God and man. Historically, there have been many theories concerning this relationship. Varying opinions, theological concepts and academic schools abound, but the true, living relationship between God and man remains an unsettled question.
Because the relationship between God and man is so fundamental to life, our understanding cannot proceed until we have clarified this question thoroughly. As we pursue the answer, we discover that there are two main perspectives which we might take. One view is from God's standpoint, and the other is from man's point of view. Although various religions have developed through pursuing these two views, there must be one principle common to all religions which can clarify the relationship between God and ourselves. God wants us to understand this truth in its ultimate sense.
If somebody asks you, "What is the most precious thing in your life?" what will you answer? Some might say, "Power." Some would undoubtedly say money: "Money is everything." And others would suggest, "Wisdom or knowledge." Then, are those elements-power, money, knowledge-the most important things in life? When we look into this question deeply, other thoughts emerge. We soon come to this conclusion that the most precious thing is love; love is the most precious thing in life. And second to love, life itself is most precious. If we have love and life, we need one thing further-an ideal. These three elements -- love, life, and an ideal- are not just precious and profound in value, they are the very things that make our lives worth living.
Let us consider something further. All men long for eternal life. By the same token, in our human expression of love and ideals we feel an innate desire for them to be unchanging unique and everlasting. Many writers in history have described the beauty of the eternal kind of love. No writer has ever felt moved to glorify the kind of love that changes night and day. The many religions of the world which testify to a life beyond this earthly one support the reality of our desire for eternity. If a religion does not teach eternal life, that religion does not serve a good purpose.
Furthermore, the words "love" and "ideal" are without meaning by themselves. Love exists only when there is someone to love and someone to be loved by. An ideal needs to be shared with someone. Love and ideals come alive as soon as there is a reciprocal and complementary relationship of give and take established. We are in the position of the object and always need someone to be in the subject position. Love and ideals will bud and blossom into full flower only when two elements are in a subject-object relationship.
Is man the cause, the source of his universe, or did someone create us? How can man be the cause of the universe when he does not even create himself? It is obvious that we are resultant beings. We are the products of some cause. Therefore, a subject or cause must exist. There must be a cause for man's existence. This subject, or cause, then is the essential reality. We should be as certain of this as we are of our own existence. Whatever name you choose for that cause doesn't matter. The most important thing is that he is there. And we call him, "God."
Let us put our question to God. "What is the most precious thing to you, God?" His reply will be no different from your answer and mine. God will answer, "Love, life, and my ideal are the most precious things to me." Does God need money? He created all things. Everything belongs to Him anyway. He does not need money. Does God need power? He is already the source of all power. What about knowledge? God is omniscient and the source of all knowledge. Yes, God is all these things; but He cannot have love, life and His ideal all by Himself. He needs to share, to have give and take with someone in a reciprocal relationship. Even almighty God cannot experience the value of love, life and His ideal when He is alone. That is why God created His object, man.
Now I shall ask, "Why do we men act the way we do?" The answer is simple: Because God acts that way. All human traits originate in God. Why are we the way we are? Because God is the way He is.
We are mirrors reflecting the characteristics of God. God is just like you and me. God is the origin. Therefore, our love comes from the love of God. Our life comes from the life of God, and our ideals come from the ideals of God. We feel these are the most precious things because God first felt these things were most precious. God is the subject of love, the subject of life, and the subject of ideals. We are the objects of love, the objects of life, and the objects of ideals. Therefore, if God is absolute, we are to be absolute. If God is unchanging, we are to be unchanging. If God is unique, we are to be unique. If God is everlasting, we are to be everlasting. Our eternal life is not just a fantasy. It is reality. Since God is eternal, His object, man, must be created for eternity. Otherwise, we cannot reflect the nature of our eternal God.
If there is a God of love, life, and ideals, and that God does not manifest all these qualities in man, His object, then God has defeated His very purpose of creating. God either projected the full value of Himself in His object, or He created nothing at all. God is the subject to man, and we are the objects to God. An object is the full reflection of the subject. So man is the visible form of God, and God is the invisible form of man. Subject and object are one in essence. God and man are one. Man is incarnate God. Otherwise, we would not be able to reflect God's full image. God could not realize His joy, the purpose of His creation. When we as objects are not as perfect as God Himself is perfect, we cannot reflect the full love, life, and ideal of God. So man, the object of God, is as important in value as God Himself. If I made vigorous gestures and shouted to an empty auditorium, I am sure that anyone who saw me would wonder, "Is that man crazy?" But if I have someone to have give and take with, some object out there to respond to me-even one small child in front of me-and I pour out my heart and soul to him, then I am considered normal. The sole difference is the presence of someone as object. But let's say there is not even one little child in the audience. In desperation, I might pick up a little piece of dust, and looking at this dust, I could speak to it and still pour out my heart. Then I would at least not be a crazy man, for even a dust particle can serve as an object.
What I am trying to illustrate is the value of an object. As we are the objects to God, He has placed us in a position equal to Himself. Thus, man shares the same value as God and is just as important as God. Even though God is most high and noble and mighty, He too must have His object. Otherwise He feels no joy. Joy comes when you receive stimulation from the object. Not even God can be joyful alone. You must realize that God created man and the universe for joy. But God's joy remains dormant until He can have give and take with His object.
So far in Christianity, we placed God so high up in heaven, and pushed man so low in hell, that there has been an un-crossable gap between them. A wide and raging river has separated man from God. Men do not dare to reach out to God as a living reality. Man has been unable to realize that God is so close, so real, so approachable, that we can even dwell with Him. We are supposed to be the living temples of God. Yet conventional Christianity has been unable to make that a reality.
No matter how wealthy and famous you may be, unless you have someone with whom to have give and take so that you can share your joy, your sorrow, your opinions, and your ideals, you are just a poor man. We feel joy and sadness because God's heart can feel joy and sadness. Not until this time in history did we ever believe that God could feel sorrow. And God can feel excitement or indignation, just as we can. We, the objects of God, have this ability to experience emotion because our subject, God, has the same capacity for emotion. God is the first personality, and human personality comes from God. How them can we become true objects to God? By our efforts and hard work alone? No. There is but one way to come together in oneness with God. That way is through love-oneness in love with God.
Let me illustrate. Suppose there is a famous man. Opposite him is a woman who is unassuming and meek and without beauty or education. However, once this great man and this humble woman establish a circuit of give and take in love, she will instantly achieve his level of prestige. Let's say the man's name is Jones and he falls in love with this woman and marries her. She then become Mrs. Jones and returns his love with all her heart. Whatever power, authority and prestige Mr. Jones enjoys, Mrs. Jones would share in every respect. Now, what does this teach us? Once we have a relationship of love with God and become one with Him, our value increases instantly to the level of God's value. And such love as this is everlasting, unchanging, and unique.
Today is the time when we must fulfill this fundamental relationship between God and man. The subject and object must be one just as cause and effect are one. Therefore, the Bible says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end." (Rev. 22:13) Within God, two are one. He is the beginning and we are the end. He is the first and we are the last. And the relationship between God and man is a circuit because beginning and end come together in oneness.
Peace, happiness and joy are the fruits of harmony in love. Therefore, in God's ideal of creation, He planned the relationship between God and man to be lived with harmony in love, with harmony in life, and with harmony in ideal.
Thus we know that God is subject and we are the objects. We also know that the object is just as important as the subject. We now want to know precisely what man's position as God's object means.
When God created man He gave him wisdom and ambition. Wisdom gives us the power to compare, and ambition gives us the power to strive for the best. If there are two choices before us, A and B, we will automatically compare them to determine which is better. Our human desire leads us to choose, and our ambition does not let us rest until we have obtained ultimate fulfillment.
Let me take another analogy. Let's say there is a most handsome man. He is not only handsome, but all-powerful and all-wise. You would be anxious to have some kind of personal relationship with this great man. What would you want it to be? Would you like to be just his servant? No, in your heart you know there is a position better than that of servant. Would you like to be only his friend? No, you would still not be happy. Would you like to be only his adopted son? Will this position bring you complete happiness? No, I don't think so. You would still crave some closer position. There is one relationship beyond which there is nothing more intimate. That is to become a true son or daughter of this man. With this relationship you will have reached the ultimate fulfillment, and you cannot desire anything more.
Why, then, do we want to become true sons and daughters? Because that is the position in which to receive the man's love most fully. There is no closer or deeper relationship in human society than that between the father and son. Once you have your father's love, you possess everything he has. Every joy of the father, all the power of the father all skill and wisdom and ambition and desire of the father-all will then be yours. In receiving the love of a father, there is no procedure, neither paperwork nor ceremony, necessary to grant those things to a son. The father and son are automatically one. This principle applies among mankind, and it applies between man and God.
Then, what kind of relationship would you like to have with God? Would you be content to just be His servant? Or would you prefer to be His friend? Would you rather be His adopted son, or would you like to find a way to become God's own child? I know you will be satisfied with nothing short of the ultimate position as sons and daughters of God.
God's ultimate purpose in His creation of man is to give to him all His love, all His life, and all His ideal. You are to occupy the entire love of God, to the depth of His heart. By becoming His true sons and daughters, your desire will be fulfilled. That is your ultimate destiny. Then you will be saturated with the love of God. You will be filled with joy and feel overwhelmed by a total satisfaction in life.
There is no limit to joy. Happiness has no end. When you are standing in the love of God, every cell in your body jumps for joy. You breathe in and out with the entire universe. In this state your life is fulfilled. This is how God means us to live, intoxicated in love and joy. And through our joy God receives His joy. The joy of man is the joy of God; the joy of God is the joy of man.
Early in my life God called me for a mission as His instrument. I was called to reveal His truth for Him, as His prophet. I committed myself unyieldingly in pursuit of truth, searching the hills and valleys of the spiritual world. The time suddenly came to me when heaven opened up, and I was privileged to communicate with Jesus Christ and the living God directly. Since then I have received many astonishing revelations. God Himself told me that the most basic and central truth of the universe is that God is the Father and we are His children. We are all created as children of God. And He said there is nothing closer, nothing deeper, nothing more ultimate than when father and son are one: One in love, one in life, and one in ideal.
Love, life, and ideal are at the central point where father and son meet. Once we unite there then God's love is our love; God's ideal is our ideal; God's life is our life. And there is no other relationship where you can have unity of life, unity of love, and unity of ideal any more than in the father-son relationship. This is a fundamental reality of the universe.
How do we come into being in this world? The father and mother become one through their love, and bring together their lives and ideals. Their love precedes our birth. Love is the force which unites. Husband and wife become one in love. This means the husband's love, life, and ideal become the wife's, and the wife's love, life, and ideal become the husband's. This is the way that two live as one, and two become one flesh. Upon this foundation of oneness in love, a new life can be generated.
When a child is born, that child is the manifestation of his parents' love, life and ideal. When you look at your own child, you are actually seeing another you. You are looking at the fruit of your love, the fruit of your life, and the fruit of your ideal. You are looking at your second self-another visible form of yourself.
Now let us expand this truth onto a universal scale. God created man and woman as His son and daughter. He wants to see Himself in human beings. Therefore, the Bible says, "... God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." (Gen. 1:27)
Man is created in the likeness of God. In other words, God made Himself incarnate in man. Man is the mirror of the living God, and His every virtue, characteristic and quality is reflected in this mirror. God surely wants man to reflect His love, life, and ideal. Man is the fruit of God's love, life, and ideal.
How wonderful, how simply wonderful it is to live this perfected life of God! This is the true life of joy unequaled by any earthly joy. Once you reach this state of perfection you don't need prayer. Why should you? You meet God face to face, and you live heart to heart with Him. You converse with God. You no longer need religion, and you don't need a savior. All these things of religion are part of the mending process, the process of restoration. A man of perfect health does not need a physician. The man in perfect union with God does not need a savior.
Life in union with God is the one great way to live-life with God, life in God, and God living in you. This was the spiritual state of Jesus when he said, "Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me?..." (John 14:10) God and man will embrace in one all-consuming love. This is the state where God is made the living reality. You no longer believe, but you know. And you live the truth. If you really experience this kind of love and oneness with God, then you have tasted the supreme experience of life. There are probably many Christian leaders among you, yet how many of you have had that wonderful experience, receiving the profound love of God?
God made man to live his life in intoxication. Man is meant to be intoxicated by the love of God. Since men lost this original capacity, they seek unnatural, artificial intoxication-getting drunk on alcohol, marijuana, or drugs. The perfect man, however, is created to be intoxicated in the love of God. There is nothing that can go beyond this feeling of joy. Every cell in your body will explode with joy. Your eyes and ears, the tissues in your face, your arms and legs-everything will be newly alive in a rapture of joy. Nothing else can ever match this quality of joy. This is the plan of God's original creation. When you say, "Heavenly Father;' do you really have a living and vibrant feeling of God's presence? Don't you want to hear God answering, "Yes, my son"?
Here is my gift to you tonight: I want you to realize that the true relationship between God and man is a subject and object relationship. You are His sons and His daughters. Once you have achieved unity with God, nothing can trouble you. Neither sorrow nor loneliness, sickness or anything else under the sun can discourage you. God is the ultimate security. You could pay many millions of dollars and still not buy that kind of security. It is priceless. No money can buy it. This is the total experience of life. We are meant to live with God.
Your life is therefore the most valuable thing in this universe. That is why Jesus said, "For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? Or what shall a man give in return for his life?" (Matt. 16:26) Jesus is talking about life with God. Life without God is like a burned-out electric bulb which cannot give out light. A life without God is death.
Jesus Christ is the one man who lived God's ideal in its fullest realization. He was the first man of perfection ever to walk the earth, and he came to restore the true relationship between God and man. But after Jesus' crucifixion, Christianity made him into God. This is why the gap between God and man has never been bridged. Jesus is a man in whom God is incarnate. But he is not God Himself. I Tim. 2:5 of the Bible says, "For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus..." The dwelling of God within Jesus was a total reality. He said, "Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me?..." (John 14:10) Jesus is, indeed, the only begotten son of God, but God does not want only Jesus as His son. All mankind is created to be able to say, "I am in the Father and the Father in me" This is the fully attainable goal of everyone.
Our first step in becoming the true sons and daughters of God is to clearly comprehend God's view of good and evil. What is goodness and what is evil?
We are not concerned with a man-made definition. The eternal standard of good and evil is defined by God. The sharp definition of good and evil existed at the time of His creation, long before evil ever came into being in the Garden of Eden. God's view of good and evil will never change. God is eternal, His law is eternal, and His definition is eternal and unchanging despite the passage of time.
All of our human traits originate in God. We recognize that there is some human tendency for selfishness. This is natural because at one time God Himself was self-centered. This fact may surprise you, but you must understand that before God created man and the universe, He was all alone, with no one to care for except Himself. However the very instant that God initiated creation, His full concept of life emerged. God now lives for His counterpart-not for Himself.
What is creation? Creation means nothing more than the Creator, God, projecting Himself into a substantial form. He made Himself incarnate symbolically in the universe, and He made Himself incarnate directly in man. When the spirit takes form, this is creation. God invested Himself in the creation. God's investment of energy is the creation.
The Bible in the book of Genesis makes creation sound simple and easy. Genesis gives us the impression that God's creation is accomplished through the magic of His words. God simply says, "Let there be a world' and presto!-the world comes into being. Then He says, "Let there be man" and poof! -- Adam and Eve come into being.
But now it has been revealed that it was not this easy at all. God invested all of Himself in His creation. He did not reserve even one ounce of energy. Creation was His total labor, His total effort of giving all of Himself. When God put His entire heart and soul into the creation of His object, He was investing 100 percent of Himself. Only in this way could He create His second self, the visible God.
Therefore, after His creation, God was no longer existing just for Himself. God began existing for His son and daughter, Adam and Eve. He exists to love, He exists to give. God is the totally unselfish existence. God cannot exist alone. "Love" and "ideal" only take on meaning when partners are in complementary relationship. God initiated creation and made an investment He cannot lose. When God poured all of His love, life, and ideal into His second self, He had to, in a sense, realize a profit. God knew that when He invested all He had--100 percent-His object would mature and return to Him many, many times over the fruits of love, life, and His ideal. His object, man, is everything to God. The life of the object attracts God. God wants to go and dwell with His object, man.
Let us look at an illustration. Suppose there is a great artist. If he works at random without feeling, he cannot create anything worthwhile. To create the masterpiece of his lifetime, the artist must put all of his heart and soul into his creation. That is the only way for him to come up with a great work of art. If an artist works in this way, his art becomes his life.
God is the greatest of all artists. When He created His masterpiece, man, He poured His heart into the process. He poured His soul into it. He poured all of His wisdom and all of His energy into it. God wished only to exist for Adam and Eve and all mankind. He saved not a single ounce of energy when He created them. Thus, man has become the life of God.
God set the pattern for the universe. In the ideal existence we live for others. The subject exists for the object and the object exists for the subject. God's definition of goodness is total giving, total service, and absolute unselfishness. We are to live our lives for others. You live for others and others live for you. God lives for man and man lives for God. The husband lives for his wife and the wife lives for her husband. This is goodness. And here unity, harmony, and prosperity abound.
Would you, as a man, be disturbed if I said that you were created for a woman? Perhaps some of you are proud of your masculinity and would not want to hear this. But this is the principle of God's creation, and you must not be sorry to hear these words. Man lives his life for his partner, not for himself.
Let us assume that one of you ladies is a beauty queen. No matter how beautiful you are, your beauty is not for your own gratification; it is for the delight of men. We are created to live for each other. This is the very reason for our existence; we exist for others, for an object, for a counterpart. This is the principle for all human relationships in our society. Parents exist for their children, and children exist for their parents. Then both parents and children, when they give unselfishly, become united in a circular motion.
This circling motion is the motion of unity. When you give and take, the give and take action creates a circular motion. Circular motion alone can be eternal, because there you will find no end. Therefore, all of God's creation is based on a pattern of circular movement, since He created for eternity. Even our faces are round, although there is one central vertical line. Our eyeballs are round, and there are upper and lower lips which make up a round mouth. The sun is round, the moon, the earth, and all heavenly bodies are round. They are each rotating on their own axes and revolving around others. Everything in this universe has complementary give and take action between subject and object. Give and take action occurs between artery and vein, and thus blood circulates through the body. Human sickness is the state where the balance of give and take action is broken, and normal circulating motion is stopped. Without having this give and take action between subject and object, without abiding by this principle, nothing endures for eternity. All existence that is based upon God's principle is a good existence.
Then, what is evil? Evil is the emergence of selfishness into this world. God's principle of unselfish giving was twisted into an ungodly principle of selfish taking. The ungodly position of desiring to be served rather than to serve was thereby established. The origin of evil is Satan. He was in the position to serve God, but instead he posed as another god and subjugated man for his own benefit. God is the absolute positive force in this universe. Then Satan posed as another positive force. Two positives naturally repel each other. Satan is a fallen archangel. He left his position as faithful servant to God and man, and he challenged and competed with God. His motivation was selfishness. Out of his selfishness comes the origin of evil and sin.
What happened is this: Eve fell from her position as God's first daughter, becoming the first victim of Satan and transforming herself into a creature of selfishness. Together Eve and Satan then successfully brought Adam into their selfish world. By this tragic event, God was isolated by man in the Garden of Eden. Human history started on the wrong footing, without God. The foundation for the evil history of man was laid, and Satan was established as the ruler of this world. Selfishness came into being at the beginning of human history, and now our world is rampant with killing, lying, and stealing. All of these actions in the evil world are motivated by selfishness. Evil subjugated others for its own benefit, while good sacrifices itself for the benefit of others.
Since the fall of man, God's work has been the restoration of original goodness. God wants to destroy the world of evil and recreate the world of goodness. We have lost our health. We have become sick people. The salvation of God is, therefore, the restoration of man to a healthy state once again.
God sowed the seed of goodness, but before He could gather its fruit, Satan invaded with his evil seed and harvested his evil fruit. For this reason, God must sow the seed of goodness once again. To do this job God needs certain tools. The religions of the world have served as these tools for God. Throughout history, good religions have taught God's way of life, centered upon sacrificial love and duty. Thus Christianity may be considered the most advanced and progressive religion because it teaches this sacrificial love and duty in supreme form.
Jesus came as a savior, but his teaching was, "... the Son of man came not to be served but to serve..." (Matt. 20:28) Jesus taught that the greatest love in this universe is to give one's life for his enemy. The teaching of the Bible is contrary to the common rule of our worldly society. It is exactly the opposite of the way of this self-centered world. The Bible teaches complete giving and total sacrifice. "He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake will find it." (Matt. 10:39) It seems almost foolish to think seriously about living this way in man's evil society. But once you know God's principle, you discover that there is actually no wisdom greater than this.
Jesus Christ's teachings were hitting the very core of this fundamental truth. The more you give the more you receive. God rewards total giving with total love, and total sacrifice with total life. Giving creates room for God's love to enter. The more room and the greater the vacuum created by your giving, the faster you will be filled by the flow of God's love.
To be treated well you must first treat others well. You reap as you sow. Sow evil to reap evil; sow goodness to reap goodness. Your concern should be how to give, and how to give well. As for the return to you, you must trust in God. He will take care of it.
Let us take an illustration of a good man and a bad man. Let us say there is one man who has ten friends. Day in and day out this man is unselfishly serving his ten friends. People cannot help but love this man. He can become the very best friend to-ten people. Then his influence will spread to the relatives and friends of those first ten people. By giving and serving unselfishly this man becomes prosperous. He is a center of harmony and unity because he lives God's principle. Unselfishness brings prosperity. Here is a-good man.
But suppose, on the contrary, this man said to his friends, "You ten, bring everything to me; you are here to serve me." Before he spoke this way to his friends three times, everyone would end all connection with him. They would want to have nothing at all to do with him. So he would be left all alone. Isn't that true, even in our society? It is universally true: A self-centered doctrine, a self-centered philosophy, a self-centered way of life will fling you head over heels down the tragic road of self-destruction. But if you will live your life in service to others, you will find prosperity. It may seem that such a route would lead you to ruin, but it will not. They only reason it may not always bring prosperity to you is because you do not give to the very end. In the middle you suddenly become skeptical. You change your heart or pity yourself and thus shrink from God's law of total giving. The good result never materializes. Total giving is the way of prosperity because it is the way of God.
If any individual sacrifices himself for another individual, he becomes a hero to others. If one family is sacrificial for the well-being of another family, then that family becomes a heroic family among all families. Peoples and nations who sacrifice themselves for the benefit of others become champions of nations. A man who gives his life for his parents is a pious son. A man who gives his life for his king is a loyal subject. And a man who gives his life for all mankind is a saint.
Jesus Christ proclaimed this very truth you are hearing tonight. He strove for the fulfillment of God's truth on earth. He came not to satisfy his nation's selfish purpose, but to achieve salvation for the entire world.
God intended the chosen people of Israel to serve as the prepared instrument of the Messiah for his mission of world salvation. The people of Israel did not know this. They conceived of the coming Messiah as an invincible military conqueror who would restore the political empire of King David for the glory of the Jews. How wrong they were!
God's purpose is not the salvation of any particular man, church, or nation. God's purpose is to save the whole world. Therefore, the true church would give itself as a sacrifice for the benefit of the world. Yes, true Christians must be willing to sacrifice their own lives for the salvation of the world and all mankind. However, Christian teachings today are self-centered. Christians are seeking their own personal salvation. Christians are crying out for "my salvation" and "my heaven.'' This is contrary to God's truth and contrary to God's ideal. We must steadfastly give, love, sacrifice, and live for the sake of others.
We must all work for the ideal way of life. I exist for my family, my family exists for our society, our society exists for our nation, our nation exists for the world, all the world exists for God, and God exists for you and me, for all mankind. In this great circle of give and take there is harmony, there is unity, and there is an eternal process of increasing prosperity. Furthermore, since in this circuit all existence will fulfill its purpose of creation, there is abundant and profound joy. This is the Kingdom of Heaven, in which feelings of happiness overflow.
In this world, selfishness ruins everything. Selfishness in the family causes disharmony, which then erupts into bitterness and strife. Everyone wants to be served instead of serving others. Wives tell their husbands what to do and then seek to be served. Husbands want to be served by their wives. Parents expect service from their children and the children take their parents for granted. This is demonstrated in our families, in our societies, and in our nations.
In this world today the nations are existing solely for their own national interests. They plot, connive, cheat, and lie. They destroy other nations for their own national benefit. Is there even one nation on earth which pledges to God, "God, you may use this nation as your sacrifice and as your altar, if that is the way you can save the world?" Tell me, where is such a nation? Where?
It is a recognized fact that when America demonstrated the spirit of service and sacrificial duty in the world, and went out of her way to help others in their need-when America gave lives, money, and a helping hand-she enjoyed a golden age. But now America has a selfish attitude. The domestic problems today are very difficult. America's situation is chaotic. Today there are greater divisions, more corruption, and graver problems choking this land.
I am not criticizing any people or nation. I am merely proclaiming the heavenly truth that all mankind is seeking.
I started the Unification Church. If this Unification Church exists solely for the benefit of the welfare of the Unification Church itself, then it is doomed to perish. I founded the Church so that I could give my life, my heart, and my soul for the advancement of the salvation of the world. Among this audience there are many members of the Unification Church. Their great desire, their only motivation is to serve others, to save this nation and the world.
Jesus did not teach his disciples laws of retaliation. He told them, "... if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also;... and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles." (Matt. 5:39,41) You never have to retaliate; all you have to do is completely and totally give, and then God will return to you more and more abundantly.
When Jesus was crucified, Roman soldiers pierced him. And Jesus prayed for his enemies: "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." (Luke 23:34) Even at the moment of death on the cross, Jesus was so earnest in forgiving. His very last act was motivated by his love for his enemies. He was the supreme form-of giving-a paragon of love. The example of Jesus- Christ is the absolute standard for all mankind. Just imagine an entire nation composed of Jesus-like men. What would you call it? The Kingdom of Heaven on earth-it could be nothing less.
Jesus Christ was lord over all life because of his unparalleled form of loving, giving, and sacrifice. He will remain the Lord forever. In the same way, no one in this universe surpasses the total giving and loving of God. So God is God forever. He reigns over all creation.
Look at the decline of Rome. The entire Roman Empire collapsed in front of the army with no weapons, the army of Jesus Christ. By what means did the Christians conquer Rome? They conquered by love, sacrifice, and total giving, up to the cost of their very lives. History is a witness that no empire can withstand the army of sacrificial love. And this history shall be repeated.
Up to now in our lives we did not know clearly the definition of good and evil. We could not be certain where to commit ourselves, when to act, what to serve. This has been the source of the greatest confusion in human lives. We must not become the Christians who merely crave their own well-being. As Christians, we must live the life of Jesus and give ourselves totally for the benefit of others, so that others might have life. This is God's way.
This present world is evoking the wrath of God. It truly deserves His uncompromising judgment. But God is love, and He is long-suffering. God is suppressing His anger because He wants to save us. He is giving us a chance to change. He is waiting.
I know that Western culture is characterized by individualism. However, selfish individualism is doomed. Sacrificial individualism will blossom. Individuality in itself is good. God gave each one of us a unique way to serve. But individualism without God can only build castles on the sands of
I can see a great change, a great new surge of revolution coming to America-not by fire, not by bullets, but by God's truth kindling a revolution of men's hearts. I have come here to ignite this spiritual revolution. I don't need to demonstrate in front of the White House or in Lafayette Square. The answer does not lie there, but in the hearts of men, in the quiet revolution from selfishness to unselfishness.
Can you imagine how wonderful the ideal society will be? Individuals will belong to their families, the family will belong to the society, the society will belong to the nation, the nation will belong to the world, the world will belong to God, and God will belong to you. He who gives the most will know God most deeply.
Some young people might say to me, "Rev. Moon, you are coming here repeating the same old stuff." But that is not at all true. I am speaking not from theory but from life. I am telling you that we are all here to live the truth, as Jesus lived the truth. This is not a theory, a philosophy, or a theological doctrine. It is the ultimate truth of God-not to be talked about, but to be lived.
When man makes this truth live, it is going to bring about the greatest change upon the face of the earth. Although in one sense you know the truth of the things I have been saying, still nobody truly believes them. Since nobody believes the truth, nobody ever lives it. This truth is as old as God, yet as new as the 21st century. You must live the truth. If the revelation of the Divine Principle has made this age-old truth real in your heart, then you have in effect discovered a brand-new truth. The Divine Principle is touching the hearts of millions of young people, showing them the way to our very real God. People throughout the world are learning that God is absolute and perfect, and perfect God demands perfect man as His object. Jesus said, "You, therefore, must be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect." (Matt. 5:48) He is clearly indicating that our standard of value is the perfection of our Heavenly Father Otherwise we cannot be God's objects and God cannot accept us.
All of us want to be perfect. All of us want heaven on earth, but we ask, "How can it be done?"
We wonder if it is at all possible for man to be perfect. Some contend, with apparent justification, that all one has to do is merely look at man to see the gross error of such an aspiration. We point to the sin and suffering inherent in all things even in the things that are most holy. We say, "Only God is perfect." However, when we fully comprehend the design for man in God's concept of creation, we will understand that perfection is within our grasp.
In God's ideal of creation we were designed as temples of God, temples of the spirit of God, where God is master. "Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's spirit dwells in you?" (I Cor. 3:16)
We were designed to be God's temples. When we attain this status, we shall cease to possess a will that is corruptible. Limitations or laws will no longer be necessary, for His will is our will. With His spirit dwelling in us completely we shall move only as He dictates. We shall then be perfect because the force that is guiding and directing us is the perfect force.
When man achieves this ultimate goal he is in perfect union with God. He is no longer living on the human level alone, but on the God-like level. He takes on God's qualities because the Spirit dwells in and possesses him as a perfect temple; he reflects God's virtue and power. Thus man can be as perfect as the Heavenly Father is perfect. This was the original pattern which God intended for mankind through Adam.
Marriage is the most important means of establishing God's kingdom on earth. Adam and Eve were God's first children. They were born of God, grew up in God, and would have matured into perfection in God. God intended to make Adam and-Eve one in heavenly matrimony. Then they would have borne sinless children and become the true mother and father for all mankind. They would have been the first "king" and "queen," establishing the Heavenly Kingdom on earth.
Has such a kingdom ever existed? No. Instead, history started in the wrong direction. From the evil first step, Satan has been the god of this world. It has, therefore, been God's purpose of restoration, His purpose of salvation, to restore the perfected nation so that He can truly have His kingdom upon the earth. For this God needs a model. Who can set the criteria of perfection on this earth? To meet this need the Messiah comes.
Jesus Christ came as the Messiah. He was the model of perfection upon every level: The individual, family, tribal, national, and world-wide levels. He came to establish a perfect world in his lifetime, not over a period of centuries.
Before God sent His champion Jesus Christ, He prepared the field with the chosen people of Israel. They were the foundation for the Messiah's coming. The people of Israel could have perfected themselves and their nation if they had united with the coming of the Lord. The kingdom of God would have been a physical reality at that time.
But Jesus was not accepted by his people. Instead of welcome, he met rejection at every level. Jesus was denied the opportunity to take a bride in the position of restored Eve, and to establish the first God-centered heavenly family. Instead, the people of Israel nailed him to the cross. Read I Cor. 2:8: "None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." Thus, the mission of Jesus Christ was left undone on earth.
The history of God's providence is a sad, sad story. To comfort the heart of God and fulfill His work, we must clearly understand His process of restoration.
When God created man, He placed Adam and Eve, man and woman, in the Garden of Eden. They both united with Satan and became sinful, thereby leaving God isolated. In the process of restoration, God must restore both Adam and Eve. Jesus came as the sinless Adam, or perfected Adam. His first mission was, therefore, to restore his bride and form the first family of God. All fallen generations would have been grafted onto him as the true olive tree. God-centered families, tribes, and nations would thus have been restored. Perfection would have reigned. The sinless state of God's kingdom could have been a reality for the last 2,000 years. This is why I Cor. 15:45 says Jesus is the "last Adam ' the second Adam.
Jesus came, but he was crucified. He was not given the chance to restore his bride. And this is why Jesus promised his second coming. Jesus Christ must come again to consummate the mission he left undone 2,000 years ago. Let me repeat: Jesus was a man, not God Himself. When he returns to earth he will come as a man in the position of the third Adam.
Let us understand more fully the significance of these revelations in the book of Revelation, there is the prophecy of the marriage of the Lamb. God intended Adam and Eve to come together in heavenly matrimony in the Garden of Eden. Since it was not realized at that time, God intended Jesus to fulfill this marriage in his time. But it was not realized by Jesus either because of the faithlessness of the chosen people.
Jesus was the second Adam. It was God's will for him to be blessed in heavenly matrimony with the second Eve, his restored bride. They would have become the True Parents for mankind. And all mankind would have found life by grafting onto them.
Jesus cautioned the people: "You are of your father the devil..." (John 8:44) Because of the beginning point of human history, we were born Satan's children. By the restoration of True Parents we will be reborn as children of our Heavenly Father, God, with full salvation into His sonship.
God's will was denied fulfillment in Jesus' time. That is why he is coming again as the third Adam. The marriage supper of the Lamb will take place. True Parents for all mankind will be realized in our time. God will bring forth His true family upon the face of the earth. All men will be made new through their True Parents. All will be made capable of bringing sinless children into the world. This will be done when Jesus Christ reappears. The Kingdom of Heaven on earth will then begin. This will be the day when the dwelling of God is with men. God will be full of joy. His own son as perfected third Adam will initiate an entirely new history upon the earth. On that day, we shall become living images of God. God will bring His kingdom to earth.
I pledge to you from the bottom of my heart that the realization of all this is at hand, in the fullness of God's time. The ultimate realization of this ideal has been the hope of God as well as the hope of man.
Thank you very much for your attentive listening. You have been a most gracious audience. Thank you.