Ep 407 - God's Providence And Our Portion Of Responsibility Part 1
God's Providence and Our Portion of Responsibility #42
Yesterday, the Sub-region 1 Devoted Graduation Ceremony was held at the Clifton Church in New Jersey.
More than 50 people including zoom participants attended the graduation ceremony and I gave an internal guidance regarding the Matching and Blessing.
Whenever I see our young generation, second generation, third generation, I am always inspired by them. They are our future and hope.
Also, last Thursday, we had a HQ Christmas Party at the 43rd Street in New York. Around 50 HQ staff attended the Party.
Last year we could not do that. We had a Christmas party by zoom. But this year we invited all of them to join the headquarters Christmas party. It was very, very good with good communication. We had time to really get along together in person. Naokimi said not to wear a necktie, but he wore a necktie! (See photo)
Today I’d like to talk about “God's providence and our portion of responsibility” from True Mother Hak Ja Han Moon: An Anthology, Book 1.
Though the Bible says that the course of human history has lasted for 6,000 years, it is thought that this period is symbolic, and that it has actually continued for much longer than this. Beginning right after Adam and Eve fell in the garden of Eden, God began working to reclaim humankind from Satan, and He has been continued to work unceasingly for the period of 4,000 years to enlighten humanity and make it possible for them to escape Satan's realm and return to their original position as His children. You may already know from the Bible that, after God established the people of Israel as the central chosen people for His providence of restoration, He has been working with them for 4,000 years, moving stage by stage through the difficult and painful process of restoration. (2006.08.08, Caracas, Venezuela)
For each stage of the work He chose people, such as Abraham and Moses, to stand in the position of central figure of the providential tasks. When His chosen central persons failed to fulfill their responsibility, God had to endure indescribable pain and suffering. Humanity, however was unaware of the process of restoration and of the pain that God was suffering. And still, God promised to send the Messiah and continued to give hope to the people of Israel and to enlighten them. At the time, Israel was a still small nation. If the people of Israel at the time had recognized and accepted Jesus as the savior and connected with the foundation of the Roman Empire, the situation would have been very different. Though human beings fell, their original nature tends toward goodness and hopes for a better world, and so they already have the basis on which they can uphold Heaven's Will. For this reason, God promised to send the Messiah.
I am sure that you gain new understanding when you study the Word every day. God created one man and one woman. This was because He wished to form three generations. To do so, Adam and Eve needed to marry. However, they fell before they had reached maturity and gotten married. Consequently, human history has unfolded as a history with Satan, not God, as its master. This is why the Savior is necessary. Many religions including Christianity have continued to enlighten humanity with the purpose of opening the path for them to live in goodness in this fallen, evil world. Consider God's purpose of creation for a minute. Jesus was a man.
What does a man need? He needs a woman. The people of Israel, Judaism and Mary should have united and attended Jesus and helped him to form a family. According to the words of the Divine Principle, God was unable to interfere with the human Fall because of humankind's portion of responsibility. Similarly, it is humankind's responsibility to attend the Lord. If the people of Israel and the followers of Judaism at the time had known of God's providence and purpose of creation, they would not have failed so miserably; their ignorance resulted in the death of Jesus on the cross. (2006.08.08, Caracas, Venezuela)
Based on Mother’s word, let’s study Father’s word about “If Jesus Had Not Died.” Father guided us about very important things. Please study this carefully.
If Jesus Had Not Died
<7-304> Ladies and gentlemen, please think about it. If Jesus, the only begotten son of God, had not died after coming to the earth, what would have happened? Since it is said that Jesus is the only begotten son, God would have sent his only begotten daughter. Ecclesiastes 7:28 says "while I was still searching but not finding — I found one upright man among a thousand, but not one upright woman among them all."
The two-thousand-year history of God after Jesus is the history of seeking a bride. It is the history of seeking a bride. Do you deny that?
God created one man and one woman. That was Adam and Eve. They were the representatives of the true couple, representatives of the true parents, representatives of true children, and representatives of true brothers and sisters.
Jesus came as the only begotten son. And the Bible says that he came as the Last Adam. If Jesus came as the only begotten Son, he needs the only begotten Daughter. If Jesus was the Last Adam, he needed the Last Eve as well.
This Bible verse is very important.
(Ecclesiastes) 7:28 says “"while I was still searching but not finding — I found one upright man among a thousand, but not one upright woman among them all.“ This verse means that the only begotten Son came, but his partner, the only begotten Daughter was not found.”
In the end, Jesus died on the cross without being able to find the only begotten Daughter and have the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. After Adam and Eve fell, God laid the foundation to find the only begotten Son, but He could not set up the only begotten Daughter.
That is why True Father said that the two-thousand-year history of God after Jesus is the history of seeking a bride, that is, the only begotten Daughter. Think of how much sacrifice and indemnity Christianity made to find and set up the wife of the Messiah, the only begotten daughter, after Jesus died on the cross. From such a standpoint, consider how precious True Mother is.
For True Mother to appear on earth as the only begotten Daughter… Wow! The past 2,000 years, especially after Jesus passed away, how much all mankind, especially Christianity, needed to go through, all kinds of persecution and indemnity. That is why we came to understand the value of True Mother who is God’s only begotten daughter.
Although Jesus came as a true son, since there was no true daughter, God's will was not fully accomplished. For this reason the two-thousand-year history is the history of finding a daughter. The fights in the Unification Church will also center on this issue. The Holy Spirit came as God's daughter.
Then what kind of day is God's liberation? It is the day of the marriage super of the Lamb. If the Lord appears as a chosen man out of a thousand men, where will his bride be? What the Holy Spirit must do on this earth for 2,000 years to come is to prepare the bride.
Since God had laid the foundation for the Messiah 2,000 years ago, at the time of the Second Coming, if that standard was just set (up) on the earth, Heavenly Father could have sent the Messiah at any time. (That was so) because Heavenly Father had already (laid) the foundation for the messiah.
The problem is that since the Kingdom of Heaven begins with the family, Satan tried his best to prevent the Holy Wedding of the Second Coming. That is why at the time of the Holy Wedding, True Parents suffered the greatest persecution in the history of mankind. This is because when the Second Coming realized the family, even if there is the bitter heart of prolonging the Providence, he does not need to come again. Secondly, with True Parents’ Holy Wedding, the substantial Heaven begins on the earth.
The Holy Spirit we are talking about is God’s daughter, the only begotten daughter. Then what kind of day is God’s liberation? It is the day of the marriage supper of the lamb.
If the Lord appears as a chosen man out of a thousand men, where will his bride be? What the Holy Spirit must do on this earth for 2,000 years to come is to prepare the bride.
What should be noted here is what True Father prophesied about the future of the Unification Church from the beginning. He said that the reason why our Unification Church will fight in the future is because of this issue of this only begotten daughter. True Father has already prophesied that the issue of this only begotten daughter will become a big issue within the Unification Church itself.
God raised Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and blessed them not only to love them; it was to love their descendants, too. Are there any such descendants? Have there ever been sons and daughters whom Jesus could love? If there had been sons and daughters of whom Jesus could say, "He is my son that I love infinitely and eternally, and he is my direct descendant," then this world would have already become God's nation.
What was the greatest bitter heart that Jesus had while dying on the cross?
The first is that he died without having the Holy Wedding, the marriage supper of the lamb.
Second, Jesus died without leaving behind his lineage, the lineage of God. As long as the direct lineage of Jesus remains, it is only a matter of time before the kingdom of heaven will be established. Because the family of Jesus itself is the beginning of the kingdom of heaven. In that sense, as long as True Parents have a family, there is at least one True Parents’ blood lineage left, and a blessed family is created, the kingdom of heaven has already begun.
Then the messiah would no longer need to come (again).
Third, Jesus should have found and created a family and restored God’s sovereignty, people and nation on this earth, but he died without achieving that.
Fourth, he was unable to liberate pitiful God, who suffered for 4,000 years after the fall of man, and now God had to bear all the burdens again.
Fifth, he felt deep sorrow as he thought about the indemnity that the Israelites would pay and the indemnity that mankind would have to pay because of his unfulfilled mission and his death.
Father spoke very, very clearly about what would have happened if Jesus had not died. It is very, very clear.
LIVING DIVINE PRINCIPLE: Who is God?
I am continuing to talk about God’s character.
God is:
• The subject and harmonious union of original internal nature and original external form.
• The harmonious union of original masculinity and original femininity.
• The subject partner having qualities of internal nature and masculinity towards the universe.
Recently I have been presenting a series about who God is.
1. God is my eternal parent.
2. God is the subject of the Three Great Subjects thought
3. God is absolute, unique, unchanging and eternal.
4. God is a God of love.
5. God is a God of heart.
6. God is the Word.
7. God is dual characteristics.
8. God is the original absolute Sex.
9. God is a being of character.
10. God is the origin of Principle, law and order.
Today I would like to speak about God’s (third) identity, “God is absolute, unique, unchanging and eternal” based on True Father’s word.
3. God Is Absolute, Unique, Eternal and Unchanging
<77-103> If God is an eternal, unchanging, absolute and unique being, can we, as people who are His partners of love, think about Him and say, "I only need you for a moment when I need help, or only when I am facing some kind of situation"? We cannot think this way. Because we can love, because it is ideal, because we are His partners for happiness, because we have a subject-object relationship of peace with God, it is essential that we must become not momentary, but absolute, eternal, and unchanging beings, just like God. All of us here need to understand this.
Since God and humankind have a relationship of parent and children, the relationship between parents and children must be eternal. If human beings are not eternal, then there is no need to believe in God.
True love is always eternal, absolute, unique and unchanging. God’s nature is like that. That is why his object partners, human beings, need to have the same kind of identity and character.
What if God is an eternal subject and there is no eternal object partner? How lonely God must be! What if you are eternal and your children are not?
As an object of God, how can I become an eternal being, a unique being, an absolute being, an unchanging being?
I am not a temporary being. I am God's eternal object partner. I am a unique object partner. I am an absolute object partner. I am an unchanging object partner. So, how precious am I?
We can settle any issue through the principle of subject and object partner and through the dual-characteristics relationship which is an inseparable relationship between the subject partner and the object partner. The Divine Principle is really, really clear, really amazing. It can apply everywhere, and we can solve any problem with the Divine Principle. Let’s study more.
<77-103> In our fallen world also, we say to the people we love, "You are my eternal partner. You are special and constant." People also do not want to change . . . How much more will God, who is an ideal being, be unchanging. When we look from this point of view, if we are people who can stand within the realm of God's love and ideal, and if God is immortal, then people must automatically be immortal, too. Even though people are standing in the position of object, if God is absolute, people must also have an absolute objective value. Also, if God is an unchanging being, people, in the object position, must also become unchanging beings. Looking at it from this point of view, it is theoretically a fact that people must be immortal.
Since God and humans are in a relationship of subject partner and object partner, (which is a) dual characteristic relationship, the logic (is) that if God is an eternal being, human beings, his object partner, must also be eternal.
I am God's eternal object partner. I am his unchanging partner. I am his absolute object partner. And I am his only object partner. What a wonderful truth!
How amazing it is! Really amazing! If only God is absolute, unique, eternal and unchanging and human beings are not absolute, not unique, not eternal and not unchanging, then they have nothing to do with God.
Why do we need to suffer on this earth? Struggling and struggling and fighting between Cain and Abel (and) among the people, disunity? Can you imagine that? Everybody would just die; no meaning, no value. Why do we still need to survive on the earth? We have come to understand human beings' eternal value. As long as God is our parent and I am the child of God, then we cannot separate from this destiny. God is absolute; then his object partner should be absolute. If as a parent (I) live forever, but my children are not absolute, unchanging beings and then die… (undecipherable). Are you happy about it? You are not happy. (If) God is the only absolute being, and unique being, eternal being, unchanging being (and) he doesn’t have any object partner to give-and-take with him as an eternal object partner, a unique partner, unchanging partner, that does not make any sense.
Human beings are eternal beings. That is why our spirit wants to live forever with my partners -- with my children, with my spouse, with my parents, with my brothers and sisters. We want to live eternally. Why do we have that kind of nature? Do you think any animal thinks, “I need to live eternally.” They don’t have a soul and spirit. Only human beings (do). This is really amazing!
We are living eternally, not just for the time being. When we discover this principle, how powerful it is! That is why as long as God is absolute, unique, eternal and unchanging, (In order) to become his absolute, unique, eternal and unchanging object partner, I need to relate to God properly. I am the one who liberates him. I am the one who comforts him. I am the one who will make happiness for him. Then as children and parent we will have give-and-take absolutely, uniquely, eternally and unchangingly.
TODAY’S YOUTH MINISTRY: Jacob’s Course - What Kind of Person Is God With?
Recently I have been talking about Part II, all central figures lives: Adam’s family, Noah’s family, Abrahams family. Now we are talking about Jacob’s course. What kind of person is God?
1. Let's look at the problem between parents and children. Parents want their children to be better than themselves and to be greater people. That is why parents do not regret giving their children money, having them study, or providing food, clothing, and shelter. Parents want to give everything to their children, believing that they will be better than them.
Wow! I really appreciate Father’s guidance. Human beings have this kind of nature: my object partner should be better than I am. Even though God is almighty, omnipotent, omniscient -- such a powerful God -- he has that kind of nature as a parent: each human being should be better than God himself. If this is really true, really sure and God has this kind of nature, his object partner, each human being, should be better than him, if God has that kind of nature, Wow! He is really our eternal God, our eternal parent.
If God does not have that kind of nature, how come human beings (do) have that kind of nature? We are the ones who resemble God. That is why God is really amazing. Even though he created the sun and moon and ocean and the entire universe, God thought that each human being, “my prince, my princess, should be better than me.” I think Christians cannot conceive of this. Wow! What are you talking about!
Father discovered this principle: what is the origin of the universe? What is the universal truth? The parent-child relationship. As long as God exists as a parent, human beings exist as the children of God. The same kind of principle.(?) That is why when we raise our children, always one of our great wishes is that the children should be better than I am. How many times (better)? One time, ten times, a hundred times? There is no limit. That is why God’s love has no limitation. This is really amazing!
True Father said in order to discover this principle that the object partner should be better than I am, it took three to four years. And then once Father got his answer, how happy he was! “Wow! (You are) that kind of God!” “How much God loves me! (We), his children, must be better than himself.” That is why we say that God is the parent of parents.
2. The same is true when looking at history. God values those who use their flesh (body) on earth. (He values them) more than the spirits because He must see the fruits when the flesh is being used. … True Father said that God values human beings on the earth more than Jesus.
Maybe Christianity could accept this description. How can we grow up? In order to bear fruit, we need a tree. Without a tree, we cannot bear fruit. That’s why in order to grow properly, we need to have flesh, a physical body. That is why we grow on earth. We need to bear fruit. You need to become mature; you need to become complete. Once you die, nobody, no tree bears fruit. You need to come back again. That is why … how precious the human body is! Once we die, we cannot grow by ourselves. We need to come back on the earth; we need to find somebody and borrow his body and grow up together.
In that sense, once Jesus passed away and had no physical body, he needed to rely on human bodies in order to fulfill God’s mission. … True Father said that each human on earth is more (valuable) than Jesus. I clearly remember when Father established UPF as the Abel(?) United Nations before leaving on a world tour, he brought all the continental directors -- I was there -- to Hanamdong. (At that time) he said very clearly, “Hey, continental directors, you have to be bold and strong. Do you know who you are? “Your position is better than any saints.” Father mentioned each of their names; Father said, “You are even better than Jesus. You need to believe in that. Your value is that precious, walking (working?) together with the messiah. You have to establish God’s kingdom of heaven.
Once you have passed away, all the spirits who are living in the spiritual world, their focal point is not the spiritual world. Their focus is the earthly world because they need to complete (their missions). In order to complete (them), they need to have flesh. They need to come down again. That is why all the spirits in the spiritual world are not only just focused on the spiritual world. Without exception everybody needs to come back to the earth because they need to complete their own individual mission, their own family mission, and they need to help build the kingdom of heaven on earth.
3. Although Jesus came to this earth as the Messiah, because he died without fulfilling the will, in the standpoint of having to fulfill that will, he sees us as more precious.
(Parents see their children’s value as greater than their own.)
This is because no one can accomplish the will of Jesus unless he is a human being on the earth. (Undecipherable) True Father has no flesh. How much … fulfill God’s will on the earth! Talk to God, talk to Jesus, talk to True Father. What will Jesus and True Father say to you? I think they only have one wish: Please unite with Mother to establish the substantial cheon il guk on the earth. Father said, “Your value is more than anything (anyone in the spiritual world?) else.”
4. In loving their children, parents can use all the money they have saved through a lifetime of hard work for their children. That is why parents value their children. However, even when parents treat their children like this, the children do not know it and easily only see from their position. Children do not know the background and history of their parents' hard work for their children.
I confess to you. I am 64. I know my father and mother love me. My physical father and mother love me so much. But I had a lot of complaint. Why was my family so poor? When I was young, the whole day (they) were looking for food. Where is the food? They went to the mountains and tried to catch (find) mountain vegetables to eat. As a young boy for the whole day, I was searching for food. Why was I born into this kind of poor family? Because of no money, I could not go to school. I went to the .... graduate, middle school. I could not find the money to go to highschool. I worked to make money for two years, then entered high school very late. I had that kind of bitter experience.
My father was always helping other people as … and was not very serious about his children’s studies. I had a complaining mind. I could not understand my father and mother. I became 30 years old, then 40, 50, then 60. I now truly understand my father and mother. I love them. When I think about them, tears come down. “Father, just your becoming my father, I am so grateful for this. When I was young, I did not know who my parents were. Children never understand their parents’ background and history. How much parents love their own children. They become 50 and 60 and still don’t appreciate them. When their father and mother have passed away, they start to realize the value of their parents, but it is already too late.
Fallen men, in order to cultivate their heart and mind, take a long time (to do it). Children never understand their parents’ history and their parents’ background and their parents’ hard work. Wow! In order to become a mature guy, it takes time.
5. Children easily resent their parents and cause conflicts with their parents. Children only ask for what is necessary for the given reality, and they do not know the historical value of their parents' treatment of them. As a result, they distrust their parents. Distrusting your parents is the same as distrusting God.
6. Had Leah served her sister, Rachel, like her own husband Jacob, she could have received blessings from the God Jehovah. Leah said that she gave birth to her own child and that she was not in a position to rejoice horizontally. She was not in a position to be just happy that God granted her wish by giving birth to a son. Being self-centered and liking something makes the people around her very upset. If she had known this from a young age and had grown up, she would have been able to become a filial child.
7. The problem is that we are self-centered and express our emotions, and we recklessly become joyful, upset, or worried centered on ourselves. Worrying centered on myself regardless of God is distrusting Him who has expectations for me.
This is an important point.
8. When True Father was young, there was a time when he was studying in Japan. Fortunately, True Father received money from home when he enrolled every semester. However, he said that he could not tell his Korean colleagues that the money came from home. Because his colleagues from Korea did not have money, they all went to the labor market to work.
9. At that time, True Father paid tuition on behalf of a friend who had not registered yet, and then he went to the labor site and worked to earn money and register for himself. In retrospect, True Father said that doing so made him feel more comfortable. He said that he felt more comfortable paying his friend’s tuition first, and then doing labor himself to pay his tuition.
10. True Father said that rather than doing labor to pay for his tuition because he had no money, he easily made money, gained strength, and his heart was happier when he registered his friend first and then did labor.
Father is an amazing guy!
11. It is difficult to make money if I am making it because I intend to spend it. However, when you say you are making money for others, you are receiving spiritual power that you are not aware of. This is the joy of living for the sake of others. If you live for this purpose, you will make others happy, and in the end, you will also be happy.
When I went to UTS and the first semester was finished, I did not get a single cent from my parents. I needed to work. After school I would go to some area and sell something. For many days I needed to fundraise. It was a lot of money for me to register for another semester. During summer vacation, I went somewhere with my friend. … I made some money to help someone. My friend was in the same situation. I made money and gave a donation to the UTS office. I said I would go work for a year or two years and, if I am ready to study, I will come back. And then I .... about money. I did not raise enough (for tuition?), but almost. Then I gave that money to the office, and then I tried to leave UTS. This is my first time confession and testimony (about this). Then one of the main staff at UTS … said, “Hey, Yong! With God’s (help?) …. Your studies have been very good. You don’t need to pay.” Oh, my God. I truly understood that, wow! (Through) Father’s lifestyle living for the sake of others, making someone (else) happy first, you can gain incredible strength and power from the spiritual world. Father knows the taste of living for the sake of others. Many people do not know the truth of living for the sake of others and live only for themselves. They (live) without knowing how to receive power from God, the spiritual world and the universe, True Father lived the principle of living for the sake of others. If True Father had first used the tuition money from his home for his own registration, the friends around him would not have been able to form a deep relationship with True Father because of their envy of him.
12. Many people do not know the truth of living for the sake of others and live only for themselves. They live without knowing how to receive power from God, the spirit world, and the universe. True Father lived with the principle of living for the sake of others. If True Father had first used the tuition money from his home for his own registration, the friends around him would not have been able to form a deep relationship with True Father because of their envy of him.
13. Leah boasted that she had given birth first. Regardless of the feelings of Rachel, who had tried so hard to have a baby, she rejoiced only centered on her own feelings.
14. When Sarah, Abraham's wife, was unable to bear a child, a woman named Hagar was brought in, who gave birth to Ishmael. According to the Bible, Hagar said that she gave birth to Ishmael and ignored Sarah. Then Sarah also gave birth to Isaac, and as the conflict continued, Hagar eventually went a different path.
15. What was great about Jacob was that he was respected before his wives. Jacob's kindness became a condition for God to be with him. The relationship between Leah and Rachel is the same as that of Cain and Abel. The important thing here is that Abel's heart toward Cain and Cain's heart toward Abel must be aligned. They must live for the sake of each other. The heart of a couple and the hearts of Cain and Abel must bring heartistic alignment of “you and me, me and you.”
16. There is a saying in the Bible that the first will be last and the last will be first.
The first should be the first one, and the last should be the last one originally. In order for the first to become first and the last to become last, the first must serve, love, and become close to the last. Then whoever comes first is always first.
Someone joins the church early, and someone else joins later. Then True Parents recognize the later one. “Wow! You brought more results than those who joined first.” Then (the early joiner) becomes so disappointed and jealous. The Bible says you who were first can become the last and the last can become the first one. What is the best way for the first one to become the first one? You need to serve the last one, be close to the last (one), serving him, loving him, caring for him. Then whoever comes first is always first, Father said. If you try to get respect from the last one, you will lose your position. How can I become humble? Those who joined the church later, “I need to serve them more, take care of them more.” Then you will be forever the first one.♦
(Response to sharing) You point out a very important thing: if we distrust our parents, we distrust Heavenly God. That is really true. Of course, God loves his children very much and never gives up (on them). The important thing is whether children have a clear alignment or not. If children do not have a clear alignment, there is no respect and they are outside the Divine Principle. Then (parents) cannot do anything. When Adam and Eve fell with the archangel, God could not intervene because God cannot relate with evil.
Many people say God is a jealous God. When Heavenly Father looks at human beings, they love Satan. Everybody goes to Satan’s side. And God feels jealous. “You need to come back to me centering on the Principle!” That is why God says, “When you go to the evil side, you are supposed to (/should have) come to me.” That is why God feels jealous. “Jealous” doesn’t mean that God has fallen nature. It is not like that. He is centered on absolute goodness. When his children go to Satan’s side, he feels jealous: “You are my children. You are my blood lineage. You are supposed to come to me. You are supposed to be my children. How come you go to Satan’s side?” Even though we are in that position (on Satan’s side), as long as we have a clear alignment toward God, then God can intervene. But even though we are in the position of God’s children, as long as we believe in Satan, God cannot intervene because God is (a God of) absolute goodness. He cannot deal with the evil enemy.♦