Ep 416 - True Mother and the Spirit-led Churches Part 2
True Mother and the Spirit-Led Churches #51 - December 15, 2021
Today I’d like to talk about again “True Mother and the spirit-led churches” from True Mother’s Anthology, Book 1.
Those of you who have listened to True Father's sermons are aware that as we attend True Parents on the earth there are special events in the heavenly providence that happen without any of us realizing it. At that time in Korea, there were many spirit-led churches, which were different from the Christians who believed that if you just had blind faith in Jesus and the Bible you would go to heaven. These groups had only one goal, which was to prepare the way and to follow guidance which they received directly from God about the search for the Lord's Bride. I was born into a family that was spiritually prepared, whose preparation included participation in those spirit-led churches. I have memories of the indescribable suffering endured by the churches to which my mother, Daemonim, belonged. The members of those churches lived entirely according to the divine revelations they received.
By studying the course of True Parents, we were able to understand well how specifically God selected and prepared a country, a nation, and a religion to send True Parents to this earth.
Think about it. God prepared for 6,000 years to send True Parents to this earth, but did he simply neglect the preparations? You should know that there were indescribable labor and sacrifice of God and the tremendous sacrifice and indemnity of our ancestors.
And we need to know how much blood, sweat and tears our ancestors prepared for us until we met the True Parents who came to us after 6,000 years.
Today as I reflect upon the circumstances of that time, I am drenched in sorrow. These revelations directed them to walk an indemnity course in order to prepare an easier path for the Lord. It was an unbelievable course filled with difficulties and hardships. Some of those members died in prison. Having been called by God to prepare for the Messiah, they overcame their difficulties by carrying with them only the hope that someday they would be able to meet him.
So, with devotion and attendance, they made extensive preparations to welcome the Returning Lord. Among the things they did was to prepare everything for him, from spoons for him to eat with to clothes for him to wear. The revelations they received were so detailed that they knew even the size of his clothes.
Yet while they endured indescribable suffering to carry out these directions, unfortunately they died, one by one, unable to meet the Lord. However, their mission was passed down through three generations, and I was born at the culmination of their revelations. When I was born, God gave revelations about his plan that the Lord at his Second Advent would be born on earth. These revelations were given to a woman named Rev. Heo Ho-bin. When I was six, Rev. Heo's mother met me and prophesied, “You will surely be Heaven's Bride.” She had received that revelation about me though I was still just a young girl. (1977.05.03, Belvedere Training Center)
The groups to welcome the Second Coming Lord prepared everything from spoons to clothing in detail.
When I study about certain prepared spiritual groups (prepared for) the Second Coming and for True Father and True Mother, there are really amazing stories and preparation. It is incredible how Heavenly Father prepared for the Second Coming in such detail. Such detail!
Some prepared spiritual groups were receiving revelations through spiritual communication with so much detail that they could even know the size of the clothes the Second Coming Lord would wear.
Some day you need to study more in detail how they prepared to welcome and attend the Messiah. Every day their group (performed) kyumbei 3,000 times. Their style of kyumbei was really, really formal, very heartistic. To bow just one time takes a long time. Can you imagine? 3,000 or 4,000 kyumbeis in order to welcome the Second Coming! God prepared so seriously for the Second Coming of the Lord!
As they waited for the Lord's day, unfortunately, they did not meet that day and died one by one, and the mission was passed down through three generations without giving up. And as the final culmination of that revelation, finally True Mother was born.
God's preparation for the Second Coming was incomparable to those for whom God was prepared until the birth of Jesus 2,000 years ago.
The spiritual world did not want to make a mistake. They prepared very, very seriously and thoroughly for the Second Coming.
It can be seen that God gave very thorough and specific teachings through spiritual people and prepared groups, sometimes through dreams and sometimes through revelations.
That’s why True Father had to meet all this category of people, one by one. They had received the revelation that the Second Coming was coming very soon. Father met each one of them and talked with them, and Father clearly told them who he is. It is really incredible.
Today’s youth ministry is long, so I will do it first. Maybe today I cannot take time to explain the Divine Principle lecture. Today’s title is “Remember what you owe and forget what others owe you” and the other title is “Do Not Lose Sight of the Greater Eternal Value.” This is very important content.
TODAY’S YOUTH MINISTRY: Joseph’s Course - Remember what you owe and forget what others owe you & Do Not Lose Sight of the Greater Eternal Value
Today’s title is “Remember what you owe and forget what others owe you.”
Matthew 6:1-5 Giving to the Needy
1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
We hear this kind of guidance by Jesus very often. Many ministers and many leaders talk about this Bible verse. I really reflect on my life of faith based on this content. Jesus is really saying not to (seek to) be recognized just by human beings but by God. If you are recognized by human beings, you have already received your reward in full. However, you need to be recognized by God. If you are recognized by human beings, you already have received your reward. When you try to be recognized by human beings, you can easily become a hypocrite like (certain) Jewish people.
I always speak about sincerity. Whether someone recognizes you or not does not matter. You need to be sincere to your own self. Sincere to your own self! This is the point. When someone looks at me, (we may think,) “Oh, I have to be careful.” How someone looks at me is not an important matter. (What matters is) how can I relate to heaven? God is watching me every minute, every time, every second. That is why I always need to think “Invisible God, God is everywhere with me. How can I relate with God?” That is the more important thing. Here it talks about, when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Then God will surely remember and you will receive your reward in heaven.
Remember What You Owe and Forget What Others Owe You
1. On Joseph's journey, as Joseph predicted, a drinking officer (cup bearer) in prison was able to return to work. But he forgot Joseph’s request.
Joseph interpreted his dream. Joseph had an important mission for the sake of God’s will. He (the drinking officer, the cup bearer) knew that someday he would return to his original position as the drinking officer. Joseph knew that he needed to get out of prison and someday needed to carry on God’s mission. (So,) Joseph asked (the cup bearer) not to forget his request.
2. Fallen humans always forget what they owe others and always remember how they helped others. Because of these thoughts and habits, human relationships are cut off and no longer develop. We should rather live a life of faith where we do not forget what we owe and forget what others owe us.
Fallen man always remembers what he gave to others. He remembers eternally. But he easily forgets what he received from others. This is really fallen nature, really fallen nature -- even in the relationship between husband and wife, and in the relationship between parents and children. (Some) parents always ask their children, “Do you know how much I have done for you? Do you know how much I love you? How come you do like that?” It is a kind of expectation from children, from the spouse, from parents. That creates a weak relationship between parents and children, between husband and wife, between Cain and Abel. That’s why we need to know how we can gain more benefit and blessing from heaven: we need to focus on how to give.
I (came to) realize this point, when I give something to others, I feel incredible joy and happiness. Giving itself is already an incredible reward. That’s why you (should) focus on giving, rather than remembering, because giving itself is already joy and happiness. You have the object partner (to whom) you can give. That is already incredible joy and happiness.
That is why when I was young, I tried to have that kind of habit. Later on it became a good habit of giving and forgetting. When I focus on giving, I can forget. Then I can feel incredible joy and happiness. Our hobby should be giving. Giving is my hobby. Giving is your hobby. Giving, giving, giving. You can feel joy and happiness (in this way).
If you try to remember what you gave to others, this is really troublesome. Your heart cannot become deeper, cannot become wider. However, when you focus on giving, giving itself is already a great reward. You need to forget, “Oh, when I offer this money, when I tithe, I thoroughly check how headquarters uses it, how that guy is using it.” That is not pure giving. What you offer to others, (you need to) completely forget. Whether that person misuses it or uses it properly does not matter. When I offer something, it is not just for human beings. I am offering it for God. I offer it for God! Whether it is used well or misused is that person’s portion of responsibility. My job is already done. My job is already done! I already have completed my offering for God.
“I don’t want to offer any more because this public person, Abel, misused it.” Of course, some public figure needs to check about that, but your attitude cannot be like that. When you offer your tithe, it (should be) pure giving. Whether our Abel figure, my leader, properly used it or not, if you have that kind of calculation, that kind of individualistic thinking about it, that means you have some kind of motivation and expectation. That is not pure motivation. That is why when you purely give, then God receives from you purely. Calculating, checking this or that -- of course, we need to do it -- but I am talking about your inner heart should be pure. This is very important.
3. As mentioned in the Bible before, the left hand should not know what the right hand does when giving kindness to others. We must reflect on whether we are really doing so as Jesus said.
That’s why we need to have a parental heart. When parents do something for children, even though they are giving and giving and forgetting, (they ask), “How can I give a better one next time? I want to give a better one.” When we focus on how to give a better one, then we can forget. How can we forget after giving? We need to give with a parental heart. When we give something with a parental heart and shed tears, then “That is not enough. That is not enough! That is not enough! Next time I will give a better one.” For fallen man, when you give something, (you may feel), “It is already enough. I have already done enough.” Calculation and expectation is not pure love and pure giving. We need to know about that.
4. At the time of exile from Egypt, the Israelites forgot about God’s works of letting them cross the Red Sea, and feeding them quail and manna in the wilderness, and about being able to drink spring water from the rock. Whenever they were hungry, they remembered eating lamb in Egypt and lost faith in Jehovah God. Even though God worked with them through amazing miracles and wonders, they didn’t have faith. It is because they did not remember and cherish God's grace.
Of course, sometimes we are very hungry. Sometimes it is a very difficult situation. However, we need to remember what we owe and forget what others owe us, what Heavenly Father owes us. This kind of thing (comes up) in our life of faith. Do not have any expectations of someone giving to me. If we have an expectation of someone giving to me -- “Oh, my spouse is supposed to give to me. My children need to listen to me. My parents need to give me something” -- If you have some kind of expectation, I am telling you, you will always have disappointment. If there is great expectation, do you want to get something? I am telling you, what is the outcome? We can have disappointment.
However, “how can I give more? How can I serve more? How can I give more? How can I contribute more?” If you have that kind of heart, your object partner someday will realize and return to you. If that guy does not return to you, God will surely return to you. This is a universal principle: a perfect plus can create a perfect minus. Even if someone does not remember you, the universe will remember you. God will return to you.
If God does not have that kind of universal principle, then God does not exist. God knows everything. When you have that kind of sincere heart and mind, God surely will return to you. When you are giving, someday you will receive. That is a universal principle. We need to believe in that. When you give something, you will get it. That is why you should not have any expectation of your partner. God will return to you through somewhere, not exactly through that person. Through somewhere. As long as you have such a beautiful attitude, beautiful motivation, the universal principle will surely return to you. This is really amazing guidance by Jesus and our True Parents.
5. This is not only true of the Israelites of the time, but also of anyone today. In other words, people forget their blessings and what is precious and complain only about being in pain when they are miserable.
When we receive a lot of things from others, from heaven, from True Parents, we easily forget. When we are in pain or are miserable, we easily forget that we received something from heaven, from True Parents. That is fallen nature.
Do Not Lose Sight of the Greater Eternal Value
6. The pain I go through when I am trained during a test is incomparable to the times I receive love and grace. How vain is the person who throws away the grace they have received so far just because trials and pain come in the course of their life?
You need to always remember how much blessing I have received from heaven, from True Parents. However, when you have a trial, just a little trial, just a little pain, then you start to be disappointed and forget God’s ways, forget about God’s eternal value and immediately doubt: “Wow! True Father is like that! True Mother is like that. How come?” How much time have you spent with True Parents! However, when you have trials, (even though) the time period of your trial is very short, you forget such a long time period with God and True Parents and throw it away so easily. Wow! What should we do? We have that kind of blood quality!
7. It is also precious for a couple to get married and live together for the rest of their lives, but if they forget that preciousness and the wife humiliates the husband because his salary is low and treats him carelessly -- “this guy does not make any money and just eats at home; how come his salary becomes lower and lower; this kind of person has no capability” -- if you treat your spouse like that, heavenly fortune will leave the family. If you forget each other's preciousness and evaluate the other person with external material values, heavenly fortune will leave the family. You shouldn’t get hot blooded or hate over something small. In the most difficult times, if you think that there is no value more important than the fact that you two met, and respect and serve each other, God will certainly always allow material blessings to come to your family.
Sometimes the husband’s financial situation is not easy. Sometimes the wife will need to work or needs to work harder; however, we have to be grateful. If the husband dies because of an accident and you have no more husband beside you and you need to survive by yourself, in the worst case you need to think this way. Just husband. “Even though you do not do much, just (because) you are beside me, I am already so grateful!
When I think about my father and mother, I don’t want to have any expectations of my father and mother any more. “My father, you are just being my father; Mother, you are just being my mother. (For this) I am already so grateful! You have already done everything for me. Just being my father, just being my mother… My first grandchild is already 6 years old. How much he stimulates me and gives me incredible joy and happiness! I don’t want to have any expectation of my grandchild. Already you have made me so happy. If my child becomes 18 years old or 20 years old, already you gave me incredible joy and happiness, when I raised (you?) up. You have already returned to me that kind of joy and happiness. It is already enough.
“Why does my husband not make money? Why does my wife not do anything and only spends money?” If we complain about each other like that and you evaluate the other person like that centered on external material values, you will surely lose blessing and everything. For the time being maybe your husband becomes like that, maybe your wife becomes like that. However, you need to think about what the eternal value is. When you received the blessing with your eternal spouse, already the blessing itself with your spouse is really of eternal value. If we keep that kind of eternal value, rather than just focusing on small, small things, I am telling you, God is really moved by you. God surely will allow incredible material blessings for your family.
8. The same is true of Leah and Rachel. The first most important thing is the relationship between God and the husband. You must live with the belief that Heaven will bless you if God and your husband have a good relationship, but what is the point if you are disappointed by the absence of a baby, and your relationship with your husband becomes estranged and your relationship with your brothers and sisters becomes estranged?
9. The same is true of Ham from Noah's family. Ham knew through the flood judgment that God was with his father Noah. How can it be so easy to forget the relationship of heart between Noah and God, who had been with Noah for 120 years, due to one drunken and naked incident? However, Ham made a mistake because he thought centered on himself.
Can you imagine? Ham -- of course, before the 40-day flood judgment he may have mistrusted his father more -- but he saw after God’s judgment, “Wow! Heavenly God was with my father for 120 years.” He needed to realize that point. But all of a sudden, Noah became drunk and lay naked (in his tent). Because of this one small incident -- ten minutes or 3 minutes or 5 minutes -- Ham forgot everything: the relationship between his father and Heavenly Father for 120 years! That is why a fallen man just forgets because of some small incident and problems and trials. Ham forgot the time period of 120 years between Heavenly Parents and Noah. Wow! That’s why we are stupid people!
10. If we are also interested in and attached to small things, we often lose sight of the greater eternal value. Therefore, the Bible rebuked people as a group that idolized rotting things (Romans, Chapter 1).
11. Think about the grace we have received from True Parents so far. A person who did not know the Principle came to know the purpose of life and the existence of God through the Principle. A trivial being like me, who had no choice but to die, met the Messiah, received the Blessing and gained eternal life, eternal love, and eternal lineage. Where is greater grace than this?
I am so grateful to God and True Parents! Because of True Parents, how much I changed my blood lineage! For me, a trivial being and stupid guy, I met God through True Parents. I know the identity of Heavenly Parents, how miserable he is. True Parents taught me who God is. He is my daddy, my parent, and I came to understand the purpose of my life and who True Parents are. They are my eternal savior. True Parents also saved me through the Blessing. They gave me eternal life and blood lineage and eternal love. Wow! Blessing … self eternally grateful!
But because of some small incident, sometimes a children issue, this and that, then (one) doubts True Parents’ value and forgets the value of the blessing. Wow! My goodness! Someone (may have been) been very faithful for 30 years or 40 years, but because of a small incident, some problems, they doubt True Parents and forget everything and even betray True Parents and go a different way and give up eternal value.
> Rom1: 23 They don't worship the glorious and eternal God. Instead, they worship idols that are made to look like humans who cannot live forever, and like birds, animals, and reptiles.
12. Did you come into the Unification Church, listen to the Principle and make a judgment that you wouldn’t have any bitter heart even if you died? Wasn't it us who received the Blessing because this standard of judgment existed?
13. The Blessing is the most precious covenant we receive from God. There is nothing more precious than this. Blessed families are the most precious value and treasure that have never existed before in history.
Already I have received an incredible blessing from True Parents. How can I expect more than this? Because of some small, small incident -- you received persecution, you had a trial and you feel very much pain -- you start to doubt even the Blessing itself. Why do we have a terrible relationship between husband and wife? Because we forget easily (the) eternal value.
14. However, how sad would God's heart be if we lost all the standards we swore to God after receiving the Blessing and living together, and lost eternal value just because life was difficult with frequent trials and pains? Isn't this like throwing your pearls to pigs who don’t know the pearls’ value?
15. Therefore, blessed couples should never break the Blessing promise of "You are for me and I am for you. I was born for you, and you were born for me” in their relationship. We should not resent each other and lower the standard of value.
Sometimes we say to each other: “I want a divorce; I want to separate; I want to run away from that; I hate my spouse; I don’t like it (the situation?).” Because of a small incident or a quarrel with each other, we forget the eternal value, the meaning of the Blessing.
16. If you resent others because you feel bothered by them, you become a foolish person who throws away eternal value because of very trivial feelings or matters.
17. In Matthew Chapter 19 of the Bible, a young man came to Jesus and asked, “What good thing must I do to get eternal life?” Jesus said, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” However, considering that the young man got worried and retreated, we see that he abandoned the Lord and seized money.
18. If humans are too ignorant, they will not know the eternal value of God and True Parents and only grab onto things that quickly rot and disappear.
19. So what are the things that will rot in our lives? The Bible says:
Fallen man does not focus on eternal value. He is focused on foolish things. What are the things that will rot in our lives? The Bible says:
Rom 1: 29-32
29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips,
30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;
31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.
32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things, but also approve of those who practice them.
Fallen man always focuses on what? On valuable things.(?) Sometimes he focuses too much on what to wear, what to eat, what to do. Sometimes he focuses on such evil things as envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice, all these kinds of garbage things and forgets what the greater eternal value is.
20. Conclusion: We should not be foolish people who abandon the path of life and choose the path of death. Even if our ancestors to this day have made such an error, we should not follow in such footsteps. Our faith should not become a course where we value rotting things and consider eternal things as worthless.
I am so grateful because I received the Blessing. I gained eternal life. I gained eternal love. I gained God’s eternal blood lineage. I am so grateful. I need to confess that Heavenly Parents, you are my eternal parent. I need to confess that True Parents, you are my savior, you are my True Father, you are my True Mother, you are my eternal parents. Just only thinking about the Blessing, it is eternal value. God, True Parents, you gave eternal life to me.
Of course, sometimes I don’t agree with my wife. Sometimes I quarrel a little bit with my wife. However, I cannot forget, no matter what, the greatest value which is the Blessing. Heavenly God, True Parents, because of you I have a beautiful wife, I have beautiful children, I have beautiful grandchildren. I am eternally grateful to you, Heavenly Parents.
That’s why, always remember what the greatest eternal value is. Sometimes we are focused on …. things. Sometimes we are focused too much on material things and easily forget greater eternal value. We always need to remember that. Then our life will become so meaningful and thankful!
God bless you!♦
Note: This lightly edited transcription may contain errors and omissions. indecipherable or uncertain words are tagged with a “(?)” and phrases with an ellipsis “ ...”. First, second and third person pronouns have been left as spoken, and other apparently Korean English expressions have been preserved.This text and the powerpoint slides from this speech are available as pdf files at the top of this text and at text.morndev.com & yong.hoondok.com. Audio only is available at anchor.morndev.com, spotify.morndev.com & audio.morndev.com.♦
True Mother and the Spirit-Led Churches #50 - December 14, 2021
Recently I have a strong heart and mind, wow, if I had a lot of time, I would like to visit each of our blessed families in person. I miss all of you. Recently I visited a few families. I had an incredible and beautiful experience. I feel that we are really one family under God and True Parents.
Today I’d like to talk about “True Mother and the spirit-led churches” from True Mother’s Anthology, Book 1.
In Israel, 2,000 years ago, God made many preparations before the birth of Jesus. He prepared the people of Israel ahead of time to welcome Jesus. He prepared so that Jesus could have his heavenly family, unite the nation and then bring salva-tion to the world. However, the central figures of the providence at that time cared more about their daily lives than about God's circumstances or His profound Will. As a result of their not recognizing and attending Jesus properly, Je-sus was sent to the cross.
During the 2,000 years since Jesus' resurrection, God has been working through Christian culture to awaken and prepare people as Brides to attend the Returning Lord. He called Korea to be His chosen nation. Although Korea has but a short history of Christianity, God led the people of Korea to establish churches to make internal preparations to welcome the Returning Lord both before and after the country's liberation.
If it is said that the 4,000-year history of God's providence of restoration laid the foundation for preparing (for) the only begotten Son; the 2,000-year period after Jesus was such a history to welcome the only begotten daughter, that is, to receive the bride of the Messiah. Then, Christianity was the religion of the bride.
If the only-begotten Son is in a holy marriage with his bride, the only-begotten daughter, the Messiah will not have to come again forever. Only time is an issue. This is because if God's only begotten son and only begotten daughter meet and become a holy marriage, the kingdom of heaven on this earth will surely be established over time. Then, True Parents' Holy Marriage in 1960 was the greatest feast and greatest day in human history!
Actually True Parents’ wedding ceremony is more important than anything else: the birth of True Father, the birth of True Mother are also important, God’s Day and True Parents Day are also important, but the greatest feast and greatest day in human history was True Parents’ Holy wedding. Because of True Parents’ Holy Wedding, God’s kingdom of heaven on earth began.
In Cheolsan, North Pyeongan Province, there was a spirit-led church, the Holy Lord Church, with an elderly lady pastor named Kim Seong-do, which had indemnified the mission of Eve. After the death of Rev. Kim Seong-do, God di-rectly guided Rev. Heo Ho-bin and her husband, who established the Inside the Womb Church, to make internal preparations to attend the Returning Lord.
In North Korea, as the power of the communist authorities grew stronger, the persecution of religion became severe. In August 1946, Rev. Heo Ho-bin was taken to the Daedong Detention Center in Pyongyang. While in jail she received a revelation that she would meet the Returning Lord. Around the same time True Father was arrested while evangelizing in Pyongyang and was taken to the same jail. While in the jail, True Father managed to send a note to Rev. Heo through her chief disciple. However, the note was discovered by a prison guard and True Father was tortured so severely that his teeth were broken.
It was during that time, before I came down to South Korea, that Rev. Heo's mother called me to go see her after receiving a revelation about me. I was then six years old. Rev. Heo's church was fulfilling the mission of the Bride of the Lord at the Second Advent, and Rev. Heo's mother gave me a benediction that I would take the position of that Bride. She said in her prayer that I was supposed to fulfill a great mission. I still vividly recall it: an elderly lady in a white Korean dress said that she had received a revelation about me from Heaven and she called me to come into her room alone in order to give me that blessing. (1999.10.21, Punta del Este, Uruguay)
God doesn't know how much labor, sacrifice, and indemnity he put into sending his only begotten daughter to this earth.
Look at the indemnity that Christianity paid after Jesus. Look at how much indemnity True Father paid for his only begotten daughter in Korea.
Then we need to know how precious the existence of True Mother is.
We are so grateful. We are now working together, uniting together with True Mother. We are really trying to achieve God’s will. Now we are working centered on God’s second seven-year course. Please do all your best to focus on the December 18 event, the Blessing festival. Let’s really make True Mother happy.
LIVING DIVINE PRINCIPLE: Who Is God?
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.
11. God is the God of absolute faith, absolute love, and absolute obedience.
12. God is the subject of true love, true life, and true lineage.
13. God is the subject of conscience.
14. God is a God of bitter pain.
15. God is a God of mercy.
16. God is a God of sorrow.
17. God is a being who needs to be liberated.
Today, in the series of lectures on Who God Is, I would like to share a message with the subject of “God is the subject of conscience.”
Last time I shared about this, but I would like to repeat again this one important topic: “Who is God?” When you share this series of lectures on who God is, we can understand very clearly God’s character, God’s nature, and how to relate (this understanding) to my life of faith.
13. God Is the Subject of Conscience.
<PHG 98> There is nothing I do that my conscience does not know. It knows everything. Any time the body thinks about doing something bad, the conscience always objects, but the body can manage to pull the mind where it wants to because, since the fall, the power of fallen love is stronger than the power of the conscience. However, when the conscience reaches perfection, and connects in a relationship with God and True Love, there will be no problem.
We should be really grateful that we have a conscience. If human beings do not have a conscience, human restoration is impossible.
God believes in the power of conscience that every human being has. That is why God is constantly appealing to the human conscience. Satan is well aware that as long as all human beings have a conscience, they will return to God, so they will eventually perish.
Conscience is my eternal teacher. I should be grateful because my conscience always teaches me to live righteously. Conscience always appeals to God to return. Conscience never tires and is constantly advising me.
We should be so grateful to our conscience. It is continuously guiding us, teaching us. How really great it is!
The conscience is always righteous. Right GPS. Conscience tells me to do the right thing without compromise under any circumstances. The conscience clearly states what is evil and what is good, no matter how evil the circumstances.
However, no fallen man has ever (fully?) obeyed his conscience and freed his conscience from evil. Fallen humans do not know how much they hurt their conscience, how much they deceived and how much pain they caused. Therefore, the liberation of conscience is the liberation of God.
Then man is a sinner among sinners before his conscience. You don't know how much you have denied and disobeyed God's commands and God's voice through your conscience!
That is why we must know that our conscience is weeping for me with a very sorrowful heart. My conscience is weeping every moment because of me.
Can you imagine? How much we hurt our conscience! Our conscience without tiring is constantly giving us advice: “You need to go that way; you need to go this way. How come you went the wrong way?” Without stopping it continuously guides me, teaches me, advises me until I have life, until I am free. It continuously non-stop teaches me and guides me.
However, how much we hurt our conscience! How much we cheated, how much we deceived, how much we ignored our conscience! That’s why our conscience has strong resentment. “When can you follow your conscience? When can you follow my advice? Why do you go your own way?” Behind our conscience God strongly guides us.
The problem is that the power of fallen human conscience is much, much weaker than the power of love, so when horizontal temptation or love comes, my conscience cannot control the power of desire in the flesh.
Therefore, in order to overcome the love that comes from a horizontal position, you must add the power of love from God to the power of your conscience. Therefore, if we give our jeongseong devotion and receive the love and spiritual strength from God, we will be able to overcome horizontal love.
Why did Adam and Eve fall? What is the reason they fell? Because the power of love was much, much stronger than their own conscience. The conscience knows that. Adam and Eve went the wrong way. Their conscience knew this very well.
Then how can we overcome physical temptations, especially Chapter Two? The Chapter 2 power of love is very, very strong -- stronger than our conscience. So in order to overcome, in order to follow our conscience, there is only one way. The power of conscience is much weaker than the power of love. Therefore, in order to control our physical limitations, our physical desires centering on physical love, we need to borrow power. You need to borrow power! How can you borrow power? As long as you are aligned to Heavenly Father and put (invest) your jeongseong and utmost sincerity, you can feel God’s power. You can feel God’s strength. When you borrow power from the spiritual world plus the power of conscience, you surely will overcome any kind of horizontal environment, horizontal temptation. This is a really, really important point I am sharing with you.
Thus True Father said when the conscience reaches perfection, and connects in a relationship with God and True Love, there will be no problem.
Even though each human being has a conscience, why isn’t it powerful? Because of no connection to God. Without vertical alignment, without connecting to God centering on our utmost sincerity, jeongseong and devotion, always you are defeated by the power of physical love. It does not work because the power of conscience(?) is much, much weaker than horizontal love. The power of love is much, much stronger than anything else. If the power of conscience were stronger than love, then what would the problem be?
God wants to dominate, God wants to control everything by true love, not by anything else. That is why the power of love is the greatest, even though it is a horizontal power. That’s why we need to have vertical power: our conscience plus God’s love, God’s love! As long as we connect to God centering on our conscience, nobody wins(?). The power of conscience with God’s love is stronger than anything else. That is why without connecting to God, without relating to God centering on our jeongseong and devotion, there is no way to overcome physical love, physical temptation.
That is the reason outside people cannot overcome, even though they hear God’s voice through their conscience. Why can they not overcome? Because they do not believe in God, they do not know how to borrow power from the spiritual world and our Heavenly True Parent. Wow! True Father teaches us very, very clearly.
<PHG 98> We can only find the original self where there is absolute obedience. God is our parent among parents, our teacher among teachers, and our lord among lords. This becomes the Three Great Subjects Principle, centering on heaven and earth. We must unite completely from the position where our conscience gains the position of object to the subject principle. If our conscience is not in a more important position than our parents, or our teachers or the king of a country, we cannot become the object of love for God's love. The conscience must not be educated. We must attend the conscience in the place of God.
True Father said that you can find your true self only in absolute obedience to the commands of my conscience.
Therefore, True Father is telling us that we must serve our conscience as the parent of our parents, the teacher among the teachers, and the master among the masters, just like God.
True Father said, “If our conscience is not in a more important position than our parents, or our teachers or the king of a country, we cannot become the object of love for God's love.”
Father said that the conscience needs no education. Therefore, we must serve our conscience absolutely in God's place.
Not just follow the conscience; following the conscience is OK. What I mean is that it (needs to be) centering on God. We should treat our conscience like God, like God himself. Why do outside people not have power even though they have a conscience? They do not treat their conscience as God’s voice. They need to serve their conscience as (if it was) God.
Of course, the conscience is not equal to God; it is not the same. But Father tells us that we should treat our conscience as (if it were) God, vertically connected. Whenever you hear the voice of your conscience, you need to think that this voice comes from God. This is the point.
<258-63> The conscience precedes God. It means that you know what you will do before God knows. Do you understand? God is supposed to know it after you act. Why is it like that? Your being is another personality. In Unification Church terms, you are an individual embodiment of truth. If God knows simultaneously with you what you will do, it means that you are one of the attributes of His body; you become one body with Him. It means that there is no concept of reciprocity which wants one’s partner to be thousands of times better than oneself.
The Three Great Teachers Are in Our Conscience
Just now Father was talking about this.
1. The conscience comes before parents.
2. The conscience comes before teachers.
3. The conscience comes before God.
Father sometimes challenges us; when you do something, do you think God knows (about it) first or your conscience knows first? Many people say, “God is the one who knows first.” Father said, “You are wrong. If God knows what I am going to do, if God knows more than my conscience, if he knows earlier than I do, then Adam and Eve, human beings, never would have fallen, never, ever would have fallen. Why?
If God knows what I am going to do earlier than I, how can human beings fall? If God knows earlier than I, then my body is only an extension of God’s body, like one part of the hand and one part of the legs, one part of God’s body. Then how can he fall? He cannot fall. You need to know that each human being is an individual truth body, completely independent. As long as each human being has independence from God, when I am going to do something, I have decided something, I am going somewhere, I have already decided -- God does not know yet. My conscience comes before God. You need to know about that. If human beings are only an extension of God’s body, how can God himself fall? He cannot fall.
God respects each human being as an individual embodiment of truth, individual independence. I had never heard this from anyone (else). True Father taught us (this). That’s why my conscience comes before parents; my conscience comes before teachers; my conscience comes before God. That is why it is completely independent. However, my conscience is the root of God. My root is Heavenly Father. My conscience comes from God.
> Even if God is the root of conscience, it doesn’t mean that God and conscience are the same being. Just now I mentioned that; (they are) not the same. (Each human being is an individual embodiment of truth). I really love True Father’s explanation.
> Absolute obedience to the conscience can subjugate the body.
That is why I treat my conscience…
Even though I am an independent person from God, I need to treat my conscience as God.
Even though it is not the same (as God), I need to treat, I need to serve my conscience as God because God is the root of conscience.
> God is the root of conscience, but, it doesn’t mean that God and the conscience are the same being.
We need to know this very, very clearly.
God really respects each human being. You are an independent truth body separate from God.
You are completely independent. That is why you need to take ownership of yourself. As long as you are an independent being from God, you need to take ownership. You need to become a co-creator like God. Co-creator.
If God knows what I am going to do, if God knows earlier than I do, then human beings are not independent. Then there is no need to say “co-creator.” Each human being is a co-creator. We need to know that we are a completely independent being from God. However, we need to know that God is the root of conscience. This is really amazing guidance.
TODAY’S YOUTH MINISTRY: Joseph’s Course - Joseph’s Faith and Dreams
1. Joseph had great faith in his dream. He believed that the dreams he had had were something God was revealing to him, so he absolutely believed in them. He had absolute faith in God who works through dreams. Because of such faith, he believed that God had expectations and a will for him no matter the circumstances, so he did not change in any kind of environment. God often guided Joseph in his dreams and showed him the direction he should go.
Joseph was a man of dreams. He really absolutely believed in his dreams. He really believed that God was always guiding him, instructing him, through his dreams. That’s why once he had a dream, he absolutely believed in it. “This came from God. This is God’s revelation. This is God’s direction. It will surely happen someday.” Can you imagine when he was young, his brothers called him a man of dreams.
2. Many people have frequent dreams when their environment changes. You often dream when you sleep at a different house. This shows that the spirit world cooperates with us. When times change or when you’re traveling somewhere, whenever the destination changes, there are cases when the spirit world is concerned and foretells the future. When you look at this, you can see that the spirit world is always trying to protect us and take responsibility for us.
Do not misunderstand me. This is my own case; maybe not everybody is the same. I have a public mission. Wherever I go, I may sleep one night (in a place). I know exactly that church, that house, that area’s members’ situation. God teaches me through my dreams. What is the current situation in this area, this church and this house? I have been so amazed by God’s guidance through my dreams everywhere! I (may) just sleep (there) one night. I know the next day what will happen, what kind of environment it is here, a great environment, a sorrowful environment, a bad environment. Wow! Really I can feel that the spiritual world is guiding me and teaching me. Recently I have become more and more sensitive to that.
We are spiritual beings. We need to receive that kind of guidance from heaven. Look at Joseph. Throughout (history?) the central figures -- always God guides us through dreams. Especially this Joseph, how God guided him through dreams. He had dreams many, many times -- in prison and before he came to Egypt. His brothers sold him. Why did his brothers struggle with him and even Jacob struggled with him? “Will I bow down to you? Eleven stars and sun and moon bow down to you?” Joseph was a chosen guy. His quality of blood lineage was really different.
Do not ignore your dreams.
3. Our frequent dreams are evidence that the spirit world and our ancestors are cooperating with us. Since we humans have to use our bodies on earth and become the substance of love while we live, the spirit world takes interest in me and informs us through dreams in advance. The wish of the spirit world and ancestors is to guide their descendants on earth in hopes that they will become the people needed in the Providence of Restoration and become the true people God desires.
Spiritual world is already guiding us through dreams. Sometimes when I wonder where to go, what to do -- kind of struggling, but centered on a public purpose -- always True Father appears, sometimes True Mother appears, sometimes my ancestors appear and come to me and give me very clear guidance. In the beginning it was very symbolic; that is why I needed to interpret it well. I needed to have data. When I … this company (?country?) and what happened yesterday … and through my experience I know that this company (?country?) shows something.
Whenever I receive persecution, always I can see in my dreams a flood, a lot of flood flowing down, and I am swimming in the middle of the flood, then I know that persecution is coming, definitely coming. Then I prepare my heart. I have to be stronger. Then God always tells me … you need to prepare your heart. You will have this kind of happening, that kind of happening.
Really spiritual world wants to protect us, God wants to protect us. That’s why do not simply ignore your dreams. God will teach us through dreams. Look at Joseph and how Heavenly Father guided him. Jesus’ mother and Jesus’ stepfather, Joseph, (received) everything through dreams.
4. Joseph lived an unjust prison life, but he did not get frustrated there. Rather, he gained respect from his peers and came to a position of guiding them. Everything came together as Joseph had prophesied to them. Some prisoners went out with hope under Joseph's guidance when they went out, while others were punished as Joseph had said.
5. One day, a chief baker and chief cupbearer from the Pharaoh's Palace entered the prison. Joseph interpreted their dreams and prophesized. Joseph prophesied to them that the baker would be put to death, but the cupbearer would be reinstated. At that time, Joseph asked not to forget himself, who interpreted their dreams.
6. Everything happened according to Joseph's interpretation. But the cupbearer, who was restored to his position, forgot what Joseph had asked for. This was very unfortunate. Fallen man always forgets what is indebted to others but always remembers helping others. Because of these thoughts and habits, interpersonal relationships are cut off and no further development is possible. Rather, it should be our life of faith to not forget what we are indebted to and forget that others owe us, but we are unable to do that.
7. The Bible also tells us not to let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. when we show kindness to others. We must reflect on whether we are really doing it according to the words of Jesus.
8. You should forget what you owe to others (?others owe you?), but never forget what you owe to others.
9. Looking at the history of God's providence, God gave many instructions to the central figures through dreams. Therefore, the deeper our faith, the more spiritual communication with God.
10. Through dreams, God does many works. Dreams are channels through which God comes to us. And the dream is never a dream that is shown only for a moment. Know that most of the dreams taught by Heaven are concerned about my eternal life and growth.
Many people say, “Once I had this dream, but time has passed, so it is over.” Do not think this. Any dream (can) connect to your spiritual life, to your eternal growth. That’s why, do not forget it.
“Why does this kind of dream come to me?” Very often there is a meaning. In the beginning God shows us in a very symbolic way, then later on in more detail, then later on God teaches us and True Father appears to us directly and talks to us through sharing his words. It is like direct dominion.
11. People without dreams are often very realistic or intelligent people.
Those who are very, very realistic are not looking for God; (they are) just only very busy (concerned with) what to eat, what to wear, what to drink, very focused on “my job.” This kind of person seldom has a dream. Such (overly) intelligent people have no need for God because they believe in their own intellect. They are not much connected to the spiritual side; they don’t have dreams. And in many cases, they are very dull people in a spiritual way.
However, in the other case, there are those who do not have any dreams before God, and those who do their job well day by day do not have any dreams. (It is just as) if your own children are doing very well, they are doing their own job very well, they study very well, then (their) parents don’t need to say anything. That’s why when you are really doing very well according to God’s will, according to God’s concern, then you seldom have a dream -- because you absolutely follow and practice God’s will.
However, those who are spiritually sensitive and who are always in heartistic communication with God receive many, many instructions from God through dreams.
I think dreams are very important. We learn through Joseph’s faith and dreams. If you are really desperate, very seriously praying about (something), then God teaches us because God is our parent. Why doesn't God intervene (with) me? Why doesn’t God appear to me? Why no dreams? You do not have desperation. If you have really have desperation, really serious, like life and death, God surely will teach you. Whenever you have problems with your spouse or children, however, if you are very serious, spiritual world will guide you and teach you how to talk to your children, how to talk with your spouse, how to solve your own problems.
Wow! Our determination, our seriousness, our desperation are very important. Our life of faith should be like that. Desperation! In order to accomplish God’s will, we should be like that. In order to save people’s lives, we should be like that. Desperation and jeongseong. Then God will surely guide us.
We learned very important things from Joseph’s faith and dreams.
(Response to sharing) In my life of faith I really appreciate that kind of dream. I receive clear direction about where I should go. That’s why I realize that God is love. He really wants to protect me. He wants to send me in the right direction. How can I deny (him)? Through dreams I cannot deny the spiritual world, I cannot deny God, I cannot deny God’s love.♦
Note: This lightly edited transcription may contain errors and omissions. indecipherable or uncertain words are tagged with a “(?)” and phrases with an ellipsis “ ...”. First, second and third person pronouns have been left in place as spoken, and other apparently Korean English expressions have been preserved. This text and the powerpoint slides from this speech are available as pdf files at the top of this text and at text.morndev.com & yong.hoondok.com. Audio only is available at anchor.morndev.com, spotify.morndev.com & audio.morndev.com.♦