ORDER NUMBER
79-10-04
REVEREND SUN MYUNG MOON
SPEAKS ON
DAY OF
THE VICTORY OF HEAVEN
October 4, 1979
World Mission Center
Translator - Bo Hi Pak
When you hear "Day of the Victory of Heaven", the meaning
of it might not be very clear in your heart. Therefore, this morning we
are going to make the meaning clear.
To make a long story short, the fall of man meant the defeat of God.
How? God was unable to possess the position in which He could govern
the entire world and have true dominion. Consequently, God has not
truly controlled all things of creation nor man. Finally, God has not
had dominion over love.
Among these three things, what would be the central point? Love is
the key and central factor to have dominion over men and all things.
Once you possess love, you can actually possess all things and man
because love encompasses everything. God's history after the fall of
man has been one of struggle to regain the position where He could have
dominion over love. There is no doubt that the ruler of this fallen
world is Satan because he has dominated all three precious things of
this creation.
As a result, history has developed as a course of restoration of the
lost dominion. In order to re-establish God's dominion, God's side
must demonstrate a quality that is superior to any on the satanic side.
Thus, a movement must inevitably appear which will show the way toward
the restoration of God's position. To accomplish this end the people in
that movement will deny their families and world, and even their own
lives to serve God.
With what weapon and strategy will God defeat Satan? God's tool in
history has been religion. What is the essence and depth of religion?
God's prime purpose in establishing religion is simply to bring men to a
level where they love God more than anything else under the sun. In
order to possess God's love you must become a man of God first. There
are many religions in this world, but how many people are really
striving to become men and women of God? What about Christians today?
Many religious people believe in a certain faith in order to receive
some benefit, such as a place in heaven. That is not how God intended
to fulfill His purpose for religion, however. The essential intention
of religious people must be to restore men and women who will do their
utmost to serve God above all else. This is the standard which must be
established.
If love is the key factor in religion, what will be the standard and
who will set it up? Should men or women set the standard? Let's
broaden the question-should individuals set the standard, or a nation,
or religion, or what? In order for God to establish the domain of love,
more than a nation or society is needed-one individual is the key. Who
is going to bring that standard, a man or woman?
Restoration follows a process which is reverse that of the fall.
Who brought the fall by initiating the fallen action? Women initiated
the action by which God lost His love, so who will God use first in
restoration? I will ask you a difficult question to help you answer:
did men or women give birth to Jacob and Jesus? Women initiated the
fall, so women are in a position to initiate restoration. This is why
women were ordained by God to take action to bring these men to this
world. If Jacob, for example, had not had cooperation from his mother,
the history of Israel could not have taken place.
What did Jacob's mother do? In order to fulfill the will of God,
she went to the extreme of deceiving her own husband and her eldest son,
allowing Jacob to be in a position where he could fulfill his mission
from God. Have you ever heard of someone trying to buy the birthright
from his elder brother? From a secular point of view, Jacob's mother
was a liar and Jacob himself was a swindler. The Bible records these
things very clearly, as well as the fact that God glorified and blessed
them, and this has been a puzzle for Bible students.
Satan is the master of this world, so this satanic world is in the
elder brother's position of holding sovereignty. If you confront Satan
and inform him you have come to take over his world, will he just drop
it and leave it to you? Instead, you say that you will take back the
world in the same way that Satan first stole it. It is only
logical-Satan took the world without God's permission, so you don't need
Satan's permission to take it back to God.
How did Satan take the world? First, he lied to his own Father and
to Adam, deceiving father and son. Furthermore, through Eve Satan
deceived the husband. In the process of the fall, God and His daughter
were separated when she became a betrayer. In restoration the reverse
way is necessary, so God and His daughter must be united; in other
words, women should be united with God. Satan and women united in the
fall and took Adam and all things of creation away from God. In
restoration God and women unite to take the husband and all things of
creation back to God.
That was the position of Jacob and his mother, Rebecca. Here
mother and son united with God to cut the fallen tie, which in this
case was to the husband and son on the satanic side. Now you
understand why that process was acceptable in the sight of God. Their
first task was restoration of the birthright of the eldest son. Why
was this necessary? The elder son's position is always that of master
or dominator, which was the right and authority bestowed on the eldest
son. In biblical history the family heritage always passed from elder
son to elder son. Since the elder son's position was stolen by Satan,
God used Jacob to restore that position by taking it back.
By restoring the elder son's position Jacob could restore dominion
over all things and over men. Since Jacob totally united with God,
once he could take the position of elder son he completed God's
sovereignty, ending the satanic rule. By Jacob's cutting off the
satanic line, restoring the elder son's position to God and creating a
tribe and people, God finally had a territory and people He could
claim. This is why God gave Jacob the name Israel, which means victor.
Because of the failure of men, God was always in a position of
failure. Now for the first time God won a victory, through Jacob, and
set up a foundation on earth. Through Jacob God expanded His territory
further and further, and ultimately that family grew into a tribe, a
people and a nation.
Because restoration between Esau and Jacob was completed when both
were in their forties, or middle age, Satan could still claim that God
had not changed the foundation. Because Jacob and Esau grew up in the
satanic world for forty years, Satan still had some claim. This period
from birth to the age of forty remained in Satan's hands, even though
the birthright was restored after that age. Therefore, another step of
restoration had to be taken, beginning with the mother's womb.
God's representative was not born in the elder son's position.
Jacob assumed that position only after he was forty, as another battle
remained which had to be won in the mother's womb. This dispensation
was conducted through Jacob's son Judah and his
daughter-in-law, Tamar, and the whole course had to be
accomplished in a period of three generations. Tamar was destined to
be responsible for an unusual dispensation specifically asked for by
God.
Tamar's story has always been incomprehensible to scholars.
According to Jewish custom, when the elder son died the second son
would marry the widow. When Tamar's husband died, however, Judah's
second son refused to marry her. The third son was too young to take
the role of her husband. Knowing that she must bear a child, Tamar
thought of a scheme to have a child by her father-in-law and
thus continue the lineage. This put her in a position to deceive both
her father-in-law and his sons. Tamar disguised herself as a
prostitute and enticed her father-in-law to have a
relationship, out of which she became pregnant.
According to Jewish custom at that time, a woman caught in
adultery, such as a widow who conceived a child, was supposed to be
stoned to death. Tamar already knew what would happen to her if she
had a child, so she wisely took the precaution of asking for Judah's
ring and staff, which would prove later that she was not just acting as
a prostitute, and thus save her life so she could fulfill God's
dispensation. When Judah learned that he was responsible for her
pregnancy, he protected her and saved her life. This was not a joyful
act for Tamar, but an act of risking her life. She performed such a
dangerous duty simply to fulfill the destiny given her by God.
Centering upon God's situation, Tamar won the heart of her
father-in-law, who was in a position of potential enemy who
could have her killed. Yet Judah protected her, uniting with the
mission of father. Therefore, the children in Tamar's womb could stand
on God's side. Judah was the fourth son of Jacob, and out of the
tribe of his descendants Jesus was born. In Jewish history Judah's
tribe traditionally carried the tabernacle. They held this sacred
position because God bestowed it on them, but most important of all,
Jesus was born into this lineage.
Jacob and Esau were twin brothers, and Tamar conceived twins who
stood in the same position. The closest kind of relationship among
brothers and sisters is found between twins. Even in the mother's womb
twins truly exchange feelings; if one cries then other feels some
sorrow, the other feels some sorrow.
Two brothers, Perez and Zerah, were struggling inside Tamar's womb.
At the time of delivery the brother who was later named Zerah reached
his hand out of his mother's womb. In order to clearly mark who was
first born, the midwife tied a red thread around his wrist. This was
representative of Cain, and ultimately foreshadowed the satanic force of
the Last Days, which would eventually emerge as communism; before Jesus'
birth the Roman Empire held that position. After the red thread was
tied on, however, a great struggle took place in Tamar's womb, in which
Perez fiercely pulled Zerah back in and was born first himself! Thus,
the name Perez means "he who pushed aside."
You can see that at that time the victory won by Jacob over Esau was
consummated in the mother's womb through Perez and Zerah. Now
restoration was complete in that lineage and there was no room for Satan
to exert any claim, even from the time of conception in the womb. That
family tree continued uninterrupted for 2,000 years down through the
birth of Jesus. As you can see, God prepared a foundation which was
totally cleansed from the root, so that at an opportune time God could
have a sinless son out of that lineage, over whom Satan could have no
claim.
The restoration of the birthright was first carried out on the
family level, and that particular family expanded to the national level.
Years after Jacob won over Esau, Jacob and his family had to flee to
Egypt, where over the generations they developed into a great tribe.
Why were Jacob and his family sent to Egypt, which was enemy territory?
Since that family was given the blessing of being called Israel, all the
various elements of that family had to be totally united, but that had
not been done. There was still room for Satan to accuse them of not
being united. This was manifested in the fact that Jacob loved his
eleventh son, Joseph, very much and the ten older brothers were jealous.
Instead of thinking of Jacob's happiness or mission, they were envious
of Joseph and tried to kill him, eventually selling him into slavery in
Egypt. Even though he was first a slave, Joseph became respected and
loved by the Pharaoh and eventually became prime minister. When a
seven-year famine struck Canaan, Jacob's family was saved by Joseph
when he gave them assistance in Egypt.
When Jacob struggled with Esau he had to flee to Haran, and returned
21 years later to be reunited. In Egypt they grew in prosperity into
twelve tribes of 600,000 people. During this period God allowed the
Pharaoh to be very cruel, forcing the Hebrews to unite totally with each
other. No one totally knows why the Pharaoh could be allowed to be so
cruel to God's chosen people. Because the Pharaoh was so cruel,
however, the Hebrews became united under the leadership of Moses and
were ready to obey God's order through Moses.
When the Hebrews came out of Egypt they took as many of the riches
of the Egyptians as they could. This was one of the few dispensational
moments that God allowed His people to strike a blow at the satanic
side. This very rarely happens. At the conclusion of the Exodus the
Hebrews entered Canaan, but again there was more division and lack of
unity. Because they did not realize their mission and remained divided,
God again used external forces to torment them and force them to awaken.
I cannot clarify everything today, but eventually God used even the
Roman Empire to chastise them just before Jesus' arrival.
The Romans worshipped many gods, but the Jews and Christians
worshipped only one, and the two ideologies inevitably clashed. God
made the Roman Empire strong to achieve one goal-the unity of the Jews,
and a fierce determination to free their people from oppression. God
always uses that strategy, so that by allowing an enemy to become strong
His people are forced to unite. In the development of Christianity the
early believers suffered terrible persecution. I visited the
underground labyrinth of rooms in Rome known as the catacombs, where the
Christians gathered secretly in the early days. They were deeply united
because opposition was so strong.
God used the Roman Empire to unite the Jews before Jesus came, and
after the crucifixion God used the Roman Empire to make the Christians
unite. Under those adverse conditions God's people had to give up
everything for the sake of God, so that there was no other reason for
them to exist. Then they could have total oneness with God and with
each other. In this way God's dominion over all things, over man and
over love could be restored. When God's people were totally united,
they would all move as one under His direction for wholesome
restoration. All this is historical fact, but this perspective on
history has not been known till now.
After 4,000 years of biblical history since the fall of Adam and
Eve, the time finally arrived for the birth of the Messiah. This means
that for the first time in history God could finally send His true son
in His lineage, sinless in the mother's womb. Because that lineage had
already been cleansed, Satan could have no claim on that sinless baby
boy, and on this level Satan was defeated. This event was the first of
its kind in history, and any people who united with this messianic child
could also be made sinless and elevated into heaven. By uniting with
the true child of God they would be linked to God, and dominion over all
things, men and love could be restored directly.
The Roman Empire ruled the nation of Israel externally, but the
Messiah was to rule it internally once the Jews united totally with him.
God wanted the Jews, whom He had trained for 2,000 years, to unite with
Jesus so they would be as one. Jesus came to fulfill all of that.
Jesus was already destined at his conception to be the son of God. Upon
his birth God expected the whole nation to bow down to him.
At one time I was buying clothes at a New York store which was run
by a Jew. He asked me if I was Reverend Moon, and then wanted to ask me
a question. He asked, "If the Jews are the chosen people whom God
loves the most, why did God allow so much suffering to fall upon them?
Can you answer me?" I replied, "The answer is rather simple,
but explaining it fully would require one hour. Could you give up one
hour of your business time to listen?" He said he couldn't possibly
do that, so I told him maybe we would talk another time.
I want you to know that it is God's will that all religions be
united into one. You know restoration takes place according to the law
of indemnity, and that God's purpose is the restoration of all mankind.
Some people, like Jesus, are in the position to sacrifice for the sake
of the world. The Jews as well are in a position to help God restore
billions of people around the world. Their sacrifices must not remain
in vain; they served an important purpose in the history of God for the
sake of restoring all the multitudes of people in history.
Among the religions of the world, the Jews have suffered the most
because God's loved ones are always in a position to be a sacrifice.
Because God allowed such suffering to come to the Jews, God expected
them to be the strongest, most understanding and most united religious
people. Who shall play the central role in uniting all religions? God
handpicked the Jews and trained them for that role. This is my
explanation of the suffering of the Jews from the dispensational point
of view; their oppression was not a punishment from God, but was the
same glorious sacrificial role that Jesus was given in order to complete
the restoration of mankind.
After World War II the Jews had a great opportunity because they
suffered the most. They should have become flag bearers and champions
of God, calling for unity of all religions, including Christianity,
under God's banner. If those two had united then the unity of all other
religions would only have been a matter of time. The problem has been
that Jewish thinking was always nationalistic, while God's thinking was
universal. The Jews should embrace all people of the world for their
salvation, and in that case they would have won a true victory for God
after World War II. But as long as they have narrow thinking they will
face more and more problems. Once they liberate themselves to see from
God's perspective, their whole situation will become different. If they
think self-centeredly then God will leave and look for some other
champions elsewhere.
I want you to understand that because of this failure of religions
to unite, communism could rise after World War II. In the event that
they take over the free world, the first group of people to be
annihilated will be the Christians. The worst bloodshed, never seen in
history, will take place and touch all people of the world. The
genocide of the Jews in World War 11 will seem small in comparison as
millions and millions of people will die in that bloodletting. God will
require the toughest kind of unity to be forged under those
circumstances.
Pope John Paul II visited New York recently and received a
wholehearted welcome, but do you think he could have been given such a
welcome under worldwide communist rule? No, the Pope and all Catholics,
Protestants and Jews together would have been killed at the outset.
What about the Unification Church? We would be the first to go. In
that respect all religious people face a common destiny. My
proclamation is that we must unite and go beyond the level of
denomination and the boundaries of religions. I established a movement
to unite religions, but instead of being united, Christians are uniting
with communists to accuse and oppose us. What seems to be unanimous
opposition to me, however, is being split by you who crossed over the
line to unite with me. You are the people who saw the will of God and
want to give your lives to it and fight for this goal.
All of this has been a tangent because I thought about that Jewish
merchant. so let's get back to the main topic. Yet it is necessary
that you know this common sense truth.
The nucleus of God's dispensation is given to the chosen people
through the Messiah, who brings the true meaning of restoration to the
world. Should the Messiah be born of a man? Of course not.
"Man" is a short, simple word, but "woman" is a
bigger word; that "wo" means Wow or wonderful, so women are
"wonder people"!
Who was chosen to fulfill that most extraordinary dispensation in
the sight of God at the time of the Messiah 2,000 years ago? Her name
was Mary. "Mary" and "marriage" sound quite alike.
In God's sight the first woman in the position of bride was Mary. She
was a culmination of all God's work through 4,000 biblical years of
history, the pinnacle of this dispensation, and her responsibility as
this chosen woman was to pass through a course representing all of
history.
In the process of the fall three deceptions took place. Eve
deceived God, her Father, as well as Adam, her husband and God's son.
When God summoned Mary to take up her great responsibility, she was
already engaged to be married. This was significant because the fall
took place during the period of Adam and Eve's engagement. Mary
conceived Jesus without having any relationship with Joseph, so there
was deception of her husband-to-be involved When the angel
came to Mary, he told her she would conceive a son whose name would be
Emmanuel. How did she react upon learning of this incredible mission?
She could have refused, saying she was already engaged and that her
fiancee would be angry, that she would be stoned if she conceived a
child. The mission presented to her was a life risking one.
Her husband-to-be was involved, as well as her own and her
husband's family, and the Jewish people. She was given a mission to
conceive a child out of wedlock and faced condemnation and death. But
did she refuse? She answered the angel, "I am the hand maid of the
Lord; let it be to me according to your word." She knew people
would revile her, so her determination was that she would willingly die,
but not until after she had borne this son. She was clever and thought
that the best way to protect herself would be to win Joseph's heart.
But could she go to him and claim that she was carrying the Messiah in
her womb? She faced incredible difficulties, but I don't want to take
the time to go into detail.
Ultimately, because Mary made up her mind to giver her life for the
mission of God, God cooperated to help her. An angel appeared to Joseph
in a dream, telling him not to fear taking Mary as his wife. Joseph was
also a man of God, and where another man might have dismissed this as
but a funny dream, he took it seriously. He turned his back on the
external appearance of the situation and accepted it as God's will. He
took Mary as his wife, knowing that she was carrying a child that was
not his.
Do you think that naturally he would ask her whose baby it was,
since after all he had saved her life? Could she reply that she
conceived through the Holy Spirit and expect Joseph to accept it? If
the Pope was in Joseph's position would he believe her? Would Billy
Graham believe his wife if she told him that? That kind of conversation
between Joseph and Mary could have led only to a great argument, with
Joseph accusing that even though he saved Mary's life she still was not
being honest with him. Though this is not exactly what took place, do
you think there was no tension in that family when Jesus was finally
born? At first the community would think he was Joseph's son, but it
was impossible to keep secrets. Any conversation between Mary and
Joseph must have been overheard, even by the birds or insects, and I'm
sure rumors spread quickly that Jesus was an illegitimate child.
More children were born to Mary and Joseph, and they all knew that
somehow Jesus was different. The Bible does not speak directly about
this, but the fact is that when Jesus was a boy there was a great deal
of tension, and even Mary was distant with him at times because she was
a victim of the everyday situation. Jesus was lonely as a child and
often left the house to be alone. Once his parents even left him behind
in Jerusalem for three days, only coming back to look for him later.
How could parents leave a young boy behind that way? There were not
many happy days in that family.
I'm sure many of you have grown up with a stepparent, and even in an
open society like America's today there is tension between a stepparent
and stepchildren, so imagine how much more difficult it was 2,000 years
ago. In this sense Americans are in a position to be sympathetic with
Jesus' position; many young people are experiencing the same kind of
suffering Jesus went through.
Satan took Eve away through deceit of father, husband and son.
Mary, in the reverse position, willingly faced difficulty and
misunderstanding in order to do the will of God. In spite of her
mistakes, she was a great woman for she accepted the call and strove to
fulfill it.
This is the background of the circumstances under which Jesus was
born. He was destined before his birth to be the Messiah, but he was
not accepted by the people. He was rejected and crucified. God worked
unspeakably hard to bring this one son of His to the world, guiding a
course of incredible history. After all His effort, do you think His
Messiah came only do die on a cross at the age of 33? Was that God's
will? The Messiah was born as the elder son of the universe on God's
side, having sovereignty over all things. Jesus was sent to the world
as the representative of God's personality, God's love and God's entire
creation.
After 4,000 long years of struggle, one person, Jesus, could be born
as the representative of God in totality. Christians today must repent
for not knowing that the crucifixion was not the will of God. The path
of the cross was not God's primary will, and the cross is not a pleasing
symbol to God at all. Because this is what I teach, people call me a
heretic, but let them go ahead. This is the hidden history that only
God can reveal, and until now it has not been known to anyone on earth.
If men continue in this ignorance, they are destined to be destroyed,
but instead God has chosen me to reveal the truth for the first time in
history.
If I am truly a God-sent champion to reveal truth God has never
disclosed in all history, then any religious leader or believer who
opposes this work shall inevitably decline. Look at how Christianity,
which has prospered for 2,000 years and spread throughout the entire
world, is faltering and crumbling in the thirty short years since World
War II. It cannot be a coincidence.
What happened after Jesus' crucifixion? God's dispensation was
divided, with one side a physical dispensation and the other a spiritual
dispensation. Jesus remained the parent on the spiritual side. The
Trinity of God and Adam and Eve, or male and female spirits, are
represented by God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Hence, Jesus fulfilled
the position of parent of mankind spiritually. His body was killed, so
he was in a position to be a husband spiritually. The Holy Spirit is in
the bride's position, but has never had physical form as Jesus once did.
In the end, however, the Holy Spirit will take physical form as one
woman, who together with a physical man will become True Parents to
mankind. Together they shall be the channel by which mankind can return
to God.
Only with the installation of True Parents who are both physical and
spiritual can the Kingdom of Heaven on earth be formed which can finally
be lifted into heaven. Therefore, the Bible and the Divine Principle
teach that the Kingdom must come first on earth and then be opened in
heaven: "Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and
whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
God created both man and woman, not just one or the other. Could
Jesus be the parents of mankind all alone? The inevitable question is
whether Jesus should have taken a bride. Then he would have had
children, right? If his lineage had continued from generation to
generation, would such a system as the papacy have been needed? Of
course not. Jesus' descendants would have been the center of the living
kingdom on earth. If Jesus had left heirs on earth would there have
been unity or not? Nothing like that happened, so the natural
conclusion is that Jesus must come again. In order to fulfill this
mission could he come as a celestial body on the clouds?
Based on Jesus spiritual heritage the entity we know today as the
free world was formed. What is its purpose? It exists as a foundation
for the coming of thee Lord of the Second Advent. The center of that
free world today is America, a nation which contain the essence of the
Christian world in Europe. People of all denominations who
lacked freedom of worship in Europe came to America, and the founding
spirit of this nation is "In God We Trust." When the Pilgrirn
fathers came here. they came to make a better world centered upon God.
They were outcasts in Europe and because their consciences could not
accept the government oppression there they wanted to make a better
world somewhere else God opened a new horizon to them in their search.
and led them to America. They fled from Europe, determined to make a
better country.
Did they have a joyful, lighthearted departure from England? No,
they were outcasts fleeing their own country. The Mayflower was a tiny,
rickety ship and they sailed without any assurance of what their destiny
would be, realizing that they could very likely all die at sea. That
was the strength of their determination when they set sail.
The Mayflower is a symbol of men who value their faith above life,
men who don't mind risking their lives to find freedom of worship.
Because of the strength of their faith, America rose to incredible
prosperity in the short time of 200 years. The people in this nation
were determined to make a better nation than any in Europe, and
believers and immigrants of all kinds came from abroad, creating a
melting pot of faith, races and nationalities in this one nation.
America is a movement of unification under God.
There were many thousands of Indians in this country when the
Europeans came, yet God sided with the white people and allowed them to
push the Indians back and settle this country. Indian opposition to the
settlers was quite necessary, however. If the Europeans had found this
beautiful land all free and idle for them to use, selfishness and
division would have been more extensive among all the different groups
and they would have more easily forgotten God. God allowed the Indians
to attack so that the white minority would have to unite. In the end,
however, the white people made a great blunder. They should not have
massacred the Indians but should have had the same unity with the
Indians that they had among themselves.
The law of cause and effect cannot be avoided in history. America
is an extension of Great Britain which means that Satan is more
interested in America's fate. Thus, America is in a position to
indemnify what Britain did wrong in history. The British had done great
evil over the centuries particularly m Asia and India. They
aggressively developed the Opium trade in the Orient in order to bring
out ton after ton of gold for themselves Official policy gave no
consideration to the well-being of the Asians and was totally
unconcerned that whole groups of people became addicts. just as long as
the British could keep petting gold. Someone today has to pay for that
sin. America is paying that historical debt, and young people here are
plagued by drugs White people crippled the lives of Asians through the
effects of opium, and now the same evil is plaguing America.
No other race in the world trusts the word of white people when they
say they bring salvation because, especially in recent history, their
actions have always brought greater evil and distress to other peoples.
Look, for instance, at the plight of the boat people since America's
blunders in Vietnam. If Asians, however, come forward to say there is
hope in the world, other people will listen to them. There is an
unbridgeable gap between white and black people today, so a mediator
must come and that can only be yellow people. It is historically sound
to say that God will bring hope to the world from Asia.
Do you hear any Orientals proclaiming hope for all mankind today?
No Filipinos, Vietnamese, Chinese or Japanese have come forward. The
only voice crying in the wilderness is Reverend Moon, and I am
proclaiming the solution to the problem of the world. But I am not just
shouting like a crazy man; this message is logical and truthful.
America needs that voice and should listen, but instead of accepting me
this nation is trying to suppress this movement. That is the reality.
Someone might be skeptical and want to know why, if I am destined to
save this world, I didn't come to America sooner instead of waiting
until I was fifty. The answer is that a foundation was necessary on the
national level. Since Jesus lost his physical body and the national
sovereignty of Israel was subsequently destroyed, that position must be
indemnified and restored. Both spiritual and physical things must be
restored on a national basis. Until then the world dispensation could
not be started.
Unity between spirit and body must start from one individual, then
be expanded to one family, one tribe and one nation, then to the world.
It is impossible to jump to the world level without following each of
those steps. Before coming to America and the world stage I had to
liquidate the debt of history. All the sins committed by men and women
of history had to be solved before I could come.
Jesus was opposed by his family, tribe, nation and world. And
before I came to the worldwide level I received the same persecution.
In order to indemnify the past I had to receive the same persecution,
yet win. I came as the world champion of goodness, yet I was treated
the worst possible way, as was Jesus. From Satan's point of view the
Messiah is the worst person in the world and he never wanted to look at
Jesus, but from the heavenly standard the Messiah is the best. Satan
doesn't care how much the Mafia grows or how much drug addiction
spreads, but he can't stand to see my work growing in America and the
world.
If Satan is to survive he cannot allow me to prosper, so he began an
all-out attack against me, mobilizing even the communists. He was
even successful in getting religious people and well-established
public figures to unite against me. No matter how righteous religious
people may have been, if they oppose the central figure on God's side
they automatically put themselves on the satanic side. The ultimate
showdown, however, must be done on the worldwide level. My work in
Korea, Japan and Asia was only preparation. To make the final showdown
I had to come to America, and you know the history of what I did after
that.
I arrived on December 18, 1971, but the real battle and offensive
began on April 30, 1973, the day I was granted permanent residency in
this country. On that day I was given legal permission to stay here,
which meant I was allowed to begin the battle. It was all culminated
roughly 3½ years later on September 18, 1976 at the Washington
Monument Rally. That was a gigantic heavenly offensive on the worldwide
level. During those years I created a God-centered nation on the
worldwide level and God-centered people on the worldwide level;
everything I did in those years was on the worldwide level.
The ultimate goal is that centered upon the love of God you restore
dominion over all things of creation and all people. In every respect
the standard of God's people must be superior to any satanic standard.
How can we prove that we have set that standard? If you have a great
chunk of gold, will you put it in your pocket, or rejoice that it will
serve the purpose of the Kingdom of God? When miners found gold during
the 1849 gold rush they killed each other to keep that gold for
themselves. But in the heavenly standard we rejoice that it can be used
for Kingdom building, not for ourselves.
The purpose of MFT is training to prove to the secular world that
our standard is higher. If we earn $100, we want to give $101; that's
the way we think. Then that money shall come under God's dominion,
without restriction. Adam and Eve lost that standard, so men and women,
you and I, should restore it. Some people might say they like the
Unification Church and the Divine Principle, but they don't like to fund
raise. Is it right for people just to want to enjoy some benefit for
themselves? Unless you set a standard higher than Satan's side, you
have no way to represent God's dominion over all things and all people.
When you join the Unification Church, the first thing you do is fund
raising. You must liberate yourself from the old selfish way of
thinking about money, giving up the concept that money is for your
benefit. On MFT you might think you are tired and want to use the money
you earned for a big meal at a nice restaurant, or for a taxi instead of
walking, giving the leftovers for God's mission. That is not the right
way to think. Adam and Eve never had a car, so we walk too. The excuse
that you need vans for fund raising is not acceptable. Unless you keep
the highest possible standard in fund raising here in America, how can
you win on the worldwide level?
This way of thinking is rather fearful, but it is not my thinking-it
is God's thinking. If you live this absolute standard, Satan is the one
who will be trampled and have to bow down to you. This is the victory
God wants to gain. If there is anyone who has the right to complain, I
am surely the first one. Have you suffered as much as I have? There is
absolutely no suffering that I have not gone through.
Satan has mobilized every technique to oppose heaven's forces and
there is no method he hasn't tried on me. When he opens his big gun
against me, I squat down and hunch over and just take the beating. The
enemy encircles me, but since I am down so low their fire ultimately
hits each other instead of me. The government and religious leaders
thought they were firing at me, but they have discovered they are firing
at each other instead. I take their fire calmly, but they are fighting
among themselves over me. That's God's strategy, and no one can outwit
God, right?
It is inevitable that a controversial giant shall emerge around whom
all four billion people in the world shall gather and start barking at
each other. In the end they will conclude either that he is the most
precious visitor sent by heaven, or the worst criminal. I cannot be
halfway or mediocre: I must be either completely good or completely
evil. The world is divided over this, saying both that I am the best
and the worst. Where do I stand? You recognize that I am a
controversial figure in the world. In one thing I have unquestionably
won the championship: I am the King of Controversy! That is one thing
no one can dispute, young or old. Mother and my children also believe
that.
Either I am extremely evil or extremely good, but which side am I
on? You are just saying I am on the side of good, right? When the
entire world hits you, will you divide or unite? You are not so dumb
that you will divide? Are you united? I see all kinds here, white and
black skins, and all colors of hair. Are you united? Will God say He
cannot forgive me because I took His love and all the young people, or
will He be excited and encourage me to do more?
What a wonderful goal we have! For the first time in history we
want to create one race of mankind we call the love race or Adam raise
all colors of skin as brothers and sisters and no national boundaries.
If I were living in the remote countryside of Cuba and called all the
Moonies of the world to come see me, would you come? Even if your
parents and all your relatives opposed you? Even if the U.S. Government
refused to let you go? Would you swim across? Sharks might get you!
The one principle of life or credo which would bring you is what is in
the Bible: "Those who would lose their life for my sake will find
it."
Do you think there will be years of greater controversy to come in
the future? No. The year of most heated worldwide controversy was
1976. Everyone was watching the Washington Monument Rally, including
nations and U.S. Government agencies, hoping Reverend Moon would sink
down. Only one group of young people was insisting that I would go up
instead. The problem is which side God stands on. He stood on my side
and because of that support we won the victory. This hectic battle will
continue until 1980, but a culminating point must come and it will all
be finished.
Without the help of God would it be possible that one man coming
from a mountain village in Korea, not understanding the language
or the culture, could go to a foreign land and stir up the entire
world in 3½ years? Is that an ordinary or an extraordinary
thing? Furthermore, that battle was not fought in an obscure place,
but in front of the U.S. Congress. It was a modern-day confrontation
between David and Goliath. I predicted in those days that we would
prevail, but when I spoke like that in 1976, 1977 and 1978, did
you believe me 100 %? Only a few of you said yes. Most of you
were not sure.
After all these victories were won, God declared the Day of the
Victory of Heaven. All the 6,000 years of biblical history were won at
that point. On the foundation of that victory I proclaimed the year one
in the history of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth, on February 23, 1977.
From that point on the defensive battle was finished and now everything
we do shall become a monument to that victory.
The battlefield since that day is home church, where we are deeply
moving into society. In home church we are winning on the level of
family, people, nation and world, and the home church victory represents
all victories. Home church is your divine altar to offer yourself as a
living sacrifice for God. When you make a righteous offering there you
are inheriting all of heaven. Your 360 home area is your world, your
place of love, service, worship and prayer. There you care for the
people and teach them, awakening them from darkness to light.
Ultimately you shall be recognized as their tribal messiah. You shall
be a master in three ways: master of love, master of all things, master
of people. It all comes together in home church.
If you are united into one then our opposition shall cease, slowly
but surely. As long as there is division, however, there will
continuously be enemies coming against us. The communists will
continue to pressure the free world until it awakens and becomes one.
Now you can clearly understand the meaning of the Day of the
Victory of Heaven. This is the historical day which marks my victory
over Satan and payment of all the debts of the world, just as Jacob
struggled with the angel at the ford of Jabbok and finally won. I have
restored the name Israel, which means victor, on the worldwide and
universal scale. That is the meaning of this day.
We have laid a firm foundation for the Kingdom of Heaven on earth.
Even if all of us except one person were to die, leaving that one
person to carry the banner, he would succeed in building the Kingdom of
Heaven. But we will not die; we shall win and the Kingdom of Heaven
shall be a reality, not a dream. Since the Day of the Victory of
Heaven, unity between God, Adam and Eve, and the archangel has taken
place. In the garden of Eden they were all divided, but here they are
united and restored.
Adam and Eve represent the physical kingdom of God on earth, while
the archangel represents the spirit world, or Kingdom of Heaven in
Heaven. All three united together create the unity of the Kingdom of
Heaven both on earth and in spirit world. Now that the foundation is
laid on earth, all the spiritual power that had been confined to heaven
can freely work and intervene on earth as well. This is why you can
act boldly and strongly-the entire spirit world and angelic world is
behind you. There is no way you can be alone and weak.
Unless you have a bold and dynamic trust in God and True Parents
and demonstrate your faith by your achievement here on earth, you will
not be respected when you go to spirit world. I want you to understand
the true meaning of this day. Before this day was declared, the spirit
world was in the subject role and here on earth we were in the passive
role. But the establishment of the Day of the Victory of Heaven
reversed these roles and now people on earth are the masters over the
spirit world. We are in command, not the spirit world.
From now on, those who join the Unification Church shall be fierce
fighters who will do more work than the old timers. I want you to
understand this very clearly because unless you do very well you shall
be in the position of Cain, not Abel. Who is Cain? He is the one who
doesn't want to go to the front line. That is why I push out all the
Abel forces to the front line, as in CARP. If you just want to sit
relaxed and idle, your foundation will be lost and you will find no
position in the Kingdom. This is why the Bible clearly predicted that
those who were first will become last, and the last become first. This
is why I had my first disciples from several decades ago in Korea come
to America and sent them to the front line. That's the only way they
could survive. The front line is the place of survival.
What is the gift which the Day of Victory of Heaven brought to you?
What will home church bring to you? God's providence has prevailed in
heaven and it shall prevail on earth; the priority has been reversed
from spirit world to physical world. A new age has dawned. Why do we
proclaim this new age? The old history has been terminated and the new
age has begun. The direction of God's work has been changed from
heaven to earth, and God will dominate directly. The highest of the
satanic positions has been taken over by the heavenly side.
We should work with the spirit of going 24 hours a day plus one
more hour. Since it is physically impossible to have 25 hours, you
have to run faster. There is no time to sit down and eat in
relaxation. There is no time to take all your clothes off and relax in
bed; just lean against your bed standing up and sleep a little bit.
That is the kind of tradition you must build. You will become pioneers
of the new age if you live this way, in the ultimate age which is
dawning in the Kingdom of Heaven on earth.
Rebecca, Tamar, Mary and others really gave up their lives to serve
God. Do you think I did that too? Would you inherit that tradition
too? From this time on God is with you. Home church is your
life-giving duty, and unto your life you should do home church. In
home church you will indemnify everything that was lost in history-all
the things of creation, all the love and heart which was lost, all of
God's personality which was lost.
Shall we renew ourselves on this anniversary and make a new
beginning? Those who feel, "Today we must make a pledge never to
shame the Day of the Victory of Heaven" raise your hands. Now the
emphasis has shifted from heaven to earth. God's spirit is coming down
and the emphasis of spirit world has
shifted to earth. We shall not get behind those in spirit world
but lead them. That should also be your pledge on this day. Raise
your hands and show me if you determine never to shame the Day of the
Victory of Heaven but to lead the spirit world and angelic world and
win the victory.
God bless you.
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