Stop lying there on the ground! Get up! ¹¹ I said everything in Jericho belonged to me and had to be destroyed. But the Israelites have kept some of the things for themselves. They stole from me and hid what they took. Then they lied about it. ¹² What they stole was supposed to be destroyed, and now Israel itself must be destroyed. I cannot help you anymore until you do exactly what I have said. That’s why Israel turns and runs from its enemies instead of standing up to them.

Richard:  This is the exact same Rheama from four days ago.  I need to reflect on how I am offering the fruits of my labors to God (tithing).

Isaiah 31

The Egyptians are mere humans.
    They aren’t God.
Their horses are made of flesh;
    they can’t live forever.
When the Lord shows his power,
he will destroy the Egyptians
    and all who depend on them.
Together they will fall.

Who Will Become the Friend of Golgotha?

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
October 19, 1958

Jesus was a carpenter until he was thirty. If someone has had a holy, spiritual experience, he would know a part of the thirty years of Jesus’ life. If there is someone who knows, his heart will be torn with sorrow when he eats a good meal, wears good clothes, and lives in good circumstances. God was with Joseph when he took Mary, according to God’s will. Growing up in Joseph’s family, however, Jesus was treated disdainfully as a stepchild. As the children of Joseph became many, Jesus became more isolated. Thus, without being able to share his situation and feelings, he spent the thirty years of his life humbly, making other people’s doors with a saw and plane. Who knew his situation? No one. At that time, he could not appear as the historical Jesus as you believe in him now nor as the Christ with the historically acknowledged character.

Who are the ones who will receive the Messiah when he appears in the last days? Not the one who serves the historical character of Jesus. You should know that it is the one who serves the character of Jesus of the age. You should know that though Jesus carried the way of Heaven in his heart and worried about the earth, he suffered the sadness of not being recognized by his parents, and brothers and sisters.

Now we should believe in this Jesus. Our Unification members should believe, but believe in this Jesus first, know this Jesus first. We should know that, though we know Jesus as having taken the path of the cross and death, in fact he came to live. We should hold onto the deceased Jesus and cry.

Jesus was in a wretched situation. He could share his feelings in preparing for his death with no one. He could share his Shim Jung, stricken with the worries, sorrows and grudges of Heaven and earth, with no one. If there had been people who could cry with Jesus, understand his situation and befriend him, they would have become his disciples. Why Peter? How could Peter, fishing at the shore of Galilee, become the chief disciple of Jesus? This was to be deplored. What happened to the prepared religious figures and the chosen people? How could Peter and the fishermen, who were not even in God’s plan, unexpectedly become the disciples of Jesus? Jesus must become indignant. Jesus grieved because there was no welcome from the chosen people.

Thus, as you believe in the Lord today, do not simply believe in the deceased Jesus. Believe in Jesus as he worked when he was alive. Believe not only in Jesus who died on the cross but in Jesus who worried over the will of Heaven for the thirty years of his life. You should know that the course of his life was one of sighing for the sake of the will. It was one of a sorrowful Shim Jung, culminating in the sadness of the cross. Where is someone, on the earth, who understands Jesus’ suffering Shim Jung at Golgotha? Where is the one who can be his friend? Jesus needed friends in his family, friends among his brothers and sisters, friends who could represent all the fathers and mothers, and friends who could represent the church. He needed friends who could carry the cross in his place. Jesus needed friends who could tread the worldwide path of the cross and Golgotha in his place. There is no one now who knows this will and believes in Jesus thus.

Jesus, who appeared in the flesh with the historical will, was brought down after working under adverse circumstances. Those who have walked the historical course following the will Jesus left behind also have found themselves under the miserable circumstances of the ages, and they cried out for Jesus. When Jesus carried the cross at Golgotha, the whole universe was at stake. We should understand the heavenly Shim Jung, which therefore roams around to find a friend of Golgotha. That is, Heaven is looking for the friend who can understand the Shim Jung of Golgotha.