Revelation 7
13 One of the elders asked me, “Do you know who these people are that are dressed in white robes? Do you know where they come from?”
14 “Sir,” I answered, “you must know.”
Then he told me:
“These are the ones
who have gone through
the great suffering.
They have washed their robes
in the blood of the Lamb
and have made them white.
15 And so they stand
before the throne of God
and worship him in his temple
day and night.
The one who sits on the throne
will spread his tent
over them.
16 They will never hunger
or thirst again,
and they won’t be troubled
by the sun
or any scorching heat.
17 The Lamb in the center
of the throne
will be their shepherd.
He will lead them to streams
of life-giving water,
and God will wipe all tears
from their eyes.”
Job 22
21 Surrender to God All-Powerful!
You will find peace
and prosperity.
22 Listen to his teachings
and take them to heart.
23 If you return to God
and turn from sin,
all will go well for you.
24 So get rid of your finest gold,
as though it were sand.
25 Let God All-Powerful
be your silver and gold,
26 and you will find happiness
by worshiping him.
27 God will answer your prayers,
and you will keep the promises
you made to him.
28 He will do whatever you ask,
and life will be bright.
29 When others are disgraced,
God will clear their names
in answer to your prayers.
30 Even those who are guilty
will be forgiven,
because you obey God.
Oh, Where Shall I Go?
Sun Myung Moon
January 18, 1959
What kind of faith does Heaven desire? When Jesus said, “Believe in me,” he meant to believe in him as he believed in God. He could have said, “I am God’s son, and I believe in God,” because he was certain that God trusted him as His son, just as he trusted God as his Father. Jesus said this from such a position.
Today we are searching for faith. We are searching for the Word and the course of faith based on the Word. In Christian terms, the one substantial center who comes to humankind with the Word, centered on true faith, is called the Second Coming.
Humanity has been upholding God as the standard of faith. Analyzing faith as it has been held so far, God has been teaching humankind based on the Word. Now another battle is coming, since religions hitherto have not resolved everything. Speaking in biblical terms, this is the age of the seven-year turmoil of the last days. You should know this.
We should meet the substance through the Word. Today, although there are many who believe the words of Jesus, there is no one who believes in Jesus himself. Although there are many who follow his words, no one utterly relies upon and follows the substance of Jesus. We must. However, when someone appears with the true Word, we do not believe him. We even persecute him.
What kind of person should we become today? We should become one with the Word. The one who comes representing God is the only one of Heaven, the model for all people, the one who represents the entire ideal of humanity. When we compare ourselves with him, we should not be any different.
Thus, following the one who is good, righteous and victorious to the highest degree, we should take the subsequent steps. This is the road humanity should follow. Although humankind on earth has struggled for 6,000 years to rely on and live by the Word, no one served and lived with the one who is the master and substance of the Word. From the time of our ancestors to now, there has been no one who authentically served and lived with such a person.
God established countless numbers of saints and gave great amounts of words during the 4,000-year providence after the fall. To have humanity find the one center, God united and led a nation in one direction and promised to send the substance of the Word. That person was Jesus. For this reason, Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” (Matthew 4:13)
Jesus had the ability to fulfill all the words given until his time and had something greater than the Words God had given in the course of history. He was the Messiah. However, the people who had been waiting for the Messiah, the substance of the Word, did not recognize him when he actually came. You should know that they became the people who lost the substance of the Word.
Jesus, who appeared unexpectedly with the Word, went beyond all the historical conditions by engaging in a confrontation with God. There remains for us a condition also to engage in a confrontation with Jesus. You should know this.