Author: Richard Urban

Adam and Eve could not grasp what kind of relationship they had with God

Exodus 1

11 The Egyptians put slave bosses in charge of the people of Israel and tried to wear them down with hard work. Those bosses forced them to build the cities of Pithom and Rameses,[b] where the king[c] could store his supplies. 12 But even though the Israelites were mistreated, their families grew larger, and they took over more land. Because of this, the Egyptians hated them worse than before 13 and made them work so hard 14 that their lives were miserable. The Egyptians were cruel to the people of Israel and forced them to make bricks and to mix mortar and to work in the fields.

Micah 5

Jerusalem, enemy troops
    have surrounded you;[a]
they have struck Israel’s ruler
    in the face with a stick.

2 Bethlehem Ephrath,
you are one of the smallest towns
    in the nation of Judah.
But the Lord will choose
one of your people
    to rule the nation—
someone whose family
    goes back to ancient times.

Let Us Open Our Eyes Once More and Behold the Sky

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
February 15, 1959

Matthew 26: 36-46

The title of the sermon I would like to share with you is “Let Us Open Our Eyes Once More and Behold the Sky.” I will speak briefly upon this topic.

This land in which we live has not seen the new morning of the realization of God’s ideal of creation. It has slept under the power of Satan for a long time. This is how our history has been. This is how our minds have been, how all that we pursue and the hearts we seek have been. In other words, none can wake from the deep sleep in which they exist, within the realm of Satan. We understand this fact very well.

When God created Adam and Eve and blessed them, they were wide awake, and they were able to rejoice with God in the world of eternal ideology. God created Adam and Eve for this purpose. However, Adam and Eve could not grasp what kind of relationship they had with God and the ideology with which they should relate with all things. In this state of immaturity, when they were progressing toward perfection, they made the grave and sorrowful mistake of the fall. We all understand this. Continue reading “Adam and Eve could not grasp what kind of relationship they had with God”

Restoring the Family Is Salvation

Cheon Seong Gyeong 2314

You must endure, sacrifice for and
serve your fiancée even if you do not like
her. “If I hadn’t met her I wouldn’t have
learnt anything. Now I see that I was giv-
en this person so that I could go through
more hardships in order to attain a spirit
of service and sacrifice and thus go to
heaven.” Those who think like this can
become great people and enter heaven.
God wants to have even sinners
become His sons and daughters. Just
because your fiancée might not have
such a pretty face or is Japanese or is a
little short, can you think, “Oh, I don’t
like her”? You men should be convinced
that you would go to the highest place
in heaven if you took the ugliest woman
and sacrificed yourself for and served
her more than anyone else. You should
understand that you would then become
the greatest husband and a saint of a
husband. Unification Church members
should be capable of having that level of
thought. (116-95, 1981.12.20)

Richard:  This is great advice for success in your marriage.  Even if your spouse is not the most beautiful, etc., you will grow as you love her and God will make up for any lacking of your spouse in the fullness of your relationship with Him.

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1273

Everyone, you must change com-
pletely after you go through the cere-
mony of converting the lineage. Would
this be possible if True Parents were not
here? Think about the path of hardships
previous generations had to persevere
through ever since the time of the cre-
ation of the world. Having True Parents
here right now is something for which
you should all be truly grateful. It is even
more amazing that you have received the
Blessing from them in person. Through
the Blessing, the tradition of the lineage,
that is, the tradition embedded with true
love, life and lineage can be established.
You must always keep this in mind.
(216-36, 1991.3.3)

Let Us Open Our Eyes Once More and Behold the Sky

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
February 15, 1959

Matthew 26: 36-46

Prayer

Father, every time a sad event takes place on the earth, Heaven mourns, our ancestors mourn, all things mourn, and we feel the same sorrow. Father, you have spent 6,000 years in fruitless wandering and struggling, unable to find that for which You were looking or a place to go, wishing all the while for the day of liberation from this sorrow. If You were to appear before us now, we would feel like crying endlessly.

Now we understand everything and have come seeking the original Parents. We wish, from the depth of our beings, for the day to come when we can shed tears of joy, rather than tears of sorrow-when we can cry for heaven and earth with such intensity as to even forget our existence. We wait for the day when we can remove all sorrows and leave only joy behind. Continue reading “Restoring the Family Is Salvation”

VisionRoot Specializes in Systems to Promote God’s Kingdom

Today is the celebration of the 6th Anniversary of the Seonghwa  of Rev. Sun Myung Moon.  Happy Seonghwa Anniversary to Rev. Moon!  Watch the anniversary ceremony here:  https://youtu.be/TjBBBLl2v5k.

Ezediel 40

28 We then went into the inner courtyard, through the gate on the south side of the temple. The man measured the gate, and it was the same size as the gates in the outer wall. 29-30 In fact, everything along the passageway was also the same size, including the guardrooms, the walls separating them, the entrance room at the far end, and the windows. This gate, like the others, was eighty-five feet long and forty-two feet wide. 31 The entrance room of this gate faced the outer courtyard, and carvings of palm trees decorated the walls of the passageway. Eight steps led up to this gate.

Richard:  God’s work is orderly.  Our ministry, VisionRoot, specializes in providing systems to promote the Kingdom of God, such as the STAR Interfaith Leadership Training, available online at the Urban Life Training Abstinence Education Portal:  https://www.urbanlifetraining.org/index.php/online-teaching-portal.

Proverbs 13

22 If you obey God,
    you will have something
    to leave your grandchildren.
If you don’t obey God,
    those who live right
    will get what you leave.

We will return to our regular scripture readings tomorrow.

 

The Work to Save Families

Cheon Seong Gyeong 2152

Through the foundation of multifar-
ious missionary and business activities
in Alaska, Antarctica, the countries of
the former Soviet Union, the 33 nations
of Latin America, and throughout Asia
and Africa, we are making preparations
to solve problems that humanity will
face over the coming millennium, such
as environmental pollution and fam-
ine. In recent years, I have worked in the
Pantanal and Amazon regions of Brazil
to lay a substantial foundation to protect
the Earth’s environment. On the other
hand as regards the internal aspects, I
have worked through the International
Holy Blessings and the True Family Val-
ues Ministry. Some 430 million couples
around the world have participated in
these marriage blessings, adding further
impetus to the building of God’s long-
awaited kingdom on earth based on ide-
al families.

Richard:  This sums up the salvific work of Rev. Sun Myung Moon.

Cheon Seong Gyeong 2152 

It may be important to live in afflu-
ence and to do something in life; how-
ever, before anything else, you need to
fulfill your duties of filial piety and loy-
alty to the vertical Heavenly Parent and
surpass living saints in your devotion
to Him. Such is the original purpose
for humankind’s birth. He created us in
order to meet such people. Such is our
underlying purpose. (58-231, 1972.6.11)

Let Us Open Our Eyes Once More and Behold the Sky

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
February 15, 1959

Matthew 26: 36-46

36 Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane. When they got there, he told them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”

37 Jesus took along Peter and the two brothers, James and John.[a] He was very sad and troubled, 38 and he said to them, “I am so sad that I feel as if I am dying. Stay here and keep awake with me.”

39 Jesus walked on a little way. Then he knelt with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, don’t make me suffer by having me drink from this cup.[b] But do what you want, and not what I want.”

40 He came back and found his disciples sleeping. So he said to Peter, “Can’t any of you stay awake with me for just one hour? 41 Stay awake and pray that you won’t be tested. You want to do what is right, but you are weak.”

42 Again Jesus went to pray and said, “My Father, if there is no other way, and I must suffer, I will still do what you want.”

43 Jesus came back and found them sleeping again. They simply could not keep their eyes open. 44 He left them and prayed the same prayer once more.

45 Finally, Jesus returned to his disciples and said, “Are you still sleeping and resting?[c] The time has come for the Son of Man to be handed over to sinners. 46 Get up! Let’s go. The one who will betray me is already here.”

Prayer

Father, humanity must awaken from its deep sleep and free themselves from the powers of darkness; yet, they do not. No matter what kind of obstacles block our path, please reveal Your compassionate hand to us so that we may dash toward the beacon of new light.

Father, we know the historical hardships You have suffered for our sake. We also know that You mourn that dark natures lie deep within us. We must look at ourselves and grieve, as the Father has grieved over the earth.

We must go beyond ourselves to pay back the debt we owe to all things, which are deep in sorrow, and comfort the Father’s grieving heart. Though we know in our hearts we must fulfill this responsibility, we have not been able to cope with it. Please forgive us.

We have inherited the history of sorrow and borne the fruits of sorrow. Although the Father has tried to nurture a history of joy and the fruits of joy, we have become fruits of bitterness and lament. Of course, this has caused deep sorrow and anguish in the Father’s heart. How could it not? Continue reading “The Work to Save Families”

Become a Worthy Bride of Jesus

1 Thessalonians 5

7 In the name of the Lord I beg you to read this letter to all his followers.

28 I pray that our Lord Jesus Christ will be kind to you!

Richard:  We should have the heart to share God’s Word and the good news of Jesus Christ and His Second Advent.

Proverbs 8

With great understanding,
    Wisdom is calling out
2     as she stands at the crossroads
    and on every hill.
3 She stands by the city gate
    where everyone enters the city,
    and she shouts:
4 “I am calling out
    to each one of you!
5 Good sense and sound judgment
    can be yours.
6     Listen, because what I say
    is worthwhile and right.
7 I always speak the truth
    and refuse to tell a lie.
8 Every word I speak is honest,
    not one is misleading
    or deceptive.

Let Us Understand God, Who Wanted to be Proud

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
February 8, 1959

Genesis 1: 24-31

Prayer

Father, the steps we have taken to go before You have been steps of ordeals through the history of contradiction. The saints and sages of the past were not considered normal people in the eyes of the people of their times. We know all too well, through our study of the Bible, that from the standpoints of their times, the saints and sages were stragglers, abnormal people who were ridiculed. This was the case with Noah and Abraham.

Who would have ever praised Abraham, who obeyed God’s command to offer his only son as a sacrifice and tried to strike him with a knife? He was the craziest and most strange person. Although he appeared to be insane, You related with him. The saints and sages were persecuted and ridiculed by the ignorant as they tried to bring pitiful people to the Father. Father, You have called upon us to build an inseparable bond of heart with us. We are truly awe-stricken before this infinite grace. Continue reading “Become a Worthy Bride of Jesus”