Author: Richard Urban

We have a heavenly mission to restore the authority of goodness

Revelation 5

“You are worthy
    to receive the scroll
and open its seals,
    because you were killed.
And with your own blood
    you bought for God
people from every tribe,
    language, nation, and race.
10 You let them become kings
    and serve God as priests,
and they will rule on earth.”

2nd Chronicles 18

7 “We could ask Micaiah son of Imlah,” Ahab said. “But I hate Micaiah. He always has bad news for me.”

“Don’t say that!” Jehoshaphat replied. 8 Then Ahab sent someone to bring Micaiah as soon as possible.

The Ideal Kingdom of Heaven, Our Hope

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
February 22, 1959

Matthew 3: 1-17

As we break apart the road of resentment that remains on earth, we must have a sincere desire to see the ideal world for which Jesus yearns in his heart. Only then can we meet the substance of that ideology.

After the first Israel perished, the second Israel, the Christians of the world, have worked hard to create that nation, race, land and authority, and are waiting for their leader to appear. Reality does not coincide with that ideal. There is no greater sadness than this.

What is a patriot? A patriot feels miserable when he sees the citizens of his nation in pitiful situations. He feels more pain than if his body was being dismembered when he sees his land trampled upon by other nations. He feels it more keenly than the leader of his nation when he sees the leader being treated unfairly and put in a miserable position.

What words are these about being brides who must meet the Prince of Heaven? We have the appearance of disloyalty, ugliness and sin and cannot even face the words. Therefore, we should have humble hearts. When we see the rights of the citizens of Heaven being infringed and Satan trampling this land, we must fight to recover them even if we die. We have a heavenly mission to restore the authority of goodness. Continue reading “We have a heavenly mission to restore the authority of goodness”

We Must Fight to Keep Giving

Cheon Seong Gyeong 927

In this world there are servants of
servants, servants, adopted children
and children by concubines. The world
is muddied. Order must be made. With
what will we find order? It is possible
only through love. Religions that inher-
ited and carried on the traditional way
of love should have become global reli-
gions. Religions that go against the way
of love and those who do not follow this
love will be judged as the representatives
who take responsibility for their age in
history.
What will pass judgment on the
world? It will be the tradition of love, the
tradition of loving heaven and earth, the
tradition of loving the world, the tradi-
tion of loving the nation, the tradition of
loving the people, the tradition of lov-
ing one’s family, the tradition of loving
one’s parents and one’s wife and broth-
ers, and the tradition of loving oneself.
(192-75, 1989.7.2)

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1441

Those who are registered centering
on True Parents will become the ances-
tors of the future. They will become
ancestors of the next world, and based
on the mainstream tribe and everyone
from the collateral family lines, tribes
will be created. That is why you need to
be registered. You cannot be registered
without doing anything for it. You first
need to restore 160 or 180 couples. Those
who have failed to accomplish this will
be eliminated. The era in which you
could assert your position as one of the
36 Couples has already passed. We are
now living in the era of equalization,
and the only issue in this era is who will
be the first to fulfill that responsibility.
(286-247, 1997.8.11)

The Ideal Kingdom of Heaven, Our Hope

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
February 22, 1959

Matthew 3: 1-17

After Jesus passed away, God prepared for 2,000 years for the meeting to come. Jesus has been praying and preparing for 2,000 years from the spiritual world so that we may meet the bride of Heaven in the last days. Jesus has the responsibility of a bridegroom, and people on earth have the responsibility of a bride. Jesus has been fulfilling that responsibility in the spiritual world. We know this through the Bible.

How can the brides on earth meet the bridegroom? They must fulfill their responsibility. When Jesus appears on earth, he appears after having fulfilled his responsibility. Therefore, we should also fulfill our responsibility. As the reward for fulfilling Your responsibility, you will receive a gift from Heaven. Therefore, all the Christians of the world should fulfill their responsibility as the bride.

Jesus said, “You shall witness unto me, unto the uttermost part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) He said, “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.” (Matthew 16:25)

We must be people who fight to keep giving, in the course of fulfilling our responsibility. That is the only way we will not be ashamed in the presence of the hearts of those who fought for the earth through historical courses, like Jesus, the bridegroom. They did not eat when they were hungry and never had a day free of anxiety and concern. Each of you must know that you can be qualified to meet Jesus only after fulfilling your responsibilities. Continue reading “We Must Fight to Keep Giving”

You Must Meet Jesus Again at the Second Advent

Ephesians 6

5 Slaves, you must obey your earthly masters. Show them great respect and be as loyal to them as you are to Christ. 6 Try to please them at all times, and not just when you think they are watching. You are slaves of Christ, so with your whole heart you must do what God wants you to do. 7 Gladly serve your masters, as though they were the Lord himself, and not simply people. 8 You know that you will be rewarded for any good things you do, whether you are slaves or free.

Richard:  I think that this speaks to our attitude as we do the duties that God gives us in life (through our conscience, mainly, but also to others such as our parents, or Christ).  We should give obeisance to Christ and be glad to go the way of sacrifice, knowing that we will reach the goal of happiness after the course of hardship.  The problem is, as Rev. Moon stated yesterday “We the followers of Jesus must go the way he went, whether we live or die. The problem is whether you really want to go this way.”

Isaiah 30

29 The Lord’s people will sing as they do when they celebrate a religious festival[e] at night. The Lord is Israel’s mighty rock,[f] and his people will be as happy as they are when they follow the sound of flutes to the mountain where he is worshiped.

The Ideal Kingdom of Heaven, Our Hope

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
February 22, 1959

Matthew 3: 1-17

We must go. We must go over the idea of faith that religious people hold. Furthermore, we must go over the cross of Jesus. Beyond the cross, we must go over Jesus’ heart of resurrection. We must even go over God’s heart and comfort Him. We must advance toward that kind of position.

How can we stop our footsteps from heading toward that longed-for place, the place where God resides, the place where Jesus dwells, the place of the true brotherhood of humankind? Before you lies the road of ideology that we must go, no matter what on earth holds us, stepping over every obstacle. We must even lead the people who have been those obstacles into following that road.

Have you ever thought about God’s hard work in finding us? From the day of the fall, God always sought Adam. God never failed to follow Adam’s descendants. He has been seeking you when you did not know He was doing so. Have you ever sought God? You must know that 6,000 years of sadness and millions of people’s deaths obstructed His path. When we know the hard work of God in seeking us, we should have the same kind of heart as we in turn seek God. Continue reading “You Must Meet Jesus Again at the Second Advent”

Do You Want to Go the Same Way as Jesus?

We the followers of Jesus must go the way he went, whether we live or die. The problem is whether you really want to go this way.

Cheon Seong Gyeong 194

What kind of person is a wise person?
He is the first to understand and recog-
nize the global era and the time of hope.
The wise person is the one who can bear
the responsibility of being the first to
recognize it, analyze it, criticize it, and
take action. In this way, he takes posses-
sion of it. Although he comes as an indi-
vidual, when the Messiah appears on
earth, he is not just an individual. He is
the fruit of faith, hope, and love that the
whole world desires. This is his value. All
the paths of history are connected to this
fruit. In other words; past, present and
future are all connected to it. Further-
more, all individuals, families, tribes,
peoples, nations and the world are con-
nected, and both heaven and earth are
connected to it. (13-142, 1964.01.01)

Cheon Seong Gyeong 1848

You could number the fish as you
like, for example you could name one
“fish number one.” Then those num-
bers could form a unified name system
worldwide. A fish could be numbered
as fish one hundred-and-something or
fifty-something. If there is a special fish
you like, you can call and order it by
number. You can tell them that you are
going to the fish farm at a certain time
and ask them to prepare fish number so-
and-so for you. All you would need then
is a sashimi knife. You can make sashi-
mi with that particular fish and have a
tasty meal. Such a time will come. (274-109,
1995.10.29)

The Ideal Kingdom of Heaven, Our Hope

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
February 22, 1959

Matthew 3: 1-17

Jesus carried with him the suffering of humankind. He started from the lowest point of humanity and ended at the top of Golgotha. There he sacrificed his whole self. Where was God’s son, the heir apparent, the Prince of Heaven? Where was the Messiah of humankind, the Savior? At that place, Jesus could not assert one iota’s worth of his value. It was a tragic and pitiable place. Yet Jesus was able to go over that hill of death, look to Heaven and advance toward Heaven’s ideal garden. His ideology was more powerful than death. His ideology was more powerful than any force in history. Thus, he was able to push aside the realm of death and resurrect. He brought the people who opposed him to repentance and, hence, Christianity today has a base of victory.

We the followers of Jesus must go the way he went, whether we live or die. The problem is whether you really want to go this way. Continue reading “Do You Want to Go the Same Way as Jesus?”

Jesus Endured Hardships for Us

Leviticus 1

14 If you offer a bird for this kind of sacrifice, it must be a dove or a pigeon. 15 A priest will take the bird to the bronze altar, where he will wring its neck and put its head on the fire. Then he will drain out its blood on one side of the altar, 16 remove the bird’s craw with what is in it,[e] and throw them on the ash heap at the east side of the altar.[f]17 Finally, he will take the bird by its wings, tear it partially open,[g] and send it up in smoke with a smell that pleases me.

Richard:  We should not be afraid to sacrifice ourselves and do unpleasant tasks to help others.

I live among lions,
    who gobble down people!
They have spears and arrows
    instead of teeth,
    and they have sharp swords
    instead of tongues.

5 May you, my God, be honored
    above the heavens;
    may your glory be seen
    everywhere on earth.

The Ideal Kingdom of Heaven, Our Hope

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
February 22, 1959

Matthew 3: 1-17

Jesus was supposed to walk the road of the providence in front. Yet, he could not go in front. Instead, he stood behind everyone and said to each, “You go the easy way. I will walk the most difficult path.” He shouldered the difficulties of the nation and the world alone. He carried the cross of hardship, which humankind repels, by himself and lived for the sake of humankind. Jesus had to walk the road, even though it was one of historical sadness, entangled with evil conditions. Thus, with a thirty-year period of preparation and a three-year period of public life, he walked that road with intense, internal determination. The more intense that conviction became, the more he became a friend to sorrowful humankind. Moreover, he was mortified over the fact that human beings were suffering a life of fear and that Satan ruled humankind. In the humblest place in history, in the humblest place of the age, he fought with Satan.

He walked the road with a mind to say, “If humankind is in sorrow, I will take responsibility for its sadness. If humankind is in difficulty, I will take responsibility for that difficulty. If humankind lives in death, I will take responsibility for death.” His footsteps were those of an individual, but his mission was a historical mission, a mission of the age, a mission for the future. Continue reading “Jesus Endured Hardships for Us”