Category: Old Testament

Some Force has been pulling us and Prodding Us in the Depths of Our Hearts

Watch the latest Richard Urban show with Stephen Downward: True Father’s Words Have Been Adulterated: https://youtu.be/8h9AhTg10kQ.

Mark 14

53 Jesus was led off to the high priest. Then the chief priests, the nation’s leaders, and the teachers of the Law of Moses all met together. 54 Peter had followed at a distance. And when he reached the courtyard of the high priest’s house, he sat down with the guards to warm himself beside a fire.

55 The chief priests and the whole council tried to find someone to accuse Jesus of a crime, so they could put him to death. But they could not find anyone to accuse him. 56 Many people did tell lies against Jesus, but they did not agree on what they said. 57 Finally, some men stood up and lied about him. They said, 58 “We heard him say he would tear down this temple that we built. He also claimed that in three days he would build another one without any help.” 59 But even then they did not agree on what they said.

Nehemiah 4

4 When Sanballat, the governor of Samaria, heard that we were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, he became angry and started insulting our people. 2 In front of his friends and the Samaritan army he said, “What is this feeble bunch of Jews trying to do? Are they going to rebuild the wall and offer sacrifices all in one day? Do they think they can make something out of this pile of scorched stones?”

4 When Sanballat, the governor of Samaria, heard that we were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, he became angry and started insulting our people. 2 In front of his friends and the Samaritan army he said, “What is this feeble bunch of Jews trying to do? Are they going to rebuild the wall and offer sacrifices all in one day? Do they think they can make something out of this pile of scorched stones?”

3 Tobiah from Ammon was standing beside Sanballat and said, “Look at the wall they are building! Why, even a fox could knock over this pile of stones.”

4 But I prayed, “Our God, these people hate us and have wished horrible things for us. Please answer our prayers and make their insults fall on them! Let them be the ones to be dragged away as prisoners of war. 5 Don’t forgive the mean and evil way they have insulted the builders.”

6 The people worked hard, and we built the walls of Jerusalem halfway up again. 7 But Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the people from the city of Ashdod saw the walls going up and the holes being repaired. So they became angry 8 and decided to stir up trouble, and to fight against the people of Jerusalem. 9 But we kept on praying to our God, and we also stationed guards day and night.

10 Meanwhile, the people of Judah were singing a sorrowful song:

“So much rubble for us to haul!
    Worn out and weary,
will we ever finish this wall?”

11 Our enemies were saying, “Before those Jews know what has happened, we will sneak up and kill them and put an end to their work.”

12 On at least ten different occasions, the Jews living near our enemies warned us against attacks from every side,[a] 13 and so I sent people to guard the wall at its lowest places and where there were still holes in it. I placed them according to families, and they stood guard with swords and spears and with bows and arrows. 14 Then I looked things over and told the leaders, the officials, and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of your enemies! The Lord is great and fearsome. So think of him and fight for your relatives and children, your wives and homes!”

15 Our enemies found out that we knew about their plot against us, but God kept them from doing what they had planned. So we went back to work on the wall.

16 From then on, I let half of the young men work while the other half stood guard. They wore armor and had spears and shields, as well as bows and arrows. The leaders helped the workers 17 who were rebuilding the wall. Everyone who hauled building materials kept one hand free to carry a weapon. 18 Even the workers who were rebuilding the wall strapped on a sword. The worker who was to blow the signal trumpet stayed with me.

19 I told the people and their officials and leaders, “Our work is so spread out, that we are a long way from one another. 20 If you hear the sound of the trumpet, come quickly and gather around me. Our God will help us fight.”

21 Every day from dawn to dark, half of the workers rebuilt the walls, while the rest stood guard with their spears.

22 I asked the men in charge and their workers to stay inside Jerusalem and stand guard at night. So they guarded the city at night and worked during the day. 23 I even slept in my work clothes at night; my children, the workers, and the guards slept in theirs as well. And we always kept our weapons close by.[b]

What Belongs to the Father Belongs to Me

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
August 30, 1959

John 14:11

1 Corinthians 13: 1-13

The title of the sermon I am about to give today is “What Belongs to the Father Belongs to Me.” To expand the scope of this, it becomes “What Belongs to the Father Belongs to Us.” I will speak briefly on this topic.

Until now we have thought that we have infinite value. We do not know the nature of our value; we only know that we are valuable. However we feel, that cannot establish our complete value and remain till the end. We cannot confidently and with dignity take pride in ourselves before the great universal reality with the mere feeling that we are valuable.

We cannot deny that because this is the state we find ourselves in, we long for the precious being, the precious one, the relationship of value and the valuable world. We are to seek for these. When we recognize what needs to be done and we look at the great universe, we cannot help but have an intense feeling of emptiness.

Hence, we seek something we can depend upon. We sense deeply through our consciences and in our lives that it is our fate to pursue this. From this standpoint, even if there were no God, we would have to create a fictional absolute being. If we understand that we live in such a situation and that there should be some order in our actions, including our feelings, our rejoicing and singing, and if we reflect upon ourselves as to whether or not we can forge a valuable relationship with that and be happy, we can probably conclude on our own that the answer is negative.

Because this is the miserable situation of human beings, if there were a God, He would have some responsibility to establish a relationship with us. If God is the subject partner of absolute value and the origin of value itself, then we cannot logically deny that if God does nothing to establish that valuable relationship, there is no way to attribute love and other such characteristics to God.

We know that human beings fell. We know that they lost their original position. Human beings lost their original value. We should look at the whole world. If there is a God, then we should call out “Heaven.” If there is an absolute being, we should call out “Absolute Being,” and if there is something which has the form of goodness, we should appeal to it to manifest itself in concrete form. We should ardently long for such an absolute being, a God, or being of goodness.

Because Heaven understands the situation human beings are in, He has not hesitated to exert Himself to the utmost and sacrifice Himself to recover us. He did not hesitate to exhaust Himself in clinging to humanity. He has been searching for the value of the whole and of the ideal. If we accept this, we should have a humble heart. Pressing our hands together, we should bow before Him.

When we fathom this movement of the whole, the flow of history and the sway of our hearts, we find that even if we are not aware of it, some force has been pulling us and prodding us in the background of history and in the depth of our hearts. We have to understand that some force deep inside our hearts prods us to pursue some value. We should not ignore this as a coincidence or phenomenon, because it stems from an inseparable relationship inside each one of us. When we decipher this relationship and examine its value, we find that therein lies something which is connected to God, the epitome of goodness. This relationship has to be built.

Develop Knowledge and Fight Opposition to Win

Watch the latest Richard Urban show with Stephen Downward: True Father’s Words Have Been Adulterated: https://youtu.be/8h9AhTg10kQ.

Mark 2

18 The followers of John the Baptist and the Pharisees often went without eating.[e] Some people came and asked Jesus, “Why do the followers of John and those of the Pharisees often go without eating, while your disciples never do?”

19 Jesus answered:

The friends of a bridegroom don’t go without eating while he is still with them. 20 But the time will come when he will be taken from them. Then they will go without eating.

21 No one patches old clothes by sewing on a piece of new cloth. The new piece would shrink and tear a bigger hole.

22 No one pours new wine into old wineskins. The wine would swell and burst the old skins.[f] Then the wine would be lost, and the skins would be ruined. New wine must be put into new wineskins.

Richard: Jesus brought the new word of truth. Yet it was very hard for the prepared Jewish people to receive this word. They would need a new perspective, like putting wine into new, not old, wineskins.

Psalm 38

I trust you, Lord God,
    and you will do something.
16     I said, “Don’t let them laugh
    or brag because I slip.”

17 I am about to collapse
    from constant pain.
18     I told you my sins,
    and I am sorry for them.
19 Many deadly and powerful
    enemies hate me,
20     and they repay evil for good
    because I try to do right.

21 You are the Lord God!
    Stay nearby
    and don’t desert me.
22 You are the one who saves me.
    Please hurry and help.

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
August 9, 1959

1 Corinthians 9: 14-27

There are many religions today. There are many religious sects today: Confucianism, Buddhism, Islam, etc. There are many tracks in the stadium. However, Heaven decides the specific track. It has been determined which event will be held on which track. It is an unfortunate reality that human beings are directed by a certain religious sect or denomination or some person. This is because human beings fell.

You must participate in God’s race one way or another. You will have to run in one event. Yet you belong to different nations. The races that God wants are not to be divided among nations. They are international. In other words, they are like the Olympic games. Into that stadium, all the representatives of each nation will come. They all enter the stadium and run. The same thing can be said of God’s providence of restoration. For this reason, Heaven has been working to find the winners of the marathon race on the world level. Religion may be compared to marathons, which occupy the most prestigious position among all the races.

Not all religions are good. Only when the tradition is properly set will a good religion emerge. Then there must arise common knowledge based upon that. If one lacks knowledge about that, no matter how much one may have prepared, there is no way he can become the winner. It cannot be taught. He will never win, because he does not have a clear sense of purpose.

Therefore, you should prepare your minds and bodies and develop knowledge, so that even if all of Heaven and earth were to be mobilized in opposition against you on the battle field, you would not surrender but overcome it. You should fight on with this kind of conviction. Only then can you participate in the group who will win in the final course.

Prayer

Our ancestors ran the race. Adam was responsible for one event in God’s race, but while he was running it, he collapsed because he upheld himself. Ham, who should have attended Noah with the heart of attending Heaven, failed. Because of this, Noah also fell down mid-course. Abraham should have revered both small and large with an equally sincerely heart and established their relative value, but because he could not accomplish it, he also was broken.

When we examine the course of Moses, we find that the Israelites and Moses both fell. Moses should not have shown anger before God was angry. The Israelites should not have despaired before Heaven despaired. Yet Moses struck the rock twice in rage before God showed any anger, and the Israelites lost their faith in God. For these reasons they all fell down in the wilderness.

When we examine Jesus’ time, what about the betrayal of the three disciples? Although they should have risked their lives and walked the course, they did not want to go. They disappeared out of fear for their lives. The miserable failure of the three disciples has become the tower of humanity’s grief.

We have learned today through the principle of restoration that the path the saints of the past walked is none other than the path we should walk. We know that what was begun in Adam’s family passed through many obstacles in history. Only in Jesus’ time, when Jesus said, “Father, do not as I will, but as Thou will,” did a winner emerge who fought at the risk of his life. Now we have come to understand that if we do not follow his example, we cannot run the race in the stadium.

Father, we have come to understand the content of the restoration. We have come to understand what our determination should be as we set out to engage ourselves in restoration and how fierce the battle is. Please protect us on these race tracks, that we will not fall as losers. We have pledged before Heaven and earth. Even if we are to face death, no matter what kind of difficulties and pain are to rush against us, even if all of humanity were to oppose us like a thunderstorm, and even if Heaven and earth were to change, please let our center remain unchanged and let us overcome all difficulties. Let us cast away the dark clouds and become victorious and glorious sons and daughters who can look up to the joyful grace of Heaven in a bright Heaven and earth.

Please have compassion on those of us who have gathered here today. Since we have already entered the race, even though some are running and some are unable to run, please govern them so that they will not escape from this fateful course they must run after repentance. Please guide us to welcome the tribulations and afflictions that come our way and to digest them so that we can establish conditions of pride and glory before the Father. Let us become worthy people who can use them as conditions of sacrifice.

We understand the great work which has been hidden deep inside the heart of the Father, who has desired to give awards for six thousand years. Based on this, Jesus said that he was the bridegroom and that we are the brides; that he is our true father and we are his true children, true family, true nation, and true world. However, today we do not have a family, a people or a country. We do not have anything adequately prepared. What hesitation and reluctance can we have before our parent, who is trying to restore everything? What hesitation and reluctance can we have before the heavenly family and the heavenly nation? We should pour out all of our determination and unswerving zeal to run the race without stopping and conquer the enemy camp. We should raise the flag of God’s victory and say, “Father, please be liberated from all Your grief.”

We have learned that to accomplish this we have to overcome any difficulty and win in the fight. Please protect us so that we will not fail as racers in our life. Please guide us not to lose the original ideal that the Father established and not to cause anguish to the Father’s heart.

Please allow us to become children of Heaven who can risk our lives each day and run the race bravely. Please do not let us lose the race. Praying that You will allow us to become final victors in God’s races and become precious sons and daughters who can glorify the Father before the entire universe and all things of creation, we prayed in the name of the Lord. Amen. 

You Should Endure Jesus’ and God’s Opposition

John 8

31 Jesus told the people who had faith in him, “If you keep on obeying what I have said, you truly are my disciples. 32 You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

33 They answered, “We are Abraham’s children! We have never been anyone’s slaves. How can you say we will be set free?”

34 Jesus replied:

I tell you for certain that anyone who sins is a slave of sin! 35 And slaves don’t stay in the family forever, though the Son will always remain in the family. 36 If the Son gives you freedom, you are free! 37 I know that you are from Abraham’s family. Yet you want to kill me, because my message isn’t really in your hearts. 38 I am telling you what my Father has shown me, just as you are doing what your father has taught you.

Richard: Jesus here indicated that the people made a grave error by not accepting Jesus. He states, in fact, that their father is not God, but the devil.

Joel 3

From the heart of Jerusalem
the Lord roars like a lion,
    shaking the earth and sky.
But the Lord is a fortress,
a place of safety
    for his people Israel.

Inside God’s Stadium

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
August 9, 1959

1 Corinthians 9: 14-27

Although Jesus worked to fulfill the mission of the Messiah who was to win in this stadium and represent the four-thousand-year history, Christians did not fulfill their responsibility. They were to receive the Messiah’s baton of victory and glorify the two-thousand-year history from Jesus’ time until now. Although Christianity established its form after the death of Jesus, it failed to complete its victorious foundation in the realm of the heart and in other areas. The standard of victory has never emerged.

You should endure Jesus’ and God’s opposition and gain their recognition so that they can raise their hands and bless you. To do so, you should overcome any obstacle. Isn’t that true? If it is, what kind of providential representative does God want to raise up in His providence of restoration? God will want to find victorious sons and daughters to whom God and Satan will surrender. He will want to praise them before the satanic world and in Heaven. If that is what human beings desire, God’s desire must also be similar.

We the members of the Unification Church who are walking the path of truth today will face God’s test in the end. He will say, “Do not walk this path.” Even then, there must be someone among you who says, “I will go. I will die running the race.” If there is no such person, words of truth which surpass the Bible will not emerge. Words which surpass what Jesus left behind when he died will not emerge. Words of truth which surpass what God wanted to speak after the coming of Jesus will not appear.

When we are running this course, we should have the conviction, “Let there be a cross heavier than the one that Jesus bore; let there be suffering, sorrow and pain like God suffered during the six-thousand-year course of the providence. Let the 2.7 billion people of this world be mobilized and shoot arrows at me all at once. Let the humanity of the entire world be mobilized, since both God’s providence and Satan’s opposition are carried out through human beings. I will go to the end of hell and the highest place of the Kingdom of Heaven.” If, after opposing and affirming in your mind you decide that this is the right path, you should begin to run. Once you run, no one should be able to stop you. No matter what comes your way, you are to break through and go forward. Only then can you safely cross over the hill which has been blocked for six thousand years.

Members of the Unification Church, God is longing for brave people who can come and say, “Let us give it a try.” Only then can the will be accomplished. If there are sons and daughters of God who are knowledgeable, have firm determination and are determined to fight, God will not ignore them. What will Heaven do? If you bring hope for the future and say, “Father, isn’t this so? Isn’t this how Your heart is? Isn’t this how the Father’s hope of the past, the present, and hope of the future is? Since this should not be done at present, shouldn’t you ignore this and do this and that?” Then no matter who opposes you, God will say in recognition, “Yes, you are right.”

Pursue the Right Path at the Risk of Your Life

Watch the latest Richard Urban show with Caleb Johnson: Always Keep Your Promises Before God: https://youtu.be/8U3csFc2_dM.

“Know your neighbor, love your neighbor, help your neighbor”:
Jake Wood, founder of Team Rubicon: https://youtu.be/B25PvyNXboU

Acts 10

In Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, who was the captain of a group of soldiers called “The Italian Unit.” 2 Cornelius was a very religious man. He worshiped God, and so did everyone else who lived in his house. He had given a lot of money to the poor and was always praying to God.

3 One afternoon at about three o’clock,[a] Cornelius had a vision. He saw an angel from God coming to him and calling him by name. 4 Cornelius was surprised and stared at the angel. Then he asked, “What is this all about?”

The angel answered, “God has heard your prayers and knows about your gifts to the poor. 5 Now send some men to Joppa for a man named Simon Peter. 6 He is visiting with Simon the leather maker, who lives in a house near the sea.” 7 After saying this, the angel left.

Cornelius called in two of his servants and one of his soldiers who worshiped God. 8 He explained everything to them and sent them off to Joppa.

9 The next day about noon these men were coming near Joppa. Peter went up on the roof[b] of the house to pray 10 and became very hungry. While the food was being prepared, he fell sound asleep and had a vision. 11 He saw heaven open, and something came down like a huge sheet held up by its four corners. 12 In it were all kinds of animals, snakes, and birds. 13 A voice said to him, “Peter, get up! Kill these and eat them.”

14 But Peter said, “Lord, I can’t do that! I’ve never eaten anything that is unclean and not fit to eat.”[c]

15 The voice spoke to him again, “When God says that something can be used for food, don’t say it isn’t fit to eat.”

16 This happened three times before the sheet was suddenly taken back to heaven.

17 Peter was still wondering what all of this meant, when the men sent by Cornelius came and stood at the gate. They had found their way to Simon’s house 18 and were asking if Simon Peter was staying there.

19 While Peter was still thinking about the vision, the Holy Spirit said to him, “Three[d] men are here looking for you. 20 Hurry down and go with them. Don’t worry, I sent them.”

21 Peter went down and said to the men, “I am the one you are looking for. Why have you come?”

22 They answered, “Captain Cornelius sent us. He is a good man who worships God and is liked by the Jewish people. One of God’s holy angels told Cornelius to send for you, so he could hear what you have to say.” 23 Peter invited them to spend the night.

The next morning, Peter and some of the Lord’s followers in Joppa left with the men who had come from Cornelius. 24 The next day they arrived in Caesarea where Cornelius was waiting for them. He had also invited his relatives and close friends.

25 When Peter arrived, Cornelius greeted him. Then he knelt at Peter’s feet and started worshiping him. 26 But Peter took hold of him and said, “Stand up! I am nothing more than a human.”

27 As Peter entered the house, he was still talking with Cornelius. Many people were there, 28 and Peter said to them, “You know that we Jews are not allowed to have anything to do with other people. But God has shown me that he doesn’t think anyone is unclean or unfit. 29 I agreed to come here, but I want to know why you sent for me.”

30 Cornelius answered:

Four days ago at about three o’clock in the afternoon I was praying at home. Suddenly a man in bright clothes stood in front of me. 31 He said, “Cornelius, God has heard your prayers, and he knows about your gifts to the poor. 32 Now send to Joppa for Simon Peter. He is visiting in the home of Simon the leather maker, who lives near the sea.”

33 I sent for you right away, and you have been good enough to come. All of us are here in the presence of the Lord God, so that we can hear what he has to say.

34 Peter then said:

Now I am certain that God treats all people alike. 35 God is pleased with everyone who worships him and does right, no matter what nation they come from. 36 This is the same message that God gave to the people of Israel, when he sent Jesus Christ, the Lord of all, to offer peace to them.

Zechariah 12

6 At that time I will let the clans of Judah be like a ball of fire in a wood pile or a fiery torch in a hay stack. Then Judah will send the surrounding nations up in smoke. And once again the city of Jerusalem will be filled with people.

7 But I will first give victory to Judah, so the kingdom of David and the city of Jerusalem in all of their glory won’t be thought of more highly than Judah itself. 8 I, the Lord God, will protect Jerusalem. Even the weakest person there will be as strong as David, and David’s kingdom will rule as though my very own angel were its leader. 9 I am determined to wipe out every nation that attacks Jerusalem.

Inside God’s Stadium

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
August 9, 1959

1 Corinthians 9: 14-27

You may believe that Jesus resides in the Kingdom of Heaven, but he actually resides in Paradise. Jesus said that he was going to Paradise. Paradise is the waiting room before one enters the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus is returning to go past the gates of Paradise and open up the gates to the Kingdom of Heaven. Since he could not complete this work on the earth, he will run the race again and score the goal at the finish line.

Therefore, the race we are running is the final course. It has the name of faith. It may be compared to a marathon. It is the most glorious of all races. Religion is the event that deserves the throne of the king of all races. How must we who have entered this race run? It is not enough to run the race relying on our determination alone. You have to understand that there are many battles which have piled up here. The world is pulling our bodies. Isn’t this so? In our religious life, we sense that the world is pulling our bodies, while the teachings are pulling our minds. Where is the goal? It is not clear. On the path that we walk, many enemies are shooting arrows at us from all kinds of hidden places. Moreover, Jesus and God in whom we believe will not recognize you in the Last Days. This will take place one day.

As brave soldiers, what determination should we make? The moment we decide that the goal of the path we are racing on is the right one, we should make the determination to pursue it at the risk of our lives. Only then can we win the course. If we are to fail, we should be determined to fail most tragically. If we are to die, we should be determined to die most miserably. If we are to suffer, we should be determined to suffer most severely. We should be determined to suffer more than God has suffered.

Prevail Over Anything, Even if God Were to Strike You

Watch the latest Richard Urban show with Caleb Johnson: Always Keep Your Promises Before God: https://youtu.be/8U3csFc2_dM.

“Know your neighbor, love your neighbor, help your neighbor”:
Jake Wood, founder of Team Rubicon: https://youtu.be/B25PvyNXboU


Jude 1

1 From Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and the brother of James.

To all who are chosen and loved by God the Father and are kept safe by Jesus Christ.

2 I pray that God will greatly bless you with kindness, peace, and love!

Ezekiel 7

19 Your silver and gold will be thrown into the streets like garbage, because those are the two things that led you into sin, and now they cannot save you from my anger. They are not even worth enough to buy food. 20 You took great pride in using your beautiful jewelry to make disgusting idols of foreign gods. So I will make your jewelry worthless.

Inside God’s Stadium

Rev. Sun Myung Moon
August 9, 1959

1 Corinthians 9: 14-27

This is because God desires that we rejoice with Him and win the victory with Him. Since God is the God of the past, the present and the future, we should also have the qualities of the past, present and the future and be knowledgeable about them. Otherwise, we will be swept away by trends of thought in the future.

We should understand them more deeply and even understand the heart of the historical God. Members of a family are tied together in complex relationships. Given God’s heart of the past, present and future, we should understand everything about the race that the Father is directing based on this heart and be in tune with the realm of His heart. God’s desire is that we win the race after having done all this, so that we can become those with whom He can be fully satisfied; so that we can worship God and share eternal joy with Him.

Therefore, religion is not built on truth alone. A religious way of life is more than just the truth itself. Teachings and ideologies are built on truth, but religion contains both the truth and the heart. This is the difference. Thoughts and ideologies do not contain the heart. However, religion has a rich inner content similar to the silent love that we find between a parent and a child. There is some content which transcends logic and theories. That is how religion is. But this is not true for doctrines. A doctrine is the fruit of an organization or group. It is not a fruit of the heart.

We today must have knowledge about the course and the situation of this age in order to be prepared properly as racers who are running toward a certain purpose. In order to race forward, we should also understand the future and have a plan. This is the basic knowledge that we racers should have. If there is someone who goes this heavenly course at the risk of his life, with God’s heart of the past, present and future, who understands how much God has suffered to establish and pave this course, he will surely overcome any difficulty he will confront.

Next, we should not lose our fighting spirit as we are racing toward our purpose. No matter how well prepared and knowledgeable our enemy may be, we must have the determination to prevail. We must not lose. The sphere of our actions is the battle field. You should be a brave soldier who is determined to prevail over anything on earth and never submit, even if God were to strike you. This is how I see it.