Matthew 27:1-56
Former Church Headquarters
Seoul, Korea
The title of the sermon I am going to give is, "Let Us Become Someone Who Can Hold Jesus' Body and Mourn." You must feel once again that Jesus, in whom you believe, was sent as the great prophet of the heavenly principles, with the mission from Heaven to restore all things. He is the center of hope for which all things, human beings and Heaven have longed.
Jesus Is Needed by God, Humankind and All Things
Jesus, who came 2,000 years ago, is not someone who was needed only by the Jewish people at the time. He was needed by humanity, throughout the 2,000-year course of history after that. He is not only someone you need today. He is needed for the construction of the garden of peace which God desires on the earth. Consequently, all people and all things are still yearning for the time when all can become one, centering on the returning Jesus. Appearing before the throne of the Father, with the song of victory, they will offer a glorious welcome. In other words, Jesus is an essential person for Heaven, for human beings on earth, and for all things of the creation.
You must be able to manifest the will of God, the historical ideology, as the standard of victory centering on you. However, if you cannot do that, there is no way you can unshackle humanity from the torment and sorrows they have suffered through the 6,000-year history of conflict until today.
Many people in history have believed in Jesus. Jesus has been fighting against Satan for the sake of the earth, all people and all things on behalf of the will of Heaven. You have to understand that because Jesus could not fully accomplish the purpose he desired for Heaven and earth when he came, he has been fighting in the spirit world with a pained heart even to this moment.
Accordingly, unless that conflict ends, the fight of Heaven will not end nor will the fight on earth. Unless we can accomplish our hope, the things of creation will not be able to have a day of hope.
When we think about the Lord you believe in today, the Lord that all people of faith must serve as the bridegroom and true father, you must compare the standard of Jesus with the life you are leading. The crucial question will be to what extent has the life you are leading become one with Jesus, from the position of representing the whole will of history and religion.
Jesus came for the sake of humankind on the earth. He also died for them. Yet when we ask if someone on earth has become one with this Jesus, inside the realm of one ideology where one rejoices eternally with God and Jesus, there is no such person. Jesus does not have anyone whom he can rule over and trust eternally. Accordingly, you know very well through the principle that God also has failed to find someone centering on Jesus with the one standard upon which He can rest eternally in peace.
What was the hope Jesus had toward the chosen nation of Israel when he came to the earth? He hoped that the will of God, who had been guiding the dispensation for 4,000 years, would be accomplished through them. This is why Jesus proclaimed the new Gospel: to construct the place of rest and happiness where all people of that time, and their future descendants, could be happy.
Jesus came, on behalf of the 4,000-year history, to actualize the new ideology of Heaven. Therefore, although Jesus was the son of a carpenter and a simple young man without much education, God hoped to accomplish all the will of the ideology and hope of Heaven through him. Yet no one among the people of that time was aware of this. When Jesus emerged before humankind as the fruit of all history, the central being of God's providence, what did he hope to feel through his mind and body? First, he hoped to appear with feelings that could connect with Heaven and with human beings, and relate to each accordingly.
The Heart and Sorrow of Jesus
You have to understand that the more Jesus felt that all things of creation in heaven and earth are bound by the bitter grief of the fall, the more he realized God's sadness, in looking upon this situation, pierced into all things. He then became more serious. Growing up as the son of a poor carpenter, unable as yet to emerge as the Messiah, he led a life of silence, making preparations to proclaim the will of Heaven. Even as he did that, he possessed an unchanging, singular heart toward Heaven, a heart that reached out to all people. The more intense became his heart of love toward Heaven and humanity, the more concern he felt, which he could not express to anyone. No one then realized that he bore such great concern alone. The members of Joseph's family could not feel this determined heart of Jesus as the distress of Heaven, the heart which yearned to save humanity.
However, even in this environment, Jesus had the mission to reveal the words of the Gospel to the Israelites and have them lift high the signal light of a new revolution. Therefore, he needed someone who could become one in heart with him. Jesus had to point out the direction of the heavenly principles and re-establish the way of the human principles centering on Judaism. More than any other factor, the fact that Jesus did not have anyone who could represent the heart of Heaven and the historical heart of humanity is the crucial reason he could not fulfill the providence of the restoration of God.
The faith of Israel which God had elevated through 4,000 years of toil should have become the indispensable altar for Jesus. In turn, he should have become the chief priest this altar could not do without. Yet Jesus and the chosen people finished divided. Jesus tried to step forward holding the signal light of the new providence of the New Testament centering on the faith of the chosen people, the fruit of the Old Testament. However when this foundation which God had prepared to uphold His will could not become one with Jesus, Jesus' sorrow was indescribably great.
You must feel again in this hour that Jesus did not have even one true friend in his surroundings, with whom he could share his situation and interact, no matter how hard he looked. Because he was in such a lonely situation, he could not rest in a comfortable place like other people. Jesus understood that if he were to suffer sadness, the humanity of future generations would be punished for it. Therefore, he became dead serious when he witnessed the opposition of the very people who had been chosen for the accomplishment of the will.
Although this was the situation Jesus faced, he could not show sorrow like others. He knew that if he were to be sad, it would bring greater sorrow to Heaven. In other words, there was no one who understood the heart of Jesus then, grieving because he knew that his own sorrow would remain in history. You must comprehend the sorrow of Jesus. No one in the course of history has ever understood this sorrow. You must comfort the lonely Jesus whom the Israelites chased out. You have to understand that this is the only way you can alleviate the sorrow of Heaven for Jesus and allay the sadness of Jesus that has stained history.
Ladies and gentlemen! What are these eyes looking at? What voices are these ears listening to? Which direction are these hearts facing? Which direction are these bodies moving in? The time has come when you must coldly, objectively reflect upon yourselves.
The Correct Attitude Toward Jesus
Therefore, we must not see Jesus as the figure of a bygone era. We must seek and attend him as Jesus of the present reality. When Jesus was going around to different villages and being persecuted, he found enemies everywhere he went. His path became more perilous and rough. Among the people God had been grooming for 4,000 years, Jesus could not find even one friend who welcomed him gladly. You have to feel this situation of Jesus in the present.
Although many sects, countless people and priests had waited for the Messiah, when he actually appeared there was no one who welcomed him. How would God have felt observing this situation? If you were living in the age of Jesus 2,000 years ago, how can you guarantee you would not become like the Pharisees and Sadducees? You have to reflect upon yourselves.
If the Jesus who came in the past is the Jesus of the present and the future, then only when you can fathom and be connected to the heart of Jesus of the past can you welcome the Jesus of the present and of the future at the time of the new world. However, today we believe that, after coming to the earth, Jesus merely led thirty years of a sad life course and then died on the cross. Yet we have come to the realization that this is not the case. Accordingly, you must now awaken the ignorant people who think that Jesus had to die when he came to the earth. Although we want Jesus of 2,000 years ago to come seeking us, he is not supposed to. On the contrary, we are to rise seeking the Jesus of 2,000 years ago. In other words, you must understand the sad and lonely situation of Jesus 2,000 years ago. There must be no gap between you and the reality that Jesus faced. When you can hold onto Jesus and cry, then the Lord who is to return will never forsake you.
Those people who have an attitude of faith desiring Jesus to come looking for them 2,000 years after his death, although we are the ones who killed him, will never meet the Lord who is to come again. The question is how many Christians are on earth who can climb backwards ten, one hundred, 2,000 years and cling to the tormented Jesus, shedding tears.
Now the time when we cling to the deceased Jesus and shed tears for Heaven has passed. The time has come when we must comfort the living Jesus with tears of joy. However, where is this living Jesus? It is the grave mission of Christians today to find and support this Jesus.
Have you opened your mouths and called out to Jesus in Heaven? No matter how much you call out, you cannot easily build a relationship with him. Nonetheless, because Jesus is the Savior of all people, the Savior who died for us, we must forge an eternal relationship with him. However, when we consider whether we have seen Jesus with our eyes, heard the words of Jesus with our ears or spoken the words of Jesus with our mouths, we can sense that the distance between Jesus and us is still very great.
At this time, when we must penetrate through and overcome the fateful work of holding onto Jesus, this unfortunate pass, what must you do? You must develop the relationship based upon which you can testify to him, as the Jesus of the present reality in your life. If you cannot do that, you have to understand that the toilsome will of God, who has worked strenuously for 6,000 years, will not be related to you. You cannot usher in the day of peace.
Now you must think about Jesus. You have to understand this Jesus, who stepped forward holding onto the Gospel for the sake of pioneering the providential will involving all humankind. This is the Jesus of the 2,000 years of history since his death; this is the historical Jesus who persevered through a course of persecution he could not share with anyone. You must understand the tormented situation of Jesus, who was ostracized by the chosen people.
You are not to view Jesus as some fixed fact of the past, but as one who is living in this era today. You have to keep in mind that only by experiencing and sensing the sorrow of Jesus in your own life can you finally grasp him.
The Heart of Jesus Who Loved Humanity, the Mind of Jesus Who Suffered at Humanity's Hands
What kind of person was Jesus? When we behold him, his were the eyes that observed the sung sang of God, who had passed through 4,000 years of history since the creation. His eyes watched over the many spirits who were in hell because of the mistakes of humankind. His were the eyes that looked with a sense of responsibility to alleviate the bitter grief of the spirits in heaven. Moreover, when Jesus was looking at the land on behalf of God's sorrow, when he saw how the chosen Israelites and all humanity opposed him, Jesus' gaze represented the sorrow of God, who had been mourning for 4,000 years since the fall of Adam and Eve.
The chosen Israelites should have received the blessing of God; they should have taken the position of a family by living with Jesus for eternity. Why did they oppose him? You must become friends of Jesus, who could not hold the recalcitrant Israelites and speak to them. You must be friends of the Jesus who held onto the temple and mourned over their ignorance. Have your eyes become the eyes for which Jesus hopes? Jesus' eyes looked in place of the sorrowful sung sang of God; they saw the situation in which he had to fulfill the restoration of Paradise and the earth. They surveyed the situation in which even hell was to receive benefit from him.
Are your ears pierced with sorrowful voices? The ears of Jesus heard the voice of God coming from Heaven. He heard the unfortunate, crying voices of countless spirits. You must understand that, when he heard those voices of sorrow and screams crying out for him, he could never be at peace. When he was looking at the earth, he heard the screaming voices of the people, who not only brought evil upon themselves and trampled upon goodness, but also betrayed Heaven. Therefore, you must realize that Jesus felt a sense of mission to allay the bitterness of Heaven and bring the opposing forces to repentance.
What did he speak with his mouth? Jesus spoke new words halfway between Paradise and the fall. In this way, he guided the spirits of Paradise into the Kingdom of Heaven and spoke in defense of the spirits in hell. He spoke to send the spirits in Paradise, the invisible world, into heaven. In other words, he spoke to resurrect. Moreover, he spoke in defense of the spirits in hell, even in defense of Satan. Therefore, the words he spoke were the words of condition that fulfilled the heart's desires of the spirit world. They were the words that could liberate humanity on the earth, which was shackled to Satan's realm of death.
These words of liberation should have been welcomed on the earth without hesitation. On the contrary, all they met was opposition. How could that be? This is the reason those on earth could not forge a relationship with Heaven.
What were Jesus' hands and feet like? His hands were healing hands placed upon the sick. They were hands that gave life to the dead. They were hands that gave bread to the hungry. Moreover, his feet left footsteps full of prayer for the sake of his enemies, even as he was being harassed by the opposing Israelites and Satan from this village to that, from this valley to that. They were hands that wished blessing upon his enemies, hands and feet that were hung on the cross and pierced with nails.
What about Jesus' body? His body could not enjoy one day of rest, no matter where he went. Since what he saw and heard before him was not at all in accordance with the heavenly principles, he was driven out wherever he went. You have to understand that because of this, Jesus could not find a place to rest his head. He could not enjoy a day of rest when his heart could be at peace. Jesus was not welcomed anywhere. Therefore, though he had many things to say, he did not say them all. He could not speak words about Heaven to people who could not even understand words concerning the earth. Meanwhile, Jesus was charged as the traitor of the people. Neither the people of faith nor the authorities of the time welcomed him.
However, Jesus carried out a strategy to become one with all the multitudes. God has been carrying out such two-pronged strategies. Therefore, although it might seem that He is retreating from the front-line, eventually He can bring such results that, in the end, even Satan works for His sake.
Consequently, in the history of the world, those who struck first were defeated more than eighty percent of the time. At the time of World Wars I and II, the side which struck first was defeated. When we realize this principle, we can immediately come up with the answer to the question of who, among the two camps today, is on the side of Satan. We can discern at once when we observe for whose sake they are carrying on their activities. Satan's side does not live for the sake of the whole; it lives for the sake of itself. It tries to sacrifice the whole for its own sake.
Jesus Is Responsible for the First Line of Offense, the Holy Spirit Is Responsible for the Second Line
What kind of person is God? It might seem that we have become a sacrifice, but God is the One who has become a sacrifice for us. When people live for the sake of Heaven, Heaven hands the whole ideology of the universe over to humanity. In the satanic world, when you live for others, your life will be taken away; in the end even the ideology that you have given will be taken away, and you will be dragged into eternal hell. However, if you carry on the fight while you are being accused by Satan, this will become a gain for the side of Heaven. Therefore, the group that goes to Heaven has come into being. Because Satan stands in the position where he cannot return, the more he moves forward, the sooner he will face a situation where he has to yield.
Jesus had to fight in all directions. However, because he failed in the first providence, he had to establish a second and carry on the providence centering on the altar of sacrifice and service. Therefore, even now, as he is being chased and driven out, he has been building Paradise. In the last days, this will become the front-line of Satan and the front-line of God, causing such confusion, people will lose discernment. It will become a chaotic world. Accordingly, you have to learn to search for the first front-line of God.
Only when you can possess the authority of Heaven and can dismantle Satan can you make a beginning there as the new front-line. Because Jesus passed away without fulfilling his responsibility, God had to send the Holy Spirit. What is the Holy Spirit? She is the one who came with responsibility for the second front-line. The Holy Spirit is the one who comes with the responsibility of the truth of the cross. Who is responsible for the first front-line? Jesus is responsible for it, while confronting Satan. Accordingly, when we can bring these into oneness by following Jesus and the Holy Spirit, they will form a new battlefront. Therefore, only after we today form a new second battle line in place of the Holy Spirit and attain the power to block Satan can we become qualified to be an elite troop. We can then be victorious over Satan and unveil his identity. Not God, Jesus nor the Holy Spirit can do this.
When this happens, people of such qualifications can become the friends of God's heart and the friends of Adam before the fall. They can become qualified to rule over the archangel and all things. You have to understand God is seeking these kinds of people. You must fulfill the tasks you have been entrusted within your own position. God is calling for people who can stand as the true sons of God in religion, science or any situation.
In the last days, one cannot say this and that about others. Because one is standing on the crossroads of life and death, the crucial problem is where to go to attain the recognition of Heaven. Therefore, if people of consciousness come together and form one race who can build the castle wall and say, "We will fight on behalf of Heaven," then this race can become a nation that can represent the entire sovereignty of God.
Please do not envy such nations as America. Please do not envy any great civilized nation. The problem is how much relationship we have built before Heaven and earth within the realm of the heavenly principle once we understand them. No matter how good the external conditions are, there will come a time when we must cleanse them once and for all. Although God's heart feels intense indignation, He does not only have a heart of indignation. Deep within His heart of indignation, there is a foundation of righteousness Satan cannot fathom. The reason Satan can submit is that there is a heart of indignation and the standard of righteousness. This is why he submits in the end.
Our Responsibility
This is how the human mind is. Today people are infinitely swayed and confused by the sinful world in which they live. However, by becoming one with the foundation of history and the foundation of the future in your hearts, you must establish the one principle that will never change. Moreover, when your internal standard and the standard of life confront some unfortunate reality, you must be able to overcome it and move forward. By doing so, you must become one with the heavenly works, one with the practical providential will and the providential plan for the future. Moreover, only when you can become a person who is qualified to cope with everything, centering on this, can you finally understand the heart of God.
When Peter met the deceased Lord after longing for his appearance, he forgot everything and was swept into his heart. You must forget all the historical heart of misfortune and experience the sorrowful heart with which God has been mournfully guiding the providence. From that point on, the new work of Heaven can finally be unfolded.
God is relating with people with an infinite heart, but people have only fathomed one aspect of it. In other words, they only comprehend the angle centered on themselves, and they have mistaken this for the entirety of Heaven. In other words, they have mistaken this small angle for 360 degrees. The time when this difference is recognized is none other than the time of judgment. Moreover, one reason Jesus became the Messiah was that, even as he passed through the course of all the vicissitudes of history, he stood on a straight line connecting to Heaven and attended Heaven with unchanging loyalty.
How would the love of Heaven be manifested on the earth? The one passionate ideology and our minds must become eternally one and never diverge. In this way, we can circle 360 degrees for eternity. When we can become one within the realm of the one, indivisible ideology, God can rest His heart in peace. You have to understand that the will of the second providence can be manifested on the earth at such a time. Accordingly, today we must take the responsibility to step over this sinful world and rise above it. We must construct the second world of creation which can connect with the heart of God, in other words, the world of love.
Now you can abandon external, worldly desires and represent only the internal heart of God. Whether you are dealing with a thousand or 10,000 people, you must be able to feel the heart of God through them. To put it another way, you must become someone who can look into the heart of God through any person.
If you really want to be this kind of person, then even if you suffer the greatest sorrow, you must be able to overcome it. If you suffer great injustice, you must overcome indignation that surpasses the size of heaven and earth. Moreover, when the heart of indignation toward Satan explodes in you, you must think that you will one day liquidate that satan, and you must endure for the sake of securing one more person, one more comrade. Furthermore, you have to understand that when you go before Heaven with this kind of mind-set and pray, Heaven can transcend the history of sin and forge a relationship with you from the position of the new ideology.
