God and the Building of the Kingdom of God

We all know that if there had been no fall of man, the Kingdom of Heaven would have come to earth, and all men would naturally have been born as direct heirs of God. Individually speaking, each man would have lived in perfection, with complete unity of mind and body.

The Kingdom of God, therefore, was to be built by perfected men who were perfectly united in mind and body. And God would have been dwelling in the hearts of men.

As you already know through the teaching of the Divine Principle, when subject and object form one perfect unity, the dwelling of God is always there. Therefore, when subject and object unite, they form unity on their own level and elevate themselves to God's level, and in addition, their environment and anything involved with them automatically become involved with God.

In that setting, there would be inner relationships between all parties concerned.

Some joyful event for Adam would automatically be joyful for Eve and God as well. At another time, the joy of Eve would be the joy of Adam, as well as the joy of God.

In God's ideal, everything would work together on a common base, with a common harmony and unity. Then God and man would always react in perfect harmony in different situations.

Had that been the case, where and when would God have been most joyful?

Would the greatest moment for God have come with the completion of the restoration of man after the fall, or would God have wanted to see Adam and Eve grow to maturity and perfection without the fall?

Which would have given God the most joy?

I am sure that those among you who have children realize why the correct answer is the second one. When a husband and wife hold their firstborn child, they truly feel the heart of parents, and they pour out their hearts to their child.

Unless you have held your own child in your own arms, there is no way to truly describe the feeling of a mother. A mother's heart is filled with pride, joy, and satisfaction.

What do you think should be the most perfect, precious, and treasured thing in this universe?

The most precious thing for Adam and Eve, or any parents for that matter, including God as the parent of all mankind, is not money, knowledge, or power, but their child.

The relationship between God and man is a vertical one, and that between Adam and Eve is horizontal. From them, we can draw one triangle. God is on the vertical line, above man, and Adam and Eve are on the horizontal level.

However, to establish perfection, you can see that one whole area is missing. To have the whole relationship between God, Adam, and Eve become perfect, this one area must be filled by a child.

This is why the Divine Principle teaches us about the heavenly four positions.

When there is no child, then the real vertical anchor from God down to mankind is incomplete, and with that one area missing, man's position cannot be stable. The child's position is the point of hope for Adam and Eve, as well as for God.

Everyone's hope is concentrated on this one point. Adam and Eve are always one-sided; they cannot be in a position to receive God's entire love or become the entire central point by themselves. In other words, the balance point in the universe is the point of the child, not Adam and not Eve.

The vertical love is God's love, and the horizontal love is that of Adam and Eve.

These loves will be consummated by the couple having a child in the fourth position. We can say that we have two parental loves: one is vertical and the other horizontal.

The parental love of God is the vertical love of God, and the parents' love is the horizontal love of God. There is a channel of God's love flowing from God to Adam and Eve and their children. This creates three levels: the position of God, the position of Adam and Eve, and the position of the child.

Horizontally speaking, there is parental love, conjugal love, and filial love. When we see this basic structure or principle in the work of God, then where is the beginning point of the Kingdom of God?

We know that the perfection of Adam would have been the beginning point of the Kingdom of God on earth; a more perfect description of the Kingdom of God, however, is that it begins currently when Adam and Eve bear their child on earth. Suppose the fall was unknown to this earth.

When you were born, your parents would have already been perfect. Then the moment of your birth would have marked the beginning of a new heaven for your parents and would have marked the beginning point of another dimension of the heavenly kingdom.

Let us imagine Adam and Eve, whom God created. If God were giving love to Adam and lingering especially with him, then what would have been Eve's reaction?

Or if God were loving Eve, then what would Adam's reaction have been?

In such situations, the Kingdom of God might have seemed unbalanced when Adam was loved by God and Eve was left aside, or if God moved to Eve and Adam seemed to be forgotten.

Actually, the Kingdom of God begins when God loves one person because that love would automatically become his partner's as well. In that case, when God loved Adam, Eve would have rejoiced as much as if she herself were being loved.

Adam would have rejoiced when God went to Eve because that experience would have been as real as God loving him directly. It would all be the same thing. It just wouldn't have made any difference whether God loved Adam or Eve because it would all be the same.

This feeling would have become real when Adam and Eve became true husband and wife. In a loving relationship blessed by God, the two are no longer separate but perfectly one.

Perfection comes when there is unity through love; in other words, love is central to perfection. If Adam and Eve had realized this perfect unity and harmony in love, then there could have been no such thing as feeling forgotten or jealous.

God freely goes anywhere and everywhere, and wherever God moves automatically becomes the point of joy for both Adam and Eve.

Then, where can we find one central, visible point of love between all three?

The children of Adam and Eve would be the one visible point where the three elements of God, Adam, and Eve could be harmonized together.

God's supreme hope in creation was to see the children of Adam and Eve. Those children were to form the point around which God Himself and all things in the universe could be united.

Why do you love your children?

A husband and wife may confront each other in a heated battle, with neither side budging an inch, but the one point of unity always remaining between them is their children. Thus, there is never complete separation. Why is that?

Why don't they hate their children when they fight with each other?

If they were to disregard their children, then they would have nothing left because their children are their hope.

They must have something to hang onto, and their children are that something. The hope of the father, the mother, and also of God all hinges upon the children, and they cannot disregard their hope.

Even though they may not consciously realize this, they can feel that their children are the beginning point of hope for the Kingdom of God here on earth and in heaven. History begins right there. Therefore, God, parents, and children all find common ground in the position of the children.

Parents can always forget themselves when they center on their children, and their sacrificial spirit will extend even to the point of giving up their lives. If a husband and wife are a happy couple and very much united in love, but they have no children, can they say they are perfectly happy as a family?

Even though a husband and wife may be perfectly in harmony, as long as there are no children, some areas of their lives will always remain imperfect. That is because they will not have the hope that will create their kingdom of God on earth and in heaven. They will not have planted the seed of the Kingdom.

If a husband and wife go to the spirit world without the experience of having children, then when they see God loving all His children here on earth, they cannot share His feeling.

Without having children, they are lacking in one area, and their feelings cannot parallel God's in His own experience of having children. For eternity, they will be completely lacking in that one vertical area, and they will have no way to gain that experience.

Then what is your conclusion? Do you need to be married and have children?

There are many very egoistic, secular, and selfish feelings prevailing in our world nowadays. People are thinking that marriage is a burden and that they do not want to be bothered with children.

Even many Americans who are married are making a conscientious effort not to have children. Why?

They are afraid that they will be imprisoned by having the responsibility of a child.

America is a woman's kingdom; here, the women are always masters of the house, and in numerous instances, the men obey the women. Many times, a couple does not have children because the wife just does not want that pain and burden.

I frequently go to New York, and there I have seen that most of the well-dressed people are women, while the American men look miserable. The women not only wear beautiful clothes, but their ten fingers are not enough to hold all their ornaments. The wonderful thing is, however, that those women do not look happy, even though they have everything and are kicking their husbands around.

Many of those women push their husbands to get them bigger diamonds and more gold. Do you agree? Only the men are saying yes! Can you women say, “I don't need earrings or diamond rings.

What I need is perfect harmony with my husband and a sacrificial spirit towards him so that together we can serve the purpose of God.” That is beautiful, isn't it? Would you still say, “Amen,” if you had only bad shoes and rags to wear?

Your external looks and ornaments have no value in a spiritual sense; rather, the kind of love that dwells in your heart is the key. A child is love made visible, and the quality of your love can be seen in your child.

When there is common fruit between a husband and wife, then there can be no permanent separation between them. Their children are their most precious things, and for an innocent child, his mother and father are most precious. To make a child happy, you must provide him or her with the love of a father and mother.

Even more than that, the parents must give their children the love of God; they must represent God, and His love must be made visible through them.

God cannot forgive anyone who acts to destroy such a beautiful bond of love. The most pitiful situation, and one we can often see in American society, is that of a husband and wife getting divorced and fighting over their children. No matter how much that couple may try to invite God to come, there is no room for the love of God in that kind of situation.

In divorce, the parents are not only separating from each other but also from their children and from God. Their vertical line of love is destroyed. The mother may say to her child, “Your daddy is absolutely no good.

Please hate him. That does not make sense because a child cannot hate his father; it is also virtually impossible for a child to hate his mother. Those of you whose own parents have separated, raise your hands.

You know from experience that the most agonizing pain for a child is witnessing conflict between his father and mother, because then you do not know which way to turn. Can you love only one parent and disregard the other?

Actually, a child becomes more sympathetic toward his father when his mother says he must hate his father. It is natural to oppose separation, and so it is natural for a child to protest the separation of his parents.

In the most fundamental meaning, love is not for yourself but for others. That is the basic element of love, and anyone who would live this principle will always oppose the action of separation.

Can you imagine God coming down to a child and saying, “You must not love your parents? You obey Me; I am your God. You must hate your parents.” Could that child obey such a mandate?

Even to God, that child will say, “What kind of God are You?” If God ever asked a child to hate his parents, then it would have to be for a selfish reason, such as trying to win the child's love for Himself by having him reject his parents. But the entire universe revolts against any selfish motive.

How would the child feel if God said, “Your parents may not treat you right? I know your heart, but after all, they are your parents. You must respect them; as much as I still love them, you must love them too.

You must stay with Me.” If that child has obvious logic, he will say, “God is really God, a God of mercy, unselfishness, and sacrifice.”

A child is the visible fruit of love, and that child will serve as the common ground of unity between husband and wife; because of that child, then, there is no way that they could remain eternally separated. We are to live our lives here on earth and pass into the spirit world.

There, the perfect kingdom of the heart has four parts, where the love of God and the love of father, mother, and child all together create a warm, harmonious feeling.

The person who lives their physical life being separated from people and acting destructively will also be elevated to the spirit world.

Do you think such a person can feel comfortable in a heavenly atmosphere?

Is there any place for that kind of person to sit down in the spiritual kingdom if he has been living for the destruction of love here on earth?

When you really understand the spiritual principle of the Kingdom of God in heaven, you will see what a crime it is for a husband and wife to separate and put their children at risk here on earth.

There is no defense in all of heaven and earth from the accusation of a child toward his parents' grieving, “You didn't do me justice.” You didn't do God justice. You didn't do yourselves justice.” God has provided no law that will give mercy in that case. This is such a serious matter.

When you understand this, you can see that marriage is not a light matter but should be taken very seriously. Marriage is more serious than your life, than heaven and earth, than your entire hope and ideal. When you find happiness in this serious area, you will find ultimate happiness.

As a couple, can you exercise the responsibility of marriage toward your children and toward God? Can you pledge such responsibility? Your first responsibility is to become a true child of God yourself, under the True Parents.

Are you exercising that responsibility?

This is also a serious matter. Considering living the Divine Principle is the pinnacle of seriousness, and there is no joke in it.

Are you becoming a member of the Unification Church with that seriousness?

Particularly in our day, marriage is not considered a serious matter. Husbands and wives are not looking at their mates as permanent and eternal. They feel that if their love does not work out, they can go try someone else.

When you blessed couples took the marriage vow in front of the True Parents, were you thinking that the pledge to your mate was eternal?

How deep was your pledge?

Can you say, “Yes, Father, my marriage will be an eternal one, not only here on earth, but hereafter in heaven”? How about those of you who are going to make that pledge? Can you take it lightly? No, absolutely not.

God is eternal. God is permanent, and He will never shift His position. Even after the fall of man, God did not chastise mankind permanently. God did not say, “Because you have become such a dirty, fallen sinner, you and I have nothing to do with each other. Don't come to me; I am no longer your father.” God will never say this. God still recognizes mankind as His own sons and daughters.

When a child is born, he or she is permanently the child of his or her particular parents.

Nothing under the sun—no rule, no power, no principle—can alter or change the position of that child. That child cannot go away from his position, nor can his parents abandon their position.

God is permanent and eternal, and that child is born to an eternal position. What about the mother and father? Can an impermanent and temporal relationship create something permanent?

The husband and wife must also be anchored in an eternal relationship. God is perfect and eternal, and the position of a child is also permanent and eternal, but nowadays the unstable factor is the position of husband and wife. The positions of men and women are unstable because of the fall of man.

Men and women lack maturity and seriousness about marriage, believing that if one person does not work out, they can go and find another. That feeling is the product of the fall of man; without the fall, man would not be capable of even thinking in such a way.

As long as men even consider the possibility of an unstable relationship between husband and wife, thinking that there are other alternatives, then a permanent Kingdom of Heaven is not possible. From this standpoint, how many people here in America are entitled to the Kingdom of God in heaven?

How about you? The concept of marriage, so far in the fallen world, has become a tool of Satan, allowing him to bind mankind for his benefit. God's most precious gift of marriage is being used by Satan.

Until we build this stable foundation, will it be possible to build the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth?

The problem does not lie in heaven or with the people of the world. The problem lies right here with you and me. We are the key; if we can resolve this problem, we will bring about the Kingdom of Heaven quickly.

Jesus Christ came down to build the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth. Could he possibly accomplish that all by himself? Did he have his bride? Did he have his children?

Was Jesus a man or a woman, or something else? You said he was a man; was he a real man or an artificial man? If he were a real man, then physically speaking, did he have the perfect features and functions of a man? He was a real man and had every function of a man.

Then was he capable of being a husband, or would he have told all the women of the world not to come near him because God was watching?

Was that the reason he never married?

Jesus had pride, and he had a mission on earth as the only begotten Son of God.

God's mandate to him was to build a heavenly family and to bring heaven here on earth. Jesus would have liked to see his bride-to-be as the most perfect woman under the sun, not for himself, but for the fulfillment of God's will.

Today, you are thinking that for the sake of God's purpose, you want to become a perfect man and marry the perfect woman to bring perfect children into the world.

That was exactly Jesus' own desire. Jesus knew that God wanted to see His own living children here on earth, and he wanted to give birth to the perfect heirs of God.

Suppose Jesus had been blessed with a perfect bride. Do you think that because he was a holy man, Jesus should have kept five feet away from her all the time? Was Jesus capable of kissing, too?

Would he have kissed his bride only for the sake of some condition, or because he really wanted to show his love to her? As a holy man, would he have looked at his bride just from time to time and then gone away, or would he have had fervent love in his heart to pour out upon his bride? Would he have been a sinner if he had done that?

God intended man to live in perfect love and perfect eternity, without even a bit of separation. God Himself is perfect and eternal, and the position of children is always perfect and eternal, which is why God wanted the positions of husband and wife to be perfect and eternal.

After the fall, man's love became dirty and stained. Has mankind ever seen perfect love under God, manifesting the purpose of God?

No one has really known the purpose of religion and salvation. Many religious people have felt that the world is filled with filthiness and have tried to separate themselves from it and live an isolated life.

It is often thought that a religious, divine life is a life of isolation, but we must realize that the Kingdom of God in heaven and on earth has been ready for a long, long time, from the very beginning of creation, and is just waiting to be occupied.

The problem has been that of finding occupants for that kingdom. Men and women qualified for the Kingdom of God here on earth and in heaven have not existed. They were the missing key. Ultimately, this is not the Messiah's problem.

It is the problem of you men and women. This is often misunderstood by many religious people.

Jesus knew this truth. Did he want to build the Kingdom of God from his nation and the world, or did he want to start his kingdom by himself with men and women?

He knew that he was the beginning point of the kingdom, along with other men and women. The subject of the Kingdom of God is not an issue of national sovereignty or government but of individual men and women.

Man is the key; man is the subject.

Therefore, when Jesus ascended into heaven, do you think he had to leave his key to the Kingdom of God here on earth, or did he take it with him?

The key to unlock the kingdom belongs here on earth, not up in the air. Then, where should Jesus have left that key—in a copper box in the Vatican in Rome or in the hearts of individuals? Actually, that key is right here. I want you to understand that the Kingdom of God has been ready from the beginning of time.

If you men and women were in this perfect position under God, in perfect harmony, perfect unity, and perfect love for eternity, you would be so happy.

When we bring back this atmosphere of living under God, then, in thinking of your wife or husband or about serving your children, you would automatically be entitled to the Kingdom of God in heaven. In that atmosphere, you would not have to make any special effort.

Even in the fallen world, everyone is thinking about their parents and children as their immediate interest. They occupy most of man's attention. There is nothing wrong with that fact in itself, but somehow the content of that thinking changed because of the fall of man. We want to reverse those contents and make them heavenly.

Since the fall of man, our thoughts still center around ourselves, our parents, our husband, or wife, and our children. However, the family is surrounded by many satanic layers: the society, nation, world, and cosmos.

The first step, therefore, is to liberate ourselves. We must get out of the satanic influence to liberate ourselves from sin and get rid of all these bindings, and after we free ourselves, we can bring back the heavenly contents of the original world.

Actually, the pattern is the same in both the satanic world and the heavenly kingdom. The problem is that the satanic kingdom is built on selfishness, and it has multiplied into selfish societies, nations, and a selfish world.

We have become prisoners of sin and been wrapped within all these satanic bindings.

Therefore, we must get rid of those bindings and rebuild ourselves according to a new, unselfish pattern that will be superior to the satanic world. This reorganization of men is the work of religion, transcending the level of race and nationality.

Then what is the Unification Church, of which you are a member?

Are we looking forward to unification within the framework of the satanic world, or do we want to build our unification starting here?

Another important consideration is this: will we build a new, God-centered, unselfish pattern here and then put up a big wall between the two worlds, saying, “Don't come to me, and I won't come to you.”

Shall we take that attitude, or once we are ready, do we want to transform the entire satanic world into the heavenly world?

This means we have a dual mission, a round trip to make. This is an important idea: on the way out, we must liberate ourselves from the satanic world, and then we must go back to the satanic world to liberate it.

On both trips, we are going to have a headwind. When you are trying to go out of the fallen world, everybody will pull you, saying, “Don't go! You stay right here!” And then when you try to come back, everybody will try to keep you out.

When I was first trying to come into America, the State Department hesitated to approve, and once I entered and became active, they have been continually trying to push me out.

America is a free country, and people from all over the world can enter with relative freedom. But when I came, all of a sudden, the government wanted to resist.

Since I have a following like you, young people all over the world, I have become someone to be recognized. If I am not just an ordinary person, then why don't they want me to enter?

This does not happen because of any personal vendetta against me, but because this is the way that the satanic world reacts. Therefore, throughout history, the course of any messenger sent by God has followed this pattern.

When God's men came down to establish a beachhead in the satanic world, they were always resisted. There is no way that God's world can be built without resistance.

Do you think God is sending the Messiah to live a quiet life and then go away, or is he coming to shake the entire world?

He is coming in the name of religion, not as a politician running for Congress or to be head of state. In the name of God, he is coming to shake the whole foundation of the earth. Otherwise, he is not a Messiah at all!

In that respect, the Unification Church is setting records, isn't it? As far as shaking the world is concerned, our record will be set between 1976 and June of this year. We are really approaching a pinnacle now.

We have become controversial in this country, haven't we?

Many people imagine me as some kind of inhuman monster, with ten horns, six arms, and nine legs. They can't imagine what I must be like, and some people are really petrified of my image. The other day, I went to a shop in White Plains; I was dressed in simple sports clothes, but people immediately recognized me and stared at me with wide eyes. “Are you really Reverend Moon?” They did not quite expect me to look like a normal human being.

God's men are destined to face opposition. When men face opposition, one of three things can happen: one, they will be destroyed; two, they will destroy their opposition; or three, they will unite all men, both good and evil, and come up with a new world. Opposition is not necessarily bad, and in any case, we are destined to confront this headwind.

The Unification Church is destined to go one of these three courses, and so is our opposition. Let us consider which side is going to win. You said that God's side will win, but our opposition claims to be on God's side too. They have people, and they come against us in the name of the church and in the name of God, so how do you know if you are on God's side?

I am sure you would like our Unification Church to win completely, but particularly in some of the more conventional churches, they think, “We must win in the name of God.” What will determine who wins, and how do you envision that we can win?

The spiritual power in the heart of each member will decide. The outcome will be affected by our personal qualities—how unselfish, determined, committed, wise, and persevering we are.

Of course, the external environment is important—how much economic power we can mobilize and whether our organizational structure is sound—but from the external perspective, the existing churches and conventional religious organizations have much greater influence and power than we do. President Carter is a professed Christian.

Suppose even the President of the United States opposed us. Would you be terrified? Would you surrender as soon as this entire nation of 220 million people came against us?

What power and conviction do you have to make you say you will never give up? Are you a PFC (Private First Class) follower of Reverend Moon or a PFC of God?

We are invincible and strong, and we cannot be defeated because God is in us. We are the champions and soldiers of God, and we are here to truly give ourselves to liberate the world, mankind, and God Himself. There could be no nobler cause than this one. We are following this most unselfish, noble, and dedicated cause for God.

Suppose the Christian churches stood up and decided, “We are the champions of God, and we will liberate all mankind and God.”

Do you have a guarantee that God would favor a minority group like the Unification Church instead of supporting the Christian majority? Maybe God does not want to go through all this persecution.

What guarantee do you have that God is not going to pop Paul?

With Pope Paul, he doesn't have to defend anything because for every situation there is protocol and honor guards and fanfare, but wherever I go, there is persecution and shouting and outcry.

God would not want to side with the losers and lonely people, would He? Wouldn't God want to be proud of Himself and relax, receiving great honors and hearing trumpets? If he goes with Pope Paul, he might have all that.

There may be dozens of Pope Pauls and millions and billions of Christians, but most of them are working to attain heaven for themselves. We are working to build God's kingdom itself.

Who has a better cause, those who are trying to get themselves admitted to the Kingdom of Heaven or those who are trying to actually create heaven so that all can enter it? The builders or the occupants?

The answer is basic. The Kingdom of God does not exist yet, and God needs builders of His Kingdom here on earth. This world is occupied by Satan, and so far, Christians have tended to try to get away from him by isolating themselves.

They are expecting to find their heaven in the air. Does God need those who are preparing to rise in the air, or does He need those who will liquidate the satanic world and build His kingdom right here on earth?

We can reach another conclusion. Those who are working toward their heaven can use everyone, old and young. But in building the Kingdom of Heaven right here on earth, what we need are young people. God knows this requirement, and so God is bringing us young people.

God gave the old people to those groups who are just trying to enter heaven. Age has become one distinction between us and many other churches.

If God were looking down on this morning service, it would not be quite appropriate to see all senior citizens sitting here saying, “Yes, Reverend Moon, we are going to build the Kingdom of Heaven! “

It just would not look right! But instead God is seeing you, young people who are not even married, who have shining eyes and brilliant faces, bearing you to declare, “Father, let us build that kingdom together! “You are burning with zeal, and you can do that right now, here in America!

Which group would give God hope—young people or just any kind of people?

Is this teaching you are hearing about the ideal family and ideal kingdom more suited for older people or younger people?

Married people or single people?

You are God's hope. Our vision is clear, and our future is clear. As long as the churches that have inherited 2,000 years of tradition are interested only in finding their heaven, then their destiny is to diminish.

We are rising like the sun. Could winds and hurricanes and blizzards stop the rising of the sun? American young people are wandering with nowhere to turn.

There is no one to receive the young people of America because they are difficult people, almost like outcasts and untouchables. They are so explosive that even the President of the United States and great religious leaders cannot touch them.

Only one man has come who cannot touch them but also tame them. I am the one to whom God has given the power to influence their children, but ironically, I am hated by many parents in America.

My road is a rugged one. Can you follow me even to jail? I will wait and see when we come to that point. Simon Peter swore that Jesus was the Son of God and that he would die for Jesus at any time.

Do you have confidence that your faith and strength are superior to those of Peter? Do you say yes because you are young?

What makes you superior?

Again, the answer is simple. You will be superior if you can give up your lives at any time. That is the ultimate criterion.

Your answer is getting weaker now. Can you do it? I must wait and see. I gave up my life a long time ago, at the very beginning of my ministry. I have the confidence that I will win over all my opponents because none of them are dedicating their lives to their purpose.

There are varying degrees of conviction in the lives of those who are saying things about us, but none of them are serious to the degree that they would give up their lives for what they are saying. My neck is always out, however. God is colorblind, and the fact that I came from the Orient does not make any difference in His sight.

The important thing to God is finding which person will fight for His cause to the end. In this, I am sure that I am first. With that conviction, our cause will not dwindle; we will be invincible.

Our goal is not limited to taking care of America. Far more than that, we are dedicating ourselves to liberating the communists and to liquidating that evil ideology. Can we accomplish such a gigantic goal if we are half-hearted?

We will never accomplish it unless we give our lives to it. Have you ever thought about that?

God knows that throughout my whole life I have kept my covenant with Him. I will stand up for my God to the end; God does not see in me any betrayal like Peter's.

Can you be that way? Don't answer me, but look at your heart and answer yourself. Do you have deep confidence?

The world has not known, but today, April 17, is the true Easter. The spirit world knows this, and Jesus knows.

What is the resurrection of Jesus?

It is not merely the issue of whether his body rose out of the tomb. That is but a small part. The most significant aspect is the resurrection of Jesus' heavenly principle and His God-centered love.

That particular aspect was a hidden secret until I came and declared it to the world. My declaration today of the meaning of Easter is a moment of great joy for Jesus in heaven.

There have been many great Christians of deep religious conviction, but for 2,000 years, they have blindly believed in Jesus, leaving many fundamental questions unanswered.

When I asked our seminary professors these fundamental questions, they had no answers. They did not know where the Kingdom of Heaven is, for instance, or what true love is. You cannot expect to reach perfection by following an unclear truth.

You must clearly know the truth, not in a mirror dimly, but face-to-face.

The Kingdom of Heaven begins when you become a man and a woman of perfection, and the man finds the perfect woman, and the woman finds the perfect man.

That is why Jesus so often referred to the bridegroom and bride when speaking of the Kingdom of Heaven. To become the bridegroom is the qualification for each man, and to become the bride is the qualification for each woman.

For 2,000 years, Christianity had no way to clearly understand the meaning of this, so they have interpreted it by saying that the bridegroom is the symbol of the Lord and the bride represents Christians and mankind. How could that be?

Jesus is definitely returning to fulfill this prophecy, which he could not fulfill either among the Jews or among the Christians.

The Christians believe that the Lord will come on the clouds of heaven in a very supernatural manner, and the Christians will be lifted into heaven to find the millennium in the air. But this is not at all the way God works.

God is a God of principle, and nothing the Christian majority believes will change the way that heaven works. God works according to His principle and not in some phantom fashion.

Suppose Jesus was meant to be single; after he was elevated into heaven and sitting by the throne of God, he would have had one question to ask God: “God, why did You make man and then not use me as a man?” Will God answer, “Well, I created man just for an experiment,” or will He answer, “Man is for woman, and woman is for man”? I have a perfect vision and purpose in mind.” God made you as men and women for a reason.

Jesus came as the king of all kings, but not to be a bachelor king. In God's mind, there is the concept of king and also the concept of queen, and for this reason, Jesus' capability and purpose were to come on the earth and create such a queen; he came as the father of all mankind.

People do not understand that Jesus was also to be the first among all husbands of the world, as well as the first among all grandfathers of the world. Would he have preferred to say to all women, “Don't come near me; I am the king of kings"? You are not worthy of me. For all eternity, I will remain single.”

What would Jesus have answered if he had been asked, “Do you want to become king of kings and remain holy and divine all by yourself, with the people bowing down 1,000 feet away?” I am sure that Jesus would have answered, “Do not even ask me such a foolish question!”

Man is a small creature, but a giant in greediness, wanting ten crowns instead of only one, and a conglomerate instead of just one company. All men are this greedy.

When you are so greedy, who do you resemble?

We are intended to resemble Jesus as well as God. Was Jesus a man with greed and ambition or not? Is he the ideal man? Why?

If Jesus were to dance, would he be more joyful dancing solo or with a partner?

When Jesus returns and fulfills his mission, taking his crown and his place in God's palace, would he want to occupy his throne all by himself, or would he want to have his queen, as well as princes and princesses, together as subjects of all the children of the world?

As a follower of Jesus, would you recommend that he stay on his throne all by himself, or would you say, “Jesus, don't you want to marry and have your children and grandchildren?” Would Jesus say, “How absurd! I am a holy man, the son of God! What are you talking about?”

People have such misconceptions of holiness and divinity. I would like to bless the many dedicated priests and nuns in heavenly matrimony. All those thousands, even tens of thousands, of priests and nuns who have already passed their lives and are in the spirit world are on my side and agree with me!

If there had been no fall of man, Adam and Eve would have brought their heaven here on earth up to heaven, and their family life would have extended through eternity in the heavenly world.

The family is the building block of heaven for eternity, and those who do not experience family life here on earth cannot fully understand heaven in the spirit world. Without loving your children, how can you understand the love of a parent for eternity in the spirit world?

Even Jesus Christ cannot fully echo the words of God when He is talking about the love of a husband and wife and the love of parents and children. Without his experiences in that area, even Jesus cannot fully share the feelings of God.

Isn't that true? Is it enough to be moved by the Holy Spirit?

If that were enough, then Jesus would not even have had to come to the earth. This teaching is the most orthodox, central teaching of God.

Are you already Orthodox, or are you going to become Orthodox? The Unification Church is not a fly-by-night organization. It is built on principle and has logic and theory behind it that is 100% approved by God.

We are now living by that principle in all faith. We have not only logic and principle but also experience in our religion. That is why we are strong.

Even if someone beheads me or chops off my arms and legs, I still cannot deny the truth, so I have no choice but to continue. Some people think that when I die, the Unification Church will collapse, but that is nonsense.

Communism did not collapse after the death of Marx. Which ideology is superior, Marxism or Goodism? Our ideology is superior because it is the truth, and Marxism is a lie.

There is no end to this topic, and I could go on and on, but you have to sell newspapers, so I want to conclude quickly.

You are leading busy lives, but what are you actually gaining?

Christian tradition says that Sunday is the Sabbath, the holy day on which you rest in a holy way, eat in a holy way, and walk in a holy way. But I say that this world is dying; even currently, it is desperately crying out for help.

What kind of holy day is this? Is there a holy day in the communist world? Do they say, “This is Sunday; there is a truce, so we won't invade you”? That is not a communist tactic.

The real holy day is a fighting day; we must stop the world from crumbling and stop the spread of communism and win one soul after another back to God. That is a true holy day. There can be no such thing as a holy day without victory for God.

Do not even talk about a holy day without the fulfillment of the work of God. If God is being defeated and retreating, can you still claim that this is a holy day? How does God feel?'

Therefore, this is my principle: every moment of the day is an emergency, and Sunday is the day to really go out and show victory for God.

Once God declares victory, then we can truly declare the Sabbath, not just for one day but for the entire week. Until then, we must just persevere and go on.

Why did you join the Unification Church?

Your life would be so much easier if you went to other churches. What kind of church is this, asking you to have a 5 o'clock service and to be here by 6 o'clock to listen to a 2 1/2 hour sermon that still has not ended?

It is a lot better when ushers ask you to come in and be seated, and you can walk on plush carpets as organ music resounds in your ears. But when you Westerners with long legs come here and sit on the floor, it is even painful. It is outrageous for Western culture. Why do you still come here?

Why don't you go ahead and find some more comfortable places? If you do not come, then I do not have to talk, and then no parents will come against me. Would you still come even if I drove you and pushed you in the most unprecedented manner in history? Throughout my entire life, there has not been one day that I have not had to face criticism and persecution as my daily diet.

Does anybody welcome opposition and criticism?

Because you are Moonies, you will be treated just like me, and wherever you go, people will look at you scornfully. What did you do wrong? Did you rob the bank or rape a woman, or what? Are you half Moonies or 100%? When you deeply feel good about being a Moonie, then regardless of what anyone does against you, it will not bother you any further.

In Radio City Music Hall, they have a feature attraction, “The Littlest Horse Thieves.” Ponies were used to haul coal out of the mines before machines were developed to do that. After the mines were mechanized, the ponies were not needed, but the outside world was so strange to them that they could not adjust to it. The ponies in the movie were finally returned to the mines, where they were destined to live and die. Are you like the ponies?

Do you know how people live in the everyday world?

Before becoming Moonies, some of you were drug addicts and hippies, and you experienced the corruption in the world. Then are you Moonies because you do not know anything about the outside world, or because you know the outside world and found salvation in the Principle?

Can you continue in this way of life until your death?

What would you do if not just your parents but I chased you out? What would you do if your three meals became two meals a day, and then those two meals were reduced to one meal?

Then what would you do if that one meal were given every other day or every three days? You would say, “Well, if I receive one meal every three days, then I am entitled to rest more.” But what if all of a sudden I said, “Go out fundraising and witnessing!” Would you complain?

Why do you have to go to such extremes? You have only one life to live and only one youth to enjoy. Why do you have to suffer so much? Did you see God? Where is he? I see nothing but the vast blue sky.

How do you know that I am not a real swindler, as so many people outside our church think?

Particularly, you women and older men, why do you have to struggle for three years or more before you can receive the blessing?

If you leave the church, you can have complete freedom to date and get married, and do anything you want at any time. Things would be so easy; why do you prefer this way?

You know that even before desiring God, we are searching for true love. You have tried out everything and found that nothing worked. The highest hope for all men is to have true love- invincible, eternal love, upon which you can relate as husband and wife, have children, and build a family, and then build a society, nation, world, and cosmos.

When true love is the foundation, then you will find the true husband and wife, true parents, true children, true nation, and true world. Throughout history, there has never been such a thing available.

If no such true love exists, then God must be a lie, and we cannot talk about God, Christianity, or religion.

However, if there is God, if there is religion, then there is true love, and we can secure it and fulfill it. You can only meet God on the foundation of pure love. But we must search for this, and that is the mission of the Unification Church.

We are here to secure, enjoy, and fulfill the true love of God. We have a destiny ordained by God, not just for ourselves but for all men, and at one time or another, all men will have to go this route.

If the Unification Church does not lead you to discover true love, then you must go somewhere else to find it. When you come to the Unification Church, you can see the possibility and gain the confidence that you can secure such love. Being here and working to practice the Principle, you can experience God and feel the emergence of true love.

That is the power of our church. My entire life has never been easy. I have not even had one night of sleep when I was completely relaxed or completely happy because I felt like a sinner, as if somebody were always watching me, always oppressing me.

If God truly loves me, then why does He not do something drastic?

Why did God permit this nation to come against me with so much negativity?

Why did He not bring down brimstone and fire and judge the world and let me become invincible, raising me before the world?

But God has reserved greater love, and He deeply wants us to deserve that greater love. He is so anxious to give it as soon as the moment comes when we can deserve it. The entire spirit world is working for such a blessing from God; even after a lifetime of devotion, they still have not received it.

Could God offer His entire blessing to me without my doing anything? God wanted to have me go through such a difficult path that no one in the spirit world could accuse me or be jealous of me.

I must work harder and suffer more than anyone, and only then could everyone in the spirit world bow down to me, saying, “Indeed, Reverend Moon, you deserve such a blessing from God.”

God wants all the saints of the spirit world, including Jesus Christ, to come and petition Him, saying, “God, please give your entire blessing to Reverend Moon. He is indeed entitled to it and deserves everything.”

God wants to hear that testimony from all the saints and holy men of the spirit world. Even though that prayer has already been given supporting me, God has still not released His blessing yet, but is testing me even further.

Soon, all the spirit world will mobilize and demonstrate against God, saying, “God, we will take up the responsibility of Reverend Moon. We protest that you are demanding too much. The time has come for you to release your blessing. Such a thing has never happened before in the entire history of man.

Actually, God is wiser; by resisting their demands, He is pushing the entire population of the spirit world down to the earth and mobilizing them. Then all those in the spirit world will say, “Well, God is not directly intervening in Reverend Moon's cause. Let us go down,” and they will all come down to the physical world.

In this way, many spirits will come to assist us in our cause on earth; then the blessing will go not only to you but also to them. This is God's strategy to liberate the spirit world; in this way, the entire spirit world will be given a blessing equal to that which you will receive here on earth.

My goal is to receive more suffering and take more beatings than any other man of God has ever taken in history. I can take the pain; I will take greater pain than any individual or group in the entire universe, in heaven or on earth. I am going to go beyond their capacity.

Look at you, transcending color and nationality, language and culture; you are willing to die for this cause. You are beautiful, and you are great.

Currently, behind the Iron Curtain, many believers from the underground churches are in prison, but they are secretly moving. They are determined to suffer or die at any moment. When God calls for a martyr, they are ready to become martyrs.

If I were willing to use the strategy of the communists, there is nothing I could not do; I have the power, the people, and the organization to fulfill any kind of mission if I resorted to the communists' type of activity and strategy.

If I said right now, “Let's go to the front of the State Department and demonstrate,” would you follow me or not? But revenge and violence are not God's way. God trusts me, and my way is God's way.

Even though I receive the utmost loyalty from those who follow me, more than any person has received in history, I will never exploit it.

In all of history, have you ever heard that people from all the races got together where matchmaking was done by one father and where they were then married by the thousands? This is certainly an unprecedented record.

What I have done is unprecedented and unique, and no one even dreamed before that such a thing could ever be done. You are married, almost like the summer thunderstorm that quickly bursts in the afternoon.

However, will your marriage also be separated suddenly one day?

After the blessing, there is fidelity and obedience in those families, even when husband and wife are separated on different missions for seven years. Such faith deeply moves the heart of God and the True Parents. Have you ever heard of any young people going on such a sacrificial course for any religion or state?

Did Hitler do that? Did Stalin do that?

I am very unusual and peculiar in that respect. When I matched you men and women, were you almost crying and forced into the marriage, or did you most willingly accept it with pleasure? The moment that I gave you your husband or wife, you felt joyful and were smiling from ear to ear. I saw it myself.

In the name of God, I am setting records as an industrialist and businessman, although I am a religious leader. My basic mission is that of a messenger of God, yet even in the field of industry and education, I am setting records. Has any man in history come from a small Oriental country like Korea and, even needing an interpreter, shaken the nation within four years?

Even in such a city as New York, I am not free to even go shopping because I am so well-known and recognized. People are afraid, knowing my capability and seeing the foundation that I have already laid.

Some say that I am even worse than the Mafia. But I have done everything in the name of God and always for His cause. When God looks at His son working so hard and accomplishing so much, will He smile upon him? Do you have pride in that?

Now, when the service is over, you should just run to New York, dash in and get the newspapers, and go out without even going to your centers. Do you feel such life and excitement? How long can you continue? Can you compete with me?

Korea has come against me for more than 30 years, for practically my entire life, since I initiated my ministry—opposition, slander, accusation, and character assassination, thing after another. But people are smart, and through it all, they are recognizing who I am.

Even now, after being in America for four years, I have become famous, and many are really showing reverence and respect for me, even calling me “Moon Hero.” They say that I am really a hero among the Koreans.

Very soon, America will follow this pattern. After four years, the negativity and persecution have built up momentum in America, but that persecution will die out because there is nothing for it to feed on.

The State Department, Justice Department, and IRS are investigating our church, and now the Fraser committee is coming. However, they will soon run out of things to say. Then what will people say after that? Under such heavy beatings, I not only survive but also prosper.

I keep going and finally reach the point where people cannot find anything more to accuse me of. The American people are good-hearted, and the time when they realize that they must give me credit is not too far away.

On all levels of the American government, there are Cain-Abel struggles concerning us, with one group for the other group and me against it. I do not have anything to do with them, yet on their own, they have separated into two groups and are debating about me.

Let the negative side do its utmost. This is the way that God's strategy works: He allows the negative people to exhaust all their resources until ultimately they have to surrender.

The time will come when the nation can transcend politics between the Democratic and Republican parties, and in seeking national salvation in the midst of an urgent emergency, the first person they will think about is me. This will come because our ideology alone has the solution to the problems of this country.

Whether I live another 100 years, or another 10 years, or die tomorrow does not make any difference. My death would not change the destiny of this nation because I have already made my impact on the culture of America.

I have established my footprint, and from now on, all the words, prophecies, and revelations that I have spoken will be fulfilled.

One thing is obvious: you will not be digested by today's American culture; you are going to digest America, digest the world, and create a new culture. You are a new breed of people, aren't you? People think that if they can eliminate me, that would be the end of it, but that would only be a new beginning.

Each one of you will become Reverend Moon yourselves! Those who want to become another Reverend Moon, raise your hand.

I planned to speak for two hours, but it is already three hours now! Let's return now to the original topic of this talk, “God and the Building of the Kingdom of God.”

That title will begin to be fulfilled when you love other people, when you love your neighbor, your brothers, and sisters, your surroundings, and the people of the world. Why? Without the action of love, without self-giving, there is no way that you will find true love as a husband or wife or the true love between parents and children.

Your suffering in the process will never be in vain. That is the most beautiful principle. The greater your suffering, the more precious is the realization of your love. When your suffering is greater, then your love as a husband or wife will become more precious. When your suffering is greater, your love for your children will become more valuable.

The family is the building block of the Kingdom of God. God created it in such a way that the family is the basic unit where all love can be fulfilled and consummated.

God has been working for that family; Jesus Christ came for that family, and today I, too, am working towards the establishment of that family. Your accomplishment is greater when your sacrificial giving is greater. Therefore, your precious sacrificial way of life shall truly bring salvation to the world.

To make a long story short, when you cannot love your spiritual brothers and sisters and your spiritual children, do not even discuss a perfect marriage or perfect children because you cannot yet be given those things.

You must steadily build yourself by sacrificially giving your love to spiritual sons and daughters and brothers and sisters. Only then will you find perfect love in your home between husband, wife, and children.

In the process of loving your neighbors and gaining your spiritual sons and daughters, you will give totally of yourself, and through that God can bless your home, your spouse, and your children. Then you will have a clear conscience and can enjoy love to an infinite degree. This is such a precious position and yet so difficult to achieve; God has worked for 6,000 years for it, and Jesus Christ has worked for it for 2,000 years.

Even at present, Heavenly Father and the True Parents are working toward the establishment of that foundation, and still that position is far greater than anything you have yet experienced in terms of suffering. That is why you must hold on to this way of life and never release it.

I have lived my entire life with this philosophy, bringing in many spiritual children and giving many people the blessing so that they might become husband and wife.

I am watching an experiment in a way, to see what kind of children are born to those most loyal members of our family. This whole truth cannot be valid unless superior children come from such loyal, blessed members. I am watching from this standpoint.

A few days ago, I met with three officials of the Japanese church. In Japan, many fortune tellers read Sa-ju, which means “Four Pillars.” You are born on a particular year, month, day, and time, and each becomes a pillar that marks a tremendous personal destiny in Oriental philosophy.

Fortune-tellers are like the sages of the Orient. They are genuinely interested in me because I have had such a deep impact in Japan, and they like to study Japanese leadership with their Sa-ju.

When they studied the families whom I blessed several years ago, they concluded that their matches were terrible according to the Four Pillars and predicted that those couples would have terrible children.

However, the children who have been born are like real princes and princesses! The fortune-tellers are completely flabbergasted; this completely contradicts their predictions, and they are ashamed of themselves. There is one very famous fortune-teller who publicly recognized that I have a better way of reading Sa-ju. He humbly accepts me as a far greater sage than he, and he has promised to give whatever service he can to our church without taking any fee.

Everyone has their Four Pillars. Even if your Four Pillars say that your destiny is absolutely terrible, do not worry. I have another way of reading it. When I match you with your spouse, I want you to rest assured that in the heavenly way, you are perfectly matched.

Can you trust that?

Since joining the Unification Church movement, your original destiny has been changed. This is an important point. Now you live instead according to the fortune of the Unification Church, like riding piggyback on God's own eternal destiny.

Therefore, your individual destiny is no longer relevant. As long as you are loyal to the heavenly destiny, then your personal destiny will not affect you.

You have a pipeline into an unlimited reservoir. The only way you can receive an unrestricted supply of the water of life is by having loyalty, love, and a deep heart.

When you give your heart and loyalty, then God can give to you from the unlimited reservoir of the water of life, and He can give a heavenly child to you. When the loyal members of the Unification Church get blessed, they will have incredible children who will be the future leaders of the world.

The handsomeness of the husbands and the beauty of the wives will not determine this, nor will it be determined by white people marrying together or yellow people marrying together.

The greatness of the children will be determined by the intensity of the parents' hearts toward God. So, do you mind suffering now?

I know this deep secret. I am not trying to be boastful, but even looking at my own children, I can see that the younger children are superior, and that is the way it should be. After 17 days, Kwon Jin, the second youngest, was smiling and responding to emotion.

Within three months, he responded to music and would call for it, and when the music began, he would immediately stop crying. Then, when the music stopped, he began to make music himself. Now, less than two years old, he is singing songs in Korean and English.

When I look at him, I have to be humble to God, saying, “God, thank you. You love me.” Because such a blessing comes from God through these children, I do not feel that nine is enough. I think, “God, do you have more blessings to give me? I will gladly accept them. 10? 11? 12?”

I know the channel for giving love to the world, and in that way, I can expand the territory of God's work and spread salvation quickly. I would rather not impose a limit there. This is the most powerful and even fearful philosophy.

Through my direct family and through the family of the Unification Church, God wants to expand the territory of salvation to reach out to every corner of the earth. I know that is the will of God, so that will be done.

Mother went to the doctor the other day, and the doctor advised her, “Well, you have nine children now, isn't that good enough? Don't you want to stop having children and enjoy your remaining life?”

That is one perspective, but God sees differently. I'm sure clever members may have now caught a hint that Mother is going to have another child. You are not wise enough!

If you were intelligent, then when I mentioned the doctor, you should have applauded at that point! Your sense is one minute too slow.

Mother has never said to me, “You preach about true love and true men and women on the platform at Belvedere, but why don't you practice it at home in East Garden?” She would not be qualified to be Mother if she felt like that.

But Mother recognizes that I am living by deed, not just word, and nobody else but Mother can bear true testimony to that. Why don't you ask her? She said, “All I have to do is smile. My husband is perfect. That's a good answer for you. Furthermore, the children have said, “My father is the number one father under the sun. I don't want him to become president or king; that's too small.” For me, that is the greatest compliment.

Whenever I can spare a bit of time at home, I play with the children, but unfortunately, I do not have much time for that. God has to understand that, and so do the children. I am sure they do. Earth

h, I have had a dual mission all these years: one has been to build the spiritual foundation of the Unification Church and get the message out to the world, but my internal mission is to build my own home and the central point of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth, that is, to find Mother and nurture our children to make a perfect family that is a model of the Kingdom of God. I have only erected the tradition of the Unification Church.

Now I want to build the tradition of God's home. I have already received persecution for the purpose of erecting the tradition of the Unification Church, and now I am willing to do whatever work needs to be done to build the tradition of the home and family.

Adam and Eve fell, and for that reason, there is no guarantee that my children will not fall at this stage. Therefore, a period of setting the tradition is needed. Our environment is worse than the Garden of Eden, where there was only the angel besides God, Adam, and Eve.

Nowadays, a satanic environment and influence fill the earth, and setting the tradition is difficult under those circumstances.

For this reason, I need to spend more time at home. Do you agree?

In the future, you will follow precisely the same path. I will have my busiest time until June of this year, and thereafter, I think God wants me to concentrate more at home. But I am sure that you will feel left alone.

Then maybe I will delegate the mission of delivering a sermon on Sunday morning to Bo Hi Pak or other church leaders. Then will the people who come to Belvedere to listen to me become more or less anxious to hear me?

Whenever I go on an inspection trip to other states, I always want to go with Mother. I just don't want to go anywhere without Mother. But the children always have to go to school, and since I do not stay at home, they always say, “Daddy, can't you stay home a little more and spend time with us?” But as far as Mother is concerned, I hope she is happy.

Actually, I have such an intensive pace that Mother has a difficult time keeping up with me. Occasionally she says, “I want to stay home today. That's inevitable, particularly when she is expecting a baby.

When I look at Mother and the children, I am looking at eternity; she is my God-given wife for eternity, and they are my God-given children for eternity. In human behavior, we always have some physical limitations, and there are always personalities clashing at certain points.

If you quibble and complain about those items, then you can find dozens and hundreds of them every day, but when you look at eternity and can see your solid position of service, then you can blind yourself to those things. Then you only see beauty and grace and God-given blessings, nothing else.

When I hear the children complain about my being away, I take it as grace, as God telling them to tell me that my service is not good enough. That is the way I interpret it. Instead of reacting strongly, I only take it as God's grace.

Building a home is the cornerstone of building the Kingdom of God on earth. I am doing influence, and you also must concretely lay the cornerstone of the perfect family here on earth. It is not a dream or concept.

When you always look at everything from God's eternal perspective, then you will feel that God is with you.

Amazing things are happening in my family. The children's spiritual senses are open, so they sometimes see a spirit man or hear spiritual sounds. They told me, “I was playing the piano, and there was a very noble man in a white gown standing just behind me and benevolently watching over my shoulder.”

Hyo Jin is at a very active age. He loves music and riding horses and so forth, but he also enjoys quiet moments. He has a wild side, but he also has a quiet and sentimental side; at 2 a.m., he all of a sudden got up and was playing the flute in his room one night. Later, he told me about hearing heavenly music.

In our home, there is a complete mixture of the spiritual side of life and the physical side of life, merging into one. The children are receiving important things in dreams, particularly visions of each member of the family in the future. They are telling each other, “I saw you in a dream, and you appeared this way.” Parents should put these experiences together, organizing and beneficially analyzing them.

I am committed to building a realistic Kingdom of God here on earth. The supernatural beliefs of many Christians today about the Kingdom of Heaven will not come to pass. God is scientific and logical, and He will not fulfill His ideal in any other way.

If you understand this, then whenever you walk, you will walk to build the Kingdom of God on earth. When you talk, you will share the Kingdom of God; when you think, you will think about kingdom-building. When you walk, work, run, or rest, it will always be for Kingdom-building.

This year's slogan is “The Kingdom of God on Earth and the Ideal Family.” From this year on, we will get into realistic kingdom-building. This is not just a slogan or concept; we must expand the territory, atmosphere, and environment of kingdom-building, and we are creating our own families as the basic building block. Today is the real Easter.

On this day, we declare that we are undertaking the creation of perfect homes of love here on earth. When that is our resolve, then there is nothing more joyful for Jesus to rejoice about on his Easter.

As a man, you must feel yourself in the position of Jesus; as a woman, you must feel yourself in the position of Jesus' bride, with both having the desire to build a home in the name of Jesus and his bride.

Nothing could be more joyful for heaven and earth; that will liberate Jesus and the True Parents. By liberating Jesus and the True Parents, you are actually liberating God.

God's liberation does not begin in any grandiose setting; it will begin in your home, in yourself. You are working to become a parent who can exemplify the love of God. You are going to become a father; you are going to become a mother.

When you become like that, then you are personifying the love of God, and you can enjoy the love of God, the love of father and mother, husband and wife, and children. All love shall be consummated in you. In that case, God's love is with you and will live together with you.

When you obtain this basic love, then the rest of our work becomes easier, because all you have to do is expand that basic love.

If a wife has perfect unity and love with her husband, then when she looks at other men, she will see them as others in her husband's world and can love them equally. A husband sees other women as an extension of his wife's world and other children as extensions of his sons and daughters.

When you look at the entire world that way, it realistically becomes one family, and you can relate to everybody with God-centered love. Nobody is a stranger in that kingdom. That is the Kingdom of God on earth.

Where do you begin? With you, yourself, and your home. That is your 5% responsibility that the Divine Principle is speaking of.

If you are living this way of life, then you are guaranteed to end up in the same place that I will go, and you are destined to arrive at the throne of God. Those who pledge to go this route, please raise your hand. God bless you.