Cheon Seong Gyeong: Episode 224

Cheon Seong Gyeong Book 8: Life of Faith and Training
Chapter 1: What Is a Life of Faith
Section 3: The Path of Faith, 02-15

The path we must go in accordance with God's Will

(2)  When we talk about the true path of faith, "true" means there is only one path. What then, is the object of our faith? It is the absolute God. A life of faith is about seeking and finding the destination of hope desired by God, in accordance with His Will. A life of faith is not about what I want; it is not about the desire of those who lead a life of faith. Confusion has occurred within the global community of faith because people have not understood that a life of faith should be centered upon accomplishing God’s Will, not centered upon oneself.

(3)  Everything depends on oneself. It is up to each of us whether we achieve perfection or fail to achieve it. It is the same regarding whether we succeed or fail in life. Our life of faith is no different. Although our faith may be constant throughout our life, our conscience urges us to strive after ever-higher goals. Reaching the highest standard is, however, no ordinary undertaking. The higher we climb, the closer to the peak we are, until, ultimately, we realize that everything ends in unity.  It is difficult, though, to reach that point of oneness: historically, our conscience has sought the purpose of goodness, yet the perfection we desire as human beings still eludes us.

(4)  In the Unification Church, your life of faith requires you to raise the standard by which you evaluate yourselves as you walk with God in your daily lives. When you go to the spirit world this higher standard will be your asset. It will also be the determining factor deciding whether in the new era you will be remembered in history as a hero or an outcast.

(5)  Each one of us needs a victorious standard, a starting point from which we can accomplish our mission. This means we must establish a victorious standard from the subject partner position. Naturally, unless we establish a victorious standard, we will not be able to accomplish our purpose. Where must we establish this standard? It must be created within ourselves.

(6)  When Jesus came to earth carrying God's entire mission on His behalf, standing as the one responsible for ending a cosmic struggle, the issue for Jesus was always to focus on his relationship with God. God was to be the center of heaven and earth and Jesus the substantial center. Jesus was constantly mindful of this fact. If any gap between himself and God had opened, or a conflict over their purpose had arisen, they would not have been able to progress toward victory.

(7)  Deep in his heart, Jesus carried the conviction that the Father and Son must always be united. In other words, centering on God, the victorious subject partner, Jesus was fully aware that in order to prepare a victorious foundation as a subject partner on earth, he needed to attend God in his heart. It is from this standpoint that Jesus referred to himself as the temple of God. Achieving a victorious standard means to create a foundation of unity, of becoming a temple centering on Jesus, the substantial manifestation of God on earth. In other words, to complete a victorious foundation, a standard must be established. Otherwise, the completion of restoration, the accomplishment of Jesus' mission, would be impossible.  Therefore, unless we establish a standard of faith and begin, we cannot claim that we have attained a victorious foundation. This is true no matter how long we have practiced a life of faith or how difficult our course may have been. In conclusion, the most important point is to have one moment that defines the standard of victory within oneself.

(8)  When you seek what is true, you need a heart that longs for what is true. When you yearn for the truth in which heaven and earth can take delight, you must realize that you have to prepare yourself to match the standard of what is true from Heaven's perspective. The true God, true truth and true human beings are different kinds of existences. However, from an internal point of view, all three move in the same direction. In other words, God and truth move in one direction and coexist eternally. When we look at today's world, we lament that this world has not become a true world. Furthermore, when we look deeply within ourselves, we lament not becoming true people and deplore not finding the true God in our lives of faith, despite yearning to do so. This is the agony faced by those who lead a life of faith.

(9)  No one who lives a life of faith at the risk of his or her life wants to see his or her faith simply crumble amid life's tribulations. The more seriously we practice our faith, the greater the trials we encounter, and the more we want our faith to become deeper, wider, and more enduring. If God is a serious God, then when He looks at each of us, we want Him to look more seriously at us than others look at us.  Furthermore, as believers, we all desire to leave a legacy in this world related to the cause most dear to our hearts.

(10)  As believers, we say we will become God's children. Yet, what is God's wish? God's ultimate wish for us has nothing to do with the mundane matters of our daily lives such as eating and sleeping. These activities are common to everyone. The Bible clearly tells us, "Therefore, do not worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?' For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things ... But strive first for the kingdom of God and His righteousness." (Matt. 7:31-33)

(11)  A life of faith involves overcoming the constraints of our environment, making breakthroughs every day, and constantly seeking new paths. Unless we do so, we cannot enter the kingdom desired by God. Since we often lack energy, and since our habits and daily lives do not meet a high standard on our path of faith, we need to uphold God as our standard and adjust our daily lives, accordingly.

The path to eliminate the fallen nature

(12)  Originally, human life was meant to begin with living for others, with God at the center. However, due to the Fall, human life did not begin with living for others. It began with selfish thinking, living for oneself, and creating self-centered relationships. Since we are striving toward the goals of eternal freedom and peace, we must shed the self-centeredness and fallen nature that put our personal desires before the greater purpose. We need to become people who transcend ourselves and live for others.

(13)  Before we can be proud of ourselves, we first must admit we are fallen people. Prior to showcasing our qualities, we first must confess the nature of our sins, while admitting that we come from a sinful history and that we are imbued with fallen nature. Although this is the reality of our fallen state, we try to circumvent it in all kinds of ways. Heaven must cleanse all the guilt that stains history and resolve the resentments resulting from these festering historical crimes passing down through the lineage.

(14)  Among your colleagues, teachers, students, or relatives, is there anyone who likes those who make excuses? Yet people are prone to blaming another person and scapegoating others when something goes wrong. A common excuse is, "Why are you only blaming me? He also did that; my brother did the same thing." This is wrong. A person who makes a mistake should be honest. Yet often, someone who has committed an error tries to implicate others. Such behavior is from fallen nature. In order to correct this fallen inclination within ourselves, we should be honest in our daily life. We must have even greater honesty in front of God.

(15)  When perfect parts are put together for a particular purpose, a perfect object is made. For example, to build a house, the doors and all the related components should be perfect. Only then can a house be completed. When we consider this, we realize we need to pursue perfection. Therefore, Jesus said, in Matthew 5:48, "Be perfect, therefore, as your Heavenly Father is perfect." The standard is that you too must reach the perfection of Heaven. You must without doubt pursue the values of an object partner who comes close to the Absolute. What is required is a perfected object partner who stands unashamed in front of the Absolute. In order to achieve this, we need to analyze our daily life. We must set aside our daily life and even our thinking. We must analyze our five senses and entire body. We must feel and sense everything differently from how we did before.