Predestination and Christology

Hyo Jin Moon October 29, 1989 Sunday Service Belvedere

Predestination

Our topic today is predestination. The most important aspect of Principle is to realize the meaning of responsibility. Responsibility is the absolute essence of Principle. This chapter reminds us of the significance of responsibility. From the beginning to end, this chapter is dedicated to man's effort, man's responsibility, man's portion in the grand sketch of God's ideal.

In the Principle we find that circumstances will be divided based on man's effort. In other words, God's Will can be either accomplished or lost based on man's effort. The realization of God's intention or purpose depends solely upon man's effort to unite with Heavenly Father, upon man's desire to understand what God expects of us, and, ultimately, upon man's endeavor to manifest God's expectation in our lives. It is important that we take the initiative. God does not categorically control the direction we take or the means we use. It is up to us. We have to initiate something of our own in order to bring fulfillment to God's ideal. That is very important. So once again, responsibility is the key issue in bringing fulfillment to God's ideal.

If you accept the word predestination in its conventional meaning, then God is omnipotent and created everything in His image and perfection. In addition, everything that occurs in the world is predestined. Whether it is good or bad, whatever you see in the world was meant to be. Before we go into a deep intellectual discourse on the word predestination, we have to understand what God has predestined. God expected to see the fulfillment of His ideal world based on love. God's ultimate purpose is to create a world centered on love, with God in the position of Parent and mankind taking the position of His children. God said, "I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed, and I will do it." (Isaiah 46:11) That is His purpose and goal: to manifest the ideal world centering on love.

Before we focus on the realization of God's ideal world, we have to discuss how we attain this world. Again, the answer lies in our responsibility. Through our responsibility and efforts to reach the ideal world, God can ultimately attain the ideal world. This is the significance of human responsibility.

Predestined Goal of God's Ideal

In order to reach the predestined goal of the ideal world, man's responsibility is absolute and inevitable. Without man's participation in the process of realizing God's ideal world, God cannot attain His predestined goal. Our responsibility is very significant and absolutely important.

Restoration can be possible because the ideal world is predestined. God expected to realize His ideal world, but man's portion of responsibility is essential if God is to attain His goal. No matter what, man hay to perform in accordance with God's plan. If man has deviated from God's ideal plan, then man must redeem himself, find his lost direction and return to God's expectation. We see, once again, our clear responsibility to make God's Will a reality.

God must restore man because man's responsibility is a crucial component in the process of fulfilling God's Will and attaining His ideal world. Please read the examples following the first page of the chapter. Man's responsibility is absolutely necessary. We need encouragement to go this course.

Just for a change of pace, let me speak about the interesting Korean word ung-su. Can somebody tell me what that means? You know how to read Korean, don't you? When I explain that it means manipulation, does that word connote something bad or good to you? What do you think? (Good.) You are crazy people! If you say that to the world, they will crucify you!

Let me give you an example. My children go to preschool. They do a lot of things there: they write, draw pictures and make funny-looking things. They bring them to me, filled with pride in their accomplishments. To their eyes I guess they look great; but to me, being much older and having seen many drawings that are much better, they look terrible! To my physical eyes, they look terrible. But I realize that my daughter tries to make the best drawing she possibly can, and she is