Spirit and Truth

Jesus (Jn. 24:4) said “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

When I fundraised, many Christians would ask, “Do you believe in Jesus?” to which I emphatically answered “Yes!” Next they would ask, “Are you born again?” I said yes. The third question was, “Have you received the Holy Spirit?” That’s where I had some doubt what they really meant, which was inevitably “speaking in tongues.” I didn’t claim that, but I replied, “I receive the Holy Spirit in tears.”

But our Church was rather cool and intellectual. We raised people up by lectures and fundraising.

I was a steady fundraiser but never did spectacularly well.

I realized that I don’t really have “The Spirit” and moreover I felt our whole church needs that.

Definitely many Christian churches have “The Spirit”.

We (Unificationists) dismiss that: “What they’re really receiving is some evil spirits. Better not open yourself to the Spirit.”

Back at the UTS (Unification Theological Seminary) early on in 1989 for a religious studies class I wrote, “The Unification Movement needs spirit-filled healing, born-again revival similar to what evangelical and Pentecostal Christians have at their camp meetings and Wednesday evening get-togethers, raising the barn till late into the night.”

Those prophetic words would eventually be realized first in Dae Mo Nim’s Great Works sessions and later, more focusedly, in Rev. Lee Gi-seong’s all-out shouting Nightly Prayer Vigils, initiated at the CheongPyeong Training Center facility and eventually at our gatherings all round the world.

But, just think: We Moonies didn’t have much of what Born Again evangelicals would call “Spirit”—but we had the Second Coming Messiah in our camp! Now they have a powerful Holy Spirit, well developed with rousing hymns, big tent revivals and outdoor rallies, praising the Lord, and all the trappings of spirit-filled worship. Billy Graham and Jimmy Swaggart are two of many famous preachers in many denominations, reaching out to all ages, classes, and political convictions.

The problem we see in the Christian church particularly in the nineteenth and twentieth century is that, though definitely influential, certainly spirit-filled, and well financed—they missed the person of the Second Coming and the Bride—who are the most important figures of all time and figure prominently in the final revelations of the Bible.

Why’s that?

Think about shouting prayer, which we advocate, now more than before: With all the clamor, how are you going to catch “the still small voice of the Holy Spirit” which must “guide us into all the truth”?

And that most important kernel of truth is none other than the very identity of the Returned Lord.

What’s the problem?

First, you must believe He and She are going to or have already shown up in person. Right there we have a problem: We emphasize this important event, yet don’t actually believe it will happen in my time and that I can be one of those to meet him and/or her. It means we need three elements: “Faith, Hope, and Love.”

Next, you must have a realistic, practical concept of how they’re coming. Note: He and She. It’s right there in your Bible, all the way from Genesis to the Revelation of John the Divine. Christians generally think the Lord is descending from the sky on a cloud and we will be automatically raptured if we’re faithful believers. It’s very supernatural and highly unscientific. Do they mean an airplane?

Third: folks, you better overcome race and gender issues. Did you imagine the Messiah could be a Woman? Did you picture the Second Coming from an Oriental or African country?

So the primary issue is how to think correctly and how to pray to the true God and receive His/Her answer and guidance.

There’s nothing more important than correctly and affirmatively finding and joining up with the Lord and the Bride when they show up.

They’re not coming the way you expected. That means you must be very astute, sensitive, prayerful, and watchful.

And you might be the only one on the block, the only one in your church, the only one in your family, who recognizes Him and Her. And everyone else around will say you’re crazy and shun you.

There is no more important examination in the world nor in history than this most important one.

For that, we need Spirit and Truth.