1. The Foundation of the Kingdom of God

In this world, nobody can uproot God's life and love. The closer we are to the truth, the more we are absorbed into it. That truth will become the center, which nobody can take by force. Even if the earth falls into chaos millions of times and the universe is suddenly destroyed, if you have the truth as your mind's center, you will never be changed or shaken.

However, if you are not prepared to receive the truth, even how correct the truth may appear you will not recognize it. Even if true life appears, you will not know it. No matter if true love appears, you will not know it. From this viewpoint, if today's Christians are looking for real truth, true life, and true love, they should deny themselves and establish a new center in their mind.

When new continents were being discovered, it seemed the earth was expanding; but now the earth seems to be getting smaller and smaller. In other words, when civilization was not developed the world seemed huge, but as history and civilization developed, the world seemed to become gradually smaller. In this sense, the ideal world will be the universal time when everything is directly related to everyone. Therefore, it is necessary that the love and life of the heavenly country be completed in one's mind and within oneself.

Because truth, life, and love are like one family, love and life should necessarily follow truth, life and truth should necessarily follow love, and, love and truth should necessarily follow life.

Why are truth, love, and life always connected to one another? As you know, in order for one being to exist, there should be above and below, front and back, and right and left, centering on that being. No existing being can escape from the realm of the number three. This is the basic structure of any existing being. These three elements make the unified form. If a force proceeds in the reverse way, a different action of the force occurs. Accordingly, God is the origin of love, life, and truth, yet after the fall, when those three did not make a balance, God could not work providentially. (2-133)

The disciples of Jesus thought that when Jesus became King of Israel, having dominion over the Roman Empire, they would also receive high positions. However, that is not the essential matter. First of all, one has to make the heavenly country within one's mind and make unity between one's physical body and God, centering on one's mind. This is the greatest problem. The Kingdom of God starts from oneself.

Therefore, the foundation of the heavenly country is one's mind. Do you want the world to become good without you? You probably want the world to become good together with you. Do you want to join the place of death? You probably don't want that. Even people at the age of 70 or 80 may not want to join the place of death. Here, you grandmother! Do you want to join the place of death or not? Although, because of old age, they don't have long to live, they still probably don't like the place of death. Why is this so? When people are getting old, they may become miserable and therefore say that they want to die. However, most people tend to say that they, with their wrinkled face, would like to see such and such things before their death. What does this mean? It means they don't want to die. This is a problem because they may be thinking everything is meaningless without themselves in the world. (47-273)

Where is the foundation of the Kingdom of God? A great number of Christians believe that they can go to that heavenly country by believing in Jesus. Then, where is the foundation of the Kingdom of God? When Peter asked, "Where is the Kingdom of God?" Jesus answered that it is not in heaven but in your mind. Then, what is the foundation in your mind? Can a sad mind be the foundation in your mind? Can a proud mind be the foundation of the Kingdom of God? Can a mind that denies society be the foundation? These are not the foundations we are expecting and not the foundations that God can approve.

In this situation, the person seeking the foundation of the Kingdom of God cannot help being more solitary than anyone else. Why is this so? Because God is solitary, the person has to be solitary. Because God has walked the way of the victim, that person has to also go that way.

Then, if humankind always repents, feeling sad and shedding tears because heaven and earth are filled with sadness, can that be the foundation of the Kingdom of God? That alone cannot be the foundation of God's Kingdom. Even when you serve the church, expecting the time of new joy, you have to determine to resolve the problem of evil in this world. Without such an attitude and determination, the foundation of the heavenly country cannot be made. This is an obvious fact.

Where is the foundation of the Kingdom of God? Some people confidently assert that because they have a certain social position, the Kingdom of God starts from them. If good and evil moved together, their opinion might be right. However, good and evil cannot move together. When evil goes east, good has to go west. When evil stops, good has to move. Moreover, when evil has a desire, good must not have the desire. Good and evil are opposite.

In this sense, when God comes to this world, who would be the most desirable one to make a bond with God? The heavenly country starts from the place where God abandoned all hope for mankind. Therefore, people who are satisfied with their present lives cannot be true religious persons.

When you are confronted by the sorrowful fate of life and death, and when you sink into despair and distress, losing the meaning of your existence, you should not be excessively attached to your past. On the contrary, you should seek new value at the place of self-denial. In this process, the foundation of true goodness can start.

From this point, is there anybody who can confidently say that his personality is the foundation of the heavenly country? [Nobody] Nobody can insist that his family is the foundation of that nation. No tribe can insist that God must recognize that tribe because of the historical good achievements of its ancestors. The Peoples, nations, and some thoughts or theories are the same. This is a tragedy.

Therefore, while the one who wants to die will live, the one who wants to live will die. What does that mean? The one who wants to live for one thousand years can realize such a dream only when he makes effort to detach himself from the evil world for one thousand years. The one who wants to live for ten thousand years can find the foundation of his wish only when he gratefully sacrifices himself for ten thousand years.

Likewise, the one seeking eternal life, happiness, and the Kingdom of God must overcome the present difficulties centering on the eternal, and must be able to endure sacrifice. Only when one takes such an attitude can the eternal foundation emerge. (47-247)