The History of Restoration Moses Family 1

What does it mean to have a foundation to receive the Messiah? For it to be possible for God to send the Messiah, you need a foundation of faith and a foundation of substance. Now, that's the theological terms, but how does that translate into the real world? You need a state that can protect itself. The Messiah needs to be protected, and part of that is having a people, a nation, or a spiritual community that is living a spiritual and religious life. When the Messiah appears and starts telling them about God, they need to know what he is talking about. They shouldn't need to be persuaded that God exists. They need to be aware of the presence of God and able to recognize the Messiah, understanding that what he talks about is sensible and answers their questions. That's the first thing. So, what's the foundational substance? How does that manifest in practice? Well, we can look at what went wrong with Cain and Abel; Cain killed Abel. So, a foundational substance in practice means allowing life to flourish. We are talking about a society that is not at war, a society that is at peace, with relative freedom of speech and freedom of religion. In other words, when the Messiah comes along and starts talking about God, if he has different ideas than everyone else, they may disagree with him or argue with him, but they can't put him in prison and kill him. There has to be a basic rule of law, what we now call human rights, in a law-governed society with freedom of assembly, so he can meet with his friends, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion. That's what foundational substance means. Think about how common it is in human history to have a society with freedom of speech and freedom of religion. It's very rare, isn't it? That's what God needs to create: a national foundation for the Messiah, which is a spiritual community where there's freedom of speech and freedom of religion. When the Messiah comes, he can persuade people through his words and deeds to accept him. So, that's the kind of foundation that God needs to establish. If we look at how far God got, we can see in Jacob's family, and in Abraham's family, how foundational substance was established to a limited extent with Jacob and Esau. They reconciled, but the descendants of Jacob became the Jews, while the descendants of Esau remained two different peoples who fought against each other quite a bit. You can see what happened with Jacob and Esau. They were reconciled, but they weren't genuinely united. That didn't happen until Jacob's sons, particularly Judah and Benjamin, where Judah, in the position of Cain, was willing to risk his life to save his brother Benjamin, in the position of Abel. That became a genuine, lasting foundation of substance. Those two brothers embraced and loved each other, and hundreds of years later, the southern kingdom was made up of the two tribes of Benjamin and Judah. The Messiah actually comes from the line of Judah. The first king, Saul, came from Benjamin, and the second king, David, came from Judah, and the Messiah is descended from the line of Judah. So, that was where this lasting foundation of substance was established between Judah and Benjamin. However, it's still only on a family or tribal level. If we look at Satan's foundation on an individual level, there were lots of nasty people, big bullies, and criminal families attacking others. There was no religious freedom, and oppressive societies like Egypt existed, where the Pharaoh was worshipped as God, and everyone lived to serve the Pharaoh. Satan's foundation was on a national or even international level with the Egyptian and Assyrian empires, where there wasn't this kind of freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and social mobility necessary for the Messiah to come. If the Messiah had come in Jacob's family or shortly afterward, they could have easily come into conflict and been wiped out. As Neil was saying, there was no state, no foundation to protect the Messiah, which is why God needed to establish a national foundation, leading to this delay. The pattern for overcoming Satan was established by Jacob, and more particularly by Joseph, and then by Judah and Benjamin. This pattern was followed by Moses, later by Jesus, and of course, by our true parents. Let's look in more detail at the national foundation needed to receive the Messiah. A foundation of faith is essential, and the central person to do that is Moses. He makes a foundation of faith through a certain period of time, qualifying him to stand as a central figure for the foundation of substance. He had to go through a period of 40 years of restoration, and this offering then becomes following the word of God, which means living a spiritual life. The foundation of substance means they need to remove their fallen nature to restore the foundation of substance and overcome their fallen nature, which is the unity with Moses and the Hebrews. This means that the foundation for the Messiah to come on a national level requires divine grace, with God's 95% and human will being 5% for God's will to be done. So, that's the national foundation for the Messiah, living a spiritual life and overcoming the fallen nature. What was life like in Egypt? Jacob took his family down into Egypt, and while they were there, they prospered and multiplied. Do you remember why they ended up in Egypt? There was a famine, and Joseph became the prime minister. Joseph had a dream about seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine. During the seven years of plenty, he stored up grain, and during the famine, he sold it to the Egyptians. Initially, they used their savings, but when they ran out of money, they had to sell their property and eventually themselves. After the seven years, they accused Joseph of making them slaves to the Pharaoh. Interestingly, because Joseph was the prime minister, he invited his family in, and they owned land, prospering and multiplying. Through his economic policies, Joseph managed to reduce all the Egyptians to slavery while his family became wealthy landowners. You can imagine how that went down. In retrospect, Joseph's economic policies were not very brilliant. He was taking advantage of the people's situation to sell the grain. Instead, he could have distributed it freely during the famine, which is what the state should do. The point of these stories in the Bible is that there are lessons to be learned. Some politicians want to impose punitive rates of taxation because they dislike the wealthy, leading to inheritance taxes and other taxes that take away a significant portion of ordinary people's wealth. They prospered and multiplied, but they were not very popular. A new king arose over Egypt who didn't know about Joseph and thought, 'Who are all these foreigners living in my country who are also rich?' He devised a cunning plan involving grand building projects, employing many Egyptians. A lot of Hebrews decided to work on these projects for good pay, leaving their jobs and businesses. The Pharaoh then changed the employment legislation so that only Egyptians could be foremen, while Hebrews could only be labourers. He increased wages for Egyptian foremen and lowered them for Hebrews. If any Hebrews tried to return to their old jobs due to low pay, they were intimidated and beaten. Gradually, their wages were reduced until they effectively became slaves. This is reminiscent of communism, where private property was abolished, and everyone had to work for the state, losing their freedom. The Hebrews lived in Goshen, where they ended up becoming slaves, but they weren't the first slaves; the Egyptians were the first slaves. Now, we have the first national course to restore Canaan. What were they doing in Egypt? Abraham made a mistake during the offering. If Abraham had not made that mistake, they would have reached Canaan and stayed there. When God told Abraham to make the offering, he expressed doubt, which led to the need to restore his faith. God instructed him to make an offering of a heifer, a goat, a sheep, and a dove. If he had made that offering successfully, his descendants would have lived in Canaan forever. Because he didn't restore the foundation of faith, God said his descendants would live in a foreign land for 400 years. The point is that 400 years had to pass anyway to get from the family level to the national level for the Messiah to come. If they had stayed in Canaan, they would have spent 400 years prospering there, and then the Messiah would have come. Instead, they spent 400 years in Egypt, necessitating a national course to restore Canaan. After this period, they could return to where they were meant to be. How did Moses become the central figure? He was the son of Amram and Jochebed. Amram was a leader of some kind, and Jochebed was his mother. The Pharaoh wanted to stop the Hebrews from multiplying, so he introduced drastic birth control measures, killing the boys born. Jochebed didn't want her son to be killed, so she put him in a basket on the river. His sister kept an eye on him, and the princess found him and took him into the palace. The midwives, who were told to kill the boys, refused to do so, and God's providence began to unfold.

Because of disobedience, was the Pharaoh's daughter obedient or disobedient? Did she know Moses was an Israelite child? She must have lied to her father, right? So, she was disobeying the command of her father. She was risking her life to save Moses, a person of extraordinary compassion. Even though she knew that was against the law, she was disobeying the Pharaoh, who was her father. She risked her life by disobeying him to save Joseph's life. Anyway, he grew up in the palace and was also brought up by his mother, who was actually employed as a wet nurse. Wet nurses breastfeed children when the mother runs out of milk, so his mother ended up being employed as his nanny and wet nurse. She brought him up, knowing his identity as a Hebrew in some way, and he grew up with a very strong sense of justice.

When he was 40 years old, he was wandering around the building site and saw an Egyptian slave driver whipping and beating one of the Hebrews unfairly and unjustly. He felt really angry; he had a very strong sense of justice. So, he went and killed the Egyptian slave driver. Through this, you can imagine the people, the Hebrews, knew that Moses was their man in that sense. They knew he was brought up in the palace, but how do you think they felt about him growing up in the palace? They might have felt resentful. They may have thought, 'Oh, it's just not fair, is it? He's growing up in the palace, a life of luxury, and here we are slaving away.' Some of them might have thought, 'When's he going to show his true colours and come to help us and save us?' By killing the Egyptian slave driver, he was showing the people that he was a patriot, revealing his identity as a true Hebrew. However, by killing the Egyptian slave driver, he was also putting himself outside the pale of being an Egyptian and had to leave the palace.

Do you think it was a good idea for him to kill the Egyptian slave driver? Some might think it was a good idea, while others might question whether it was right to kill someone. That was the choice he made, and the consequence was that he had to leave the palace and ended up going to the desert. Imagine if he hadn't killed the Egyptian slave driver; he might have remained in the palace and even become the emperor of Egypt, which could have made the journey for the Israelites easier. If he had maintained his identity as a Hebrew and become Pharaoh, there could have been a synthesis of Hebraism and Hellenism, leading to a different outcome. However, if he hadn't killed the Egyptian out of fear, that would have been a disaster because he wouldn't have acted at all. This was his choice, and God worked with the consequences of that.

The Hebrews should have recognised that Moses, brought up in the palace, was a true patriot. They should have respected him because he had a good education and decided to risk his life to protect them. They should have listened to him and asked him what they should do. Together, they could have multiplied and created a lot of goodness. Instead, they ended up in a situation where Moses saw two Hebrews fighting, and when he intervened, one of them said, 'Who made you a prince and judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?' This shows that they were jealous and did not respect him. They didn't recognise his authority, and they questioned his idea of justice, which involved arbitrarily killing someone he thought was wrong. They saw him as a loose cannon, and Moses realised that if everyone knew about him killing the Egyptian, there would be a warrant out for his arrest, so he needed to escape.

The first national foundation for the Messiah was a failure on both sides. It's important to try and understand things from different people's points of view. What was going on in Moses' mind? How would his actions have appeared to an ordinary Hebrew? It’s easy to judge them, but understanding their reactions can provide insight. If an Egyptian prince had killed a lower-level Egyptian, he might have faced some trouble, but because Moses wasn't originally Egyptian, his situation was precarious. The law at that time stated that if you were an aristocrat and killed a slave, you were not punished. The law applied differently depending on one's social status. If it was someone else's slave, you would pay a fine, but if it was your own, you could do what you liked with him. Some of the other princes might have been looking for any excuse to act against him.

Moses fled to the Wilderness of Midian, outside Egypt. While there, he helped some ladies around a well who were being harassed, driving off their harassers. He found out their father was called Jethro, who is often associated with the invention of the seed drill in the Agricultural Revolution. Jethro was a priest of Midian and, according to tradition, opposed the idea of turning the Hebrews into slaves, which led him to flee to Midian. Moses married Zipporah, one of Jethro's daughters, and they had two sons. He became a shepherd, and according to tradition, the Hebrews were building the pyramids and the city of Rameses. If they had followed Moses, they could have reached Canaan in 21 days, but instead, he had to flee to Midian.

The second national course to restore Canaan had the same conditions as the first. The foundation of faith was Moses, the object conditional object was the tablets, which represented the word of God, and the time period was 40 years. During this time, they should have loved, respected, submitted, and multiplied goodness together with Moses. Moses had to make the foundation of faith, qualifying him to be the central person for the foundation of substance. He needed to represent God, and this required a certain charisma. People should be able to feel the spiritual energy and God's presence flowing through him. If he did not make a foundation of faith, it would be difficult for people to respect him. The foundation of faith is a condition to stand in the position of Abel, allowing him to mediate God's love and truth. Abel must separate from Satan to enter God's presence, enabling God to work through him when he stands at the pulpit, delivering a sermon where people can feel God's grace.

It is surprising that Moses, with his education and patriotism, did not marry an Israeli woman. He was in Midian, where there were no Hebrews living. As a prince in the palace, he could not marry a slave; it was socially unacceptable. From Jewish tradition, the woman carries on Jewish lineage, so this tradition was already in place. There were many who converted to Judaism, and it was a religion that people were converting to until the time of Constantine, who passed laws against converting to Judaism. This led to the current situation where Jews do not engage in evangelical missionary activity. In the early centuries, there was a lot of fluidity between Judaism and Christianity, with many Gentiles becoming Christians and then realising the need to study Judaism more deeply. This fluidity allowed for movement between the two religions, which is not as common today.

A nice, peaceful life, and then after his 40 years, he encountered God. He saw this Burning Bush, and he observed that it wasn't burning; it wasn't being consumed. So, he went up to it, and God told him, "You're standing on Holy Ground; take off your shoes." He took off his shoes or sandals, and then God spoke to him, saying, "I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." How did God introduce Himself? A Jewish God? They weren't Jews in those days, nor was it even really an Israeli God. It's much more about the God of your ancestors, but specifically the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This is very much like a personal God; He identifies Himself with these individuals. This is a very important insight in Judaism: God is someone with whom you can have a personal relationship. God takes a personal interest in every single human being. It's not just an abstract concept; He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God was identifying Himself so Moses would know who He was and whether this voice could be relied upon and trusted. Yes, because it was the God of his ancestors, about whom he would have known.

God said, "I have seen the misery of my people in Egypt; I've heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering." This reveals something essential about the nature of God: He is a God of compassion. Most essentially, God feels and cares about His people; He cares about their suffering. God would have liked to have intervened before this time, but He had to wait until this 400-year period passed. During this period of 400 years, what was Satan trying to do? He was trying to kill them, to break their faith. They had to restore this foundation of faith for 400 years, which meant they had to maintain their identity. Satan had 400 years to try and destroy Abraham's descendants. If, after 400 years, there were no people who believed in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, there would be no one to take out of Egypt and back into Canaan.

You can imagine that when the Hebrews were reduced to slavery, their choices were limited. They could become resentful and bitter, consumed by a sense of victimhood, which would have spiritually paralyzed them. Alternatively, they could keep their identity and therefore continue to be singled out, or they could lose their identity and assimilate. They could have taken on Egyptian citizenship, renouncing their Hebrew identity to become Egyptians. I'm sure there were some Hebrews who did that; they thought, "Why should I suffer just because I'm a Hebrew? If I become an Egyptian, I can become a slave master, a slave driver, etc." Many Koreans in Japan have Japanese names and families. If you do that, you become assimilated. What Satan was trying to do was to make the Hebrews lose their sense of self and their identities, so that after 400 years, there would be nobody left to bring out. The Hebrews thought, "Why should we be different and be treated so badly? What's so important about keeping our identity and lineage? Why can't we be like everyone else?"

This challenge persisted, but enough of them maintained their identity as Hebrews and kept their traditions, such as observing the Sabbath and circumcision. These practices helped them maintain their identity and their faith in God. When Moses appeared, they could relate to him. This reveals that God cares; He is a God of compassion who feels people's suffering as His own and wants to help relieve them of their suffering. So, what happens next? Moses has a discussion with God. God says to Moses, "I have seen the suffering of my people, and I will rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians. I will bring them into the land of Canaan. Now go; I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt." How do you think Moses felt? He was a retired man, and naturally, he said, "Who am I?" In other words, if he went to Pharaoh and said, "Let my people go," Pharaoh would ask, "Who are you, a shepherd from the desert? Why should I pay any attention to you?"

Moses thought this was not a good plan. It's interesting that God said, "I am who I am," and Moses responded with, "Who am I?" But God assured him, "I will be with you, and this will be a sign to you that it is I who sent you. When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship me on this mountain." Does that sound like a plan? God said to Moses, "Don't worry; I'll be there with you. Just to prove that I'm with you, after you've done the job and brought them all out to worship me here, then I'll provide the evidence." Moses thought, "He may be God, but the world doesn't work like that." So, Moses said, "They will ask, 'What is your name?' If I go to the Israelites and say, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' they will ask me, 'What is his name?' What shall I tell them?" God replied, "I am who I am," but in Hebrew, it says, "I will be who I will be." This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I am' or 'I will be' has sent me to you. Does that sound like a plan? No, Moses said they wouldn't believe him. Essentially, Moses thought this was just not going to work.

God then said to Moses, "Okay, look, throw your rod down on the ground." He threw his rod down, and it turned into a snake, causing Moses to jump out of his skin. God said, "Pick it up," and when he did, it turned back into a rod. God said, "This is a little trick that can serve as evidence to prove that I have sent you." Symbolically, this is interpreted as the restoration of Adam. Then God said to Moses, "Right, stick your hand in your blouse." He did, and when he took it out, it was leprous. God said, "Put it back in again," and when he took it out again, it was healed. This is symbolically interpreted as the restoration of Eve by the Messiah. Finally, God said to Moses, "Look, take some water from the Nile, pour it onto the sand, and it will turn into blood." Moses thought, "Yeah, I can work with that."

At this point, a question arises: if Moses could interrupt God, what does that mean? I've been talking to many of my colleagues, and the Bible is easily challengeable academically. It doesn't always make sense; some of the miracles don't seem scientific. You can argue that if God can do anything, then that's true, but we also learn that God has to adhere to certain principles. He created the principles in a way that they are set. How can we reconcile that with the miracles? If you think of miracles as something supernatural, it becomes a problem. However, if you consider that perhaps Moses was just an illusionist, like a modern-day magician, it changes the perspective. You see these extraordinary feats on television and wonder how they do it. There is often a psychological explanation behind it, but it's amazing when you look at it; you think it's extraordinary. The symbolism comes from the book called The Divine Principle. Would you like me to explain it in more detail?

The principle interprets many of these events in the Bible through a typology of the three blessings, for example. It sees many of these occurrences as being related to restoring the three blessings. Sometimes, the interpretations can feel a bit stretched or forced. A staff is made of wood, which is part of a tree. You can see how these interpretations can be made, but sometimes they seem a bit forced. However, that's how the principle interprets these events, attributing particular meanings to them, such as restoring the three blessings. This approach is not unusual; Christianity interprets these events similarly but uses a different typology. Why do you think it's important that these miracles are interpreted this way? Why is it significant that Moses performs these miracles?

God was trying to give Moses something to go on because Moses was a very practical person. He realised he needed more to convince Pharaoh and the Israelites that he had come from God. He lacked the confidence that they would pay attention to him just because he said so. These particular miracles were primarily performed for the Israelite leaders, not Pharaoh. He first went to the leaders of the Hebrews, who would have known who he was. He would have said, "I had this experience, this encounter with God," and these miracles would serve as proof that what he was saying was true. Moses then said, "Oh my Lord, I am not eloquent; I am slow of speech and of tongue." The understanding is that Moses was a stutterer and not a good public speaker. You can imagine him trying to give a speech to Pharaoh and choking up, leading everyone to laughter. He said, "I am not eloquent," and God replied, "Okay, I can handle that. I will be your mouth and teach you what you shall speak."

Moses then said, "Oh well, really?" God assured him that Aaron, his brother, would speak for him. In other words, Moses would whisper into Aaron's ear what to say, and Aaron, with his strong voice, would deliver the message. Finally, Moses said, "Oh my Lord, send someone else. I really don't want the job." This interaction in the biblical tradition is fascinating; there is an incredibly active dialogue between the prophets and God. They argue with God. For them, God was a reality; He was personal. This is what it means that God is personal: you can argue with Him, talk to Him, and work out some kind of arrangement. Moses said, "Okay, God, you want me to do this, but that’s not really practical. Let's come to some kind of compromise that we can both be happy with." God compromises and finds a way to accommodate Himself to human limitations. At this point, God became a bit upset with Moses, but eventually, Moses agreed to do it. God said to Moses, "Right, you are going to work together as a trinity. You can be like me, and Aaron will be like you, while your sister Miriam can work in a similar position, like a trinity: Adam and Eve."

Moses then set off towards Egypt, and on the way, at a place where they spent the night, it says the Lord met him and tried to kill him. You might think, "Well, that's a funny condition of employment. What's going on here?" This is even more extraordinary: Zipporah, his wife, took a flint, cut off her son's foreskin, and touched Moses' feet with it, saying, "Truly, you are a bridegroom of blood to me." So, He let him alone. It was then she said, "A bridegroom of blood by circumcision." The son was called Gershom. So, what's going on here? Why did God try to kill Moses? He was testing him. Why was he testing him? Moses had to trust God completely. There is also a pattern that humans must overcome. Why do they do that? To strengthen their character. Divine Principle states that God does not grant grace to people without a necessary condition. If He were to do so, Satan would make an accusation. Therefore, when God is about to give grace, He puts a person through a test either before or after the grace to prevent Satan's accusations.

Why would Satan accuse them? The reason is that God does not grant grace to people without a necessary condition. If He were to do so, Satan would make an accusation. Granting grace means giving a blessing, and someone might accuse another of not deserving it. This is how it works: if you are not qualified to receive a blessing, you might be seen as undeserving. For example, if you want a job, you need to study, pass exams, and earn your degree to be qualified. This principle applies not only spiritually with God and Satan but also in the world we live in.

Consider a chairman of a large company who has a son that is completely unqualified, yet he is placed on the board of directors. The rest of the employees would feel upset for several reasons. Firstly, they would think it is unfair, as there are better candidates for the position. Secondly, they would worry about the future of the company if the son were to take over. This is a normal reaction; people want to ensure that those in positions of authority are qualified. Therefore, when God is about to grant grace, He often puts a person through a test to prevent Satan's accusation.

For example, Satan often accuses God, claiming that if God loved him more, he would not have felt a lack of love, which led him to seek love from Adam and Eve. To prevent such accusations, God cannot grant grace without a test. This brings us to the idea of a trial period. When God puts people through trials, they must pass the test by themselves. Just as in an exam, you cannot ask for help; you must figure it out on your own. This is about taking responsibility and thinking for oneself.

In the Old Testament, we see examples of this principle. For instance, when Moses was confronted with the task of leading the Israelites, he faced significant challenges. The traditional understanding is that Satan does God's will by testing individuals to see if they are truly qualified. Satan acts as a critic, pointing out errors and mistakes, which ultimately helps individuals strive for perfection. This is evident in the story of Moses, where God sought to kill him due to a failure to circumcise his son, highlighting the importance of following divine principles.

Circumcision, in this context, represents a significant change in lineage, often at the risk of one's life. It is about removing the blood of death and aligning oneself with God's lineage. The act of circumcision is a profound commitment, signifying that one belongs to God, even at great personal risk. In ancient times, this was a life-threatening procedure, and those who underwent it did so to affirm their identity and allegiance to God.

The significance of circumcision is further illustrated through the story of Abraham. When God made a covenant with Abraham, he was circumcised, which changed his name and his lineage. In Hebrew tradition, each letter has a numerical value, and this change in name reflects a deeper spiritual transformation. Before circumcision, Abraham had control over 243 limbs of his body, but after, he gained control over all 248 limbs, symbolising complete self-control and alignment with God's will.

This transformation through circumcision is not just physical but also spiritual. It represents the restoration of dominion and the unity of mind and body. The Bible speaks of three types of circumcision: of the mind, the flesh, and all things, which purifies and separates from Satan's influence. Moses, after receiving God's message, approached the Hebrew leaders and performed signs to prove his divine calling. Their acceptance of him was crucial for the foundation of his mission to confront Pharaoh.

When Moses approached Pharaoh, he requested to let the Israelites go for a festival in the desert. This request was strategic, as Moses understood the likelihood of Pharaoh allowing them to leave permanently was slim. Pharaoh's response, however, was dismissive, claiming ignorance of the Lord and refusing to let the people go. In retaliation, he increased their workload, leading the Hebrews to blame Moses for their worsening conditions. This reaction caused Moses to feel disheartened, yet he maintained an intimate relationship with God, expressing his frustrations and seeking guidance.

The narrative continues with the ten plagues, where Moses confronts Pharaoh repeatedly. Each time, Pharaoh's heart is hardened, leading to a series of plagues that demonstrate God's power. The first plague turned the Nile to blood, followed by a plague of frogs, yet Pharaoh remained obstinate. This cycle of confrontation and divine intervention illustrates the struggle between God's will and human resistance.

Shall we leave this till next week? It's going to take quite a long time, actually. Chrisal Bell's question is an important one. This section is a natural place to stop, that's all. The next part will start with the plagues, and then it leads into the Exodus, which is quite a lengthy topic to cover.

It's probably enough for today. I don't want to keep you here all night.