Jesus and the Man who has attained the Purpose of Creation

Christology

Section II

Jesus and the Man who has attained the Purpose of Creation

1. Jesus and Perfected Adam as the Restoration of the Tree of Life

Human history is the history of the providence to establish the Kingdom of Heaven on earth by restoring the Tree of Life (Rev. 22:14), which was lost in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:24). We can know the relationship between Jesus and perfected Adam by understanding the relationship between the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:9) and the Tree of Life that is to be restored at the close of the age (Rev. 22:14).

As already discussed in detail in the "Fall of Man", if Adam had become a man who had attained the ideal of creation, he would have become the Tree of Life (Gen. 2:9); and all his posterity would also have become trees of life. However, Adam fell, nullifying the will (Gen. 3:24), and ever since, it has been the hope of fallen men to restore themselves to this Tree of Life (Prov. 13:12, Rev. 22:14). Since fallen man can never restore himself as the Tree of Life by his own power, a man having attained the ideal of creation must come as the Tree of Life, and all men must be engrafted to him. Christ is the man who comes, symbolized as the Tree of Life (Rev. 22:14). Therefore, perfected Adam, symbolized by the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden, and Jesus, who is also likened to the Tree of Life (Rev. 22:14), are identical from the standpoint of their being men who have attained the ideal of creation.

2. Jesus and the Man who has attained the Purpose of Creation

We have already explained in Section I the value of perfected man. Let us here consider the difference between Jesus and perfected man. As we well know from the previous discussion, a perfected man, in light of the purpose of creation, should become perfect, as God is perfect (Matt. 5:48); thus, he is so valuable as to even possess deity. Since God is eternal, man, who was created as His substantial object, should also become eternal, after his perfection.

Besides, the value of the existence of the whole macrocosm cannot be complete without perfected man, because he is a unique being and the lord of all creation. Therefore, man has the value of the whole macrocosm.

Jesus is truly a man of this value. However great his value may be, he cannot assume a value greater than that of a man who has attained the purpose of creation. Therefore, we cannot deny that Jesus was a man who had attained the purpose of creation.

The Principle does not deny the attitude of faith held by many Christians that Jesus is God, since it is true that a perfected man is one body with God. Furthermore, when the Principle asserts that Jesus is a man having attained the purpose of creation, this does not in the least diminish his value. However, the principle of creation sees the original value of perfected man as being equal to that of Jesus. We have explained above that Jesus was a man who had attained the purpose of creation. Then, let us look at the Biblical proof for this.

It is written in I Timothy 2:5, "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.". We find in Romans 5:19, "For as by one man's [Adam's] disobedience many were made sinners, so by one man's [Jesus'] obedience many shall be made righteous.". It further explains (I Cor. 15:21), "For as by a man [Adam] came death, by a man [Jesus] has come also the resurrection of the dead.". The Bible also says (Acts 17:31), "...he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed." and Luke 17:26 says, "As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of man.". Thus, the Bible demonstrates most plainly that Jesus is a man. Above all, he had to come as a man in order to be the True Parents of mankind, thus giving man rebirth.

3. Is Jesus God Himself?

When Philip asked Jesus to show him God, Jesus said to him, "He who has seen me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father?' Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me?" (John 14:9-10). Again the Bible says, "He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world knew him not." (John 1:10). Further, it is written, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." (John 8:58). On the grounds of all these Biblical verses, many Christians have hitherto believed that Jesus is God Himself, the Creator.

As demonstrated above, Jesus, as a man having fulfilled the purpose of creation, is one body with God. So, in light of his deity, he may well be called God. Nevertheless, he can by no means be God Himself. The relationship between God and Jesus can be compared to that between the mind and body. The body, as the substantial object which resembles the mind, is one body with the mind, so it may be called a second mind (image of the mind), but the body can by no means be the mind itself. In like manner, Jesus, being one body with God, may be called a second God (image of God), but he can by no means be God Himself. It is true that he who has seen Jesus has seen God (John 14:9-10); but Jesus did not say this to indicate that he was God Himself.

It is written (John 1:14) that Jesus is the Word made flesh. This means that Jesus is the substantiation of the Word; that is, the incarnation of the Word. Then, it is written (John 1:3) that all things were made through the Word, and again (John 1:10), that the world was made through Jesus; naturally, Jesus may be called the Creator. According to the principle of creation, the world of creation is the substantial development of the character and form of a man of perfected individuality. So, a man who has fulfilled the purpose of creation is the substantial encapsulation of the entire cosmos, and the center of harmony in the whole creation. In that sense, it may also be said that the world was created by a man of perfection. God intended to have man, after his perfection through the fulfillment of his own portion of responsibility, stand in the position of the creator over all things, by giving him even His own creative nature. Seen from this perspective, we can understand that the Bible (John 1:10) only clarifies the fact that Jesus was a man who had perfected the purpose of creation, and does not signify that he was the Creator Himself.

Jesus was a descendant of Abraham; but since he came as the human ancestor giving rebirth to all mankind, he would become the forefather of Abraham, in light of the providence of restoration. This is why Jesus said (John 8:58), "...before Abraham was, I am.". We must understand that this also does not signify that Jesus was God Himself. Jesus, on earth, was a man no different from us except for the fact that he was without original sin. Even in the spirit world after his resurrection, he lives as a spirit man with his disciples. The only difference between them is that Jesus abides as a spirit man of the divine spirit stage, emitting brilliant light, while his disciples are the objects who reflect this light.

Meanwhile, Jesus has been interceding for us before God even in the spirit world after his resurrection (Rom. 8:34), just as he did on earth. If Jesus is God Himself, how could he intercede for us before Himself? Moreover, we see that Jesus also called upon "God" or "Father" for help, which is good evidence that he is not God Himself (Matt. 27:46, John 17:1). If Jesus was God Himself, how could God have been tempted by Satan, and finally crucified by the evil force? Furthermore, when we find that Jesus said on the cross, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" it becomes clear that Jesus is not God Himself.