According to the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, that’s exactly what happened. Moon is the head of the Unification Church, a.k.a. "The Moonies," a pseudo-Christian cult. Moon teaches his followers that on Easter morning in 1936, Jesus appeared to him and requested that Moon complete the “unfinished task,” thus making Moon the “new Messiah.” Are Moon’s outlandish claims true? I suggest we check the Scriptures.
Question 1: Did Jesus fail to complete the task? I believe there exists a couple of verses that support he did not fail. First, before he took his last breath, Jesus said, “It is finished.” (John 19:30) The Greek word for finished is tetelestai, meaning “paid in full.” In the culture of that day, whenever an indentured slave paid off his debt, the owner would give a certificate of completion and write telelestai, indicating the debt was paid in full. Jesus paid our debt on the cross (1 Timothy 2:5-6). Did Jesus lie about having finished the task? To quote a great Christian, “Lord forbid!” Secondly, and I really like this one, Jesus testified he did all the Father asked him to do (John 17:4). The word of God declares Jesus finished the job.
Question 2: Is Rev. Moon the new Messiah or Christ? That implies there was at least one other Messiah prior to Moon. The Bible demonstrates that Jesus is that Messiah (Matthew 16:13-17). Then what does that make Moon? Jesus said Moon is a false Messiah (Matthew 24:23-26). Jesus’ not Moon’s name is the most exalted (Philippians 2:9-11). By the way, that guy who will deceive the world in the last days is called the anti-Christ, not the anti-Moon.
Even from a theological perspective, God’s stamp of approval that Jesus completed the task – the resurrection.
Sorry Rev. Moon. Your teaching does not pass the exegetical and theological smell tests.
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Wonderful article!
Identifying the enemy is half of the battle. Then, not only are we called to display his failure but to appeal to him and his followers to come to the true saviour.
Flesh out your arguments. For example give the citations you reference and expound upon them demonstrating them to validate your point(s). Do not assume that your readers are capable of doing this for themselves.
Keep up the good work!
