On our journey of faith towards the everlasting kingdom of heaven, what kind of person am I—“I who belong to God” or “I who belong to myself”? As we reflect upon ourselves, we come to realize that we have often belonged to “myself” rather than “God.” Of course, we used to think to ourselves that we should become “I who belong to God.” However, there were many times when we didn’t have our life completely belonging to God.

Now, let’s take some time to examine ourselves if we live as “I who belong to God” or as “I who belong to myself,” through the words of God.

Stubbornness and arrogance of “I who belong to myself”

The Bible teaches that those who belong to God listen to His word, but that those who do not listen to God’s word do not belong to God.

Jn 8:47 “He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.”

The person who hears what God says and obeys Him is the one who belongs to God. On the contrary, the person who does not obey God’s word is the one who lives as “I who belong to myself,” not as “I who belong to God.”

If one lives as “I who belong to myself,” it is because he still has arrogance and stubbornness. One’s stubbornness and unrepentant heart causes him to bring God’s punishment upon himself.

Ro 2:1-5 . . . Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance? But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.

If anyone still has arrogance and an unrepentant heart, it is proof that he lives as “I who belong to myself.” Even though God tries to lead human beings to the kingdom of heaven, if they stick to their own thoughts and follow their own way rather than God’s, they will become alienated from the eternal heavenly kingdom and finally bring destruction upon themselves in the end. We must give up our stubbornness and arrogance and live according to God’s word, as “I who belong to God,” not as “I who belong to myself.”

“I who belong to God” and obedience

An old woman was throwing her stick up in the air. She repeated the same thing over and over again. When a stranger passing by saw this, he was curious and asked, “Excuse me, ma’am. May I ask what you are doing here? Why are you throwing that stick up in the air repeatedly?”

Then the old lady said, “I am throwing my stick in order to decide where to go, but its tip always points toward the left even though I have thrown it so many times. I want to go to the right, but only if the stick points toward the right. So, I keep throwing my stick until its tip points toward the right.”

She should have just gone to the right if she had wanted to go to the right, but she stubbornly continued to insist on satisfying her own intention. This is the way we human beings do things.

It is possible to live a life as “I who belong to God” only when each of us fully obeys the word of God. Among the teachings of God, if we follow what we like and neglect what we don’t like and keep insisting on our own way, it is no different than the foolish act of throwing a stick until its tip points toward the right, isn’t it? We will incur the wrath of God if we do not follow the truth of life, which God has given us in order to lead us to the everlasting kingdom of heaven, but instead twist God’s words to fit our own thoughts.

1 Sa 15:22-23 But Samuel replied: “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has rejected you as king.”

The Bible says that to obey is better than sacrifice and that arrogance is like the sin of idolatry. God has prepared gracious results for those who obey Him. However, an unfortunate destiny awaits the people who do not obey but insist on their own way and live as “I who belong to myself,” not as “I who belong to God,” like Saul.

The fate of those who do not belong to God

Such an example is also found in the journey of the Israelites from Egypt to Canaan. Most of them didn’t live as “I who belong to God” but as “I who belong to myself.” For this reason, they continued to grumble all the way God led them through. They complained about having no food or water.

Nevertheless, God brought forth water for them out of the rock, and rained down bread from heaven for them to eat for 40 years.

Although God had prepared everything for them and guided them, they didn’t realize the will of God. They didn’t look at things with the eye of faith but judged by their own thoughts and standards. As a result, God’s wrath came upon them and they were all destroyed in the desert before entering the land of Canaan.

1 Co 10:1-5 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.

God was not pleased with most of the Israelites because they didn’t belong to Him. Taking warning from the past history of the Israelites who lived as “I who belong to myself” and ended up being destroyed, we must throw “myself” away from within us.

In choosing priests and position or title holders, God has set the condition that they must not be overbearing (Tit 1:7). He has called those who are willing to do the will of God, instead of insisting on their own way, to be His ministers and workers.

2 Pe 2:9-12 if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority. Bold and arrogant, these men are not afraid to slander celestial beings; yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not bring slanderous accusations against such beings in the presence of the Lord. But these men blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like brute beasts, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like beasts they too will perish.

God gives warning to the people who live as “I who belong to myself” by saying that He will punish “those who insist on themselves and do not fear God” on the Day of Judgment. We should try to be born again as “I who belong to God” by obeying God’s will. In addition, we should always discern what pleases God and what we ought to do as God’s people.

We can see Elohim when we throw away our stubbornness

We believe in God the Father and God the Mother, following God’s will and teachings described in the Bible. However, most people in the world reject the teachings of God and insist on their own way. Their knowledge, fixed idea and prejudice become a hindrance on the way to God.

We are in the process of being changed into “I who belong to God” by making efforts to obediently follow the word of God although it is contrary to our thoughts. Throwing away everything that is against the word of God, we must honor and worship God correctly only in accordance with the teachings of God.

Through the book of Genesis, let’s meet God who is inconsistent with the common notion of Him, widely held by most people.

Ge 1:26-27 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

God said, “Let ‘us’ make man . . . ” And when man was made in God’s own image, male and female were created. Through this fact, we can easily understand that God has not only a male image but also a female image.

If God were only one, it would be a great contradiction for God to say, “Let us make man in our image.” In spite of clear evidence, many people in the world, reading the same Bible, stubbornly insist that there is only God the Father. We cannot help but doubt how they read the Bible.

God has taught us that there is God the Mother as well as God the Father, on the first page of the Bible which He has given human beings for their salvation.

People have called the male image of God—the male God—“Father” for a long time.

Mt 6:9 “This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, . . . ’ ”

Jesus told His disciples to call God in heaven “our Father.” Reading this verse, many people jump to the conclusion that God is only one—the Father, and have a fixed idea that there can never be God the Mother.

In actuality, however, the reason why Jesus mentioned only God the Father when He taught His disciples how to pray was because God the Mother was prophesied to appear in the last days—the age of the Holy Spirit.

Gal 4:26 But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother.

This word is also definitely recorded in the Bible. Nevertheless, they do not believe in God the Mother because of their stubbornness and their unrepentant heart, so they are storing up God’s wrath against themselves. They acknowledge God the Father, but insist that God the Mother doesn’t exist, even after they confirm Her existence through the Bible. They are just like the old lady who insists on throwing her stick until the tip of the stick points to the right.

In order to be saved, we must throw away this kind of stubbornness. Among all living things on the earth, there is nothing that can exist without a father or mother. Not only the Bible but also all creatures in the universe show that there is God the Mother as well as God the Father. Despite this clear evidence, people fail to find God the Mother because of their own stubbornness.

Rev 22:17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.

Elohim, who created male and female in Their own image as recorded in the first chapter of the Bible, were God the Father who was the model for man and God the Mother who was the model for woman. In the last chapter of the Bible, Elohim appear as the Sprit and the Bride and call us to come and receive the water of life. The Spirit is God the Father who is to come in the last days. So, the Bride, the Wife of the Spirit, refers to God the Mother.

Today, the world is suffering from spiritual thirst. It is because the people do not know the Spirit and the Bride who give them the water of life. If they were able to receive the water of life without coming to the Spirit and the Bride, it would not be necessary for the Spirit and the Bride to come to this earth and They would not call us to come and receive the water of life.

Let’s become God’s children who belong to God

The Bible states that we have not only God the Father but also God the Mother, and that we can receive salvation only when we come to God the Father and God the Mother. Each of us should become the “person who belongs to God” by obeying the will of God completely, keeping in mind God’s providence that is shown through all things and God’s will which is contained in the Bible.

2 Co 10:3-6 . . . The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

God’s word is true and perfect, which contains no lie. Any theory in this world is not needed before the word of God. God’s word demolishes all speculations and takes captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. So, since God’s word testifies about God the Mother, we must forsake our own thoughts and obey the Word completely.

The reason we can call God “Father” is that we are members of the heavenly family. In a family, the mother is the comforter and the supplier of warmth and love; if children return home, they call out for their mother first. This is the instinct given by God to all human beings. Many people in the world mention the love of Christ, without even knowing the love of God the Mother who has come to this earth to find Her lost children. However, without knowing Mother who is love and life, no one can live in Her perfect love.

There are still many souls who do not know God the Mother but deny Her and insist on their foolishness. Even to those stubborn souls, God has testified about God the Mother from the beginning of the world until now. Let’s help them throw away their stubbornness and become “those who belong to God” so that they can be saved. Following God’s command to “go and make disciples of all nations,” let us lead all people around the world into the arms of Mother, as “those who belong to God,” so not only we but also all other people in the world will know Mother and long for Her love and salvation.

I truly desire that you will all receive the blessings of heaven by faithfully carrying out the valuable mission of preaching God the Father and God the Mother