I changed my opinion about the three wise men after hearing in more detail the Principle teaching of the Rev. Moon. Even though they gave their gifts they left Jesus unprotected despite knowing that King Herod planned his death. One of the first things to do after finding the Lord of lords and King of kings surely is to stay together with, and serve him. I think that they were shocked to find the baby Jesus in a stable and had doubts, or second thoughts.

   Jesus' parents also didn't believe in Jesus as the Messiah. They didn't notice that he wasn't with them for a whole day when Jesus was 12 years old. (Luke2:41-52) Even if your child weren't the long awaited Messiah would you not notice his absence for a whole day? I don't think so.

   John-the-Baptist testified to Jesus at first as the Messiah because God told him directly who Jesus was; but later John came to have doubts. His mission as the baptist should have ended with the baptism of Jesus at the Jordan River. What should it have been after that? He should have become the main disciple of Jesus, inseparable from him; and yet, apart from the account at the Jordan River, there is no record of John-the-Baptist working together with Jesus at all. From prison John sent some of his disciples to Jesus to ask if he were the Messiah or not. John-the-Baptist was a dismal failure and yet he is erroneously celebrated as a saint.

   It is clear too that Jesus' disciples did not really understand who Jesus was even though they stayed together with him for almost three years. As an example, Jesus warned Peter that he would deny him three times (Luke 22:33,34) before he was taken away for questioning. If Peter had truly believed in Jesus as the Messiah then he would have taken Jesus' warning seriously and prayed to ask God about it. Instead he protested against Jesus imagining that some high officials, or even the Chief Priest himself, would come to challenge Peter. Then he could proudly and defiantly affirm that he was with Jesus. Instead it was first a servant girl and then some ordinary people standing around a fire to keep warm that challenged Peter and so he failed, despite Jesus' warning. The disciples changed, of course, after the visitation from the Holy Spirit, but by then it was after Jesus had already been killed.

   It is well known that the established church authorities at the time of Jesus did not accept Jesus as the Messiah. Jesus spoke of new wineskins being needed for new wine to suggest that a greater effort would be needed for established church leaders to accept a new expression of the truth. Do you suppose that it would be any different in our day? What kind of person would tell you and in what kind of way do you think that you would be told that the Messiah is here already, in our day, right now? How would you respond and how would you check it out? Israel, as a nation today still does not officially recognise Jesus as the Messiah and they are like a living museum in that respect.

   Please read the chapter in the Unification Principle entitled, 'The Messiah: His Advent and the Purpose of his Second Coming', where you can find another viewpoint which may surprise you and provoke a fresh thinking concerning the Lord of the Second Advent as well as a deeper appreciation of Jesus. We should not repeat the mistake that was made by those alive at the time of Jesus who did not know the time of their visitation.