YES, HE is Talking to YOU! (continued)
Love is the Fulfilling of the Law
We got a bit sidetracked yesterday by the comments of a minister that were directly contrary to our understanding of the words of the Master. and which, feeling that this minister’s position is rather common in the church today, needed to be addressed. This type of teaching in the churches is accompanied by their ministers assertion that what they are saying is the true interpretation of the word of God but we know that anything that is contrary to the Universal Love and the Forgiveness and the Peace that Jesus teaches cannot be in itself wholly true. As we said in the last post, it is to counteract these ideas of separateness which are so prevalent in the Christian world today, that this blog exists; this, and to promote the opposite idea of the Universal Love of the One True God. The dogmatic or doctrinal exclusion of any person from the Kingdom of God serves no purpose but to enhance an already overbearing sense of prejudice against large blocs of people by otherwise well meaning Christians. Christ never said Love your Christian neighbour or your Jewish neighbour, He just said to Love your neighbour. All variations from this are but the doctrines of men. We know that what Jesus’ words were meant to convey to those He spoke to 2000 years ago He also meant for all of us. When, repeating the words of Esaias, He said: “…..Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mark 7:6-7) He was speaking to all generations.
Continuing with our theme on Love we will look today at the teachings of the Master that took the form of parables. We know that He said that He taught the people in parables and the gist of His reasoning was that only those that were ready to hear the truth would understand the meaning behind the story. Jesus says to His disciples, after telling a parable to the people, that: “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand” (Matthew 13:9-13). In the context of our discussion this saying should be a bit more clear than when we just read it as text. To the disciples, His followers, the ideas behind the parables should be understandable although at times the Master had to interpret a parable even to them. For those who had an interest in the Kingdom and in His teachings; they could get some part of the idea with the promise even of more understanding. For those with no interest at all; they would get nothing but the outer story and be further confounded in their thinking such as to have had even prior ideas taken away in confusion. This same dynamic is at work today in regard to His parables. We should be able to testify to this from the perspective of seeing that these things, His teachings, become clearer and clearer the more we indulge in His word and in the things of the Spirit.
Let us start with the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard. This is a simple parable on the surface and it has much importance in the overall understanding of the teaching of the Master regarding those who have been a long time, at least in their opinion, with Him at work. It is a story of fairness from the perspective of the Giver and of His Love and forgiveness of all. And, it is a story that reflects the idea that it matters not when you get to the work so long as you get to the work which, in our understanding, means that it is always possible to awake to the promptings of the Inner Man….it is never too late. The story goes: “For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way. Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did like wise. And about the eleventh hour he went out , and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive. So when even was come , the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first. And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny. And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house, Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day. But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny? Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee. Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good? So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen” (Matthew 20:1-16).
So we have some people who from an early age felt the urging of the Spirit and went about to follow the spiritual way and we have others who from an early age saw the ministry as a career path; both of these are among the first, in this story, to arrive for work in the vineyard. Others, in their youth, felt the call of the world for fun or for career, which was stronger than the call of the Inner Man, and they follow it. Then one day they get a realization that there must be a better way to live and these then also turn and begin follow the spiritual way. And so it goes through life with people at different stages and for different reasons coming to the realization of the Soul within and who begin to follow the promptings. In this parable the idea of intent underlies the idea of time with time being the first qualifier. Those who come to the spiritual life earlier seem to be those who also lose something over the years insofar as the teaching of this parable. The Master is saying that those among the first are thinking that they are better and they think also that they deserve more because they have been working longer for the Kingdom. This is where intent plays its part; do we strive to enter the Kingdom for a reward greater than the Kingdom itself? or do we strive to enter the Kingdom for the sake of the Truth of the Inner Man that is prompting us to go onward? Those seeking to enter for the greater reward are those that are going to think that they deserve more because of the time they spent; those doing it for the sake of the Love of God and one’s brother will accept the Kingdom as reward enough and understand that early or late does not matter.
Remember this is a parable likening the householder to the Kingdom; the householder, like the Kingdom, is attracting people to it and that the reward is the penny or the Kingdom. The idea that Jesus teaches in saying: “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth ; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened” (Matthew 7:7-8) can be seen as the epitome of this parable. The Kingdom is here and calling and men at various stages of life come to it; to them is the reward and the reward is the Kingdom. It is the calling of the Kingdom that makes us ask and seek and knock and it is in the Universal Love of God that we find that the reward is always there for each to seize at any time. The calling of the Kingdom; the prompting of the Inner Man, reflect the for many be called and those who seek the Kingdom and follow the prompting for the sake of the Kingdom and not for some greater reward here or thereafter are among the but few chosen.
Our next parable is the Parable of the Good Samaritan. This parable has already played a part in the series in helping to define neighbour and part did appear also as a Quote of the Day. The parable is the answer to the question of a lawyer asking the Master “who is my neighbour” and goes thus: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more , when I come again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said , He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise” (Luke 10:29-37).
The idea of this parable is Love thy neighbour. Jesus asks the lawyer what he thinks is necessary to inherit eternal life and the lawyer answers thus: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself” (Luke 10:27) to which Jesus agrees with the lawyer’s understanding that this is the way. In this is the answer to the whole search of the Christian churches who teach people how to be ‘saved’; the answer is clear and plain and as simple and not hidden at all behind the story in this parable. The question precedes it and Jesus saying at the end seals it by saying “Go, and do thou likewise“. So how do we miss it and how do we miss it to the degree seen in the ministers sermon discussed in the last post. LOVE THY NEIGHBOUR.
Yes the first part of the Great Commandment that the lawyer recites is “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind” but this is not addressed in the parable at all except that in whatever we do for our neighbour we can consider also being done for our God. This is the way to eternal life and this is the way to the Kingdom of God. If we truly act this way we will be led to the Kingdom by the Inner Man whether we know of it or not. If we are focused on the Kingdom and our spiritual lives then this Love will be the evidence that we have arrived on the Path to God. Without this type of Love to All we are, in the words of the Apostle Paul, as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal; we are nothing; whatever we do, without this Love, it profits us nothing (1 Corinthians 13). Repeating again the idea of this Love as we have defined it:
In a general sense love is benevolence, good will; that disposition of heart which inclines men to think favorably of their fellow men, and to do them good. In a theological sense, it includes supreme love to God, and universal good will to men. Plus the ever important High Ideal as taught by the Christ: “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them” (Matthew 7:12).
Note on the Quote of the Day
This daily blog also has a Quote of the Day which may not be in any way related to the essay. Many of these will be from the Bible and some just prayers or meditations that may have an influence on you and are in line with the subject matter of this blog. As the quote will change daily and will not store with the post, it is repeated in this section with the book reference and comment.
If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also. (1 John 4:20-21)
In the context of the definition of Love that we have above, it is our duty and our responsibility to Love All. There is no question as to the words of the Master and the Apostles so why do we change them in the churches. Why do we deny that this is what He meant and replace His words and His Doctrines with the commandments and the interpretations of men.
