Love is the Fulfilling of the Law
ON LOVE; PART CCXXXVIII
ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•Α
GoodWill IS Love in Action
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In our last essay we concluded our look at what we see as the results of mankind’s spiritual immersion in the vanity, the illusion and glamour of the world as depicted by the Apostle Paul. We can see in his words to the Romans in Chapter Eight the cause, as a part of the Plan of God, through which man, the True man as the Soul, is made to incarnate in the Earth where the vanity, the illusion and the glamour, are among the ruling forces, forces that cause the man to view Life only as he sees it and to place the self and those things important to the self in high regard. It IS this that the doctrines of the churches call the ‘fall of man’ a term created by doctrine to explain the state of man in the Earth and which IS attributed to the actions of Adam and Eve and is seen as the ‘punishment’ of the world for the self-centered actions of the first humans to be graced with the mental and emotional personality as created by the fusion of the Soul and the form. This doctrine is of course taken from the literal reading of the first chapters of the Book of Genesis and it is upon this literal reading that most doctrines of the ‘fall of man’ and ‘original sin’ are based. In our view we do not see these things as we DO NOT read Genesis literally but rather as an allegorical story that compresses what are likely eons of time into a few brief chapters that are written for the understanding of the emotionally based, superstitious and barbaric man of thousands of years ago. Here we should try to understand that we are speaking about the Plan of God, a God who IS, according to the Apostle John, LOVE, and this should be clear in more than just the reality of John’s saying that “God is love” (1 John 4:8, 16); it should be clear in the nature of the Master’s teaching on Love and it should be clear in other sayings like: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son” (John 3:16), a saying that some attribute to the Master Himself.
Without cause and reason from the perspective that this IS the Plan of God, Paul tells us of the plight of the True man in the world, how he IS subjected to the ways of the world which ARE vanity, illusion and glamour and which have led man to that state of being which we have been studying over the last several days, a state called by the apostle as one of “ungodliness and unrighteousness” and which is for us the reality of being separated from and initially unaware of the Soul, the God Within, as the Truth and reality of Life in form. As we have seen in Paul’s words however this unawareness is not a permanent reality but is rather a temporary condition for as the Soul continues in his prompting of the consciousness that IS enmeshed in the illusion and the glamour to his own True reality, the man as the personality in the world can and does awaken to some degree to this reality of his divine nature as the Soul. And this IS a part of the objective of Life in the world and a part as well as our purpose for being here “subject to vanity” (Romans 8:20) as the apostle tells us and which we have discussed in different terms many times. And this awakening is the expectation of God, the expectation of the Plan, and the apostle tells us in this regard that in the end man WILL BE delivered and we should try to understand this deliverance to be the revealing of the Inner Man, the Soul, through the Life in form in the world. Paul tells us as well, in those other verses from Chapter One that we have been studying, that the plight of True man is that even when the man does awaken as the personality in the world, when he does KNOW God from the perspective of the promptings of his own Soul and the visible evidence that IS ALL around him, he DOES NOT change, he DOES NOT Repent, but rather does as the apostle explains, becoming: “vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened” (Romans 1:21). They stay as men in the world, focused upon the self and the things of the world.
This IS the state of the vast majority of men yet today and we should understand here that the converse of this IS Godliness and Righteousness as there are but two alternatives; focus upon the things of God and focus upon the things of the world. In this we should see this reality, from the perspective of attaining the Kingdom of God, that the great middle ground IS STILL to be considered as focus upon the self and the things of the world. We should see here that focus upon God is the completeness and the perfection of the disciple and the man who IS accounted worthy of Him and His Kingdom. Of course ALL progress from man’s attention on the things of the world to attending to the things of God, IS True spiritual progress and can and does build spiritual collateral, good karma if you will, but the reality IS, as the Master tells us clearly, that the definitive choice MUST be made between God and mammon. And in His view that trying to do both IS NOT possible and can only cause harm to one pursuit or the other or both. Jesus tells us “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24). We ended the last essay with some words that reveal that not all men are ready for the Truth, nor for the reality of the Kingdom nor discipleship and here we must understand the for many the idea of not being ready is found in the reality of the plight of man in the world, that he is so encumbered by the illusion and the glamour that he CAN NOT and WILL NOT see the Truth of the Kingdom and this idea IS presented to us in the story of the rich young man as told us by the Master. Men today are given these same choices albeit from the Soul and the Christ Within, a choice that for the rich man is unacceptable; he CAN NOT and WILL NOT leave the comforts and the pleasures of Life in form for the prospects of the Kingdom and what he sees, according to the text, as eternal Life. We should see in this story, this parabolic account of the Life of each man, that going part way IS NOT sufficient; the story goes:
“And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions” (Mark 10:17-22).
We should note here that in our understanding of the reality of terms concerning the Kingdom of God, that ALL mean the same thing, that where Mark and Luke have the Master telling this man of the one thing that he lacks, He tells him that “If thou wilt be perfect” (Matthew 19:12) according to Matthew. Regardless of how we see these words, the overriding reality is the message that one MUST forsake ALL for the Truth of the Kingdom and that living in partial righteousness, partial perfection if you will, IS NOT righteousness nor is it perfection. This man, this rich young ruler, was NOT ready to accept the Truth of the Kingdom, the illusion of his success and glamour of his place in the world were stronger than his desire to be accounted worthy; he cared more for the things of the self that for the things of God. And this is the message of the apostle that we have been discussing; that even in KNOWING God, that a man will be inclined to NOT KNOW Him a he CAN NOT see beyond the vanity in which he lives….he CAN NOT yet see the Truth.
Taking what we are saying here above, let us relate again to the sayings by Paul as we see them in a cause and effect role:
On the cause:
“For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:20-23).
On the effect:
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things” (Romans 1:18-23).
While we have covered this before, there is much for our enlightenment in the Eighth Chapter of Paul’s Epistle to the Romans as he speaks to disciples about disciples and his words here should not be misconstrued but understood in the Light that we present above which IS that one can either side with God or with mammon and the impossibility of doing both successfully. In the Masters words one CAN NOT do both and in our view of the Kingdom and of discipleship there MUST be that dedication through which a man can eventually say that “I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). As we have ofttimes said, there ARE NO shortcuts, there ARE NO affirmations nor rituals that will bring a man to this perspective of being accounted worthy; there IS ONLY keeping His words and, until such time as we are complete in doing so that we follow the Masters injunction that we strive. We add here that while this may be disparaging to some and even insulting, we are but setting for the Truth of the Master’s words as we see them and as we believe that anyone who looks openly WILL see them as well. Here in this Eighth Chapter we see Paul’s dialogue that goes thus:
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” (Romans 8:1-19) THE TEXT CONTINUES TO OUR SAYINGS ABOVE.
Now we have covered these words in some detail and we will not repeat much of that here as we are looking at Paul’s words these days from a different perspective; our previous comments are in In the Words of Jesus part 395-406. Today we are looking at this as the words relate to the reality of discipleship which is the totality of a mans dedication of his Life in form to the things of God, the definitive choosing of God over mammon and the reality of living Life in the Master’s service which is for us service to God through service to our fellowman in Love and in our total understanding of our sameness as the True man, the Soul. It is in this definitive choosing, one’s Transformation if you will, that we are made to properly understand the Truth of the Master’s words on discipleship and on the Kingdom and we should note that we are using the word Transformation and not the word Transformed which is the finality of the process of Transformation, a finality that results in one’s Redemption and which prepares him for that final phase of Transfiguration. We have discussed our use of these terms in some depth and our thoughts can be found in using these words in the search bar on the home page of this blog. We can summarize this in our phrase:
REPENTANCE, TRANSFORMATION AND REDEMPTION LEAD US TO TRANSFIGURATION
and we begin using this in In the Words of Jesus part 611 and carry on this theme for several essays. Our point here is that this starts for us as the decision to change which we call Redemption and which, when combined with our ardent striving, leads us to Transformation and ultimately then to being Transformed which IS the accomplishment of discipleship. So then as we say here above, it is in this period of Transformation, this period of being as we are, aspirants to discipleship, that we come to understand some of the deeper meanings of the words of the Master and His apostles and in this we should see the meaning of accepting what He tells us OVER the contradictory urges of the personality in form. We can say that it IS here that we can see the reality of His saying that: “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32). Here then as we close for today is the Truth of discipleship from the Master’s words and these are sayings that we can Truly understand, Truly accept, only in our Transformation from the man in the world who is focused on the self to the man in heaven who is focused on God.
“If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple….So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath , he cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26-27, 33).
We will continue with our thoughts in the next post.
| Aspect of God |
Potency |
Aspect of Man |
In Relation to the Great Invocation |
In relation to the Christ |
|
GOD, The Father |
Will or Power |
Spirit or Life |
Center where the Will of God IS KNOWN |
Life |
|
Son, The Christ |
Love and Wisdom |
Soul or Christ Within |
Heart of God |
Truth |
|
Holy Spirit |
Light or Activity |
Life Within |
Mind of God |
Way |
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.
We are again at a time of year that includes the three Spiritual Festivals which are yet largely unrecognized by the Christian churches except for the one that recently past called Easter. We know about these festivals through the teaching and the efforts of the Master’s of the Wisdom who we should see as advanced disciples of the Christ, a group which may yet include those Souls that appeared with the Master as His Apostles, disciples and others who aided and assisted in His Great Mission such as the Baptist and His natural mother Mary. Each of these festivals is celebrated at a Full Moon and the cycle begins with Easter which is celebrated on the Sunday following the first Full Moon of Spring. At the Full Moon of May, which occurs on the 5th day of the month, is the Wesak Festival which is the Festival of the Buddha and at the Full Moon of June, which will occur on the 4th of June, is the Christ Festival also known today as World Invocation Day. As we progress toward the Wesak Festival we will post Quote’s of the Day that are, in our view, conducive to the view of the Buddha and the Christ as regards the spreading of Love and GoodWill throughout the world; we begin with the Affirmation of the Disciple.
I am a point of light within a greater Light.
I am a strand of loving energy within the stream of Love divine.
I am a point of sacrificial Fire, focused within the fiery Will of God.
And thus I stand
I am a way by which men may achieve.
I am a source of strength, enabling them to stand.
I am a beam of light, shining upon their way.
And thus I stand.
And standing thus, revolve
And tread this way the ways of men,
And know the ways of God.
And thus I stand.
We repeat again what we had previously said of this Mantram:
Today’s Quote of the Day is called the Affirmation of the Disciple and is spoken from the perspective of the Soul and not from that of the man in form. It is the Soul that we are in this life on Earth, housed in this ‘temple’ of flesh and it is the Light of the Soul that must flow through this ‘temple’ in order that we may say with the Christ “I have overcome the world“ (John 16:33) which is our goal and our destiny. Speaking then as the Soul we affirm our reality and true existence in God and in His Three Aspects of Light and Love and His Will. As this Light and Love and Will flow through our conscious personalities and forms we, as disciples, take on the nature of the second stanza being able to offer to the world a better way through our service and our Love for all, encouragement to righteousness through our strength of purpose, and the Light which shines in accordance with the Master’s instructions to “Let your light so shine before men” (Matthew 5:16) and illuminates the Path. Finally we realize that we are standing in this world and walking as men but, as conscious Souls in form, we know the way and the ways of God and are able to say with the Christ that “I am not of this world” (John 8:23).
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts!
- 3 Strongest Strongs Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible – 2001
