N LOVE; PART DCXIX
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GoodWill IS Love in Action
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“The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:29-31).
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“Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:36-40).
In the last essay we continued our discussion of the fourth chapter of the Epistle of James and on that saying that he offers us on being a “ friend of the world“; that to be such IS to be “the enemy of God“. We posted some doctrinal commentary on these ideas which seem to hold enemy as hated and friendship as one’s partaking in the grossest of things that the world has to offer. The reality here IS again that the apostle IS speaking to the aspirant and the disciple, to the man who has chosen the Way of God over the ways of the world and this should be seen in the reality of striving to keep His words and NOT in the ordinary idea of the casual believer nor the man who may make his career in the church. The reality of True striving IS NOT doctrinal but universal and it must grasp the True intent of Love as the Master teaches us according to the Great Commandments at the top of our essay and the Golden Rule which says that we hold ALL men in the same Light and DO to and for ALL what we would have done to and for ourselves. This IS the simplest of dividing lines regarding the Truth of one’s striving and this can ONLY be Truly assessed by each man individually regarding his own journey on the Path to the Kingdom of God. Here we should understand that while the aspirant strives to keep His words, the disciple DOES and these should be seen in the reality of James earlier words saying “be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22) and his follow up to this that IS clear and blunt saying: “For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:10).
The disciple DOES NOT offend in any point, the disciple IS a committed follower of the words and the example of the Master. The aspirant on the other hand lives in the realm of duality where the temptations that the apostle speaks of as well as the lusts and the desires and the confusion of Life are his affliction; the aspirant must stand and choose his path daily and in this perhaps we can see the idea that the Master presents saying that the man that IS His disciple and the man that Truly follows Him must “deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23). While the aspirant may make some bad choices, these ARE NOT so bad as to be seen as the offensive ideas of sin but rather as poor choices in thoughts and attitudes that may result in equally poor actions and the key here IS that he IS striving; his focus IS ever upon the ways of God. In our discussion of these words from James we have been saying that it IS the aspirant and the disciple who are subjected to this Life of duality and this IS yet our vision of the Truth; the difference here IS that the disciple DOES NOT make the poor choice that the aspirant is apt to do. The disciple has perfected his ability to stand.
While these ideas of one’s measurement of his own spiritual reality are our own, they do work out in accordance with the teachings of the Master who qualifies the disciple as the man who DOES keep His words and the man who has forsaken ALL for the Kingdom of God and it IS in this reality that discipleship IS to be seen as the High Calling. We should remember here as well that even after one has accomplished this: the ability to keep His words and the reality of “take no thought” (Matthew 6:25) as his way of Life, there IS yet much to DO as we learn from the example set for us in the Life of the Apostle Peter. This then IS the man that James speaks to in his words saying:
“Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy? But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded” (James 4:4-8).
Here we should try to see the idea of duality, that James is cautioning the man who Truly strives as the aspirant, as well as the disciple who IS yet subjected to the attractions of and the attachment to the things of the world, against these things and as a reality check if you will and for his continued instruction. It IS in this light that a man will understand the reality of friendship with the world, that this is that intimate familiarity that he should NOT continue as his focus MUST be on the things of God; for both an aspirant or a disciple this change of focus IS the reality of Truly striving. And, we should remember here that this change of focus IS the result of that conscious change that IS Repentance and that the Life of striving IS one’s work at Transforming; in this we should see that both the aspirant and the disciple ARE somewhere in this scale of Transformation which results in the endpoint of being Transformed, of being the completed disciple.
For this man, the aspirant and the disciple, there IS the reality of NOT being at enmity with God and we should try to see here the reality of the apostle’s idea that “whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God“. This IS NOT hatred, although some may have this emotional response to the prompting of his own Soul and the teaching of His word, but in this idea of enemy we should simply see opposition as offered by the lexicon which includes in its definition of echthros that it IS: opposing (God) in the mind 2. We should also note here that Vincent tells us that the idea of “is the enemy” is better rendered as “maketh himself the enemy” 4 as IS done by the Revised Version and in this there IS a better understanding of the process involved. Again, we should see here in James’ words the central idea of the Master’s words regarding God and mammon. The whole of this idea IS lost on the average man in the world who sees the world as his place and in this we can see the doctrinal interpretations that include the grossest of offenses and Love for the world’s pleasures as the idea of friendship and that it IS those who partake in the gross that ARE the enemies of God.
The next idea from the apostle, his question that asks “Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?” should be seen as it IS presented; as a question that results in an answer of NO. Scripture DOES NOT say this about the Spirit of the man and while there are various ideas regarding the possible source for scripture saying such, there IS NO True reference here to any. The point IS simply that this IS NOT what the aspirant and the disciple should DO; they should not lust and they should not envy and whatsoever other ideas can be drawn from this phrase where the idea presented in the Greek word pros can as easily be rendered as with, as for, and even as against in place of the King James rendering of to. Many translations try to make sense of this and render it according to some doctrinal belief and here we post a few examples:
- Bible in Basic English; “Or does it seem to you that it is for nothing that the holy Writings say, The spirit which God put into our hearts has a strong desire for us“.
- Common English Bible; “Or do you suppose that scripture is meaningless? Doesn’t God long for our faithfulness in the life he has given to us?“.
- English Standard Version; “Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”?“
- GOD’S WORD Translation; “Do you think this passage means nothing? It says, “The Spirit that lives in us wants us to be his own.”“.
- Good News Translation; “Don’t think that there is no truth in the scripture that says, “The spirit that God placed in us is filled with fierce desires.”“.
- New American Standard; “Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: “He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us”?“.
- New International Version; “Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely?“
- Young’s Literal Translation; “Do ye think that emptily the Writing saith, `To envy earnestly desireth the spirit that did dwell in us,’“.
Can we see the diversity of ideas here? Our view again IS simply that this IS a general question for which the answer IS NO from the perspective of the aspirant and the disciple; we DO NOT think that the scriptures says in vain that the Spirit lusts with envy which we can understand perhaps as saying that as friendship with the world IS in opposition to God, so there IS NO sense of lust or envy or any worldly idea to be found in the Spirit.. The text goes on in a followup fashion to this idea, this question, and perhaps we should see this as James own answer to his rather rhetorical question saying: “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble“. Here in this saying there ARE translation differences regarding the idea of “Wherefore he saith” as many render this as “it says” referring back to scripture and others actually render as that “scripture says“. In the end this DOES NOT matter as whether we are speaking about scripture, or Christ or God, these can ALL be understood in the same way.
In this idea of grace there IS much confusion as except as it IS meant to be favor, the meaning of it is rather nebulous. We can look at grace as the Apostle John presents this, that grace IS a part of the very Nature of Christ; we read: “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” and then again we read “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ” (John 1:14, 17). If we can see grace in this way, that it flows in the Light of the Soul with Truth and, while NOT contrary to the law, IS that expansion of the law the we get from the Master, perhaps we can see more clearly. In this we can see the idea of more or greater grace as the new basis of the law itself, the fullness of it; the grace that enables the Apostle Paul to tell us that “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Galatians 5:14) and for James to offer us a similar note saying “If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well” (James 2:8). Can we see the point here? That in the grace of God, in the expression of His Love to ALL, that there IS NO need to attend to the laws themselves; that in the Truth of this Love ALL things are considered.
This idea of grace IS NOT however the point that the apostle IS making as he offers us the reality that the proud DO NOT express the Truth of the scriptures and likely do express the lust and the envy of the previous verse; that perhaps the proud see the worldly reality of “lusteth with envy” as though it were a spiritual right. Remember again the apostles audience, he IS NOT speaking to the average man who IS likely proud to some degree and who DOES lust and envy in whatsoever combinations. The apostle IS speaking to us; to aspirants and to disciples, and he IS saying that these worldly things DO NOT come from the Spirit, they DO NOT come from God nor His scriptures and that in His words we should see the reality that pride can only detract from ones Truly spiritual ambitions. In the last essay we offered a definition of envy that encompasses the idea of pride, that envy can come from an attitude of pride as one senses that another can DO or say what we can or even better IS a good example. In any event ALL of these negative virtues ARE linked and connected in the heart of the carnal man as these ARE the ways of men in the world….not ALL men perhaps and these, like most ALL virtues, can be measured by degree.
The idea of humble needs no further interpretations as this idea is clear and succinct but we should understand that it IS an attitude and NOT merely an outward expression. Similarly, pride and envy and even lust, ARE ALL personally held attitudes so that one can hold envious attitudes for example and NOT appear to be envious. The idea here IS that God “giveth grace unto the humble” and we can understand this idea from our thoughts on grace above; as that this grace, this potency of the Christ and the Christ Within, can flow forth to the man whose heart IS clear of the negative virtues found in the world; this man is humble. To see this we must try to understand grace in a novel way, that while grace IS the “gift of God“, it IS one that IS universally distributed to the man whose heart IS clear, the man whose focus IS steadfastly upon the things of God. And the relationship here between grace and humble IS sure; it IS given to us by the Master who tells us of the necessity of being humble, that this IS a requirement for being accounted worthy of the Kingdom of God. There IS NO word that we can use to explain this idea of grace any better that this idea that the ‘gift’ of grace comes to a man as a clarity of vision and NOT as some nebulous favor. From John’s words above we can see that grace IS a potency of the Christ and grace IS that reality of vision that comes in the Truth of His Love; that in His expression of this Love and in our own expression of Love as He teaches us, ALL else is considered. There IS naught that a man can DO that IS contrary to this Love when he IS himself “rooted and grounded in love“.
Perhaps we can see the reality of grace in the Apostle Paul’s words, in his prayer for those who follow him as disciples of the Lord and aspirants to that High Calling. Perhaps grace IS to experience the fullness that the apostle prays for saying:
“For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God” (Ephesians 3:14-19).
Can we see the Truth of grace here in this clarity of vision?
We will continue with our thoughts in the next post.
| Aspect |
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.
As we approach the Wesak Festival at the Full Moon of May, it seems appropriate that we post the Great Invocation as our Quote of the Day. Wesak IS the Festival of the Buddha and it IS said that on this day the Buddha returns to us and stands with the Christ to help to focus the attention of men of GoodWill on the Truth of the Plan of God, the Plan that can come to fruition in the expression of the Light and Love and Power in the world of men.
From the point of Light within the Mind of God
Let light stream forth into the minds of men.
Let Light descend on Earth.
From the point of Love within the Heart of God
Let love stream forth into the hearts of men.
May Christ return to Earth.
From the centre where the Will of God is known
Let purpose guide the little wills of men–
The purpose which the Masters know and serve.
From the centre which we call the race of men
Let the Plan of Love and Light work out
And may it seal the door where evil dwells.
Let Light and Love and Power restore the Plan on Earth.
This prayer is a part of our Prayers and Meditations section and there is much information about it there and in our discussion of it in the Quote of the Day section of In the Words of Jesus parts 128-132
The above Invocation or Prayer does not belong to any person or group but to all Humanity. The beauty and the strength of this Invocation lies in its simplicity, and in its expression of certain central truths which all men, innately and normally, accept—the truth of the existence of a basic Intelligence to Whom we vaguely give the name of God; the truth that behind all outer seeming, the motivating power of the universe is Love; the truth that a great Individuality came to earth, called by Christians, the Christ, and embodied that love so that we could understand; the truth that both love and intelligence are effects of what is called the Will of God; and finally the self-evident truth that only through humanity itself can the Divine Plan work out.
Like the Lord’s Prayer, this invocation is a World Prayer which is as all that a prayer is intended to be. It is a prayer for the uplifting of the Human Family out of the mire of materialism and selfishness. The Lord’s Prayer asks nothing for the individual praying it but asks that its benefits be for US and for WE which is why it was given by the Christ as a prayer and as a model over 2000 years ago. This invocation is also attributed to the Christ who, as He promised, has never left us; He, through channels that we do not readily understand, has Himself instructed His disciples to distribute this prayer and to encourage its use as a world prayer and as an aid in preparing the world for His return.
The first three stanzas of this prayer should be understood as reflecting the effective potencies of the Trinity which is God and which, when brought down to an individual level, the Trinity which is Man. His Will, His Love and His Light we should seen as the Potent Powers of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts!
- 2 New Testament Greek Lexicon on BibleStudyTools.com
- 4 Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition, 1888
