ON LOVE; PART CMXI
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
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
FIRST IS THE GREAT COMMANDMENTS: “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).
ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ
WHAT THEN IS LOVE? 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. While this IS from an older definition of Charity, which IS rendered in the King James Bible from the same Greek word agape which IS generally rendered as Love, we should amend our own definition here to include the idea that in the reality of Love a man will accord to ALL men ALL things that he would accord to himself and to say that Love IS our thoughts and attitude of the equality of ALL men regardless of their outward nature or appearance…that ALL ARE equally children of Our One God
ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ
PLUS THE EVER IMPORTANT AND HIGH IDEAL TAUGHT TO US BY THE CHRIST: “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them” (Matthew 7:12).
In the last essay we continued our discussion of the doctrinal idea of atonement and the atoning quality of the death and resurrection of Jesus from the perspective of the way that such doctrines erode the Master’s own words that most clearly tell us that it IS to the man who keeps His words that the grace of God will come. It IS the man who keeps His words that IS accounted worthy of the Kingdom of God, it IS this man who can have the realization of the Presence of God and it IS this man who can be seen as a disciple of the Lord. As we have discussed, these ideas ARE clearly stated by Jesus and amplified and clarified by His apostles but, as we see in the commentaries from the last post, these ideas ARE NOT a fundamental part of the doctrines that have come to be Christianity. In the last essay we looked at the doctrinal ideas from various expositors and commentators regarding the most simple saying that “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven” and in this many contend that it IS doctrinal ideas such as: faith in Christ for life and salvation; which is the source of all true evangelical obedience, and without which nothing is acceptable to God and the idea that: these words chiefly respect preachers 8, as John Gill frames this, that ARE the Master’s meaning.
Another went so far as to say that: the will of God must be understood, not in the sense of sinless obedience, but as including a compliance with the conditions on which sins are forgiven. it IS in this tone that the Fourfold Gospel goes on to say that: sinless obedience is an impossibility 8. It IS in these ideas and others like them that so many men believe that their responsibility in regard to being accounted worthy to “enter into the kingdom of heaven” IS NOT as the Master most clearly says but IS rather as the individual ideas of doctrine predicate. In this look at this single idea from the Master, we ONLY took on a small part; we DID NOT discuss the greater implications of Jesus words regarding those who may call Him “Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say” which IS framed for us by the Apostle Luke as that rhetorical question which asks the most basic question; we read: “why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). And perhaps the point of the Master’s words IS to show the reality that we ourselves see in these commentaries that dilute Jesus own words which show us of the Way to the Kingdom. It IS in this light that we should read Jesus’ thoughts from the perspective of the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders which follows both the saying in Matthew and in Luke:
“Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose , the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great” (Luke 6:49-49).
In this parabolic example we should clearly see the reality of keeping His words and while doctrines may parse this saying to discover ideas which agree with their own view as we see in the commentaries, there IS NO such safe harbor given by the Master who further explains the whole of His ideas in Matthew’s version. Here, in Matthew’s expanded version of Luke’s simply put question we find Jesus’ caution: to men to NOT see their Way in interpreting His words in any other way than as He stated, in any other way but but DOING “the will of my Father which is in heaven“; We read Matthew’s words again saying:
“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity” (Matthew 7:21-23).
Here IS in these ideas we should try to see that this attitude of one’s believing that they ARE close to the Lord, that they ARE among His disciples and that they ARE accounted worthy of the Kingdom without their keeping His words, which IS framed here as “the will of my Father which is in heaven“, IS NOT the Way to the Kingdom. Jesus makes it clear here that to merely speak as one who KNOWS in prophecy, or to act as one who KNOWS by healing ability, or even to appear as one who KNOWS in whatsoever can be considered as “many wonderful works“, IS of NO use insofar as being accounted worthy and that the ONLY way to His Kingdom IS in keeping His words. Here there IS NO need to wonder what it IS that the Master means as His words ARE clear and here IS the rub: men today believe that Jesus IS speaking ONLY to those men in that day who had such pretense, and most DO see this as pretense on their part. If however we can take this from the view that we ascribe to the Pharisee and the scribe in Jesus’ day, we can better understand that while there may be such pretense on the part of some, that most DO believe in their own spirituality based upon their own adherence to their own doctrines and traditions.
While men over the centuries and still yet today see the idea of pretense in the words of those men who many assume pretend to KNOW, and while many may see the Master’s idea of “in that day” as being: in the last day, the day of judgment, the great and famous day, fixed by God, unknown to angels and men, which will be terrible to some, and joyful to others 8, as John Gill tells us, NONE of this should really matter. We should see here that the simple reality IS that these who may pretend and these who actually believe that they ARE among His disciples ARE NOT except that they “doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven“; this IS the overriding message. In the relationship between these words from the Master according to Matthew and His ideas that are encapsulated into the parable which follows, we should be able to see the single reality and the singular importance of keeping His words as well as the defined relationship between DOING so and DOING “the will of my Father which is in heaven“. And while Matthew gives us the greater detail, the whole of the Master’s intent IS also found in the honest searching of one’s own heart according to Luke’s offering to us of Jesus’ most simple question.
And this IS the same question as that one posed by the Apostle James which, while in the the form of a statement, should evoke that same honest searching of one’s own heart. James tells us that we should “be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves“. While the words that follow this can seem confusing, the perspective here should be of the man who IS NOT a DOER, the man who deceives himself; this IS the man who believes that he sees a spiritual man looking back at him based in his hearing which IS his self perception as a believer. We read James’ more complete words as:”be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed” (James 1:22-25). In the idea of deception here we have the same dynamic at play which should be seen in Jesus words above and we should understand that both of these ideas ARE deception, that the man who calls on the Master as Lord, Lord, DOES believe himself to be among those who ARE accounted worthy of the Kingdom of God.
Many millions of men have found themselves in this SAME condition; from the Pharisees and the other religious rulers of the Jews, to those men through history who proclaimed their allegiance to the Lord, those who proclaimed His Name and taught their view of His teachings as Christians or Jews or as any religion, but DID NOT keep His words….that were NOT “doers of the word“. And we have a True example of this dynamic in the Life of the Apostle Paul who was deceived by his own doctrines and traditions as a Pharisee. While Paul recognized this Truth and wrote about it in his epistles, most DO NOT see his words in the way that we paint these here; most DO NOT see that in his awakening, the apostle hears and heeds the call of the Christ and becomes a DOER; and that this must become the way of everyman: to hear and heed the call of the Christ Within which IS the call of Truth. It was his own world of vanity, his own world of illusion and glamour, that the apostle shows us in saying of his former Life that: “I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day” (Acts 22:3). To this Paul adds “I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee” (Acts 23:6) and, to King Agrippa, the apostle says “I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth” (Acts 26:9).
Our point here IS to set out the idea of illusion and glamour and to show how that their effect works in the hearts of men. It IS this sense of vanity that causes men to see things as they desire them to be and NOT as they Truly ARE. And this IS James’ message as well as he shows men that there IS naught but deception in ALL ideas of spiritual reality except when the man will be “doers of the word“. As we have ofttimes discussed, this IS the same reality that the Master shows us, NOT ONLY in the ideas that we have above regarding the Kingdom of God, but in the ideas which bring to a man a realization of the Kingdom of God which we so often use in our posts. Jesus shows us the reality of DOING in His words from the fourteenth chapter of John’s Gospel which we repeat here again:
He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me” (John 14:21-24).
Here again we should realize the sameness of the effects, the sameness of the results of keeping His words. Here we should understand that this singleness of purpose leads to ALL things spiritual and here we have the very Presence of God as the reward, a reward that IS the same in effect as one’s attaining the Kingdom of God as the Master shows us above. While the Master shows us the deception of the man who believes that calling Him Lord and doing such things as healing and prophecy and whatsoever “wonderful works” in parabolic tones, James shows us this same effect in straightforward words. Both show the fallacy of one’s own thoughts and beliefs, the same fallacy that Paul testifies to as he “verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth” and the same fallacy that Jesus shows us saying “He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s“.
James shows us that such a man who IS deceived, such a man who DOES NOT DO as the Master instructs may look at himself much in the same way as Paul did before he was awakened to the Truth, and then he adds yet more. James tells us as well that even this man who looks at himself in deception, who believes that he IS in accord with the Master’s words, forgets even his own delusion as soon as he ceases such reflection. Can we see this in the apostle’s words that show that this man “beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was“? Can we see how that this idea reflects upon the apostle’s earlier words saying “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways“? How that this man who IS deluded by his own thoughts of his own spiritual accomplishment IS yet living his Life as a man in this world and that this IS where his own thoughts will go? It IS the man who IS NOT the DOER who “beholdeth himself, and goeth his way” and we should try to see here how that this idea of “his natural face” can ONLY mean that which he believed that he IS seeing as one will NOT “forgetteth what manner of man he was” in regard to his own physical face.
We must look to the parabolic value of James’ example which shows the reality of the Life of the man who IS the DOER, the man who “looketh into the perfect law of liberty” which IS the Master’s words, the “the will of my Father which is in heaven“. If we can then relate the apostle’s words that complete this thought, that the man “continueth therein“, to Jesus own words, we should be able to see the third part of the Master’s words regarding the man who will keep His word. We read: “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). Again this IS the third reality that comes to the man who will keep His words; above we have his being accounted worthy of the Kingdom of God, and above we have the Presence of God that Jesus shows us as His manifestation and as the idea of the Father and the Son making their abode with such a man.Here we have the reality of discipleship, True discipleship which IS the reality of being “disciples indeed“. This IS our trifecta which we should see in the British definition** of the word; three successful outcomes, His Presence, the Kingdom of God, and discipleship, all as the result of that great achievement in the Life of a man….that he can keep His words.
We close today with Jesus explanation of the Parable of the Sower as it IS in this that we can see the Truth of deception broken down into the Master’s positive statements regarding the plight of men; we read:
“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience” (Luke 8:11-15).
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.
Live in joy, in love, even among those who hate.
Live in joy, in health, even among the afflicted.
Live in joy, in peace, even among the troubled.
Live in joy, without possessions.
Like the shining ones.
The winner sows hatred because the loser suffers.
Let go of winning and losing and find joy.
There is no fire like passion, no crime like hatred,
No sorrow like separation, no sickness like hunger,
And no joy like the joy of freedom.
Today’s Quote of the Day is from the Dhammapada (on JOY)5; a collection of the sayings of the Buddha. These words and ideas ARE much the same as those we discuss in our In the Words of Jesus essays. And what is this freedom but the release of our hearts and minds from loving this life in this world and attaining the Presence of God. This word Joy has many meanings as DOES the idea of Love, but in the context that it IS used here we should see the idea that Joy IS Love, Joy IS health, Joy IS peace and that Joy IS without the burdens placed on a man by the illusion and the glamour of the ways of the world. We should try to see that it IS the antithesis of these ideas in hate, in affliction and in troubles that ARE among the possessions of the carnal man, that ARE among the “evil treasure of his heart” (Luke 6:45) according to the Master.
And it IS in the second stanza above that we see the basic psychic ideas that can eliminate the harm caused by such “evil treasure” as a man looks past himself and at the welfare of others which IS the greater reality of Love as the Master teaches us. It IS in losing such possessions, losing such carnal thoughts and attitudes, that one can truly find the “joy of freedom“….this IS the Truth of deliverance.
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts
- 5 The Dhammapada Translated by Thomas Byrom
- 8 Bible commentaries on BibleStudyTools.com
- ** Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979
