ON LOVE; PART CMLXXXIX

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GoodWill IS Love in Action

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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).

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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

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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 discussed how that the idea of fruit IS the result of discipleship which in turn IS the result of keeping His words. This IS made apparent in Jesus’ words according to the Apostle John who tells us that “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples” (John 15:8); here we should see that to “bear much fruit” IS a precursor to discipleship as IS the reality that men “continue in my word” as IS clearly shown us in the trifecta below. We should remember here that it IS by measure that discipleship comes upon a man as he Truly strives toward the Kingdom of God and this sense of measure IS shown to us in the Parable of the Sower as it relates to fruit.

In this parable where “The seed is the word of God” (Luke 8:11) there IS a Truly clear message in the way that the Master explains this to His disciples yet the reality of His words IS missed yet today. Perhaps we should take the way that this IS missed according to the terms of Jesus’ opening statement as He begins to offer the explanation to His disciples. He says to them in answer to their questions about the original parable: “Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables” (Mark 4:11). While so many believe that they KNOW the reality of the explanation, few there ARE that Truly DO see the underlying Truth which IS NOT hidden but yet must be discerned from the fullness of the Parable which we repeat here from the Apostle Luke:

“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).

To properly place oneself into this parable, one must Truly admit to whatsoever stage he IS on. A man must KNOW that he IS the way side or the stony ground or that he IS among thorns where the seed IS “choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life“. Here one CAN NOT merely believe that he IS “the good ground” based upon some doctrinal precept as Luke shows us the force of Jesus’ words as “they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience“. Here we have the fullness of the idea of keeping His words, not by the law but “in an honest and good heart” which idea captures the True gist of the Apostle Paul’s many words on grace, faith and the law.

The three gospel writers each treat this idea of “the good ground” differently and it IS in the combination of these ideas that the Truth IS revealed; the Apostle Matthew tells us that “the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it” (Matthew 8:23) while the Apostle Mark tells us that Jesus’ words say “these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it” (Mark 4:20). Vincent tells us this on these three approaches to this idea through which the Truly spiritual man will “bring forth fruit“: The three evangelists give three characteristics of the good hearer. Matthew, he understandeth the word; Mark, he receiveth it; Luke, he keepeth it ⁴. The greater reality IS that the man who IS “the good ground” will keep His words but perhaps we can see the idea of striving in the accounts of Matthew and Mark; both show us the measure by which a man can “bring forth fruit” and it IS this measure that comes in understanding the Truth of His words and receiving them. Luke DOES NOT show us the measure but only the fullness of the man who keeps His words….that he will “bring forth fruit with patience“.

In the reality of understanding the Truth as this IS presented by the Master according to our trifecta we have the reality of striving; any man who Truly understands the Master’s admonition that men should keep His words will perforce move toward that goal. It IS the man who DOES NOT see the reality of keeping His words as the Way to the Kingdom that will find Jesus’ words scattered among the thorns where they DO NOT “bring forth fruit” against the backdrop of the clamor of worldly living that IS his primary focus. However, as a man comes to see and to understand the Truth, a measure of fruit will come through his Life and this personal measure, “some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty” (Matthew 13:23), DOES depend upon the measure of his focus upon the Truth of the things of God.

In Mark’s version, the idea of receiving the word comes from the Greek word paradechomai which IS used only this time in the gospels. The lexicon tells us that this word means: to receive, take up, take upon one’s self; to admit i.e. not to reject, to accept, receive; of a son: to acknowledge as one’s own; and in this we should try to see the apostle’s intent: to receive the word IS to accept the word and to take it upon one’s self….and in this we should see a man who will strive. A kindred word apodechomai IS used in the Book of Hebrews where we read of God that: “For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth” (Hebrews 12:6); on this saying Vincent shows us this receiving by the Lord as: Admits to filial privileges: acknowledges as his own ⁴. In these defining terms we should get the greater idea that to receive according to these Greek words IS much more than the common understanding.

Again, this IS the reality of fruit: that it IS intimately tied to His word, to receiving it which IS to accept it and to acknowledge as one’s own and in this we should see the reality of believing in and believing on the Master which IS, as Vincent shows us, to accept and adopt His precepts and example as binding upon the life ⁴. Can we see how these ideas work together? And this intimate relationship of fruit to His word is found also in understanding it as Matthew tells us; here, the Greek word suniemi IS used and the lexicon tells us that this IS: to put (as it were) the perception with the thing perceived ². Vincent tells us this regarding the kindred word sunesis: is a union or bringing together of the mind with an object ⁴; this word IS used by the scribe to whom Jesus recites the Great Commandments in place of Jesus use of dianoia which IS rendered as mind above but also as understanding and as the mind as a faculty of understanding ².

In receiving as well as in understanding as these ideas ARE presented we should see specific intent of the man who hears His words: that to accept it and to acknowledge as one’s own IS the thought, attitude and action of striving to keep His words. And bringing the mind to bear upon the Truth of His words, as to bring the focus off of the carnal ideas which heretofore had taken one’s attention, and to put the mind onto His words with purpose IS as well striving to keep His words. In both of these we have a measure of fruit, a measure of the Truth of His words becoming the expression of the man in this world. The end of this IS of course as Luke shows us….that a man will hear his words and keep them; this IS the reality of Jesus saying that “that ye bear much fruit“.

In ALL of this we should try to see and to understand how that to “bear much fruit” IS the result of keeping His words as much as IS discipleship, the Presence of God and one’s entry into His Kingdom. It IS in the Master’s words that ARE our trifecta that we should clearly see the reality of what happens in the Life of the man who IS “the good ground“: not in believing oneself to be so but in keeping His words. This IS the reality of the trifecta which we repeat here again:

• “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).
• “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” (Matthew 7:21).
• “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).

In ALL of this we have sought to establish the Truth of fruit and what it means to be a disciple of the Lord….that to be so means that one DOES “bear much fruit” as “the good ground” and this IS the man who “having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience“. This IS the reality of the objective of everyman; this IS the reality of the goal of ALL men and this regardless that they may see this or NOT. And to see this IS the fortune of the man in whom the Truth of Repentance has begun: that by measure, “some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty“, he will come to be among those to whom the Master speaks saying: “Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them” (Mark 4:11-12).

This IS the difference between the hearer and the DOER in these versions of the Parable of the Sower as well as in the words of the Apostle James who tells us to “be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22). While men may believe that these words from Jesus which echo the words of the Prophet Isaiah ARE intended only for the men in those days, the reality IS that these ideas ARE timeless. Yet today men ARE seeing but DO “not perceive” and ARE hearing but DO “not understand” the great Truths that ARE offered by the Master….Truths which ARE obnubilated by the manifold doctrines of men.

To “bear much fruit” IS to express the Truth of Jesus’ words, the Truth of Love, to the world of men and if we look at Paul’s list of “the fruit of the Spirit” with an open mind we can see how that each of its components IS an expression of Love. Much as “the works of the flesh” ARE men’s expression based upon their focus on the self and the self in this world, “the fruit of the Spirit” IS men’s expression in a Life which is focused upon the things of God. We should try to see here the effective meaning of Jesus words saying that “Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24) and understand that beyond the black and white ideas that Jesus presents here there IS yet the reality of striving which sets the course upon the spiritual reality of serving God. One CAN NOT however serve both or even believe that he can overcome the dichotomy between the spiritual and the carnal.

We close today by repeating Paul’s words to the Galatians which we have been studying and we should look at the apostle’s ideas of “the fruit of the Spirit” with an understanding that these ARE ALL expressions of Love, of agape; and we should remember how that Vincent paints this for us saying that: Love, in this passage, is that fruit of the Spirit which dominates all the others ⁴.

“For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts” (Galatians  5:17-24).

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.

This Quote of the Day is the antithesis of glamour and illusion. In this mantram are the thoughts about ourselves and our brothers in the world that can diffuse these forces that hold a man in the world of things and prevent his spiritual progress.

Mantram of Unification

The sons of men are one and I am one with them.
I seek to love, not hate;
I seek to serve and not exact due service;
I seek to heal, not hurt.

Let pain bring due reward of light and love.
Let the Soul control the outer form, and life and all events,
And bring to light the love that underlies the happenings of the time.

Let vision come and insight.
Let the future stand revealed.
Let inner union demonstrate and outer cleavages be gone.
Let love prevail.
Let all men love.

The Mantram of Unification is a meditation and a prayer that at first affirms the unity of all men and the Brotherhood of Man based on the Fatherhood of God. The first stanza sets forth several truly Christian ideals in Unity, Love, Service and Healing. The second stanza is a invocation to the Lord and to our own Souls asking that from the pain (if there can truly be any) incurred in focusing on the Spirit and not the world will come Light and Love into our lives and that we begin to function as Souls through our conscious personalities. We ask that the spiritual control of our lives will bring to light for us the Love that underlies world events; a Love that the world oriented man will not see working out behind the scenes and also that the Love that we bring forth, individually and as a world group, can be seen by all and ultimately in all. Finally, in the last stanza we ask for those things that are needed for Love to abound. Vision and insight so that we can direct our attention properly; revelation of the future in the sense that all can see the Power of Love in the world; inner union so that we do not fall back into the world’s ways, that we faint not; and that a sense of separation, the antithesis of brotherhood, ends as we know it today. Let Love Prevail, Let All Men Love.

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