Monthly Archives: February 2017

ON LOVE; PART MCXIX

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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).

We ended the last essay with some thoughts on the Truth of sin and evil versus the doctrinal perspective that combines these ideas into strictly moral offenses by men. The reality of both IS that they ARE in opposition to good; not merely moral good but good as a universal expression of agape. Jesus says, in response to being called good, “Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God” and in this idea we should be able to see the reality of good as the opposite of evil and of sin. Good IS Godlike and ALL that IS NOT is of this world and can be found within the lexiconic ideas of both hamartia and poneros which ARE rendered as sin and evil.

In the Apostle Paul’s words then we should see the complete thought as Love sincerely; abhorring evil, cleaving good. Here we should try to see that to Love sincerely, to sincerely and purposefully express agape, one will, as a matter of course, abhor ALL carnal thoughts, attitudes and actions which ARE evil….which ARE contrary to the good. Furthermore, this sincere and purposeful expression of agape will perforce cleave to good. This idea of cleaving good should be seen in the idea of joining oneself to good which IS the rendering of this idea in the Parable of the Prodigal Son according to the Apostle Luke; here we read that “he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country“(Luke 15:15). This idea IS rendered from this same Greek word kallao which the lexicon defines in terms of glue saying that kallao IS: to glue, to glue together, cement, fasten together ².

Many translations render this idea of cleaving as “holding on to” but this IS a dilution of the apostle’s intent which IS better seen in the idea of joining which IS to be one with good. This IS better understanding: that we Love, that we express agape, and loathe evil, which IS to have an aversion to the worldly ways, and that we become one with good which IS ever from above. ALL of this IS however lost in the common understanding of sin and evil and men’s misplaced ideas of what IS good. And it IS NOT that we ARE without defining ideas in Jesus words; He tells us what IS good as we read above and he tells us what IS evil saying “An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign” (Matthew 12:39) and here we should see the greater idea.

This generation IS NOT ALL evil men as this idea IS commonly understood but it IS a generation where men’s focus IS largely upon the self, the things of the self and the things of the world; and this IS much like it IS yet today. Men and their doctrines fail to see the dichotomy that DOES exist between the carnal and the spiritual, between the things of this world and the things of God. This IS a dichotomy that we have often discussed and which IS spoken of by the Master and His disciples in rather clear terms which ARE nonetheless misunderstood and misapplied; we read:

• The Apostle John tells us: “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:5).
• The Apostle James tells us: “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” (James 4:4).
• The Apostle Paul tells us: “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:2).
• The Apostle Paul also tells us: “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness” (1 Corinthians 3:19).
• The Apostle Peter tells us: “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (2 Peter 1:4).

ALL of these ideas and many more show us the dichotomy that DOES exist between the spiritual and the carnal and how that we must escape our bondage to worldly living which IS “the bondage of corruption“, which IS the vanity, the illusion and the glamour, of Life in this world. ALL of these ideas should serve to amplify and clarify what the Master also presents to us regarding a Life whose focus IS on those thoughts, attitudes and actions that serve the self in this world. Despite ALL of this the doctrines of men still look past the reality and will argue their cause based in their out of context ideas and their continued reliance on bits and pieces of the Old Testament.

And they further support their ideas by believing themselves to be among the Transformed, among the saints and among the followers of the Lord without ever understanding just what this Truly means. They fail to see the the reality of the intentionally poignant words of the Master and His apostles as they ever believe that, based in their doctrinal approach to God, they ARE NOT meant for them. It IS in this doctrinal approach to the Lord that men have recused themselves from sin and evil and consider themselves as good and this despite the Truth of the Greek words that ARE rendered as such.

Few see the picture of True spiritual living that IS painted for us in the stated dichotomy between the things of God and the things of the world. Few understand the example that IS shown us in the Life of the Apostle Peter as he moves from simply believing what the Master says to KNOWING who the Master IS and then KNOWING and expressing the fullness of his own True nature. And so much of this picture IS clearly painted for us in the trifecta but this clarity IS obnubilated by the precepts of doctrines that have the greater appeal to the minds of men, the greater appeal to the “the vanity of their mind” (Ephesians 4:17) which IS bound in the illusion and the glamour of Life in this world.

And so ‘religious’ men believe that they ARE among those who ARE saved; not because the ARE DOING what IS their duty and their “reasonable service” but because they believe in their doctrines which set them apart based upon their affirmations and confessions and their nebulous ideas of faith and believing. It IS the diluted ideas that are attached to pistis and pisteuo that ARE the bane of men and which leave them stuck on the carnal side of Life. And the irreligious men who have NO such beliefs have the same range of social and moral thoughts and attitudes as the religious save for their presumed place above the “natural man” that the religious believe that they have.

In the end these two groups of men ARE largely equal in Life except perhaps for those at the extremes of either group. The combination of these IS humankind, more that seven billion strong and most ALL yet dwelling in that same sense of vanity which Vincent defines for us as: a perishable and decaying condition, separate from God, and pursuing false ends ⁴. We DO NOT often include the words of the Buddha in our posts as we did some time ago and this because the greater point of our writing IS directed at the Christian who may NOT accept nor understand the universal greatness of the Buddha and the Truth of His Wisdom and His enlightenment. Here today however we repeat again the words of the Buddha on the world and the nature of it.

“Do not live in the world, In distraction and false dreams. Outside the dharma. Arise and watch. Follow the way joyfully through this world and beyond. Follow the way of virtue. Follow the way joyfully Through this world and on beyond! For consider the world – A bubble, a mirage. See the world as it is, And death shall overlook you. Come, consider the world, A painted chariot for kings, A trap for fools. But he who sees goes free. As the moon slips from behind a cloud And shines, So the master comes out from behind his ignorance And shines. The world is in darkness. How few have eyes to see! How few the birds who escape the net and fly to heaven! “(Dhammapada; on The World).

This view IS NOT unlike the words of the Master and His apostles and while the Dhammapada IS also subjected to the translation and the doctrinal interpretations of men, the message IS yet clear for the man who takes the time to see past his own nurturing, indoctrination and experience; the man who strives toward the greater Truth that IS ALL around us and IS the very fabric of Life. Doctrines of ALL kinds and of ALL religions have blurred the line between the real and the unreal while the Truth of the scriptures that have spawned those doctrines IS most clear. It IS the doctrinal view that denies the reality that when a man can overcome his own carnal thoughts and attitudes, his own thoughts of self and the things of the self, that he can find “the truth, and the truth shall make you free“.

This lack of vision, of Truth and of freedom IS “the bondage of corruption” and it IS largely the doctrines of men that keep their vision subdued; few look past their nurturing, indoctrination and experience; “few have eyes to see!” and few understand “How few the birds who escape the net and fly to heaven!“. And this IS the larger point that we should take from the words of the Apostle Paul which we ARE studying: it IS ONLY in being “transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God“.

It IS ONLY in one’s ability to look past what he thinks he KNOWS based upon his nurturing, indoctrination and experience that he can begin to “Arise and watch. Follow the way joyfully through this world and beyond. Follow the way of virtue. Follow the way joyfully Through this world and on beyond!“. We should realize here that this IS NO different that the admonition of Paul that follows upon the ideas that we ARE studying; the apostle says: “Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light” (Romans 13:10-12). Repeating again Paul’s words that lead up to this admonition to awaken:

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith” (Romans 12:1-3).

“For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer; Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality. Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not. Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits. Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:4-21).

It IS leading up to his words on Love that the apostle writes these words on “renewing of your mind” and we should try to remember here that it IS the mind that IS Transformed from its carnal focus to a focus upon the things of God. This IS contrary to much of doctrine that teaches that it IS the Spirit that IS somehow renewed and we should try to see here that they DO NOT see the reality of Life as the Life of the spiritual man who IS trying to express himself through form; they DO NOT see the example given us in the Life of the Apostle Peter nor DO they see the ‘conversion’ of Paul in terms of Repentance and Transformation. In the end both of these True saints come to live in accord with the Master’s words and in the Life of Peter we should be able to see what this Truly means.

We have discussed Peter in many essays and should be able to see that although he was an apostle of the Lord, a True disciple according to Jesus defining qualities of the disciple, Peter still had his own issues with reversion to carnal thoughts and attitudes and these ARE shown us throughout the gospels. We should note as well that even with his shortcomings the apostle was Jesus’ chosen leader which should imply to us that he was ahead of the others in the quest for the fullness of discipleship; none other IS painted in such detail for us. And this detail IS given to us by those who served with him as apostles, Matthew and John, as well as those that may have been in their company, Mark and Luke. ALL tell us essentially the same stories and from ALL of this we cna see how that Peter DID “hath my commandments, and keepeth them” as we read again in our trifecta.

• “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).

And we should take special note that in the gospel stories concerning Peter and the follow-up found in the Book of Acts there IS also our lesson on measure; Peter accomplishes the goal of the fullness of discipleship by measure. He Transforms his mind, his thoughts and attitudes on himself and his Life from the fisherman who tells the Master “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord” (Luke 5:8), to the leader of the new dispensation to whom “they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them. There came also a multitude out of the cities round about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one” (Acts 5:15-16).

This IS the ultimate Truth in the Life of everyman; a Truth of which the Master tells us in words that doctrines deny. The Master says to ALL who Truly follow Him that “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do” (John 14:12). Unfortunately both the idea of measure and the reality of those “greater works” IS lost in the doctrines of men who DO NOT understand the force of the Greek words pistis and pisteuo.

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 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 repeat here a Quote of the Day that we spent much time with over the course of our essays. In this affirmation we find the Truth of discipleship as we have been ever been expressing and here we can relate our themes of the last few days; “take no thought” for the things of the world and that we approach the Kingdom and discipleship in the nature of the little child, in humbleness, meekness, unashamed in any way and unassuming. The message that this imparts for us today IS that it IS the Soul that is at work in the world of men as it expresses to some degree the purpose, power and the will through Life in this world. These words are from a meditation offered to his students by our Tibetan brother and in which we find greater understanding of the message of the Master. This IS Truly the way of the disciple.

My Soul has purpose, power and will; these three are needed on the Way of Liberation.

My Soul must foster love among the sons of men; this is its major purpose.

I, therefore, will to love and tread the Way of Love. All that hinders and obstructs the showing of the Light must disappear before the purposes of the Soul.

My will is one with the great Will of God;. that Holy Will requires that all men serve. And unto the purposes of the Plan I lend my little will.

Let the peace of God rule in your hearts