ON LOVE; PART MCXCV
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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).
Over the last few essays we have been discussing the way that the fundamental idea of agape has been the central point of Judeo-Christian scripture from the time of Moses on through the teachings of Christ and His apostles. We have noted how that the precept of Love, of agape, began in the laws of Moses, was reinforced by the prophets and was emphasized by the Master while at the same time being relatively ignored as the intended expression of ALL men. That agape IS ignored by most as the singular Truth that leads everyman to being “delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (Romans 8:21) IS ever tied to that sense of vanity, that illusion and glamour that afflicts ALL men; it IS this Truth that goes unnoticed by the doctrinal thinker who yet lives in that vanity unawares.
It IS in the very nature of vanity as this IS properly understood from the Greek word mataiotes that IS defined by the church as the ‘fall of man’ and while this IS a fall from the perspective of the Soul, this IS NOT as taught by the church….as based in Adam and Eve eating the forbidden fruit. The story of Adam and Eve in the Book of Genesis IS NOT a literal description of this fall but rather a story that IS intended to show how that the Soul, the spiritual man, succumbs to the vanity, the illusion and the glamour, of Life in form, which Vincent shows us as: a perishable and decaying condition, separate from God, and pursuing false ends . The Apostle Paul shows us this vanity saying that “the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same” (Romans 8:20).
In this we should see that the ‘fall of man’ IS an integral part of the Plan of God and NOT some form of punishment for billions of people based in the actions of what biblically ARE the very first two. This doctrinal belief IS a picture of the vanity, of the illusion caused by men’s subjection to Life in this world, and forms a part of the same superstitions that befell men’s doctrines from the beginning. This vanity afflicts ALL men as they see the world as men and struggle to understand their own reality and it IS this same vanity, this same illusion and glamour, that prevents them from a clear vision of the spiritual reality, although the Way to such clear vision IS offered to us by the Master and amplified and clarified by His apostles.
It IS in this vanity that men have come to believe as a literal interpretation of such things as the Book of Genesis creation story, the lives and the ‘fall’ of Adam and Eve as the very first humans, as well as other fantastical ideas that come from this first book of the bible. At the same time, it IS this vanity which prevents men from seeing the literal value of the words of the Master who shows us in our trifecta the most simple way to the Truth….a way that has been part of scripture from the beginning and which colors the Old Testament as the covenant between men and God. In the Old Testament this IS framed as “all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God” (Deuteronomy 28:2) while in the New Testament this IS shown us in His words; repeating our trifecta 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).
- “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).
When faced with the choice of following in the words of the Lord or, as Alexander Maclaren frames this, to fall back into surrounding idolatry 12, the men of the Old Testament most always chose the more familiar idolatry despite the teaching and the promises of the covenant which IS clear in saying “if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth” (Deuteronomy 28:1). Perhaps these barbarous and superstitious people DID NOT sufficiently believe the words of the Lord even after seeing the miracles wrought at the hand of Moses.
Or perhaps they ARE merely acting as men who ARE so entrenched in the vanity, in the illusion and the glamour, that they CAN NOT see beyond their own deception. Both of these ARE likely True in those days as well as in the days of the Master who similarly wrought many miracles and put the people at awe; and while some DO follow Him, most ARE NOT so convinced that they would leave off of their own version of the surrounding idolatry to believe that this man Jesus IS their Messiah. His teachings ARE as contrary to their doctrines as Moses were contrary to the developed idolatry of the Jews and there IS little psychological difference between the doctrines of the Jews and the developed idolatry of their ancestors.
In fact the one grew out of the other as the developed idolatry became mixed with the words of the law to form the Jewish doctrinal approach to God. We should remember that in the times of Moses, the kings and the prophets it IS the nation that IS judged rather than the individual and it IS the righteousness of the nation that IS seen in the historical perspective of ‘good’ kings and ‘evil’ ones.. The blessings on the nation rise and fall based in such ideas as “he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin” (1 Kings 15:26) which IS spoken of Nadab the king and “And Jehoash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him” (2 Kings 12:2).
While much of this dynamic, the view of Israel as the nation both united and divided, changes somewhat during the long years of the Jew’s captivity at the hands of the Assyrians and the Babylonians, the fullness of this change IS NOT Truly felt until John the Baptist and the Master. John is the harbinger and Jesus IS the essence of the New Dispensation that comes; first to the Jews, and then to the masses, and here we should likely note that the Jews and the Romans each have different views on Life and religion. John speaks his wisdom to individuals, to publicans and to soldiers (Luke 3:12, 14) and to any who were willing to Repent, in a new dynamic in a New Dispensation which IS carried forward by the Master.
While many doctrinal authorities think these soldiers to be Jewish, there IS NO real evidence and here we can perhaps see the first instance where the non-Jew IS made a part of the new teaching. If we can see the doctrinal ideas that Jesus was come to the Jews and allows gentiles to become a part of His ‘church’ only because the Jews largely reject His message as such doctrine, we can likely better understand that this appears this way ONLY because His IS a continuation of a long history of attempted correction of the Jewish way of approach to God. And while much IS painted this way by the Gospel writers, that Jesus ‘ministry’ IS to the Jews, the deeper reality IS that He comes to ALL the world.
Neither the Master nor the Baptist ever Truly restrict the flow of healing and grace to ONLY the Jew and ideas to the contrary should be seen in the light that the Apostle John shines for us saying that of the Christ that He “was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world” and of the Baptist that he “was sent to bear witness of that Light” (John 1:9:8). Our point here IS that the frame of reference that the Jews have regarding the teaching of Moses and the reinforcement of the Truth over doctrine provided by the prophets IS the basis for the Truth that Jesus provides, Truths that ARE NOT likely to be understood in the context that the Master provides by any but the Jew.
In this the Master comes as another Prophet who IS attempting to change the mindset of the Jews, to take their emphasis off of their doctrinal approach and to center it in Love which was ever the message of Truth. And as with the prophets before Him, He IS largely rejected by the people whose sense of doctrine IS NOT swayed by His teaching and here we should see that the great motivator is the rejection of the Master by the Jew’s religious leaders. We can see this in the way that it IS largely the same crowds who hail Him saying “Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord” (John 12:13) that also “cried out all at once, saying, Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas” (Luke 23:18).
Some however ARE NOT swayed by the “the chief priests and elders” who “persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus” (Matthew 27:20) and it IS these that continue with the Master into His death and His resurrection. We should try to see here how that many who heard Jesus speak, who were healed or who witnessed miracles were NOT convinced by these things and, at the word of “the chief priests and elders” easily fall back into surrounding idolatry 12. Here we should see that the doctrinal ideas of “the chief priests and elders“, the Pharisees and the scribes, and ALL who had taken authority over the people ARE that surrounding idolatry which we should understand as ALL that IS NOT in accord with the Truth which had been presented over the previous 1500 years.
And there IS little difference today as men outwardly rely upon the death and the resurrection of the Master for the atonement which they think that they have; this they have been told by their own “the chief priests and elders” and their doctrines. Many ARE yet today entombed in their doctrines as were the Jews to whom Jesus says, repeating the words of the prophet, “in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mark 7:7). This IS yet the plight of men who ARE unaware of the reality of the vanity into which they were cast as Souls who, through years of nurturing and indoctrination, CAN NOT see through the illusion and the glamour any better than the Jew in Jesus’ time.
The Jew’s Messiah came and the Jews in their vanity and their illusion DID NOT see Him and this despite His words of Truth and His many works; and it IS in their glamour that they refused to consider that their doctrinal approach to God was wrong. Do we think that when He returns as He promised that His message would be different than His words on Love 2000 years ago? And DO we think that He will see the doctrinal ideas of atonement and of being “born again‘ in the same way as men have devised them based upon their nebulous ideas of salvation rather than the Truth?
The Apostle James tells us that “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (James 1:17) and in this we should understand that the same Truth that IS offered to the Jews in their covenant and to the ‘Christian’ in Jesus words that ARE our trifecta will be offered yet again upon the Christ’s return. The Jews expected that their Messiah would be supportive of their doctrines which were but machinations of the Truth that ignored the most basic principles first introduced by Moses and then reinforced by the prophets….the principals of Truth and Love that come to everyman whose focus IS upon the things of God.
It IS this focus that IS man’s part of the Old Covenant as it IS in this focus that one DOES “hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments“. And it IS this same focus that IS everyman’s part of the New Covenant which Jesus so simply shows us in the words of our trifecta and throughout the gospels. The covenant IS largely the same save for the differences in the way that it IS presented: by Moses to the nation of Israel and by the Christ to the individual. We should remember here the words of the prophet who says that in the New Covenant “I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts” (Jeremiah 31:33).
Many millions of Christians await the return of the Christ and many have predetermined ideas regarding His arrival; in these there ARE many different scenarios which have been adopted by the various Christian Denominations and we should understand here that in Non-Christian terms many other religions ARE awaiting the same Lord. Much of the Christian view IS taken from the literal ideas offered by the Master and His apostles who, without reference to time, have offered various prophecies regarding His return which IS tied by most the their eschatological views. With the variations in the Christian beliefs regarding His return and the surrounding eschatology, one must wonder if they ARE ALL reading from the same bible.
So which Jesus will come again? Which idea of Christ’s return IS right? We should try to see here that Jesus IS the Christ, the anointed of God, and it IS as the Christ that the Master speaks. Because Christians DO NOT differentiate between Jesus and the Christ, they DO NOT see how that the Great Soul that appeared as Jesus need NOT DO so again. There IS NO requirement that the second coming of the Christ will be in the same form as Jesus and there IS NO requirement that the Christ can ONLY be Jesus. We should remember here Paul’s words saying that “in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” and understand that any man who can express such fullness IS equally a Christ.
Jesus tells us that we, as men, as everyman, have this potential and while NOT saying so in words that ARE recognizable to the doctrinal thinker, He DOES show us this Truth. And there IS but one KEY and that KEY is found in the covenant which IS ever the same….that men will keep His words. To keep His words IS to”hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments“; to keep His words IS the reality which Jesus presents saying “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“. And if we can see the promises of the Old Covenant in terms of the blessings presented in Moses words from Deuteronomy and the promises of the New Covenant in terms of Jesus words here, we can better understand the intended Truth.
Many millions see the Master’s return, the return of the Christ, in some combination of ideas taken from Jesus words, the words of the Apostle John in the Book of Revelation, Paul’s writings to the Thessalonians and the ancient prophecies of Daniel. It IS the various admixtures of these ideas that form the basis for much of what IS taught yet today and much of this IS fantastical and based in what we can ONLY call superstition. These many millions see their own salvation in these ideas as they believe that they ARE among the saved based in their doctrines of atonement without ever seeing the need to fulfill man’s part of the covenant. Here again we should try to see how that the essence of the covenant, the essence of the law, IS found in Love, in agape, as Paul shows us saying:
“Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 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” (Romans 13:8-11).
We should be able to see here how that the covenant has changed but, at the same time, has NOT really changed at all. The Old Covenant IS presented in terms of keeping His words through such ideas as that the “blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God“. And while this message was somewhat ameliorated by the words of the prophets who show us that the Lord had sought to change the doctrinal approach taken up by the Jews in saying such things as “For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings“, such mercy and True “knowledge of God” are yet sorely lacking.
Here the idea of keeping the law IS shown to men as it was originally intended….in terms of Love; but the doctrines of the Jews prevailed as men continued to in their ways causing the Lord to say through the prophet “But they like men have transgressed the covenant: there have they dealt treacherously against me” (Hosea 6:6-7). The Old Covenant was ignored by the Jews throughout their history, replaced by doctrines, by rites, rituals and ceremonies which lacked the meaning that was originally attached to them; and it IS this that Jesus rails against as the final attempt to rectify the misinterpretation and the lack of understanding that had plagued the Jewish nation under the leadership of the kings and the priests and then the Pharisees with their lawyers and their scribes.
As we have been discussing, Jesus’ message IS a continuation of the Truth of the law and the words of the prophets, both of which were relegated to a subservient position against the doctrines that had evolved from them. And while the Jews rejected the Master and His message, it was taken up by His apostles and His followers in the early days; but this too went the way of doctrine through a movement that seemingly begins while the Apostles ARE still writing their words which clarify and amplify the Truth which the Master brought. It begins as that “another gospel” which Paul writes about and in those things which John sees in his vision regarding the churches.
We close today with our words from Paul to the Corinthians that show us the importance of Love as the Way of Redemption; here we should see that ALL that the churches value in spiritual terms ARE for naught without the expression of Love….without agape. The expression of agape sees past ALL divisions, ALL prejudices, ALL preconceived ideas of Truth….the True expression of agape sees ALL men as One….agape Truly see the Unity in Diversity that IS Life in this world. The apostle tells us:
“Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).
“Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8).
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.
We change our Quote of the Day today to the words from Solomon on Wisdom along with our thoughts on them from the original postings of them in In the Words of Jesus parts 46 and 556. These words ARE a testament to those things that we should be asking of the Lord and which are representative of the Holy Ghost. Wisdom, understanding and knowledge which will lead us to understanding the fear (reverence and respect and awe) of the Lord and the knowledge of God so that in this world we can understand righteousness and judgement and equity and be preserved by discretion and understanding. Thus are we in a position to treat everyone as we would want to be treated ourselves.
Since we are centered on the ideas of Wisdom today we offer the following from Proverbs as our Quote of the Day. Solomon, who is KNOWN for his Wisdom, which we read in the story of his Life was His gift from God, a gift that he receives because he does not want for the things of the world. But Solomon gains as well the things of the world in plenty and as his Life story proceeds we can see clearly that it is his Life in the world that is to his detriment. The wisdom however produces for us the writings of the Book of Proverbs and it is this that he is remembered for. His Life is interesting reading and is well documented in the Books of Kings and Chronicles.
….incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints. Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path. When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee (Proverbs 2:2-11).
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts
- 12 Expositions of Holy Scripture–Project Gutenberg’s and Baker Book House’ Expositions of Holy Scripture, by Alexander Maclaren–(1826-1910)
Those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those who are showing a new road.
Voltaire,
Writer and Philosopher
