ON LOVE; PART MCCCLXV
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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).
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We ended the last essay with some thoughts on the way that the Apostle Paul frames his views on what ARE those “spiritual gifts” that he lists in some detail. While he seemingly promotes these and tells us at the end of this chapter that men should “covet earnestly the best gifts“, the remainder of his words should show us the worthlessness of these gifts when they ARE carnally oriented; that IS when they ‘operate’ in the absence of agape. The reality of this idea has gone unnoticed for 2000 years as the ‘possession’ of such gifts ARE desired by the doctrinal thinker who either DOES NOT see the relevance of the apostle’s words on agape or believes that his expression IS agape while it IS actually the carnal and common ideas of Love. It IS the expression of agape that Paul IS promoting in these chapters and NOT the gifts which in the end ARE shown to us as fleeting ideas through such words as “whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away“. We should understand that this fleeting effect IS to be attached to the full list of those “spiritual gifts” of which the apostle tells us that “concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant” (1 Corinthians 12:1). We should also see here that the knowledge that we should gain IS that these gifts ARE fleeting and it IS in this respect that we should see the apostle’s continuing words saying “when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away“; we have appended these and Paul’s other words to our selection which we repeat here saying:
“covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not
charityagape, 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 notcharityagape, 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 notcharityagape, it profiteth me nothing.CharityAgape suffereth long, and is kind;charityagape envieth not;charityagape 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.CharityAgape 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. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity” (1Corinthians 12:31, 13:1-13).
The message here IS rather clear but, again, unnoticed by the churches which value these gifts as special attributes despite their worthlessness in the absence of one’s expression of agape. Part of the problem IS the habit of the readers and the interpreters of the bible to take verses and sayings out of the context in which they appear and to create of them stand-alone sayings that can be used to promote whatsoever one wishes to promote. The more important part however IS the church’s total lack of understanding the deep truth that IS agape. When agape IS interpreted into the common ideas of Love, the idea IS destined to failure. In the last essay we established the link between agape and selflessness as this IS taught by the Master and it IS when we can understand this link that much will become clear to the seeker. The whole idea behind the second of the Great Commandments will NOT be understood so long as this selflessness IS denied as a True Christian attribute and one that IS a central point in the Master’s teaching. We see these ideas on selflessness most often in Jesus’ words on discipleship and it IS discipleship that the ardent Christian should be desiring….True discipleship and NOT those ideas of the church that cast most ALL Christians, “born again” according to them, as disciples. Jesus DOES define the disciple and in rather clear and simple terms but these ARE contrary to the selfness that men cling to in Life as they seek to live their lives as men in this world. It IS to accomplish this carnal goal that the doctrines of men have sought and found reasonings to enable them to ignore the Truth of His words as they have established a ‘new’ covenant based in words that ARE more appealing to the carnal nature of everyman. But Jesus words ARE clearly stated as He says such things as “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). The reference here IS His words and NOT the words of the apostles which ARE used to establish their ‘new’ covenant, a covenant which IS the epitome of those “commandments of men” of which Jesus tells us “Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mark 7:7). It IS carnality that has become the essence of the doctrines of men who have convinced themselves of the rightness of their doctrines and perhaps it IS through the sheer difference of views prevalent in the church today that we should be able to see the inadequacy of ALL. We should try to see two things here and both ARE related to the words of Paul whose intent IS ever to amplify and to clarify the teachings of the Master and NOT to invent a new doctrinal approach to the Lord.
The first IS His words on “another gospel“. Thayer’s gives us a long dissertation on the meaning of the Greek word that IS rendered as another. They define heteros as the other when the word IS found with the article and simply as other when it IS without the article 9. They add a third defining category regarding quality for which they define heteros saying: another i. e. one not of the same nature, form, class, kind; different 9 and it IS into this class that they place its usage in Paul’s saying on “another gospel“. From this we should be able to see that this idea of “another gospel” IS different from that taught by the Christ and hence Paul’s aversion to it. Paul tells the Galatians that “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ. But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ” (Galatians 1:6-10). Paul’s point IS strongly stated but the idea of his words IS become wasted on the church that sees themselves in the True Gospel despite the fact that it IS NOT modeled after the Master’s words but IS one not of the same nature, form, class, kind….that it IS different 9. The gospel of men IS developed “to please men“, to allow for the founders and the followers of doctrinal precepts to live as men in this world. Here we should understand that as the reality of Jesus’ words including His Great Commission IS to make disciples of men, the “commandments of men” through their various established doctrines, ARE NOT. Paul tells us that his original teaching to ALL those that he taught was shown to him “by the revelation of Jesus Christ” and, to be sure, this IS the Way of revelation for ALL men who can look past the carnality that has become the church at large. Paul IS NOT happy with these “foolish Galatians” of whom he asks “who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth” (Galatians 3:1) and while we DO NOT KNOW the specifics of what Paul calls “another gospel: Which is not another“, for sure this IS NOT as some interpret the idea into a falling back to the laws of Moses. Such laws ARE NOT and never were designed “to please men” which IS why the Jews also developed “another gospel” which became their rules and their traditions that ARE their mitzvah. What we should see IS that Paul’s words here and elsewhere ARE intended to dissuade men from seeking out the easier paths of doctrines and to hold onto the Truth of the original gospel….the Truth of the words of Jesus who IS Truly “the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2). Perhaps it IS to ALL who choose the carnal paths and the doctrines of men to bring their sense of ‘salvation‘ that Jesus says: “why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). And this IS the common problem of the church: that they DO NOT teach the words of the Master but rather the way of ‘salvation‘ according to their various doctrines and, again, the reality that there ARE so many various doctrines should cast a pall on their role in seeking the Truth.
The second IS the reality of the carnality in the presumption of gifts. Here we should focus upon the idea of presumption, the way that man and groups of men can come to believe that they have this or that power from the Lord. While Paul speaks about the “diversities of gifts” (1 Corinthians 12:4) and itemizes for us a list of such, he waits until the end of his dissertation to tell us of their worthlessness in the absence of agape. It IS ONLY when we look at his words regarding these “spiritual gifts” in their entirety that we can see that it IS the intent of his words to show us their carnality and this because without one’s expression of Truth and Love, they ARE NOT Truly “spiritual gifts“. The apostle spends many words showing us that the True “spiritual gifts” come from the same source, from the “the same Spirit” and “the same Lord“. In understanding that it IS “the same God which worketh all in all” (1 Corinthians 12:4, 5, 6) that we should be able to see that these gifts that Paul speaks about ARE Truly spiritual and that there IS carnal value in neither obtaining them nor in using them. Here of course the idea of carnal value should show us that there IS naught that IS for the self and this according to the Master’s and His apostles many words that show us the necessary dichotomy between the opposing forces that ARE at play in the lives of men. Paul shows us this dichotomy saying that “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” and should we earnestly look, we could find our self-serving use of such gifts embedded in the deeper meanings of his list of “the works of the flesh” (Galatians 5:17, 19). This IS the same point that we should take from the Master’s words which show us the spiritual Way of the single eye as He shows us that we must choose between the source of our treasures….that we must be able to discern the difference between God and mammon. These Truths ARE NOT hidden from our view but they ARE cloaked by the teachings of the churches that CAN NOT fathom the Truth of spiritual living against the carnal value of everyday Life in this world. Our point, and the point of scripture, IS that we must escape from the one in order to have the other, that we must escape the lower carnal forces to allow for the spiritual to Truly Transform us “by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). Jesus tells us that “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:21) and here, should we connect the dots, we can see how that ALL IS carnal that IS NOT governed by agape which idea perforce includes that presumption of gifts that men believe that they have; gifts that serve NO True spiritual purpose. It IS this idea that we should see in Jesus’ words to those who believe that they ARE ‘saved‘ in their presumption of having such gifts; Jesus tells us: “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). What we need to understand here IS that without our expression of agape such gifts ARE NOT spiritual but ARE carnal and it IS in recognizing the Truth of one’s presumed gifts that we can understand Paul’s words saying “Agape 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“.
We should remember that despite the dilution of the idea of agape through men’s seeing Love in carnal terms and the rendering by several translations of agape into charity, the apostle’s intent has never been understood. We should remember here also that the idea of charity as the word was defined in the seventeenth century IS more akin to the definitions provided by Webster’s 1828 dictionary. Webster’s words on charity ARE considerably more attuned to the idea of agape than IS the common understanding of Love both then and now. It IS for this reason that we post the defining ideas of charity in the preamble of every essay. This older defining idea for charity has NOT carried forward to modern times however and, much like today’s defining ideas for mercy, ARE restricted to ideas of leniency and of ‘giving’ to the poor and downtrodden. The carnal ideas of both mercy and charity ARE compatible and similar just as the ideas of mercy and the deeper meanings of agape mean much the same as spiritual ideas. When we can understand agape as this IS presented by the Master and amplified by His apostles, we can then perhaps understand what the expression of agape means to the True seeker. It IS the True defining ideas of the concepts of agape and mercy from the Greek word eleos that come to us through our Repentance and Transformation as we move our minds away from our heretofore carnal understanding of things. Theologically the idea of agape has ever been tied to the Apostle John’s words “God is love” (1 John 4:8, 16) but the theological understanding of this phrase IS also sorely lacking. In the simplicity of this idea IS that Oneness that IS ALL things and in this Oneness there IS an equanimity that goes unseen because men’s vision IS ONLY of their worldly experience. We use this word out of its general meaning because such ideas as equality ARE even more difficult for men to see. In equanimity we should see a steady sense of Unity that IS unmoved and unmovable; a sense of Unity that casts ALL as part and parcel of the “One Boundless Immutable Principle; one Absolute Reality which, antecedes all manifested conditioned Being. It is beyond the range and reach of any human thought or expression“** that IS our God. While esoterically this Love that IS God IS often defined in terms of attraction, this idea IS offered without explanation and if we can see this idea of attraction in terms of the Oneness of ALL, we can then better understand the idea. Much of the problem with understanding this idea that “God is love” IS found in the way that we have assigned a personality to the Godhead; if we could but understand the Godhead as that “One Boundless Immutable Principle; one Absolute Reality” we can perhaps get a glimpse of God as we read in Exodus where He calls His name “I AM THAT I AM” and tells Moses: “Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you” (Exodus 3:14). It IS easy to see and to understand why we refer to God as He, and Him; from a human perspective ALL other ideas ARE incorporated into these pronouns. The assignment of a personality however DOES NOT help us in understanding God and, in fact, makes this understanding much more perplexing. It IS when we Truly come to KNOW God that this sense of personality will fade and our understanding of “God is love” will begin to reflect in our consciousness….in our renewed mind.
The Master’s version of the first Great Commandment shows us this sense of Oneness in words that ARE NOT understood; Jesus tells us that “The Lord our God is one Lord” and here the emphasis should be upon the idea of One. While ONLY the Apostle Mark includes this in the Great Commandment, these words ARE the same as we find in the Old Testament Book of Deuteronomy where Moses IS restating the Ten Commandments. It IS this Oneness that IS the motivating factor of agape from the perspective of the Lord and the intended motivating factor for human kind. For the Lord this IS a most natural state as it IS for man’s correspondence to the Lord, his Spirit and Soul. The Spirit and Soul of everyman IS ever One with the Lord; inseparable parts of a Greater Whole while a man’s physical presence, his flesh if you will, IS but a vehicle that must express this same agape by overcoming his carnal nature; a nature which IS created in that vanity to which ALL are subjected. When Jesus tells us “I have overcome the world” (John 16:33) this IS what He means; He IS saying that He has overcome the carnal nature in ALL its many facets. In this Oneness of God as the “Absolute Reality” containing within Himself ALL spiritual matter if we can use that idea here, we have the foundation for the idea that “God is agape“, that God IS a Unity of ALL on every plane of existence. Should we understand this idea of planes as a pseudo-separation of Spirit, Soul and a physical universe, we could see into the very nature of things and while our flesh may be a part of this physical universe, it IS still but a vehicle of expression. Man then IS NOT Spirit, Soul and body as the body itself IS but a tool; the True third part of the trinity as it applies to man IS found in Paul’s words saying “even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:23). It IS in this Redemption that we too can say “I have overcome the world“. Again, it IS in this idea of adoption that we can become One with God and this through our own God and Christ Within. It IS in this adoption that our own spiritual being gains full control over his vehicle of expression thereby allowing the fullness of the Godhead to flow through it. To be sure, this condition IS the endpoint in the long Life of the Soul in form and it IS NOT an impossible idea. Jesus Himself shows us the possibility as He tells us that “from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force” (Matthew 11:12) and here we should be careful to understand the words that Matthew IS using to tell us the Master’s thoughts. While the common theological idea regarding this violence IS shown to us on a carnal level pertaining to the people following the Master which Vincent interprets as : the multitudes who followed Christ and thronged the doors where he was 4, there IS a deeper component here. Jesus IS speaking about the Kingdom and NOT the people that ARE following His ‘ministry’; it IS the Kingdom that IS the objective of those who may have some realization of Truth and who ‘violently‘ “put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts” (Ephesians 4:22). The phrase “suffereth violence” IS from the Greek word biazo which means: to force, i.e. (reflexively) to crowd oneself (into)9a according to Strong’s and in this we should better see the idea. Perhaps it IS because men’s doctrines ARE centered around the idea that the Kingdom IS the “free gift” to the ‘believer‘ based in his doctrinal approach that men DO NOT see this idea that “the violent take it by force” as the Way to enter. They DO NOT see that this entry IS through the reality of Jesus’ words 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” (Matthew 7:21). Add to this the doctrinal idea that the Kingdom IS the destination of men after they die on this Earth and we have at least two reasons that the Truth IS NOT seen while, at the same time, it IS NOT being hidden save for in the illusion and the glamour of men.
The second word rendered as violent IS from a derivative of biazo, biastes; this word IS the noun form of the idea of forcing and IS defined by Strong’s as: a forcer 9a which should show us the same idea of men forcing their Way into the Kingdom by putting “off concerning the former conversation the old man“. Again, while the doctrinal thinker may believe that he has DONE this, that he has Truly Repented and Transformed, this IS but his illusion based in the indoctrination that he has received. This IS his chimera. The reality of Repentance and Transformation IS NOT found in the sameness of Life that IS the result of some emotional response to one’s affirmations and confessions or one’s rites and rituals. The reality of Repentance and Transformation IS a sea change in the Life of a man through which he decides, based on hearing and heeding the call of the Soul, to Truly follow the Master in thought, in attitude and in action….to live in the reality of agape as the Master teaches us. We should remember here Paul’s words that reflect upon one’s expression of agape; that to “have not charity agape, I am nothing“. We must remember here that this IS NO easy task for the man in this world who has been indoctrinated into the ways of this world culturally, socially and religiously. We should understand here that the more indoctrinated one IS, the longer his doctrines of Life have been his guide, the more difficult his Way will be and it IS here that we can better appreciate the Apostle Peter’s words saying: “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). It IS these “exceeding great and precious promises” that men should chase after and NOT the “spiritual gifts” that ARE ofttimes the objective of the doctrinal thinker, gifts that ARE carnally based in the absence of True agape, a spiritual concept that Transforms one’s understanding of what such “spiritual gifts” Truly ARE. Peter tells us here what the True gifts ARE as he shows us that the “exceeding great and precious promises” ARE to “be partakers of the divine nature” which IS to share in the very nature of the Christ and in His relationship to the Father and the world. This IS NOT unlike Jesus’ own words that ARE our trifecta where we should see these promises as the Truth, as the Kingdom and as the True Presence of the Lord in our lives; ALL of this IS then perforce expressed in our own relationships to our fellowman in agape. 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).
The main point of Truth has been missed by church for 2000 years. Yes they DO speak of it in sermons and in writings but the reality of the word agape has been missed and transformed into a set of carnal ideas which, while they may ofttimes be virtuous, ARE nonetheless carnal. That agape IS rendered as Love and as charity should offer us a broader understanding of the idea and enable us to understand that agape IS NOT the carnal understanding of Love which IS never really shown us in the words of the Master or of His apostles, except in a negative fashion which should also show us a glimpse of the Truth. Jesus tells us that to be “worthy of me” IS to agape Him and this more than the carnal ideas that ARE attached to family; the Master tells us that “He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me” (Matthew 10:37). Again relating being “worthy of me” to discipleship, His words become as Luke presents them saying “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26). Perhaps Luke IS intentionally phrasing this to NOT use the word agape which IS NOT related to the carnal Love between families or any sense of Love for one’s own Life and we should remember that this idea of hate CAN NOT mean hate as it IS commonly understood. Surely the Master IS NOT encouraging that we have a feeling of hate toward “father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters“; this would be contrary to His entire message. It IS words that fail us in these ideas as there ARE NOT suitable translatable words to clearly show the intent of many parts of scripture. Both Strong’s and Thayer’s show us the alternate idea to the carnal idea of hate along with hate as the definition of the Greek word miseo and both phrase this idea as to love less 9, 9a. In the end, in combining ALL of the words of the Master and His apostles on agape together we should get an even greater idea that to love less and that greater idea IS to Love ALL equally. This IS of course contrary to ALL that culture, society and religion teach us; it IS the common way of men to Love, according to cultural norms, one’s family and then to extend this emotional response to friends which becomes the way today that one can find a husband or a wife. We should remember that in biblical times this was NOT so; wives were assigned in a way or, as in the lives of the Old Testament kings, they were taken. Seldom do we see such ideas as falling in Love as we find in the story of Jacob and Rachel; even the ‘romance’ between Ruth and Obed IS more for its convenience that it IS for Love. While the common idea of Love IS that emotional and mental attraction and attachment to others, an attraction and attachment that expands to pets and objects and attitudes, etc., such ideas ARE far removed from the Truth of agape which sees NONE of these relationships as important from a spiritual perspective but rather as an impediment to discipleship. Can we understand this? Can we see that the whole of the reality IS bound to the very nature of God’s Love? This nature of God’s Love IS shown us as “that God is no respecter of persons” (Acts 10:34) and Paul shows us this same idea several times as he tells us that “neither is there respect of persons with him” (Ephesians 6:9) and “there is no respect of persons with God” (Romans 2:11).
Paul shows us this same idea as a reflection of the Godhead as he says that “Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons” (Colossians 3:24-25). Unhidden in Jesus words IS this same idea which IS framed for us to accomplish as men according to this nature of God. In His words on agape saying that we should “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:44-45) IS a nearly complete picture of expressing agape with NO “respect to persons“. While such Truths ARE unhidden their reality IS also unseen by men both in and out of the church who also fail to understand the Apostle James’ amplification and clarification which says “if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors” (James 2:9). This IS the deep purpose of agape as it applies to everyman in this world and here we should see that in DOING this, in having NO “respect to persons” one IS bringing that sense of Unity, that Oneness, that IS the very nature of God and of the Souls of men, to expression in this world. It IS this expression that fulfills ALL the law and ALL the commandments of the Master and of the Father and it IS to show us this that Paul tells us that “all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Galatians 5:14) and again that “love is the fulfilling of the law” (Romans 13:10). If we can see that this expression of agape IS the ONLY ‘replacement theology’ that Truly matters, that this expression of agape fulfills ALL that the Master intends in saying “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“, we ARE then ready to enter the Path.
We will continue with our thoughts in the next post.
- 1 Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1828 and 1913 from https://1828.mshaffer.com/
- 4 Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition
- 9 Thayer’s Greek Lexicon on blueletterbible.org
- 9a The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible on blueletterbible.org
- * Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
- ** A Treatise on Cosmic Fire by Alice A Bailey © 1951 by Lucis Trust
Those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those who are showing a new road.
Voltaire, Writer and Philosopher
