ON LOVE; PART MDXXXIX
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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 the Apostle Paul’s words on that conclude his saying from which the doctrinal church takes their ideas on faith and works, how that it IS ONLY by faith that one can be ‘saved‘. That the church DOES NOT include this conclusion in their equation should show us that they ARE more interested in their own position than they ARE in seeking the Truth as the continue “teaching for doctrines the commandments of men“. While this may seem a harsh assessment of the ways of the church, it IS intentionally so. And, while NOT ALL parts of the church ARE afflicted by this message that it IS ONLY faith that can lead one to ‘salvation‘, other parts DO NOT have much else to offer in the realm of True salvation. As we have ofttimes said in our writing, this doctrinal idea of faith IS a nebulous one that relies on an emotional response to the world and its events as they affect any individual or group. The idea IS rather undefined save for the accompanying idea that one must believe in the Lord and hold Him as one’s Lord and savior and we should note here that both the ideas of faith and believing come from the same group of Greek words. Pistis IS rendered most always as faith while pisteuo IS rendered most always in terms of believing but neither really holds these positions. The very ideas of faith and believing have been diluted from the intent of pistis and pisteuo rendering them as but nebulous ideas. Apart from the doctrinal ideas incorporated into the definitions of pistis, the idea should always be understood as KNOWING; in pistis we KNOW a thing to be True rather that we feel a thing to be True as the idea of faith shows us. This IS an important distinction which IS shown us through the primary definition of pistis; according to the lexicon which IS based on Thayer’s commentary the idea of pistis IS simply: conviction of the truth of anything and here we should see this conviction as that KNOWING. In spiritual terms this KNOWING IS based upon KNOWING God which idea has its own definitions; according to the Apostle John the idea must be that “we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments” (1 John 2:3). Here, as we have said, we should see that KNOWING God IS indelibly tied to and IS the result of keeping His words.
It IS this idea that should be incorporated into Paul’s words on faith and works if we ARE to understand the reality of what the apostle tells us over the doctrinal interpretations that ARE designed to alleviate men’s fears regarding their own death and the Truth of keeping His words. Pisteuo works out in much the same way. Pisteuo IS derived from pistis, as the verb to pistis being the noun, while both ARE derivatives of another Greek verb peitho. Peitho of course has the lead meaning of this group of words; Strong’s tells us that peitho IS: to convince (by argument, true or false) and, after some analogies, that peitho IS to rely (by inward certainty). Both of these defining ideas should show us that the entire group IS more related to KNOWING that to faith and believing which ideas ARE nebulous at best. Peitho IS used frequently in the New Testament most often referring to persuasion, trust and confidence and here we should try to see that it IS the Soul that tries consistently to persuade the mind; to instill in the mind what IS KNOWN by the Soul and what can be comprehended and understood by the mind in its current state of awareness. Overall, we should try to see ALL of these words in terms of KNOWING and NOT simply believing that which IS told us or having faith in those things that we ARE taught. KNOWING comes from a deeper source than other persons ideas, KNOWING flows from one’s own Soul, one’s own Christ Within. We should try to remember here that our KNOWING IS NOT of the facts of things carnal, our KNOWING IS our KNOWING God and as John tells us “we know him, if we keep his commandments“. These ideas ARE missed by the church that relies upon their doctrinal KNOWING which IS passed down from generation to generation with little alteration and herein lies a part of the churches problem with keeping its flock and adding to it: the doctrinal ideas of the past ARE NOT tuned to the mental capacity of those born in later generations. Surely there have been some changes in the approach of parts of the church but these have been mostly populist movements; the Word of Faith movement along with its teachings on prosperity, teachings that run counter to past doctrinal teachings but which attract men seeking betterment in this world of men. ALL however seem to rely upon the words of the Apostle Paul to define their individual denominational views and paramount among these ARE the apostle’s words to the Ephesians saying:
“But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:4-10).
From these words and others like them the doctrinal idea has become that it IS “by grace ye are saved” but this IS without a foundational understanding of just what grace IS. Further on the text tells us that grace IS “the gift of God” and while this IS a Truth, it IS NOT so simple as the doctrinal idea of this gift. Strong’s defines doron, which IS rendered as gift, saying that it IS: a present; specially, a sacrifice and here the idea of sacrifice should eliminate the doctrinal understanding. God DOES NOT sacrifice to offer His gifts; ALL that comes from God, grace if you will, flows freely to those who can accept what IS being offered and we should try to understand that such grace, such gifts, flow from one’s own Soul, one’s own Christ Within. So then when we say that “by grace ye are saved” we should understand it as that the flow of Truth and agape into one’s conscious mind IS our ‘saving grace‘ as such takes us out of our carnally oriented mindset. And while it IS a Truth that this salvation IS “not of yourselves“, the reality IS that this salvation IS the product of the incoming Light of the Soul; it IS NOT under the control of the carnal minds of men. This however IS NOT the presentation of most ALL of the church that teaches that a man CAN NOT save himself without any understanding of the relationship between the Soul and the carnal man. It IS ONLY through our Repentance and subsequent Transformation that we can be Truly saved and we should try to understand here that it IS our own Souls, our own Christ Within that DOES the work of this salvation. As we ARE Transformed the flow of Truth and agape increases in our mortal lives and this IS our sole objective as men in this world; it IS through this process of Repentance and Transformation that we will, by measure, “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).
Understanding faith as KNOWING and understanding grace as ALL that comes from God through our own Souls IS the basic foundation for Truth in our spiritual walk; it IS this that we should get from our reading of the New Testament apart from the dictates of the doctrines of men. That grace comes through our diligent efforts to allow the Light of the Soul to penetrate our carnal mindsets IS the single factor that allows us to come to KNOW the Lord and, it IS this KNOWING that IS our faith, our pistis. Paul DOES tell us that this grace IS “is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” and here again we should try to see that the works that Paul refers to IS NOT those “good works” that he shows us in the next verse. The works to which the apostle refers IS those carnal actions through which the Jews meet some degree of the responsibility of men to the law; such works ARE overly concentrated on the things that became important to the Jews and to the Christian through their doctrines. It IS this that the apostle speaks against. Perhaps an example can be found in the Master’s words on prayer, on giving and on alms as He shows that while these ARE virtuous ideas they can be but ‘works‘ when the right motivation IS NOT present. Let’s explore here the Master’s words.
Jesus tells us: “Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly” (Matthew 6:1-4). These words refer to our giving and a look around the world will show us that few that give DO SO anonymously and many DO their giving for the reward of men in recognition and as a tax deduction.
The Master goes on to tell us that: “when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly” (Matthew 6:5-6). It IS NOT unusual to hear men pray aloud and while their motivation may NOT be “that they may be seen of men“, such prayer DOES run counter to the Master’s words here. DOES this idea include the prayers offered in unison by groups in and out of the churches?
Finally Jesus tells us about fasting saying “when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly” (Matthew 6:16-18). Surely this should mean that the organized fasting under some doctrines should be subject to some scrutiny here. We should note that in between the Master’s words on prayer and on fasting He teaches us how to pray and here again His words ARE ignored save for the organized recital of the Lord’s Prayer in some church services. In the Lord’s Prayer however ARE many KEYS to our spiritual salvation, our ability to allow the Soul, the Christ Within, to overcome the carnal mind as we work toward our own “adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:23). It IS this Redemption that IS perhaps our final victory in this Earth where we ARE charged as Souls to overcome our vanity through our Repentance, our Transformation and then “the redemption of our body” which perhaps can be better understood as the completion of our work in this world.
It IS precisely these forms of works that the Master rails against that ARE the subject of Paul’s words on works, his condemnation of them if you will. To be sure there ARE others which we have cited in past essays including the observance of the sabbath according to the Jews’ traditions and observance of the dietary laws. Should the energy put into these aspects of the Jews doctrinal approach to the Lord be put into those things that the Master refers to in saying such things as “if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless“, perhaps this world would be a better place today. These words ARE spoken by Jesus in direct reference to the ways of the Jews regarding the sabbath as the Pharisees condemned the actions of the Master and His disciples who “began to pluck the ears of corn, and to eat” against the law which the Jews imposed saying that DOING so “is not lawful to do upon the sabbath day” (Matthew 12:7, 1, 2). Just as the Master speaks against this form of obeisance to the Jews interpretation of the law, their doctrines if you will, so DOES Paul and the rest of the apostles from whom we have a written record. So then, when we read that Paul writes such things as “it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast“, it IS such things as this observance of the sabbath and adherence to the dietary lawas along with ALL the rites and rituals established by the Jews and their carnal behaviors in such things as giving, praying and fasting.
That the church has misinterpreted the Master’s words and the words of the Apostle Paul into a condemnation of the entire idea of men DOING what IS right to secure their own salvation IS Truly unfortunate. That they rely upon their nebulous interpretations of pistis and pisteuo to govern their walk with the Lord DOES little to bring about the reality of agape in their expression in this world. Here again we should try to see that the Master warns us; He warned the Jews 2000 years ago and His words should have continually warned the Christian world until today. His warning IS clear and simple but has NOT been accepted by the church at large as pertaining to the Christian ways and doctrines; Jesus tells us “This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mark 7:6-7). Most any intelligent look as the doctrines of men, both of the Jew and the Christian, will show that it IS doctrines that form the more persuasive arguments to the people at large. This IS NOT because the people ARE necessarily swayed to the doctrine over the Truth but because the doctrine IS taught with the authority of the church according to its many denominational bents. It IS here that the Master’s words should ever ring True in the hearts and minds of the teachers as many must perforce recognize that they ARE “teaching for doctrines the commandments of men“. While the Jews have several ‘denominational’ views of the Truth that they teach, the Christian world has been engulfed in a rampant spread of different views, different denominations and sects, each with its own particular ‘belief’ that separates them from others. And while this alone should suffice to show us the inadequacy of any singular denominational idea, it has NOT as the number continues to grow according to the ways of men in this world. We should remember and try to understand that it IS the church that has failed here and NOT the people, there ARE many who would follow the Truth if it were what they were taught and indoctrinated into. The church however has chosen a different path from the Truth and while they call their many differing paths Truths, they ARE NOT; there IS but One Truth waiting yet for everyman to find it. It IS here that Jesus words saying “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened” (Matthew 7:7-8) ARE of value and in these words the subject IS spiritual Truth.
These words follow upon the Master’s telling us about the spiritual KNOWLEDGE that one may possess and how to handle that saying “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you” (Matthew 7:6). The idea here IS simply that one should NOT try to teach deep spiritual Truths to men who ARE NOT ready to hear that Truth and this idea should be able to readily understood. If one were to speak of such things to a hardcore doctrinal Christian, and many ARE such, they would be laughed at and scorned because they disagree with the prevalent Christian beliefs; he would be a heretic in the eyes of many despite his grasp of the Truth. With this caution the Master continues to tell the individual that he must ask, seek and knock with reference to the Godhead which IS centered for everyman in his own Soul. The Master’s words however ARE fully misconstrued; on the one hand giving “that which is holy unto the dogs” IS NOT seen as spiritual KNOWLEDGE but rather as feeding the dogs on things considered holy by the Jews, the products of the sacrifices of animals by men for example. John Gill interprets this as most DO saying: nothing that was holy was to be given them, as holy flesh, or the holy oblations, or anything that was consecrated to holy uses; to which is the allusion here. It is a common maxim with the Jews8. The Christian world has adopted such ideas into their doctrinal approach to God as they seem to understand Jesus’ words as pertaining ONLY to the Jews.
The next part, the admonition to “neither cast ye your pearls before swine” IS seen a similar literal way by the Christian world. John Gill however gives us a different slant than what we see in other Christian commentary. Vincent for example tells us that the idea of: Pearls before swine [μαργαριτας εμπροσθεν των χοιρων] IS Another picture of a rich man wantonly throwing handfuls of small pearls to swine. Swine in Palestine were at best but half – tamed, the hog being an unclean animal. The wild boar haunts the Jordan valley to this day. Small pearls, called by jewellers seed – pearls, would resemble the pease or maize on which the swine feed. They would rush upon them when scattered, and, discovering the cheat, would trample upon them and turn their tusks upon the man who scattered them4. While there may be such things as jewellers seed this IS hardly the point that the Master IS offering here yet it IS one that IS widely accepted. And while we go to Vincent for his insight often in these essays and to John Gill for the more common doctrinal ideas, the table IS turned in this instance. John Gill offers us a different picture of the intent of the Master in giving us these words. Mr. Gill tells us that: since the subject Christ is upon is reproof, it seems rather to be the design of these expressions, that men should be cautious, and prudent, in rebuking and admonishing such persons for their sins, in whom there is no appearance or hope of success; yea, where there is danger of sustaining loss8. Here again the True idea from the Master IS muted in carnal tones as the idea here IS tied by Mr. Gill to the previous verses on judgment. However, Mr. Gill includes in his commentary some words from Jewish sayings that offer us a greater insight into the Master’s intent. He tells us that: “(Myryzxh ynpl Mynynph wkylvt la) , “do not cast pearls before swine”, nor deliver wisdom to him, who knows not the excellency of it; for wisdom is better than pearls, and he that does not seek after it, is worse than a swine”8. This IS the Truer idea to be taken from the Master’s words: that we should NOT offer to people that ARE NOT ready for Wisdom, people that would ONLY abuse such knowledge and use it carnally. The revelations of the mysteries that any should Truly have should NOT be offered to those who will NOT understand. Mr. Gill offers us a reference to Proverbs in his commentary and we expand that to include additional verses; we read:
“Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding. He that reproveth a scorner getteth to himself shame: and he that rebuketh a wicked man getteth himself a blot. Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” (Proverbs 9:3-10).
The message in Proverbs, while different from the Master’s admonition, shows us the similar idea that we should take care NOT to “cast ye your pearls before swine” while promoting the value of Wisdom. Perhaps it IS Wisdom, the companion of agape Love, that brings into the lives of men the revelation of the mysteries of which Paul tells that such IS “the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints“. Paul tells us that this mystery IS “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:26, 27) and Truly there ARE NOT many who understand the depth of this saying. It IS this reality that is both hinted at by the Master and protected from the view of those NOT ready through the parabolic language of scripture. In past essays we have discussed the reality of the saint, that it IS NOT as the idea IS used today in the church but rather a position of Power, a position of discipleship if you will, and here we should remember the value of measure in judging one’s own position. It IS the disciple that has access to the Truth of the parables and to the mysteries and the Master shows us this in His dialogue with His disciples concerning the Parable of the Sower. We read “Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand” (Luke 8:10). We should see in Jesus’ words here that the idea using parables, the idea of keeping from the unawakened the reality of the mysteries, IS intentional. The point to be taken IS that until one IS ready, he will have NO realization of the Truth. The objective then of our lives in this world should be to ready ourselves for the our own realization and this readiness begins with our Repentance which IS our decision to achieve this objective of Life.
We should understand here that it IS our finding of this objective and then working toward fulfilling it ARE the products of our Repentance and Transformation. It IS this finding and fulfilling that has been confused by the church and morphed into the doctrinal idea that ‘God has a plan for your Life’. This doctrinal idea has its roots in the words of the Prophet Jeremiah who says “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end” (Jeremiah 29:11). While these seem to have little to do with the doctrinal assertion, the alternate translations of this verse DO. Most other renderings of the prophets words come down along the lines of this rendering from the English Standard Version where we read his words as “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope“. There ARE some New Testament ideas and other Old Testament sayings taken by the doctrinal church to support this ideas but they ALL fail when taken in their context. We should also understand that the idea itself that ‘God has a plan for your Life’ IS mostly based in carnal undertakings and carnal achievements as a measure of a man’s worth.
In most ALL the accepted sayings there IS an allusion to the reality of the way that we DO NOT KNOW our future and that it IS in God’s hands. Yes, it IS True that we DO NOT KNOW our future but in this world we DO prepare ourselves for whatsoever we may believe it may hold. This IS a function of our personalities as we choose a path, right or wrong, for our lives and this path IS most always inclusive of marriage and career but seldom inclusive of our True spiritual wellbeing. While it IS our spiritual wellbeing that we should be most aware of, it IS NOT this that we ARE nurtured and indoctrinated into. We are rather shown ONLY the ways of the world and while this may include a pseudo-religious taint by way of the denomination or sect that our ‘family’ embraces, this latter part IS also an aspect of the ways of the world. This of course IS a bitter pill to swallow for the religious of the world, for those that have been indoctrinated into a particular form of religion but it IS nonetheless True and, as we have said many times, doctrinal religion IS a hindrance to our True spiritual pursuits. Doctrinal religions create a psyche that embraces one’s particular religious bent as the True religion and ties this to one’s spiritual wellbeing. ALL too often however this Life’ strategy creates a situation where what one believes to be spiritual Truth IS in opposition to the words of the Master and His apostles and it IS in this reality that most ALL men, the religious to be sure, live. There IS NO fine line between these realities, between the Truth of the Master’s words and what one believes to be True; there IS a schism and NOT ONLY that schism that exists between denominations and sects within the greater church. The schism that we speak of here IS between spiritual reality and discovering that reality, and those attitudes, thoughts and actions that result from one’s participation in doctrinal religions.
It IS in our discovering our own spiritual reality that we find out that while God may ‘have a plan for our lives’, this plan originates in our own Souls; it IS our own Christ Within that will inform the carnal mind of the direction that one should go. This however IS ONLY possible when it IS allowed to happen, when one looks to his Inner Man, his inner sense if you will, and allows the Light of the Soul to direct one’s Life in this world. This begins with Repentance, True Repentance, and continues into our Transformation and finally to “the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:23). This IS the reality of what Paul tells us in saying “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” (Romans 12:1-2). This IS the Path to True discipleship.
Returning to our original theme, we should try to see that our pursuit of discipleship, our pursuit of the promises that ARE offered in scripture, revolves around our DOING. It IS when we keep His words that we will allow the Soul greater and greater influence over our carnal minds and in this IS the reality of our Transformation. It IS as part of this Transformation that we should see Paul’s words saying “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:4-10). It IS here, if we ARE doctrinally indoctrinated, that we must break away from the ideas taught by the church, ideas that tell us that we ‘CAN NOT save our selves’ and understand that it was never our “good works” that the apostle railed against. It IS the type of works that the Master references above, works built in doctrinal deception and human vanity, that ARE those that we should cease to entertain. We speak much about our vanity in our blogposts and this vanity IS best understood according to Vincent’s commentary that tells us that our vanity IS: a perishable and decaying condition, separate from God, and pursuing false ends4. Our deception IS also defined for us according to the words of the Apostle James who tells us very clearly to “be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22). In this world we ARE caught between our vanity and our deception whensoever we fail to see the reality of scripture and follow the True Path, a Path that IS NOT defined by any particular religion, or denomination, or sect, or absence of any, but rather a Path that IS built on our expression of agape as the fundamental reality of keeping His words. Again, this IS shown us by Paul who clearly tells us that “all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love agape thy neighbour as thyself” (Galatians 5:14).
And what of our pursuit of the promises that ARE offered in scripture. Much of these ARE misrepresented by the doctrines of men and revolve around the singular promise of a heaven after our death on this Earth. This promise IS greatly misconstrued because of a misunderstanding of the ideas of heaven and hell; at the same time however it has attracted many followers of religion based on men’s uncertainty of their future after they leave this world. There IS but one True promise and that IS framed for us by the Apostle Peter who tells us that “Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: 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 1:2-4). Here it IS “the knowledge of God” and we should try to understand that “the knowledge of God” IS the KEY component that brings us to the promises. Here we should understand that the promises ARE never carnal….they ARE always spiritual. We should try to understand as well that our “knowledge of God” IS what comes to us by measure as we keep His words; it IS through DOING so that we have the necessary revelations of Truth and we must understand here that there ARE NO shortcuts save for that which we ARE offered through Paul’s words that tell us that “all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love agape thy neighbour as thyself“. While this may seem to be a shortcut, it IS NOT really so. To express this agape IS an aspect of our “good works” that sets in motion the desire to keep His words. As we have said many times in our blogposts these ideas of keeping His words and expressing agape each result in the same spiritual reality. If our expression IS agape we will keep His words and if we ARE keeping His words, we ARE expressing agape. These ideas CAN NOT be separated. The Apostle John helps us here by tying these things together with the reality of our KNOWING God. John tells us that “hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love agape of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked” (1 John 2:3-6). Here we have keeping His words, our expression of agape and KNOWING God. We close today with our trifecta which we should reflect on in relation to John’s words; 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).
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 |
- 2 New Testament Greek lexicon on biblestudytools.com
- 4 Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition
- 8 Bible commentaries on BibleStudyTools.com
- 9 Thayer’s Greek Lexicon on blueletterbible.org
- 9a The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible on blueletterbible.org
Those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those who are showing a new road
Voltaire, Writer and Philosopher
