ON LOVE; PART CMXII
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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 the Parable of the Sower which the Master offers to the people and then explains it in somewhat clearer terms to His disciples. It IS with this parable that we get the Master’s thoughts on His use of parables, that they ARE to cover the deeper Truths from those who CAN NOT discern them, and it IS here that we should try to understand the general parabolic tone of Jesus words….that this IS NOT limited to those stories that ARE called parables. We should also understand that Jesus’ words to His disciples and to His apostles ARE also parabolic and it IS with this in mind that we should read through His personal discourses with them. It IS near the very end of Jesus’ time with His apostles that He tells them of His parabolic way of teaching them and we should see this ourselves in their questioning and in their confusion up till the end.
The point here IS that Jesus’ words ARE intentionally obscure as IS much of the teaching of His apostles, and this obscurity, this parabolic tone, shows us the reality of Jesus thoughts on His use of parables: that it IS for the man who has developed some spiritual foundation to discern the Truths behind His words. It IS this same idea that we find in the Apostle Paul’s saying that “the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). And this brings us back then to our theme from the last several posts which IS the delusion of men who believe that they ARE among those who KNOW, among those who have such spiritual discernment, but who DO NOT keep His words. Such IS the doctrinal view of atonement which IS based in the fabricated views of men who presume to KNOW and who teach that there IS NO responsibility for the man in this world to DO as the Master instructs….that it IS by His atoning death men ARE saved.
To show our point we discussed the Master’s words regarding our keeping His words and it IS in the trifecta of spiritual reality that comes to the man who DOES so that we find the Truth of His words as it IS this Truth that IS among the hidden things which the “natural man” DOES NOT see. In the reality of being accounted worthy of the Kingdom of God, in the realization of the Presence of God in one’s Life and in the idea of being His “disciples indeed“, there IS but one criteria….that men will keep His words. And ALL of this IS rather clearly stated; there IS NO parable involved in His instructions concerning these things and yet men have ever looked past these and have invented convenient interpretations of His words that remove their own responsibility to DO. We find this reality spelled out for us in Jesus words regarding how to attain the Kingdom of God but men DO NOT see themselves on the side of those who will NOT enter into the Kingdom and this despite Jesus Parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders which follows in both Matthew’s Gospel and Luke’s. And men DO NOT see themselves as being on the wrong side of the ledger despite the most blunt words of the Apostle James who clearly says “be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22).
Throughout history men have missed the point of their own delusion as they formulate and teach their doctrines which have always supplanted the Truth in much the same way as Jesus accuses the Jews as He repeats the words of the prophet saying: “Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, 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). We should try to understand here how that this delusion IS so difficult to see in one’s own Life; how that the effect of “deceiving your own selves” prevents the carnal mind from seeing the Truth and causes one to believe that he has the Truth already….causes one to believe that he KNOWS. This IS of course the reality of that illusion and glamour in which men live in this world, the vanity that Paul shows us, and while the illusion may cause the delusion, it IS the glamour that causes men to stand fast in their deluded beliefs.
We should understand here that the Master sees this reality and that He sees the potential for men to continue in their deluded ideas of Life and of God; we should try to see here how that His teaching on the Way IS in clear language which IS intended to show men the reality of DOING, the reality of keeping His words. While we see this clarity however, many millions DO NOT and have NOT through the centuries since Jesus left us; NOT because Jesus’ words ARE unclear, NOT because they are told in parables as even the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders IS clear in its teaching, but because men see themselves in His will through their doctrines that supplant the Truth. This IS their delusion then: that men believe themselves to be acting according to the will of God when they ARE NOT keeping His words. They DO NOT see themselves of the wrong side of the ledger according to His words saying:
“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).
Nor do men see themselves on the wrong side of the ledger according to James most direct words saying “be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” and this despite His also blunt and direct words saying: “whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all“. Here in James’ words we see the equanimity of ALL sin and when we can understand that the very nature of sin IS one’s focus upon the self and the things of the world, that it IS NOT just the offenses against specific commandments, then we can better see the apostle’s point which he shows us in regard to Love. And while we should see that it IS human nature that causes men to be deluded and to see things as True which ARE NOT, this DOES NOT relieve men from DOING as the Master instructs and it IS in this view that we should see a most important point: that we strive.
This idea of striving IS His teaching and, as most ALL of His words, this IS His commandment and His spoken Way to salvation; we read: “Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able” (Luke 13:23-24). Here the Master shows us the relative difficulty of Repentance, of shedding the illusion and the glamour, and of seeking the Truth; it IS this seeking that IS the reality of striving and it IS in this striving that we come to the fullness of keeping His words. This sense of difficulty however has been turned into a sense of impossibility by men and then into a reliance upon doctrines; doctrines which ARE based in the out of context sayings that serve to cover men from their True goal which IS keeping His words. There IS however no cover, there IS only the illusion of cover; there IS only men’s deluded ideas of atonement which, in the end, must be seen in the True Light of that at-one-ment which IS found in the Life of the man who keeps His words, and by measure in the Life of the man who strives to DO so.
While it IS in the fullness of this at-one-ment that one finds the trifecta, which IS the fullness of the grace of God, or, better, one’s realization of this fullness as the man in this world, it IS the proportionate measure of His grace that comes into the Life of the man who strives; it IS this then that should be the immediate objective of everyman. It IS this reality of striving that must replace the doctrinal idea that it IS impossible to keep His words and any other doctrinal precepts that relieve men of their individual responsibility. And there IS delusion here in these ideas as well; there ARE many who believe that they ARE striving while they DO NOT yet see the reality of Jesus rhetorical question which asks “why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). Nor DO they see the companion saying from Matthew’s Gospel which we have above, that saying that clearly shows the Way to the Kingdom. And there IS yet more delusion here as men fail to see themselves in the role the man who the Master depicts in prophecy, in healing and in DOING “many wonderful works“, but who DOES NOT keep His words.
Nor DO men see the stark reality portrayed in the parable that follows these ideas in both gospels; few see themselves as building upon the Earth or, as Matthew tells us, upon the sand, yet they DO NOT “heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them” (Matthew 7:24). This IS the delusion of men, the delusion of men who believe that they ARE DOING according to His words but who ARE NOT; men who ARE at best DOING according to their several doctrines. While Matthew shows us the strait gate in more parabolic tones, we should be able to see the reality of Jesus’ words rather easily as this IS made clearer by Luke. We should note here however that the parabolic tone IS NOT so severe that most men should NOT discern the basic idea which we read in His words saying “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:13-14). In our more simple language, the strait gate and the narrow way ARE found in being in accord with His words, they ARE found in the narrow focus of the man upon the things of God.
This ALL brings us back to the Parable of the Sower as this IS explained to the disciples in tones that ARE NOT parabolic but which DO NOT resonate as they ARE intended in the minds of men. Here again IS the delusion of men, here again men ARE deluded by the ideas of doctrines rather than being illuminated by the Truth of His words. Here in this parable IS the same simple and basic Truth, that Truth which brings one the realization of His grace and His Presence, the Truth of keeping His words. And the tone here in the parable IS the same as the tone in His teaching on the Presence of God according to John where we read again:
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).
Here we have the idea of “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them” and in the parable we have the similar idea framed as the “good ground“, as the man who “in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it“. This IS the same idea which we find in ALL things spiritual, this IS the KEY to ALL spiritual reality and it IS this same idea that plays such a role in the delusion of men who believe that they ARE in His grace but who ARE NOT “doers of the word“. In this Parable of the Sower the Master shows us a comparison of men and He does so in a range; from men who DO NOT care in the least what IS True and right to the man who only seeks the Truth by keeping His words; we read:
“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience” (Luke 8:11-15).
While many millions of men place themselves into the final category of the “good ground“, there ARE in Truth very few who ARE; very “few there be that find” the strait gate. This again is delusion and this IS a delusion that IS easily shattered by men who can look with “an honest and good heart“; and we say this in the spirit of reality where most ALL men DO KNOW in their own hearts their place in the comparative brackets that Jesus gives us above. It IS this same delusion however that prevents a man from realizing his True place in the carnally active mind. When one’s focus IS upon the things of the world and the self in the world, a man can hardly reflect upon the Truth so that while he may KNOW in his heart his True place, this realty remains trapped behind the illusion. And this IS the division of the Life of the man in the world; a division that IS resolved in at-one-ment and one that IS lessened in striving. In striving one moves his focus away from the self and the self in the world and onto the Truth, onto the things of God.
There IS little or NO sense of division for those who ARE the way side; there IS somewhat more in the Life of the man who IS the rock, the man who hears the Truth but ignores it if favor of his carnal Life. It IS in the world of thorns where most men who see themselves as religious or as spiritual find their reality. It IS here that the sense of delusion which we speak of resides; it IS here that men come to believe that they ARE closer to the Truth and to God than they ARE; it IS here that men hear the Truth of their own Souls but allow the “cares and riches and pleasures of this life” to overwhelm what they hear. And here IS the rub: it IS in this delusion that men believe that they ARE doing right because their own doctrines have taught them that this IS so. It IS through the assumed authority of those who promulgate and teach such doctrines that this delusion has grown and continues to grow and this despite the Master’s rather clear words; especially those words on Love which we again repeat at the top of our essay.
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.
Live in joy, in love, even among those who hate.
Live in joy, in health, even among the afflicted.
Live in joy, in peace, even among the troubled.
Live in joy, without possessions.
Like the shining ones.
The winner sows hatred because the loser suffers.
Let go of winning and losing and find joy.
There is no fire like passion, no crime like hatred,
No sorrow like separation, no sickness like hunger,
And no joy like the joy of freedom.
Today’s Quote of the Day is from the Dhammapada (on JOY)5; a collection of the sayings of the Buddha. These words and ideas ARE much the same as those we discuss in our In the Words of Jesus essays. And what is this freedom but the release of our hearts and minds from loving this life in this world and attaining the Presence of God. This word Joy has many meanings as DOES the idea of Love, but in the context that it IS used here we should see the idea that Joy IS Love, Joy IS health, Joy IS peace and that Joy IS without the burdens placed on a man by the illusion and the glamour of the ways of the world. We should try to see that it IS the antithesis of these ideas in hate, in affliction and in troubles that ARE among the possessions of the carnal man, that ARE among the “evil treasure of his heart” (Luke 6:45) according to the Master.
And it IS in the second stanza above that we see the basic psychic ideas that can eliminate the harm caused by such “evil treasure” as a man looks past himself and at the welfare of others which IS the greater reality of Love as the Master teaches us. It IS in losing such possessions, losing such carnal thoughts and attitudes, that one can truly find the “joy of freedom“….this IS the Truth of deliverance.
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts
- 5 The Dhammapada Translated by Thomas Byrom
