ON LOVE; PART MDXLI
ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ
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).
ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ
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.
ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ
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).
ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ
We ended the last essay with some words from the Apostle Peter which we can try to see in relationship to a proper view of the Trinity which IS our God. While the church has defined the Trinity as three separate but equal parts of the Godhead, they have failed to adequately describe the interaction of these parts as they effect the individual and the corporate world of men as humanity. We post here again a symbolic reference to the Trinity which shows us the Christian thought on the Trinity as three separate Persons defined as: the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, three distinct persons sharing one essence/substance/nature**. In simpler terms the church has offered the idea that: the Father creates a plan, Jesus Christ implements the plan, and the Holy Spirit administers the plan**; while this IS closer to our view, the idea IS flawed as we note that God IS the Plan, the Christ IS the manifestation of that Plan and the Holy Spirit IS the working out of the Plan in the lives of men and in this world. Regardless of how we view the Godhead, the reality IS that the Truth of KNOWING God IS ONLY afforded to those that live in accord with His words. The True dynamics of the Godhead ARE ONLY KNOWN by those that have access to the mysteries according to Paul’s words saying “the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:26-27).
This symbolic presentation of the Trinity attempts to show three separate aspects as ‘persons’ and while this IS misleading, it IS at the same time more tuned to the way that men can understand the spiritually complex ideas that the word Trinity itself embodies. The separation IS clearly depicted as the Aspects of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit ARE NOT at ALL linked together; they ARE indeed separated by the idea of ‘IS NOT’. This philosophy, while perhaps assisting in men’s understanding of the Trinity, IS misplaced and contradicted by the words of the Master Himself. First we see the Union of the Father and the Son Aspects in such sayings from Jesus as “Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works” (John 14:10). Here we have the combination of the Father and the Son which we can further interpret into a combination of the Spirit and the Soul with the Spirit represented by the Father and the Soul represented by the Son, the Christ. Next we get a glimpse of the Union of the Son and the Holy Spirit through Jesus’ words that we posted in the last essay saying “If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you” (John 14:15-18). Here the idea IS founded in the way that Jesus’ ‘promises‘ the Comforter, “Even the Spirit of truth“, and then goes on to say “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you“. We should try to see that this idea that “I will come to you” IS of the Christ which Jesus fully embodies and NOT the man Jesus Himself. Finally we have the relationship between the Holy Spirit and the Father shown to us in the Master’s words saying “But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me” (John 15:26)
Through ALL of this we should be able to at least sense that the churches symbolic representation of the Trinity IS NOT accurately describing the Trinity but rather offering a doctrinal version, a carnal one if you will, of the relationships of the Three Aspects of the Godhead. We should try to see the whole of this in the same way we should try to see the polytheism of other religions; as that these ‘many’ gods ARE NOT Truly seen as such in the hidden depths of these religions. These ‘many’ gods ARE depicted as individual gods based upon their share of the potency of the Godhead. While this may make little sense today, in ages past these ideas were perhaps the ONLY way for the average man to understand anything about his individual relationship to the gods. The Christian Trinity IS NO different as the Aspects of the One God are divided by their ‘potency’ which we humbly show in our chart as:
| 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 |
While some parts of this chart ARE from our esoteric studies, others ARE from our own sense of the Truth of the existance of man within the singularity that IS our God. There IS a reality to the idea of the Trinity that IS beyond the comprehension of most ALL men and while our chart here provides some insight, our final understanding, our revelation of the Truth if you will, requires our Repentance and the beginnings of our Transformation before we can have any measure of this comprehension. In other words, we “must be born again” as the Master shows us in His dialogue with Nicodemus. Both the depth of the Master’s words to Nicodemus and the spiritual ideas incorporated into our chart ARE NOT intended for the understanding of the average man as such have NO basis for understanding such deep Truths. These Truths ARE however unlocked by the revelations of our own Souls to the awakened minds of men, revelations that correspond with the ideas behind the promises of our trifecta, promises that show us the achievements that can be garnered by the man who will keep His words. To the carnal mind, the minds of most ALL men in this world to be sure, the depth of the ideas of the Trinity, our trifecta and the inner Truth of our chart above remain most nebulous at best and incomprehensible for most. This IS because the reality of the ideas finds NO corresponding ideas in men’s indoctrination to the ways of the world nor in their indoctrination to whatsoever religion lies in their path. Our trifecta shows us the source of the Truth, the freedom that the Truth brings, our becoming a part of the Kingdom and our ability to have True realization of the Presence of the Lord in our individual lives. Jesus tells us:
- “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).
In ALL parts of this trifecta the promise IS linked to the reality of keeping His words and while the idea IS worded differently in each, the reality IS the same. As we have shown in past essays, the idea of our continuing in His word IS better understood as that we abide in His word. It IS the Greek word meno that IS rendered as both and, to be sure, the idea of abiding IS much more descriptive of the task at hand. The overall idea, whether using the idea of continuing or of abiding, means the same thing: that we keep His words. In the next part the idea IS presented as DOING “the will of my Father which is in heaven“; here again we should simply see that the idea IS keeping His words. There ARE many ways that we can show that these ARE the same thing but the clearest IS perhaps found in the next part of our trifecta where we read that “the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me“. Earlier in this same chapter of John’s Gospel the Master tells us “the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works” (John 14:10) further establishing the His words and the words of the Father Aspect ARE the same. Finally we find the idea phrased as “”He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them” which IS later rephrased as “he will keep my words“. Both of these iterations as well as the ideas from the first two parts of our trifecta ALL tell us the same thing: that the promises ARE given to the man who will keep His words and there IS NO alternative to this anywhere in the New Testament save for one that we should understand as being synonymous and that IS that we express agape in this world as instructed. This returns us to our primary theme, our expression of agape.
While it IS through keeping His words that we ARE made ready for the inflow of Soul Light into our carnal lives, this view of our righteousness can be accomplished through our expression of agape Love to ALL. While the Master DOES NOT expressly say this, He DOES allude to it through His teachings on agape and through the reality that the commandments that He DOES amplify ARE solved through our expression of agape. However, while He may not expressly tell us that ALL IS accomplished through our expression of agape, His apostles, through their writings, clarify and amplify the Master’s message. The rest IS a matter of logical thinking based in some measure of understanding of just what agape Love IS and how it IS intended to work out in this world. While some may think that we have repeated our view on the difference between agape and the common understanding of Love ad nauseam, this difference IS KEY to our understanding of agape. So, again, agape IS NOT that emotional and mental attraction and attachment to others and to the things and ideas of this world; agape IS NOT emotional nor IS it mental as agape requires NO thought or feelings in its expression. The closest the church has come to divulging the reality of agape IS to say that it IS the ‘God kind of Love’ and while this IS True, the statement IS rather meaningless until we can actually KNOW the Lord. The Apostle John tells us that “God is love agape” (1 John 4:8, 16) and while this IS an accepted idea in most ALL of the doctrinal church, it IS at the same time grossly misunderstood. From the perspective of the Godhead agape IS the singular Force that holds ALL together in ALL realms of existence. Note that we DO NOT say that agape holds ALL things together as this idea holds ONLY carnal features. On the physical plane this holding IS of ALL things in their natural ‘orbit’; from the individual atoms, to their formed molecules, to whatsoever cells they comprise ALL the way up to solar systems and galaxies, ALL things ARE ordered in the natural attraction of agape. However, because this IS the physical plane, a realm where the influence of the Godhead IS tenuous at best, the incursion of other factors can effect and afflict this order. Much of this incursion IS based in the behaviors of mankind over the ages and it IS this that has resulted for example in such things as cancer, rampant viruses and perhaps even what happens to the Earth itself which IS subjected to the forces of the Universe.
To be sure, this IS NOT a scientific approach to the nature of Life as men in this Earth but it IS rather a reasoned spiritual approach based in the dichotomy between the spiritual and the carnal which ARE ever at odds. It IS in this vein that we should understand James’ words saying “know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God” (James 4:4). This dichotomy IS an important factor in our understanding of both the Godhead and agape and IS perhaps one of the most resistant factors to the understanding of the church and its adherents of ALL stripes. The Godhead has nil effect upon the workings of Life in this world and while one may point to the bible stories of the interaction of God and men or God and the world, these DO NOT reflect the greater Godhead but simply the effect of Truly spiritual men in this world. Moses, the Prophets and Jesus ARE ALL men who were endowed with a great measure of spiritual Truth and ability and it IS this same Power from on High that enabled the apostles to work their own miracles and to convey to us what they had come to KNOW. We should add to this list the primary figures of most ALL True world religions; ALL, Christian and non-Christian, brought the reality of the Godhead to men through their own lives in this world. Mankind IS essentially on its own and while prayer, concerted prayer that IS, may have some effect, this IS NOT an answer from the Lord but rather the joining together of many Souls seeking the same or similar result. We should understand here that whensoever prayer IS made for carnal favor from the Lord the result IS merely happenstance; the Lord DOES NOT grant carnal favor as this would render moot the Truth that “there is no respect of persons with God” (Romans 2:11).
While this theme, that “there is no respect of persons with God” IS shown us several times in the New Testament, the idea has NOT made any impact upon the habits of the church and their teachings that prayer can bring carnal results. In the Book of Acts we read Peter’s words which, while in a different context, tell us the same thing. The apostle tells us “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons” and we should understand here that Peter’s perception IS a spiritual one as a disciple of the Christ. Paul shows us that this same IS True in relation to judgement saying that “he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons” (Colossians 3:25). This of course corresponds with the apostle’s telling us “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not” (Galatians 7-9). Peter also addresses this idea of having “no respect to persons” as it regards judgement saying “if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear” (1 Peter 1:17). As we should be able to see the idea that “God is no respecter of persons” IS deeply and firmly ingrained in the text of the New Testament, we should note here that the idea of “respect to persons” IS also a part of the Old Testament albeit in a different tone. In the Book of Proverbs we read Solomon’s instruction to men saying “These things also belong to the wise. It is not good to have respect of persons in judgment” and then further on he tells us “To have respect of persons is not good: for for a piece of bread that man will transgress” (Proverbs 24:23, 28:21). The idea goes deeper in the Old Testament as well; we read in Samuel that “For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him” (Samuel 14:14). We also read from the law in Leviticus that “Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honour the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour” (Leviticus 19:15). This IS followed closely by the original wording of “thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18). And this same theme IS offered by Paul in regard to a master of servants; the apostle tells such men that: “Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free. And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him” (Ephesians 6:8-9).
From ALL this we should be able to see that the idea of having NO “respect to persons” IS well established in Judeo-Christian scripture and yet with ALL this men still pray for favor from the Lord. We should try to understand that this IS a part of the very nature of the Godhead, that ALL men ARE seen as the same, as equally entitled to ALL that the Lord has to offer. And, based upon the closing idea of the fifth chapter of Matthew, this vision of men must also be a part of the actions of everyman who Truly seeks the Lord. Jesus tells us to “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). The idea of perfect here IS much maligned in the church as most try to see the idea carnally rather than spiritually and have converted the meaning to reflect maturity rather than the perfection that IS our Lord. Perhaps this IS why Luke offers us the Master’s words in regard to agape and its expression saying “Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful” (Luke 6:36). Through these words we ARE admonished to be as the Lord and the apostle James gives us this reality in relation to our own individual expression of agape and it IS unfortunate that the apostle’s words ARE ignored. James tells us clearly that “If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:8-10).
While James IS pointing us in the right direction regarding our expression of agape, few Truly understand his words and their relationship to our expression of Truth and agape Love. We should try to see that while humanity has failed miserably in its expression of agape, it has failed yet further in regard to men’s view of one another. The blame for much of this lies with the way that agape has been rendered as Love and with the way that the idea of Love IS understood. Love as it IS commonly understood IS a carnal emotion and NOT a spiritual force as IS agape but this distinction has gone unnoticed for 2000 years and much of the blame for this lies with the church which teaches agape as though it IS this carnal idea of Love. It IS James who carries forward the visionary idea that agape IS to be equally expressed to ALL and while this IS based upon the ideas of God’s having NO “respect to persons“, neither idea IS fully supported by the church which for reasons unknown continues to see agape as Love. While many have added the addendum that agape IS the ‘God kind of Love’ they fail to either understand this or express it in this world….it IS become but another trite adage. The idea that agape IS the ‘God kind of Love’ IS related by doctrine to the Love that God has for humanity but this IS seldom the context in which the idea IS presented in the New Testament. Google’s generative AI which compiles its answers from ALL that IS said about a subject tells us that***:
The “God kind of love” is a term used to describe the love that God has for humanity, and is also known as agape love. In the Bible, agape is considered the highest form of love, and is characterized by the following traits:
Unconditional: God’s love for us is unconditional, meaning it’s not based on any virtues we possess.
Selfless: Agape love is a selfless love that’s motivated by the well-being of others, not by self-recognition.
Sacrificial: Agape love is a sacrificial love.
Everlasting: Agape love is an everlasting love.
Forgiving: Agape love is a forgiving love. In the Bible, Isaiah 43:25 and Hebrews 8:12 say that when we ask forgiveness, God forgets our sins.
Tenderhearted: Agape love is a tenderhearted love. Ephesians 4:32 says that we should be kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving towards one another, just as God has forgiven us.
Much of what IS listed here IS common to the doctrinal understanding of agape and we should note that every point IS actually a carnal one that depicts the level of Love that one expresses and NOT the reality of agape which, in the end, has naught to DO with the common ideas on Love. While there ARE some important Christian virtues listed above, they ALL fall short of the reality of agape and this especially when it IS combined with James’ words saying that there must be NO “respect of persons” in our expression of agape. The reality that agape must be with NO “respect of persons” IS fully based in the Master’s words and in the Great Commandment that tells us that “Thou shalt love agape thy neighbour as thyself” (Matthew 22:39). In this timeless saying we should see the expression of agape to ALL and, through James words, that this expression should be equally expressed to ALL. This however IS NOT how the idea IS perceived in doctrinal religion. The commandment that we “shalt love agape thy neighbour as thyself” IS the seed text for James’ words and while this IS NOT seen by many, it IS at the same time True. When we understand the neighbor as everyman we can then begin to see that the common understanding of Love CAN NOT work; we CAN NOT have the same emotional and mental attraction or attachment to everyman, this would be a near impossible task. We can however, under the influence of True agape, see everyman as we see ourselves and this IS the major point to be taken from the misunderstood phrase that “Thou shalt love agape thy neighbour as thyself“. In True agape we come to see ALL men as the same, as equal even to ourselves, and this despite any observable differences of which there can be many. It IS in this view of Life where we see ALL men as the same spiritual beings working out an existence in this world under vastly differing circumstances that agape IS Truly expressed. Granted that we CAN NOT have any control over the ways of others and granted that there ARE segments of humanity with which we should NOT participate, we ARE still left with the admonition to “love agape thy neighbour as thyself” and to DO so with NO “respect to persons“. It IS with this in mind that we should read the Master’s words from His Sermon on the Mount; words that tell us about anger, about retribution and about fear.
Agape IS the Force par excellence that can change the world by changing the way that we view each other as persons and this same can stretch out to cover international, intercultural and interreligious affairs. When we can see our neighbor as we see ourselves we will perforce conform to the Golden Rule which clearly tells us “as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise” (Luke 6:31). This IS our expression of agape and because the neighbor IS defined for us as everyman, because the Golden Rule cites ALL men, this IS our expression with NO “respect to persons“. There IS NO greater force than agape and it IS for this reason that the apostle Paul shows us that without agape we ARE nothing, we ARE profitless and we ARE “become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal” (1 Corinthians 13:3, 2, 1). There ARE many clues to the Force of agape in the Master’s words and here today we will center upon His instructions to His disciples that ARE intended to eliminate one’s own seemingly innate feelings of superiority over others, feelings that ARE central to our vanity and which must be eliminated. We begin with Jesus’ words that show us that even He must perforce have NO such feelings of betterment and that ALL whose focus IS Truly upon the things of God can be as He IS. The Master tells us that “the disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?” (Matthew 10:24-25). Here we have NOT ONLY the equivalency that Jesus shows between Himself and His disciple, how they too can be as He IS, but also a general statement of the relationship between and ‘master‘ and his servant. It IS the eventuality of one’s becoming “as his master” that IS reflected in John’s words saying “as he is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17); here we should understand the potentiality of being “as he is” against the reality that we ARE “as he is“. This IS NOT as complex as it seems. As we incarnate in this world we ARE “as he is“, we ARE ALL equal but this equality DOES NOT show until we ARE fully focused upon the things of God; it IS here that we can be seen by ALL as being “as he is“.
Luke’s version of the Master’s words clarifies this idea of our realization of becoming and being “as he is“; here the Master tells us “The disciple is not above his master: but every one that is perfect shall be as his master” (Luke 6:40). In these sayings the equivalency between the disciple and the Master IS made clear and it IS unfortunate that the church has NOT seen the reality that everyman, through His “good works“, can be as the Lord. This IS despite the way that the whole idea of becoming a Son of God and becoming “partakers of the divine nature” ARE shown us in the words of His apostles who have reached these spiritual plateaus. Paul, the apostle that IS credited by most of the Christian denominations and sects for establishing their doctrine, tells us that “as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Romans 8:14). In these words we should see the potential of everyman who has reached out for, strived for if you will, this idea of perfection or Luke’s alternate framing of being merciful that IS shown us in Jesus’ words above. Again, we should try to see how that being merciful IS our expression of agape and NOT the common understanding of the word; both being merciful and being perfect ARE tied together for us by John who tells us “And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love” (1 John 4:16-18).
Paul goes on to tell us about the struggle to get to this point of perfection as he shows us the reality of our vanity, how that ALL are born into this vanity by being born into this world, separated from our True self, the Soul. And this IS our very definition of this vanity; that it IS: a perishable and decaying condition, separate from God, and pursuing false ends4. Our vanity IS our bondage to this world and this IS shown us in Paul’s words saying that “the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because expectation that the creature itself also shall be delivered made free from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (Romans 8:20-21). From our perspective the apostle’s words here show us the state of humanity and whether one sees Paul’s words as we DO or interprets them according to the ‘fall of man’ DOES NOT matter; what matters IS our realization of the vanity in which we exist. From ALL perspectives our existence here in this world IS perishable and decaying; this IS the very nature of Life in form and so long as we identify with that Life we ARE, as beings, in this perishable and decaying condition. We ARE also separate from God and this IS True on multiple levels; as Souls, when we ARE NOT in control of our carnal existence, we ARE separate from God and here we should understand God as the Christ Within which IS the Soul. At the same time we ARE separate from the reality of God by our focus upon our little lives in this world and while religion may offer us brief respites from our vanity, it IS most always a temporary state. Finally, as we pursue our carnal goals, goals that we ARE encouraged to have by the church and which ARE doctrinally related to the Plan that God has for one’s Life; most ARE pursuing false ends. This IS based in dichotomy between the carnal and the spiritual that James shows us saying “know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God” (James 4:4). And we should NOT forget here the Master’s words that tell us that “Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24). Paul shows us this same idea of the dichotomy between the carnal and the spiritual saying “they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be” (Romans 8:5-7). Here the idea of being “after the flesh” should be understood as our focus on the self and the things of the self in this Life.
Finally we hear from the Apostle Peter who tells us about our “bondage of corruption” from a different perspective saying: “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 1:3-4). Here our bondage must be escaped and we should try to see this as explanatory to such ideas as that we “shall be delivered made free from the bondage of corruption“. Paul offers us NO explanation of our deliverance or, better, our being made free, he merely shows us that it IS a part of the Plan of creation. Peter, in showing us that we must escape, uses the Greek word apopheugo which Strong’s tells us literally means escape….there IS NO question as to the apostle’s intent. The word IS used ONLY by Peter and later in his epistle as a caution to those that have escaped saying “For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning” (2 Peter 2:20). This saying comports with his words above and perhaps the KEY to both IS the idea that our escape IS “through the knowledge of the Lord” or, as he previously shows us that we have access to “all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue“. The KEY to ALL spiritual Truth IS founded in our ability to KNOW God and this KNOWLEDGE IS NOT that which we can learn from others; it CAN NOT be taught by the church. KNOWING God must flow into our minds as we Transform; thisPaul shows us saying “be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:2). We close today as we will start our next essay, with the Apostle John’s words saying: “And 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 of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him” (1 John 2:3-5).
We will continue with our thoughts in the next post.
- **Trinity, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Trinity&oldid=1233838488 25 December 2024 16:18 UTC
- *** Google generative AI on ‘God kind of love’
Those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those who are showing a new road
Voltaire, Writer and Philosopher
