YES, HE is Talking to YOU! (continued)
Love is the Fulfilling of the Law
We left off yesterday with the completion of the text regarding the birth of the Christ in Bethlehem on what we have come to call Christmas Day. As we have said, it matters not that we have the right date or that we know the year or the nature of the place in which the Master was born, it matters only that when we come upon this day that we take the time to reflect on His coming and, as we spoke yesterday, there is not a better time for our renewed commitment to His work. We will continue today from where we left off and will try to discover some of the mysteries in Jesus early life that have been made part of the canon of text to which we refer. There are other apocryphal documents that purport to detail some of the Christ child’s adventures and there is the much later text called the Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ which is purported to be taken from the ‘akashic’ records. We will not deal with these now except to say that there is likely much truth in some of the apocryphal books but at the same time much error or should we say much of the thoughts of the men of the time. We should remember that there are also a number of apocryphal documents to the Old Testament that are not accepted by most Jews but which are included in some versions of the Holy Bible as we know it. Some of these were well enough known to be quoted in parts of the epistles, especially that of Jude; these, and perhaps others, may be the source of some of the prophesies referred to in the New Testament for which there is no apparent Old Testament source, an example of which is the saying in the Gospel of Matthew referring to Jesus “This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets “He shall be called a Nazarene.” “(Matthew 2:23).
Great are the mysteries of Life and of especially of that part of Life that we cannot all see. Such is the nature of the akashic records. To interpret what this is in human terms is difficult but we may see this as the ‘fabric’ of the unseen ‘physical’ realm where thoughts and desires exist. Thoughtforms and desire forms are entities that we all deal with daily and which give a reality to our thoughts, our dreams and our aspirations on individual, group and even national levels. Although these may dissipate, either because they have become realities or because they wane in our lives; it is said that there is an indelible reflection of these that continues in this ‘fabric’. Much of the problem here is that it is left to man, the man who can see and purportedly read these records, to discern between the real and the unreal, between thought and desire and between fantasy and real aspiration. Such are the ideas that one must attach to the Aquarian Gospel which is written by Levi H. Dowling, an American Christian preacher, who claims to have transcribed this book from these records. His gospel includes the ‘missing eighteen years’ of Jesus life for which there is no record in addition to its different perspective on the Master’s Life in general. This is interesting reading and, as always, it is left to the individual to ascertain the accuracy for himself; much of what is said is along the general lines that we hold in our posts. Similarly, the New Testament Apocrypha, a collection of works by many authors, reflects some of the deeper understandings that we espouse but at the same time much that is fanciful; there is no accurate way at this time to discern the real from the unreal and so we will continue with what we have in the New Testament as our usable source.
Yesterday the Christ is born and in our celebration of this we should reflect upon this not merely as on Christmas Day but on every day as we look continually for the greater Light of the Soul, the Christ Within, to be born in our hearts, our conscious personality; which is were He Truly must be borne. In the much misunderstood statement by the Master “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” and again He says “Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again” (John 3:3, 7) we can see the reality of this birth. We have discussed this principal frequently in our posts and specifically in In the Words of Jesus parts 52-57, which bear the title ‘Born Again‘. We have also, on more than one occasion, listed the ideas that the Master gives us regarding attaining the Kingdom of God and today, before we move on, let us look at some of these in relation to the Birth of the Christ.
- First we should see the above references from John’s Gospel on Born Again which He gives to us and then expands upon; speaking to Nicodemus: Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit” (John 3:3:8). Can we see in the Virgin Birth the intended showing of the purity of the Spirit of the Christ born into a body of flesh? Can we see this as an example of the birth of our pure and unblemished Spirit being born and borne in the flesh CONSCIOUSLY? Can we see the reality of the Masters words “so is every one that is born of the Spirit” in a way that shows us that rarity and that purity that carnal man cannot understand?
- Next we have the idea of riches and a life of plenty as it contrasts the coming into the world of the Master Jesus. We are told this saying by the Master this regarding riches; He is commenting on one who sought the Kingdom and eternal life but could not give up that which he had: “And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:23-25). How does this relate to the messages of the Birth of the Christ? We spoke over the last few posts of the humble beginnings for our Lord, our King of Kings. After traveling several days to Bethlehem and presumably spending their nights on the road, the First Couple, arrive and have yet no place to stay; they can only find a stall or a stable to share with the resident animals. This is the birthplace of the KING. In this regard also we should look at the sayings of the Blessed Mother of the Lord who says, as part of what is called the Song of Mary or the Magnificat: “For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away” (Luke 1:49-53). Can we see here how the Lord eschews the ideas of the proud, the mighty and the rich? To show yet a bit more of the lowly beginnings from the perspective of the carnal nature, we have only to look at this which we will cover in more detail in our next segment: “And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord; (As it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;) And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons” (Luke 2:22-24). The significance here is in the offering of “A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons“; Rev. Hartdegen says clearly on this that the Mosaic Law (Ex. 13, 2) established the firstborn male child as property of God, and thus his parents had to buy him back; the price (Num. 18,15f) was five shekels (about $3.20). Lev. 12 prescribed a rite of purification from legal defilement. For this reason the mother of a male child, forty days after his birth, made an offering of a lamb as a holocaust and of a pigeon for a sin offering. The poor were permitted to offer two pigeons10. We must realize that there could be no ‘holding back’ on the part of Mary and Joseph and that the likely view is that they were counted among the poor. Can we see here the totality of the message and the link from Jesus birth to our attainment of the Kingdom? Can we see here that it is unlikely and, according to the Master, extremely difficult to enter the Kingdom with riches and that one must be free of all attachment and cares?
- For our last point on this we have this from the Master: “Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein” (Luke 18:17). The Master came to the world, to us, as a child; born as we are and presumably raised in a spiritual setting. But this is not the point to see. The point here is that Jesus is born to the world as we are and yet was not subject to the world as we become. He is unscathed by Life in the flesh and is free from “…all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life” which we know “is not of the Father, but is of the world” (1 John 2:16). Is there a better way to convey this message to us than giving us this view of His humble beginnings and His purity of heart throughout His Life and to liken this for us to being able to “receive the kingdom of God as a little child” We said previously regarding this saying that: ‘This is a saying that is much overlooked. It is passed by in some commentaries and ill treated in others yet it is so simple an idea and easy to understand in the right light. So what are the qualities of a little child? Innocence and trusting, no pride or prejudice, no hatreds or misconceptions of life; capable of loving all, having humility and meekness. These are the qualities of a little child and these are what is needed by us to enter into the Kingdom of God’.
In everything that the Master says and does there is a Life’ lesson for us all and His birth is no exception as we should see from the ideas above. Continuing with the verses from the Gospel of Luke we find next the circumcision of the baby Jesus and His presentation as we saw above. The text says: “And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord; (As it is written in the law of the Lord , Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;) And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons. And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law, Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel. And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him. And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against; (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed. And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity; And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem. And when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth” (Luke 2:21-39).
What do we take from these verses regarding Simeon and Anna. First they are signs to us of spiritual people, people walking in the Light of the Soul and that in this state of being one can have all things revealed to him and to this Luke gives us the thought of things being “revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost”. In Simeon we have this and in Anna we have similar from Luke’s noting her purity and her serving of the Lord; it is through this that she is able to discern the reality of the presence of the Master. Second, we have the continued working of the Great and Awesome Plan of God that put these persons before Mary and Joseph as an help to them so as they do not lose faith in the face of all that is going to happen to them. Encouragement and confirmation by ‘holy’ people which continues next with the visit of the Magi.
As we said yesterday, we are including some additional thoughts on the Quote of the Day that we have had now for this third day. The thoughts below are a shortening of the words of the Tibetan from the book Telepathy and the Etheric Vehicle***; shortened to keep with the ideas with which this is presented in our blog and to help prevent any undo confusion.
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.
It is essential that servers, men and women of good will, get a grasp, of the work to be done and that they become “relaying channels and not delaying points of selfish interest” in the divine flow. This takes vision and courage. It takes courage to adjust their lives—daily and in all relations—to the need of the hour and to the service of mankind; it takes courage to attack life problems on behalf of others and to obliterate one’s own personal wishes in the emergency and need, and to do so consistently and persistently. However, there is much to encourage the server. Humanity has now reached a point in development where there is a definite grasp of brotherhood, sharing, internationalism, and unity. All of this is a challenge to the disciple. What is it that he must do?
The disciple has to take himself as he is, at any time, with any given equipment, and under any given circumstances; he then proceeds to subordinate himself, his affairs and his time to the need of the hour. When he does this within his own consciousness and is, therefore, thinking along lines of the true values, he will discover that his own private affairs are taken care of, his capacities are increased and his limitations are forgotten. He takes his place with those who perceive the needs of the coming cycle, wherein the wider plans for the good of the whole must be understood, endorsed and preached, the new and clearer vision for human living must be grasped and finally brought into being.
There is a certain esoteric Mantram which embodies this attitude—the attitude of the disciple who is striving, in cooperative endeavour with others, to link hierarchical intent with human aspiration and thus bring humanity nearer to its goal. The intent of the Hierarchy is to increase men’s capacity for freedom in order to function effectively with that “life more abundantly” which the Christ will bring and which demands that the spirit of man be free—free to approach divinity and free also to choose the Way of that approach. The Mantram bears the name, “The Affirmation of the Disciple.” It involves certain inner recognitions and acceptances which are readily perceived by those whose intuition is sufficiently awake; but its meaning should not be beyond the ability of any sincere student and thinker to penetrate if it appeals to them as significant and warranting their effort***.
I am a point of light within a greater Light.
I am a strand of loving energy within the stream of Love divine.
I am a point of sacrificial Fire, focussed within the fiery Will of God.
And thus I stand
I am a way by which men may achieve.
I am a source of strength, enabling them to stand.
I am a beam of light, shining upon their way.
And thus I stand.
And standing thus, revolve
And tread this way the ways of men,
And know the ways of God.
And thus I stand.
Today’s Quote of the Day is called the Affirmation of the Disciple and is spoken from the perspective of the Soul and not from that of the man in form. It is the Soul that we are in this life on Earth, housed in this ‘temple’ of flesh and it is the Light of the Soul that must flow through this ‘temple’ in order that we may say with the Christ “I have overcome the world” (John 16:33) which is our goal and our destiny. Speaking then as the Soul we affirm our reality and true existence in God and in His Three Aspects of Light and Love and His Will. As this Light and Love and Will flow through our conscious personalities and forms we, as disciples, take on the nature of the second stanza being able to offer to the world a better way through our service and our Love for all, encouragement to righteousness through our strength of purpose, and the Light which shines in accordance with the Master’s instructions to “Let your light so shine before men” (Matthew 5:16) and illuminates the Path. Finally we realize that we are standing in this world and walking as men but, as conscious Souls in form, we know the way and the ways of God and are able to say with the Christ that “I am not of this world” (John 8:23).
- 10 A Chronological Harmony of the Gospels; Stephen J. Hartdegen, O.F.M., S. Scr. (1942)
- *** Telepathy and the Etheric Vehicle by Alice A. Baily; © 1950 by Lucis Trust
