IN THE WORDS OF JESUS–Part 286

Love is the Fulfilling of the Law

ON GOD; Part LXXI

 I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

John 10:10

The saying above served as our introduction into what we can consider one of the many ‘Easter’ type scenarios that we find in the gospels and in the words of Jesus and one into which we were able to incorporate some of the ideas from our current theme of illusion, glamour and deception. Jesus’ death is real as is His resurrection from the dead and it is in these two scripted events that there lies the Master’s teaching to us all regrading the reality of Life. He tells us of His own physical Life in the world “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down , and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father” (John 10:17-18) and we need to see this as the indicator of what we are to do as men in form in regard to our own physical Life. Like so many others of His sayings that come to us couched in mystery and in the form of parables, this one has a double meaning. For Him it is one that is indicative of His Earthly Life as a man who had long since overcome the wiles of the world and the lures of Life in form and which was necessarily the real death of the physical body and its resurrection. For us it is one that by the example of His Life of Love and His desire to lay it down to show the way, we must see as our own the ability to forsake the wiles of the world and the lures of Life in form and to let the self-serving personality die so that the ALL-serving Soul, the Christ Within, can be resurrected within the body. As we have seen in recent posts this is, in its totality, the act of becoming a True disciple of the Master and being accounted worthy of His Kingdom.

For us then this is the True meaning of the Resurrection of the Christ and we should remember here that He did not do this  act of “I lay down my life, that I might take it again” nearly as clearly as we are led to believe by the doctrines of the Church. We have covered this idea before in our posts (In the Words of Jesus parts 59 and 193) and in the observations by those who were there and those who wrote about them shortly thereafter is much insight into the mysterious and the parabolic nature of the events. Our point is that the Master did not die on the Cross as Jesus and take up His life again in the same way but rather He continued to show us the relative unimportance of the form that we use and we take this idea from the biblical accounts.

First we should remember that He appeared to them in different forms: From the Gospel of Mark we have these words in that section of his gospel that is disputed “After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country” (Mark 16:12) This does however bear similarity to those sayings in the Gospel of Luke which create quite a story for two disciples who were with Him and likely knew Him well:

• “Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre. And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments: And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee, Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. And they remembered his words, And returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest. It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles. And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not. Then arose Peter, and ran unto the sepulchre; and stooping down , he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass. And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. And they talked together of all these things which had happened. And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know him. And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad? And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days? And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people: And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him. But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: and beside all this, to day is the third day since these things were done. Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre; And when they found not his body, they came, saying , that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive. And certain of them which were with us went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the women had said: but him they saw not. Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further. But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them. And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight. And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures? And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them, Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon. And they told what things were done in the way, and how he was known of them in breaking of bread. And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit. And he said unto them, Why are yet roubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. And when he had thus spoken, he shewed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have yehere any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And he took it, and did eat before them. And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.” (Luke 24:1-44).

Note on the Quote of the Day