ON LOVE; PART DCLXXXII
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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.
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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).
In the last essay we continued our discussion of the fourteenth chapter of the Gospel of John and our view as to how that these words from the Master work together with our ideas on grace and on the reality of the Holy Spirit as factors in the Life of the man whose focus IS upon the things of God. In the first three verses of our current selection from this chapter we have found several words and ideas that have been appropriated by doctrine and which have a deeper meaning based in our view of the Truths of Life and of God. First IS the nature of the True man as the Soul living Life in this world of form as opposed to the doctrinal view that the man IS this Life in the world which will continue in a heaven or a hell depending upon the various doctrinal interpretations of Life. And second IS the reality of the Kingdom of God which is painted for us in doctrine as that place that the faithful will go after the death of this physical body, those who believe on the Christ as Lord and Savior according to some and those whose Life contains some measure of Good according to others, but which we understand as that state of being in Union with the Master here and now in this world, and the degrees of this achievement for men whose focus IS on the spiritual Life and the things of God.
It IS based upon these ideas that of the Kingdom after death and these ideas that the man IS this form and personality in the world that lead doctrine to see their interpretations of mansions in the “Father’s house” as that they ARE abodes in the afterlife or at the Second Coming of the Lord and that ARE actual heavenly mansions or that they are the ‘gift’ of opulence for the believer in this place in the sky called heaven. And it is based in these ideas, or the many variations of this that are taught across the many denominations and sects, that the Master’s words on His going and His preparing a place, a mansion if your will, find their root as we read again in our current selection from John’s Gospel:
“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? 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. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake” (John 14:1-11).
What we see here in this dialogue between the Master and the Twelve IS NOT this idea of mansions as these are understood by many, it IS NOT the idea that Jesus, in His death, is going to “ prepare a place” for them. and it IS NOT to be understood that He will return, either in His resurrection or at the presumed final resurrection, to bring them to this place where the “Father’s house” can be found. Our reality here IS that this IS a journey for the Twelve and for those who would follow them; a journey to the reality of the Kingdom of God and to the Truth of discipleship where they can be as He IS according to His own words saying: “The disciple is not above his master: but every one that is perfect shall be as his master” (Luke 6:40). This IS our ultimate reality….to be as He IS. And this IS the underlying message of these first three verses which follow upon the supper and the washing of the disciple’s feet; the Master’s words on His ‘betrayal’ and His fate of NO longer being among them. It IS these words: “Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye shall seek me: and as I said unto the Jews, Whither I go, ye cannot come; so now I say to you” (John 13:33) and the following dialogue with the Apostle Peter that lead us to these sayings above.
Here in these sayings the Master, perhaps sensing the uncertainty and the sense of loss that the Twelve feel, tells them that they should NOT lose faith and that they should remain firm in their belief and their KNOWING of the Truths that He had taught them and had shown them. Here, in the idea of “many mansions” the Master IS telling them about the Presence of God, that each can have this Presence according to His own complex Life in this world….a complex Life that combines the divine nature of the Soul with the expression that each one has in this world through the uniqueness of his form and personality Life. That there IS a Presence of God for each of them is the message that IS repeated in a different view in a later saying that: “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” (John 14:23). We should note that this saying IS a part of a series of parabolic sayings regarding the Kingdom and the Father and the Truth of the Christ Himself, a series that has profound meaning in the Life of the aspirant and the disciple who can see but which IS lost on those who DO NOT see the essence of His teachings; and we should note as well that these Twelve DO NOT ALL understand His Truths. In these sayings above we find this in the questions of Thomas and of Phillip and later in this dialogue, in the sixteenth chapter, we find that some still DO NOT see clearly the Master’s meaning as we read: “Then said some of his disciples among themselves, What is this that he saith unto us, A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me: and, Because I go to the Father? They said therefore, What is this that he saith, A little while? we cannot tell what he saith” (John 16:17-18).
Can we see the confusion of some of these disciples who DO KNOW much but who at the same time have NOT yet had the realizations and the revelations of the Truth of His words? And can we see how that the Master’s words ARE intentionally parabolic, how that it IS His intent that only those who have developed the necessary spiritual sight can Truly see? And the Master confirms this saying “These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father” (John 16:25). This IS the Truth of His teaching and it IS unfortunate that so many have come to believe that based in His death and His resurrection that they have this spiritual sight and that they see His Truths which ARE yet hidden from plain view. We should see here that while the Master DOES tell His disciples that “blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear” (Matthew 13:16), that this DOES NOT include ALL of the mysteries but only those for which each individually IS able to see
The point here IS that the Twelve DO NOT ALL understand the Master’s meanings and that those who follow them DO NOT understand His meaning either as they interpret His words according to the several doctrinal approaches of the Early Church Fathers and the many other interpretations that have followed over the centuries. Our own view IS also an interpretation of the Master’s Truths as we see them and our own ability to understand here today IS different from that of the Twelve to whom these ideas were given; we have to also fight through the translations and the interpretations and the sense of the English words that they employ. And so we see these ideas differently and while our vision is somewhat muddied by the ideas applied to the Greek words, we can still find some meaning by applying our vision of the Truth of Life and of the Kingdom that we take from Jesus’ many other words and the words of His apostles. So we see the idea that Jesus is telling them to keep their faith, to “Let not your heart be troubled” and that He tells them that they should continue in their beliefs which IS their KNOWING of His teaching and their knowledge God; beliefs which vary among them based in their individual sense and vision. It IS perhaps in His seeing this individual sense that He assures them that the Presence of God can come to each of them and that they can ALL abide in Him and He in them which itself IS a very parabolic idea for them and for us. It IS in this assurance that they should feel comfortable in the Master’s impending absence from them, an absence about which He had just told them and on which He continues in His dialogue after showing them how that He has prepared them and will continue to DO so.
In the Master’s parabolic words that follow here we should try to see the hidden meaning of the words through the translations and the interpretations that have clouded this message for centuries. Instead of understanding this as that Jesus IS going to the “Father’s house“, the the Kingdom of God, to prepare mansions for them to ‘live’ in when they should die or in the end, we should understand this as that for those who He will lead over 2, which IS an alternate rendering of the Greek word poreuomai which IS rendered as go above. The sense of go IS related to the doctrinal ideas of the Kingdom as a place while the idea of lead over is more aligned with our view that He IS showing them the way in parabolic terms; as we had discussed there are also other ideas to be found in this word poreuomai which can show this same idea of leading from various perspectives such as: to follow, to become his adherent and to lead or order one’s life 2. This IS the greater view of the Master’s message here which IS doctrinally tied to an outside kingdom and rendered as go. And this greater view can continue into the idea that Jesus goes “to prepare a place” which idea again IS tied to this doctrinal perception of the Kingdom and the idea of mansions. Here we see the ideas that are shown as metaphorical definitions by the lexicon, ideas that can be seen in the reality that as He leads them and as they follow Him that He IS preparing them for their station in Life as disciples whose reality IS that they ARE in the Kingdom of God and that they ARE expressing the qualities of the Kingdom through their lives in this world. This idea IS from the alternate renderings for the Greek word topos which IS rendered as place but which can mean: position; possibility, opportunity 3 according to Strong’s or the: condition or station held 2 according to the lexicon.
In this ALL we should try to see the ideas that the Master IS offering them rather than the doctrinal ideas that are likely based in the Jewish doctrines and traditions regarding the Kingdom of God. In ALL this we should also try to see how that our view here shows a more realistic view of the Master’s teaching….that He would not be speaking to them about a place that they would see after their death at some time in the future but rather how that they could be with Him, in His Presence, here and now. A KEY to the reality of Jesus words here IS found in the use of the word if which has no meaning in the doctrinal view but DOES have much meaning in our understanding of His words. As we discussed, we should try to see this idea of if as that it IS in reference to Jesus’ success in preparing them for the Truth and the reality of the Kingdom of God; we should try to see this as if He has led and they have followed His lead into the condition or the station of being His True disciple in the Kingdom of God, that they will come into that state of being….this IS the purpose of the if. In this phrase “I will come again” the words “I will” are instered by the translators and reading without these additions can show us the Truth of our idea here: that the one who follows the Master and IS prepared for his place in the Kingdom will come into that Kingdom and perhaps we can see that in the idea of again there IS the reality that each of them, as Souls, are ever there.
We can easily find these ideas in these defining terms for the Greek word erchomai which IS rendered as come: to come into being, arise, come forth, show itself, find place or influence; be established, become known, to come (fall) into or unto; to go, to follow one 2. Can we see the point here? Finally we have the idea that the Master will “receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” which can be understood in a variety of ways. One way, as we find this in the God’s Word Translation, can show us a view of the intended meaning; they render this as: “Then I will bring you into my presence so that you will be where I am“. While their intent may not be as ours IS, this view of the idea of “receive you unto myself” as His Presence IS the greater reality of this phrase and the intent of the original theme of being in His abode which we see as His Presence. We of course see this as that it IS the fullness of the Life of the Christ Within, which IS ever in His Presence, in the Life of the disciple in the world, which puts that disciple in the Presence of God and of the Master…the Christ and the Anointed of God.
We have spent much time on these first verses and we have repeated our ideas several times and from different perspectives. We DO this because it IS important for the reader to understand these parabolic words of the Master away from the established doctrines which cloud the Truth; it IS in seeing this idea of His Presence with some clarity that we can better understand our own spiritual reality and the concept grace in our lives. And, it IS only in understanding these things that we can see more clearly the following ideas on the Oneness of the Father and the Son, the Spirit and the Soul and how that these work out in our own lives as aspirants and disciples of the Lord. In ALL of this we can come to KNOW the Truth of grace and of the Holy Spirit and how that these ARE our ability to express the Truth of the Love of God, the Love that IS God, to the world of men.
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.
We repeat here again a saying that is from the Bhagavad Gita, which goes well with our theme of the God Within, the Soul, which we see as the Christ Within and while this is good in the Christian world and is True based upon our understanding of the Christ as the manifestation of God, we should also see in these words below that it does not matter what these divine ideas are called; that it matters not what we call this Inner Man, that he is the same in ALL, he is the Soul.
Thou carriest within thee a sublime Friend whom thou knowest not. For God dwells in the inner part of every man, but few know how to find Him. The man who sacrifices his desires and his works to the Beings from whom the principles of everything stem, and by whom the Universe was formed, through this sacrifice attains perfection. For one who finds his happiness and joy within himself, and also his wisdom within himself is one with God. And, mark well, the soul which has found God is freed from rebirth and death, from old age and pain, and drinks the water of Immortality.—Bhagavad-Gita
It is difficult to tell just what verses of the Bhagavad Gita the above is from; whether it is a paraphrase or a combination. It is from the book “The Great Initiates” by Édouard Schuré which was originally published in French in 1889 and perhaps it is in the translation of the verses that they become hard to recognize. However, the sheer beauty of the presentation caught my attention and so I share it with you. The Path to the Kingdom is the same no matter what religion one professes.
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts!
- 2 New Testament Greek Lexicon on BibleStudyTools.com
- 3 Strongest Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible – 2001
