ON LOVE; PART MCCCLVI
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 thoughts on the list of woes that the Master directed at the Jews’ religious leaders regarding their conduct and their hypocrisy. Our point in the first four that we covered IS to show the similarities between the conduct and the hypocrisy of the Jews and the way of the Christian churches from the beginning. The Jews concentrated their religious efforts on the rites and rituals described in the law, on the role of the atoning sacrifice, the dietary rules and regulations and the many edicts regarding the sabbath, holy days and, of course, circumcision. The Jews failed in the deeper realities of the law and concentrated upon the ancillary edicts of Moses. These ancillary laws ARE intended to control a seemingly uncontrollable population in barbarous and superstitious times and most ALL of them ARE de-emphasized in the Master’s words which, at the same time, enhance the meaning of those ideas that the Jews failed at. Those ideas regarding agape and Right Human Relations which Jesus frames in His terms saying to these same scribes, Pharisees and other religious leaders that they should “go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice” (Matthew 9:13). These ARE Jesus’ version of the words of the Prophet Hosea who, speaking as the Lord more than 700 years before the advent of the Christ, says “For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings“. We should try to see that the deeper part of the prophets’ teachings ARE to break the Jews away from their rote following of the law and from their failure at what Jesus calls for us the Great Commandments. The Master tells us that “On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:40) and in this we should see ALL that the Jews missed in their interpretation of the law. We should see as well the failure of the Christian according to these same Great Commandments. Mark shows us a similar idea as he reports Jesus as saying “There is none other commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:31). The importance of these ideas IS NOT completely missed by the Jews as we can find that the lawyers and scribes who answer the Master in the gospels DO acknowledge the words and their meaning. We should however easily see through Jesus words that the precepts of the Great Commandments ARE NOT the practice of the Jews. Neither ARE they the practice of most ALL of the Christian church whose teaching IS based in a doctrinal approach which IS based in the words of the apostles and here, again, especially the words of Paul. And this IS the point of Jesus’ list of woes: He IS showing them and us that the Way to the Truth IS NOT found in the rote following of doctrinal precepts but in the reality of agape as we read in the Great Commandments which ARE again at the top of our essay. Repeating Jesus’ list we read:
“woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets” (Matthew 23:13-31).
The next woe that we will discuss IS the subject of Jesus words on mercy above as He repeats the idea written by Hosea. The Jew in Jesus’ day DID, according to the Master, pay his tithes and we should understand this in relation to the culture of the day. We should understand that the idea of “mint and anise and cummin” ARE things of value to the Jew and while we may NOT understand the concept, Jesus tells us that this IS a thing that the Jews’ religious leaders DID perform. Perhaps the KEY idea here IS in the act of tithing, of giving to the Lord through the priests, a tenth portion; this tithing IS perhaps a later result of the commandments of Moses regarding the firstfruits of the land. We should try to see here how that the Master’s intent IS to show how that these religious leaders would follow in the ways of the “tradition of the elders” in more ways that He previously exposed as their habits saying “when they come from the market, except they wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables” (Mark 7:3, 4). Jesus charge IS that these religious leaders conscientiously adhere to such traditions while forgetting about the more important, the weightier if you will, aspects of the law, “judgment, mercy, and faith“. Here we should try to see judgement in relation to Jesus similar words saying “if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless” (Matthew 12:7); the idea then IS their lack of judgement as IS shown in the way that they “condemned the guiltless“. In mercy we should see the expression of agape and in faith that same sense of KNOWING that Hosea shows us saying “I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings“. This IS the contrast we should make according to Jesus woe against these religious leaders, the contrast between the rote following of laws and doctrines and DOING what IS the True teaching of the Lord. We should see the complicity of the Christian in ALL of this and while the offense may NOT be in Jesus example of tithes, there ARE many ways in which the doctrines of men supersede these same ideas of “judgment, mercy, and faith” rightly understood. Jesus closing words here, that these Jews will “strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel” ARE also replicated by the Christian doctrinal thinker; as a general precept religious men, Jews and Christians, DO the same as they focus their attention, carnal attention to be sure, upon some mundane idea, some carnal offense that IS against their myopic view of the commandments as adopted in their doctrines while the greater Truths of the commandments get NO attention at ALL. We can see this in their acceptance of a lack of agape and Truth in the church as too many concentrate their ‘religious’ efforts on their pet carnal ideas which they see as egregious, ideas related to sex, to abortion and to homosexuality….today’s doctrinal gnats. We should note that little IS said in the New Testament regarding these ideas while much IS offered in regard to fornication, as carnally understood, adultery and divorce, doctrinal camels if you will. The Christian church as a whole will accept the latter, “swallow a camel” but NOT the former as they seek to eliminate, “strain out a gnat” as many translations render this idea. This IS but one example of the hypocrisy and many more exist in the Christian doctrinal view of the world. This reminds us of the words of Reverend Barber at the 2016 Democratic Convention; he says:
“that is why I’m so concerned, about those that say so much—about what God says so little, while saying so little—about what God says so much. And so in my heart, I’m troubled. And I’m worried about the way faith is cynically used by some to serve hate, fear, racism and greed“
Reverend Doctor William Barber
While the idea here of “blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel” can be shown in specific examples, it IS the generality of the charge that should bother the Christian churches. Although they may see this as a specific charge against the Jews, the Master’s words DO show the same hypocrisy for any group, religious or secular, that engages in such ideas that may promote or allow for things contrary to the rule of law in thoughts, attitudes and actions while condemning those things on which the rule of law IS moot. In religion we can see this in our example above while in religion, politics and other carnal endeavors there IS the tendency to promote ill-conceived ideas while condemning socially progressive ones. In today’s economy examples can be found in race relations, international conflict and and the social realities of equal rights for ALL. In these realities we should see and question such things as the founding idea proclaiming that ‘all men are created equal’ while these same founders DID at the same time diminish the role of women while relegating many others to a Life of servitude; here the camel IS the role of women and slaves while the gnat that IS removed IS the promised but non-existent equality. And this DOES NOT even consider the treatment of the native population which were seen as less than equal. Can we see the points here as they affect the Judaeo-Christian world? The next woe should be seen along similar lines; Jesus says “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess“. The Jews religious leaders delighted in appearing as such; Jesus tells us that “they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries,a and enlarge the borders of their garments, And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi” (Matthew 23:4-7). The point here IS the same that the Master cautions us about as He tells us of praying and fasting and how that the one should be DONE in one’s closet and the other in relative secrecy. Neither of these IS Truly observed by the Christian who reads Jesus words as against the scribe and the Pharisee; neither DO any attend to the Master continuing words saying “But be not ye called Rabbi; And call no man your father upon the earth; Neither be ye called masters” (Matthew 23:8, 9, 10). It IS easy to see the idea of appearances as this afflicts most ALL men; it IS NOT so easy however to discern “extortion and excess” as these ARE often hidden away in one’s heart. Our appearance IS what we project to the world and what we should see in Jesus’ words IS that such ARE usually deceiving and ARE often an intentional effort to deceive. As the Jews saw ‘holiness’ in the righteous facade of their religious leaders, so DOES the Christian see the same in their clergy which IS also shown exceptional deference by the non-religious masses. The idea here relates well to the first of the woes where the Master highlights the pretense, the portrayal of righteousness by the Jews religious leaders, which IS largely mimicked by most every religion and succeeding generation including today. We DO NOT wish to impune every religious leader but rather the general tenor of appearing righteous by one’s position while thinking and acting contrary to the Truth of righteousness. There IS a reality to the scriptural idea of righteousness that IS missed by most ALL men; even our bible dictionaries miss the deeper reality of this word. We should remember the Master’s charge saying that men should “seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33) for a clear view of what IS intended to be understood by this word. The meaning here should be understood to be Godly if we can use that idea here. The meaning IS NOT merely the light application of virtue as considered in common usage but rather to be living according to His words. In NOT keeping His words, and here we should note again the Great Commandments, men fail at the test of righteousness.
We should not be fooled by the ideas gleaned from the Master’s words saying “except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20). We should understand this through Jesus’ next woe which speaks directly to righteousness saying “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity“. Here again we have both pretense and appearances and we should understand the appearance of righteousness IS based mostly in the position of these religious leaders and the ‘respect’ that this demands from the people. It would seem to be quite easy to “exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees” but this IS NOT so simply understood as it IS rendered. We should however understand this in scriptural terms and NOT according to the ideas of men. Simply put the idea of righteousness IS to be in ‘right standing with God’ and here we should understand that to be so requires one to be keeping His words; in this the bar for True righteousness IS set quite high. To “exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees” then IS NOT as it seems and perhaps we can find a hint to the meaning of Jesus’ words here in the defining ideas for the Greek word perisseuo which IS rendered as exceed. The word IS most often rendered in terms of abundance and abounding 2a which ideas give a sense of degree to the idea of exceeding. To this end we should note that a compound phrase IS used, “perisseuo pleion“which IS then rendered only as exceed; pleion IS defined for us by Strong’s as: more in quantity, number, or quality; also (in plural) the major portion 9a. Can we see the idea of degrees of exceeding here? Perhaps it IS in the combination of these words that Strong’s defines perisseuo as: to superabound (in quantity or quality)9a. We should note here that while the Master IS showing us the failure of the Jew’s religious leaders regarding their appearance of being righteous, there IS a long way to go for us to be “perisseuo pleion” in regard to their sense of righteousness which IS, to be sure, NO righteousness at ALL as Jesus shows us. It IS NOT the appearance of righteousness and the pretense that IS the failure here but rather the lack of True righteousness as the Jews followed in their doctrinal approach to God and NOT in the Truth that was presented to them in both the law, the words of the prophets and in Jesus’ words. It should be easy to see how that this idea of appearance and pretense IS as apparent in the Christian churches as few, if any, Truly follow in the Master’s words as they adhere to doctrines that have been passed down generation after generation; doctrines that have become a false Truth.
We come now to a woe that DOES seem to specifically pertain to the Jews and their history as the Master accuses them of being “the children of them which killed the prophets“. This they ARE and we should note that there IS little in the Jews’ history that shows us these things save for the example of Zacharias although his lineage DOES NOT agree with the account in 2 Chronicles. The point here however IS that the ways of men in those days and the days that follow was one of barbarism and superstition along with a sincere desire on the part of the leaders of the day to protect their station without ever Truly seeing the consequences of their actions. In this same mode of barbarism and superstition the Jews killed Jesus and many of the martyrs of the early church but this killing DOES NOT stop there. How many men were sacrificed under laws of blasphemy in the early centuries AD we DO NOT KNOW and while today there IS a lessening of the barbarism that leads to such deaths, there IS yet the ways of the church to ostracize those that DO NOT agree while common people, severely indoctrinated common people, often take up the role of the killer. The Christian DOES NOT see himself in these roles but one must acknowledge that such killings DID happen and were exacerbated during the years of the Reformation Wars. This ends our commentary on the woes that the Master shows us against the Jews and, again, our point here IS that we try to see how that ALL of these ARE NOT ONLY historic but also predictive of the attitudes, thoughts and actions of the Christian world from the very beginning of the ‘organized’ church.
This brings us back to our discussion of our selection from the Apostle Paul’s Epistle to the Romans. In these words we should see ALL that can prevent the Christian from being entrapped in these same woeful ideas as the Master shows us and, of course, the most dynamic idea here IS in changing one’s focus away from the separated self in this world. When one’s focus IS turned away from the self and onto the things of God, there IS NO hypocrisy as the man will think and DO according to the teachings of the Master. When one’s focus IS upon the things of God there IS NO longer the idea of appearances creeping into a man’s Life as he appears to be that which he has become by expressing the Love and Truth that ARE the reality of the Soul, the Christ Within. There IS also NO need for pretense as the man realizes that he has passed beyond the need to show himself to others in any carnally important way. The man focused upon the things of God IS steadily gaining in his ability to express the “weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith” and ALL of this according to the Master’s words that ARE our trifecta….words that summarize into the singular idea that we DO keep His words. The man focused upon the things of the Lord IS NOT longer spiritually blind but sees, in the Light of the Soul, the reality of agape and the Power of Repentance, Transformation, Redemption and Transfiguration. ALL of this IS incorporated into our selection as the apostle contrasts for us the man who IS yet carnally bound and the man in whom dwelleth the Spirit of the Lord, again, according to our trifecta. Repeating our selection we read:
“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. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in
hope, Becauseexpectation that the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:5-23).
If we take nothing from these words except for the contrast presented by Paul, we have still made some progress in understanding the Truth that IS NOT revealed to us by the doctrines of men. We must however see these words apart from any doctrinal understanding that we previously have held to; we must see that the positive spiritual ideas shown us by Paul ARE NOT some automatic or magical response to the mere idea of being a Christian. We must see that such ideas as to “mortify the deeds of the body” IS a positive action taken up by the aspirant to Truth; it IS NOT something that is imputed to a man but rather requires the utmost effort to Repent….to change the focus of one’s Life off of “the deeds of the body“. And these “deeds of the body” ARE NOT ONLY those gross human behaviors that ARE highlighted by the church, these ARE NOT the sexual ‘sins’ nor any of the gross carnal transgressions that men inflict upon each other. These “deeds of the body” ARE ALL thoughts, the attitudes and the actions of a man that ARE contrary to the Great Commandments through which we should see ALL of the law and the total measure of the Master’s teaching. As men we can learn the reality of His words and the spiritual Truth that comes in keeping His words. The church as a whole however CAN NOT learn such things as they plod along in the doctrinal approach to God. The Church must first see the inadequacy of their doctrinal approach and understand that the Master’s words ARE spoken to the Jews because it IS to Jews that He is speaking; there IS NO scriptural reality to any idea that His words ARE meant ONLY for the Jews. The Church must come to see that His words ARE eternal, as many DO say that they ARE, and that their meaning IS to ALL men as Paul shows us saying “Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all” (Colossians 3:11). What need IS there for Jesus to say that “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Luke 21:33) if such words ARE intended ONLY for the Jew in those days. It IS the Christian’s idea of a new dispensation originated by Paul that must “pass away” before the reality of Christ’s words can become the Truth toward which everyman must strive. And our example from His word, our trifecta, IS the most basic Way that everyman can have what the Christian erroneously supposes that he already has as the Truth, the Presence of the Lord in one’s Life and access to the Kingdom of God. Repeating our trifecta we read:
- “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).
The simple message here IS that one keep His words and we should understand that this has been the Way from the beginning. Before Moses there IS little of a direct message from the Godhead as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and his twelve children meander through a history of interactions with the Lord with little or NO responsibility save for their following in their own customs and seeing the idea of “the God of Abraham” as their message that there IS but One God. We should try to see how that this IS the message of the Book of Genesis and that many of today’s Christians try to paint the words of these chapters as the True and literal history of the world DOES NOT make it so. It IS ONLY when men can understand the duality of Spirit and form that the mysteries of creation can be glimpsed and while these mysteries ARE alluded to in Genesis they ARE obscured in ideas that CAN NOT be understood with a doctrinally oriented mind. The Book of Genesis IS NOT intended to be such a literal view of creation but IS rather as Alexander Maclaren shows us saying: We are not to look to Genesis for a scientific cosmogony, and are not to be disturbed by physicists’ criticisms on it as such. Its purpose is quite another, and far more important; namely, to imprint deep and ineffaceable the conviction that the one God created all things. Nor must it be forgotten that this vision of creation was given to people ignorant of natural science, and prone to fall back into surrounding idolatry 12. Mr. Maclaren IS an 18th century English non-conformist minister, whose more than 1500 expository sermons include a fuller analysis of the creation story and here we should see that this controversy IS an old one. In the secular world the ideas of evolution have supplanted the Christian ideas of creation and while there IS renewed interest in these Christian ideas as they ARE taught by many in the church, both views, the secular and the religious, ARE steeped in error. It IS however an unseen error still today because the reality of human Life and human living ARE NOT understood through the duality, of Spirit manifest as Soul, and the form nature which IS but an animal body that IS used for a time by that Soul. It IS in the failure to understand this that we find the failure of the church’s message and while we ARE NOT left without the clues and hints in Jesus’ words and the words of His apostles, these ARE obnubilated by the authoritative dictates of men beginning with the church fathers and continuing until now. The KEY to ALL IS found in the Master’s words that ARE our trifecta and in this idea that men should “hath my commandments, and keepeth them“, “continue in my word” and “doeth the will of my Father” we have the foundation for the Master’s teaching on Repentance. It IS in Repentance that men take upon themselves responsibility for their thoughts, their attitudes and their actions as their focus changes from being upon the form, the self in this world, to being upon the reality of the One God of whom ALL ARE part and parcel as spiritual beings. So long as men identify their being with the form that they inhabit as Souls in this world and NOT with the Soul itself, their IS NO hope for that Transformation that changes one into a son of God. And, so long as the Christian believes that he already has this realization through his doctrines, there IS NO hope of Truly realizing the Truth, the Presence of the Lord and the Kingdom as men in this world. The church played and DOES still play a exceedingly large role in the spread of ideas that fail to show the True nature of man and the essential Truths for ALL generations that ARE the Master’s words. In place of these ideas of the True Way to ‘salvation‘, the church has constructed a doctrinal approach that minimizes the Truth of Jesus’ teaching and substitutes their new dispensation theologies which ARE based in their misunderstanding and misapplication of certain ideas offered by the apostles and, here again, especially their out of context ideas gleaned form the letters of Paul.
In closing we should add here that there IS NO magical personal reaction to following doctrinal edicts, there IS NO real benefit in the rites and the rituals of the church. Both should be but reminders of the deeper Truths that one IS hoping to express in Life. In doctrinal edicts there IS the need for Repentance, True Repentance and NOT the common idea of remorse. Doctrines must realize that this change in focus IS the intended reality of the affirmations and confessions prescribed by some of the church or the proper result of rites and rituals prescribed by other parts. Affirmations and confessions mean little if NOT sincerely held as the beginning on the Path to Truth and Love; the beginning of one’s True Transformation “by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). It IS this renewing in the Light of the Soul that Transforms us and NOT the ofttimes idle words prescribed by the church. Similarly the role of sacraments offers little in the way of salvation but should be seen as stepping stones to the same Transformation. It IS the Transformation that IS of importance in the Life of everyman else we ARE NO better that the Jews to whom Jesus cites His list of woes. And think NOT that the Master’s woes ARE intended ONLY for the scribe and the Pharisee; while addressed to them they DO cover the people who these scribes and Pharisees teach their idea of God and their way to salvation. Similarly the whole idea of these woes as well as nearly ALL of the Master’s words ARE NOT directed at the Jew but at ALL men and in ALL times and whatsoever IS offered by the churches that IS contrary to this IS but a part of those “commandments of men” and “another gospel” (Galatians 1:6) against which the Master speaks saying “Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mark 7:7). The reality of salvation and the intended results of scripture ARE NOT found in the pronouncements of any church but rather in the reality of Repentance and the striving to keep His words. And this IS NOT so that we can say that we follow this or that doctrinal way but rather that we can eliminate from our lives ALL prejudices and hatreds and begin to see ALL men equal according to the Great Commandment saying “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself“. We must add to this the qualifying reality of this equality which James offers is in clear language saying “if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors” (James 2:9).
We will continue with our thoughts in the next post.
- 2a New Testament Greek lexicon on biblestudytools.com
- 4 Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition
- 9 Thayer’s Greek Lexicon on blueletterbible.org
- 9a The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible on blueletterbible.org
- 12 Expositions of Holy Scripture–Project Gutenberg’s and Baker Book House’ Expositions of Holy Scripture, by Alexander Maclaren–(1826-1910)
Those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those who are showing a new road.
Voltaire, Writer and Philosopher
