Monthly Archives: July 2013

ON LOVE; PART CCCXXI

ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•Α

GoodWill IS Love in Action

ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•ΑΩ•Α

May the Power of the One True God flow through His group of all true servers;

May the Love of the Christ characterize the lives of all who seek to aid in His work;

May I fulfill my part in the one work through self-forgetfulness, harmlessness and right speech

(Evening Reflection)

These words have served as our Quote of the Day for several days now and are also featured in our Prayers and Meditations section with some additional comments regarding them. We begin with this today as it gives us opportunity to expound upon those words that we so often use in our essays, that it is the Love and the Power of God, and of the God Within, the Soul,  that CAN be expressed by those that serve Him and this is told us by the Master albeit not in these words. We say in our comments on this evening reflection that when the Love of the Christ can become the character of one’s Life then this Power can be made available in a predictable way and the precepts of the last line will become our mode of conduct, and, we should KNOW that this IS Truly a part of our goal and our objective for our Life in this Earth. Revising somewhat our comments for our purposes today we should see that this is a prayer for the Love and the Power of God to be made available to all who DO serve Him; in this Power is the Love and the Wisdom of the Son as we see in our chart below and a Truer understanding of the Good, the Beautiful and the True as our ready aids in this service. As one seeks to serve, and this IS a very broad term which we will discuss somewhat below, he must be able to see, to understand and to express that Love the the Master teaches us and on which we spend much time in our essays. This is that Universal Love in which we must consider ALL men from the perspective of the apostles who tell us that “there is no respect of persons with God” (Romans 2:11) which we have discussed in some detail over the last several posts and which led us to our new found phrase of humble in thought, lowly of heart in attitude and meek in action which must become our everyday way of living in this world.

Our mantram above is a Christianized version of the original which speaks of the one Life and the one Soul while in our modified version we cite God and Christ which ARE in intent and in effect the SAME; God IS Life and Christ IS the Soul from our perspective and this too is seen in our chart below. Our point in these modifications as well as another where there is reference to those who seek to aid the work of ‘Great Ones’ which we simply say as His work, is to make of this a mantram that IS in a more normal and easier to understand language than that which may be understood by the esotericist and the arcane student. The end result is the same as ALL seek to aid in the work of the Christ who is the universally accepted Leader and Teacher in ALL things spiritual and who communicates to the world through the individual Souls who can express His character and His precepts while keeping His words. And we have the Master’s words on serving as He tells us clearly that: “If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour” (John 12:26). In these words are several of words that mean more than their common understanding and more than their face value:

• First we have the idea of serve and for our right understanding of this we refer to other words on service from the Master Himself.
  • First there is the idea of serving in His saying that “Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24). Here we should see that serving would include by this context all that we DO; if we DO for the self and the self in the world, which IS mammon in its broader sense, then it is mammon that one serves; conversely if we do the things of God, if we keep His words and perform His precepts, then we are serving God. In these ideas we should see that ALL we do is a service to someone and that this IS either the self in mammon or it IS God. A popular Bob Dylan song says it this way: ‘You’re gonna have to serve somebody, It may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you’re gonna have to serve somebody’ (from Gotta Serve Somebody © Special Rider Music). Of course we DO recognize that the devil IS the very idea of mammon itself.
  • This saying: “he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve. For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth” (Luke 22:26-27), gives us this idea of serving from multiple angles. First we see that reality that whosoever is greatest, or that is chief, let him serve and we should understand that this IS said by the Master to His disciples at the ‘Last Supper’. In this we should note that as disciples none should be greatest and none chief and from this perspective, ALL would serve. This is given differently by Matthew and Mark where it is tied to the request of John and James for special treatment in His Kingdom or His Glory depending on the gospel but this IS not our point for today and they both offer similar understandings of what we see in Luke above. We should note as well that the Greek word that is used in Luke as serve is used as minister to in Matthew and this itself causes unnecessary confusion as they both mean serve and  from the perspective that we are establishing and as Dylan’s song relates. We should see here the idea that ALL are disciples and none is chief and that this IS their intended understanding and thereby that ALL should serve….and they DO. Next we should see how Jesus relates this to the ways of the world and to actual service in the world by a servant. The words that lead into this saying are in regard to the disciples quibbling over who IS greatest among them and the Master tells them clearly that “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. But ye shall not be so” (Luke 22:25-26) and here we should see the message that the disciples should NOT act in the ways of the world and this sense carries forward to the acts of serving as servants in the world. His point is that they ALL should serve regardless of their apparent position as this IS what He does, and therefore what those who follow Him must do.
  • Finally we should note the relationship between this serving and and the words of the Master in that parabolic saying regarding the concept that what one does for the least of mankind, is done for the Lord. He tells us here that “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me” (Matthew 25:40) and in this we should see the reality of serving and NOT only in those ideas that He gives us by example of feeding and clothing but, in ALL things. We should note here as well a link to our discussion from the last essays on His being, and our need to be “lowly in heart” (Matthew 11:29).
• Second we have the idea of following Him which we KNOW from the context IS much more than a physical presence which is of course rather impossible for any but those with Him in those days. The lexicon tells us that this Greek word akoloutheo means: to follow one who precedes, join him as his attendant, accompany him; to join one as a disciple, become or be his disciple; side with his party ² and we should focus here on the ideas of discipleship. In another place, the Master tells us: “And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me” (Matthew 10:38) and in this we should get the same force of this world follow. Vincent tells us of akoloutheo that: Often used in the New Testament with the special sense of following as a disciple or partisan. Also with the meaning of cleaving steadfastly to one and conforming to his example ⁴ and it IS in the second understanding here that we should see our subject verse as well as that from Matthew’s Gospel. This IS much like our understanding of believing in and believing on the Master as we have often discussed and of which we say that this believing IS to accept and adopt His precepts and example as binding upon the life ⁴.
• Finally we have the idea of being where He IS which is accomplished by serving and following and again following IS in a psychic and spiritual way. This phrase is used a number of times in John’s Gospel and we have this from Vincent regarding one of those times:

  Where I am In absolute, eternal being and fellowship with the Father. I am ( εγω ειμι ) is the formula of the divine existence (John 8:58). The phrase carries a hint of the essential nature of Jesus, and thus prepares the way for ye cannot come (see on John 7:7). The difference in character will make it essentially impossible ⁴. We should note here that Vincent’s idea here of “I am” ARE the essence of what we are trying to show in our verse above as well where we see this idea as even more profound from this perspective than the one he chose to comment on. Again we must see that in these mysteries that the Master hints at for us in His sayings, including His missed and misunderstood saying, that “the Kingdom of God is withing you” (Luke 17:21) is a KEY to our reality. In our sense, to be where He IS is seen in His other words as well including those that tell us that , like the Kingdom Within, that “At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you” (John 14:20) and His similar sentiment to our subject saying above as He tells us: “Abide in me, and I in you” (John 15:4). This is the significance of “where I am” and the reality of “there shall also my servant be“. Most of these saying and others of this type are not rightly understood as the “ye in me, and I in you” is most always viewed from the strictly physical perspective of men in form and in the world and seldom understood in the spiritual perspective.  John Gill in his Exposition of the Bible ⁸ says of this verse from John’s gospel that: and you in me: that they were in union with him as the branches in the vine, and as the members are in the head, and how they were loved in him, chosen in him, righteous in him, risen with him, and made to sit together in heavenly places in him: and I in you; formed in their hearts, living in them, dwelling in them, as in his temples, and filling them with grace and glory. The knowledge of these things promised, designs a more clear and distinct knowledge of them; something of them was known already, but not so perfectly as should be hereafter……⁸. Mr. Gill goes on here in like words that reach to resurrection and Pentecost and being KNOWN as he takes themes from other parts and inserts them into the Master’s thoughts on this particular day. From the perspective of Christ and not of Jesus, the physical incarnation of the Christ, we should try to understand that He IS the Love and the Power of the Godhead made manifest and that in this sense He IS ALL pervading and, from the perspective of us as men in form, that He IS as we ARE, that as the Father IS in Jesus as the Christ, the Father IS within us ALL as the Christ Within…..the Soul.

ALL of this is essential about the idea of the server and how this word in our mantram corresponds to the server who IS the aspirant striving to keep His words and the disciple who has accomplished this part of the journey and, here again, we separate these so as not to appear to be any more that we are as aspirants to discipleship. We can and we do however count ourselves among those who serve and we do so by our efforts and by our example in striving to keeping His words and expressing whatsoever part of that Love and Power of the Soul as we can. And hence our prayer for the greater flow of this Power and this Love of God; not for us, but through us.

There are many mysteries in Life in this world and these are KNOWN as Souls who are Truly One with God but who, short of this Oneness, have lost that realization. The Master tells us that these are protected, that IS that they are hidden in His words and in His parables and He tells us this clearly saying to His disciples that: “Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given” (Matthew 13:11). Despite this many believe that they KNOW these mysteries and in so claiming they claim as well then to be disciples. But we KNOW the criteria for discipleship and we KNOW that there are few who have achieved this. So then how do we, writing in this blog, purport to KNOW these mysteries? by revelation and by the test of the Wisdom from above which shows us that it is in our focus that revelation comes by degree and while we here offer what we KNOW as better reasoning for the Master’s sayings and those of His apostles, we DO NOT claim to have the fullness of revelation which IS, according to His word, the privilege of the disciple alone. However, here we must also remember that the Master teaches His disciples by parable or by proverb as well and He tells them this saying that “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); we should likely see here that there are things that the disciple can KNOW that are even beyond what had been already revealed and by His world this is the very Nature of the Father, of God.

Paul tells us something similar as well; speaking to disciples at Colossus he says: “Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; Even 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 1:25-27). Here is the revelation of the Christ Within and few understand its Truth and its importance, especially in the church that bears His name. Few there are that have been able to overcome the doctrinal approach to this “mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations“.

We will continue with our thoughts in the next post.

Aspect of God	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.

Wakefulness is the way to life. The fool sleeps As if he were already dead, But the master is awake And he lives forever. He watches. He is clear. How happy he is! For he sees that wakefulness is life. How happy he is, Following the path of the awakened. With great perseverance He meditates, seeking Freedom and happiness. So awake, reflect, watch. Work with care and attention. Live in the way And the light will grow in you. By watching and working The master makes for himself an island Which the flood cannot overwhelm. The fool is careless. But the master guards his watching. It is his most precious treasure. He never gives in to desire. He meditates. And in the strength of his resolve He discovers true happiness. He overcomes desire – And from the tower of his wisdom He looks down with dispassion Upon the sorrowing crowd. From the mountain top He looks down at those Who live close to the ground. Mindful among the mindless, Awake while others dream, Swift as the race horse He outstrips the field. By watching Indra became king of the gods. How wonderful it is to watch. How foolish to sleep. The beggar who guards his mind And fears the waywardness of his thoughts Burns through every bond With the fire of his vigilance. The beggar who guards his mind And fears his own confusion Cannot fall. He has found his way to peace. (Dhammapada; on Wakefullness) ⁵.

This selection from the Dhammapada, the sayings of the Buddha, is from the chapter called Wakefulness. The ideas here are simple for the awakened but for the unawakened they can be very difficult. This is much like the sayings of the Christ and His apostles, especially these last ones that we discussed regarding the mysteries. Wakefulness here can be likened to our idea of focus on the Christ Within, the Soul, and the spiritual Life. Sleep is just the opposite and can be likened to focus upon the things of the world. To be awake is to see things as they Truly are and to be asleep is to see things in the illusion and the glamour of the world. Wakefulness makes a man the master of his own Life while sleep makes one the fool. Wakefulness is striving to enter at the strait gate while being asleep is to float aimlessly on the waves of the ways of the world where one may think that he is getting somewhere only to realize in the end that he has gone nowhere, accomplished nothing.

In the above we should see the idea of master as we understand the disciple in our writing, as the awakened one, the man in whom the Light of the Soul is being expressed through form, the disciple and the high aspirant and we should see the idea of the beggar as the seeker, the one who is seeking awakening.

This idea then of being awake can be seen running through the teachings of the Master and of the Buddha although the Master does not use the specific word but rather alludes to it in His teachings calling the asleep those whose “heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed” and the awakened those who “see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart” and this is a point that Jesus makes several times and it is to those who can realize their awakening that these words ARE directed: “blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear“.

Let the peace of God rule in your hearts!

• ²  New Testament Greek Lexicon on BibleStudyTools.com
• ⁴ Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition, 1888
• ⁵ The Dhammapada Translated by Thomas Byrom
• ⁸ Bible commentaries on BibleStudyTools.com