ON LOVE; PART DLXXIII
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GoodWill IS Love in Action
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“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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“Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:36-40).
In the last essay we found the summary line of the first chapter of the Epistle of James, a line that should have the power to move many away from their preconceived ideas about salvation. This saying sums up James’ ideas on avoiding succumbing to temptation, it shows the reality of the Wisdom from above which comes only to the man who is focused upon the things of God, it shows the reality of the “brother of low degree” as the man who KNOWS these things and accepts them, it shows the nature of “Every good gift and every perfect gift” and that it IS from God; it shows the way that a man is beguiled by the illusion and the glamour of the ways of the world, the wrath if we can say it this way, and how, if a man “lay apart” these things that he can worketh the “righteousness of God“. ALL of these things that the apostle speaks of are accomplished for the man who IS a DOER of the word, the man who can set aside ALL and focus upon the Truth of His words and simply keep them. This simple statement is the Truth of salvation and, as we said in the last essay, it DOES NOT matter how one may perceive the word of God as regards the way of doctrine, ALL keeping of His word will serve some degree of the higher purposes of Truth and Love. In the last essay we explained this by the example of Love; the Master tells us to Love ALL men with NO distinction while doctrine allows greater interpretation of the ideas of neighbor and brother. If a man can then follow the doctrinal ideas of Love with the limitations allowed on neighbor and brother, he is much better off than the man who does not Love at all. Here, while the expression of Love may not be what the Master prescribes, it IS at the same time a step in the right direction and toward the Truth and in this step perhaps a man can receive the greater realization of the Master’s intent.
What this IS saying then IS that one should DO at least what he may believe to be the Truth as it will lead to greater Truth. This means that if the brother is defined by such and such doctrine as ones fellow Christians, then the expression of Love to these brothers should be in accordance with the Master’s teaching and include the ideas that He offers us saying: “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). This would necessarily include the realities of Love expressed in the Golden Rule saying “all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them” (Matthew 7:12) as well as the related commandments that one should “Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away” (Matthew 5:42). In these ideas we should try to see that these Truths from His word ARE NO easier to accomplish toward the Christian brother than they ARE for humanity as a whole…these ARE difficult things to bring about in the world. It IS in this context that we should try to see James’ words on DOING; in James’ words that we should “be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22) we should see many ways to realize our own faults and in today’s context this should be that for a man to say that he IS a Christian who IS keeping His words but who at the same time IS NOT doing these things, he IS among those who ARE Truly “deceiving your own selves“.
The effects of this saying ARE far reaching and cover a multitude of interpretations; what we say here today and what we have said throughout of blog posts are but examples of how this Truth can be viewed but the greatest reality IS that there ARE things included here that are beyond religion and go to basic human ideas which, while perhaps seemingly based upon the Ten Commandments, are universal in scope. For example, murder, and stealing and intentionally inflicting harm on others IS against the precepts of every religion and are as much the word of God as any of the ideas written specifically in the bible; to this we can add the special treatment given to the law by the Master as He tells us that anger and hatred are equivalent to murder in the same way as He tells us that one who “looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery” (Matthew 5:28). The bottom line here IS that James IS telling us the Truth of Life, that a man may believe that He IS righteous and saved and whosoever else doctrines may ascribe to men, but if that man IS NOT a DOER of the word, if he IS NOT keeping His words beginning with the Great Commandments and the Golden Rule, they he IS among those that the apostle calls “hearers only” and this man IS but deceiving himself. And this IS regardless of what he may believe.
These words should be seen in the same way as the Master’s words from the Sermon on the Mount regarding DOING and the Kingdom of God and we should remember that in Truth there ARE NO shortcuts to being accounted worthy of the Kingdom and this regardless of how one may perceive this, whether as a place to go at death or as that High Calling that we see it as. The Master tells us that:
“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. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity” (Matthew 7:21-23).
These words ARE clear but at the same time they are largely ignored by much of Christianity which prescribes a different way to the Kingdom. We discussed this in some detail in our essays on the Sermon on the Mount and specifically in In the Words of Jesus parts 970 – 971. Luke’s Gospel offers us this same idea in the form of a rhetorical question saying “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say” (Luke 6:46) and we should note here again that in both Matthew’s and Luke’s Gospels these saying on keeping His words immediately precede the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders. From James’ words we should see that the foolish builders ARE indeed those who are deceived by their own views. James DOES NOT speak of the Kingdom of God in this context but we should KNOW that his intended audience understands the relevance of his words and that they understand that while they can believe themselves to be whatsoever they may desire spiritually, the are only deceiving themselves if they ARE NOT keeping His words.
As the apostle explains to us some of his ideas of what this man who IS deceived is like, that while he may believe himself spiritual and see himself as such when he IS so focused, that these ideas are soon forgotten as the man leaves this focus in favor of doing whatever in the world of men. And this IS the double minded man that the apostle speaks of earlier, the man who will NOT get that assistance from his own Soul so long as his interests are in the self and the world. This is the idea behind James’ words saying “For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was” (James 1:23-24). This IS NOT about mirrors nor reflections, it IS about the attitude of the man who believes that he is righteous but who at the same time IS NOT keeping His words; he may be spiritually focused as he sees himself but this IS forgotten as he participates in the carnal thoughts, attitudes and actions of the world….he forget his own spiritual focus. We should understand that this reality IS a part of Life and is especially felt by the aspirant and the disciple whose lives are consciously of this double nature, this duality; when they are contemplating God they are focused on Him but when they are participating in the world they do not think the same way about the things of God, their focus is on whatsoever is taking their attention. While it may seem that the idea of keeping His words is an impossible thing from this perspective, it IS NOT; it IS however difficult to achieve this state and perhaps the ONLY way to accomplish this IS to keep one’s focus upon the the Truth as it flows from the Soul at ALL times. The Apostle Paul offers us some words that may be helpful in this regard; he tells us:
“One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth , eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks. For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s” (Romans 14:5-8).
As IS True with many of the apostles’ sayings, these ideas can be seen in many ways; some see the idea of weakness and strength of faith as the primary idea while others see the idea that men ARE different and will understand things differently; there ARE likely many other views and in this IS our point. In our ideas above on deception, we have seen how each man, each group and each doctrine, can see the Lord’s words in a different way; we can see how that some constrict the meanings of His words and some allow them the freedom to effect more of the thoughts and the attitudes of men. Paul acknowledges this idea of difference and tell the disciples at Rome that this should NOT be allowed to matter in their own interactions and that regardless of the True understanding of each man, the personal and individual way that the word IS understood without pretense, that ALL should conduct themselves with ALL things “unto God“. Now this should not be seen as in ritual offering or prayer only if one IS so motivated, this IS the attitude of the man in ALL things; this IS having that same focus upon the things of God throughout ALL that one may do, the same focus when looking in the glass as when conducting oneself in the world. Here, in Paul’s words, we again should try to see that the more ardent one’s focus upon the Good, the Beautiful and the True, the better his understanding of these idea will be and this IS because one’s focus upon the world causes one to see what he may believe IS reality where there IS actually illusion and, of course, these things happen by degree. It IS difficult for a man to see the illusion when he is in the midst of it and deluded by it.
“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed” (James 1:22-25).
In these words from James above we should see the reality of deception as the paramount idea in the apostle’s words from the perspective man who seeks God and who IS striving toward the Kingdom and this regardless of his ‘level’ of achievement. This deception IS self-inflicted by the man who IS NOT honest with himself, the man who KNOWS and understands the Truth of the word but hides behind the constricted meanings that are held by others and by doctrine. For others, for the man who IS NOT Truly striving in the Master’s Truths, our ideas above will suffice; that men can see things differently and believe differently and that they should act upon their sincere beliefs and in the idea of sincere we should see NO thing that is very contrary to the Truth of His words from the perspective of one’s expression of faith. We should understand here that if one IS taught to hate by a particular teacher or doctrine that this teacher or doctrine IS NOT teaching Christ and in this a man can be lost to the reality of His word and for him NONE of this would Truly matter; this IS an unfortunate but NOT an uncommon situation.
Our words here then are for the man who Truly strives, the aspirant and the disciple, it IS to this man that this concept of deception IS of value. And it IS for this man the the ideas of temptation should resonate as this IS a primary cause of deception; even earnest men may try to find some place in the word that would allow them to partake of some particular thing that the world offers and that the man, in his carnal mind and emotions, desires. Little things or big things, the dynamic IS the same and the effect IS the same as well…that a man’s focus IS turned from the Truth of the things of God which IS where the focus of the single-minded man stays. Paul offers us some clarity in this regard as he tells us “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting” (Galatians 6:7-8). Here we should see “life everlasting” as eternal Life and as the attainment of the goal of discipleship and the Kingdom and we should note Paul DOES NOT refer to incidents but to the attitude of ones Life.
This IS the reality of True discipleship and the Kingdom of God, this IS the pursuing of perfection as the Master teaches and this is the deeper message of James. The mirror and the image are but a parabolic way of telling us that the aspirant and the disciple KNOWS himself, he KNOWS his own countenance or expression, but unless he is found in the fullness of keeping the words of the Master and of God, he will forget some part of this KNOWING when he IS in contact with the world of men. And this IS the reality of the last part of these sayings that tells us of “the perfect law of liberty” and in this saying the important words ARE “continueth therein“. While there IS NO definition of what “the perfect law of liberty” IS, it is not difficult to see the apostles intent and here Vincent offers us a bit of greater understanding as he tells us that: The perfect law of liberty (νόμον τέλειον τὸν τῆς ἐλευθερίας); Lit., the perfect law, the law of liberty. So Rev. The law of liberty is added as defining the perfect law 4. Here we see the separation of the idea of liberty from “the perfect law” which leaves liberty as the effect of the law in which we can see salvation and deliverance. Other translations adopt this idea in part and Young’s Literal Translation offers us this better way to see this: “and he who did look into the perfect law — that of liberty, and did continue there, this one — not a forgetful hearer becoming, but a doer of work — this one shall be happy in his doing“. While we do not agree with the rendering of makarios as happy, this IS NOT a sufficient word to express the intent of the Greek, the rest of this in our view IS the correct understanding.
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.
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)
Today’s Quote of the Day is in regard to the new birth which Nicodemus did not understand and which many today do not understand either. The words of the Master tell us of a total commitment to the Lord as the way to the Kingdom and these verses say that as well. This total commitment is being born again. The differences in language aside, we should try to see the relationship between these ideas of being born again which is the essence of discipleship for it is only in discipleship that one can Truly see the Kingdom. These are much misused ideas because they are seen from the perspective of the man in form and no from the perspective of the Soul living through form.
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts!
- 4 Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition, 1888
