IN THE WORDS OF JESUS–Part 1137

ON LOVE; PART DCCXXVI

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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).

Through ALL of the Master’s words that we have discussed here in this fourteenth chapter of the Gospel of John, there IS a steady message of the Unity of man with God, a Unity that IS founded in Love and keeping His words. And this IS NOT an illusory Unity, this IS a spiritual Unity, a  spiritual Oneness of man and God, as IS depicted in the Master’s words. When we can realize that we ARE the Inner man, the Spirit and Soul, we can come to understand the great Truths that ARE presented here in this entire section of John’s Gospel. It IS here that the Master IS showing the reality of Life to His apostles, a reality that IS difficult for some, if not ALL, of them to grasp and to understand as they too see their Life as men in the world. In Jesus’ words however we can find the KEY to our own understanding of these Truths, an understanding that escapes most men yet today. Although the Master’s teaching IS in response to the questions of some of His apostles, we should try to understand that this teaching IS for us as well as for them; if we DO NOT see this idea here, it IS evermore difficult to see this Truth in other parts of His teaching. We should try to see that ALL of the Master’s teaching IS in reality discipleship training; He IS teaching His apostles and disciples and followers of every sort the same lessons which ARE, by their very nature, ONLY understood, realized if you will, by the man who IS ready, by the man who IS properly focused upon the things of God. We should try to see here that even the apostles are distracted by their own carnal lives; we are made to see this in the many ways that the Apostle Peter IS rebuked and corrected by Jesus and in the way that other ideas are presented. We can count these questions from Philip, Thomas and Judas here in this chapter as evidence of this and we can see this as well in the way that the selfish attitudes of John and James are shown us as they seek a higher place for themselves over the others.

And there ARE other hints of this lack of focus; we see this in the way the disciples seek to dismiss those that bring the children to Jesus and in the way that James and John are rebuked by Jesus as they seek vengeance upon those who DO NOT see the Master as they think He should be seen by ALL; we read: “And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of” (Luke 9:53-55). We should understand here that it IS Peter and James and John who are pointed out as NOT seeing things in the right way and that these three ARE the three that ARE chosen to accompany Jesus into many special places; they alone are with Him as He raised Jairus daughter, they alone are with Him at the Transfiguration and they alone accompany Him to the private part of the Garden to pray. Our point here IS to show the ongoing teaching that the Master offers to them and to us through their words and to highlight the idea that most ALL of Jesus teaching IS discipleship training for them and then for us. That we ARE intended to learn these same things IS stated for us in the Master’s prayer to the Father, a prayer that should be understood for its teaching value as the words of the Master ARE the words of the Father as we read in our selection that we repeat here again:

“At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. 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. These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:20-26).

In previous verses the Master tells us 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” (John 14:10) which should help us to understand both His prayer and our own sense of prayer; and we should see that this idea that the Master’s words are the Father’s IS repeated again in our selection as He says “the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me“. Now we can try to divide what words He may mean as He tells us that His words ARE the Father’s but how can we Truly do this? We must believe the totality of what He says IS the words of the Father and we should understand that the Master goes to great lengths to show us this Truth. Without basis, many Christian doctrinal views discount the idea of the Oneness of the Father and the Son, the Christ and God, and even our union with them as part and parcel of the Lord; this denial IS rather clear in this from John Gill as He comments on the fundamental idea presented by the Master saying “I and my Father are one” (John 10:30). We read: I and [my] Father are one. Not in person, for the Father must be a distinct person from the Son, and the Son a distinct person from the Father; and which is further manifest, from the use of the verb plural, “I and [my] Father”, (esmen), “we are one”; that is, in nature and essence, and perfections, particularly in power ⁸. While this IS Mr. Gill’s view, he does continue as he points out that: The Jew objects, that “if the sense of this expression is, that the Father and the Son are one, as the Nazarenes understand and believe it, it will be found that Jesus himself destroys this saying, as it is written in (Mark 13:32), for saith Jesus, “that day and that hour, there is knoweth, not the angels, nor the Son, but the Father only”; lo, these words show, that the Father and the Son are not one, since the Son does not know what the Father knows.”⁸

We should try to see here that the first idea from Mr. Gill IS NOT supported by scripture but IS rather based in his own doctrinal view of the Trinity, a view that IS founded in separate persons who ARE in some mystical way each God. Mr Gill next divides the idea of the Son of God and the son of man to support His own idea in opposition to that of the Jews that he cites above; we read: But it should be observed, that Christ is both the Son of God, and the son of man, as the Christians believe; as he is the Son of God, he lay in the bosom of his Father, and was privy to all his secrets, to all his thoughts, purposes, and designs; and as such, he knew the day and hour of judgment, being God omniscient; and in this respect is one with the Father, having the same perfections of power, knowledge but then as the son of man, he is not of the same nature, and has not the same knowledge; his knowledge of things was derived, communicated, and not infinite; and did not reach to all things at once, but was capable of being increased, as it was: and it is with regard to him as the son of man, that Jesus speaks of himself in (Mark 13:32) ⁸. If we can see that there IS a greater idea at play here which IS found in the reality of the Oneness of man and God and, in this, the reality of Christ in God and if we can see God as the ONE Boundless and Immutable Presence from which ALL things proceed and see the Christ as we can KNOW Him as a Soul, a spiritual being much as we ARE, to whom the fullness of the Godhead IS revealed, we can then see the subsequent reality that it IS this fullness that IS passed into the Life of the Master as Jesus in this world. And it IS this same fullness that IS our individual goal and objective…that as He IS “all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9) so it IS our own destiny and in this IS the reality of the Apostle John’s words saying: “And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace” (John 1:16). In this we should see the idea that “as he is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17) and we should try to understand that as Souls ALL of us ARE the same as the Christ, divine beings who ARE part and parcel of God. What He has and what we lack IS the ability to express this divine nature through our lives here in this world as the Master did.

And this IS His teaching on discipleship, that we should be as He showed us and as He taught us in the fullness of His words. Jesus IS the perfect man, the fullness of the expression of the Godhead in the world and it IS in this that the Master tells us that we should be perfect as well as He tells us “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). And this IS the message of the Apostle Paul who tells us: “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13); here we should see that the idea of the perfect man IS a man who IS expressing that “measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ“. In the incomprehensible nature of Life as infinite and eternal we have the incomprehensible nature of God and in this perhaps we can see the idea that the Master presents saying: “of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father” (Matthew 13:32). This IS NOT as the Mr. Gill understands this nor IS this as he ascribes to the Jews; this IS simply a picture of the vastness of this creation that shows us that in our place as Souls we KNOW of our place and we KNOW the fullness thereof but, in the fullness of eternity and in the infinite nature of His Creation, we still have somewhat to KNOW as we grow in God apart from our limited reality. The Soul that came among us as Jesus was much as we ARE and while this is likely impossible for the doctrinal man to understand, there IS a reality in this idea which the Master IS teaching us in these chapters from John’s Gospel. This Soul we call the Christ IS the anointed of God, and if we can see ourselves in this same way, as Souls, we can better understand the apostle’s idea of unction and of anointing as he says “ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.,..the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him” (1 John 20, 27).

It IS our expression of this unction that we being taught on by the Master, our expression of our own divine nature to the world. Here we should try to see that in this accomplishment, in our ability to DO as He DOES in this world, that we are finished here, that we can say with Him that “I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). And He IS finished here as well save for His promise to us…a promise offered in Love for ALL men, a promise offered in the same Love that He brought among us and teaches us; a promise that says “lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:20). While we DO NOT KNOW the state of being of the Master and while our view here IS but our own realization of Truth, the rest of these ideas are founded in the scriptures that we cite above and in the realities of our relationships to Him and to God as we read them in this chapter of John’s Gospel. It IS in the Master’s words here in this chapter of John’s Gospel that we find the most compelling ideas regarding our own place, our own station in Life. As Souls we ARE in Unity with Him, and it IS this realization that He shows us through His words and His answers to His apostles’ questions. As He tells us first of His relationship with the Father, that “I and my Father are one” and that “In my Father’s house are many mansions” (John 14:2). These mansions are NOT places nor are they actual dwellings as some believe, they ARE the idea of abiding, that ALL have a place in His Kingdom and in His Presence. It IS the realization of this that we must have as men in form in order that we can understand the even deeper ideas being offered. Doctrine has hijacked this idea rendered as “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” rather than showing us the Truer meaning of these words; that in the idea preparing: that He IS NOT preparing a dwelling but He IS preparing us, our hearts, for the reality of the Christ Within active in our carnal lives. And there is then the greater meaning of topos, which is rendered as place place here, and of which the lexicon shows us metaphorically as: the condition or station held by one in any company or assembly; opportunity, power, occasion for acting ².

And there IS the deeper idea also of His words “I will come again” which Vincent tells us should be seen as: The present tense; I come, so Rev. Not to be limited to the Lord’s second and glorious coming at the last day, nor to any special coming, such as Pentecost, though these are all included in the expression; rather to be taken of His continual coming and presence by the Holy Spirit ⁴. Can we see the import here? Can we understand that this IS the reality of the Christ and the Christ Within coming into the hearts of the man whose focus IS upon God? This IS the teaching of the Master and for the disciple, the man who keeps His words as Jesus explains further as His teaching progresses, this IS the reality of coming to Christ and of Christ coming to man; this IS the realization of one’s own divinity and in the idea that He will “receive you unto myself; that where I am , there ye may be also” we should try to see the state of being a disciple as the place where He IS, the state of realized divinity. The Greek word paralambano which IS rendered here as receive is IS a complex word and we repeat here our thoughts from our previous discussion: 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.

This IS the beginning of His showing us the mysteries in most parabolic terms and this IS the beginning of His showing us of the relationship of ALL things spiritual. His apostles DO NOT understand and, as we see above, they ARE being continually taught on the idea of this Unity….of God in man and of man in God, this idea of the Soul, the Christ Within and the God Within, as the motivating Life Principal. Perhaps the ultimate goal here IS our full realization of the depth of Truth that IS found in His words that “the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do” (John 14:12) which He speaks to disciples and to us through them. We should KNOW our inclusion in these ideas from that prayer that the Master offers which we speak about above; His prayer in the Unity of the Father and the Son that says: “Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me” (John 17:20-21).

We will continue with our thoughts in the next post.

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
• ⁴ Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition, 1888
• ⁸ Bible commentaries on BibleStudyTools.com