ON LOVE; PART CMLXIX

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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. 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

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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 post we began a review of the words that the Apostle Paul uses to define what ARE “the works of the flesh“. While most see his words as referring to those gross offenses that men may DO in this world, we see the spiritual component contained in the ideas that the apostle presents. And because most ALL translations and commentaries on his words ARE in regard to these gross offenses, men fail to see the deeper ideas that ARE Paul’s intent as he writes to men whose lives ARE, or should already be, free from such gross offenses; men who ARE striving toward the great Truths that Jesus teaches us. It IS this man who can understand that dichotomy between the carnal and the spiritual which the apostle shows us in his opening words from the selection that we have been studying. If we can understand that the translated words that have been rendered from the Greek ARE NOT what most men perceive them to be but ARE Paul’s thoughts on those things that keep a man from God according to the Master’s own precept that we keep His words, we can then see his True intent. 

While much of the Christian world believes that they ARE “led of the Spirit” merely by being Christians and believing their several doctrines that teach such things ARE the way of salvation, the real Truth of being “led of the Spirit” IS found in the fruit of one’s Life. Paul goes on to speak of this “fruit of the Spirit” but his intent here IS also lost in the dogma. On both sides of the apostle’s words the spiritual reality IS missed by any who believe that one can be “led of the Spirit” while NOT expressing the “fruit of the Spirit” which IS the natural expression of the man who Truly sees. The ultimate Truth of being “led of the Spirit” IS found in the words of Jesus and His Life’ example as well as in the lives of His apostles who have set for us a view of their own lives that ARE free from dogma and doctrine and in accord with the Master’s teaching while still men in this world. We repeat again the apostle’s words:

“For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts” (Galatians  5:17-24).

In our many essays on these words we have tried to show how that they ARE segmented according to the Great Commandments and while we DO NOT KNOW that this IS the apostle’s intent, we DO KNOW that this approach works according to the very nature of Paul’s teaching. It is that section of his list of “the works of the flesh” that corresponds to a man’s relationship with God that we began our word review in the last post and if we can see how that the idea of adultery, as rendered from the Greek word moicheia, shows us the infidelity that men have toward God according to other scriptural uses of this idea, we can then better understand how that the next words paint this same picture for us. The picture IS a view of how that men DO NOT live in accord with the first of the Great Commandments, which we have again at the top of our essay, so long as they ARE NOT focused upon the things of God rather than the things of the world. While this may seem an impossible task: to “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength“, it IS the commandment and it IS the goal toward which the spiritual man, the man who IS “led of the Spirit“, must strive.

It IS in this view that we should see the idea of moicheia which, while missing from many later manuscripts and translations, can help set the stage for our understanding of the next words as the reality of infidelity; this IS the thought that this word invokes on ALL levels of understanding. It IS in this sense of infidelity that the Apostle James uses this idea as he writes “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God” (James 4:4). James’ subject IS the same sense of the dichotomy between the carnal and the spiritual as he shows that one’s focus CAN NOT be upon the things of the world and here we should get the same sense that Paul shows saying that “these are contrary the one to the other“. Paul’s next word is rendered as:

Fornication: this English word IS strictly used in a sexual context and like the idea of adultery this can be expanded in the same way from it usage in scripture. In the same way that the idea of idolatry IS attached to moicheia, it IS also attached to this Greek word porneia and while this word leads to the English words that ARE affiliated with porn, this relationship IS based upon men’s assumed use of the Greek word. Webster’s 1828 dictionary defines fornicate as: Idolatry; a forsaking of the true God, and worshipping of idols. 2Chron. 21. Rev. 19.¹ and it IS only in one’s deeper understanding of idolatry that this idea can be understood in our terms as infidelity.

While idolatry IS a word that IS used later in this segment of Paul’s list of “the works of the flesh“, the reference here IS to one’s choosing the idol over God. When we can see this idea of idolatry as Webster’s 1828 edition shows, as excessive attachment or veneration for any thing ¹, and measure this against the first of the Great Commandments, we can then see the idea of infidelity more clearly. Webster’s shows us the English word idolatry as a compound of idol + service ¹, and if we can see this in the context of Jesus’ saying on God and mammon, we can better understand Paul’s intent here in showing us fornication as a man’s choosing to serve mammon or his own carnal interests over God.

These first two words ARE understood by most ALL doctrine in their sexual context ONLY and it IS likely through this that the next words ARE rendered in the same light. The spiritual component and the apostle’s message to the man who IS past these type of carnal endeavors IS that one must be True to God and that it IS in this faithfulness, for lack of a better word, to the Godhead that one IS keeping His words and IS focused upon the Truth which brings to him our trifecta of spiritual reality that we repeat here again from Jesus’ words:

• “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).

We should try to see here how that the adulterer and the fornicator ARE NOT focused upon God and NOT keeping His words which IS the reality of one’s expression of Love, of agape, to ALL. And we should try to see this from the spiritual perspective that the Prophet Isaiah shows us saying “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee” (Isaiah 26:3); and in this idea of trust we should see the reality of faith and believing as these ideas ARE intended. It IS this “perfect peace” that IS the Life of the disciple who KNOWS the Truth; it IS this “perfect peace” that IS the Presence of God in one’s Life in this world and it IS this “perfect peace” that IS one’s realization of the Kingdom of God….it IS this “perfect peace” that IS the trifecta. Paul’s next word IS rendered as:

Uncleanness: this English word IS rendered from the Greek word akatharsia. This idea IS relegated to sexual deviation although there IS really NO sexual component to it. We should try to see akatharsia as a result of the infidelity and understand it as the focus that a man has on mammon, on the things of this world and his Life therein. Jesus uses this word against the Pharisees and the scribes as a part of his list of woes 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” (Matthew 23:27). That there IS NO sexual meaning in this use of akatharsia by Jesus DOES NOT prevent men from seeing its use by Paul in a strictly sexual way as we can see in John Gills commentary on the rendering of uncleanness in Galatians: it is a general name for all unchastity, in thought, word, or action; and may here design more especially all unnatural lusts, as sodomy ⁸ which he call self-pollution.

Vincent gives us some ideas on the use of this word as it IS used by Paul in his first Epistle to the Thessalonians where there IS also NO sexual connotation; we read of this usage that: Here in the sense of impurity on the side of sordidness ⁴. Paul also uses akatharsia in his Epistle to the Ephesians saying of the generality of men whose focus IS NOT on God that “Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness” (Ephesians 4:19). Again there IS NO sexual component here and Vincent tells us that the reference IS: in a spirit of selfish desire ( πλεονεξία ) which is the spirit of covetousness. In the ideas of selfishness and covetousness we should be able to see the deeper idea of men seeking after the things of the world rather than after the things of God; this IS the sin and this IS the basis of ALL sin.

We should be able to see how that this idea of uncleanness IS relegated to sexual deviation by way of the assumed meaning of the preceding words and, if one were to see the ideas of adultery and fornication as they ARE intended, as infidelity toward God, the sexual ideas applied to akatharsia NO longer work. We should try to see the doctrinal ideas as that it IS easier to see the sexual deviation as a sin committed by others than it IS to see oneself as among those to whom Paul says that “they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God” based upon one’s own focus upon the things of this world. This is especially True when the ideas of selfishness and covetousness ARE explored in relation to the first of the Great Commandments. Paul’s next word and the last one to be a part of the common understanding of sexual deviation IS aselgeia which IS rendered as:

Lasciviousness: The meaning of this English word IS again tied to sexual deviation according to the common understanding and we should try to see how that there IS a strong relationship between this Greek word and the one that IS rendered as uncleanness, especially when we see akatharsia as the lexicon defines this; as: the impurity of lustful, luxurious, profligate living ². If we can see here the strong desires for the worldly luxuries and a bent toward profligate living in the sense of extravagance and DOING whatsoever to attain one’s strong desires, we can then see the idea of wantonness which IS the better and alternate rendering of aselgeia.

Vincent tells us this of this word, as it IS used by Jesus according to Mark: Lasciviousness (ἀσέλγεια)–Derivation unknown. It includes lasciviousness, and may well mean that here; but is often used without this notion. In classical Greek it is defined as violence, with spiteful treatment and audacity. As in this passage its exact meaning is not implied by its being classed with other kindred terms, it would seem better to take it in as wide a sense as possible – that of lawless insolence and wanton caprice, and to render, with Trench, wantonness, since that word, as he remarks, “stands in remarkable ethical connection with ἀσέλγεια, and has the same duplicity of meaning” (“Synonyms of the New Testament”) ⁴.

In the connection of both of these ideas to wantonness we should be able to see that the objective IS the way of a man’s Life that IS focused upon the carnal things and understand that the sexual connection IS NOT the intended message; it has been created in doctrines through the ideas of adultery and fornication which should have been understood as man’s infidelity toward the Godhead. It IS in this connection of wanton behavior that we should see the man whose interest IS in his self and the things of the world for that self rather than in accord with the Great Commandment which tells him that he “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“. It IS in the deeper understanding of this idea that men refuse to put themselves and it IS in this refusal that IS a part of the illusion and the glamour, a part of the vanity to which ALL men ARE subjected, that the ideas of sexual deviation ARE substituted.

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.

This Quote of the Day is the antithesis of glamour and illusion. In this mantram are the thoughts about ourselves and our brothers in the world that can diffuse these forces that hold a man in the world of things and prevent his spiritual progress.

Mantram of Unification

The sons of men are one and I am one with them.
I seek to love, not hate;
I seek to serve and not exact due service;
I seek to heal, not hurt.

Let pain bring due reward of light and love.
Let the Soul control the outer form, and life and all events,
And bring to light the love that underlies the happenings of the time.

Let vision come and insight.
Let the future stand revealed.
Let inner union demonstrate and outer cleavages be gone.
Let love prevail.
Let all men love.

The Mantram of Unification is a meditation and a prayer that at first affirms the unity of all men and the Brotherhood of Man based on the Fatherhood of God. The first stanza sets forth several truly Christian ideals in Unity, Love, Service and Healing. The second stanza is a invocation to the Lord and to our own Souls asking that from the pain (if there can truly be any) incurred in focusing on the Spirit and not the world will come Light and Love into our lives and that we begin to function as Souls through our conscious personalities. We ask that the spiritual control of our lives will bring to light for us the Love that underlies world events; a Love that the world oriented man will not see working out behind the scenes and also that the Love that we bring forth, individually and as a world group, can be seen by all and ultimately in all. Finally, in the last stanza we ask for those things that are needed for Love to abound. Vision and insight so that we can direct our attention properly; revelation of the future in the sense that all can see the Power of Love in the world; inner union so that we do not fall back into the world’s ways, that we faint not; and that a sense of separation, the antithesis of brotherhood, ends as we know it today. Let Love Prevail, Let All Men Love.spiritual control of our lives will bring to light for us the Love that underlies world events; a Love that the world oriented man will not see working out behind the scenes.

Let the peace of God rule in your hearts

• ¹ Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1828 and 1913
• 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