ON LOVE; PART MXXXIV
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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).
We ended the last essay with a selection of words from the Apostle Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians which can be seen in the Light of the trifecta. This trifecta IS Jesus’ own words on attaining the Truth of grace which IS one’s KNOWING the Truth, which IS the reality of faith, this grace IS as well the Presence of God and it IS this grace which allows men to enter into the Kingdom of God here and now. That doctrines DO NOT teach these ideas of grace and faith is of no moment to the man who Truly seeks this grace and the reality of this grace and faith can be clearly seen by any who can leave off of their indoctrination and look anew at the words of the Master and the clarifying and amplifying words of His apostles. In these words from the apostle we have such clarifying and amplifying ideas and we covered some of this in our last post.
When we can look at the idea of “the things which God hath prepared for them that love him” and understand these in terms of grace and faith we can see how that the very idea of “the things which God hath prepared” ARE things from God and therefore ARE His grace which comes as the reward if you will for our Love. This IS NOT that emotional and mental form of Love that IS carnal in every respect but this IS that Love, that agape, that IS spoken of by Jesus in the trifecta which clearly links this Love to keeping His words. It should be clear that “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me” as this follows upon Jesus’ previous words saying that “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15) and IS spoken before He tells us “He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings“. There IS NO mystery in these words and there IS NO parabolic language ; yet doctrines teach that men can Love God without them.
Without the backdrop of Jesus own words these words from Paul lose their meaning and their intent. The apostle repeats here words from the Prophet Isaiah whose own words tell us that this IS True “since the beginning of the world” (Isaiah 64:4); these words then reflect upon Jesus’ words and the idea of mysteries and those “things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 13:35). Paul affirms what these things ARE in his text as he tells us that these ARE, this grace IS, “the deep things of God” and that “God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit“. It IS when we can understand that this revelation comes in the Presence of God that comes to the man who Loves Him, which IS the man who will keep His words, that we will have the more complete idea and some glimpse of the secrets and the mysteries….”the things which God hath prepared for them that love him“. We repeat the apostle’s words to the Corinthians saying:
“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:9-14).
While the idea of Love DOES link Paul’s words here to the trifecta as the source of grace and while there IS a firm link established between this Love for God and keeping His words, there IS little of this found in the doctrines of men. Doctrines seem to rely ONLY upon the singular idea of “the things that are freely given to us of God” without ever understanding that while these ARE free, they ARE spiritual and they ARE ONLY accessible by the man who Loves Him. We should understand as well that the word translated here as free IS NOT in the Greek text but was added to the idea of charizomai which IS a Greek word which IS mostly rendered in terms of forgive and give 2 according to the lexicon. We should note as well that the lexicon tells us that this Greek word charizomai IS the middle voice from (5485) 2 which IS charis which IS grace.
The doctrinal idea of free as this IS applied to this grace permeates the renderings and the translations of these words according to the various doctrines of grace and should we look past this we can more clearly see that this KNOWING which we can have IS those revelations that come to the man who Loves Him. And when we can see these ideas according to Paul’s words saying that these things ARE that grace, that KNOWING, that faith, “which the Holy Ghost teacheth” we can then see the reality of the Presence of God which IS shown us by Jesus in the trifecta. And, if we can relate this to the unction of which John tells us that “ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things” as this same Presence of which He also says that “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 2:20, 27), we can then better see the whole idea of what Paul shows us as the mystery revealed….”which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). ALL of this DOES amplify and clarify Jesus’ own words which we call our trifecta of spiritual reality; we read again:
- “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).
Perhaps if we can see how that Love IS one’s expression in Life which IS based in and upon what he has come to KNOW, based in one’s True faith, we can better understand the way that this faith works as a “fruit of the Spirit“. If we can combine this view with those ideas that we previously discussed saying that in regard to Paul’s list of “the fruit of the Spirit“, we should try to see how that faith and Love anchor his list. ALL of the virtues of this list ARE included in the idea of Love whose expression IS joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance” and, at the same time, ALL of these operate in one’s expression of faith, ones Life expression of KNOWING the Truth. In this Truth IS the KEY to the mysteries and that KEY IS Love. We read the apostle’s words again saying
“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).
Here again we must remember that the whole idea of this “fruit of the Spirit” IS found in the way that these ARE expressed in the Life of a man and we should see here as well how that this list amplifies and clarifies Jesus’ own words on bearing fruit. As we have previously discussed, there IS one of Jesus’ sayings on fruit that IS directly linked, through the idea of discipleship, to His words that ARE our trifecta. The Master tells us that “Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples” (John 15:8) and here we should be able to see and to understand how that the reality of discipleship IS shared between these words and His words that say “If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed“. And if this IS shared then the cause of discipleship IS also shared which should show us that it IS in keeping His words that one will “bear much fruit” and that to “bear much fruit” IS to “keep His words“.
Here again IS a simple logic that most ALL doctrines either fail to see or refuse to see, a logic which makes these ideas inseparable. Inseparable too then IS the idea of “Herein is my Father glorified” which would be either by keeping His words or that one “bear much fruit“. And we could take this further; we can take this into Jesus’ words according to Luke where we have Him stating the very essence of the first of the Great Commandments as the KEY to discipleship while He implies the second part; we read: “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple….So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26-27, 33).
Can we see how that ALL of these ideas ARE related? Can we see that the very Truth of discipleship IS found in men’s DOING and in keeping His words? Of course we must understand the idea of hate as it IS rendered here from miseo; we must try to see that the English idea of hate IS NOT what IS intended and that the sense of this IS clarified by the similar words offered by the Apostle Matthew who shows us this idea IS to Love less. And IS this NOT the whole idea of the Great Commandment that says we “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“….that NO thing shall come before the Lord in the heart of the man who IS the disciple and who strives to be so?
If we can look away from our doctrinal sense, we can also see the implication of the second of the Great Commandments in Jesus words from the Apostle Luke above. What IS it to bear one’s cross? IS it NOT to live one’s Life according to the Way of Truth and to lose sight of oneself according to Jesus’s words that show men that naught that they ARE or believe themselves to be matters? Can we see some of this cross in the Master’s words saying:
“Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away. Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, 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; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:38-48).
It IS easy to forget that this IS His words that a men should keep and it IS easy to see how that the entire civilization has ignored these tenets for as far back as time can reach. IS this NOT the idea that Jesus gives us saying that the disciple must “bear his cross“? IS it NOT sore difficult to have and keep the thoughts and the attitudes that will allow a man to Love as these words portray and ARE NOT these words the essence of the idea that “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself“? It IS in this Light that we should also see the idea that the disciple must forsake ALL and here we should try to see the broadness of this idea. Much like bearing one’s cross, this forsaking IS of ALL that can be seen as the “bondage of corruption” (Romans 8:21); ALL that keeps men in the illusion and the glamour, the vanity according to Paul which Vincent shows us as: a perishable and decaying condition, separate from God, and pursuing false ends 4. This forsaking IS of every thought and every attitude that IS NOT focused upon the Godhead.
And here we should be able to see also how that these words and ideas ARE the same in essence as the ideas behind Paul’s list of “the fruit of the Spirit“. We should try to see how that ALL of this list flows from Love and how that the expression of Love IS dependent upon one’s sense of KNOWING. Here we should see that one’s expression of Love grows in the measure of KNOWING that one has and the the measure of KNOWING grows in the measure of Love that one expresses. This KNOWING IS of course the faith that IS in Paul’s list which we set according to the defining ideas on faith that we take from Jesus words. Finally, we should see the last two words in Paul’s list in the words of Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount that we recite above; ALL of these ideas ARE meekness and they ARE temperance and it IS with these ideas as well as the conclusion of our long look at faith, as faithfulness, that we will continue in the next post.
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.
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 a Quote of the Day that we spent much time with over the course of our essays. In this affirmation we find the Truth of discipleship as we have been ever been expressing and here we can relate our themes of the last few days; “take no thought” for the things of the world and that we approach the Kingdom and discipleship in the nature of the little child, in humbleness, meekness, unashamed in any way and unassuming. The message that this imparts for us today IS that it IS the Soul that is at work in the world of men as it expresses to some degree the purpose, power and the will through Life in this world. These words are from a meditation offered to his students by our Tibetan brother and in which we find greater understanding of the message of the Master. This IS Truly the way of the disciple.
My Soul has purpose, power and will; these three are needed on the Way of Liberation.
My Soul must foster love among the sons of men; this is its major purpose.
I, therefore, will to love and tread the Way of Love. All that hinders and obstructs the showing of the Light must disappear before the purposes of the Soul.
My will is one with the great Will of God;. that Holy Will requires that all men serve. And unto the purposes of the Plan I lend my little will.
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts
- 2 from New Testament Greek Lexicon on BibleStudyTools.com
- 4 Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition, 1888
