ON LOVE; PART MDXXII
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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).
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Before we start on our theme for this essay we would like to share an observation that we recently came to understand. We often speak of the idea that much of the church favors Paul’s words over the Master’s when it comes to their sense of doctrine and that for parts of the gospels some of the church claim that the words were NOT intended for them but for the Jews in Jesus’ time. Among these ARE much that the Master shared directly with His disciples with the end intent being that they would in turn teach the same to the masses. This IS of course confirmed for us in what has come to be known as the Great Commission which IS but another part of the Master’s words that has been misapplied and misunderstood except in doctrinal terms. Jesus tells His apostles and disciples that they ‘must’ “Go ye therefore, and teach make disciples of all nations people, baptizing immersing them them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen” (Matthew 28:19-20). We should remember here that our edits to the King James text ARE based upon the renderings of other versions and the meaning of the Greek words and you can see our reasoning by searching for the chapter and verse in the search bar on the front page of this blog. Our point here IS simple and based upon what we like to call our realization of things; such realizations come from the Soul, the Christ Within, as our individual measure of the mysteries IS revealed to us. Such realizations are available to ALL who move their focus off of the self and the things of the self and onto the things of God. Here our point IS that the sayings and ideas from the Gospels, many which ARE given directly to the apostles as teaching, ARE intended to be shared by them and their descendants in the ‘church’ among which should have been the clergy for the last 2000 years. We should try to see here that it IS NOT ONLY what the Master said directly to His apostles, our trifecta IS an example of this, but ALSO Jesus interactions with the people which serve as an example to His apostles and disciples of the right way. This should have meant that even words spoken directly to the Jews 2000 years ago ARE an example of the perspective that His apostles and disciples should have and therefore so should we. Our argument here IS unlikely to change the minds of any in the doctrinal world that believe that Jesus IS speaking to the Jews but if we can encourage even some to look deeper into the Master’s words our realization would have been a successful endeavor. Having mentioned the trifecta, let us look at the Master’s words that comprise it and understand that He IS indeed speaking to ALL that would follow the True Christian Way. Jesus tells us:
- “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).
Jesus IS telling His disciples and through them us about True discipleship and the Way to be His True disciple but these words have fallen upon deaf ears in the church for the last 2000 years. And it IS NOT because men and women NO longer want the role of disciple of Jesus; it IS rather because those that DO see their goal through their pursuit of their doctrinal religious experience. Surely in some parts of the church there ARE those that maintain their ‘calling’ and DO serve and teach to the best of their ability; most ALL however still embrace their doctrinal philosophies and this because it IS the way that they were themselves indoctrinated into their particular denomination or sect. They have their measure of Truth which pales in comparison to the measure that they would achieve in the absence of their individual dogma. The Master’s point IS simple: that for men to achieve the degree, the measure if you will, of spiritual Truths, they must keep His words and it IS this at which most ALL fail. We repeat here then the idea that the Master has given to us and which far too many believe IS directed ONLY at the Jews, that His words here ARE NOT a part of “all things whatsoever I have commanded you“. Jesus tells us that “Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mark 7:6-7). While this should be a foundational precept of the church from the beginning, it has NOT been so; that the Christian church should have seen the failure of man made doctrines in these words DID NOT happen. The church from the beginning chose to create doctrines and rites and rituals to define their religion and it IS likely that ALL who DID see things differently were moved aside and their beliefs and teachings seen as heretical. There were several movements, some with remnants remaining yet today, but these too have succumbed to their doctrinal ideas over the specific words of the Master. While discipleship IS the spiritual goal of ALL men, it IS NOT seen as such by most who ARE content with their carnal lives despite having ofttimes gnawing personality conflicts regarding the spiritual status of their lives.
And so we write our essays; it IS our objective to find the few who will benefit from our prodding to see religion from a different perspective and to take up the mantle that the Master and His apostles left long ago. We should NOT expect to become full disciples in this lifetime although this IS always possible for those who intently follow, strive to if you will, the Master’s words and instructions, but we can find some measure of success. This success IS measured by the fruit of our lives and it matters NOT how fruitless our lives have heretofore been; it matters ONLY what we DO next. Can we see the point here? Can we see that it IS never too late to move our focus off of the things of the self and onto the things of God? Can we see that in so DOING we ARE Repenting as the word should be used and that we ARE beginning our Transformation? We have often discussed the concepts of Repentance and Transformation because these ARE two Life changing endeavors which ARE necessary if we Truly seek the Lord. Both ARE misunderstood by most ALL of the church and often misapplied through men’s carnal understanding. Repentance IS NOT as it IS defined; Repentance IS NOT: deep sorrow, compunction, or contrition for a past sin, wrongdoing, or the like* as it IS defined today. Repentance IS also NOT as it was defined in Webster’s 1828 Dictionary where we read that Repentance IS: Sorrow for any thing done or said; the pain or grief which a person experiences in consequence of the injury or inconvenience produced by his own conduct 1. Webster’s includes a theological definition as well saying that: In theology, the pain, regret or affliction which a person feels on account of his past conduct, because it exposes him to punishment 1. Finally Webster’s offers another defining idea which while being a bit closer to the reality of Repentance yet falls short; they say that: Real penitence; sorrow or deep contrition for sin, as an offense and dishonor to God, a violation of his holy law, and the basest ingratitude towards a Being of infinite benevolence. This is called evangelical repentance, and is accompanied and followed by amendment of life 1. They then add an example saying that: Repentance is a change of mind, or a conversion from sin to God 1. We should try to see that the idea of Repentance has been diminished over time and we were surprised to see in today’s research that Google’s AI, based upon its voluminous ‘reading’, tells us that Repentance IS: a turning away from wrongdoing and a turning towards a better path, often involving regret for past actions and a commitment to change. It’s a process that includes recognizing a mistake, feeling sorry for it, and then actively working to correct it. In religious contexts, particularly within Christianity, repentance is often seen as a turning towards God and away from sin, seeking forgiveness and a change of heart 7. This takes us much closer to the reality of Repentance that we have gleaned from the writings of Marvin Vincent and perhaps his writings ARE included in the AI’s ‘reading’. Mr. Vincent tells us that: Repentance, then, has been rightly defined as “Such a virtuous alteration of the mind and purpose as begets a like virtuous change in the life and practice.” Sorrow is not, as is popularly conceived, the primary nor the prominent notion of the word 4.
This IS the reality of Repentance and while the idea IS used in the New Testament according to the idea of sorrow, the deeper reality IS found in the Master’s words; we read in Mark’s Gospel that: “Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying,The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:14-15). We also read in the Book of Acts the Apostle Luke’s words saying “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord” (Acts 3:19) and here the KEY word IS converted. The Master IS, as Vincent reports the definition of the idea, telling us that we should change our lives; He IS NOT telling us that we should be sorry or remorseful. Similarly the idea of Repentance given us by Luke combines the ideas of Repentance and conversion and we should try to see that his idea of “the presence of the Lord” IS in accord with the third part of our trifecta where the idea IS simply that when we keep His words we will have His Presence. Now much of the church DOES say that when a person ‘accepts Christ’ according to their particular doctrine that the Lord DOES come into one’s heart but this IS NOT in accord with what the Master says. Jesus tells us that “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” (John 14:21); this IS much deeper than the nebulous idea of ‘accepting Christ as one’s Lord and savior’. The point here at which one has the Presence of the Lord in one’s Life IS when one keeps His words which IS the reality of “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them“. We should note here that the apostles ARE NOT clear on what the Master IS saying and this because the whole idea IS a part of the mysteries of which Paul tells us that “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 1:26-27). The mystery IS “Christ in you” which IS His Presence in the Life of the man who keeps His words; it IS the realization of this Presence that sets us apart. We should note here that as Paul tells us that “Christ in you” IS “made manifest to his saints” and to be sure “his saints” ARE those that keep His words.
What then of the doctrinal idea that when one ‘accepts Christ as one’s Lord and savior’ he gains the Presence of God? From our perspective this can fall one of two ways; it can be a starting point from which the person comes to the reality of Repentance and sees the clearer Path to the Lord. Or, it can be but an empty endeavor where the acceptance of the Lord IS but an emotional response and Life goes on as it had before save perhaps for a greater awareness of the Lord. The Master offers us, as a rhetorical question, the answer to our unasked question saying “why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). While the idea of ‘accepting Christ as one’s Lord and savior’ should be a starting point for Repentance and Transformation, for far too many it has become an endpoint with nothing further to DO. We should understand here that it IS never too late to Truly Repent and the Master shows us this in the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard which we repeat here saying:
“the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way. Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise. And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive. So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first. And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny. And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house, Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day. But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny? Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee. Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good? So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen“ (Matthew 20:1-16).
There ARE several messages in this parable, some of which we have previously discussed. The most apparent IS found in the final words saying “the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen“ and while this intersects with today’s observations, it IS NOT our purpose. Our purpose today IS to show that there IS a continual line of persons coming to the Lord over time; beginning with the those that enter the vineyard “early in the morning” and ending with those that entered the vineyard “about the eleventh hour“, ALL ARE in the vineyard DOING the work. The controversy involves the ‘feelings’ of men as those that began the day in the vineyard DO NOT see why those entering later, and as late as “the eleventh hour“, should get the same wages, the same reward if you will. We should understand here that we ARE NOT speaking about the householder as a man however, we ARE speaking about the householder representing “the kingdom of heaven“. Unlike men and their feelings, the idea here IS that the Kingdom will accept ALL who come to it regardless of when. One can come to the Kingdom as a youth or one can come as an old man….the reward IS the same and while measure surely plays a role, everyone who comes, everyone that Repents, IS both welcome and rewarded. And here perhaps we can take the obvious idea of “the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen“ into consideration from the perspective of any remaining carnal attitudes from those who came to the vineyard “early in the morning” and perhaps others who spent much of the day. This however seems to have little to DO with the final words that tell us that “many be called, but few chosen“; here we should try to see that ALL are called but few there ARE that choose Repentance and Transformation as their Way of Life. Our point here IS simply that it IS never too late to come to the Lord through Repentance and Transformation and while we should understand that ALL ARE welcome, few choose the spiritual over the carnal. The idea in doctrinal theology IS that few ARE chosen by the Lord and we should understand that should this be the proper understanding it would render moot the idea that “there is no respect of persons with God” (Romans 2:11).
If then the idea of being chosen by God 9 as Thayer’s defines the idea IS NOT the proper understanding, what IS? It IS simply that few choose to Truly follow the Lord and this idea IS used again in Matthew’s Gospel where the Master says “For many are called, but few are chosen” in regard to the man who DID NOT come prepared to the “wedding feast“. This IS from another parable, the Parable of The Great Banquet, where in the end we read that “when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen” (Matthew 22:11-14). This man, although he was welcome because “many are called“, was NOT prepared; he DID NOT choose to prepare himself and hence, was eliminated from the feast. Can we see the point here? Can we see that one can enter into the vineyard or the feast but if one IS NOT prepared that the result IS failure. And what IS this failure? Simply one’s failure to Truly Repent, to change his Life, to experience Such a virtuous alteration of the mind and purpose as begets a like virtuous change in the life and practice. It IS here in the vineyard or at the feast that the man who DOES choose to prepare and Repent, begins his Transformation; begins “the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2).
Understanding that the idea of choice IS ever at the feet of humanity IS perhaps the greatest reminder that it IS never too late that we have. We should note here that there IS another parable of sorts that IS often interpreted to say the opposite of this idea that it IS never too late. Before we look at this we should understand that this sense of time IS in regard to a Lifetime; it DOES NOT stretch any further insofar as men’s ‘salvation‘ IS concerned. The Master’s words here ARE related to His words from Matthew’s Gospel which we often tie to the rhetorical question cited above. In Matthew’s Gospel it IS those that ‘pretend’ to be spiritually focused which we read into Jesus’ saying “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). While the first part of this IS rather universal, we see the second part as being directed at the Christian world before it was ever ordained by men. It IS an indictment of those who will call the Master Lord by DO NOT the things that He says. They may be prophesying in His name, effecting cures, and DOING “wonderful works” but who, at the same time, ARE NOT DOING “the will of my Father which is in heaven“. Luke’s version carries the same message in a different tone; we read that:
“he went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying* toward Jerusalem. Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are: Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity” (Luke 13:22-27).
Here again the Master IS speaking of salvation as He explains that the Way to salvation IS to “Strive to enter in at the strait gate“. We should note here that there IS NO time table on such striving and that the shut door here IS NOT an end to our ability to “Strive to enter in at the strait gate” but rather it IS the same end as we read in Matthew. This end concerns those that can perhaps be understood to be casual followers or that ARE NOT Truly striving, NOT following the definition of striving which IS: to exert oneself vigorously; try hard: to make strenuous efforts toward any goal*. Perhaps the idea IS best understood as being directed to those that believe that they ARE DOING “the will of my Father which is in heaven” through their doctrinal practices while yet living carnal lives with a splash of doctrinal religion. Our point here IS again that it IS never too late. Finally we look to the Catholic Church and perhaps some others which offer ‘last rites’ as a final point in time to accept Christ; from a doctrinal perspective this can be comforting for the dying and those around him but there IS NO real point from which to Repent and Transform. It IS in Repentance and Transformation that we ARE striving “to enter in at the strait gate” and, to be sure, our Transformation, once begun, can last the rest of one’s mortal Life and NOT yet be DONE. We must remember however that ALL things involved in our Transformation come to us by measure and in True striving, much can be DONE with haste. Paul tells us about Transformation saying “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:1-2). In these words we have several ideas to discuss again. First IS the apostle’s words that implore and admonish men to “present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God” which IS, in essence, to Truly Repent and make that decision to effect in one’s Life: such a virtuous alteration of the mind and purpose as begets a like virtuous change in the life and practice 4. In this we change the focus of our lives; we take our focus off of the carnal and mundane and place it onto the things of God…..this IS our “living sacrifice“. Second Paul shows us that as men in this world who Truly seek the Lord that this “is your reasonable service“, a fact that IS NOT understood by most ALL of the church which may regard such messages encouragement to enter into the clergy or be active in one’s church.
Next comes the crux of the apostle’s message as he tells us to “be not conformed to this world“. We should understand here that we ARE, most ALL of us, “conformed to this world” simply because we were born, nurtured and indoctrinated into its ways. In other words: we are born into vanity and will remain in this condition of bondage which IS defined for us as: a perishable and decaying condition, separate from God, and pursuing false ends 4. For most ALL of us this IS ALL that we KNOW and while some DO embrace doctrinal religions as a cure, such affiliations DO NOT easily allow for men to “be delivered made free from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (Romans 8:21). This deliverance and freedom IS made possible by our being “not conformed to this world” which IS the result of our True Repentance and the beginnings of our Transformation. And this IS Paul’s final point here: that we be “transformed by the renewing of your mind” so that we can come to KNOW “that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God“. ALL of this IS dependent upon our Repentance which IS the Way that allows for us to even begin our Transformation and we should understand here that we fool NO one when we merely go through the motions while still being “conformed to this world“. NO man Truly KNOWS the heart of another save for some glimpse that may be had through their deportment and perhaps the Light and the fruit that comes from another’s Life. This the Master shows us in two ways; first He tells those who Truly follow Him to “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works” (Matthew 5:16). Jesus also tells us about fruit and while His words ARE framed in the negative, it IS also the reality in the positive; He says “Ye shall know them by their fruits” before reminding us that “by their fruits ye shall know them” (Matthew 7:16, 20). Paul’s words here ARE important to understand in their context; they ARE clear and easy to understand which qualifies them to be a part of that “wisdom that is from above” (James 3:17) which we recently discussed in some detail.
While we have used the idea of Transformation in our blog posts frequently, the word IS NOT often used in the New Testament. The Greek word metamorphoo which IS rendered here as Transformed IS also rendered as Transfiguration which IS a much deeper idea of change; it IS also rendered as change in one of its four appearances in the New Testament. While the meaning IS effectively changed, the idea of both Transformation and Transfiguration show us a much deeper idea and both play a part in our view of the spiritual progress of a man. In the sequence of spiritual events in the Life of a man there ARE four distinct steps which ‘change‘ a man from the inside out and while this IS NOT offered to us in words in the New Testament, the effects ARE implied in many places. Four steps, namely Repentance, Transformation, Redemption and Transfiguration, can overlap each other in the spiritual progress of men but, to be sure, this change must start with Repentance. This must be True Repentance, this must be a True decision to change and, according to the defining idea that we use; this must be Such a virtuous alteration of the mind and purpose as begets a like virtuous change in the life and practice. The latter part of this defining idea IS what IS of importance; lacking this virtuous change in the life and practice, Repentance reverts back to the common ideas that have been applied to the idea for centuries…..sorrow and remorse. Repentance IS first the decision to change but this IS rather worthless in the absence the decision having a effect upon one’s life and practice. We should of course understand that virtuous change in the life and practice and the decision to DO so may take time and repeated efforts but once this IS begun in earnest, once we Truly decide, we begin the process. We should remember that the decision to change IS at the same time a decision to focus on the things of God and take our focus off of our daily lives and our plans and schemes for the future. It IS this change of focus that IS the reality of our Transformation; as we focus more and more upon the things of God we perforce focus less and less on the things of the self and the self in this world; this IS the natural action of Repentance and Transformation.
We should try to see how that this Transformation IS from the inside out, it IS a function of allowing the Soul to dictate one’s thought processes rather than their being dictated by our vanity, our mind and emotions, and what IS happening around us in this world. As Paul shows us we ARE “transformed by the renewing of your mind” and we must try to understand that this IS a process and our success IS in allowing the Soul, the Christ Within, to influence the mind; it IS this influence that IS our renewing. Finally, we must come to understand that this has but incremental effects on the thoughts, attitudes and actions that we display; we should expect a slow and steady change in our life and practice as we move toward the Truth and the ability to express the agape Love that IS flowing through our being. Surely there IS a struggle here; as we begin our Transformation our carnal self will revolt; it will repel our new sense of Truth and agape but this will eventually fade out as we Truly strive to move the motivation of our lives away from the carnal self and onto the Truth and Love that bring us ever closer to True discipleship. Here of course we must remember that discipleship has its own rules as laid out by the Master and the first of these of moment IS that we keep His words. Can we see the point here? Can we see that it IS our effort to keep His words that IS the reality of our change in focus as we focus upon the Truth of His words over the doctrinal ideas into which we were indoctrinated. Jesus shows us this using the idea of continuing which we should understand as abiding in’; the Master tells us rather clearly that “If ye continue (abide) 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).
In closing today we would like to contrast this Greek word metamorphoo which IS used ONLY four times; twice in gospel commentaries by the writers to describe Jesus’ Transfiguration and twice by the Apostle Paul, with another Greek word, epistrepho which IS rendered in various ways. The word IS used several times by the Master in the context of conversion and we start here with this from the Master; Jesus says “For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.” (Matthew 13:15). This sense of conversion IS much like the idea of Transformation and the ideas surrounding this use of epistrepho should allow us to see the basic idea. The conversion cited here by the Master IS one of Transformation, that the people should “see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted“; these ideas ARE, ALL of them, the reality of our Transformation. Our eyes begin to see the Truth; our ears begin to hear the Truth and here we should understand that both DO NOT specifically relate the the physical eyes and ears. These rather relate to the inflow of the Soul’s Power to convey to the renewed mind what they should hear and see spiritually. This IS compared to the dullness of hearing, and closed eyes which DO NOT hear nor see the reality of what IS happening spiritually around them as the focus of such persons IS largely on the self and the things of the self in this world. Epistrepho, in addition to being rendered in terms of conversion IS also rendered, most often, in terms of turning with this latter idea pertaining to a carnal use of the word and the former, conversion, pertaining to its more spiritual uses. Of course it IS the spiritual ideas that we ARE here addressing as we try to show that our Transformation and our conversion ARE largely the same. We should see the idea of Transformation in epistrepho in these words that the Master speaks to the Apostle Peter; we read that the Master says to the apostle “I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren” (Luke 22:32). Here we see that Peter, while being the lead disciple of the Master, IS yet being Transformed and we should try to see that the endpoint of conversion and the endpoint of Transformation ARE largely the same. We end today with James’ use of epistrepho in the closing of his epistle; we read “Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins” (James 5:19-20).
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 |
- 1 Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1828 and 1913 from https://1828.mshaffer.com/
- 4 Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition
- 7 Google generative AI on repentance
- 9 Thayer’s Greek Lexicon on blueletterbible.org
- 9a The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible on blueletterbible.org
- * Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those who are showing a new road
Voltaire, Writer and Philosopher
