Tag Archives: Reincarnation

ON LOVE; PART MDLXXXIII

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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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In the last essay we continued our discussion of the Beatitudes as part of our overall discussion of the entire Sermon on the Mount. We concluded our discussion of the fifth Beatitude concerning mercy with the general idea that those that keep His words ARE His disciples and perhaps here we can try to see that the Presence of the Lord in the Life of the disciple, the active Presence of the Soul as the director of Life, IS the mercy that we obtain. This we related to the third part of our trifecta where the Master tells us that “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“. To understand our point we must keep in mind a few important facts; first that the Master IS speaking to His disciples, second IS that as disciples, True disciples as defined in the first part of our trifecta, ARE keeping His words; this IS what defines one as a True disciple or, as the King James Bible renders this, “disciples indeed“. Third, the very idea of having the Father and the Son in one’s Life, the Presence of God if you will, IS to have the most fundamental idea of agape in one’s Life; here we must understand the deep reality that John reveals for us saying that “God is love agape“. ALL of this must be coupled with the fourth point regarding our defining idea for mercy itself, that mercy IS how agape expresses itself in action and therefore being merciful IS expressing agape to ALL. In this we lose ALL of the ideas that mercy IS offered to the wretched or the afflicted; we lose the common idea that mercy IS: compassionate or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or other person in one’s power*. Surely this form of mercy IS a True carnal virtue but it IS NOT the reference that should be given to the idea as a spiritual concept.

Being merciful according to this Beatitude can be best understood by relating the idea to the Godhead and this we can DO through Luke’s version of the Master’s words saying “Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful” (Luke 6:36). Here, God IS Love IS equated to God IS merciful and we should try to see their relationship as we define it above. We also briefly explored the relationship of Luke’s version with Matthews where the idea IS given as “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). In these two versions of the same idea and their relationship to this Beatitude we should try to see that ultimately mercy IS how agape expresses itself in action, and perfection is the completeness of that agape love when it leaves no one out, when it IS expressed with NO “respect to persons” (James 2:9). Repeating our subject verses:

“And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake” (Matthew 5:1-11).

The next Beatitude for our consideration IS “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God“. Here we have another of the Beatitudes that IS NOT understood from the perspective of the disciple. Carnally, in this world, there can really be NONE that ARE “pure in heart” save for the True disciple and the saint. The Master shows us a view of this in His speaking about the Holy Spirit; we read His words saying “the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you” (John 14:17). Our point here IS that it IS those that Truly have “the Spirit of truth” that ARE “the pure in heart“; it IS the disciple that has set aside His vanity and has allowed the Spirit to overcome the carnal nature. Paul offers us a version of this idea saying that “if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Romans 8:13-14). It IS the disciple that IS “led by the Spirit of God” and we should understand that while many in the doctrinal churches lay claim to this high spiritual status, the True disciple IS extremely rare in this world. It IS these that ARE “led by the Spirit of God“, these True “sons of God” that ARE the reality of “the pure in heart“. The last time we addressed this subject we concluded that by “obeying the truth” we allow the purity of the Soul to be realized in the Life of the man in this world and it through this realization that we become “pure in heart” as the Master frames this Beatitude. Here we should understand that “obeying the truth” IS the Way of the disciple which idea comes through in Peter’s words at 1 Peter 1:22.

Understanding this let us look again at the words that the Master uses. Pure IS rendered from the Greek word katharos which the lexicon defines as: free from corrupt desire, from sin and guilt; free from every admixture of what is false, sincere genuine; blameless, innocent; unstained with the guilt of anything ². Using these defining ideas, we should be able to easily see that laying claim to the idea of being “the pure in heart“, even when based upon the idea that believers ARE cleansed by divine grace, IS a false claim as the idea IS biblically defined. Next we have the Greek word kardia which IS always rendered as heart. The idea has several uses however; it can mean the physical organ or, as the idea IS generally considered, it: denotes the centre of all physical and spiritual life ². More specifically Thayer’s tells us that the heart IS: the center and seat of spiritual life, the soul or mind, as it is the fountain and seat of the thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavors ⁹. There ARE other meanings that can be applied but for our purposes, these ARE the ones that matter. Parts of each of these ideas ARE correct and we should note that the True understanding of kardia comes from its uses in the gospels. The Master uses the idea in several ways:

• In relation to the imaginative mind He says of adultery that “whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart” (Matthew 5:28).
• In regard to the overall focus of a man He tells us that “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:21).
• In regard to the general thoughts of a man the Master says “Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?” (Matthew 9:4).
• Of Himself in regard to His earthly appearance He says “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart” (Matthew 11:29).
• In regard to the source for our outward expression He says “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matthew 12:34).
• In relation to the ‘storage place’ for our attitudes He says “A good man out of the good treasure of the heart G2588 bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things” (Matthew 12:40).
• In relation to the ‘place’ where understanding resides and from where it can be absent the Master 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).
• In regard to that place where spiritual impulse resides He tells us also that “When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart” (Matthew 13:19).
• As the source of ALL things carnal the Master tells us “those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies” (Matthew 15:18-19).
• As the source of virtue, both spiritual and carnal, He tell us “So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses” (Matthew 18:35).
• As a part of our keeping the Great Commandment the Master tells us “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matthew 22:37).
• As the source of carnal thoughts and actions He tells us: “if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming” (Matthew 24:48).

While there seems to be a broad range of uses in the Master’s words taken from Matthew’s Gospel, the reality IS that these can ALL be distilled down into a single word idea which perhaps DID NOT exist in those days: kardia can simply be defined as the personality. It IS the personality that IS the actor in this world and in his vanity he acts out his worldly ways in conformance to the worldly ideas into which his is nurtured and indoctrinated. It IS also the personality that Repents, that decides to change. It IS the personality that fulfills the apostle’s words saying “be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). And it IS the personality that IS redeemed according to Paul’s words regarding “the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:23). The personality IS defined simply as: the quality or state of being a person** and while this IS True, it ignores the complexities that can be attributed to the personality. For our purpose then both kardia, heart, and personality can be defined as the active, outward expression of the self in the world. In the end we should try to see that in ALL of the examples of the use of kardia cited above that this defining idea that it IS the active, outward expression of the self in the world. While some of the examples show a spiritual tone and others a carnal one, the basic reality IS that either expression can be understood in today’s terms as the personality.

Again it IS the personality that IS the actor in this world. This actor can play the part of the man grounded in vanity or the man “led by the Spirit of God” and it IS the focus of one’s Life that IS the determining factor. This idea IS clearly the point of the Master’s words saying “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh” (Luke 6:45). It IS the personality, the heart if you will, that IS moved toward good and toward evil and here we must understand that the idea of evil IS NOT limited to the gross behaviors of men; it should be understood as the carnal focus of men both individually and corporately. Christians have been conditioned to see the common idea of evil as profound immorality and wickedness but this IS NOT True according to its New Testament usage. Like many Greek words poneros, which IS rendered as both evil and wicked, should be understood according to the Master’s use of the word. From simple statements like “let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil” (Matthew 5:37) to more complex ideas like “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” (Matthew 7:11) we should see a deeper meaning for the idea of evil. In the former, we should understand that the Master IS NOT telling us that those who swear ARE acting with profound immorality and wickedness, they ARE merely acting in a carnal way and according to tradition. Similarly in the latter saying we should understand that the Master IS NOT accusing ALL men of acting with profound immorality and wickedness as they “give good gifts unto your children“. Commentary that links poneros to: the devil, the evil one ⁹ as Thayer’s DOES to the first saying above ARE equally misplaced and misleading. We should try to see in this idea of poneros a broad range of ideas that may include profound immorality and wickedness but IS NOT limited to these. In Truth, we should try to see the effects of our vanity as the idea behind most uses of poneros according to the defining idea for vanity saying that it IS our: perishable and decaying condition, separate from God, and pursuing false ends ⁴. This IS our carnal focus on the self and the things of the self, this IS vanity and this IS poneros.

In the above ideas we should be able to glimpse the reality of being “pure in heart” and understand that it IS the focus of our lives that makes one so. The disciple, focused on Truth and agape, IS focused upon the spiritual while the ordinary man remains in his vanity, in his perishable and decaying condition, separate from God, and pursuing false ends ⁴. The blessing for this disciple IS simply that “they shall see God“. Again, we should see the idea of being blessed as our spiritual fulfillment and while the idea of seeing God may seem impossible according to the apostle’s words saying “No man hath seen God at any time” (1: John 4:12), there IS another view that most miss. Jesus tells His disciples “If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him” and “he that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (John 14:7, 9). For the disciple this IS NOT a mystery.

The next Beatitude tells us that “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God” and in this we have yet another idea that IS misunderstood and misapplied by the doctrines of men. We could presume that the subject here IS literally peacemakers in the sense of resolving conflicts and, to be sure, this IS True. This however IS NOT the idea that should be attached to this Beatitude. In our previous discussion we DID assign this idea of being a peacemaker to the Master’s words and away from the carnal ideas engendered by the word. The Master tells us “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you” (John 14:27) and in this we can see a source of becoming a peacemaker and that the expression of one who IS a peacemaker IS his expression of agape. While ALL this IS True and while the carnal ideas attached to the word ARE NOT the Master’s intent, we look today toward a spiritual reason that IS part and parcel of being a True disciple. Paul tells us of Jesus that “Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace” (Ephesians 2:15). This we should tie to Jesus’ words from John’s Gospel where we read “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Can we see the point here? Can we see that as disciples we have overcome our own vanity, which IS to “have overcome the world” and that we too have made “of twain one new man, so making peace“.

While the idea of overcoming “the world” as a man IS NOT generally tied to the idea that “ye might have peace“, there IS a definitive relationship. We should try to understand that because “as he is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17) that we too can “overcome the world“. This however IS NOT the way that the idea IS viewed doctrinally; John Gill, in his Exposition of the Bible, tells us of this verse that: There is a peace by Christ, which he has made for his people by the blood of his cross; and there is a peace in him, which is enjoyed through faith’s looking to his blood for pardon, to his righteousness for justification, to his sacrifice for atonement and satisfaction; and by having communion with him, and discoveries of his love, and by seeing safety and security in him ⁸. This doctrinal idea totally bypasses John’s words above as well as the Master’s own words saying “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do” (John 14:12). As we have previously discussed the idea of “believeth on me” CAN NOT be understood according to doctrines but according to the deep spiritual meaning that IS incorporated into this idea. Vincent shows us that: To believe in, or on, is more than mere acceptance of a statement. It is so to accept a statement or a person as to rest upon them, to trust them practically; to draw upon and avail one’s self of all that is offered to him in them. Hence to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ is not merely to believe the facts of His historic life or of His saving energy as facts, but to accept Him as Savior, Teacher, Sympathizer, Judge; to rest the soul upon Him for present and future salvation, and to accept and adopt His precepts and example as binding upon the life ⁴. It IS this last part that we highlight in bold that IS the reality of keeping His words and IS the Way par excellence to discipleship. It IS the disciple then that can DO such “greater works” and, to be sure, to “overcome the world” IS a part of such works.

The complexity of Jesus words saying “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” IS easily broken down but to DO so we must think outside of the established doctrinal ideas. Our understanding revolves around the Greek word emoi which IS rendered here as me. Emoi IS a much more complex word which Strong’s defines as: a prolonged form of G3427; to me adding after the usage ideas of I, me, mine, my ^9a. Thayer’s however offers us a broad range of defining ideas for emoi beginning with the definition that it IS: possessive pronoun of the first person, mine ⁹. Thayer’s expands upon this saying that the idea can be: that which I have; what I possess and proceeding from me ⁹. While there IS NO single word that can be inserted into a translation other than mine, the idea presented should suffice to show us that the Master IS NOT referring to Himself as a person. Understanding the nature of the Christ as the anointing rather than the man, and understanding that Jesus IS able to express the full potency of that anointing, can help us to understand what IS otherwise a cryptic saying. The full potency of the Christ IS, from the Master’s perspective, that which I have; what I possess; this potency IS what IS proceeding from me. To relate this to our peace we need ONLY to understand that as we ARE able to express this potency of our own Christ Within, we will have peace and will be able to “overcome the world” and stand with the Master having made “of twain one new man, so making peace“.

While this may seem a long way to go to establish the idea of the peace-maker, it was important to understand how that ALL these sayings across the gospels and epistles work together. The idea can of course be understood in a worldly way as one who actively promotes peace but since we have established the idea that ALL the Beatitudes ARE aspects of the disciple at work, the idea of “making peace” seems so much more applicable. The blessing here IS perhaps the most simple: “they shall be called the children of God“. This reference IS made often in the New Testament but we should understand that the reality of this idea of being “children of God” IS related to discipleship. While discipleship can be understood in measure, the finality of it, which was a topic of our last series of discussions, IS found in “the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:23). We should try to understand that as Souls ALL ARE “the children of God” and that the challenge of Life IS that we become able to exhibit this relationship as men in this world. In this idea of “the children of God” lies yet another doctrinal fallacy which IS based in the writings of Paul and the misunderstanding of the Greek words pistis and pisteuo. These ARE rendered as faith and believing and ARE assigned the nebulous ideas of doctrines. The reality of pistis and pisteuo however IS NOT the nebulous ideas of the church but, as we often discuss, it IS the reality of KNOWING and here KNOWING God IS the best description. The doctrinal ideas on faith begin with such ideas as “ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:26); in this the general Christian population believes that they ARE “the children of God” in this world.

Paul’s statement uses the Greek word huios which as Vincent shows us as: better, ye are all sons of God and here we should look again at Paul’s words saying “as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God“. This should be a universal understanding but it IS missed by the doctrines of men that include ALL ‘believers’ as “the children of God“. The simple logic IS that as one IS “led by the Spirit of God” he will perforce keep His words. Again, we should understand that as Souls we ARE ALL “the children of God” and that the challenge IS that we express this through discipleship and sainthood to the world; in this we can be understood as True “sons of God“. We must understand Paul’s words to the Galatians in context; he begins with the idea that “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ” (Galatians 1:6-7). Here we should try to see that these Galatians were Transforming into disciples of Christ but they got caught up in “another gospel: Which is not another” and in this we should try to see a different ‘doctrinal’ approach NOT ordained by Paul. The rest of this epistle can be seen as further instruction intended to bring the Galatians back from the throes of those “that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ“. It IS in this context that we read “Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith pistis. But after that faith pistis is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. For ye are all the children sons of God by faith pistis in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:24-26). In the completeness of Paul’s words we should see that he IS still addressing disciples or, better, aspirants to discipleship, and it IS to these that he ascribes the status of “the children sons of God“. It IS these that KNOW God, by measure to be sure, and it IS our measure of KNOWING God that makes us disciples. Our point here IS simply that while doctrines dilute the idea of being among “the children sons of God“, that there IS a reality that IS missed and that IS held by the peacemakers or those that have made “of twain one new man, so making peace“.

The final two Beatitudes can be seen together with the second defining the first and we should try to see here that these ARE specifically addressed to disciples. The Master tells them “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you“. Perhaps the most distinguishing idea in these last two Beatitudes IS that the Master IS equating His disciples with “the prophets which were before you“, with those that we able to speak the Truth that flows from the Godhead. And what IS the persecution? In Jesus’ day it was the treatment of the disciples by the priests, the Pharisees and other religious rulers of the Jews. We should understand that this persecution was because the Master’s teaching and the teaching of His disciples was contrary to the doctrinal ideas of the Jews, against their traditions if you will. We should remember here that the Master continually ‘called out’ the behaviors and attitudes of the Jews for being against the Truth of the law, laws which they had changed and diluted into their mitzvot, into the doctrinal system under which they lived.

The first point here IS to understand what it means to be “persecuted for righteousness’ sake“. In this we should first see the relationship between the Master and His followers and the Jewish religious establishment. The priests, Pharisees, scribes and other religious authorities believed that they were DOING the will of the Lord. They had lost sight of the way that their doctrines had steadily moved further and further away from the True dictates of the law and they confused the ancillary ideas of the law with the True law, “the royal law” as James frames this. For reasons that parallel the progression of Christianity over the last 2000 years the Jews sought out the ancillary laws and placed them above the Truth and it IS against this that the Master says “go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice” (Matthew 9:13). The Jews were much more concerned with the rote ideas of their mitzvot, ideas that played little or no role in the goal of KNOWING God, than they were with the Great Commandments around which the Truth of the law was established. In their practices of sabbath rules, sacrifices, dietary regulations, rules regarding the clean and unclean as well as the crueler aspects of Moses laws, the Jews established their doctrines.

The Master calls this failure out several times especially in the words we often use saying “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. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition” (Mark 7:6-9). The Jews of course rejected the Master’s words much as they rejected the words of the prophet and this because they thought that they were being righteous in their traditions and practices. While much of the church today has a contrary view supposing that the Jews were acting in a more ‘evil‘ way purposefully, the reality IS that the Pharisees and others sought to protect their ‘religion’ from the encroachment of Jesus and His disciples. In the beginning of Jesus’ ‘ministry’ the Jews DID NOT and likely could NOT see Jesus as the Messiah; they saw Him as a heretic. Over time however, when it became clear that Jesus had the Power of the Godhead, their protections became more personal as Jesus’ teachings were seen as an affront to the religion that they had established; in this they blinded themselves to the possibility that they could have been wrongly interpreting their law for centuries. We should note here that there were those among the religious leaders of the day that DID see beyond the blindness of the majority but the majority of course ruled.

We should note here that this same dynamic has been playing out in Christianity for 2000 years and today we should try to see in the practices of Christianity a constant move from believing in the righteousness of the denominations and sects to protecting what they have, ofttimes by any means necessary. The point of the Master’s words then IS directed to His disciples who DID speak and act with a sense of righteousness that was seen as heresy by the Jews. It IS in this display of righteousness that they would be persecuted. In the next verse the Master continues in this same thought while adding some of the ways that this persecution will be accomplished saying that “men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely“; it IS these things that they also used in their persecution of the Master. We should try to understand that this persecution of disciples by those that believed themselves righteous continues throughout the forming years of Christianity and that forms of such persecution continue till today by segments of the church, some of which ARE DOING such things as the Master railed against in regard to the Jews 2000 years ago.

In this final set of Beatitudes the blessing IS the Kingdom and here again we must try to understand that the Kingdom IS NOT that place that men go when they die according to doctrine. The Kingdom IS NOT a place at all and we should understand that “your reward in heaven” IS perhaps best understood as our realization of the Kingdom here and now. Jesus tells us that “the kingdom of God is within you” and while the church DOES NOT see this against their own doctrinal beliefs, it IS nonetheless True. We should try to understand the context in which these words ARE spoken; we read that “when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:20-21). In this we should try to see that the Jews DID NOT see the Kingdom as a place but rather as ‘spiritual movement’ that would come upon them. This IS amplified by the Master’s words saying “if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you” (Matthew 12:28). We see this reality in the Master’s teaching as He tells His disciples “heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you” (Luke 10:9) as He sends them out to teach on their own.

In the many parables regarding the Kingdom and what it IS like, there IS never a mention of it being a place for the deceased. Doctrines however have chosen to see the Kingdom through the Old Testament and the Book of Revelation where prophetic dreams ARE interpreted by men. In the end we should understand that the Kingdom itself IS a mystery that IS revealed to the True disciples of the Lord and this we should see in the Master’s words saying to His disciples “Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God” (Luke 8:10). We were not able to work our trifecta into our discussion but, in closing, we repeat it here:

• “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 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

• ² New Testament Greek lexicon on biblestudytools.com
• ⁴ Word Studies in the New Testament; Marvin R Vincent D.D. 2nd edition
• ⁸ Bible commentaries on BibleStudyTools.com
• 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
• ** “Personality.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/personality. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

those who walk on the well-trodden path always throw stones at those who are showing a new road

Voltaire, Writer and Philosopher