\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n 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<\/em>” (Mark 12:29-31).<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n 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<\/em> 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n 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<\/em>” (Matthew 7:12).<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9\u2022\u0391\u03a9<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n While our overall topic has been the True Christian goal of become a True Son of God, we have been exploring the way that the Master’s final words in Matthew’s Gospel effects men’s ability to become Sons of God as the reality of His words has been lost over the last 2000 years. Jesus’ words ARE clear and while they have been translated and defined according to the doctrines of men instead of their True intent, the churches have failed to honor them by both accounts. Jesus tells His apostles and disciples, and through them us, to “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing 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<\/em>” (Matthew 28:19-20). The ideas at the beginning were the closing portion of our last essay where we discussed the ideas of teaching <\/em>and nations<\/em>. First the reality of the words should be understood as that the disciple should make disciples of ethnos <\/em>which IS rendered as nations<\/em>. Thayer’s shows us that the idea of matheteuo <\/em> which IS rendered as teaching <\/em>IS: to be the disciple of one; to follow his precepts and instruction<\/em>9<\/sup> and while there ARE lesser defining ideas attached to the Greek word, this IS the spiritually significant one offered by Jesus in His appeal for His gospel, His words, to be spread abroad. In the idea of nations <\/em>we have the seed of the Christian missionary movements over the centuries as missions have been sent into other nations <\/em>but the idea of ethnos <\/em>here should have been better understood as the human family and in this the movement toward making disciples would have started at home. Ethnos <\/em>IS a complex word from the perspective of English meaning and likely the meaning in other languages as well. The word IS rendered as gentile, nation, heathen and people<\/em> in the King James Bible and ONLY one of these Truly represents the idea that in ethnos <\/em>we have the entirety of the human family. The issue here IS the doctrinal ideas of the gentile <\/em>as the non-Jew but we should try to see that the idea of people <\/em>will work easily into most ALL uses of the word. That the idea IS sometimes used to specify other people<\/em>, those others ARE yet people <\/em>and the context of who IS being spoken about should be derived from that context and not the arbitrary words used. That there ARE several words that can be rendered as people <\/em>should NOT affect the idea of ethnos <\/em>which perhaps should be seen as people<\/em> other than us as a group idea. In the end, the Master IS telling us to reach ALL people <\/em>and, like His use of the idea of one’s neighbor, <\/em>the reality IS everyman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The next word then IS baptize<\/em>. we ended the last essay with some thoughts on the way that those who ARE to be discipled<\/em>, those that ARE to be taught to be the disciple of one; to follow his precepts and instruction<\/em>9<\/sup>, ARE to be baptized<\/em>. As we have often discussed, the reality of baptism<\/em> IS NOT the rites and the rituals that ARE attached to this word idea; rites and rituals that vary greatly among Christianity’s denominations and sects. There IS too much doctrinal emphasis on the ideas of when baptism <\/em>should be done and the way it should be conducted. Infant baptism <\/em>IS a rather meaningless ritual but it IS NOT any less meaningful than an adult baptism <\/em>that IS done merely to say one IS baptized<\/em>. Similarly the idea of being “baptized with the Holy Ghost<\/em>” (Acts 11:15) IS equally meaningless; this ‘rite’, which John the Baptist tells us will be DONE by the Master, IS accomplished in some doctrinal settings by the ‘laying on of hands’ by others who presume that they have ‘received’ that baptism<\/em>. While the whole practice of baptism in Christianity comes from the work of the Baptist, we should try to see the symbolism involved. While John symbolically cleanses the participant with water, the real act of baptism <\/em>IS performed by the participant himself who through the process eschews sin and accepts the reality of Repentance<\/em><\/strong>. Repentance <\/strong><\/em>IS the reality of changing one’s Life, his attitudes, thoughts and actions, to conform with the eternal Truths as put forth by the Master and by ALL spiritually oriented people before and after Him. Strong’s defines the Greek word baptizo <\/em>saying it IS: to immerse, submerge; to make whelmed<\/em>9a<\/sup>. Thayer’s tells us that: The word is used absolutely, to administer the rite of ablution, to baptize<\/em>9 <\/sup>and we should understand ablution <\/em>as a cleansing with water or other liquid, especially as a religious ritual<\/em>* as today’s dictionary tells us. While the ideas here seem to revolve around cleansing, the reality of baptism <\/em>IS far deeper and extremely personal. Because of this idea that baptism <\/em>IS so personal an undertaking, infant baptisms <\/em>and baptisms <\/em>performed merely as a rite or ritual according to church doctrine are superfluous with the ONLY benefit being that one can say that he IS baptized<\/em>. The reality of baptism <\/em>has naught to DO with water nor the ‘laying on of hands’; the reality of baptism <\/em>IS found in one single word from the defining ideas above: immersion<\/em>. While the word baptizo<\/em> IS also rendered in terms of washing<\/em>, the reference in Mark’s Gospel IS to “the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables<\/em>” (Mark 7:4) and in Luke’s it IS to the washing <\/em>of hands, these ARE isolated uses of the word which IS part of a family of words which includes bapto<\/em>. For us the reality of the intent of baptizo <\/em>IS NOT washing <\/em>and it IS certainly NOT the doctrinal ideas that govern its use as a rite and a ritual. The lexicon offers us a simple look at the idea of baptizo <\/em>versus bapto <\/em>in a commentary that we have used several times; the lexicon tells us that baptizo<\/em> IS:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not to be confused with 911, bapto. The clearest example that shows the meaning of baptizo is a text from the Greek poet and physician Nicander, who lived about 200 B.C. It is a recipe for making pickles and is helpful because it uses both words. Nicander says that in order to make a pickle, the vegetable should first be ‘dipped'(bapto) into boiling water and then ‘baptised’ (baptizo) in the vinegar solution. Both verbs concern the immersing of vegetables in a solution. But the first is temporary. The second, the act of baptising the vegetable, produces a permanent change. When used in the New Testament, this word more often refers to our union and identification with Christ than to our water baptism. e.g.Mark 16:16. ‘He that believes and is baptised shall be saved’. Christ is saying that mere intellectual assent is not enough. There must be a union with him, a real change, like the vegetable to the pickle!<\/em>2a<\/sup>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The idea here of baptizo <\/em>IS clearly immersion <\/em>for the purpose of change and under this the rendering of the word in terms of washing <\/em>IS at best a misuse or simply that we ARE NOT understanding the context in which the word IS used. Jesus’ use of this word idea in the Great Commission IS NOT that we should wash<\/em> men; nor IS it that we should sprinkle them which IS the general idea behind bapto<\/em>, an idea that IS used in parts of the church. And while bapto <\/em>IS defined as: to whelm, i.e. cover wholly with a fluid<\/em>9a<\/sup>, this form of immersion <\/em>DOES NOT create that permanent change as we find in Nicander’s recipe<\/em> for pickling<\/em>. Using these ideas we should be able to see that most ALL baptisms <\/em>ARE NOT baptizo <\/em>but ARE rather bapto <\/em>as the permanent change to Repentance<\/strong><\/em>, Transformation<\/em><\/strong> and Redemption <\/strong><\/em>IS lacking. Clearly the Master’s word regarding “baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost<\/em>” IS well beyond dipping or temporary immersion<\/em>. Clearly His intent IS that permanent change that had previously overcome the apostles and this without real evidence that they had been baptized<\/em>. The point here IS that the action of baptism <\/em>IS symbolic and NOT necessary for any who can come to Repentance <\/em><\/strong>without the aid of that symbol. Using the redefined terms that we have been discussing thus far, we can see the Master’s words as “Go ye therefore, and Our next word then IS name <\/em>and here we should understand that this idea IS NOT what IS reflected by the church according to such sayings as “If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it<\/em>” (John 14:14). This IS much greater than the doctrinal interpretation that results in men’s adding some words to the end of a prayer as ‘in Jesus name<\/em>‘. Again we go to Vincent to understand the deeper spiritual reality but we begin with the lexicon which tells us that: the name is used for everything which the name covers, everything the thought or feeling of which is aroused in the mind by mentioning, hearing, remembering, the name<\/em>2a<\/sup>. Briefly Vincent tells us that onoma<\/em>, which IS rendered as name<\/em>, should be understood as: Expressing the sum of the qualities which mark the nature or character of a person. To believe in the name of Jesus Christ the Son of God, is to accept as true the revelation contained in that title<\/em>4<\/sup>. If we can see that this idea of name<\/em> must reflect ALL that IS the person under the name<\/em>, we can then perhaps understand the way that the idea IS used in the New Testament. To “ask any thing in my name<\/em>“, to “call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord<\/em>” (1 Corinthians 1:2), and to “ask of the Father in my name<\/em>” (John 15:16) ARE ALL synonymous and represent calling or asking the one whose name <\/em>IS used and NOT some arbitrary idea attached to the end of a prayer. Regarding Jesus’ words from the Great Commission Vincent tells us that Baptizing into the name has a twofold meaning<\/em>4<\/sup>. First IS denoting object or purpose, as eijv metanoian, unto repentance<\/em> and second IS denoting union or communion with, as Romans 6:3, “baptized into Christ Jesus; into his death<\/em>4<\/sup>. Mr. Vincent continues saying that: Baptizing into the name of the Holy Trinity implies a spiritual and mystical union with him. Eijv, into, is the preposition commonly used with baptize<\/em>4<\/sup>. We should be able to see here that the whole idea of DOING anything “in my name<\/em>” or into the name of the Holy Trinity<\/em> IS much more than merely attaching His name <\/em>or the name <\/em>of the Trinity to the end of a supplication or doctrinal activity. The reality IS that we ARE immersing <\/em>ourselves into the Trinity, into the three Aspects of the Godhead, and in so DOING we ARE making a statement of Repentance <\/em><\/strong>through which we can actually live in those Aspects fulfilling, or striving to DO so, ALL of precepts <\/strong><\/em>and examples <\/strong><\/em>provided for us. In the end we should understand here that the Trinity IS but an easy way to look at the Aspects of the Godhead as they make themselves KNOWN to the disciple; we should remember however that each of the Trinity names <\/em>represents also the fullness of the Godhead. These Aspects provide us with a view by which to see God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It IS these same Aspects that ARE at play in the human family and while, as men, we look from the lowest level, awareness of the reality of our existence IS our goal. It IS in Repentance <\/em><\/strong>that we can begin to see and to understand the realities of Life; that we ARE Spirit as “God is The Apostle Peter clarifies this for us saying in full that “According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust<\/em>” (2 Peter 1:3-4). Here the idea of being made free <\/em>IS shown to us as our escape<\/em>. While Paul seems to be showing us the ultimate end for ALL of the creation<\/em>, that eventually ALL will find such freedom<\/em>, he IS at the same time showing us that this IS the expectation <\/em>of the Creator and that it IS us, as men, that must see our individual destinies through the words before and after this statement. Perhaps the greater clarity comes in Paul’s saying that “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body<\/em>” (Romans 8:22-23). Here he shows us our individual effort to use “the firstfruits of the Spirit<\/em>” to gain our freedom <\/em>from “the corruption that is in the world through lust<\/em>“. We must try to understand that it IS human desire<\/em>, the full gamut of men’s desires<\/em>, that comprise this idea of lust <\/em>and NOT ONLY those ideas attached to lust <\/em>by common usage; especially the doctrinal usage that IS most often attached to ideas of a sexual nature. Jesus shows us the usage of this idea of being made free <\/em>in the first part of our trifecta <\/strong><\/em>where we read that “the truth shall make you free<\/em>” and our realization <\/strong><\/em>here should be that we can ONLY have this Truth by keeping His word<\/em>s or, as He tells us, “If ye<\/em> continue in my word<\/em>“. In these ideas we should be able to see that it IS in keeping His words<\/em> that we can free <\/em>ourselves and that it IS our keeping His words<\/em> that provides our escape <\/em>from “the corruption that is in the world through lust<\/em>” and that frees <\/em>us from our own “bondage of corruption<\/em>“.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We should also try to see how that it IS in keeping His words<\/em> that we ARE qualified to act in regard to the Great Commission; it IS disciples or, at a minimum, True aspirants to discipleship ONLY that can “make disciples of all teach<\/s> make disciples of all nations<\/s> people, baptizing<\/s> immersing 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<\/em>” (Matthew 28:19-20). The next word idea that we should address IS the phrase “in the name of<\/em>” which IS much more that saying the words. First the idea of in <\/em>IS from the Greek word eis <\/em>which IS better understood as into <\/em>or unto<\/em>. For help in understanding the relevance of into<\/em> when used in such a spiritual Way we must turn to Vincent as the bible definitions DO NOT elaborate on the force of the idea. We often discuss the word as part of Jesus’ words that ARE rendered as “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also<\/em>” (John 14:12) or the apostle’s use of the idea in saying “to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name<\/em>” (John 1:12). Vincent tells us that the use of pisteuo eis<\/em>, believe into<\/em>, should be understood in such a way as: 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<\/strong><\/em>4<\/sup>. The idea of in<\/em> from Jesus’ words on the Great Commission IS the same into <\/em>and here we are to be baptized<\/em>, immersed, <\/em>“into the name<\/em>“. There IS a great similarity to the ideas of believing <\/em>“on<\/s> into his name<\/em>” and being baptized <\/em>“in<\/s> into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost<\/em>“.<\/p>\n\n\n\na<\/s> Spirit<\/em>” (John 4:24); that we ARE the unrealized Christ as Jesus IS the realized Christ, the Son which IS our inner consciousness, our Souls. And, that we ARE the Holy Spirit, the activity of Soul in this world of form. From the perspective of the Godhead the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit ARE Universal while from the perspective of man these Aspects ARE our individual link to our own individual Truth and to the Greater Universal God. As a man Jesus has this realization<\/strong><\/em>, full realization <\/em><\/strong>if you will; He KNOWS the Father intimately, He IS the Transformed <\/em><\/strong>and Redeemed <\/strong><\/em>Son able to bring the Power of Spirit into this world of men, and He IS the Holy Spirit, the activity of Spirit in this world as the Power of Spirit radiates from His mortal being. This IS of course a simplistic way of looking at the Trinity but we should try to see that we, as men, CAN NOT but glimpse the Truths that will come to us as we break away from the vanity<\/em>, from the “bondage of corruption<\/em>” (Romans 8:20, 21) into which we ARE born. It IS in our escape <\/em>which IS prompted by our Repentance <\/strong><\/em>and Transformation <\/em><\/strong>that we can realize the fullness of Truth and come to understand the dynamics of the Trinity; and this because “as he is, so are we in this world<\/em>” (1 John 4:17). We should try to understand that while we ARE yet trapped in the vanity <\/em>that IS Life in this world, our spiritual Inner Man, our Souls, DO ever try to prompt the mind to see the Truth and the Love that IS the Godhead in which we exist. This prompting however DOES NOT rise above the din of daily Life save for ‘moments’ of realization <\/em><\/strong>that generally fade back into obscurity. It IS in our Repentance <\/strong><\/em>that we can begin to better understand our own reality and through this the reality of God, the Christ and what we call the Holy Spirit. It IS in this realized understanding that we can see and change our vanity <\/em>into “the glorious liberty of the children of God”<\/em>, a change that brings us a measure of those “exceeding great and precious promises<\/em>” that ARE put before us in the prompting of our own Souls. Paul explains this saying “the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because<\/s> expectation that the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God”<\/em> (Romans 8:20-21) which shows us our plight and our own Redemption<\/em><\/strong>. We “shall be delivered<\/em>” or, better, we “shall be made free”<\/em> which IS the clearer definition of the Greek word eleutheroo<\/em> that IS rendered by most in terms of this freedom<\/em>. However, such rendering in terms of being freed <\/em>as well as the idea of being delivered <\/em>presume some action from outside our lives rather than show us that we must free <\/em>ourselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\nnations<\/s> people, baptizing<\/s> immersing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost<\/em>“. Can we see the inadequacy of the doctrinal ideas that flow through well meaning missionaries whose goal IS to bring people to their denomination or sect and to add to their Truly arbitrary count of those that ARE ‘saved<\/em>‘ by their efforts. This inadequacy IS amplified by the Master’s closing statement of this admonition to disciples as well as by the force of what should be understood by the idea of “in the name of <\/em>” as it IS ONLY in keeping His words<\/em> that we can be “immersing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost<\/em>” which IS to say that it IS ONLY disciples, True disciples or committed aspirants, that can “