Oct 5, 2014
Examining Thomas, Part 15
The Verse:
77 Jesus said, “I am the light that is over all things. I am all: from me all came forth, and to me all attained. Split a piece of wood; I am there. Lift up the stone, and you will find me there.”
So does this verse relate any truth to you? Can you really find Jesus under a rock?
We had three post a response on this:
Jenny:
There is light and intelligence in all creations. Have you ever held a rock or touched a tree and tried to listen to it? I have and heard their vibration. If all intelligence comes from one source then you should be able to feel or see or hear the vibration that is Jesus even in the trees, rocks, rivers and all mankind.
Rick: In the watch pocket of my jeans, I keep a polished stone, with the OM symbol engraved on it. When somebody tells me that their book is the only place where the Word of God can be found, I pull out my “OM Stone” and tell them, “The Word is written in this stone, for those that have the eye to read it.”
What do these three answers have in common? They all recognize that the life of God is in all things, even a rock.
But is Jesus the man in a rock as he insinuated?
Yes and no.
No, in the fact that you will not find the individualized Jesus in a rock any more than you will Jim or Rick.
But the answer is yes in that fact that Jesus represented the incarnated Logos or the Word of God and, as John says, the Word created all things. And what is the Word? All words are vibrations created from wavelengths. And what is a stone? Virtually the same thing. It is energy in vibration, which vibrations are created by wavelengths.
The Christ energy in vibration thus created all things physical and is in all things. Thus when Jesus, you or me become one with Christ, or the Word, we share a universal presence that reaches from heaven to the stones of the earth.
Here is the next verse that presents a puzzle:
80 Jesus said, “Whoever has come to know the world has discovered the body, and whoever has discovered the body, of that one the world is not worthy.”
The trouble with some of these verses is that we do not know the dialog that preceded them and they can be interpreted a number of different ways. For instance, usually when we think of someone who knows the world we think of someone who may be a carnal pleasure seeker, but that is obviously not what is meant here.
And what does a body have to do with knowing the world? Is he talking about the body of the world itself, the body of Christ, the physical body that houses our spirits or what?
He tells us that the world is not worthy of the one who discovers the body. This would indicate the body is a very spiritual thing, perhaps something spiritual as the body of Christ or God as described by Paul.
“Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are diversities of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is THE SAME GOD THAT WORKETH ALL IN ALL. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to EVERY MAN to profit withal […] (Then Paul enumerates on the gifts of the Spirit.) […] For as THE BODY IS ONE, AND HATH MANY MEMBERS, and all the members (human lives) of that ONE BODY (GOD), being MANY, are ONE body, SO ALSO IS CHRIST (GOD). For by ONE SPIRIT we are all baptized into ONE body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into ONE SPIRIT. For the body (GOD) is not one member (Life), but MANY (All lives together) […] Now Ye are the body of Christ (GOD), and members in particular.” (1 Cor 12:12-14, 27)
Here’s the next verse:
81 Jesus said, “Let one who has become wealthy reign, and let one who has power renounce it.”
Generally, Jesus did not speak very favorably of the wealthy. For instance, he said it would be more difficult for a wealthy man to enter the kingdom than a camel going through the eye of a needle. Perhaps he is speaking of spiritual wealth instead.
Next he tells those with power to renounce it. Now Jesus had great power and never renounced it, but embraced it. There is a particular power we should renounce and that is power that sustains the Beast. This is power or authority over other people that forces them to bend to your will unjustly. All unjust, unnecessary power over the minds of men and women should be renounced.
Next:
82 Jesus said, “Whoever is near me is near the fire, and whoever is far from me is far from the <Father’s> kingdom.”
There is a hymn with these words, “The Spirit of God like a fire is burning…” When one does get near to the Spirit, or Christ, he will be near a spiritual fire that will have a powerful effect. When the point of tension is reached he will experience the “baptism of fire.”
Here are two verses for the group’s consideration:
83 Jesus said, “Images are visible to people, but the light within them is hidden in the image of the Father’s light. He will be disclosed, but his image is hidden by his light.”
84 Jesus said, “When you see your likeness, you are happy. But when you see your images that came into being before you and that neither die nor become visible, how much you will have to bear!”
Oct 6, 2014
Examining Thomas, Part 16
The two verses under consideration:
83 Jesus said, “Images are visible to people, but the light within them is hidden in the image of the Father’s light. He will be disclosed, but his image is hidden by his light.”
84 Jesus said, “When you see your likeness, you are happy. But when you see your images that came into being before you and that neither die nor become visible, how much you will have to bear!”
I don’t have time to fully comment on your interpretations given on this but several of them are in the right direction. Let us dissect this.
“Images are visible to people…” These are obviously all forms on the physical plane such as people, mountains, trees etc that we can see with our physical eyes.
Then he talks about the “light within them.” What is this? What would be the light within a rock? Within all such images are two lights. First is the light of he etheric double and second is the light at the center of each atom. The electrons form a cloud that hides the inner light.
He says this light “is hidden in the image of the Father’s light.” The Father’s original light is pure spirit and from this was created the lesser lights of the physical so one could say the lesser light is hidden in the higher.
DK sheds some light on light:
Out of the flesh God will be seen and known, yet with the eye of the inner vision can God be seen even when a man is occupying a body of flesh. Not with the physical eye can Deity be seen, though the hallmark of divinity is everywhere. There is an eye which can be developed and used, and which will enable its possessor to see God working on the inner side of Life, within Himself and within all forms, for “when thine eye is single, thy whole body is full of light.” In that light shall we see light, and so see God.
Esoteric Psychology Vol 1, Pg 182
Seeing light in light is an interesting concept worthy of much contemplation.
The next verse begins with:
“When you see your likeness, you are happy. But when you see your images that came into being before you…”
It is obvious that our likeness we see is the physical body. What doesn’t make sense though is that most people are not happy with how their bodies look, especially females. The “before you” is poorly worded as it could mean a number of things. It could merely mean images that come before your eyes or images from before your birth.
Assuming he means before birth he could be referring to past life memories.
The verse ends with: “and that neither die nor become visible, how much you will have to bear!”
Some think all of our past lives are happening now or our past lives are still living as entities on some plane of existence, but if they were they could become visible and the scripture says they do not become visible. Why? Because they exist as memories or images within the soul. Memories can be translated into images and such memories will not die, but neither will they become visible in the normal sense, just as my memory of what I did yesterday does not exist as an image for others to see.
When we discover our past lives it will indeed give us much to bear, especially if we realize the karma involved.
Here are three more verses with fairly odd phrases to consider:
85 Jesus said, “Adam came from great power and great wealth, but he was not worthy of you. For had he been worthy, [he would] not [have tasted] death.”
86 Jesus said, “[Foxes have] their dens and birds have their nests, but human beings have no place to lay down and rest.”
87 Jesus said, “How miserable is the body that depends on a body, and how miserable is the soul that depends on these two.”
Give them your best shot.
Oct 7, 2014
Examining Thomas, Part 17
Good interpretations today from the group to difficult scriptures. Let us take a look.
85 Jesus said, “Adam came from great power and great wealth, but he was not worthy of you. For had he been worthy, [he would] not [have tasted] death.”
Sharon gave a great answer on this:
Adam was a highly evolved entity before ascending into matter on the physical plane and as a spiritual entity would have had access to great power and great wealth. On the physical plane he was starting off as a personality on the lower level therefore not aware of his true essence and worthiness as a soul and would need to reincarnate again.
Johann added:
Adam or the first born in the beginning came from great materialistic power and he had great produced wealth or was a good provider.
Ruth:
The only way to know Good from Evil was to live with both energies and in which got them into trouble with God, and then they were banished from the Garden of Eden…
Sharon:
The animals and birds are part of a group soul and run on an instinct program and feel at peace and connected as with humanity who rarely find contentment and peace until they connect to their inner being again.
JJ
That was a very creative insight of you and Ruth to bring the group soul aspect into this and you have made an important point. Humans with their individual souls’ self-identity are just naturally more restless – that is until they come to the knowledge that all souls are a part of the One Great Life.
Ruth expanded on this saying:
We don’t have a real place to lay down and rest, because Change is a constant, and our consciousness is always growing and events and places and people change all the time, and we can lose our homes or loved ones in an instant, and because we are self conscious, then we can emotionally feel pain and physical pain and mental pain, so we are in constant upheaval because of change and because we are aware of change,
Johann:
Animals have their natural habitats, but human beings do not but have to make one so they can lay down their heads and rest.
All gave good answers on this in close alignment with my thinking which is this.
We must first ask- What is a body? A body is consciousness confined by form. Some have called the body a prison for the spirit as the denser we get into form the greater our limitations. If an entity is centered in the mental or astral body and feels dependent on the physical – and misses raising consciousness beyond the worlds of form then he will be “miserable,” or at least quite unsatisfied.
By “soul” here the writer most likely is not referring to the Higher Self, but to the life of the entity who is not happy being centered in the worlds of form.
The next verse is another strange one, so I’ll throw it out to the group.
88 Jesus said, “The messengers and the prophets will come to you and give you what belongs to you. You, in turn, give them what you have, and say to yourselves, ‘When will they come and take what belongs to them?'”
Questions:
How do the messengers and prophets come to us?
What do they give us that belongs to us?
What do we give to them?
What does the receiver think “belongs to them”?
Greg Anderson Shared this vision:
I hesitantly share this. This is some understanding of the Tree of Life that I had gained recently. I am not looking to get into the middle of this and Allan’s explanation which for me seemed to be like a dog chasing its tail and never getting anywhere. Here goes:
One morning I rose up after repeating the song of the 144,000, I arose to where I stood before a door. I opened the door. As the door was opened, I recognized that this was my hall of records and memories. It was as vast as a large warehouse. I stood near the ceiling of the room and there were no steps down. I took a step out and I floated over a vast area that had several hundred full length mirrors standing upright. I was told that these mirrors are the memories and experiences of my past lives. There were literally hundreds of them. There was a certain mirror that had a particular draw and I floated down to it and stood in front of it.
As I looked in the mirror I saw a reflection that does not look like me now, but I knew it is was my own reflection. This mirror or memory had the key to understanding the purpose for my existence in this current life time and as to what I am to learn in this life ahead of me. To extract this understanding I am to stare into the right eye of the reflection that I was looking at. As I do this, there is a download of sorts that helps me to gain that understanding. As I completed that download, I now have clarity as to my purpose and what I am to gain. As I look down, I see that there is a cable of sorts that goes from each mirror to a different location. As I float to the ceiling of the room, I see that these cables all converge to a single place.
As I draw closer, I see that it is tree. The cables are like roots. The experiences and knowledge that I gain in each life time nourishes the tree and the tree grows based on that nourishment. The tree is my own Tree of Life. The growth of the tree is a representation of the growth of the seed of divinity that is in me. As I look at the tree I am asked to determine if it is large and flourishing, or is it small and seems underdeveloped? Does it bear fruit. Is the fruit ripe or is it green or is it small? Has the tree developed to the point that others may partake of the fruit and taste the Love of God?
As I look up I notice that the ceiling height in this room is dependent on the height of the tree. I am told that the ceiling represents the ring pass not, the limit of what I am willing to consider. The greater the maturity and height of the tree, the greater the knowledge that is available. However, on this occasion, the Lord allows me an exception. At the base of my tree I find a small door. I open the door and find it initially very dark. As my eyes adjust, I find that the light of God within me illuminates the area and there is a spiral staircase that goes round and round to the top of the tree. I find there is no ceiling at the top of the tree.
I exit the stair way and find myself in the very tops of the tree. As I look, I see the vastness of the universe. I see galaxies and planets in formation with the most vivid colors and light. Every sense of my being is quickened by the vistas that I see. Out into the distance I see a ball of light in the distance. My thoughts take me there immediately. As I approach the sphere of light, it seems a 1000 times brighter than that of our sun. Initially there is extreme fear that enters in. As I over come the fear, I enter. There I find a glorious being. He speaks to me and gives me knowledge and understanding. He then blesses me. The words of knowledge and the pronouncement of the blessing become vivid in my mind so that I can remember. After a while I exit, and work my way back to home.
I know after time and perspective many things that I experience or have seen end up having different meanings than they did when I originally had them. With the mature perspective that many on this site have, you may see it differently than I have at this time and may offer greater insight.
Oct 8, 2014
Examining Thomas, Part 18
Here is the next verse:
88 Jesus said, “The messengers and the prophets will come to you and give you what belongs to you. You, in turn, give them what you have, and say to yourselves, ‘When will they come and take what belongs to them?'”
Questions:
How do the messengers and prophets come to us?
Obviously messengers and prophets do not come to us all in any one life, but sooner or later the seeker will be graced with their presence. The ancient statement is ever true, “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.”
There are two key words that hasten their manifestation. That is one must seek and ask. A third point is to not stop seeking and asking.
What do they give us that belongs to us?
Johann:
They give us our inner light back, the light that always belonged to us in the first place.
Yes, the God within us already understands all true principles and a teacher merely brings them to our awareness. Understanding brought down to the physical level extends the life and comprehension of God.
Here is another insight on this. Jesus said “your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.” Matt 6:8
God wants to give us good gifts and knows what we want before we ask. The key is that what we ask that is in harmony with the will of God is already ours. Any messenger or teacher that gives us what we are seeking is giving is that which already belongs to us.
What do we give to them?
The verse says that messengers not only give to us, but we have something to give to them. What could that be?
Ruth: We give them an audience and we give them our own words and also Glory and we give them feedback.
True, but there is one more important thing we give them. We give them purpose. What purpose would a teacher have if there was no one to teach? We also give the teachers opportunity to advance for as they assist us then higher lives will assist them.
Finally we are told that we have something that belongs to them that we want to give them. What could that be?
Could be.
DK gives an interesting hint here. He says that he Fifth Kingdom feeds off the Fourth. In other words, us seekers provide some kind of sustenance for the inhabitants of the Kingdom of God corresponding to food that plants and animals provide for us.
Obviously, the food is not our flesh, but something else. The fact is when our consciousness is raised up so that it participates in the Fifth Kingdom then the energy within the soul group is enlarged and your teachers will be strengthened with additional spiritual food.
Verses 89-97 are a rewording of verses found in the Bible but verse 98 is quite different:
98 Jesus said, The Father’s kingdom is like a person who wanted to kill someone powerful. While still at home he drew his sword and thrust it into the wall to find out whether his hand would go in. Then he killed the powerful one.
You have to have a good creative imagination to make sense of this one. Let us see what you can do.
Oct 9, 2014
God Is Change
We’ll take a break from the Gospel of Thomas today and respond to Prophecy Guy’s post. He excoriates us for not believing the following:
“What most people do NOT want to accept is that God is the same today, yesterday, and forever…”
The first interesting thing to note is this is virtually a quote from the Gospel of Hebrews purportedly written by Paul for whom Prophecy Guy has great disdain.
“Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” Heb 13:8
So, is this scripture telling us that Jesus has not progressed or changed in billions of years and that he will always do everything in exactly the same manner henceforth?
Not quite. The word “same” comes from he Greek HO AUTOS which doesn’t mean the “same” in the way we use it today. The phrase represents His person; He, Himself. The Concordant Version has the most accurate translation. It reads:
“Jesus Christ, yesterday and today, is the Same One for the eons also.”
In other words, the verse is merely saying that Jesus will be Jesus and we can depend on him. It is not saying he will stagnate in sameness. In fact this same book of Hebrews makes note that Jesus has changed.
Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; Heb 5:8-9
Here we are told that Jesus has not always been the same. He had to “learn” obedience and he had to arrive at perfection (more accurately translated “completion”).
The LDS scriptures back this up:
And I, John saw that he received not of the fulness at first, but received grace for grace; And he received not of the fulness at first, but continued from grace to grace, until he received a fulness; D&C 93:12-13
The scriptures tell us that God is always doing and creating “new” things so obviously he is not in a state of changelessness. Here are a few references:
“And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.” (Revelation 21:5)
“Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:19)
“For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.” (Isaiah 65:17)
“And I will write upon him my new name.” (Revelation 13:12)
“And they sung a new song.” (Revelation 5:9)
It is written that God continually makes “ALL THINGS NEW!” When new things are made that creates new experiences to enjoy and both man and God are that they might have joy. When there are new experiences on the horizon then there is new knowledge to be gained and life is in a state of becoming, or evolving, and is then worth living. This state of rejuvenation through newness is necessary for all life, even God.
Then to top this off the very name of God is the epitome of change. Moses asked God for his name and he told him “Hayah (or ehyeh) aser Hayah” which has been mistranslated as “I am that I am.” It is more literally translated as “I will be who I will be” or as translated in The Immortal, “I Am becoming that which I decide to become.”
In other words, God was telling Moses that he couldn’t give him a permanent name because he was in a state of becoming or change.
We are made in the image of God and we change and progress so God must be doing the same, as we are patterned after him.
Oct 11, 2014
Examining Thomas, Part 19
The verse to interpret:
98 Jesus said, The Father’s kingdom is like a person who wanted to kill someone powerful. While still at home he drew his sword and thrust it into the wall to find out whether his hand would go in. Then he killed the powerful one.
Good comments again and I do not have time to do them justice, but most saw “someone powerful” as an obstacle to the kingdom of God, such as dark powers, the personality or the ring-pass-not. The sword represented truth that removed the barriers.
Keith gave a divergent answer that was quite thought provoking:
The part of the verse that got my attention was,”…While still at home he drew his sword and thrust it into the wall to find out whether his hand would go in…”
I remember doing the same thing years ago, but without the sword. There was a time in my youth when I could not differentiate between physical reality and the physical etheric. One of the solutions I came up with was making a habit of occasionally trying to push my hand through the wall. On occasion my hand would go through the wall, and I would become fully conscious in the physical etheric.
One of the realizations that comes to you after awhile; is that the ‘ego’ or ‘conscious mind’ is a powerful enemy, which must be killed in order to freely pass from one physical world to the other.
Now, I know going from the gross physical, to the physical etheric is not entering the ‘Father’s Kingdom’, but it is a beginning. Therefore, if you use the law of correspondence, maybe the higher worlds must be entered consciously by making war with them. That is, attacking them with stealth and cunning. Very much like an assassin or burglar staking prey. The prey might be the following: your conscious mind, your ego, your dweller, your higher self etc. Each body and its parts must be either conquered, jettisoned and or incorporated with others.
Maybe that is were the scriptural reverences to putting on the armour of Christ comes from. In order to go to war against the physical world we must go to war against all the worlds of form at once.
As we proceed here we need to remember that if these words were truly inspired by the Spirit then more than one interpretation could apply. Not every interpretation would be correct though as it has to be tested with the Law of Correspondences. That said, here is my take:
What has been overlooked is the exact wording of the first sentence which reads: Jesus said, “The Father’s kingdom is like a person who wanted to kill someone powerful.”
In other words, the Father’s kingdom is not a place, but something created by will, hinted at in the word “wanted.” The real kingdom is not a static place where all is quite and peaceful but created by a desire that wants “to kill someone powerful.”
Does this mean that John Wilkes Booth, John Hinkley and other assassins were on their way to the kingdom because they wanted to kill the President?
Obviously, this is not the case. The question to ask is when would a good man seek to kill a powerful person?
The answer is when the powerful one stands as a barrier to greater freedom, truth and light. An example of good men who justly sought to kill such a powerful man was in depicted in the movie Valkyrie where Stauffenberg and his group of conspirators attempted to remove Hitler through killing him.
Stalin and Mao also created powerful obstacles to freedom and light that drew forth brave men attempting to kill them to remove them as obstacles.
So perhaps the message is not that the kingdom is a place where we will break through and find, but the kingdom is created by an active courageous state of mind that is willing to risk everything, against overwhelming odds to move up to a higher state of being.
The kingdom is eternal change and progress and to enter the kingdom one as to be in that state of mind where he is driven to move forward and remove obstacles as they present themselves.
There is a common statement hat tells seekers that if they find the Buddha on the path to kill him. This does not mean the disciple should kill any innocent person, but that he should not let anyone, even a saint or angel, prevent him from progressing. When many seekers meet someone they think has all the answers they will quit seeking and relax. This is a wrong move. They need to not let he Buddha, Jesus or anyone else stop them from their own internal quest.
This is why I have told students from the beginning to not trust anything I say unless it is verified by their own souls. A teacher can stimulate, but truth must always be discovered internally by the disciple.
This story from Socrates highlights the point.
There was once a student that came to Socrates and says, “Socrates I want wisdom and knowledge like you have; what do I have to do?”
Socrates said to the student, come with me and wade in this lake about waist high and I will show you. The student said okay, so they wandered out into the lake and Socrates grabs him by the head, pushes him under water and holds him there about a minute and then brings his head up. The student says, “what in the world did you do that for?” Socrates says, “When I had your head in the water what did you want more than anything else in the world?” He says, “Air and the longer I was down there the more I wanted it.”
Socrates replied, “When you want wisdom as much as you wanted air you will find it, as have I.”
There is no permanent kingdom unless it is accompanied by the driving force of higher will that is willing to do what is necessary to remove obstacles.
The obstacles are many, much more than some powerful dictator. Some are external and others internal.
Here is the next sentence:
While still at home he drew his sword and thrust it into the wall to find out whether his hand would go in.
The home represents familiar surroundings and the wall represents inertia or that which prevents the action from will. He cannot remove the powerful one until he can force himself into action, so he creates a trial run for himself to see if he really has the power to move forward. When he assures himself that he does then he applies himself in the true reality and removes all powerful obstacles. Now he can take his next step.
Here are the next two verses of interest:
105 Jesus said, “Whoever knows the father and the mother will be called the child of a whore.”
108 Jesus said, “Whoever drinks from my mouth will become like me; I myself shall become that person, and the hidden things will be revealed to him.”
Let us see what you can come up with on these two verses.
Oct 12, 2014
Teaching
Let’s put this idea to bed that it is a sin to tell anyone you are a teacher when you teach. Some didn’t seem to register the truth taught in this post so here it is again.
Here is the scripture that literalists use to object to the word “teacher.”
“But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.
“And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.” Matt 23:8-12
The first thing to look at is the main point that Jesus was making, which was revealed in verse 12. He was teaching the disciples to avoid titles which would place them in a position of authority which would take their attention away from the inner Christ.
First he told them to not be called Rabbi. A Rabbi was seen as an authority, like a priest, whose words were supposed to be followed above what a seeker may receive from within.
Secondly, he says to call no man “Father.” Now people who take things too literally may go so far as to not call their own fathers this, but is this what he means? If it is then we shouldn’t call our parents Mom and Dad, Father and Mother, etc. By extension Grandma and Grandpa would be forbidden.
Does such a restriction make sense? That is what the true seeker must always ask and the answer he gets should be in harmony with his spirit, mind and emotions after he thinks it through.
No, it doesn’t make sense to refuse to call your Father and Mother by what they are for it doesn’t unjustly exalt then. How could we honor our Father and Mother if we cannot call them by what they are?
What Jesus was against was substituting the authority of the inner Christ for the outer that takes it’s place. The Catholic Church as done this by insisting members call the priest “Father.” He is seen as a father that is a substitute for God and this exalts him, which thing Jesus was against.
Finally he says, “Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.”
Master here comes from the Greek, KATHĒGĒTĒS, and these verses in Matthew are the only place in the New Testament where it is used. Here in the King James it is translated, “Master,” but other versions render it “teacher, instructor, leader, director, and even preceptor.” The first suggested translation from Vine’s as well as Strong’s is “guide.”
KATHĒGĒTĒS is derived from two other words which are KATA and HĒGEOMAI. KATA is a common preposition indicating motion but HĒGEOMAI denotes power or regal authority. That us without doubt the reason Bible translators in the past have rendered KATHĒGĒTĒS as Master, for Master is a much more authoritative word than teacher.
The common word for teacher in the New Testament is DIDASKALOS, which is used 58 times. When we think of the English word teacher, this would be the Greek word we would want as comparable. Nowhere does Jesus tell us to not use this word.
Jesus was called DIDASKALOS a lot of times and he did not correct anyone for doing this.
In addition to this the teachers Jesus confronted in the temple were called DIDASKALOS. (Luke 2:46) Jesus also called Nicodemus a teacher (John 3:10).
Disciples were called teachers or DIDASKALOS in numerous places after Jesus left the scene.
“Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger,” Acts 13:1
“And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles,” I Cor 12:28
“And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers.” Eph 4:11
Paul says, “Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.” II Tim 1:11
Obviously neither Jesus or the disciples saw any problem with using the common word for teacher which was DIDASKALOS.
Even so, common designations like teacher can be misused. I call myself a teacher in a way that applies to anyone who teaches for we all teach one time or another and are students at other times. What could create a violation of the principle that was being stressed by Jesus was if I demanded that I be called “teacher” when being addressed. This was why Rabbi was on Jesus’ list of forbidden words because when meeting one with such a position you are expected to address him as such.
It is not the words that concerned Jesus, but the way they could be used. If a title is applied to you in a way that is forbidden to others then you are falsely exalted and this is an error.
Such designations are the “names of blasphemy” which were applied to the beast of Revelations. (Rev 13:1)
Here are some more comments on this subject from my book, The Unveiling.
We are told that on his heads are the names of blasphemy. The King James says “name” but most modern versions correctly translate this as “names.” What are the blasphemous names on the heads of the Beast?
The emperor of Rome was proudly called Caesar Augustus. “Augustus” implies Caesar was Lord, or God. We all know many Christians were fed to the lions and crucified. Few know that much of it had to do with the refusal to accept this and other names chosen by the Roman emperors.
The current names of the Beast are not negative names like anti-Christ, Satan, devil and so on. The names of the Beast are adored by the world.
Here are some of the names of blasphemy used in the religious and political world:
* His/Her Royal Highness
* Holy Father
* His Holiness
* His Eminence
* His Grace
* Reverend
* Imperial Majesty
* Serene Majesty
* Lordship
* Most Reverend
* Most Worshipful
The Pope has been accused of having the name VICARIVS FILII DEI (in the place of the Son of God) written on his hat or some other item. The roman numerals on this name add up to 666, but this seems to be a fabricated accusation made by the enemies of the Catholic church who believe they singly represent the Beast. Little do they realize that the Beast has infiltrated all the organizations of the earth.
The great name of blasphemy was extended through the Caesars who went beyond Augustus to being called Lord and being deified as a God. Once a year each citizen in Rome had to appear before authorities and acknowledge that Caesar was virtually God. Once one did this, he could go worship according to his choice undisturbed. But, if one put Jesus or some other version of God above Caesar, he was seen as a danger to the state and was usually executed.
Thus, the most blasphemous name of the Beast occurs when a flesh-and-blood man, like the rest of us, is called and worshiped as a God. It is true that even Jesus said that men are Gods (John 10:34), but he was speaking of God in all of us with equality, great and small. Caesar was declared God as one who was special and unique among men. Caesar demanded to be worshipped, and it is blasphemy for one man to worship another man or even see another person as having more rights than he himself possesses.
The interesting thing about the emperors of Rome is that it was not the government who it was the people. The early emperors thought it was a silly thing for the people to do, but eventually the people called them gods long enough and with enough repetition that they began to believe it, and also see that the idea would secure more political power.
One does not need to go to the extreme of calling himself a God to his fellow men and women to have a name of blasphemy, but any name that brings the person a reverential respect takes away from the glory that belongs to God alone. Even Jesus was very cautious about not taking away from the respect due God alone. A man once addressed Jesus as “good master.” To this he responded:
“Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is God.” Matt 19:16-17
Jesus did not even want to take the chance of looking too “good” to his followers, but in the present time his mindless followers think it is blasphemy to call Jesus anything less than the best and most perfect creator God of the universe.
Here is another example: “But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted. But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.” Matthew 23:5-15
Isn’t it interesting how clearly Jesus tried to teach the principle of not using a name or title that exalts one person above another because “all ye are brethren.”
The Catholic Church has certainly disregarded the command of “call no man your father …” Using the title or name of “reverend” violates the same principle and is blasphemous. One man is to be revered no more than another because “we are brethren” as Jesus taught. Many religions use the title of “Holiness” or “Holy” in reference to their leaders. Many New Agers use the title Master when talking about a teacher, but there is one Master over us and that is the Christ within all of us. If a teacher does not speak to that center within us then we should ignore him.
Royalty uses all kinds of blasphemous names for God such as “Your Highness,” “Your Majesty,” “Your Excellency,” and so on. Even the idea of one being a king or the divine right of kings is blasphemous. One person has no more divine right to be a king than does another. There are many titles that are not blasphemous because they do not indicate that a man is taking the place of God. A title is correct if it merely indicates the job he is attempting to do in this life such as president, mayor, judge, senator, doctor, teacher etc. “Master” may be legitimate as an acknowledgement of one’s mastery over an activity, but not in relation to being a master (or in the place of God) over an individual. There is nothing untruthful or disrespectful about these names.
You will find, however, that wherever unjust authority rears its ugly head, the person exercising it will revel in the chance to be called by some title that belongs to God alone.
There are religious and political organizations where blasphemous names are not allowed, but the leader is still revered as one who is infallible or able to commune with God in a way that the average person cannot. This type of fixation corresponds to a name of blasphemy and it will be just a matter of time before the illusionary names surface to fit the thoughtform.
Truly great leaders are examples of what we are to become, not examples of holiness that we cannot attain. When is the last time you heard a person with a God-like title speak in such a way that it spoke to your inner Christ and caused your heart to burn? Probably never. It is different when a true teacher, who wears not the names of blasphemy, speaks or writes. Then the soul of the seeker will be stirred.
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Adam:
JJ’s a grown up. He can ignore it or respond. Sometimes I learn more from the tone of Keyster responses than the content. There are also responses with great content, as JJ demonstrated today. I think that’s useful. Keysters can read what they wish and delete the rest, JJ’s responses included. No one has a gun to my head.
JJ
This is one of the reasons I am tolerant of opposition and allow posts through that are relatively civil even though they disagree. Opposition has often brought forth some of my best teachings.
Ironically, this is a point on which Allan and I agree as he tells his group that opposition forces him to do some of his best writing.
Copyright 2014 by J J Dewey
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