Feb 4, 2016
The Offending Part
lwk quotes this scripture followed by a question:
“And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.” -Matthew 5.29
Do you suppose this is something the man Jesus said, not necessarily guided by the Christ within, or perhaps even modified/added to/corrupted in the transmission of the scriptures themselves?
If you could distill down what the teaching was intended to convey, what would that be?
JJ
This basic thought is repeated several times in Matthew and Mark, which is not a surprise because many scholars think that Mark was written first and used as a source by the author of Matthew.
The above scripture mentions the “right eye”, but later Matthew repeats this thought in Matt 18:9 just mentioning the “eye” with no right or left attached. Mark does the same thing. There are similar references to cutting off the hand or the foot if they offend.
Even though there is some literal truth to these scriptures, as I noted before, it would seem quite possible that Jesus may have rephrased them if he had thought about how literally some future fanatics may take his words. Then too, it is quite possible that he never said it this way at all. Mark words his a little differently and Luke and John leave it out altogether.
The Aquarian Gospel gives a larger account of the Sermon on the Mount and never mentions this scripture at all.
Furthermore, Jesus said “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” Matt 5:17
Here is one of the laws:
You shall not make any cuts on your body for the dead or tattoo yourselves: I am the Lord. Leviticus 19:28 ESV
My guess is that this was a saying attributed to Jesus and got placed in there when the gospels were compiled. Jesus probably made some off hand remark about how it would be worth the sacrifice of a body part to enter the Kingdom of God, but didn’t plan on this type of wording to enter the holy writ.
As I said there is some literal truth in the scripture, because a life lived well with a missing body part is better in the end than a careless one where one is whole.
BUT…
99.9% of the people would see it as madness to pluck out an eye or cut off a hand just to avoid temptation. An I agree, that a person would have to be bordering on insanity to do such self mutilation, but there are some who have done it.
Saint Lucia of Syracuse, plucked out both her own eyes and sent them to an admirer to stave off his advances when she thought he may interfere with her vow of chastity. I’m not sure who was the more insane, Lucia, or the church for making her a saint.
Whether Jesus said this or not it surely was not meant to be taken literally, but merely stated to make the point that most any sacrifice or disability we might have to suffer for the kingdom of God would be worth the price. Those who go so far as to give the ultimate sacrifice of their lives for the truth are assured of great reward. On the other hand, suicide, in an attempt to negate life, is a grave error.
Even though all the words attributed to Jesus in the scriptures may not be completely accurate they are still the result of contemplative thought and have value. What meaning can we derive from these strange scriptures?
There are three body parts mentioned that may offend and cause the disciple to turn to the path of destruction. They are the eye, the hand and the foot.
The eye discerns light from darkness and when it ceases to follow that discernment the whole body goes into the hell of darkness and the person loses his way.
Through the eye the individual sees many things done by others that offend him. In this case he needs to pluck out the offense (not the eye) so he can see into the soul of his brother.
The hand is a symbol of labor and it offends when a person does harmful deeds that cause ill will in his brother’s heart. These offensive deeds (not the hand) need to be eliminated and replaced by acts of generosity and love.
Feet symbolize the power to move forward toward our goals and overcome obstacles on the way. Offences of the feet come when the person walks by those in need and does not help, or he bulldozes over a brother in the way causing harm. The disciple must remove this offensive behavior (not the feet) and seek to be a servant rather than to be served.
In reading and interpreting any words belonging to either a wise man or a tyrant one must use the eye of discernment. The literal words often do not tell the whole story.
***
Questions
Ruth asks: “These are the Jews that were here on Earth before other humans and Sanat?”
Not quite sure which group of Jews you are referring to here. If you are referring to sixth degree initiates the answer is no.
Ruth:
With the 7th Initiation, that Christ will be undergoing for the rest of humanity, what does that entail for him?
JJ
It is written: “He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied.” Isa 53:11 To complete his seventh initiation he must complete the work he has set for himself so his soul will be satisfied so he can move onward to greener pastures and leave the work for others to more forward. What all this entails no one knows in full detail.
For more on the seventh go to this audio
Start at 5 minutes 48 seconds.
The full presentation is HERE
Ruth
(Does Christ have to) resurrect the rest of humanity out of the darkness and above the cosmic physical plane? Or only himself and his elementals and Devas?
JJ
They will not be taken completely out of darkness but he will complete as much as is possible – to his satisfaction. All life will be stimulated.
Ruth:
So Jesus will be the Messiah over the Jewish leaders and ancient Jews who have incarnated into the Mormon Church? How are those people going to recognize him, when they are so stuck in wrong thought forms and corrupted beliefs?
JJ
The disciple Jesus will be a Messiah to the Jewish race, not the Mormons. That does not mean he will be “over the Jewish leaders” but he will be a force for change. Keep in mind that it has been over 60 years since DK made this prediction and even the plans of the Great Ones change with new influences.
Copyright 2016 by J J Dewey