God Is Light!

 

 

God is Light….

A new year dawns upon us this week, dear friends. For some, much of it may be the equivalent of walking in or into darkness. For others, it may be a combination of intense frustration, disappointment, sadness, anger; all at what we have seen and are experiencing. But we are called to be light bearers. These days oligarchs might claim to be light bearers! But they are not. What does this all mean for us?

A few scripture verses will help.

Jesus said I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.

John said that God is light and in him is no darkness at all; if we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness we lie, and do not live according to the truth.

Jesus also said you are the light of the world; let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and give glory to God.

And in Ephesians it says walk as children of light, for the fruit of light is all that is good

and right and true; therefore it is said, Awake, O sleeper, and arise…..for Christ shall give you light.

And perhaps the most significant statement the Lord says: found in Matt 6:22ff

The eye is the lamp of the body; if your eye is sound your whole body will be full of light!

 

Remember when the Bible first recounts the creation narrative, it speaks of darkness, and of God saying Let there be light; remember that when Moses came down from the mountain after spending time in God’s presence receiving the Commandments, his face shone; remember that on the road to Damascus, a light flashed and shone upon Saul, and Jesus spoke to him.

God is Spirit, God is Love, God is Light. All three at one go! Being, content, form. Not symbolism, as some try to say on the internet (!) but a scientific and little understood reality. Remember God’s words - not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord. The worldly understanding of power (the force of one entity over another) is not the same.

God’s will is seen in godly actions. Like the 2 commandments that Jesus said come before all others. Love God and love your fellow man. But understanding requires  a certain enlightenment. When Jesus said ‘turn the other cheek’ he was speaking in a context that assumed a conscience led by a moral sense of right and wrong, of good vs harm, of guilty vs innocent. This is why, as a historian once pointed out, as Mahatma Gandhi lay down in peaceful resistance before British mounted troops, the soldiers would not ride over him; conscience! Or why sisters of the cloth once stood before corrupt Government troops in the Philippines blocking their path in peaceful resistance; or how a lone citizen once stood before a tank, blocking it’s way, in Tian An Men square in China. Troops who would not obey orders to murder the innocent! When and where moral conscience does not exist, Jesus’ words cannot be applied. Scripture is not necessarily full of literal interpretations. Sting, (Gordon Sumner, The Police) once sang ‘I cannot turn the other cheek, it’s black and blue and torn!’ i.e. I’ve tried it, it didn’t work. Jesus never said ‘its ok, let others abuse you!’ Let them demean your self-worth,  and treat you cruelly.  No. You are no less a creation of the One God as they are. 

Back in the day when Graham Nash (Hollies; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young) wrote and sang, ‘rules and regulations who needs them’  he was not singing about establishing disorder but of doing away with oppressive and demeaning rules and regulations, (Just as the Pharisees had created!) hence his

‘so your brother’s bound and gagged, and they’ve chained him to a chair;

won’t you please come to Chicago, just to sing;

in a land that’s known as freedom, how can such thing be fair,

won’t you please come to Chicago, for the help that we can bring;

we can change the world; rearrange the world; its dying….to get better;

if you believe in justice, if you believe in freedom …

 

God is not a God of ritual. Nor of talk. But of action that brings light into the lives of others.

Frank Herbertm writer of the Dune trilogy etc  saying through Paul Atreides (Muad Dib) in the 1^st Dune movie -  ‘Sleeper, awake!’ where’d that line come from? Sound familiar? Ephesians? Or of Frodo reaching for the vial of light Galadriel of the Elves had given him -  when he is attacked by Shelob in the giant spider’s lair in JRR Tolkien’s The Hobbit. Where’d that come from – the Psalm that says ‘God is my light, whom shall I fear?’ God’s light is everywhere. And is experienced when you walk along the godly path. And Jesus laid it out and said I am the way. Walk this way….

It correlates to simple deeds of genuine kindness that you do in your life for others. God knows the difference in what comes from the heart and what does not. It is not only a matter of a personal relationship with God but also of a personal relationship that is always lived in the context of others. 

A few aspects then, critical to our sense of the Light of God reaching into our lives. Remember Matt 6:22 once again that says ‘your eye is the lamp of the body; if your eye is sound, your whole body will be sound. But why ‘eye’ (singular) and not ‘eyes’ (plural)? Because Jesus is not just talking about the physical body but the God given spirit within; and when your spiritual vision is clear your mind and body are energized. And you will know it! In brief…

1.God’s Light brings insight and understanding

This is the light of a keen sharpness - of sight and considerable ability, to understand a thing clearly for what it is; no ‘arbiter of the truth’ or ‘leader’ is needed. Such an ability can tell each and every one of us why a thing is happening, has happened, will happen; and to have a clear and strong sense of how to respond. Corruption is not excused. Nor greed. Nor irresponsibility. It is the old honesty of calling a spade a spade, or a donkey or an elephant. And to accept no evil which is  ‘hidden in the darkness’ but to work to bring it into the light, where it will fester and die, as is said in Eph 5:11.

 

2.God’s Light brings inner strength and a ‘lightheartedness’ of spirit

This is the light that energizes both mind, spirit and body! God’s gifts of love, joy, and peace come upon you; and that which the world cannot give it cannot take away! Hence, Jesus says, ‘my peace (my shalom = my wholeness) not as the world gives, give I unto you.’

The world cannot bring you down because you see it for what it is; and you learn to distance yourself emotionally, mentally, spiritually from its wickedness; how you respond is something you must work out with God. What if the Good Samaritan was risking his life when he decided to help a Jew in Jewish country? Might have been accused of trying to take advantage of an injured man? Don’t know for sure. But he decided he would help anyways.

 

3. God’s light brings confidence

This is the light that gives confidence and encouragement; from one to another; to help others see, starting with yourself, if need be, that it is not a question of whether you believe in God, but rather that God believes in you! It is to say ‘You can do this!’ From Jesus, and even through Stephen King’s character of Mother Abigail who says this to Nick in the TV movie The Stand! A combination of empathy, acceptance and support to help another take the next step in their journey. This is not ‘mentoring’ i.e. a -superior-inferior- shared ‘let me show you’ relationship; it is believing in the other’s ability to surpass! Encouragement is an essential key to the human condition. It is contextual, relational, social; hence the old Wesleyan notion of pastoral visiting and my visiting from house to house 3 times a week! Encouragement = strength = an ability to move forward. Teachers are meant to be encouragers!

 There is more, but this is enough for the week. Run with it and see where it may bring you to! In January 2026 we will begin to wonder about the mind of Christ and true Christian renewal, not the false gospel, or as Jim Wallis’ writes, the false white gospel. It is time. Walk carefully, tread lightly, be of firm conviction. Accept no nonsense from anyone, for their antics will take your time and energy, like the spirit of a medieval succubus.  And may the light of God in Jesus go with us and before us and destroy the darkness that threatens our wellbeing. Walk with Jesus. G.

 

God Is Love!

 

God is Love…..

Actually, God’s love is very simple to know about, because God makes it easy for us; but, given the common global penchant for material wealth, evil, and the sinful exploitation of others, this simple truth seems really hard to acquire and follow through on. Has run right through human history! And we find ourselves in the middle of the Parable of the Sower – the good, the bad, and the ugly. Reminds me of that Dwayne Johnson movie about Christmas called Red One where he is quitting the Santa movement because the adults are becoming so bad he doesn’t want to deal with giving presents to them, and the destructive habits of the parents are poisoning the children! But here we go, into Christmas week!

This all begins with John 3:16. But there is much more there than seems to be, in the verse. God created this world out of love; God lovingly made potential and possibility for God’s creation, so we could take on a lovely and beautiful opportunity. But this creation proved wayward and unwilling to cope with free will freely given. But that was the hope and the experiment. Humanity has never been predetermined by this creating God! The experiment continues!

From the myth of Adam and Eve, through the struggle of a people called Israel who kept failing, and who finally followed the movement of earthly kings and their priorities and shifted into an entirely materialistic form, armed with weapons, and not the spirit of God. Unable to grace the world.  This falling away continued with the early church, which created Councils to decide what constituted the Bible and what didn’t, so that we lost some 20 years of Jesus’ historical life. Why? He disappeared? Did he really? Then came divisions in the church, even from its early beginnings. Peter is the rock. Well, the rock split. And kept splitting. And none of the fragments could do what the apostles in the generation after Jesus had been doing. The power of the good news gradually faded and dissipated. But it left very hopeful words. Hence, we inherited much talk about faith and belief. Easy way to go. Blame the victim. Or blame ‘Satan’. The true gospel of godly power was lost, like the cup of Christ. Reduced to talk, words, and sometimes inspiring persuasion. 

But think of what Jesus said about giving a cup of cold water to someone who needs it  - you have given it to me, he said. To God himself. Meant very clearly to teach us. God’s love reaches out to every human heart of God’s creation. All we need is to welcome God there. Behold, Jesus says, I stand at the door and knock! God watches. God blesses. Do not look for what you want. Look for where God is leading you to. Every act of kindness and care that is done is rewarded with the ability to do more care and kindness; and this results in an overflow that strengthens the recipient,  who begins to grow in a new way and is able to go help others, unless they choose not to! ! By contrast, have you not noticed how, when someone is mean or cruel to you, it takes your ‘strength’ away? Or it feels like some energy has been taken away from you? That which is good is godly, and it builds, encourages and strengthens. That which is not, detracts from and harms the human spirit, and makes us weak, small, limited, and in the end, mean and cruel. Both aspects have always happened; and they still happen. The other centered love of God, vs the self-centered meanness of much of an evil influenced human spirit.

But be of good cheer. God’s love is very real, very alive, and all around us in the good, godly, simple folk who walk this earth; those who hear the voice of God and see the need of others. No blood is shed, but people are helped. Love is all around us. And it works to cover and protect us from all of the madness and evil around. 

But know this also - the love of God will itself bring judgement and woe unto everyone who would harm someone else. They will pay now or worse still, face the evil that they have created for others themselves, twice over when they leave this world. In that Red One movie, the punishment is solitude, forever. Interesting. Almost like the opposite of community. Or like someone once said, no man is an island. It is the other side of the house of many rooms, for hell is grossly oversimplified. We create it ourselves. At the end of this life we either go with Elijah or face a Red Sea crossing that will slowly choke and drown us. Continually? Like the weird story in the Pan Book of Horror Stories series years ago – where after being cursed, every night boils would grow out of the man, and out of these boils, heads would appear and remind him of all the wicked deeds he had done. He’d cut th talking heads off with a knife. But they would come up again in new boils, and this would go on all night, every night. Interesting.

Heaven is something else. There you start growing, as Jesus said: they neither marry nor give in marriage. And shape, form, and function move beyond this life. and you may travel from room to ‘room’ in the house of the Father, which is not a house! Think dimensions. Or will in Star Trek with the Traveler. Remember the limits of what the New Testament writers were struggling with, and why John’s Revelation is still consistently misunderstood and misinterpreted.

But the love of God brings strength to all those who practice kindness on this earth and brings blessing straightaway into their lives. Remember, salvation = deliverance, now! It is not hope, it is much more. You must see it coming, and then it comes. Folk will find Jesus in their own way, through their own little cups of cold water to those in need. More likely, Jesus will find them. God has an interesting sense of humor! And some of us won’t even realize this because we fail to observe kind deeds and look at ‘distractions’ like the color of a person’s skin. But the One God is neither mocked nor fooled. God is of no color. On the other hand, God is of many colors.  Remember also what Jesus said about different folk coming from all corners, who would end up sitting at table in the Kingdom of God.

God is love = God’s love is in you if you accept it, and then it becomes you and becomes God’s love to whomever you share it with! John 3:16 is the painful sacrificial love of the caring Father who comes to us, and even in rejection, dies to deliver us from the sinfulness of an evil will. Be willing to die for someone else. It is the willingness that makes the difference. It is a willingness that God can see. It will give you a sense of God’s love. We may take on good-will anytime, and create good, and make community strong, and bring joy and happiness into the lives of others. And with this all comes health. And wisdom. And the power to move, alter and shape a thing, whatever it be. Go, discover. While the rest of the world is singing merrily and drinking even more merrily, there will be opportunity and chance to help someone in some way. Neither you nor they will be disappointed. You will both grow, because of the love of God. The more it is shared, the more real it becomes, the stronger it effects change, and the more we are enabled to do.

The will to love enables the will to heal. Love heals. Walk in the love of Jesus!

And the Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you this Christmas, and be gracious unto you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and protect you, and give you His peace. Barki nafshi eth Athonai.

 

                             A blessed Christmas from our family to yours! G.

                                                                 

Christian Maturity.....

 

Dear friends,

On Christian maturity….

We have discussed characteristics a little these past few weeks. But what identifies and separates ‘descriptions’ of character as ‘Christian’ from the understanding we have of human characteristics?  Perhaps most of us might agree that they seem pretty much the same! So what are we really saying and what are we really looking for? It’s the defining, constituting aspects  – the stuff that makes character come into being - that we’re after. And they  are all dependent on specific actions. That which is referred to as Christian character is no more than that good human character and function that the One God desires for and of all human beings.

And what do the Scriptures teach us about Christian maturity? We look to Ephesians Ch 4:12ff for some guidance. Then next week we must look at what it means that God is love and how that applies in our lives. And then at year’s end, that enlightening truth that says God is light. Then perhaps some illumination will come. Believe it or not, maybe even more like science fiction than academic theology!

But Ephesians 4:12 onwards talks about:

To attain…..to the stature of the fullness of Christ;

No longer as children, tossed about

Carried here and there by doctrine

by the cunning of men

Their craftiness in deceitful wiles.

 

Speak the truth in love.

 

No longer live as sinners do

Darkened in their understanding

Alienated from God because of their ignorance

Due to their hardness of heart; callous, and greedy;

 

Be renewed in the spirit of your minds.

 

Think on these verses carefully. Note the contrast, clearly and carefully described; and the middle road, where we call reality for what it is, as kindly and as gently as we can, but without changing the truth of it. And the final clause, that speaks of an ongoing process of renewal.

When God called Israel, it was to create a people with a mission who would exemplify the grace of God in their lives and so spread it to all; SALVATION = DELIVERANCE! NOW. What happened? Long story short, the mission derailed. God gives up on Israel and comes in the form of the Son.  And the mission that the Son leaves us with? That soon devolves into divisiveness and weak spirituality which continues today. In all fairness, there are marvelous contradictions to such a claim all around us. Godly people. Seek their company and walk with.

But much of what we have left, is talk. Call it what you will. Talk; about scripture as THE WORD OF God. Quote it all you want, study it all you want, pray over it all you want. Your prayers won’t be answered. I could go on. No need.

The answer is simple, but we human beings continue to choose otherwise and so these good things that God wants for us do not happen. But we can change that today. No one needs to play spiritual leader with special gifts etc etc. We are all blessed by God if we all open our lives –  mind, body and spirit, to God. 

You have heard me mention Branch Theology and Jesus’ words about I am the vine you are the branches. That’s all it comes down to. No talking about connectedness but being actually connected. Linked. Joined at the hip. Close. We know how to pick up our cell phones and talk to a friend. We make time. We spend energy, we question, we argue, you challenge; do the same with God and learn the friendliness of Jesus, Lord of our lives. Watch what happens. Learn how to listen carefully and use the strength of God given will that we all have. If we spend 5 minutes talking to God, spend one hour listening.

I have no cues, no clues, no instruction because we are all different and God speaks to each one of us differently, BUT…..the end result will aways be the same. If it is not, it just means that we are kidding ourselves about having God in our lives. We’re just hearing what we want to hear and claiming God said it, is all.

The essentials are simple, as they have always been.

Christian maturity starts with being willing to believe that God is. This willingness puts you on to the first step of a new plane of being – of existence.

Then you practice the use of positive will. As I’ve said before, we all use our individual will all of the time. To get up, to sit down, to be silent etc ad infinitum;  where mind, body, and spirit is concerned.  Seems like most of the world is good at using its will for wicked, cruel objectives that exploit and harm. God calls us to do otherwise.  That is the community that God wills. If we go against that, we will indeed be able to serve the prince of this world and do evil, but the power of good will remain elusive to us.

This takes community effort. We are challenged to be exemplars; struggling, failing, continuing and finally succeeding.  It is a process. You don’t get to be a knight in shining armor because you can afford the armor! And we learn, a little from the Bible, a little from the church, a little from sincere friends, Christian or otherwise, but mostly from what transpires between God and ourselves; of being in synch with God’s will for our lives.

How will we know? Because the outcome is always good. There is no other end result.  If it is not good, we have not been listening. Go try again. That’s all it comes down to. Then when we get it correct, our will is in synch with God’s will and we may ask what we will and it will be happen. This is why so much of prayer asking just remains as asking, as though God is some great vending machine and if we put in the right number of coins we will get the candy bar we want.   

And it’s not about the amount of faith we have or believe we need to have. Faith is not quantifiable. As Jesus said, mustard seed sized faith is more than enough! Learn how to energize it. That is the key!

And what remains? The actualizing of love in our lives for all whom we encounter, in some way or shape or form. Again, love is not quantifiable. Love that is given is love known. And the end result is light. A light which takes all darkness away from our lives.

I want to finish the year with these ideas that you all can chew on next year. And then we can let them carry us onto a different plane. All of my life, God has continued to teach me, despite my stubbornness and my really not wanting to have anything to do with all of this religious stuff, that God is quantifiable. God is very different from most of what is said and taught, and God is always seeking to make a difference in our lives. Beyond faith, beyond belief, beyond sacrament, beyond ritual. Salvation is deliverance - in the here and now. And then it takes us beyond. Walk with Jesus,

And the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be with you always. G. 

 

Truth, honesty, integrity

Honesty & Integrity aka…. why lie?

Billy Joel once said in his song  ‘Honesty’..

If you look for truthfulness you might as well be blind,

It always seems to be so hard to give..

Honesty, is such a lonely word; everyone is so untrue

Honesty, is hardly ever heard, but mostly what I need from you…

( you can find this on you tube)

Go back some in time, to an episode of the Honeymooners called "Mind Your Own Business" - you can find this on You tube as well - to a black and white sitcom starring Jackie Gleason et al. story line goes…

Ralph talks Ed into an "or else" move in demanding a promotion and a raise; Ed tries it - it backfires, and Ed gets fired! Alice hears about it and cannot believe who would lead Ed into such a thing, it's not like Ed. Ralph won't admit its him so he pretends he don’t know nothing. He lies. Ed comes in and says don’t feel bad Ralph - so Alice learns the truth!

Then Ed tries working as a door-to-door salesman. He's a flop at it, manages to sell one iron to his mom, but tells Ralph he made 40 bucks the first day! Ralph gets excited  and wants to sell irons too! Ed doesn’t want to tell the truth; he says some have it and some don’t. Ralph thinks Ed is hoarding a good opportunity!

And so it goes…truth is calling a spade a spade, whatever the consequence. Problem is we bend it whenever we don’t like what the consequence entails; and the end result never works out.

If we are to have reliable relationships, honesty is essential. The Commandments talk about "not bearing false witness." That is social exchange, taking its meaning from the good or harm between people. The philosopher Spinoza believed that truth in friendship was a great blessing, and that friendship was a celebration of and a sanctuary for the search for truth in our lives. For Spinoza, the goal of truth was a foremost goal - an ideal to be striven for, since in daily life certain truths might wax and wane with circumstance and knowledge. The standard of honesty has to reach beyond the facts we can know to our very desire to be clear and truthful with one another. Take a moment and think of what "Editing" amounts to, and how often you might have heard the word "expunged" used.

 

 

Alice Walker, Fathers. (Abbreviated)

Alice Walker's father understood the temptation to lie, and the importance of resisting it. As a result, she learned to favor truthfulness, which, as she found, pays off in greater personal strength and deeper ties with other people....

I recall a scene when I was only three or so in which my father questioned me about a fruit jar I had accidentally broken. I've never forgotten my feeling that he really wanted me to tell the truth. And because he seemed to desire it - and the moments during which he waited for my reply seemed quite out of time; I was only three - I confessed. I broke the jar, I said. I think he hugged me. I still feel as if he did, so embraced did I feel by the happy relief I noted on his face; he didn't punish me but seemed pleased with me. I think it was at that moment that I resolved to take my chances with the truth, although as the years rolled on I was to break more serious things in his scheme of things than fruit jars....

Hans Christian Anderson, The Emperor's New Clothes, adapted by Colin Greer.

One day, two swindlers came to a great town. They told everyone they were weavers and said they knew how to weave the most beautiful cloth. Not only were the colors and the patterns gorgeous, but the clothes that were made of this cloth had the quality of becoming invisible to every person who was not fit for the office he held or was impossibly stupid.

Those must be splendid clothes, said the Emperor. By wearing them I should be able to discover who in my kingdom are fit for their posts. I will be able to distinguish the wise from the fools. The Emperor paid the two swindlers cash in advance so they could begin work at once.

In a matter of weeks, the swindlers decided they were ready to bring the Emperor his new clothes. See, these are the trousers. This is the coat. This is the robe. Yes I see said the Emperor. Will your majesty be pleased to take off your clothes....said the swindlers. Then we may put the new ones on you.

The Emperor took off his clothes, and the weavers pretended to give him one article of dress after another. The Emperor's Courtiers then called for the Emperor to walk through the town so all of his subjects could see the beautiful new clothes the Emperor was wearing. Yes, said the Emperor. I am quite ready to show my new clothes to my people. Don't they fit well!

Then the Emperor walked in procession from his palace through the streets of the town. How beautiful the Emperor's clothes are! What a splendid gown! The townspeople called from the streets and windows. Nobody would let it appear that he or she could see nothing, for then they would not be fit for their posts....until a little boy cried out! 

 

Jesus said let your yes be yes, and your no be no. Tell it like it is. I forget who sang that one, but it’s a neat song. Some truth is happy, some truths are not. But they are the truth. Changing stuff only further complicates it. Some have talked about little white lies and the like, but every lie has a motive and therein lies the evil. Truth is reality, which we must all deal with. Politicians are not good at this, and it makes them very dangerous. The road to hell is still paved with the best of intentions. Stay well. Stay uncomplicated. Speak the simple truth always. And leave the rest in God's hands.

On what basis do we describe someone as being honest or as having integrity? We look at the correlation in their life between thought, word, and deed. It is where what you say is ratified by what you do. It is the action that makes the difference. Talk is easy, and talk can be cheap. Yet without words and written and verbal speech, how would we communicate? In the pages of history, both religious and political leaders have always used the emotive power of words to reach out. But oftentimes their walk is unable to catch up with their talk. Our actions demonstrate the truth of our integrity, or lack thereof.  

Language has valid motivational and inspiring functions. But words that are not followed with concrete positive actions quickly become manipulative. Understand then, that integrity and honesty are NOT tied to words, but to actions!!

Let’s look at some of Jesus’ teachings that relate to these aspects. Note that these are scriptures that most preachers will rarely preach on. Ask yourself why. And we begin with

1.Matthew 5:34-7, where Jesus says ‘You have heard that it was said to the men of old, “You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.”  But I say to you, do not swear at all. Let what you say be simply ‘yes’ or ‘no’.  Compare this if you will to Ecclesiastes 5:4-5, and James 5:12.  The followers of Jesus should be known as men and women of their word. Their life is their witness. Jesus is warning that whenever we deviate from this rule we enter into all sorts of manipulative intent, and no good will come of it. It is what it is. Trust the Lord and carry on.  Very clear, but so easy to go against because of the way the world works! But you are called to be different, and God will back you!

2.Matthew 5:28 where Jesus says   ‘everyone who has looked at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.’ 

Good golly, what have we here? A saying that moves from LUSTFUL LOOK = IMAGINED SEX  = REAL ACTION.  Many might want to disagree. But the statement stands. Image in action = the real thing. This is very scary. Jesus is saying that what you imagine is the equivalent of real action! (think equi-valent as being of equal weight and value as in valency) So you had best control your imagination then! But how? We will come to this ‘mind-control’ more specifically as we move upwards.  There is a subtle distinction between mind and spirit, between that which is mental and that which is spiritual. Most of us live somewhere in-between! Make this notion part of your ongoing spiritual journey, and it will bear fruit as you go. 

All people have been created by God, and all are equally deserving of God’s love. This means we cannot make anyone into an object, be it of sex or something else. To do that would be demeaning to them.  Dehumanizing. It would not be treating others as you would like to be treated. And we become less in the process! We hurt our spiritual growth. More so, the forces that we have to contend with daily can objectify and demean our lives, so that we seem to become reduced in value and worth, and less than what we can and should be. One example – what happens when a poor person has to ask for help? Is that person treated with dignity? Or why are there so many single mothers, but so few single fathers? How did this state of affairs come to be? A child is not made by one person! This is why cultural norms and socio-political systems must always be subject to constant scrutiny. I have never given a damn for the norm. We must go beyond it. Customs, habits, and systems of structured order are created by people, and people are imperfect for the most part, no matter what position of leadership they might be in!  Ask The Lord to show you these things. You will find out as you grow. We move on.

3.Matthew 5:29 where Jesus says  ‘ If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell.’

The good news is  - this is not a call to self-inflicted blindness! Jesus’ words are never easily interpreted. It is not the eye, but the mind’s eye! That is much harder to deal with. Maybe easier to put your eye out! So you have to clear (not clean) your mind out, and not your heart!! Why? Because when the mind is kept clear then only can the holy spirit lead you! Remember King David watching Bathsheba take a bath? Right! How to get around that kind of looking – and the thinking behind the looking? that is the question!  Where to start?

You must know (be honest with) yourself, first. Then you must intend and will (your own motivation of will and determination) the giving up of such desire, because it is an attachment that will keep you chained and unable to move towards the Kingdom.  You must want to be free. And that can only happen if you have the Kingdom of God first in your heart. Above all others. Remember Jesus talking to the rich young man about ’go and sell all you have and come and follow me.’  Not doable, unless you can put the kingdom first. If you do not, it cannot happen, no matter how hard you try. Because spiritual growth IS NOT ABOUT TRYING! When you are right with God, it just happens. And you are always right with God when you put God first! There are no levels where one human being is a better moral person than another. They just seem to be, from what is known about them in public. And more often than not that is just a sociological presentation. An image, as we like to say. 

Modern psychology says you are only human. Lust is natural. Yup. It is natural to the human  state. Whether it becomes sinful or not depends on us! But you don’t have to stay there. Jesus says so. This is why Jesus is the ‘prototokos’  - the prototype of what we can and should be! While we make of him an exception, he is saying to us, ‘no, you can do what I can!’ Read John Chs. 14 – 15! We keep saying ‘Christ, Lord, Son of God’, and Jesus is pleading with us – ‘come ‘up’ here with me, you can do it!’ This is why Church worship struggles to make a difference. It cannot be more sociological than spiritual!

Understand that the ‘prototokos’ notion of the New Testament is very unique and is something that many steer clear of. Why? Because it teaches that you don’t need anyone. You are not a sheep. It says that you can be strong, and different, and good, and right, and can overcome! Isn’t that wonderful? Isn’t that the real good news? And it is not about religion or politics! It is about spirituality! OK, now you begin to get the picture. And in order to get moving, you must first begin to train your mind as the mind of Christ! Only then can your spirit use your mind, so that the holy Spirit can speak clearly to you and through you. The things that distract you are all satanic in origin. Know this. And be careful. And this brings us to a final text:

4.Luke 14:26 says ‘If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.’

 A little like having to pluck out a naughty eye, no? But once again, not a literal interpretation! It is a call not to allow anyone or anything to prevent you from getting into the kingdom of God. That would be obstructing your spiritual progress. And in that case, should you hate them? No. rather, it means you must get around the obstruction that they represent. Avoid them, ignore them, do whatever it takes when you need to. Keep your responsibilities to them.   Here, hate = move around that which obstructs! Stay focused on your destination and keep moving. Don’t argue, don’t get into a fight or a debate. Don’t waste your energy and get dragged into negativity. Leave them/it alone. Disengage.

If hate is at all involved, it is about being aware of what is behind the obstruction – the root cause, which is none other than Satan. Even a sincere person can be used without realizing it! How come? Simply because being a nice person does not = a spiritually mature person. There is a huge difference that derives from true awareness and perceptive ability. There is no protective magic in being called a Christian. You must always be a discerning practitioner of the Christian walk.

This is why when Peter attempts to persuade Jesus in Mark 8:33, that the mission is not about going up to Jerusalem to be crucified, Jesus’ answer is ‘Get thee behind me, Satan!’ Jesus is pointing out just how easily we all might be used!

So be at peace. But be on your guard. Always. False notions of morality and being ‘good’ are everywhere, and are freely touted by structured religion. Jesus is different. Getting into the Kingdom of God is not about being good. Or being good enough. You can try that road forever and it will never work. It is just about being loving.

To love God is to develop a real (not imaginary, as in ‘by faith’) relationship with Jesus. To talk about faith is to be barking up the wrong tree! People can sing ‘and he walks with me and he talks with me and he tells me I am his own’ but it needs to be more than something to sing about, which anyone can join in for the fun of the song! Yup. Singing songs is great. We all love music. Socializing in church is wonderful; not much spiritual about it, though! Take care of yourself. There is much more to come and much work to be done. Blessings always in Jesus, G.