Limited Vision

After a few days of thinking about it, I'm not entirely happy with what I wrote in my last post. I need to clarify some things and maybe re-state them.

I wrote:

What about Left without Right? (Etc.) Where do we live? We do not live on the endpoints of those lines. We live on those entire lines, the whole enchilada! That is as close to non-duality (wholeness) as we can get.

After thinking more about that the last couple of days, I'll say this. For one thing, using number lines to picture a continuum is to be using an analogy, and any analogy breaks down if relied on too much.

I said we live on those lines, and yes, we live on at least a very large section of those lines. We don't live at -400F or +400F, and yet we can measure with devices environments we can't physically inhabit. So in a sense we do experience extremes.

But the point of what I was writing was that we don't have an attachment to a particular point on any of those lines. An attachment is when we say that any one point is better than other points on that line. Don't like football more than anything else in your life, or your life will suffer. Don't worship computers or video games, or be overly obsessed with having the greenest lawn, because your life will suffer. That's the point I was trying to make.

Yes, we live those lines, left & right, up & down, hot & cold, rich & poor. But we only see a small section right around us, almost as if we are driving on a foggy road and you can only see 30 feet around you, front & back. We have limited visibility. Why can't we see everything? I suspect it is related to the idea of duality & non-duality. It's like we live in a duality bubble, or cloud.

But just think of it for a moment. What if you're in a white room, with white furniture and white objects. Everything in the room is white. What would perfect lighting be, for such a room? Perfect light would be muted enough so that you can discern the edges of things, the shape of the things around you. Maybe in a similar way, we couldn't handle the full view, just like very young plants and animals are frail and need protective sheltering from the full onslaught of life. We are very young, and our eyes are still closed!

Faith, Works, and Other Concepts

In this post I'm going to introduce a topic that many Christians may not have heard before, Duality. Bear with me, tough it out, and I'll show you something that is pretty cool!

Examples of duality are easy to find: extremes of light and dark, hot and cold, right and left, inside and outside. We humans are adept at seeing, and even enjoy seeing contrasts.

These dualistic concepts are like endpoints on a line, the whole line being the continuum of non-duality, or oneness.

For example, I am motivated to take care of my kids. The motivation is from love. But it is also from duty. On one hand, I find that I want to, but I also find that I have to!

We might try to make a statement about love, that because it is a coming together, that it must equal non-duality. But that leaves out duty. A more correct statement would be
LOVE + DUTY = 'TAKING CARE OF MY KIDS'.

What about in the book of James where it says that faith without works is dead? There you have another line, with faith on one side and works on the other. And that continuum could be called 'CHRISTIAN LIFE'. Duality would be only existing in one specific point on that line, whereas non-duality would be living the whole thing at once!

Let's look at some other concepts. Can you say that Freedom without Law is dead (or vice versa)? What about Passion without Direction? Would Hot without Cold make any sense? What about Left without Right? (Etc.) Where do we live? We do not live on the endpoints of those lines. We live on those entire lines, the whole enchilada! That is as close to non-duality (wholeness) as we can get.

Here's a cool visualization:
Start drawing lines for all the concepts you can think of (and label them), and have all those lines cross in the center. You will end up with something resembling an asterisk but with more (near infinite, actually) lines.

Now, you might be tempted to label the very center 'Creation' (as it looks like a simplified Big Bang) but hang on a minute. Creation would be the whole ball of wax, right? All of Creation is THE biggest picture of non-duality that you can come up with!

But what would you call those end-points? Duality. Each of those end-points represents a limited dualistic view of reality, the reality being the totality of creation. And the movement is to an extreme of duality, of separation from the whole. But none of us want separation, isolation. In general, speaking about any human being, however misguided they might be in their actions their life is spent trying to achieve balance. In a sense, we are trying to go back to what we had at creation: non-duality.

That’s a really cool thing to realize because it takes away the feeling of difference, the feeling of separation from the rest of humanity, most of which seem quite different to us. There really is no basic difference at all. Any perceived difference is an illusion, or a clouded view.

Now here’s another cool thing. All the things you like in life, like fishing, golf, whatever —anything that gives you that peaceful feeling— is you wanting to get back to the center, back to origin. Every single human being, and everything in the universe, is trying to come back to the center! Hot neutralizes cold, pressure neutralizes vacuum, etc. And every human being is trying to regain their center by whatever recreational activity or other pursuit that gives them that feeling, no matter how misguided.

Even the things that we don't appreciate, like suffering, bring us to the center because it tries to change you, move you. Whatever it is that does this automatically brings us closer to center, which is why it is said that your enemy is your best teacher.

Everything brings us to the center, like a big funnel! We are all trying to get back to our point of origin, like fishes swimming upstream!

Chalk it up to the way God created us originally, or maybe it is from our separation from God (which actually sounds more likely), but we have been pushed into a dualistic view / life. But our innermost desire is to return to God, to non-duality!

Here is something else that is amazing. If you sincerely try to absorb and internalize a concept, what the true meaning of that concept is on a personal level, you will at some point get a glimpse of the non-dual continuum that it is on, and you will begin to understand its complimentary concept. For example, if you delve into the meaning behind Law, you will find the concept of Freedom.

These concepts (what we've visualized as endpoints in our graph) are not like NOUNS (things), they are like VERBS! Duality focuses on the endpoints, on what it GETS. Non-duality has no focus, but is expanding, GIVING.

In the beginning, God was all there was. This 'all-ness' was one, no splits, non-dual. If Non-duality still is, then duality is an 'illusion', or at least a narrower, shadowed vision of reality.
At best, our vision is cloudy. But the real reality is non-dual!

The spiritual is REAL. The material world is either an illusion or a limited view.

If God is only real to us as a physical THING (or if we make things into gods) it is called idolatry.

If we make concepts like love, faith, freedom, (etc.) into THINGS to be acquired or manipulated (instead of internalizing them on a real level) then we are not on the same wavelength as God.

Dualistic thinking (thinking in terms of THINGS) separates us from God and others. It's us versus the world.

IE- Living materialistically is not living spiritually. This comes as no surprise, does it?

The spiritual world is real. The material world is an illusion or a limited view!

Openness and Growth

We know in the natural world that an opening of some sort is an invitation for something to move into that opening, to fill it up. As a vacuum pulls in pressure, darkness somehow pulls in light, and coldness pulls out heat. Balance is sought, and that creates motion, energy.

As we gain in maturity (consciousness, not fossilization, lol) we are encouraged to be more accepting of others, to open up more, and to internalize our daily ration of life lessons. This, and our quiet time in prayer and connection with God, brings peace and quiet and allows positive energy and facilitates a higher consciousness. This is growth.

Unconsciousness / confusion leads to refusal to 'play well' with others, refusal to have any opening, refusal to internalize or learn from life's lessons. There is no prayer or deep connection with self or God. What is produced internally can only be a chaos of discordant noise, annoyance and disconnection from self and others. The confused or unconscious has cut themselves off from any sort of real life.

Consciousness / growth is ever opening, ever growing!
Unconsciousness is cutting off, closing, dying.

In life there are only two states- things that are growing and things that are dying. You are either growing or dying depending on whether you open yourself or close off.

Vulnerability

I have no idea where this might take us, and that is a little scary. I used to think that when I had a 'butterflies in my stomach' feeling it meant I was scared. But that feeling is just a recognition of vulnerability. I have learned that outside of my comfort zone is where I really live life.

You will never reach home if you are clinging to the safety of third base.

No one wants to feel vulnerable. But the truth of it is that vulnerability is openness and openness is availability and availability allows creation and creation is life!

So, which direction do I turn?
----Well, in what direction does your heart skip a beat?

What scares you, is what excites you and what excites you is what you love and what you love is what enlivens!

The Search for Truth

My faith is the very thing that both allows and drives me to 'doubt' (investigate). There is nothing to fear.

I want what is said here in this 'blog' to benefit someone. Obviously, I am directing this primarily to Americans of the Christian faith, because that is where I come from. That is what I know the most about, and these are the people I care about the most.

For many in the U.S., church is what they do to fit in. It's what they do to meet business clients or get dates or a future spouse. Or they do church to keep their spouse or family happy. A lot of effort is put into their outfit and washing the car, because image is everything. This blog is not really for them, unless they become tired of the falsehood.

To become tired of the falsehood is to desire the truth, above all else.

There is a saying that goes, 'every man has his price' but I disagree. Jesus could not be bought. That's who I want to follow, and be like. So similarly, I do not care about appearances, power, money, or prestige. What I will seek, no matter where it take me, is the truth.

This is a scary path. But in honestly seeking the truth, can I expect God to lie to me? No, of course not.

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? (Matthew 7)

I said before that my faith is the very thing that both allows and drives me to 'doubt' (investigate). There is nothing to fear. But the truth of the matter is-- I do have fear.

I read a fair amount. And all my adult life I have been obsessed with discovering whatever the truth may be. I don't shy away from any philosophies or questions. But I have held off from reading some books.

Tonight, I started reading Daniel Dennett's 'Breaking the Spell'. Although initially I felt a huge amount of fear (because the book purports to examine the very mechanism of faith) I am finding that I agree with the author. These things DO need to be examined, for many reasons.

Accepting Jesus' challenge of, "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you" is an exciting journey!

Outer Fruits of the Inner Life

I am sure that by now you have noticed a reoccurring theme, which is the contrast between inner faith and outer fruits, of spirituality and religion. Even though this is the most basic of topics, I think that many might still misunderstand.

On an individual level, if we humble ourselves and become quiet and receptive, we become able to pray. Our spirit affirms a connection with God's spirit. And we are fed spiritually, with peace, joy, and love. This is a holy place, accessible to all!

No need to feel guilty. This is not a selfish inner focus, because in humbling ourselves and becoming quiet we do not seek any self gratification or expansion. We are in this personal, internal quiet space to be with our creator.

And on an individual level this attention to inner spirituality, our true connection with God, leaves us energized and full of the life that produces, externally, the fruits of the spirit! Without any thought of self promotion, we can turn outward to our neighbors (or even our enemies) and show them compassion and love.

(The following is from Galatians 5)

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. [IE- These are the outer manifestations of a healthy inner spiritual life]
And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. [IE- But you can't be thinking selfishly]

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Let's look at the group level- the church. If a church has true spirituality working in it, there will be an energizing of those spiritual people with peace, joy, and love. And the impact of the church on the community will be fruitful with the fruits of the spirit. Without any thought of the church's promotion or profit, we can turn outward to our community (which may include those opposed to us) and show them compassion and love.

The principle is clear: Top priority is to the inner spiritual bond, and the outer fruit will come on it's own. Don't worry about it!

Can a person try to fake the outer fruits of the spirit? Can a church try to put up a good show, a good looking exterior? Yes to both. But invariably they will become more and more selfish, self-centered, into gratification and hoarding. They have neglected the inside, and so they will feel as if they are somehow starving (because they are. This is called, "lust of the flesh").

(Also from Galatians 5)

[This] I say then, Walk in the Spirit, [Attend to the inner, spiritual life]
and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. [and you won't be such a selfish jerk]
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit [the selfish mind resists the quiet spirit],
and the Spirit against the flesh [the quiet spirit has no wants or needs]:
and these are contrary the one to the other...

You can get rid of those cravings and feelings of inadequacy, but not by trying to feed into them!

Cosmic Formulas and Hocus Pocus

The following quote is from Wikipedia. This is one of several possible historical explanations for the words 'Hocus Pocus':

...it may simply be imitation Latin with no meaning, made up to impress people:

I will speak of one man... that went about in King James his time... who called himself, The Kings Majesties most excellent Hocus Pocus, and so was he called, because that at the playing of every Trick, he used to say, Hocus pocus, tontus talontus, vade celeriter jubeo, a dark composure of words, to blinde the eyes of the beholders, to make his Trick pass the more currently without discovery, because when the eye and the ear of the beholder are both earnestly busied, the Trick is not so easily discovered, nor the Imposture discerned.

— Thomas Ady, A Candle in the Dark, 1656

That reminds me of the story in Acts 8 of Simon the magician:

But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one: To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, "This man is the great power of God." And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.

But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.

Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.

Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) Then laid they [their] hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.

And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, Saying, "Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost."

But Peter said unto him, "Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and [in] the bond of iniquity."

Then answered Simon, and said, "Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me."

Now you may wonder how this relates to modern worship in our modern churches. Simon thought he could 'fake it til he made it.' Simon did not yet understand that any change must be internal, not external. Only a personal, internal seeking for spiritual things can result in the externally seen fruits of spirituality.

In a prior post I talked about objectification of Jesus (keeping Jesus at arms length, not looking for him within) being a form of idolatry. This also goes for God.

We cannot treat God as if he is some sort of cosmic formula that we can manipulate to get our way.

God is not a rabbit's-foot, nor is he Santa Claus. He's not in our back pocket. He's not our copilot, and he's not here to help us against other people. Stop trying to think you can use God! Any of these kinds of things is like that stage magician saying 'Hocus Pocus, Alacazam!' while they distract and fool people. And there are some poor superstitious souls who play the trick and fool even themselves.

A very immature new Christian might have the mistaken idea that we 'fake it til we make it'. But true internal spirituality springs forth from inside to outside, like a light or a fountain. How can you blast out this positive energy if it does not come from within? Impossible!

An externally focused religion (one that does not come from within) is despicable:

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead [men's] bones, and of all uncleanness. (Matthew 23:27)

Eventually, the internal practices of prayer and worship begin to influence the external life until the two become one. Then every action, every step is in communion with God. Then, the words 'internal' and 'external' have no meaning.

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, [which is] your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Romans 12:1,2)

Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. (1 Thessalonians 16-18)

External = Temporary; Internal = Eternal

Let's take a look at the story of the woman at the well in John 4.

"Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria?" for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.
Jesus answered and said unto her, "If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water."
The woman saith unto him, "Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?"
Jesus answered and said unto her, "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life."

She was completely focused on everything external. Jesus was turning her to the spiritual, the internal.

The woman saith unto him, "Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw."

She's not taking Jesus seriously. I think she thinks Jesus is joking with her!

Jesus saith unto her, "Go, call thy husband, and come hither."
The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."
Jesus said unto her, "Thou hast well said, I have no husband: For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly."
The woman saith unto him, "Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet."

He says for her to go get her man, and she says she doesn't have a man. Basically, Jesus tells her he knows she's sleeping with all kinds of men, and not only that but she's sleeping with men she knows are married! I think she thought she was very successful in keeping this a secret, which is why she was so shocked. "How did you know?"

So she asks him what she thinks is a challenging question:

"Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship."

Jesus saith unto her, "Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.
But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God [is] a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship [him] in spirit and in truth."

Jesus is telling her that all this external stuff is not what God is interested in. The seeking out of God must be done internally, spiritually!

The woman saith unto him, "I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things."
Jesus saith unto her, "I that speak unto thee am [he]."

And upon this came his disciples, and marvelled that he talked with the woman: yet no man said, "What seekest thou?" or, "Why talkest thou with her?"

[But you can bet they were scandalized!]

The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men, "Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?"
Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.

In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, "Master, eat."
But he said unto them, "I have meat to eat that ye know not of."
Therefore said the disciples one to another, "Hath any man brought him [ought] to eat?"

It seems everyone was so wrapped up in external things and not the spiritual. But you can see that the woman is letting go of external things, in that she left her waterpot. It wasn't so important anymore!

Jesus saith unto them, "My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.
Say not ye, There are yet four months, and [then] cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together. And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth. I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours."

Let me point out here that Jesus was intensely focused on the job at hand. He was not calling for worshipers, but rather he was trying to get the message out of sustenance to be had. Jesus is all action.
You would think that turning attention to the spiritual, internal life would lead to inaction wouldn't you? Contemplation leading to 'analysis paralysis'? This is what is meant (in James 2) by, "For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." Faith that springs from the inside out shows itself as energy. Faith is not something external, but it shows itself externally, like the light of a city on a hill.

And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, "He told me all that ever I did."

I think that this woman was a grand woman, known in her community for her kindness. Otherwise, how else do you explain the effect of her testimony on her community? She was a respectable woman externally.

So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days. And many more believed because of his own word; And said unto the woman, "Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard [him] ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world."

I want to point out here the phrase "Christ, the Saviour of the world." The title 'Christ' is not Jesus' name. It's his title. Why is this important? Because it speaks of his mission, his job, his function. It's a transliteration of a Greek word that is the equivalent of the Jewish word for 'messiah' and it means 'leader'. There is a distinction between God, who is WORSHIPED, and Jesus, who is FOLLOWED. Jesus never asked us to pray to him or to worship him, but to follow him.

I apologize for this being a larger than normal post, but I didn't feel right cutting such a great story in half. There is sustenance here!

Still Small Voice

And he [the Lord] said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind and earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. (I Kings 19)

God chose to speak to Elijah through a "still small voice."

How could Elijah hear this? He had to be QUIET. He had to be very still, physically and mentally, in order to properly hear it.

What was it? It was something that Elijah only heard with his spirit, in other words, not with his physical ears. Elijah was only able to hear that still small voice because his spirit was in alignment with God.

Where was this voice, to Elijah? Very close! It's something that feels more internal than external, spiritual rather than physical.

Does anyone find it remarkable that the voice of God is something so intimate? That it doesn't need to go through any clergy or other official bodies?

Jesus said, "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" (Matt 7)

When Jesus said that, he was speaking of an internal seeking, not external. This is proven by the context, as just a couple of verses before Jesus was talking about finding and removing the log in your own eye before making a big deal out of the speck in your brother's eye. In other words, Jesus segued from talking about soul searching inside yourself to discover your own intentions and motivations, to another internal process, prayer. The 'channel' for communicating with God is internal. It has always been internal!

Starvation (part 2)

I wrote before-

Jesus, instead of being internalized and accessible to us as he should, is withheld from us, made into a magical being that we can never hope to approach, let alone try to follow...When Jesus is held up as the object of our worship instead of God, or when we worship Jesus as an image of God, then we have objectified him, made him something external. That is treating him like an idol...as long as Jesus is held off at arms length as being external and superior to us in every way, how can we invite him in? How can we find him in us if we are looking outside of us for him?

If we intellectualize Jesus, we are doing the same disservice.

Let's say an immature, selfish man comes to church and likes what he hears. He knows that he has flaws in his makeup. Yes, he feels very inferior and in need of fixing. So, despite (or aided by) the emotional singing of the invitation call, he makes a very rational decision to accept Jesus as his personal lord and savior. He doesn't even know what 'personal lord and savior' really mean. Are they different? Why is it personal? "Maybe this is like learning chemistry in college-- just accept it and stop trying to figure it out!" is what he tells himself. Some people do define faith in just that way.

As each Sunday goes by, he begins to interpret that what everyone is talking about is an intellectual agreement that Jesus died on a cross for all of our sins, so now we get to go to heaven when we die because we're all in agreement that this as a fact. (Jesus has just been intellectualized)

"Hmmmm... So this is all there is to being a Christian?" he asks someone one day.
"Well, yeah... You can always go to this other Bible study, join this group...You just need to have faith!"
Maybe that's it-- he just doesn't have enough faith! (something else we've externalized)
So he really tries hard. Maybe, if he just tries a little harder... a little harder... a little harder...
The harder he tries, the more elusive all of this is to him, and he ends up frustrated and defeated. He's just as immature and selfish, and now he is also even more unhappy with himself. But, he sure looks good on the outside!
He is spiritually starving!

Starvation (part 1)

I ended up my previous post talking about spiritual starvation.

I believe there are huge numbers of people these days that are starving spiritually, inside and outside of churches. Our modern religious activities are completely inadequate to the task of solving the problem of spiritual starvation.
This starvation I believe, is the main motivator for the lust for power and greed. It fuels many vices (forbidden fruit), including physical overeating, porn addiction, shopping addiction, etc. It is a desire to feed one's false sense of identity.

I am merely trying to point out a trend in our human nature, not to make any moral judgment calls.

It is funny, in a very sad sort of way, that a person can be starving when they are so close to food! Because this hunger seeks fulfillment only in external things, and never seeks internally.

Our society has encouraged this philosophy and behavior because it promotes more business. It sells more cars. What is shameful is that our churches have this competitive external seeking philosophy.

Jesus, instead of being internalized and accessible to us as he should, is withheld from us, made into a magical being that we can never hope to approach, let alone try to follow.

Who does this? The church. When Jesus is held up as the object of our worship instead of God, or when we worship Jesus as an image of God, then we have objectified him, made him something external. That is treating him like an idol.

This is understandable, because people tend to want to keep some sort of control over everything, even their god. But as long as Jesus is held off at arms length as being external and superior to us in every way, how can we invite him in? How can we find him in us if we are looking outside of us for him?

Forbidden Fruits

As a species, why do we humans have our 'wires crossed'?
Why is it that illicit activity is exciting?
Why do we get such a kick out of something stolen?
Why do women like the 'bad boys'?
Why do we enjoy TV shows centered around spies, vampires, and similar dark characters, or violent crime dramas?
And why do we not get a kick out of 'being good'?

I think that the hunger people have for the 'dark side' is from a warped pursuit of empowerment. Finally they feel a bit of freedom in the crossing into 'forbidden' territory!

This is precisely why Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit in the garden. It was a misguided attempt at personal empowerment.

Would you say that Jesus was an empowered individual?
Of course you would!

So, what are we missing here? Why do we find it so hard to get 'plugged in' so-to-speak?

Speaking for myself, I have realized that I get a feeling of personal empowerment by being assertive, in any manner. This is one of the secrets of life, investment-- what you invest will return amplified.

Jesus had a task set before him, and he took the responsibility gladly to get the job done. Because he answered the call of his responsibility, that assertive stance further empowered him.
He did what he knew to be right even if it was at odds with religious or political leaders, because he was a spiritual leader.

If we Christians are to set ourselves the task of following Jesus' lead, of being like him, we may often find that political and religious groups (worldly powers) fear empowered individuals. They would much rather you merely worship Jesus.

Inaction is starvation. If you merely worship Jesus, you are starving yourself.

You won't hear that in most churches.

Communicating Through Imperfection

Mankind's greed and lust for power has purposely hidden or changed God's message to us.

Why would God allow his message to be treated in this way? This is a question that has burned in me for a long time.

Why would a sovereign God let his message become corrupted and misused? If his message to us is of utmost importance, and he can see that it is being miscommunicated, why doesn't he intervene to protect it?

The answer is right under our collective noses! We have always reminded each other that we are the only Bible that some people will ever see. Another way of saying this is that we are God's voice to the world. In us is the word, and we are the word of God to the world! But are we, yet, perfect? No. So how can something imperfect reflect or project something perfect? We never will be able to perfectly portray God to others, just as the Bible falls short of fully explaining or portraying God. It will never be perfect in this life. We will never fully understand all of creation, let alone coming even close to understanding what or who created it all!

Man's greed and lust for power have warped God's message in order to create a power structure that is really an anti-church, existing alongside the true church. These are the weeds that have been sown amongst the real crop.

God knows this, and lets it happen. Why? How could this be good? What can possibly be his strategy?

I believe it is because God has never been one to hide from us the consequences of greed and lust. With very few exceptions, every individual in the Bible has all their laundry on display, so-to-speak. Their defeats are right next to their triumphs. Consider these lessons from the Bible as object lessons complete with visual aids, complete examples from a full spectrum view.

And our lives are a living continuation of these examples, to others!

God trusts us to discern for ourselves, what we want to do, which way we will go.

Despite how greed and lust for power have warped God's message, it is still discoverable and knowable, and truly a gospel of good news to all.

Other Questons RE: Strength

It occurred to me just after my previous post, that the following question- 'What if ______________ were discovered to be (True/False), would that destroy your ______ ?'- is also a good diagnostic question to ask in other circumstances.

Like marriage:
What if ______________ were discovered to be (True/False), would that destroy your love/devotion/marriage/commitment to the marriage? [spouse's wild history, a recent mistake or affair, an addiction, trust issues of any sort, etc. What could make you divorce?]

Or even your sanity:
What if ______________ were discovered to be (True/False)(or lost), would that challenge your grasp of reality, being able to cope? [what if your country is conquered, what if you lost your job or family, what if you became paralyzed, etc. What could make you go insane?]

How Big Is Your God?

This is something I've been thinking about for a long time.

By asking, "How big..." of course I am also asking, "How small...".

I believe this is a very similar challenge to Elijah's challenge of the priests of Baal in I Kings 18, and also similar to Jesus' description of the kingdom of heaven being like a mustard seed, or having faith at least as big as a mustard seed. It's all challenging your concept of God.

Here is my challenge for you-- How strong is your faith?

I am primarily directing this at Christians, but it works for other belief systems as well.

Here's the important question, just fill in the blanks:

What if ______________ were discovered to be (True/False), would that destroy your faith?

Examples:
1. What if the existence of extra-terrestrial aliens were discovered to be true, would that destroy your faith? Couldn't God be big enough to include aliens?

2. What if the writings of Jesus were discovered, and they conflicted with the modern church in some way, would that destroy your faith? Wouldn't a strong faith in God decide to then reexamine the conflicting LESSER power, the ideology of the church? Or is God the lesser power to the church?

3 What if evolution were discovered to be true, would that destroy your faith? Would that necessarily mean God doesn't exist? Or maybe we just don't understand the system, but God is still there?

4. What if the universe were discovered to be much older than the opinions of the religious experts, would that destroy your faith?

5. What if a bible story (like the creation accounts) were discovered to be allegorical in nature, would that destroy your faith? If you believe Jesus was/is God and Jesus taught in parables, doesn't that mean God might teach with stories, too?

I'm NOT talking about fanatical faith that flies in the face of scientific facts! Nor am I saying that in order for faith to have merit, that we must not understand it! God gave us a brain to use fully!

What I am asking is that you put yourself in the mindset of someone just a few hundred years ago, if you weren't afraid of being tortured for having an open mind--
'What if the Earth were discovered to be not flat, but a sphere, would that destroy your faith?'

Come up with your own questions. God's not afraid of anything you can ask.