Visible God

from

Visible  God

Martin Cecil   May 29, 1983  a.m.

We are come as sons and daughters of God in this particular setting of our Chapel and in these particular physical forms. We came forth from the Father, and are come into the world. Just how much awareness is present in our hearts and minds of this truth? We may be increasingly aware as we choose to be so, because of the nature of our momentary behavior and living.

It was said of old that when the sons and daughters of God came to present themselves before the Lord, satan came also among them. Satan is another word for human nature. I suppose it could be said that, in this gathering here this morning, there is something of a mixture. There is nothing particularly wrong with satan coming also among them, among us. We couldn’t very well exclude satan without ourselves being physically absent. Human nature, human heredity, human behavior based in human nature and human heredity, is usual in the world. It should not be usual for us, however, if there is a consciousness of being sons and daughters of God. Because human nature is present, this does not mean that we must behave accordingly. With most it has been taken for granted that that’s the way one behaves; and so the world is filled with violence, corruption. But one may choose, mentally and emotionally, to acknowledge the presence of the truth, which is the presence of a son or a daughter of God.

It may be interesting to note that human behavior is based in what is visible, visible in the sense that one is aware of it through the senses. There are those things which are actually visible with the eyes but there are other things beyond that that may be classified as being visible because we are acquainted with them through our senses. It is by what is thus visible that the invisible control of behavior is exerted. In other words human beings are quite accustomed to acknowledging what is visible. It is usual to react to what is visible, thereby accepting a control in living that is then invisible. It emerges through our thinking and our emotions, to exemplify the sort of behavior that we find appearing on earth through human beings. It originated because of an acknowledgment of the visible. So everyone is quite acquainted with this process. In fact it is deemed to be essential that one should acknowledge the visible in order to determine what the behavior should be. Of course the behavior is not, generally speaking, all that deliberate. It puts in an appearance because of the reaction to the visible.

If we see this customary mode of operation in human experience we may also recognize that if the true expression of a son or a daughter of God is to put in an appearance it requires initially something visible. Then it may connect up with what is customary in human behavior. Usually the idea has been that God is invisible and one needs to connect up somehow with that invisibility. This has not been found to be easy. In fact it has not been found to be possible. Very earnest attempts have been made, but always it has reverted into the provision of something visible, like a priesthood for instance, like buildings in which one may supposedly worship—regardless of the particular religion, it’s customary. So the visible has come into the picture, but it has not been the visibility of God but the visibility that has been produced by human beings. They may have produced it with all sincerity and earnestness, and some of the production has been beautiful, I suppose you could say. Architecture, for instance, and some of the rites and ceremonies are impressive. The vestments of the priesthood are remarkable, very often, so as to provide something visible which was supposed to convey an awareness of the invisible God. If there has been any sort of awareness conveyed it has necessarily been a very distorted one on that basis. If the priesthood is so magnificently dressed, for instance, what would God be like?

However there is a certain truth here which we ourselves have come to recognize, principally because there was One who did exemplify the truth without any necessity for priestly robes or buildings of great magnificence. This One, we are informed, was called Jesus, and He spoke to people and moved among them anywhere. Yet here was a visible point, representing deity to those who would respond to that point and eventually come to know that here indeed deity was being exemplified. I am speaking about those who were there present at the time, not all this fancy business that has been produced later; but when there was this living point exemplifying the way, the truth and the life, exemplifying the reality, the truth of God, then there was the opportunity for people who were present at the time to recognize and acknowledge this point of supreme visibility. They didn’t, of course.

Not even those who were closest to Him were able, apparently, to allow the truth to be acknowledged in their own living. At the conclusion of His ministry one of the disciples said, “Well, you talk about the Father; show us the Father and that will be enough,” as though He hadn’t been doing it consistently all along the way. In other words there was a point of visibility but it wasn’t acknowledged. Oh yes, according to the record, Peter at one point said, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God,” which was fine for the moment. It didn’t penetrate very deeply in his experience. It was a momentary surface awareness of something, which faded rather quickly. We know that the one requirement is that there should be a visible representation and that there may be those who will acknowledge that visibility. There are a lot of people who are inclined to acknowledge an invisible God, but if that invisible God begins to put in a visible appearance, then they don’t want to have anything to do with it—crucify Him!

So we have seen this essential requirement in this present time. We don’t have any other time anyway. Some might say, “Well it could have been done back along the way somewhere.” Maybe. It wasn’t. How about now? How about this invisibility being made visible so that there may be the opportunity of acknowledging the truth? That’s the only way the truth can be acknowledged. Otherwise it’s all theory; it’s all imagination.There is plenty of that in the world. What is called religion is virtually all imagination. “You had better believe this…” Why? It may be helpful, as it was put, to believe in God, believe that there is a God. But who is He? Where is He? “Oh, just invisible.” God is known when made visible insofar as human experience is concerned, because that visibility calls to remembrance the truth of the individual who acknowledges it. It activates behavior from within the person, just as the visible world activates behavior from the standpoint of human nature. It activates behavior that comes out through the person; in other words there was something in the person to come out. Well if one is activated simply by the visibility of the world which human beings have made, then that clearly is placing human nature, satan, in the saddle, so that that determines human behavior. Some of that human behavior is deemed to be good and some of it is deemed to be bad, but it is all activated in the same way. It isn’t until there comes this specific visibility of the invisible God that there is the opportunity for human beings to acknowledge it; and in genuinely acknowledging it, it activates something from within themselves, so that what was before invisible of a divine nature within the individual is caused to come forth.

That coming forth could be described in the terms of “I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world.” Here is a son or a daughter of God putting in an appearance. But that will never happen until there is first an acknowledgment of the visible reality. Well you can’t acknowledge the visible reality if it isn’t there. And that has been, I suppose you could say, the problem insofar as human experience is concerned over the centuries since Jesus was on earth, that there has not been that visible point to acknowledge. So the endeavor has been to acknowledge Him, but He isn’t the visible point. He was a visible point to some people back there; they didn’t take advantage of the opportunity. But you can’t pick up the pieces, as though the fact that they didn’t take advantage of the opportunity wasn’t the fact of the matter. The visible point must be living and present in the moment now. We have some conscious awareness of this fact and have undertaken to allow something to happen increasingly in this regard. But it can only happen because you acknowledge a visible point.

The visible point which was provided by Jesus long ago was just one individual. Clearly it proved to be insufficient. But we also know that it set in motion what should come in season into the experience of human beings down along the way. What was set in motion was below the level of consciousness. All this conscious fanfare in what has been called Christianity may have kept human beings aware of the fact that the visible truth might again put in an appearance. That, in religious terms, has been called the Second Coming of Christ. But it has been a concept which is not based at all in the truth of the matter. There was the expectation of a person coming. Well, the person came, and what happened? That has all been done. It’s not going to be done again. What would be the point? But what is to be done is the emergence, as we are well aware, of this collective visible point of deity on earth. It must be there. Then human beings have the opportunity of acknowledging it or rejecting it. If it isn’t there they can’t acknowledge it and they can't reject it. Well that begins to sort things out, doesn’t it? But the reality of the truth must be present and visible. And who is going to assume the responsibility for that? Presumably those who are aware of that necessity. Who else? And so we have, in whatever measure, put ourselves on the spot.

There must be the acknowledgment of the visibility through human flesh, the Word made flesh. Some have imagined perhaps that somehow or other it would all come rushing forth through human beings, transforming everyone, transforming the world in consequence. Hope springs eternal in the human breast, they say; but it doesn’t work that way. It must reach a point where people have the opportunity of making a conscious choice. They may be impelled toward that conscious choice subconsciously; many people are. We ourselves have found people showing up with certain understanding already present, delighted to find those who seem to be genuine. But let that reach the point where a choice has to be made as to the visibility, the actual visibility of the truth, then people are inclined to pull back. Perhaps they need to be a little skeptical; they have been fooled often enough. But there must be something in a person which is capable of acknowledging the visible truth, which seems to that person to be external to him- or herself—that’s the appearance: as being external to the person. But what it activates is actually internal to the person. Finally there is a connecting up with the invisible, and that becomes experienced to the extent that the invisible comes forth, finds expression, is lived, not merely believed in.

Human beings have been trapped in their beliefs. As long as one can convince oneself that all that is necessary is to believe, then it doesn't matter really how you behave: it’s only to be expected that one will be resentful of this and that, and perhaps hate that evil person over there and be fearful of the other thing. This, after all, is human nature. Satan! And satan is worshipped in that sense. There is the control in human living, regardless of their beliefs. Well you can see that you can’t exchange your prior beliefs for what are now defined in your consciousness as Emissary beliefs. It doesn’t do you any good; you have still got beliefs. It isn’t a matter of believing anything or trying to believe anything. It’s a matter of being the truth, and being the truth requires that one acknowledge the truth when it becomes visible. If you will not acknowledge the truth when it is made visible you simply cannot acknowledge it while it remains invisible. That should be reasonable and logical, shouldn’t it?

As I say, very often people go along with something as long as it isn’t brought to point. There is something very nice; everybody is happy, everybody enjoying themselves. The question is, Why? What produced this state, in which other people may participate? You find that people go along with it fine, but the very moment something begins to come to point—oh, they pull back! Well that’s fine. That’s fine because as the visible truth puts in increased experience everyone is required to make a choice. There is no real, clear-cut choice to make until that happens. The choice seems to be between Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism, Islam, Hinduism, what have you—all kinds of choices which don’t mean a thing! One may make some particular choice which can lead to something else, and something else, and something else; and one may finally reach the point where one recognizes the necessity of acknowledging the truth made visible.

Now we have the responsibility for making this visible. We have recognized that there is a need for someone or ones who have already made it visible. This has been something of your own experience—but now you are the ones! Something visible is beginning to emerge, very small but visible nevertheless, the opportunity for people to begin to make their choices. If we recognize that this is the purpose of the visibility, it doesn’t really matter what the choice is, just so long as it is made—pro or con. Of course the results of the choice are different insofar as the people who make them are concerned, but what makes possible the choice to be made remains unconcerned as to what the choice is. Of course it is certainly a delight if there are those who acknowledge the visible truth and consequently allow the invisible truth to come forth through themselves, so that they in turn make it visible; and presumably the more there are who are allowing this to happen, the more quickly choices can be made.

We realize that this invisible truth coming forth is not merely an individual matter. It is an individual matter, but not alone an individual matter, because it brings forth what may be called a body, a body of human beings collectively, who are consequently one, coordinated. It is through this visible body as such that the larger area of choice in human experience may be made. So we share this; we know something about it. We have some experience in the matter, even though satan comes also among us, even though human nature is still present. The only question is as to whether that will determine our behavior, or whether the activated truth in expression will determine our behavior. That’s the choice, ultimately speaking.

There is a day, today, in this hour, in this very moment, when the sons and daughters of God are gathered together and satan comes also among them. Is the truth acknowledged so that there is activation thereof in the momentary processes of living? Or is human nature still in there? We can look at human nature in all kinds of ways, because there is something for everybody. Very often it is in the matter of what I would like, or on the other hand, what I wouldn’t like—what I want. Who is speaking? We all have different names, but in the usual human experience they could all be the same name—satan. We can fool ourselves by having different names, but the same control, the same compulsions, operate in human nature the world around and keep human beings enslaved, keep them in conflict with each other, sustain violence and corruption. Oh, there is a little bit of good thrown in too to make the whole dish slightly more palatable, particularly if one can live in the good part of the world where “I would like to live.” If the Lord is my shepherd, if what finds expression through me is fathered by the truth, I shall not want; I shall not want anything.

The whole purpose of the exercise by which human beings are caused to make a choice may be said, “To return the earth and the world to God.” It has been stolen by human beings. “It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye”—the people of the world—“have made it a den of thieves.” This earth is rightly the dwelling place of God in a specific sense by reason of man. We know that theoretically. It is said finally that, “The tabernacle of God is with men.” Ah, there is a tabernacle—whatever that is—going to be given by God, presumably, to men so that He can be with them. What is being said, of course, is that the tabernacle of God is with men, the tabernacle of God is men. Here is the dwelling place. Here is the means by which God dwells on earth.

Now, if you are going to return the earth to God, what is the first order of business? Presumably to return oneself to God. It isn’t a matter of taking a plot of land and saying, “This is God’s acre,” as some people have done. “I’ll let Him have this much. Then I will tend it and keep it when I have time. But I have other things to do as well.” There are those who use the fact that it is possible, for instance, to contribute to their church as a means of evading, or avoiding, the necessity of giving oneself. It is an attempt to bribe God, isn’t it? “I will give so much to the church as long as you don’t bother me, God, and I can go on doing what I want to do.” What is the attitude? Is it honest? The fact of the matter is that a dishonest person cannot take an honest look at anything. That’s another cop-out: “Let’s take an honest look at this or that.” But there aren’t any honest people around, so how can an honest look be taken? An honest person is not a thief, for one thing, and anyone who imagines that he has a personal life all his own, to do with as he pleases, is a thief, is a very dishonest person. “Well let’s take an honest look at this!” People are taking honest looks at this all the time—and it makes no difference; it doesn’t change anything. But an honest person has an honest stance, and he sees things honestly; he sees things as they are. But a dishonest person can’t do that, and as long as one is claiming even one little square centimeter of the earth for oneself one is not an honest person.

We naturally are concerned with attitude in this matter. There are those who have thought, “Well I shouldn’t have stolen all this from the Lord; therefore I am going to write out a check for my total bank account and give it to somebody, EDL perhaps.” Please don’t! One is responsible for whatever is present in one’s own field of operations. But if one, as a person, belongs to the Lord, so that the expression of the truth is constantly pouring forth, then obviously everything is handled on that basis. And there may be—money is a good symbol of things in general—there may be money that is in one’s own bank account. Well that’s the Lord’s money, just as surely as anything else; therefore it has to be handled by the Lord. But how? “Well I am going to think what would be pleasing to the Lord.” Who is the Lord? “He’s over there somewhere. If I listen closely enough He will let me know what will be pleasing, how to use this money.” Nonsense! One can be fooled on that basis.

There are those who listen for a voice. Well all they hear is the voice of satan; that is, human nature. It’s not a matter of listening for anything in that sense; it’s a matter of being something, of giving expression to the truth oneself. When that is so, everything will be used rightly. And it will not be used on the basis: “Well I think it would be nice. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a holiday?” Do you want a holiday? Well we could have a holiday every day by letting it be a holy day, by letting it be the expression of the truth in one’s own living. One will never have to go away somewhere to experience, what?—rejuvenation or something. It’s not there. It’s right here. Let it come out of here and all that is necessary is present. Present—what for? For the creative purpose of being, the creative purpose of God. But no one knows what that is secondhand. You either experience it firsthand or you don’t know it, and you can’t experience it firsthand as long as you are holding out and classifying yourself as a thief. A thief is dishonest. I think everybody would nod their heads to that statement. Or you may justify thievery, of course. But you can’t justify stealing from God.

“The earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein,” including “me.” And when I am one with God, all that I administer is administered in the name of the Lord. Then there may be honesty, then there may be clear vision as to how it should be handled, but only on that basis; not by pretense, pretending to serve God: “Well I’ll dole out a little for God this month. I have a little surplus here to let Him have through my church or in some other way.” Charities are good recipients for evading the necessity of being honest. “He’s such a good person; he gives so much to charity.” What’s he doing? Returning a little of the stolen goods, or trying to do it that way.

Coming again to the awareness of being a son or a daughter of God incarnate in human form on earth to handle all things in the name of the Lord, the factual state of restoration is known. As we have noted before, it’s not trying to restore the world to God, just to restore “me”—my body, my mind, my heart. That’s all anyone can do, and when that is done the son or the daughter of God comes into the world and then whatever creatively should be expressed comes forth. It’s not a matter of trying to drag the world back to God. It’s not coming. He doesn’t want it anyway, not that world. “My kingdom is not of this world.” It's another world, another world which puts in an appearance when there are those sons and daughters of God incarnate on earth who reveal it, so that all their living is such a revelation—all of it. Let us be honest. Let’s stop stealing ourselves—if you stop stealing yourself, you’ll stop stealing everything else—and permit the power, the creative power of the living God, to be restored into expression on earth because we live, individually and collectively, because there is one body. And all who compose that body cannot think, or speak, or act without consideration for the health, the vitality, the creative achievement made possible through that one body. This business of “I want… oh wouldn’t it be nice… time for me to retire now and I will look the scene over and see, where would I like to go…” Who is speaking? Satan!

We do what we are here to do, that’s all, as sons and daughters of God. We may be a little less capable of doing what we are here to do when we are children, but as we mature we should become more and more capable of doing what we are here to do. Most people imagine that they become less and less capable. Well they may become less physically capable of high jinks, but there should be a greater spiritual ability. It’s appalling, isn’t it really, in oneself or in anyone else, to see that hanging back and refusal to allow the beauty and grandeur and effectiveness, creative effectiveness, of the expression of a son or a daughter of God to come forth. It seems to me that Moses was eighty years old when his ministry started. We have a ways to go yet, most of us. But we could start right now, to the glory of God.

I am thankful that we have the privilege of knowing these things and of letting that knowing be the reason for our living—no purpose to our living otherwise. So may we glorify God in restoring ourselves and consequently mankind to Him. The light must shine and the light must be acknowledged, either in acceptance or rejection. We would—if we still have any preferences—prefer acceptance, but rejection is quite all right too. It's unfortunate for the rejecter. How good to know the truth and to be free.

© Emissaries of Divine Light