We have recognized that each one has his Egypt, the outer manifestation of his being, and we recognize that that Egypt can partake of the nature of the world or it can partake of the nature of the Divine Design.
Any human being who is turning to God, beginning to yield and respond, begins to bring forth the manifest form of the Only Begotten Son of God. The Christ Spirit begins to bring forth or establish in form through each one, that which is of God; and when it begins to appear, as it is beginning to appear through yourselves, it is as a babe. And because it carries the nature of the positive expression of God, it is symbolized in the biblical pattern as a boy baby.
The individual who then reacts, and turns in the wrong direction and responds to the patterns of this world, destroys first his or her own baby or son, the beginning of the manifestation of the form of the expression of the Only Begotten Son of God through the individual in the pattern of life. But once having committed murder in this respect, the human being, and I have seen it many times, begins to take the attitude that he or she has nothing to lose anyway—of course, there is no real consciousness of all the steps involved, but this is the pattern—and such an one then begins to try to destroy the positive expression of the Spirit of God through others—by talking, by doing, by insidious misrepresentations, by doing everything that he or she can to discourage others, and to poison the minds and hearts of all who will listen. And so, I have seen human beings in this day and age become obedient to the Pharaoh, the conscious mind which knows not Joseph, the Lord, and as a result begin to destroy as many of the boy babies, the manifestation of the positive expression of the Spirit of God, as possible. And it is a sad thing. In your ministry or service, wherever you may be, in whatever capacity in serving God, you will he under the necessity of dealing with such things.
It is one of the sad aspects of Ministry and one of the things which tends to upset one's pattern of polarity unless there is an awareness of the principles involved and unless one stays steady in Center. And those who reach this point of trying to be a servant of Pharaoh, have an uncanny ability to perceive those who are weakest, those who are most likely to yield to the wrong influence, those who are most likely to become subject to the poison which they spread, and very often it works out on the basis of where there is very little that you can do about it. If you try to arbitrarily convince such people, they will become more suspicious, more rebellious. They will twist and turn whatever you say into a pattern of condemnation and self-justification. And so, all too often, unless someone has the courage to come directly to you when such things are in operation, there is nothing that you can do but stay centered, hold steady and let it work.
But there is this which is always a point to remember and cause one to take courage: As it was at the time of Herod, that the protection of the LORD carried the focus of the Only Begotten Son of God down into Egypt, out of harms reach, so are those who will stay truly centered, those who are obedient to the direction of the Spirit, protected in Egypt from the onslaught of such a false king. And also we are beginning to consider a story here, from the story of Moses. It moves immediately into the pattern, the portrayal, the story of Joseph to the story of Moses. The story of the birth of Moses is very interesting and significant because we see that Pharaoh had done his best to establish a pattern which would prevent the development of a leader for the Children of Israel.
If all the boy babies were destroyed and the girl babies were kept as slaves, there would not be any chance for a leader to develop. And that is the typical pattern in the world; and you will find that the moment you begin to step forth in the pattern of Ministry you begin to run into that situation; for the Children of God are in slavery in Egypt today just as surely as in the days of Moses. We have in principle, in pattern, exactly the same situation today and, as mentioned here, that they served with rigour. Look out into the world pattern. It is on a little different basis, it has a little different form and instead of a whip held in the hand, there is the whip of the pay check; instead of a lash that is actually placed on the back of the slave, the lash, the whip, held in the hand, is the pay check. And out of the same pattern of slavery the Children of Israel, the Children of God, must be delivered today.
And we have in our Ministry, in our Service, exactly the same problems that were present at the time of the Children of Israel in Egypt, we must use exactly the same principles. Insofar as there is proper response and proper function, we can, or should at least, we can avoid the mistakes that were made because they have been clearly outlined. But you begin to realize that our problem today in Service, is exactly the same problem that was present at that time. We have the same conditions of slavery, the same conditions wherein the positive expression of the Spirit of God is in danger of being slain by one of Pharaoh's servants, the self-active mind of man.
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The minute any human being begins to move into a pattern of Spiritual life to bring forth the form of the Spirit of God on earth, there are those who will seek to destroy. And it takes a certain amount of courage, a certain amount of honesty, a certain degree of basic devotion for you or anyone to move along that path. And once you reach a point of adequate realization so that you can truly serve, this is one of the things which you will remember and will cause you to be exceedingly patient, for you will be aware of all these forces that are brought to bear in order to destroy the budding manifestation of the positive expression of the Spirit of God through those whom you serve. Over and over again you will be disappointed. You will see human beings with promise and ability become subject to Pharaoh. You will see them turn away, see them go down and you cannot follow them. You can, perhaps, undertake to call to them, stop them if they will listen, but if they are bound and determined to go, all you can do is let them go.
Those who let their lives be truly dedicated to service have these sorrows to meet, and they are not sorrows so much with respect to what you may have to endure as an individual, and sometimes that may not he altogether pleasant, but your real sorrows, the sadness with which you will have to contend, has to do with those who take the blessings of God for granted for a little time, refuse to let the seed of Truth go deeply into the soil of the heart, so that when the first hot day comes along it withers and is gone. So often one has to be immune to the process of turning away, working through members of one’s own family. How did the Master put it? “One shall he taken; the other left.” Very dear friends, loved ones, and if one responds to such things as develop in such a case, one loses one’s own polarity and fails. And this is one of the reasons, one of many of course, why it is so important to let ourselves become truly centered and stay steady, practice the Art of Living in the pattern of the Divine Design, because sooner or later you will face that issue.
And those who have turned away from my Ministry are greater in number than those who remained. And I loved them and served them as I love and serve you. But the number of those who have come under subjection to Pharaoh, turning back into slavery and denied the blessings of God, and betrayed and fought against God. I have never known one to come back. I have never known one to find peace or know the joys of life. But I would not want to take the positive position that it cannot be. All I can say is that I have never seen it. I hope that perhaps something might work out some day to break that vicious pattern, but it has not been done yet. But the larger hope is this, that those who begin to respond shall not turn away.
And so, even though there is such sadness and sorrow at times, in the pattern of Ministry, even though we see human beings go down needlessly and suffer needlessly, and throw away the richest and greatest blessings in life, we have to remain steady, unmoved, no matter who it is, no matter how much such a person is loved, no matter what great potentiality rests in that person. By reason of such things, I have seen things that I have built in Ministry, torn down and destroyed until I had to begin again out of the ashes, out of the ruins. Several times in my Ministry that has already and taken place. I trust it will never be again. But it is not a pleasant thing to hold steady when it appears that there is no hope, there is no possible way. This is the important thing, because if you do hold steady it will open one way or another, and I would this morning that you deeply realize this point. And if sometime in the future, you, yourself, come under pressure or you are Ministering with someone who is under pressure, remember, be patient and hold steady, hold steady and let it work, because merely because someone else violates, betrays, and undertakes to destroy, we cannot betray God's Trust in us. And as we begin the study of the Children of Israel in Egypt, let us remember that we are dealing with exactly the same problems, human beings in the same pattern of slavery, the same cruel king, the same difficulties.
If the world can help it, no leader shall arise to serve the Children of God. That has been true down through the centuries and every leader who has come through to the point of actually doing something in the world has had to face this fact, that the consciousness of the world, the prince of this world, or the patterns of the world, however you want to put it, so function, and they have the backing of millions and millions of Christians, millions and millions of good, sincere people. If the world can help it, no leader shall arise and become known on earth to the Children of God. Pharaoh always does his best, no matter what ruthless action he thinks he has to take in desperation, he does his best to see to it that there shall be no leader for the Children of God on earth. The Children of God have been without a leader, any True Shepherd, so much in the past, down through these thousands of years, because of this very fact. And when our Master Himself was on earth and began to reveal the reality of that leadership, they crucified Him.
The same old determination of Pharaoh and Herod: there shall be no leader for the Children of God. Leaders for the opposition, yes. Leaders of all kinds for Pharaoh and Herod, the children of this world. Set out to be a leader for the children of this world and the way will be opened before you for wealth and fame and position. But set out to be a leader in the cause of our God and if you do not stay centered, do not hold faithful and true to the Truth, you will never reach the point of leadership, not if the world can help it. And we are here to save the world, a world of human beings who will do everything in their power to prevent the manifestation of leadership which would make their own salvation possible. That sounds ridiculous, but it is the sad fact.
We have been up against this for twenty thousand years. I have been on earth in many bodies, in many forms, in many places and worked through many things in order to help clear this pattern. I think most of you, if not all of you, realize that the body of Joseph was one of my bodies. The body of Moses was one of my bodies. The story of Joseph is My Story. The story of Moses is My Story, just to mention two of them. Over and over again, down through the thousands of years. There are circumstances working out in the vibrational pattern of the universe itself which will bring things to a crisis and force issues, and man is going to have to accept the responsibility.
But in this issue that is being drawn now, there is need for those who will share the responsibilities of true, unwavering, dedicated, devotedleadership. Over and over again, already in my Ministry on earth in this body, the world has sought to destroy any possibility of my coming to a point of leadership. And if you undertake to share the responsibilities of Ministry with me, the responsibilities of leadership, you will find that the world tends to do the same thing to you. And so, the real value of our studies here—in the story of Joseph and now beginning the story of Moses—is that you may be so oriented, have such a deep realization of the workings, the power and the Spirit of God on earth, that you may function effectively, that you may be forewarned, forearmed, that you may see the mistakes that were made in the past and avoid them, so that you may of a truth be a disciple of our LORD and KING and serve Him and be not a partaker of the spirit of Judas who betrayed, or the spirit of Peter who denied our LORD.
When the LORD begins to work out the pattern to raise up a leader for the Children of God on earth, He always finds a way for those who will be obedient to the Spirit of God and yield and trust. And here the pattern worked out so that Moses was raised in Pharaoh’s own house. That is typical of the way the LORD does things. Moses was raised as Pharaoh's own grandson and he grew up in his own house [greatcosmicstory.blogspot.com/2023/05/the-word.html] and was educated on the basis of the best that Egypt could offer. He was raised in the court of Egypt, the Royal Family. He went to the schools and universities; had the highest education the world could then afford. And so the LORD raised up a leader for the Children of Israel, the Children of God, and He did it in Pharaoh's own house right in Egypt where the pattern of slavery was all about and where they were destroying the boy babies.
Perhaps sometime when you are under pressure in your Ministry or service, you will remember that. The LORD has His ways of doing things and if the LORD could raise up a leader for the Children of Israel right in Pharaoh's own house, giving him the position of Pharaoh's own grandson, well then, the LORD can do almost anything—if we just give Him a chance; if we just hold steady. Most people, when it begins to look black, difficult, begin to look for a place to turn around. You know, the first creatures to leave a sinking ship are the rats. The first creatures to leave a sinking ship are the rats. In any case, it is the ability to hold steady when it does look black, the ability to face issues when it looks as if there is no way out.
You saw that same pattern worked out in the story of Joseph and others before him, and you see it again and again where so many people when they begin to get under pressure, when they cannot see with human vision just how and where, they are ready to turn and run. And so often if they would just hold steady a little more. Generally speaking, for those who have any real quality at all, they had come so close to victory, it was right at the door. Just a little more and they would be over the top. But I have seen human beings, time after time—sometimes if they had held steady just a few more minutes even—I have actually seen that; situations where if the human being had held steady for another thirty minutes there would have been obvious victory. Over and over again, when it was merely a matter of hours or days, I have seen them turn and run, get frightened and quit, turn yellow. It is a matter of holding steady, remaining true. Remember if we do that, the LORD will find a way.
Through To Victory
One of the things that we need to begin to truly realize is that wherever we turn in the LORD’s Service there are going to be barriers for some little time to come. There is no way of saying how long, and even if I knew I would not tell you, but there are going to be barriers, walls, difficulties, at best, and when it appears that there is a wall in front of you, perhaps you can begin to see it coming up, as it were, as you are drawing closer to it, learn to keep right on going, Learn to walk right up to the wall? No. If you walked up to the wall, how close would you get to the wall? A hundred yards, or ten yards, or six feet? You walk up close to the wall and stop a wait for the wall to vanish? It does not work that way. You learn to walk not up to the walls, you learn to walk right through them.
And if you think you cannot, you are wrong. You do not just stop when there is a wall over there; a wall of circumstance and vibrational factors. Of course, there are those elements of discretion and understanding with respect to maneuvering, which are essential, but as far as the walls are concerned, you do not just stop and camp by the wall. You keep right on going. and you find that when you get right up to it, pressing against it, it opens—or you find suddenly that it just looked like there was a wall. Anyone round about would have sworn there was a wall, and when you get up there close enough it begins to move back.
Did you ever chase the rainbow; try to catch up with it? It keeps getting away just as fast as you try to get to it. Of course, that is the rainbow, the rainbow of promise. But the principle is the same. The barriers give way and if we are working centered in God, properly responsive to the Divine and hold steady, the barriers give way. That is the—one of the lessons to be learned in the story of the happening after the Children of Israel began to move into the Promised Land.
You will remember there was a certain city where the walls fell down? Jericho. Whenever there are Jericho walls, they will fall if you function correctly. When we get to that we will study some of the basic principles that are involved that are of vital importance and interest. But remember that if you quit merely because you think you see a wall in front of you and you think, “Well I can't get over it. I know I can't climb over it. I cannot do anything. I will just have to quit and camp right here or else go back.” Do not be deluded. Keep right on going and the wall will open or prove to just be a mirage. Perhaps it is not even there. It just looks like it. Hold it steady and keep going.
It is the only way to victory. If walls can stop you, you will be stopped. If human beings can upset you, you will be upset. If discouragement can turn you aside, you will be turned aside. That is the situation. If walls can stop you, you will be stopped. It is only for those who refuse to be stopped by any wall and keep right on going that there can be a true sharing in the Victory.
With respect to this initial phase of the story of Moses, we might well note that the Levites were the members of the Priesthood—members of the Priesthood. Moses was not a Jew. Let us remember that, too. Only the Children of Judah were Jews. All the Children of Israel were Hebrews. But Moses was not a Jew; he was a Levite, and both his father and mother were of the House of Levi. Now at first they were spoken of as the houses, later the tribes. And she called his name Moses: and she said. “Because I drew him out of the water.” And water is the symbol of Truth. And always, when you begin to find the pattern of the Spirit of God's leadership in relationship to yourself, in yourself, through yourself, that which is the Divine expression, it is drawn out of the water, out of the Truth. The emphasis, “Be true to the Truth.” And so shall ye come to know the Victory.
There are two wonders, which have been a source of amazement to me over the years. One wonder is in heaven, the other on earth. The wonder in heaven centers in the fact of the truth contained in the King James version of the Bible. The statement I have in mind this morning is contained in the 14th chapter of the Gospel according to John. These words are available to anyone who speaks the English language, and in view of the fact that the Bible has been translated into virtually every language on the face of the earth it is available therefore to all people everywhere; this availability is because the Bible is so widely distributed. What a wonder it is that there should be such an accurate statement of the truth.
The wonder on earth is that in spite of this massive availability scarcely anyone has understood it. There have been interpretations made, composing the doctrines of what is called Christianity. These interpretations have done little more than obscure the truth, in spite of the fact of the wonder in heaven: the accurate, straightforward statement of the truth. You have come to know something of this truth and have a certain understanding, which is also a wonder on earth, so that as I read a portion of this chapter, you will share with me this understanding, so that the way it had been translated in most human consciousnesses may fade into oblivion and the truth as it is be stated and understood.
“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.
“Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.”
Jesus referred to Himself as the Son: the Son of Man, the Son of God, the only begotten Son. From what has been stated in these words which I have read, it is evident that the Son is the Father living on earth. There was indication that in this instance the One called Jesus was about to depart; He was about to make space for the manifestation of the Son, who is the Father living on earth through those who believed His words. How much belief would you say there has been in those words and in the One who spoke them? The evidence would indicate that there has been virtually none. The apparent foundation for what is called Christianity is based in the idea of belief, but what is the fact? The belief has been in certain ideas and doctrines promulgated by the Church, but what about the fact of belief in the Son, the fact of belief in the Son being the Father living on earth?
That is exactly what was here stated. “Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip?”—known the Son being the Father living on earth? “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? ... Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.” I make space for the Son. As an individual, Jesus revealed the truth that the Son is the Father living on earth. Now space has been made so that that revelation may not alone be an individual one but a collective one, because each individual assumes exactly the same responsibility as was assumed by Jesus.
We speak of the man as having been called Jesus. What’s your name? We each have a legal name. It could have been said that Jesus was the legal name of a person. It isn’t this legal entity which carries the real value and importance. The legal entity isn’t the real person; it’s a make-believe person, one might say. There is no substance at all to this legal entity but there is substance to the one who is referred to as the Son, the Son who is the Father living on earth, when that is the case. Then there is someone there.
Now we have an awareness of these things that we might accept the true belief: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father,” thereby making space for the manifestation of the Son. The Son is not just one individual; the Son is much larger than that. Would it be conceivable that one individual could be, in total expression, the Father on earth? Jesus simply revealed what human responsibility is, and He removed Himself so that there would be space for this to be proven out, that the Son might be on earth—and the Son is the Father living on earth. This is the reason for the existence of mankind—the only reason that human beings have for living on earth. If any other justification for being on earth is claimed, it is a lie. Anyone who does that will prove out that there is no such existence. There is only one life, and one must be a part of that one life in expression to know it. There is no existence outside of the Son; it’s a total blank otherwise. Who amongst us would be so foolish, understanding in whatever measure these things, as to exclude him-or herself from the only reason for existence? Surely we are more intelligent than that.
The Son is the Father living on earth. [greatcosmicstory.blogspot.com/glory-unto-glory.html] The acceptance of the Son, that particular focus which came to point in the One called Jesus, requires that one be, in expression, the Father. Here is the source for all existence, including human existence. Reject that source and there is no existence. Accept that source in actual experience and that is belief. It is something of a miracle, isn’t it, that these things should be available to everybody—not just available to us but to everybody and, in these days, in their own language. Should there be a willingness on the part of anyone to understand these words, I am sure that would suffice.
Philip thought what Jesus was offering was insufficient, and this is the belief that virtually everyone else has had. Instead of accepting what He said, doctrines have been invented to avoid accepting what He said, and so it has been, evidently, quite insufficient insofar as human experience is concerned. Because of this, the sufficiency had to be directed toward the idea of some sort of life after death, which was going somehow to make up for all the misery while we were here. But it is all worthless, all meaningless, all empty, all valueless. Only the life of the Father on earth has meaning. To exclude that is to become increasingly meaningless. Above all people, we have had greater opportunity to experience meaning than any others. We could only avoid meaning by our own deliberate refusal to accept it. So we presumably have accepted at least some meaning, and at times we have a very keen sense of that meaning.
The Son of God is the Heavenly Father living on Earth
The Son of God is the Heavenly Father living on earth. At the same time He is the Son of Man. We have our essential physical forms, our minds and our hearts, our facilities of consciousness, to allow the experience of the Father living on earth to be known. But it was indicated by Jesus Himself that there was another father—the earthly father rather than the Heavenly Father. The earthly father was called the devil, for sake of a name. And there is a son there too: the son of perdition. The son of perdition is the evidence of the father springing out of the earth, the qualities and characteristics of human nature. So there is a father, whether heavenly or earthly, and there is a son, whether of God or of perdition.
Our concern simply is to participate in what is here revealed in the words which I read, so that the works that are needful may be done, the works which are the evidence of the life of the Father on earth. And if there are increasing numbers of people who are participating in this process, then the works become greater and greater. One man could only do so much. He could only do, in this instance, the essences of what was required, the essences which have been virtually incomprehensible to most people. This is why all these doctrines have been invented. But the essences only begin to become comprehensible as they are differentiated. As we let it happen then we know what they are. So we are in the business of letting it happen, of doing what we are here on earth to do, and we become increasingly aware of the fact that we are indeed those who have been sent into the earth to do this. This becomes increasingly our consciousness of ourselves. The wonderful thing is to be the Father living on earth. The evidence of that fact has been designated as the Son—the Son of God, the Son of Man.
As there is only one Heavenly Father, even though that one Father may be seen as being universal, there is only one Son: one evidence of the Father living on earth. There is vast evidence of the Father living elsewhere. But on earth, this is our responsibility, to let this living be known. And we can’t have it both ways; we can’t bring our baggage with us, the defilements and the abominations and the lies. The eye of the needle is very real; there is no space for those things. If we hang onto those things, then we find ourselves disintegrating with them.
What happens when this truth finds expression, when the Son is present on earth and the Father is revealed in living? What has been called resurrection occurs. We’ve spoken of this in the collective sense as restoration, without really understanding what that might mean, because it is a transcendent experience that has never been known. How could anyone know what it is? What is it now? What is it insofar as our present experience is concerned? Let’s find out! We only find out by being it, bybeing the Father living on earth; [greatcosmicstory.blogspot.com/to-fulfill-prayer-of-oneness.html] and that requires quality. “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Be that! And yet there is hesitation, isn’t there? It’s not a great, long-drawn-out process in actual fact. Once we reach the point of having a certain level of understanding, once we emerge out of the childish state—and even out of the adolescent state, hopefully—to experience some measure of maturity, then there is no reason anymore to allow these things to live through us, the things that defile, work abomination and make lies—there is no necessity for that.
One must understand oneself. You know yourself when you are the Father living on earth; then you know yourself. You don’t need anyone to explain it to you. You only need someone to explain things to you because you are maintaining a state of defilement, abomination and lies. Then you are in a state of confusion and you need someone to come along and explain it all. No one can explain it; it’s completely nonsensical. Let it go. Let it pass away, that the Father may live on earth in the Son, because the Son is present, letting it happen. Do you expect the Son to come wafting down from someplace else? The Son is here! We are all included in that state if we are willing to accept it Accepting it is believing in it. Accept the truth! Don’t try to get someone to explain all the lies. This is the human approach always: to try to explain why things went wrong. Well we know why things go wrong. Let’s let them go right. Let the Father live on earth and they go right, and everything that occurs thereafter is part of the process of resurrection. If we want understanding, we can understand that.
So we share this mature responsibility of letting the Father live on earth. But we’re not trying to let the Father live on earth through somebody else—how could we?—or through some remarkable collective body. I must do it. I must let it be. And when there are sufficient “I’s” doing this, the “I’s” have it!—and the Father is living on earth in the Son, collectively speaking. It’s a very natural, easy thing. The yoke is easy, the burden is light. Who would set that on the side and reaccept the tribulations which are the common lot of human experience? Rise up—that’s resurrection—rise up, the Father is living on earth because of me! There is a third wonder on earth then! We may know the wonder of these words and we also may know the wonder of the experience of them in ourselves while we live. We are here present for that purpose.
We come to the time of our Sunday evening meditation on September 27th 1953. Tonight I have something to share with you which I believe has tremendous significance. I've been working with you and for you a long time, seeking to develop a preparedness, a readiness, for a larger sphere of service; but in the cycles of accomplishment it appears that we must always, for a time at least, begin before we are ready. As you know we recently passed our Anniversary period [September 16, 1953]. I offered you, at that time, the opportunity of sharing with me in a deeper realization of our Purpose and Divine Commission, and the manner of function under that Commission. There has been forward progress and you accepted it seriously. There have been some tendencies to forget, but, once the Commission is established one cannot delay over long, and beginning function under it. From an outer standpoint, twenty-one years ago, it could be easily said that I was not ready; and yet there was nothing to do but begin—which I did. We've passed through these three cycles, [1932-39; 1939-46; 1946-53] as I pointed out to you earlier, and we come to the point where we must move in the pattern of this new cycle. And, as we move into it, there are basic responsibilities. I trust sincerely that all of you will prove to be sufficiently centered so that you may share the responsibilities and privileges of this new cycle without undo stress; and certainly it would be sad if any were eliminated under the pressures of the cycle. But we have the necessity of the discharge of our responsibility.
It has sometimes seemed to me that those with whom I work closely, whether here or in the field, tended to imagine somehow, perhaps subconsciously, that my job was fundamentally to work with them, and that if they needed a long period of time to make progress, well then it was supposedly my responsibility to just let it be so. But it isn't so. You share with me a responsibility with respect to the people of the world, and the time has come when we must begin to discharge that responsibility on a larger basis. In many respects, this present situation reminds me of the circumstance as it was twenty-one years ago.
While we have met some of our heavy and most pressing obligations, we have a number of obligations which have not been met, and which must be met in the near future. We have financial limitations. From a financial standpoint, it seems to be a very inopportune time to say, “Now we are going to pull our stakes and enlarge the borders of our tent.” But regardless of financial situations, this is exactly what we are going to do. We're going to enlarge the borders of our tents. And so, in the outer sense, the lack of preparedness—I would that you were better prepared, better centered. I would that all the crosscurrents had been cleared from among you. I would that the same things were true with respect to all those in the field. But we have come to the time when delay is no longer possible. We're going to move into it on a “sink-or-swim” basis. There's an old saying that the best way to teach a child to swim is take him out in the middle of the lake and throw him in. Well, I wouldn't want to do that literally, and you've had a few lessons in learning to swim, but the time comes when we move on a sink-or-swim basis. And I hope you all swim. It's the best way.
In any case, tonight I wish to begin to open up the vibratory pattern with respect to this enlarged sphere of function. If we all function correctly it can move forward without too much difficulty. Failure to function correctly can mean some tragedies along the way, some casualties, but regardless of tragedies and casualties we're going to move. I've been working vibrationally to bring to focus the material that would be best suited, under these present world conditions, to an introduction of this Service to the world. And, the latter part of it I had to hold vibrationally today, while I was with you on the picnic, and I finished writing it out tonight, this evening, and now here it is.
One of the things that I need to bring to your attention is this: we might call this a “baby”. And perhaps you might be inclined to develop some ideas in your own minds as to what ought to be, or ought not to be, in this manuscript. For instance, it's possible that someone would raise the question as to why there is not a dissertation upon the One Law in this manuscript. I have a reason. I anticipate that there will be a second. If this accomplishes anything, there'll need to be a second; and the place for that dissertation, and the consideration of various other subjects which could be considered, is not in this booklet but in another, whether the next one or one to follow. We shall see. So, I am not presenting this to you tonight with the idea that you will let your minds go up on tangents with respect to suggestions as to what else could be in it. That isn't the point. There are many things that can be considered.
But I'm offering it to you on the basis of a consideration of what is in it; not of something else that mightbe in it; on a basis of consideration of what it is. And while I'll be very much interested in your comments, I might warn you in advance that I'll not be moved by any concept that something that is in it ought not to be. Perhaps you think that's dictatorial. I don't. I've carefully worked this out in the vibrational pattern over a long period of time, and to the degree that you have worked with me I have used your vibrational patterns to produce it. Sometimes they have hindered rather than helped. But in any case, you have had your opportunity already, to help establish whatever needed to be established with respect to this focalization. It is something that is passed due to the pattern of your function, during the past year particularly. So, whatever you had to author in the vibrational field, toward bringing this to point, you've already done; and the development of some concept one way or another will have no bearing on the matter, because it will not change the vibrational factors that have already been established.
You will perhaps begin to learn that what you are doing has a bearing, not only with respect to that which is immediately at hand, that which you can see and touch and feel, but upon that which is taking form in the future, the vibrational factors that are being brought to focus, the cycles that are being opened or expanded, initiated or developed, so that you may have a consciousness of the fact that day-by-day, with respect to many things of which you may not be aware, you are either helping or hindering. Tonight I have no wish to consider any of these factors, other than those with which you have helped. If for some reason you may come to the conclusion that you have not helped enough, well then that's too bad. We'll have to forgive and forget it, and let the days yet to come have greater meaning than the days that have gone. But there is the necessity of realizing that, each day, you are either helping to prepare that which is to take form in the days to come, or you’re hindering in its manifestation—and what is done is done.
I trust that as I present this, you will function correctly in the vibrational field, in relationship to it. There is no necessity that the stress factors, which are bound to appear, should appear here. Perhaps a word to the wise will prove to be sufficient.
This which is to become a booklet, is designed for wide distribution, distribution wherever there is interest, distribution through service centers, distribution through the mail, distribution wherever we can find an honorable way to release the factors that are involved. And so, we are on the pattern of launching—launching our ship of service into deeper waters, to set sail, and see what shall appear on the sea of life. If there is sufficient appreciation, recognition, of the significance of this moment, this hour, you will all find ways and means by which you may help to intensify and enlarge the cycle of movement.
But there is also another factor, other than direct service—for instance, in helping to increase distribution of these booklets when they are ready. I think tonight, after you have heard the words that are here written, you will realize more deeply—at least I trust you do—that you will realize more deeply your responsibility, and the necessity of right function, lest that which is set in motion shall, by reason of that motion, wash you away. There will be some reactions in the world. If they come, can we let them wash round and about, or over, and pass away, and be as if they had never been? Are you ready to prove, on the field of service, the reality of your centering?
And these words that I have spoken in introduction are not just to you. They are to you, but they are to every member of our Service in the field, every student of the Third Sacred School, to every member of the Church of the Emissaries of Divine Light, to every server, to all who will share in our Program.
Let us have a moment of devotion. Our gracious LORD and KING, I thank Thee for this hour. I thank Thee for those who share this hour with me, both in person and in Spirit, that we may worship Thee in Spirit and in Truth, and move forward in the Way which Thou didst open, that we may accomplish that to which we are called in Thy Holy Name, to the end that Thy Service may be increased, and to the end that all things may work together to perfection for all who love and serve Thee, in the Christ. Aumen.
The title for this booklet consists of three short words: Let Us Live. Let us live. This booklet carries a dedication: “A dedication to two billion bipeds of the species homos sapiens.” And the first presentation in it is entitled, “Theory”.
Theory
“We cannot clearly perceive the needs of our own lives, or attain a state of life satisfactory to ourselves, until we individually experience an harmoniously equalized integration of the four aspects of being: body, mind, emotion and spirit.”
Meditation will show that there is a good deal in that one sentence, the one sentence which outlines the theory which we accept, or which establishes our premise. I'll read it again. “We cannot clearly perceive the needs of our own lives, or attain a state of life satisfactory to ourselves, until we individually experience an harmoniously equalized integration of the four aspects of being: body, mind, emotion and spirit.” The next portion is entitled:
Approach to Investigation
“We must be willing to learn. We must face facts. We must accept that which proves to be true. If that which we already think and believe were in all respects correct and true we would not have so many problems, and life would hold more meaning for us. Our purpose is not to justify and defend what we already think and believe, but to discover what it is that we should think and believe. Let me repeat that sentence. Our purpose is not to justify and defend what we already think and believe, but to discover what it is that we should think and believe.
“We must dare to think for ourselves; we must dare to act on the basis of that which we discover to be true. Prejudice, if allowed to rule, will defeat us. Fear is faith in that which opposes our progress. Believing a lie will not make it true. Believing truth to be false will not make it so. Many people are not honest with themselves, and so defeat themselves. Let us learn how to be honest with ourselves. We need zeal without fanaticism. The fanatic loses perspective and defeats himself. We need to be practical, realistic, and scientific.” The next section:
What of Religion?
“We respect all religions. We have no quarrel with any religion. We encourage you to attend the church of your choice. We do not proselytize. But we feel that all religions cannot be entirely right. There must be one truth. If anyone of the recognized religions were wholly right there should be more power to change lives than we have yet seen. If religion is primarily concerned with the hereafter, we will disregard religion and leave the matter to the many churches. Our immediate concern is with this present life, that we may live. If we would learn to live this present life effectively, we must consider the spiritual factors of life, without regard to religious belief. The names of beliefs that divide men are not our concern. We would rise above all man-made boundaries, and learn the truth about God, and about our relationship with deity, from the standpoint of living today. Broadly speaking, the churches are concerned with what happens after death, and with present living only as they think it relates to what happened after death. We are concerned about what happens before death. Effective living now should not interfere with such prospects as one may have for the hereafter.” Effective living now should not interfere with such prospects as one may have for the hereafter.
What Does It Mean to Live?
"You were born on earth. You have a purpose on earth. You are individual. The Divine Design that makes you different from every other person on earth should not be wasted. You can do something on earth which no other person can do. You are important on earth. Your life on earth is important. Why do we have noble aspirations? Why do we wish to achieve something worthwhile? Why do we wish to mean something to others? Can we mean something to others without having meaning to ourselves? Can we mean something to ourselves without having meaning to others? A great man or woman is great because he or she has much meaning to others? The more you have meaning to others, the more you enjoy life. If you are going to enjoy life, you need to use your abilities in a manner which helps others to enjoy life. Health of body, mind, heart, emotional nature, and spirit is important to the enjoyment of life. The value of anything man makes or owns is determined by what it will do, or by what man can do with it. What can you do with your body? What can you do with your mind? What can you do with your emotional nature? What can you do with your spirit? Your value depends on what is done on earth because you live. Your value depends on what is done on earth because you live? Your joy in living is measured by what you do and not by what you get or own. What you get depends on what you do. Your job is not what classifies what you do.”
Now there's one little sentence that needs to be remembered, always, here or anywhere, all the time, wherever you are; because when you get into a pattern where you imagine that your job, here or anywhere, is a thing that classifies what you do, then you're wrong. You've lost sight of the reality of your responsibility.
“Your job insofar as physical action is concerned is always secondary to something else. Your job whatever it may be, I do not care, whatever your job is, it does not classify what you! Your doing is your living. The sum total of all your actions, your thoughts, your words, your feelings, your attitudes, plus the directions of your responses—that which controls your doing controls your living.” And we can read that one again: “That which controls your doing controls your living.” Our next section is entitled:
Our Starting Point
“There are several broad patterns of religion in the world. For the present we will not directly consider the basic segments of religion classified as Mohammadan and Hindu. The three great faiths, as often mentioned, relate to basic religious patterns which are called Protestant, Roman Catholic, and Jewish. Two of these are combined to indicate what is called the Christian world. The other Branch could then be called the Jewish world. These two worlds have their centering in the two parts of the Holy Bible, the Jewish world being centered in concepts derived from Old Testament scripture and the Christian world being centered in concepts derived from New Testament scripture. To this we must add one more segment of the basic pattern of religion, namely, the atheistic world as it appears today through Red Russia. Atheism must be seen as a religion in which man seeks to make himself supreme to himself, thereby destroying the dignity of life. The struggle is present within human beings everywhere, of all colors and creeds, has taken form within the human family as the contest between the Christian world and the Jewish world on the one hand and the atheistic world of Communism on the other hand.
“The struggles within the human family must first be resolved within the human being. Our starting point is, then, is with that which is called God by the Jewish world and the Christian world. We need a new vision of God, a new understanding of God, wherein we see and know the basic truth as recognized in both the Jewish and Christian worlds, so that to us there will be no division between the two. We need to find the one-God-world as opposed to the no-God-world. We need to find the one-God-world as opposed to the no-God-world.” Our next section is entitled:
Our Initial Theory About God
“Man cannot form himself or initiate life in himself. Man cannot form himself or initiate life in himself. If we conceive nature to be the mechanism through which creative force works to form the babe in the womb, we must acknowledge a source for the creative force. Force must be controlled and applied within a design before we have purposeful power. We must select a starting point. If we assume that the Bible must have some meaning we can anticipate discovering therein certain keys which may have been overlooked or inadequately understood. Let us look for ourselves without the vast array of smothering concepts which have crystallized in the minds of millions. If we use the word man in the plural sense we mean “mankind.” In the Biblical story of creation we find the words, “And God said let us make man”—mankind—“in our image and after our likeness, and let them have dominion over the earth.” If the plural is seen, and mankind means the whole human family made up of two billion human beings, and mankind was made in the image and likeness of God, then God is made up of untold millions of God Beings all of whom together make the One God just as the millions of human beings make up the one mankind. “Hear, O Chosen Ones, the LORD our God is One God.”
“As there are leaders in the human family so must there be leaders, or supreme points of focalization, in the God family. Since the body of mankind is made up of many members, and mankind was made in the likeness of the God who said, “Let us make”, it is evident that, according to the scriptures, the body of God is made up of many members, or God Beings, by whatever name called.” The next portion here is entitled:
Man's Purpose On Earth
“Have you ever asked the question, “Why am I here?” Generally speaking, most philosophies assume that man is merely a creature of chance who has no meaning after death, or that man is here on earth to prepare somehow for some state after death. Our text indicates that God created man to have dominion on earth. The original purpose for man must be the present purpose for man. There is no valid reason to believe that God changed his mind and established some other purpose for man.”
Let's repeat that sentence. “There is no valid reason to believe that God changed His mind and established some other purpose for man.”
“As far as we are concerned, let us assume that God's original purpose for man still stands; and that that purpose has nothing to do with the popular concept of being saved for a hereafter. Human beings do not, obviously, have the dominion over the earth, and all the things that are therein, which they are supposed to have. We have institutions full of people who are physically and mentally sick. Trouble is everywhere; suffering is all around us. To blame our sufferings, sickness and trouble on the will of God is an inconsistent blasphemy. A dependable car manufacturer makes an automobile with the expectation that it will run and give good service. He does not will that it should break down. If man is thus honest, how much more so is God? If you were made in the likeness of God, does God get sick, suffer, have tragedy and trouble? We might admit that God has had trouble with man, but God did not will that trouble. God has made every provision necessary to make it possible for us to live on earth without the problems which prevent us from having dominion. We can fulfill our purpose and have dominion on earth. We were created to be on earth, to have our home on earth. We should let heaven come on earth.” Our next chapter has the title:
All The Sons Of God
“Let us take a new look at the New Testament. Could it be that the word “Christ” should not be thought of as the name of a man. Whatever else Jesus may have been, he was a great teacher—He was a prophet. A prophet is one who speaks the Word of God on earth. He said, “The words I speak unto you, I speak not of myself.” Therefore, if we accept His own words about himself, we will accept His teaching as being from the Father and not as being about himself as a person, or a man. The idea that God had only one son, in the sense of one being who appeared as one man, is not supported by anything which God the Father spoke through the lips of Jesus. The Father, speaking through the lips of Jesus, the prophet, said, “The works that I do shall ye do also, and greater works than these shall ye do.” This was spoken concerning any person anywhere at any time, for He said, “He that believeth on me”—which is without limit as to time, place or person—but this was the Word of the Father and not the Word of Jesus, as He himself said.
“The greatest thing which Jesus did was to reveal the Father, do the works of the Father, and speak the words of the Father. He indicated clearly that we can and should follow Him in such doing. When we examine the matter carefully, we find no basis for believing that Jesus died for us, but we can find much evidence that He lived for us, in the sense that His living, His teaching, His doing, reveal to us the way by which we can live, and learn to accept our divinely ordained places among the sons of God on earth. From the words of the Father through Jesus we read, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” He did not say that He was going to be crucified so that we could be free. From the same source, we have these words, “If ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” The next chapter is headed:
God's Only Begotten Son
“From the standpoint of reason, it is logical to assume that the only begotten Son of God should have reference to the sum total of the essence of being which issues forth from God. When we examine carefully all the Biblical passages which have a bearing on this subject, which for lack of space cannot all be presented here, we begin to find that the term “Christ” relates to the spirit of the Father. or the spirit which issues forth from God and reveals the presence of God. Looking again to the Old Testament, we find that the same truth was known in olden times. The term “Shekinah” as you used in connection with the revelation of the presence of God above the Ark means, “The evidence of the Presence of the One Who Dwells.” The Shadow of the Almighty has reference to Shekinah. We find that the Shekinah of the Old Testament and the Christ of the New Testament mean exact exactly the same thing. There is no conflict between the two revelations of God's Truth. “The glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle and shone round about.” “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory.” The evidence of the Presence of the Father as revealed through Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life”, which is the Christ Spirit of love, truth and life which issues forth from God. The Shekinah was revealed as the Cloud of Glory—Life; the Light that Glows—Truth; and the Fire that Burns—Love. The word “Word” as used in the First Chapter of John means “Shekinah”, and when so read the passage begins to have real meaning. Shekinah was a secret word, and many ways of indicating the word without actually saying or writing it were used. Shekinah or Christ was and is the only begotten Son of God.” The next chapter carries the title:
The Great Atrocity
“In our new look at the New Testament we come to the point where we must choose between the ideas derived from the writings of Saint Paul and the record of the words of the Father as spoken through the lips of Jesus. Paul said that if we do not believe that Jesus died for us, the truth is not in us. This idea supposes that God will not forgive our sins unless we believe that Jesus paid the price on the cross. But that is not what Jesus said. It is not what Jesus taught. He taught men to pray, “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” He went on to say that if we forgive others, our heavenly Father will forgive us. This was long before the crucifixion. And Jesus did not qualify His statement in any way. If we study what Jesus said, we find that it was not God's will that He was crucified. It was an atrocity for which the whole human family was responsible; not just the people who were present in person, but all mankind. Let us be consistent and honest with ourselves. If Jesus had to die on the cross so we could be forgiven and saved, then Jesus did not know it—in fact He did not know what he was talking about!
“If He had to die to save us, Judas who betrayed Him should be the chief of all the saints, for he made it possible for us to be saved. Pilate should also be acknowledged as a great saint, for although he could find no fault with Jesus he turned him over to the Roman soldiers to be crucified. These are the men who should be our great saints, if Jesus dying had anything to do with our salvation. The soldiers who drove the nails should be counted high among the saints, for their action is supposed to have made it possible for us to be saved.” The next chapter is:
The Gospel
“The word “gospel” means “good news”. We have heard much about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but He stated His own “good news” in these words, The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” There is not one recorded word from the lips of Jesus which even remotely suggests that His Gospel had anything to do with dying on a cross. If we are going to assume that Jesus Himself knew what He was talking about, and that He knew what His purpose on earth really was, we must accept His own statement of His Gospel, “The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” He did not say, Heaven is at hand.” But He did say, “The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” Some have suggested that His word on this point was true only because He was here on Earth, and that as soon as He left, the Kingdom of Heaven was no longer at hand. How then can we explain His Word, “This Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world, and then shall the end come.” He had stated that the Gospel of the Kingdom was that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. He also taught men to pray, Thy kingdom come.” Thy kingdom come—when? Now. Not sometime in the future. Where? In our lives here on earth.
“Not heaven but the Kingdom of Heaven. The word “Kingdom” clearly indicates control and an understanding of the design through which control must work. Man was created to have dominion on earth. The Good News Jesus brought was that the means by which we might be restored to the state of dominion was at hand, within reach. available to you and me, and to all. When that truth is known. the end comes. The end of what? The end of the evil state in which we have no dominion, not the end of the earth, not the end of life on earth, the end of our failure to be what God created us to be. The Gospel of the Father as expressed by Jesus is the key to a new vision: the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” The next chapter carries this title:
The Truth Shall Make You Free
“If we accept the idea that it is possible that Jesus knew what He was talking about, and that what He stated is of value to us, we must examine His words, the words of God the Father through His lips, without regard to all the ideas of others, whether they be the words of Saint Paul, or someone else. Who was it that decided that Paul's words were so important? Who was it who classified his words as the words of God? There are two questions. Who was it that decided that Paul's words were so important. Who was it who classified his words as the words of God. Examination of the record shows that not even Peter had a true understanding of what Jesus taught. Those who wish to believe in Peter have a perfect right to do so. Those who wish to believe in Paul have a perfect right to do so. Just so, we feel that we have a perfect right to believe in Jesus. Our experience indicates that those who are most unsure of their position will be those who most strenuously object to examination of any new ideas, if they are controlled by prejudice. Otherwise they will be willing to take a new look, a careful look to find the truth. Only the truth will stand. Only the truth can make you free—free to be what you ought to be, free to enjoy dominion in life here and now, on earth.
“We have touched briefly on only a few points. Many questions should arise. If they are honest questions from one who seeks to know the truth, we will welcome the privilege of further study with you. If you are satisfied with what you already believe, we have no desire to change you. This brief approach to our problem of truly living is only an introduction. We are finding a vital relationship with God. We are beginning begin to prove God's power in our lives. That power allows healing of the physical body; that power allows a clearing of heart and mind; that power allows the responding one to live in the awareness of the Presence of God.”
And that's it. That's it. No one of the chapters is more than one page, double spaced. There are fourteen pages overall, including the cover, or title page, as I have them here in manuscript. It means that it won't be a very large booklet, in size. But what would happen if we put even 10,000 of them out across the land? Are you ready? [someone replied: “You bet!”] Very well then. Good night and God bless you.
