Religious or Spiritual

Religious or Spiritual what does it really mean?

A fundamental quest of life is the search after happiness and how to overcome suffering. Not just our life, but anyone’s life. In fact, any living creature searching for satisfaction, happiness, or pleasure, is trying to overcome suffering.

What is the goal of spirituality?

The goal of spirituality is the complete cessation of suffering and the attainment of inner joy. In essence the, goal of spirituality and of our lives are identical. The difference lies in the way they can be attained.

In general, our approach to solving issues of life has two parts, the conventional and the spiritual way.

We hear it often said: “We are spiritual, but not religious”. Let us start with examining conventional religion as an inquiry into happiness.  First we need to ask ourselves, what is the greatest amount of happiness we can imagine for ourselves? To do this we need to establish a norm of measurement. We need to ask, what are the conditions in which we can experience this happiness, joy, bliss, love?

One would assume, that the joy of life is easier expressed when we are young. We have our whole life in front of us; we are optimistic, vigorous, and full of dreams and ideas. However, the latest research on the elderly shows, that this is not necessarily the case.

Common sense suggests that happiness and well being should decline with age. After all, with creaking joints, memory lapses, and the sense of edging ever closer to the end of life, the stereotype is that older people mourn their lost youth and vitality, their active social lives, and the anticipation of a long and happy life. But research shows that this is not so. Older adults report higher levels of positive affect and lower levels of negative emotions than do young adults. Moreover, older adults have a higher feeling of well being than do younger adults. How can this be?

While there is no definitive answer, some of the reasons suggest that older adults do not experience emotions, particularly negative emotions, as intensely as the young. Another explanation is that negative events don't have the same devastating impact that they have on younger people. Older people have learned how to "roll with the punches”.

Now we may ask, is there anything more to life; is there another kind of happiness? The answer is yes, but not necessarily of this world. The belief is, that after death one can go to higher realms, a better environment, where we get a finer form of enjoyment

What are the requirements to obtain happiness in the world?

To attain happiness in the world, we need three things, a body, an object of enjoyment, like music, art, food, vacation etc. – things to do in the world and an environment in which to do them..

We may have all that we need in an earthly body, but none of these experiences are very spiritual, it may just be a fun place to be.

Then there are the ideas people have of the afterlife, where one can go to and be happy. This is what religion tells us. Yet how do we know that such a place even exists? We simply have to believe.

What does Christianity tell us about heaven?

"Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband" (Revelation 21:2).

No tears or pain in eternity

"And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away" (Revelation 21:4).

Perfect peace

"The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust [shall be] the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain," says the LORD (Isaiah 65:25).

Houses and vineyards

"They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit" (Isaiah 65:21).

Fruitful gardens

"The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose" (Isaiah 35:1).

Popular myths picture heaven as a fanciful place where spirits sit on clouds playing harps or float around in nebulous space. However, in John 14:2-3 the Bible says that Jesus is building mansions in heaven for those who accept salvation. He is preparing real buildings with real tangible materials for real people who will inhabit them.

Additionally, when Jesus went to heaven he told his disciples: "But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom" (Matthew 26:29). This means that in heaven real vineyards will produce real grapes.

The Bible even refers to heaven as a country (Hebrews 11:16). Before sin came into this world, the world was a physical paradise — a beautiful garden full of fruits, trees, and animals. Similarly, when sin is finally eradicated from this universe, we will get to live life as God originally intended for mankind when He first created the Garden of Eden — not as spirits on clouds, but in a tangible, material Heaven.

The Bible speaks about hosts or inhabitants of both heaven and earth. "Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished" (Genesis 2:1). The Bible mentions that angelic beings  rejoiced at the creation of the earth. "When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy" (Job 38: 7). The biblical prophet Micaiah said: "I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing on His right hand and His left (2 Chronicles 18:18).

Perfect unselfish love governs all relationships in heaven

The Bible says: "He who does not love does not know God, for God is love" (1 John 4:8). Those who love God keep His commandments (John 14:15). The inhabitants of heaven obey God’s commandments of love (Psalm 103:19-21).

We will have physical bodies in heaven

Our bodies will be free from disease, pain and death in heaven (1 Corinthians 15:40-49). We will still have physical bodies. The Bible says: For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body (Philippians 3:20,21). The body of Jesus after His resurrection was physical. Jesus said: "Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have" (Luke 24:39). We will be able to recognize our loved ones. The Bible says: "For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known" (1 Corinthians 13:12).

The New Earth as heaven

Real earth, real houses, gardens, hobbies, loved ones, are all part of the perfect future life in store for those who are faithful to God’s Word. This becomes more believable when we realize that the Bible says that the greater part of the future existence of human beings will take place right here on our planet earth, which will be recreated and restored to its original perfection. This life will be free from sickness, war, crime and anything harmful. The future life will have the best of this life plus additional joys beyond our imagination. (see Revelation 21:1-4; Isaiah 65:17-25; John 14:2-3)

Bible prophecy points to the fact that Jesus will return the second time. He will  come in secret , in the clouds, first at the rapture, and then seven years later, every eye shall see him when He descends to the Mount of Olives (Revelation 1:7) at the literal second coming of Christ to the Earth.. At the rapture, those who have accepted Jesus as their personal Savior will be taken to heaven for a period of seven years, during the tribulation on Earth. . They will live with Christ   in the mansions Jesus is building. After His second coming and the thousand year reign of Christ on Earth, when He has put all His enemies down, then He will bring the New Jerusalem down to earth. God will recreate a new earth and a new Heaven, and our heavenly life will take place right here.

What is the spiritual perspective?

From a spiritual perspective, we realize, that our true nature is Happiness, Joy, Love and Bliss itself, However, this state can only be realized, when the mind is still, but most of our minds are agitated. What agitates the mind is unfulfilled desire for things, relationships, heaven, all of which are a concept of the mind. Some things we can obtain, which satisfy the mind for a while, but this satisfaction won’t last. We always want more. What we think is that the attainment of our desires, or that place, that job, that person, makes us happy. But this is not the case; it is our inner happiness when it shines forth that makes us happy.

When we realize, that happiness is within, we know that it is there at all times. It can only be obscured by our restless mind. Here we may ask, would it not be wise to just calm our mind and let all those desires go?

Our entire consumer economics is driven by the psychological forces of tension and release of tension. We build up desires through advertising, we get the object, it releases tension and that release of tension we call happiness.

People on the spiritual path who are convinced, that they are not this body nor this mind, but have a body and mind and that there is a spiritual reality within them, which transcends the limitations they seem to have, can experience  happiness of this and the next world right now.

If one’s goal is to realize his true identity, if this becomes the pursuit in life, and if one is convinced that God exists, that God is real and can be realized or experienced, he can go beyond the sorrows of this world. Experiencing God or God realization is the purpose of life, but we must step away from the mad pursuit of the world outside. To do this, we don’t have to become a monk. We can perfectly live in the world, take care of family, do our job, but internally we need to resemble something like a monk, searching for spiritual realization.

The key to this is, I want to know who I am, I want to experience God and I need to integrate life’s activities into my spiritual life. We can convert all life activities into spiritual life. Child rearing, shopping all the normal activities can be lifted to a service to God.

Spiritual practice is almost the opposite of what a person is doing in the world. We generally think, that if I work for my career and for my family, I will be happy, whereas the person on the spiritual path reverses this. He works for the happiness of others. It could be for the small circle of the family, for the community, or for the world at large.

Once we come to this place in our lives, what do we do? We perform spiritual practices. An ideal leading to God union is the practice of Yoga.

Yoga, the Pathway of Spiritual Dimension

There are essentially four paths, each one suited for a certain temperament.

There is the path of action, karma yoga. The path of selfless work, where every action is offered to God

Then there is the path of the intellect, jnana yoga the path of discrimination between that which is real and eternal and that which is temporal, non – eternal

There is the path of love, devotion, bhakti yoga, where the worshiper merges his ego with the chosen ideal. For Christians this would be God, Jesus.

The enemy of the heart is of the form I want, I desire, passion. Spiritualized love means streams of rays of love are channeled into the world and then directed to, I love God.

The last path is the path of prayer and meditation, rajas yoga. This path is predominately for people who lead  a contemplative life, but also can be incorporated into our normal life.

Among the teachings of Jesus there are many examples which could be classified according to one or another of the yogas. For example, “Inasmuch as you have done unto the least of these my brethren, you have done it unto me”. He was teaching in the spirit of Karma yoga; worship God through service of man.

Jesus taught discrimination and renunciation. “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else, he will hold to the one, and despise the other, ye cannot serve God and mammon (the world).

We have essentially been discussing two paths. One is to be happy in the world and try to get to heaven. The other way is the path of spirituality through God realization.

At this point we need to be aware, that we no longer seek happiness only from the world, but we combine spiritual life and our worldly life.

For people new on the spiritual path, even a little practice is a step in the right direction and is never lost.

God is the source of happiness in us. There is an ocean of joy within us. Once we realize this, we go even beyond this, to God realization.

We go from the worldly happiness, to the happiness of spiritual beingness, the attainment of God.

2 Corinthians 5:5 (NLT)

God himself has prepared us for this, and as a guarantee he has given us his Holy Spirit.

What does it mean that God is spirit?

The teaching that “God is spirit” is found in John 4:24: “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” Jesus said this to a woman who thought that physical locale has a bearing on proper worship of God.

The fact that God is spirit means that God the Father does not have a human body. God the Son came to earth in human form (John 1:1), but God the Father did not. Jesus is unique as Emmanuel, “God with us” (Matthew 1:23). Numbers 23:19 emphasizes God’s truthfulness by contrasting Him with mortal men: “

Numbers 23:19 (KJV) 19 “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?”

Some question in which the Bible sometimes speaks of God as if He has a body. For example, Isaiah 59:1 mentions God’s “hand” and “ear.” Second Chronicles 16:9 speaks of God’s “eyes.” Matthew 4:4 puts words in God’s “mouth.” In Deuteronomy 33:27 God has “arms.” All of these verses are examples of anthropomorphism. Anthropomorphism is a form of figurative language. It does not imply that God has an actual body.

To say that God is spirit is to say that God the Father is invisible. Colossians 1:15 calls God the “invisible God.” First Timothy 1:17 praises God, saying, “To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever.”

Even though God is spirit, He is also a living, personal being. As such, we can know Him personally. Joshua 3:10 speaks of God in this way, saying, “You will know that the living God is among you.” Psalm 84:2 declares, “My heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God” (ESV).

Philosophically, God must be a spirit in order to be infinite. Also, if God was limited to a physical body, He could not be omnipresent (in all places at once). God the Father is not limited to the dimensional restrictions of created things but can exist in all places at one time. God is the uncreated First Cause that is the power behind all other beings.

Interestingly, in John 4:24 Jesus makes the connection between God being spirit and worshiping Him in spirit and in truth. The idea is that, since God is spirit, people must worship Him accurately (in truth) and in spirit (with their soul or heart), as opposed to relying on traditions, rituals, and physical places.

Ethics and development of consciousness

Ethics typically focuses on defining right and wrong behavior. But despite centuries of work by major schools of thought disagreement about the nature and content of such criteria has proven to be the rule rather than the exception.

Two major approaches of ethics can be distinguished, duty based and happiness based. The duty based is supported by Kant which emphasizes performance and the following of rules; the happiness based depicted by John Steward Mill, emphasizes the promotion of general happiness and well being. Each of these approaches has its strengths and reflects and reflects deep aspects of intuition about ethics.

But there are problems with both. Advocates of the happiness based approach often point out that following rules and duty without consideration of other people’s happiness and suffering is too complex to be defined and used as a base for ethics and the life based on the pursuit of happiness makes one a slave to circumstances and violates human dignity.

Mill expresses his view on freedom by illustrating how an individual's drive to better their station, and for self-improvement, is the sole source of true freedom. Only when an individual is able to attain such improvements, without impeding others in their own efforts to do the same, can true freedom prevail. Mill's linking of freedom and self-improvement has inspired many. By establishing that individual efforts to excel have worth, Mill was able to show how they should achieve self-improvement without harming others, or society at large.

The theory, developed as a result of Enlightenment rationalism, is based on the view that the only intrinsically good thing is a good will; an action can only be good if its maxim – the principle behind it on which to act – is duty to the moral law. Central to 

Kant's construction of the moral law is the categorical imperative, which acts on all people, regardless of their interests or desires.

Kant an outlook or system of thought attaching prime importance to human rather than divine or supernatural matters. Humanist beliefs stress the potential value and goodness of human beings, emphasize common human needs, and seek solely rational ways of solving human problems.

German philosopher G. W. F. Hegel criticized Kant for not providing specific enough detail in his moral theory to affect decision-making and for denying human nature. German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer argued that ethics should attempt to describe how people behave and criticized Kant for being prescriptive. Michael Stocker has argued that acting out of duty can diminish other moral motivations such as friendship, The Catholic Church has criticized Kant's ethics as contradictory and regards Christian ethics as more compatible with virtue ethics.

Walk in the Spirit of God, a Christian perspective.

As a young boy I always wanted to know about the Holy Spirit. I asked priests and ministers for the answer, all I ever received was, you just have to read the bible. I never gave up in my quest for Truth. It was God that answered my prayer. I am convinced that without the Holy Spirit, we walk in darkness, we sleepwalk.

I hope that the reader of this short paper will discover what he needs, so that he can walk in the Spirit and joy of God. God be with you.

"What does it mean to walk in the Spirit?"

Those who believe have the indwelling Spirit of Christ, the Comforter who proceeds from the Father (John 15:26). The Holy Spirit assists believers in prayer (Jude 1:20) and “intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God” (Romans 8:27). He also leads the believer into righteousness (Galatians 5:16–18) and produces His fruit in those yielded to Him (Galatians 5:22–23). Believers are to submit to the will of God and walk in the Spirit.

A “walk” in the Bible is often a metaphor for practical daily living. The Christian life is a journey, and we are to walk it—we are to make consistent forward progress. The biblical norm for all believers is that they walk in the Spirit: “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25, KJV; cf. Romans 8:14). In other words, the Spirit gave us life in the new birth (John 3:6), and we must continue to live, day by day, in the Spirit.

To walk in the Spirit means that we yield to His control, we follow His lead, and we allow Him to exert His influence over us. To walk in the Spirit is the opposite of resisting Him or grieving Him (Ephesians 4:30).

Galatians 5 examines the work of the Holy Spirit in the believer. The context is freedom from the Law of Moses (Galatians 5:1). Those who walk in the Spirit “eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope” (verse 5) and are free from the Law (verse 18). Also, those who walk in the Spirit will not gratify the desires of the flesh (verse 16). The flesh, fallen nature under the power of sin, is in direct conflict with the Spirit (verse 17). When the flesh is in charge, the results are obvious (verses 19–21). But when the Spirit is in control, He produces godly qualities within us, apart from the strictures of the Law (verses 22–23). Believers “have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (verse 24), and now we walk in the Spirit (verse 25).

Those who walk in the Spirit are united with Him and the bearers of the fruit the Spirit produces. Thus, those who walk in the Spirit walk in love; they live in love for God and for their fellow man. Those who walk in the Spirit walk in joy, they exhibit gladness in what God has done, is doing, and will do. Those who walk in the Spirit walk in peace—they live worry-free and refuse anxiety (Philippians 4:6). Those who walk in the Spirit walk in patience—they are known for having a “long fuse” and do not lose their temper. Those who walk in the Spirit walk in kindness—they show tender concern for the needs of others. Those who walk in the Spirit walk in goodness—their actions reflect virtue and holiness. Those who walk in the Spirit walk in faithfulness—they are steadfast in their trust of God and His Word. Those who walk in the Spirit walk in gentleness—their lives are characterized by humility, grace, and thankfulness to God. Those who walk in the Spirit walk in self-control—they display moderation, constraint, and the ability to say “no” to the flesh.

Those who walk in the Spirit rely on the Holy Spirit to guide them in thought, word, and deed (Romans 6:11–14). They show forth daily, moment-by-moment holiness, just as Jesus did when, “full of the Holy Spirit, He left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness” to be tempted (Luke 4:1).

To walk in the Spirit is to be filled with the Spirit, and some results of the Spirit’s filling are thankfulness, singing, and joy (Ephesians 5:18–20; Colossians 3:16). Those who walk in the Spirit follow the Spirit’s lead. They “let the word of Christ dwell in them” (Colossians 3:16), and the Spirit uses the Word of God “for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). Their whole way of life is lived according to the rule of the gospel, as the Spirit moves them toward obedience. When we walk in the Spirit, we find that the sinful appetites of the flesh have no more dominion over us.

In Gal 5:16 Paul says, “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.”To walk in or by the Spirit is to allow Him to direct the way in which we live our life; it is to make decisions in the light of His holiness; it is to remain in communion with Him; it is to be occupied with Christ, because the Spirit’s ministry is to engage us intimately with Jesus.

Walking by the Spirit is not a mystical, trans-like state in which one enters and mysteriously lives; nor is it some kind of far out, ethereal experience as some have postulated–any such thinking along those lines is completely “cultic” in its orientation.  To walk by the Spirit is to live under the direction of the Holy Spirit and to walk by faith in God’s Word. Jesus taught His disciples the night before He went to the cross that He was going to return to heaven, but would send His Spirit to live within them to guide and instruct them in much the same way  He had. (John 14:16-18, 26; 15:26; 16:13-15).  Scripture tells us it is only by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit that we are able to grasp and understand spiritual truth (Acts 16:14; 1Cor 2:12-14).  So to walk in the Spirit is to live in the light of truth, and walk by faith in God’s Word.

When we walk in the Spirit, the attachment to the physical is transcended. We cannot be occupied with both Christ and our matter body at the same time; so being led by the Spirit means, being lifted above the body. Walking in the Spirit involves a conscious awareness of His presence and a conscious reliance and dependence upon Him to guide and direct our lives. The knowledge of His abiding presence, and this reliance and dependence is clearly taught in Scripture.  Since the parameters of walking in the Spirit are revealed to us in God’s Word, we embrace these truths by faith and we act upon them with an attitude of submission to God’s will (Jam 1:22).

Therefore to be occupied with the things of the Spirit, is to be occupied with “living a life of faith. The walk of faith is one in which we submit to the truths of Scripture which amounts to studying, believing, trusting, obeying, and affirming those truths. When we fully affirm truth it will lodge confidently and peacefully in our soul.

Paul said, “Be filled with the Holy Spirit” (Eph 5:18), and “Let the Word of Christ dwell in you” (Col 3:16); essentially, the Spirit and the Word are direct equivalents in these two verses.  Paul said, “the life I now live, I live by faith”(Gal 2:20). We live and walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7). We live and walk by the Spirit, not by feeling. Since we live by the Spirit, let us walk by the Spirit (Gal 5:24). We were “justified by faith” (Gal 3:24); we live by faith” (Gal 3:11); and we received the promise of the Spirit by faith”(Gal 3:14). “Faith is the victory that overcomes the world!” (I John 5:4).  We walk in the Spirit (live by faith in the Word) when we obey Christ from the heart (Gal 5:8-10). We are to live life by being occupied with the things of Christ in every respect–“to live is Christ, says Paul (Phil1:21). 

We are transformed by the “renewing of our minds”– by faith (Rom 12:2; Eph 4:23). Paul, “Keep seeking those things which are above, where Christ is; set your minds on things above, not on the things  of this world” (Col 3:1-2). We are transformed and renewed through a true knowledge of Christ (by faith) (Col3:10).

The goal of our instruction, writes Paul, “is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1 Tim 1:5). We are to “fight the good fight of faith” (1 Tim 6:12). Only a life of faith “pleases God” (Heb11:6).  We are to be doers of the word and not merely hearers” (Jam1:22).

Paul made “walking in the Spirit” the central element of the believer’s responsibility.  The Old Covenant saints were expected to glorify God by living in conformity to the Mosaic Law; today, God’s children are required to glorify God by walking in the Spirit. Paul teaches us that the Holy Spirit lives within every born-again believer, but not every believer lives in submission to the Spirit; possessing the Holy Spirit is not sufficient, believers must allow the Spirit to possess them. To walk in the Spirit means to live in complete submission to the control of the indwelling Spirit of God (Rom 6:12-13). “Walking in the Spirit” is the opposite of “walking in the flesh” – Paul contrasted the results of these “two walks” in his letter to the Galatians (5:19-23). Walking   in the Spirit accomplishes the following: 1. It prevents walking in the flesh, which is our “default mode” (Rom 6:12-13; Gal 5:16). 2. It proclaims God’s glory because we submit to His stewardship in this economy (1 Cor 6:19-20). 3. It preserves the grace principle, which we forfeit if we default to the flesh (Gal 5:4; Jam 4:3-10). 4. It prevents death, the natural result of anything accomplished in the flesh (Rom 6:23; 7:5, 24; 8:2-7).  (The fruit of the flesh is death; nothing of the flesh has any eternal value; it is simply matter}.

JUST LIKE A CHILD

Just like a child,

So humble and mild,

Jesus said," Come unto Me."

And forever be free.

When we seek His face,

And trust in His grace,

His Spirit lives in our hearts,

And will never depart.

If we walk by His side,

And if on Him we rely,

We who are weak are made strong,

And to Him, we'll belong.

But many He wishes to save

From the depths of the grave,

Have forborne to come,

And, He leaves them alone.

For we all have free will,

And though He loves us all, still,

Only those who will hear,

Does our loving LORD draw near.

So, we give God the glory and praise,

For all His good ways-

We who were vain and selfish ones,

Are now His precious daughters and sons.

-Jennifer D. Wenzel

The Cosmic Christ

The mystery of Christ is much bigger than Christianity. Christ is not a personality but a Divine Essence. It is a spiritual emanation from Godhead. The Son of God or the Godhead in its creative aspect is that power or principle which begets and animates all manifestation of life. It is the Divine creative force, a great stream of life giving essence which manifests in all things, on all planes as the animating principle of the one life.

The Christ spirit therefore is an animating power of all life, physical, mental and spiritual.

In nature, it is the unquestionable urge toward perfection, which adapts the organism to its environment

Among man it is the urge toward union with God, the effort to bring the Divine in them into harmony with the Divine in the universe. It is this mystic forming verifying principle, the Christ force manifesting in and through Jesus, when he said: “I am the bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world” John 6:51 KJV.

"He who eats my flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life”

Such statement could not apply to any human flesh and blood or any personality, but figuratively to that immortal universal principle, which the personality of Jesus embodied. Eternal life cannot be obtained by merely observing or studying spiritual truth, for they must be assimilated (eaten) in one’s total being and be a part of life. Just as physical food must be assimilated by the body and manifest as love, tolerance, charity and purity. In this way we have truly eaten of the body of Christ. Only through the Christ force, Spirit in us can we have eternal life.

To grow spiritually is not enough to lead ethical, moral and blameless lives. We must also drink of the blood and eat of the flesh of Christ, that is, drink of the spiritual creative power or Divine life force which shall re-create us. This divine life force shall make our lives not only mortal models, but dynamic, radiant centers of the force for good.

We must distinguish between the mystic Christ principle and the personality of Jesus. This distinction is plainly made in the New Testament. Only the lack of knowledge concerning the mystery of Christ can account for the incomplete teachings of church leaders. Most teachers talk only about the personality of Jesus and his suffering. If they stop here, they don’t even touch the hem of his garment. They worship a picture and as a result will be disappointment. They see their ideal crucified, cast out and destroyed. The Pauline picture of Christ is for those who need no historic personality as a model, but to open their heart to the Christ and have the Holy teachings revealed through the spirit.

The story of Jesus is not just a story of a great teacher, but the story of the perfected man in us, the growth and perfection of the soul. The story of Jesus is the story of which each personality must pass through. Most people live in their mind which is dual by nature and for the most part vacillates between higher and lower expressions. The Jesus man (follower of Jesus) becomes Christ like when the human mind is uplifted and blended with Christ Consciousness, the discriminating intellect.

Christ consciousness according to Paramahansa Yogananda is the projected consciousness of God immanent in all creation. In Christian scripture, the "only begotten son," the only pure reflection in creation of God the Father; in Hindu scripture, Kutastha Chaitanya or Tat, the universal consciousness, or cosmic intelligence, of Spirit everywhere present in creation. (The terms "Christ Consciousness" and "Christ Intelligence" are synonymous, as also "Cosmic Christ" and "Infinite Christ.") It is the universal consciousness, oneness with God, manifested by Jesus, Krishna, and other avatars. Great saints and yogis know it as the state of samadhi (ecstasy) meditation, wherein their consciousness has become identified with the divine intelligence in every particle of creation; they feel the entire universe as their own body.

The resurrection of Jesus was the symbolic way of saying that his presence was beyond any limits of physical space and time. The Christ is omnipresent.

Experiencing God In Silence, Solitude, and Stillness

The importance of silence, solitude, and stillness in the life of Jesus and his disciples is undeniable. Jesus made a habit of withdrawing, sometimes abruptly, from the crowds and his ministry of doing his Father’s will to “the hills” or a “lonely place” or “the wilderness” or a “high mountain” or to the “seashore” or to the Garden of Gethsemane. To be more like Jesus we must likewise find times of silence, solitude and stillness.

The spiritual disciplines of silence, solitude, stillness are disciplines of abstinence. In the disciplines of abstinence, we abstain in some form and for some time from what we generally regard as normal desires.

And, as with all spiritual disciplines, the disciplines of silence, solitude, and stillness are for the ultimate goal of godliness, Christ-likeness, and oneness with God.

For the purpose of spiritual disciplines we define silence, solitude, and stillness as follows:

Silence: To abstain from speaking, to listen. to be quiet.

Solitude: To be alone, to turn away from human interaction and external stimuli.

Stillness: To stop, cease, desist, to not move, to rest, to wait, to be at peace.

Experiencing God in Silence

“In silence and quietness the devout soul makes progress and learns the hidden mysteries of the Scriptures” – Thomas a Kempis.

“All writers on the spiritual life uniformly recommend the practice of silence”

“In quietness and trust is your strength” (Isaiah 30:15)

We are in a culture that conditions us to be comfortable with noise and crowds and uneasy with silence.  We have an addiction to noise. Silence is rare in our society as our lives are always filled with background noise, without which we tend to fear nothing is happening. What does it say about our souls if we have to have noise to feel as if something is happening around us?

All in all no spiritual discipline is more universally accepted as necessary than the practice of silence. In silence we close our soul off from the sounds of words, music, and noise. Silence allows us to experience life-transforming concentration on God.

The reason we seek silence is the same reason Jesus did, to be able to listen and hear what God is saying to us. Nothing like silence strips us naked and allows us to see reality through God’s eyes.

Silence is possible without solitude but very few of us can be silent in the presence of others, which speaks to the necessity of pairing silence with solitude. Richard Foster(writer and theologian) notes that “Without silence there is no solitude”

Experiencing God in Solitude

“But when you pray, go into your closet and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret.” (Matthew 6:6)

In the spiritual discipline of solitude we purposefully abstain from interaction with other human beings and all that comes with interaction with others. We intentionally isolate ourselves away from the experience of being with others by going to our prayer closet, the ocean, the wilderness, or the mountain to experience aloneness with God.

Solitude also is freeing. The normal course of daily human interactions locks us into patterns of thought and action that work against experiencing God, and only solitude can free us from the ingrained patterns that hinder our connection with God. In solitude we can better see the things that trap, worry, and oppress us and we are free to return to society as free persons.

It has been said that no great work in literature or art was ever accomplished by a man who did not love solitude. Anyone who has to create music, art, lessons, sermons, presentations, or reports knows it can’t be done with excellence without some form of extended and uninterrupted solitude.

Spiritual people from every generation have agreed that it is a fundamental principle that no large measure of spiritual growth was ever attained by one who did not take sufficient time to be alone with God.

Experiencing God in Stillness

“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him.” (Psalm 37:7). Scripture implies that stillness involves waiting and that blessings follow those who wait on God. As we don’t initiate action in our own strength and timing, we experience the blessings of God’s good and perfect and pleasing will and timing.

“Peace! Be still! And the wind ceased.” (Mark 4:39). Jesus connects stillness with peace. When we experience extended periods of stillness with God, our heart rate slow down, our inner turmoil is stilled, and a deep peace that passes understanding permeates our body, mind and soul.

“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations and in all the earth.” (Psalm 46:10). The Psalmist declares that we come to know God and His ways in stillness and that He is glorified and worship is experienced through God-focused stillness.

“He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.” (Psalm 23: 2-3) Scripture associates stillness with rest and healing. When we are sick the doctor usually prescribes that we be still through bed rest. When we suffer broken bones they are placed in a cast or sling to immobilize the bones. Why? because stillness promotes healing. When we are still before God we experience life-giving healing and wholeness that only He can provide.

“Now therefore stand still and see this great thing that the Lord will do before your eyes.” (1 Samuel 12:16). In stillness we slow down enough to notice where God is obviously at work in our lives, the lives of others, and in the world.

It was while Samuel was lying still in the Temple (1 Samuel 3:3-4) that God spoke to him. Likewise it is in the midst of stillness that we hear God’s voice speaking to us and respond to His call upon our lives.

Silence, Stillness, and Solitude Summarized

Spiritual writers and leaders, ancient and modern, are unanimous in agreeing that the disciplines of silence, solitude, and stillness lead to a love of God, a love of self, and a love of others. More than ever in history, we must discipline ourselves to experience silence, solitude, and stillness.

We need to think of silence, solitude, and stillness as complimentary as well as transformative. They are frequently found together because silence, solitude, and stillness go hand in hand, each making the other complete. Think of them as a three stranded rope, when structured together are stronger than the sum of its parts.

In summary, we practice the disciplines of silence, solitude, and stillness so that we may:

• Seek the will of God as Jesus did before choosing his disciples in Luke 6:12-13.
• Open our minds to see God’s ways as when Gabriel responded to Zechariah’s unbelief with an enforced silence in Luke 1:20.
• Quieting the noise so we can clearly hear God’s voice as Samuel did.
• Regain strength and receive power. After expending themselves physically and spiritually Jesus told His disciples, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest awhile.” (Mark 6:31)
• Produce the fruits of the spirit in our daily lives.
• Increase our sensitivity and compassion for others, and experience a new responsiveness to their hurts and needs.
• Learn to rely more on God’s control in matters where we typically feel compelled to speak, act, or exert control.
• Participate without interruption in other spiritual disciplines, such as, to read scripture and sacred writings, meditate, pray, journal, worship, even fast.
• Experience union, communion, and oneness with God.

If we have experienced genuine silence, solitude, and stillness then we will delight in the experience of refreshment, joy, and transformation.”

Enlightenment, a Christian Perspective Part 2

The Pharisees Excommunicate the Healed Man

“13 They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees. 14 Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. 15 Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.”

“16 Therefore some of the Pharisees said, “This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.”

Others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them.

“17 They said to the blind man again, “What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?”

He said, “He is a prophet.”

“18 But the Jews did not believe him that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight. 19 And they asked them, saying, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?”

John 9:39 (KJV)

“39 And Jesus said, for judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind”.

We need to discriminate between what is right and that which is wrong and do what is right and not what is expedient. In our spiritual journey, we need to embrace a sense of awe, of faith and wonder, and seeing ourselves as co-creators with God’s plan. We ought to be as Jesus exclaimed: “I have come to do the work of Him that sent me”. We all are a part of creation and have a responsibility to the whole. In this process we have to be watchful as children of light.

1 Thessalonians 5:5 (KJV)

“5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness”.

We must be watchful. We can only get away with evil, if we explain it to ourselves as virtue. Anyone who does wrong thinks of himself with some distorted perception, like using violence in, let’s make the world safe for democracy or helping others, we always have a rationale to justify our violent nature. That is the self serving ego speaking. It does not want to admit the truth of its false perceptions. It is never wrong.

“And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.”

A look at Salvation

Another word for enlightenment in Christianity is salvation. It is the act of being saved or protected from harm, risk, loss, destruction, or an act of healing that Jesus performed on many occasions according to the bible. 

The Hebrew words used to signify salvation, yasa (to save, help in distress, rescue, deliver, set free) it is most frequently used in the Old Testament.

In contrast, the employment of salvation in the New Testament usually signifies deliverance with special spiritual significance. In addition to the notion of deliverance the Bible also uses salvation to denote health, well-being, and healing.

The most common meaning of salvation is God's sovereign and gracious choice to be "God with us" in the person of Jesus Christ, who is described as both author and finisher of salvation ( Heb 2:10 ; 7:25 ). But the movement of Jesus' life goes through the cross and resurrection. It is therefore "Christ crucified" that is of central importance for salvation (1 Cor1:23), for "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures" (1 Cor 15:3) and was handed to death for our trespasses (Rom 4:25).

Matthew 20:28 (KJV)

“28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister and to give his life a ransom for many”.

In practical terms salvation became the overall word for the final healing that is experienced in life and after death that makes us right with God. Jesus healed, he mingled with all people. He did not ask what their religion was. He transformed many that were within his reach. He had no pre-requisites, but he told people to change their life style or repent.

In the New Testament there are three different passages. Some which point out, that salvation has already happened, some point out that salvation is in the process of happening, and there is a finality and future tense.

Example:

God has been pleased to reconcile all things to Himself.

Colossians 1:19-20 (KJV)

“19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell”;

“20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven”.

Ephesians 2:8-9 (KJV)

“8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast”.

Romans 5:5 (KJV)

5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

We need to recognize that well spring of the Holy Spirit.

Genesis 2 (KJV)

“2 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them”.

Unfortunately in some of the Christian teachings, salvation or enlightenment is largely taught as an evacuation plan for the next world.

Instead religion needs to be taught in a manner that transforms people now so that they can experience God’s presence through the guidance of the Holy Spirit in their daily lives.

We need to look at the deep present tense passages like

John 1:9 (KJV)

9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

Philippians 2:12 (KJV)

“12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling”.

This is what keeps one on the journey.

Then there are future passages.

1 Corinthians 15:22 King James Version (KJV)

“22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive”.

On incarnation,

The incarnation did not begin with Jesus’ birth. The incarnation of Christ started the moment God decided to materialize; where we have the eternal Christ, the combination of matter and spirit.

An enlightenment experience must be observable. The people project a glow, they change in personality, and they also change others just by being who they are.

Unfortunately many Christians limit the Christ mission to their own vision. Few realize that Jesus’ mission continued beyond his incarnation. He showed that he is able to materialize his body at will in the world or on any other level of existence at any time. This is why He could say to his disciples;”Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world”. He immortalized His body as well as His spirit. Any true devotee can see him as Jesus Christ or know Him as one with the Infinite Christ. Saint Francis, born centuries after Jesus, used to see him every night. St. Teresa of Avila knew him as one with the Infinite Christ.

Some people are blessed with ultimate visions, where they can touch the body of Jesus and talk with him, just as truly as when he walked on earth. The intimately real sensation of touching the materialized form is not the same as contact with the gross matter of the incarnate form, but the realization of the true essence of the body as a combination of spiritual vibrations of Bliss impart a wondrous elevating sense of joy and blessings. Any sincere devotee can and should have an intimate relationship with the living Christ. Christ is now and forever, He is eternal. One can have a daily experience of His presence.

Romans 1:20 (KJV)

“20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse”.

Our knowledge of God is certainly partial at best, but we cannot plead complete ignorance. His creation reveals enough of Him to make a major difference in our lives.

For the invisible things of him - The expression “his invisible things” refers to those things which cannot be perceived by the senses. It does not imply that there are any things pertaining to the divine character which may be seen by the eye; but that there are things which may be known of him, though not discoverable by the eye. We judge of the objects around us by the senses, the sight, the touch, and hearing.

We have examined Enlightenment from a Christian Perspective, stated that Mysticism is the belief that union with or absorption into the Deity or the Absolute is possible. We have said, that the

Eastern Church, contemplation consisted not merely in negation and renunciation, but in a union with God's Spirit, in an experience of spiritual illumination

We have touched on, that experiencing the Holy Spirit is a feeling of inner peace and joy. We presented some of the teachings of Jesus and said that God is light, and in Him is no darkness and that we are “Ye are all the children of light”, and that Enlightenment in Christianity is also spoken of as salvation.

Our knowledge of God is certainly partial at best, but we cannot plead complete ignorance.

An elaboration on the Holy Spirit I

I will tell you of that which is to be known, because such knowledge bestows immortality. Hear about the beginning-less Supreme Spirit, He who is spoken of as neither existent nor nonexistent. He dwells in the world, enveloping all, He is present everywhere, shining in all the senses, yet transcending them; unattached to creation, yet the source of all creation.

He is within and without all that exists, the animate and the inanimate; he is the Indivisible One. He appears as countless beings; He maintains and destroys forms, then creates them anew. He is the light of all lights, beyond darkness; he is knowledge itself, that which is to be known, the goal of all learning, He is seated in the hearts of all.

An explanation of the Holy Spirit II

Spirit is motionless, vibration-less, both in thought and energy. It has no dimensions, no relativity; it is like nothing in creation. It knows neither pleasure nor pain. It is beyond the relativity of the four ordinary states of human consciousness, pleasure, pain, indifference, and temporary peace.

It is bliss, which is deeper than peace, and is always new and unceasing. That is the only quality of Spirit. When we feel that and nothing else satisfies; then you have true spiritual consciousness.

Spirit is nameless and formless. If we try to name Spirit, we immediately limit it. Spirit is not knowable by the limitation of understanding, but that does not mean that Spirit is entirely unknowable, because Spirit can be felt.

From the human point of view of time, Spirit is, was, and ever shall be. In Spirit there is no past or future, only the present. Spirit is ever conscious. Spirit's Cosmic Consciousness does not cease to operate actively, as does the consciousness of man in sleep. Spirit has no alternating consciousness of wakefulness or sub-consciousness like that of man, but has perpetual, enjoyable, active and inactive wakefulness combined within Itself.

It is said, that Spirit was Joy, but there was no one else to taste of this Joy, so Spirit divided Itself to become the Enjoyer, the act of enjoying, and the thing enjoyed, the Knower, the process of knowing, and the thing known.

This triune division of Spirit into Knower, Knowing, and Known was accomplished by the law of relativity. Spirit, being one and indivisible, had to imagine and will Itself to be many. Expressed another way: Spirit divided Itself into God as the Father, the Cosmic Consciousness or "Knower" remaining beyond all creation; and into God as the Son, the Christ Consciousness or cosmic intelligent subjective "knowing" power in creation; and into God as the Holy Ghost, the cosmic intelligent objective creation itself, the thing known.

Manifesting in creation, Spirit divided Itself into subject and object, the Knower and the Known.

What is the difference between Spirit as subject and object?

Spirit as God in the aspect of Christ Consciousness manifests subjectively in creation as the power of perception of thoughts and feelings; and Spirit as God the Cosmic Intelligent Vibration manifests objectively to produce the universe. Everything is One, but when that One Infinite Spirit differentiates Itself into many, It has many forms and many names. But Spirit, the great One Reality, cannot be named.

The word "God" means the manifested, transcendental Being beyond creation, but existing in relation to creation. Spirit existed before God. God is the Creator of the universe, but Spirit is the Creator of God. Spirit is not the universe; Spirit is that which was and will be whether the universe does or does not exist. Spirit includes everything.