It's me, mike hillebrecht

Duality is the blight of mortals. It affects all that we see, do, touch, taste, smell, and hear. It permeates every institution developed for the advancement of humanity. It has so stained our lives that any attempt to call attention to its trickery is often met with ridicule. I am not here to rail either way about the pros or cons of this matter. No, this is simply a finger pointing at where it all began. And…

This is rather a simple innocuous word you might think, however, this is where the whole debacle of duality beings. Back in the day when they used to teach grammar in an English class, teachers could be found instructing children how this word, “and,” is what is known as a “conjunction.” The purpose of this type of word is to join elements together into the same grouping or take two thoughts and join them together. (You know what they call two or more thoughts of anything? I’m not going there.)

You might think that this is not a big deal, right? Consider what occurs when you connect two subject matters which are opposites with this little word. Hard pressed to do such a task? Let me help you. Sweet and sour. Fire and water. Rich and poor. There is a plethora of examples but let’s not neglect the most important of all: Good and evil.

And it Begins

Have you recently read the first chapter of Genesis? In the 31 verses of that chapter, “and” appears in every single verse, often as the first word, followed by “God.” Furthermore, the commission which God assigns to the man is peppered with “and.” What is interesting also is how in this chapter of the creation narrative, “good” seems to be the standard for all things created. What can we gather from this?

The writer/interpreter seems pretty certain that all the events described were joined together as One cause conducted by One Person, namely God. The entirety of creation, including the animals and man, are seen as being One in, and with, God in this description. God determined how all the works done were “good” and “very good” at the conclusion of the chapter.

Even into the first three verses in the second chapter, “and” plays a prominent role following the same format from the previous chapter joining the seventh day to the prior days; sanctifying it as a day of rest for God and all creation. At no point does the appearance of an “opposite” or “another” enter into creation. Then comes the fourth verse of the second chapter where the entire narrative takes a turn.

In theological circle there are those who will expound on the opinion of how the writer of the first 34 verses in Genesis was written by someone different than the writer(s) who penned the remaining story line. There are those who will also claim that the second chapter is merely an expanded version of the sixth day of creation. Honestly, I don’t care because once you start going down any of these roads, you soon find how you’re more than lost in the land of “And” it’s more like lost in “And 2.0” on steroids.

What I want to bring out from this point is how the “new” writer is the first to form the conjunction between good and evil. Now this might not seem like a big deal until you consider how prior to the development of this association found in the seventeenth verse, everything was “good,” there was no opposite present (this includes the woman). It seems this “new” writer is shifting the reader from an OMNI-God to a God who is up-there and out-there somewhere during the day and can somehow be influenced by this new association of opposites.

Lost in the Land

We all know the story of how the woman is enticed by the serpent to eat the forbidden fruit and then the man partakes of it also. This confers upon them the knowledge of good “and” evil. Since all things prior to the bite were in the complete state of “good,” it is probably safe to assume that they already had this knowledge established in their consciousness. In my opinion it was “evil” that became the new knowledge. This evil was simply the recognition of doing the opposite of what they had been told not to do, or in other words, not listening to and following what God said.

This very simple act of self-rule required God to place both the man and the woman out of the garden created by God and into land of wilderness. They were now lost in the land of “and” knowing that they once inhabited a place which was the opposite of their present habitat. Seared into their consciousness was the dichotomy of “good” and the effects of self-rule.

Generation after generation would be told a dimmer and dimmer story about the land of “good” as a foil to the hardships each generation faced in the wilderness of the multiplicity of self-rule. The deeper humanity succumbed to self-rule in the land of “and” the farther it appeared God departed from the very creation He founded. Eventually humanity would be deemed “lost” needing to be “found” and “saved.” (Notice the “and” there.) Yet are they truly lost?

The Peek-a-Boo Syndrome.

I find it interesting how adults will play peek-a-boo with an infant for no reason than to try to set up the child into thinking somehow they can disappear. The infant is lying down or sitting up with the adult closely right in front it. The adult takes its hands and places them over their eyes for a brief moment and then quickly removes them while saying, “Peek-a-boo, I see you!” This may also be done with a cloth being placed over the eyes of the infant and then quickly being removed while exclaiming the same line, “Peek-a-boo, I see you!” This ritual will continue for several minutes much to the delight of the adult who is joyful how the infant laughed during the matter.

This same scenario is played out with God in the land of “and.” We treat God as the infant while we “hide” ourselves behind anything we believe God can’t see us. Then we go to some weekly religious service and for the briefest of moments exclaim joyously how God showed up. “Peek-a-boo, I see you!” But is God laughing with us or at us?

All of Thee

In the fourth gospel Jesus broke through the land of “and” when he exclaimed, “The Father and I are one. . .If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.” How, you might ask, does this “break through” the land of “and?”

The purpose of a conjunction is to join two or more parts together. In the land of “and” the parts come together but retain their individuality, their own self-rule. In the land of “and” there is me and, you and, they and, we and, not me and, nor you and, nor us and.

To the religious leaders present when Jesus said that he and the Father are one, they believed that Jesus was saying he was equal with the Father. This is a typical reaction in the land of “and” where self-rule is the predominate belief. Each person is equal to another in every characteristic and capacity. “Equal” is the result of “and” just like in math. But that is not what Jesus was proclaiming.

In this one statement Jesus rips the veil from the land of “and” revealing how all along there has not been a multitude of beings lost in the land of “and.” Being “one” is not a declaration of self-rule but a broadcast of the reveal of a kingdom established by an omnipresent God. There is no God “and” in this kingdom. There never has been or will be. Omnipresence insures this. The moment there is an “and” there is no God.

Believing Truth

Herein lies the horror of the land of “and.” Self-rule negates God’s ability to function through the mechanism of one or more “beliefs.” The primary belief is that there is “me and” God. From this belief springs forth a multitude of other beliefs about the relationship of “me and” God; “me and” my ability to see, hear, touch or know God; “me and” my walk with God versus those around me; “me and” how I get God to heal me, feed me, cloth me, prosper me, keep me in peace; and whole host of “beliefs” about the nature of God crafted on the “belief” that we are created in His image so He must act just like we do.

All of these beliefs, and those not mentioned, stem from our experiences in the land of “and.” There is not a single truth found in any of them. How can I make such a claim? Simply because in the land of “and” we failed to comprehend the magnitude of omnipresence. Missing this crucial element required us to “make up” beliefs on how it always appears that God is up-there, out-there, while focusing on the physical realm with all of its difficulties and the dichotomies of good “and evil.”

Jesus said that we need to worship the Father “…in spirit and truth.” Never did he say in spirit and “belief.” Yet every religious institution since those words were uttered has maintained that their “belief” is truth. How lost we have become in the circle logic of such thinking! In this we wrestle with the thought of an Omnipresent spiritual Creator which still asks, “…WHO told you…”

The truth is, “. . . for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me.” Until you can remove your self-governing belief in and on “and,” this truth will evade you. Omnipresence demands you to be one. However, it will not force you into it, this action must be undertaken in the quiet desperation of needing ALL of Him more than any of you “and” what you’ve clothed yourself in.

If you are someone who is following a spiritual journey leading to the unfolding of enlightenment there will come a point where you suddenly are thankful that God does not believe. Truth doesn’t have the innate need to believe. Each of us have this need to believe within us – God doesn’t.

Have you ever considered what it means to “believe?” You’re a “believer” but just what does it mean to believe? Have you ever wondered if Jesus was a “believer” like you or was he a different “believer”? If Jesus is the son of God, did he even have an innate need to believe like we do?

Do you believe in gravity? I know this is a rather silly question to ask but bear with me for a moment as I attempt to shine a light on this subject. To believe in/on something means to choose between two or more options which have been offered to you and then select the “best.” The “best” is often the one which continues or maintains your survival with the least amount of risk. This is how most of our “beliefs” have been developed. Then comes gravity.

None of us were ever offered an alternative. This is because gravity is a truth. If something goes up, eventually it comes down. You might think well if we were in space we wouldn’t have to deal with gravity, but even up there everything is being pulled to something somewhere. So there really isn’t a belief in gravity – it just IS. Just like God.

“God is good.” How many times have you ever said or heard this phrase? Do you believe it? Seriously think about what it means to “believe” this claim. You need to have another option presented to you that is either opposite to this claim or is more favorable to your survival. Some people live a life where this claim is a hazard to their well-being so there is no way they would believe anyone who might profess such a harmful expression. But then a “believer” enters their life, and the struggle ensues. Faith versus Truth.

“God is love.” This is the New Testament revelation. How did this become considered a “new” belief? Was there another alternative prior which “everyone” seemed to believe? What were the survival barriers the older belief presented which this new belief overcame? As a “New Testament believer,” did you have this old belief before an opposite belief became open for you to adopt it?

“God is omnipresent.” The alternative to this is that He isn’t, right? And yet there are moments in our lives when we “need” to believe He is because the gravity of our reality is hopelessness. And there is the rub: Our perception of reality is always a series of alternatives we face trying to survive the hopelessness of living through past wrong decisions where God wasn’t even there for us. Unbelievable, right? Far from it for most. Beliefs can be so entrenched that truth can’t break through its desperately clutching grip.

“My Father and I are one.” Jesus made this claim not as his belief but as a truth. Regrettably, even up to today we don’t recognize the gravity of this declaration. There are those who “believe” how Jesus was able to make this claim was because he is (believed to be) the Son of God. Jesus never said this about his relationship to the Father; he often called himself the Son of Man. This title creates issues for believers because it places Jesus back in the fold of humanity with all of its warts and failures. This is not a very appealing alternative to base a “belief” upon.

Isn’t it fortunate how a Truth completely disregards every belief? Wouldn’t it seem better to let Truth be the compass on a spiritual journey rather than belief? It seems that most of what is Truth has been hijacked by institutional beliefs intended to keep the masses blindfolded through life. So how do you overcome this and get back on track?

Start with the Truths I have offered to you in this work. They are as follows:

1. God IS.
2. God is Good.
3. God is Love.
4. God is Omnipresent.
5. My Father and I are ONE.

Right now, you have a “belief” about each of these. Many of these beliefs aren’t even yours – you adopted them. This doesn’t matter. What you must do is remove the belief. How? Realize that what you believe is the “opposite” to Truth and as long as you can lay claim to the opposite, the belief remains. Consider how Adam told God that he was naked. God asked him who told him he was naked. Adam’s “belief” founded on the knowledge of good and evil (opposites) couldn’t surrender to the Truth God knew about the man and woman.

There are many more truths to uncover but the process will be the same for each one. You must submit every belief you hold up to the light of Truth. Then you can begin the process of integrating Truth back into your life. This process will involve meditation and contemplation on the Truths and how they influence your life activities.

Understand that this is not a one-time deal. This is a lifestyle. I’m not going to tell you it will be easy to accomplish because it takes tenacity to cut through all the tangled webs of beliefs which permeate our lives. But there is always grace to do the job. I’ve come to a point where I realize grace is possibly the best gift given to us to bust out of the grave clothes of our limiting beliefs and robed in the Truths of the kingdom of God. I might have said in the past that I believe you can do this; however, today, I will merely say do it with no opposite intended or offered.

“Father, in the name of your son Jesus, heal my daughter.”

I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve got over three decades of unanswered prayers. It’s frustrating and at times a test of my faith in an omnipresent God. Healing, wholeness, abundance, provision, and a bevy of other requests sincerely sought for, not just for me, but friends and family members. Nothing I’ve asked or pleaded for has materialized. If it has happened to me, I know that it is happening to you too.

Sure, I know the passage which claims that you have not because you ask amiss. But honestly, no one over the years has had the fortitude to demonstrate what that passage means and how to rectify my senseless prayers. Even you, while you read this, are overcome with the hesitation which permeates the unanswered prayer. This is hallowed ground that all walk over but no one wants to acknowledge.

When I first began my walk in this realm, I was schooled in the craft of prayer by a woman who was acknowledged throughout the town as a “prayer warrior.” From her I received my “prayer language” and began an intense internship in the prayer ministry of my church. Our voices were the underpinnings of every Sunday sermon, of the monthly baptismal service, and the yearly rededication to service for the members of our community of believers.

When our church moved into cell groups and my wife and I became leaders over other groups, praying was the requirement for dealing with the unknown which would weekly confront us. Direction and wisdom were the staples sought after during this time. Yes, I prayed for others to be led to us who needed the care we offered within the special space of our church group, but honestly, a “prayer language” prayer can cover a lot of ground you never knew you were walking I was told.

Selfish Prayer

What I have revealed to you up to this point might sound noble, but it’s merely the influence of a mega-ministry. When you accept a position within any prayer ministry you lose yourself to the greater ideals of the ministry you’ve aligned yourself with. Soon you begin to realize that just like your own prayers, the ministry prayers hit the same wall of answerability.

Honestly, I’ve been part of large and small prayer groups all dedicated to seeing the kingdom of God poured out on the community we were supporting. While there was great thrashing about “in the spirit,” over a span of time there were minimal, if any, results from the efforts we exerted over long periods of time. Looking back on the entirety of my public prayer life it was more an exercise of expressing the selfish desires of those in a position of power rather than the divine influences of an everlasting kingdom.

The side effect to this lifestyle is how personal prayer time becomes infected with these outside demands which limit your “time” with the Father. Suddenly what should be a dialogue becomes a monologue where you air your grievances about the evils of the world and how they hinder you and your family from achieving all the promises given in the bible. You’re compelled to “remind” the Father of these promises, which you have written down on 3×5 cards and scan every moment your in “prayer mode.”

The Prayer Industry

When prayers do not get answered everyone turns to “experts” who have prayers which work. There are more than 1,000 books available to aid any novice in how to pray “the effectual fervent prayer” of those deemed to be righteous. There is even a book entitled “Christian Prayer for Dummies” which has a 4.3 out of 5 rating on Amazon!

Every ministry that I’ve encountered has a collection of prayer materials they refer their congregants to when the question of prayer is ever presented to them. Somehow it is believed that these books or pastoral teachings are the sole basis for dealing with the entire nature of prayer. If you doubt me on this, then maybe you need to go to a group prayer where everyone has a background founded from differing ministries and listen to how prayer is conducted. You will be amazed how anything is every effectively prayed for!

The Who, What and Where of Prayer

I am going to be direct with you here. I don’t pray anymore. I recognize how some of you will Immediately pass some form of religious judgement upon me and leave this writing without discovering the Truths which will be unveiled. Bye.

For those of you who remained, the ache in your heart to discover why praying is so hit and miss is what I hope to address herein. To do so, I am asking that for a moment you suspend all you have learned and been told about what prayer is. Let me just call your past undertakings your belief, but it is not Truth. All of us have a belief in what prayer is but only a few have a true use of it. So, let’s look at the basics.

First, who are you praying to and who is praying? Second, what are you praying for and how does it align with the kingdom of God? Lastly, where are you praying to or from? I understand how these three questions might appear different within the context of this writing; however, they are actually one and the same. Allow me to show you.

Begin with End in Mind

Prayer has been sold to us as our ability to talk to God about our condition and plead for His help in the midst of our calamity. Rarely does anyone talk to God when things are going great. However, when the stuff hits the fan, knees bleed.

So, let’s ask first off where do our prayers go? Most will respond that they go to heaven, the place where God resides. Regrettably, this is the belief of most of the people on this planet regardless of their faith. Heaven is that up-there, out-there realm where all the “goodness of God” resides. It is the hope of all who pray that their supplication will pierce the veil into the third heaven and be adjudicated through our Christological union with the divine. Again, this is simple a belief, not the Truth.

Jesus, the Master, stated the Truth when he said that the kingdom of God is within you. Many have sent their prayers up to a place that doesn’t even exist in the hopes that some deity would respond. No response is a response that we ask amiss. Every. Single. Time. If you’re going to beseech God, wouldn’t it be best to do it in front of the throne rather than from the linen closet upstairs?

“But what about the Lord’s prayer?” some of you might be asking. First thing to get straight is how this is actually the disciple’s prayer where Jesus is showing them how to pray. Yes, Jesus does say, “Our Father, which art in heaven…” Most would stop right here claiming if Jesus said it, it must be true; you’re a heretic believing otherwise. Yet, just go to the next line, “…thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” If you believe Jesus has always done the will of the Father then the kingdom of God, the seat of the eternal realm is in you and me now, this very moment, and every moment when you’ve prayed thinking it was up-there, out-there somewhere.

The Who of it All

What does Santa Claus, slot machines and roulette tables all have in common? The answer is that we’ve all treated God likes one of them in prayer mode.

The Creator of the universe; the One who knew your before you were formed in your mother’s womb; the All in All; the invisible eternal omnipresent being within everything is not someone who you gamble on with prayers or expect to wake up in the morning and see what goodies have been left in your living room.

If you think that God has favorites, you would be correct. The entirety of creation is filled with His goodness, His oneness. This is what is His favorite. He cares for, appreciates and approves of ALL simply because He is omnipresent to ALL, in ALL and therefore knows ALL.

Yet, sometimes when we least expect it, particularly when we’re in distress, we forget the principle thing revealed to us by Jesus: God is Spirit. I know that this isn’t new to any of us, but it has a huge impact on how you pray. Jesus said if you’re going to worship God it must be done in Spirit and in Truth. This brings us to the What issue.

What do You Want?

Here is Truth: God is Spirit. God’s kingdom is spirit. The goodness declared by God is spirit in essence first. All of creation, which came out of Him, is spirit manifesting itself into materiality. The kingdom of God, its wholeness, well-being, prosperity, peacefulness is spirit.

The mind which you operate daily from is founded upon the senses – feeling, hearing, smelling, tasting, seeing – and it is not spirit. You might “think” you’re being spiritual but the minute one of your senses gets triggered, spirituality is out the door.

To add further complications to this, each of us has been trained from our birth into this material world to evaluate everything, everyone, every condition on a scale of good and evil, best or worst, hit or miss. This duality of thought undergirds our every action in the effort to secure our survival. You’re even doing this now as you read these words.

In the kingdom of God, ALL is one in the eternal spirit. The love of your neighbor as yourself is the spiritual law of one. There is no “either, or” to consider. This means there is no sickness, disease, death, or scarcity. Any opposite you can consider is an “or” to the oneness of the kingdom.

Our prayers are not spiritual as much as they are material. We pray for a sick body to be healed; for a dying friend to live; a cancerous growth to be eradicated; a financial burden to removed; a lost family member to be reunited; for broken lives and broken homes to be made whole; for the money in the bank to last until the end of the month; and these are just for ourselves. I won’t even begin to go down the path of prayer against our fellow man.

Every prayer for a material situation disregards the fundamental nature of all things being spiritual. You can’t approach God from a material world view. Spirit and Truth. Nothing in the material world is the Truth if your senses or duality of thought has tinted it.

How to Pray Effectively

This is probably going to be the most counter-intuitive approach to prayer you have ever heard or tried. But that is to be expected by one who is ruled by a dual-material mind. The method is simple, but difficult to master. It is found in Psalms 46:10

Be still, and know that I am God.

Stillness. Knowing. Simply difficult to “do.”

Notice it doesn’t mention anything about talking, rehearsing your woes, or pleading. Why should you anyway? In the presence of the all-knowing Creator, what could you possibly have to say which isn’t already known? It’s difficult to remain still when the urge to speak about your issues is present. But seriously, who told you they were your issues? Does this passage from Isaiah even apply to your situation:

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusts in thee.

Your mind is like a wild stallion on the open range running wherever it likes to travel. Trying to be still is nearly impossible in the depths of a situation where the material world is closing in on you. But focus your thoughts, all your thoughts on God and perfect peace will be your reward. You will then know God and trust God to show you what must be done. No pleading involved. No reciting numerous bible verses. No repentance. Just silence.

Now I recognize how some of you might claim that being still and silent isn’t really doing anything. However, anytime you allow the presence of God to come into a situation the fullness of His kingdom comes along. Lack, strife, sickness, and every other calamity you’ve created through your material mind is overrun by a kingdom where abundance, peace, and wholeness in oneness eternally operates.

This means that you can’t just choose to do this once and expect all your manifestations to be magically eradicated. It took you years of 24/7 material-mindedness to craft this perfect storm you’re in. You’re going to need to at least offer the same level of commitment to the spiritual remedy to take hold. Therein is the rub: Commitment. You’ll do it negligently to create a problem but stutter when real focus is essential.

Before you think that I’m some master here you need to put that thought on the shelf. I’m no different than you. I’ve taken the time to commit to this, but I still must wrestle with my thoughts to get still. I have a hoard of prayers from the past which haven’t been answered, but I am willing to allow them to fall to the ground. I find trickles of hope now in the silence as His presence enters my consciousness. But it takes effort on my part to achieve what is supposed to be effortless. So, I keep moving on towards the manifestation of the glory of my high calling.

To convince someone to do something is to “con” them out of their belief. I simply want to present to you a Truth not often acknowledged. The decision rests with you to apply it. Just give it your all – there is no alternative that has worked yet, right?

Within the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus makes this declaration, “…resist not evil.” His focus here is to redirect the generational notion that it is justifiable to return an egregious act against oneself upon those who committed the act. Jesus refers to it as “eye for an eye” which was defined in the Mosaic Law. The entire corpus of the Judeo-Christian justice system is built on this premise of retributive justice. The best that anyone can hope for is mercy – not grace – when confronted with a conflict.

Yet, there is an important principle here that many completely miss. A principle which underlies the entire understanding of the kingdom of God and His grace. Before I expound on this principle allow me to offer another verse which provides us with a similar condition which has been highjacked by the religious establishment too.

Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

If you have been in any church service, there is the inevitable call to “fight the good fight of faith.” Many a pulpiteer will tell you that a “good fight” is a fight you win. There will be many a prodding to do just what the verse in James says by resisting the archenemy of every Christian. This will secure the victory during the long-term battle of faith. But isn’t the counsel in James a contradiction to the declaration of Jesus?

The Only Power

Every sermon preached today, across all denominations, will have relinquished our birthright to the influence of another power, the power of evil. Yes, many will extol the virtue of the power of God to restore and judge the unjust, but this is only because there is an acceptance that humanity has been captured and enslaved by an evil power and its kingdom, commonly depicted as the devil or satan. This avatar can cause any who cross its path to sin leading many to their destruction and eternal damnation. Hence, according to James, we are urged to resist the influence this avatar projects upon us.

But isn’t God omnipotent? I know that this is a big word, but omnipotent simply means all powerful. Not some power or a power limited to certain areas, but ALL. So just how much power does this “other” kingdom have? If it has any, then it would have had to have received it from the source of ALL power. Is that possible? Of course not! Then what is going on here?

The knowledge of good and evil is an invention of mankind. Jesus said that there is only one good, and it is the Father. This response came after someone tried to claim that Jesus was good, a value placed upon him by a human, possibly someone who would claim him to be evil enough to be crucified sometime later. Herein lies my reasoning for how good and evil is an invention of mankind: What is claimed to be good today can, and often is, be redefined as evil tomorrow.

This duality creates a power structure which people rally around attempting to defeat the opposing side which in their eyes is the “evil one.” Yet, there is no power in the illusion called evil unless we give it power over us. God is all the power in the universe. Jesus told Pilate that he would have no power over him unless it had been given to him from above. This could mean that Pilates power came from those over him, or Jesus meant by His Father. I’d bet that Jesus, knowing there is only one power in the universe, was representing the omnipotent nature of His Father which Pilate also recognized.

Enforcing an Illusion

To call out some item, some person, some event as being evil is to cast an illusion, a mental mirage over reality. Consider how all of creation, both seen and the unseen, was made, and is held together by and through the Word of God. This creation was then declared very good. There is not a single thing which has been created which hasn’t been declared good. Only mankind has the ability to assert a thing as evil. This assertion can in no manner override the divine nature of its being good. Evil is simply an illusion.

I know that many of you will balk at this claim and bring up any of a number of incidents or people who are “verifiable” evil. Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, the concentration camps, the killing fields, child sex trafficking, your favorite political nemesis, on and on the list grows. I am not ignoring how any of these people, deeds, or things are abhorrent. I am simply stating that their original divine nature is good. Yes, ignorance about this nature will create a pathway in life which allows influences to shape and shift the character and actions of a person or thing diametrically opposite from its divine purpose, but evil is not what this is. It is wholly the ignorance of good.

Evil Among Us?

For most of my life I have been an enforcer of the illusion of evil just as you have. Generational and cultural traditions culled out certain stereotypes where evil was the only acceptable category available. As a novice adherent, I too labeled those whose lives and actions were against the status quo. Unknowingly and unwittingly, I pushed certain people and their actions into boxes without ever having to actually interact with them. The very notion that these groups were divinely good never once crossed my mind.

My introduction to my ignorance came during a political cycle where my prayer group and I were feverishly assailing the gates of heaven to rid the earth of the evil presented by a particular bevy of candidates. As we in unison zealously prayed for a move of God in this matter, I heard the Spirit of God reprimand me. “Shut up! You have no idea what you are doing or saying.” It was clear and concise as only a divine communication can be. I was thunderstruck and immediately stopped all of my praying, listening to the droning of my unaware compatriots. Thus began my introduction into a nature of grace I heretofore had never encountered.

You see, I had resisted evil like every person has been instructed to do in every religious setting. But ALL those teachings were not the TRUTH. They were the enforcement of an illusion, a mental mirage created generations ago designed to control the populace in some capacity. Where Jesus said, “Resist not evil,” my eyes missed completely the word “NOT.” I, like James, resisted the devil. In both cases of these directives, I had missed the point and it is possible that multitudes had missed it too.

Consider that while it may appear that both of these passages contradict each other, they are speaking truth that most have overlooked. As I stated previously, evil is a mental construct of mankind, not of God. That construct only exists when attention is focused upon it. Ignore it and it dissipates. Don’t put any effort into resisting it and it evaporates. IT only thrives when our mind is transfixed on an event or person which our perception deems to be outside of our norms.

I realize making this claim is easier said than done. So, what is the action step which must be undertaken to redirect our thoughts. Enter the passage from James. If your focus is on the resisting part, then you’re no further along than when you began reading this. The critical part is actually the first statement, “Submit to God.” Submit your thoughts to God, on God, about God and you’ll not have any desire to view things as evil. Here is the unique thing which happens when you do this small act: You are resisting the devil and it flees. Any time you focus your thoughts on God whatever was occupying you previously seems to just vanish just like the mirage that it is.

The next time you feel compelled to identify someone or something as evil, don’t take the knee-jerk reaction of fighting or resisting. Submit the thought to God. Goodness, secured with grace, simply returns.

We live in a day and age where “disinformation” is all the rage across social media and MSM news outlets. Governmental agencies are seriously exploring ways to limit the ability of multiple narratives from being disseminated to the public. Free speech, the hallmark of a democratic society, is in peril as never before.

Today, anyone who disagrees with the establishment story line is classified as a “conspiracy theorist” and “canceled” from the public forum. Back in the day these same people were called “heretics” and they were publicly tortured, even crucified, for their stance contrary to the official party line. Some things never change, I guess.

“You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth of falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you.” – C.S. Lewis

Universal Beliefs

There are a number of beliefs held by people that can be classified as being universal. For the longest period of human history, it was believed that the sun rotated around the earth. Then when it was demonstrated how the earth, and the other planets in our galaxy, rotate about the sun, a long-held belief had to die to new information. This shift didn’t occur overnight though. It took a long period of time to dislodge the erroneous belief.

Someone once said that it is harder to extricate a misbelief, even one built around a half-truth, than to accept the authority of a truth. Jesus stated, “…And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (Joh 8:32) Notice Jesus never said how a belief would make you free – only truth.

Is this Heaven?

In the movie “Field of Dreams” shoeless Joe Jackson, an early 1900’s baseball icon, finds himself alone from his team on a baseball field created by farmer Ray Kinsella. After practicing with Ray for several hours, Joe begins to depart into the cornfield which surrounds the ball field. Before he enters the cornfield. Joe turns and asks Ray, “Is this Heaven?” Ray truthfully responds, “No. It’s Iowa.”

This interchange demonstrates the dichotomy between belief and truth. Joe’s belief was a product of the many years playing the sport that he loved. To be able to once again experience the passion for the game he devoted his life to was “heaven” to him. Ray knew the truth about how the ball field came to fruition and what its location was. That truth resided within Ray and became the anchor for the journey he was about to undertake.

How does this story apply to us? Let me ask you what heaven means to you. Do you know where it is located? Do you have a belief or a truth about it?

Almost everyone has a belief about heaven which has been handed down to them from previous generations whose entire world experience could be measured from horizon to horizon. Tradition held the belief in three heavens: the first heaven was the space above the land; the second heaven was the space where the sun, moon and stars were at; while the third heaven, which the apostle Paul makes reference to in one of his letters to the church in Corinth, was the realm the gods and spiritual beings inhabited. In every instance, heaven was up there, out there.

Heaven’s Relocation

When Jesus walked the earth, he taught about the kingdom of heaven. He referenced many attributes of the kingdom and how they resemble and operate just like everyday elements found on earth. This radical teaching was for most people liberating since it gave them an opportunity to understand how the realm of God’s kingdom wasn’t really that different from their own environment. This teaching also moved heaven down to earth rather than from its vaulted position in the sky.

This teaching didn’t particularly sit well with the religious class who held the belief that as long as heaven was up and out of the way of mankind, its holy nature couldn’t be corrupted by humanity. Recognizing their ire at his teaching, Jesus turned the screws just a little bit tighter with the proclamation, “The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.”

Later on, Paul would further claim how we are the temple of God. This was a direct blow to the religious structures, both physical and governmental, across the lands he traveled. No longer could some class of people declare themselves to be above any other group – God inhabited everyone equally.

Missed Opportunities

Many denominations today still function under the premise which was prevalent prior to Jesus. They teach their congregants to seek an up-there, out-there god who sits on a throne waiting in judgement to banish sinners to the darkest pits of hell. This belief permeates all realms of society from governmental structures to law enforcement; education to healthcare; even music and film. But this is not the TRUTH.

Because of this mindset proclaimed from the pulpit, many have become “believers” in a lie. Since the lie has spanned many generations, truth can’t even get a foothold within these hollowed halls. (Don’t think I chose the wrong word there. Living a lie makes a person hollow.) Every effort to bring the truth out into the light is squashed by branding the instigator as a heretic. I’ve all discussed this heretic subject here, here, here, and here, so this is not something new on my part. Regrettably, it isn’t new with the Church either. Let’s consider the implications to this universal belief of heaven being out there.

How many of you have been in a meeting where there was a call to “bring heaven down?” Or how about “storming the gates of heaven?” Or my favorite, “entering the third heaven to commune with God?” There are many other examples, but these will suffice as a representation.

The first example is often employed during a worship service. The participants are encouraged to lift their voices so that the “heavenly realm” will fall upon the congregants and invade the service. Notice the term “invade” as if God is on a military campaign to raid and pillage the land.

The second example is often employed during times of intense intercession. This too is militaristic in nature, but from the human perspective where people believe that the castle gates are locked and fortified to protect from any foreign raiders. Honestly, when was the last time you stormed any castle that wasn’t from your imagination? How do you deal with the fact that according to scripture the gates to heaven are always open?

The last example is comical simple because it assumes that God is not omnipresent and that we must take an elevator to ascend into the third heaven in order to just be in His presence. I can think of no clearer illustration of the up-there, out-there theology of many “believers.”

The Freedom of Truth

God is. There aren’t any words which can fully capture the totality of the infinite Spirit we call God. God is all in all. God is omnipresent today just as He was yesterday and will be tomorrow. God know all things – even the things you believe you can hide from Him. God is all power. There is no power in creation other than God. To believe otherwise is a lie. God is good. All of creation is good because it is made from the word from God. Everything that is God’s belongs to you and me. God resides within each of us and nothing can ever separate Him from us no matter what we believe.

It is time to question our beliefs to determine if they are at their core truths expressed within the scriptures or whether they are fables cloaked in religious garb to appear pious. He has benefited us with grace to do just this very act. Freedom waits for those who can heed His call: “Fear not.”

Isa 55:8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Have you ever considered why grace is needed? Probably not. Afterall, according to Paul in Ephesians 2:8 “…by grace are you saved through faith; and not of yourselves: it is a gift of God.” As the old saying goes,” Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth?” Looking would be considered as being rude and unappreciative of the gesture behind the gift. But is it really a gift?

A kingdom viewpoint

There are few things which many fail to understand about how the Kingdom of God operates. Here is my basic understanding:

1. God is Love
2. God sits on a throne called grace.
3. A throne is the place where the king issues commandments which must be followed by the subjects of the kingdom. The subjects describe God’s throne as “grace” because the commandments issued from it are an expression of His character as Love.
4. The Word was with God in the beginning; all things were made by the Word and are held together by the Word. According to the subjects of the kingdom, the Word gave us grace for grace.
5 Love covers all sins.
6. The kingdom of God is within us.

Sure, this is rather simplistic, like the wanderings of maybe a little child. Yet isn’t that how we are supposed to view this according to Jesus? So, let’s consider the question at hand: Is grace really a gift?

Everyone will admit that Paul was quite capable of instilling truth through the use of metaphors. There is a debate on whether it was Paul who actually wrote the book of Ephesians, so I’m just going to sit this argument out using this line of thought: I submit that the writer of the book of Ephesians was using a metaphor to describe grace as a gift. My reason is simply because the Greek word for grace, charis, has the meaning of reciprocal giving of a gift or service.

Pay attention to the term “reciprocal.” Its Greek understanding associated with charis is how when something is given by one, the other is obligated to return something in return of equal or greater value in the future. Culturally, this was understood by all those who spoke Greek. Hence, the use of charis as a metaphor and not as a literal translation. Consider the implications to you if this was literal: What greater gift could you possibly give to God than His son?

So, let me go back to the kingdom understanding I presented and see how a new understanding of grace might be presented. The writer of the fourth gospel claims that Jesus gave grace for grace. I submit that Jesus offered the true representation of grace from the kingdom of God for what the culture believed grace was. Yes, there was the act of giving demonstrated, however, it was self-less. Humans give to get there is no other way around it. Jesus did not give in this manner simply because he knew that there wasn’t anything he wanted or needed from someone else since his Father was his entire source.

In the kingdom of God grace is the activating power of His love. The Hebrews view God as a verb not a noun. Grace therefore cannot be a gift like a puppy or new bicycle. Grace is the visible action of God’s love. Consider everything which surrounds you now. It was all made by and through God’s word. It is the visible action of the word of God’s character as Love. There isn’t anything made that isn’t that grace-filled expression of Love.

Now there is an implication from this claim which many never address or even consider. You are the grace-filled expression of Love. You always have been. There has never been anything that could change or take this away from you. If something could alter this about you anytime, you and God would cease to exist! If you and God cease to exist, so does ALL of creation.

I’ll let you flesh out the reality of this on your own. However, there are powers who do not want this to come out. So, proceed accordingly.

Again, grace is the activating power of God’s love. You are surrounded by it. Some might tell you that you don’t deserve it, or that you must earn it, or maybe once you had it but now you’ve lost it. They are ignorant – even though they too are grace-filled expressions of God’s love. God’s thoughts and ways are higher than ours. Thankfully.

Isa 55:8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

In my previous post I spoke about how knowing the truth about God will break a person free from the illusion of the religious control system. At the end of the post, I provided you with eight descriptors about the truth of God that you can begin to use to strip off the mask of illusion. In this post I am going to take you one step further in bringing you to the true light of God. Regrettably, this is going to be a difficult step for many of you even if you have moved out of the illusion the system has inflicted upon the world.

Imagine

John Lennon wrote a song called “Image” where he conveyed his thoughts on what it would be like to live in a world with peace. It became a huge success during an era when there was great strife and wars being waged across the globe. The words to the song are as follows:

Imagine there’s no Heaven
It’s easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there’s no countries
It isn’t hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say that I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will live as one

Lyrics by John Lennon

Religious Backlash

When this song was released, there was nothing but blistering hatred from the religious authorities of the day simply because of the opening line, “Imagine there’s no Heaven.” Many saw this as a direct attack by an atheistic mind bent on propagandizing the youth of the time. There was also the strong sentiment about how this was simply propaganda to move the world into a classless, one-world communist-socialist society. (Notice how this is not a claim being solely made by the political class but was being lifted by the religious class too. Herein we see the blending of politics and religion to oppress the masses.)

But it was possibly the line in the second stanza which caused the blood vessels in every religious person to burst when Lennon associated the end of religion with the acts of living and dying for a cause. This is the sacred ground which no person can ever publicly bring to light throughout human history because it sacrifices the holy ground of causation for every imperial campaign past, present, and future.

When you consider the social upheaval which was occurring during the time this song was produced, the detractors were simply securing their foothold to agendas they had committed their lives, and the innocent lives of millions more, to uphold. Even the inspiration of Marin Luther King’s speech “I Have a Dream,” given almost a decade earlier, could be seen as a model within the lyrics.

Today, however, this song has secured a place within the religious establishment as an anthem for peace. If I was to claim how this came about it would only be speculation on my part. I see it as an evolution of consciousness in mankind. I believe it demonstrates the power in words which this post is actually about. It may have taken me a while to get here, but the backdrop is set to look at our thoughts and the concepts they have created behind what we think about “God.”

The Word became Flesh

One of the very first commandments gave to Moses on the mount was how the children of Israel shall have no graven images and idols. We typically associate this restriction maybe first with the golden calf which Moses’s brother, Aaron, is crafting back in the camp, or maybe all the multitude of idols Egypt had erected to honor their gods throughout the land. Rarely will anyone consider the one idol which overshadows all of these: A word.

Every word is the lowest common denominator of thought. Thoughts create ideas which must be expressed by words. Imagination is constrained by words and thoughts. When we claim how, “… words fail me,” we are experiencing the limitation of words to properly capture the fullness of a thought. When we attempt to describe the fullness of any entity, we use a multitude of words to try to capture what this entity is eliciting within us. Never will we be able to fully express ourselves no matter how many times we come back to the subject and offer a completely new set of words. Intuitively we recognize this limitation about our words.

In religious circles this is amplified through the multitude of biblical translation available today. If you’ve been in any church sermon there has had to be a time when the speaker said, “…and in the original Hebrew this word is…” or “…in the Greek this means…” Consider how what produced this claim was from the reading of word in the bible and then referring to what the origin of the word(s) were as they were originally produced. Yes, this demonstrates the limitation of let’s say the English language, but it also applies to every other language on the planet, including the original Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic.

What is an idol? According to Dictionary.com the definition is what we most commonly associate with the term: An image or other material object representing a deity to which religious worship is addressed. However, there are additional definitions found here under this term such as: Any person or thing regarded with blind admiration, adoration, or devotion; a mere image or semblance of something, visible but without substance, as a phantom; a figment of the mind, fantasy; a false conception or notion, fallacy.

Words, even acronyms, are idols which we often fail to recognize. Consider Grace, COVID-19, Antifa, BLM, FBI, Russia, Taiwan, United States, George Floyd, J6, 2A, Google, Apple, Facebook, Nike, American Express, Climate Change; Capitalism, Socialism, Republican, Democrat, and on and on it goes. You can call an exception to any of these if you like but consider the primary function towards every idol is worship. Each of these has a devote following who are faithfully worshiping the god-like qualities they have projected onto it.

Is your god a meme or your idol?

In 1976 the book, “The Selfish Gene,” written by Richard Dawkins, he coined the term “meme” which he defined as “a noun that “conveys the idea of a unit of cultural transmission, or a unit of imitation.” Dawkins’s premise was that ideas in a society have a shelf life which causes them to either evolve or die off. This is a far cry from what today we know memes to be as viral social media postings meant to inject sarcasm at any individual we disagree with.

When you consider Dawkins’s definition of a meme it becomes obvious that a “god” within a culture is an idea which is transmitted and imitated across many differing viewpoints. Just to deliberate on the many denominations in the western church alone is an exercise of parsing through the evolving imitations of a god. This naturally brings us to what is the “god” you are paying attention to.

“Paying” is a term we all understand. It is the reward for the work we have put in; the cost for a good or service we have incurred; to be punished or suffering for an action. People view God the same way: A rewarder, or a debt collector, or a punisher. Some have rolled all these characteristics into one!

Regrettably, these, plus the multitude of other misrepresentations, are not the true living God. They are at best merely idols. Yes, this even includes the god you worship. This is because we all, having never seen God, or just experiencing a fraction of the divine nature, have come to rely on our imagination as to the extent of who, and or what, God is. Once we reach that limit to our imagination, we add the “superman elixir” just so our view of God doesn’t look like us. Now we’re set to worship this “Frankenstein” god who we declare is “Alive.”

The Franken-god heals if that is what you need and have enough faith he can, even the smallest amount of faith will allow him to heal; Franken-god provides food, money, shelter, even a parking space, when you need it; Franken-god is a protector of your property, family, congregation, nation, but clearly not the world since your enemies inhabit part of it and it is those who you need Franken-god to destroy; Franken-god is who you pray to because you know he is a good listener who never interrupts your monologue or is disappointed when finish and haven’t given him time to speak; Franken-god is also who loves to hear songs about the wonders he has created for himself, the heaven he resides in away from you, and how much he enjoys the bloodlust to the innocent lives given for his realm they hope someday to see if they have said the true magic prayer. Imagine if…

Chances are quite high that if your prayers are not being answered or your worship is not taking you to higher spheres of spiritual enlightenment, the idol you’re pointing these efforts to is blocking an encounter with the true Creator of All. You are allowing your imagination to craft a divine which is purely a fabrication of limiting words devoid of Spirit.

Sure, you can claim that God knows your intentions, however, do you know His? There is a reason that He doesn’t want you to use your imagination to create an idol, even if it is just words. There is only one Word in the kingdom of God. It was in the beginning, and we are all from it and still in it.

The title of this post might be classified as a double negative which is where two negative words are used to express a single negative. Delusion and illusion both address the nature of deception or to deceive. However, what if someone becomes aware of an illusion and no longer is affected by it even though many still embrace it? Wouldn’t that person be characterized as being delusional by the majority who still adhere to the illusion? Welcome to the spiritual journey of the mystic.

What is the Illusion?

Depending on who you talk to, the illusion for one group is the delusion of the other group. So, to pinpoint one thing is to recognize that someone is going to agree, and another will disagree. Therefore, let’s start with this as the illusion: The world we inhabit.

I’m not claiming that the planet and all the life which it supports is an illusion, but the organizational structures that mankind has created and continuously supports as a means of control over the populace. These structures include governments, bureaucracies, religious institutions, healthcare programs and the institutions with their associations, monetary and banking models, and a whole host of agencies, ideologies, and organizations whose purpose is to constrain the individual in any endeavor they chose to explore and operate in. In short, anything which has been generated from the mind of man and touched by his hands in any capacity is the illusion. It is impermanent, finite, and transitory.

What makes the Illusion?

The movie The Matrix is a perfect example of what makes an illusion. It caters to the basic needs of the masses which subsequently become lulled into accepting that life cannot possibly exist outside of the controlled environment they are living in. The illusion employs any of a number of devices from the desire for physical objects to the mental constraints of peer pressure to keep people in the lines of what the intended purpose of the illusion has been crafted for, which as I’ve already stated is control.

In our society today anyone who brings attention to the illusion is immediately dismissed as a conspiracy theorist, a crank, a wack-job because of the grave danger of this person developing a following which might potentially tip the scales of the dominate power structure. This is a risk I’m willing to take because I’m only calling attention to the religious illusion. To many a religious illusion isn’t important to the primary illusion being promulgated to the populace. You only need to look at how Jesus dealt with the illusion of his day to see what the effect was to the primary illusion.

Overcoming an Illusion

Jesus confronted the illusion of the religious establishment of his day when he claimed his sonship with the Father. This had never been done and was considered a religious crime to see oneself equal to the Creator. However, Jesus pressed forward with his radical message by driving home the key to breaking the power of every illusion.

Joh 8:32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

Truth always breaks the stranglehold of an illusion. The difficulty comes in knowing what truth is and what are the half-truths which perpetuate the illusion. Half-truths are still lies which are formed around a bit of truth everyone can recognize but also given a twist which underlies the illusion rather than the whole nature of a truth. Consider this exchange between Jesus and Pilate.

Joh 18:37-38 Pilate therefore said unto him, Art you a king then? Jesus answered, You say that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth hears my voice. (38) Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in him no fault at all.

Jesus had been brought to Pilate by the religious leaders under the half-truth that he declared himself to be a king. Their motives where that by making this claim about Jesus they would be showing their allegiance to Rome’s illusion of power. However, Pilate knew the fullness of Rome’s illusion which the occupied religious leaders could never understand: Kings establish and are responsible for the truths of their realm.

The Half-truth of Religion Today

The illusion in the religious environment today is designed to control the parishioners. This is mostly accomplished by shining a light on the moral failure of an individual sometime during their life and then reinforcing that failure as the reason God is displeased and removed from their life. Only true repentance can restore the union with God, but ultimately, only God can determine if the repentance was satisfactory. Thus enters Jesus to perfectly cleanse the impure through the blood he shed upon the cross for the salvation of the world. This sacrifice is the only means between humanity and the divine to restore the union corrupted through every moral transgression across the ages.

This might seem correct at first to those who have committed themselves to any doctrine of the western clergy. However, the premise of this is founded on a God who is up-there and out-there; not involved in the daily affairs of mankind; only waiting for the day of final judgment when the coffers of hell can be filled with the unredeemed, back-slidden degenerates which inhabit this world. It also perpetuates a world renown barbaric tradition of blood sacrifice as an adjudicating tool for sin repreparations.

Paul’s statement to believers how they should, “work out their salvation with fear and trembling” has become a tool in the illusion to keep a person focused on not only what they did to put them in the place of a lost soul, but also what works they must continually strive towards to remain above the dung heap they have been delivered from. This too is simply a half-truth. It demonstrates the depth of the delusion even after the means to salvation have been entered into. Only a revelation of truth can overcome this stranglehold upon the believer.

Truth to Set One Free

What I am about to offer you is not new. You have read it in your bible any of a number of times. Yet, it is under this clarifying light of truth where the scales can fall from the eyes which have been looking through a glass darkly. First and foremost, truly understanding the nature of God is vital. This is the primary place where every deception springs from because in the illusion we have been indoctrinated, “…who can know God; God’s ways are not our ways, and God’s thoughts are not our thoughts.” Rarely are we informed that it is possible to know the ways and the thoughts of God.

God Is

This statement brings God right into your present situation. Some want to offer a claim how “God was,” but that relegates God to the past; or claim how “God will,” which places Him in the future. God always IS.

The Omni Nature

We profess it but deny its validity. God is omnipresent, all present; God is omnipotent, all powerful; God is omniscient, all knowing. We’ll gladly praise God as being “All in all” but fail to recognize the fullness of this truth.

God is Love

Everything is a demonstration of the love of God. Everything means all things. Look about you and there is not one object which is not of God’s love.

God is Good

From the beginning, all of the works of God were declared “good” and mankind, the last creation, was deemed “very good.” God’s goodness is a direct result of His Love. To call something “evil” is to enter into the illusion of humanity where finite thoughts die on the tree of good and evil.

God is All-Power

This is a reiteration of God is omnipotent. There is only one power in all of creation. To believe in another power is to accept the illusion. Nothing is greater than God.

God is One with All

All of creation came from God. He is one with all which He creates. It is impossible for God to separate Himself from anything in His creation for in doing so, all of creation would cease to exist.

God Knows Us

We were with God before the foundation of the world. He knew us before we were conceived in our mother’s womb. Our name is written on the palm of His hand. There is not a single time we have ever been able to hide our actions or thoughts from Him.

God is Grace

In God’s kingdom He sits on a throne labeled by the subjects of the realm as the throne of Grace. The subjects have made this distinction because every word which comes from it is regarded as being “grace.” Grace is the activating power of God’s Love and its Goodness.

Living Truth

These statements about God’s nature are merely a sampling of an infinite God. There are so many more to uncover in your daily meditation and contemplation. Saying you know these things but not living them is merely living the illusion of the religious. Living them out pierces the veil of the illusion and shines a light on how to model the life of Jesus in this world.

There are a multitude of people who have become discouraged by the illusion of religious institutions across the globe. They prefer to regard themselves as being spiritual rather than adhering to some denominational doctrine. No longer willing to be led along a path which promises a divine encounter but only focuses on human failings, these people long for the promise of divine sonship they know exists but has not been presented as a vital element to their spiritual journey. It is safe to say that they have reached their delusion of the illusion. The path is now open to experience true communion with the Father.

Some might think that this path requires what is being bantered about as “deconstruction.” Unfortunately, anything constructed, torn down, and then rebuilt still possesses the finite fingerprint of man and will in the end be burned up like hay and stubble. No, this path requires only two things to direct your gaze upon; first, “except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it;” second, “be still and know that I am God.” This is the way out of the illusion if you’re willing to take it. Only you can decide.

You ever tried to have an intimate moment with someone and suddenly another person steps in and crashes the mood? Of course, you have, particularly if you have kids. Well imagine how the Father feels in His relationship with you. The trouble is that He is not concerned with another person so much as he is concerned about the company you keep bringing into every situation. You know, your three amigos: Me, Myself, and I.

Here is a definition of a term which at first glance could describe the playground of most believers in western religion:

“A personality disorder characterized by extreme self-centeredness and self-absorption, fantasies involving unrealistic goals, an excessive need for attention and admiration, and disturbed interpersonal relationships.”

Take a moment to assess how many prayers you have made which featured one of the three amigos. How many of these prayers ever came through? If you’re like most people you’ve taken the admission on the heavenly slot machine, “well, next time…” when things never materialized as you intended.

The reason for almost every disappointment in prayer is simply because your ego doesn’t believe it is living in the kingdom of God. Consider these quotes from the Master to see if your life conforms to the kingdom model.

Joh 7:16 Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.

Joh 8:29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father has not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.

Joh 12:44-45 Jesus cried and said, He that believes on me, believes not on me, but on him that sent me. And he that sees me sees him that sent me.

Joh 10:30 I and my Father are one.

Joh 17:21 That they all may be one; as you, Father, art in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that you have sent me.

One of the most noticeable things in the published works about Jesus is his disregard for his ego. His ability to clearly demonstrate his relationship with the Father and submit his will to the will of the Father is the cornerstone for what it means to live life like Jesus. Time and again Jesus, as the verses above show, placed the Father desires above his own.

There might be some who will claim that Jesus spoke about himself frequently through what has been called the “I am” statements found in the fourth gospel. This perception might seem valid when those reading, for example, the passage which claims, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father accept through me.” This seems rather egotistic no matter how you read it. Even the claim, “I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life,” appears to throw the focus on Jesus rather than the Father. But if the Father and Jesus are one, who is speaking these truths? That is the question that layman and theologians have wrestled with for centuries. I’m not going to claim that I have the definitive answer. However, oneness blends the lines of separation despite what the eyes claim to see.

The greater question is whether you have the same claim to oneness shared by Jesus and his Father. If you aren’t sure how to answer this question maybe you need to reflect on how crowded your relationship is and take some steps to corral the amigos who think they have a greater importance to your divine destiny. Hopefully, you can you hear the knocking at the door which is waiting for You to answer.

The institution known as “The Church” has been around since mankind began worshiping a reality higher than themselves. It spans across the globe in a variety of formats based on cultural biases, but the underlying premise is universal – man is not responsible for all which comprises the universe.

Our recent flavor of The Church evolved during the reign of the Roman emperor Constantine some 400 years after the resurrection of Christ. I would contend however that the proclamation made by Christ to Peter about, “…on this I will build my church…” has never been what The Church developed into. Even today, whether eastern or western in origin, the franchise we know as The Church across the denominations really has one thing in common: There is nothing common.

I’m not here to bash the differences in denominations. Church has a function and purpose as I have already stated – man is not responsible for all which comprises the universe. It is the place where, as Paul describes, like-minded people assemble to worship and pray. It is the place where followers hear the word of God about the works of God. It is the place where people commit their lives to…

To what exactly are people committing themselves to in The Church? Many take oaths to the denomination creeds which limit the type of beliefs you can have and practice. Many commit their lives to the people of their immediate fellowship. Many commit to turning from their immoral lifestyle to a moral lifestyle predicated on Old Testament rules. Many commit to never associating with the “world” since only their perception of spiritual reality is true, and others are demonic.

This last claim is possibly the greatest crux to The Church. It is the man-made perceptions of reality which deny or just plain ignore the spiritual Truth of reality. A crux, by definition, is a cross, a pivotal point of demarcation. Christ has always been the crux to The Church.

The Church creates followers of Christ. That is its mission. Sermons and lessons abound to drive home the point that a holy life is found by being a follower of Christ. The Church glosses over the fact that during the days of Jesus, it was his followers who demanded that he be crucified. Sure, The Church will glorify the good deeds done by Jesus since this builds faith in the hearts of those who today need something similar to occur in their lives. But when the miracle fails to happen or the pain (physical, emotional, or mental) becomes too great to endure and there is no relief, no comfort, no view of a savior on the horizon, crucify is the cry most often heard.

Such is the life of being a follower – up one moment and then in the dregs the next. This cycle typically runs its course weekly. Up on Sunday into Monday; declining into Tuesday; bottoming out Wednesday afternoon just in time for the Wednesday service or bible study which will lift you back up into Thursday; declining once again into Friday afternoon and subsiding through Saturday, until it starts all over again on Sunday. Every week; for some, for a lifetime.

The Church knows this to be humanly true. Their message and its dissemination perpetuate the cycle. It has crafted a message wholly designed to create and maintain followers. Yes, there may be a counter claim that The Church is creating believers, yet this is not evident even in the smallest population base within any denomination. This is what The Church cannot admit: Believers are disciples.

I can assure you that my claim is not a matter of semantics. Followers, believers, and disciples are not the same. Jesus had multitudes of followers but only twelve disciples. Those twelve were believers through their daily interaction with Jesus. Their testimony as a believer was founded on a daily encounter and the relationship shaped by it. Each of the disciples had an independent relationship with Jesus while still having a relationship with each other. However, their relationship with each other never made them believers in Jesus.

There is not one thing that The Church can do to move anyone from a follower to a believer and then disciple. Teaching will not do it; more prayer; greater worship; outreaches to the community; deeper bible study; cell or home groups; conferences and seminars; healing service and crusade; evangelists with prophetic words, or any other scripted diversion from the one true need – an encounter with the Divine.

According to Christ, the only revelation which will build those who have been called out from the community to lead it will be found in being the Son of the Living God. Not solely Jesus, but each of us. This is the spiritual truth of a believer which no human perception can capture. This is a revelation which each of us must encounter on our journey in life, just like Peter did, not sitting in some seat claimed to be holy by an institution.

While you might hear it frequently preached that we are sons of God, The Church cannot produce this. Jesus, in his day, was vilified for the claim,

I and my Father are one. Joh 10:30

The religious culture of his day had no frame of reference when it came to relating to the Divine on a personal level. Yet, this is what made Jesus so acceptable to the multitudes, people who all their lives had been led to believe that the Creator was so pure that HE would have nothing to do with the creation which had become so polluted.

This is still the thinking in The Church today even though it was never what Jesus spoke about or implied in any of his parables. Divine sonship is a human birthright which few have acknowledged and even fewer have entered in the manner which Jesus proclaimed. The Church cannot admit this simply because it doesn’t have any leaders who are walking this truth out in public. This is an inner truth which only comes through a revelation to the individual uncovered in meditation. Remarkably, not everyone is ready to receive the revelation or in a place where such a revelation could bubble up from within.

Once an encounter occurs to someone and their faith shifts to belief, the things which occupy The Church no longer appeal. A person goes from being a bench warmer to a first-string player on a team of One.

Understanding the revelation of “One” is not the business of The Church. It is first, and foremost in the business of separation with the hope that one day you will be reunited, but still separate. A divine encounter demonstrates the futility of this model, yet The Church recognizes how this type of occurrence will never happen within its milieu and it is satisfied with the result.

The spiritual journey is a singular quest which many simply do not have the fortitude to embark upon. There are great rewards, but none of them will appear in The Church. As long as people embrace the institution as a mere gathering place for social activity which caters to the base nature of the human condition, The Church will prosper. Disciples and believers know the difference and respond accordingly.