{"id":2971,"date":"2025-10-04T06:45:08","date_gmt":"2025-10-04T13:45:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/?p=2971"},"modified":"2025-10-29T19:50:05","modified_gmt":"2025-10-30T02:50:05","slug":"no-one-to-give-and-take","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/04\/no-one-to-give-and-take\/","title":{"rendered":"No One To Give and Take"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"29\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/theres-only-grace\/inbaby-hand3\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mikehillebrecht.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/inbaby-hand3.jpg?fit=135%2C135&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"135,135\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"inbaby-hand3\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mikehillebrecht.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/inbaby-hand3.jpg?fit=135%2C135&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mikehillebrecht.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/inbaby-hand3.jpg?resize=135%2C135\" alt=\"hand in hand\" width=\"135\" height=\"135\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-29\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The journey of the spiritual life is one of revelation in who you truly are.  Revelation is only valid when it smashes through the preconceptions of a deluded identity and forces us to accept a truth that has always been.  Acceptance is not merely acknowledgement by the shaking of the head in agreement, but by the hard act of living the truth through actions.<\/p>\n<p>In the beginnings of my writing on the subject of grace I was adamant in trying to find a way to get back to the original understanding of what the New Testament writers, particularly Paul, meant when they used the term \u201cgrace.\u201d  This meant finding out what the Greek word \u201ccharis\u201d meant in all its various forms.  There are plenty of writings herein, along with <a href=\"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/my-grace-tp-you\/\" title=\"My Grace to You\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">published books<\/a>, I have made about what this means.  In a nutshell, according to what I discovered throughout the original Greek writings which predate the biblical writings of the New Testament, \u201ccharis\u201d boils down to reciprocal giving.  <\/p>\n<p>In later writings I became convinced that grace, as it was being offered in the writings of the apostles, is the activating power of God\u2019s grace.  This stemmed from an understanding of the principles of a kingdom and how it functions in relationship to the power of its throne.  A throne of \u201cgrace\u201d is an action of a divine being who IS love.<\/p>\n<p>As my journey has expanded, my writings have become fewer due to difficulty of trying to put into words the unveiling which revelation presents.  The importance of the clarity to Oneness with the Father, as described by Jesus, has led to many personal key insights which, when held up to the message the church has offered to the western world for two thousand years, can be and often has been declared heretical in nature.  Attempting to blast through the calloused mindset of these past teachings is somewhat challenging since most people have adopted them as sacrosanct and cannot be challenged no matter who says differently \u2013 even Jesus!<\/p>\n<p>So, with this as a foundation, what I am about to present is a clarification spurred on by a passage I recently read from a book entitled, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Liberating-Gospel-Christian-Myth-Scripture\/dp\/B0FG2NHP9N\/ref=sr_1_1?sr=8-1\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">\u201cLiberating the Gospel from Christian Myth\u201d by Michael Hardin<\/a>.  In this passage Michael speaks about the issue of charis falling under the banner of an \u201ceconomy of exchange.\u201d Whenever you place anything God has done in and through Jesus under this economic vehicle it defiles the truth of the gospel.  <\/p>\n<p>Consider the exchange we have all been indoctrinated in: God so loved the world that He gave\u2026 Do you see this giving as reciprocal? Charis, in its traditional rendering demands it of you.  But what are we expected to give in return?  This after all is a sacrifice of the highest order.  <\/p>\n<p>We have been taught that to meet such an exchange we must offer ourselves to God without reservation. He in turn will take our offering and\u2026and what?  This is the workings of what Michael calls the \u201cJanus-faced God,\u201d the pagan deity whose face was smiling on one side and scornful on the other.  Under this god you never knew how he would look upon you or your actions.  Regrettably, most of the Western teaching of the Father are directly employing just such a motif.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am God, there is no other,\u201d is a most important passage to base your spiritual journey upon.  Most reading this passage take the position that there are no other gods, which for starters is a good thing.  However, \u201cother\u201d applies to ALL, not just a theological narrative.  This is vital to our oneness.  You can\u2019t claim to be at one with the Father if \u201cyou\u201d consider yourself to be \u201cother.\u201d There is no God and\u2026  There IS God, period. In oneness, there is no \u201cyou.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That statement scares people.  They have invested a lifetime believing in \u201cthemselves\u201d and now in oneness, not only do they not exist, but they never have.  All those therapy sessions dealing with \u201cwho am I and what is my purpose in the life\u201d just went up in smoke.  This is the delusion we have all been living.  It is fostered by an ego that believes itself to be separate from God.  Any such separation is merely a need to be \u201cother\u201d who knows how to function in this life according to its best interests.  Those interests remarkably function on vast economies of exchange.<\/p>\n<p>To fully embrace the nature of oneness with the Father, it demands knowing how the mortal shell seen in the mirror is not \u201cyou.\u201d Within the interior of that shell resides a Soul which is truly, forever One with the Father.  No exchange placed it there.  The Soul is as God IS.  When the mortal decays and expires, the Soul returns to the Father liberated from the confinement of the ego, whole and resplendent in the glory which has always possessed.<\/p>\n<p>As the fullness of oneness reveals itself, suddenly comes the realization that there is no \u201cother\u201d who gives and takes.  Exchanges which operate from a sense of lack disappear in the truth of abundance in the One who is ALL in ALL.  Grace becomes the action of Love to those still living in the delusion of their ego who believe that they get only according to what they have giving.  Sometimes the best answers and their revelation come when \u201cyou\u201d finally give UP.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The journey of the spiritual life is one of revelation in who you truly are. Revelation is only valid when it smashes through the preconceptions of a deluded identity and forces us to accept a truth that has always been. &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/04\/no-one-to-give-and-take\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"amazonpipp_noncename":"","amazon-product-isactive":"","amazon-product-single-asin":"","amazon-product-content-location":"1","amazon-product-content-hook-override":"2","amazon-product-excerpt-hook-override":"3","amazon-product-singular-only":"","amazon-product-amazon-desc":"","amazon-product-show-gallery":"","amazon-product-show-features":"","amazon-product-newwindow":"3","amazon-product-show-list-price":"","amazon-product-show-used-price":"","amazon-product-show-saved-amt":"","amazon-product-timestamp":"","amazon-product-new-title":"","amazon-product-use-cartURL":"","amazon_featured_post_meta_key":"","_amazon_featured_alt":"","amazon-product-template":"default","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[4,6,5],"class_list":["post-2971","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-24","tag-grace","tag-mike-hillebrecht","tag-teaching"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2ITDy-LV","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4637,"url":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/22\/planning-through-grace-guidance\/","url_meta":{"origin":2971,"position":0},"title":"Planning Through Grace Guidance","author":"mike","date":"March 22, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"M3:Week 4: Veils on Eternal Horizons Day 1: Planning Through Grace Guidance Today's Veil to Pierce As we step into Week 12, carrying forward the Passover and Easter unveiling from last week, we now explore how grace guides our planning for the personal horizons that lie ahead. The deceptive veil\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2026 Postings&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2026 Postings","link":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/category\/2026-postings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mikehillebrecht.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/piercing-the-veil-201x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4604,"url":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/16\/lamb-as-pointer-to-inherent-glory\/","url_meta":{"origin":2971,"position":1},"title":"Lamb as Pointer to Inherent Glory","author":"mike","date":"March 16, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"M3:Week 3: Preparing for Passover's Revelation Day 2: Lamb as Pointer to Inherent Glory Today's Veil to Pierce Building on Maya hiding eternal life in rituals, we now contemplate the lamb as pointer to inherent glory\u2014the core symbol where the deceptive veil of Maya is pierced to reveal that the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2026 Postings&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2026 Postings","link":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/category\/2026-postings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mikehillebrecht.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/piercing-the-veil-201x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2660,"url":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/14\/revolution-refines-a-revelation-an-ending\/","url_meta":{"origin":2971,"position":2},"title":"Revolution Refines a Revelation &#8211; An Ending","author":"mike","date":"February 14, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Can world events change a revelation about God\u2019s character? In this final installment\u00a0to a series of articles where I've been briefly examining history and how the American Revolution restored the gospel of grace to the world I'm going to uncover the deception we've been living under through our ignorance. A\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2023 Postings&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2023 Postings","link":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/category\/2023\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"hand in hand","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mikehillebrecht.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/inbaby-hand3.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2657,"url":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/14\/revolution-refines-a-revelation-part-3\/","url_meta":{"origin":2971,"position":3},"title":"Revolution Refines a Revelation &#8211; Part 3","author":"mike","date":"February 14, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Can world events change a revelation about God\u2019s character? In this series of articles I'm briefly examining history and how the American Revolution restored the gospel of grace to the world. The Kingdom Message of The Church I need you to recognize how at this moment, as you read this\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2023 Postings&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2023 Postings","link":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/category\/2023\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"hand in hand","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mikehillebrecht.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/inbaby-hand3.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2651,"url":"https:\/\/mikehillebrecht.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/13\/revolution-refines-a-revelation-intro\/","url_meta":{"origin":2971,"position":4},"title":"Revolution Refines a Revelation &#8211; Intro","author":"mike","date":"February 13, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Can world events change a revelation about God\u2019s character? In this series of articles you\u2019ll have an opportunity to examine history and how the American Revolution restored the gospel of grace to the world. Introduction When John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert R. 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