Our paragraph topic is: (The rich young man speaks to Jesus) Part 3.
One there is who is good and he is God. The Father created us. The Father gave us life. The Father protects us and guides us and provides for us. And he is good. He is great. He is wonderful. He is glorious. He is above all and is all. And he is good. But we live in a world where our actions indicate that there is no belief in God. Our actions demonstrate that we are our god. We believe that we must do for ourselves. We believe that we must provide for ourselves. We believe that we must protect ourselves in any and all circumstances. And when the world demonstrates that we are not in control, we do not know how to make sense of it. We loose control rather than surrender the control to our Father. We believe through our actions that we are the ones who are great and wonderful and glorious.
The young rich man questioned Christ to get an answer to his question. He wanted to know what he must do. And behold he came. Of all the people who followed Christ and sought his teachings, this young man appeared and asked the question that could have set him on the right path as he stood at the crossroad seeking to know which direction to take. He asked: "What must I do to attain heaven?" And Christ told him: "But if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments."
Keep the commandments. Simple, easy, straight to the point: "Keep the commandments." Is it just that simple. Is it just that easy, to just keep the commandments. As we are children our parents command us to follow their rules. Looking out on the world and seeing what it has to offer, we rebel. Our society commands us to follow the laws that are set before us, we do not. We adapt them to fit our own needs as we see fit. Our God gives us commandments to follow as a guide to life, but we create our own guide to follow as we choose. There are those who would believe and would attempt to follow the commandments. We are not perfect so we make some effort to obey. Yet in the world we live in, we are compelled to disobey, to set aside, to rationalize our actions to fit the situations we face. Our society motivates us to turn away from the commandments and to follow the norm of today.
Keep the commandments. Keep the rules that are given to us and do not go astray from them. They are the boundaries that separate us from the protection that our Father provides and the evil that wants to lead us away from our Father. The choice is ours. Choose to follow the commandments or choose to cross over and be led by that which will lead you astray. What do we loose? What do we gain? If we only knew the peace, and the joy, and the happiness, and the glory that is ours, we would not make the choices that we make today. We sacrifice our heritage simply for the glitz and glamour of the moment.
Our Father does not dictate to us. He merely sets guidelines to follow. He is good and he knows what is best for us. He sees the truth of the choices that we make. He knows the path down which our decisions will lead us. And he is compassionate and merciful to forgive us if we awake from the influences of evil and turn back to his protection. But if we knew the truth of our decisions and the treasures we give up for the passion of the moment, we would not make the decisions that we make. We would rejoice in the commandments, if we knew. We would celebrate the gifts of the Father, if we knew. We would be overwhelmed with the path that we walk, if we only knew the treasures we forsake. We have a choice. And the choice is ours to make.
Let us not be led astray by the influences of the world. Fear not the loss of the flesh, for the spirit is alive and cannot die. Fear not the death of the body for the body is dust and must return to dust. For worse than death is the one who can kill the body and kill the soul in hell. We have the life that has been given us by Christ. We have the life that is within us. We are the children of our father, created in his image and likeness. Yet we live in the flesh not knowing the truth of who we are in the spirit. Keep the commandments! Seek the truth of who you are in Christ and you will know and see the light of life that is within you. The Holy One will come and abide with you. The Holy One will teach you. The Holy One will guide you, protect you and be with you at all times. Then you too will know the truth of who you are. And with that truth no one will be able to lead you astray. For your light shines within, and that light is the life that Christ has given you that you will know where you are from. Open your mind. Open your heart. See the truth that is within you. For you too are a child of God, your Father.
Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in.
One there is who is good and he is God. The Father created us. The Father gave us life. The Father protects us and guides us and provides for us. And he is good. He is great. He is wonderful. He is glorious. He is above all and is all. And he is good. But we live in a world where our actions indicate that there is no belief in God. Our actions demonstrate that we are our god. We believe that we must do for ourselves. We believe that we must provide for ourselves. We believe that we must protect ourselves in any and all circumstances. And when the world demonstrates that we are not in control, we do not know how to make sense of it. We loose control rather than surrender the control to our Father. We believe through our actions that we are the ones who are great and wonderful and glorious.
The young rich man questioned Christ to get an answer to his question. He wanted to know what he must do. And behold he came. Of all the people who followed Christ and sought his teachings, this young man appeared and asked the question that could have set him on the right path as he stood at the crossroad seeking to know which direction to take. He asked: "What must I do to attain heaven?" And Christ told him: "But if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments."
Keep the commandments. Simple, easy, straight to the point: "Keep the commandments." Is it just that simple. Is it just that easy, to just keep the commandments. As we are children our parents command us to follow their rules. Looking out on the world and seeing what it has to offer, we rebel. Our society commands us to follow the laws that are set before us, we do not. We adapt them to fit our own needs as we see fit. Our God gives us commandments to follow as a guide to life, but we create our own guide to follow as we choose. There are those who would believe and would attempt to follow the commandments. We are not perfect so we make some effort to obey. Yet in the world we live in, we are compelled to disobey, to set aside, to rationalize our actions to fit the situations we face. Our society motivates us to turn away from the commandments and to follow the norm of today.
Keep the commandments. Keep the rules that are given to us and do not go astray from them. They are the boundaries that separate us from the protection that our Father provides and the evil that wants to lead us away from our Father. The choice is ours. Choose to follow the commandments or choose to cross over and be led by that which will lead you astray. What do we loose? What do we gain? If we only knew the peace, and the joy, and the happiness, and the glory that is ours, we would not make the choices that we make today. We sacrifice our heritage simply for the glitz and glamour of the moment.
Our Father does not dictate to us. He merely sets guidelines to follow. He is good and he knows what is best for us. He sees the truth of the choices that we make. He knows the path down which our decisions will lead us. And he is compassionate and merciful to forgive us if we awake from the influences of evil and turn back to his protection. But if we knew the truth of our decisions and the treasures we give up for the passion of the moment, we would not make the decisions that we make. We would rejoice in the commandments, if we knew. We would celebrate the gifts of the Father, if we knew. We would be overwhelmed with the path that we walk, if we only knew the treasures we forsake. We have a choice. And the choice is ours to make.
Let us not be led astray by the influences of the world. Fear not the loss of the flesh, for the spirit is alive and cannot die. Fear not the death of the body for the body is dust and must return to dust. For worse than death is the one who can kill the body and kill the soul in hell. We have the life that has been given us by Christ. We have the life that is within us. We are the children of our father, created in his image and likeness. Yet we live in the flesh not knowing the truth of who we are in the spirit. Keep the commandments! Seek the truth of who you are in Christ and you will know and see the light of life that is within you. The Holy One will come and abide with you. The Holy One will teach you. The Holy One will guide you, protect you and be with you at all times. Then you too will know the truth of who you are. And with that truth no one will be able to lead you astray. For your light shines within, and that light is the life that Christ has given you that you will know where you are from. Open your mind. Open your heart. See the truth that is within you. For you too are a child of God, your Father.
Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in.
