Metaphysical Corner
I am starting this little series of writings to express my inner beliefs. My intention is to periodically write a metaphysical interpretation of a Bible passage here. Let me start by saying I do not take the Bible literally. I also do not believe it is the undisputed Word of God. I believe the only undisputed Word of God is in our hearts where God choses to communicate with us. I submit to you that Moses had no Bible, nor did Abraham. Yet these great Biblical characters were able to accomplish amazing things by hearing God intuitively. They were not learned Biblical scholars, albeit Moses was extremely educated in the Egyptian systems of education seeing he was reared in the house of Pharaoh. Yet these men were communicated to by God, and what they did far surpassed the scholars of their day. They outshined the priests of their day. The priests were the educated theologians of their day.
The same is true in the time of Jesus. As far as we know he did not attend any prestigious seminaries of his day. He was not educated with the priests of his day. This fact was evident when he was in the temple astounding the priests with his knowledge of the Law. How did Jesus come about getting his great knowledge? There are those who will say it is because he was God in the flesh and therefore had an advantage. I exert that it was because he was open to Spirit and heard what Spirit would whisper in his consciousness. It is obvious that his understanding was far different from the scribes and Pharisees – the theologians of his day. When they came to him with a particular saying from the law trying to trip him up, he consistently gave them another viewpoint that was not considered before then. The famous, “Let he that is without guilt”.
Principles vs Literal
It becomes clear to the astute observer that Jesus was using another means to interpret the scripture of his day. Those scriptures were often referred to as the Law and the Prophets. When the disciples were eating grain in the fields on the Sabbath day, the Pharisees came to Jesus and questioned why they were eating on the Sabbath day which was unlawful. This is the literal interpretation. Strict and cold. Jesus pointed out how David went into the temple and ate the shewbread and shared it with his men which was unlawful. This is an example of principle. The principle of love overruling the literal. Jesus invited them to look deeper into the scriptures of the day. Surely there was something more in them than the literal. Here the letter of the law would condemn the disciples, but the spirit (principle) gave them life. The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath. I am sure there will be those who will quote Jesus saying “The son of man is therefore Lord of the Sabbath” hence making a case for him being the exception because he was divinity. I will say in advance, point taken. That is an entirely different discussion and one that I intend to address here in a future writing. That is if people actually read this, and I hope that some will. For those of us who do not deitize Jesus, perhaps we can see the principle of love outweighing legalism here. God would not want any child of his to starve. Hence the normally unlawful shewbread becomes fair game.
I said that to say that sometimes education can get in the way. Education is a mental process involving intellectual processes. Yet we are told in “the Word” (I am being intentionally factitious at an attempt at humor) our minds cannot comprehend the things of Spirit. So while formal education can give me ideas, it is only through the Spirit that I am able to comprehend the things of Spirit. Jesus told us God is Spirit and in order to worship (love) God we had to love God In Spirit and in truth. If I can only love God in Spirit, then I must perceive God in Spirit. Academia cannot give us that experience. Only Meditation and personal interaction can give us that. It is possible to be so educated that you cannot see what is in front of you.
As a singer, I have had no formal education. I have worked with people who have been highly trained. Many of them can only sing what is written on the paper. They are imprisoned by the notes written on the paper. One person I worked with could not find a harmony note on his own. It had to be on the paper. While myself and another uneducated singer fell right into harmony. We were educated on the street corners, singing impromptu recitals. We could ‘hear’ the notes we needed. We could intuit our separate parts. Not only that but we could adlib and add some rifts that accentuated what was written. I say that not to knock anyone, but to illustrate the importance of being open to Spirit and being willing to listen for Spirit. This is how Jesus confounded the learned scholars of his day.
It was not until I threw out all that I had been taught that I was able to gain – what for me is – a clear understanding of the message in the scriptures. Jesus often said “He that hath and ear let him hear.” That ear is not in the mind, it is in the heart. He said his words were life, life is not mental, life is Spiritual. Life is not lending itself to a microscope. Life is intangible, as is Spirit. It was not until I read the words of Christ with an open mind that they began to have a profound effect on my life. It was not until then that I was able crack the code from the literal to the underlying principles that I began to get a glimpse of God working in my life. From that point on my life changed. It was not about trying to take the Bible literally but it was about the seeing the symbolic interpretations. This is what changed my life, and gave me my very real relationship with God. This is what gave me the gift of abundant living. If you are open to this type of understanding, then perhaps what will be written here will be of assistance. I will invite you to read carefully the detractors responses. Notice how they will mechanically quote scriptures, but not talk much about personal experience. The metaphysical approach has the potential to make the scriptures more meaningful and clear to you, and will, as they did me, open the door for wonderful experiences with a very real, as opposed to a theoretical God.
Having opened my heart to alternative interpretations of scriptures, I now see it as beautiful music. I see other belief systems not as threats, but as beautiful rifts adding to the wonder of the music of Spirituality. Come now, and let us harmonize together.
