October 1, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, Elias.
I was the prophet of old and now I am an inhabitant of the Celestial Heaven and an immortal child of the Father. I have been present on several occasions when the high spirits were writing to you and have been much interested in the work, which they are doing and in the work which you are doing, for you are doing a wonderful work in helping the dark spirits of suffering and in bringing these spirits in close communion with the higher spirits who can show them the way to the Father's Love.
I would like to write you a long message tonight upon the history of the times in which I lived, and the knowledge that we, who were looked upon and written about as prophets, had as to the relationship between God and man; and what some of our experiences were with the spirits of the Heavens who came to us and communicated some of the truths of the Father.
And I will say in all our knowledge of truth, we never understood what the Divine Love of the Father was as distinguished from the love that He bestowed on all men irrespective of their seeking for His Love, and irrespective of the fact that they were sinful and disobedient to His commands. As I now know, we could not have understood what this Divine Love meant, or ever have possessed it, for in my time and until the coming of Jesus, the privilege of men receiving it did not exist. The Father had withdrawn this privilege from humanity.
But we did receive spiritual knowledge of those things that would make man better in his moral nature, and bring him closer to the Father in his natural love; and our efforts were directed towards making the people understand these things and the necessity of complying with the moral laws.
As I said, I should like to write you a long message, but there is another present who desires to write and I will stop. But I will come soon and deliver my message and, in the meantime, I will pray for you and try to help you in your soul development and in your work. With all my love and blessings I will say good night.
Your brother in Christ,
Elias
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Saturday, September 14, 2013
John Writes Further on the Destiny of the Soul that Has Not Experienced the New Birth
September 30, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, John.
I desire to finish my message and hope that you are in condition to receive it. Well, as I was writing about the future or destiny of the soul that has not experienced the New Birth, I will continue where I left off.
When the soul becomes wholly purified and restored to that condition of perfection that was possessed by the first parents before the fall, it continues to live a life of happiness and contentment, until it realizes that its possibility of further progress, either mentally, morally or spiritually, has come to an end; that it has reached its limit of advancement and that the happiness that it then enjoys is the full complement of what it may obtain or possess. This condition is one which satisfies the large majority of those who have reached the state of the fully restored man, and they are content to live the life of such perfection, and rest in the assurance that there is no greater happiness or more desirable condition existing in the universe of God.
But with some of these souls, this state does not bring or contain this complete satisfaction, and in them continues the desire for more and greater progress; but they realize that they have reached the limit of their progress, and that they must continue to live in that state which holds for them the happiness and delight of being perfect and at-one with the Father, as was intended by Him when man was created the perfect being. But notwithstanding this knowledge that as the soul develops in its natural love and in its moral and mental faculties to the finality of limitation, there can be nothing beyond; yet there comes to them a dissatisfaction and, as it were, a negative unhappiness that causes unrest, and a conscious desire for something, they know not what. It may be that the memory of something they heard in their progress through the spheres, or an imperfect suggestion of some unconscious, reproduced, dormant memory, inherited from their first parents, of the great gift of endless progress potentially bestowed upon God's first created beings, and forfeited, that causes the discontent and longings for something beyond the condition of their perfect state.
When this state of mind and soul comes to them, then they are susceptible to the teachings and help of those spirits who have in their souls the Divine Love, and knowledge that there is a way that leads to everlasting progress without limit or possibility of reaching the end. And many of these perfected souls in their natural love have followed the advice of these immortal spirit, and have left the high sphere of their perfection and entered the lower soul spheres of the spiritual heavens, and sought and found the New Birth of the soul, and progressed from sphere to sphere until they reached the Celestial Heavens, where they are still progressing and realizing a contentment never marred, but always accompanied with the knowledge that ever beyond are spheres of greater happiness of truth and knowledge. But, as I say, the larger, yes, much larger number of souls, that have been born unto men, will find and rest, in the future, in the state and happiness of the restored first parents.
It should not be necessary for me to attempt to make the application of the truths which I have written to the desires and wills of men, for the vital importance of making the choice between the future of the Divine Spirit, and that of the perfected man, is so apparent, that scarcely any mortal, who is not the man that says in his heart there is no God, needs another to apply for him the lesson taught. And I will say in closing that such lesson contains the truths that actual observation and knowledge have made certain. Speculation does not enter into it, and the possibility of error or mistakes is utterly eliminated.
I have written enough and will stop for tonight.You have received the message very satisfactorily and I am pleased. So with my love and blessings, I will say good night, and God bless you with His Love.
Your brother in Christ,
John
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, John.
I desire to finish my message and hope that you are in condition to receive it. Well, as I was writing about the future or destiny of the soul that has not experienced the New Birth, I will continue where I left off.
When the soul becomes wholly purified and restored to that condition of perfection that was possessed by the first parents before the fall, it continues to live a life of happiness and contentment, until it realizes that its possibility of further progress, either mentally, morally or spiritually, has come to an end; that it has reached its limit of advancement and that the happiness that it then enjoys is the full complement of what it may obtain or possess. This condition is one which satisfies the large majority of those who have reached the state of the fully restored man, and they are content to live the life of such perfection, and rest in the assurance that there is no greater happiness or more desirable condition existing in the universe of God.
But with some of these souls, this state does not bring or contain this complete satisfaction, and in them continues the desire for more and greater progress; but they realize that they have reached the limit of their progress, and that they must continue to live in that state which holds for them the happiness and delight of being perfect and at-one with the Father, as was intended by Him when man was created the perfect being. But notwithstanding this knowledge that as the soul develops in its natural love and in its moral and mental faculties to the finality of limitation, there can be nothing beyond; yet there comes to them a dissatisfaction and, as it were, a negative unhappiness that causes unrest, and a conscious desire for something, they know not what. It may be that the memory of something they heard in their progress through the spheres, or an imperfect suggestion of some unconscious, reproduced, dormant memory, inherited from their first parents, of the great gift of endless progress potentially bestowed upon God's first created beings, and forfeited, that causes the discontent and longings for something beyond the condition of their perfect state.
When this state of mind and soul comes to them, then they are susceptible to the teachings and help of those spirits who have in their souls the Divine Love, and knowledge that there is a way that leads to everlasting progress without limit or possibility of reaching the end. And many of these perfected souls in their natural love have followed the advice of these immortal spirit, and have left the high sphere of their perfection and entered the lower soul spheres of the spiritual heavens, and sought and found the New Birth of the soul, and progressed from sphere to sphere until they reached the Celestial Heavens, where they are still progressing and realizing a contentment never marred, but always accompanied with the knowledge that ever beyond are spheres of greater happiness of truth and knowledge. But, as I say, the larger, yes, much larger number of souls, that have been born unto men, will find and rest, in the future, in the state and happiness of the restored first parents.
It should not be necessary for me to attempt to make the application of the truths which I have written to the desires and wills of men, for the vital importance of making the choice between the future of the Divine Spirit, and that of the perfected man, is so apparent, that scarcely any mortal, who is not the man that says in his heart there is no God, needs another to apply for him the lesson taught. And I will say in closing that such lesson contains the truths that actual observation and knowledge have made certain. Speculation does not enter into it, and the possibility of error or mistakes is utterly eliminated.
I have written enough and will stop for tonight.You have received the message very satisfactorily and I am pleased. So with my love and blessings, I will say good night, and God bless you with His Love.
Your brother in Christ,
John
Friday, September 13, 2013
Jesus Writes About the Difference in Progression and Limitations of the Natural Love versus the Divine Love
September 28, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, Jesus.
I come tonight to tell you that you are in a better condition to write than you have been for sometime and I think it best that I deliver to you a message. Well, I will write on the subject of: "The destiny of the man who has not the Divine Love in his soul, and dies with only the natural love and a belief in the creeds and dogmas of the churches."
I know that many men believe that the creeds of the churches is what is necessary for the salvation of mankind. I mean as to baptism and observance of the sacraments and the belief that in my name men may be saved are sufficient and all that are necessary to ensure them an entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven; and in such belief rest with the feeling of assurance that nothing else is required or in any way to be sought for and acquired.
The large majority of professing Christians are in this state of belief and, hence, the greater number of mankind will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven, or become in their natures Divine. I have already told you what is the future of those who possess this Divine Nature of the Father and now I will confine my message to the future of this great majority.
As you may know, "the river can never run higher than its source," and neither can this majority attain to a perfection and happiness superior to that which was possessed by man before the time of the fall from the state of his perfect creation and, hence, no matter how great his progress may be in his natural love or in his moral or mental qualities, he can never excel the first created man as he was before the fall. And the only possible future for this vast majority is the condition and development that existed in the perfect man of God's first creation.
I know it is said that man has in him that which is a part of the Divinity of God, and that by his own efforts he may develop that Divine Substance until he becomes Divine himself and of the nature of the Father. But this is not true, and it is not possible to develop the Divine Love or any Essence of the Divine out of that which has not (that) in itself. There is nothing of the Nature of the Divine (in man).
In the spirit world, and I mean the spiritual as well as Celestial, laws prevail, and are just as certain in their operations as are the laws of the material world and a fundamental law is that only like produces like; although in the physical world it may appear that a derivative is not like that from which it is derived, but this is in appearance only, for in substance and essence the likeness exists and cannot be eradicated.
And so as to the real condition of the soul of man. If he has only the natural love - the created love - the development of that love will result in that which cannot possibly be greater or other than that which in its constituent parts is only the natural love, and no matter what the perfection may become, the Divine element is absent and all the limitations that are inherent in the created being still continue to form a part of and control that being. There is a limit to the development of this natural love and to the state of happiness beyond which it is not possible for this being to go, and that limit is the qualities and excellence possessed by the first man before he became defiled and impregnated with sin. The mind of such being is also limited in the progress which it may make in obtaining knowledge, for that mind being a thing of creation is bound by the limitations that that creation imposed.
So I say, such a man can never progress higher than those attributes or qualities with which he was endowed when he was the perfect man, either spiritually or mentally, unless he seeks for and obtains the Divine Love. When spirits come and write that life in this spirit world is always progressive, these spirits who write have never attained to this limit of which I speak and, hence, to them progression is endless and this belief is very beneficial, because it inspires them to make an effort to progress.
There are many spirits in this perfect state in the highest sphere of natural love or mentality, but they are spirits who have been in the spirit world for a vast number of years and are what you might call ancient spirits. These spirits have realized this limitation of which I write, and while they can change the objects of their seeking and the sources of their happiness, yet their progress has its ending, and often there comes to them dissatisfaction and a realization that over and beyond their sphere, there must be something that may be obtained that surpasses their perfect state and development. And as a result of this dissatisfaction many of these spirits, in moments of their unrest, give heed to the suggestions of those spirits who have become possessed of the Divine Essence, and upon whom is no limitation of progress; for these latter spirits are at all times in the highest sphere of these spirits of perfected natural love trying to show them the way to the higher development and happiness of the Celestial Spheres.
It may seem surprising to you, but it is a fact, that these spirits of the natural love, during their periods of progression and especially as they make nearer approach to their perfection in the satisfaction and happiness that they experience in that progression, will not listen to the spirits of the Divine Spheres, or believe that there can be any other methods of progress more desirable or excellent than the ones that they are pursuing, and only when they come to realize the dissatisfaction that I speak of, will awaken to the fact, or consent to be awakened to the fact, that there may be a way that leads to things beyond their limits of progress and the perfection that they may have acquired. So, as I say, the higher the progress of these spirits and the farther away they advance from the earth plane, the greater the difficulty in persuading them that there is a state of perfection and happiness surpassing that which they are seeking for, and a way, different from the way they are pursuing.
As these spirits progress in their natural love and in the development of their created minds, much happiness and satisfaction come to them, and in each stage of progress, so much greater do these experiences become, that they readily conceive that there can be no way superior to the one that they are travelling and, hence, having such belief, the difficulty of convincing them to the contrary becomes almost insurmountable. As a consequence, the spirits of the Celestial Spheres and those of the spirit spheres, who are progressing in the Divine Love, give the greater part of their time and efforts to convincing spirits of these higher truths while they are in the earth planes, before the happiness that I mention is experienced.
The life on earth and that in the earth planes of the spirit world are the states in which the souls of mortals and of spirits have the best opportunities for learning and believing these truths that show them the way to the progression that is without limitation or ending and hence, the importance of men knowing these truths, and of spirits also, before they experience the satisfaction and pride, I may say, that the advancement in the development of their natural love and mental and moral qualities gives them.
Until the time comes when the Father shall withdraw from man and spirit the privilege of obtaining this Divine Love and Essence, which time will bring the second death, these spirits and all spirits and mortals will have the opportunity of seeking for and finding the way to the Celestial Spheres and Immortality. But after that time, this privilege will no longer exist and then those spirits and mortals, who have not found and followed the way of that privilege, will be and become only the perfect beings, as were their first parents. They will have no assurance of Immortality, or even continuous life, and that dissatisfaction and longing for something unknown, will be theirs.
They will remain only the created beings in spirit body, soul and mind, and as the first parents had all the qualities that these restored men will have, and fell, and why may it not be that they will fall (or) that there may come some change in the individualized spirit that will destroy that individuality and dissolve it into its elements of pre-creation? No spirit knows that such a change will take place, that the perfect spirit will not always retain the same individuality, or that the happiness of such spirit will not always exist. And neither does any spirit know that these things will continue to be.
Then why should he not choose that course which leads to Divinity and certainty of Immortality and progress, rather than the one which leads to limitation of progress and happiness, and to uncertainty of Immortality?
I have written enough for tonight. I will come again soon. So remember that I love you and am with you trying to help you spiritually and that I pray to the Father to bless you. Good night.
Your brother and friend,
Jesus
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, Jesus.
I come tonight to tell you that you are in a better condition to write than you have been for sometime and I think it best that I deliver to you a message. Well, I will write on the subject of: "The destiny of the man who has not the Divine Love in his soul, and dies with only the natural love and a belief in the creeds and dogmas of the churches."
I know that many men believe that the creeds of the churches is what is necessary for the salvation of mankind. I mean as to baptism and observance of the sacraments and the belief that in my name men may be saved are sufficient and all that are necessary to ensure them an entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven; and in such belief rest with the feeling of assurance that nothing else is required or in any way to be sought for and acquired.
The large majority of professing Christians are in this state of belief and, hence, the greater number of mankind will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven, or become in their natures Divine. I have already told you what is the future of those who possess this Divine Nature of the Father and now I will confine my message to the future of this great majority.
As you may know, "the river can never run higher than its source," and neither can this majority attain to a perfection and happiness superior to that which was possessed by man before the time of the fall from the state of his perfect creation and, hence, no matter how great his progress may be in his natural love or in his moral or mental qualities, he can never excel the first created man as he was before the fall. And the only possible future for this vast majority is the condition and development that existed in the perfect man of God's first creation.
I know it is said that man has in him that which is a part of the Divinity of God, and that by his own efforts he may develop that Divine Substance until he becomes Divine himself and of the nature of the Father. But this is not true, and it is not possible to develop the Divine Love or any Essence of the Divine out of that which has not (that) in itself. There is nothing of the Nature of the Divine (in man).
In the spirit world, and I mean the spiritual as well as Celestial, laws prevail, and are just as certain in their operations as are the laws of the material world and a fundamental law is that only like produces like; although in the physical world it may appear that a derivative is not like that from which it is derived, but this is in appearance only, for in substance and essence the likeness exists and cannot be eradicated.
And so as to the real condition of the soul of man. If he has only the natural love - the created love - the development of that love will result in that which cannot possibly be greater or other than that which in its constituent parts is only the natural love, and no matter what the perfection may become, the Divine element is absent and all the limitations that are inherent in the created being still continue to form a part of and control that being. There is a limit to the development of this natural love and to the state of happiness beyond which it is not possible for this being to go, and that limit is the qualities and excellence possessed by the first man before he became defiled and impregnated with sin. The mind of such being is also limited in the progress which it may make in obtaining knowledge, for that mind being a thing of creation is bound by the limitations that that creation imposed.
So I say, such a man can never progress higher than those attributes or qualities with which he was endowed when he was the perfect man, either spiritually or mentally, unless he seeks for and obtains the Divine Love. When spirits come and write that life in this spirit world is always progressive, these spirits who write have never attained to this limit of which I speak and, hence, to them progression is endless and this belief is very beneficial, because it inspires them to make an effort to progress.
There are many spirits in this perfect state in the highest sphere of natural love or mentality, but they are spirits who have been in the spirit world for a vast number of years and are what you might call ancient spirits. These spirits have realized this limitation of which I write, and while they can change the objects of their seeking and the sources of their happiness, yet their progress has its ending, and often there comes to them dissatisfaction and a realization that over and beyond their sphere, there must be something that may be obtained that surpasses their perfect state and development. And as a result of this dissatisfaction many of these spirits, in moments of their unrest, give heed to the suggestions of those spirits who have become possessed of the Divine Essence, and upon whom is no limitation of progress; for these latter spirits are at all times in the highest sphere of these spirits of perfected natural love trying to show them the way to the higher development and happiness of the Celestial Spheres.
It may seem surprising to you, but it is a fact, that these spirits of the natural love, during their periods of progression and especially as they make nearer approach to their perfection in the satisfaction and happiness that they experience in that progression, will not listen to the spirits of the Divine Spheres, or believe that there can be any other methods of progress more desirable or excellent than the ones that they are pursuing, and only when they come to realize the dissatisfaction that I speak of, will awaken to the fact, or consent to be awakened to the fact, that there may be a way that leads to things beyond their limits of progress and the perfection that they may have acquired. So, as I say, the higher the progress of these spirits and the farther away they advance from the earth plane, the greater the difficulty in persuading them that there is a state of perfection and happiness surpassing that which they are seeking for, and a way, different from the way they are pursuing.
As these spirits progress in their natural love and in the development of their created minds, much happiness and satisfaction come to them, and in each stage of progress, so much greater do these experiences become, that they readily conceive that there can be no way superior to the one that they are travelling and, hence, having such belief, the difficulty of convincing them to the contrary becomes almost insurmountable. As a consequence, the spirits of the Celestial Spheres and those of the spirit spheres, who are progressing in the Divine Love, give the greater part of their time and efforts to convincing spirits of these higher truths while they are in the earth planes, before the happiness that I mention is experienced.
The life on earth and that in the earth planes of the spirit world are the states in which the souls of mortals and of spirits have the best opportunities for learning and believing these truths that show them the way to the progression that is without limitation or ending and hence, the importance of men knowing these truths, and of spirits also, before they experience the satisfaction and pride, I may say, that the advancement in the development of their natural love and mental and moral qualities gives them.
Until the time comes when the Father shall withdraw from man and spirit the privilege of obtaining this Divine Love and Essence, which time will bring the second death, these spirits and all spirits and mortals will have the opportunity of seeking for and finding the way to the Celestial Spheres and Immortality. But after that time, this privilege will no longer exist and then those spirits and mortals, who have not found and followed the way of that privilege, will be and become only the perfect beings, as were their first parents. They will have no assurance of Immortality, or even continuous life, and that dissatisfaction and longing for something unknown, will be theirs.
They will remain only the created beings in spirit body, soul and mind, and as the first parents had all the qualities that these restored men will have, and fell, and why may it not be that they will fall (or) that there may come some change in the individualized spirit that will destroy that individuality and dissolve it into its elements of pre-creation? No spirit knows that such a change will take place, that the perfect spirit will not always retain the same individuality, or that the happiness of such spirit will not always exist. And neither does any spirit know that these things will continue to be.
Then why should he not choose that course which leads to Divinity and certainty of Immortality and progress, rather than the one which leads to limitation of progress and happiness, and to uncertainty of Immortality?
I have written enough for tonight. I will come again soon. So remember that I love you and am with you trying to help you spiritually and that I pray to the Father to bless you. Good night.
Your brother and friend,
Jesus
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Jesus Writes About the Power Given by God to Perform Miracles and God's Plan of Salvation
September 24, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, Jesus.
I have been with you a great deal today, and know just what have been the workings of your mind, and tried to influence you as to some of your thoughts. I was with you at church in the morning and heard the minister's sermon and saw that he did not rightly comprehend the meaning of the words of the text. "Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also: and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. If ye shall ask anything in my name I will do it."
His explanation of what was meant by "greater works than I do," was not in accord with what I meant, or with the meaning that I intended to convey; for when I referred to works I meant those works which the world considered as miracles. I intended to assure my disciples that they would have power to do similar works or perform similar miracles to a greater extent than I had performed them. "Greater" referred to quantity and not to quality.
But this power, or the successful exercise of it, was not dependent upon belief in my name, but upon their faith in the Power of the Father and in the fact that He would confer upon them that Power. There was no virtue in my name or in me, as the individual, Jesus, but all virtue rested in the faith that they might have in the Father. I never performed any of the so-called miracles of my own self, but they were all performed by the Father, working through me; and just as He worked through me He would work through my disciples who should acquire the necessary faith.
As I have told you before, all acts that are apparently miracles are controlled by law just as are those things, which you call the workings of nature controlled by law, and when sufficient faith is acquired there comes to its possessor a knowledge of these laws. It may not be, as you would say, a knowledge or consciousness that is perceptible to the ordinary senses of man, but perceptible to that inner sense, which is the one that enables men to comprehend the things of the spirit. And having this knowledge of the inner sense, men may so control these laws that they will work those effects which seem to be contrary to the accustomed workings of the Laws of Nature. Until my disciples had acquired this faith that brought to their inner sense this knowledge, they could perform no miracle and do no work of phenomenon that other men could not do.
The Bible expression that: "Belief in my name is sufficient to cause the workings of miracles," is all wrong, and I never said that such belief was what was required, neither did I say that: "Whatsoever should be asked of the Father in my name would be given to men."
I was not a part of the Godhead and I had not of myself any power, and neither did my name have any miraculous influence with the Father. I was a man as other men are men, only I had become filled with the Divine Love of the Father, which made me at-one with Him and, consequently, had that knowledge of His Love and laws that enabled me to bring into operation those laws that would cause the desired effects to appear as realities.
But belief in my name caused no working of these laws, or the response of the Father to any supplications. Prayer must be made to the Father in the name of Truth and to His Love and Mercy. Every individual is dear to Him, and He is ready to bestow this Love upon everyone who asks in faith and pure desire. And in response to the earnest prayer will come Love, and with it knowledge of things spiritual, and with this power that may be used for the good of mankind.
My name is not a mediator between God and man, and neither is belief in one, the Jesus, a means to reach the responsive soul of the Father. If men will understand my teachings of truth, and when they ask in my name mean that they ask in the name of these truths, then such askings will have its results - but so few men, when they pray to the Father in my name, have such intention or understanding.
Only a knowledge of the Truth of the Plan for men's salvation will enable them to seek in the right way to obtain the Gift of the Father - and when I say knowledge of the Truth of the Plan, I do not mean that men shall understand all the minutiae of this Plan, and how one element or part of it may operate upon another, and what results may flow therefrom. But that knowledge must be sufficient in the beginning which shows to man that the Father is a God of Love, and that this Love may be obtained by man through earnest prayer for Its bestowal. This is all that is necessary, for the response that will follow will cause the New Birth, which when experienced by a man will place him in that unison with the Father that will lead to a knowledge of the other Truths that form a part of the Plan of Salvation.
There is nothing else that will bring about this knowledge of that inner sense of which I write. A knowledge of the mind, except in conjunction with this inner knowledge, can never bring about this necessary at-onement with the Father. It often exists that a man will have this inner knowledge and at the same time have a knowledge of the mind which is wholly at variance with the truths of the plan for his salvation. And the mind of man, being a thing of wonderful power, can for a time retard the growth of the knowledge of the inner sense or, as I will say, the soul sense. But only for a time, for at some time the soul sense will progress to that knowledge of the truth, so that the erroneous mind knowledge will entirely disappear, and man will possess only the truth.
Of this erroneous mind knowledge or, perhaps, rather conviction is the belief that in my name, that is supplications made in my name, will bring about the realization of the desires of the supplicant. Also, that in my blood, or in the power of the cross, or in my alleged vicarious atonement, the salvation of men can be obtained. If any name must be used in man's supplication then use only the name of the Father, for His is a name high over all, and the only name in Heaven or earth that can bring to man salvation and at-onement with His being.
And what I have said applies to many other declarations contained in the Bible, such as: "He that believeth on the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved. There is no other name under Heaven whereby men can be saved," etc. This is the enunciation of a false doctrine and misleading to the great majority of mankind for they accept the declarations as literally true. Of course, if it be interpreted as meaning that he that believeth on the truths that I teach, then the objection is not so great, but even then the declarations do not go far enough, for men may believe in these truths, and that belief may be a mere mental one, acquiesced in merely by the mind's faculties without any exercise at all of the soul sense. If to all these declarations shall be added the vital Truth that: "Except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven," and to this mental belief be added the soul's faith, then the doctrines will be truly stated and men will understand what is necessary to salvation.
Belief and faith are not the same; one is of the mind, the other of the soul; one can and does change as phenomena and apparent facts change, the other when truly possessed, never changes, for faith possessed by a soul causes all the longings and aspirations of that soul to become things of real existence, which like the house that is built upon the solid rock can never be shaken or destroyed.
I write, thus, tonight to show that the preacher in his sermon did not explain the true meaning of the text, and did not comprehend the truths that were intended to be conveyed of which the text was susceptible, though it did not set forth my expressions or in its literal interpretation declare the truth.
I will not write more now except to say that I love you with a great love and pray to the Father to bless you. Believe in the Father and trust me for you will not be disappointed and pray that this Divine Love of the Father shall come into your soul so that you shall know that you are an accepted son of the Father. Keep up your courage and have faith that whatsoever things you shall ask the Father in the name of His Love and Truth shall be given to you. I am with you in all my love and care and you will not be forsaken. So my dear brother, rest assured that I am
Your brother and friend,
Jesus
**********
Helen Confirms that Jesus Wrote
I am here, your own true and loving Helen.
Well, my dear, you have had a wonderful message from the Master tonight, and you may study and understand it thoroughly, for it contains in it more truth than you may see on a cursory reading. It is so contradictory to the beliefs of Christians and, therefore, so important that a knowledge of its meaning to the fullest is desirable. So good night.
Your own true and loving
Helen
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, Jesus.
I have been with you a great deal today, and know just what have been the workings of your mind, and tried to influence you as to some of your thoughts. I was with you at church in the morning and heard the minister's sermon and saw that he did not rightly comprehend the meaning of the words of the text. "Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also: and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. If ye shall ask anything in my name I will do it."
His explanation of what was meant by "greater works than I do," was not in accord with what I meant, or with the meaning that I intended to convey; for when I referred to works I meant those works which the world considered as miracles. I intended to assure my disciples that they would have power to do similar works or perform similar miracles to a greater extent than I had performed them. "Greater" referred to quantity and not to quality.
But this power, or the successful exercise of it, was not dependent upon belief in my name, but upon their faith in the Power of the Father and in the fact that He would confer upon them that Power. There was no virtue in my name or in me, as the individual, Jesus, but all virtue rested in the faith that they might have in the Father. I never performed any of the so-called miracles of my own self, but they were all performed by the Father, working through me; and just as He worked through me He would work through my disciples who should acquire the necessary faith.
As I have told you before, all acts that are apparently miracles are controlled by law just as are those things, which you call the workings of nature controlled by law, and when sufficient faith is acquired there comes to its possessor a knowledge of these laws. It may not be, as you would say, a knowledge or consciousness that is perceptible to the ordinary senses of man, but perceptible to that inner sense, which is the one that enables men to comprehend the things of the spirit. And having this knowledge of the inner sense, men may so control these laws that they will work those effects which seem to be contrary to the accustomed workings of the Laws of Nature. Until my disciples had acquired this faith that brought to their inner sense this knowledge, they could perform no miracle and do no work of phenomenon that other men could not do.
The Bible expression that: "Belief in my name is sufficient to cause the workings of miracles," is all wrong, and I never said that such belief was what was required, neither did I say that: "Whatsoever should be asked of the Father in my name would be given to men."
I was not a part of the Godhead and I had not of myself any power, and neither did my name have any miraculous influence with the Father. I was a man as other men are men, only I had become filled with the Divine Love of the Father, which made me at-one with Him and, consequently, had that knowledge of His Love and laws that enabled me to bring into operation those laws that would cause the desired effects to appear as realities.
But belief in my name caused no working of these laws, or the response of the Father to any supplications. Prayer must be made to the Father in the name of Truth and to His Love and Mercy. Every individual is dear to Him, and He is ready to bestow this Love upon everyone who asks in faith and pure desire. And in response to the earnest prayer will come Love, and with it knowledge of things spiritual, and with this power that may be used for the good of mankind.
My name is not a mediator between God and man, and neither is belief in one, the Jesus, a means to reach the responsive soul of the Father. If men will understand my teachings of truth, and when they ask in my name mean that they ask in the name of these truths, then such askings will have its results - but so few men, when they pray to the Father in my name, have such intention or understanding.
Only a knowledge of the Truth of the Plan for men's salvation will enable them to seek in the right way to obtain the Gift of the Father - and when I say knowledge of the Truth of the Plan, I do not mean that men shall understand all the minutiae of this Plan, and how one element or part of it may operate upon another, and what results may flow therefrom. But that knowledge must be sufficient in the beginning which shows to man that the Father is a God of Love, and that this Love may be obtained by man through earnest prayer for Its bestowal. This is all that is necessary, for the response that will follow will cause the New Birth, which when experienced by a man will place him in that unison with the Father that will lead to a knowledge of the other Truths that form a part of the Plan of Salvation.
There is nothing else that will bring about this knowledge of that inner sense of which I write. A knowledge of the mind, except in conjunction with this inner knowledge, can never bring about this necessary at-onement with the Father. It often exists that a man will have this inner knowledge and at the same time have a knowledge of the mind which is wholly at variance with the truths of the plan for his salvation. And the mind of man, being a thing of wonderful power, can for a time retard the growth of the knowledge of the inner sense or, as I will say, the soul sense. But only for a time, for at some time the soul sense will progress to that knowledge of the truth, so that the erroneous mind knowledge will entirely disappear, and man will possess only the truth.
Of this erroneous mind knowledge or, perhaps, rather conviction is the belief that in my name, that is supplications made in my name, will bring about the realization of the desires of the supplicant. Also, that in my blood, or in the power of the cross, or in my alleged vicarious atonement, the salvation of men can be obtained. If any name must be used in man's supplication then use only the name of the Father, for His is a name high over all, and the only name in Heaven or earth that can bring to man salvation and at-onement with His being.
And what I have said applies to many other declarations contained in the Bible, such as: "He that believeth on the Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved. There is no other name under Heaven whereby men can be saved," etc. This is the enunciation of a false doctrine and misleading to the great majority of mankind for they accept the declarations as literally true. Of course, if it be interpreted as meaning that he that believeth on the truths that I teach, then the objection is not so great, but even then the declarations do not go far enough, for men may believe in these truths, and that belief may be a mere mental one, acquiesced in merely by the mind's faculties without any exercise at all of the soul sense. If to all these declarations shall be added the vital Truth that: "Except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven," and to this mental belief be added the soul's faith, then the doctrines will be truly stated and men will understand what is necessary to salvation.
Belief and faith are not the same; one is of the mind, the other of the soul; one can and does change as phenomena and apparent facts change, the other when truly possessed, never changes, for faith possessed by a soul causes all the longings and aspirations of that soul to become things of real existence, which like the house that is built upon the solid rock can never be shaken or destroyed.
I write, thus, tonight to show that the preacher in his sermon did not explain the true meaning of the text, and did not comprehend the truths that were intended to be conveyed of which the text was susceptible, though it did not set forth my expressions or in its literal interpretation declare the truth.
I will not write more now except to say that I love you with a great love and pray to the Father to bless you. Believe in the Father and trust me for you will not be disappointed and pray that this Divine Love of the Father shall come into your soul so that you shall know that you are an accepted son of the Father. Keep up your courage and have faith that whatsoever things you shall ask the Father in the name of His Love and Truth shall be given to you. I am with you in all my love and care and you will not be forsaken. So my dear brother, rest assured that I am
Your brother and friend,
Jesus
**********
Helen Confirms that Jesus Wrote
I am here, your own true and loving Helen.
Well, my dear, you have had a wonderful message from the Master tonight, and you may study and understand it thoroughly, for it contains in it more truth than you may see on a cursory reading. It is so contradictory to the beliefs of Christians and, therefore, so important that a knowledge of its meaning to the fullest is desirable. So good night.
Your own true and loving
Helen
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
John Writes About the Purification of the Natural Love
September 23, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, St. John.
I want to write tonight on a subject that is important, and I hope that you will he able to receive my message, for I have been waiting for some time to deliver it. Well, I desire to discourse on the subject of: "What is the destiny of the mortal who has not experienced the New Birth, but who will progress to that condition which may be called the perfect man?"
As you know, there is a future for the mortal who receives the New Birth and a different one for him who has only the complete and pure development of his natural love. This latter condition does not depend upon the mortal having in his soul the Divine Love or the Essence of the Father, but merely upon the purification of the natural love so that all sin and error and inharmony form no part of his state of soul or mental existence. This condition is not the result of a New Birth, or of a change in the constituent elements of his soul, but merely the elimination of those things therefrom, which were the results and the necessary sequences of the defilement that followed the fall.
Now as man lost by this fall the qualities which made him the perfect creature of his Maker, it is only necessary for him to regain what he lost by that fall in order to become the perfect man once more; and in recovering this state of perfection, it is not required that he should seek - or actually add to the qualities which he at first possessed - any new or additional qualities or attributes, but only that he regain what he had been deprived of by his disobedience; and when that is accomplished, he will come again in harmony with the laws of his creation and have all the potentialities and excellence that he originally possessed.
And now, what will that future be? And in order to determine this question it is only necessary to understand what his inherent condition or qualities were when he was the perfect man of his Father's creation.
At that time he was possessed of those things of which he is now the possessor, except that then they were all so accurately adjusted that every sense and function of his body, as well as every faculty of his soul and mind, were so in harmony with the laws of his creation, that he was capable of doing the will of the Father, and obeying every requirement that was imposed upon him. He was then, not only a perfect being as regarding his physical formation, but also as regarding his mental and moral qualities which, of course, included all the emotions and appetites and spiritual aspirations. But, as we have written you before, all these faculties were subject to his will and, in a certain sense, his will was controlled by the exercise of these faculties.
His body was in the beginning made of matter, changeable as it now is, but of a more ethereal kind, and not subject to decay and disintegration in such a short time, as it now is, but yet, subject to this decay; and man, as regards his physical being, necessarily was compelled to die, and to have released his spirit body and his soul from this physical vesture, and thereafter exist as pure spirit. This was not the death that he died as a consequence of his disobedience, but the death natural to him, by reason of the very nature of his creation. His soul and spirit body were not subject to death in the sense of annihilation, but were given the qualities of continual existence in a pure and perfect state, and the only difference that the fall made as to these parts of his being, is that the purity and harmony that were men's are now no longer parts of his soul and spirit. Whether immortality was a quality of that existence, we spirits do not know, and therefore cannot assert, but as his created soul and spirit body had a beginning - mere creatures of the Father - it may be that they were intended to have an ending, as individualized soul and spirit.
Of course, they were created from something, and not from nothing, as some of your theologians say, and it is possible, in the order of change, which seems to be the law in the spirit world as well as in the mortal world, that this soul and spirit may be resolved again into that something. But as to this finality we do not have any knowledge because, so far as the observation of spirits in this world go, no soul or spirit body - and I mean the body as a composite whole and not as to its constituent elements - has ever been resolved into that something, or been deprived of its individualized existence. Therefore, I cannot say that when man was created, it was intended that, as man, he should not be immortal, or that he should be so.
But you will readily see, that after man shall have accomplished the purification of his soul and become in mind and spirit body, as it was intended he should be at the time of his creation, he will be nothing more nor less than he was at that time and have no other or greater qualities or freedom from limitations and changes than he had before his fall. Of course, he will have no physical body, and here let me say that there is no fact or experience known to the spirit world that justifies the assertion that man on earth will ever be immune to physical death. I know that some say, that in the far future men may make such progress in the development of their natural love that their condition of inner purity will be so great as to cause the physical bodies to become so etherialized as to render them free from physical death. But that I cannot conceive will ever happen, for men were made to become inhabitants of the spiritual realms and the short time they were decreed to live the earth life was for the purpose only of giving the soul an individualized existence.
Never was it intended that the physical form should have an eternity of existence, no matter how pure, or, as they say, etherealized it may become, for it was made of matter, of the earth, earthy, while the soul was made of that which had its origin in the spirit realm and composed of spirit substance, so that it cannot be conceived that in the beginning man was created for an immortal earth existence.
I see that you are tired, and I will finish later. I am glad that I could write tonight and also that you are in such good condition to receive my message. So with my love and blessings and assurances that you have every reason to keep up your courage and hope, I am
Your brother in Christ,
John
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, St. John.
I want to write tonight on a subject that is important, and I hope that you will he able to receive my message, for I have been waiting for some time to deliver it. Well, I desire to discourse on the subject of: "What is the destiny of the mortal who has not experienced the New Birth, but who will progress to that condition which may be called the perfect man?"
As you know, there is a future for the mortal who receives the New Birth and a different one for him who has only the complete and pure development of his natural love. This latter condition does not depend upon the mortal having in his soul the Divine Love or the Essence of the Father, but merely upon the purification of the natural love so that all sin and error and inharmony form no part of his state of soul or mental existence. This condition is not the result of a New Birth, or of a change in the constituent elements of his soul, but merely the elimination of those things therefrom, which were the results and the necessary sequences of the defilement that followed the fall.
Now as man lost by this fall the qualities which made him the perfect creature of his Maker, it is only necessary for him to regain what he lost by that fall in order to become the perfect man once more; and in recovering this state of perfection, it is not required that he should seek - or actually add to the qualities which he at first possessed - any new or additional qualities or attributes, but only that he regain what he had been deprived of by his disobedience; and when that is accomplished, he will come again in harmony with the laws of his creation and have all the potentialities and excellence that he originally possessed.
And now, what will that future be? And in order to determine this question it is only necessary to understand what his inherent condition or qualities were when he was the perfect man of his Father's creation.
At that time he was possessed of those things of which he is now the possessor, except that then they were all so accurately adjusted that every sense and function of his body, as well as every faculty of his soul and mind, were so in harmony with the laws of his creation, that he was capable of doing the will of the Father, and obeying every requirement that was imposed upon him. He was then, not only a perfect being as regarding his physical formation, but also as regarding his mental and moral qualities which, of course, included all the emotions and appetites and spiritual aspirations. But, as we have written you before, all these faculties were subject to his will and, in a certain sense, his will was controlled by the exercise of these faculties.
His body was in the beginning made of matter, changeable as it now is, but of a more ethereal kind, and not subject to decay and disintegration in such a short time, as it now is, but yet, subject to this decay; and man, as regards his physical being, necessarily was compelled to die, and to have released his spirit body and his soul from this physical vesture, and thereafter exist as pure spirit. This was not the death that he died as a consequence of his disobedience, but the death natural to him, by reason of the very nature of his creation. His soul and spirit body were not subject to death in the sense of annihilation, but were given the qualities of continual existence in a pure and perfect state, and the only difference that the fall made as to these parts of his being, is that the purity and harmony that were men's are now no longer parts of his soul and spirit. Whether immortality was a quality of that existence, we spirits do not know, and therefore cannot assert, but as his created soul and spirit body had a beginning - mere creatures of the Father - it may be that they were intended to have an ending, as individualized soul and spirit.
Of course, they were created from something, and not from nothing, as some of your theologians say, and it is possible, in the order of change, which seems to be the law in the spirit world as well as in the mortal world, that this soul and spirit may be resolved again into that something. But as to this finality we do not have any knowledge because, so far as the observation of spirits in this world go, no soul or spirit body - and I mean the body as a composite whole and not as to its constituent elements - has ever been resolved into that something, or been deprived of its individualized existence. Therefore, I cannot say that when man was created, it was intended that, as man, he should not be immortal, or that he should be so.
But you will readily see, that after man shall have accomplished the purification of his soul and become in mind and spirit body, as it was intended he should be at the time of his creation, he will be nothing more nor less than he was at that time and have no other or greater qualities or freedom from limitations and changes than he had before his fall. Of course, he will have no physical body, and here let me say that there is no fact or experience known to the spirit world that justifies the assertion that man on earth will ever be immune to physical death. I know that some say, that in the far future men may make such progress in the development of their natural love that their condition of inner purity will be so great as to cause the physical bodies to become so etherialized as to render them free from physical death. But that I cannot conceive will ever happen, for men were made to become inhabitants of the spiritual realms and the short time they were decreed to live the earth life was for the purpose only of giving the soul an individualized existence.
Never was it intended that the physical form should have an eternity of existence, no matter how pure, or, as they say, etherealized it may become, for it was made of matter, of the earth, earthy, while the soul was made of that which had its origin in the spirit realm and composed of spirit substance, so that it cannot be conceived that in the beginning man was created for an immortal earth existence.
I see that you are tired, and I will finish later. I am glad that I could write tonight and also that you are in such good condition to receive my message. So with my love and blessings and assurances that you have every reason to keep up your courage and hope, I am
Your brother in Christ,
John
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Lazarus Writes that James E. Padgett is the Best Qualified Medium to Receive Higher Messages of Truth
September 21, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, Lazarus.
I merely want to say that I am the real Lazarus of the Bible story and that I am an inhabitant of the Father's Kingdom, and in the truth that exists in that Kingdom, and in its inhabitants.
I declare to you that the spirits who have written you the truths of Celestial and spiritual things are actually those whom they represent themselves to be. Jesus, especially, is with you very often and communicates to you truths from his great storehouse of knowledge of the truth. He is so much interested in the work to be done and the revelations to be made that he is with you so very often for the purpose of not only revealing these truths, but of preparing you to receive them; and he is enveloping you in his love and giving to you a development of your soul faculties that will make you qualified to receive these high truths as no other mortal has ever been qualified, for he knows that you are his best qualified instrument now on earth to do his work and the work of the Father.
From what I say, you must not suppose that you are the best, nor the man having the greatest amount of the Divine Love in the soul, for that is not true. Nor are you chosen because of any merits of your own or superior mental endowments; but you have those conditions of attunement with him that enables him and the other spirits to use you in performing this work.
I am not of such exalted position or soul development as are many of the spirits who write you, yet I know the plans of the Master, and what I say to you is true. I was a Jew and an orthodox one, until the Master came to me and I developed my soul so that I could understand his teachings and become susceptible to the inflowing of the Divine Love.
I will not write more now, but in closing repeat that you must believe what I have above said, and try to do the will of the Father, and the work that you have been selected to do.
Well, both Mary and Martha are in the Celestial Heavens, and you would naturally suppose that Mary has made the greater progress in her soul development but that is not true, as they both live in the same sphere and have similar development. As you know, they have been in the spirit world for a very long time and whatever spiritual superiority Mary may have appeared to have over Martha does not now exist, for they both have this Divine Love to a degree that has caused all sin and thoughts for the material to have become eradicated long years ago.
Your wife says that I must not write more now and so I will say good night.
Your brother in Christ,
Lazarus
**********
Helen confirms the writing from Lazarus.
I am here, your own true and loving Helen.
Well sweetheart, you have had a message from Luke and one from Lazarus, and I want to tell you that it was really they who wrote. I was with you tonight and saw that you did not enjoy the evening very much nor the music either. I think it may be best for you to not visit there (the Colburns) so often, for if you will give more of your evenings to us you will find more benefit in our society and communications. It is well that you visit them occasionally for they enjoy your visits and some time, perhaps, you may be able to show them the way to the vital truths of the soul.
I am so glad that you are feeling so much better and I wish that the time was here when you could enjoy the things that you were thinking about as to your home. I will not write more tonight as it is late and you had better go to bed and get up early.
Yes, Mary [Kennedy] was with us and she enjoyed the visit and was very close to the Doctor [Leslie R. Stone]. She says tell him that she loves him and wants him to love her more and more each day. She will write him soon.
Yes, they did her good and succeeded in relieving some of the difficulty and she is better and the doctors think that she may recover. Dr. Campbell was with her last night and gave her the best attention and help that he was able to give and he knows a great deal about the ills of mortals and how to remedy them. He took charge of the case as the doctors say and directed the manner of assistance on the part of the others. I do hope that she will get well and the doctors are very hopeful. So you may expect to hear that she is better.
So my own dear Ned, love me and think of me for I love you so much. Kiss me and say good night.
Your own true and loving,
Helen
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, Lazarus.
I merely want to say that I am the real Lazarus of the Bible story and that I am an inhabitant of the Father's Kingdom, and in the truth that exists in that Kingdom, and in its inhabitants.
I declare to you that the spirits who have written you the truths of Celestial and spiritual things are actually those whom they represent themselves to be. Jesus, especially, is with you very often and communicates to you truths from his great storehouse of knowledge of the truth. He is so much interested in the work to be done and the revelations to be made that he is with you so very often for the purpose of not only revealing these truths, but of preparing you to receive them; and he is enveloping you in his love and giving to you a development of your soul faculties that will make you qualified to receive these high truths as no other mortal has ever been qualified, for he knows that you are his best qualified instrument now on earth to do his work and the work of the Father.
From what I say, you must not suppose that you are the best, nor the man having the greatest amount of the Divine Love in the soul, for that is not true. Nor are you chosen because of any merits of your own or superior mental endowments; but you have those conditions of attunement with him that enables him and the other spirits to use you in performing this work.
I am not of such exalted position or soul development as are many of the spirits who write you, yet I know the plans of the Master, and what I say to you is true. I was a Jew and an orthodox one, until the Master came to me and I developed my soul so that I could understand his teachings and become susceptible to the inflowing of the Divine Love.
I will not write more now, but in closing repeat that you must believe what I have above said, and try to do the will of the Father, and the work that you have been selected to do.
Well, both Mary and Martha are in the Celestial Heavens, and you would naturally suppose that Mary has made the greater progress in her soul development but that is not true, as they both live in the same sphere and have similar development. As you know, they have been in the spirit world for a very long time and whatever spiritual superiority Mary may have appeared to have over Martha does not now exist, for they both have this Divine Love to a degree that has caused all sin and thoughts for the material to have become eradicated long years ago.
Your wife says that I must not write more now and so I will say good night.
Your brother in Christ,
Lazarus
**********
Helen confirms the writing from Lazarus.
I am here, your own true and loving Helen.
Well sweetheart, you have had a message from Luke and one from Lazarus, and I want to tell you that it was really they who wrote. I was with you tonight and saw that you did not enjoy the evening very much nor the music either. I think it may be best for you to not visit there (the Colburns) so often, for if you will give more of your evenings to us you will find more benefit in our society and communications. It is well that you visit them occasionally for they enjoy your visits and some time, perhaps, you may be able to show them the way to the vital truths of the soul.
I am so glad that you are feeling so much better and I wish that the time was here when you could enjoy the things that you were thinking about as to your home. I will not write more tonight as it is late and you had better go to bed and get up early.
Yes, Mary [Kennedy] was with us and she enjoyed the visit and was very close to the Doctor [Leslie R. Stone]. She says tell him that she loves him and wants him to love her more and more each day. She will write him soon.
Yes, they did her good and succeeded in relieving some of the difficulty and she is better and the doctors think that she may recover. Dr. Campbell was with her last night and gave her the best attention and help that he was able to give and he knows a great deal about the ills of mortals and how to remedy them. He took charge of the case as the doctors say and directed the manner of assistance on the part of the others. I do hope that she will get well and the doctors are very hopeful. So you may expect to hear that she is better.
So my own dear Ned, love me and think of me for I love you so much. Kiss me and say good night.
Your own true and loving,
Helen
Monday, September 9, 2013
Jesus Writes that God is Love and Love Knows No Limitations in its Heights or Depths
September 17, 1916
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, Jesus.
I was with you tonight at the meeting and heard what the preacher said, and he declared some truths, and also said some things that were not true. He said: "Only those who have been converted are sons of God."
All men are the children of God, and His Love and care are over all, and they are very dear to Him, otherwise He would not have rebestowed His Love upon them and given them the privilege of becoming inhabitants of His Celestial Kingdom.
The mere fact that they are sinners makes them no less His children, who He is so anxious to redeem and fill with the Divine Love, and when the preacher says: "They who are sinners are not the sons of God," he does not declare the truth, for they are all His sons - some to enjoy the pure life and bliss which the purification of their natural love will bring to them, and others to enjoy and inhabit the Celestial Kingdom which the New Birth will bring to them.
But all are His sons, though some have wandered and become strangers to His Love, just as was the prodigal son who left his father's house for a far country. This doctrine of the sinful not being sons of God is a damnable and harmful doctrine and will cause many to give up hope of ever becoming anything else than the sons of perdition - or as these orthodox say - of the devil.
The Father's mercy is for all, and if certain of His children do not choose to seek and receive the Divine Love which, when possessed, will make angels of them, yet they are His sons and will, in the fullness of time or before the time of the great consummation, become pure and happy beings as were the first parents before the fall.
And while this preacher has a great amount of the Divine Love in his soul, and is earnestly and in the right way seeking for more, yet his beliefs and teachings as to the destiny and future condition of those who may receive this Love and become at-one with the Father are all wrong and will tend to retard his own progress in the development of his soul and in his advancement towards the Kingdom of God.
He, of course, is possessed of these beliefs because of his study and construction of some of the declarations of the Bible and, therefore, is not teaching what he does not believe or what, to his own conscience, is false. Nevertheless, it is false and he will have to suffer the consequences of such false beliefs and teachings.
Ignorance, while it will not relieve him from its consequences, and neither will it invoke the penalties of the law that apply to the willful deceiver or teacher of false doctrines, yet neither will it excuse him or relieve him from the penalties of that law which demands the truth, and only the truth to be believed and taught. He will have to get rid of these false beliefs, even though he may have some of the Divine in his soul; for whenever there exists untruth in belief in the heart and soul of man to that extent it interferes with the inflowing of the Love into and the progress of that soul towards perfect unity with the Father.
Truth is of itself a fact. It can have no affiliation with untruth, no matter that untruth is the result of ignorance, for all untruth is the result of ignorance, and must be eradicated from the hearts of men before there can be that harmony between God and man which the very nature of truth itself requires. So that if no man could be the son of God, who has not the perfect harmony which truth absolutely demands, God would have no sons amongst men. The condition of the sinner and that of the man who has experienced the New Birth differs only in the fact that one has not commenced to have in his soul the essence of Truth, while the other, to an extent, has that essence. All may have that essence, and to a great abundance. Some may never have the essence of Divine Truth, yet no man will be left without the essence of the truth which leads to the perfect man. The truth of the angel existence, and the truth of the perfect man are equally truths, though the former is of a higher degree and nature than the other.
Our first parents were the children of God - His own creatures - good and perfect, and after their fall they became no less His children, for His love was so great for them that in the fullness of perfection of His plans He again bestowed upon them the privilege of receiving His Divine Love, and sent me to proclaim the fact and to show men the way to obtain that great love. The death that had existed for all the long centuries was supplanted by life potential, and I became the way, the truth and the life, and immortality became a possibility to men. So that, all men are the sons of God in one relation or the other; depending in the one case whether a man will turn from his sins and be satisfied with the perfection of his natural love and the home that belongs to the perfect man, or seeks for the inflowing into his soul the divine love which will enable him to enter the Divine Heavens and have the certainty of immortality.
When God rebestowed this Divine Love on man, there was no man in existence, or spirit either, who could be called His son, if it were necessary that he had been converted as the preacher said, because none had received this love which is the only thing or power in all God's universe that can convert a man dead in trespass and sin: yet God loved all His children and conferred upon them this great gift, because they were His children. If God had loved only the righteous there would have been no one who could have been the object of His bounty. He would have had no sons or children of His love. And now that He has rebestowed this gift, and some of the sons of men have received and possess it, and are more in harmony with Him, it is not true that those who were His sons and children before its bestowal are any less His sons and children, because they may not have sought and made this gift their own.
No, the Father's Love is so great and broad and deep, that it goes out to all the children of earth, waiting to bestow it upon them, and the lost sheep is as much His child as the ninety and nine who are safe in the fold, and although the lost one may never find or enter the fold, where those are that possess His Divine Love are sheltered, yet that sheep remains and is the object of His love.
So let preachers and others, who have assumed the responsibility of teaching men the truths of the Father, cease from proclaiming the doctrine that only those who have received the new birth are the sons of God. They, of course, are not His obedient sons until they have obtained either the Divine Love and Essence of the Father, or the purity of the first parents before the fall, but yet they are His, even though defiled by their own creations of sin and error.
God is Love and Love knows no limitations in its heights or depths. It exists in the highest Heavens, and reaches to the lowest hells, and will in its own way and in its own time work its own fulfillment. All men will come into harmony with the will of the Father, which is perfect, and even though some, and I may say the majority of men, will not accept the invitation to become angels of His Celestial Kingdom, which is not compulsory, yet they do His will by becoming in the future, near or far, free from the sin and error of their own creation, and pure and perfect as were they, whom the Father first created and pronounced good.
Man's greatest enemy to man is he, who having received the assurance of possessing the Divine Love, and thereby becoming as it were, a divine son of the Father, and who believes in the errors of the Bible and the misinterpretations of its truths, declares that all others of mankind are hated of God, and are objects of His wrath, and certain of eternal damnation and everlasting torment. It is deplorable that such beliefs and such declarations should exist and continue to be made, especially on the part of those who undertake to lead the masses in the way to God's truths and plans for men's happiness, and redemption from the evils and sins that cause them so much suffering.
But all this shows the power and blindness of belief founded upon error and untruthful teachings. And strange as it may seem, these leaders of the ignorant may have some of the Divine Love in their souls, and yet their mental and intellectual beliefs be so fixed and unmoveable that the possession of this love will not cause them to understand that the Father's love is for all, and that wrath is not a part of His being, but a quality of sinful man that these believers in error attribute to Him.
If God may be said to hate anything, He hates sin, but He loves the sinner, who is the creature of His will, and who is so unfortunate as to have created that which defiles him and to wander away, not only from the Father, but from his own perfect and pure creation.
Well, I have written enough for tonight and I hope that what I have said may prove beneficial not only to the sinner, but to the man, preacher, or layman, who possessing some of the Divine Love, proclaims that only he or others like him, are the sons of God.
As Paul said, "They see through a glass darkly," but then they shall see face to face, and when they do, they will see such evidences and manifestations of the Father's Love that they will know that they and their sinning brothers are all sons of the Father, although one may be an heir to the Celestial Kingdom and the Divine Essence of the Father, while the other may be an heir only to the pure love of the Father, to bless and make them happy in the pure natural love and perfect manhood which the so-called Adam possessed before his fall.
I must stop now, but in doing so say, that you must not let what any of these orthodox believers may say disturb your faith in our communications, for they know only what the Bible tells them, and you know the truths that we declare. I will soon come and write to you a message of truth that I have been waiting sometime to write.Believe that I love you and am with you, praying for you and helping you with my influence.
Good night, and may the Father bless you.
Your brother and friend,
Jesus
Received by James Padgett
Washington, D.C.
I am here, Jesus.
I was with you tonight at the meeting and heard what the preacher said, and he declared some truths, and also said some things that were not true. He said: "Only those who have been converted are sons of God."
All men are the children of God, and His Love and care are over all, and they are very dear to Him, otherwise He would not have rebestowed His Love upon them and given them the privilege of becoming inhabitants of His Celestial Kingdom.
The mere fact that they are sinners makes them no less His children, who He is so anxious to redeem and fill with the Divine Love, and when the preacher says: "They who are sinners are not the sons of God," he does not declare the truth, for they are all His sons - some to enjoy the pure life and bliss which the purification of their natural love will bring to them, and others to enjoy and inhabit the Celestial Kingdom which the New Birth will bring to them.
But all are His sons, though some have wandered and become strangers to His Love, just as was the prodigal son who left his father's house for a far country. This doctrine of the sinful not being sons of God is a damnable and harmful doctrine and will cause many to give up hope of ever becoming anything else than the sons of perdition - or as these orthodox say - of the devil.
The Father's mercy is for all, and if certain of His children do not choose to seek and receive the Divine Love which, when possessed, will make angels of them, yet they are His sons and will, in the fullness of time or before the time of the great consummation, become pure and happy beings as were the first parents before the fall.
And while this preacher has a great amount of the Divine Love in his soul, and is earnestly and in the right way seeking for more, yet his beliefs and teachings as to the destiny and future condition of those who may receive this Love and become at-one with the Father are all wrong and will tend to retard his own progress in the development of his soul and in his advancement towards the Kingdom of God.
He, of course, is possessed of these beliefs because of his study and construction of some of the declarations of the Bible and, therefore, is not teaching what he does not believe or what, to his own conscience, is false. Nevertheless, it is false and he will have to suffer the consequences of such false beliefs and teachings.
Ignorance, while it will not relieve him from its consequences, and neither will it invoke the penalties of the law that apply to the willful deceiver or teacher of false doctrines, yet neither will it excuse him or relieve him from the penalties of that law which demands the truth, and only the truth to be believed and taught. He will have to get rid of these false beliefs, even though he may have some of the Divine in his soul; for whenever there exists untruth in belief in the heart and soul of man to that extent it interferes with the inflowing of the Love into and the progress of that soul towards perfect unity with the Father.
Truth is of itself a fact. It can have no affiliation with untruth, no matter that untruth is the result of ignorance, for all untruth is the result of ignorance, and must be eradicated from the hearts of men before there can be that harmony between God and man which the very nature of truth itself requires. So that if no man could be the son of God, who has not the perfect harmony which truth absolutely demands, God would have no sons amongst men. The condition of the sinner and that of the man who has experienced the New Birth differs only in the fact that one has not commenced to have in his soul the essence of Truth, while the other, to an extent, has that essence. All may have that essence, and to a great abundance. Some may never have the essence of Divine Truth, yet no man will be left without the essence of the truth which leads to the perfect man. The truth of the angel existence, and the truth of the perfect man are equally truths, though the former is of a higher degree and nature than the other.
Our first parents were the children of God - His own creatures - good and perfect, and after their fall they became no less His children, for His love was so great for them that in the fullness of perfection of His plans He again bestowed upon them the privilege of receiving His Divine Love, and sent me to proclaim the fact and to show men the way to obtain that great love. The death that had existed for all the long centuries was supplanted by life potential, and I became the way, the truth and the life, and immortality became a possibility to men. So that, all men are the sons of God in one relation or the other; depending in the one case whether a man will turn from his sins and be satisfied with the perfection of his natural love and the home that belongs to the perfect man, or seeks for the inflowing into his soul the divine love which will enable him to enter the Divine Heavens and have the certainty of immortality.
When God rebestowed this Divine Love on man, there was no man in existence, or spirit either, who could be called His son, if it were necessary that he had been converted as the preacher said, because none had received this love which is the only thing or power in all God's universe that can convert a man dead in trespass and sin: yet God loved all His children and conferred upon them this great gift, because they were His children. If God had loved only the righteous there would have been no one who could have been the object of His bounty. He would have had no sons or children of His love. And now that He has rebestowed this gift, and some of the sons of men have received and possess it, and are more in harmony with Him, it is not true that those who were His sons and children before its bestowal are any less His sons and children, because they may not have sought and made this gift their own.
No, the Father's Love is so great and broad and deep, that it goes out to all the children of earth, waiting to bestow it upon them, and the lost sheep is as much His child as the ninety and nine who are safe in the fold, and although the lost one may never find or enter the fold, where those are that possess His Divine Love are sheltered, yet that sheep remains and is the object of His love.
So let preachers and others, who have assumed the responsibility of teaching men the truths of the Father, cease from proclaiming the doctrine that only those who have received the new birth are the sons of God. They, of course, are not His obedient sons until they have obtained either the Divine Love and Essence of the Father, or the purity of the first parents before the fall, but yet they are His, even though defiled by their own creations of sin and error.
God is Love and Love knows no limitations in its heights or depths. It exists in the highest Heavens, and reaches to the lowest hells, and will in its own way and in its own time work its own fulfillment. All men will come into harmony with the will of the Father, which is perfect, and even though some, and I may say the majority of men, will not accept the invitation to become angels of His Celestial Kingdom, which is not compulsory, yet they do His will by becoming in the future, near or far, free from the sin and error of their own creation, and pure and perfect as were they, whom the Father first created and pronounced good.
Man's greatest enemy to man is he, who having received the assurance of possessing the Divine Love, and thereby becoming as it were, a divine son of the Father, and who believes in the errors of the Bible and the misinterpretations of its truths, declares that all others of mankind are hated of God, and are objects of His wrath, and certain of eternal damnation and everlasting torment. It is deplorable that such beliefs and such declarations should exist and continue to be made, especially on the part of those who undertake to lead the masses in the way to God's truths and plans for men's happiness, and redemption from the evils and sins that cause them so much suffering.
But all this shows the power and blindness of belief founded upon error and untruthful teachings. And strange as it may seem, these leaders of the ignorant may have some of the Divine Love in their souls, and yet their mental and intellectual beliefs be so fixed and unmoveable that the possession of this love will not cause them to understand that the Father's love is for all, and that wrath is not a part of His being, but a quality of sinful man that these believers in error attribute to Him.
If God may be said to hate anything, He hates sin, but He loves the sinner, who is the creature of His will, and who is so unfortunate as to have created that which defiles him and to wander away, not only from the Father, but from his own perfect and pure creation.
Well, I have written enough for tonight and I hope that what I have said may prove beneficial not only to the sinner, but to the man, preacher, or layman, who possessing some of the Divine Love, proclaims that only he or others like him, are the sons of God.
As Paul said, "They see through a glass darkly," but then they shall see face to face, and when they do, they will see such evidences and manifestations of the Father's Love that they will know that they and their sinning brothers are all sons of the Father, although one may be an heir to the Celestial Kingdom and the Divine Essence of the Father, while the other may be an heir only to the pure love of the Father, to bless and make them happy in the pure natural love and perfect manhood which the so-called Adam possessed before his fall.
I must stop now, but in doing so say, that you must not let what any of these orthodox believers may say disturb your faith in our communications, for they know only what the Bible tells them, and you know the truths that we declare. I will soon come and write to you a message of truth that I have been waiting sometime to write.Believe that I love you and am with you, praying for you and helping you with my influence.
Good night, and may the Father bless you.
Your brother and friend,
Jesus
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