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Jesus Christ

Page 31 of 151

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GRM 54.3-5

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

«Is it you that wanted Me?» He asks the two strangers. «Here I am. Who are you?»
«We heard You the other evening… in the Temple. We looked for You in town. A man, who said he is a relative of Yours, told us You stay here.»
«Why are you looking for Me?»
«To follow You, if You will allow us, because You have words of truth.»
«Follow Me? But do you know where I am going?»
«No, Master, but certainly to glory.»
«Yes. But not to a glory of this world. I am going to a glory which is in Heaven and is conquered by virtue and sacrifice. Why do you want to follow Me?» He asks them again.
«To take part in Your glory.»
«According to Heaven?»
«Yes, according to Heaven.»
«Not everybody is able to go there. Because Mammon lays more snares for those yearning for Heaven than for the others. And only he who has strong willpower can resist. Why follow Me, if to follow Me implies a continuous struggle against the enemy, which is in us, against the hostile world, and against the Enemy who is Satan?»
«Because that is the desire of our souls, which have been conquered by You. You are holy and powerful. We want to be Your friends.»
«Friends!!!» Jesus is silent and sighs. Then He stares at the one who has spoken all the time and who has now removed the mantle-hood from his head, and is bareheaded. He is Judas of Kerioth. «Who are you? You speak better than a man of the people.»
«I am Judas, the son of Simon. I come from Kerioth. But I am of the Temple. I am waiting for and dreaming of the King of the Jews. I heard You speak like a king. I saw Your kingly gestures. Take me with You.»
«Take you? Now? At once? No.»
«Why not, Master?»
«Because it is better to examine ourselves carefully before venturing on very steep roads.»
«Do You not believe I am sincere?»
«You have said it. I believe in your impulsiveness. But I do not believe in your perseverance. Think about it, Judas. I am going away now and I will be back for Pentecost. If you are in the Temple, you will see Me. Examine yourself.
54.4
And who are you?».
«I am another one who saw You. I would like to be with You. But now I am frightened.»
«No. Presumption ruins people. Fear may be an impediment, but it is a help when it originates from humbleness. Do not be afraid. Think about it, too, and when I come back…»
«Master, You are so holy! I am afraid of not being worthy. Nothing else. Because I do not doubt my love…»
«What is your name?»
«Thomas, also known as Didymus.»
«I will remember your name. Go in peace.»
Jesus dismisses them and He goes into the hospitable house for supper.
54.5
The six disciples who are with Him want to know many things.
«Why, Master, why did You treat them differently? Because there was a difference. Both of them had the same impulsiveness…» asks John.
«My friend, also the same impulsiveness may have a different taste and bring about a different effect. They both certainly had the same impulsiveness. But they were not the same in their purposes. And the one who appears less perfect is, in fact, more perfect, because he has no incentive to human glory. He loves Me because he loves Me.»

Keywords

GRM 54.5

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

No man is perfect. But I am perfect because He Who is speaking to you is the Word of the Father: part of God. His thought that becomes Word. I have Perfection in Myself. And you must believe Me to be such if you believe that I am the Word of the Father.

Detail

Jesus spoke and said:

Keywords

GRM 54.5

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

I want to be called the Son of man because I lower Myself taking upon Myself all the miseries of man, to bear them as My first scaffold, and cancel them, after bearing them, without suffering from them Myself. What a burden, My friends! But I bear it with joy. It is a joy for Me to bear it, because, since I am the Son of mankind, I will make mankind once again the child of God.

Keywords

GRM 54.5

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

«Oh! My friends! And who is perfect but God?»
«You are!»
«I solemnly tell you that I am not perfect by Myself, if you think I am prophet. No man is perfect. But I am perfect because He Who is speaking to you is the Word of the Father: part of God. His thought that becomes Word. I have Perfection in Myself. And you must believe Me to be such if you believe that I am the Word of the Father. And yet, see, My friends, I want to be called the Son of man because I lower Myself taking upon Myself all the miseries of man, to bear them as My first scaffold, and cancel them, after bearing them, without suffering from them Myself. What a burden, My friends! But I bear it with joy. It is a joy for Me to bear it, because, since I am the Son of mankind, I will make mankind once again the child of God. As it was on the first day.»

Detail

Being a part of God, his Thought made Word, I have perfection in me. In a note to the second edition, it is written: "part is not to be understood as "portion" but as "belonging". Unlike man, who belongs to God not by nature, but by likeness (note 167.9), Jesus belongs to God by nature: in other words, he is God like the Father (he will say in 487.4: "I am his, both part and all with him"). This is why his perfection does not lie in the fact that he is a prophet (as he said above), but that he is God-Man. The human part of the God-Man was exhaustively completed by his victory over temptation (as he himself will say in 80.10 and as is clear from the end of the note to 174.9). Jesus' discourses in chapters 487 and 506 on the two natures, divine and human, are fundamental.

Son of man is the most frequent title given to Jesus and by Jesus to himself. Its general meaning is given in 343.4; but its messianic meaning is found here as well as, for example, in 126.3 and 603.1.

Keywords

GRM 54.5

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

Jesus is speaking very gently, sitting at the poor table, gesticulating calmly with His hands on the table, His head slightly inclined to one side, His face lit up from below by a small oil lamp on the table. He smiles gently, He Who formerly was so majestic a Master in His bearing, is now so friendly in His gestures. His disciples are listening to Him carefully.

Detail

Jesus' attitude, shortly after gathering six disciples around him (John and James of Zebedee, Peter and Andrew, Philip and Bartholomew).

Keywords

Jesus Christ

GRM 54.7

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

54.7 «I would like to ask one thing…»
«What, Andrew?»
«John told me about the miracle You performed at Cana… We were hoping so much that You would perform one at Capernaum… and You said that You would not perform any miracles before fulfilling the Law. Why Cana then? And why here and not in Your own fatherland?»
«To obey the Law is to be united to God and that increases our capabilities. A miracle is the proof of the union with God, as well as of God’s benevolent and assenting presence. That is why I wanted to perform My duty as an Israelite, before starting the series of miracles.»
«But You were not bound to fulfil the Law.»
«Why? As the Son of God, I was not. But as a son of the Law, yes, I was. For the time being, Israel knows Me only as such… and, even later, almost everyone in Israel will know Me as such, in fact, even less. But I do not want to scandalise Israel and therefore I obey the Law.»
«You are holy.»
«Holiness does not bar obedience. On the contrary, it makes obedience perfect. Besides everything else, there is a good example to be given. What would you say of a father, of an elder brother, of a teacher, of a priest who did not give good examples?»
«And what about Cana?»
«Cana was to make My Mother happy. Cana is the advance due to My Mother. She anticipates Grace. Here I honour the Holy City, making her, in public, the starting point of My power as Messiah. But there, at Cana, I paid honour to the Holy Mother of God, Full of Grace. The world received Me through Her. It is only fair that My first miracle in the world should be for Her.»

Keywords

GRM 54.7

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

«I would like to ask one thing…»
«What, Andrew?»
«John told me about the miracle You performed at Cana… We were hoping so much that You would perform one at Capernaum… and You said that You would not perform any miracles before fulfilling the Law. Why Cana then? And why here and not in Your own fatherland?»
«To obey the Law is to be united to God and that increases our capabilities. A miracle is the proof of the union with God, as well as of God’s benevolent and assenting presence. That is why I wanted to perform My duty as an Israelite, before starting the series of miracles.»
«But You were not bound to fulfil the Law.»
«Why? As the Son of God, I was not. But as a son of the Law, yes, I was. For the time being, Israel knows Me only as such… and, even later, almost everyone in Israel will know Me as such, in fact, even less. But I do not want to scandalise Israel and therefore I obey the Law.»
«You are holy.»
«Holiness does not bar obedience. On the contrary, it makes obedience perfect. Besides everything else, there is a good example to be given. What would you say of a father, of an elder brother, of a teacher, of a priest who did not give good examples?»
«And what about Cana?»
«Cana was to make My Mother happy. Cana is the advance due to My Mother. She anticipates Grace. Here I honour the Holy City, making her, in public, the starting point of My power as Messiah. But there, at Cana, I paid honour to the Holy Mother of God, Full of Grace. The world received Me through Her. It is only fair that My first miracle in the world should be for Her.»

Keywords

Jesus Christ - Son of God

GRM 55

The Gospel as revealed to me

Detail

Andrew, Peter, James and John, Bartholomew, Philip, and Thomas are at the house of Jonah, the guardian of Gethsemane. Thomas tells how he came back to the scene. Jesus questions him, and offers him to stay. The apostle is happy, and Jesus takes the opportunity to teach the apostolic group a lesson about hospitality. Peter grumbles and makes a few remarks, saying that those we welcome are not always well-intentioned, and the Lord replies. Then he asks Thomas to go and find Simon the Zealot in the tombs, and to accompany him until he is purified. They meet again later. As for Judas, he encourages him not to go and see him, or even to seek his presence.

Peter grumbles again, and Christ asks him why. Simon of Jonah then points out that he gives missions to those who have just arrived, but not to the first disciples who followed him. The Master smiles at his words, and points out that, if he doesn't give such missions, it's because he knows them and is sure of them. The one who must be put to the test is the one who is not yet sure, the Savior asserts, and yet Christ esteemed them so much that he took his first apostles "without demanding proofs and without feeling the need to give you any". Peter is reassured and asks for forgiveness. Jesus, for his part, asks him not to argue about the places and merits of each. The Redeemer reminds them that He Himself is man's servant, and so He reminds them to remain humble.

Finally, Jesus gives Thomas the portrait of Simon the Zealot. All that remains is to find him...

Keywords

GRM 55.1-2

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

«It is a long way, it is a dark night, the Roman patrols are around the town. I say: stay with us, if you wish.»
«Oh! Master!» Thomas is happy.
«Make room for him. And each of us will give something to our brother.» Jesus gives him the portion of cheese He had in front of Him. He explains to Thomas: «We are poor and our supper is almost over. But there is so much heart in those who offer.» And He says to John who is sitting beside Him: «Give your seat to our friend.»
John gets up at once and sits down at the end of the table near the landlord.
«Sit down, Thomas, and eat.»
55.2 And then He says to them all: «You will always behave like that, My friends, according to the law of charity. A pilgrim is already protected by the law of God. But now, in My name, you must love him even more. When anyone asks you for some bread, a drop of water or a shelter in the name of God, you must give it in the same name. And you will receive your reward from God. You must behave so with everybody. Even with your enemies. And that is the new Law. Up until now you were told:
“Love those who love you and hate your enemies”. I say: “Love also those who hate you”. Oh! if you only knew how much you will be loved by God, if you love as I am telling you! And when anyone says: “I want to be your companion in serving the true Lord God and following His Lamb”, then he must be dearer to you than a brother by blood, because you will be joined by an eternal bond: the bond of Christ.»
«But if someone comes who is not sincere? It is easy to say: “I want to do this or that”. But words do not always correspond to the truth» says Peter, rather irritated. I do not know why, but he is not in his usual jovial mood.
«Peter, listen. What you say is sensible and fair. But, see: it is better to exceed in bounty and trust rather than exceed in distrust and hardness. If you help an undeserving person, what harm will befall you? None. In fact, God’s reward will always be active for you, whereas the person will be guilty of betraying your trust.»
«No harm? Eh! Very often a worthless person is not satisfied with ingratitude, but goes much further, even to the extreme of ruining one’s reputation, wealth and one’s very life.»
«True. But would that diminish your merit? No, it would not. Even if the whole world should believe in slander, even if you became poorer than Job, even if the cruel person should take your life, what would change in the eyes of God? Nothing. Or rather, something would change. But to your advantage. God, to the merits of your bounty, would add the merits of your intellectual, financial, physical martyrdom.»
«Alright! Perhaps it is so.» Peter does not speak any more. He sulkily rests his head on his hand.

Detail

Jesus addresses Thomas, then gives a lesson on hospitality.

Keywords

GRM 55.3

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

Let the world of the “living dead” know My name, let them throb with hope, and let those come to Me, who will have faith in addition to hope, that I may heal them. It is the first form of purity that I am bringing, the first form of the resurrection, of which I am the lord.