Skip to content

Notes for this theme

The invisible world

Page 12 of 54

Reading comfort

Aa

GRM 77.7

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

«What is the soul?»

«It is what makes a god of man and not an animal. Vice and sin kill it, and once it is killed, man becomes a repulsive animal.

GRM 78.6

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

You are all pilgrims and strangers in this world, learn how to gather together and proceed towards the promised Kingdom. The road: the commandments fulfilled not because of fear of a punishment, but out of love for You, holy Father. The Ark: a perfect heart in which the nourishing manna of wisdom is treasured and the branch of a pure will is certain to bloom. And come to the Light of the world, that your houses may be bright with light. I bring you the Light. Nothing else. I have no riches and I do not promise worldly honours. But I possess all the supernatural wealth of My Father and I promise the eternal honour of Heaven to those who will follow God with love and charity.

GRM 79.8

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

79.8 Elias, who has brought some milk and brown bread, says: «While waiting for You, I tried, and Isaac tried with me, to convince the people in Hebron… But they will not believe, they will not take an oath, they do not want anyone but John. He is their “holy man” and they do not want anyone else.»

«It is a sin quite common to many places and many present and future believers. They look at the workman, not at the master who sent the workman. They ask the workman questions and they do not even say to him: “Tell your master”. They forget that there is a workman only because there is a master and that it is the master who instructs the workman and enables him to work. They forget that the workman can intercede, but only the master can concede. In this case God and His Word with Him. It does not matter. The Word is sorry but bears no grudge. Let us go.»

The vision ends.

GRM 80

The Gospel as revealed to me

Detail

Jesus arrives at the Temptation Site, accompanied by John, Judas and Simon the Zealot. It's a desolate place. Judas thinks he's only been there a few hours, but the Lord disabuses him. He explained that he had come there to prepare for his Mission. The Iscariot thought he'd been with a few teachers and rabbis, but who could teach the Word of God anything?

Jesus goes on to explain that men have a destiny and must choose between the Friend or Satan. Finally, he suggested that the apostles stay here for a few days, to teach them the power of penance. John and Simon the Zealot readily accept. Judas is less enthusiastic, but doesn't dare leave.

After a few days, Maria's vision continues. Jesus explains that his stay in the desert lasted forty days and took place during winter. He explains his baptism, given by John, and the Temptation by the Devil. In particular, he talks about his God-man nature, and also answers Judas' question as to whether or not he could have been tempted. At the end of his speech, he asks the disciples not to tell Mary about the world's hostility to Jesus. She would suffer too much...

GRM 80.3

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

I the Eternal Word of the Father, (...) was present when the Father created man and am aware of the immortal soul by which he is animated and of the power of free capable judgement with which he was endowed by the Creator (...).

Keywords

GRM 80.4

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

The two enemy powers are Satan and the flesh. By flesh I mean your flesh and the world: they are the pomps and enticements of the world, that is, the riches, feasts, honours and powers which are obtained from the world and in the world, but are not always obtained honestly and they are used even less honestly when eventually a man reaches them. Satan, the master of the flesh and of the world, speaks also on behalf of the world and of the flesh. He, too, has his rules… Oh! He certainly has! And as your “ego” is enveloped in the flesh, and the flesh is attracted by the flesh, as metal chips are attracted by a magnet, and the singing of the Seducer is sweeter than the warble of a nightingale in love in the moonlight and among perfumed rose bushes, it is easier to follow those rules, and incline towards those powers and say to them: “I consider you my friends. Come in”. Come in… Have you ever seen an ally who remains honest forever, without asking a hundredfold return for the help he has given? That is what those powers do. They go in… And they become the masters: Masters? No: galley sergeants. They tie you, men, to the galley bench, they fasten you with chains, they do not allow you to raise your head from their yoke, and their lash leaves bleeding marks on your backs if you attempt to escape. You either must bear to be torn to pieces and become a heap of shattered flesh, so useless, as flesh, as to be rejected and kicked aside by their cruel feet, or you must die under their blows.

If you can bear that martyrdom, then Mercy will come, the Only One who can still have mercy on that revolting misery, which the world, one of the masters, now loathes and at which the other master, Satan, throws the arrows of his revenge. And Mercy, the Only One, passes by, bends down, picks it up, doctors it, cures it and says: “Come. Do not be afraid. Do not look at yourself. Your wounds are but scars, but they are so numerous that you would be horrified, as they disfigure you. But I do not look at them. I look at your goodwill. Because of your good- will, you are marked. Therefore I say to you: I love you. Come with Me”. And He takes it to His Country. You then understand that Mercy and the friendly King are the same person. You find the rules He had shown you and you did not want to follow. Now you want them… and first you reach the peace of your conscience, then the peace of God.

GRM 80.5

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

I must snatch two souls from Satan. It can only be done by penance. I ask you to help Me. It will be training for you. You will learn how to snatch victims from Mammon: not so much with words but with sacrifice… Words!… The satanic uproar prevents one from hearing them… Every soul which is a prey of the Enemy is enveloped in a turbine of infernal voices…

GRM 80.8-11

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

«Listen. Once a man asked Me whether I had ever been tempted. He asked[1] Me whether I had ever committed sin, and whether, when tempted, I had ever given in. And he was surprised because, in order to resist temptation, I, the Messiah, had asked the Father for help, saying: “Father, lead Me not into temptation”.»

Jesus speaks slowly, calmly as if He were relating an event with which none of them was acquainted… Judas lowers his head as if he were embarrassed. But the others are so intent on looking at Jesus, that they do not notice him.

Jesus goes on: «Now, My friends, you will learn something of which that man had only a faint idea. After My Baptism I came here: I was clean, but one is never clean enough with regards to God, and the humility in saying: “I am a man and a sinner” is already a baptism which makes the heart clean. I had been called “the Lamb of God” by the holy prophet who saw the Truth and saw the Spirit descend upon the Word and anoint Him with its chrism of love, while the voice of the Father filled the Heavens saying: “This is My beloved Son in Whom I am very pleased”. You, John, were present when the Baptist repeated those words… After being baptised, although I was clean both by My nature and by appearance, I wanted to “prepare”. Yes, Judas. Look at Me. May My eyes tell you what My mouth does not yet speak. Look at Me, Judas. Look at your Master, Who although was the Messiah, did not consider Himself superior to man, on the contrary, knowing He was the Man, He wanted to be so in everything, except in yielding to evil. Exactly so.»

Judas has now raised his head and looks at Jesus in front of him. The light of the stars causes Jesus’ eyes to sparkle as if they were two stars fixed in a pale face.

80.9

«If one wants to prepare to be a teacher one must have been a pupil. I, as God, knew everything. My intelligence enabled Me to understand also the struggles of man, both by intellectual power and in an intellectual way, that is without any practical experience. But then some poor friend of Mine, some poor son of Mine, could have said to Me: “You do not know what it is to be a man and have senses and passions”. And it would have been a fair reproach. I came here, or rather on that mountain, to prepare… not only for My mission… but also for temptation. See? I was tempted where you are now sitting. By whom? By a mortal being? No. His power would have been too limited. I was tempted by Satan himself.

I was exhausted. I had not eaten for forty days… But while I was engrossed in prayer, everything had been forgotten in the joy of speaking to God, rather than forgotten, it had been made endurable. I felt it as a discomfort of a material nature, confined to matter only… I then came back to the world… I was back in the ways of the world… And I felt the needs of those who are in the world. I was hungry. I was thirsty. I felt the biting cold of the desert night. My body was worn out due to lack of rest, of a bed and with a long journey made in such a state of weariness that I could go no farther…

Because I am made of flesh too, My dear friends. Real flesh. And my flesh is subject to the weakness common to all flesh. And, with My flesh, I have a heart. Yes, I took the first and second of the three parts that form man. I took the physical part with all its needs and the morals with their passions. And whilst, with My will, I subdued all the bad passions at birth, I let the holy passions grow like mighty age-old cedars, that is filial love, love for the fatherland, friendship, work, everything that is best and holy. And here I felt nostalgia for My far away Mother, here I felt the need for Her care for My human frailty, here I felt once again the pain of parting from the Only One Who loved Me with perfect love, here I realised what sorrow is laid aside for Me and I was grieved at Her sorrows, poor Mother, Who will have to shed so many tears for Her Son and because of the wickedness of men, that She will be left tearless. And here I experienced the weariness of the hero and of the ascetic who in an hour of forewarning realise the uselessness of their efforts… I cried… Sadness… a lure for Satan. It is not a sin to be sad in painful circumstances. It is a sin to go beyond sadness and fall into inertness and despair. But Satan comes at once when he sees anyone in spiritual languor.

He came. Dressed as a kind traveller. He always takes on a kind appearance… I was hungry… and thirty years old. He offered to help Me. First he said to Me: “Tell these stones to become bread”. But before… yes… even before, he spoke to Me about woman. Oh! He knows how to speak of her. He knows her very well. He corrupted her first, to make her his ally in corruption. I am not only the Son of God. I am Jesus, the workman of Nazareth. I said to that man, who was speaking to Me then, the one who asked Me whether I had experienced temptations and almost accused Me for being unjustly blessed, because I had not sinned: “The act subsides when satisfied. A rejected temptation does not fade away, but becomes stronger also because Satan instigates it”. I resisted the temptation both of lust for woman and hunger for bread. And you must know that Satan proposed woman to Me as the best ally to succeed in the world, and he was quite right, from a human point of view.

Temptation did not give up because of My comment: “Man does not live on his senses only” and he spoke to Me of My mission. He wanted to seduce the Messiah after failing with the young Man. And he incited Me to crush the unworthy ministers of the Temple with a miracle… A miracle, the fire of Heaven, is not to be bent to form a wicker wreath to crown ourselves… And we must not put God to the test, asking for miracles for human purposes. That is what Satan wanted. The reason mentioned by him was an excuse: the truth was: “Boast of being the Messiah”, as he wanted to lead Me to another lust: the lust for pride.

He was not daunted by My reply: “You must not put the Lord your God to the test” and he circumvented Me with the third power of his nature: gold. Oh! gold. Bread is a great thing, and woman an even greater one for those longing for food or pleasure. To be acclaimed by the crowds is a very great thing for man. How many crimes are committed for these three things! But gold… gold! It is a key that opens, a circle that joins, it is the beginning and end of ninety-nine percent of human actions. For bread and a woman man becomes a thief. For power he also becomes a murderer. But for gold he becomes an idolator. The king of gold, Satan, offered Me his gold if I adored him. I pierced him with the eternal words:

“You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only”.

It happened here.»

80.10

Jesus is now standing. He seems taller than usual in the flat nature surrounding Him, in the slightly phosphorescent light of the stars. The disciples also get up. Jesus carries on speaking, staring intently at Judas.

«Then the angels of the Lord came… The Man had won the triple battle. The Man knew what it meant to be a man and had won. He was exhausted. The struggle had been more exhausting than the long fast… But the spirit was triumphant… I think that Heaven was startled at My becoming a perfect creature endowed with knowledge. I think that from that moment I got the power of working miracles. I was God. I had become the Man. Now, by defeating the animal nature connected with man’s nature, I was the Man-God. And I am. And as God I am omnipotent. And as Man I am omniscient. Do as I did, if you want to do what I do. And do it in memory of Me.

That man was amazed at My asking for the Father’s help, and at My praying not to be led into Temptation. That is, not to be left at the mercy of temptation beyond My strength. I think that that man will no longer be amazed, now that he knows. I ask you to do the same in My memory and to win as I did. And never doubt My nature of true Man and true God, seeing how strong I was in all the temptations of life, and how I won the battles of the five senses, of sensuality and of sentiments. Remember all of that.

80.11

I promised to take you where it would be possible for you to know the Master… from the dawn of His day, a dawn which is as pure as the one which is now rising, to the noon of His life. The noon which I left to go and meet My human evening… I said to one of you: “I also prepared”; you now see it is true. I thank you for your company in the return to the place of My birth and the place of My penance. My first contacts with the world had sickened and depressed Me. It is too ugly. My soul has now been nourished with the lion’s marrow: the union with the Father in prayer and solitude. And I can go back to the world and take My cross upon Me once again, the first cross of the Redeemer: the cross of the contact with the world. With the world, in which there are too few souls called Mary, called John…»

Detail

Summary: A lesson on the temptation of Christ. It covers Satan, the Lord’s temptation, the fact that He is the God-Man and therefore the Son of Man...

Annotation

Matthew 3:13–17 and 4:1–11: Then Jesus appeared. He had come from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. John tried to stop him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you come to me!” But Jesus replied, “Let it be so for now, for it is proper for us to fulfill all righteousness.” So John allowed it. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he came up out of the water, and behold, the heavens were opened: he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming upon him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he became hungry.

The tempter approached him and said, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But Jesus replied, “It is written: ‘Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the Holy City, set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written: He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” Jesus said to him, “It is also written: ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

The devil took him again to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. He said to him, “I will give you all this, if you will fall down and worship me.” ’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For it is written: “You shall worship the Lord your God, and him alone shall you serve.”’

Then the devil left him. And behold, angels came and ministered to him.

Mark 1:9–13

In those days, Jesus came from Nazareth, a town in Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And as soon as he came up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn open and the Spirit descending upon him like a dove. A voice came from heaven: “You are my beloved Son; in you I am well pleased.” ” Immediately the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness, and there he remained for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He lived among the wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him.

Luke 3:21–22 and 4:1–13: As all the people were being baptized, and after Jesus had also been baptized and was praying, the heavens opened. The Holy Spirit, in bodily form like a dove, descended upon Jesus, and a voice came from heaven: “You are my beloved Son; in you I am well pleased.”

Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus left the banks of the Jordan; led by the Spirit, he went into the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when that time was over, he was hungry.

The devil then said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” Jesus replied, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.’”

Then the devil took him to a high place and showed him, in an instant, all the kingdoms of the earth. He said to him, “I will give you all this power and the glory of these kingdoms, for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. So if you will worship me, all this will be yours.” Jesus replied, “It is written: ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and serve him alone.’”

Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here; for it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you,’ and again, ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” Jesus answered him, “It is written: ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Having thus exhausted every form of temptation, the devil left Jesus until the appointed time.

John 1:29–34: The next day, seeing Jesus coming toward him, John declared, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world; it is of him that I said, ‘The one who comes after me has surpassed me, for he was before me.’ And I did not know him; but I came baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.” Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. And I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain—that is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen, and I testify: this is the Son of God.”

GRM 80.9

The Gospel as revealed to me

Quotation

Sadness… a lure for Satan. It is not a sin to be sad in painful circumstances. It is a sin to go beyond sadness and fall into inertness and despair. But Satan comes at once when he sees anyone in spiritual languor.