And Jesus went into another town upon the coast and spoke good words of cheer to those who followed him. And one stood forth and said, Lord, are there few that enter into life? And Jesus said, The way is rough that leads to life; the gate is narrow and is guarded well; but every one who seeks in faith shall find the way, and they who know the Word may enter in. (Aquarian Gospel 141:1-3)
Jesus did not come to a town and preach about the end of the world and judgment and eternal heaven or hell. He did not show people they were sinners and deserving of divine punishment. He did not frighten them, he gave them hope, telling them of their true nature and true destiny as sons of God.
Yet he tells the truth that the way that leads to life is hard because of our weakness and ignorance. Once we gain some genuine spiritual experience it still requires discipline and effort, but it is no longer hard because of the wonder of what we know awaits those that persevere. The following gives the right perspective:
The sands have been washed in the footprints
Of the stranger on Galilee’s shore,
And the voice that subdued the rough billows,
Will be heard in Judea no more.But the path of that lone Galilean,
With joy I will follow today;
And the toils of the road will seem nothing,
When I get to the end of the way.There are so many hills to climb upward,
I often am longing for rest,
But He who appoints me my pathway
Knows just what is needful and best.I know in His word He hath promised
That my strength, “it shall be as my day”;
And the toils of the road will seem nothing,
When I get to the end of the way.He loves me too well to forsake me,
Or give me a trial too much;
All His people have been dearly purchased,
And Satan can never claim such.By and by I shall see Him and praise Him,
In the city of unending day;
And the toils of the road will seem nothing,
When I get to the end of the way.When the last, feeble step has been taken,
And the gates of that city appear,
And the beautiful songs of the angels
Float out on my listening ear;When all that now seems so mysterious
Will be bright and as clear as the day,
Then the toils of the road will seem nothing,
When I get to the end of the way.
Those who intuit that the Goal is real are those that really have faith. They will persevere. But yoga is needed to enter in, not devotion or intellectuality or good works. (In other words, not Bhakti Yoga, Jnana Yoga or Karma Yoga.) And that yoga is the Yoga of the Word: Om Yoga as explained in the major Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita and Yoga Sutras. (See Chapter Four of Om Yoga Meditation, Its Theory and Practice.)
But many seek the way for selfish gain; they pound upon the gate of life; but it is fast. The watchman from the turret says, I know you not; your speech is that of Ashdod, and your robes are those of sin; depart and go your way. And they will go their way with weeping and with gnashing of the teeth. And they will be enraged when they see their father Abraham with Isaac, Jacob and the prophets, resting in the kingdom of the Christ, and they themselves debarred. (Aquarian Gospel 141:4-7)
This is a most instructive passage and it will be good to extract the principles and lay them out where we cannot mistake them.
- We must be seeking God, and God alone. Anything else is selfish and ego-based. This is why most religion is utterly useless: its very basis is wrong.
- We cannot force our way in divine matters. It is not possible to wear God down. On the other hand, positive persistence can eventually bring about the desired result. The difference is in the involvement of the ego in forcing and the spirit in persisting. Learn to tell which is which for you.
- Ashdod was the place where the captured Ark of the Covenant was taken and put into the temple of Dagon. It symbolizes those who are attached to the false gods of this world and personal ego. Also those who take that which is God’s and invest it in delusion and worship of materiality and ego. Even though it was shown to them over and over that Dagon was no true god, still they set the idol back up and finally banished the Ark with God’s true presence from the temple of Dagon, rejecting it and sending it back to the Hebrews. This is the way of many in the world, they expel God from their lives while wanting all of God’s benefits (which they have no intention of acknowledging).
“The Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod. When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon. And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the Lord. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again. And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the Lord; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him. And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us: for his hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god. So they sent and gathered together all the Lords of the Philistines, and said, Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go again to his own place, that it slay us not, and our people” (I Samuel 5:1-4, 7, 11).
And, lo, I say that men will come from lands afar, from east, from west, from north, from south and sit with me in consciousness of life. Behold, I say, the last shall be the first, the first shall be the last. All men are called unto the kingdom of the Christ; but few are chosen, for the pure in heart alone can see the king. (Aquarian Gospel 141:8-10)
Here we see that the essence of the kingdom of God is consciousness, for spirit is consciousness itself, as is God. Purity of heart is the supreme requisite for entering the kingdom and beholding the King.
And as he spoke a Pharisee came up and said, You man of Galilee, if you would save your life remain not here; flee instantly, for Herod swears that he will take your life, and even now his officers are seeking you. And Jesus said, Why is it that the Pharisees are so concerned about my life? And then he said unto the man who spoke, Go forth and say to that sly fox, Behold, I heal the sick and cast the unclean spirits out today, tomorrow, and the days to come, and then I will attain. Go say to him, I need not fear in Galilee, for I must meet the cruel wrath of men within Jerusalem. (Aquarian Gospel 141:11-14)
Fearlessness is a trait of those established in righteousness. Also Jesus knew his destiny and was aware that Herod would have no implication in his death, at least directly.
And while they tarried in the place a man, a Pharisee, invited Jesus and a few of those who followed him, to dine with him upon the Sabbath day, to celebrate the marriage of his son. Among the guests was one afflicted with a dropsical disease. And Jesus said to those who had been sent to get from his own lips some words by which they might accuse him of a crime, You lawyers and you Pharisees, what do you say about the lawlessness of healing on the Sabbath day? Here is a man, one of your own, and he is sore distressed. Shall I, in God’s own strength, say out the healing Word and heal this man? The lawyers and the Pharisees were dumb; they answered not. Then Jesus spoke the healing Word and healed the man and he, rejoicing, went his way. Then Jesus said again unto the lawyers and the Pharisees, Which one of you who has a horse or cow, if it would fall into a pit upon the Sabbath day would not call in his friends to help to draw it out? And not a man could answer, Here am I. (Aquarian Gospel 141:15-23)
This, too, is business as usual for Jesus.
As Jesus looked upon the guests who had been bidden to the feast and saw them crowding in to get the highest seats, he said to them, You selfish men, why do you strive to take the highest seats when you are but invited guests? You do not show our host the courtesies of life. When men are bidden to a marriage feast they should sit in the lower seats until the host shall place them where he wills. You may, unbidden, take the highest seat; but then a man more honorable may come and when the host shall bid you rise and take a lower seat that he may honor his more worthy guest, you cannot help but blush for very shame in your humility. But if you take the lowest seat and then are honored by your host and asked to take a higher seat, you are esteemed an honored guest. In this event we note a principle in life, That he who would exalt himself shall be abased, and he who humbles low himself shall be exalted in the sight of men. (Aquarian Gospel 141:24-29)
One thing I have observed regarding truly holy people: they are unfailingly courteous and respectful of others. This was a very marked trait of Swami Sivananda. Yogananda was very sure to always show everyone respect. Some spiritual teachers carefully teach their students the simple rules of politeness since in so many places they are not observed.
Then Jesus spoke to all the guests; he said, When any one of you would make a feast, it should not be for friends, or kindred, or the rich; for they consider such a courtesy loaned out, and they feel called upon to make a greater feast for you, just in the payment of a debt. But when you make a feast, invite the poor, the lame, the blind; in this a blessing waits for you, for well you know that you will get naught in return; but in the consciousness of helping those who need, you will be recompensed. (Aquarian Gospel 141:30-32)
This is very much understood in the East, especially India, but little elsewhere. The idea is that at all times we should be doing everything in such a way that merit (positive karma) will be accumulated to help us along the way. And even more beneficial will be the inner effects from having been unselfish and caring to extend assistance to others.
And then he spoke a parable; he said, A wealthy man prepared a feast; he sent his servants forth to bid his chosen ones to come; but they desired not to go, and they formed such excuses as they thought would satisfy the would-be host. One said, I have just bought a piece of land, and I must go and prove my title to the land; I pray to be excused. Another said I must go down and prove my ownership in sheep that I have bought; I pray to be excused. Another said, I have been married but a little time and so I cannot go; I beg to be excused. Now, when the servants came and told the man who had prepared the feast that those he had invited would not come, the man was grieved in heart; and then he sent his servants forth into the streets and alleys of the town to bring up to the feast the poor, the lame, the blind. The servants went abroad and found the poor, the lame, the blind, and brought them in; but there was room for more. The host then sent his men of arms to bring by force the people to his feast; and then the house was full. (Aquarian Gospel 141:33-40)
Only in the Aquarian Gospel version of this parable do we learn that the people gave as excuse whatever they thought the man who invited them would accept. Really they just did not want to bother. This is very much the case with people. They are invited by God tread the righteous path, but it does not interest them so they use all kind of things in their life as excuses. What they really mean is they just do not want to do it. Such is the folly of human beings.
When such refusal has gone on for lifetimes, the divine destiny begins to force itself upon them and sometimes people are virtually forced to face up to spiritual necessities and follow them. When things get bad enough the individual seems to longer have a choice.
Very long ago when I was still in high school I heard someone sing this song in church:
When the Canaanites hardened their hearts against God
And grieved Him because of their sin,
God sent along hornets to bring them to time,
And help His own people to win.The hornets persuaded them that it was best,
To go quickly, and not to go slow;
God did not compel them to go ’gainst their will,
But He just made them willing to go.If a nest of live hornets were brought to this room
And the creatures allowed to go free,
You would not need urgings to make yourself scarce,
You’d want to get out, don’t you see.They would not lay hold and by force of their strength
Throw you out of the window, Oh No,!
They would not compel you to go ’gainst your will,
But they’d just make you willing to go.When Jonah was sent to the work of the Lord,
The outlook was not very bright;
He never had done such a hard thing before,
So he backed and ran off from the fight.But God sent a big fish to swallow him up,
The story I’m sure you all know;
He did not compel him to go ’gainst his will,
But He just made him willing to go.When Moses was sent to lead Israel out,
To Canaan’s rich fruit-bearing land.
Resisting His Spirit they worshiped a calf,
But refused to obey God’s Command.God did not compel them to go to the land,
Which with wine, milk, and honey did flow,
But fed them on manna for forty long years,
’Till He got them all ready to go.When Balaam was sent to the Moabite king,
And wanted things run his own way,
His mule, ever faithful, spoke at the right time,
Made him willing God’s Will to obey.God can use any man, since He used Balaam’s mule,
For He is Almighty you know;
He does not compel us to go ’gainst our will
But He just makes us willing to go.He does not compel us to go, No! No!
He does not compel us to go.
He does not compel us to go ’gainst our will
But He just makes us willing to go.
This is a fact. William Branham the great healer wanted to be a rowdy teenager and would tell his friends to pick him up and they would go have fun. But when he heard the car horn and went toward the front door an angel would appear with a sword and not let him leave. This happened more than once. He had a great spiritual destiny to fulfill as I saw for myself over fifty years ago.
And God has made a feast for men. Long years ago he sent his servants forth unto the favored sons of men. They would not hear his call; they came not to the feast. He then sent forth his servants to the strangers and the multitudes; they came, but there is room for more. Behold, for he will send his angels forth with mighty trumpet blast, and men will be compelled to come up to the feast. (Aquarian Gospel 141:41-43)
This not an apocalyptic event, but the way things will work out at different times in the future. Finally God calls so loudly that people have to hear.
Read the next section in the Aquarian Gospel for Yogis