Relationships: It is important to remember that the Kingdom of God is constituted in relationships; relationship with God and with all of his creation. The priority of love of God over every other love should be stressed here. First and foremost, it is God Himself who loved us first in virtue of which we are able to love Him and His creatures. The love God has for us is known under various names like mercy, good pleasure, grace, election, choice, vocation etc. Since God is both Love and Truth, His love for us is not blind but informed and controlled by Truth. He never withdraws His love from us since God never takes back what He has once given. "For the gracious gifts of God and his calling are irrevocable" (Romans, 11: 29). Sin and its disastrous consequences were introduced into the world by Adam under Satan's influence. Thereafter God has taken into account the new situation created by the misuse of our free will , although nothing was unplanned before His mind the proof of which is the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus himself gave a new definition and meaning to relationships by turning upside down values cherished by people. This he started by proclaiming the Gospel of God: : "The time has come; the Kingdom of God is upon you; repent, and believe the Gospel" (Mark, 1: 15).
As for our relationship to God, Jesus has given us a model in the child. "... I tell you this: Unless you turn round and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matthew, 18: 3). As we have already discussed in the previous Post on 'Living in the Freedom of the Children of God' - The Way of Knowledge - Jnana Marg - the implications of becoming like a child before God, here we shall not go into details of the same. The only point to remember here is that it is a relationship that is the foundation of our spiritual life. The genuine practice of this relationship is the incontrovertible proof and verification of the authenticity of our belief in God. For, it can happen that our very attempt to live a life pleasing to God can unwittingly turn into idolatry meaning veneration of our own selves. Therefore, the only sure-fire method is to turn around from our present mode of living, praying, doing good, worshiping etc., and be like a child. If this upsets our plans and ideas, we must remember that only then God can act in us through His Spirit. It conforms to the demand of Jesus that we leave everything behind - possessions, parents, siblings, wife and children and even one's own self - for, a child does not need all those symbols of power and security when he or she is in the ambit of the power of his or her real parent. This kind of a total revolution in our life is a necessity in order to be truly related to God. Without such a radical reformation of our way of thinking and living, we are people deluded into thinking that we are religious or even spiritual.
How then shall we be related to our fellow humans and the entire universe, if we become like children before God? Loving and serving one another is an intrinsic requirement to be like children before God so much so that loving God already implies loving our neighbor. Here again we see a reversal of values. For, usually people say that loving your neighbor is the same as loving God, whereas we propose just the opposite here. We cannot love God unless we become like little children and that involves the readiness to be humiliated like a child in our relationships with others. This kind of readiness is the sure proof of renunciation of our own selves without which we cannot love God. Readiness to be a real servant of all, including the entire universe, and putting it into practice in our daily lives is the sound foundation of our relationship to our fellow humans and the entire universe. Paul tells us how the entire universe waits for sharing in the glory of God's sons "... and enter upon the liberty and splendor of the children of God" (Romans, 8:21).
Giving up everything is a 'sine qua non' for beginning and maintaining our relationship with God. We have seen in the previous Posts that this kind of giving up everything including one's own self consists in true detachment combined with the willingness to be a real servant of all. The human tendency to transfer the demands made upon us into symbols and to objectify and worship them should be stoutly resisted. For, it is nothing short of idolatry under the guise of worship of God. Worship and glorification of God take place through transformation of our own selves for which churches, temples, mosques, gurudwaras etc., are but mere means. All the rituals, social gatherings, and external manifestations of devotions should lead to our self-transformation whereby we become real servants of God and His people. To say that we are servants symbolically while enjoying all the trappings of the rich and the powerful of this world is a mockery of the Word of God given to us in the Scriptures. What is the way for this kind of self-transformation? Paul is very clear on this point when he says: "Adapt yourselves no longer to the pattern of this present world, but let your minds be remade and your whole nature thus transformed. Then you will be able to discern the Will of God, and to know what is good, acceptable, and perfect" (Romans, 12: 2). Immediately before this in Romans 12: 1, Paul tells us what is true worship that is offered by our minds and hearts in consequence of offering our very selves to God as a living sacrifice. Our relationship with God thus becomes personal, intimate and real that should also be expressed externally and socially through our relationship with our fellow human beings. Let us note here the two levels of worship of God: First, worship of God for self-transformation and then, worship through active service in daily life. (To be Contd).
As for our relationship to God, Jesus has given us a model in the child. "... I tell you this: Unless you turn round and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matthew, 18: 3). As we have already discussed in the previous Post on 'Living in the Freedom of the Children of God' - The Way of Knowledge - Jnana Marg - the implications of becoming like a child before God, here we shall not go into details of the same. The only point to remember here is that it is a relationship that is the foundation of our spiritual life. The genuine practice of this relationship is the incontrovertible proof and verification of the authenticity of our belief in God. For, it can happen that our very attempt to live a life pleasing to God can unwittingly turn into idolatry meaning veneration of our own selves. Therefore, the only sure-fire method is to turn around from our present mode of living, praying, doing good, worshiping etc., and be like a child. If this upsets our plans and ideas, we must remember that only then God can act in us through His Spirit. It conforms to the demand of Jesus that we leave everything behind - possessions, parents, siblings, wife and children and even one's own self - for, a child does not need all those symbols of power and security when he or she is in the ambit of the power of his or her real parent. This kind of a total revolution in our life is a necessity in order to be truly related to God. Without such a radical reformation of our way of thinking and living, we are people deluded into thinking that we are religious or even spiritual.
How then shall we be related to our fellow humans and the entire universe, if we become like children before God? Loving and serving one another is an intrinsic requirement to be like children before God so much so that loving God already implies loving our neighbor. Here again we see a reversal of values. For, usually people say that loving your neighbor is the same as loving God, whereas we propose just the opposite here. We cannot love God unless we become like little children and that involves the readiness to be humiliated like a child in our relationships with others. This kind of readiness is the sure proof of renunciation of our own selves without which we cannot love God. Readiness to be a real servant of all, including the entire universe, and putting it into practice in our daily lives is the sound foundation of our relationship to our fellow humans and the entire universe. Paul tells us how the entire universe waits for sharing in the glory of God's sons "... and enter upon the liberty and splendor of the children of God" (Romans, 8:21).
Giving up everything is a 'sine qua non' for beginning and maintaining our relationship with God. We have seen in the previous Posts that this kind of giving up everything including one's own self consists in true detachment combined with the willingness to be a real servant of all. The human tendency to transfer the demands made upon us into symbols and to objectify and worship them should be stoutly resisted. For, it is nothing short of idolatry under the guise of worship of God. Worship and glorification of God take place through transformation of our own selves for which churches, temples, mosques, gurudwaras etc., are but mere means. All the rituals, social gatherings, and external manifestations of devotions should lead to our self-transformation whereby we become real servants of God and His people. To say that we are servants symbolically while enjoying all the trappings of the rich and the powerful of this world is a mockery of the Word of God given to us in the Scriptures. What is the way for this kind of self-transformation? Paul is very clear on this point when he says: "Adapt yourselves no longer to the pattern of this present world, but let your minds be remade and your whole nature thus transformed. Then you will be able to discern the Will of God, and to know what is good, acceptable, and perfect" (Romans, 12: 2). Immediately before this in Romans 12: 1, Paul tells us what is true worship that is offered by our minds and hearts in consequence of offering our very selves to God as a living sacrifice. Our relationship with God thus becomes personal, intimate and real that should also be expressed externally and socially through our relationship with our fellow human beings. Let us note here the two levels of worship of God: First, worship of God for self-transformation and then, worship through active service in daily life. (To be Contd).
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