Sunsets Into Sunrises
Bishop Martin - The Progress of a Soul in the Beyond
- Chapter 171 -
THE LORD'S ADVICE TO MARTIN. A CURE FOR WRATH. HOW TO HANDLE SATAN. MARTIN'S PRECAUTION BEFORE THE START OF HIS SERMON. THE ADVERSARY'S MIGHTY THREATS. MARTIN'S REASSURING WORDS TO THE FRIGHTENED CROWD. THE LORD'S COMFORTING WORDS.
1
(Say I): "All right, dear Martin, the hymn is coming to an end, so get ready! I warn you that things will get rather heated, for we are not safe from a visit by our adversary.
2
Therefore, pull yourself together and do not let wrath overcome you. The wrathful must never be opposed with wrath, but only with gentle earnestness, then you will gain a striking victory over him. Wrath is always anxious to call forth wrath in the opponent in order to destroy him with its imagined superiority. But if wrath does not find an object to seize hold of, it reverts to itself and tears itself to pieces. Therefore, be prepared for anything; be earnest and gentle, and victory will be yours."
3
(Says Martin): "O Lord, should that enemy appear with whom I had dealings already in my house, I do beg You to grant me more strength. I would love to give that beast a lasting reminder as thanks for all the good it has done to me."
4
(Say I): "Not so, My dear Martin, you know that evil repaid with evil has never borne blessed fruit as yet. Therefore, free yourself of such thoughts and act as I have advised you, and then you can be sure of victory. If you oppose the enemy with an act of destruction, he will flee in order to return strengthened, hoping to be better able to harm you.
5
I assure you that he could easily be destroyed if that were not against the established order. So he must be handled and imprisoned in a different way, and the existence of the entire material creation must be sustained by preserving him. Thus the course of action should be to curb him as much as possible, but no one should ever wish to destroy or completely annihilate him.
6
The hymn is now ending, so be prepared. If you follow My advice, you will not lack My help."
7
(With these words of Mine, the music comes to an end and Uron, the sage, approaches Martin and says): "I hear that you are going to speak to us first. Everything is ready and you may begin. The people are assembled, those who have to pass on the message have taken up their proper positions, and all ears and eyes are fixed on you. So, if it suits you - or rather the One - you may begin."
8
(Says Martin): "Yes, friend, I shall begin in a moment. However, tell me first whether you know all the guests assembled here well enough to assure me that there is no complete stranger among them.
9
If there is no stranger present, I shall speak to you short and straightforward. But if there is an uninvited guest who has sneaked in here like a thief or assassin in order to confuse and excite the minds of the audience during my speech, point him out to me that I may place him here in front of me facing all of you."
10
(The sage diligently searches the crowd of guests who are standing in a perfect formation, but he cannot detect any stranger, and says to Martin): "Friend, as far as my eyes reach, I cannot discern anyone strange to me. However, I will give a sign to the crowd to let me know if a stranger is among them."
11
(Says Martin): "All right, do that, and I will wait a while longer."
12
The sage immediately sends a question into the distance and receives the following reply from all directions:
13
(The crowd): "No, no, no! There is no stranger among us! However, the surface of the large sea close by is considerably disturbed and heaves mightily. It looks most frightening and we are afraid that we may have to flee before the sublime guests have completed their sacred message to us.
14
Whilst we are talking, Uron, we can see the center of a tornado forming not far from us. When it strikes, it will probably force the water up over your highest dwellings. Oh, do beg Him, the Almighty Who is said to be visibly present in your house, to ward off from us this imminent danger and save us from destruction!"
15
The sage, rather embarrassed, informs Martin of this and asks him to beg the Lord to graciously ward off this danger.
16
(Says Martin): "Friend, tell everybody immediately not to fear anything, for they will be quite safe. This manifestation is caused by that impotent, evil spirit who once had the audacity to appear as a false angel of light and give new divine laws. These laws, however, were his own and, with their help, he intended to corrupt the people completely. Now we have come to thwart this evil scheme once and for all, and save all of them through the might and strength of Him Who is here in our midst as the eternal, most holy Father among His children. Tell them this without delay!"
17
Uron complies, but after a short while, he receives this reply:
18
(The crowd): "Praise and adoration to the Supreme Divine Spirit! This is most reassuring. However, the water is still rising, and it will reach us within ten beats of the pendulum of the large time recorder. Beg the Lord to ward it off or it will be high time for us to flee!"
19
Uron quickly passes this message on to Martin, who says:
20
(Martin): "Tell them immediately to be not afraid, notwithstanding the manifestation. They must not flee, even if the water should wash against their feet, for the Lord will allow the adversary to go only so far, then He will seize him with the greatest sternness of His judgment and punish him severely before their eyes."
21
This message is passed on by the sage, and he then receives the following answer:
22
(The crowd): "We rely on the word of the Most Holy and will let the water touch our feet. And then we shall rejoice and praise the Divine Spirit for bestowing such unprecedented grace upon us. However, the water is still rising with great rapidity, and the result will be devastating unless the might of God checks it."
23
The sage tells Martin about this reply, and he says, in considerable agitation:
24
(Martin): "Listen, friend, this is a miserable reptile that has no respect for God, its eternal Master, for it knows that the Lord is too kind - yes, too boundlessly kind! But, although everything about the Lord is of an infinite nature, in this case Satan will have made a miscalculation. This time the Lord's infinite patience will come to an end, and He will know how to restrain that oldest, most wicked evil-doer."
25
(Say I): "Do not let this interfere with your task, Martin. I will handle the agitator, but you begin now with your sermon so that we can at last achieve our purpose. Let Satan enjoy himself. I assure you, it will not be for long. To completely reassure you, I can tell you that this time the enemy has made a considerable mistake where My patience is concerned."
26
(Says Martin): "O Lord, You best and holiest of Fathers, my poor heart has been relieved, indeed, of a very heavy burden. All my love and deepest adoration is Yours forever!"