The Great Gospel of John
Volume 1
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
The Lord at the Sea of Galilee. John the Baptist's imprisonment and inquiry
- Chapter 145 -
John the Baptist's spirit and soul. 'I am the Way and the Life' John's calling and individual freedom as prophet. The nature of asking. About the penitent sinner and the ninety-nine self-righteous.
Say the people, 'Lord, if so then it is wrong for You to leave him in the prison! Judging by Your deeds, which only God is likely to accomplish, it would surely have been easy for You to free him, since he worked for You! Lord, this You ought to do now and not let him be stuck in prison.'
2
Say I, 'He who comes himself accomplishes more than by sending a messenger or a letter; John's spirit is big and bigger than any spirit that ever acted in a body on this earth; but his body is of this earth and out of its weakness a weak soul has developed and it is good thus!
3
For such strong spirit is indeed capable of raising a strong soul; but the flesh and soul of John are weak. Hence he always sent messengers in his own stead and here messenger or letter never effect what a person does himself in whom reside soul and spirit.
4
Because I must not and cannot, hang My own strength and power upon someone, be it that someone comes and takes same himself; because on My part none is precluded from taking either life, or judgment, whatever he will, and thus neither My authority nor power for a good cause.
5
But whoever does not come by himself, to him it shall not be granted, other than the grace of light, through which he would find the way to Me, here or in the beyond and realise along the way that I Myself am the way to life and the Life itself.
6
John indeed, like no other, attained to near mastery of his flesh. He saw the blessings in front of him yet did not take them by force. Why not? Did he have to be like that?
7
Here stands before you He Who pronounces the 'Must', where necessary! But this One also is telling you that He did not pronounce for John a must in this respect.
8
His being called to make straight for Me a way, for the people's sake, was a kind of must, behind which nevertheless there was hidden an eternity of freedom, which however you shall not grasp in your flesh; but that he should not have been allowed to follow Me when seeing and recognising Me, there was neither a 'should not', and even less a 'must not'. There his spirit listened to the soul, wherewith he also got into doubts about Me and has for this reason sent messengers to Me for the second time. He Who asks is not yet in the clear, since every question presupposes either a complete lack of knowledge, or a doubt about whether what one knows is true. If John were fully in the clear, he would not be sending Me messengers.
9
No one indeed before him had led a life so strict - because he would eat and drink nothing for days if he felt even the slightest carnal desire in his flesh and hence was the earth's greatest penitent - without ever having sinned; I nevertheless say unto you all: a sinner who has never mended his ways, approaching Me with a love-filled heart, rates higher with Me than John!
10
For he who says to Me: Lord, I am a sinner and not worthy of Your entering my house, is preferable to Me than to ninety-nine righteous who need no penance, praising God in their heart for not being sinners and hence better than an ever so great a sinner. I say unto you: theirs shall not be too great a reward in My kingdom!'