The Great Gospel of John
Volume 2
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
Second Journey of the Lord: Nazareth - Cave at Bethabara (First Feeding of the People) - Mountain of Prayer - Walking on the Sea of Galilee (Peter's test of faith) - By ship to Genneseret in the bay with the same name
- Chapter 135 -
Testing Jarah's love.
Says Jarah: "He is indeed an indescribably beautiful person, since he looks like a human; but next to Yourself o Lord all angels and heavens with all their light and beauty of form are as nothing! For You Yourself alone are all their beauty! I would still not be able to love any of them!"
2
Say I: "But am I as you see Me here actually more beautiful than this angel? Look, My work-worn hands, My strongly tanned skin and My age surely are not attractive, whereas this angel is armed with everything that the heavens would and could call beautiful!"
3
Says Jarah: "Lord, the external is nothing to me if the inner is not akin to Your heart; for You alone are the Lord!"
4
Says I: "But out of the angels everywhere radiates My love and wisdom undisguisedly, which completely resembles Me in everything. If however you love Me only on account of My love and I am nevertheless the Lord, then I don't see why you can't love this angel like Myself, since he surely is only put together by My love and wisdom!"
5
Says Jarah: "Lord, You my love, my life; all men are composed out of these two life-elements, and yet I cannot love them all like Yourself! I do of a truth love all people and most of all the needy, and always do everything I can with my feeble strength to procure help for the poor; yet I cannot love them like Yourself; and after that fashion I also love this angel; notwithstanding, my heart and my life belong only to You! Only if You oh Lord were to reject my pure love toward You, then I would get very sad, but I would think: He, the purest, the holiest was not able to consider your still much too impure love as worthy of Himself, and hence rejected it!"
6
After those word the little one begins to cry, saying amid sobs: "And that's how it will be: I dared to go too far with my love and in my naivety did not consider Who He is that my heart seized so heftily; wherefore Your supremely holy love gently rejects my still far too unholy love, giving me an angel who is to purify my heart and raise my love to greater holiness. It grieves me mightily indeed, yet I know that You alone are the Lord, and thus I intend to bear all that You intend imposing on me."
7
Say I: "O, My dear one, why such empty reproach for your love! He who does not love Me as you do, loving anything in the world more than Me, is not worthy of My love; but you, whose heart all the angels of heaven cannot turn away from Me, already loves Me, your God and Lord, like the angels of heaven, and hence have been already for long a supremely beautiful angel, with whom I am Myself in love beyond all measure! Come over here unto My heart and obtain recompense for this little test!"
8
With these words the little one is fully healed again and cuddles as close up to Me as possible.
9
Speak the angel: "Oh bliss of all bliss! What are all the heavens besides the sight of such love?! We perfect spirits have indeed enjoyed so endlessly many pleasures that no tongue could enounce their number; yet all the enjoyed supreme pleasures are less than a dew-drop compared to when You, oh most holy Father, take Your little child upon Your arm and press it to Your holiest heart with visible, intensest love! Oh what unmentionable bliss this Your little child must not feel!?"
10
Say I: "Yes, it is exceeding bliss for the little one, but also for Myself; but you shall yourselves also enjoy it when it shall have been accomplished, and whin you shall have supped at the table of My children! But now let the water back into its basin! Thereafter this My little child shall appoint you another task."
11
And, inclining My mouth toward Jarah's enamoured little head: "Isn't that so, My Jarah, you are going to help Me give My angel a few more jobs yet?"
12
Says the little one with an exceedingly love-willing, child-like innocent and gentle voice: "Indeed, out of my love for You, with immeasurable pleasure! You need only to utter it, and I cast myself into any fire out of my love for You, as also over the walls of this mountain into the sea, if it is down below again!
13
Say I: "And yet no fire of the Earth would burn or destroy you, because you have already yourself become full of the strongest and mightiest fire! Nor could stones or water harm you; for your nature within My order is more solid than a diamond, and your feelings gentler than all the waters of heaven! In short, you have somehow grown into My heart, and I hence put you at liberty to command My angel to carry out something as if commanded by Myself. Hence think of some job and tell the angel, who is tarrying longingly to receive a command from your heart whatever you desire, and it shall all be carried out instantly!"
14
Says Jarah: "My dear messenger from the heavens, if it can happen without damage, then in the Lord's name please make it that this mountain, being too hard to scale in the natural way. Have an easily negotiable path, without danger upwards or downwards, and also towards the sea, normally accessible only to birds."
15
The angel only executes a delicate bow before little Jarah, saying: "Ah, you most glorious commander in the Lord's name! Just look around you in every mountain direction, and you are bound, to be happy with me! Behold, sometimes we are slow in action, but if necessary then faster than lighting!"