The Great Gospel of John
Volume 6
Jesus' Precepts and Deeds through His Three Years of Teaching
The Lord and the Priests of the Temple (John 5)
- Chapter 27 -
The maturation of man.
Said I: "You have formulated your question well and presented the matter correctly and truthfully, as far as a right-thinking man is at all able to. Nevertheless, I tell you that the ancient sages are just as right, and even more so than you!
2
Do you not believe that one can be and exist in the most perfect way within time and space, yet simultaneously outside of it?"
3
Says Philopold: "Yes, one can believe this indeed, particularly if one hears it from Your mouth. But when I asked my question and made my request I said already that I did not take exception to anything said or demonstrated by You. It is here only a matter of comprehension. For a mere so-called pious faith appears to me to be a mockery of all human reason, intellect and thinking, all of which have surely been given by God to man as a spiritual light through which alone he can recognize himself, all the things outside of him and, finally, even God.
4
And therefore I am of the firm opinion that a reasonable man cannot accept to blindly believe the words of some wise or extremely gifted and in all matters well informed person. He should at the same time and very intensively look for the right understanding of what he accepted into his faith."
5
Say I: "Again you are quite right. Only, there is here and there a catch which deserves full consideration!
6
See, everything in this world, and even in the spirit world, needs a certain maturity and a certain time to reach maturity.
7
Look at an apple tree or a vine in winter! Where is the ripe and sweet fruit?! But then comes spring, there is more light and the warmth of the sun, the buds get fuller and juicer, soon you see tender shoots and finally leaves and blossoms. A short while later the blossoms fall off as they have become useless for attaining the higher aim and you can see the beginning of the future fruit.
8
'What kind of comparison is that?', you are now asking in your mind. Look, buds, their turning juicy, their first shoots, leaves, blossoms and their first germination all correspond to the childlike, pious faith of man; but there can be no mention as yet of a maturity. For God is Himself the supreme order, and whatever happens all over the world must have its time, which corresponds to the divine order.
9
At first, the child babbles; then the babbling gradually develops into speech. Once the speech is more developed, people begin to pronounce things to the child, and soon he pays attention to the brief phrases. After that, whatever else he is told he believes almost unconditionally. He does not ask as yet about the why and the wherefore. Grounded in this pious faith, he then learns a great deal and, at the end of his youth, often begins to think clearly and tries to get to the bottom of many a thing he has learned and acquired. Yet he still lacks some of the full inner vital warmth which equals the first germination.
10
However, as soon as in high summer the full power of the light and the warmth out of the sun appears, the first germination produces the inner, all-enlivening warmth. This effects a greater and greater expansion of the new fruit and cooks the juices flowing into it. Thereby the fruit becomes larger and fuller of the more and more purified juices. Now the light can increasingly permeate the fruit, and only then does the fruit mature.
11
And behold, so it is with man. In spite of the best external explanation he will find it difficult or even impossible to understand the inner, spiritual truth, unless the inner vital warmth of his love has reached the highest degree possible and the light of this warmth thoroughly permeates him throughout. But once he is, like a ripe grape, thoroughly permeated by the increasing inner vital warmth and its light, he is mature and has within him the best answer to all his former doubts.
12
Since you are closely approaching maturity, you can be given a little more light and warmth out of the great sun of grace, from which all the heavens and their dwellers - as well as all the material worlds and all that is within, upon and above them and lives and breathes - have their life and existence. And so pay attention."