One often hears people of all denominations respond to posts by saying it is not Biblical and expect that alone is enough to discredit whatever it is they are arguing against.

The assumption seems to be that during the early to middle ages, the Church captured everything God had to say that was worth writing down, got it all right, and then closed the cannon. Now every opinion that does not align with it, has to be considered heresy and/or blasphemy.

I am not picking on Catholics here, as later protestant denominations carried that cannon with them when the left. They may have opened it for a spell, made a few changes to the angst of those Catholics, but once they did, they closed it back up again and took an often even more extreme position on what they say is the "Word of God"

How do you feel about that? Is God limited to affirming only that which the Bible has already said "God Says"?

Is your denomination's particular version of the Bible the final say in all matters for you?

I think it is time to renew my relationship with God after severing ties with Evangelicalism. Christian Mysticism appeals to me- what are some resources to understand it better? I need something that explains it to me like I’m 5.

For those that don't, what does your faith look like?

Can I consider myself a Christian and not attend a formal church setting?

 The test of the Living Christ is:

1. Will you recognize that Christ is MORE than your current mental box?
2. Will you allow Christ to take you beyond your mental box, or will you use the consciousness of anti-christ to make Christ conform to your current perception filter?
3. Will you allow the Living Christ to be born within you, or will you cling to your mortal sense of identity?

 

A message from Ascended Master Jesus through Kim Michaels: 

"I AM indeed the real Jesus, and I have sponsored and inspired this website for the purpose of giving you an opportunity to make peace with me.

The person who has created the physical aspect of this website does not claim or believe that he is Jesus, is Jesus in embodiment or Jesus come again. He is serving as my mouthpiece, my messenger, my open door for bringing forth the teachings on this site, as many people have done during the past two millennia.

Planet earth is presently at a rather low level of its cosmic evolution. This planet has made the considerable sacrifice to serve as a home for people who are still in a rather low state of consciousness, giving them an opportunity to live out that mindset until they have hopefully had enough and want more. The hope is that they will one day have had enough of the death consciousness and will want the LIFE of the Christ consciousness that I offer to all people on earth.

Plausible deniability

Due to the Law of Free Will and the rather low state of consciousness of many of the inhabitants on this planet, plausible deniability must be maintained. I do not have the authority to create some kind of undeniable proof that I exist, and thus I have sponsored a website created by a human being, so that it is easy for people to deny the validity of this site and the teachings upon it.

This is the same law I followed, when I walked this earth almost 2,000 years ago. I was allowed to perform certain miracles, but I was not allowed to manifest any phenomena that could not be doubted or denied by those in the consciousness of duality, the consciousness of anti-christ.

This also explains why my non-dualistic, mystical teachings and example were turned into a rigid, abusive, dictatorial religion, that for almost 1,700 years has been in direct opposition to my purpose for coming to this planet. I am perfectly aware of how many people have been abused and hurt by the religion that claims to represent me on earth. I am aware of this because I truly feel the pain of all these people, and that is why I have decided to give all people this opportunity to be free of all pain, fear or doubt related to their relationship with me

Why do you need to make peace with Jesus?

Why do you need to make peace with Jesus? Because no matter where you have grown up – in a Christian or non-christian culture – you have been given a false image of me and my mission. And the real problem is that this has also caused you to accept a false image of yourself, an image that limits your life experience and that will prevent you from following my example. Thus, you can benefit greatly from overcoming that false image and getting some sense of who I am and what I truly teach. Not only will this enrich the rest of your journey on this planet, it will also greatly assist you in what happens after you leave this planet.

• If you consider yourself a Christian, you will want to know that mainstream Christianity presents a false image of me that simply cannot take you to salvation. You will not make it to heaven by following the blind leaders of the Christian churches, regardless of the fact that they claim to be my representatives. You will make it only by knowing my true teachings, as I present them on this website and in other places shunned by orthodoxy.
• If you consider yourself a spiritual seeker, you will want to know that although you do not have to become a Christian in order to grow and make your ascension, you still have to make peace with me by overcoming all false images of me. My true teachings and my example provided an archetypal pattern of the process that all people have to go through in order to graduate from Earth’s Schoolroom. Today, I hold a spiritual office that all people must pass through in order to ascend from earth. Thus, unless you have made peace with me, how can you possibly even approach me and move through my office to your permanent ascension in the light?
• If you consider yourself a non-Christian, and perhaps look upon Christianity with suspicion or hostility, you can benefit from knowing that my true teachings are universal and are aimed at helping all people escape the death consciousness. And as explained above, no matter what is your outer religious affiliation or non-affiliation, you still have to pass through my spiritual office in order to become permanently free from what might be called the treadmill of the death consciousness.

Why Jesus came to earth

Everything that happens on earth is an opportunity and a test. If you really want to understand why I came to earth, you need to understand that my coming was the supreme opportunity and the supreme test. I came to give all people a real choice.

The simple fact is that life on earth has been almost entirely dominated by the consciousness of death, the consciousness of anti-christ, in which people see themselves as being separated from their spiritual source and from each other. If you have never encountered anything but the consciousness of death, how can you actually make a free choice between death and life?

Thus, I came to demonstrate that there is an alternative to the consciousness of duality, the consciousness of anti-christ. It is the Christ consciousness in which you know and accept who you are, and thus see yourself as one with your Creator and one with all life. I came to teach and demonstrate a path that helps you let the mortal self die, so you can be reborn into your true identity as an individualization of your Creator’s Being.

Due to the Law of Free Will, I could not prevent those who are entirely blinded by the duality consciousness from developing a religion called Christianity and setting themselves up as my only representatives. I could not prevent them from creating a religion that teaches the exact opposite of my true teachings, and thus makes an entirely false promise that cannot take people beyond the death consciousness.

Are you ready for the path of Christ?

Yet what the law does permit me to do is to present people with an alternative to the false path, and that is the entire purpose for this website. What I teach on this website is the true path of Christ, the path that can take YOU to the same state of consciousness that I demonstrated, namely personal Christhood.

I am fully aware that those who are still blinded by the duality consciousness will deny, put down or ridicule the very existence of this website and the teachings upon it. And by doing this, they will simply hasten their own judgment, for did I not say that by your words you shall be justified and by your words you shall be condemned? Yet the primary purpose of this website is to offer the true path of Christ to those who are ready for it.

How will you know whether you are ready? Well, you will not know with the outer mind. You will know only with the inner mind of the heart, your intuition. Tune in to your heart and consider whether you feel something stirring or burning in the core of your being? If you do, then consider that you might indeed have chosen to take embodiment at this critical time in order to help me and other ascended masters facilitate the transition of this planet into a new phase of its cosmic evolution.

Thus, I encourage you to consider whether you might identity yourself as one of the millions of people I talk about in the following discourse. And if you do, then use the teachings and tools I present to awaken yourself to the true purpose for which you came to this planet at this turning point of cosmic cycles.

I AM the ascended master Jesus Christ, and I am eternally dedicated to your victory and ascension in the light. Are you?"

Two major dissident sects of Christians were relatively hidden from history until discoveries in the late 19th and mid-20th centuries, including the Berlin Codex and the Nag Hammadi Corpus. The latter is comprised of twelve codices plus several leaves from a thirteenth. Included therein are forty-five separate titles, with some duplication. Prior to the discoveries, scholars were aware of such Christians, those who were ostracized as heretics, but material that accurately described who they were and what they believed was scarce. In fact, much of the knowledge we had was based on commentaries written by the clergy of the Catholic Church (the heresiologists including Irenaeus, Tertullian, and Epiphanius,) clearly not objective sources. In this work, I’d like to explore the differences between two of the main groups often in opposition with the Orthodox, the Valentinians and the Sethians. The codices mentioned have given us a glimpse into how diverse the beliefs of the early Christians were at the time.

The Valentinians were a part of the Orthodox Christian community; they attended church services and often led them. Additionally, though their beliefs incorporated traditional doctrine, they practiced their own tenets separately. This secret teaching conflicted with the views of the proto- orthodox. However, the Nicene Council of 325CE put an end to some of the more esoteric beliefs of this school.

The Sethians appear to have been much less likely to be concerned with the activities of the proto-orthodox. We know that this Sect, as defined today, was a fusion of the Barbeloites and the Sethites, two smaller schools of thought that have been combined by scholars. The Sethites held the biblical character Seth from Genesis (who was born after Cain and Abel) in such high regard as to position him with Christ himself. I find the Barbeloite branch to be much more intriguing, and we’ll delve deeper into this subject throughout this work. Going forward, whenever I mention the Sethians, it’s the Barbeloites being referenced. Later, I make the case that the Sethians were the Johannine secessionists, and I devote an entire Section to this group after discussing The Gospel of John. In fact, I believe this wing of the Johannine School represents the evangelist’s original intent–and notably not the author some scholars refer to as John the Elder (whom many scholars believe wrote the Epistles and possibly added some later additions to the Gospel, though not its core.)

The Valentinians likely fused the Sethian concepts into their beliefs. However, some of the original texts, particularly The Apocryphon of John (ApJohn,) seem to have been rewritten entirely. Thus, additional treatises were drafted that relied on Sethian tenets that were woven into the respective Valentinian works. Rather than describing the Father solely in mysterious, negative-theology terms, which paradoxically he really should be for means of clarity, the Valentinians attempt to canonize the notion by way of using softer descriptions in addition to a subset of this negative-theology, such as “in his sweetness.”

Though I believe that the Father (and the Neoplatonic One) does in fact encapsulate such expressions, I prefer the strength of the Sethian/Barbeloite and potentially Johannine secessionist exposition of his character: ineffable, incomprehensible, incorruptible, illimitable, unsearchable, immeasurable, invisible, eternal, and unnameable.

My preliminary thought is that I am a Johannine Sethian, though I’ll revisit this discussion repeatedly. As Princeton’s Elaine Pagels says on p. 162 of The Origin of Satan, “Those who have ‘the Spirit of truth within them’ refuse to enter into marriage, business, or any other worldly entanglements, in order to remain an ‘undominated generation’, ‘free to devote themselves to the Holy Spirit.’”

Some of the New Testament is critically important; many of the works discovered near Nag Hammadi, Egypt in 1945 are also key. Of note, the latter were discovered shortly after WWII. I will attempt to piece this puzzle together in this work, and I believe that tenets of the Johannine School are crucial.

Ultimately, I will put forward my take on what I entitled The Protennoia Johannine Secessionist Canon.

Many of the secessionists resided in Alexandria, where Plotinus' philosophical school started, though he later migrated to Rome. If in fact the latter was originally a secessionist, which is certainly possible, then the Johannine secessionists later became the Neoplatonists. Furthermore, Alexander J. Mazur (Ph.D., The University of Chicago) argues that many Neoplatonic concepts and ideas are ultimately derived from Sethianism during the third century in Lower Egypt, and that Plotinus himself may have been a Sethian before nominally distancing himself from the movement.

Interestingly, from the work's Epligue, "Plotinus was a student of Ammonius Saccas, along with Origen, and Trimorphic Protennoia is attributed to The Father, or in Platonic terms the Form of The Good." This occurred in Alexandria, prior to Plotinus going East to Persia with Emperor Gordion III, an unfortunate failure; afterwards, Plotinus settled in Rome, where of course he started his academy.

I'll start with some personal comments, as prologue to Jesus addressing the Title question...

This sub is "Christian Mysticism" ...But what is a "Christian"?

Is a "Christian" merely a member of a Christian religion where Jesus is portrayed primarily as an idol to worship, or... is a Christian a devout follower of Christ and Christ's teachings where much more than merely and idol to worship, Jesus is an example to follow?

The Gospels give us a good starting point but the actual teachings of Jesus are obviously only a starting point, an introduction of everything Jesus has to reveal to us.

 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. John 16:12

And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written.  John 21:25

What would Jesus' definition be of a Christian -- A Follower of Christ?

“If ye continue in my word then you are my disciples indeed and you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”  John 8:31-32

”Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”  John 14:23

“But that the world may know that I love the Father; and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do.”  John 14:31

“If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.”  John 15:10

“And ever“Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: …” Mt 7:24

“Any one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:…” Mt 7:26

The teachings of the Gospels were given at the level of the consciousness of the disciples at the time that they were given, over two thousand years ago. And even then, only a handful of disciples were ready for them. The majority of the people of Jesus time did not have eyes to see or ears to hear Jesus' message. And the most learned, sophisticated religious leaders greatest could not see or hear Jesus' message at all. In fact they were the mocked Jesus and his teachings and ultimately were responsible for his death on the cross.

Obviously there is much more to know and understand about Jesus' commandments, their importance for our spiritual growth and our reason for being created, the consequences of implementing them or not implementing and how to actually integrate them into our everyday lives.

From the time I was a boy, I had a strong sense, that there was something more to understand, something more to know beyond even what I was taught at a Catholic grade school for eight years. Starting in the fifth grade, when I was ten years old, I began asking sincere questions of the nuns and priests in a sincere attempt for greater understanding, but I honestly never once received an answer that seemed to make sense. When I asked follow up questions to their answers they got frustrated and would often say: "It is really just a matter of faith."

When I was 18, I concluded that I would not find the answers to greater understanding through the church and I spent decades looking for that understanding. When about 20 years ago I stumbled onto the "AskRealJesus" website where Kim Michaels posted answers dictated from Jesus to questions submitted to KIm, I was very skeptical as many of you are to the excerpts I have shared here. But before I finished reading the first answer it was clear to me that this was on a mystical level, far beyond anything I had found over decades of searching.

Now 20 years later, not only have these teachings answered all of my questions, it has enlightened me and given me understanding beyond what I have dreamed of all my life and confirmed my lifelong belief that there is more to know than what science and religions have to offer, the knowing of which is profoundly life changing.

I realize that it may be unbelievable that Jesus would be speaking today through a human messenger. I only recommend that you read and absorb the words and go use your heart, and not your head to discern: Is this real, or is it not? Try not to allow your outer mind to immediately dismiss the messages with convenient labels, like this is New Age malarky, this is tin foil hat stuff, etc. This is only your ego, that does not want to be disturbed out of its comfortability and its incessant desire that might require you to change in any way.

After this post I will begin posting excerpts from two books dictated by Jesus: "The Mystical Teachings of Jesus" and "Walking the Mystical Path of Jesus". Both are available in Kindle and Paperback format on Amazon.

Now, here is Jesus from a message given to us through Kim Michaels in 2004. The full text can be found here: https://askrealjesus.com/stop-rejecting-my-gift-to-you-new/

-----------------------

A message from the ascended master Jesus through Kim Michaels: (December 24, 2004)

I AM indeed the living Jesus Christ, and I deliver this message through the Living Word that I AM. I know many will doubt that it is truly I, the real Jesus, who is speaking. I know many will look for any little thing they can use to reject my message. I know some have already decided that I could not possibly be speaking to people in this age or that I could not have anything to say beyond what was said in the Scriptures—the Scriptures that are almost 2,000 years old and do not address many of the problems people face today.

Yet if you believe the Scriptures were divinely inspired, then you should realize that those Scriptures were spoken by me through human messengers. So what is to stop me from speaking through a human messenger in this age? Given that I have all power in Heaven and on Earth, there is nothing to stop me. The only question is, “Are you willing to listen—do you have ears to hear?”

You might begin by considering why I speak through a human messenger. I tell you, it is because so many of those who call themselves Christians are not willing to listen to my Living Word that I speak directly in their hearts. Do you think I am happy with the fact that I am unable to reach millions of those who would be my followers, but who have shut up their ears to my Living Word? I can assure you that I am not happy about this state of affairs, and that is why I have decided to use a human messenger in an attempt to reach those who cannot hear me in their hearts but can at least read my words. That is, if they are willing to read my words and have not hardened their hearts against me.

I am come to call those of you who claim to be my followers to stop rejecting the most precious gift I have given to humankind. That gift is the Living Word that I am, a word you can hear directly in your hearts. Why then have so many of those who call themselves Christians become so attached to outer doctrines – many of which are like whited sepulchres filled with dead men’s bones – that they are unwilling or unable to hear my Living Word?

Why do you ignore my Living Word?

Consider some of the reasons people have for ignoring my living word, and if what I say applies to you, then be honest with yourself. Dare to look for the beam in your own eye, for until you see it, how could you possibly remove it. And if you do not remove it, how can you enter our Father’s kingdom? So here are the most common reason for rejecting the Living Word:

Do you ignore my Living Word because you have allowed some hellfire and brimstone preacher to make you afraid to consider anything beyond the outer doctrines and a literal interpretation of those doctrines? If so, why do you fail to see that I was not a hellfire and brimstone preacher but that I preached a gospel based on love instead of fear? Why do you think I said:

And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. (Mark 12:30)

I knew full well that fear will not take you to Heaven. And how can you love God if you fear God or think he will punish you for every little mistake? That is why I came to give people the perfect love that casts out all fear (1John 4:18).

Do you ignore my Living Word because you have allowed those same hellfire and brimstone preachers to scare you into believing that everything you are allowed to know about me is stated in the Bible and that I could not possibly say something today that is not in the Bible? If so, consider a statement often willfully ignored by those preachers:

I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. (John 16:12)

It should be obvious to anyone that I came to raise people’s awareness of the spiritual side of life. And it should be equally obvious that over the past 2,000 years humankind’s awareness of every aspect of life has indeed been raised. Therefore, I can tell you many things today that people simply could not understand, could not bear, 2,000 years ago. What do you think I meant when I said:

Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. (Matthew 28:20)

I meant that my Spirit will always be with you and that I will continue to give my Living Word, my progressive revelation, to those who have ears to hear it. And in this age many have ears to hear, although some have not yet realized that they are ready for a higher understanding of the mysteries of Christ. Yet it is never too late for you to awaken to my Living Truth!

Do you ignore my Living Word because you have allowed some intellectual theologians to convince you that their man-made interpretations of the letter of the law is all you need in order to be saved? If so, why do you fail to see that I constantly challenged the intellectual theologians of my time, the scribes and Pharisees? Why do you think I said:

For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:20)

I knew full well that you cannot intellectualize your way into Heaven. You can enter the kingdom of Heaven only by absorbing my body and my blood, my Living Word, and allowing it to raise the whole loaf of your consciousness (Matthew 13:33). I came to give people the gift of the Spirit of Truth that can never be found in outer doctrines. That is why I said:

God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:24)

Do you ignore my Living Word because you have become too comfortable with certain interpretations and rituals or a certain church? Are you thinking you know everything you need to know about me and that your salvation is guaranteed—and therefore you do not want me to disturb you with a higher understanding? Have you become unwilling to leave your nets of worldly pursuits, so that you are not willing to have a direct encounter with me out of fear that I might compel you to change? Or have you allowed some modern-day lawyer to tell you that you do not need to seek my Living Truth because you can be saved simply by declaring Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? Do you think I can save all those who call on my name but ignore my commandments? Why do you think I said:

No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. (Matthew 6:24)

Contrary to the beliefs held by many, “mammon” is not simply money, but rather “the things of this world,” even the beliefs of this world. So many call themselves Christians, yet they think it is enough to pay me lip service on Sunday, and then they can do whatever they want the rest of the week. Why do you think I so often called the scribes and the Pharisees hypocrites? Why do you think I said it was easier for a camel to go through the eye of the needle than for a rich man to enter Heaven (Matthew 19:24)?

The “rich man” is a symbol for any person who is not willing to let go of the things of this world in order to follow Christ. And this includes man-made interpretations that make people think they can be saved by simply calling on my name without being willing to change themselves. You simply cannot enter the kingdom of Heaven as long as you hold on to the things and the beliefs of this world. That is why I said:

For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (Mark 8:36)

I did not come to make people comfortable in their possessions and in their illusions. I came to make them uncomfortable with the things and the beliefs of this world, so that through their discomfort they could reach for the Spirit of Truth and be saved. That is why I said:

Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. (Matthew 10:34)

My sword is the word of truth that divides the real from the unreal. So for those who are willing to look beyond their fears, their intellectual pride – which tells them they know everything – and their comfort zone, let me now explain to you what is the true gift that I have given to humankind.

I shall send you a comforter

As one of the last instructions to my disciples, I gave them the following teaching:

15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. (John, Chapter 14)

Oh if only all Christians could truly understand the meaning of this teaching, could truly understand who and what is that comforter. So let me now explain, to those who have ears to hear, the true identity of the comforter who is with you even today.

To understand the comforter, you need to step back and take an overall look at religious life on this planet. You will see that there are two ways to approach religion. One is what I call the outer approach. It is the approach taken by the scribes, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the lawyers and the temple priests, the very people who condemned me to death.

Oh yes, I know that all Christians think they could never have condemned the Living Christ as these people did. Yet I tell you that you ought to look for the beam in your own eye before you judge the mote in the eye of another. The outer approach is not simply confined to a certain type of people living at a certain time. The outer approach to religion springs from an aspect of the human psyche, and thus all people have the potential to fall into this approach to religion.

What is the outer approach? It is based on the belief that you can enter Heaven by observing certain rules here on Earth. You think that as long as you believe in certain doctrines, defined by the right scriptures or the right authority figures, you will be saved. As longs you follow the rules defined by your religion and don’t do or say the wrong things, you will be saved. As long as you belong to the right religion and observe its rituals (at least on Sunday), you will be saved. In other words, you can be saved by performing certain outer acts and you do not have to take on the much more difficult task of examining yourself, your beliefs, your attitudes and your psychological wounds. You can be saved by changing your outer actions without changing yourself, your state of consciousness.

My beloved friends, how could you fail to see that millions of Christians have fallen into this outer approach to religion, thinking that because they belong to the only true religion – Christianity – and because they have declared Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, they will automatically be saved? Do you see that millions of Christians expect that some day I will appear in the sky and whisk away all humankind’s problems, lifting all good Christians – that is “good” according to an outer standard – to Heaven and sending all nonbelievers to Hell?

How can you fail to see that this is the exact same approach to religion taken by those who condemned me when I walked the earth 2,000 years ago? Oh yes, I know full well the hearts of those who think they are good Christians and who judge all others based on their own standard. Oh yes, I know that different groups of Christians think they are the righteous ones and that they would have instantly recognized and followed me if they had met me in the flesh 2,000 years ago. Yet I tell you that this is far from being the case, and it is, in fact, a very dangerous illusion that could cost you your salvation.

You see, my beloved, salvation cannot be won by taking the outer approach to religion. That is why I said that the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees was not enough to get you to Heaven. Why not? Listen to one of my most profound statements, a statement often overlooked or misinterpreted by Christian preachers:

20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. (Luke, Chapter 17)

Is it not clearly stated by me that you cannot enter the kingdom by observing outer rules and doctrines? Is it not clearly stated that the kingdom does not come as long as you are looking for it outside yourself? The kingdom does not come for you until the moment when you find it inside yourself!

What does it truly mean that the kingdom of God is within you? It means that the door to the kingdom of God is located inside of you, or rather inside your mind. It means that you cannot gain entry to the kingdom of God by performing outer actions, be they recitations of scriptures and creeds or the performance of rituals. You can gain entry to the kingdom in one way only, and that is by changing yourself, by changing your state of consciousness.

How can you change your state of consciousness? You must follow the very path followed by Paul, who said, “I die daily” (1Corinthians 15:31). Which part of Paul died every day? It was what he called his carnal mind—the natural man. This is the very mind that causes people to sin, to judge one another and to believe that the observance of outer rituals can get them to Heaven. That is why Paul said:

22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. (Ephesians, Chapter 4)

Paul was willing to go through the difficult and painstaking process of examining himself and putting off that which he found to be unacceptable in the all-exposing light of Christ Truth. He was willing to let his carnal self die because he understood that he could not take this old man with him into Heaven. He knew that in order to enter the wedding feast, he had to put on the wedding garment (Matthew 22:12) of the new man, the new state of consciousness. Here is how Paul described this new man:

And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him. (Colossians 3:10)

So who was it that created this new man? It was none other than I, the ascended Jesus Christ, who created the new human that all people have the potential to put on, thereby entering the kingdom of Heaven within them. This new man can be described simply as a state of mind, namely the mind of Christ, but it is even more. How do you put on this new man? You cannot do so through outer observances. You can do so only by allowing this Spirit of Truth to dwell in you until you become one with that Spirit. Paul knew this, and that is why he said:

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 2:5)

When you allow the old state of consciousness, the carnal mind, to die and allow the new state of consciousness, the mind of Christ, to be born within you, then you will understand the true meaning of being born again. Oh how many Christians think that being born again means to simply declare me as their Lord and Savior. Nay, I say, no outer declaration can make you reborn in Christ! To truly be born again in Christ means to allow the mind of Christ to be born within you. That is why I said:

3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. (John, Chapter 2)

That which is born of the flesh is not simply your physical body. It is the human state of consciousness, the carnal mind, that cannot recognize the Living Christ when it stands before him in the flesh. The people who did not recognize me 2,000 years ago were blinded by their carnal minds. That is why I said:

And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive. (Matthew 13:14)

Likewise, if you do not recognize my Presence within you – or within this message – you too are blinded by your carnal mind. This carnal state of consciousness will not allow you to see that the door to the kingdom of Heaven is located within you. And that is why you look for an outer Savior who will do all the work for you instead or realizing that the true Savior, the only Savior, must be found within your own mind. Who is that inner Savior?

Do you ever worry that the quest of becoming or delving deeper into "Christian Mysticism" is actually counter-productive at some point?

I originally strove to be a mystic in Christianity and started praying all day long, some days. Little short prayers for help and intercession with conversations, and gratuitous singing in my mind to God. Also, hundreds of acknowledgments to God.

These days are utterly mind-bendingly wonderful, and I experience divine timing and have the right words come to mind for the right situations.

However, it seems that setting myself apart as a Christian Mystic can breed pride and separation from those who love God too. Over time, I had many days where I looked at the world around me and had thoughts pop up of "Why are they not doing what I am doing?" or "It says plainly in the bible to pray unceasingly."

It appears that as I grow in maturity in Christianity, the ambitious seeking of wanting to be a mystic has turned into just wanting to help others get a closer relationship with Jesus. Which is the goal for a lot of us.

This just makes me a mature Christian and not a mystic, even though I still have mystical experiences.

What are your thoughts?

Go to the churches

Open the churches

The Kingdom is already there

It’s already been built

A global network of incredible churches

Sadly many of them are locked a lot of the time

I’d love to spark a movement to OPEN the churches and keep them open much longer hours

Praying in silent, empty churches alone or with a few silent others is a life-changing experience

The churches are being under-utilized by primarily opening them for masses and church services

Masses are wonderful but these are living temples, living monasteries, ancient prayer-fields

Give the people access to the true depth of spiritual healing and protection that is available within these structures

With Care,

Jordan

"I would like you to consider why there is religion in this world. Do you think that God needs religion? Do you think that the Being who created an incredibly vast and complex universe has some kind of need to be worshiped by human beings living on a planet that is like a speck of dust in infinity? I am not hereby saying that human beings are not important to God. I am simply saying that God is an unlimited, infinite Being, and God does not have human needs. The idea that God needs to be worshiped is yet another example of backwards reasoning.

The simple fact is that God has no need to be worshiped by human beings. Religion was not created for God’s sake. It was created for your sake.

The simple fact is that God does not need religion. Human beings need religion, and it is very important that you understand why. God created you in his image and likeness. You have the capacity of consciousness to experience the fullness of God’s infinite Being. Yet as your lifestream decided to descend into the material universe, you faced a challenge that is quite severe.

You must understand that my Father’s house has many mansions. By that I mean that there many different levels of God’s creation. Modern scientists have found that the entire material universe is made from energy. Energy is vibration.

You know that your eyes can detect only the types of energy which you call visible light. You also know that there are many forms of light, and many other forms of energy, that your eyes cannot detect. Therefore, there are many different layers or levels of vibration. In fact, one might consider that the totality of God’s creation is a vast, but not unlimited, continuum of vibrations.

Visible light is simply part of a continuum of vibrations. Your eyes can see only one pocket of that continuum. Likewise, the material universe is simply one pocket in a larger continuum of vibrations. Your senses, and the lower consciousness of the human mind, can perceive and fathom only a small pocket of the continuum of vibrations that comprise God’s creation. That small pocket is what you call the material universe.

The only difference between visible light and invisible light is a difference in vibration. The only difference between the material universe and higher levels of God’s creation is a difference in vibration. The only difference between Heaven and earth is a difference in vibration.

There are no impenetrable barriers in God’s continuum of vibrations. There is a dividing line between the vibrations of the material universe and the vibrations of the lowest level of the spiritual universe, the level that is right above the material universe in vibration. That dividing line is not an impenetrable barrier. However, your physical senses and the death consciousness will never be able to cross that dividing line. Therefore, to the physical senses and the death consciousness, there seems to be a barrier between the material world and the spiritual world."

The Ascended Master Jesus through the messenger Kim Michaels

https://ascendedmasterlight.com/jesus-4/

Difficult moments are not wasted. When you stay faithful through challenges, God sees it and promises a reward. Keep going—your endurance has purpose.

Lately, I’ve been joining a midnight prayer session from Ghana called Alpha Hour, and it’s helped me stay focused, fearless, and rooted in faith when life gets uncertain. If you ever want to join and pray too, here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/live/XoNyGqrtgR4?si=B1JBFTRUIJEPQPVd

God is not only powerful He is close and cares deeply about you. He delights in you and rejoices over you, You are not just tolerated by God you are loved and valued.

Lately, I’ve been joining a midnight prayer session from Ghana called Alpha Hour, and it’s helped me stay focused, fearless, and rooted in faith when life gets uncertain. If you ever want to join and pray too, here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/live/4PBpsI61NZg?si=VS5eairzCwjz4yx2

Further exploration of the Johannines is warranted.

As for the Paulines, I’d recommend they take up the Johannine writings post haste. The Valentinians’ supposed claim to fame is through Theudas, a direct disciple of Paul, though Paul was never a direct disciple of Christ, except according to himself. Even the Johannine Revelation to John refutes the Paulines in RevJohn 2-3, according to a Paul apologist Paul Renan in St Paul (1869:) “Apostle John’s book of Revelation was a ‘cry of hatred’ against Paul and his friends.” Also, in the Epistles to the Colossians and Philemon by Handley C.G. Moule, p. 17 “and it has been maintained (notably by Bauer, of Tubingen as well as Renan) that the school of St. John entirely repudiated St. Paul, and succeeded in effecting a total break of continuity [between the two schools.]”

Furthermore, per RevJohn 2:1-7–“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands:”
I know your works, your toil, and your patient endurance. I know that you cannot tolerate evildoers; you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them to be false. I also know that you are enduring patiently and bearing up for the sake of my name, and that you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember then from what you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. Yet this is to your credit: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. To everyone who conquers, I will give permission to eat from the tree of life that is in the paradise of God.

All one has to do is read the end of The Acts of the Apostles to ascertain just how controversial the Pauline school actually was; the writings somehow made the Orthodox Canon, but there was certainly, at the very least, real dysfunction.

Paul was not welcomed by the other apostles who rightly challenged his authority: per the UNCW web page Paul vs the Apostles, “Paul seems to have lost his power struggle with the Apostles, then broke with them and went out on his own preaching his own version of Jesus as Lord, his own law-free gospel, and his own innovative concept of the ‘church.’ In his last epistle, Romans, Paul seems to have given up on the East and is informing the Roman Christians that he plans to come to them on his way to Spain to spread his gospel in the West. But first he plans to make a final trip to Jerusalem which turns out to be his undoing. There he is arrested and eventually sent as a prisoner to Rome where he is executed.” 

Furthermore, per The BBC’s description of Paul, “his works have also been used, among other things, to justify homophobia, slavery and anti-Semitism. He has also been accused of being anti-feminist.” 

Among the critics of Paul the Apostle was Thomas Jefferson, who wrote that he was the “first corrupter of the doctrines of Jesus,” according to The Writings of Thomas Jefferson: Being his Autobiography, Correspondence, Reports, Messages, Addresses, and Other Writings, Official and Private.

And corrupter he was—but it is quite possible that from the perspective of the Jews he was an insider. Paul’s life was spent as a Pharisee (at least according to Acts) who condemned true Christian believers to awful fates--including St. Stephen. However, it is possible that what he espoused represented a counter-move to the likes of the early Christians. Paul professed, possibly disingenuously, to having had revelations from Christ, as that is part of what he learned from those early Christians he condemned. In order to combat the growing body of those moving away from Judaism and into what is now known as Christianity, he could have used their model. 

If this is the case, it was not Epinoia that inspired Paul, it was deceit. He potentially quite early on attempted to persuade true Christians into a mode of thought, or religiosity, that he and other Jewish leaders condoned. His Gospel was hardly “law-free,” but rather sought to accommodate Gentile customs regarding circumcision and the like—all the while promoting the "true" law of Yahweh himself—or Yaltabaoth as the Sethians believed. Thus, he potentially used the Christian revelatory framework, precisely echoing what the Johannine secessionists professed, to theoretically accomplish Judaism’s end, a counter-move. The entire book of Romans is a great example of this potential bait-and-switch.

Further support for this position comes from the Introduction to Rudolf Bultmann's work The Gospel of John, a Commentary, p.10: "In John [unlike Paul] no discussion about the Law is to be found. The concept of the "righteousness of God" is lacking in him. In his Gospel the Jews are not representatives of Jewish orthodoxy, as they are in the Synoptic Gospels and Paul, but representatives of the unbelieving world. Paul's scheme of salvation history will be sought for in vain in John, proof from Scripture occurs seldom; the pair of contrasts "flesh-spirit" falls into the background; the apocalyptic expectation of the future, to which Paul holds fast, has been excluded by John."

Peace be with you as we enter this Third Sunday of Easter, continuing our journey deeper into the Great Awakening of the resurrection.

We have begun to integrate the profound vulnerability of the transfigured wounds, and now the liturgy shifts again. We are no longer intensely focused on the moment of resurrection or the immediate evidence; instead, we are invited into the ongoing, surprising ways the Risen Christ reveals Himself in the ordinary moments of our daily lives. The familiar and beautiful narrative in Luke 24:13-35 takes center stage, and the text in 1 Peter 1:17-23 reminds us that we have been "ransomed" for a new, living hope, not with perishable silver or gold, but through a deeper, indestructible connection.

Here is a sermon for your spirit, spoken from the mystic’s heart for this season of ordinary recognition.

The Ordinary Recognition

A Sermon for the Third Sunday of Easter

The Text: "They urged him strongly, saying, 'Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.' ...When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight." (Luke 24:29-31) / "They said to each other, 'Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?'" (Luke 24:32)

My friends, the Risen Christ is not a ghost from the past or a distant celestial being; He is the most intimate, present reality of your ordinary day.

The two disciples walking to Emmaus were completely disheartened. They were running away from the tragedy in Jerusalem, consumed by despair and grief ("...we had hoped that he was the one..."). Their false self, which craved a triumphant, political Messiah, was shattered. They were blind to the truth because their external expectations had failed them utterly. But the mystic knows that it is precisely when our tidy narratives collapse that we are most open to a deeper, ordinary recognition.

I. Unrecognized but Present (Walking with Discouragement)

The staggering truth of this passage is that Jesus is already walking with them, listening to their despair, even when they are entirely "kept from recognizing him." He doesn't appear in a burst of glory or wait for them to have their theology sorted; He simply joins them on the dusty, discouraged road of their ordinary lives.

We often imagine we must be "clean," "perfect," or deeply "spiritual" for God to be present. But the Risen Presence meets you exactly where you are in your exhaustion, your doubt, your grief, and your feeling of deep loss. Your very discouragement is not an absence of God, but potential soil for an ordinary recognition, because the True Self is already walking beside your exhausted False Self, patiently waiting for the illusion of separateness to thin. You are not alone on your Emmaus road.

II. Hearts Burning (Scripture and Discerning Warmth)

While they walk, Jesus opens the scriptures to them, starting with Moses and the prophets. Yet, even as their hearts begin to "burn within them" from this direct, internal warming, they still do not physically recognize Him.

This speaks to the slow, internal work of gnosis, the intuitive, inner knowing of the Divine. Scripture and theological understanding can prepare the ground, stripping away the ego's false interpretations and fueling the sacred fire. But burning hearts do not always equal open eyes. We must cultivate the capacity for both: engaging the intellect and the heart through scripture and deep internal work (Peter), AND remaining open for the direct, experiential encounter that truly dissolves the False Self’s last defenses (Thomas’s direct encounter). This inner fire is precious. Pay attention to what sets your heart ablaze.

III. Ordinary Recognition (Breaking the Bread)

The final, startling reveal is shockingly ordinary: "he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it..." In this simplest of human actions, sharing a meal, a universal gesture of community and sustenance, their eyes are suddenly opened.

The deepest mystical realization, the supreme gnosis of Divine Union, isn't typically found in lightning bolts or esoteric formulas, but in the ordinary substance of life. Christ is revealed through the very physical, shared act of community, where the external (bread) is internal (communion). Your ordinary moments, a shared coffee, a quiet walk, a moment of presence with another, the breaking of bread itself are all potential sacraments, ordinary thin places where the Risen Presence is already present, waiting for your eyes to simply... open. The indestructible True Self is not separate from the ordinary; it IS the ordinary, transfigured by Love.

The Encouragement

This Sunday, integrate the realization of ordinary recognition into your daily life. Stop looking for God only in extraordinary events or perfectly manicured spirituality. Instead, look around you. Pay attention to the ordinary road you are walking, especially when you are discouraged. Listen for the internal "burning" of your own heart, what moves you? What calls you? What reveals deeper truth?

And most importantly, cultivate the ordinary recognition in community. See the Risen Christ in the face of the stranger, in the shared task, and most purely, in the breaking of bread and shared sustenance. Dare to believe that the stone of separation has been rolled away from all of ordinary life, and the Divine is intimately, beautifully, and ordinarily alive in you, and in everything. Awaken to the ordinary resurrection, right now.

A Mystic’s Prayer for the Third Sunday of Easter

O Ordinary Presence,

We confess that we are so often blinded by our discouragement

And our desperate desire for external power and glory.

Forgive us for looking only for the extraordinary,

When You have revealed Yourself so purely in the dusty roads of our lives and in the simple breaking of bread.

Walk with us in our moments of despair.

Set our hearts on fire as we open ourselves to Your internal voice through scripture and intuition.

And most of all, open the eyes of our heart,

That we may roll away the stone of separate identity

And cultivate the ordinary recognition of Your Risen Life, transfiguring every person, every shared meal, and every ordinary moment into a radiant sacrament of Divine Love.

Amen.

GosMark was most likely written for the Gentiles, and the writers believed they did not have to keep the Jewish law. Richard Bauckman, senior scholar at Ridley Hall, Cambridge, states in The Johannine Jesus and the Synoptic Jesus: “The extent to which John presupposes traditions about Jesus which he does not record is not often noticed. Whether the evangelist’s intention was in some sense to complement one or more of the Synoptic Gospels is not important for our present purposes, though there is quite a strong case to be made for the view that he presupposes his readers know Mark.”

Furthermore, he states: “The explanation for the oft-remarked absence of the term ‘kingdom of God’ from John (only in 3:3, 5), by comparison with its prominence as the central theme of Jesus’ message in the Synoptics, is that ‘eternal life’ or ‘life’ is the Johannine substitute for it.” However, the verbiage in both GosJohn & GosMark is quite similar and written in the same vein. This discussion is further explored in Paul N. Anderson’s Mark, John, and Answerability: Interfluentiality and Dialectic between the Second and Fourth Gospels. In the Orthodox Canon, Mark is the Second Gospel, not the First. John is of course the Fourth. Anderson refers to Mark and John as the Bi-Optic Gospels, thus not the three Synoptics (Mark, Matthew, and Luke) against John.

Additionally, the late Larry Hurtado of the University of Edinburgh had this to say on his blog: “Scholarly readers of the Gospel of Mark have long noted the conspicuous presence of non-Greek terms and phrases.  A forthcoming article sets the analysis of the phenomena on a more sophisticated level:  Alfredo Delgado Gomez, “Get Up!  Be Opened!:  Code-switching and loanwords in the Gospel of Mark,” forthcoming (2020) in Journal for the Study of the New Testament. Scholars have often explored whether the use of such non-Greek words and phrases was indicative of the provenance (or destination) of the GMark.  For example, the Latin words have led some to propose a Latin-speaking setting/destination.  Others, pointing to the greater frequency of Hebrew and Aramaic terms have argued for an “Eastern” setting in Palestine or Syria. To my knowledge, Delgado Gomez’s article is the first study to address the wider phenomenon of what are called in linguistics “loanwords”, whether Latin, Hebrew, or Aramaic.  And he does so bringing to bear principles and insights from social linguistics. After setting out those principles and insights, he then surveys sequentially the use of Latin, Hebrew, and Aramaic loanwords and phrases.  And he explores cogently how these items would have influenced early readers.  For example, the Aramaic loanwords/phrases are largely on the lips of Jesus.  This, Delgado Gomez proposes, would have given to the character of Jesus in the GMark what we might call “local color”, and gave readers a sense of hearing occasional words of Jesus in his own language.”

As I state below more directly regarding Chapter 13, the author of Mark seems to have intentionally left most OT allusions dangling (i.e. not explicit) in order for them to be interpreted according to the reader’s teaching or disposition. In a sense, the non-referenced passages, of which there are many, could be perceived as overwrites or omissions of the original texts of the OT in the spirit of Christ’s New Covenant. In fact, in some of the Verses, this new teaching seems to either represent something quite different, often with a new spin (1:21-27, 2:5-12, 2:18-22, 6:1-6, 13:11, 13:14-17, 13:28-31, 13:32-37, 14:32-41, 15:34-39,) or admonish some of the old teachings (3:3-5, 4:13-20, 7:9-13, 12:1-11, 12:18-27, 12:35-38, 14:59-65.)

Again, Mark was theoretically written first (GosThom could have been written beforehand.) Furthermore, the potential exists that Mark relied on GosThom for many of its Verses. Mark leaves out almost all the explicit OT references that GosMatt & GosLuke emphatically add back (in order to be inline with Justin Martyr’s belief that the OT’s & NT’s history should be intertwined.) 

I believe Mark sees this notion differently, just as the Johannine School has very few references to the OT in GosJohn. This approach could be construed to demonstrate the correctness of Christ’s new teaching to understand God—the true Father. Jesus might acknowledge the correctness of some of the teaching in the OT, overwhelmingly not correctly followed by Israel at the time, but Christ’s New Covenant (from the Father) is what Mark is all about to me. 

It is quite possible that there were effectively two missions being accomplished simultaneously, one representing Christ’s and Father’s, the other representing the fulfillment of OT prophesy. You really have to carve out the salient Verses in GosMark as I do believe this book was written with the two entirely different audiences in mind. Note the similarity of this reasoning with the end of  The Neoplatonic Trimorphic Protennoia:

• “I was dwelling in them in the form of each one. The Archons thought that I was their Christ. Indeed, I dwell in everyone. Indeed, within those in whom I revealed myself as Light, I eluded the Archons. I am their beloved, for in that place I clothed myself as the son of the Archgenitor, and I was like him until the end of his decree, which is the ignorance of Chaos. And among the angels I revealed myself in their likeness, and among the Powers, as if I were one of them; but among the Sons of Man, as if I were a Son of Man, even though I am Father of everyone.”
• “As for me, I put on Jesus. I bore him from the cursed wood, and established him in the dwelling places of his Father. And those who watch over their dwelling places did not recognize me. For I, I am unrestrainable, together with my seed; and my seed, which is mine, I shall place into the holy Light within an incomprehensible Silence. Amen.”

GosMark & GosJohn are quite similar on several points. Many people get caught up on genealogy and other elements of history, but it’s right before our eyes. GosMatt & GosLuke get so caught up on their respective points regarding tying the Old Testament to the New Testament that Christ’s New Covenant gets lost in the translation. Just by reading sections of GosJohn and GosMark, it’s clear how much Christ admonishes the teachings of the Old Testament.

Hello! I (f24) am currently working on the interior castle and im currently going through castles 1-3 before stepping into the fourth and embrace mystical life more in depth.

However I lack what st Teresa calls Holy friendships in my life, so I wonder if anyone here might want to chat about our experiences and life with God ☺️

One issue that plagues people new to quitting is that they want to think about their habit and then not do it. The porn person wants to look at bikini girls, the gambler just wants to think about what the smart bet would be on the Super Bowl. The Bible says to “Take every thought captive.” Every one, every single one that is about your habit. 100% of them.

Second, every person quitting should have three “Replacement thoughts” to use when tempting thoughts enter. You can find dozens of replacement thoughts from old articles. Find three that really speak to you.

1. ____________

2. ____________

3. ____________

Example: Gambling has wrecked you, and you want to quit. You think: “Boston is a lock to win the Chanpionship.” That is destructive thinking, and you must replace it. Consider saying:

“No! Then praying:

“Father, lead me not into temptation.”

Third, you think: “I am bored and I want to ___________.” Consider saying:

“No! Then praying:

“Father, show me what You want me to do.”

Fourth, we are most often tempted with our eyes or our ears. We must “Guard” our eyes and ears. If you happen upon something that is risky, consider praying:

“Father, should I stop watching/listening to this?”

James 4:7 ESV Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

It is hard work to take every thought captive. But, 85% of our tempting thoughts are from satan. Notice that when you are working hard at this, at some point your tempting thoughts start to be less and less. Well... that is a sign that the devil is fleeing from you. Consider starting your fight today.

Lately, I’ve been reflecting on how Scripture often speaks in patterns of timing, not everything happening all at once, but unfolding in stages.

There seems to be this quiet “in-between” space that shows up again and again. A waiting phase where things are not fully revealed yet, but are also not the same as before. It’s not just external events; it almost feels like something internal, like a preparation or refinement happening beneath the surface.

I was reading about what’s sometimes called “Jacob’s Trouble.” Instead of seeing it only as an outward event, it made me wonder if it can also be understood as a deeper process, something that unfolds both inwardly and outwardly over time.

What stood out to me is that these phases don’t feel random. There’s a sense of movement, even in uncertainty, almost like something is being aligned or brought into clarity step by step.

It made me think differently about the idea of “waiting” in Scripture, not as delay, but as part of the transformation itself.

Question:
Do you see these kinds of phases in Scripture as something primarily external, or more as an inner spiritual process that unfolds over time?

April 12, 2026

 Copyright 1998-2026, Epinoia Cesare

https://www.neoplatonists.com/2026/04/the-neoplatonists-johannine.html
https://www.neoplatonists.com/

This work discusses in depth issues concerning the treatise Trimorphic Protennoia & The Father; The Apocryphon of John is also extensively addressed. Johannine & Sethian theological tenets are instrumental. The concepts tie in, directly, with Neoplatonism. The Ancient Greek Philosopher Plato's works are key, as are The Father (Protennoia, Kalyptos,) Christ (Autogenes,) and Epinoia (Direct Spiritual Revelation.) The case is made that the Johannine secessionists are one and the same with the Sethians, and they later became the Neoplatonists just before the Western Roman Empire fell. Many resided in Alexandria, the spiritual & scholarly capital of the era, much closer to Byzantium (later Constantinople, also known as the Second Rome given Constantine established this city as the new capitol) in the Eastern Empire--and much closer the the Holy Land. In fact, Egypt was part of what later became known as the Byzantine Empire in the fifteenth century. Constantinople's fall to the Ottoman Turks in 1453 is generally regarded as the cut-off date, as those in the Byzantine Empire referred to themselves as Romans. The Westerners later made the distinction. 

A fundamental tenet of Neoplatonism is as follows, in accordance with The Apocryphon of John & Trimorphic Protennoia: "that a person manifests a corrupted desire, a desire for what is evil, the material aspect of the bodily. Alternatively, a person can distance himself from these desires & identify with his rational self. Matter is identified with evil & privation of all Form or intelligibility. Plotinus holds this in conscious opposition to Aristotle, who distinguished matter from privation: matter accounts for the diminished reality of the sensible world, and all natural things are Forms in matter." (Stanford University Encyclopedia of Philosophy)

As the Introduction states: "Many of the secessionists resided in Alexandria, where Plotinus' philosophical school started, though he later migrated to Rome. If in fact the latter was originally a secessionist, which is certainly possible, then the Johannine secessionists later became the Neoplatonists. Furthermore, Alexander J. Mazur (Ph.D., The University of Chicago) argues that many Neoplatonic concepts and ideas are ultimately derived from Sethianism during the third century in Lower Egypt, and that Plotinus himself may have been a Sethian before nominally distancing himself from the movement."

As the Epilogue states: "Plotinus moved to Rome in his forties. Note that A H Armstrong's translation of Against the Gnostics was the only one in existence until Lloyd Gerson's, and this version could have been tailored to his own specific message. Plotinus could have been addressing the Valentinians, not the secessionists / Sethians (though not the Sethites--those who held Seth, born after Cain & Abel of the Old Testament, in the highest regard. Recall that the secessionists disregarded the Old Testament. I believe the Neoplatonists did too.) How could Plotinus have held that the Demiurge was a good character if his primary role was shaping Matter--which is inherently evil? The Valentinian Tripartite Tractate is in opposition with The Apocryphon of John & Trimorphic Protennoia as it holds the Demiurge & Matter as good, a core belief of those who followed Valentinus. Perhaps Plotinus knew Valentinus as the latter almost became the bishop of Rome.

Plotinus was a student of Ammonius Saccas, along with Origen, and Trimorphic Protennoia is attributed to The Father, or in Platonic terms the Form of The Good."

Additionally, Plotinus could have been the primary drafter of Trimorphic Protennoia, rather simply supported by Wikipedia: "Some [Sethian] gospels (for example Trimorphic Protennoia) make use of fully developed Neoplatonism and thus need to be dated after Plotinus in the 3rd century."