EDEN

THE TREE OF LIFE

AND THE RETURN OF THE PRODIGAL SON

BY THE WAY OF THE REVELATION OF JOHN

   

Once the soul of man came into being, he/she found himself caught between two worlds -- i.e., that of this physical world, and the spiritual world that lies beyond the realm of souls.   In this we can begin to see the problem: The soul of man was caught in limbo, and could not return to the Source of his/her being without that part of itself which was represented in its lower nature and manifest in this world of gross physical manifestation.   Thus was born the journey of Mind in which the soul was forced to embark upon in it's search for Completion.   I use the word Mind, because the soul of man is Pure Mind that is the result of the balance of the spiritual and physical natures of man.

 As the fetus is born and progresses through the stages of infant, childhood, adolescent, and mature adult, it is important for us to recognize that the mind expands as the body evolves through each stage of physical development.   Once it is therefore realized that organic man is the physical manifestation of mind that is not only the opposite polarity of his spiritual self, but that in the same way  the mind develops in conjunction with the physical development of the body, the same is true with respect to man's soul and spiritual natures.   In knowing this fact, it is then easier for us to realize the great importance that this world plays in the Divine Pattern of our Creator God.  

In the beginning all souls were equal and the same.   As that part of us developed in this physical world, our soul correspondingly grew in wisdom, understanding and knowledge.   Thus, the key to all true growth was discovered by the ancients who endeavored to know themselves and their Creator God -- which key was seen in the fulfillment of the Universal Law: “We can never possess any greater amount of truth than we are able to live and manifest in our lives in word, thought and deed”.   And as that part of us which was in this world began to open his/her eyes to the Greater Truth of Creation, and actually begin to live its lives in accordance with that Truth, this caused the physical to develop in ways that was beyond the perception of carnal man, which in turn initiated great evolution of Mind from the perspective of the soul.

While the greater majority of people continued to be very much a class of barbarians who populated the earth, there remained a few who overcame the physical elements of the body-vessel in which they inhabited, and they arose to a state of highly developed spiritual maturity.   Among these few there were still a lesser number who were the followers and disciples of that Being who lived as Jesus in the first century of our Common Era.   He had been an Essene many times prior to that life -- and as Jacob I came to be Jesus’ disciple, because I had been his follower and disciple in numerous lifetimes since the earliest of times in the course of human history.

Throughout the earth there were great masters in search of spiritual knowledge and their Source of Being.   Some of these master’s teachings remain with us, and are known to us in the form of the various religions of the world which have evolved out of man’s long past.   But the Essenes and their Teacher possessed a wisdom and knowledge that had yet to be discovered by these lesser masters from around the world.   Thus, the teachings of The Way was born among the Essenes, who called themselves the people of the New Covenant.   And as the soul who lived as Jesus himself became the first Prodigal Son to return to the Kingdom of Light, he became the Master of The Way that all of us, his brothers and sisters, had to follow.   But what does that mean?   To follow does not mean to believe in a philosophical manner -- but rather, to pick up our own cross and follow in the Master’s footsteps on our journey as the prodigal sons along The Way to the Kingdom.   We accomplish the by endeavoring to learn the Royal Law of God, and then manifesting its tenets, oracles and knowledge in our daily lives.    Thus, we must not only seek to learn and know the Truth and the Light and The Way, but we must ourselves become possessed by the Truth and the Light and The Way.

In order to accomplish this, and begin/resume our journey in The Way, there can be no room in our lives for anything other than Truth.   If a church doctrine is not the Truth, then it must be left behind.   The same can be said for celebrations, traditions, and attachments to the culture of the world in which we are presently living.   Even in the case of our most intimate relationships -- these relationships must be either molded and developed in the Light of the Truth, or left behind in our search for Completeness.   Thus, while many of the lesser masters of the worlds many religions sought to sever the disciple from not only the desires attached to the physical body, the Hebrews and Essenes perceived an important element in the Divine Pattern of Creation that the others did not.   Instead of denial, they placed great importance on developing these desires and intimate relationships in order to transcend the physical and manifest the highest level of Godliness that the prodigal sons could achieve.

 

From a New Covenant perspective, the key is not in denial, as was expounded by the Apostle Paul and the masters of many of the worlds religions -- but rather, by taking the physical body -- it's senses and desires -- and developing man's physical reality into the Highest Expression of Godliness!   While admittedly, this is not easily accomplished.  In fact, it is often easier to subdue the physical  body and its appetites, than to raise them up to a higher level.   The problem is that it is absolutely necessary, because man cannot be Complete without that part of himself that is manifest in this physical reality.   Thus, to accomplish this, the disciple of the Light needed to possess great wisdom, understanding and knowledge as he/she became fully immersed in the teachings of The Way.   What was born out of this endeavor came to be known as the knowledge of the Tree of Life -- which incorporated the knowledge of the workings of the twelve spheres of mind as it interacted with the physical and spiritual natures of man.

In scripture and the teachings of The Way, it does not matter if we are speaking about the twelve tribes of Israel, or the twelve disciples of Christ, what is being portrayed in the spiritual language of the Bible is the workings of the Laws of Nature and of God as these Laws, realms and dimensions of consciousness interact with the twelve spheres of mind, as seen in the words: “And the LORD God said, The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever… He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God… Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations… Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city” (Gen 3:22; Rev 2:7;22:1-2 NIV; 22:14NKJ).   In order for the disciple in search of Truth and Light to walk in The Way, they must connect the teachings of the Tree of Life which is portrayed in Genesis, with that of the Revelation.  

Students of Hebrew Mysticism will immediately note that the above pictorial diagram of the Tree of Life is very different than what they have traditionally studied.   In fact, one only has to perform a search on the internet to quickly realize that what is presented herein is not the same as what is taught either directly by Jewish sources and authorities, New Age philosophers, or what is known as the Theosophical Society/Movement.   Why is this Tree of Life portrayed differently?   Because while the Jewish sages from ancient time did not reveal the most important elements of their oral teachings to those who were not deserving to receive them, and the Gentile Philosophers have for the most part never possessed a complete and total picture of the inner most teachings of the Hebrew Essene/Ebionites.   In this time of spiritual restoration, though, I have been permitted to reveal the portrayal of the Tree of Life in the same manner it was first taught to me by the Son of God.   In this respect, anyone who truly knows Christ, will have learned the meaning of the twelve spheres of mind, as well as the laws which control the vital life-force that flowes between the realms of Eden and the Final Paradise of our Heavenly Father.   Those who truly know Christ will possess this knowledge, because all who are taught by the Son of God while in the House, are the recipients of this Sacred Knowledge which are the very Organic Patterns of what the Apostle called the Mysteries of God.   If you have not yet learned the meaning of the Tree of Life, then in the words of Paul: “... he does not yet know as he ought to know” (1 Cor 8:2 RSV).

Unlike the traditional teachings which can be learned by ether Jewish or Non-Jewish sources, it is important to note that the bottom sphere has only one entrance point into the body of the ten spheres -- and perhaps even more important is the additional sphere with only one path leading to the upper most sphere.   Again, unlike traditional teachings on the Tree of Life, that additional sphere which provides the connecting link to the upper most sphere, can be best understood as the physical body of man, and is associated the sphere of Intellect.   Why Intellect?   It is the best word that I can use in the English language which would indicate the manner in which the believer/disciple uses their wisdom, understanding and knowledge throughout every aspect of their lives.   Again we must rely upon the Great Law that man can never possess any more knowledge than he is able to live!   Thus, it is this last sphere that either limits and inhibits our growth and development, or acts as a gate which opens to us the Kingdom of God.   In this sphere the fruits (knowledge) of all the other spheres must be applied in order to bring about the Application of the Word in the life of the believer/disciple -- and it is in this sphere where we can then find the very essence of the teachings of The Way.

 

The sincere person in search of Truth will come to understand the meaning of the other symbol which incorporates the Star of David.   It is here that we will not only see the upper heavenly triad brought into total harmony with the lower earthly triad, but also the six outer and six inner (twelve) points that must be brought into the proper conjunction with the Laws of Heaven and Earth, in order to bring about the perfection and completion necessary to receive the Anointing of the Light.   That the Star of David is here depicted in the Eternal Circle, is significant of the ring that is placed upon the finger of the prodigal son who has returned to the Kingdom.   While in this portrayal I have added the traditional cross, which is a non-biblical symbol of Pagan origin, it is here used to symbolize the opening of the teachings of The Way to the non-Essene/Ebionite world of the Gentiles, and further symbolizes the process of overcoming the physical body-vessel mind in the crucifixion of the lower nature of man.

THE JOURNEY INTO THE LIGHT: Every day the faithful flock of Christian, Jewish, and Muslim believers pray to their God for Truth.   In fact, people the world over are constantly beseeching their God to open their mind to the higher revelation of the Truth.   Even the Atheists call upon God to reveal Himself if He is truly the Supreme Power of Creation.   Christians believe that Jesus is the Truth -- and they are right!   The Jewish people are not quite sure what Jesus was -- and they are right!   Muslims believe that the majority of Christians and Jews do not understand the essence of their own respective religions -- and they are right!   There are people the world over who are in search of the Truth -- and if they are willing to live in accordance with the Royal Law that Jesus revealed (James 2:8), it is the Will of the Eternal that they should possess the Truth they seek.  

In the same way that we cannot redefine marriage to suit our own philosophy, Jesus ordained a manner of thinking (mindset) and living that is absolutely essential to enter into a covenant relationship with the Lord.   With respect to the Kingdom, the Bible warns us that: “Nothing impure will ever enter it” (Rev 21:27 NIV).   In acknowledgement of this biblical proclamation, we have no choice but to conclude that a person who embraces Pagan religious doctrines cannot enter into the Kingdom because of the impurity of their beliefs.   A person who thinks in accordance with the mindset of our present-day culture cannot enter into the Kingdom, because of the impurity of their minds.   To enter into the Kingdom we must enter into a marriage covenant with the Light, and whatever impurities we possess will inhibit and limit that covenant.

We pray for Truth -- and in answer to your pleading for a greater understanding, what I will then reveal to you in this book is the foundational covenant-marriage mindset that Jesus taught to his disciples that prepared them for their journey into the Light.   Jesus did not teach his disciples a series of doctrines of belief -- but rather, he taught them the Application of the Sphere of Intellect which can only be understood in the manner we must live, so we are able to open the “gate” and walk in “The Way” -- which is the true name for the religion that Jesus inaugurated.   And what is The Way?   It is the path in life that every person must walk in order for them to embrace the Ultimate Truth that the Eternal God desires each and every one of us to possess.   Walking in The Way is the destiny of every soul that has ever existed.

What you are about to read is the result of what I learned as a first century follower of the man known today as Jesus.   In the many places that the scriptures speak of God raising up a prophet to guide the faithful flock into The Way, then in my case, this is again true in our own time.  

Throughout the last twenty-five years of my life the Hand of God has been upon me -- teaching me, developing me, and revealing to me the things that I must know in order to witness to the faithful flock who desire to know the Truth, enter into a covenant relationship with the Lord, and walk in The Way that He Ordained.   As all genuine prophets that are raised up, I am a witness who proclaims to the people that the day of the Lord is about to come.   I will neither speak from my own accord, nor will I attempt to tell you what to believe -- for such is the way of the false prophets which the evil one ordains to lead men astray.   What I will reveal to you is the means by which you will be able to arise from the darkness of this world, and yourself walk in The Way, in order that you might be able to sit at the feet of the True Prophet and know the Revelation of the Mysteries of God for yourself.

As in the past, the path that leads to The Way has been blocked and obstructed by the god of this world.   Because of these obstructions, the faithful flock can no longer perceive The Way that leads to Life with a clear vision and certainty.   One of the paramount problems they encounter is they attempt to move in a large group -- i.e., feeling safe in numbers -- and they forget the words that many are called but few are chosen.

The obstructions that block the path of the flock of believers are caused by the fact that the modern church has become immersed in the traditions and doctrines of generation upon generation of people who called themselves Christians, but were not faithful to the Word.   The result is that Christians today suffer in a state of spiritual disenfranchisement, because the faithful flock has become alienated from many essential points that were contained in the Original Gospel message.   In order to remove these obstacles, and once again walk in The Way, what the people need is Light shown upon the doctrines which, over the course of history, have become a part of the common faith.   This is absolutely necessary in order that we might see and understand what we believe more clearly.   But be forewarned: The powers of darkness that endeavor to continue to enslave the mind of man will attempt to discredit the Truth, and empower the children of darkness to attack the children of the Light.   Know for a fact, then, that while it is within your power to inherit the promise of the Word, unless you make a whole-hearted genuine effort to seek the Truth, and you are willing to walk in solitude with the Lord, you will be confused, and your path to Life will continue to be obstructed. 

The reality that we must come to terms with is that we are two thousand years removed from the time when the New Testament scriptures were authored.   To the detriment of the modern believer, the scriptures that we presently use are not in their original condition.   I understand that many fundamentalist groups will ardently oppose the idea that our Bible is not in the same condition as when it was written, but regardless of what these groups proclaim, the truth is easily demonstrated.  

Before we can come to terms with the fact that our Bible has been altered, we must first understand why is has been altered.   In the same way that at Luke 17:20-21 many of our Bible translations have Jesus proclaim to the Pharisees that the Kingdom of God is in their midst -- meaning that Jesus was the coming of the Kingdom -- rather than properly translate the Greek text which means the Kingdom of God is within all of mankind, what we must understand is the fact that these erroneous biblical translations were not intended to deceive, but to clarify the text in order for it to be more easily understood.   When we say, then, that our biblical texts from which we make our translations have been severely edited, they were not edited to deceive, but to reflect and support church doctrine and tradition.  

What we must come to terms with is the fact that the Pagan Christians of the past truly believed that they knew the truth.   The fact that they took the writings of an alien society of religious people -- a people who had been condemned as heretics -- and reinterpreted them in order to make then compatible with the thinking of the (Pagan-heathen) people who adopted these writings, is a fact of history that can easily be proven.   Once we begin to understand this truth, we will then be able to come to terms with the fact that those who corrupted the scriptures did not want to deceive future generations of believers -- but rather, they clarified the scriptures in the endeavor to protect the believers from what they viewed as heresy.  In most instances, they not only thought they were doing good, but they often believed that they were inspired by the Holy Spirit to remove what they viewed as the interpolations of the heretics.  

In truly embracing the message of the Bible, we can begin to recognize one of the great pitfalls that have snagged many people over the course of human history.   Every person who endeavors to search for the Truth must come to terms with the fact that the greater evil in this world is brought about by misinformed and misguided people who truly believe they are doing good.   Stalin, Lenin, Hitler, Marx, Darwin, as well as our present day generation of misguided politicians, all believe they are acting in the best interests of mankind.   Those people in our present day society who are attempting to mold our children in accordance with either a fundamentalist or liberal agenda, all believe they are acting in the child’s best interests.   The Communists and Socialists who are fervently striving to modernize and socialize our Constitutional form of government, all see themselves as helping us to find a better way.   The Atheists and social-reformers who are very much in control of our nation’s public school curriculum and agenda, are merely attempting to enlighten the minds of the children whose parents continue to cling to what they view as bazaar religious superstition.   It is therefore impossible for us to come to terms with the defilement of the scriptures, until we first begin to realize that the very people who corrupted the Bible were truly motivated by a desire to clarify the gospel, and insure that the faithful flock of believers were not seduced into being misled by what they viewed as Jewish lies and Gnostic deceptions.

Contrary to what modern Christians would like to believe with regard to the purity of the scriptures, the Bibles we use today very much reflect the carnal thinking and doctrines of the very Pagan Church of the Roman Empire that came into existence in the fourth century.   Under the title of Bible in the Church, the Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics writes: “In the first two centuries nearly all the various readings of the New Testament came into existence, the majority of them by deliberate alteration of the text, many for the sake of style, and several in the interests of dogma... Often readings were rejected as falsifications of heretics, but often the heretics were right in their counter-complaint... Every province, every order, every monastery, has a tradition of its own...”   

If every province, every order, and every monastery in the first two centuries had their own version of the scriptures which supported their favorite doctrines of belief, then what do we have left today?   The problem is that we will continue to be misinformed and misdirected with regard to the condition of our scriptures, until we can come to terms with the true reason as to why they were edited and changed in the first place.   Moreover, that God permitted the editing and rewriting of the scriptures is fundamentally for the same reason that most fundamentalist Christians reject today -- i.e., to meet and serve the needs of the people who would eventually be converted to the Truth.

If it is true that every province, order, and monastery had their own version of the scriptures that reflected their favorite doctrines of belief, then we must come to terms with two distinct realities that have alienated us from the Pure Word of God in our present day.   If the above quotation is correct in its assertion that in the second century the scriptures were initially altered to make them support the dogma of the various Gentile religious groups who used them -- then we must further understand that the later copyists again changed the scriptures because they in turn saw what they perceived as many interpolations and faults that were introduced into the text, and they attempted to again alter the scriptures in an effort to restore the Bible to its original form.   Each succeeding group of scriptural corrupters believed they were inspired by the Holy Spirit, and each believed they were doing the will of God.

We can never get a right understanding of the problem until we first realize that the scriptures were transitioned from one group of people into the hands of other groups, who were themselves alien to the first group -- and then again were corrected by still later groups who attempted to not only fix the original doctrine to more faithfully represent the doctrine of the church of the fourth century, but to also remove what they saw as the interpolations of the second and third century Gentile religious groups who believed entirely different than the church of Constantine that immerged in the year 325AD.  

In their original form, the scriptures were authored by Hebrew holy men who possessed a heightened and spiritual vision of the Word and Creation.   What they wrote was then transitioned into the hands of carnally minded Gentile converts who were imbued with a very Pagan mindset.   Proof that the two groups held entirely different perceptions of both life and the Word is evidenced by the hostility between the two groups.  It was not only that the Gentile convert was of an entirely different culture, but also that they viewed life through the eyes of a very carnal mindset.   Thus, the transition was not only made difficult because of a language and culture barrier, but also because the converts possessed a very mundane and worldly understanding of life itself.

In the process of transitioning from one manner of thinking to a totally alien manner of thinking, once the scriptures were placed in the hands of the Gentile converts, the written word quickly became altered in order to make it conform to a Gentile-Pagan perception of life and creation.   When they were finished clarifying and removing what they believed were errors, interpolations, and passages that were difficult to understand, their edited versions of the scriptures made perfect sense to their manner of thinking.  

From a cultural perspective, their many clarifications of the scriptures was something they could live with, while still embracing their Gentile-Pagan traditions and mindset.   Yet, each time they fixed what they viewed as flaws, and edited the scriptures in order to make them reflect the truth from their perception, they diminished the original spiritual essence of the revelation of the Word.   In the initial clarification of the scriptures, they created a transitory form of the gospel that opened the door for the Christian religion to eventually enter into a covenant with Rome, and in every way become a secular religion.   The result was that the very spirit and essence of the teachings of The Way was put to death -- as was the genuine disciples of the Light who still existed into the fourth century of our Common Era.  

What we fail to understand today is the fact that each clarification and reinterpretation of the written word was designed to assist the people in their endeavor to embrace the gospel, and was seen as being good.   We do the same exact thing today when many of our modern biblical translations interpret Luke 20-21 as the Kingdom of God being in the “midst” of the people, instead of ”within you”.   The second century Gentile Christians viewed the original versions of the scriptures as being defiled by a heretical adherence to what they called the Jewish Law.  From a Gentile perspective, everyone knew that Jesus came to condemn the Jews -- and they reasoned that the original Jewish followers were unable to grasp the simplicity of Jesus’ message.   In the same way, the Roman Church of the fourth century viewed the thinking of the first Christians as too Greek and Hellenistic, and they too were deemed heretics.   In each case, the written word was edited to clarify the thinking of the heretics who preceded them.   Each generation of Christians believed exactly as we do today -- i.e., that they knew Jesus better than the heretics who came before them.

A reality that modern-day Christians fail to understand is that the scriptures were not edited once, but a number of times as they were passed into the hands of succeeding groups of believers who held very different perceptions of what the meaning of the gospel message was.   The problem is that these edited versions of the scriptures has caused the thinking of the modern Christian to be so alienated from the essence of what Jesus actually taught, that when a more genuine copy of the scriptures is placed in their hands today, they condemn and reject the very Word of God they search for.   Because we have today become so accustomed to the thinking and the mindset of the Pagan Christians who clarified the scriptures at the time of Constantine -- which mindset is in fact supported by Darwin and the Theory of Evolution -- that many modern believers would become enraged by what they would see if they could view an original copy of their own Bibles.  

In the same way that the church was transitioned -- one step at a time -- from spiritual to carnal, the first objective of this book will be to begin the process of reverse transitioning of the mind.   Step by step we must start at the point where we will again begin to perceive the root teachings of the Spiritual Gospel of Christ emerge.   Without this transitioning, if an unedited copy of the Bible were placed in the hands of the present-day church, they would spit upon, condemn, and attempt to destroy the more pure copy of their own scriptures -- and call it the work of the devil.

The alienation of the flock of believers from the Pure Word by the traditions and doctrines of men -- traditions which have in many instances been written directly into the scriptures -- makes it more difficult for the Eternal God to answer the prayers and supplications of the Christian today.   How can our Heavenly Father answer our prayers when we beseech Him to grant us a greater understanding of the Word, when we have been alienated from many important foundational concepts by the many generations of Hellenistic, Pagan, and Secular Christians before us?  

If we expect God to just zap our minds and reveal Himself and the Pure Word to our understanding, then we are in fact embracing the same exact mindset as the Atheist who demands that God must make Himself known to them on their terms.   In this respect, the modern believer is very much synonymous with the Atheist -- i.e., each demands that God submit Himself to their demands and conditions.   Each group equally ignores the warning of the Bible itself with respect to the teaching that God must be sought out by the disciple in search of the Truth, and is revealed to the individual who has cleansed himself from the defilements of this world, one step at a time.   Thus, this great truth is in fact the very meaning of the essence of New Covenant thought with respect to walking in The Way -- i.e., if one does not first begin, and then continue in the journey and quest for the Light and Truth, then the transition of the individual from a natural-carnal being, to a Spiritual and Anointed being, is never accomplished.   Does God love us?   This is not even part of the equation!   God loves us enough to permit us to learn our lessons of life, and evolve into the maturity of true Children of our Eternal Father.

To begin to perceive our greater destiny, we must also understand that the promise of the scriptures is true with respect to the continual assertion that the Lord always attempts to answer the prayers of the faithful believers.   Thus, we are presented with two biblical factors that have been brought together in the creation of a great divide -- with the question being whether history will again repeat itself.   When the prayers of those who are calling upon the Lord for greater truth are answered, the question is whether they will set aside the error of the past to embrace the Truth?   The answer to this question will be disturbing to many people today -- i.e., it is my prediction that a great number of modern believers will reject the Word of God when it is presented to them in a more Pure form, and they will not be able to embrace the Truth that the Lord will place in their hands in answer to their own prayers.  

 

 NEXT

 

 

To contact the author: Allan_Cronshaw@nazirene.org

 

The Way of the Nazirene Web Ring Next Site This The Way of the Nazirene
site is owned by
The Path from Eden through the Tree of Life to the Revelation of John.

[List Sites] [Back 5] [Back] [Next] [Next 5] [Random] [Home]

 

 

 

 

 

This site is a member of WebRing.
To browse visit Here.

 

 

 

 

NAZIRENE HOME                NAZIRENE MAIN