Religion today has been redefined by both the secular politicians of the fourth century and the Protestant Reformers in the Middle Ages to be an expression of faith in the unknown -- but this was not the original intent of the New Covenant and teachings known as The Way.   If we are to begin the process of restoring the Gospel, and drawing closer to God, then it is imperative that be start to perceive the true depth and purpose of the religious experience.   It is therefore important for us to understand the claim of religion at the beginning of our Common Era that man not only has the ability to overcome this ten percent limitation that plagues him, but that the holy men and women of the past possessed the keys to opening the door to higher understanding.   This claim that man can possess the secret to open the full potential of his mind, was made by both the Spiritual Jews known as the Essene-Ebionites, as well as the Spiritual disciples and followers of Christ.  

Genuine religion, then, was not only a life based upon faith, but also the transformation of man from a carnal being of very limited perception and understanding, to a spiritually mature Child of God who has been set free from the shackles of the Prince of Darkness.   A genuine disciple of the Christ is the one who seeks the all-illumining Power of the Light in his life -- a Power that permits the disciple to overcome the congenital ten percent limitation of mind, and opens the spiritual senses of the disciple to enable them to perceive Life and Reality from an enlightened and illumined vision that is beyond the understanding of those who the Apostle refers to as a “natural man” (1 Cor 2:14 NKJ).

What the Bible states is this: If man is to understand and embrace existence from the perception of the Source of his Being, then he must move beyond the superficial, and seek the Source and Essence of all things in his life.   What the Bible teaches us is that this can only be accomplished when man ceases to adhere to the doctrines of men who are limited by their natural carnal reasoning, and learn directly from God -- the Source of all Truth.  

Every day our school children are instructed and educated into all the theories of science and philosophy of man -- and yet, the most important aspect of man's learning experience is rarely ever discussed.   It is as if want to maintain an air of politically correctness -- i.e., we don’t what to convey to them that they are congenitally retarded.  

This is especially demonstrated in the fact that the root cause of all ignorance and conflict in the world is never presented to them in a manner that would enable them to alleviate the problem, and strive to overcome the obstacle.   Fundamentally, we at times do admit to our school children that the mind of man uses only a fraction of its potential -- and there are instances in our educational curriculums where we do acknowledge that our perception of life is of a suppressed and limited vision -- but what does this mean?   Rarely do we ever discuss the implications of these facts -- i.e., it means that every scientific truth and philosophical precept that we teach to our children in all probability is incomplete and defective -- and yet we rarely ever discuss the problem from the perspective that we do not know how to overcome the congenital limitation and enable the child to use more of their latent potential of mind.

In the same way, children and adults alike are constantly being showered with claims of the superiority of one religious doctrine over that of another -- and yet, they are never told about what the Bible states is the cause for all theological conflict in the world.   Non-religious people are critical of religious people and vise versa, liberal religious people are critical of fundamentalists and vise versa, and yet few ever acknowledge the true cause of the dissension between the opposing points of view.

In the ultimate quest to perceive truth from error, these questions regarding the very nature of mind, its inherent organic limitations, and the true reason for all conflict of thought in the world, represent the root cause of the problem that each one of us struggles with over the course of our lives.   Yet, this root cause is rarely ever discussed by either the religious or non-religious authorities we look to as teachers who are charged with the responsibility of enlightening our understanding.   By continually dwelling on the effect, while ignoring the true cause, it is as if they suggest that we resolve the problem of a car running out of gas by getting rid of the defective car.

Do we tell a blind man to see?   Or a deaf man to hear?   Or a crippled man to walk?   Or a retarded man to think and reason?   If we did, we would be looked upon as fools.   Yet, from the true perspective of man’s inherent limitation of mind, this is exactly what we are attempting to do.   Every day we teach our blind, deaf, spiritually crippled and mentally deficient children to ponder the Mysteries of God that are beyond even their ability to imagine -- and this we call education.   Moreover, in removing any accountability to a Higher Power or the need to live in accordance with moral standards, we have in many instances turned our children into beasts.

If there is an organic and congenital reason why it is impossible for man to perceive and comprehend the higher truths that would enlighten his understanding, then it is this root problem that should be the paramount issue for both the believer and non-believer to seriously ponder and find a means to overcome.   It is reasonable to recognize that if man’s vision is inhibited -- if his hearing is inhibited -- if his thinking is inhibited -- then to intelligently resolve the problem, we must endeavor to remove the obstacle that inhibits him.  Yet, the reality of man’s plight is seen in the fact that both our secular and religious authorities today are ignoring the problem, and telling the blind man to see -- the deaf man to hear -- and the man who is incapable of comprehending to understand.

In past ages we institutionalized children with the congenital defect known as Down Syndrome.   We diagnosed them as hopelessly retarded, and incapable of living any kind of normal life.   At birth our medical doctors strongly encouraged the parents of these children to sign them over to an institution, and not even bring them home.   Our medical experts told the parents of a Down Syndrome child that they will never mature beyond the mental age of five years old.

Today we have Down Syndrome children who even attend college.   What changed?   One of the most profound changes that impacted the plight of the Down Syndrome child was the Supreme Court ruling of Roe vs Wade.   With the reduction of adoptable children, suddenly these throwaway children took on new value in the eyes of perspective parents, and there became a waiting list to adopt a child with Down Syndrome.   Since these children were no longer simply cast into an institution where they were ignored and neglected, we began to research the cause of the problem, and we discovered that the level of retardation was directly linked to certain physical and mental conditions that could be worked with.   The result is that today there are people with Down Syndrome who attend public school, have gone on to college, are employed, have learned to drive a car, and because we have addressed the problem on a wholistic level, are able to function very well within our society.   This has been accomplished because insightful researchers confronted the problem directly, and found ways to overcome the inherent limitation.

The religious holy men and women at the beginning of our Common Era were those who endeavored to conquer the cause of the problem.   They wrote about their own experiences with regard to overcoming the congenital limitation of mind that is a natural condition of birth in this world.   Like the person with Down Syndrome, they did not attempt to dogmatize the thinking of the child -- but rather, they incorporated disciplines and a lifestyle into the life of the person that would enable them to overcome their congenital limitations.   The result was that they could profoundly alter the life and thinking of their student/disciples.   By removing the obstacle, sight was restored to the blind man -- hearing to the deaf man -- and comprehension to the man who was previously limited by the congenital natural level of understanding of carnal man.

The issue is this: We can spend our lives in the vain endeavor of stuffing one hundred pounds of knowledge in the form of substance into a ten pound bag -- uselessly attempting to instruct and educate a genetically suppressed and congenitally limited mind -- or we can use our intelligence to see the futility of such a course of action, go to the root cause, fix the problem, and in overcoming the natural barrier, symbolically make the bag bigger.

If we recognize the fact that man is congenitally blind to the higher realities of Creation, what is the proper cause of action?   Should we continue to do as our secular educational institutions -- i.e., ignore the problem; accept our inherent condition; live our life in denial; and adjust our lifestyle so we can continue to exist under the constraints and limitations of our handicap?   Should we continue to face the problem in the manner of our churches -- i.e., ignoring the warning of the Apostle by teaching and embracing incomplete religious doctrines that divide the Word of God by the creation of still more sects and factions, while doing nothing to resolve the cause of the problem?  

What these things mean to us is this: So long as we continue to ignore the source of the problem, we could argue forever about theories and doctrines that we can never, ever, resolve.   In fact, from the perspective of ascertaining the truth, we are a people who can be likened to one who attempts to eliminate the sea of confusion by standing on the beach throwing one shovel of sand at a time into the ocean.   It is a useless endeavor that is simply not worth our effort -- much less our life.   What this means is that, unless we are willing to focus on the source of the problem, rather than the downstream effects, we will die without ever attempting to resolve the true dilemma.   Regardless of whether we become educated from a secular perspective, or whether we become religious from a church perspective, we will die on the battlefield of life without ever having begun to wage war on the true cause and adversary that confronts us.   Moreover, from the perspective of our soul, we will have wasted and squandered our very opportunity of life itself.

In view of the facts, it is not only reasonable, but necessary to conclude that mankind in his natural -- carnal -- state, has an inherently great limitation and burden placed upon him with regard to his ability to comprehend the Mysteries of Creation.   Moreover, this inherent limitation is so all-pervading and encompassing, that it overshadows every aspect of our lives in our quest to understand and perceive our place in the Divine Order of things.   Further, we will continue to dwell under the great cloud of unknowing that has continually plagued man since the very dawn of time -- endlessly groping in the darkness of this realm of illusion -- until we begin to confront the source of the problem, rather than arguing and quarrelling over its downstream effects that we can do nothing about.   What this means is that we do not escape the dilemma of this world by physically dieing -- but by dieing to this world while we are still alive in this physical body!

What I am saying is nothing more than what we are warned about in the scriptures: “For those who guide this people are leading them astray; and those who are guided by them are brought to confusion” (Isa 9:16 NAS).   For the most part we ignore these many statements in the Bible because we fail to perceive that they speak directly to us.   Because we fail to understand the cause of the problem, we are unable to recognize that, like the child born with Down Syndrome, each of us enters into this life with a congenital defect that uniformly causes us to focus our lives and thinking in the wrong direction -- and it is this congenital defect that limits us to using only a fraction of our true potential of mind.   The great truth which the Bible acknowledges in the above quotation is that those who lead us will always attempt to resolve the dilemma of life by resorting to the use of the natural intellect -- an intellect that is congenitally limited.

In the world of both science and religion the wisdom of the biblical prediction is once again seen as true and applying to us, as we are able to observe that those who we look to as authorities, and attempt to teach us, very rarely ever discuss or even acknowledge the root cause of either our congenital learning disability, or the reason for all the doctrinal and political conflicts in the world.   Why?   Because the majority of our leaders are virtually living off the conflict!   In fact, they are in essence the very people that the Bible warns us to stay away from -- calling them false prophets and the servants of the antichrist -- and cautions us not to follow in their way.   In their many doctrines and understandings that they create in order to explain mysteries that they possess no comprehension of, they have not even begun to confront the beast of ignorance that plagues all of mankind -- a beast that they, themselves, do not possess the means to overcome and slay.   Yet, like blind guides, they are all too willing to instruct and indoctrinate you into their religion and/or philosophy about life.

Once you understand and come to terms with the heart of the problem, you will cease to become immersed in its ever-unfolding outward effects.   You will no longer engage others in meaningless arguments over the mysteries of life that they are incapable of comprehending.   Once you have truly come to recognize the root cause of the problem of all conflict and dissension, you will understand the reason why the Apostle Paul condemned the formation of sects and opinions based upon conflicting contentions over religious doctrine.   And you will truly begin to see that there is One Truth -- and when mankind fails to perceive this One Truth, and argues among himself, there is truly One Error; and this one error takes on as many forms as there have been men who have lived upon the face of the earth.   Therefore, not wanting to be a child of darkness and error, you will alter your course, and come to the Light by embracing the Source of this One Great Truth.

There is no point in arguing with an Atheist -- they are utilizing a part of their mind that is incapable of seeing beyond their current perception of life.   In like manner, there is no point in arguing with a Fundamentalist, a liberal or conservative, a feminist, or any other school of thought that exists.   These people do not have free will, and they perceive the world through a predetermined filter that forces their vision and understanding into a previously defined role which they play on the stage of life.   These people are not free -- i.e., their thinking is controlled by the both the laws that cause each person to perceive life from a certain perspective, the previous experiences of their soul, and the organic patterns that have been ingrained in their physical body and associated organs and glands.    Before a person can even begin to open their minds, they must perceive their limitations of mind, and they must then embrace the problem from a wholistic perspective.   Few people are willing to do this, and they therefore spend the majority of their lives believing everyone else to be in error.  

It is only when be begin to understand the cause of the problem that we will then be able to comprehend the New Covenant prohibition against judging and finding fault with our fellow brothers and sisters.   In most instances, the majority of people are doing the best they can under the circumstances of life they are presently living.   Change does not come with preaching or condemnation -- but rather, change can only come when the Children of the Light demonstrate the manner in which the people must walk in The Way.

In understating these facts, we are then presented with a choice.   We can either continue to swim in the never ending sea of contention -- pointing to the error in our brothers and sisters, while we, ourselves, continue to exist in our own brand of falsehood because we are only capable of a very partial understanding of the mysteries of life -- or, we can focus our effort on the heart and essence of the problem.   When Jesus promised his disciples they would know the Truth, what he stated is that his followers would be able to perceive Reality and Creation through the eyes of our Eternal Father-God.   In the restoral of the first century teachings of The Way, I will not ask you to believe or have faith -- but rather, what I will present to you will be the means that will enable you to look beyond the inherent error of this realm, and perceive the true cause of all strife and conflict throughout this and all other worlds of Creation.  

If we were to go to the very essence and core of what Jesus taught -- a core teaching that is ignored by what the Bible refers to as the children of darkness -- perhaps one of the most important concepts that Christ conveyed to his faithful disciples is embodied in the words of the Apostle Paul when he wrote that the “carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God... For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” (Rom 8:7-8;13 NKJ).

People from all over the world open their Bibles written in almost every language known to man, and only a very few ever see one of the most ignored and misunderstood verses in the New Testament -- which message is the profound warning of the Apostle that “the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned" (1 Cor 2:14 NKJ).   These words that possess a profound and all-pervading meaning to every person who has ever lived, represent the very first principles of New Covenant thought that is ignored by our churches today!

What this means is that man, in his natural state -- born of the union of man and woman -- is utterly incapable of understanding God, the Divine Mysteries alluded to in the scriptures, and man's true spiritual reality as manifest in Creation.   The profound message that the Apostle is warning the reader about is this: Regardless of how often you pick up your Bible to read the written word of God, so long as you are of a natural mind, it is impossible for you to ever perceive what Paul calls the Mysteries of the Gospel.   Moreover, it is not a matter of more study -- or more prayer -- or more worship -- or calling upon the name of the Lord -- so long as we continue to ignore the congenital problem of mind that inhibits us.   What the Bible proclaims to the reader is that only when we begin to embrace the Word of God in the totality of the Truth, and we become fully consecrated to the Word throughout every aspect of our being, will the Lord be able to move in our lives to break down the wall which limits our natural consciousness, and we will see and know all things as they truly are from the same vision as our Creator-God.

One of the most ignored truths which the Bible conveys to those in search of the Light is this: “If any one imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know” (1 Cor 8:2 RSV).   Why?   Why, we ask, would Paul make a statement such as this?   How can the Apostle warn those who were baptized and committed Christians -- a body of believers who had themselves received the gifts of the spirit, and of whom the Apostle writes: “that in every way you were enriched in him with all speech and all knowledge--even as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you--so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift” (1 Cor 1:5-7 RSV) -- and yet, the Apostle said of these confirmed and committed Christian believers that they do not yet know as they ought to know?   If these confirmed and baptized Christians were enriched in “all knowledge” and were “not lacking in any spiritual gift”, and yet they did “…not yet know as they ought to know”, then what is the nature of the Mysteries of God that they cannot even be revealed to the minds of carnal man who would view man’s spiritual reality as “foolishness”.   In these words of the Apostle lies the dilemma that has plagued mankind since the very dawn of time itself -- and it is the followers of Jesus who should take the Apostle’s message to heart, and should be leading men into the Light.

Mankind, and especially those who profess to believe of the Gospel, dwell in a world of great confusion because they chose to continually ignore one of the most profoundly important warnings of the Bible.   In fact, all contention in the world -- all factions -- all confusion -- all division -- all dissension among mankind -- all evil -- all racial and ethnic conflict -- all domestic violence -- all error -- all has its root in the core message of the scriptures that all but a very few possess the wisdom to see -- i.e., that what the Apostle says is the great truth that continually plagues mankind as he searches for truth and understanding is this: If you read the scriptures and perceive the Word of God in accordance with human understanding, then you are seeing only a very limited and carnal sense of the Gospel.   Moreover, in view of the fact that this world in which we presently dwell is in and of itself a living scripture which was created for our instruction, the same blindness that plagues the religious man, is exactly the same as the philosopher and scientist who attempts to understand the higher reality of the world in which we are presently confined to.   They may appear smart because they have learned to manipulate matter with either craftsmanship or technology, but unless they comprehend the essence and purpose of life itself, they know very little of any real value.

Wise men, then, understand that it is not that man has to be educated, instructed, or learn more than he knows at present through the process of rote programming in or systems of education -- but rather, he must strive to overcome the carnal limitation that plunges him into a world of darkness.   From this perspective, the religious man, the philosopher, and the scientist are all in search of the same exact Power of Enlightenment -- and in our quest to come into the Presence of the Anointing (Christ), and be taught directly from the Word of God, it is imperative that we embrace truth over culture and doctrine, and start to open our eyes and mind in the endeavor to possess a greater understanding and depth of what we presently see and believe.

In the same way that man is a great deal more than what he appears to be physically, spiritual men of wisdom have always heeded the warning at Proverbs 22:20 where the scriptures reveal to us: “Have not I written to thee excellent things in counsels and knowledge” (KJV).   One only has to check the meaning of the Hebrew text where it is here translated “excellent things” to understand that the word means a triangle, three, or threefold revelation of counsel and knowledge.   Thus, the Word of God is then a threefold revelation that can only be perceived by those who, in Jesus' own words, possess the eyes to see and ears to hear and understand the inner meaning of the Word that is beyond the natural comprehension of man.

It is of the utmost importance for us to recognize that this threefold nature of the scriptures merely follows the pattern of all things in life, and is so paramount in our search for truth and understanding that the Church Father Origen wrote that it is in fact the very Key of Knowledge that Jesus accused the Jewish sects of the Sadducees and Pharisees of throwing away.   A most profound statement of Origen is found in his famed writing De Principiis where he writes: “But all the narrative portion, relating either to the marriages, or to the begetting of the children, or to battles of different kinds, or to any other histories whatever, what else can they be supposed to be, save the forms and figures of hidden and sacred things? As men, however, make little effort to exercise their intellect, or imagine that they possess knowledge before they really learn, the consequence is that they never begin to have knowledge; or if there be no want of a desire, at least, nor of an instructor, and if divine knowledge be sought after, as it ought to be, in a religious and Holy Spirit, and in the hope that many points will be opened up by the revelation of God -- since to human sense they are exceedingly difficult and obscure -- then, perhaps, he who seeks in such a manner will find what it is lawful to discover”.

If it is our desire to possess what we can call genuine knowledge -- to begin to perceive the Mysteries of God which the Apostle said was beyond the natural perception of man -- and we want to know anything of any real value -- i.e., who we are, and what is our true relationship to both Jesus and our Creator God that Jesus taught was our Father -- then it is of the highest importance that we contemplate what we see in the above words by the Church Father Origen.   Of a paramount importance is for us to closely analyze the statement by Origen that is in absolute conflict with the quasi-Darwinist mindset with which we have been imbued with since childhood from our modern-day culture.   This is seen in the words that few men even “…imagine that they possess knowledge before they really learn”.   Ask the question and ponder the ramifications: How is it that we could possess knowledge before we even begin to learn?   Moreover, how can it be said that because we fail to recognize this fact, that “…the consequence is that they never begin to have knowledge”?

While the average reader may simply skim over these words, the ramifications of their wisdom is profound!   More importantly is the fact that it should be clear to the reader is that Origen saw life from a totally different perception than we do today.   What we must decide as we analyze his words is if the Church Father Origen is representative of a more pure biblical vision of the meaning and purpose of life -- and if it is, then we can easily begin to perceive why both our churches and our culture has failed to manifest the higher reality that we have sought.   What Origen conveys is that because we are looking at the picture of life in reverse of man’s actual reality, that the words of the Apostle are completely relative to us when he warned: “If any one imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know” (1 Cor 8:2 RSV).

With respect to these statements we must ask why Origen would state that: “…men, however, make little effort to exercise their intellect”?   And stating with respect to the scriptures that: “…But all the narrative portion, relating either to the marriages, or to the begetting of the children, or to battles of different kinds, or to any other histories whatever, what else can they be supposed to be, save the forms and figures of hidden and sacred things”.   What Origen writes is that all those references to marriages, the begetting of children, and the depiction of the many battles, has absolutely nothing to do with historical events -- but rather, are “…the forms and figures of hidden and sacred things”.   The problem is that in order to begin to understand the true meaning of these sacred symbols and forms, we must begin to utilize those parts of our mind that is beyond the less than ten percent level which nature permits us to use.   Moreover, the key is found in the words: “…As men, however, make little effort to exercise their intellect, or imagine that they possess knowledge before they really learn, the consequence is that they never begin to have knowledge; or if there be no want of a desire, at least, nor of an instructor”.  

What I will demonstrate throughout this book is that if we are to begin to truly “…exercise our intellect”, and desire to learn in the presence of the only genuine “instructor”, then we must reverse the quasi-Darwinist mindset with which we have been imbued, and recognize the great truth that we do indeed “…possess knowledge before we really [begin to] learn”.   Without our very astute recognition of the implications of these all-important words as representing the very essence of New Covenant thought, we will remain hopelessly carnal, and make little progress in our quest to understand anything of any real value!   It is therefore of the greatest importance for us to recognize that what Origen is very clearly stating, is that we already possess a source of knowledge within us that was manifest at a time before we endeavored to begin the process of learning in this life.   This in turn confirms the great truth and biblical assertion that, when we embrace the doctrines of the teachers of this world who attempt to teach us in the traditional manner of instruction, that we become disenfranchised from this inner source of knowledge that each of us already possesses.

With respect to the hidden meaning of the scriptures, Origen then writes: “But lest this difficulty perhaps should be supposed to exist only in the language of the prophets, seeing the prophetic style is allowed by all to abound in figures and enigmas, what do we find when we come to the Gospels? Is there not hidden there also an inner, namely a divine sense, which is revealed by that grace alone which he had received who said, ‘But we have the mind of Christ, that we might know the things freely given to us by God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teaches, but which the Spirit teacheth?’ And if one now were to read the revelations which were made to John, how amazed would he not be that there should be contained within them so great an amount of hidden, ineffable mysteries, in which it is clearly understood, even by those who cannot comprehend what is concealed, that something certainly is concealed. And yet are not the Epistles of the Apostles, which seem to some to be plainer, filled with meanings so profound, that by means of them, as by some small receptacle, the clearness of incalculable light appears to be poured into those who are capable of understanding the meaning of divine wisdom? And therefore, because this is the case, and because there are many who go wrong in this life, I do not consider that it is easy to pronounce, without danger, that any one knows or understands those things, which, in order to be opened up, need the key of knowledge; which key, the Savior declared, lay with those who were skilled in the law”.

The great truth that Origen conveys to us is that the scriptures are written in symbols, figures and enigmas that can only be revealed to the reader by man’s spiritual nature and the indwelling mind of Christ.  And if we ask why the scriptures would be written in such a manner?   The answer is because they are composed in accord with the universal genetic blueprint of Creation -- in order for the soul in search of Truth will observe the same pattern in the scriptures that exist throughout all of life.

If we were of an enlightened mind, and we could perceive the totality of everything we see and experience, we would perceive that all of life in this realm is a series of symbols, figures and enigmas that can only be perceived when we see through the eyes of our soul and spiritual natures.   The universe is a great mind -- and everything we see is a symbol that conveys a deeper thought to those who possess the eyes to see man’s spiritual reality.    Moreover, it is equally important for us to recognize that, according to Origen, these Mysteries of the Gospel that we seek today to understand can only be contemplated by those who possess the Key of Knowledge.   Origen then goes on to say: “And here, although it is a digression, I think we should inquire of those who assert that before the advent of the Savior there was no truth among those who were engaged in the study of the law, how it could be said by our Lord Jesus Christ that the keys of knowledge were with them, who had the books of the prophets and of the law in their hands. For thus did He speak: “Woe unto you, ye teachers of the law, who have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them who wished to enter in ye hindered” (Origen quoting Luke 11:52).

These words of Origen should open up a whole new avenue of reality that few of us whose thinking and mindset has been cultured by our modern society has ever contemplated!   If both the scriptures and the life we are living is a series of symbols, figures and enigmas that we must possess the Key of Knowledge to understand, then our present limitation of mind has in fact been caused by our inability to use the same Key of Knowledge that unlocks the meaning of the scriptures, to unlock the three-dimensional prison in which we presently dwell.   Moreover, it is this same Key of Knowledge that when properly applied in our lives, permits our minds to evolve out of the embryonic state of natural man, into an Anointed (Christ) and Illumined Son of our Heavenly Father -- who has, in the manner of the Prodigal Son, overcome this world and returned Home to the Kingdom from which we originally emanated.   What Origen makes reference to is the very essence to the enigma of mind that has confused and confounded all men in search of knowledge -- whether philosophical, secular or religious -- throughout all the ages.

What this also means is that both the Roman Church, as well as the modern-day intellectually elite, have all underestimated the true depth of mind of the Hebrew holy men and women.   In view of the fact that many modern-day Jews are Atheist -- and even Carl Marx himself was a Jewish Atheist -- it can be demonstrated that these great thinkers and philosophical icons of our modern culture threw away the very key to the essence of knowledge that they sought after.  

From a Christian perspective, the great truth that Origen conveys to us is the understanding that the Jews already possessed the Key of Knowledge prior to the time of Jesus -- but because the Sadducees and Pharisees failed to use this Key within themselves, and hindered the people of the common (Jewish) faith who attempted to use the scriptures in the manner that was intended, that for this reason Jesus condemned them as counterfeit leaders and false instructors whose study of the law would remain unfruitful.   Why are these words so important to us today?   Because the doctrines of the fourth-century Roman Church has in effect imbued us with the same exact error as those “teachers of the law” that Jesus condemned.   Moreover, once properly understood, it is seen that the very people who call themselves Christian today, continue to embrace the same exact error as did the Sadducees, Pharisees, the Church of Rome, Carl Marx, Darwin, and the majority of our societies cultural philosophers who the Apostle Paul condemns as promoting the false wisdom of this world.  

With respect to the Key of Knowledge, Origen then goes on to explain: “But, as we had begun to observe, the way which seems to us the correct one for the understanding of the Scriptures, and for the investigation of their meaning, we consider to be of the following kind: for we are instructed by Scripture itself in regard to the ideas which we ought to form of it. In the Proverbs of Solomon we find some such rule as the following laid down, respecting the consideration of holy Scripture: ‘And do thou,’ he says, ‘describe these things to thyself in a threefold manner, in counsel and knowledge, and that thou mayest answer the words of truth to those who have proposed them to thee’.”  

Only when we begin to understand these biblical concepts are we able to perceive the wisdom behind the commandment to be in the world and not of it!   Moreover, so long as we attempt to cling to the thinking and natural human understanding of this world, we can never be anything more than cultural Christians who are being nourished by what the Apostle calls the “milk” of the gospel -- never perceiving or understanding the Mysteries of God or the Spiritual and Genuine Gospel of Christ.  

It is the Genuine Christian who has become enlightened by the indwelling Anointing of the Light, who will perceive that this same Key of Knowledge with respect to the threefold nature of the written word not only applies to the scriptures, but to every facet of our lives.   Evidence that this threefold nature is not limited to the Bible, and is present throughout every aspect of creation is seen in Seiss' Apocalypse for Revelation 1:17-20, where it is written with regard to the number three: “As such, it has also been done in all God's works. Man is body, soul, and spirit -- three-one. The family is man, and wife, and offspring -- three-one. Religion is knowledge, action, and experience -- three-one”.   What Seiss is saying is that if we desire to escape the error of the Sadducees and Pharisees, we must recognize that this genetic threefold imprint of God is seen throughout every aspect of Creation.   Ultimately, Seiss conveys to us the wisdom of the ancients with the acknowledgment of “man, and wife, and offspring”, and especially when perceived universally as the positive, negative and balance -- or offspring of the two primary forces of Creation -- wherein when properly understood, lies the Key of Knowledge.  

What this means is that in every aspect of our lives we are living out the Divine Genetic Pattern with which all of Creation has been imbued, and we only need to become conscious of the forces at work in our lives, and then apply the formula in accordance with the teachings of the New Covenant.   The more we apply the formula, the more we develop from our embryonic state of mind.   As we become mature, the First Force of Creation -- i.e., the Word -- can instruct us into all the Mysteries of God.

At Psalms 119:18 where it is written: “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law” (RSV), these wondrous truths that the eyes must be opened to are not easily perceived.   On this word that we interpret “wondrous”, Brown-Driver-Briggs' Definition tells us that what is contained is “beyond one's power, to be difficult to do... to be difficult to understand... extraordinary or hard or difficult thing...”

A very important biblical concept is revealed by the Prophet Isaiah in the words: “For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered. And the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot; for it is sealed: And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned. Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men” (Isa 29:10-13 KJV).

With regard to the statement that the inner and true meaning of the scriptures are hidden from the mind of man by the Hand of God, the Commentary Barnes' Notes writes: “The vision of all the prophets; that is, all the revelations which God has made to you. The prophet refers not only to his own communications, but to those of his contemporaries, and of all who had gone before him. The sense is, that although they had the communications which God had made to them, yet they did not understand them. They were as ignorant of their true nature as a man who can read is of the contents of a letter that is sealed up, or as a man who cannot read is of the contents of a book that is handed to him”.

If we say that we desire to be disciples of the Truth, and commence our journey into the Light, then it is absolutely necessary that we begin with the recognition of the barrier that obstructs our path.   It is no different than if we started a business -- or any other endeavor where there are obstacles that must be overcome.   Truth belongs only to those who are willing to seek it.  

In order for us to commence our journey as a disciple of the Light, and open our minds to the higher truths of the spirit, we must start the process by asking the question: Why was the genuine spiritual revelation of the scriptures closed to the people, their religious leaders, and their prophets?   If we are to find success in our journey, then we must understand the reason why the Bible states that God intentionally concealed the true meaning of the written word?   The key to the great dilemma is found in the words that they permitted themselves to be “taught by the precept of men” (Isa 29:13).  

Thus, one of the most profound questions that affects every person today: Why is teaching others philosophical truths as we routinely do today considered such a sin from a biblical perspective?   How else are we to instruct and educate our children but to send them to school?   How else are we to learn and improve ourselves but to study the wisdom of the great minds of our society?   How else are we to learn the word of God but to attend study groups and learn the meaning of the scriptures?  

In view of the fact that study and instruction can be very important, the answer to these questions are not easy for us to understand and embrace.   True learning and knowledge can never be embraced through instruction alone -- but rather, through instruction that conveys knowledge in its true threefold form, along with the means to manifest this instruction and knowledge in our daily lives.   If it is the purpose of instruction to grow our level of consciousness, then we must learn to apply the Key of Knowledge to our thoughts, as well as every aspect of our lives.   As we read the scriptures the most important interpretation is the one that we see with our own mind.   When we take the thoughts of another person and memorize their thoughts, and attempt to make them our own, we totally negate the power of the written word, as well as the soul and the spirit to instruct us.   Thus the words of Jesus towards those who teach a doctrinal interpretation of the scriptures: “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are” (Matt 23:15 NIV).  

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To contact the author: Allan_Cronshaw@nazirene.org