Trust Your Inner Wisdom?

Trust your “inner wisdom” is a lot like Joseph Campbell’s dictum follow your bliss. It sounds good on the surface, but it can just as likely lead us away from the Christ within as lead us toward our divinity and life’s purpose. This is because wisdom is not planted inside us like a burning bush but a mustard seed–a seed which takes years of learning, living, and loving for it to bloom up with fire. The seed of our inner wisdom also demands that we dissipate the cloud cover of our egos which so often stunts its growth and blurs its message.

Jesus’s wisdom, we are told, grew as he grew in years.¹ It was only after he had surpassed the wisdom of King Solomon² and put the devil (ego) behind him in the wilderness of his soul that he fully trusted his inner wisdom and began his ministry in earnest.

Inner wisdom is not downloaded from On High. It is a process of coalescing, of unification. Buddha’s enlightenment under the Bodhi tree didn’t arrive like a thunderbolt from the heavens. It was a coalescing of all his past meditations, learning, and experiences: all of the pieces of the puzzle suddenly fell into place. But before that could happen, Buddha had to collect all those pieces of knowledge. And that took time, patience, and diligence.

So, by all means do look toward your inner wisdom for guidance. But remember that there are many inner voices battling for your attention. Don’t trust the voice that you think is your “inner wisdom” blindly. Enter into a dialogue with it. Make sure the road it is calling you on has a heart. And look for the traps that your pride and ego sets along the way.

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1. Jesus grew in wisdom as he grew in years, and gained the blessing of God and men. – Mark 2:52 [↩]
2. She came from the very ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon; and here is more than a Solomon! – Luke 11:31 [↩]

Luke – Gospel 17 – The Kingdom of God is Within You

Jesus said to his disciples: “It is inevitable that there should be snares; yet woe to you who is answerable for them! 2 It would be better for you to be flung into the sea with a mill-stone round your neck, than that you should prove a snare to even one of these lowly ones. 3 Be on your guard! If your brother does wrong, reprove him; but if he repents, forgive him. 4 Even if he wrongs you seven times a day, but turns to you every time and says ‘I am sorry,’ you must forgive him.”

5 “Give us more faith,” said the apostles to the Master; 6 But the Master said: “If your faith were only like a mustard-seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be up-rooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.”

7 “Which of you, if you had a servant ploughing, or tending the sheep, would say to him when he came in from the fields, ‘Come at once and take your place at table,’ 8 Instead of saying, ‘Prepare my dinner, and then make yourself ready and wait on me while I am eating and drinking, and after that you shall eat and drink yourself’? 9 Does he feel grateful to his servant for doing what he is told? 10 And so with you—when you have done all that you have been told, still say, ‘We are but useless servants; we have done no more than we ought to have done.’”

11 On the way to Jerusalem Jesus passed between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was entering a village, ten lepers met him. 13 Standing still, some distance off, they called out loudly: “Jesus! Sir! Pity us!” 14 When Jesus saw them, he said: “Go and show yourselves to the priest.” And, as they were on their way, they were made clean.

15 One of them, finding he was cured, came back, praising God loudly, 16 And threw himself on his face at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done; and this man was a Samaritan. 17 “Were not all the ten made clean?” asked Jesus. “But the nine, where are they? 18 Were there none to come back and praise God except this foreigner? 19 Get up,” he said to him, “and go on your way. Your faith has delivered you.”

20 Being once asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was to come, Jesus answered: “The kingdom of God does not come in a way that admits of observation, 21 Nor will people say ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There it is!’ for the kingdom of God is within you!”

22 “The day will come,” he said to his disciples, “when you will long to see but one of the days of the Son of Man, and will not see it. 23 People will say to you, ‘There he is! or ‘Here he is!’ Do not go and follow them. 24 For, just as lightning will lighten and flare from one side of the heavens to the other, so will it be with the Son of Man.”

25 “But first he must undergo much suffering, and he must be rejected by the present generation. 26 As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be again in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking and marrying and being married, up to the very day on which Noah entered the ark, and then the flood came and destroyed them all.”

28 “So, too, in the days of Lot. People were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building; 29 But, on the very day on which Lot came out of Sodom, it rained fire and sulphur from the skies and destroyed them all. 30 It will be the same on the day on which the Son of Man reveals himself. 31 On that day, if you are on your house-top and your goods are in the house, you must not go down to get them; nor if you are on a farm should you turn back.”

32 “Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever is eager to get the most out of his life will lose it; but whoever will lose it shall preserve it. 34 On that night, I tell you, there shall be two in one bed, the one will be taken and the other left; 35 Two shall be grinding together, one will be taken and the other left. 36 Two shall be in the field, the one taken and the other left.

37 “Where will it be, Master?” interposed the disciples. “Where there is a body,” said Jesus, “‘there will the vultures flock.’”

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To read the next chapter of the Book of Luke, please go to The Gospel of Luke – 18.

This Online New Testament Gospel of Luke is excerpted from the book The Living Hour: The Lord’s Prayer for Daily Life (with New Century Gospels). Including over 200 bookmarked citations from the canonical Gospels, this Progressive Christian book appeals to the Unitarian spirit at the heart of all faiths.

Challenge your perceptions on the Gospel of Christ, Jesus’s parables, and the Kingdom of God by purchasing The Lord’s Prayer book today. Produced by LivingHour.org, a Thailand-based small press dedicated to publishing unique Learn Thai Language books and eBooks, as well as works on progressive spirituality.

Mark – Gospel 4 – Parable of Mustard Seed

Jesus again began to teach by the sea; and, as an immense crowd was gathering round him, he got into a boat, and sat in it on the sea, while all the people were on the shore at the water’s edge. 2 Then he taught them many truths in parables; and in the course of his teaching he said to them: 3 “Listen! The sower went out to sow; 4 And while sowing, some of the seed fell along the path; and the birds came, and ate it up.

5 Some fell on rocky ground, where it had not much soil, and, having no depth of soil, sprang up at once; 6 But, when the sun rose, it was scorched, and, having no root, withered away. 7 Some of the seed fell among brambles; but the brambles shot up and completely choked it, and it yielded no return. 8 Some fell into good soil, and, shooting up and growing, yielded a return, amounting to thirty, sixty, and even a hundred fold.” 9 And Jesus said: “Let anyone who has ears to hear with hear.”

10 Afterwards, when he was alone, his followers and the twelve asked him about his parables; 11 And he said: “To you the hidden truth of the kingdom of God has been imparted; but to those on the outside, teaching takes the form of parables, 12 That ‘though they have eyes, they may see without perceiving; and though they have ears, they may hear without understanding; lest some day they should turn and be forgiven.’” 13 He then went on to ask them: “Do you not know the meaning of this parable? Then how will you understand all the other parables? 14 The sower sows the message.”

15 “The people meant by the seed that falls along the path are those where the message is sown, but, as soon as they have heard it, Satan immediately comes and carries away the message that has been sown in them. 16 So, too, those meant by the seed sown on the rocky places are the people who, when they have heard the message, at once accept it joyfully; 17 But, as they have no root, they stand only for a short time; and so, when trouble or persecution arises on account of the message, they fall away at once.”

18 “Those meant by the seed sown among the brambles are different; they are the people who hear the message, 19 But the cares of life, and the glamour of wealth, and cravings for many other things come in and completely choke the message, so that it gives no return. 20 But the people meant by the seed sown on the good ground are those who hear the message, and welcome it, and yield a return, thirty, sixty, and even a hundred fold.”

21 And Jesus said to them: “Is a candle brought to be put under a blanket or under a couch, instead of being put on candlestick? 22 Nothing is hidden unless some day it comes to light, nor was anything ever kept hidden but that it should some day come into the light of day. 23 Let all who have ears to hear with hear.”

24 “Take care what you listen to,” said Jesus. “The measure you mete will be meted out to you, and more will be added for you. 25 For, to those who have, more will be given; while, from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.” 26 Jesus also said: “This is what the kingdom of God is like: like a farmer who has scattered seed on the ground, 27 And then sleeps by night and rises by day, while the seed is shooting up and growing, he knows not how. 28 The ground bears the crop of itself: first the blade, then the ear, and then the full grain in the ear; 29 But, as soon as the crop is ready, immediately he puts in the sickle because harvest has come.”

30 Jesus also said: “To what can we liken the kingdom of God? 31 By what can we illustrate it? Perhaps by the growth of a mustard-seed. This seed, when sown in the ground, though it is smaller than all other seeds, 32 Yet, when sown, shoots up, and becomes larger than any other herb, and puts out great branches, so that even ‘the wild birds can roost in its shelter.’” 33 With many such parables Jesus used to speak to the people of his message, as far as they were able to receive it; 34 And to them he never used to speak except in parables; but in private to his own disciples he explained everything.

35 In the evening of the same day, Jesus said to them: “Let us go across.” 36 So, leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them, just as he was, in the boat; and there were other boats with him. 37 A violent squall came on, and the waves kept crashing into the boat, so that the boat was actually filling. 38 Jesus was in the stern asleep upon the cushion; and the disciples roused him and cried: “Teacher! Is it nothing to you that we are lost?”

39 Jesus rose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea: “Hush! Be still!” Then the wind dropped, and a great calm followed. 40 “Why are you so timid?” he exclaimed. “Have you no faith yet?” 41 But they were struck with great awe, and said to one another: “Who can this be that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

To read the next chapter of the Book of Mark, please go to The Gospel of Mark – 5.

This Online New Testament Gospel of Mark is excerpted from the book The Living Hour: The Lord’s Prayer for Daily Life (with New Century Gospels). Including over 200 bookmarked citations from the canonical Gospels, this Progressive Christian book appeals to the Unitarian spirit at the heart of all faiths.

Challenge your perceptions on the Gospel of Christ, Jesus’s parables, and the Kingdom of God by purchasing The Lord’s Prayer book today. Produced by LivingHour.org, a Thailand-based small press dedicated to publishing unique Learn Thai Language books and eBooks, as well as works on progressive spirituality.

The Kingdom, The Power, & The Glory

For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory. Forever, Amen. The Lord’s Prayer began by grounding us in our relationship with the Father, and it ends now by solidifying our faith in that kinship. We have already talked about how the kingdom, power, and the glory of God are played out within the living hour; but most of us are not satisfied with this daily bread. We want to know that there is a divine plan, with a definitive beginning and end, that’s been arranged by the Father.

Our desire to see the culmination of God’s plan is what led Jesus’s early Jewish followers to believe that he was an earthly messiah. And it is what fuels today such false beliefs as the rapture and Jesus’s second-coming out of the clouds. Without an end-game in place, we find our faith under assault, (1) as we try to make sense of a world filled with horrors, suffering, and loss. Yet it is precisely this lack of knowledge in God’s final act (like our uncertainty in what happens to us after we die) that creates the condition which rewards those with the faith of but a mustard seed.

If we are to acquire that life giving faith, and get glimpses of the Father’s divine plan, we must take a “big picture” view of our lives and the history of the world. This means letting go of human time and entering God time. With human time we focus on beginnings and ends, and see time as a product that can be saved, lost, and spent. And we view morality within the limits of those human constraints. But with God time we are dealing with a cyclical ebb and flow that cannot be pinned down–and where moral reckoning occurs on a timeline that far exceeds an individual lifetime.

Our life in Christ is beyond beginnings and ends–which is why Jesus says that he existed before Abraham (2) and his words will live on even after heaven and earth pass away. (3)

This is an excerpt from Chapter 12 of the book The Living Hour: The Lord’s Prayer for Daily Life (with New Testament Gospels). An SBNR faith book especially suited for Progressive Christianity workshops, Bible Study Groups, Unitarian Christians, and all who seek a richer life. The book’s SBNR (Spiritual But Not Religious) meditation is richly supported by over 200 Gospel book citations.

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To read thoughts on the current state of Christianity from a Progressive Christian and Unitarian perspective, please go to: Where is Our Joy?