Who is your enemy?

I’ve been reading a great article that I find so apropos to the things going on in the world today. It’s entitled “Truth Handles Crime“.

I have learned from this article is that no person, neighbor or nation is our enemy. Mankind, as the spiritual image and likeness of God, is wholly spiritual, good, trustworthy, and honest. The only enemy we have is what the King James Version of the Bible terms the “carnal mind” (Romans 8:7).

The carnal mind tells us lies about ourself and our neighbor.  It tells you that you are jealous, evil, stupid, worthless, incapable, etc. It often comes in the pronouns “I am” (sick, fearful, tired, sensual, angry, unsatisfied) or “they are”(mean, spiteful, trying to take away what is mine/out to get me).

These lies are the enemy. They are trying to defile the Christlike image of God. And these lies have no power because they are not true. When one of these evil “suggestions” comes to our consciousness, we need to recognize what it is, where it is coming from, see that it is a lie and has no power (and not let it in to our thought).

The Bible tells us that “I am” is the name of God. This means “I am” can only be associated with God and His likeness – that which is  good, loving, kind, compassionate, strong, trustworthy, eternal, honest, productive, and healthy. This is true of each of us; we naturally express and embody these qualities and inherently want to know/do good.

The article states:

“As we understand these things clearly, we cease to regard each other as enemies. We no longer think that we must get rid of individuals or groups who seem to menace harmony. We refrain from fearing our neighbors and do not appear dangerous to them. It will become increasingly plain to all men that the only agressor there is, is mortal mind, and that it is an illusion. Then its suppositional acts of trespass, invasion, deceit, and destruction will no more have power to harm us, and will cease to seem to occur.”

I believe that holding to the true image of men and women in God’s image and likeness, detecting and uncovering mortal mind/the carnal mind, is what will aid us in overcoming political unrest, a desire to terrorize, feeling impoverished and anything else that would suggest the hate, division and unworthiness of groups or individuals.

Unity is our natural state of being


This morning I was praying and awakening to a spiritual sense of unity.

Unity is the natural state to all of us. We are united by the very Source of our being.
So any sense, or temptation, of discord and division is an illusion.
These temptations or divisiveness can only scratch the surface. It can never touch the depth of being or change the spiritual reality of who we all are. I find great comfort in this and it helps me see clearly through these illusions.

Christ Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”¹

I thought this Beatitude meant to avoid conflict; we’ve all known or been one of those people who avoid conflict, or are more passive. But actually this Beatitude now means to me that even in the face of conflict we are seeing the real depth of being, the true spiritual reality or substance that comes from our Source, is not conflicted and is totally at peace. This change in consciousness is powerful. It reminds me of the story in the Bible where Jesus is attacked by an angry mob. Their intention is to push him over a cliff. The Bible says:

“All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff. But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.”²

Isn’t this true peace? Seeing anything that presents a lie of discord, anger, hatred is not true, is not from Deity and therefore has no power? Jesus didn’t react, and he didn’t allow this incident to corrupt his view of God’s spiritual image and likeness. He recognized it for what it was: the “carnal mind”.

“The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.”³

So today I am praying about the deep unity of being; the unity of all of us. And recognizing that there is no power which can divide or separate us from one another. 

_________________________

¹NIV The Bible, Matthew 5:9
² NIV The Bible, Luke 4:28-30
³ NIV The Bible, Romans 8:7