"Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God." (Luke 6:20)

Does this mean that anyone who is poor gets to go to heaven? And what about someone who has some money in the bank? Do they have to lose all their money to get back to the spiritual realm?

To understand Jesus' statement we must first understand its context. Here are the verses just prior to Jesus' statement:

One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles: Simon (whom he named Peter), his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. He went down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coast of Tyre and Sidon, who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by evil spirits were cured, and the people all tried to touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all. Looking at his disciples, he said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God." (Luke 6:13-20)

How did Jesus get his power?

Here we can see that Jesus' power and authority came from the Supreme Being, as he prayed in private prior to his sermons and healings.

Jesus also empowered his disciples, as we can see from the histories of Peter, James, John, and others.

Jesus had many disciples. A disciple is someone who has devoted his or her life to the teachings of their spiritual teacher. This process has been accepted amongst all scriptures of the world from ancient times, and this process was carried on by Jesus who was a disciple of John the Baptist, John who was a disciple of Zachariah, Solomon who was a disciple of David, David who was a disciple of Samuel, Samuel who was a disciple of Eli, Joshua who was a disciple of Moses, Jacob who was a disciple of Abraham and many in between.

We can also see from these verses that Jesus selected twelve disciples as "apostles."

What is the difference between Jesus' disciples and his twelve apostles?

This begs the question about the real role of the "twelve apostles". Were they really to be considered above Jesus' other disciples?

The word "apostle" in the above verse comes from the Greek word ἀπόστολος (apostolos), which means, according to the Greek lexicon, "a delegate, messenger, one sent forth with orders."

Does this mean that Jesus' other disciples were not also given the wisdom of Jesus' teachings, and the ability to pass those teachings on to others? Certainly not. Any of Jesus' students, assuming they submitted themselves to the Supreme Being as Jesus instructed them, could be empowered to pass on Jesus' teachings.

Note also that Jesus' statement was directed at his disciples: Looking at his disciples, he said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God."

This illustrates that even though Jesus had selected twelve to work closely with him, he was directing his teachings to all of his students.

Since we know that Jesus had many other disciples, all of whom are being taught his teachings, and could thus pass those teachings on to others, we can know that this role of "apostle" is more of an administrative position.

It is not as if Jesus selected these disciples because God discriminates between people. We might, for example, consider Mary and her sister Martha, who were also disciples, yet they were women. They were also very close to Jesus as documented elsewhere - specifically in the raising of Lazarus - and yet they were not part of the twelve. Does this mean that Jesus did not consider women able to be teachers?

Certainly not. The twelve apostles, in fact, were students who were able to conduct business on behalf of Jesus. They were able to arrange for his speaking engagements and his meals and lodgings as they traveled from town to town. They were men because during those times men typically conducted business.

There is clear scriptural evidence that after Jesus left this world, Mary Magdalene became a leading teacher among early Christianity. This notion was snuffed by the Roman-empire surrogates of the early church, as they tried to make Mary out to be a prostitute.

The Supreme Being does not discriminate. He wants all of us back, regardless of the physical body we wear. And He will also utilize any of His devoted servants, regardless of their temporary physical body, to pass on His message.

This leads us to Jesus' statement. Does God give more favor to those who have less money in the bank? Does having less money or possessions give us more rights to the spiritual realm?

What did Jesus mean by "poor"?

This leads us to ask what Jesus meant by "poor" if indeed he said poor. Does "poor" mean having less than $5,000 in savings? Or less than $1,000? Or does it mean having no place to live? Or perhaps it means only having a 2-bedroom house instead of the 4-bedroom house?

Or perhaps it only means being homeless and having no job, or having a job that pays little or nothing? This would qualify an inmate in a penitentiary, thrown in jail for stealing or murdering someone as "yours is the kingdom of God." Does that make sense?

We have to accept that Jesus was not speaking of "poor" with respect to money. In fact, the word "poor" is being translated from the Greek word πτωχός (ptōchos), which relates to lacking in either wealth, influence, position, honor" according to the lexicon. This can either relate to a person's standings in society or "their spirit."

In other words, the word can relate to being humble either by means of wealth, or being humble in spirit. This latter context is the point of Jesus' statement.

Was Jesus actually speaking of humility?

We can confirm that this statement by Jesus has been significantly mistranslated. Its more appropriate translation - as reflected in the Lost Gospels of Jesus - should be:

“Blessed are you who are humble, for the sanctuary of God is yours."

Humility is the first characteristic required for entering the spiritual realm (the kingdom of God). The kingdom of God is that place where God is honored, loved, cared for, and served. Each of these comes from a place of humility.

One cannot truly honor God if they are thinking themselves somehow special or privileged. They cannot think of themselves as great and at the same time consider God great. It is one or the other. Either we think we are great or we honor God as great.

Didn't Jesus exercise humility?

We can see that Jesus practiced humility himself from the excerpt above:

One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. (Luke 6:12)

Spending the night praying to God is an exercise of humility. The act of prayer is in itself humility. As we pray, we are committing ourselves in one respect or another to the Supreme Being as being Supreme, and being the subject of our honor and respect. True prayer - as opposed to prayers that simply ask for stuff as though God is our servant - requires humility.

Humility is the key to the spiritual realm because real love requires humility. Just consider what a man does when he has some glimpse of love for a woman: He will humbly go and buy her flowers or some gift. A man must have a little humility to buy a woman flowers. Or a father might go to a dance recital for his daughter. Would a typical man show up at a dance recital? Most men wouldn't be caught dead in a dance recital. Yet a father would show up, as his love for his daughter bears humility.

Love for the Supreme Being is greater than all these examples because a person must accept that God owns everything, and God controls everything. Where does that leave us? Can we claim "champion of the world" with this in mind? Can we proclaim our superiority when everything we have has been given to us by the Supreme Being?

For these reasons and more, Jesus was trying to teach his students the meaning of humility. This was illustrated by those who were sick who humbled themselves before Jesus in order to be healed. And even those who were appointed as his special administrators - "apostles" - were not superior to anyone else. They were Jesus' servants, and they took care of his needs.

Is this the same as acting humble?

It is important to differentiate between acting humble and the humility that Jesus was teaching. Jesus spoke out clearly and sometimes forcefully to make his points. But he also knelt down to his knees and prayed to God, asking God:

“My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.” (Matthew 26:39)

To ask God to let us do His will is real humility.

As far as wealth and standing in the community, we know that some of Jesus' disciples were wealthy, such as Joseph of Arimathea, who arranged a tomb for Jesus' body. We know from this and other students that Jesus did not demand that people gave away their physical possessions - though he did test a particularly wealthy person one time.

If Jesus demanded that people give everything away, why did Jesus wear a robe? Why did he accept Mary's expensive ointment massage on his head and feet?

Rather, Jesus wanted his students to offer whatever they had been given in this life to God, including their most valuable resources, time and energy.

This is the exercise of real humility according to Jesus' teachings and example.

In order to enter into the kingdom of God that Jesus offers to us, we must - regardless of our position in society and our relative wealth - become humble, knowing that everything comes from God, and that we are completely dependent upon the Supreme Being.

"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye ..." (Luke 6:41-42)

"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,' when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." (Luke 6:41-42)

Why do we criticize others for our own faults?

Throughout society, we are quick to judge others and criticize others for their various faults. In fact, we often are most critical for those faults in others that we ourselves have.

The very fact that we can see those faults in others typically reflects that we ourselves have those very faults. There is in fact, a saying about this, that "it takes one to know one."

Our realization of fault in others lies in our awareness that this is indeed a fault. How would we think that this is a fault unless we saw it within ourselves?

There are two types of judgments a person may make: The first is a judgment coming from a place of feeling superior to others - feeling we are in a position to judge others.

This first type - rooted in the position of feeling we are superior to others - is the first fault we, in fact, see in ourselves that we reflect onto others. This is why we will more harshly condemn those who portray themselves as superior to others. We are quick to strike back at them because we see their demeanor of superiority.

Why are we so quick to lash out and criticize someone who acts with such a demeanor? Because we see that very same demeanor within ourselves, and we have disdain for that.

Why is our disdain for others actually disdain for ourselves?

If we did not have such disdain against this superiority mentality within us, we would only feel sorry for such a person having that issue. We would not need to lash out at them and criticize them.

And deep within we feel disdain for our feelings of superiority because this is not our true nature. Our true nature is humble.

But because we unconsciously hold with disdain our own feeling of superiority, we are ready to quickly lash out at others who portray such symptoms, even in small amounts.

From this fulcrum we are ready to lash out in so many ways, being super-critical of how our friends, family, workmates and even media personalities act. We are ready to pounce upon their every move and action, all stemming from this disdain regarding our feelings of superiority.

This feeling of superiority, in fact, is our greatest disease; and it is the very disease that got us thrown out of the spiritual realm in the first place. This feeling of superiority is linked with self-centeredness - feeling that we are the most important person.

Why is humility so important in spiritual life?

Humility is the consciousness of heaven. The community of the spiritual realm is completely opposite to this consciousness. This is our real family. The family of our physical body is temporary - and lasts only as long as the body lasts. But the family of the spiritual realm is eternal.

Our brothers and sisters within the spiritual realm - our real family - naturally put themselves below everyone else. While we like to put ourselves above others, they put themselves at the bottom. This is called real humility.

The fact that real humility is the consciousness of the spiritual realm has been taught by Jesus elsewhere, such as:

"I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." (Matt. 18:3)

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matt. 5:3)

In both of these statements, Jesus is portraying the spiritual world - the "kingdom of heaven" - as a place where its citizens are humble. Jesus compared them to the consciousness of some young children who obviously were portraying humility as they looked up to others.

Yet we do not need to become artificially humble. This has no benefit. Such a person who acts humble so everyone will respect them for their humility is simply playing a game. It is superficial.

However, if a person is sincere in their approach to the Supreme Being, they can develop real humility when they begin to get a glimpse of the greatness of God. As they see God's incredible personality - His graciousness, His unconditional love and forgiveness, His beauty, His kindness, His thoughtfulness and His care for everyone, we automatically are humbled by this.

We become humbled when we understand our true identity - not these physical bodies nor the roles they play in the physical world. When we realize that we are spiritual children of the Supreme Being - created to be His loving caregiver. With this realization comes real humility.

What does humility have to do with God?

True humility awakens our relationship with God. Real humility opens us up to the blessings of God and God's representatives, because God can see our hearts at every moment. When we are feeling superior to others and being judgmental of others, He knows we need lots of rehabilitation, for we are far from the consciousness of the spiritual realm - our pure consciousness. But should we remain determined, and we slowly advance in our desire to be with Him, He opens up to us more and more, and this increasingly sheds our feelings of superiority.

And it is only in this state - of feeling we are lower than others - that we can help others. It is only when we "clearly see" our own faults, knowing we need God's help, that we can be of service to others. This Jesus explained when he said:

"If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all." (Mark 9:25)

It is only when a person sees themselves as a servant of others and a servant of the Supreme Being can they truly help others. This is because there is only one person who is qualified to judge others, and that is God. If we are serving God, and providing a service to others, we are then able to truly discern what is pleasing to God versus what is not pleasing.

Only in that condition can we truly provide assistance to others by pointing out activities that are pleasing to God, discerning those from activities that are not pleasing to Him. This of course, is how Jesus and so many of the prophets - as well as Jesus' own students - were able to appropriately criticize those ecclesiastical Jewish scribes and their institutions. Their critical statements stemmed from their service to the Supreme Being. They were providing a service to God and to others by clarifying what pleases God and what doesn't.

Remember that Jesus is speaking here with his students, and he expects them to one day carry his message forth to others. This will require that they re-establish their own humble relationships with the Supreme Being. Jesus wants them to reach this state of "seeing clearly," so they can help others, in order to "remove the speck from your brother's eye."

Reaching this point of humble service ("seeing clearly") requires a determined process of following the instructions put forth by God's representatives. Jesus clearly indicated and practiced this process: praying to God, praising God, offering to God and giving oneself to God. These are the processes to achieve the goal Jesus and Moses both laid out, which is the ultimate consciousness of real humility:

"'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'" (Luke 10:27 and Deuteronomy 6:5)

"I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John ..." (Luke 7:28)

"I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he." (Luke 7:28)

Was Jesus devoted to John the Baptist?

Jesus' statement indicates clearly that Jesus was devoted to his teacher John the Baptist.

"I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John" clearly indicates Jesus' devotion and esteem towards John. Yet many institutional teachers completely ignore this humble attribute by Jesus as they pronounce that Jesus could not be including himself - that he could not possibly be saying that John was greater than himself.

Yet this is precisely what Jesus is saying. Was Jesus' physical body not also born "of women"? Was he not the son of Mary? And did Mary not give birth to Jesus? This is clearly documented in the Gospels.

This most certainly means that Jesus is paying homage to and honoring his spiritual teacher as being the greatest teacher, and greater than himself.

Was John Jesus' teacher?

How do we know this? Consider the rite and meaning of baptism. Originally, baptism was a ceremony symbolizing a follower's acceptance of a particular teacher. This is clearly documented in the case of Jesus:

Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. (Matt. 3:13)

At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. (Mark 1:9)

John also baptized many others:

The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. (Mark 1:5)

And Jesus was among them:

When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. (Luke 3:21)

In fact, many of those who were in the crowd listening to Jesus' teachings were John's disciples, as we find these two verses directly following Jesus statement above in Luke 7:28:

(All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus' words, acknowledged that God's way was right, because they had been baptized by John. But the Pharisees and the experts in the law rejected God's purpose for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John.) (Luke 7:28)

So we can see clearly that at least in that region, John had many disciples, and Jesus was among them. And John would not have been baptizing if he didn't understand himself to be a bonafide teacher and representative of God. We can see this within this statement:

Even tax collectors came to be baptized. "Teacher," they asked, "what should we do?" (Luke 3:12)

This indicates that along with their baptism they were accepting John as their spiritual teacher. They were ready to take instruction from him.

We can also see the esteemed position required to baptize others during those times with this statement:

Now the Pharisees who had been sent questioned him, "Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?" (John 1:25)

This indicates that John was admitting himself to be a spiritual teacher and God's representative by exercising the rite of baptism and thereby accepting students.

What is baptism?

We can also see that baptism is none other than the rite of anointing as described in the Old Testament:

"Anoint them just as you anointed their father, so they may serve me as priests. Their anointing will be to a priesthood that will continue throughout their generations." (Exodus 40:15)

We can see this rite as Moses anointed Aaron:

He poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron's head and anointed him to consecrate him. (Lev. 8:12)

And we can see this rite as Samuel anointed David:

So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David. (1 Samuel 16:13)

These verses and others clearly indicate that anointing and baptizing are essentially the same in their symbolic meaning. They are both ceremonial rites that symbolize the student accepting the spiritual teacher as God's representative, and the spiritual teacher accepting the student as disciple.

And while some institutions like to say that becoming a priest requires a more official ceremony following baptism, this is merely pomp. It is not the reality. The reality is that anointing and baptizing are ceremonies that symbolize a person's accepting a spiritual teacher. Any student of a bonafide teacher can become a teacher. This was illustrated by Jesus himself as he told all his disciples to go out and teach others (see below).

And we see that anointing alone was a general rite required to become a priest (the word "father" in the verse below has been assumed from אב ('ab) but the Hebrew indicates this means mentor or teacher) with this instruction by God to Moses:

The priest who is anointed and ordained to succeed his father as high priest is to make atonement.  (Lev. 16:32)

As time went on, we see from the Old Testament that the Jewish temple institutions began to see anointing as the rite of passage to become a king. But this is completely negated by the early descriptions of anointing and David's many statements regarding how special those who have been anointed are to the Supreme Being:

"The LORD forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the LORD's anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the LORD." (1 Samuel 24:6)

and

But David said to Abishai, "Don't destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the LORD's anointed and be guiltless?" (1 Samuel 26:9)

Furthermore, the rite of baptism/anointing also represents the student committing their life to the teachings of the teacher - and this means (if the student is sincere) committing their life to the Supreme Being. This is why David was so respectful of Saul's having been anointed.

These verses and many others indicate that the anointing was specifically related to becoming a student of a spiritual teacher. Certainly, the word was also used to select or "anoint" a king. But this anointing was related to the fact that the king was expected to carry out the wishes of the Supreme Being. They weren't being anointed as a ruler. Kings were anointed into doing the will of God.

Many institutional teachers not only discount John's baptism: They also do not realize that baptism is a form of anointing, just as many prophets were anointed.

These teachers assume these verses indicate that John's baptisms were not potent. Why would John baptize so many people including Jesus then? Why did John even teach?

Many discount John's baptisms because he spoke of himself and his baptism humbly:

"I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." (Matt. 3:11)

"I baptize you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." (Mark 1:8)

"I baptize you with water. But One who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." (Luke 3:16)

"I baptize with water," John replied, "but among you stands One you do not know." (John 1:26)

Most misinterpret the phrase "But One who is more powerful than I will come" to mean someone who enters the scene later - as though it were a movie set or something. But this would contradict John's own statement saying that "but among you stands One you do not know" if we are talking about Jesus' coming arrival on the scene. This is confirmed by this clear statement four verses later:

When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. (Luke 3:21)

We can also know that John was not speaking of Jesus because John did not know Jesus' position. This is confirmed with this verse:

When the men came to Jesus, they said, "John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, 'Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?' " (Luke 7:20)

So who was John referring to when he spoke of "One who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie"?

In fact, the statements in Matt. 3:11, Mark 1:8, and John 1:26 are not speaking specifically of Jesus. These statements are indicating that it is the Supreme Being - God Himself - who renders real baptism. Yes, the "He" in "He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire" is none other than God. And "but among you stands one you do not know" is referring to the Supreme Being, who stands amongst all of us - but we do not see Him. We do not know Him. (This also relates to the teaching, "The kingdom of heaven is near.")

What does "come" mean?

We must understand the source and meaning of the word "come," as used multiple times in the context of Jesus' and John's teachings in the New Testament. This word "come" is translated from the Greek word ἔρχομαι (erchomai) which means, "to appear, make one's appearance" and "to come into being, arise, come forth, show itself, find place or influence" according to Thayer's lexicon.

The "appearance" of the Supreme Being takes place within our life and heart once we dedicate our life to God. Such a person comes to see God within, from a spiritual perspective. This is not the same as seeing with the physical eyes. It is seeing with the heart. In other to have such a vision of the Supreme Being, one's spiritual eyes must be opened. These are the eyes of love and humble loving service.

John was certainly humble about his own power. This is consistent among bonafide spiritual teachers. Jesus also indicated his humility when he told John's disciples: "Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me." (Luke 7:23)

And we must understand how God's representative sees himself. God's representative sees himself as a humble servant of the Supreme Being and God's representative. Jesus indicated this clearly when he said:

"My teaching is not my own. It comes from the One who sent me." (John 7:16)

and

"I am not here on my own authority, but He who sent me is true. You do not know Him" (John 7:28)

Notice how both Jesus and John spoke humbly about their own abilities, and they both attributed all their potency to the Supreme Being.

And those who have misinterpreted these glorious statements by John and Jesus are in fact trampling upon their humble statements, being blind to the very Supreme Being they were referring to.

Did Jesus pass on John's teachings?

We also can see from John's and Jesus' teachings that Jesus was, in fact, passing on John's teachings to others. Consider these three verses:

In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." (Matt. 3:1-2)

After Jesus' baptism from John, Jesus carried forth those teachings:

From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." (Matt. 4:17)

and Jesus also told his disciples to pass on these same teachings to others:

"As you go, preach this message: 'The kingdom of heaven is near.'" (Matt. 10:7)

The "message" "'The kingdom of heaven is near'" is obviously a generalization of their teachings, but the fact that not only did John and Jesus both teach it, but Jesus told his own students to teach it. Because we know that Jesus' disciples were to pass on Jesus' teachings, we can also know by these verses that Jesus was passing on John's teachings. This clearly indicates Jesus' relationship with John as his student.

What is the second lesson of Jesus' statement?

Now for the second lesson within Jesus' statement of Luke 7:28:

"yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he."

Is Jesus saying that John the Baptist was not the greatest person "born of women" as he indicated in the first part of this statement? Was he contradicting himself? Certainly not.

Jesus was trying to teach a great lesson here, one critical for his students to understand. When it comes to a bonafide spiritual leader or teacher - God's representative in other words - being the "greatest" is not comparable to being "greatest" as we consider it in the physical world.

In fact, so many people want to be great teachers. They strive for many followers and strive to earn a name and reputation for saving so many people. This goal, to become a great teacher, is in fact no different than wanting to be a movie star or a famous model, or even a president or an Olympic Gold Medal winner. These are all aspirations of empty hearts who want to fill our emptiness with the adoration of others.

We think that if we are adored by many people we will be happy, and fulfilled inside. Any real star, president or winner will tell you, however, that having the adoration of millions does not fulfill the emptiness within. And we can see that it doesn't by all the suicides and addictions among those who are famous. Becoming famous does not fulfill us - even if we become a famous preacher, minister, reverend or even pope.

This is because being great or famous is not our natural position. Our natural position is one of servant-caregiver. We are not happy being served and adored by many because this is not our natural position.

In fact, we are not these physical bodies at all. They are temporary vehicles we drive for a few years and then leave them at the time of death. Thus their identities are temporary as well. Just as a child can only be identified as a child for a few years, we can only be identified with our adult body - our jobs and positions - temporarily. Just talk to any elderly person. They will say: "When I was younger I was a fireman" or "when I was younger I was a lawyer." Their former identities were quite obviously temporary.

And when we leave our body behind at the time of death, we will leave our identification with it completely.

Yet we each have a spiritual identity that endures. Our spiritual identity is eternal. This is who we are inside.

This spiritual identity's natural position is servant-caregiver. We are only fulfilled when we are loving and serving the Supreme Being and His children.

This means that humility equates to greatness in the spiritual realm. This creates an opposite scenario compared to the physical world, where being great in the physical world means being puffed up and respected by others.

Being great in the spiritual realm is the opposite. Being great is related to one's level of humility and service to others. Therefore, the greatest in the spiritual realm are actually the most humble - feeling themselves the lowest instead of the greatest.

This is Jesus' lesson with this statement. He is trying to make sure his own disciples do not fall into the trap of desiring to become a great spiritual teacher. This was something Jesus condemned about the ecclesiastical Jewish teachers - the Pharisees, Sadducees and the High Priests. They were all vying for the top spiritual teacher post because they wanted to be respected and served by the public.

Meanwhile, Jesus' hope was that his students learned to love and humbly serve the Supreme Being:

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment." (Matt. 22:37-38)

“Whoever welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me ..." (Luke 9:48)

“Whoever welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the One who sent me. For it is the one who is least among you all who is the greatest.” (Luke 9:48)

Why isn't 'the One' capitalized?

In this and most other Biblical versions, "One" is not capitalized (it is added here). Why not?

Because they are ignoring the God that Jesus loved and served. Jesus is referring to the Supreme Being - "the One who sent me." Who else would Jesus be referring to? But because some institutions and their translators do not recognize that Jesus is God's representative - God's messenger - they have forgotten the very Supreme Being that Jesus is referring to here.

This is a continuation of the interpretation of Jesus' teachings as brought forward from the Councils of Nicea, during which Jesus became confused with the Supreme Being, and the Supreme Being Himself was all but left out of the teachings of many institutions.

They made Jesus out to be the Supreme Being and thus forgot the real Supreme Being.

They left out the very Supreme Being Jesus wanted us to focus upon, come to know, love, and serve.

They left out the very Supreme Being who sent Jesus.

We see the evidence of this in the most critical part of this statement:

Why does he say "whoever welcomes me"?

Jesus says, "whoever welcomes me welcomes the One who sent me"

The word "welcomes" comes from the Greek word δέχομαι (dechomai). This means "to receive" or "to embrace" or "to receive favorably" according to the lexicon. Jesus is speaking of those who were following Jesus, and apparently accepting and embracing Jesus' teachings. Jesus is trying to tell them that if they are receiving and accepting Jesus, then they are essentially accepting the Supreme Being - because that's who sent Jesus.

This is the crux of this statement. Jesus is referring to the "One who sent me" as the foundation for the meaning of this statement.

But Jesus is referring to himself here: Not an imaginary Jesus. If someone thinks they are speaking of Jesus or doing something in the name of Jesus and they are not including his relationship with the Supreme Being, their reference to Jesus is imaginary.

Jesus confirmed this when he said:

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’" (Matt. 7:21-23)

"I never knew you," Jesus states here. Even though they might be calling Jesus "Lord, Lord" as stated here by Jesus. Even though they may be performing many miracles such as healing the sick in Jesus' name. Even though they may be prophesizing in Jesus' name. Even though they may be driving out demons in Jesus' name.

Even though they are calling Jesus "Lord, Lord" and doing all these things in Jesus' name ("in your name") - as some institutions and their teachers are doing today - Jesus is stating that he "never knew you."

Why would Jesus deny these people? He states it clearly:

Why does Jesus say "Not everyone ..."?

In Matthew 7:21 above, Jesus says, "only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven."

Just as "whoever welcomes me welcomes the One who sent me" is the crux of Jesus' statement here in Luke 9:48, "only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven" is the crux of this statement.

Why? Because loving and serving the Supreme Being was the focus of Jesus' life. He refers to "the One who sent me" as his foundation because he loves the Supreme Being and is doing the will of the Supreme Being.

This means that Jesus is serving God. He is God's servant. And God's representative.

Let's use an example. Let's say that a candidate for office hires a press secretary and the press secretary comes out before the press to announce that the candidate is going to run in the next election, and he will be seeking votes.

But instead of the press and the public focusing their attention on the candidate - investigating his qualifications and so on - they hone in on the press secretary, and completely forget the candidate!

And then after a while of this, they begin to call the press secretary the candidate! Say this goes on to the point where the press secretary has to say something to the effect of, "if you won't focus your attention on the candidate then I want nothing to do with you." Why would he say that? Because his mission is to speak for the candidate. He is a messenger for the candidate. To then confuse him with the candidate completely messes up his purpose and mission. The press will be investigating the press secretary's qualifications instead of the candidates. They will screw up the election.

This is precisely what has happened among those institutions that followed the Roman tradition. These institutions and their teachers claim that Jesus is "God became man" - as if God ever becomes a man.

Isn't God is always God?

By definition, God must always be God.

This misunderstanding has created all sorts of misinterpretations about Jesus' teachings, and the teachings of the Prophets.

It has caused people to examine Jesus' life with incorrect assumptions. For example, thinking that God had to come down to the physical world and suffer for people's sins - as though God has to come under the rules of sacrifice: This is offensive to the Supreme Being.

God never has to sacrifice Himself to purify the sins of people. He can purify our sins with a simple thought.

And God does not need to come down to the earth and try to prove that He is God by doing healings and other miracles. God never has to prove Himself.

As they attempt to answer these questions, some doctrines hang on to the notion of a Trinity - God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.

And yes, if one is defining "God" as coming from the spiritual realm, then yes, all three can be God, as Jesus was sent from the spiritual realm.

But many ignore the separate and personal existence of the Father by conjuring God as some kind of vague force - who "becomes man" in Jesus. This completely misses the focus and mission of Jesus' teachings.

The only way someone can do the "will" of someone else is if that someone else is a person. The only way a person can be sent by someone else is if that sender is a person.

Can a vague force have a will?

No. And a vague force cannot send people.

Yet Jesus is clearly stating that God sent him. He is also clearly stating that we need to do God's will.

This means that God is a Person. He has a will. And He can send people.

Jesus also states:

“ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind" (Luke 10:27)

We can only love a person. We cannot love a vague force. Love requires first coming to know that person. This requires the person has to be knowable. And lovable.

This is what Jesus is trying to teach. He is teaching that God is knowable. He is teaching that God is loveable. He is teaching that we can please God by doing His will.

And once we understand this, we can now more thoroughly understand Jesus' statement in Luke 9:48.

Why were Jesus' disciples having a squabble?

Jesus is responding to a squabble that broke out between some of his disciples:

An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest. (Luke 9:46)

Then:

Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and had him stand beside him. (Luke 9:47)

Why did Jesus take hold of a child? Because children have no position in society. They are lacking prominence among people. Especially during that time, elders were respected as they were experienced. The squabble about being "the greatest" was about being respected by others. Children are typically not respected in that way because people assume that children have little if any experience in matters of life.

So Jesus took hold of a child and used that child to discuss respect.

Within the context of Jesus' statement, "welcomes" is a poor translation for the Greek word δέχομαι (dechomai) - which has also been translated to "receives" in other translations. According to the lexicon, the word also means "to receive favorably, give ear to, embrace, make one's own, approve, not to reject."

Wasn't Jesus referring to respect?

Jesus is talking about the approval of others. He is talking about being respected.

Otherwise, this statement by Jesus - following his disciples squabbling about who would be the greatest - would have little meaning. Thus a better translation, according to the Lost Gospels of Jesus, is:

““Whoever will respect this child for my sake respects me. And whoever respects me will respect Him who sent me"

This clarifies that Jesus is relating directly to what Jesus' disciples are looking for: respect. They want others to respect them. Each wants to be known as the greatest disciple.

Aren't most of us seeking the respect of others?

Does this remind us of anything? Yes, most certainly. This is what is going on all around us. Each of us is vying for the respect of others. We want to be seen as the "greatest" in something. Whether it is our job, our hobby, or even being a parent, we want others to respect and admire us. (Evidenced by the popularity of "Greatest Dad" mugs.)

And some will proclaim that "I am the greatest" in their particular hobby, sport, or profession. This is a huge fixation for those of us within the physical world. Why?

In fact, this is why we are here in the physical world in the first place. We want to be like God. We took our innate need to love God and turned it upon ourselves. This spawned our envy of God, because of course, God is the Supreme Being. He is the ultimate center of the universe. And we wanted those positions.

And this is why God sent us away from the spiritual realm into the physical world. He designed this world and we took on these physical bodies in order to enable our escape from Him. Here we get to pretend we are the center of the universe. Here we get to struggle for positions of authority and power.

Yet this is also a place of rehabilitation. The reason why we cannot hold onto our positions of authority is that they are facades. They are mirages. We think we are so respected but others just want to take our place. We think we are in a position of authority but it gets taken away within a few years when we are replaced by a younger "I am the greatest" seeker.

Are we servants by nature?

This is all meant to teach us that we aren't the greatest. We are, in fact, servants by nature. The Supreme Being created us as His loving servants. He created us to love Him and please Him.

But in order to truly love Him, He had to give us the choice to love Him or not. And those of us here in this rehab center - the physical world - are here because we chose not to love the Supreme Being.

You see, God does not force Himself upon anyone. He does not need us. If we don't want to love Him, He will disappear from our perception. This is why these physical eyes aren't designed to see Him. These physical bodies allow us to ignore God's existence. They allow us to pretend that we are "the greatest" for a while.

But notice that being "the greatest" doesn't satisfy us. It doesn't fulfill us. This is evidenced by the richest, most famous and most powerful people in the world, who remain unhappy and unfulfilled. The reason is that we simply are not "the greatest" by nature. We are servants by nature. We are loving servants, and we are happiest when we give and when we serve.

And God knows that we will only be happy when we are in our natural position of loving and serving Him. This is why He sent Jesus: To teach us that.

This is why Jesus says:

"For it is the one who is least among you all who is the greatest.”

Being "the least among you" means feeling oneself as the least important. It is only accomplished by seeing the Supreme Being as the greatest, and seeing others as greater than myself.

It is only accomplished by seeing the Supreme Being as the greatest because otherwise we simply fall into the trap of feeling that we are so great because we are so humble - a trap that many fall into.

The only way out of this trap is reality. The reality is that only God is the greatest. And when we see His position with respect to ours, we gain true humility. There is no pretending to be humble when we perceive God's greatness. There is no act. It is reality.

And once we see the reality of how great God is, we see how insignificant we are, and how fallen we have become. We begin to see our true selves: Our self-centeredness. Our constant seeking of respect and admiration because we think, I am so great.

"... do not take the place of honor ..." (Luke 14:8-10)

"When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, 'Give this person your seat.' Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, 'Friend, move up to a better place.' Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests." (Luke 14:8-10)

Why is Jesus saying this?

Jesus has sat down to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee and noticed that people selected the seats of honor:

When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: (Luke 14:7)

Is Jesus teaching about how to attend a wedding or how to sit down at a table? Is Jesus teaching them about wedding table manners?

Is Jesus teaching about table manners?

Jesus is not teaching table manners. And he is not teaching about how to respond to a wedding invitation.

Rather, Jesus' symbolic parable or analogy and his observation at the table represent a more important issue: How important do we see ourselves with respect to others. Do we think we are the most important person in the room? Do we think that we are the smartest person around?

Not wanting to take the place of honor means not seeing ourselves as the most important person. It is about respecting others, and accepting that others are important - and sometimes more deserving than we are.

This also relates to how we see ourselves in relation to the Supreme Being. Does God exist in order to serve me? Is His role to wait around until we pray to Him to ask Him to do something for us or our family? In other words, do we think God is our servant?

In other words, Jesus is suggesting that none of us are the center of the universe. The world does not revolve around me.

This relates directly to the symbolism that Jesus is using. Where one chooses to sit is symbolic. It symbolizes how we see ourselves in relation to others. And to the Supreme Being. A person who approaches with confidence - being judgmental and feeling important and significant, is equivalent to "those who exalt themselves" according to Jesus.

And the consequence for this consciousness is very clear according to Jesus: "For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled."

But those who see themselves humbly will receive another consequence: "those who humble themselves will be exalted."

Of significance here is one who feels superior enough to judge the Supreme Being and His representative: Feeling the mind powerful enough to be able to judge God and determine whether God exists, or whether God is fair and so forth.

Who are we to judge?

It seems that everyone has an opinion, and most of us think our opinion is the right one and anyone who disagrees is wrong. We think that we are so cognizant that we can see everything and that we are thus the most capable person to render a judgment.

This is also seen among materialistic scientists who feel their tiny minds are powerful enough to determine how the universe was created. Some have speculatively concluded that the universe comes from a random explosion without a source. This type of confidence only comes from someone unaware of their own insignificance.

Consider, for example, a bacteria living within the intestines of a human. Do those bacteria have the where-for-all to judge what their host is composed of? Do the bacteria have any idea what the human does or even that there is a living organism hosting its existence?

What if we saw such a bacteria make a judgment about its host - its universe - and conclude there was no life outside of its section of intestine? We would laugh at such ignorance, wouldn't we?

Is this about humility?

Yes, Jesus is referring to humility, but he is not referring to false humility.

He is not speaking of appearing humble or making a show of humility. Rather, Jesus is speaking of consciousness.

As such, a person who speaks softly and appears humble may still be feeling very significant and important. This is often paraphrased with "looks can be deceiving."

The false identity of the body

Most of us see ourselves and others in relation to what type of body we are wearing and what position our physical body is in at the moment. This, however, is circumstantial: it is false identification.

This is because we are not these physical bodies. Scientifically speaking, our physical bodies are vehicles we occupy temporarily. They are like clothing that we are wearing. Our physical body might be compared to an astronaut's spacesuit. Or even the space capsule itself. These are both coverings over the astronaut that allow the astronaut the ability to go into outer space.

In the same way, these physical bodies allow us to enter into and engage within the physical universe. Without the physical body, we cannot engage physically.

We can know this scientifically because the physical body is always changing. Just as we might change our clothes, the body is constantly recycling atoms and molecules. So the body we had when we were a child is not the same body we have now.

The constant entity - our person or personality - is composed of spirit. We have a body and identity made of spirit, which cannot be seen by the physical senses. It is of another dimension. Jesus confirmed this:

"The spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing." (John 6:63)

This dimension of spirit is the world of consciousness. In the physical realm, one can deceive others with false humility. But within the dimension of the spirit - the spiritual realm - our consciousness is inseparable from our spiritual self.

Is the soul innately humble?

In our pure state, our spiritual self is by nature humble and loving. But because we chose to reject our relationship with the Supreme Being, we have become separated from our spiritual nature. Our spiritual nature has become covered up by self-centeredness.

It is like having a bucket of mud thrown onto the windshield of our car. With mud covering the windshield, we cannot see out of or into the car.

When a person begins the path towards reviving our relationship with the Supreme Being - and reconnects with Him through prayer and through the glorification of His Names - that 'mud' of self-centeredness covering us gradually clears up, allowing us to begin to see ourselves more and more. This allows us to regain our natural love and humility - our natural consciousness as we begin to see our position as God's humble loving servant.

As one's loving service relationship with the Supreme Being increases, this understanding of our actual (humble) position will naturally carry over into the rest of our lives. We will begin to see our brothers and sisters as they are - not as their temporary bodies but as spirit-persons - and see ourselves in a humble light as we see all of our faults.

This is the consciousness Jesus is speaking of here as he speaks figuratively regarding choosing ones seat. As we choose our seat at the table of the spiritual realm, we should realize all of our faults. We should realize how fallen we are and how our positions are completely dependent upon the mercy of the Supreme Being.

"For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled ..." (Luke 14:11)

"For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted." (Luke 14:8-11)

Who will humble those who exalt themselves?

Jesus is at the house of a Pharisee and he is sitting down at the dinner table. He has just told his parable about the wedding feast. Now he is elaborating on the meaning of this parable.

Some have taken this statement by Jesus to be some kind of threat. Jesus was not saying that someone was going to strike us down if we exalt ourselves. Jesus was not threatening us with hell or fire and brimstone. He wasn't saying that if we exalt ourselves then we will go to hell.

The reality is that those of us who exalt ourselves are already in hell. As Jesus is identifying, when we promote ourselves we are saying to others that we are the most important person in our life. This is the opposite of the consciousness that brings us peace. This is the opposite of the consciousness of love.

What Jesus is saying is that by nature, a person who exalts themselves will become humbled. This is because this world is a place of learning. This physical world was set up to constantly humble us.

Just looking around at the natural world is a humbling experience. Just consider the great mountain ranges. Or the incredible ocean swells. Consider tornados. Consider lightning. Just watching the sunset is humbling. This world is awesome, and we can be humbled every day just by looking around us.

And of course, the physical world is designed to humble us in many other ways - whether we receive them or not. For example, a person who feels proud of their physique will be automatically humbled as the physical body ages, becomes weak, and eventually dies.

A person who feels proud of their accomplishments will be automatically humbled as their accomplishments are gradually forgotten and outdone by others who come after. All of us will be humbled when our body dies and we are forced to leave all our accomplishments behind.

Who will exalt those who are humbled?

Some have interpreted this to mean that Jesus or God will be coming around and exalt those who have remained humble. As though those who become humbled would receive a reward for their humility. As if those who act humble will be paraded through the streets of heaven and exalted before crowds of adoring angels. As if.

Such a fantasy is not about humility. Pretending to be humble in order to receive a reward for acting humble is a falsehood. Acting humbly in order to receive a reward is not humility. It is a show.

True humility has nothing to do with acting humble. Those who are truly humble within may or may not be recognized as humble.

True humility comes from intelligence. It is understanding the Supreme nature of God and His creation. It is understanding that we have been given this physical body and this physical world in order to learn lessons of love. True humility comes from an awareness of the incredible creation and organization involved within this physical world and the spiritual world.

True humility comes with our realization that the Supreme Being is perfect. That we are but a tiny particle - a child-soul - created by the Supreme Being. True humility comes with a realization of how beautiful the Supreme Being is. It comes with the awareness of our own shortcomings compared with God's mercy and love for us.

True humility comes with the understanding that the Supreme Being loved us so much that He was willing to send His beloved representative Jesus to this world to teach us about Him - even though that world committed gruesome crimes against Jesus while he was here to teach us about love and humility.

"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them ..." (Luke 18:16-17)

"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." (Luke 18:16-17)

Why is Jesus talking about children?

Here is the situation, and what Jesus is responding to:

People were also bringing babies to Jesus for him to place his hands on them. When the disciples saw this, they rebuked them. (Luke 18:15)

This statement by Jesus brings up two questions:

1) What is so special about a "little child"?

2) How can a person "receive" the "kingdom of God"?

These two questions may be confusing for those who identify the self as the physical body. Due to this, their interpretations of scripture convolute the true meaning of these and other verses.

For example, a person who identifies the self with the physical body will imagine the physical body floating up to heaven. They will imagine that they will retain their names, families, positions and other characteristics of their current bodies - in heaven.

Can a physical body go to heaven?

But how can a body that will decompose or be cremated float up to heaven? The reality is, we leave the physical body behind at the time of death - together with all of its characteristics, including its family.

Jesus confirmed this when he was asked what would happen in the hypothetical situation where a woman married seven brothers. They asked him:

"Now then, at the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?" 

Jesus replied, "The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are considered worthy of taking part in the age to come and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage, and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God's children, since they are children of the resurrection. (Luke 20:33-36)

The point Jesus is trying to make - despite confusion created by translating αἰών (aiōn) to "age" instead of "lifetime" - is that one leaves behind the physical body at the time of death - "the resurrection from the dead."

What does Jesus mean by 'resurrection'?

The word "resurrection" is translated from the Greek word ἀνάστασις (anastasis), which means "to rise" and "to rise up." So what is rising up? The spirit-person is rising from the physical body and leaving it behind. This is the full meaning of ἀναστάσεως τῆς ἐκ νεκρῶν - which is being translated to "resurrection from the dead." The spirit-person is rising from the dead body - and in Jesus' reference, returning to the spiritual realm.

Jesus clarifies the substantial difference in composition between the physical body and the person who rises and returns to the spiritual realm: They "will neither marry nor be given in marriage, and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels."

Thus we see that the spirit-person is essentially being described by Jesus to be an angel. He is also stating that this angel-like spirit-person is eternal: "they can no longer die."

Jesus is also clarifying that the spirit-person is not associated with the identity of the physical body. Otherwise, there would be some continuing relationship between the hypothetical wife of the seven brothers and these seven brothers after she died. But since Jesus denies this association by stating that she won't be married to any of the brothers, we can understand that the spiritual realm does not maintain the family relationships of the physical world.

This might come as a surprise to many who have followed those who preach the importance of family.

Didn't Jesus teach the importance of family?

Actually, he didn't. We see a number of other comments by Jesus regarding family. Jesus in fact, disavowed the importance of the family of the physical body. And he requested that his followers reject their families in order to follow him:

“If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple." (Luke 14:26)

And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life." (Matt. 19:29)

He also told one of his students who wanted to go to bury the father of his body:

"Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God." (Luke 9:60)

He also rejected the importance of the family of the physical body in his own life:

Someone told him, "Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you." He replied to him, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?" Pointing to his disciples, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother." (Luke 12:47-50)

“My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.” (Luke 8:21)

It wasn't that Jesus didn't believe in family. But it is his spiritual family that Jesus values - those who take shelter in the family of the Supreme Being. Outside of honoring mother and father, he wanted his students to reject the families of their temporary physical bodies.

The family of the physical body might be compared to a family of a TV show. They pretend to be family members while they are filming, but once the filming is over and they are off the set, they are no longer family. In the same way, we think that our physical body's family is so important, but as soon as the body dies, those family relationships completely disappear.

Yes, spirit-persons within a family often incarnate together. Their relationship can continue as they evolve together. But this doesn't mean they will play the same role in the next life. The mother of a family may end up being a son in the next lifetime. Or a brother in a family may end up being a father in another lifetime. This means that our relationship with them is not bound to or based upon this physical body.

But this is not Jesus' concern because Jesus wants his students to return to the spiritual realm after the death of their body. As such, staying close to the family members of ones physical body can deter a person's spiritual progress. By identifying oneself as a family member one can easily forget one's relationship as a child of the Supreme Being. Always thinking that the family of our body is our only family can help us forget our real family - our family of the Supreme Being.

(This doesn't mean a family who is worshiping God together cannot make spiritual progress together as well. As long as we understand those family relationships based upon the physical body are temporary.)

'Like a little child'?

With these points in mind, we can better understand the meaning of Jesus' statement about being "like a little child." Jesus isn't talking about becoming younger, or smaller like a baby. Jesus is not speaking of the physical body at all in fact.

Rather, Jesus is speaking of humility. Little children - basically babies - are known for their humility because they haven't figured things out yet. So they are a little more innocent. And this often makes a baby naturally humble.

Jesus is wanting his students to become humble and innocent - like babies. It is not that they should start crying or throwing tantrums. Rather, just as a child is more accepting and trusting, Jesus wants his students to trust and accept the Supreme Being.

This is more precisely called taking shelter. When a person takes shelter in the Supreme Being, they come to understand that they have no real control and they are reliant upon the Supreme Being. We need God. We need Him as our Protector and our Best Friend. Where else can we find protection? Where else can we find shelter? Everyone else around us will get old and die.

Just think of how a baby comes to rely on mom and dad. During those tender years, a baby will want to stay close to mom and dad and not want to be left alone without them. This dependency on mom and dad is what Jesus is talking about - as he requests their approach to God.

This relates precisely to the notion of "receiving" the "kingdom of God" ("Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child..."). How can a child "receive" a place? Especially a place as large as God's kingdom?

The problem again is that without knowing our composition as spirit, one could see the "kingdom of God" as a physical place - a place for the old physical body.

We can immediately know that this is not what Jesus is speaking of. If one is interpreting this as a place: If one accepts that God is the Supreme Being, then there is no part of His kingdom that He is not the Controller of. He is the Creator and Controller of every place. As such, one must accept that His kingdom is everywhere.

Now if every part of creation is part of God's kingdom, then we must accept that even this part - the physical world - is part of the kingdom of God.

If we understand this then we must also understand that Jesus could not be speaking of a place at all with this statement. It is not that he is speaking of a physical place where one gains entrance into - since we are already in the kingdom of God.

We can thus come to the conclusion that Jesus is not speaking of a physical place at all. So what does Jesus mean by "kingdom of God"?

What does 'kingdom of God' mean?

The word "kingdom" is being translated from the Greek word βασιλεία (basileia) which means, according to Thayer's lexicon: "royal power, kingship, dominion, rule - not to be confused with an actual kingdom but rather the right or authority to rule over a kingdom"

Thus Jesus is speaking of accepting ("receiving") God's authority over our lives. Jesus is speaking of us coming to rely upon the Supreme Being.

During Jesus' times, people of towns and territories would voluntarily or by force seek the protection of a particular king. Such a king would be accepted (received) based on his ability to protect the populace from invasion by foreign armies from surrounding areas. Such a process - of accepting the authority of a particular king - was considered to be "taking refuge" in that king. 

In such a condition, the people who took refuge in a strong king with a big army would be considered safe. But a person who took refuge in a weak king would be subject to a losing battle with an invading army, likely resulting in their village being burnt down.

It is within these circumstances that Jesus - and his teacher John the Baptist - used the terminology written in Greek as βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ - typically translated to "kingdom of God."

While this translation is not necessarily wrong if is interpreted broadly, it does confuse the issue, and make it seem that Jesus is speaking of a place. What Jesus was actually speaking of is taking shelter in God. So a better translation might be:

"Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the shelter of God like a little child will never enter it."

We can receive the shelter of God simply by seeking it. Once a person takes refuge in God, that refuge - that protection - will be provided by God.

The word εἰσέρχομαι (eiserchomai) is being translated to "enter" here. Yes, the word can mean "enter" - but both physically and metaphorically. When the word is being used metaphorically - as Jesus was - its definition according to the lexicon is:

"of entrance into any condition, state of things, society, employment - to arise, come into existence, begin to be - to come into life - of thoughts that come into the mind."

Thus we can conclude that there is an entrance of sorts - but the entrance is not to a physical place: It is the entrance into God's shelter. God's protection.

As we've discussed, we are already in the kingdom of God because His kingdom is everywhere.

Jesus is speaking of coming to rely on the Supreme Being. To accept His authority over our lives. To accept that He is our only savior and our only real friend and permanent companion.

In such a condition - such a state of being - we can be anywhere - either in the physical or the spiritual realms - and be with God. We can be carrying out Jesus' mission of loving and serving the Supreme Being with all our mind, heart and being.

Jesus' "first and foremost commandment" was not to go to heaven: It was not to be saved. It was not to have my leg healed or become rich or serve the family of this physical body. Jesus' most important instruction was:

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’" (Matt. 22:37)

But how does one come to love God? By getting to know Him through the praising of His Holy Names. Find out the scriptural evidence for this.

"They like to walk around in flowing robes ..." (Luke 20:46-47)

"Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely." (Luke 20:46-47)

Who is Jesus speaking to?

Jesus is speaking directly to his disciples, but so the people in the audience could also hear. This is confirmed by the prior verse:

While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his disciples, (Luke 20:45)

This also means that Jesus was speaking specifically to those who were following him. But he was also sending a message to everyone. This includes those he was referring to as well as the general public.

What is Jesus saying?

He is speaking of the Temple teachers who controlled the interpretation of scripture and dominated the Temple society at the time. The phrase, "teachers of the law" comes from the Greek word γραμματεύς (grammateus). This word refers to a scribe or teacher that interprets scripture.

During Jesus' time, a person in this role received great respect. The sentence of anyone who was accused of breaking scriptural law - or criminal law - was usually determined by such a scribe. As a result, they held the seats of honor and wore long robes. And when they traveled through the streets or markets, they were greeted with great respect.

Jesus comments here that they were not only interested in the respect of others. They also took advantage of their followers. They were profiting from their positions. This meant when the man of a household died, the Temple would seize the household wealth - thereby taking the money that should have belonged to the widow.

This is not an isolated situation. Throughout history we find many will utilize the post of religious teacher to take advantage of their followers. We find this even today, as so many hold positions of professional teachers, making comfortable salaries off the backs of poor people who are intimidated or coerced into making donations.

For this reason, Jesus didn't want his disciples to earn money from preaching. He not only railed against professional preaching as with this verse. But he also specifically instructed his disciples to not carry a bag or purse or belt to hold money as they went out to teach:

“Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals..." (Luke 10:4 NKJV)

The Greek word βαλλάντιον (ballantion) means a purse, bag or belt for carrying money.

Why did he instruct them not to bring a purse or money belt?

Because he didn't want them collecting money in return for their preaching. He wanted them to require or demand no compensation for their service to God.

This is an important point in terms of whom we choose as a teacher as well. Those who collect money in return for their teaching services are not serving God. They are performing a service in return for a salary. Therefore, they are disqualified as a true teacher and servant of God.

Such a position is evidenced by its fruits. Those who take salaried positions as preachers and priests become thirsty for power and authority. Their positions lead them to a need to be honored by others and they begin to take advantage of their positions - as we have seen with many Catholic priests who have abused their followers.

Why would they abuse their followers?

Why did they become abusive? Why did they like to be honored by others, and why would they think they have the right to take advantage of their followers?

Because they think of themselves as superior to others.

This feeling of superiority comes in various forms. Not just by professional preachers and priests - but people throughout the world who take advantage of others or otherwise mistreat others.

Despite their supposed roles in passing along Jesus' teachings and the teachings of the Prophets, they assume roles that are diametrically opposed to the teachings of Jesus and the Prophets.

Yes, these teachers were supposedly representing the Prophets and their teachings. Yet by their actions, they were contradicting those very teachings.

Consider for example, this statement about Moses:

Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth. (Numbers 12:3)

David reflected this in one of his hymns - referring to the Supreme Being:

"You save the humble..." (2 Samuel 22:28)

In this same hymn, David also writes:

"The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior — from violent people You save me." (2 Samuel 22:2-3)

Note that the word "LORD" is translated from the word יְהֹוָה (Yĕhovah). David is referring to the Supreme Being.

Isaiah also used this Name of God when he wrote:

Once more the humble will rejoice in the LORD (Isaiah 29:19)

We find a similar statement written by Zephaniah as declared by the LORD:

"But I will leave within you the meek and humble. The remnant of Israel will trust in the Name of the LORD." (Zephaniah 3:12)

We find similar teachings by Jesus:

For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. (Matt. 23:12 and Luke 14:11)

Thus we find the basic principle of humility common among the Prophets and Jesus. Why is this so important?

We also find in some of the verses above that humility is the key to being able to praise and glorify God. What is the connection? To praise and glorify the Supreme Being requires by default that we admit that we are not the greatest.

Is this a disease?

Yes. We think that we are something special. We think that we are, in one way or another, the greatest.

And this material universe allows us this illusion to think that each of us is the greatest. This material world gives us the opportunity to gain some kind of position or role that allows us to believe that we are something special. One might become, for example, a chess champion in some community. Or perhaps a person scores a game-winning touchdown or goal in the big game. Or perhaps a person wins a track race and gets a gold medal. Or perhaps a person becomes the CEO of a business or the mayor of a town.

Most of us would admit that none of these positions would allow a person to really become the greatest. Yet at the moment this person gains that temporary position of honor, that's exactly what we will do: We'll consider ourselves the greatest - the most important person.

This is the illusion of the material world. And it is set up specifically by the Supreme Being to allow us the opportunity to see ourselves in the role of being the greatest.

You see, this is because only the Supreme Being is actually the greatest. Yet because He endowed each of His children with a spark of Himself, each of us has the choice to want to be the greatest: Each of us has the choice to either love and serve ourselves as the greatest - or love and serve God as the Greatest. This means, in essence, the choice between love of God and envy of God.

This puts each of us in the precise situation where God wants us to be in: Where we have the complete freedom to love Him or not.

What if you were God?

Just think about it. What if you were God and you had all the control? You could do anything you wanted. But you also wanted to exchange a loving relationship with others. Would you create robots that did whatever you wanted them to do? That would get a little boring, wouldn't it?

No. You would create people that had the choice to love you or not, right? They could choose to love you or choose to be jealous of you. This is the only way that your creations could actually make a free choice to love you, right? And if you exerted your control over this freedom to love you or not, then it really would not be love, would it?

This is the position of the Supreme Being. He gave us this ultimate choice - to love Him and humble ourselves before Him - or become envious of Him and strive to be the greatest.

And those who decide to strive to be the greatest have the extra benefit of not having the Real Greatest Person (God) in the way. This is why we can't see God with the physical eyes in this world.

This scenario gives the Supreme Being the enjoyment of exchanging true loving relationships with those who freely choose to submit themselves before Him.

We are talking about the Supreme Person here, not some monolith floating in space. We are speaking about the Source of everyone and everything. The Person who everyone is a small spark of. He has every capacity we have, except that He is the source of all our capacities. Whatever capacity any of us have, He has that capacity at its maximum. He has every capacity to its perfection.

This means that whatever beauty exists - He is the perfection of beauty. Whatever kindness exists, He is the perfection of kindness. Whatever love exists, He is the perfection of love. The Supreme Being is everything we have ever wanted or wanted to be. He is everything we have ever wanted to see in others.

Is God is the Perfect Person?

Yes. If we decide to give up our fruitless chase for greatness, and we want a true loving relationship - one that never ends; one that has no limits; one where we can truly be ourselves - then we need the Supreme Being. We need to make the choice to return to our innate loving service relationship with God.

This requires humbling ourselves before Him - and accepting that He is the greatest and we are not. It requires understanding that He is our only real shelter. He is our only real protector. He is our only real Friend. He is the One Person we can trust at the end of the day.

Such a position achieves the ultimate in humility - because it states that we cannot provide our own shelter. We cannot protect ourselves.

Forget trying to act humble. Trying to appear to others as humble. This is not real humility. This is pretend humility. It is show humility - for the purpose of impressing others.

Needing God's protection is the only real humble position. Jesus clarified this position of protection by the Supreme Being:

"Holy Father, protect them by the power of Your Name, the Name you gave me..." (John 17:11)

We find this connection above among the teachings of the Prophets as well - this connection between humility and taking shelter in God - and praising and glorifying the Supreme Being and His Holy Name.

Jesus himself, in his prayer to God above, as well as Isaiah and Zephaniah above, testifies to the potency of the Holy Name of God.

Jesus says, "protect them by the power of Your Name." And we find similar statements above - "trust in the Name of the LORD". Why? What is so special about the Name of God? It's just a name isn't it?

No. It is the Name of the Perfect Person. The Name of the Greatest Person. The Name of the Person who is the Master of everything and everyone.

As such, this Name is not just another name. It is endowed with the potency of the Supreme Being Himself.

You see, in the physical realm, there is duality. The entities of this material world can be given one name now, and another name later. One can get their name changed, or get a new name after marriage. So here our name is different. We are separate from our name.

The Supreme Being maintains no such duality. The Name of the Supreme Being is not separate from God. His Name thus contains His potency. His power. Himself.

This is why God gave this instruction:

"Wherever I cause My Name to be honored, I will come to you and bless you." (Exodus 20:24)

Why? Because when we call upon the Holy Name of God with humility, respect, and love, He will be there for us.

This makes approaching the Supreme Being pretty simple. Not easy, because losing our sense of superiority and our feeling that we are the greatest isn't easy. But simple in that we don't have to join any church or religious institution to connect with God. To connect with God, we don't need to follow some professional preacher or institution that seeks to take advantage of their followers.

How can we do this? With humility, reverence, and love, we can call out His Holy Names and praise Him. This alone will save us.

Find more scriptural evidence for the power of praising God's Holy Names.