Message 37
Jesus' Relationship With Mr. Padgett And How The Higher Spirits Help The Dark Spirits
Jesus' Relationship With Mr. Padgett And How The Higher Spirits Help The Dark Spirits
I am here, Jesus;
(Question: 'Will I be able to see you as you really are?')
Well, as to that, I know that you will in the not-distant future be able to see me as you say, for I am desirous that you do so. You have the power of clairvoyance, but it is not desirable that it be developed in you at this time as we wish all your power to become centered in receiving the messages. But some night when you are praying and I am with you the power will be given you and you will see me as I am while praying with you. I feel that this may strengthen your faith and draw you closer to me, and I, myself, want you to actually see me as I am.
Yes, I understand, but if I should come and write to you in the, as you may think, dignified way that an elevated spirit should write, you would not feel the nearness to me that I so much want you to feel. And besides, you might not just understand what I intended to communicate. It is impossible for you to accommodate yourself to my condition, and hence, I have to accommodate myself to yours. I want you to get as close to me as possible, and in order that that may be I have to become verily human as you are, otherwise the rapport could not exist between us and I would seem to you like some far off nebulous being that you could not understand or feel the influence of. No, I am very human when I come to you.
But this I will say, in order that you may get a somewhat better idea of our relationship, that as you progress more in your soul development and in the possession of the Father's love you will be less human - I mean in your condition of soul, which is that in you that furnishes the rapport between us - and I will meet you on the plane that you may occupy. So you see what a determining factor in our rapport your condition of soul is.
And if you will consider this for a moment you will more clearly comprehend why it is that the dark spirits can find in you a closer rapport that enable you to help them than they can find in the higher spirits. We try to make a rapport with them, but their souls do not respond. And it is only after you have talked to them and directed their attention to us, which causes, as it were, an opening up of their souls to us, can we come in that rapport with them that enables us to gain their attention and create in them an interest in what we may say to them.
This to you may seem surprising as you believe that we who are more elevated must have great power with and over these dark spirits, and this is so for certain purposes. We do often restrain them from doing things that they should not do, but this as you must understand means that we by our powers arbitrarily force them to do or not do certain things, just as on earth your laws or the enforcement of them restrain those who desire to violate the laws from doing so. But when we come to the work of attempting to turn their thoughts to those things that affect their soul condition, this thing of constraint or force will not effectuate the work. We then must deal with the exercise of their free will, and in such cases only persuasion or love influence can possibly do the work of helping them out of their dark and tainted condition of soul. We must invite and persuade the soul to awaken - we cannot force it - and to do so we must form that relationship with these dark spirits that will cause them to voluntarily open up their souls to our influences.
The great obstacles to our work among spirits of this kind is that they will not listen to us or come in conversation with us, and we cannot compel and accomplish our purposes. No man or spirit can ever by force be made to open up his soul to the higher thoughts and essentials of the soul's progress. Of course, when we once get in that rapport with them that enables us to enlist their attention and listen to what we say, we can cause them to have an awakening by informing them of the sufferings and torments that will be theirs if they continue in their same condition, and you may say by a kind of mental force compel them to think of these things that are holding them in their condition of darkness. But this does not occur unless we can first secure their attention, and to some extent their confidence.
So you must realize from this, to some degree, the importance of the work that you are doing among the dark spirits. They, being in the condition of darkness and want of soul development, cannot see any such development that you may have, and to them you are merely a mortal, as they themselves were a short time ago in many cases, and finding that they can communicate with you they come to you just as one man would to another for the purposes of conversation, and outside of the phenomenon of spirit and mortals conversing, you do not seem to them any different from what men seemed to them when they were on earth. They are all very human, and to them your conversation is very natural, and hence, they listen to you with the same feelings of confidence, or rather not of distrust, that they would to another spirit of their own kind. You are all humans together, and your opinions or ideas to them are just the same as they might expect if they were in the flesh or you were a spirit like themselves.
While these dark spirits may under certain circumstances see the bright and beautiful spirits, as they sometimes tell you they do, yet they see only the appearance of the spirit body. They cannot see the condition of the spiritual development in these bright spirits, for it is a law that the spirit perceptions cannot vision conditions of the souls of others to a higher degree of development than they themselves have. And this applies to all spirits no matter what sphere they may occupy. And hence, you will understand that as we progress in our soul spheres, the higher we ascend and the more clear and comprehensible become our soul perceptions of the Father and His divine qualities.
So I say, so far as the real perception of these dark spirits is concerned, they cannot comprehend the real spiritual development of the higher spirits whom they often see. The interior condition of these higher spirits is just as hidden from the dark spirits as is the interior condition of one man from another. Only when like meets like can there be a perception - that is, not a real visual perception, but a spiritual perception of each other.
But the higher spirits can see the interior conditions of those who are in spheres lower than they and determine just what the soul development of these lower ones are.
Also, you must understand that the appearance of the spirit body indicates and portrays to a large extent the condition of the soul, and from this one spirit may judge the actual development of another - I mean, those may so judge who have progressed above the dark planes.
Well, I have written more than I intended, but as you were desirous to have some conception of what I have written, I concluded to attempt to explain to you these matters, though I know from my explanation you cannot fully understand what I have been trying to make known to you.
But we must stop now. So with my love I will say good night.
Your brother and friend, Jesus
(Question: 'Will I be able to see you as you really are?')
Well, as to that, I know that you will in the not-distant future be able to see me as you say, for I am desirous that you do so. You have the power of clairvoyance, but it is not desirable that it be developed in you at this time as we wish all your power to become centered in receiving the messages. But some night when you are praying and I am with you the power will be given you and you will see me as I am while praying with you. I feel that this may strengthen your faith and draw you closer to me, and I, myself, want you to actually see me as I am.
Yes, I understand, but if I should come and write to you in the, as you may think, dignified way that an elevated spirit should write, you would not feel the nearness to me that I so much want you to feel. And besides, you might not just understand what I intended to communicate. It is impossible for you to accommodate yourself to my condition, and hence, I have to accommodate myself to yours. I want you to get as close to me as possible, and in order that that may be I have to become verily human as you are, otherwise the rapport could not exist between us and I would seem to you like some far off nebulous being that you could not understand or feel the influence of. No, I am very human when I come to you.
But this I will say, in order that you may get a somewhat better idea of our relationship, that as you progress more in your soul development and in the possession of the Father's love you will be less human - I mean in your condition of soul, which is that in you that furnishes the rapport between us - and I will meet you on the plane that you may occupy. So you see what a determining factor in our rapport your condition of soul is.
And if you will consider this for a moment you will more clearly comprehend why it is that the dark spirits can find in you a closer rapport that enable you to help them than they can find in the higher spirits. We try to make a rapport with them, but their souls do not respond. And it is only after you have talked to them and directed their attention to us, which causes, as it were, an opening up of their souls to us, can we come in that rapport with them that enables us to gain their attention and create in them an interest in what we may say to them.
This to you may seem surprising as you believe that we who are more elevated must have great power with and over these dark spirits, and this is so for certain purposes. We do often restrain them from doing things that they should not do, but this as you must understand means that we by our powers arbitrarily force them to do or not do certain things, just as on earth your laws or the enforcement of them restrain those who desire to violate the laws from doing so. But when we come to the work of attempting to turn their thoughts to those things that affect their soul condition, this thing of constraint or force will not effectuate the work. We then must deal with the exercise of their free will, and in such cases only persuasion or love influence can possibly do the work of helping them out of their dark and tainted condition of soul. We must invite and persuade the soul to awaken - we cannot force it - and to do so we must form that relationship with these dark spirits that will cause them to voluntarily open up their souls to our influences.
The great obstacles to our work among spirits of this kind is that they will not listen to us or come in conversation with us, and we cannot compel and accomplish our purposes. No man or spirit can ever by force be made to open up his soul to the higher thoughts and essentials of the soul's progress. Of course, when we once get in that rapport with them that enables us to enlist their attention and listen to what we say, we can cause them to have an awakening by informing them of the sufferings and torments that will be theirs if they continue in their same condition, and you may say by a kind of mental force compel them to think of these things that are holding them in their condition of darkness. But this does not occur unless we can first secure their attention, and to some extent their confidence.
So you must realize from this, to some degree, the importance of the work that you are doing among the dark spirits. They, being in the condition of darkness and want of soul development, cannot see any such development that you may have, and to them you are merely a mortal, as they themselves were a short time ago in many cases, and finding that they can communicate with you they come to you just as one man would to another for the purposes of conversation, and outside of the phenomenon of spirit and mortals conversing, you do not seem to them any different from what men seemed to them when they were on earth. They are all very human, and to them your conversation is very natural, and hence, they listen to you with the same feelings of confidence, or rather not of distrust, that they would to another spirit of their own kind. You are all humans together, and your opinions or ideas to them are just the same as they might expect if they were in the flesh or you were a spirit like themselves.
While these dark spirits may under certain circumstances see the bright and beautiful spirits, as they sometimes tell you they do, yet they see only the appearance of the spirit body. They cannot see the condition of the spiritual development in these bright spirits, for it is a law that the spirit perceptions cannot vision conditions of the souls of others to a higher degree of development than they themselves have. And this applies to all spirits no matter what sphere they may occupy. And hence, you will understand that as we progress in our soul spheres, the higher we ascend and the more clear and comprehensible become our soul perceptions of the Father and His divine qualities.
So I say, so far as the real perception of these dark spirits is concerned, they cannot comprehend the real spiritual development of the higher spirits whom they often see. The interior condition of these higher spirits is just as hidden from the dark spirits as is the interior condition of one man from another. Only when like meets like can there be a perception - that is, not a real visual perception, but a spiritual perception of each other.
But the higher spirits can see the interior conditions of those who are in spheres lower than they and determine just what the soul development of these lower ones are.
Also, you must understand that the appearance of the spirit body indicates and portrays to a large extent the condition of the soul, and from this one spirit may judge the actual development of another - I mean, those may so judge who have progressed above the dark planes.
Well, I have written more than I intended, but as you were desirous to have some conception of what I have written, I concluded to attempt to explain to you these matters, though I know from my explanation you cannot fully understand what I have been trying to make known to you.
But we must stop now. So with my love I will say good night.
Your brother and friend, Jesus