Exodus 18
We are walking in today: The Spirit of Leadership!!! Part 11 Your Attitude is More Powerful Than Your Reputation!!!!
Witness uprightness throughout the Bible: H3476 yosher--rightness, uprightness, what is right, what is due
Micah 2:7 O thou that art named the house of Jacob, is the spirit of the Lord straitened? are these his doings? do not my words do good to him that walketh uprightly?
Torah: Leviticus 26:13; Deuteronomy 9:5
Prophets: 2 Samuel 22:24, 22:26; Isaiah 26:7, 57:2; Habakkuk 2:4
Writings: 1 Kings 9:4; 1 Chronicles 29:17; Job 6:25, 33:3; Psalm 25:21, 119:7; Proverbs 2:13, 4:11, 14:2
Ecclesiastes12:10 The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, H3476 even words of truth.
THE PURPOSE OF OUR EXISTENCE:
Genesis 1:1-5. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day. To understand the creation of the universe by God, we must know something of the character of the Most High. Yeshua said, "God is Spirit." The works of the Most High He said, were done in Him (Yeshua) and through Him. "The Father abiding in me doeth his works." That the Most High is an intelligent force always present and always active is the virtual conclusion of all philosophers, thus corroborating the statements of Yeshua. The Most High is eternally in His creation and never separate from it. Wherever there is evidence of creative action, there the Most High is. Explain the Most High as Divine Mind. How does the Divine Mind create? The Most High's mind, He created through His word or idea, and this is the universal creative vehicle. It is plainly stated in this 1st chapter of Genesis that "the Most High said." Yeshua corroborated this creative power of the word or idea again and again. He said that His words were so powerful that if we let them abide in us we might ask whatsoever we would and it should be done to us. The Most High is a mind force carrying forward creation under His mental law. That law may be known to anyone who will follow the example of Yeshua. Yeshua said, "Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." This means that we should strive for the perfection that the Most High is. We are the image and likeness of this great creative Mind, and being in a certain aspect of our mind just like it, we can through mental adjustment attain the same conscious unity that Yeshua did. What is the first step in the awakening of man to spiritual consciousness? The first step in creation is the awakening of man to spiritual consciousness, the dawning of light in his mind, his perception of Truth through the quickening of his spirit. Light is wisdom; and the first day's work is the calling of light or wisdom into expression. Light represents intelligence, and darkness represents undeveloped capacity. Symbolically these are "day" and "night." The word the Most High in this instance stands for Elohim, which is the Most High in His capacity as creative power, including within Himself all the potentialities of being. The "beginning" indicates the first concept of Divine Mind. "Created" means ideated. The "heavens" is the realm of ideas, and the "earth" represents ideas in expression. Heaven is the idea and earth the mental picture. A comparison is found in the activity of our own mind: we have an idea and then think out a plan before we bring it forth. Did the Most High create man and the earth as they appear today? We are to understand that the Most High created not the earth as it appears but that which produced the earth. Elohim, Spirit, creates the spiritual idea, which is afterward made manifest through the Most High. What is meant by "The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters"? What, in terms of mind, is "darkness" or "Light"? The earthly thought was not yet clear. Harmony of form had not yet come into expression. "The deep" represents the capacity of the earth idea to bring forth. "The face of the deep" represents its intelligence. Understanding has not yet come into
expression, and there is no apparent action. "The Spirit of God" or divine intelligence moved upon "the face of the waters." "Waters" here represents unexpressed capacities, the mental element out
of which all is produced. Man is conscious of unexpressed capacities within himself, but only as he moves upon mind substance with intelligence are his inherent spiritual qualities molded into forms. "Light" is intelligence, a spiritual quality. It corresponds to understanding and should precede all activity. At the beginning of any of our creating we should declare for light. Our declarations of Truth are instantly fulfilled in Spirit. James says in his Epistle, "Every good gift and every perfect gift
is from above, coming down from the Father of lights." John speaks of "the true light . . . which lighteth every man, coming into the world." All that emanates from the Most High is good. In the process of bringing forth our ideas we need a certain degree of understanding in order properly to regulate our thoughts. The light must be divided from the darkness, as in Divine Mind the
light was separated from the darkness. "Day" represents the state of mind in which intelligence dominates. "Night" represents the realm of thoughts that are not yet illuminated by the Spirit of
the Most High. Gen. 1:6-8. And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day. What is the central idea in the second day's creation? The second step in creation is the development of faith
or the "firmament." The "waters" represent the unestablished elements of the mind. The second day's creation is the second movement of Divine Mind. The central idea in this day's creation is the establishment of a firmament in the "midst of the waters" dividing the "waters from the waters."
"Waters" represent unexpressed possibilities in mind. There must be a "firm" starting point or foundation established. This foundation or "firmament" is faith "moving upon" the unformed capacities of Spirit consciousness. The divine word of the Most High, as creative power--gives forth the edict "Let there be a firmament." The first step or "day" in creation involves "light" or understanding, and the second step, faith in the knowing quality of mind. The word is instantly fulfilled in Spirit. "And God made the firmament." This does not refer to the visible realm of forms but to the mental image in Divine Mind, which deals only with ideas. In every mental state we have an "above" and a "below." Above the firmament are the unexpressed capacities ("waters") of the conscious mind resting in faith in Divine Mind. Below the firmament are the unexpressed capacities ("waters") of the subconscious mind. Why is the word heaven capitalized in Genesis 1:8? The word "Heaven" is capitalized in this passage because it relates directly to Divine Mind. Faith ("firmament") established in consciousness is a state of perfect harmony, therefore "Heaven." Another degree of mind unfoldment has been attained. "And there was evening and there was morning, a second day." "Evening" represents completion, and the "morning" following represents activity of ideas. Gen. 1:9-13. And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called He Seas: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit-trees bearing fruit after their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after their kind: and God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a third day. What is the third step in the creative process? The third step in creation is the beginning of the formative activity of the mind called imagination. This gathers "the waters . . . together unto one place" so that the "dry land" appears. Then the imagination begins a great multiplication of forms and shapes in the mind. The first day's creation reveals the light or inspiration of Spirit. The second day establishes faith in our possibilities to bring forth the invisible. The third day's creation or third movement of Divine Mind pictures the activity of ideas in mind. This is called expression. The formative power of mind is the imagination, whose work is here represented by the dry land. There is much unformed thought in mind ("the heavens") that must be separated from the formed. Does Divine Mind deal directly with things or ideas? In this proclamation "earth" is the mental image of formed thought and does not refer to the manifest world. The Most High is Divine Mind and deals directly with ideas. "Seas" represents the unformed state of mind. We say that a man is "at sea" when he is in doubt in his mental processes. In other words he has not established his thoughts in line with the principle involved. The sea is capable of production, but must come under the dominion of the imagination. Divine Mind images its ideas definitely and in every detail. The idea precedes the fulfillment. "Let there be" represents the perfect confidence necessary to demonstration. Ideas are productive and bring forth after their kind. They express themselves under the law of divine imagery. The seed is within the thought and is reproduced through thought activity until thought habits are formed. Thoughts become fixed in the earth or formed consciousness. In Divine Mind all is good. How does man form his world? Again a definite degree of mind unfoldment has been attained. Man, in forming his world, goes through the same mental process, working under divine law.
Yesuha said, "The seed is the word of the Most High." Gen. 1:14-19. And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years: and let them be for lights in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made the two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
The symbology of the development of the "two great lights." The fourth step in creation is the development of the "two great lights," the will and the understanding, or the sun and the moon. These are but reflectors of the true light; for the Most High had said, "Let there be light: and there was light"--before the sun and the moon were created. The "firmament of heaven" is the consciousness of Truth that has been formulated and established. In the second day's creation a firmament was established in heaven (realm of divine ideas). This firmament divides the day (illumined consciousness) from the night (unillumined consciousness). Through faith the "lights"
are established; that is, understanding begins to unfold. The "signs," "seasons," and "days and years" represent different stages of unfoldment. We gain understanding by degrees. The "earth" represents the more external processes through which an idea passes, and corresponds to the activity of an idea in mind. In man the "earth" is the body consciousness, which in its real nature is a harmonious expression of ideas established in faith-substance. "And it was so"; that is, an idea from divine consciousness is instantly fulfilled. The "greater light," in mind, is understanding and the "lesser light" is the will. The greater light rules "the day," that realm of consciousness which has been illumined by Spirit. The lesser light rules "the night," that is, the will; which has no illumination ("light" or "day") but whose office is to execute the demands of understanding. The will does not reason, but in its harmonious relation acts easily and naturally upon the inspiration of Spirit. Divine will expresses itself as the I AM in man. The "stars" represent man's perceptive faculties, including his ability to perceive weight, size, color, sound, and the like. Through concentrating any of the faculties ("stars") at its focalizing point one may come into an understanding of its action. Divine Mind first images the idea, then perceives its fulfillment. Man, acting in co-operation with Divine Mind, places himself under this same creative law and thus brings his ideas into manifestation. The idea is the directing and controlling power. Every idea has a specific function to perform. When our
ideas are constructive and harmonious we see that they are good and realize that their power to rule is dominant in consciousness. "Evening" stands for the fulfillment of an idea and marks another
"day" or step or degree of unfoldment in consciousness. The Hebrew word for light is owr, meaning "luminosity" either literally or metaphysically. On the fourth day God said, "Let reflectors appear in the expanse of the heavens." Then God made two large "luminaries." The Hebrew word here used to express light is maowr, "a luminous body." The author of Genesis made a distinction between the source of light and how it was to be bodily manifested. But both were concepts in Divine Mind. Our
modern dynamos produce luminosity out of the ether equal to sunlight. The earth whirling on its axis generates electricity. Modern scientists are accepting analogy then, holding that bodies in motion generate energy that under certain conditions becomes luminous, and the conclusion is that the primal force that produces light existed before its manifestation through matter. This conclusion is in harmony with the symbolic story of creation as found in Genesis. Moses" calls attention to the creation of light before the sources of light, the sun and the stars, were created. Gen. 1:20-23. And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in
the open firmament of heaven. And God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature that moveth, wherewith the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind: and God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth. And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day. What qualities were developed on the fifth day? What kind of ideas are "creatures" and "sea-monsters"? Compare them with fishes and fowls. The fifth step in creation is the bringing forth of sensation and discrimination. The "creatures" are thoughts. The "birds . . . in the open firmament of heaven" are ideas approaching spiritual understanding. "Water" represents the unformed substance of life, always present as a element in which ideas ("living creatures") increase and multiply, just as the earth produces a crop when sown with seed. The "birds" represent the liberated thoughts or ideas of mind (heavens). In connection with the body, "water" represents the fluids of the organism. The "sea-monsters" are life ideas that swarm in these fluids. Here is pictured Divine Mind creating the original body idea, as imaged in the 20th verse. In the 2nd chapter of Genesis we shall read of the manifestation of this idea. Idea, expression, and manifestation are the steps involved in bringing anything forth under divine law. The stamp of good is placed upon divine ideas and their activity in substance. In the fifth day's creation ideas of discrimination and judgment are developed. The fishes and fowls represent ideas of life working in mind, but they must be properly related to
the unformed (seas) and the formed (earth) worlds of mind. When an individual is well balanced in mind and body, there is an equalizing force flowing in the consciousness, and harmony is in evidence. Another orderly degree of mind unfoldment is fulfilled. Another step in spiritual growth is worked out in consciousness when the individual enters into the quickening of his judgment and seeks to conform his ideas to those of Divine Mind. Gen. 1:24-31. And God said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kind: and it was so. And God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creepeth upon the ground after its kind: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. And God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them: and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food: and to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for food: and it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. What is the sixth step in the creative process of which man is the grand culmination? The sixth step in creation is the bringing forth of ideas after their kind. When man approaches the creative level in his thought, he is getting close to God in his consciousness, and then the realization that he is the very image and likeness of his Creator dawn on him. This is the consciousness in man of Christ. Explain the cause of which sensation is the result. On the sixth day of creation ideas of life are set into activity. [the thoughts and ideas from day 5 are set into activity by love and wisdom] that which has been created in the "Cattle" represent ideas of strength established in substance. "Creeping things" represent ideas of life that are more subtle in their expression, approaching closer to the realm of sense. They are the micro-organisms. The "beasts" stand for the free energies of life that relate themselves to sensation. Divine ideas are always instantly set into activity: "and it was so." Underlying all these ideas related to sensation, which in their original purity are simply ideas of life functioning in substance, is the divine idea of life. When life is expressed in divine order it is pronounced good. What is termed "sense consciousness" in man
is not to be condemned but lifted up to its rightful place. "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth may in him have
eternal life." When the ideas of life are properly related to love and wisdom, man will find in them eternal satisfaction instead of sense pleasure. In what sense is man the "image" of God? Wisdom and love are the two qualities of Being that, communing together, declare, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." This is the mental image of man that in Truth we call the Christ. The Christ man has dominion over every idea emanating from Divine Mind. The creation described in these six days or six "steps" or stages of God-Mind is wholly spiritual The Most High's mind, and all His works are created in mind as perfect ideas. This statement of man's creation, "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness," has always been a puzzle to people who read the Scriptures literally. The apparent man is so at variance with the description that they cannot
reconcile them. Theologians began first to admit that the Garden of Eden story was an allegory, and now they are including the whole of Genesis. But this is more than an allegory; it is a description of
the ideal creation. In their calculations engineers often use mathematical symbols, like the letters x, y, and z, to represent quantities not yet given precise determination but carried along for development at the proper time. Involved in these symbols are ideas that are to be brought out in their proper order and made visible when the engineer's plans are objectified. So man plans in his mind that which he proposes to build. First the idea, then the visible. This is the process through which all creation passes. God makes all things in His mind first, which is involution; then they are made into form and shape, and this is evolution. In some such way then we can think of man as represented by an x in The Most High's plan or calculations. The Most High is carrying man along in His mind as an ideal quantity, the image-and-likeness man of His creation, and His divine plan is dependent for its success on the manifestation by man of this idea. The divine plan is furthered by the constant idealism that keeps man moving forward to higher and higher achievements. The image-and-likeness man pours into "mankind" a perpetual stream of ideas that the individual man arranges as thoughts and forms as substance and life. While this evolutionary process is going on there seem to be two men, one ideal and spiritual and the other intellectual and material, which are united at the consummation, the ideal man, Christ. When the mind attains an understanding of certain creative facts, of man's creative powers, it has established a directive, intelligent center that harmonizes these two men (ideal and spiritual vs. intellectual and material). This directive center may be named the I AM. It is something more than the human I. Yet when this human I has made union with the image-and-likeness I, the true I AM comes into action, and this is the Christ , the Son of The Most High, evolved and made visible in creation according to divine law.
The Most High ideated two universal planes of consciousness, "the heavens and the earth." One is the realm of pure ideas, the other of thought forms. The Most High does not create the visible universe directly, as a man makes a concrete pavement, but He creates the ideas that are used by His intelligent "image and likeness" to make the universe. Thus the Most High's creations are always spiritual. Man's creations are both material and spiritual, according to his understanding. When is man the master of ideas and their expression? Mental activity in Divine Mind represents two phases: first, conception of the idea; and secondly, expression of the idea. In every idea conceived in mind there is first the quickening spirit of life, followed by the increase of the idea in substance. Wisdom is the "male" or expressive side of Being, while love is the "female" or receptive side of Being. Wisdom is the father quality of the Most High and love is the mother quality. In every idea there exist these two qualities of mind, which unite in order to increase and bring forth under divine law. Divine Mind blessed the union of wisdom and love and pronounced on them the increase of Spirit. When wisdom and love are unified in the individual consciousness, man is a master of ideas and brings forth under the original creative law. "Seed" represents fundamental ideas having within themselves reproductive capacity. Every idea is a seed that, sown in the substance of mind, becomes the real food on which man is nourished. Man has access to the seed ideas of Divine Mind, and through prayer and meditation he quickens and appropriates the substance of those ideas, which were originally planted in his I AM by the parent mind. Provision is made for the sustenance of all the ideas emanating from Divine Mind. The primitive forms of life are fed on "herbs"; they have a sustaining force that is food to them, even as the appropriation of divine ideas is food to man. In what attitude of mind can man truly call his creation "very good?" Divine Mind, being All-Good itself, sees only its own creation as good. As man co-operates more fully with Divine Mind, imaging only that which is good, he too beholds his production with the "single" eye, sees them only as good. The sixth step in creation is the concentration, in man, of all the ideas of Divine Mind. Man is given authority and dominion over all
ideas. Thus is completed another step in mind unfoldment. In the six mental steps or "mind movements," called days, Elohim the Most High creates the spiritual universe and spiritual man. He
then rests. He has created the ideas or patterns of the formed universe that is to follow. In the next we shall find the Most High executing what Elohim the Most High created or ideated. In the Hebrew the name Ahiyah means "I am." We identify the Most High as the I AM, the spiritual man, the image and likeness of Elohim the Most High. But spiritual man, must be made manifest, so He forms a man called Adam. The Light of the World. I am going to define Yashua’s purpose in creation, and how that purpose was accomplished through Yashua the Messiah, who is “the First and the Last”. To understand the true Gospel message, we must first understand that Yashua had a “purpose” in mind (called The Plan of Salvation) before He began His creative acts. Everything He did, He did according to that Purpose/Plan as we read in John 1. Simply stated, Yahuah’s purpose/predestined plan was to beget a family of “Godlike Ones” called Elohim. Then give this amazing Universe/Creation as His inheritance to His family. Then organize this family of “Gods” into a Divine Government of priests and kings (Royal Priesthood) to rule over His Creation for eternity; with His Righteous Instructions as the foundation of / or constitution of... that government. This “mystery” has been hidden from creation, revealed in The Messiah, then hidden again by the False Religion. We see below, that we simply do not know or understand this most basic knowledge, that we are Yashua’s literal children. Instead, we walk about in total darkness. Psalms 82.…5 They do not know nor do they understand; They walk about in darkness; All the foundations of the earth are shaken. 6 I said, "You are gods, And all of you are sons of the Most High. 7 "Nevertheless you will die like men And fall like any one of the princes."… The Mystery of the Ages: Yashua’s Purpose! We see in Ephesians, that Yashua had a purpose in creation, and that purpose is “a mystery”… it is called The Mystery of the Ages: Ephesians 1:9 9 Having made known unto us (elohim) the mystery of His will (to beget a family), according to His (YAHUAH’s) good pleasure which He hath purposed (predestined to create) in (the full image of) Himself (He is the Father of Elohim, the One True Living God Psalm 82:6).
Exodus 18:20-25
20 You should also teach them the laws and the teachings, and show them how to live their lives and what work they should do. 21 But you should choose from among all the people competent men who are God-fearing, honest and incorruptible to be their leaders, in charge of thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 22 Normally, they will settle the people’s disputes. They should bring you the difficult cases; but ordinary matters they should decide themselves. In this way, they will make it easier for you and share the load with you. 23 If you do this — and God is directing you to do it — you will be able to endure; and all these people too will arrive at their destination peacefully.” 24 Moshe paid attention to his father-in-law’s counsel and did everything he said. 25 Moshe chose competent men from all Isra’el and made them heads over the people, in charge of thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.
Leading without Leadership.
Your attitude is more powerful than your reputation.
The leadership spirit exists deep down inside the makeup of every person because we are made in the image of our Creator and have an inherent dominion spirit. Yet we can’t fully manifest this gift in our lives because we don’t have the resources to access it. We have lost the Spirit of the Creator, and we have lost our awareness of the leadership spirit as well as the mind-set that enables us to exercise it effectively.
THE IMPACT OF THE DISCONNECTION
The loss of the spirit of leadership is also like buying a new computer that has all the hardware to enable you to run programs and carry out their functions but then not having any power source to run the computer.
Suppose, then, that you discover a power source and plug it in. The computer is powered on and ready to go, but you still need software for it to be of practical use to you. You have the knowledge of what the computer has been designed to do, and all the components of the hardware are ready for use. The potential is there, the ability is there, everything the manufacturer put into it is there, but it’s almost as if you don’t own a computer because you can’t do anything with it.
These two examples illustrate the two-pronged nature of our problem. First, even though our potential as leaders is still within us, we’ve lost our connection with our Source of purpose and power. Second, even if the connection were to be reinstated, unless we obtain the right “machinery” or “software”—that is, unless we discover how a leader is meant to think and operate (the spirit of leadership)—we still won’t be able to fulfill our potential. Simply put, the leadership spirit is the inherent hardware, and the spirit of leadership is the software necessary for the hardware to function. I’ll be talking about these two crucial concepts in the next few chapters.
THE GREAT LOSS
The loss of our Source of purpose and power has led to a myriad of negative outcomes because of the confusion that inevitably resulted. The following questions have been asked by countless generations since Adam declared independence from his Source:
Who am I?
Where am I from?
Why am I here?
What am I capable of doing?
Where am I going?
These five questions summarize the essence of the human struggle and are what I, over the years, have called the questions of the human heart. They control everything that each human being does and are the motivation for all human behavior.
WHAT DID MAN LOSE?
Man was created to function attached to God; he could fulfill his true potential and maximize his full capacity only through this connection. The key to effective and successful living was the indwelling Spirit of God—called the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, therefore, is the key to true leadership. The Spirit is the critical component in every human’s existence because he is the only hope for our rediscovering our true identity, self-image, self-worth, significance, self-esteem, and destiny.
A ROYAL SLAVE
The story is told of a prince who was born into a great royal family. When the prince was five years old, his father the king took the boy with him on a journey to a far country. During the journey, their ship struck a reef, and the entire crew and passengers were thrown into the angry waves. During the turmoil and rescue effort, the little prince was saved by a native from a nearby island.
The king was unaware of the rescue, and the little prince was now separated from his royal family. He became a member of the village and grew up unaware of his royal heritage. He learned to think and live like the natives and accepted this lifestyle as his own. In his poverty and simple life, he was not aware that he was from a wealthy family of high status and was heir to the royal kingdom of his father. In effect, he became a slave to the culture, customs, and standards of the community in which he found himself.
He was a royal prince living under impoverished conditions. He did not know who he was, where he was from, why he was born, what he was capable of, or his rightful claim to be king. He lived his life vastly below his inherent privileges, not knowing the answers to the crucial questions of his life: his identity, heritage, purpose, potential, and destiny.
It is interesting that, in his search for relevance and significance, man continues to use creation as the measure and context for his search. However, it is essential to understand that we can never discover our value or purpose by studying the creation but only by a relationship with the Creator. God created the earth and everything in it for mankind and then gave humanity dominion over it. Everything in creation, therefore, get its significance from God and from us, not the other way around.
Because we are unaware of our intrinsic leadership nature, however, the average person is easily influenced by anyone or anything that seems to be stronger than he is. For example, instead of our having dominion over the earth, the earth has become our dominator in certain ways. Some people allow themselves to become controlled by drugs that come from plants. Others are enslaved to money, which is in reality trees that have been converted to paper and made into currency. Still others are controlled by grapes that have become fermented.
People’s lives are being destroyed by what is essentially vegetation. These are signs that we’ve lost our leadership awareness and ability. Imagine, sophisticated man with his immeasurable potential and intricate design being controlled by leaves and grapes. This is a tragedy and demonstrates how far we have been removed from our initial assignment of having dominion over all things in the earth.
AN IGNORANT KING
Another result of the disconnect is that, while we were designed to rule, we have become ignorant kings. Not only do we not know who we are, where we came from, and what we are capable of, but we also don’t know how to use the resources that the Creator has given us.
Psalms 82
1 A Psalm of Asaph. God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.
2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.
3 Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy.
4 Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.
6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
7 But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.
Psalm 82 in the Old Testament gives an intriguing commentary on the human condition. In this psalm, The Most High is speaking, and he begins by questioning the assembly of “gods,” referring to mankind’s status as a being who, although not equal to God, has been created in God’s own image and likeness.
The Most High then explains the cause of mankind’s behavior: “They know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.” Darkness refers to their ignorance of truth, which results in evil actions. Because of their lack of justice, the very foundations of the earth are being shaken out of place. He adds, “I said, ‘You are “gods”; you are all sons of the Most High.’ But you will die like mere men; you will fall like every other ruler.” Some scholars say that the term “mere men” refers to mere flesh and thus means living from base animal instinct. Dogs don’t have complex cognitive abilities; they have instincts. The Most High is basically saying, “I didn’t make you like that. You’re not a mere animal. You are in the ‘god-class’
If you read the questions and statements in this psalm, you will recognize the parallel to today.
How long will you defend the unjust?” In other words, in your courts, the criminal gets off while the victim is humiliated. This is because you’re not in touch with yourselves. You can’t even see the wrongness of your way of doing things. You’re so corrupt; you go after money rather than righteousness or justice.
“How long will you show partiality to the wicked?” You give tax breaks to the man who is greedy while you burden the poor man with more than he is able to pay. That’s showing partiality.
“Defend the cause of the weak and the fatherless.” You don’t take care of the orphans. You fill your stomachs full of food but let children sleep under bridges.
“Maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.” You don’t look after people; you oppress them. All these questions are a demand for effective, competent, compassionate leadership.
He says that all this is going on because of the people’s ignorance of who they truly are: God’s image.
That is why I think the term “ignorant king” is very valid. It explains why the leadership in our nations is so weak and inept and, at times, brutal and heartless. It is because of our detachment from our Source. Our Creator says, “What are you doing? You are completely the opposite of what I intended.”
MENTAL ILLNESS
The greatest impact of the disconnect, however, is what I call “mental damage” or “mental illness.” The essence of this idea is that we have become what we think we are. The most powerful thing that a human has on earth, in my view, is his thoughts. The mind itself only contains the thoughts, so the thoughts are more important than the mind. It is your thinking that determines your life.
I’m not referring to people in an insane asylum. When I use the term mental illness, I am not referring to the medical definition of being psychologically incapable of sound judgment in relation to what we call normal in our societies. In the context of our discussion, I am referring to the inherent mental defect in every human being that resulted from our detachment from our Creator-Source.
I am referring to the confusion we all face with regard to discovering our identity, self-worth, self-image, self-esteem, and sense of destiny. Men and women of every nation, race, culture, status, and socioeconomic context all seem to be doing everything imaginable to fulfill their deep internal desires to find purpose, significance, value, and worth. A study of our modern and postmodern societies will reveal that no matter how sophisticated we may believe we are, we are still haunted by a passion to know who we really are. Many have tried even destructive behaviors to make some sense of their lives.
• They have power without purpose.
• They have money without meaning.
• They have position without a passion for living.
• They have houses but not homes.
• They have children but are not nurturing their sons and daughters.
• They protect animals but kill unborn human beings.
• They pursue power at the expense of principles.
• They sacrifice integrity for temporary pleasure.
Isn’t it amazing that many of us go every day to jobs we hate, live with people with whom we have no relationship, complain about everything while changing nothing, keep doing the same things over and over again—but expect different results?
We exaggerate our accomplishments, pretend to be more than we are, hide behind false images of ourselves, and believe our reputations more than our true characters. Are we sane?
The result of mental illness is self-hatred, self-denigration, self-deception (denying the truth about oneself, lying to oneself), fear (fear of failure, fear of success, fear of the unknown, a general suspicion of other people, a distrust of God), ignorance of personal identity, ignorance of personal ability, ignorance of personal purpose, ignorance of a sense of destiny, and a mentality of survival (we don’t really live—we just make a living).
King Solomon, the wisest king who ever lived, wrote this statement in Ecclesiastes, his book on effective living and the challenges of life.
Ecclesiastes 10
1 Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.
2 A wise man's heart is at his right hand; but a fool's heart at his left.
3 Yea also, when he that is a fool walketh by the way, his wisdom faileth him, and he saith to every one that he is a fool.
4 If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences.
5 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, as an error which proceedeth from the ruler:
6 Folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in low place.
7 I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth.
THE LIMITED LEADER
There are three types of limitations in life. First, there are limitations that are imposed by external forces. Second, there are limitations that are inherent in the purpose and design of a created entity. Yet, most important, there is limitation that is a result of ignorance and faulty belief.
This is the worst type of limitation because it is self-maintained and preserved. It is determined by us and not by others. In essence, what we do not know about ourselves is limiting us. We are leaders, but we are limited because we do not know the truth about ourselves due to our disconnection from our Source.
Leaders are limited by the extent of their knowledge of the truth about themselves and the world. The only one who knows the truth about all those things is the One who created them.
We are not fulfilling our leadership potential because we are suffering the mental damage that results from our ignorance of the truth about ourselves and about creation. We have distorted beliefs because we have not been reconnected to the truth about ourselves.
Micah 2:7 O thou that art named the house of Jacob, is the spirit of the Lord straitened? are these his doings? do not my words do good to him that walketh uprightly?
Torah: Leviticus 26:13; Deuteronomy 9:5
Prophets: 2 Samuel 22:24, 22:26; Isaiah 26:7, 57:2; Habakkuk 2:4
Writings: 1 Kings 9:4; 1 Chronicles 29:17; Job 6:25, 33:3; Psalm 25:21, 119:7; Proverbs 2:13, 4:11, 14:2
Ecclesiastes12:10 The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, H3476 even words of truth.
Genesis 1:1-5. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day. To understand the creation of the universe by God, we must know something of the character of the Most High. Yeshua said, "God is Spirit." The works of the Most High He said, were done in Him (Yeshua) and through Him. "The Father abiding in me doeth his works." That the Most High is an intelligent force always present and always active is the virtual conclusion of all philosophers, thus corroborating the statements of Yeshua. The Most High is eternally in His creation and never separate from it. Wherever there is evidence of creative action, there the Most High is. Explain the Most High as Divine Mind. How does the Divine Mind create? The Most High's mind, He created through His word or idea, and this is the universal creative vehicle. It is plainly stated in this 1st chapter of Genesis that "the Most High said." Yeshua corroborated this creative power of the word or idea again and again. He said that His words were so powerful that if we let them abide in us we might ask whatsoever we would and it should be done to us. The Most High is a mind force carrying forward creation under His mental law. That law may be known to anyone who will follow the example of Yeshua. Yeshua said, "Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." This means that we should strive for the perfection that the Most High is. We are the image and likeness of this great creative Mind, and being in a certain aspect of our mind just like it, we can through mental adjustment attain the same conscious unity that Yeshua did. What is the first step in the awakening of man to spiritual consciousness? The first step in creation is the awakening of man to spiritual consciousness, the dawning of light in his mind, his perception of Truth through the quickening of his spirit. Light is wisdom; and the first day's work is the calling of light or wisdom into expression. Light represents intelligence, and darkness represents undeveloped capacity. Symbolically these are "day" and "night." The word the Most High in this instance stands for Elohim, which is the Most High in His capacity as creative power, including within Himself all the potentialities of being. The "beginning" indicates the first concept of Divine Mind. "Created" means ideated. The "heavens" is the realm of ideas, and the "earth" represents ideas in expression. Heaven is the idea and earth the mental picture. A comparison is found in the activity of our own mind: we have an idea and then think out a plan before we bring it forth. Did the Most High create man and the earth as they appear today? We are to understand that the Most High created not the earth as it appears but that which produced the earth. Elohim, Spirit, creates the spiritual idea, which is afterward made manifest through the Most High. What is meant by "The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters"? What, in terms of mind, is "darkness" or "Light"? The earthly thought was not yet clear. Harmony of form had not yet come into expression. "The deep" represents the capacity of the earth idea to bring forth. "The face of the deep" represents its intelligence. Understanding has not yet come into
expression, and there is no apparent action. "The Spirit of God" or divine intelligence moved upon "the face of the waters." "Waters" here represents unexpressed capacities, the mental element out
of which all is produced. Man is conscious of unexpressed capacities within himself, but only as he moves upon mind substance with intelligence are his inherent spiritual qualities molded into forms. "Light" is intelligence, a spiritual quality. It corresponds to understanding and should precede all activity. At the beginning of any of our creating we should declare for light. Our declarations of Truth are instantly fulfilled in Spirit. James says in his Epistle, "Every good gift and every perfect gift
is from above, coming down from the Father of lights." John speaks of "the true light . . . which lighteth every man, coming into the world." All that emanates from the Most High is good. In the process of bringing forth our ideas we need a certain degree of understanding in order properly to regulate our thoughts. The light must be divided from the darkness, as in Divine Mind the
light was separated from the darkness. "Day" represents the state of mind in which intelligence dominates. "Night" represents the realm of thoughts that are not yet illuminated by the Spirit of
the Most High. Gen. 1:6-8. And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day. What is the central idea in the second day's creation? The second step in creation is the development of faith
or the "firmament." The "waters" represent the unestablished elements of the mind. The second day's creation is the second movement of Divine Mind. The central idea in this day's creation is the establishment of a firmament in the "midst of the waters" dividing the "waters from the waters."
"Waters" represent unexpressed possibilities in mind. There must be a "firm" starting point or foundation established. This foundation or "firmament" is faith "moving upon" the unformed capacities of Spirit consciousness. The divine word of the Most High, as creative power--gives forth the edict "Let there be a firmament." The first step or "day" in creation involves "light" or understanding, and the second step, faith in the knowing quality of mind. The word is instantly fulfilled in Spirit. "And God made the firmament." This does not refer to the visible realm of forms but to the mental image in Divine Mind, which deals only with ideas. In every mental state we have an "above" and a "below." Above the firmament are the unexpressed capacities ("waters") of the conscious mind resting in faith in Divine Mind. Below the firmament are the unexpressed capacities ("waters") of the subconscious mind. Why is the word heaven capitalized in Genesis 1:8? The word "Heaven" is capitalized in this passage because it relates directly to Divine Mind. Faith ("firmament") established in consciousness is a state of perfect harmony, therefore "Heaven." Another degree of mind unfoldment has been attained. "And there was evening and there was morning, a second day." "Evening" represents completion, and the "morning" following represents activity of ideas. Gen. 1:9-13. And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called He Seas: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit-trees bearing fruit after their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after their kind: and God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a third day. What is the third step in the creative process? The third step in creation is the beginning of the formative activity of the mind called imagination. This gathers "the waters . . . together unto one place" so that the "dry land" appears. Then the imagination begins a great multiplication of forms and shapes in the mind. The first day's creation reveals the light or inspiration of Spirit. The second day establishes faith in our possibilities to bring forth the invisible. The third day's creation or third movement of Divine Mind pictures the activity of ideas in mind. This is called expression. The formative power of mind is the imagination, whose work is here represented by the dry land. There is much unformed thought in mind ("the heavens") that must be separated from the formed. Does Divine Mind deal directly with things or ideas? In this proclamation "earth" is the mental image of formed thought and does not refer to the manifest world. The Most High is Divine Mind and deals directly with ideas. "Seas" represents the unformed state of mind. We say that a man is "at sea" when he is in doubt in his mental processes. In other words he has not established his thoughts in line with the principle involved. The sea is capable of production, but must come under the dominion of the imagination. Divine Mind images its ideas definitely and in every detail. The idea precedes the fulfillment. "Let there be" represents the perfect confidence necessary to demonstration. Ideas are productive and bring forth after their kind. They express themselves under the law of divine imagery. The seed is within the thought and is reproduced through thought activity until thought habits are formed. Thoughts become fixed in the earth or formed consciousness. In Divine Mind all is good. How does man form his world? Again a definite degree of mind unfoldment has been attained. Man, in forming his world, goes through the same mental process, working under divine law.
Yesuha said, "The seed is the word of the Most High." Gen. 1:14-19. And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years: and let them be for lights in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so. And God made the two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
The symbology of the development of the "two great lights." The fourth step in creation is the development of the "two great lights," the will and the understanding, or the sun and the moon. These are but reflectors of the true light; for the Most High had said, "Let there be light: and there was light"--before the sun and the moon were created. The "firmament of heaven" is the consciousness of Truth that has been formulated and established. In the second day's creation a firmament was established in heaven (realm of divine ideas). This firmament divides the day (illumined consciousness) from the night (unillumined consciousness). Through faith the "lights"
are established; that is, understanding begins to unfold. The "signs," "seasons," and "days and years" represent different stages of unfoldment. We gain understanding by degrees. The "earth" represents the more external processes through which an idea passes, and corresponds to the activity of an idea in mind. In man the "earth" is the body consciousness, which in its real nature is a harmonious expression of ideas established in faith-substance. "And it was so"; that is, an idea from divine consciousness is instantly fulfilled. The "greater light," in mind, is understanding and the "lesser light" is the will. The greater light rules "the day," that realm of consciousness which has been illumined by Spirit. The lesser light rules "the night," that is, the will; which has no illumination ("light" or "day") but whose office is to execute the demands of understanding. The will does not reason, but in its harmonious relation acts easily and naturally upon the inspiration of Spirit. Divine will expresses itself as the I AM in man. The "stars" represent man's perceptive faculties, including his ability to perceive weight, size, color, sound, and the like. Through concentrating any of the faculties ("stars") at its focalizing point one may come into an understanding of its action. Divine Mind first images the idea, then perceives its fulfillment. Man, acting in co-operation with Divine Mind, places himself under this same creative law and thus brings his ideas into manifestation. The idea is the directing and controlling power. Every idea has a specific function to perform. When our
ideas are constructive and harmonious we see that they are good and realize that their power to rule is dominant in consciousness. "Evening" stands for the fulfillment of an idea and marks another
"day" or step or degree of unfoldment in consciousness. The Hebrew word for light is owr, meaning "luminosity" either literally or metaphysically. On the fourth day God said, "Let reflectors appear in the expanse of the heavens." Then God made two large "luminaries." The Hebrew word here used to express light is maowr, "a luminous body." The author of Genesis made a distinction between the source of light and how it was to be bodily manifested. But both were concepts in Divine Mind. Our
modern dynamos produce luminosity out of the ether equal to sunlight. The earth whirling on its axis generates electricity. Modern scientists are accepting analogy then, holding that bodies in motion generate energy that under certain conditions becomes luminous, and the conclusion is that the primal force that produces light existed before its manifestation through matter. This conclusion is in harmony with the symbolic story of creation as found in Genesis. Moses" calls attention to the creation of light before the sources of light, the sun and the stars, were created. Gen. 1:20-23. And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in
the open firmament of heaven. And God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature that moveth, wherewith the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind: and God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth. And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day. What qualities were developed on the fifth day? What kind of ideas are "creatures" and "sea-monsters"? Compare them with fishes and fowls. The fifth step in creation is the bringing forth of sensation and discrimination. The "creatures" are thoughts. The "birds . . . in the open firmament of heaven" are ideas approaching spiritual understanding. "Water" represents the unformed substance of life, always present as a element in which ideas ("living creatures") increase and multiply, just as the earth produces a crop when sown with seed. The "birds" represent the liberated thoughts or ideas of mind (heavens). In connection with the body, "water" represents the fluids of the organism. The "sea-monsters" are life ideas that swarm in these fluids. Here is pictured Divine Mind creating the original body idea, as imaged in the 20th verse. In the 2nd chapter of Genesis we shall read of the manifestation of this idea. Idea, expression, and manifestation are the steps involved in bringing anything forth under divine law. The stamp of good is placed upon divine ideas and their activity in substance. In the fifth day's creation ideas of discrimination and judgment are developed. The fishes and fowls represent ideas of life working in mind, but they must be properly related to
the unformed (seas) and the formed (earth) worlds of mind. When an individual is well balanced in mind and body, there is an equalizing force flowing in the consciousness, and harmony is in evidence. Another orderly degree of mind unfoldment is fulfilled. Another step in spiritual growth is worked out in consciousness when the individual enters into the quickening of his judgment and seeks to conform his ideas to those of Divine Mind. Gen. 1:24-31. And God said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kind: and it was so. And God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creepeth upon the ground after its kind: and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. And God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them: and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food: and to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for food: and it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. What is the sixth step in the creative process of which man is the grand culmination? The sixth step in creation is the bringing forth of ideas after their kind. When man approaches the creative level in his thought, he is getting close to God in his consciousness, and then the realization that he is the very image and likeness of his Creator dawn on him. This is the consciousness in man of Christ. Explain the cause of which sensation is the result. On the sixth day of creation ideas of life are set into activity. [the thoughts and ideas from day 5 are set into activity by love and wisdom] that which has been created in the "Cattle" represent ideas of strength established in substance. "Creeping things" represent ideas of life that are more subtle in their expression, approaching closer to the realm of sense. They are the micro-organisms. The "beasts" stand for the free energies of life that relate themselves to sensation. Divine ideas are always instantly set into activity: "and it was so." Underlying all these ideas related to sensation, which in their original purity are simply ideas of life functioning in substance, is the divine idea of life. When life is expressed in divine order it is pronounced good. What is termed "sense consciousness" in man
is not to be condemned but lifted up to its rightful place. "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up; that whosoever believeth may in him have
eternal life." When the ideas of life are properly related to love and wisdom, man will find in them eternal satisfaction instead of sense pleasure. In what sense is man the "image" of God? Wisdom and love are the two qualities of Being that, communing together, declare, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." This is the mental image of man that in Truth we call the Christ. The Christ man has dominion over every idea emanating from Divine Mind. The creation described in these six days or six "steps" or stages of God-Mind is wholly spiritual The Most High's mind, and all His works are created in mind as perfect ideas. This statement of man's creation, "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness," has always been a puzzle to people who read the Scriptures literally. The apparent man is so at variance with the description that they cannot
reconcile them. Theologians began first to admit that the Garden of Eden story was an allegory, and now they are including the whole of Genesis. But this is more than an allegory; it is a description of
the ideal creation. In their calculations engineers often use mathematical symbols, like the letters x, y, and z, to represent quantities not yet given precise determination but carried along for development at the proper time. Involved in these symbols are ideas that are to be brought out in their proper order and made visible when the engineer's plans are objectified. So man plans in his mind that which he proposes to build. First the idea, then the visible. This is the process through which all creation passes. God makes all things in His mind first, which is involution; then they are made into form and shape, and this is evolution. In some such way then we can think of man as represented by an x in The Most High's plan or calculations. The Most High is carrying man along in His mind as an ideal quantity, the image-and-likeness man of His creation, and His divine plan is dependent for its success on the manifestation by man of this idea. The divine plan is furthered by the constant idealism that keeps man moving forward to higher and higher achievements. The image-and-likeness man pours into "mankind" a perpetual stream of ideas that the individual man arranges as thoughts and forms as substance and life. While this evolutionary process is going on there seem to be two men, one ideal and spiritual and the other intellectual and material, which are united at the consummation, the ideal man, Christ. When the mind attains an understanding of certain creative facts, of man's creative powers, it has established a directive, intelligent center that harmonizes these two men (ideal and spiritual vs. intellectual and material). This directive center may be named the I AM. It is something more than the human I. Yet when this human I has made union with the image-and-likeness I, the true I AM comes into action, and this is the Christ , the Son of The Most High, evolved and made visible in creation according to divine law.
The Most High ideated two universal planes of consciousness, "the heavens and the earth." One is the realm of pure ideas, the other of thought forms. The Most High does not create the visible universe directly, as a man makes a concrete pavement, but He creates the ideas that are used by His intelligent "image and likeness" to make the universe. Thus the Most High's creations are always spiritual. Man's creations are both material and spiritual, according to his understanding. When is man the master of ideas and their expression? Mental activity in Divine Mind represents two phases: first, conception of the idea; and secondly, expression of the idea. In every idea conceived in mind there is first the quickening spirit of life, followed by the increase of the idea in substance. Wisdom is the "male" or expressive side of Being, while love is the "female" or receptive side of Being. Wisdom is the father quality of the Most High and love is the mother quality. In every idea there exist these two qualities of mind, which unite in order to increase and bring forth under divine law. Divine Mind blessed the union of wisdom and love and pronounced on them the increase of Spirit. When wisdom and love are unified in the individual consciousness, man is a master of ideas and brings forth under the original creative law. "Seed" represents fundamental ideas having within themselves reproductive capacity. Every idea is a seed that, sown in the substance of mind, becomes the real food on which man is nourished. Man has access to the seed ideas of Divine Mind, and through prayer and meditation he quickens and appropriates the substance of those ideas, which were originally planted in his I AM by the parent mind. Provision is made for the sustenance of all the ideas emanating from Divine Mind. The primitive forms of life are fed on "herbs"; they have a sustaining force that is food to them, even as the appropriation of divine ideas is food to man. In what attitude of mind can man truly call his creation "very good?" Divine Mind, being All-Good itself, sees only its own creation as good. As man co-operates more fully with Divine Mind, imaging only that which is good, he too beholds his production with the "single" eye, sees them only as good. The sixth step in creation is the concentration, in man, of all the ideas of Divine Mind. Man is given authority and dominion over all
ideas. Thus is completed another step in mind unfoldment. In the six mental steps or "mind movements," called days, Elohim the Most High creates the spiritual universe and spiritual man. He
then rests. He has created the ideas or patterns of the formed universe that is to follow. In the next we shall find the Most High executing what Elohim the Most High created or ideated. In the Hebrew the name Ahiyah means "I am." We identify the Most High as the I AM, the spiritual man, the image and likeness of Elohim the Most High. But spiritual man, must be made manifest, so He forms a man called Adam. The Light of the World. I am going to define Yashua’s purpose in creation, and how that purpose was accomplished through Yashua the Messiah, who is “the First and the Last”. To understand the true Gospel message, we must first understand that Yashua had a “purpose” in mind (called The Plan of Salvation) before He began His creative acts. Everything He did, He did according to that Purpose/Plan as we read in John 1. Simply stated, Yahuah’s purpose/predestined plan was to beget a family of “Godlike Ones” called Elohim. Then give this amazing Universe/Creation as His inheritance to His family. Then organize this family of “Gods” into a Divine Government of priests and kings (Royal Priesthood) to rule over His Creation for eternity; with His Righteous Instructions as the foundation of / or constitution of... that government. This “mystery” has been hidden from creation, revealed in The Messiah, then hidden again by the False Religion. We see below, that we simply do not know or understand this most basic knowledge, that we are Yashua’s literal children. Instead, we walk about in total darkness. Psalms 82.…5 They do not know nor do they understand; They walk about in darkness; All the foundations of the earth are shaken. 6 I said, "You are gods, And all of you are sons of the Most High. 7 "Nevertheless you will die like men And fall like any one of the princes."… The Mystery of the Ages: Yashua’s Purpose! We see in Ephesians, that Yashua had a purpose in creation, and that purpose is “a mystery”… it is called The Mystery of the Ages: Ephesians 1:9 9 Having made known unto us (elohim) the mystery of His will (to beget a family), according to His (YAHUAH’s) good pleasure which He hath purposed (predestined to create) in (the full image of) Himself (He is the Father of Elohim, the One True Living God Psalm 82:6).
Exodus 18:20-25
20 You should also teach them the laws and the teachings, and show them how to live their lives and what work they should do. 21 But you should choose from among all the people competent men who are God-fearing, honest and incorruptible to be their leaders, in charge of thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 22 Normally, they will settle the people’s disputes. They should bring you the difficult cases; but ordinary matters they should decide themselves. In this way, they will make it easier for you and share the load with you. 23 If you do this — and God is directing you to do it — you will be able to endure; and all these people too will arrive at their destination peacefully.” 24 Moshe paid attention to his father-in-law’s counsel and did everything he said. 25 Moshe chose competent men from all Isra’el and made them heads over the people, in charge of thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.
Leading without Leadership.
Your attitude is more powerful than your reputation.
The leadership spirit exists deep down inside the makeup of every person because we are made in the image of our Creator and have an inherent dominion spirit. Yet we can’t fully manifest this gift in our lives because we don’t have the resources to access it. We have lost the Spirit of the Creator, and we have lost our awareness of the leadership spirit as well as the mind-set that enables us to exercise it effectively.
THE IMPACT OF THE DISCONNECTION
The loss of the spirit of leadership is also like buying a new computer that has all the hardware to enable you to run programs and carry out their functions but then not having any power source to run the computer.
Suppose, then, that you discover a power source and plug it in. The computer is powered on and ready to go, but you still need software for it to be of practical use to you. You have the knowledge of what the computer has been designed to do, and all the components of the hardware are ready for use. The potential is there, the ability is there, everything the manufacturer put into it is there, but it’s almost as if you don’t own a computer because you can’t do anything with it.
These two examples illustrate the two-pronged nature of our problem. First, even though our potential as leaders is still within us, we’ve lost our connection with our Source of purpose and power. Second, even if the connection were to be reinstated, unless we obtain the right “machinery” or “software”—that is, unless we discover how a leader is meant to think and operate (the spirit of leadership)—we still won’t be able to fulfill our potential. Simply put, the leadership spirit is the inherent hardware, and the spirit of leadership is the software necessary for the hardware to function. I’ll be talking about these two crucial concepts in the next few chapters.
THE GREAT LOSS
The loss of our Source of purpose and power has led to a myriad of negative outcomes because of the confusion that inevitably resulted. The following questions have been asked by countless generations since Adam declared independence from his Source:
Who am I?
Where am I from?
Why am I here?
What am I capable of doing?
Where am I going?
These five questions summarize the essence of the human struggle and are what I, over the years, have called the questions of the human heart. They control everything that each human being does and are the motivation for all human behavior.
WHAT DID MAN LOSE?
Man was created to function attached to God; he could fulfill his true potential and maximize his full capacity only through this connection. The key to effective and successful living was the indwelling Spirit of God—called the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, therefore, is the key to true leadership. The Spirit is the critical component in every human’s existence because he is the only hope for our rediscovering our true identity, self-image, self-worth, significance, self-esteem, and destiny.
A ROYAL SLAVE
The story is told of a prince who was born into a great royal family. When the prince was five years old, his father the king took the boy with him on a journey to a far country. During the journey, their ship struck a reef, and the entire crew and passengers were thrown into the angry waves. During the turmoil and rescue effort, the little prince was saved by a native from a nearby island.
The king was unaware of the rescue, and the little prince was now separated from his royal family. He became a member of the village and grew up unaware of his royal heritage. He learned to think and live like the natives and accepted this lifestyle as his own. In his poverty and simple life, he was not aware that he was from a wealthy family of high status and was heir to the royal kingdom of his father. In effect, he became a slave to the culture, customs, and standards of the community in which he found himself.
He was a royal prince living under impoverished conditions. He did not know who he was, where he was from, why he was born, what he was capable of, or his rightful claim to be king. He lived his life vastly below his inherent privileges, not knowing the answers to the crucial questions of his life: his identity, heritage, purpose, potential, and destiny.
It is interesting that, in his search for relevance and significance, man continues to use creation as the measure and context for his search. However, it is essential to understand that we can never discover our value or purpose by studying the creation but only by a relationship with the Creator. God created the earth and everything in it for mankind and then gave humanity dominion over it. Everything in creation, therefore, get its significance from God and from us, not the other way around.
Because we are unaware of our intrinsic leadership nature, however, the average person is easily influenced by anyone or anything that seems to be stronger than he is. For example, instead of our having dominion over the earth, the earth has become our dominator in certain ways. Some people allow themselves to become controlled by drugs that come from plants. Others are enslaved to money, which is in reality trees that have been converted to paper and made into currency. Still others are controlled by grapes that have become fermented.
People’s lives are being destroyed by what is essentially vegetation. These are signs that we’ve lost our leadership awareness and ability. Imagine, sophisticated man with his immeasurable potential and intricate design being controlled by leaves and grapes. This is a tragedy and demonstrates how far we have been removed from our initial assignment of having dominion over all things in the earth.
AN IGNORANT KING
Another result of the disconnect is that, while we were designed to rule, we have become ignorant kings. Not only do we not know who we are, where we came from, and what we are capable of, but we also don’t know how to use the resources that the Creator has given us.
Psalms 82
1 A Psalm of Asaph. God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.
2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.
3 Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy.
4 Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.
6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
7 But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.
Psalm 82 in the Old Testament gives an intriguing commentary on the human condition. In this psalm, The Most High is speaking, and he begins by questioning the assembly of “gods,” referring to mankind’s status as a being who, although not equal to God, has been created in God’s own image and likeness.
The Most High then explains the cause of mankind’s behavior: “They know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.” Darkness refers to their ignorance of truth, which results in evil actions. Because of their lack of justice, the very foundations of the earth are being shaken out of place. He adds, “I said, ‘You are “gods”; you are all sons of the Most High.’ But you will die like mere men; you will fall like every other ruler.” Some scholars say that the term “mere men” refers to mere flesh and thus means living from base animal instinct. Dogs don’t have complex cognitive abilities; they have instincts. The Most High is basically saying, “I didn’t make you like that. You’re not a mere animal. You are in the ‘god-class’
If you read the questions and statements in this psalm, you will recognize the parallel to today.
How long will you defend the unjust?” In other words, in your courts, the criminal gets off while the victim is humiliated. This is because you’re not in touch with yourselves. You can’t even see the wrongness of your way of doing things. You’re so corrupt; you go after money rather than righteousness or justice.
“How long will you show partiality to the wicked?” You give tax breaks to the man who is greedy while you burden the poor man with more than he is able to pay. That’s showing partiality.
“Defend the cause of the weak and the fatherless.” You don’t take care of the orphans. You fill your stomachs full of food but let children sleep under bridges.
“Maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.” You don’t look after people; you oppress them. All these questions are a demand for effective, competent, compassionate leadership.
He says that all this is going on because of the people’s ignorance of who they truly are: God’s image.
That is why I think the term “ignorant king” is very valid. It explains why the leadership in our nations is so weak and inept and, at times, brutal and heartless. It is because of our detachment from our Source. Our Creator says, “What are you doing? You are completely the opposite of what I intended.”
MENTAL ILLNESS
The greatest impact of the disconnect, however, is what I call “mental damage” or “mental illness.” The essence of this idea is that we have become what we think we are. The most powerful thing that a human has on earth, in my view, is his thoughts. The mind itself only contains the thoughts, so the thoughts are more important than the mind. It is your thinking that determines your life.
I’m not referring to people in an insane asylum. When I use the term mental illness, I am not referring to the medical definition of being psychologically incapable of sound judgment in relation to what we call normal in our societies. In the context of our discussion, I am referring to the inherent mental defect in every human being that resulted from our detachment from our Creator-Source.
I am referring to the confusion we all face with regard to discovering our identity, self-worth, self-image, self-esteem, and sense of destiny. Men and women of every nation, race, culture, status, and socioeconomic context all seem to be doing everything imaginable to fulfill their deep internal desires to find purpose, significance, value, and worth. A study of our modern and postmodern societies will reveal that no matter how sophisticated we may believe we are, we are still haunted by a passion to know who we really are. Many have tried even destructive behaviors to make some sense of their lives.
• They have power without purpose.
• They have money without meaning.
• They have position without a passion for living.
• They have houses but not homes.
• They have children but are not nurturing their sons and daughters.
• They protect animals but kill unborn human beings.
• They pursue power at the expense of principles.
• They sacrifice integrity for temporary pleasure.
Isn’t it amazing that many of us go every day to jobs we hate, live with people with whom we have no relationship, complain about everything while changing nothing, keep doing the same things over and over again—but expect different results?
We exaggerate our accomplishments, pretend to be more than we are, hide behind false images of ourselves, and believe our reputations more than our true characters. Are we sane?
The result of mental illness is self-hatred, self-denigration, self-deception (denying the truth about oneself, lying to oneself), fear (fear of failure, fear of success, fear of the unknown, a general suspicion of other people, a distrust of God), ignorance of personal identity, ignorance of personal ability, ignorance of personal purpose, ignorance of a sense of destiny, and a mentality of survival (we don’t really live—we just make a living).
King Solomon, the wisest king who ever lived, wrote this statement in Ecclesiastes, his book on effective living and the challenges of life.
Ecclesiastes 10
1 Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.
2 A wise man's heart is at his right hand; but a fool's heart at his left.
3 Yea also, when he that is a fool walketh by the way, his wisdom faileth him, and he saith to every one that he is a fool.
4 If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences.
5 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, as an error which proceedeth from the ruler:
6 Folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in low place.
7 I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth.
THE LIMITED LEADER
There are three types of limitations in life. First, there are limitations that are imposed by external forces. Second, there are limitations that are inherent in the purpose and design of a created entity. Yet, most important, there is limitation that is a result of ignorance and faulty belief.
This is the worst type of limitation because it is self-maintained and preserved. It is determined by us and not by others. In essence, what we do not know about ourselves is limiting us. We are leaders, but we are limited because we do not know the truth about ourselves due to our disconnection from our Source.
Leaders are limited by the extent of their knowledge of the truth about themselves and the world. The only one who knows the truth about all those things is the One who created them.
We are not fulfilling our leadership potential because we are suffering the mental damage that results from our ignorance of the truth about ourselves and about creation. We have distorted beliefs because we have not been reconnected to the truth about ourselves.
Shema Selah, we must look to the heart of leaders, that is where there thoughts and self-image reside!! Facebook LIVE video!!
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