I always had a hunch that Christianity and the Bible were the coolest religion and book in the world. But I couldn’t understand why. You have helped this hunch become reality Mr. Pageau. I am grateful for this beyond words, thank you.
I thank God every day for the work of teachers like Jonathan to reiterate the wisdom of the gospel. Despite my inability to understand it as a child, the Book often gave me a very deep and eerie feeling. When I began to realize its depth and found tutoring in its wisdom I felt the sensation of "waking up" again and again.
“We don’t base ourselves on ideas we base ourselves on examples” so true. This is why what we need is inner conversions that make us behave as true Christians, to be a light for the world. Also easier said than done.
As krishnamurti said, you must be a light to yourself. If you are a light to yourself, then your light can also light the world. but first, remove the beam from your own eye, then remove the mote from others. I added the second sentence myself, because it seemed relevant
Jonathan, I’ve been watching your videos for about a year and a half now and I can’t express how impactful they’ve been. I am not a Christian and don’t ascribe to any religion (in the traditional meaning of the word) but I have understood for a while now that the development of one’s self, aimed towards the highest good, is humanity’s ultimate task. And that is the understanding that I’ve allowed to guide me spiritually. With that, I’ve found that there are truths that simply exist, exhibited across time by our repeated patterns. You are the first person I’ve ever heard discuss the Bible in this way - demonstrating the existence of its truths in our everyday lives, at every moment. Please know that this way of teaching scripture is a game changer. So many non-believers think Christianity is an obsolete, archaic institution because they can’t connect to it and simply see it as fairytale. But broken down this way makes these things undeniable and to deny its truths would be to deny one’s own existence. This video was surely divine timing, as I’ve been dealing with a challenging situation and have attempted to deal with it the best way I know how - looking for opportunities to embody grace. This was a reminder to continue in that, always .Thank you, your videos help me to be a better human being.
"(...) truths that simply exist, exhibited across time by our repeated patterns." If You can trust that there is wisdom in this world, reflected e.g. in seasons and cycles - sometimes 'dialectical' that is when one has to become sick, to nourish health or to suffer war, to honor peace - You'll realize how You fit into all of it, _exactly_ as You are. One can aspire to embody _greater_ grace, to be still and to reflect with one's life 'what aligns the stars' - but a clumsy, even misunderstood act of love will build a new world, _literally_ . I can't tell if You'll take a liking to it, but *the writings of Evagrius Ponticus have been put online* this year, reflecting a Christian culture that once was - and in another form, once will be again.
If you like this, might I recommend to you the City of God by St.Augustine and/or the works of St.Hildegard of Bingen? Or The Shepherd of Hermas? Or Prudentius`s Psychomachia? This is nothing utterly unheard of in the Christian worldview. It is just neglected in education. They are all different and likely will not all appeal towhat you are seeking, but certainly at least one of them will. You know the interpretive key, look for their treasure within, drawn up from same Divine Wisdom you have been drinking from here. Or for something more contemporary, try CS Lewis`s nonfiction writings or JRR Tolkien`s works of Middle-Earth (The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings among them). God bless you and grant you His Light and Wisdom, through Jesus Christ, Our Blessed Lord and Savior, Who is the Divine Wisdom, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, Who with God the Father, and the Holy Spirit, is Goodness, Beauty, Truth, Justice, Mercy, and Love Himself, the One True God, now and forever. Amen.
@@dherman0001 What does it mean if I keep saying things in scripture that I haven’t read? And not resemblances, but in some cases word for word. I asked where you got that from because I said it through internal dialogue just a few days gone. So to see your comment made me a little paranoid that I’d commented it somewhere and you’d stalked me. But you’re telling me it’s scripture. How does that happen? How do I recite scripture, verbatim, numerous times now, without having ever read it?
Your description of the horizon of possibility as heaven reminds me of the Fosbury Flop. People jump belly first for years. Then one day someone reaches into the horizon of possibility and jumps back first. And it changed the high jump ever since. It raised the bar, you could say.
You know what Jonathan? I Love this video. I'm gonna focus on God, he always pays you fairly. As for anyone else, that's their problem, in a standard sense it's just bad business on a human level.
Amazing point from 13:30 about figures opening the door to a new level, shining and embodying something valuable, ascending into heaven, and attracting others to it, 'raising the level of what is possible' YES this matches exactly with Rupert Sheldrake's Morphic Resonance.
Excellent connection ! As I remember, Sheldrake tells how chemists wanted to create a certain complex molecule but it proved to be extremely difficult to make it take form. Many labs in different countries failed. Then one lab finally succeeded, and subsequently the molecule began to take form in other labs around the world.
@@mondopinion3777 exactly! Also lab rats learning the same trick better in one place and another place following suit, despite being across the other side of the globe and not of the same genetic line etc
Thank you, Jonathan! I have been studying the parable of the ten virgins followed by the parable of talents in The Gospel of Matthew. Your discussions have helped me learn and understand tremendously. God bless you and your family.
Your sports analogies are excellent. Just as there is tough competition in Nature, yet we are required to be merciful, so in sports there is tough competition yet we are required to play within the rules which make the game possible. They say when Nijinsky danced, audiences wept. And when Gretzky was on the ice grown men were moved to tears. We all recognize and yearn toward that pinnacle of actualization..
Excellent video. I worry about the lack of examples to follow in my country. No religion, no history, none of it is really taught anymore. We have been set adrift in a strange lack of continuity...
Rootlessness and global identity is the basis for the new religion - because if you identify with everything and everyone, when pressured you will *functionally* identify with nothing and no one.
Thank you, you really know how to communicate complicated ideas in slow boy terms. You have a lot of grace and respect just in your voice, it’s really nice to hear 🏅
Thank you so much for this explanation.. especially how pioneers build the road for new levels of existence. The path of truth finds us when we become an example in Christ. We build heaven in our everyday lives. 🙏🌟
Yes! Life immortal I have always considered to be one that is always remembered. It’s very much related to the concept of attention that you’ve been talking about with others. The Day of the Dead tradition where ultimate death is the death when one is totally forgotten really hit home for me with this as well. The symbolism of the necessity of remembering those so that they are in our attention, so that they are remembered, so that they LIVE in us. Jesus lives forever in us. That is how He has everlasting life. To bring the Kingdom of Heaven to Earth through one’s actions is to live forever. To be remembered. To have achieved such a higher level of being here on Earth - like the Saints and why they are recognized. Why they are remembered. Why they should be remembered. And why people should also remember their loved ones who have passed. They live on in us. We hold them there inside us as we live our lives. A part of their existence continues through our own since they were influential to who we are.
Tank you, It’s very helpful to speak out the truth about christianity. I got alienated from religion long time ago because it did not make sense to talk about magical being in the sky and also be interested in science an the truth. If only they would have honestly said it like it is. I have been looking for this in stoicism, philosophy, psychology, self-help, etc. I can see that this is the most efficient way to propagate the positive patterns through stories and communal practice. Disembodied thinking only get you so far.
"If only they would have honestly said it like it is." If it does resonate with You, take a look into Greek Church fathers, Evagrius, the Capadocians, Maximos - a Christian culture that had assimilated the height of Hellenistic philosophy and anthropology and utilized it to grasp what they experienced in stillness and contemplation. This was arguably much closer to traditions that Westeners now seek in the Orient, usually without knowing much about their past - but a language and iconography which can build the bridges for cultural transfer that our world needs.
@@christophmahler I think christianity has build in us the good idea that truth is the most important thing. Out of that came sciences and our modern technologies. It’s not a surprise that modern people couldn’t stand the magical beings without any proof. But I can see the existence of the pattern of christ in our civilisation, as much as the one of mohammed in the islamist culture. We can now look at it as what pattern do we want to replicate, to embody, to push forward. What are their value in term of what they produce: you will know them by their fruits. I feel that christians are dishonest about this, maybe it’s about protecting people with a literate understanding. It might be better for our mind to really believe in the existence of magical being, that way the suffering of this word are less arbitrary and you can find solace in imagining the soul of passed ones in paradise.
@@alexforget "I think christianity has build in us the good idea that truth is the most important thing." I'd argue that it is _love_ , foremost. Aristotle was 'a fanatic of truth' and so Hellenism didn't lack the virtue of _wisdom_ or the 'techne', our current tyrants love so much. However, if one takes the statement: *_"I'm the way and truth and the life_* ." (John 14:6) serious, pursuing _any_ of these will lead to the other - arguably regardless where one begins (including other traditions or a seemingly hopeless life) - and if it weren't so, it wouldn't be as life-altering in a mere 'market of ideas'. "I feel that christians are dishonest about this (...)" There's the term 'confessionalism' which defines a mere group identity. Champions of the faith, however are recognized by their persistence when they are ostracized, persecuted or truly struggle with their faith - there is no 'Book of Bart, the chilled Sunday worshipper' in scripture - 'gold is tried and refined in a furnace'. _"But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold_ ." (Job 23:10)
@@christophmahler Thanks for taking the time to respond. If I understand correctly, you mean that we should avoid to be a half baked christian. We should be all in because life will throw challenges at you and you will bend if you are not completely in. I can feel this, and it make sense to me. In a sense it would be simpler to not ask questions, to believe, I can feel I would be a better person. What push me away is that I see so many variants of christianity going haywire, hating each other. I know a Jehovah witness, they believe they hold the one true interpretation, was raised catholic (again the same thing) recently my brother became a 7th day adventist and broke away from all family members and now believe the earth is flat. At the same time with JBP and now Pageau I could slowly climb the steps out of the materialist thinking and I am starting to see connection to christianity as the best way forward. I can see our current disintegration of society, of sensemaking that I think is mainly cause by the loss of faith. Sam Harris recently was a good exemple, the darling of the new atheist ready to throw away all due process because he was captured by the new ideology. I wonder if Orthodox faith is a way to connect our modern understanding of the world and the good parts that come from faith, that have been tested for thousand of years. In a sense I think that we should interpret these stories and see when they contain useful knowledge but still stay anchored in observable physical reality.
@@alexforget "If I understand correctly, you mean that we should avoid to be a half baked christian." It's an interesting question - but what I meant was more like that it is irrelevant how we self identify - because according to Christian tradtion, the soul is said to be judged according to it's substance - not by a membership register of an officially recognized organization. In Judaism e.g. there is the term of the 'Zaddique', refering to people who act, aligned with God's will, but are not of Abraham's lineage (e.g. the Persian Great King Cyrus who had ended the 'Babylonian Exile' of the Jews). A Christian Humanist like Thomas Müntzer formulated a similar concept, regarding followers of Mohammed - like Protestants, not a denomination, but a Christian heresy. "(...) it would be simpler to not ask questions, to believe, I can feel I would be a better person." I see that You interpret what I say as advocacy of anti-intellectualism - but the opposite is the case. I claim, once You are done exploring modern science and ideologies, You will realize that traditionalism is the more profound cultural strain that describes man and his fate more accurately than any science that excludes a realism toward spiritual matters. To commend 'faith' is simply a pragmatic recognition that Your knowledge will always be too limited, to accurately calculate outcomes e.g. in forms of scientific models. You have faith, not to be murdered by every person, You meet, because it is common sense and it would be impractical to start exploring the world from the opposite assumption. *The more You apply 'critical thinking' upon Yourself, the easier You'll recognize Your own biases* and bouts of unreflected paranoia. "What push me away is that I see so many variants of christianity going haywire, hating (...) each other." I get that. Personally, I solved it by canceling my Protestant denomination and not taking on any other 'membership' so far - making me officially a _heretic_ . But I won't 'teach' anything other than the claim that Christian traditions are deeper than modern confessionalist politics - and this can be proven if one studies Church history from a sociological and anthropolgical perspective, perhaps comparing to other traditions like Hinduism, Buddhism and Shia Islam. That Churches will decline and that genuine Christians will always be a rather few number is an integral part of Christian apocalyptic tradition - that heresies love to present themselves as the 144.000 saved souls is not an argument against Christianity in general - just like US sponsored Mujahedeen cannot disprove the genuine love of e.g. Rabia of Basra who was said to have prayed to be burned in hell or drowned in Paradise if not seeking God _in love_ . Zealots would attack me for muddling religions into a universalist pulp, but I don't claim that everyone is right, somehow - only that we are called to recognize and adapt the good in everything (Paul) - while Zealots die at a Massada of their own making with their adorned temples, ground down. " I could slowly climb the steps out of the materialist thinking and I am starting to see connection to christianity (...)" And that is all that can be asked for, in my opinion. "I can see our current disintegration of society, of sensemaking that I think is mainly cause by the loss of faith." As I suggested, to look at it from a sociological and anthropological perspective is a valid approach - before at some point, these questions are so personal that they will resonate e.g. in Your dreams and waking life epiphanies - calling You to sainthood (which one will struggle with for the longest time). If 'conversion on the death bed' was good enough for modern monarchs, it will be good for the average, secularized person, distrustful of authorities, but longing with an aching heart to return home _like a lost son_ . "I wonder if Orthodox faith is a way to connect our modern understanding of the world (...)" I have the hunch that it can be so, regardless of the difficulties. Take a look at the *'Short Story of the Anti-Christ'* by Vladimir Solovyev', the recently published writings of *Evagrius Ponticos* , the 'Cosmic Theology' of *Maximos Confessor* and compare it to other traditions for what is called 'structural homology' and I claim, You won't discard these works as 'superstition', but examples of *outstanding ability of critical thinking* , most 'computational modellers' can learn from when they make predictions along _wishful thinking_ .
the analogy with michael Jordan at around 15m mark is great one. Another one which was a real demonstration of this phenomenon was Roger Bannister who was the first person to run a mile is less than 4 minutes in 1954. No one was able to do it before him, but once that milestone was achieved 50 other runners also broke the 4 minute barrier by 1960.
Thankyou for helping me understand healthy hierarchy. All my logical errors of liberal youth were rooted in the misguided notion that "the patriarchy" was evil and most be stopped. Returning to Christ/Krishna consciousness after being derailed by some off brand of new age spiritual materialism for many years, i appreciate truly your exposition of this "procession of Grace." Hare Krishna 🙏
A central topic. It always struck me when I heard _'confessionalists'_ talk of 'heaven' as 'a place' - when Christian scripture emphasized _'a state'_ that is depicted as accessible to all, _at all times_ , anywhere - with death being only one - again, temporal - 'mode' of it's 'omnipresence'. The 'kingdom of heaven' was _the_ message of the _Messiah_ , between baptism in the Jordan and crucifiction at Golgatha - everything else of Christian doctrine trickles naturally from that source. Otherwise Christ could have incarnated, suffered and died, without ever stressing his identity - if it were not for a faithful _reconciliation_ of the 'children of Israel' with the 'kingdom of heaven' - to have man _find his place_ within the order of the cosmos _in love_ - in an age when everybody hoped for a nationalist 'kingdom of David', to compete with the secular power of Rome _in strength_ . Most of Hebrew scripture is an account of why that aspiration is a misconception of history and man.
Thank you for the video, Jonathan. Another interpretation can be found in Luke 20:34. Jesus was asked about seeing a wife in heaven (it could be your mum or your gran) Jesus says: "The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:{20:35} But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: {20:36} Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection. {20:37} Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. {20:38} For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him."
I was just having this exact conversation with a Deacon and you answered it perfectly. He was talking about how after Confession or Baptism, you are sinless and fully sanctified and I thought, yeah, maybe, but if that's the way to attain heaven then surely you would SEEK to off yourself right at the moment of baptism or right after receiving confession, so either they don't believe the proposition that you are sanctified by the sacraments OR they don't believe that simply attaining the heavenly reward is the point of life. I've also very much had the thought when reading the things that Jesus says is that he isn't describing the Kingdom of heaven as being some extra dimensional place, he's describing it as a pattern of being in the world, right now, and of course, he was speaking contemporaneously, meaning he's describing to the Israelites in the year 33 how the kingdom of heaven is at hand, meaning, like, here. Now. You describe it perfectly, that it is through the embodiment of the patterns received from above that we bring about the kingdom of heaven and of course if you do that, you will have eternal life, because you will grow and add to the constant iteration of that pattern and become one with God, as it were.
I agree that "Kingdom of Heaven" is a kind of hierarchy, but The "Heaven/Paradise" itself seems to be a spiritual place (as Jesus said to the thief at the cross).
Hello brother, As I listened to this video I feel compelled finally to ask you what you know about apocatastasis I truly appreciate your work and as I was listening to your comments and contemplating universal restoration I see so much of what your sharing come to light. What do you believe about hell and have you delved into and considered the early church fathers teachings of universal restoration?
Hi Jonathan, if you read I have a request! Could you do a segment on ‘Pataphysics? Starts with playwright Alfred Jarry. I believe it’s considered the ‘philosophy’ of the exception. Thanks regardless. Love love love your work.
3:08 I was hanging my washing out and there's a wrapping vine that had tangled its way onto the clothesline. I was putting a towel over, and a tip of the wrapping vine got caught under. and I thought, well, you shouldnt be growing on my clothesline dude. but i pulled it out anyway so it didn't get squashed. and i had a feeling of being god over it. and then i had a fractal sensation; a coherence that it was more than just a feeling. i mean even time is a kind of god over you. or causality itself. if you keep going up, 'what's bigger than that?' 'what's bigger than that?' eventually you get to the all-ness. the stuff of stuff. Bob Dylan: "And the ship's wise men / Will remind you once again / That the whole wide world is watchin". That was kind of an anti vietnam war slogan but I didn't know that when I heard it the other day. I experienced a paranoia as my conception of god broke in over the last few weeks. With such coincidences about me, you'd wonder who's setting it up? If you're not stable enough to weather the storm, you can see how people really fall off the deep end as this process begins. An egocentric view smashed away, and then... burning bushes all over the shop! Jonathan, I'm glad I found your page!
"I was hanging my washing out and there's a wrapping vine that had tangled its way onto the clothesline." 15th century Christian humanist *Nicholas of Cusa* had experienced an *_'epiphany'_* when traveling to Constantinople by ship - when he observed the water surface, stretching in all directions, geometrically into an peripheral horizon - suddenly grasping this impression as _an image_ of *an infinite 'totality'*, encompassing nearby contradictions (he was on a diplomatic mission to negotiate an end to the Great Schism between Latins and Greeks). So, yeah - there are more 'adventures' to explore than what meets the eye.
17:00 - We don't base our selves on ideals, we base our selves on examples. You can set rules. But if you don't lead by example... It's not going to happen.
8:47 - That which we received from above is now reproduced below. We have to embodied what comes from above and that's how you are participate in heaven. That's how you receive the kingdom of heaven.
My little brother took his own life, this past Sunday night, I’m still processing obviously, and I’m gonna be honest I’m too scared to watch this video, but I know he’s there, he’s helping others as we speak
Can someone help me understand Jonathan? Is he saying Christ "resurrected and went into Heaven" only in our minds and our collective memories? I'm having trouble undestading his vision of Heaven and the afterlife.
Sins accrue debts, and our sincere pleading for forgiveness - with intent of rectification - provides a pathway for truest forgiveness. If this etiquette isn’t upheld towards that which is greater than us (reality, or god) nor if it is held towards those who owe us (or have sinned against us), perdition awaits. Sound about right? Thanks
Hello brother, thankyou so much you have really opened my eyes to the deeper meanings of the bible. Do you believe in a literal Hell? Also do you believe in a literal Day of Judgment and a rapture?
From what I know, Orthodox Christians don't believe in hell. Or at least the general opinion of what hell is. I'm not Orthodox and also am not Mr. Pageau so I could be mistaken.
Hi Jonathan. Just a note. Symbolic World podcast is continuously being dumped from my apple podcast playlist. I have had to restore maybe 8 times now. Not sure why this is happening ? Has anyone else had this problem ? Lets say your podcast is not the most controversial podcast around so not sure what is going on.... maybe it is the best at busting materialism ! Anyhow your work and a few others (PVK) has got me to the Orthodox church so Thank You deeply.
@JulianChristopher Reality checks or encounters with death have the silver lining of momentarily awakening us.. until it doesn’t. We shouldn’t ever get comfortable taking that risk.
Yet the suffering outside of the kingdom of heaven is exactly what draws a person, by the grace of God, to Christ. To use the metaphor, it is like being cut from the team and then being offered free private classes by Michael Jordan.
Many on the left seem to have more knowledge of the Word but the right show more loving action. I feel as though religion has been used by earthly powers.
What Jonathan is talking about is not "just symbolism"-- it is quite real. Roger Bannister broke the 4-minute mile and then others could do it too, and some would say that was only because "psychologically" they believed they could. But chemists know that laboratory formulation of a certain complex molecule was extremely difficult at first -- but when one lab finally succeeded, then that molecule began to form in other labs across the world. This is a known phenomenon, and has happened more than once.
That just puts the symbol as a descriptor of reality, one that is inferior to material understanding of the same phenomenon (because it has less uses). For symbols to be real they have to be the fabric on which the material world is founded.
@@markemad1986 That is a profound comment. I will sleep on it and wait for insight. I suspect the real symbol exists both ways at once, in reciprocal relationship, requiring a leap between. Like the dynamic Hebrew star or YinYang pairs. Perhaps our era takes too reductionist a view of the material.
@@markemad1986 After some contemplation, this came : I think people have conflated symbol with Name, and what you refer to as superior is Name. Name as commanded by sorcerers. Name as in "There is none other Name under Heaven whereby you can be saved.". The sorcerer and the lover of Jesus must hold the symbol-of-the-Name within their minds in order to call upon the Name. Thus the spark leaps between the two realities.
@@mondopinion3777 you are using a language I am unfamiliar with. However remember the bodily resurrection, one of the main pillars of Christianity, and just see the way Paul defends it. At a time, people stopped believing in literal bodily resurrection, Paul was quick to discount this, even giving it as a tool to mock Christians, if Christ wasn't bodily resurrected our faith is in vain, to be clear it seemed like christians of the time were facing the same sceptical criticism it is facing today leading some to "interpret" the physical resurrection, for context the immortality of the soul wasn't a weird concept to philosophers at the time but the resurrection of the body was radical. Paul massage in this being a main pillar was clear, even if it would discount a lot of "christians"
@@markemad1986 I fully agree with you. So much so that I don't even like the word "literal" because that is a written-word term, one step removed from the physical. I think of the Resurrection as if I had experienced Him as Mary did. Bodily. I find Jonathan confusing because he is insightful, but I can never quite discern what is real to him.
The Holy Ghost pours out his Spirit and brings the increase in the name of Jesus. The latter rain proceeds the second coming and it is what waters the seed. Without the Spirit of God no one is saved. Believe in your idea of Jesus till the end of time, it does little good. You need to accept his ambassador and representative. So when the Holy Spirit shows himself and is rejected that is the unpardonable sin. To grieve the Spirit of God is to reject life. The supreme witness of Jesus Christ (King David) is reporting for duty. He was a man whose tongue held no lies, For he was the direct descendant of our father in the heavenly skies. Born to a body of fleshy sin, Though what laid beneath was unlike the rest of his kin. Jesus had the utmost grace, Never being wavered by evils face. He was wise beyond any years, Performing miracles that would bring crowds to tears. A beacon of light on top of a starless mountain, Where words of wisdom poured out of him as if there ran a cosmic fountain. His eyes pierced through you with a single glance, Leaving even the most hardened individuals in quite the trance. The Holy Spirit so ever majestically flowed inside this man, Naturally people caught notice and became a fan. Students began showing up from every mold, When they heard his words their hearts were sold. Wicked men put a price on Jesus's head, He was wanted alive or dead. Despite this he and his disciples continued their teachings, Where on occasion they endured terrible beatings. One of the twelve apostles turned to black, No longer having Jesus's back. Judas Iscariot had done Satan's bidding, And it is in hell where he now is sitting. Jesus died on the cross to pay for our shortcoming, However don't be saddened for if you believe in him you will see him at your homecoming. There he sits at the right hand of God's throne, Being the voice of truth and love that we all have known. Satan's tongue is coated in a layer of deceit, And he tramples over promises with his feet. He's a being who is bound by deceptions, Whose very essence oozes with misconceptions. He struggles to look you in your eyes, For his gaze holds nothing but lies. On occasion he will give you his hand, But don't be fooled by his stand. He seeks to corrupt your heart, You would be wise to avoid him from the start. Seeking quick pleasures and casting aside love, He traverses this land with push and shove. Now Lucifer was once not lost, But pride blinded him at a cost. Disobeying God he waged war, Becoming detestable to the core. Today he is the ruler of Earth, Though for all his power he has no real worth. However most of us have still been sold, Giving into sin and becoming cold. Nearly everyone is a puppet dancing on strings, Marching to delusion for their unjust kings. My people have given into lust, Becoming robots full of rust. However you my child are the exception, So when you meet me don't forget to mention. That you alone have been granted the key, And before your glory they shall all bend a knee. P.S.- Not too long ago I was very bitter and destructive. Literally I was covered in blood from head to toe and ripping off nails and things of that nature. In my mind Jesus was against me, he had a vendetta against me which I couldn't account for. Then slowly but surely I started having these revelations, and began delving into the word of God. It seemed like my agony was not in vain. The things which held me back eventually began to propel me forward. The darkness began fading away and an unspeakably bright light was surfacing. Jesus told me that he had to break me in order for me to rediscover who I really was. Sort of like a phoenix rising from the ashes. Today I am almost fully healed in every conceivable way, and things like being a virgin and being covered in scars I strangely enough take much pride in. I took up my cross and followed Christ and in doing so I discovered the greatest love of all.
@@thesecondlawandthetowerhou6026 Thanks again friend, I'm not writing a book ATM but I do have other poems and short stories. I'm preparing myself for the battle for Jerusalem (the City of David), soon the Third Temple will be built and I'll have to reclaim what is rightfully mine. Anyway until then I'm just kind of taking it easy and slowly evangelizing the world. Below is another poem and message of mine, I hope you enjoy it too. Here's a poem I wrote about overcoming depression called Beyond the Void. If it resonates with you and you need help navigating this drama feel encouraged to reach out. Wobbling on the edge of utter desolation, Where thoughts of death become a fascination. I take a step backwards and continue to sway, Is this the final hand that I will play? While what lays behind me is probably eternal rest, Is this decision the very best? Death is certain and that much I know, However there is still life in me left to flow. Perhaps this anguish can evolve, Maybe this question isn't impossible to solve. If I pay a visit to the abyss, There are so many things here that I will miss. Some things good and some things bad, Joyful events and those which are sad. When will this perspective shift? I desperately need my spirits to lift. I look in the mirror and remember every scar, The result of my despair I need not look far. Thoughts race through me, shackles tighten, I scream and then peculiarly my sense of awareness begins to heighten. A new thought washes through my being, I take a second glance in the mirror unsure of what I'm seeing. The burden within me feels far lighter, A winning result for this righteous fighter. The ground stops shaking and I gain some composure, Taking a step towards what was once an enclosure. Shadows fade away revealing what they left in the dark, Being pulled forward my soul begins to embark. P.S.- Persistence is key in overcoming any obstacle. None of us have it all figured out, especially the people who think they do. All we can really do is not forget to learn from our hard learned lessons and not repeat the same psychological patterns that got us into our initial conundrum. I always tell people that I wear a brave face but beneath this suit of armor there is a child in tears. What matters isn't how many times you fell, what matters is that you got back up one more time and are still standing today. She who says she can and she who says she can't are both usually right, meaning that self belief is typically the determining factor as to whether or not you accomplish your goals. I have full faith that you'll continue to sort yourself out and grow as time goes on. I know from experience that the flower that blooms from the cracks is often the most precious flower of them all. Hardships pave the way for success stories, God always roots for the underdog.
Trusting in God, one can 'fail only upwards', so to speak. It's not about being 'prim and proper' or 'looking blessed', but being _true to oneself_ in front of 'the origin of all'. From that 'rock bottom', genuine inspiration replaces quietly the half-hearted advice of busy men - and teaches the love of a God.
@@thesecondlawandthetowerhou6026 Here's an interesting video I made recently, I think you'll find it engaging. m.th-cam.com/video/D_8Xfv3UXE0/w-d-xo.html
May God bless you because you help so much the modern man understand God. Orthodoxy has completely transformed my life. Please keep on dying your blessed mission !
What if it’s like a kingdom of, say party culture? Party culture is prevailing in university campus throughout the north west. I’m struggling to form any connection with people without participating in any parties, and it made me depressed.
Can you try making a video to explain how it is possible to believe God is more than an abstraction while denying the literalist interpretation of Heaven?
OKay Jonathan, but what does this mean? Do we live forever if we get to heaven or not? That is the REAL question. If the Kingdom of Heaven is just a state of being then it will die with us, when our being is destroyed upon death, right?
Why are You _convinced_ that You are Your physical organs ? It is obviously a _preconception_ , You never had put to test. And if You do, You may come out of it as being _unsure_ - which at least legitimizes _hope_ (which would be naive if the opposite were already proven). Once You take concepts like 'hope' and 'faith' (also 'trust' in social interactions and relationships) as serious as mathematical constructs, You'll mature from a the ills of a 'vulgar materialism' that tortures You like an abusive, devaluating caretaker or partner. If You _dare_ to live with _faith_ - even experimentally to observe the effect, You'll notice that You won't get dumber, but to the contrary, grow the guts, to face reality, including one's shortcomings without being solely normative, judgemental about it.
@@MrChaosAdam "I don't care about (...) your philosophizing." It is not 'a philosophy'. _You will loose Your body_ likely before the middle of this century is reached. Your _death will confirm_ then what I said to You, now - if Your petty _secularism_ prepared You or not.
The Kingdom of Heaven is a literal kingdom and it will be established after the Kingdom of the Devil is destroyed. Yes we will live forever as resurrected beings (body and spirit reunited how it was with Christ) with glory. Christ will be King over all but be will coinherit with him.
But here's the problem and nobody ever discuses this: We didn't ask to be created, none of us did, so the loan analogy would really be the king demanding and then forgiving a debt...that he FORCED the servant to take from him...
It’s interesting that you say this because I came to this conclusion decades ago. It was one of the reasons why I left the church. I thought the focus of the church on the life AFTER life was ridiculous. Life is about living our current life, doing God’s work now. Bringing God’s will into my life and the lives of others. But everyone focused so much on the afterlife. It’s a carrot on a stick or the fear of the fires of Hell that the church tried to use to motivate ppl. It just seemed to miss the mark so much. I just wanted to do good to be good, to be close to God. God gives me the peace and faith that things will turn out fine. With God in my heart, I have a talisman against the ills in the world. Why do I need a Heaven after my life when I have it when God is with me? It just never made sense. Why hope for a life with God after physical death when you could have it now? I already was born again after accepting Christ into my heart. The old me had died and I was reborn. I don’t need physical death to feel close to God. The literalism imposed onto everyone by the church was dogmatically suffocating. It caused Christians to judge others when it’s God’s job to judge while my job was to do good by Him. It’s why I left and questioned God’s existence for a long time. It’s refreshing to see others think of the Bible and of Heaven/Hell in more metaphysical terms. It doesn’t have to be literal. I have lived in Hell on Earth. I have been to the pits of despair, the emptiness, the utter loneliness. Death felt like a respite. I don’t ever wish to go to that place nor do I wish my worst enemies in that place. I don’t need to go to Hell in the afterlife. I have been to the darkness, a place without God, without hope, without faith, without trust. You don’t need an afterlife to exist to experience that. It’s here on this Earth in your soul. God is the talisman to live. So live and stop focusing on death. That’ll come when it comes. Life is short. There’s a lot of work to be done.
Well said. I think you described the struggles of a lot of people within some of the organized religions when they become literal and almost totalitarian in thought. "Our way is the only way and truth and all else is false", - I don't like that method of understanding. Asking questions and trying to derive meaning has strengthened my faith more than any answer alone.
@@nathaniel841 Well, think of Abraham and Moses-both to be considered friends of God. What I find interesting is they were active in not only conversing with God but questioning Him as well! I think this idea where you cannot question a doctrinal point whether it be Protestantism's sacred cow of penal substitution theology or even Roman Catholicism's doctrine of divine simplicity-you run into quite a problem when such a question is met with derision and questioning the authority of the "church."
"Giving a certain amount of freedom for the lower level to exist." It's total freedom one way or the other. One can choose freedom with the evil one in the world or freedom with God in His Kingdom. There are no certain amounts nor a kind of way. You cannot serve two masters. Glory to God
@@SageStudiesGunnarFooth Well what is true “servitude”? If a person claims to serve the CIA, and does things for them, but is an agent for the KGB, surely the agents “true loyalty” lies in the KGB right? Similarly, if the Christian claims to serve God and yet serves the Devil, then the true loyalties lies with The Adversary right?
@@foulmercy8095 The problem is that God is 'greater' than antagonistic celestial powers - and without them creation would have gone another trajectory. Secular intelligence agencies are equal before God as they serve a function in an eschatological plan, man never grasps, fully - while the so called 'devil' or 'rebellious will' _serves_ God, ultimately - pictured as the 'advocatus diaboli' during 'judgement', all legal analogies to express a spiritual reality. If one loves God, one is more inclined to align with his benevolent will and 'divine economy' (including hard, seemingly painful choices) - we don't choose, rationally or voluntaristically (the Jesuit picture of the obedient soldier) between the one's we love and the one's we don't - we end up, drifting toward the former - even if we were convinced that it is 'smarter' not to. One won't find souls who love God in 'hell', no matter their 'wise choices'...
@@foulmercy8095 The agent knows who he is serving though. The KGB. He is willful and not ignorant of his master. The same way that if someone claims to be a Christian but willfully serves the devil, would be a wolf in sheep's clothing. But a Christian that sins (as we all do) but recognizes it and strives for the better path would not be serving the devil ultimately, but rather made a mistake in the serving of God. That mistake may have very well served the devil, but it was not the christians intent to do so. (Which doesn't make it okay, still) Sometimes we do things and don't know why, or what that is in the bigger picture. I guess it's good to have a strong moral compass to guide you.
I think that parable really could serve as a nexus point for Eastern-Western dailogue on atonement. God is the metaphysical foundation underlying hierarchical reality. To fail to live in such a way that aims at the highest Good (miss the mark, sin), is to be out of line not only with "God" but with reality and life itself (death). Christ does what we cannot which is to bridge the hierarchy and aim at the highest (perfect life and death) and thus restore harmony between creation and life / earth and Heaven (resurrection -- His and ours through union). Grace is the gift of Christ to fill in what's lacking in humanity apart from His intervention. This is why when Christ heals the body, He achieves it by forgiving their sin (the true root of death/sickness).
"I think that parable really could serve as a nexus point for Eastern-Western dailogue on atonement." It really is, and the more such conversations there are- on all levels of society - the less war between East and West will be - it is that simple.
Jesus said, “If those who lead you say to you, ‘See, the kingdom is in the sky,’ then the birds of the sky will precede you. If they say to you, ‘It is in the sea,’ then the fish will precede you. Rather, the kingdom is inside of you, and it is outside of you. When you come to know yourselves, then you will become known, and you will realize that it is you who are the sons of the living father. But if you will not know yourselves, you dwell in poverty and it is you who are that poverty.”
Jesus also taught in symbols, for the sake of people he thought could not grasp the true meaning of his teachings. I think symbols are important, but they are like fingers pointing to the moon, don’t focus on the finger or you will miss that heavenly glory.
"a symbologist must reject (...) literal existence" That is not what has been said if You listen with average good will. *Parabels* ('comparisons') are a means to grasp a reality that is both: immanent, and transcending the daily senses. There is no suggestion in this video - or elsewhere on the channel - to take e.g. the life of Christ or the mysteries of the faith as a mere 'Gnostic' symbolism.
Wake up from the literalism of the material focus of the Age of Enlightenment. We are in the post-Enlightenment era. We have forgotten the spiritual and metaphysical planes which is why they are a mess. The focus on the material plane is to focus on the golden calf. There is more to God than the material plane.
@@stephenrandell7152 - literal meaning an actual physical material place. Heaven exists in the spiritual and metaphysical plane. When you are close to God and God’s will, you are with Him, ie in Heaven. You don’t need a physical place to be with Him. You don’t need an image of it. It is the “image” of the place in your heart when you are with Him. You feel it, you live it, you are in it. It is not a place but a state of existence.
11:30 it is a question of ethics and morality.. but Christianity actually is a little limiting when understanding God(all being nothing/everything) Christ was first Jewish so he was influenced by a literal rhetorical understanding of God, then he became a little more spiritual but still expressed his understanding of God as a literal being. And for him to pay respect to the highest being (God) meant being the most pure you can be and that’s where Christianity went wrong. It became a self help book but it cut out the spiritual philosophy and denigrated magic/astrology while using magic, witchcraft, astrology themselves in the Bible. It became a book to control how people live and act in the world in a time and place where there was chaos and many different ideologies existing at once. If it weren’t for Constantine who was actually a mason, but used Christianity to control the people, Christianity wouldn’t be as popular as it is.
I could try and address this. But it is fractally wrong. Zoom in, falsehoods, zoom out, falsehoods. So I must agree with the above comment and say “no”.
So many things wrong with your comment. Yes earthy Jesus was a jew, But first and foremost he was the perfect union of Human flesh and the second person of the trinity. Jesus was not an enlightened teacher he was and his God.
If Your issue is with Christian denominations, yes - they are all 'particular' and rather partial, fragmented from a once universal Church along political faultlines. But if one accepts this *historicity* - in which 'the early Church' arguably _had to decline_ and become politicized (from iconoclasm to the Reformation) by _necessity_ - then the shattered pieces can be understood as pointing to a complete, accurate doctrine, not just of misunderstood dogma, but revelation - a mature state of the Church which is not, yet but which will come along an end of time. Everyone, who contemplates the mysteries of the faith will agree that many Christological teachings are not just 'clever constructs to manipulate public opinion', e.g. to legitimize politcial rule along ill-remembered prophecies or please shifting demographics, but point toward spiritual encounters that can be practized and cultivated toward a firmer grasp of reality. Your rejection of Christianity is like complaing that modern physics is 'a conspiracy to build the bomb' - which has some truth to it, but doesn't take into account what it can become from how it had evolved (when currently not in a promising shape).
If Christ's physical body didn't literally ascend to heaven where He sits at the right hand of the Father, then there is no point being a Christian. Pageau's channel is becoming outright blasphemous. I hope this isn't actual orthodox theology...
@@SageStudiesGunnarFooth I believe the earth is flat, and surrounded by the firmament. If you don't literally believe, then you don't believe. Nobody will ever convince me that the first chapter in the book of Acts isn't literal.
@@cheeseface6328 If the Bible is to be considered true, then it can’t contradict reality. The Earth is NOT flat. There is no room for discussion. How could one circumvent the world if it was? And if the sky is literally the firmament, is it so weak to be constantly broken through by meteors? Is the Heaven that fragile? There are people who are currently living in space right now (the ISS). So either we demean and assault the most holy of Scriptures by assuming it to be full of literal lies (the Earth is round, the sky isn’t the limit, etc), or we understand that the Bible isn’t a primer on natural science. In fact, it touches on matters much more important (the human condition, salvation, Gods revelation to man, etc). Please my friend, use your brain. To look at reality and shake your fist is to do so at an uncaring world. Either the Bible is true, and thus must confirm to reality (roundness of the Earth, heliocentrism, etc) or it’s false. And if it’s false we are truly damned.
And to continue, what do you mean by physical body? I do believe in a “physical” ascension. But to presume it’s the same type of body we have is ignoring all post resurrection accounts as all as the Apocalypse of Saint John. God is not bound by law, so yes, he can and did resurrect his son and are Lord Jesus Christ. But to understand “sitting” and “right hand” as literal is absurd. If The Father has a right hand, does he veins? Nerves that send signals to the brain to move? Does he have a skeletal frame, microorganisms all over and in his arm, and blood? Are you implying that our Lord Jesus Christ may get medical issues because he sits all day? Do you see how absurd literalism is when you take it just a centimeter far? I say this not to demean your intelligence, but to plead for you to think. Just as Our Master explained to Nicodemus that the rebirth does not include crawling into your mothers womb again, there are certain things that are not literal. This is not to include genealogies, description of wars, Christs birth, et cetera. Nor is this a rejection of miracles which happens every day seen and unseen. But it is a call to take the Bible seriously. Not demean it to primitive “bronze age myths”. The Bible is true. What it says is True. And it addresses reality. If you take that to mean The Father has a right arm with a skeleton and blood, then I merely pray you come to a deeper understanding my friend.
@@foulmercy8095 I will pray for you. I hope you truly understand one day. You cling to the world so you need the "impossible" parts to be explained away, instead of actually believing that God Himself walked the earth with us. A lot of us have been there. Jesus Christ healed a blind man and of course that is packed with eternal meaning, but it actually happened. You're the one moving this truth into the realm of mythical fiction, and relegating reality to nothingness whether you know it or not. So again, I will pray for you
You have insulted me of late. Your behavior has taken a turn for the worse, calling people idiots online, and being more forceful and blunt. It seems like you have lost patience or something.
I have noticed his frustration with people not being as blessed as he is to see these things. But he is just a man, and he is trying, and we should be grateful for it still.
@@leondbleondb I misread your comment at first. Three times without realizing it. Thinking you where saying I was being resentful towards Johnathan because of the things he sees. I wrote an entire reply I deleted because the context didn't make any sense at all. It makes me worried. I feel deceived. I need to take another look at exactly why I feel this way. I deeply respect Johnathan and hope he is doing well.
In his first videos after he returned from visiting Jordan Peterson in his home earlier this year, I could see that Jonathan was weeping in his soul. (I am an intuitive and perceive those things.) It did not feel like the sorrow was coming from his relationships with his family.
Jonathan is rising up the Peterson hierarchy and it ain’t a good place. It is sad to watch: first Dr Peterson and now Jonathan. I think the interview with Peterson and Greg showed the horror.
Whoever wrote the bible was bitter and had a controlling personality lol so much demeaning rhetoric is used and people love it. They love being servants and obeying a “lord” it’s so weird that that’s accepted. And when you really read the Bible how it’s written it’s like God created a simulation and is forcing you to play by “his” rules or you’re casted out to hell for eternity.. you must resist all temptation and be Perfect.. if youre God why would you create a reality where we have to struggle to reach heaven unless you enjoy watching people run through a simulation like lab rats lol
@@evanhuizenga8626 personal sovereignty lol not living in fear of displeasing the “Heavenly Father”. Not going around scaring people into believing an ideological way of life and telling people they most obey the commands of a non physical man or they’re going hell
@@xMoo_Cow the video of being a Christian for 21 years and realizing how majority of Christian’s are deluded and actually not too smart or free thinkers
The Gospel: Plain and Simple “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.” - 2 Corithians 11:3 Ask someone today if they are saved and you will most likely hear responses like these: “I have accepted Jesus into my heart.” Or “I have made him Lord of my life.” “I’ve been baptized.” “I said a prayer.” Sounds all good and churchy don’t it; but it is difficult to de-termine whether or not a person actually knows the gospel that saves them. These useless phrases don’t describe a thing about what the gospel is and has left a devastating effect of people not knowing what it is that they are saved from nor how they are saved; which leaves a more serious effect of people questioning their salvation. Let’s not muddy the simplicity of salvation that is in Christ with vague church sounding phrases that do not communicate anything. But rather present God’s word with clarity and assuredness. So here is the gospel: plain and simple. Sin was passed upon all men by one man Adam, and death is a consequence of this sin (Rom 5:12). Mankind has an eternal destiny of condemnation and wrath - Hell - because of this sin (Rom 6:23). No matter what good works one might do we are still found sinners in the sight of our Creator God. And all unrighteousness and those who follow get indignation and wrath. We cannot be found righteous for by God’s law we are found sinners (Rom 3:19-20). If we have broken even one law we are found guilty. It is for this reason of not being able to create our own righteousness and being born in a sinful flesh that we need a savior (Titus 3:5). Christ is that Savior, God manifested in the flesh, sinless, died in our place on a cross 2000 years ago. Taking upon him the wrath and judgement that was intended for us sinners. And it is through his bloodshed, burial, and resurrection on our behalf that we are able to have peace with God and forgiveness of our sins (1 Cor 15:1-4, Col 3:14). This good news is unto all but only those that believe in it are made righteous in Christ (Romans 3:22). It is then after we have heard this good news of Christ’s righteousness available to us freely, that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit and we are now part of Christ’s body the church (Eph 1:13) There is nothing that we need to do, no good works that are required, and no bad works that can separate us from our new position in Christ (Romans 8:35-39). Faith and belief in this information from God’s word is the gospel. The gospel is not accepting Jesus into your heart. The gospel is not making him lord of your life, it is not saying a prayer and it is not being baptized with water. So next time someone asks you if you are saved. Give them the clear assured answer “Yes! And let me tell you why Find more free resources at: www.graceambassadors.com
![⭐️( ลอยกระทง 2024 ) Ver. แดนซ์ Remix BY [ ดีเจกิต รีมิกซ์ ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/rMWOLhgXUHc/mqdefault.jpg)
Grace of God
9:57 Embody
13:25 Games
17:23 Lead by Example
Thanks.
I always had a hunch that Christianity and the Bible were the coolest religion and book in the world. But I couldn’t understand why. You have helped this hunch become reality Mr. Pageau. I am grateful for this beyond words, thank you.
I thank God every day for the work of teachers like Jonathan to reiterate the wisdom of the gospel. Despite my inability to understand it as a child, the Book often gave me a very deep and eerie feeling. When I began to realize its depth and found tutoring in its wisdom I felt the sensation of "waking up" again and again.
@@EdwardsComment Yes, thank you that’s exactly what it is. It seems to talk to something deep inside of me.
“We don’t base ourselves on ideas we base ourselves on examples” so true. This is why what we need is inner conversions that make us behave as true Christians, to be a light for the world. Also easier said than done.
As krishnamurti said, you must be a light to yourself. If you are a light to yourself, then your light can also light the world. but first, remove the beam from your own eye, then remove the mote from others.
I added the second sentence myself, because it seemed relevant
Jonathan, I’ve been watching your videos for about a year and a half now and I can’t express how impactful they’ve been. I am not a Christian and don’t ascribe to any religion (in the traditional meaning of the word) but I have understood for a while now that the development of one’s self, aimed towards the highest good, is humanity’s ultimate task. And that is the understanding that I’ve allowed to guide me spiritually. With that, I’ve found that there are truths that simply exist, exhibited across time by our repeated patterns. You are the first person I’ve ever heard discuss the Bible in this way - demonstrating the existence of its truths in our everyday lives, at every moment. Please know that this way of teaching scripture is a game changer. So many non-believers think Christianity is an obsolete, archaic institution because they can’t connect to it and simply see it as fairytale. But broken down this way makes these things undeniable and to deny its truths would be to deny one’s own existence. This video was surely divine timing, as I’ve been dealing with a challenging situation and have attempted to deal with it the best way I know how - looking for opportunities to embody grace. This was a reminder to continue in that, always .Thank you, your videos help me to be a better human being.
@Twilight Coda Thank you for stopping to read and for your reply!
This was a great explanation of why Jonathan's explanations work.
Good luck/ I will pray for your troubles
"(...) truths that simply exist, exhibited across time by our repeated patterns."
If You can trust that there is wisdom in this world, reflected e.g. in seasons and cycles - sometimes 'dialectical' that is when one has to become sick, to nourish health or to suffer war, to honor peace - You'll realize how You fit into all of it, _exactly_ as You are.
One can aspire to embody _greater_ grace, to be still and to reflect with one's life 'what aligns the stars' - but a clumsy, even misunderstood act of love will build a new world, _literally_ .
I can't tell if You'll take a liking to it, but *the writings of Evagrius Ponticus have been put online* this year, reflecting a Christian culture that once was - and in another form, once will be again.
If you like this, might I recommend to you the City of God by St.Augustine and/or the works of St.Hildegard of Bingen? Or The Shepherd of Hermas? Or Prudentius`s Psychomachia?
This is nothing utterly unheard of in the Christian worldview. It is just neglected in education. They are all different and likely will not all appeal towhat you are seeking, but certainly at least one of them will. You know the interpretive key, look for their treasure within, drawn up from same Divine Wisdom you have been drinking from here. Or for something more contemporary, try CS Lewis`s nonfiction writings or JRR Tolkien`s works of Middle-Earth (The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings among them).
God bless you and grant you His Light and Wisdom, through Jesus Christ, Our Blessed Lord and Savior, Who is the Divine Wisdom, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, Who with God the Father, and the Holy Spirit, is Goodness, Beauty, Truth, Justice, Mercy, and Love Himself, the One True God, now and forever. Amen.
"The Kingdom of Heaven is here and now!" ~Jesus Christ
‘The Kingdom of Heaven is here and now’
Where did you get that from?
@@117Industries Several authors of the Bible.
@@117Industries Matthew 3:2, Luke 17:21.
@@dherman0001 What does it mean if I keep saying things in scripture that I haven’t read?
And not resemblances, but in some cases word for word.
I asked where you got that from because I said it through internal dialogue just a few days gone. So to see your comment made me a little paranoid that I’d commented it somewhere and you’d stalked me.
But you’re telling me it’s scripture.
How does that happen?
How do I recite scripture, verbatim, numerous times now, without having ever read it?
@@dherman0001 That shouldn’t be possible.
16:20 Truly, Christ is "still ascending", and still at work on Earth building His k(K?)ingdom.
Your description of the horizon of possibility as heaven reminds me of the Fosbury Flop. People jump belly first for years. Then one day someone reaches into the horizon of possibility and jumps back first. And it changed the high jump ever since. It raised the bar, you could say.
this is why, as a Catholic, I love the Saints.
Yes.
@Alpha Beta
I am a Protestant and yet…..the wonder of the saints is something to me. Santa Caterina and San Francesco make me come alive.
"the Saints."
Indeed, a great tradition that still stands.
You know what Jonathan? I Love this video. I'm gonna focus on God, he always pays you fairly. As for anyone else, that's their problem, in a standard sense it's just bad business on a human level.
Amazing point from 13:30 about figures opening the door to a new level, shining and embodying something valuable, ascending into heaven, and attracting others to it, 'raising the level of what is possible'
YES this matches exactly with Rupert Sheldrake's Morphic Resonance.
Excellent connection ! As I remember, Sheldrake tells how chemists wanted to create a certain complex molecule but it proved to be extremely difficult to make it take form. Many labs in different countries failed. Then one lab finally succeeded, and subsequently the molecule began to take form in other labs around the world.
@@mondopinion3777 exactly! Also lab rats learning the same trick better in one place and another place following suit, despite being across the other side of the globe and not of the same genetic line etc
So many sports anologies 😮 at this point its clear that Mr. Pageau is a secret MMA fighter.
Even Saint Paul used a lot of sport analogies
confirmed Jordan fan
Sports are amazing.
😂
i was literally just studying the kingdom of heaven yesterday in Jesus parables, what perfect timing :)
Thank you, Jonathan! I have been studying the parable of the ten virgins followed by the parable of talents in The Gospel of Matthew. Your discussions have helped me learn and understand tremendously. God bless you and your family.
Your sports analogies are excellent. Just as there is tough competition in Nature, yet we are required to be merciful, so in sports there is tough competition yet we are required to play within the rules which make the game possible. They say when Nijinsky danced, audiences wept. And when Gretzky was on the ice grown men were moved to tears. We all recognize and yearn toward that pinnacle of actualization..
Excellent video.
I worry about the lack of examples to follow in my country. No religion, no history, none of it is really taught anymore. We have been set adrift in a strange lack of continuity...
Rootlessness and global identity is the basis for the new religion - because if you identify with everything and everyone, when pressured you will *functionally* identify with nothing and no one.
Thank you, you really know how to communicate complicated ideas in slow boy terms. You have a lot of grace and respect just in your voice, it’s really nice to hear 🏅
Lol “slow boy”
I like that
He made no sense in this whole video 😂,
He doesn’t even understand the Bible at all
Thank you so much for this explanation.. especially how pioneers build the road for new levels of existence. The path of truth finds us when we become an example in Christ. We build heaven in our everyday lives. 🙏🌟
Yes! Life immortal I have always considered to be one that is always remembered. It’s very much related to the concept of attention that you’ve been talking about with others.
The Day of the Dead tradition where ultimate death is the death when one is totally forgotten really hit home for me with this as well. The symbolism of the necessity of remembering those so that they are in our attention, so that they are remembered, so that they LIVE in us.
Jesus lives forever in us. That is how He has everlasting life. To bring the Kingdom of Heaven to Earth through one’s actions is to live forever. To be remembered. To have achieved such a higher level of being here on Earth - like the Saints and why they are recognized. Why they are remembered. Why they should be remembered. And why people should also remember their loved ones who have passed. They live on in us. We hold them there inside us as we live our lives. A part of their existence continues through our own since they were influential to who we are.
No.
Thank you so much! I am getting a little adicted to your video's.....maybe because I am thirtsy for truth?
Tank you, It’s very helpful to speak out the truth about christianity. I got alienated from religion long time ago because it did not make sense to talk about magical being in the sky and also be interested in science an the truth.
If only they would have honestly said it like it is.
I have been looking for this in stoicism, philosophy, psychology, self-help, etc.
I can see that this is the most efficient way to propagate the positive patterns through stories and communal practice.
Disembodied thinking only get you so far.
"If only they would have honestly said it like it is."
If it does resonate with You, take a look into Greek Church fathers, Evagrius, the Capadocians, Maximos - a Christian culture that had assimilated the height of Hellenistic philosophy and anthropology and utilized it to grasp what they experienced in stillness and contemplation.
This was arguably much closer to traditions that Westeners now seek in the Orient, usually without knowing much about their past - but a language and iconography which can build the bridges for cultural transfer that our world needs.
@@christophmahler I think christianity has build in us the good idea that truth is the most important thing. Out of that came sciences and our modern technologies.
It’s not a surprise that modern people couldn’t stand the magical beings without any proof.
But I can see the existence of the pattern of christ in our civilisation, as much as the one of mohammed in the islamist culture.
We can now look at it as what pattern do we want to replicate, to embody, to push forward. What are their value in term of what they produce: you will know them by their fruits.
I feel that christians are dishonest about this, maybe it’s about protecting people with a literate understanding.
It might be better for our mind to really believe in the existence of magical being, that way the suffering of this word are less arbitrary and you can find solace in imagining the soul of passed ones in paradise.
@@alexforget
"I think christianity has build in us the good idea that truth is the most important thing."
I'd argue that it is _love_ , foremost.
Aristotle was 'a fanatic of truth' and so Hellenism didn't lack the virtue of _wisdom_ or the 'techne', our current tyrants love so much.
However, if one takes the statement:
*_"I'm the way and truth and the life_* ." (John 14:6)
serious, pursuing _any_ of these will lead to the other - arguably regardless where one begins (including other traditions or a seemingly hopeless life) - and if it weren't so, it wouldn't be as life-altering in a mere 'market of ideas'.
"I feel that christians are dishonest about this (...)"
There's the term 'confessionalism' which defines a mere group identity.
Champions of the faith, however are recognized by their persistence when they are ostracized, persecuted or truly struggle with their faith - there is no 'Book of Bart, the chilled Sunday worshipper' in scripture - 'gold is tried and refined in a furnace'.
_"But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold_ ." (Job 23:10)
@@christophmahler Thanks for taking the time to respond.
If I understand correctly, you mean that we should avoid to be a half baked christian.
We should be all in because life will throw challenges at you and you will bend if you are not completely in.
I can feel this, and it make sense to me. In a sense it would be simpler to not ask questions, to believe, I can feel I would be a better person.
What push me away is that I see so many variants of christianity going haywire, hating each other. I know a Jehovah witness, they believe they hold the one true interpretation, was raised catholic (again the same thing) recently my brother became a 7th day adventist and broke away from all family members and now believe the earth is flat.
At the same time with JBP and now Pageau I could slowly climb the steps out of the materialist thinking and I am starting to see connection to christianity as the best way forward.
I can see our current disintegration of society, of sensemaking that I think is mainly cause by the loss of faith. Sam Harris recently was a good exemple, the darling of the new atheist ready to throw away all due process because he was captured by the new ideology.
I wonder if Orthodox faith is a way to connect our modern understanding of the world and the good parts that come from faith, that have been tested for thousand of years. In a sense I think that we should interpret these stories and see when they contain useful knowledge but still stay anchored in observable physical reality.
@@alexforget
"If I understand correctly, you mean that we should avoid to be a half baked christian."
It's an interesting question - but what I meant was more like that it is irrelevant how we self identify - because according to Christian tradtion, the soul is said to be judged according to it's substance - not by a membership register of an officially recognized organization.
In Judaism e.g. there is the term of the 'Zaddique', refering to people who act, aligned with God's will, but are not of Abraham's lineage (e.g. the Persian Great King Cyrus who had ended the 'Babylonian Exile' of the Jews).
A Christian Humanist like Thomas Müntzer formulated a similar concept, regarding followers of Mohammed - like Protestants, not a denomination, but a Christian heresy.
"(...) it would be simpler to not ask questions, to believe, I can feel I would be a better person."
I see that You interpret what I say as advocacy of anti-intellectualism - but the opposite is the case.
I claim, once You are done exploring modern science and ideologies, You will realize that traditionalism is the more profound cultural strain that describes man and his fate more accurately than any science that excludes a realism toward spiritual matters.
To commend 'faith' is simply a pragmatic recognition that Your knowledge will always be too limited, to accurately calculate outcomes e.g. in forms of scientific models.
You have faith, not to be murdered by every person, You meet, because it is common sense and it would be impractical to start exploring the world from the opposite assumption.
*The more You apply 'critical thinking' upon Yourself, the easier You'll recognize Your own biases* and bouts of unreflected paranoia.
"What push me away is that I see so many variants of christianity going haywire, hating (...) each other."
I get that.
Personally, I solved it by canceling my Protestant denomination and not taking on any other 'membership' so far - making me officially a _heretic_ .
But I won't 'teach' anything other than the claim that Christian traditions are deeper than modern confessionalist politics - and this can be proven if one studies Church history from a sociological and anthropolgical perspective, perhaps comparing to other traditions like Hinduism, Buddhism and Shia Islam.
That Churches will decline and that genuine Christians will always be a rather few number is an integral part of Christian apocalyptic tradition - that heresies love to present themselves as the 144.000 saved souls is not an argument against Christianity in general - just like US sponsored Mujahedeen cannot disprove the genuine love of e.g. Rabia of Basra who was said to have prayed to be burned in hell or drowned in Paradise if not seeking God _in love_ .
Zealots would attack me for muddling religions into a universalist pulp, but I don't claim that everyone is right, somehow - only that we are called to recognize and adapt the good in everything (Paul) - while Zealots die at a Massada of their own making with their adorned temples, ground down.
" I could slowly climb the steps out of the materialist thinking and I am starting to see connection to christianity (...)"
And that is all that can be asked for, in my opinion.
"I can see our current disintegration of society, of sensemaking that I think is mainly cause by the loss of faith."
As I suggested, to look at it from a sociological and anthropological perspective is a valid approach - before at some point, these questions are so personal that they will resonate e.g. in Your dreams and waking life epiphanies - calling You to sainthood (which one will struggle with for the longest time).
If 'conversion on the death bed' was good enough for modern monarchs, it will be good for the average, secularized person, distrustful of authorities, but longing with an aching heart to return home _like a lost son_ .
"I wonder if Orthodox faith is a way to connect our modern understanding of the world (...)"
I have the hunch that it can be so, regardless of the difficulties.
Take a look at the *'Short Story of the Anti-Christ'* by Vladimir Solovyev', the recently published writings of *Evagrius Ponticos* , the 'Cosmic Theology' of *Maximos Confessor* and compare it to other traditions for what is called 'structural homology' and I claim, You won't discard these works as 'superstition', but examples of *outstanding ability of critical thinking* , most 'computational modellers' can learn from when they make predictions along _wishful thinking_ .
the analogy with michael Jordan at around 15m mark is great one. Another one which was a real demonstration of this phenomenon was Roger Bannister who was the first person to run a mile is less than 4 minutes in 1954. No one was able to do it before him, but once that milestone was achieved 50 other runners also broke the 4 minute barrier by 1960.
I just read Matthew 18 this week. This couldn't have come at a better time. Thank you.
Listening to you is very enjoyable to me
Thankyou for helping me understand healthy hierarchy. All my logical errors of liberal youth were rooted in the misguided notion that "the patriarchy" was evil and most be stopped. Returning to Christ/Krishna consciousness after being derailed by some off brand of new age spiritual materialism for many years, i appreciate truly your exposition of this "procession of Grace."
Hare Krishna 🙏
A central topic.
It always struck me when I heard _'confessionalists'_ talk of 'heaven' as 'a place' - when Christian scripture emphasized _'a state'_ that is depicted as accessible to all, _at all times_ , anywhere - with death being only one - again, temporal - 'mode' of it's 'omnipresence'.
The 'kingdom of heaven' was _the_ message of the _Messiah_ , between baptism in the Jordan and crucifiction at Golgatha - everything else of Christian doctrine trickles naturally from that source.
Otherwise Christ could have incarnated, suffered and died, without ever stressing his identity - if it were not for a faithful _reconciliation_ of the 'children of Israel' with the 'kingdom of heaven' - to have man _find his place_ within the order of the cosmos _in love_ - in an age when everybody hoped for a nationalist 'kingdom of David', to compete with the secular power of Rome _in strength_ .
Most of Hebrew scripture is an account of why that aspiration is a misconception of history and man.
Thank you for the video, Jonathan. Another interpretation can be found in Luke 20:34. Jesus was asked about seeing a wife in heaven (it could be your mum or your gran) Jesus says: "The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:{20:35} But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: {20:36} Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection. {20:37} Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. {20:38} For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him."
☝🏽
I was just having this exact conversation with a Deacon and you answered it perfectly.
He was talking about how after Confession or Baptism, you are sinless and fully sanctified and I thought, yeah, maybe, but if that's the way to attain heaven then surely you would SEEK to off yourself right at the moment of baptism or right after receiving confession, so either they don't believe the proposition that you are sanctified by the sacraments OR they don't believe that simply attaining the heavenly reward is the point of life.
I've also very much had the thought when reading the things that Jesus says is that he isn't describing the Kingdom of heaven as being some extra dimensional place, he's describing it as a pattern of being in the world, right now, and of course, he was speaking contemporaneously, meaning he's describing to the Israelites in the year 33 how the kingdom of heaven is at hand, meaning, like, here. Now.
You describe it perfectly, that it is through the embodiment of the patterns received from above that we bring about the kingdom of heaven and of course if you do that, you will have eternal life, because you will grow and add to the constant iteration of that pattern and become one with God, as it were.
Love your work. Academic and credible. Never dry and always something to think about.
Thank you Jonathan!
So sat chit ananda 🎉
Simply excellent!
See you in thunder bay
I agree that "Kingdom of Heaven" is a kind of hierarchy, but The "Heaven/Paradise" itself seems to be a spiritual place (as Jesus said to the thief at the cross).
How would I learn this if not for you teaching it?
Asking the real questions right here!
Johnathan, Edward Feser and Bishop Robert Barron are changing my life.
Add some Bavid Bentley Hart to the mix to Balance out Edward Feser
Thanks
Hello brother, As I listened to this video I feel compelled finally to ask you what you know about apocatastasis
I truly appreciate your work and as I was listening to your comments and contemplating universal restoration I see so much of what your sharing come to light. What do you believe about hell and have you delved into and considered the early church fathers teachings of universal restoration?
Hi Jonathan, if you read I have a request! Could you do a segment on ‘Pataphysics? Starts with playwright Alfred Jarry. I believe it’s considered the ‘philosophy’ of the exception. Thanks regardless. Love love love your work.
Thanks!
Thanks man. Still loving the content
Great video once again Jonathan. Thank you.
3:08 I was hanging my washing out and there's a wrapping vine that had tangled its way onto the clothesline. I was putting a towel over, and a tip of the wrapping vine got caught under. and I thought, well, you shouldnt be growing on my clothesline dude. but i pulled it out anyway so it didn't get squashed. and i had a feeling of being god over it. and then i had a fractal sensation; a coherence that it was more than just a feeling.
i mean even time is a kind of god over you. or causality itself. if you keep going up, 'what's bigger than that?' 'what's bigger than that?' eventually you get to the all-ness. the stuff of stuff.
Bob Dylan: "And the ship's wise men / Will remind you once again / That the whole wide world is watchin". That was kind of an anti vietnam war slogan but I didn't know that when I heard it the other day. I experienced a paranoia as my conception of god broke in over the last few weeks. With such coincidences about me, you'd wonder who's setting it up? If you're not stable enough to weather the storm, you can see how people really fall off the deep end as this process begins. An egocentric view smashed away, and then... burning bushes all over the shop!
Jonathan, I'm glad I found your page!
"I was hanging my washing out and there's a wrapping vine that had tangled its way onto the clothesline."
15th century Christian humanist *Nicholas of Cusa* had experienced an *_'epiphany'_* when traveling to Constantinople by ship - when he observed the water surface, stretching in all directions, geometrically into an peripheral horizon - suddenly grasping this impression as _an image_ of *an infinite 'totality'*, encompassing nearby contradictions (he was on a diplomatic mission to negotiate an end to the Great Schism between Latins and Greeks).
So, yeah - there are more 'adventures' to explore than what meets the eye.
17:00 - We don't base our selves on ideals, we base our selves on examples.
You can set rules. But if you don't lead by example... It's not going to happen.
8:47 - That which we received from above is now reproduced below.
We have to embodied what comes from above and that's how you are participate in heaven.
That's how you receive the kingdom of heaven.
My little brother took his own life, this past Sunday night, I’m still processing obviously, and I’m gonna be honest I’m too scared to watch this video, but I know he’s there, he’s helping others as we speak
Can someone help me understand Jonathan? Is he saying Christ "resurrected and went into Heaven" only in our minds and our collective memories? I'm having trouble undestading his vision of Heaven and the afterlife.
Sins accrue debts, and our sincere pleading for forgiveness - with intent of rectification - provides a pathway for truest forgiveness. If this etiquette isn’t upheld towards that which is greater than us (reality, or god) nor if it is held towards those who owe us (or have sinned against us), perdition awaits. Sound about right? Thanks
17:54 Yodathan Pageau
Hank you. See you on the mountain.
Hello brother, thankyou so much you have really opened my eyes to the deeper meanings of the bible. Do you believe in a literal Hell? Also do you believe in a literal Day of Judgment and a rapture?
Billy Graham said Hell was not made for mankind, it was made for Lucifer and the fallen angels. God never intended for man to go there.
From what I know, Orthodox Christians don't believe in hell. Or at least the general opinion of what hell is. I'm not Orthodox and also am not Mr. Pageau so I could be mistaken.
Very helpful🎉
Hi Jonathan. Just a note. Symbolic World podcast is continuously being dumped from my apple podcast playlist. I have had to restore maybe 8 times now. Not sure why this is happening ? Has anyone else had this problem ? Lets say your podcast is not the most controversial podcast around so not sure what is going on.... maybe it is the best at busting materialism ! Anyhow your work and a few others (PVK) has got me to the Orthodox church so Thank You deeply.
So where do we go when we die?
@JulianChristopher and then?
The one who seeks life would never ask this question.
@JulianChristopher The one who sleeps will never see or know Christ. Christ comes as debt and judgment. The sleeper seeks to deny this reality.
@@leondbleondb The one who needs to make sense of things is not worthy of the resurrection.
@JulianChristopher Reality checks or encounters with death have the silver lining of momentarily awakening us.. until it doesn’t. We shouldn’t ever get comfortable taking that risk.
Great video
Yet the suffering outside of the kingdom of heaven is exactly what draws a person, by the grace of God, to Christ.
To use the metaphor, it is like being cut from the team and then being offered free private classes by Michael Jordan.
Praise God baby
Is there a full version of the music intro.
Many on the left seem to have more knowledge of the Word but the right show more loving action. I feel as though religion has been used by earthly powers.
What Jonathan is talking about is not "just symbolism"-- it is quite real. Roger Bannister broke the 4-minute mile and then others could do it too, and some would say that was only because "psychologically" they believed they could. But chemists know that laboratory formulation of a certain complex molecule was extremely difficult at first -- but when one lab finally succeeded, then that molecule began to form in other labs across the world. This is a known phenomenon, and has happened more than once.
That just puts the symbol as a descriptor of reality, one that is inferior to material understanding of the same phenomenon (because it has less uses). For symbols to be real they have to be the fabric on which the material world is founded.
@@markemad1986 That is a profound comment. I will sleep on it and wait for insight. I suspect the real symbol exists both ways at once, in reciprocal relationship, requiring a leap between. Like the dynamic Hebrew star or YinYang pairs. Perhaps our era takes too reductionist a view of the material.
@@markemad1986 After some contemplation, this came : I think people have conflated symbol with Name, and what you refer to as superior is Name. Name as commanded by sorcerers. Name as in "There is none other Name under Heaven whereby you can be saved.". The sorcerer and the lover of Jesus must hold the symbol-of-the-Name within their minds in order to call upon the Name. Thus the spark leaps between the two realities.
@@mondopinion3777 you are using a language I am unfamiliar with. However remember the bodily resurrection, one of the main pillars of Christianity, and just see the way Paul defends it. At a time, people stopped believing in literal bodily resurrection, Paul was quick to discount this, even giving it as a tool to mock Christians, if Christ wasn't bodily resurrected our faith is in vain, to be clear it seemed like christians of the time were facing the same sceptical criticism it is facing today leading some to "interpret" the physical resurrection, for context the immortality of the soul wasn't a weird concept to philosophers at the time but the resurrection of the body was radical. Paul massage in this being a main pillar was clear, even if it would discount a lot of "christians"
@@markemad1986 I fully agree with you. So much so that I don't even like the word "literal" because that is a written-word term, one step removed from the physical. I think of the Resurrection as if I had experienced Him as Mary did. Bodily. I find Jonathan confusing because he is insightful, but I can never quite discern what is real to him.
Jesus said follow Me
The Holy Ghost pours out his Spirit and brings the increase in the name of Jesus. The latter rain proceeds the second coming and it is what waters the seed. Without the Spirit of God no one is saved. Believe in your idea of Jesus till the end of time, it does little good. You need to accept his ambassador and representative. So when the Holy Spirit shows himself and is rejected that is the unpardonable sin. To grieve the Spirit of God is to reject life.
The supreme witness of Jesus Christ (King David) is reporting for duty.
He was a man whose tongue held no lies,
For he was the direct descendant of our father in the heavenly skies.
Born to a body of fleshy sin,
Though what laid beneath was unlike the rest of his kin.
Jesus had the utmost grace,
Never being wavered by evils face.
He was wise beyond any years,
Performing miracles that would bring crowds to tears.
A beacon of light on top of a starless mountain,
Where words of wisdom poured out of him as if there ran a cosmic fountain.
His eyes pierced through you with a single glance,
Leaving even the most hardened individuals in quite the trance.
The Holy Spirit so ever majestically flowed inside this man,
Naturally people caught notice and became a fan.
Students began showing up from every mold,
When they heard his words their hearts were sold.
Wicked men put a price on Jesus's head,
He was wanted alive or dead.
Despite this he and his disciples continued their teachings,
Where on occasion they endured terrible beatings.
One of the twelve apostles turned to black,
No longer having Jesus's back.
Judas Iscariot had done Satan's bidding,
And it is in hell where he now is sitting.
Jesus died on the cross to pay for our shortcoming,
However don't be saddened for if you believe in him you will see him at your homecoming.
There he sits at the right hand of God's throne,
Being the voice of truth and love that we all have known.
Satan's tongue is coated in a layer of deceit,
And he tramples over promises with his feet.
He's a being who is bound by deceptions,
Whose very essence oozes with misconceptions.
He struggles to look you in your eyes,
For his gaze holds nothing but lies.
On occasion he will give you his hand,
But don't be fooled by his stand.
He seeks to corrupt your heart,
You would be wise to avoid him from the start.
Seeking quick pleasures and casting aside love,
He traverses this land with push and shove.
Now Lucifer was once not lost,
But pride blinded him at a cost.
Disobeying God he waged war,
Becoming detestable to the core.
Today he is the ruler of Earth,
Though for all his power he has no real worth.
However most of us have still been sold,
Giving into sin and becoming cold.
Nearly everyone is a puppet dancing on strings,
Marching to delusion for their unjust kings.
My people have given into lust,
Becoming robots full of rust.
However you my child are the exception,
So when you meet me don't forget to mention.
That you alone have been granted the key,
And before your glory they shall all bend a knee.
P.S.- Not too long ago I was very bitter and destructive. Literally I was covered in blood from head to toe and ripping off nails and things of that nature. In my mind Jesus was against me, he had a vendetta against me which I couldn't account for. Then slowly but surely I started having these revelations, and began delving into the word of God. It seemed like my agony was not in vain. The things which held me back eventually began to propel me forward. The darkness began fading away and an unspeakably bright light was surfacing. Jesus told me that he had to break me in order for me to rediscover who I really was. Sort of like a phoenix rising from the ashes. Today I am almost fully healed in every conceivable way, and things like being a virgin and being covered in scars I strangely enough take much pride in. I took up my cross and followed Christ and in doing so I discovered the greatest love of all.
Your posts are always so real and true. Are you writing a book, please? There are thousands of young men who need to hear your story.
@@thesecondlawandthetowerhou6026
Thanks again friend, I'm not writing a book ATM but I do have other poems and short stories. I'm preparing myself for the battle for Jerusalem (the City of David), soon the Third Temple will be built and I'll have to reclaim what is rightfully mine. Anyway until then I'm just kind of taking it easy and slowly evangelizing the world. Below is another poem and message of mine, I hope you enjoy it too.
Here's a poem I wrote about overcoming depression called Beyond the Void. If it resonates with you and you need help navigating this drama feel encouraged to reach out.
Wobbling on the edge of utter desolation,
Where thoughts of death become a fascination.
I take a step backwards and continue to sway,
Is this the final hand that I will play?
While what lays behind me is probably eternal rest,
Is this decision the very best?
Death is certain and that much I know,
However there is still life in me left to flow.
Perhaps this anguish can evolve,
Maybe this question isn't impossible to solve.
If I pay a visit to the abyss,
There are so many things here that I will miss.
Some things good and some things bad,
Joyful events and those which are sad.
When will this perspective shift?
I desperately need my spirits to lift.
I look in the mirror and remember every scar,
The result of my despair I need not look far.
Thoughts race through me, shackles tighten,
I scream and then peculiarly my sense of awareness begins to heighten.
A new thought washes through my being,
I take a second glance in the mirror unsure of what I'm seeing.
The burden within me feels far lighter,
A winning result for this righteous fighter.
The ground stops shaking and I gain some composure,
Taking a step towards what was once an enclosure.
Shadows fade away revealing what they left in the dark,
Being pulled forward my soul begins to embark.
P.S.- Persistence is key in overcoming any obstacle. None of us have it all figured out, especially the people who think they do. All we can really do is not forget to learn from our hard learned lessons and not repeat the same psychological patterns that got us into our initial conundrum. I always tell people that I wear a brave face but beneath this suit of armor there is a child in tears. What matters isn't how many times you fell, what matters is that you got back up one more time and are still standing today. She who says she can and she who says she can't are both usually right, meaning that self belief is typically the determining factor as to whether or not you accomplish your goals. I have full faith that you'll continue to sort yourself out and grow as time goes on. I know from experience that the flower that blooms from the cracks is often the most precious flower of them all. Hardships pave the way for success stories, God always roots for the underdog.
@David Lewis
“God always roots for the underdog.”
Wonderful truth! The Beatitudes.
Thank you.
Trusting in God, one can 'fail only upwards', so to speak.
It's not about being 'prim and proper' or 'looking blessed', but being _true to oneself_ in front of 'the origin of all'.
From that 'rock bottom', genuine inspiration replaces quietly the half-hearted advice of busy men - and teaches the love of a God.
@@thesecondlawandthetowerhou6026
Here's an interesting video I made recently, I think you'll find it engaging.
m.th-cam.com/video/D_8Xfv3UXE0/w-d-xo.html
May God bless you because you help so much the modern man understand God. Orthodoxy has completely transformed my life. Please keep on dying your blessed mission !
Thank you. I have looked for examples of spirituality in sports.
If I could I would give more than one like :-)
What if it’s like a kingdom of, say party culture?
Party culture is prevailing in university campus throughout the north west.
I’m struggling to form any connection with people without participating in any parties, and it made me depressed.
Have you considered going to church?
Excellent video. Too bad more clergy and faithful don't get what heaven is.
Can you try making a video to explain how it is possible to believe God is more than an abstraction while denying the literalist interpretation of Heaven?
Then when you realize you can't can you go pray for forgiveness?
Your contempt for those who are saved will destroy you.
OKay Jonathan, but what does this mean? Do we live forever if we get to heaven or not? That is the REAL question. If the Kingdom of Heaven is just a state of being then it will die with us, when our being is destroyed upon death, right?
Why are You _convinced_ that You are Your physical organs ?
It is obviously a _preconception_ , You never had put to test. And if You do, You may come out of it as being _unsure_ - which at least legitimizes _hope_ (which would be naive if the opposite were already proven).
Once You take concepts like 'hope' and 'faith' (also 'trust' in social interactions and relationships) as serious as mathematical constructs, You'll mature from a the ills of a 'vulgar materialism' that tortures You like an abusive, devaluating caretaker or partner.
If You _dare_ to live with _faith_ - even experimentally to observe the effect, You'll notice that You won't get dumber, but to the contrary, grow the guts, to face reality, including one's shortcomings without being solely normative, judgemental about it.
@@christophmahler Jesus had a body and Mary had a body and they were both assumed into Heaven.
I don't care about the rest of your philosophizing.
@@MrChaosAdam
"I don't care about (...) your philosophizing."
It is not 'a philosophy'.
_You will loose Your body_ likely before the middle of this century is reached.
Your _death will confirm_ then what I said to You, now - if Your petty _secularism_ prepared You or not.
The Kingdom of Heaven is a literal kingdom and it will be established after the Kingdom of the Devil is destroyed. Yes we will live forever as resurrected beings (body and spirit reunited how it was with Christ) with glory. Christ will be King over all but be will coinherit with him.
@@ww2uniformsandinsignias48 - who wants that? Why do ppl always seek immortality? I never understand that desire…
But here's the problem and nobody ever discuses this:
We didn't ask to be created, none of us did, so the loan analogy would really be the king demanding and then forgiving a debt...that he FORCED the servant to take from him...
Kingdom of basketball is the best line!
💜
It’s interesting that you say this because I came to this conclusion decades ago. It was one of the reasons why I left the church. I thought the focus of the church on the life AFTER life was ridiculous.
Life is about living our current life, doing God’s work now. Bringing God’s will into my life and the lives of others. But everyone focused so much on the afterlife. It’s a carrot on a stick or the fear of the fires of Hell that the church tried to use to motivate ppl. It just seemed to miss the mark so much.
I just wanted to do good to be good, to be close to God. God gives me the peace and faith that things will turn out fine. With God in my heart, I have a talisman against the ills in the world. Why do I need a Heaven after my life when I have it when God is with me?
It just never made sense. Why hope for a life with God after physical death when you could have it now? I already was born again after accepting Christ into my heart. The old me had died and I was reborn. I don’t need physical death to feel close to God.
The literalism imposed onto everyone by the church was dogmatically suffocating. It caused Christians to judge others when it’s God’s job to judge while my job was to do good by Him. It’s why I left and questioned God’s existence for a long time.
It’s refreshing to see others think of the Bible and of Heaven/Hell in more metaphysical terms. It doesn’t have to be literal.
I have lived in Hell on Earth. I have been to the pits of despair, the emptiness, the utter loneliness. Death felt like a respite. I don’t ever wish to go to that place nor do I wish my worst enemies in that place. I don’t need to go to Hell in the afterlife. I have been to the darkness, a place without God, without hope, without faith, without trust. You don’t need an afterlife to exist to experience that. It’s here on this Earth in your soul.
God is the talisman to live. So live and stop focusing on death. That’ll come when it comes. Life is short. There’s a lot of work to be done.
Well said. I think you described the struggles of a lot of people within some of the organized religions when they become literal and almost totalitarian in thought. "Our way is the only way and truth and all else is false", - I don't like that method of understanding. Asking questions and trying to derive meaning has strengthened my faith more than any answer alone.
@@nathaniel841 Well, think of Abraham and Moses-both to be considered friends of God. What I find interesting is they were active in not only conversing with God but questioning Him as well!
I think this idea where you cannot question a doctrinal point whether it be Protestantism's sacred cow of penal substitution theology or even Roman Catholicism's doctrine of divine simplicity-you run into quite a problem when such a question is met with derision and questioning the authority of the "church."
"Giving a certain amount of freedom for the lower level to exist." It's total freedom one way or the other. One can choose freedom with the evil one in the world or freedom with God in His Kingdom. There are no certain amounts nor a kind of way. You cannot serve two masters.
Glory to God
What’s the sinning Christian doing, then? Are they not pulled upwards and downwards? Serving God at moments and serving Satan at moments?
@@SageStudiesGunnarFooth Well what is true “servitude”?
If a person claims to serve the CIA, and does things for them, but is an agent for the KGB, surely the agents “true loyalty” lies in the KGB right?
Similarly, if the Christian claims to serve God and yet serves the Devil, then the true loyalties lies with The Adversary right?
@@foulmercy8095 good point!
@@foulmercy8095
The problem is that God is 'greater' than antagonistic celestial powers - and without them creation would have gone another trajectory.
Secular intelligence agencies are equal before God as they serve a function in an eschatological plan, man never grasps, fully - while the so called 'devil' or 'rebellious will' _serves_ God, ultimately - pictured as the 'advocatus diaboli' during 'judgement', all legal analogies to express a spiritual reality.
If one loves God, one is more inclined to align with his benevolent will and 'divine economy' (including hard, seemingly painful choices) - we don't choose, rationally or voluntaristically (the Jesuit picture of the obedient soldier) between the one's we love and the one's we don't - we end up, drifting toward the former - even if we were convinced that it is 'smarter' not to.
One won't find souls who love God in 'hell', no matter their 'wise choices'...
@@foulmercy8095 The agent knows who he is serving though. The KGB. He is willful and not ignorant of his master.
The same way that if someone claims to be a Christian but willfully serves the devil, would be a wolf in sheep's clothing. But a Christian that sins (as we all do) but recognizes it and strives for the better path would not be serving the devil ultimately, but rather made a mistake in the serving of God. That mistake may have very well served the devil, but it was not the christians intent to do so. (Which doesn't make it okay, still)
Sometimes we do things and don't know why, or what that is in the bigger picture. I guess it's good to have a strong moral compass to guide you.
The master didn't give him over to jailers, he gave him over to torturers. Soft translations
I think that parable really could serve as a nexus point for Eastern-Western dailogue on atonement.
God is the metaphysical foundation underlying hierarchical reality. To fail to live in such a way that aims at the highest Good (miss the mark, sin), is to be out of line not only with "God" but with reality and life itself (death). Christ does what we cannot which is to bridge the hierarchy and aim at the highest (perfect life and death) and thus restore harmony between creation and life / earth and Heaven (resurrection -- His and ours through union).
Grace is the gift of Christ to fill in what's lacking in humanity apart from His intervention. This is why when Christ heals the body, He achieves it by forgiving their sin (the true root of death/sickness).
"I think that parable really could serve as a nexus point for Eastern-Western dailogue on atonement."
It really is, and the more such conversations there are- on all levels of society - the less war between East and West will be - it is that simple.
Thanks for the video
Jesus said, “If those who lead you say to you, ‘See, the kingdom is in the sky,’ then the birds of the sky will precede you. If they say to you, ‘It is in the sea,’ then the fish will precede you. Rather, the kingdom is inside of you, and it is outside of you. When you come to know yourselves, then you will become known, and you will realize that it is you who are the sons of the living father. But if you will not know yourselves, you dwell in poverty and it is you who are that poverty.”
Where did He say this ?
@@daniebeth Gospel of Thomas
8:44
12:54
Awesome
Do orthodox have a common weekly Bible reading? Where can i find it?
Look up the orthodox liturgical calender. Also look up the Sebastian Lopez on TH-cam and listen to the daily prologue.
@@MrTadfortitude Thanks, man.
Literal belief in heaven is not materialistic
Christ is Emperor
Consciense paroxistique. J
When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail... Thus a symbologist must reject heaven's literal existence.
Jesus also taught in symbols, for the sake of people he thought could not grasp the true meaning of his teachings. I think symbols are important, but they are like fingers pointing to the moon, don’t focus on the finger or you will miss that heavenly glory.
By "literal" do you mean real ? Perhaps reality is patterns of relationship, and the consciousness of same. Symbology is the language to describe it.
No such thing as literal. Everything is symbolic.
"a symbologist must reject (...) literal existence"
That is not what has been said if You listen with average good will.
*Parabels* ('comparisons') are a means to grasp a reality that is both: immanent, and transcending the daily senses.
There is no suggestion in this video - or elsewhere on the channel - to take e.g. the life of Christ or the mysteries of the faith as a mere 'Gnostic' symbolism.
Wake up from the literalism of the material focus of the Age of Enlightenment. We are in the post-Enlightenment era. We have forgotten the spiritual and metaphysical planes which is why they are a mess. The focus on the material plane is to focus on the golden calf. There is more to God than the material plane.
🙃
👍 👍 👍
"Artists" ...what are you going to do?
another slam dunk
Jonathan, would you like to shoot hoops sometime?
Guys, I just want to share the JLP Show. I'm not going to claim it's 100% Legit, but just check the guy out. He's AMAZIN'.
Where is heaven exactly? No photographic evidence yet! 🤔
It’s not a literal place but a mode of being. It is a place of being one can attain by doing one’s best to be close to God.
@@umiluv define literal please!?
@@stephenrandell7152 - literal meaning an actual physical material place. Heaven exists in the spiritual and metaphysical plane. When you are close to God and God’s will, you are with Him, ie in Heaven. You don’t need a physical place to be with Him. You don’t need an image of it. It is the “image” of the place in your heart when you are with Him. You feel it, you live it, you are in it. It is not a place but a state of existence.
@@umiluv I don't know what a ' spiritual plane' is!? Unfortunately as a scientist I need physical evidence buddy 👍
@@stephenrandell7152 nah, you need primary school eduaction.
11:30 it is a question of ethics and morality.. but Christianity actually is a little limiting when understanding God(all being nothing/everything) Christ was first Jewish so he was influenced by a literal rhetorical understanding of God, then he became a little more spiritual but still expressed his understanding of God as a literal being. And for him to pay respect to the highest being (God) meant being the most pure you can be and that’s where Christianity went wrong. It became a self help book but it cut out the spiritual philosophy and denigrated magic/astrology while using magic, witchcraft, astrology themselves in the Bible. It became a book to control how people live and act in the world in a time and place where there was chaos and many different ideologies existing at once. If it weren’t for Constantine who was actually a mason, but used Christianity to control the people, Christianity wouldn’t be as popular as it is.
Um......No
I could try and address this. But it is fractally wrong. Zoom in, falsehoods, zoom out, falsehoods. So I must agree with the above comment and say “no”.
So many things wrong with your comment.
Yes earthy Jesus was a jew,
But first and foremost he was the perfect union of Human flesh and the second person of the trinity.
Jesus was not an enlightened teacher he was and his God.
Constantine was deffinelty not a free Mason, they did not exist.
If Your issue is with Christian denominations, yes - they are all 'particular' and rather partial, fragmented from a once universal Church along political faultlines.
But if one accepts this *historicity* - in which 'the early Church' arguably _had to decline_ and become politicized (from iconoclasm to the Reformation) by _necessity_ - then the shattered pieces can be understood as pointing to a complete, accurate doctrine, not just of misunderstood dogma, but revelation - a mature state of the Church which is not, yet but which will come along an end of time.
Everyone, who contemplates the mysteries of the faith will agree that many Christological teachings are not just 'clever constructs to manipulate public opinion', e.g. to legitimize politcial rule along ill-remembered prophecies or please shifting demographics, but point toward spiritual encounters that can be practized and cultivated toward a firmer grasp of reality.
Your rejection of Christianity is like complaing that modern physics is 'a conspiracy to build the bomb' - which has some truth to it, but doesn't take into account what it can become from how it had evolved (when currently not in a promising shape).
If Christ's physical body didn't literally ascend to heaven where He sits at the right hand of the Father, then there is no point being a Christian. Pageau's channel is becoming outright blasphemous. I hope this isn't actual orthodox theology...
Certainly heaven isn’t physically, spatially above Earth though. Right..?
@@SageStudiesGunnarFooth I believe the earth is flat, and surrounded by the firmament. If you don't literally believe, then you don't believe. Nobody will ever convince me that the first chapter in the book of Acts isn't literal.
@@cheeseface6328 If the Bible is to be considered true, then it can’t contradict reality.
The Earth is NOT flat. There is no room for discussion. How could one circumvent the world if it was? And if the sky is literally the firmament, is it so weak to be constantly broken through by meteors? Is the Heaven that fragile? There are people who are currently living in space right now (the ISS).
So either we demean and assault the most holy of Scriptures by assuming it to be full of literal lies (the Earth is round, the sky isn’t the limit, etc), or we understand that the Bible isn’t a primer on natural science. In fact, it touches on matters much more important (the human condition, salvation, Gods revelation to man, etc).
Please my friend, use your brain. To look at reality and shake your fist is to do so at an uncaring world. Either the Bible is true, and thus must confirm to reality (roundness of the Earth, heliocentrism, etc) or it’s false. And if it’s false we are truly damned.
And to continue, what do you mean by physical body? I do believe in a “physical” ascension. But to presume it’s the same type of body we have is ignoring all post resurrection accounts as all as the Apocalypse of Saint John. God is not bound by law, so yes, he can and did resurrect his son and are Lord Jesus Christ. But to understand “sitting” and “right hand” as literal is absurd. If The Father has a right hand, does he veins? Nerves that send signals to the brain to move? Does he have a skeletal frame, microorganisms all over and in his arm, and blood? Are you implying that our Lord Jesus Christ may get medical issues because he sits all day?
Do you see how absurd literalism is when you take it just a centimeter far? I say this not to demean your intelligence, but to plead for you to think.
Just as Our Master explained to Nicodemus that the rebirth does not include crawling into your mothers womb again, there are certain things that are not literal. This is not to include genealogies, description of wars, Christs birth, et cetera. Nor is this a rejection of miracles which happens every day seen and unseen. But it is a call to take the Bible seriously. Not demean it to primitive “bronze age myths”. The Bible is true. What it says is True. And it addresses reality. If you take that to mean The Father has a right arm with a skeleton and blood, then I merely pray you come to a deeper understanding my friend.
@@foulmercy8095 I will pray for you. I hope you truly understand one day. You cling to the world so you need the "impossible" parts to be explained away, instead of actually believing that God Himself walked the earth with us.
A lot of us have been there.
Jesus Christ healed a blind man and of course that is packed with eternal meaning, but it actually happened. You're the one moving this truth into the realm of mythical fiction, and relegating reality to nothingness whether you know it or not. So again, I will pray for you
You have insulted me of late. Your behavior has taken a turn for the worse, calling people idiots online, and being more forceful and blunt. It seems like you have lost patience or something.
I have noticed his frustration with people not being as blessed as he is to see these things. But he is just a man, and he is trying, and we should be grateful for it still.
@@leondbleondb I misread your comment at first. Three times without realizing it. Thinking you where saying I was being resentful towards Johnathan because of the things he sees.
I wrote an entire reply I deleted because the context didn't make any sense at all.
It makes me worried. I feel deceived. I need to take another look at exactly why I feel this way.
I deeply respect Johnathan and hope he is doing well.
In his first videos after he returned from visiting Jordan Peterson in his home earlier this year, I could see that Jonathan was weeping in his soul. (I am an intuitive and perceive those things.) It did not feel like the sorrow was coming from his relationships with his family.
Jonathan is rising up the Peterson hierarchy and it ain’t a good place.
It is sad to watch: first Dr Peterson and now Jonathan. I think the interview with Peterson and Greg showed the horror.
Whoever wrote the bible was bitter and had a controlling personality lol so much demeaning rhetoric is used and people love it. They love being servants and obeying a “lord” it’s so weird that that’s accepted. And when you really read the Bible how it’s written it’s like God created a simulation and is forcing you to play by “his” rules or you’re casted out to hell for eternity.. you must resist all temptation and be Perfect.. if youre God why would you create a reality where we have to struggle to reach heaven unless you enjoy watching people run through a simulation like lab rats lol
What video were you watching?
What do you gain by refusing to serve, refusing to follow rules?
*tips fedora*
@@evanhuizenga8626 personal sovereignty lol not living in fear of displeasing the “Heavenly Father”. Not going around scaring people into believing an ideological way of life and telling people they most obey the commands of a non physical man or they’re going hell
@@xMoo_Cow the video of being a Christian for 21 years and realizing how majority of Christian’s are deluded and actually not too smart or free thinkers
The Gospel:
Plain and
Simple
“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent
beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your
minds should be corrupted from the simplicity
that is in Christ.” - 2 Corithians 11:3
Ask someone today if they are saved and
you will most likely hear responses like these:
“I have accepted Jesus into my heart.” Or “I
have made him Lord of my life.” “I’ve been
baptized.” “I said a prayer.” Sounds all good
and churchy don’t it; but it is difficult to de-termine whether or not a person actually
knows the gospel that saves them. These useless phrases don’t describe a thing about what
the gospel is and has left a devastating effect
of people not knowing what it is that they are
saved from nor how they are saved; which
leaves a more serious effect of people questioning their salvation.
Let’s not muddy the simplicity of salvation that is in Christ with vague church
sounding phrases that do not communicate
anything. But rather present God’s word with
clarity and assuredness. So here is the gospel:
plain and simple.
Sin was passed upon all men by one man
Adam, and death is a consequence of this sin
(Rom 5:12). Mankind has an eternal destiny of
condemnation and wrath - Hell - because of
this sin (Rom 6:23). No matter what good
works one might do we are still found sinners
in the sight of our Creator God. And all unrighteousness and those who follow get indignation and wrath. We cannot be found
righteous for by God’s law we are found sinners (Rom 3:19-20). If we have broken even
one law we are found guilty.
It is for this reason of not being able to
create our own righteousness and being born
in a sinful flesh that we need a savior (Titus
3:5). Christ is that Savior, God manifested in
the flesh, sinless, died in our place on a cross
2000 years ago. Taking upon him the wrath
and judgement that was intended for us sinners. And it is through his bloodshed, burial,
and resurrection on our behalf that we are
able to have peace with God and forgiveness
of our sins (1 Cor 15:1-4, Col 3:14). This good
news is unto all but only those that believe in
it are made righteous in Christ (Romans
3:22).
It is then after we have heard this good
news of Christ’s righteousness available to us freely, that we are sealed with the Holy Spirit
and we are now part of Christ’s body the
church (Eph 1:13)
There is nothing that we need to do, no
good works that are required, and no bad
works that can separate us from our new position in Christ (Romans 8:35-39).
Faith and belief in this information from
God’s word is the gospel.
The gospel is not accepting Jesus into your
heart. The gospel is not making him lord of
your life, it is not saying a prayer and it is not
being baptized with water.
So next time someone asks you if you are
saved. Give them the clear assured answer
“Yes! And let me tell you why
Find more free resources at:
www.graceambassadors.com