Truths abound in the Bible. I have been reading the Christian Bible all my life. I don’t know how many times I have read it. Also, I have read a library of books about the Bible. It is strange that I can see something many times before it actually arrives in my mind. That is the case with the passages from John about the truth.
John mentions Jesus saying that the “Comforter” will come after him. Some Bibles say the “Advocate” will come. Other Bibles use other terms. In one I see the term, “helper” used. The different words used are matters of translating a language and of the psychology of the translator. Though there are differences of meaning that can be derived from the specific choice of words used, the overall-meaning remains. An advocate is not the same as a comforter, to be sure, but Jesus says someone will come after him. In every Bible I have examined the “Spirit of truth” is used to clarify the terms “Advocate,” “Comforter,” and “helper.” There is no translational disparity found there. Clearly the reference is to truth and to someone or something coming to help mankind unite in the truth.
Now that I have been addressing the truth by creating this website dedicated to uniting the people in the truth, a recent reading of the Bible passages about the coming of the Spirit of truth to unite the world has hit me. It makes clear that the mind works in “mysterious ways.” I never gave those Bible passages much consideration. Now I will.
I suspect that people are like me in this. We all see or read something that has little effect at the time but later, after more living, stands out. Is it not a fact that we see with our eyes but interpret the sights with our minds? Is it not obvious that the brain clouds the truth? We can think that if true data is used as the foundation of reason, more truth can be discovered by the mind. If the data used as the foundation of reason is false, can more truth be discovered by the mind? Even the answer to this question is uncertain. The mind can begin with true data and derive false data due to the influences of the mind. Perhaps it can begin with false data and derive true data. I can imagine it. Reason is a function that can go wrong. Seeing is also something that can go wrong. What are we to do?
Help one another. That is what we are to do. If we cannot be absolutely sure of what we think or even what we see with our own eyes, we must resist being convinced and keep open minds. Then we can work together to advance our acquisition of the truth. We can unite in the truth. We can reason and agree that uniting in the truth is something worth doing. I think mankind has been trying to unite in the truth since the beginning. History can be seen to prove it. It is an overwhelming tendency or urge. I think it has been that way because we somehow know that when we all agree, peace will break out more surely than any war ever broke out. The many wars and other horrors of our history are in many ways connected to mankind’s desire for the truth.
Mankind has a long history. Much of it is recorded and documented. What if it was all part of the road to the truth? Like a road that has many turns and forks, the road to the truth has been torturous. History is clear on this. Opinions about the truth have been the source of great travail. That fact amplifies the importance of uniting in the truth, and our urge to do so is made clear by our bloody history. It is time to bring to the world a spirit of cooperation. Together we can create a history of peace and love by uniting in the truth. The first thing we might do is to agree to seek the truth together in cooperation. If we can do it in the Spirit of Love, the light of truth will burst upon us. Imagine that!
Our lives are different when compared to the “birds of the air,” or the “lilies of the field.” We are more heavily influenced by our brains. Right or wrong, good or bad, our brains are involved in everything about us. Human arrogance is, I think, what makes us see ourselves as more conscious or above the other life forms. We have discovered that the birds and the lilies toil endlessly to survive, but they have not gone to war with destructive power that can kill all living things. Does that suggest that maybe we are beneath them? Evidence is emerging which suggests that the plants and animals are conscious by means means other than the brain. Here we can see that uniting in the truth will require work related strongly to the brain, or the mind. The complexity is daunting, but we can do it.
We can agree to cooperate to bring the world to the truth in all things. It will be much easier if we can find within ourselves love for one another so strong we would lay our lives down for our loved ones. This submission to the relegation of our lives to the service of the lives of our loved ones will unite us inexorably in a quest to unite in the truth. Which comes first. It doesn’t matter. One leads to the other.
I am a person who does not take the Bible literally. Indeed, I think a lot of what the Bible reports is false in the extreme. The truth about Jesus is lost in the Bible as I see it. I think God is far from what the Bible says of him. This does not negate the profundity of the wisdom that can be found there. It clearly does not negate the profound importance of the Bible to the affairs of mankind. Such is the case with the passages in John about the coming of the Spirit of truth.
Many with whom I have spoken tell me they revere the Bible because it is prophetic. It predicts things that happen. When Jesus reportedly tells his audience that someone will come to unite the people in the truth, he is prophesying. I see this as I would see a prophecy that someone will come who is a human. It in no way garners my reverence for the Bible. Predictions have permeated the experience of life for mankind since the beginning and in almost every area and aspect of human experience.
The writer of John demonstrates a basic human need, truth. Humans need the truth in all things. Two thousand years ago this was understood by some, maybe all. The truth is needed. Everyone seems to agree about this. We really need the “Spirit of truth” to come.
I am not feeling any affinity with the prediction John attributes to Jesus when he says one will come to unite the people in the truth. To me it is just an obvious need the human species has that has been unsatisfied. Driven to satisfy the need for the truth, the people have developed opinions about the truth. I am no exception. I have my opinions. Above all, though, I seek the truth and I want the people to unite in the truth. The biblical prediction of the coming of the Comforter can be applied to anyone and everyone. We and all who came before us are the Comforter.
I doubt that it is possible for someone to unite the people in the truth. Such an idea suggests some sort of miracle or magic. It is a non-sequitur. Uniting is something that involves many, not one. A leader does not do what the followers do. A leader has but a role to play in the actions of the many. If I can lead some to unite in the truth, I only join the effort of the many by performing a role in the process that is as important to me as it is to everyone. I seek the truth. I want mankind to unite in the truth. I have imagined the world after mankind unites in the truth, and I want to see that world come to pass. I have seen the world after mankind comes to love for one another, and I want that world to come to pass.
Jesus is said to have told those listening to love one another. He went further to make sure they understood exactly what he meant. “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love than this no one has, that one lay down his life for his friends.” Imagine a world in which billions of people love one another so strongly they would lay down their lives for others. I did that a long time ago. What I saw was so beautiful and desirable I committed myself to becoming one who loves everyone enough to lay down my life for them. Life has never been like is was before that.
I did it. I love everyone enough to lay down my life for them. It virtually hit me like a ton of bricks. I was changed instantly, and changes have been happening in me since. I saw the world in which we all love one another the way Jesus is said to have loved us, enough to lay down his life for us. It was so beautiful I soon dedicated my life to doing my part to help mankind create that world. It has taken me down paths I would not choose but had to take to accomplish my intentions. There is a long story to be told about it, but that is not the purpose of this article.
I want everyone to love everyone. It is my purpose, my meaning. Uniting in the truth will come with love, but love can come of the truth. I do all I can to bring both to universal manifestation. I created the website you are visiting for that reason. Maybe it is part selfish, for I want that world. It is far more, though, devotion to my loved ones. You. All of you.
