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The Supremacy of Consciousness11-12-00
"Be
ye transformed by the renewing of your mind."
Romans 12:2 Join
me in affirming: I
counsel my consciousness to accept the flood of inspiration from Universal
Consciousness as It uses me as Its agent of expression. (Rev. Michael Beckwith)
Today’s topic is “The Supremacy of Consciousness.” I mean by that, that
all that is, all that we are, all that shall ever be originates in
consciousness. It is this essential
idea that is the foundation for the belief that by changing our thinking we can
change our lives. Each of us knows
this as the truth in some way. Ernest
Holmes found support for this principle in the writings of Judge Thomas Troward,
who said, in his lecture entitled “Individuality:” “The
whole problem of life consists in finding the true relation of the individual to
the Universal Originating Spirit; and the first step towards ascertaining this
is to realize what the Universal Spirit must be in itself. We have already done
this to some extent, and the conclusions we have arrived at are:--
If these three axioms are clearly grasped, we have got a solid foundation from which to start our consideration of the subject for to-day. The first question that naturally presents itself is, If these things be so, why does not every individual express the life, love, and beauty of the Universal Spirit? The answer to this question is to be found in the Law of Consciousness. We cannot be conscious of anything except by realizing a certain relation between it and ourselves. It must affect us in some way, otherwise we are not conscious of its existence; and according to the way in which it affects us we recognize ourselves as standing related to it. It is this self recognition on our own part carried out to the sum total of all our relations, whether spiritual, intellectual, or physical, that constitutes our realization of life.” Judge
Thomas Troward, The Doré Lectures on Mental Science, Individuality We have all had the experience of seeing something that we have only noticed suddenly crowding into our experience in surprising numbers. Last Spring Dan and I were having some conversations regarding the purchase of another car. We decided we liked a certain model of Acura coupe, suddenly we saw them everywhere! What had seemed so very special was suddenly a regular part of our driving experience, passing us on every highway, parking next to us at the drugstore or Costco! Until we saw one on a car lot, these cars didn’t even seem to exist. How does this idea translate into our spiritual experience? First of all, we really do have to stand in the Divine flow to experience that which is our intended role. Troward tells us that we are meant to be the “Divine distributors.” To distribute requires consciousness. This is not to say that nothing will exist without our achieving some higher state of awareness, but that the higher the state of consciousness we reach, the more powerful and directed is our distribution of the vast field of possibilities. To return to the automobile metaphor, it was within our consciousness that there were great cars out there in the world generally, but we did not have a particular car in mind. Suddenly, when we had in mind something in particular, we discovered we lived in a world awash in such a fine possibility! At this point in the development of our automobile project, we still have not crept up on the possibility of an actual purchase. We are dwelling only in the realm of uncommitted wishes, window shopping in advance of conscious choice. Let’s let go of the car buying metaphor and look at what bringing directed consciousness and choice together will accomplish.
William James
said that
"[O]ur normal waking consciousness, rational consciousness as we call it,
is but one special type of consciousness, whilst all about it, parted from it by
the filmiest of screens, there lie potential forms of consciousness entirely
different." We
can think about the consciousness of sleep and we know right away that it is
different. We know there are times
when we are so very alert, such as when you are walking in the dark in an
unfamiliar place -- it is as if your ears are perked up, alert for the
unfamiliar, scanning the shapes and colors of all that you might encounter. And
yet, this is a consciousness of things and circumstances, and we might ask
ourselves how creative this state is, how awake are you really in those
circumstances? Are you creating
peace, calm, a conscious state of safety in the world or are you walking in the
dark knowing that bad things can happen and preparing oneself for the worst?
What impact does this level of consciousness inflict on your being?
We have a choice at all times how it is that we will interact with the
world. Will we live our lives
prepared, conscious and peaceful, or should we choose to live our lives fearful
of what is around the next corner? Troward says that Spirit’s “Motive,
or primary moving impulse, is to express the Life, Love and Beauty which it
feels itself to be.” This
moving impulse that he points to, sourced us as individuals, and experiences
itself through us. This is God’s
consciousness filling us up and acting through us -- and it is happening all the
time!
A question we could ask ourselves regularly is what kind of experience am I
giving God today, in this moment? Ernest
Holmes wrote in the Science of Mind that “Evolution is the awakening of
the soul to a recognition to its unity with the whole.”
So long as we are asleep to our inner selves, we think we are having
private, separate experiences. So
if we are snippy or snooty we think it’s just on our own account and has no
effect outside ourselves. But when
we wake up to the unity of all humankind with the Divine, then we know that each
act is connected, each kindness, each expression of love lifts all of humankind
and makes it possible for those who are not now aware or awake to stand in the
presence of the goodness that God is through each one of us who knows this
truth. We say that this occurs
within the One Mind common to all humankind.
The Dean of
Boston University’s School of Theology , Robert Cummings Neville, writes,
"If you had a different concept of yourself, everything would be
different. You are what you are, so everything is as it is. The events
which you observe are determined by the concept you have of yourself.
If you change your concept of yourself, the events ahead of you in time are
altered, but, thus altered, they form a deterministic sequence starting from the
moment of this changed concept. You are a being with powers of
intervention, which enable you, by a change of consciousness, to alter the
course of observed events--in fact, to change your future." Our
demonstration of these principles in our lives provides an endless opportunity,
moment-by-moment, for another life connected to ours to experience the nature of
God, to experience the mystical connection to the Divine that we have grown
accustomed to, a chance to see the good within themselves, as we have, and to
begin to intervene in their own lives inspired by what they have seen in us.
Albert Einstein said that “A human being is a part of the whole, called
by us "Universe," a part limited in time and space. He experiences
himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest - a kind
of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for
us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons
nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening
our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature
in its beauty. Nobody is able to achieve this completely, but the striving for
such achievement is in itself a part of the liberation and a foundation for
inner security."
While we may know that “It
is the Father’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom,” somebody shared this
truth with us by demonstration in their lives.
We met someone who awakened in us the longing to know God more deeply,
more completely, in a more ordinary everyday, breathing in and breathing out
kind of way. We might well ask who
are we doing this for in our lives? Seneca
says: “He that does good to another, does good also to himself, not only
in the consequences, but in the act; for the consciousness of well-doing is, in
itself, ample reward.” So this is self care! Amazing how that works!
"Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind."
Romans 12:2.
English bon vivant, Oscar Wilde, admonished us “Keep love in your
heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead. The
consciousness of loving and being loved brings a warmth and richness to life
that nothing else can bring.”
So how do we
shine the light of love into life itself? How do we reflect back into the universe the very thing that
gives life meaning? It seems simple enough, but if we get out of practice, it
might seem more complicated than to simply express Love in what we think, say
and do. One ancient method is to
find some purpose greater than ones ordinary self.
In The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, written in the 2nd
Century BC, Patanjali counsels us as follows: “When you are inspired by
some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their
bounds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every
direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant
forces, faculties, and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a
greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be.”
By sharing this quotation with you I am not suggesting that we must go out and
do something so extraordinarily generous that it gains you a $100,000 award on
the Oprah show. I am suggesting
that if you choose love as your primary mode of expression, that you will find
deep rewards in your existence and the lives of those you touch will be lifted
simply because you exist. The I am
that you are will be realized within you and you will consciously live within
the Divine and know Heaven in the present.
Should you choose to experience this life project on a deeper level, to
move the bar up like a high jumper, to challenge yourself to give in some way
unprecedented in your prior experience, the you that you know yourself to be
will be unrecognizable by yourself. You won’t know who you are.
You will see the Divine reflected back to you in the mirror.
This can be a shock and truly challenging when you are busy as a conduit
of Love.
Eckhart Tolle,
in his book. The Power of Now - a Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment,
says “ The best indicator of your level of consciousness is how you deal with
life's challenges when they come. Through those challenges, an already
unconscious person tends to become more deeply unconscious, and a conscious
person more intensely conscious. You can use a challenge to awaken you, or
you can allow it to pull you into even deeper sleep.”
Consciousness is not a choice. In
some way we all express consciousness. Consciousness
is said to inhabit all of life. It
is our choice in which direction we will choose to deliver our attention.
I repeat: It is our choice
in which direction we will choose to deliver our attention.
As Ernest Holmes and his spiritual forebears have taught us “Heaven
or Hell are states of consciousness.” Resistance of our original
divine nature creates a hell on earth. We
suffer when we choose to believe that life is anything other than fundamentally
good. We suffer when we believe
that we are anything less than the godstuff that we are made of. The Unity of Spirit and its realization in humankind through
the Absoluteness of our Word is the expression of consciousness.
By loving we demonstrate the natural flow of consciousness, a flow that
is not defined by the laws of Physics, but by the Law of Spirit that moves ever
forward and upward in realizing itself through its experience within the
individual. We have to say
“YES!” to this flow to find balance and perfect self-expression in our
lives. God is within us.
We cannot long shut the door to this realization.
We are not meant to withstand such suffering, such an experience of Hell.
All of life moves us toward that realization and our resistance can only be
momentarily successful. God is
absolute good and so are you. God
seeks to express this good through and as you.
God is forever and more. You
are forever and more. There is a
Universal Principle that acts through and as you, and seeks its self expression
through each of us as individuals. Its
original nature is our original nature. Just
as water seeks its own level, flowing to the sea, your nature seeks to rejoin
that from which it was made. Consciousness
brings to us the opportunity to express this.
There is One Mind and that mind is common to all humankind.
By surrendering to this truth in consciousness we are empowered to use
the Law of Mind most powerfully, to realize its essential qualities: Life, Love
and Beauty. These are the things of which Heaven is made, and these are
essentially what each of us is made of too.
The Supremacy of Consciousness knows itself through you.
I repeat Ernest Holmes’ statement that “Heaven or Hell are
states of consciousness.” I invite you to surrender to Heaven now.
Thank
you for being here today! |
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