THE BOOK
MISSION OF THE THREE WISE MEN. --- [THE THREE KINGS.]
An interesting theme emerges with the whole issue surrounding the birth of Jesus, His subsequent and difficult Mission, and His death as a supposed necessary propitiatory sacrifice to cleanse the world and humanity from sin. (That is actually a very strange and totally illogical view when looked at brutally objectively.)
Nevertheless, if that really were the case (which it is not); what role did the Three Kings or “three wise men” play in the overall picture, in terms of what they achieved? More to the point, perhaps, what might have been their actual role and mission? We have their names and, according to recent research, we have a clearer picture of who they were and where they came from --- probably Parthian from the Persian Empire. So, we know the names of the lands they ruled, and we know they travelled for a long time to the exact point where the birth took place.
Was this just guesswork? Highly improbable! For how could they know where to go by simply guessing? History informs us that they were wise in the art of astrology -- the forerunner of astronomy -- and thereby “divined” the Holy Event. After so much preparation and “guidance” --- never mind the long camel or horse journey itself ---- why then just give expensive gifts to the mother and Child and simply ride away?
WHY DO THAT?
To travel for so long just to bring gifts for the Child seems to be a completely pointless exercise. However, if we are prepared to consider another and more spiritually-meaningful reason --- in terms of so much preparation to locate just one Child, albeit a very special One --- then we should reflect on their status to begin with.
In the first place they were kings in their own right, and so obviously possessed great wealth and some measure of power. Secondly, they were evidently highly regarded as wise men and rulers. And all three were carefully and collectively guided to find the Jesus Child. A logical extrapolation of those three points would suggest they were “Called” for that task. By virtue of the fact that the Mission of Jesus was constantly opposed by the religious authorities of the day who saw in him a danger to their authority and who subsequently succeeded in their plot to kill Him, might it not be possible that the primary purpose of those three powerful men was to take the Child into their care and protection? So that He might later carry out His Work relatively unhindered.
Consider how different His Mission would have been had they fully recognised their great spiritual purpose and accomplished theirs’. In the first place, the life of Jesus would not have been so tragically cut short. Under their protection His Sublime Commission would have unfolded to its utmost point, which was not death by crucifixion.
Given that the Three Kings recognised Him as The One sent from Above, we would further expect that royal scribes would probably have been appointed to record His every Word, all His Teachings. How different the “Christian world”, particularly, would be today. However, because the Three Monarchs failed to recognise their true calling and task, what we subsequently have as a result of that unfortunate error is a more fractured, divided, and divisive “Christian religion” than perhaps would otherwise have been the case had Jesus received their protection.
It may not ultimately have prevented a violent death at some point in Jesus’ life, but a strong blanket of royal protection from the “Three Kings” might have induced certain religious authorities to tread more carefully with regard to His Person. At the very least we might have had historical access to a far longer Ministry by Him with perhaps His Teachings eventually recorded by Him personally. Of course, it is all supposition.
Interestingly, however, the strange and very illogical view that many of the religiously inclined subscribe to which states that if a particular thing takes place it does so because it must automatically be The Will of God, refuses to accept the obvious reality that human beings have free will in all matters. Therefore, the path of a prophet, or even of a Son of God, can either be helped or hindered by those who might cross even the path of One sent by God --- including and especially the Three Kings.
The Magi, by not placing Jesus under their care and protection, even though clearly guided to find and acknowledge him as The Awaited One, nonetheless ultimately hindered His Mission. Not purposely or from dark intent, but rather through not fully recognising their primary purpose.
The fact that Herod -– fearing the prophecy about the “King” that would be born in his time -– in ordering the slaying of all male children up to the age of two years, surely reveals that the true purpose of the “Three Kings” in their ordained journey was to find and protect the Child.
The warning from the Messenger of God to Mary and Joseph to immediately journey to Egypt to escape Herod’s wrath therewith reinforces the fact of our sure statement. A human failing of severe proportions necessitated direct and rapid intervention from The Light to ensure that The Son of God’s Mission would not be cut short by a vengeful despot, with obviously severe ramifications for future humanity. Had Herod succeeded in killing Jesus as a baby, the world today would be completely bereft of the essential knowledge He bequeathed to humankind. Even though His Teachings have suffered appalling distortions, they nonetheless have, at least in part, still shown the way forward for many. Without such life-knowledge, an ongoing, more or less permanent “Dark Age of horror” would probably have been the resultant legacy.
Failure rather than fulfilment is the unfortunate legacy of humankind in its breakable bind to The Creative Will. Unbreakable, because It granted us conscious life; and unbreakable because it was The Creative Will we were always meant to serve as our primary “Crucial Imperative”! Unfortunately, through their error, the Three Kings in the end helped to bequeath to future Christians and the world ongoing contention about the Life and Mission of Jesus, and even the very issues we address here.
So historically-meaningful has the role of the “Three Wise Men” been in Christian lore that the great Cathedral of Cologne was built to house their skulls --- brain-case carapaces now dressed in gold and jewels, placed on the altar and there worshipped.
The journey and “mission” of the three kings over the time of that stupendous and earth-changing event has produced a narrative that perfectly fits the Christian doctrine. The Nativity scenes that are played out in thousands of places in Christendom every Christmas sees the “Three Kings” offering their “gifts” to the Child. The whole portrayal is designed to ostensibly strengthen the faith of the faithful, and the “three wise men” are lauded for their expensive gifts. From that have come all sorts of opinions about the symbolic meaning of the gold, myrrh and frankincense which they brought for the “Divine Birth”!
As our Mandate is to Proclaim The All-Truth of Imanuel, this next short Text from a Lecture by Him --- and exactly relevant to this “three kings” discussion --- “Corrects” all historical assumptions and inaccuracies about their actual purpose. For it was a Divinely-Guided Mission, and thus from such High Guidance a very different and more profound outcome for global humanity should have resulted!
This serious “Correction”, however, does not fit the “official Christian narrative”, for had they fulfilled their task, the Crucifixion of Jesus --- which was not Willed by God, but was a “murder” plotted against Him by evil men --- thus destroys the hand-wringing, false piety of “He came to die for us”! In this case, for the billions who believe that terrible lie, you really should “read and weep”!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM
Three kings found their way to the stable and presented earthly gifts; but then went away leaving, without protection the Child Whose earthly path they should have smoothed with their wealth and power, so that no harm might befall Him in the fulfilment of His Mission. Although they received enlightenment enabling them to find the Child, they did not fully recognise their sublime call.
IMANUEL:
THE SON OF MAN!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The life and times of Jesus are documented beyond measure by thousands of authors and researchers, and we will not add to that too much. Only the key points of serious disputation are of concern to us. In the sequence of his difficult journey amongst a “stiff-necked” people to His eventual murder at their instigation, the next segments are the events leading up to His trial and Crucifixion.
So: what of that group of human beings --- the “chosen people” --- who first hailed Him as The Messiah with Hosannas and then shortly after reviled Him? “Crucify Him” was then their hate-filled mantra.
JEWISH CONDEMNATION OF THE SON OF GOD.
They, the Jewish people, called to receive The Son of God in their midst. Where do they fit in the outworking of Creation-Law which ordains that all transgressions against The Divine Will must be expiated to the absolute and final point of resolution? The historical record clearly shows that the Jewish authorities continually sought the death of Jesus, to the degree of fabricating lies about Him. The legal term today is “entrapment”.
The failure of the Three Kings to recognise that their mission was to protect Jesus set in motion the train of events that would finally bring about His murder. Herod ascertained from the Magi the exact time the star made its appearance and instructed them to learn all they could about the child and report back to him. However, having been instructed by a dream not to return to Herod, they returned to their own lands by another road. Furious at being tricked and fearing the prophecy that a King had been born there, Herod ordered the killing of all new-born male children around the time of Jesus’ birth up to the age of two years.
Upon the instructions of a “messenger of the Lord”, Joseph and Mary immediately journeyed to Egypt to escape the reach of Herod. Upon Herod’s death years later, Joseph was then directed “...to go into the land of Israel”. Unfortunately, surely due to his long absence in Egypt, the powerful events of the exalted night of the Divine birth in Bethlehem slipped from Joseph. Along with Joseph and Mary, all who experienced those events then were meant to have borne stronger witness to it for the world during their lives. As previously explained, the Three Kings, called to be the primary witnesses for all time, would have changed the course of history then and forever had they fulfilled their primary task of protecting the Child.
The non-recognition of Jesus as the prophesied Messiah by the Jews --- who waited for Him then and are still waiting for a Messiah today --- seems to hinge on the fact that the prophecy about Him correctly named Bethlehem as the town in which the Messiah was to be born. Jesus, however, became known as “the Nazarene”, for that is where Joseph lived -- in Nazareth.
Could the Jewish race claim that such an error was a simple and legitimate mistake, and therefore not expect any repercussions from the whole, terrible series of events at some future time? Ordinarily, that might possibly possess some saving grace; it was all just an unfortunate mistake.
The Book of John, however, in recording the arrest of Jesus, reveals what was surely the murderous attitude of many within the Sanhedrin towards “the troublemaker”.
“The troops, then, headed by their colonel, and the Judean officers, arrested Jesus, and having bound Him, they conducted Him in the first instance to Annas; because he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest for that one year. Now it was Caiaphas who advised the Judeans that “It is profitable for one man to die on behalf of the people.” (John 18:13-14, Fenton. Emphasis mine.)
In this case, the stakes are crucially higher. What might be now dismissed as a “simple mistake” was, in truth, a hypocritical calculation to get rid of Jesus. That action resulted in the torture and murder of an innocent man in the first instance. That in itself is wrong. Secondly and crucially, that particular murder was against The One Who, gifted in Love and Grace from The Creator, came to help humankind out of the mess it had mired itself in. But Who, then, however, was rejected by the very people ‘called’ from the time of their earliest prophets to prepare for His Coming! Is that not incredibly arrogant and foolish?
We could perhaps say that if there was, or is yet still to be, severe reciprocity from that repulsive act of blind hatred against The Light Itself, what form might it take? Or might it just perhaps have already occurred --- at least to some degree? But certainly not yet in its fullest ramifications. More on that later!
Since our primary purpose is to Proclaim Imanuel and His All-Truth, let’s read a short but relevant excerpt from one more Lecture from The Living Word of The Son of Man on the trial and sentencing of Jesus!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
HUMAN OPINIONS AND GOD’S WILL . . .
Blessed is he who reaches this height and weighs every judgement he is confronted with, and then acts in accordance with his own intuitions! By so doing he will not become so deeply implicated as thousands of others who often burden themselves with heavy karma through mere thoughtlessness and love of sensation, or by showing prejudice and slandering, which will lead them into regions of suffering and torment they need never have experienced. Thus they often allow themselves to be deterred here on earth from a great deal that is really good, and thereby not only miss much for themselves but perhaps risk everything, even their whole existence!
Such was the case with the senseless and blazing hatred against Jesus of Nazareth! Only a few of the malevolent clamourers knew the actual reason for it while all the others, who had never come into personal contact with Him, merely worked themselves up into a completely blind and ignorant passion and joined in the general outcry. Just as lost are all those who turned their backs upon Him because of the false opinions of others, and who did not even listen to His words, much less gave themselves the trouble of examining them objectively, whereby they might have recognised their value after all!
Only thus could the insane tragedy develop in which, of all men, the Son of God was being charged with blasphemy and brought to the cross! He Who alone came directly from God and proclaimed to mankind the Truth about God and His Will!
This happening is so grotesque that it shows up with glaring clarity the whole narrow-mindedness of mankind!
And mankind have by no means progressed inwardly since then! Instead they have retrogressed even further in this respect, in spite of all their discoveries and inventions!
On account of their outward successes mankind advanced in conceit only, and thereby became even more presumptuous! It is just conceit that is born of and cultivated by narrow-mindedness, indeed it is a definite sign of narrow-mindedness!
And it is from this soil, which has become more and more fertile in the last two thousand years, that the present opinions of mankind have developed! The effect is both decisive and devastating, the while men, without realising it, continue to entangle themselves more and more in their opinions, thus preparing their own terrible doom! ------
IMANUEL:
THE SON OF MAN!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Powerful and unassailable logic, as that which only a Being from Divine Heights could deliver with such simple and perfect clarity. No histrionics, no overwrought emotionalism, as would invariably be the case with human beings of religious bent, just clear and wondrous Truth! By contrast, we should note here the discourse of Pilate to the baying crowd, and their replies to him.
“What then,” asked Pilate, “shall I do with Jesus, Whom they call the
Messiah?” “Let Him be crucified!” was their unanimous reply.
“Why?” he asked; “what crime has He committed?” In reply, they yelled out
more savagely than before, “Let Him be crucified!”
Pilate ... took water and washed his hands in the presence of the mob,
saying, “See, I am innocent of the blood of this just Man; look to it
yourselves!”
Then in reply to him, the whole mass shouted out, “Let His blood be
upon us and upon our children!”
(Matthew 27:22-25, Fenton. Emphases mine.)
And so Pilate handed Jesus over to be crucified.
In that last terrible and hate-filled imprecation, the inviolable outworking of the very Commandments given to that race by their great Patriarch, Moses the Law-Giver, began their silent and long-reaching work.
It was the Jewish race that was “Called” to lead the way for humankind with the greater knowledge of Creation-Law that The Son Of God brought to them. Through the elucidation of The Law by Jesus in their very midst and thus under His initial guidance, they could have succeeded. Unfortunately, however, burdened with religious ritual that held them fast to the ‘letter’ of Jewish law, they failed in their task, for they did not want it.
Because of that murder, the ancient prophecy that foresaw the death of Jesus was fulfilled. Not, however, because it was the Will of God that it be fulfilled, but because it could be prophetically seen that the Jewish people would go against the very laws and prophecies they were meant to obey. Thus: That failure was prophesied long before Jesus came onto the Earth!
So, what can we deduce from the events of 2,000 years ago for those who shouted:
“Crucify Him!”
The Book of Luke records the Admonition of Jesus to “The Daughters of Jerusalem” as he was led to Golgotha. From Luke 23:26-31, Fenton. (His Capitals):
‘And a large crowd of the people followed Him, including women, who were beating their breasts, and lamenting Him. Jesus, However, turning towards them, said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me; but weep for yourselves and for your children. For now the days are coming, during which they shall say, ‘Happy are the barren, happy the childless, and happy those who have never nursed. Then they will begin to SAY TO THE MOUNTAINS, ‘FALL UPON US; AND TO THE HILLS, BURY US’; because if they do this with the green tree, what must happen to the rotten one?”
The Divine Laws of Creation offer clear explanations of the outworking of such Law. They provide the keys for greater understanding of the commensurate reciprocity for the murder of Jesus, which we now examine at this point in our story.
Bible prophecy and Scripture thus speak of the fact that “... generations will not pass until all has been fulfilled”. And we further know that our works or deeds follow us into the beyond after earthly death and, under the aegis of The Law of Rebirth, may wait many centuries before exactly the right time and circumstances converge for possible expiation. Therefore, the notion that “crimes of enormity” committed against certain races throughout history are always committed against innocent people does not necessarily correspond with the perfect and inviolable outworking of those Perfect Laws of Creation.
The concept or claim of innocence for dark, heinous deeds committed can be used for at least two reasons:
| 1. | Ignorance and/or disbelief of any inviolable and thus constraining Laws to begin with. |
| 2. | The recognition that inviolable Laws may or do exist, that the consequences of dark actions are inevitable, but that any potential for a “possible guilt aspect” on the part of the “guilty” may translate to a “refusal”, even subconsciously, to acknowledge responsibility and thus acceptance of the long-committed deed. |
The obvious ramifications that such inviolable Laws presuppose for the individual or group in the necessary expiation of particularly heinous deeds, such as the murder of One from out of The Godhead, means that The Law will, without fail, one day “visit the appropriate reaping” on such a group.
“Ignorance is bliss!” But is it really? In terms of expiating past transgressions, ignorance of The Laws does not stop their sure outworking. Ignorance or disbelief, therefore, cannot stay the reciprocal return. The same applies to the second point. Knowledge of, but refusal to accept, the lawful reciprocity of dark deeds may add more suffering to the inevitable reaping for the deed perpetrated than otherwise might have been the case. The darker and more savage the act, the stronger will be the “lawful return”. In the case of serious transgressions by whole peoples, it naturally follows that that group as a whole may well, at a future time, “yet reap together”.
However, due to the lawful outworking of The Laws of “Rebirth...”, “Attraction...” and “Reciprocal Action...”, --- (We will look at all the Creation-Laws in later Discourses in PART II.) ---; it does not necessarily follow that the group present at a particular event in history that must require expiation -- such as the murder of Jesus -- will all incarnate together at a given future point for that expiation to occur, though many of the key players will.
For unless the individuals present at that most heinous of deeds 2,000 years ago who did contribute in even the smallest way to that dark murder had not come to recognition of their part in it since that time, then the long reach of the Justice of Divine Creation-Law would require them to be back on the earth around the time it was ordained that all karmic cycles must close.
That means in the 20th century, at the time The Son of Man was here with the prophesied All-Truth, from out of which He would “proclaim the judgement” for the earth and its peoples.
So: In the case of the murder of Jesus then; it is not only those who shouted, “Crucify Him”, who will/will have “reap/ed the appropriate return”, but all human beings who have rejected Him and The Living Truth He brought to humankind.
In the case of those directly involved in the actual, incomprehensible event -– who thus took part in His murder -– and those who were willing servants of the plotters and planners; all would need to be on earth when The Son of Man proclaimed His presence. And therewith to recognise Him through the All-Truth He would bring which would clarify The Truth surrounding the life and True Mission of Jesus: The Son of God. Recognition of that crucial Truth by the perpetrators and supporters could thereby bring expiation for them.
What I have intimated here would surely be especially condemned as “anti- Semitism”. That is a word loaded to the hilt with both accusing menace and victimisation.
By that we mean; with almost monotonous historical regularity since the great Diaspora; in virtually every country in which Jews settled, they suffered terribly at the hands of the people who initially accepted them into their midst. Perhaps resorting to the “politics of blame” in the societies concerned; accusing menace then emotionally-wrought anti-Semitic victimisation against the Jewish populations therein, often with much bloodshed against them.
The truly amazing aspect about Jewish victimisation across the centuries is not that it happened --- for war and butchery for many races was simply the historical norm on the human journey --- but that Jewish populations and enclaves appeared to be more “singled-out” than most. Why should that be? Why was that the case?
Let’s now look at a reason for such continuing persecution, but not from the standard and ongoing “wringing-hands” and “sackcloth and ashes” victimisation- rhetoric from out of the Jewish race, nor from me; but from the Hand of Imanuel --- The Son of Man, The Eternal Mediator, thus The Awaited Messiah Who was “missed” by the world --- and certainly by the Jews --- and thus of Whom it was warningly-prophesied that “only the few would know” (i.e., would recognise):
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
“COME DOWN FROM THE CROSS”!
Those who shouted this considered themselves especially clever! They scoffed, they triumphed and they laughed hatefully without any real cause, for surely Christ’s sufferings were no reason for mockery and ridicule, much less for laughter! If but for one moment they could have “seen” the simultaneous happenings in the Ethereal and Spiritual Realms, where their souls were being firmly bound for thousands of years, their laughter would have ceased! Even though their punishment could not become immediately visible in the material world, it did come in all the subsequent earth-lives these wicked souls were forced to live on account of it!
The scoffers of that time thought themselves clever, but they could have given no better proof of their limitation than these words, for they reveal the most childish view one can think of. Those who speak thus are far from understanding Creation and the Will of God operating therein! How depressing and sad it therefore is to know that even today a great number of those who still believe in God and in the Mission of His Son at that time are quite convinced that Jesus of Nazareth could have come down from the cross if He had only so willed!
down from the cross if He had only so willed! After two thousand years there is still the same sluggish obtuseness --- no change or progress! According to the naïve opinions of many believers Christ, having issued from God, must be unrestricted in His actions on earth!
To expect this shows both poverty of intellect and inertia in thinking!
Through becoming flesh the Son of God was also “placed under the law”, that is, He subjected Himself to the Laws of Creation, the unalterable Will of God in Creation. There could be no change in connection with the physical and earthbound body. In obedience to the Will of God Christ voluntarily submitted to this Law. He did not come to overthrow it, but to fulfil it through becoming flesh on this earth.
He was therefore bound to everything in the same way as man on earth is bound! Even as the Son of God, with all His Divine Might and Power, He could not come down from the cross as long as He was in a physical body of flesh and blood! That would have been equivalent to upsetting the Divine Will in Creation! ----------------------
IMANUEL:
THE SON OF MAN!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Reader: Let’s revisit perhaps the key point of Imanuel’s text here. It is this:
Even though their punishment could not become immediately visible in the material world, it did come in all the subsequent earth-lives these wicked souls were forced to live on account of it!’ (Emphases mine.)
Clearly, that means being subject to one of the great Creation Laws: The Law of Rebirth! Of course, that is not a Divine-Law reality that the “big three” of monotheism would necessarily subscribe to as a matter of course.
Nonetheless, let’s take this Lawful theme and apply it to the 20th century, for in that momentous 100 years were fought the two most bloody wars in human history and, in the case of the Jews, two things of obviously serious import occurred:
| 1. | Persecution from the turn of the century culminating in the Holocaust set in place by the Nazi Regime. |
| 2. | The “coming together” of the Jews and the formation of an Israeli homeland after that war, with physical close connections to Jerusalem once more. |
So insofar as Point 1 is concerned; since all karmic cycles have been closing rapidly for some time now but more exponentially in the present –- hence the “increasing reaping” everywhere on earth today –- we should yet note how history records countless events where various races perpetrated horrific acts against others. In those kinds of unfortunate episodes in human history, we may thereby better understand the inviolable aspects of the sure outworking of The Divine Laws of Creation.
NOTE:
The “one-life-only” school of thought, which does not take into account
the lawful outworking of precise and inviolable Laws, will naturally describe
those on the receiving end of “crimes of enormity” as innocent victims. The
reality is, however, that under those very Laws, what has taken place is
simple reciprocity under the aegis of primarily The Laws of Rebirth,
Attraction... and Reciprocal Action -- “What we sow, that shall we reap” --
in the first instance. So, races and peoples who continually lament that they
are the victims need to recognise, understand and accept that The Divine
Laws of Creation do not deliver injustice. That is impossible, even though in
many instances that may appear to be the case.
At this rapidly-closing time of humankind’s odyssey, people and races receive or “reap”, simply because they once “sowed the seed”. In essential reinforcement: Air Vice-Marshall “Bomber” Harris, head of Britain’s Bomber Command in World War II, in answer to a question about the accelerating bombing campaign against Germany; sagely stated:
“They sowed the wind. Now they will reap the whirlwind.”
Therefore: In direct concert with Imanuel’s explanatory Admonition for the reciprocal effect of the murder of The Son of God, and ‘all the subsequent earth-lives those wicked souls were forced to live’; World War II saw perhaps the greatest ever concentration of dark deeds perpetrated against many races in many different parts of the globe. The world also witnessed the curious phenomenon of mass non-responsibility from the citizens of the main perpetrating groups. They gave as their excuse or reason; they were just “following orders” or had no choice –- particularly where they were led by a megalomaniac and/or charismatic leader. In any Nation or race, however, the inviolable outworking of The Law does not absolve any person -- who simply “follows a leader into mad savagery” -- of personal responsibility.
The horrific experience of the Jewish people at the hands of the Nazi Regime during the Holocaust brought forth strong statements from some survivors about whether or not there could be a God. Anecdotal reports from ‘camp-survivors’, particularly from Auschwitz immediate post-liberation, noted liberated Jews proclaiming: “There is no God.” Some survivors interviewed even quite recently still held to that belief.
On the surface, such a view might perhaps be understandable given the years of traumatic suffering some survivors underwent at that particular “death-camp”. However, if analysed logically, such comments are really silly in the extreme for they seek to blame God for all human misfortune. Moreover, the same comments ultimately incorporate, and thus focus on, a too-strong emotive/ cultural overtone centred on a people with a strong religious history of being regarded -– in their own eyes –- as “chosen by God”. But “chosen” for what?
So, in terms of that nonetheless horrific episode in Jewish history, do we seriously believe that it was The Creator Who formed the Nazi Regime and subsequently built the ‘death-camps’? Of course not, a truly stupid thought. Nonetheless, however, one that is clearly inferred by those unthinking Jewish-survivors and their inane comments!
Human beings perpetrated that suffering on other human beings --- “Man’s Inhumanity to Man”. And even where the great and Immutable Law of Reciprocal Action must ‘return’ the ‘consequence’ of a previous and perhaps long-forgotten dark deed upon a people, it is still human beings who set reciprocal events in motion to begin with. That does not at all mean, however, that the “perpetrators of the deed” possess the “right” to so deliver retribution. That belongs to the Divine Justice that only The Light of God can deliver!
“Vengeance is mine, I will repay”, states The Law.
Therefore, the only sure way to not suffer severe and traumatic “reaping” is to recognise, understand, and live The Truth of The Law. That process offers the sure mechanism whereby “hard reaping” can be lessened or nullified to begin with, and ultimately expiated completely. So, take serious note of the Admonitions of Imanuel that we introduce you to.
Reader: Observe the increasing suffering of the Earth’s peoples; of those around you and understand the processes that have brought it about. For the reaping from the sowing will inexorably increase exponentially anyway. So: Learn The Rules and lesson, for yourself, at least some of humankind’s now near-future reaping.
Jesus came to earth to lead humanity back to The Light through the knowledge of The One Law. He therefore gifted all on earth the opportunity to return from whence we originally came --- our true home in a Higher Realm. (We all surely know His words of Divine Love which reveal that fact: “In my Father House are many mansions. I go to prepare a place for you.”) However, any possible `return home' is absolutely predicated on living that One Law, which was inherent in His Divine Essence, i.e.: The Divine Laws of Creation!
Yet despite all the trials and indignities He suffered, He did not shun physical death when it drew near but remained resolute, deliberately facing it for the sake of The Truth He brought into the world. With His blood on the Cross:
He placed His “Seal of Conviction” on all that He had said and lived.
Despite the fact His death was a terrible and inexcusable act of torturous murder, the way to The Light was nonetheless now open. He had won the victory for The Love of The Father, for The Love of Truth and the Love of Man. For He had subjugated the Powers and forces that had striven to destroy His Message and His Work! And therewith, as the incontrovertible historical record unequivocally reveals, man's faith in The Truth of His Word was strengthened by His victory. So, Jesus died for --- thus because of --- the sins of men.
If He had given up His Work and fled from His enemies, doubt would have assailed the faithful. The seeds of Truth He sowed in the spirits and consciousness of men then would not have taken root to subsequently spread to all corners of the earth.
Had it not been for the sin of turning away from The Creator and His Perfect Laws and thus introducing dark and evil forms onto the earth in the first place, Jesus would have been spared His Coming, His suffering and His death on the Cross.
It is correct, therefore, to say that for the sake of `the sin' which led to mankind's `fall', Jesus came, suffered, and was crucified, but that irrefutable fact is not a blessing for Christians or mankind in any shape or form. Those who had the chance to save Him from a terrible end --- the once-chosen and blessed Jewish race --- agitated for the criminal Barabbas over The Son of God. To Pilate, they shouted: Crucify Him.
Despite standing as an overall indictment against virtually all of mankind from that singularly-dark moment of far-reaching portent, it was and still is an especially damning indictment against the Jewish race. As we have hammered this theme in past Discourses; even today, that “stiff-necked” race still refuse to recognise that “The One” sent to them at their centuries-long-petition, really was their “Awaited One” at that time.
His Crucifixion was not, and could never ever be, an act of “necessary sacrifice'' to take away the sins of a weak and spiritually-lazy, earthly humanity. The millions upon millions of crucifixes that have flooded the earth for millennia should thus be looked upon far differently to what has been the case thus far.
Yes, the Crucifix should be approached with awe and reverence, but see it for what it really is, and therefore what it truly means!
THE CRUCIFIXION: ROMAN STYLE
Up to this point we have examined a number of issues of contentious moment centred on the life of Jesus, The Son of God. Irrespective of the many differing viewpoints about these events, however, a clear and absolutely unequivocal Truth is nonetheless sacrosanct here. And that is: That the actual happenings in the Life and death of Jesus could only have occurred according to firmly established, inviolable Laws. As we have already stated, it is impossible for anything to take place except under precise and lawful processes, irrespective of what human-monotheistic, religious opinion --- either from laypersons or academics --- might wish to state or believe.
Since that is an inviolable Truth in itself, let us put aside all selfish and ridiculous notions of how wonderful it all was that A Son of God was sent down to this earth in an act of selfless Love on the part of The Almighty to save us from our rotten sins. Instead, and from a scientific/medical perspective, let’s really and closely examine the whole process of the Crucifixion of Jesus in a probing, “blow-by-blow” assessment of His “journey of terrible suffering”.
While doing so, we should very seriously understand that the incredible pain He suffered throughout never let up. It was constant. It was not at any time relieved by “first-aid”, or convenient pain-killers such as we would immediately grasp for at the onset of even very mild, inconvenient, pain today.
From childhood, Christians, particularly, are conditioned with a mindset which superficially and incomprehensibly says that Jesus suffered and died on the Cross to save them from their sins. Nothing, however, about what that suffering really meant for Him. Not for the “believing Christian” who will never ever experience such a thing, but who nonetheless preens himself with sickening false piety in the truly strange belief that he is “absolved” from all his sins and “thereby saved”.
That being the perverse and pervading belief in Christendom, let’s all journey with Jesus to His agonising death. Whilst on that grievous walk to His place of execution, we should put aside every shred of religious thought, and -- objectively and logically -- try to fathom how and why around two billion otherwise well-meaning humans on earth can accept and even promote a belief that the cruel and excruciatingly-painful torture that The Son Of God was cruelly subjected to can somehow be the “right thing”.
Even in an earthly Court of Law, such an idea would be thrown out as unjust, yet so many blind fools believe that The Power of All Creation would nonetheless sanctify such an appalling injustice. Perhaps we should all have long-understood that just as The Creator is Perfect Love:
He is also Perfect Justice!
Firstly, then, we should watch the terrible scourging by Roman soldiers. Secondly comes the mocking and the placing of a “crown of thorns” upon His head. Next; let’s now accompany Him on every step of His cruelly-agonising death-walk laden under the crushing weight of a heavy wooden beam. And thence finally arrive with Him at Golgotha: His place of execution.
Are there any hand-clapping, “praise the Lord” Hallelujahs there? No: Of course not! It is too cruel, too painful; too unbelievable! Yet every Easter on so-called “Good” Friday, millions of Christians in their thousands of Churches across the world perversely and stupidly “celebrate” that cruel and “ yet-to-be-fully- paid-for”, worst of all murders.
“BLACK FRIDAY”: That is the reality for all time!
THE CRUCIFIXION: MEDICAL FORENSICS SPEAK!
Note: The medical and forensic analyses of the Crucifixion of Jesus we now outline is sourced from the History Channel Documentary called “Crucifixion”; screened on ‘Black Friday’, 2009. It is a harrowing Documentary that all Christians should view, for it is to date the most graphic depiction of Jesus’s painful suffering. (In this writer’s view, far more so than Mel Gibson’s, “The Passion of The Christ”; itself regarded as a very graphic depiction of The Crucifixion.)
The primary contributors for our illumination about the Biblical/historical narrative of the medical forensics associated with the Crucifixion of Jesus are:
| • Dr. David Ball, M.D. | ER Chief, Ret., Tri-Lakes Medical Center. |
| • Dr. Robert M. Norris, M.D. | ER Chief, Stanford Medical Center. |
| • Jonathan Reed, Ph.D. | Professor, University of La Verne. |
| • Richard J. Hoffman | Professor, San Francisco State University. |
| • Sarah Stroud, Ph.D. | Professor, University of Washington. |
| • Dr. Mark Benecke. | Forensic Biologist. |
| • Daniel Smith-Christopher, Ph.D. | Professor, Loyola Marymount University. |
This particular segment of our overall journey of logical enlightenment is offered as a serious warning, primarily to those Christians who are “content with their faith”, but to Muslims and Jews alike. For you, too, cannot change the Truth of God as regards the Person of Jesus and Who He really was during His tenure on earth! In the case of global Christendom, the blind-faith attitude that many Christians seemingly display is really no faith at all, for it simply demands that the faithful “accept without question” all they are told. Specifically, and especially on the question of whether or not Jesus came to Earth “to take on the sins of men” and “die on The Cross to save them”; without keen examination of this subject from either the Christian teacher or the Christian follower to ensure an absolutely correct answer -– i.e., according to The Will Of God Whom all Christians will surely state they want to serve -– the warning of a very well- known key Bible Scripture should be the primary driver to “get it right”!
“When the blind lead the blind, all will fall into the ditch.” [abyss]
Since there are a number of quite different interpretations and beliefs around the Crucifixion question, it is patently obvious that many Christian congregations have thus “not gotten it right” at all. Yet every one of them will swear that they are saved by their belief/s. Unfortunately, as we all surely and logically understand, the correct answers that must inherently reside in the events and meaning surrounding Jesus’s death cannot possibly allow for an infinite number of “saviour-scenarios” here.
The very knowledgeable expertise and analyses of the above contributors will help the “genuine seeker” and more “open-minded Christian” to make sense of a momentous and portentous event that ultimately affects all of humankind.
Crucifixion: A slow death of maximum suffering, used as a method of Capital Punishment for over 3,000 years. It was practised in various forms long before Roman Legions occupied the land of Judea at the time of Jesus. From the more simple but excruciatingly-painful practice of “staking” a body to hang suspended from an upright stake, true crucifixion -- the body affixed in the “crucifix position” on a wooden cross -- was perhaps a torturous refinement of staking.
Death by crucifixion was essentially designed to discipline the many peoples conquered by Rome. Her vast Empire required policing methods designed to ensure that the “Pax Romana” –- ‘The Peace of Rome’ -– was kept. Crucifying criminals, dissidents and revolutionaries alike who threatened that “peace”, set a severe example to others contemplating the same. Instilling fear of a terrible and agonisingly-painful death in Roman subjects probably did help hold the “Pax Romana”; for crucified victims were often left to decompose on the cross for all to see.
A further unsettling dimension for both the crucified and the travelling public was the fact that crows often sat on the heads of victims to peck at the eyes, for some took days to die. Perhaps the most notable crucifixion event was the execution of 6,000 gladiators taken from the slave Army of Spartacus after his defeat. They stretched 125 miles along the Appian Way from Capua to Rome. By the time Jesus walked the earth, the Romans had well-perfected the “art” of crucifixion as we know it today.
Two forms of the “cross of crucifixion” were used by the Legions, the Tau, in the shape of a Capital T, and the Latin --- in the shape of a lower-case t. Both consisted of two parts, the Stipe, or upright beam, and the Patibulum, the cross-member.
Since the Roman Army crucified countless thousands, their no-nonsense approach to all they undertook would have ensured a practical, efficient method for the purpose. The Tau, being simpler, was therefore probably more commonly used because the top of the Stipe is in the reach of soldiers.
A new look at the whole question of Roman-style crucifixion offers greater insights into the death of Jesus. Notwithstanding the obvious fact that Roman soldiers were well practised in the mechanics of crucifixion, considerable effort in time and manpower would nonetheless have been required to nail and/or affix the many tens of thousands crucified over the term of the Roman Empire, if the Latin Cross was the preferred option.
The simpler and thus more likely method was to first set the upright beam -- the Stipe -- in the ground. The wooden cross-member -- the mortised Patibulum weighing about 100 pounds to which the victim was affixed –- was then lifted up by soldiers and fitted onto a matching tenon on the Stipe.
THE ROMAN FLAGRUM: THE “SCOURGING” OF THE SON OF GOD
Scourge. n. 1. A whip used to inflict punishment.
2. Any means of inflicting severe suffering, vengeance, or punishment.
Scourging. tr. v. 1. To flog.
‘Scourging’ commonly preceded crucifixion. It was carried out by soldiers wielding the Flagrum, a Roman whip designed to flay skin, tissue and muscle, and thus produce excruciating pain and terrible wounds. It consisted of several strips of leather into which were tied pieces of metal, nails, glass, bone and lead weights; basically anything that would cut into flesh. Richard J. Hoffman, Ph.D. opines:
“To be crucified was to say that you were no better than a slave. You are worthy of death. And part of the crucifixion process –- you might say the drama of crucifixion -– was to scourge you.”
BEGINNING THE TORTURE.
The victim was stripped of all clothing save perhaps for loin coverings and tied by the hands to a wooden post. Two Roman soldiers would stand either side of the victim and alternate whip strokes. The severity of the flogging was largely determined by the viciousness of the soldiers.
Long-practised in war and killing, soldiers of the super-efficient, well- disciplined and ruthless Roman Army were very far removed from the more squeamish nature of modern Western peoples who often require counselling as a way of coping with what are often just the simple realities of life on Earth. Since crucifixion as a punishment was common, soldiers would often experiment on the hapless victims. Dr. David Ball explains:
“What you would expect from a Roman Flagrum would be complete tearing away of the skin down to the ribs. And this results in bruising to the inter-costal muscles, which impairs respiration ... and actually causes bruising to the lungs... And that leads to a very serious medical problem called ‘pulmonary contusion’. That will lead to ‘pulmonary oedema’ and impaired respiration. It is a very serious injury.” In this medical-trauma analysis of ‘scourging’ and crucifixion, we reiterate that it is an analysis of the suffering of Jesus, primarily as recorded in the Bible.
Dr. Ball notes that scourging a human being with the Roman Flagrum produced wounds that [are] “so severe that it has been compared to a shotgun blast at close range”. Robert M. Norris, M.D. explains:
“The muscles would have been torn, hanging; basically ribbons of flesh that were bleeding profusely ... deep tissues of larger vessels that can’t clamp down so easily. Profuse bleeding decreases blood supply leading to hypo-bulimic shock ... not enough blood circulating around heart to profuse vital tissues; the muscles and the organs.”
A prime purpose of ‘scourging’ says Jonathan Reed, Ph.D. was to:
“Create a mutilated body up on the cross ... [for] ... a mutilated,
visceral experience on the part of the viewers who were attending the
crucifixion. ... We don’t really know how Jesus was scourged. The
Gospels don’t give us much detail. But it’s quite possible that it was
fairly severe because Jesus dies within a day. And He dies before
nightfall.”
“He was beaten nearly to death. He was macerated. He was bruised.
He had massive damage to the backside, and massive damage to the
inter-costal muscles, and massive damage to the lungs and the
kidneys themselves through the bruising process.”
(David Ball, M.D.)”
Narration: ‘When the scourging is finished, Jesus’s back is an unrecognisable mass of torn and bleeding tissue. This brutal beating will dramatically affect the final hours of His life.’
THE BURDEN OF THE CROSS.
The present, widely accepted, notion in Christendom is that Jesus was made to carry or drag a complete Latin Cross weighing several hundred pounds roughly a mile to Golgotha, then nailed onto it whilst it was on the ground. His “death-cross” was then raised up and positioned in a pre-prepared hole. If that were the true scenario, it would have taken a superhuman effort to carry or drag such a weight that distance with a body severely-weakened and already near death as a result of the torture and mutilation at the hands of the Roman soldiers ordered to ‘scourge’ Him.
The Bible narrative reports that ‘Simon of Cyrene’ was seconded to carry Jesus’s Cross after His strength finally gave out.
“I do not think it is either practical -– from a Roman perspective -– to have individuals carry entire crosses. Nor do I think it is likely possible as a physical feat.” (Sarah Stroud, Ph.D.)
Experts generally agree it is more likely that Jesus would have carried only the Patibulum, which nonetheless weighed around 100 pounds -– a huge weight for a badly tortured man to carry any distance. Robert M. Norris M.D. notes:
“For this point the victim would already be in some degree of shock due to blood loss from the scourging. So now we’ve put a 100-pound beam on the person’s back; strapped their hands to it. And now the heart is tasked to pump even harder and harder to supply the leg muscles to get him to the execution site.”
Whipped up by Caiaphas and key members of The Sanhedrin, the emotional turmoil connected with the trial and sentence of Jesus would surely have wrought tumultuous agitation among those who watched Him walk His last pain-wracked mile to Golgotha. The Bible tells us that Jesus fell under the weight of the Patibulum. Dr. Norris explains the ‘medical’ ramifications of such a fall.
“The full force of His body and that 100-pound weight on the backs of
His shoulders would have been centred on His chest. That slammed
the heart against His breastbone, the sternum, inside. That could
bruise the heart.”
“A bruised heart is a very serious injury. The muscle has been
damaged, and so it tends to stretch. And as the heart is pumping, that
stretch increases and you have a balloon we call an ‘aneurysm’. That
‘balloon’ becomes thin-walled and can rupture.”
(David Ball, M.D.)
This type of injury is similar to chest trauma sustained in a car accident when an unrestrained driver impacts onto the steering wheel. Now bearing the added pain and trauma of a bruised heart from His fall, Jesus is forced to continue His grievous walk to the place of execution.
THE MURDER AT GOLGOTHA
THE NAILING OF THE SON OF GOD
“The bio-mechanics of a crucifixion is quite interesting. It all depends very much on the angle in which you secure the limbs and all the body parts because this will determine how much physical stress will either be on the bones or connective tissue. ... The maximum stress that you can have on the tissue, on the bones, is between 40 and 60 pounds. This may cause the tissue to rip or the bones to break so that the whole system of crucifixion won’t work...”
Dr. Mark Benecke found that in tests with arms set at an angle in a crucifixion:
“...each hand bears the whole weight of the body, and not half the body-weight for each as we might [‘logically’] expect. Therefore, an average weight man will tear away from the cross if nailed through the hands.”
Dr. Norris explains that if the nails were placed instead into the wrist, i.e., into the small bones of the wrist where there are [dense] fibrous sheaths around these bones:
“...they would have held. The pain, however, would be excruciating because the large median nerve which provides sensation to the forearm and hand passes right through this area of the wrist.”
Commenting on the ‘pain factor’ when the wrists are ‘nailed, Dr. Ball states that:
“The median nerve, whether it’s lacerated, or whether it’s impinged upon as the nail pushes against it ... it’s going to be like burning, severe pain.”
The Gospels imply that Jesus is nailed through the hand. In the ancient Greek language, in which the Bible was originally written, the word for hand describes both the hand and the wrist. So, the bony area described is where most experts believe the Romans drove the nail into Jesus’s hand. They would probably not have relied on the nails alone, so also tied the arms to support the weight of the body. ---
Dr. Norris notes:
“The ultimate outcome in terms of how long the person survived probably
was dependent in some particular way in how the feet were attached.”
The feet were most likely attached in the ‘stacked’ position -– one foot on top of the other as commonly depicted. This position, whilst encouraging a quicker death, produced excruciating pain. Dr. David Ball notes:
“If you place the soles of the feet flat against the upright, the individual cannot lock their knees. They have to support their weight with the thigh muscles. Or hang completely from the [hand] nails.”
This fiendishly torturous position made it far more challenging for the victim to breathe. Scholars of crucifixions generally do not believe that artistic portrayals in paintings and Hollywood movies depicting a wooden block under the feet of Jesus are correct. For why, after such prolonged torture, would the Romans then offer any victim even the smallest measure of ‘comfort’? Dr. Robert M. Norris explains:
“There are a series of nerves that pass through the feet in that area
that would cause tremendous stimulation of those sensory nerves and
just [exquisite] pain from that. And every time the victim would try to
rise to exhale, that would stimulate those nerves.”
And Dr. Ball says:
“A person nailed to the cross is going to be searching for a
comfortable position. He may relieve the pain on the medial nerve and
lift himself up, but he creates muscle pain. When he drops himself
down, he relieves the muscles, but he finds the pain has recurred in
the medial nerve and the shoulders.”
In excruciating agony Jesus tries to find relief from the intense pain wracking every part of His body. He strives to breathe freely by pushing up on the spike driven through His feet. In doing so the exposed nerves on His cruelly-mutilated back rub on the rough-hewn post. --- Robert M. Norris, M.D. concurs:
“Every time He would lift Himself up on the Cross, that would drag
these torn shredded tissues of the back across the rough wood of the
Cross, reopening the wounds, re-stimulating the nerves in the back
causing further bleeding and, again, causing tremendous pain.”
Dr. Ball notes that:
“There is no comfortable position on the Cross. There is no position where
He is even relatively pain-free.”
Narration: ‘Jesus hangs in agony. The end is near. He’s beaten, dehydrated, exhausted. He’s suffering from external trauma and internal injuries; all life-threatening conditions. But what ultimately kills Jesus? Today, science may have the technology to decode the ancient evidence and discover the exact cause of Jesus’s death on the Cross. ... Since His arrest nine hours earlier He’s been beaten and abused. His crucified body is wracked with pain as He struggles to breathe. The cruelty is clearly taking its toll. But what is the ultimate cause of Jesus’s death?’
Dr. Norris explains:
“There were so many things that were going on at the same time. Any
one of them at a certain point could cause someone’s death; the
dehydration, the blood loss, just the severe trauma to the muscles.”
Medical experts believe that Jesus’s physical deterioration begins with exhaustion, for He has not slept for over twenty-four hours. Moreover, since His arrest He has had nothing to eat or drink.
HIS FINAL MOMENTS
“The death-process is definitely underway. ...the scourging started the
process with the contused lungs, bruising to the muscles, damaged kidneys.”
“I don’t think that it’s fair to say there is one cause of death on the
cross. I think it is multi-factorial, and all of these things are taking place
in a typical crucifixion.”
(David Ball, M.D.)
Narration: ‘His blood-loss is made worse by the constant tearing of the wounds on His back as He moves up and down on the Cross in order to breathe deeply. The loss of bodily fluids means He’s probably suffering from hypo-bulimic shock; a condition in which the heart is unable to pump adequate blood to the organs, muscles and vital tissues. On top of that, decreased respiratory volume means carbon dioxide is building up in the lungs and reducing oxygen in the blood; a condition known as hypoxia. Ultimately, this could lead to suffocation.’
“He’s probably becoming somewhat hypoxic at this point. Again, from
the increased work of breathing, and inadequate blood volume
circulating around. He is near death.
(Robert M. Norris, M.D.)
Deriving from His fall with the weight of a 100-pound Patibulum on His back, it is very probable that Jesus is suffering from ‘blunt chest trauma’. ‘The ensuing internal damage could easily include a bruised heart.’
“When an individual has sustained a bruise to his heart, this bruise
creates a soft spot in the muscle. Every time the heart pumps, there’s
pressure on that soft spot that has the tendency to cause a ballooning
out. Or, as we call it, an aneurysm.”
(David Ball, M.D.)
Narration: ‘Jesus’s cardiovascular system is under enormous stress. His heart is pumping upwards of 170 beats per minute. An aneurysm puts Him at even greater risk. If left untreated it can rupture. And there’s another factor that can contribute to the death of any victim on the cross.’ Jonathon Reed observes:
“The pain of crucifixion is unimaginable. ... The pain over time is so excruciating that the bodily functions give out. You die simply of pain.”
Narration: ‘Any one of these conditions can be fatal. But Jesus has not yet given up. According to the Bible He is able to speak despite His weakened condition.’
“He was carrying on conversations that were lucid and clear. So we know
that His brain was being adequately supplied at this point with enough
[oxygenated] blood.”
(David Ball, M.D.)
Narration: ‘After several hours, Jesus seems to know that the end has come. The Bible says that he called out His final words – and then dies.’
His final words: “Father: Into Your hands I commit My spirit.”
Dr Ball states factually that:
“If He had died of hypo-bulimic shock -- as some people say -- He would
have fainted. He would not have been able to holler out with a loud voice
and then suddenly die.”
Whilst some see asphyxiation as the cause of death, Dr Ball explains why that is very unlikely. He sagely observes that if a crucified man has: “...enough air in [his] lungs to holler out, [he] will not be in any danger of dying of asphyxiation. That cannot happen.”
“That He had enough strength and enough mental clarity to cry out very effectively means to me that something catastrophic was happening. And He knew that it was happening.” (Robert M. Norris, M.D.)
Given the searching medical analysis of the final moments of Jesus’s life, experts believe that the most likely cause of death is from His bruised and damaged heart. Dr. Norris explains the process:
“Gradually His heart is failing. The fluids would begin to back up in the lungs, around the lungs, and actually around the outside of the heart; inside the heart sac -- the pericardium.”
The pericardium is a sac of fibrous tissue filled with a water-like solution that surrounds and protects the heart. Dr. Ball explains:
“With His pulse rate going to 180 or even more, He is under an enormous cardiovascular stress load.”
Dr. Ball opines that under such extreme stress, the bruised heart of Jesus ultimately ruptures. It would feel like a heart attack, and Jesus would know His death is imminent. The ruptured heart continues to beat. With each pulse, however, it pushes blood into the pericardial sac until the heart finally stops.
That is the one, single, blessing for The Son Of God in His whole unbelievable journey of horrific, agonising torture to His execution on the ‘death- cross’ at Golgotha:
For His terrible ordeal at the hands of men is finally over!
Dr Ball notes: “You’ve got a heart that is ruptured. It’s not functioning any more, it’s not pumping. But you’ve got a pericardial sac that is under pressure. Taut.”
The spear of a Roman soldier reveals the proof of Dr. Ball’s medical analysis of the actual death of Jesus.
“According to the Gospel of John, a Roman soldier takes a spear and sticks it inside Jesus to make sure that He’s dead.” (Jonathan Reed, Ph.D.)
The Gospel narrative states that blood and water ‘come out’ from the wound. Dr. Ball explains what has taken place:
“What you have to understand is they’ve gone through this pericardial sac to get to the heart. The pericardial sac is under pressure. The blood has settled. So immediately you’ve got this flow of blood followed by clear fluid, which is described as water in the Bible.”
Narration: ‘After about six hours on the Cross, Jesus Christ is dead. It’s a relatively short time for crucifixion (by Roman standards), which can last for several excruciating days. Arrested on the Thursday night of the Passover holiday; by Friday morning soldiers are preparing to nail Him to the Cross. By that afternoon He will be dead.’
The final act played out both on Golgotha and for those in the Sanhedrin who actively plotted to bring about His death, was wrought by a powerful earthquake. Sufficiently strong to shatter the floor of the Temple of Jerusalem, the convulsive transfer of energy from the earth to the great building, tore asunder the heavy curtain that protected the Holy of Holies.
Reader: The odds of that particular earth-tremor occurring with such precise convergence to, ostensibly, ‘coincide’ with the exact moment Jesus died, would surely be in the order of millions to one. That natural event should be proof enough of how terribly wrong His execution was, for even the Forces of Nature vented their anger and fury at the murder of The Son Of God: He Who once Commanded the same to cease their ‘storm-work’ activity on the Sea of Galilee with the admonition: “Peace. Be still!”
For the Jewish race, what was once the Holiest Treasure on Earth –- the sanctuary of which even Moses the Law-Giver could not enter on the decades-long journey to the ‘promised land’ -- was no longer so. The curtain that formerly ‘spiritually-symbolically’ protected it, rent in two by the power of the tremor at the murder of The Son Of God, signified the separation of man from The Almighty -- not the opposite. It was not reconciliation with God”, as many from ‘Christian academia’ will argue.
The Jewish Priesthood, once Called to serve and protect that Holy Treasure; by their dark deed that day were made redundant, for shortly after, the Jewish race lost possession of the Holy of Holies and it disappeared from history; a further indication of the singular enormousness of that particular crime.
Reader, that short but brutal timeline from the scourging of The Son of God to His terrible murder on the “cross” should surely awaken you to the appallingly-false narrative that Global Christendom has perpetuated for almost two millennia!
As at other critical junctures in our overall narrative, I include here from The Hand of The Son of Man HIS WORD for your greater enlightenment on this very subject. Primarily, He addresses His serious admonition to all of mankind, for ultimately it was the failure of humankind over successive generations from that time to the present; a failure which has not to this day resulted in correct recognition of The Son of God’s true purpose.
As elsewhere thus far, and in direct concert with the Title of this Work, we place special emphasis on the so-called “chosen people” --- the Jewish race --- for it was as a result of their blind hatred of The Truth from God that Jesus, the most innocent of all, was cruelly, inexcusably, and agonisingly, tortured.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
THE CRUCIFIXION OF THE SON OF GOD
AND THE LORD’S SUPPER
However, this interpretation is wrong! Through His crucifixion men rejected the Son of God as their expected Messiah, and this made the separation all the greater! The veil was rent in twain because henceforth the Holy of Holies was no longer necessary! It was exposed to all eyes as well as to impure currents because, symbolically speaking, after this deed Divinity would no longer set foot on this earth, thus rendering the Holy of Holies superfluous!
This is the exact contrary of the existing interpretations, which express nothing but a great presumption on the part of the human spirit!
Neither was His death on the cross a necessary sacrifice, but a murder, a dastardly crime! Every other explanation is a misinterpretation which either has its origin in ignorance or is meant as an excuse. Christ certainly did not come to this earth with the intention of letting Himself be crucified; neither does redemption lie in the Crucifixion! Christ was crucified because of His teaching, as a troublesome Bringer of Truth!
It was not His death on the cross that could and should bring redemption, but the Truth He gave to mankind in His Word!
The Truth, however, was irksome to the religious leaders and heads of the temples at that time. It was an annoyance because it severely undermined their influence. It would be exactly the same today in many places! Mankind has not changed in this respect. --
If still here and there a cult has arisen which see in this murder a necessary and principal part of the Son of God’s Work of Redemption, this only distracts man’s attention from the greater value which alone could bring this redemption. It diverts him from the true mission of the Saviour, from which necessitated His coming from the Divine Sphere to the earth!
The purpose of His mission, however, was not to suffer death on the cross, but to bring the Truth into the maze of dogmatic rigidity and emptiness which debase the human spirit, and to explain the relations between God, the Creation and mankind as they actually are!
Through this knowledge the illusions which the constricted spirit of man added, and which covered up the reality, had feebly to fall away of their own accord. Not till then could man see clearly before him the way leading upwards!
Redemption lies solely in the bringing of this Truth and the consequent liberation from errors!
It is redemption from obscured vision, from blind faith! The word “blind” most suitably depicts this false state! ----------
It is a great mistake for men to believe that through the death on the cross the forgiveness of their sins is guaranteed. This thought is followed by the terrible harm that all those who believe this are held back from the true road to redemption, which lies only and solely in living the Word of the Saviour, according to the explanations given by Him. Who knew and could overlook all. And those explanations give practical examples of the need to obey and observe the Divine Will as expressed in the Laws of Creation, and also show what happens if it is obeyed and what follows on disobedience!
His Work of Redemption lay in bringing this enlightenment, which exposed the defects and abuse of religious practices because it carried the Truth within itself and thus brought Light into the ever-increasing darkness of the human spirit. His Work of Redemption did not lie in His death on the cross, neither can Holy Communion nor the Consecrated Host bring immediate forgiveness of sins! Such a thought is contrary to all Divine Law! And consequently the power of men to forgive sins falls away! A man only has the right and also the power to forgive what he has personally suffered at the hands of another, and then only when, quite freely, his heart bids him do it.
He who seriously reflects upon these things will recognise the Truth and thus the true path! ------------------------
IMANUEL:
THE SON OF MAN!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Well, reader, we certainly can’t put it better than that. Have you recognised, however, that whilst there is Divine Justice and severity in the absolute enlightenment of His explanations, there is also an inclusive “reaching-out” to the reader of His Message; a “reaching-out” that does not beg, but yet resonates with Divine Love and Grace, and thus only offers!
If you are a truly genuine seeker of The Truth you should, at the very least, feel that in your soul. The “paucity of spirit” of we human beings cannot even begin to approach that measure of Divine Sublimity. This Work from my hand cannot possibly achieve anywhere near its fullest “directed ordination”, except with the inclusion --- where needed --- of excerpts from the Son of Man’s All-Truth!
Reader: Mark this, His Words:
“The Truth, however, was irksome to the religious leaders and heads of
the temples at that time. It was an annoyance because it severely
undermined their influence. It would be exactly the same today in many
places! Mankind has not changed in this respect.”
I ask: ‘Is that not truly the way of the world today?’
The historical aftermath of the execution of Jesus saw develop among Christians and their Church a radical but nonetheless strange change in perception concerning the ‘Latin Cross of Crucifixion’. Initially His death only reinforces the perception of the cross as an horrific tool of oppression. Yet, over time, the symbolism of crucifixion underwent an ironic transformation. Very interestingly, the documentary, Crucifixion, asks the most pertinent question of all in this regard.
“How does this implement of torture and execution become an iconic symbol of hope and salvation despite the fact that it continues on into the 20th and 21st centuries?”
The answer is brutally logical. I say this:
A Teaching, a Church or a Movement that has Truth at its core and as its practice would not, indeed could not, possibly accord such an instrument of torture the perversely altered state of reverence and even worship that the Latin Cross/Crucifix now holds for around one third of global humanity. Only a religion could bring such a thing about, for religions hold very little of Pure Truth. Hence the unbelievable state of hate and violence between religions in the present.
The path to that detrimental point probably began when the Roman Emperor Constantine became Christian after `seeing' a vision in the sky prior to a battle. It is said that an accompanying voice told him: “In this sign you will be victorious.” Believed by Christians to be the `Latin Cross', Constantine's victory on the battlefield thenceforth set that cross as “the form of salvation” for the Church and its followers. Jonathon Reed, Ph. D. notes:
“It's under Constantine's rule that the cross becomes a positive symbol for the first time. And it's a symbol of Christianity. And because of that, you can no longer use it as a tool for shameful death.”
So, in the strangest of “turnarounds”, the cross, once identified with the most fearful kind of death, and an object to inspire terror in the hearts of men, is now a symbol of piety and faith which Christians now use in the shape of their churches, for their rituals, and in their art.
Christianity becomes the dominant world religion. Despite the long history of cruel torture inherent in the practice, crucifixion is almost exclusively associated with Jesus. Even though documented crucifixions are rare after the Romans, this brutal punishment nonetheless persists throughout the centuries. The crucial event of The Second World War saw Hitler's Nazi regime use this method of torture.
Sarah Stroud, Ph.D. explains:
“It was a display of power. It's always a spectacle, and it's always sadistic. ...it was often used against individuals who actually posed some sort of threat or had committed a wrong against the State. [However] The use of it against individuals who were already victims or already captives and completely powerless seems especially perverse."
Even in recent times in the Sudan/Darfur region where genocide has been practiced, crucifixion is sanctioned as a method of execution. In 2002 Amnesty reported that 88 people, including two children, were sentenced to death by crucifixion. Perversely, then, it would seem; the image of Jesus's agonising death on the Cross remains one of our most powerful icons.
“When Christianity adopts the cross as its key symbol, it also
defines itself as a religion that focuses itself on suffering, and a religion
that focuses on atonement. And so the cross itself, maybe more so than
any book written, has had a profound impact on how Christians think
about their religion, and their religious experience.”
(Jonathan Reed, Ph.D. Emphasis mine.)
Narration: ‘Yet the cross and the roots of crucifixion reach back long before Jesus. He was just of one of the many [countless] victims of this brutal death sentence. From ancient civilisations to modern regimes, crucifixion carries the same meaning. It's not just about killing. Crucifixion is about torture, fear and control.'
“Crucifixion should be a warning. Crucifixion should make us ask
questions about unjust and horrific treatment of other people. The cross
should be a symbol that says:
Never treat someone like this!”
(Daniel Smith-Christopher, Ph.D. Emphases mine.)
The murder of The Son of God stands as the most heinous crime in the history of the world, for He came to lift humanity out of the depths to which they had voluntarily sunk. Ego and religious power had subverted The Truth and The Law --- long-proclaimed by the Prophets and Truth-Bringers --- to just religions. The resultant suffering and ignorance meant that Jesus had to come to Light the Way back to The Truth once more.
Historically, have we human beings ever really revered Envoys from The Light, or indeed the Prophets? Almost all suffered from human perversity and mockery when they proclaimed on earth. If stripped down to “bare bones”, it is the adulation of human beings by human beings that has long-reigned supreme in the world. Today, the rock stars, sports stars, movie stars, fashion models etc. are the things of adulation.