Transcript proofread by Zane Maser, Iwihub.com    Artwork: Inez Marques

pdf-49px  245A Esoteric Meaning Of Easter, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday

Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter: Esoteric Meaning 3/5
1959 Maui Advanced Work
Joel S. Goldsmith
Tape 245A

You see Saul of Tarsus has been thoroughly crucified. Saul of Tarsus not only went blind on the road to Damascus, he died; and out of that tomb, steps Paul, no longer Saul of Tarsus but Paul. Paul, a man who has his being in Christ, who now lives by the grace of God; a man who travels, not only the holy lands but Rome and Greece, wherever he will by the grace of God; a man who sets up seven churches and finds that seven churches can’t support him or his missionary work. But, they looking to him find that he can support all seven churches. By virtue of what? He had no gold mines or oil wells, but he had the grace of God. He had his being in Christ. He knew that “I live; yet not I, Christ liveth my life.” And, therefore, he can sit back, relax, and then let this Spirit of divine Sonship be his bread, his meat, his wine, his water, his resurrection, his life eternal.

Then, you see, when the transition has been made from that man of earth to that man who has his being in Christ, then, you find the readiness for the ascension—the ascension, which is a rising above every material tie. You find an inkling of that in the little passage that is in the front of every Infinite Way book and booklet in which it is revealed that spiritual wisdom destroys all material ties and binds men together with the chain of spiritual understanding. And so you see that we do not have to be blood brothers and blood sisters. We do not even have to be nationalistic brothers or national sisters, or religious brothers or religious sisters, for we have a holier tie than any human relationship that has ever been conceived. There is a spiritual tie that unites us, because we have risen above the belief that we have to be members of one particular human family, or one racial family, or one religious family, or one national family in order to be. But, we here, for the last ten years, have demonstrated that we really are spiritually of one household. All you who have been a part of this work since 1949, and the years that have come through since, have seen in actual practice the most beautiful relationship that can be manifested on this earth and without a single tie of human relationship, a blood relationship, even a racial relationship.

Now, with this in mind, do you not see that in the ascension you break every material law and find that man who has his being in Christ—the spiritual Son—is fed from that same spiritual Source that our relationship has been fed with and has maintained us in this relationship through these years. Only there is no limit to this. There is no limit to the spiritual demonstration that we may make, except such limitation as we bring upon ourselves by not thoroughly crucifying that personal sense of self.

You see, a spiritual teaching has behind it the spiritual meaning of every human symbol. So, whether it is a holiday or holy day, or whether it is a relationship, whether it is a business or a government, spiritually understood, behind every one of these activities there is a spiritual principle involved. And, when you understand that principle and begin to apply it in your daily life, you find that you’re living the mystical life or spiritual life, the life that was given us by the Master. Remember, he had no hesitancy in saying to his disciples, “Take no thought for what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink.” He hesitated not one bit in saying, “Go on the journey and take no purse and no script. None whatsoever.” He wasn’t a bit practical. Yet, he’s our Wayshower. But, you find that if you obey him, that that’s very practical to go without purse, and without script, and without taking thought for how anything will be met, for there is an “Invisible.” He called it “the Father within.” Paul called it “the Christ,” which is and becomes tangibly the bread, wine, water of life, the safety, and the security, and the peace.

You see, spiritual teachings go far beyond merely assuring us of food, and clothing, and housing. If you were to think of the subject of safety and security, you would immediately start thinking in terms of material protection, whether it would be a bombproof shelter, or a bulletproof vest, or a gas mask. Thought would instantly go to some material form of protection, and yet none of these are necessary. None of these are necessary, although at times they might be provided. But, no one has to take thought or be concerned, for Scripture reveals that God is a fortress. God is a high tower. God is a hiding place. God is an abiding place. God is a rock. When you begin to understand that, from a spiritual standpoint, you will know that this is literally true, not that God provides a rock, or a high tower, or a fortress, but that God Himself IS. And those who “live, and move, and have their being in God” need take no thought for any material form of protection.

This is important to everyone who lives in what we call this human or physical universe, because from every side there are threatening dangers, infection, contagion, accident, wars, bombs, and a thousand other things that you can read about in the headlines and hear about on the radio. But, none of these things can come nigh thy dwelling place if your thought is not on physical safety and security, but if your thought is held steadfastly on the realization of God as the temple in which you live, the hiding place, the abiding place, the fortress, the rock. These are the esoteric or inner meanings of exoteric teachings. In other words, what we read in the writings, in the Scriptures of all people of the world, these are exoteric teachings, but each has an esoteric meaning, that is, they are outer teachings, but they have inner meanings.

Now, to go through the ceremony or ritual of communion may, of course, provide a measure of satisfaction, but it is not the experience of communion. The experience of communion takes place within oneself in the realization of the meaning of this being fed the bread or the wine of communion. The real communion is when you understand the meaning of being fed spiritually, being fed by I. I am the bread of life. I am the water. I am the blood. I am the resurrection. I am life eternal. When you understand that, then either the outer communion takes greater meaning or becomes meaningless, because now you have that which is greater than the outer form. You have the inner realization.