The Teacher did everything in mystery and metaphor: immersing us in water (baptism), anointing us (chrisma), bestowing grace upon us (eucharist), setting us free and inviting us into the bridal chamber (numphon).
He said, “I have come to make what is below like what is above, and the outer like the inner and to unite them in this Temple Space, where they reveal themselves through images, metaphor and symbols.”
Those who say there is someone in the sky above are mistaken, for the One who appeared has come from within, where deep calls to deep, and contains the hidden things beyond all opposites.
In truth, the inner and the outer are one, and what appears to be outside the outer does not exist; it is the outer darkness.
The Teacher said, “My Father lives in secret.” He has said, “Enter into your chamber, close the door, and pray to your Father who is there in secret.” This means your innermost being is where the Father is. That which is inside, in the secret of all, is fullness (pleroma). Beyond it is nothing. It contains all.
Before Christ, several came forth. They could no longer return to whence they came, but neither could they leave the place they entered. When Christ came, those who had come in, he brought out, and those who had gone out, he brought in.” (The Gospel of Philip vs. 68-70)
Through the miracle of metaphor, symbol and meaning, the Christ has revealed the mystery to us and within us. Water, oil, bread and wine are symbolic of our transformation, purification, integration and liberation, but in themselves there is nothing special about them. They stand for something that transcends their form. We are not changed by immersion in water, or by eating bread and wine, or by pouring olive oil on our foreheads. These symbols point us to a deeper reality.
Christ has come to unite what is above with what is below. To bring heaven to earth. To realize the Kingdom of God within us all. Here, in our bodies – which are collectively the Temple of God where the Spirit dwells within – this union of Humanity and Divinity is realized. The symbols remind us of what has happened, but they don’t create the change within. They merely point to what is already true.
The Divine Presence who “contains the hidden things beyond all opposites” has come from within us, where this Union has always been reality, to make all things new in our minds so we can see “in truth, the inner and outer are one and what appears to be outside the outer does not exist.”
In other words, all things are one in Christ, and there is nothing outside of Christ, and nothing outside of this Union with the Divine.
This is why, when we commune with God, we do not look outside of ourselves. We go into the quiet darkness of our closets, shut the door, and listen to that still, small voice that is within us. We remember that God is closer than our own heartbeat and nearer than our own breath. We are the ones in whom God lives and moves and has being. There is nothing outside of this. We contain the fullness. The fullness surrounds us. Nothing exists outside of this Oneness.
The book from Keith Giles, “The Quantum Sayings of Jesus: Decoding the Lost Gospel of Thomas” is available now on Amazon. Order HERE>
Keith Giles is the best-selling author of the Jesus Un series. He has been interviewed on CNN with Anderson Cooper, Coast to Coast Radio with George Noory, USA Today, BuzzFeed, and John Fugelsang’s “Tell Me Everything.” He co-hosts The Heretic Happy Hour Podcast and his solo podcast, Second Cup With Keith which are both available on Spotify, Amazon, Apple, Podbean or wherever you find great podcasts.