(02/25/2018) Arrayed In Sacred Favor

Today, reply is on recognizing poetry and prose, and a third poem is shared as Black History Month begins to conclude.  A writer in the “Yahoo! Answers” Arts & Humanities:  Poetry forum who uses the ID “ugly duckling101” (Level 3 with 1,221 points, a member since August 25, 2014) posted the following:


Is this poem or prose? comment if you wish?

The little lunch box

She packed all of her favorite
puzzle pieces neatly inside
the numbered, shapes
and lettered ones.
Closing the lid with Yoda on top
she grabs the white handle
and places the little black box
into the now repurposed 10 gallon
blue diamond toy crock
stained with wine on the inside
and pulls out her etch-a-sketch
and gives it a shake
wiping it clean.


THE GOLDEN ARROW:  A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things:  and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.  But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.  For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.  (Matthew 12:  35-37, King James Version, KJV)


THE DOUBLE DAGGER:  Bloody Sunday -- Black History (02/14/2018); Black History -- Johannesburg Gold (02/05/2018); Poem:  Adam’s Time of Sleep (01/016/2017); 1st “Poem-fall” 2017: THE SNOWFLAKE BALL (01/10/2017); Where Should We Look? (02/04/2015); Spring-training (04/11/2014); Kill the Blog Writer! (04/12/2014); A Valentine, 2014 (02/15/2014)


“ugly duckling101”, here are some ideas I am willing to share:
Even where no one else “gets his thought,” or they may fail to “make their  point,” creative writers always must know their own intent and purpose.  Many professional writers will agree that the identity and process of their own works only emerge by accord and covenant (i.e., silent, unspoken agreements and contracts with those who will critique, examine, and read as mature literary persons including editors, publishers, reviewers, and teachers).  To be recognized as the work of a specific writer, a poem, essay, novel, etc. must display, express and impart a familiar style coupled with the peculiar insights, purposes, favored techniques, and understandings of its creator while also being congruent with, expanding on, and mirroring elements within the fullness of a reader (e.g., desires, longings, memories, thing that are now forgotten).  In the effort to achieve the highest levels for freedom of expression, many today are abandoning the formal models and patterns once used to establish discipline and provide standards for excellence among writers of both poetry and prose.  Hip hop will be heard as sophisticated oral and performance poetry, and part of its richness is that it blends techniques from cultural celebration and oral tradition along with devices for preservation and survival of intellectual property.

There is far more to be said, correctly examined, and spiritually apprehended.  (For example, my personal approach that acknowledges the need for simplicity and surprise can be seen in the following piece suitable to be shared as Black History Month 2018 begins to draw to its close.  The work is intended to be plain, yet, comprehensive and instructive in its focus:

WHAT SHALL WE WEAR TO FREEDOM
[A Citizen King’s Day Poem - January 15, 2007]

What shall we wear to freedom come the morning of the march?
Blue overalls or dungarees, white shirts with heavy starch?

New fiber, new resilience, just to walk a simple way
That may end in jail or bloodshed by the finish of the day?

A soft and easy armor for the farmlands where we toil?
The clothing of oppression for the Mississippi soil?

For the Alabama courthouse?  For the network TV news?
Our best suit from Sunday’s sermon, and our polished Sunday shoes?

Work boots from a Georgia chain gang?  Or the running shoes for play
And the things we may dispose of when the blood won’t wash away?

What shall we wear to freedom, all the tears we shed last night,
Now invisible and hidden as the morning starts to light?

Daubed in color, clad like rainbows, and in celebration best?
Draped in black to bury evil, putting racism to rest?

Sporting Irish green, or turquoise, russet, lavender or pink?
Naked?  Unashamed?  Non-violent, and secure in what we think?

Shall we not stand in our honor with our eyes fixed on the prize,
Answering the tattoo cadence taking not one step for lies?

Knowing death will come on quickly if we fly or sound retreat,
Let us steel our hearts with purpose, and go voting with our feet.


What shall we wear to duty, given wars are won by deeds,
The shackles of enslavement?  The innocence of needs?

A mask of feigned devotion to disguise a boiling rage?
A cloak of prowling power like a panther in a cage?

For the streets of Cicero, or Harlem, Oslo, or Hanoi?
Where the sacrifice of blood will purchase neither peace, nor joy?

Shall the promise of America, an equality of men,
Be forgotten in an instant because we don’t wear the same skin?

Those with whom we cannot reason can be bullied, can be bought,
Can no longer be inspired, followed, trusted, led or taught

True democracy is more than where you sit upon the bus
For it speaks to human dignity and touches all of us:

It’s a quality of being in our future and our past,
It’s a light shone on our children, and the things we build to last

More than all our secret longing, our opinions, our desire,
Our shared duty and shared privilege, and a flame of common fire

Fueled in spending of our taxes, and enacting all our laws,
Fanned in choosing all our leaders, and in purging out our flaws.

It’s the heartbeat of our nation, how that all may have full voice
Saying what we wear to freedom is a matter of our choice.


What shall we wear returning once the sun begins to wane,
And the shadow of the twilight swallows up the ground we gain?

Battle scars? A badge of courage?  All the horror of the day?
Having worn respect and laurels we should never cast away?

Put on smiles of hollow victory, the grimaces of sorrow,
In an agony of knowing we must trek again tomorrow?

Where imperatives of meaning and compassion fall to lust
Every covenant is broken, and we dare not yield or trust.

We must put on lasting values, and a strength that will renew
Through the righteousness and justice in the simple things we do

Where the process of believing and receiving truth through grace
And the march of faith toward Zion will continue to have place.

What we seek is that perfection where the things of light endure,
All the balance and completeness men achieve as they mature,

The fruit of silent struggle where the mind and heart once closed
Become open to discover through the values once opposed.

It comes down to understanding, and a dream we all may share
Even where we seek a freedom just to choose what we shall wear:

We must call to the Eternal, then step forward unafraid
To be damned or crowned with glory for the choices we have made.


What shall we wear to judgment, then, to bow before the King,
At the throne of purest worship where the holy angels sing?

Don the garments of his priesthood, or the jewels of his crown,
Our humility and reverence, casting every idol down?

For Chicago, Selma, Little Rock, Montgomery, tears afresh?
An uncircumcised religion, or the arrogance of flesh?

The water of baptism?  Lips seared from the altar’s fire?
The diadem of deeds that godly blessing will require?

Shall we rise up in that dawning wrapped in mantles of his grace
Golden sandals on our feet, and free to look upon his face?

In a coat of many colors, or a fragrance of the saints?
With a scowl of our defiance, or the curse of our complaints?

We ourselves create the record heaven holds until the time
We are called before the universe to answer every crime.
 
There’s no entry on our ledger introduced by demon foe,
Only wanderings and journeys where our spirit chose to go,

True salvation from the Lord is never won by sword and spear:
By each honest step in patience we elect what will appear,

What the Son of GOD will cover by his blood from Calvary
Will remain un-resurrected and no living eye shall see.

Should the books reveal our trembling, unadorned, barefoot, unshod,
They must also show this wisdom, that we humbly walked with GOD,

That we marched for heaven’s governance and liberty’s increase,
Having cast our votes for mercy and the flowing robes of peace.

THE BLACK PHOENIX

©Michael Andrew Williams.  Washington, DC.  February 2011.  All rights reserved.)

Even so, I trust this fragment will be useful.  Be it unto you according to your faith.

THE BLACK PHOENIX

Washington, DC

(11/15/2016) Life Is GOD's Intent

Today, focus is on bereavement, and the opportunities for service that are gifts from GOD and from the deceased.  In Christian belief, the dead may not communicate with the living; and the dead do not praise GOD.  While some, like Jesus, died, were carried through resurrection and are now alive, most of the dead are believed still in the condition of burial and internment where their divine spirit content is separated from their body.  Those having salvation as Christians are not to practice keriah (i.e., shaving to remove body hair; rending or tearing ones garments to display grief, outrage, shock, and dismay) or use scarification and tattoos (i.e., cuttings in their own flesh) to indicate mourning and remembrance of the dead.  Bitterness, complaining, hopelessness, and wrath are not to appear.  Through ignorance, many continue to spread death in the form of feelings and thoughts because, rather than promote hope, life and trust in GOD, their emotional focus fosters despair, sadness and sorrow.  Offering glory, honor, prayer, or exaggerated attention to the dead is a form of idol worship.  Thus, a requiem mass or memorial service is never to worship the dead.  A fighter at “Yahoo! Answers” using the ID “Anonymous” (no profile information shared) posted the following:


Why is it a sin for me to pray to my dead mother, my dead sister and my dead father?

The belief that this is a sin seems very cruel and heartless to me


THE GOLDEN ARROW:  But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.  For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.  For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God:  and the dead in Christ shall rise first:  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air:  and so shall we ever be with the Lord.  Wherefore comfort one another with these words.  (1st Thessalonians 4:  13-18, King James Version, KJV)


THE DOUBLE DAGGER:  The GOD Named “Jealous” (09/15/2016); About Judgment By GOD (08/29/2016); The Dimensions of Death? (04/24/2016); No Other gods? (08/14/2015); The Dead in Christ? (11/18/2013); Too Much Holy Spirit? (11/19/2013); Ghosts (09/02/2012); About Conversion  (09/03/2012)


“Anonymous”, the mature expression of love is always challenging and—more than affection, gentleness, or kindness—often requires such elements as “holding back,” self-denial, self-discipline, silence, and restraint.  Because divinity demands exclusive commitment and devotion, focus upon ones spouse, siblings, parents, children, and others can come into view as adultery, betrayal, “cheating”, and “whoring after idols and false gods.”  Because the goal of Creation is life, the death of loved ones are intended to make us stronger, not weaker, and more fit as divine companions.  The responses of GOD to our need when we first lose a loved one seem directed to breaking off bereavement.  It is as if the Holy Spirit comes in and says, Roll up your sleeves; let’s get to work.  Believers are to become active in unselfish ways that maintain their place with Deity and with the living, rather than mope and pine in isolation.  Survivors are to comfort others who mourn and encourage their expressions of hope, joy, love and respect.  The heir is granted a double portion of the estate to complete the “unfinished business” of the deceased.  With the sad occasion of burial and internment there usually also is a small feast to celebrate the departed.  The death of any who are close is always their last, great gift of life to us, for it carries us into new levels of emotional, psychological, and spiritual growth by calling forth maturity and strength.  Nonetheless, consider again the following from the holy writings:

(1.)   Leviticus 10:  1-6, King James Version (KJV):  1 And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not.  2 And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.  3 Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the LORD spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron held his peace.  4 And Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said unto them, Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.  5 So they went near, and carried them in their coats out of the camp; as Moses had said.  6 And Moses said unto Aaron, and unto Eleazar and unto Ithamar, his sons, Uncover not your heads, neither rend your clothes; lest ye die, and lest wrath come upon all the people:  but let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the LORD hath kindled.  7 And ye shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die:  for the anointing oil of the LORD is upon you. And they did according to the word of Moses.

(2.)  Romans 8:  5-9, KJV:  5 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.  6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.  7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God:  for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.  8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.  9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

There is far more to be said, correctly applied, and spiritually apprehended.  (For example, (3.)  Psalms 50:  16-23, KJV:  16 But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth?  17 Seeing thou hatest instruction, and casteth my words behind thee.  18 When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him, and hast been partaker with adulterers.  19 Thou givest thy mouth to evil, and thy tongue frameth deceit.  20 Thou sittest and speakest against thy brother; thou slanderest thine own mother’s son.  21 These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself:  but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes.  22 Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.  23 Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me:  and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God.)  Even so, I trust this fragment will be useful.  Be it unto you according to your faith.

THE BLACK PHOENIX
Washington, DC

(03/21/2016) The Cross and Eternity

Today, points are shared on remembering the cross as an enduring appearance of divinity, and not just a one-time event.  Jesus dying upon the cross is to be understood as dynamic and organic.  Awareness and self-will in the living are to be stirred in a continuing way that may be spoken of as eternal life.  For disciples and followers of Jesus, their transformation whereby they will permanently exist as immortal, incorruptible companions to divinity has already begun, and will be completed at the Savior’s appearance to harvest those who are his from the earth.  Consider again the following from the holy writings, and the presentation below:

Acts 4:  11-12, King James Version (KJV):  11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.  12 Neither is there salvation in any other:  for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

Romans 5:  8-9, KJV:  8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

1st Corinthians 15:  3-4, KJV:  3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;  4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Romans 6:  9-11, KJV:  9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.  10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once:  but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.  11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

A fighter at “Yahoo! Answers” using the ID “Human Animal” (Level 7 with 33,699 points, a member since September 30, 2013) posted the following:

Why does Jesus die and come back to life at a different time each year?

THE GOLDEN ARROW:  For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.  Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:  In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.  Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.  Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;  Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.  By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.  And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:  But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;  From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.  For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.  (Hebrews 10:  4-14, KJV)

THE DOUBLE DAGGER:  The Cross and Resurrection Sunday? (03/16/2016); Belief In Another World? (02/17/2016); The Bridge To Heaven (01/27/2016); Salvation Only Through Christ? (01/07/2016); An Eternal Plan and Process (07/05/2015); Afraid of Eternal Life? (10/30/2013); Why Bother to Read? (10/31/2013)

“Human Animal”, for many mature Christian believers, the cross is not a one-time event to be understood within the frameworks of time and space.  The cross is a peculiar appearance of eternal divinity upon the earth (we say, Incarnation) using flesh and existence as a material being to demonstrate authority over death and sin.  Trust that, despite time and space, through operations of the Holy Spirit, blood and truth from the cross are flowing to here and now.  This is essential for created beings and living creatures to experience a full revelation of Deity through their finite consciousness.  Acknowledgment and response to the Holy must come by discovery, self-will, and operations of spirit content from the makeup of GOD.  Included are inseparable substance such as faith, holiness, joy, longsuffering, love, wisdom, and wrath against sin.  The sacred processes of GOD for redemption and salvation are shown to include rebirth, resurrection, Advent (the Second Coming), final judgment, and the second death.  Believers carefully prepare and share annual memorials and other programs to acknowledge and teach various lessons from the cross.  However, the blessing and gifts won by the cross are to be experienced daily.  Consider how this is stated using language from the Bible:

(1.)  1st Corinthians 15:  20-23, King James Version (KJV):  20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.  21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.  22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.  23 But every man in his own order:  Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

(2.)  Romans 5:  12-15, KJV:  12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:  13 (For until the law sin was in the world:  but sin is not imputed when there is no law.  14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.  15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

(3.)  Romans 8:  3-9, KJV:  3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:  4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.  5 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.  6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.  7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God:  for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.  8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.  9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

(4.)  Galatians 2:  19-21, KJV:  19 For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.  20 I am crucified with Christ:  nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me:  and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.  21 I do not frustrate the grace of God:  for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

There is far more to be said, understood, and spiritually apprehended.  (For example, (5.)  Revelation 21:  5-9, KJV:  5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write:  for these words are true and faithful.  6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.  7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.  8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone:  which is the second death.)  Even so, I trust this fragment will be useful.  Be it unto you according to your faith.

THE BLACK PHOENIX
Washington, DC

(01/20/2014) Poems: MARTIN 85

     As surely as this seems to be a season for poetry with me, it has also been one for remembering; and so today I share a new and an old poem in respect to Citizen King’s Day, 2014.  As I was considering again one of my enduring favorites from Homer to Dunbar, Langston Hughes, e. e. cummings, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Millay to Rita Dove and on to Richard Wilbur, Black Dada Nihilismus by LeRoi Jones (Amiri Baraka) published in the Preface to a Twenty Volume Suicide Note (1961), I was impressed that anyone having that much to say before they can destroy themselves is forced to live in order to get it all written down.  Had he lived by the goodness and justice of our Nation, Dr. King would be eighty-five years old today.

Untitled Poem:  MLK 2001

I had a waking moment
where flesh and dreams
were heaped to sound a cry.

An army claimed a battlefield
in peace, with hymns of love to life,

and none did die that day.

Having marched across a nation,
from dark hollows, and black bottoms
colored quarters, low rent districts

hearts broke from joy, and tears of hope
streamed free.


Wisdom, spoken forth and spoken for
the light of another’s faith
burning like your own

I trusted what I saw to be

the truth
that you are not alone.


The echo in today is what you feel
I have a choice
I have a faith

the violence of injustice
the unreal hatred loosed
in times gone by

lack substance

I have a reality
I have a GOD
I choose to share
and this is not a dream

 

 

©Michael Andrew Williams, 2001.  All rights reserved.

 

MARTIN 85

Being someone who cares becomes
A thing of the past, or at least
A thing only remembered
Special days must come
Be set apart, aside from that
A future, a destiny,
an unbroken line of loves
And intimate innate recognition
That’s passed along
By instinct, feel, one just having a hunch
To think on you as you have been
I am getting too old for this
The violence I’ve suppressed
Will go down to my grave with me
Never to be resurrected made glorious
Or pure as this cold bright day of GOD
warmed by unforgotten marches miracles
dreams detention in a Birmingham eternity
Is it still in vogue to say thank you
To those who led us well
It is easy to imagine you as Caleb
Had it only been his will

 

©Michael Andrew Williams, 2014.  All rights reserved worldwide.

     As GOD permits, there are many more poems and remembrances to come.  By now, we should all agree, there is far more to be said, properly shared, and spiritually understood.  Even so, I trust this fragment will be useful.  Be it unto you according to your faith.


I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD.  The LORD hath chastened me sore: but he hath not given me over unto death.  Open to me the gates of righteousness:  I will go into them, and I will praise the LORD:  (Psalms 118:  17-19, KJV)


THE BLACK PHOENIX
Washington, DC

(03/21/2013) Eat His Body, Drink His Blood

A writer’s reaction to the mystery of the Lord’s Supper as “cannibalism” comes into view, today, along with more on how Christian believers understand resurrection. A “Yahoo! Answers” writer using ID “Just” (Level 1 with 93 points, a member since March 20, 2013) posted the following:


Why would Jesus want you to eat his body and drink his blood? It sounds totally grotesque, doesn’t it?

Why would al all-powerful God want you to do something that, in any other context, sounds like a disgusting, cannibalistic, satanic ritual?


THE BATTLE AXE: Magical Resurrection? (03/20/2013)—Christian belief requires a higher level of faith and trust in GOD than anything else in human experience. In addition to the truth of Incarnation (i.e., the appearance of GOD in human flesh), and an eternal relationship of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, believers must embrace the resurrection of Jesus Christ as the Anointed One sent from GOD. Resurrection pertains to the full revelation of divinity inarguably describing the absolute power of GOD over Creation, judgment, and eternal life. The many human achievements through the man-made world system (the interrelated mechanisms for exchange of resources and survival that include education, money, language, and science), in fact, are exciting responses and impressive technology for many of the classic situations surrounding birth and death. However, what mankind has accomplished remains void of the divine spark of life, and the divine spirit. The holy writings remain the most accurate and complete source for information explaining the fulfillment of mortality, the state of the dead, and the final conclusion of the ongoing transformation of mankind. At no point is there “magic”; and humanity’s best is merely biochemical trial-and-error through such practices as cloning, cryogenics, in-vitro fertilization, the manipulation of genes, and the human management of physical reproduction. One gains certainty of spiritual truth through spiritual practice that includes personal prayer (presenting ones “secret” self to GOD by actions and words); by study of sacred records detailing the action, character and person of GOD; by regular association with those having developed faith and mature identity as believers in the revealed truth from GOD; and by continuous response to the imparted, indwelling Spirit from GOD that resides within oneself.


THE GOLDEN ARROW: For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come. Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. (1st Corinthians 11: 23-29, King James Version)


THE DOUBLE DAGGER: The Children, not the Dogs (03/17/2013); Why Jesus Must Be A Jew (03/18/2013); How To Have Conviction (11/24/2012); A Text for Lives Today? (11/25/2012); The Gospel not Logical? (09/16/2012); Unwelcome Gifts? (09/17/2012); Purity of Heart (03/06/2012); Binder 21: Dead Indeed Unto Sin (10/18/2011); “Subtle” (02/21/2011); Normal? (02/22/2011); Free To Eat? (12/23/2010); Proving Truth? (12/24/2010)


Be encouraged, Just. This might help some readers understand:

There are so many spiritual answers a person must receive to completely and correctly be in agreement with the various operations of GOD among, on behalf of, and through mankind, that mature Christian believers are usually forced to declare as do the Scriptures, “you must be born again.” Once born again from divine DNA (so to speak), a believer must “grow up again.” There is a continuous process of learning, practice, and growth that dispels spiritual confusion, and provides correct appreciation of the things from GOD. Maturity does not happen in an instance.

The mystery (special knowledge) of the Lord’s Supper is not understandable to those outside the body of Christ. Coming into the community of believers, a person must acquire a totally new consciousness that is not dominated by “the flesh” (appetite such as hunger, thirst, craving for sexual activity; sensation such as hearing, seeing, tasting, touching; aspects of mind such as desire, fantasy, imagination, recall), or by “sin” that directs the self-will of created beings and living creatures to oppose the existence of divine law, Divine Person, and all the Creation of GOD. 
 
GOD is totally a spirit, has no material form, yet, continues as being and eternal presence endowed with power, purpose and sovereignty. The “makeup” of GOD is sanctified substance that exists exclusively within the Divine Person (such as faith, holiness, joy, longsuffering, love, righteousness, truth, wisdom, and wrath against sin). Through breath and spirit (also called “word”), GOD resides within chosen objects that he has put forth from himself.

As Creator, GOD has established many living creatures that operate through carnal, material, physical and social dimensions. For the created to “know” GOD, the Almighty must respond to aspects of their awareness and being, and speak to them in their own language, so to speak. Flesh and spirit must interact within a protected sphere, that allows oneness without also demanding sameness.

There is far more to be said, correctly applied, and spiritually apprehended. (For example, through the Lord’s Supper, Jesus Christ is further acknowledged as the appearance of GOD in human flesh. It is a straight forward and common sense notion that, by eating and drinking we may ingest and internalize Christ, and that divinity will be increased, nourished, and strengthened within all who partake. Like baptism and being reborn, Holy Communion is more than a human event that emerges from self-will. The spiritual reality that must occur is by the operation and power of GOD. The emblems of bread and wine are transformed to establish holy presence and divine substance.) Even so, I trust this fragment will be useful. Be it unto you according to your faith.


THE BLACK PHOENIX
Washington, DC

(12/14/2012) Remembering the Holocaust?

      Various understandings of the holocaust are considered, and there is more on the value of human life. The “Yahoo! Answers” writer using ID “Jellytot” (Level 2 with 461 points, a member since October 31, 2011) posted the following:



How should the holocaust be remembered?

please answer



THE BATTLE AXE: The Price of Humanity? (12/13/2012)—The birth, death, resurrection, and eternal continuance of GOD in a human form through the person of Jesus Christ proclaims that Almighty GOD places an enormous value upon mankind. Full definition for both “humanity” and “life” also must describe the impact, presence and operation of divinity through and upon what mankind has been, now is, and will become. The quality of human existence emerges through divine abundance, diversity, joy, the beauty of the natural world, and the range of possibility within Creation. Before GOD, control, dominance, ownership and power are less relevant to the beauty of mankind. With this in view, we may say the people of GOD are marked by self-respect without the exaggerations of pride. Human worth should not be understood only in the terms of accomplishments, ambition, behavior, desire, destiny, personal goals, and predetermined fate. Academic history centered upon conflict and discovery are not enough to display the highest levels whereby humanity merits esteem. Limits from circumstances and material conditions may be exceeded and transcended through the divine content that resides within an individual. We find it is a principle for valuing others within human relationships that even the errors of a child, as he speaks his first words or takes his first steps, are precious and further bind them to their parents and others. Sacred authority, holy person, and sovereign wisdom permit human excellence among those who praise, serve and worship despite mortality, poverty, sickness and suffering. Mankind is priceless when functioning as a jewel of Creation that emits and makes visible the spectrum of divine grace.



THE GOLDEN ARROW: Lest there should be among you man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this day from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations; lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood; And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst: The LORD will not spare him, but then the anger of the LORD and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the LORD shall blot out his name from under heaven. And the LORD shall separate him unto evil out of all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this book of the law: So that the generation to come of your children that shall rise up after you, and the stranger that shall come from a far land, shall say, when they see the plagues of that land, and the sicknesses which the LORD hath laid upon it; And that the whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, and burning, that it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein, like the overthrow of Sodom, and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, which the LORD overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath: Even all nations shall say, Wherefore hath the LORD done thus unto this land? what meaneth the heat of this great anger? Then men shall say, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them forth out of the land of Egypt: For they went and served other gods, and worshipped them, gods whom they knew not, and whom he had not given unto them: (Deuteronomy 29: 18-26, King James Version)



THE DOUBLE DAGGER: The Content of Prayer (01/29/2012); Dispatch 17: The Ally (In Heaven (08/25/2011); Dispatch 9: Peace (Peace, Peace) 08/17/2011; Tragedy? (10/23/2010)



      Much confusion now surrounds the holocaust; and there is no agreement upon its most important benefits and lessons to humankind. For many of us, the holocaust was merely a geopolitical event having global consequences, and a peculiar tragedy that is recorded in world history. The idea that the holocaust was only a cultural experience of a peculiar ethnic group is broadly held. By contrast, there are many who understand the Shoah as having been a demonstration of human faith, how suffering is overcome, the spirit of survival, and the ultimate triumph of righteousness. Also, many hold that the holocaust must be recognized as a judgment of GOD to warn mankind against lawlessness, rebellion and sin.

      For believers in Jesus Christ as Messiah, Redeemer, and Savior, the spiritual significance of the holocaust has to be seen in harmony with sacred history as recorded in the holy writings (e.g., the Old Testament, the Torah, and the Gospel). The holocaust must be accepted as a further appearance of continuing covenant and divinity whereby Almighty GOD is revealed as immutable and unchanging in spite of human process, purpose and suffering. To view the holocaust apart from the imperatives for life generated by GOD is to deny that human potential includes a capacity to express the divine nature. Men become no different than animals and material objects; and a significant dimension for full being and person will be dismissed, neglected and undernourished.

      There is far more to be said, correctly applied, and spiritually apprehended. (For example, for those who are in covenant, a day of active atonement is more appropriate than observing a passive memorial day or national day of mourning to remember the holocaust. There is no further need for a holiday of self-indulgence, and the putting away of ones usual duties. Instead, there ought to be activity, service and submission that produce change, understanding and unity.) Even so, I trust this fragment will be useful. Be it unto you according to your faith.


THE BLACK PHOENIX
Washington, DC