“But just as at that time when the child who was born according to the flesh persecuted the Child who was born according to the Spirit, so it is now also … For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and submit never again to a yoke of slavery.” ~ Paul (Galatians 4:29+5:1)

 

Note first & foremost that the ego (i.e. the “child who is of the flesh”) always rejects the will of the conscience (i.e. “persecutes the Child of the Spirit”), for the ego is generated by the “reptile mind” (the most primitive portion of the human brain) and as such built solely on fear & selfishness — whereas the conscience (otherwise known as the “Heart Brain”) is constructed from the Soul, and as such is built only of Love – compassion for & service towards others.

 

Most important of all, we must understand how these two “selves” interact with one another – understand that the former always starts from an assumption of danger, and that the former always assesses reality ¼ of a second before the latter can even begin doing so …

This means that the “reptile brain” of the ego does indeed always in a sense “persecute” the “Heart Brain” of the conscience, for the former is always responding to every situation before the neocortex even begins to activate the latter, and the former is always doing so using the only analyses at its disposal – namely, “friend or foe” & (once “foe” is registered) “fight or flight.” The former believes that any selfless deed is a loss – a vulnerability to attack – a giving to others and thus a lessening of self – a weakness that can be exploited by the malicious & the mal-intended.  And as such the ego continually “persecutes” the conscience – constantly reminding our minds that self-sacrifice is only for the Noble, and that we are “only human”, and that we are only one person, and that being Kind to mean people is dangerous or irresponsible or masochistic (or even deadly), and that being Kind to our enemies only encourages them to be even more mean or disrespectful or abusive or cruel or annoying towards us in the future …

All of these internal encouragements are lies, of course, and yet unless the person hearing them has the humility to pause and the courage to the go forth and Love anyway, he or she will ever listen to the worm-tongued whisperings of the ego, and the Joys only accessible via his or her conscience (the Soul) will remain fully dormant until his or her death.

 

And yet the best of Good News is indeed the Good News of Christ – that liberation from such selfish superficiality is available in every moment (Matthew 10:7) and that we can all access the same through simple acts of courageous Caring (Matthew 24:12-14) … Paul’s teachings will not lead us to this freedom, of course. Indeed, it is most ironic that the teachings of Paul ( the same teachings that were used to found and build up the modern-day Christian church) are one of the “yokes of slavery” from which Jesus’ Way of humble, non-judgmental, all-accepting, self-sacrificial, & unconditional Love provides liberation.

 

Amen … Let it be so.

 

Filed under: My Favorite Verses by Scaughdt