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THE KEY OF KNOWLEDGE.
which the Son of God could come down from heaven, namely,
(1) to reval the glory of the Father to mankind, (2) to redeem humanity from sin, and
(3) to establish his claim to Sonship of God, by rising from the dead,
were much better performed by Jesus as a member of the human race than could possibly be performed by him as the Son of God, in the orthodox sense of the word.
There is no difficulty now in our understanding him when he declares :
"If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow me.”
When the voice of the crier, 'repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand,' is heard and meditated upon, the path for the coming of the Saviour is straightened out. Then comes the higher teaching, to the effect that he who will save his life shall lose it, but he who loses it, for the sake of the Christ within, shall find it. It is the practical observance of this teaching, culminating in the crucifixion of the bodily self, that leads to Godhood. But the love of the lower nature is the cause of sorrow ; for, so long as it is in power, the Godhood of man must remain hidden below the threshold. Therefore, so long as a man clings to his animal nature, and has a longing to participate in the pleasures and joys which the world of senses affords, he cannot save his life; but if he gets ready to sacrifice his lower self, so that the Christ within may come into his own, he soon becomes the fountain of life eternal. Just as by the destruction of his lower nature Jesus became Christ, the fountain of immortal life, so
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