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But to return from this digression penned for the especial benefit of those who pay but little regard

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to the doctrine taught by the prophet like unto Moses; who are willing to honour Jesus with empty words of piety and love, but are positively averse from being troubled with his hard and inconvenient instructions; we proceed to remark that in the words of eternal life which he delivered, he declared the principle that "the flesh profits nothing." When, therefore, he said, "He that seeth me, seeth Him that sent me"; and elsewhere, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father," he excludes the idea, that the Flesh born of Mary's substance was the Father. This was not the Father, but simple (We think this must have been a misprint from the original copy, and that it should appear as sinful flesh (Publishers) flesh: for "that which is born of the flesh," said he, "is flesh."

He that seeth the Spirit, then seeth the Father; for it was the Spirit that uttered the words through Jesus, as clearly appears from his saying: "The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, He performs the works," or miracles. The Flesh, or Mary's Son, was the earthen vessel, the Cherub, hidden as a polished arrow in the quiver, or shadow of the power of the Eternal Spirit; in other words: "The Spirit of Yahweh rested upon him" after his anointing. He was filled with the Effluence--(By effluence we mean that which flows from, or out of The substance of the Eternal Father. We use it in the sense of the phrase Spirit of. (Dr. Thomas)-- of the Eternal Substance, and covered with it as with a halo of power, so that he was hidden, covered, or protected from the machinations of evil doers, and from evil influences, which could not harm him until the protecting effluence was withdrawn. This resting upon, indwelling and covering, was the sealing and anointing of the Father, foretold in Dan. 9:24 -- "Sealing the vision and prophet, and anointing the Holy One of the holy ones." And John the Baptist bears record of this saying: "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode (or rested) upon him." The Spirit Dove was the seal or mark of the Father; the form or shape assumed by the Divine Effluence in the anointing of Jesus. John saw this Spirit Dove, and so did all the surrounding multitude; for Jesus said to them: "Have ye not at any time heard the Father's voice, or have ye not seen His form? Or have ye not his declaration abiding in you; that him whom he hath sent, to this one ye should not give credit"? In these inquiries, he referred to what was well-known to all who attended John's proclamation. The Father's symbol was the Dove, and "the voice," the declaration, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." They had seen and heard this, the sealing and acknowledging the prophet the Father bearing witness to the Son -- yet did they not give credit to the doctrine he set forth.

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This sealing and anointing of the Cherub, was the subject of the following testimonies. "And the Spirit of Yahweh shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the reverence of Yahweh, and shall make him of quick understanding in the reverence of Yahweh; and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears, but with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and contend with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins" (Isa. 11:2-5). But this was only partially accomplished at the epoch of the anointing. The judging of the poor, the contending with equity, the smiting of the earth, or nations, and the slaying of the wicked, are events hereafter to be developed in the day of the power of the Son of Man. The testimonies of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, abundantly illustrate the former, or inceptive part of Isaiah's prophecy which, in its fulfilment, became the earnest of the certain and literal accomplishment of the rest.

In Isaiah 49:2, the effect of the anointing is thus foretold: "Yahweh hath chosen me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother (Mary) hath He made mention of my name (by Gabriel). And He hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of His hand (or power) hath He hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in His quiver hath He hid me; and said unto me, thou art My servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified." Here the Cherub of the Spirit bears the name of his ancestor Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel, which signifies "Prince of Power," i.e., of God, in our vernacular. His mouth was truly like a sharp sword, for it cut deeply into the hearts of the self-righteous hypocrites of his day, who gnashed upon him with malice and dislike. When he opened his mouth to speak, the "word of power" uttered wisdom, counsel and knowledge; and of this word, Paul says in Heb. 4:12, "It is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." In Eph. 6:17, he exhorts the saints to take it as the weapon of their warfare against all crotchets and imaginations that exalt themselves against "the knowledge of God" -- the knowledge revealed by Him. "Take," says he, "the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God"; and with this "stand against the devil's wiles" (verse 11).

But the Cherub of the Eternal Spirit in the days of his flesh and blood did not wholly fill up the idea presented in the phrase "made my mouth as a sharp sword." In his future manifestation,

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he is represented in the Book of Symbols as having "a sharp two-edged sword issuing forth from his mouth." We refer to Apoc. 1:16, and 19:15. In the latter place, the use he is to make of the sword is stated in these words: "that with it he should smite the nations." The interpretation is, that at his approaching advent, he will assume the position indicated in the chapter in relation to his associate Cherubim, on the one hand, and the hostile nations on the other. Being the Commander-in-Chief, or "Captain of Salvation," the Word of Power goes forth from his mouth. He commands that the nations be smitten, and his orders are obeyed; and though they make great resistance, they are finally overcome by the energy whereby he is able to subdue to himself (Phil. 3:21).

When we contemplate the Cherub before his sealing and anointing, we see only the Son of Mary "the Seed of the Woman," in the words of Moses; and Son of God, in the same sense that Adam was. The New Testament writers give us very little information concerning Jesus during thirty years of his sojourn in the covenanted land. All we learn concerning him after his return from Egypt is, that he dwelt in Nazareth, and was subject to Mary and Joseph; and worked at the trade of his mother's husband. He knew his real paternity was not of Joseph: he never went to school; yet was he wiser than those who assumed to be his teachers, being filled with wisdom, the grace of God being upon him; and was the beloved of all who knew him (Matt. 1:23; Luke 2:40, 46-52; Mark 6:3; John 8: 15; Psalm 119:97-104). He was clearly in an intellectual and moral condition parallel with Adam's before he transgressed. The "grace of God" was upon Adam, and imparted to him much wisdom and knowledge; but still left him free to obey the impulses of his flesh if he preferred it, rather than the Divine Law. This was the case also with Jesus, who, in his discourses, always maintained the distinction between what he called "mine own self" and "the Father Himself" who dwelt in him by His effluence. "The Son," said he, "can do nothing of himself"; and this he repeated in the same discourse, saying, "I can of mine own self do nothing."? He refers all the doctrine taught, and all the miracles performed to the Father, whose effluence rested upon and filled him. If this be remembered, it will make the "hard sayings" of his teaching easy to be understood.

Thus, in John 6:38, Jesus? says: "l came down from heaven": "I am the bread that came down from heaven the bread of life; if any man shall eat of this bread, he shall live in the Aion, and the bread that I will give is my flesh." These sayings caused the Jews who heard them to inquire: How can this man have come down from heaven whose father and mother we know? And, how can he give us his flesh to eat? These inquiries were

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prompted by their rule of interpretation, which has been the rule of their posterity through all ages to this day. They interpreted the discourses of Jesus by the principles of the flesh. "Ye cannot tell whence I come," said Jesus, "and whither I go. Ye judge after the flesh." They only conceived of the flesh born of Mary coming down from heaven, and of their eating that flesh as they would eat meat. They did not recognize the voice of the Father in the words that came from the mouth of Jesus. If they had, they would have understood that it was the Spirit that had come down, and was to "ascend where he was before"; that the Spirit claimed the Cherub born of Mary as "His flesh," because it was prepared for Him (Psalm 40:6; Heb. 10:5); and that he gave this flesh, which he calls "my flesh," for the life of the world; which flesh Paul says, "through the Eternal Spirit offered himself without fault to God." Judging according to the principles of flesh-thinking, they did not understand that it was an intellectual eating and drinking of the Spirit-and-life words, or teaching, that came down from heaven concerning the Christ and him crucified. "Thy words were found, and I did eat them," says Jeremiah (Ch. 15:16); but the contemporaries of Jesus had almost as little taste for such eating as ours. When a man marks, reads, and inwardly digests the subject-matter of the Father's doctrine, he eats and drinks it, and is "taught of God," (John 6:45), as all must be who would be saved. That doctrine sets forth the things of the kingdom of God, and the things concerning Jesus Anointed, among which is the sanctifying of those who believe the promises covenanted, through the offering of the body of Jesus once. They who understand the doctrine of the Father and believe it unto obedience, eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man; for, saith he, "He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood dwelleth in me, and I in him" (John 6:56). This in-dwelling is by faith of the words which are spirit and life, as appears from Paul's exhortation to us, saying: "Let Christ dwell in your hearts by faith" (Eph. 3:17). When the words or doctrine, of the Eternal Spirit concerning the kingdom and name are the subject matter of our faith, we dwell in Christ and Christ dwells in us. The Jews did not see into this, because they judged after the flesh, which, in this great matter of God and salvation, is altogether ignored as unprofitable. "It is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I speak unto you are spirit and life" (John 6:63); therefore, if these words dwell in us, "Spirit and life" dwell in us, otherwise not.

We must judge then, after the Spirit, for "the deep things of God," which are "the things of the Spirit of God are spiritually discerned." There is a sense then, attached to the spirit-and-life words of Jesus enunciated by him, in preaching the gospel of the

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kingdom, which the natural man, judging after the flesh, cannot receive. It is evident that the son of Mary, the body laid in the sepulchre, was never in heaven till his ascent thither after his resurrection' how then, says the man who thinks only after the flesh, can "the Son of Man ascend ( See Appendix) where he was before"? This is as incomprehensible to him as the eating of the flesh and the drinking of the blood of a slain man imparting life to the eater; and he exclaims with Nicodemus' "How can these things be"?

To this question, the answer, in principle, is, that "that which has been born ek, of, from, or out of, spirit, is spirit"; and as "God is Spirit," is therefore Deity. "The Spirit breathes where he pleases, and thou, Nicodemus, hearest his voice; but thou perceivest not how he is come, and in what he goes away; thus is everyone who has been born of the Spirit." Nicodemus and his contemporaries heard the voice of the Spirit, breathed forth in the words of spirit and life, uttered by Mary's Son, who they knew was a teacher come from God . But they did not perceive that this teacher was the Eternal Spirit, nor did they comprehend how he came. Judging by flesh-appearances, they only saw Mary's son, as they saw Isaiah or one of the prophets, as teachers from God. They did not perceive that Jesus was "a body prepared" by special Spirit-creation, the Cherub upon which the effluent power of the Eternal Substance rested; and that upon him, and through him, he walked through the country breathing forth his voice in the doctrine taught, and his power in the miracles performed not perceiving this, still less did they comprehend that the Effluent Power would so thoroughly change the constitution of the "Body Prepared," that it should be no longer corruptible flesh perpetuated in life by blood and air, but should be transformed into spirit-flesh and spirit-bones, constituting a Spirit-Body -- a material, corporeal substance -- essentially incorruptible, glorious, powerful, deathless, and quickening; and that in this, as corporealized spirit, the Effluent Power that had "come down from heaven" -- from the abode of the Eternal Substance, "which no man can approach unto" would "ascend where he was before." They did not see into this any more than our Trinitarian, Arian, or Sabellian contemporaries do. These accept symbols created by the controversies of past ages, but can explain nothing, having no scriptural understanding of the "heavenly things." The Son of Man born out of the flesh was flesh -- mortal blood and flesh, but he is no longer so. The same Son of Man has been transformed into incorruptible spirit-substance, and is therefore spirit; and as spirit (not as flesh) is "where he was before." He is "Yahweh the Spirit," the fleshly element being an accretion

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to the Effluent Power, which does not change the constitution of the Spirit, but is spiritualized thereby.

Between the two living manifestations, was interposed the death-state. In this state, the Cherubic Flesh was deserted by the Eternal Substance. The effluent spirit forsook Jesus when he exclaimed upon the cross, "My AIL, my AIL, why hast Thou forsaken me?" The effluent power by which he had taught and worked was withdrawn from him for some time before he died. The Spirit no longer rested upon the Cherub, yet that Cherub continued to live as other men. In process of time he expired. He was now, like the Cherubic Veil of the Temple, "rent in twain." It was no longer affirmable that "I and the Father are one"; but that "I and the Father are twain"; for the Father was no longer in him, nor he in the Father. In the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, the body was in the condition predicted in Psalm 38: "Yahweh's arrows stuck fast in it, and His hand pressed it sore. There was no soundness in the flesh; its wounds stank; and its loins were filled with a loathsome disease; feeble and sore broken, his lovers and friends stood aloof from His stroke, which had consumed him, and laid him low in a horrible pit." This was the death state of the Cherub. Will any one affirm that that dead body was the Father? That it had lived in the world before the world was? That it was the Creator of all things? Nay, it was the flesh only in which sin was condemned: and had it been left there, it would have crumbled into unprofitable dust (Psalm 30:9).

But, in the wisdom of the Eternal Substance, this could not be permitted. This flesh must be born again, and its ears must be opened (Psalm 40:6; Heb. 10:5). The Eternal sent forth His spirit, and "healed his soul" of that "evil disease," which his enemies said, "cleaved fast unto him, that lying down, he should rise up no more" (Psalm 41:4, 8). But the Eternal Power defeated their machinations, and proved them to be liars; for He turned the body into Spirit, and made it "one in nature" with Himself-the Spirit-Son of the Eternal Spirit, equal in power and glory -- GOD.

In this Holy Spirit Nature, the effluence of the Eternal went away. "In what he goes away, Nicodemus, thou dost not perceive." He did not comprehend that the emanation of the Father's substance, converged and localized, and rendered visible in the Spirit-Dove-that the Spirit which had thus come, would go away corporealized in a body born from the grave, to the place in which he was before, and there rejoice in the glory possessed before the world was.

These things being understood, it is not difficult to understand the import of the sentence; "thus is every one that has been born of the Spirit." He is first in the flesh, subject to disease and

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death. This, however, is to be superseded; and those who are "taught of God," and by that teaching are enlightened by the spirit-and-life words of the truth, which brings them to "the obedience of faith," are transformed or "fashioned like unto the body of His glory." This occurs at the epoch of the resurrection, termed by Paul, "the redemption of the body" -- the One Body --"the manifestation of the Sons of God," who all become "like him" in body, as they have been in faith and practice -- Spirit, because born of the Spirit, and therefore God, because, "Spirit is God."

Well may the apostle exhort believers to "walk worthy of God, who has called them to His kingdom and glory." It is indeed "a high calling," and a great manifestation of divine love, bestowed upon men by the Father, that He should invite them to become His sons, and when manifested in the divine nature, be in them "all things for all." When we contemplate such a destiny, that we are to be elements of the Spirit-glory, the Cherubic manifestation of the Eternal Spirit, which is to fill the earth as waters cover the sea, we ought, indeed, to "purify ourselves, even as He is pure," and to live superior to the mean and petty considerations of time and sense. "Walk worthy of God" -- worthy of a position in which we shall be isangeloi, equal to the angels, "the sons of God being the children of the resurrection." But here we must leave the matter for the present. We shall now resume the consideration of the Cherubic manifestation of the Spirit.