Consecrate. Divine calling.

[Tr43]

Devote in Hebrew means - set aside or consecrate.

Joshua 3:5. Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.

Romans 12:1. I beseech you there fore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
12:2. And be not conformed to this world but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.

Hebrew 5:4. And no man takes this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.

Duties as Minister or preacher. Does God give someone He calls gifts ?? Whether to evangelist or teaching.

Do all hirelings have gifts ??.
Living sacrifice is how we live our lives each day.
Talking about divine calling. Not self appointed.
Exodus 29:5. And thou shall take the garment, and put upon Aaron the coat, and the robe of ephod, and the ephod and breastplate, and gird him with the curious girdle of ephod

Consecrate means to set them in a permanent priest position
This is where I stop. If any members want to build on it.

 

[Longfellow]

Devote in Hebrew means - set aside or consecrate.

Joshua 3:5. Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.

Romans 12:1. I beseech you there fore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
12:2. And be not conformed to this world but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.

Hebrew 5:4. And no man takes this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.

Duties as Minister or preacher. Does God give someone He calls gifts ?? Whether to evangelist or teaching.

Do all hirelings have gifts ??.
Living sacrifice is how we live our lives each day.
Talking about divine calling. Not self appointed.
Exodus 29:5. And thou shall take the garment, and put upon Aaron the coat, and the robe of ephod, and the ephod and breastplate, and gird him with the curious girdle of ephod

Consecrate means to set them in a permanent priest position
This is where I stop. If any members want to build on it.

I don't see clearly if you are thinking here only of people called to professional ministry. I think that we are all called to consecrate ourselves, not only as a duty but for our own benefit. I hadn't thought about gifts associated with a calling, but my first thought is that of course He would do that, grant us gifts that help us respond to our calling.

 

[Tr43]

I don't see clearly if you are thinking here only of people called to professional ministry. I think that we are all called to consecrate ourselves, not only as a duty but for our own benefit. I hadn't thought about gifts associated with a calling, but my first thought is that of course He would do that, grant us gifts that help us respond to our calling.

Bingo !!. You nailed it. Thank you.

 

[wil]

Bingo !!. You nailed it. Thank you.

Here are interpretations of your provided Bible verses through the lens of Charles Fillmore's metaphysical teachings:

Joshua 3:5: "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you."
In Fillmore's view, "consecrate" means to set oneself apart for a divine purpose, purifying one's thoughts and intentions. It's an inner act of dedication to the Christ Spirit within. The "Lord" represents the indwelling divine law and the power of Spirit. The "wonders" are the miraculous manifestations that occur when we align ourselves with this divine power. This verse emphasizes that our inner preparation and purification directly precede outward demonstrations of spiritual power and blessings.

Romans 12:1-2: "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God."

This passage is foundational in Unity's metaphysical thought. To "present your bodies a living sacrifice" means dedicating your physical being, your thoughts, feelings, and actions, to spiritual principles. It's not about physical death but about sacrificing the limited, material perspective for a higher, spiritual consciousness. This "living sacrifice" is "holy" (pure) and "acceptable unto God" (aligned with divine law).

"Be not conformed to this world" warns against adopting the limited, sense-based beliefs and materialism of the outer world. Instead, "be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind."

This is the core of metaphysical practice: consciously changing your thought patterns from human limitations to divine possibilities. The "renewing of your mind" allows you to tap into the divine wisdom within, enabling you to "prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God"—to experientially demonstrate the perfect divine plan unfolding in your life.
Hebrews 5:4: "And no man takes this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron."

In this context, "honor" refers to the spiritual authority and capacity for divine service. "Called of God" isn't an external selection by a deity, but rather an inner spiritual awakening and recognition of one's divine purpose and potential. It's the realization of the Christ consciousness within that qualifies an individual to minister spiritually. Aaron, as an archetype, represents the high-priestly function within each individual—the faculty of will or faith that is consecrated to spiritual leadership and expression. This verse suggests that true spiritual authority comes from within, as an unfolding of divine realization, rather than from external appointment or self-proclamation.

Exodus 29:5: "And thou shall take the garment, and put upon Aaron the coat, and the robe of ephod, and the ephod and breastplate, and gird him with the curious girdle of ephod."

This verse, describing the investiture of Aaron as high priest, is highly symbolic in Fillmore's interpretations. The "garments" represent various spiritual qualities and powers that clothe the awakened individual (Aaron). Each piece of clothing symbolizes a different aspect of consciousness:
* The "coat" (or inner garment) could represent the truth or purity of the inner being.
* The "robe of the ephod" (the outer blue robe) often symbolizes the spiritual understanding or wisdom that envelops and guides.
* The "ephod" itself, a highly decorative apron-like garment, represents the perception of truth or a more developed spiritual discernment.
* The "breastplate" (Breastplate of Judgment), with its precious stones representing the tribes of Israel, signifies the heart center and the unified expression of all the divine faculties within. It represents divine love, wisdom, and judgment—the ability to discern spiritual truth.
* The "curious girdle of the ephod" (a finely woven belt) symbolizes the power of coordination and integration—the ability to hold all the spiritual faculties together in harmonious action.
In essence, this passage describes the equipping of the individual consciousness with all the necessary spiritual attributes and powers to perform their divine purpose as a "high priest" of their own being.

 

[Longfellow]

Here are interpretations of your provided Bible verses through the lens of Charles Fillmore's metaphysical teachings:

Joshua 3:5: "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you."
In Fillmore's view, "consecrate" means to set oneself apart for a divine purpose, purifying one's thoughts and intentions. It's an inner act of dedication to the Christ Spirit within. The "Lord" represents the indwelling divine law and the power of Spirit. The "wonders" are the miraculous manifestations that occur when we align ourselves with this divine power. This verse emphasizes that our inner preparation and purification directly precede outward demonstrations of spiritual power and blessings.

Romans 12:1-2: "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God."

This passage is foundational in Unity's metaphysical thought. To "present your bodies a living sacrifice" means dedicating your physical being, your thoughts, feelings, and actions, to spiritual principles. It's not about physical death but about sacrificing the limited, material perspective for a higher, spiritual consciousness. This "living sacrifice" is "holy" (pure) and "acceptable unto God" (aligned with divine law).

"Be not conformed to this world" warns against adopting the limited, sense-based beliefs and materialism of the outer world. Instead, "be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind."

This is the core of metaphysical practice: consciously changing your thought patterns from human limitations to divine possibilities. The "renewing of your mind" allows you to tap into the divine wisdom within, enabling you to "prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God"—to experientially demonstrate the perfect divine plan unfolding in your life.
Hebrews 5:4: "And no man takes this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron."

In this context, "honor" refers to the spiritual authority and capacity for divine service. "Called of God" isn't an external selection by a deity, but rather an inner spiritual awakening and recognition of one's divine purpose and potential. It's the realization of the Christ consciousness within that qualifies an individual to minister spiritually. Aaron, as an archetype, represents the high-priestly function within each individual—the faculty of will or faith that is consecrated to spiritual leadership and expression. This verse suggests that true spiritual authority comes from within, as an unfolding of divine realization, rather than from external appointment or self-proclamation.

Exodus 29:5: "And thou shall take the garment, and put upon Aaron the coat, and the robe of ephod, and the ephod and breastplate, and gird him with the curious girdle of ephod."

This verse, describing the investiture of Aaron as high priest, is highly symbolic in Fillmore's interpretations. The "garments" represent various spiritual qualities and powers that clothe the awakened individual (Aaron). Each piece of clothing symbolizes a different aspect of consciousness:
* The "coat" (or inner garment) could represent the truth or purity of the inner being.
* The "robe of the ephod" (the outer blue robe) often symbolizes the spiritual understanding or wisdom that envelops and guides.
* The "ephod" itself, a highly decorative apron-like garment, represents the perception of truth or a more developed spiritual discernment.
* The "breastplate" (Breastplate of Judgment), with its precious stones representing the tribes of Israel, signifies the heart center and the unified expression of all the divine faculties within. It represents divine love, wisdom, and judgment—the ability to discern spiritual truth.
* The "curious girdle of the ephod" (a finely woven belt) symbolizes the power of coordination and integration—the ability to hold all the spiritual faculties together in harmonious action.
In essence, this passage describes the equipping of the individual consciousness with all the necessary spiritual attributes and powers to perform their divine purpose as a "high priest" of their own being.

I like all of this, but this looks to me like a false dichotomy:
"'Called of God' isn't an external selection by a deity, but rather an inner spiritual awakening and recognition of one's divine purpose and potential."
It's drawing an imaginary line between inner and outer, within and without, self and other.

 

[Thomas]

"It is a patristic notion (developed with extraordinary profundity by Maximus the Confessor) that humanity was created as the methorios (the boundary or frontier) between the physical and the spiritual realms, or as the priesthood of creation that unites earth to heaven." (David Bentley Hart)

 

[Longfellow]

"It is a patristic notion (developed with extraordinary profundity by Maximus the Confessor) that humanity was created as the methorios (the boundary or frontier) between the physical and the spiritual realms, or as the priesthood of creation that unites earth to heaven." (David Bentley Hart)

Interesting.

 

[Thomas]

St Maximus the Confessor saw theosis / deification – participation in the Divine – as the final cause not only of mankind but also, by an encapsulating participation, of the entire cosmos – summed up in his revision of the Platonic tried as 'genesis-kinesis-stasis' – 'beginning-movement-rest'.

Maximus’s theology sees nature in its entirely (Eriugena, much influenced by Maximus, called it 'natura') as "marked by five divisions (διαίρεσις)" (Ambigua 41.103):
1: Uncreated and Created: God (the uncreated) and created natures.
2: Intelligible and Sensible: The intellect and the physical, material.
3: Heaven and Earth: The celestial and the terrestrial.
4: Paradise and the Inhabited World: The prelapsarian and postlapsarian world.
5: Male and Female: Maximus sees the distinction as stemming from the fall.

Maximus saw the human person as a microcosm who synthesises all cosmic disparities within his unified and unique substance. Each human is a body-soul composite that bridges spiritual and physical, the intelligible and sensible.

God has appointed humans as representatives over creation and entrusted them with the task of leading the cosmos into union with their Creator (cf Genesis 1:26, 2:15). According to Maximus, humans appeared last on the scene of creation so that by "mediating between the universal extremes through his parts, and unifying through himself things that by nature are separated from each other by a great distance," the human person might "[gather] up all things to God…[bringing about] the union of all things in God, in whom there is no division" (Ambigua 41.105).

In its summation, humanity and by extension the cosmos will become "everything that God is, without however identity in essence" (Ambigua 41.109).

God and humans, joined by love, would interpenetrate one another in a perichoresis (περιχορήσις), a dance, in which "the whole man wholly pervades the whole God"(Ambigua 41.109).

The Fall derailed this process. God’s solution to this disruption and division of the cosmos was, rather than annihilate creation altogether, heal it from within. Thus, "God became man" recapitulating all things both in heaven and on earth, in Himself, in whom they also had been created" (Ambigua 41.111).