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A Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 12)

The other day our topic in spiritual development was on how the spirit in us grows and matures. Today we shall discuss how the spirit bears fruit and multiplies.

26. How does the spirit in us bear fruit and multiplies?

There are three ways by which the spirit in us bears fruit. The third of these is also the way by which the spirit multiplies among us.

The first way by which the spirit bears fruit in us is the one referred to in Galatians 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” This is the fruit in ourselves. The spirit produces all these good things in us. Before these were called virtues or good habits produced by the spirit in us. Now more and more people call these values or attitudes or dispositions in life.

As the fruit of the spirit we become loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, self-controlled. We now have a sense of direction in our life, we feel fulfilled and happy.

The second way by which the spirit produces fruit in us is the one referred to in Philippians 1:9-11, “And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruits of righteousness which come through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” The spirit produces the good things in what we do, fruits of righteous works, the good works we do to others (Ephesians 2:10).

As the fruit of the spirit we are moved to do good to others. We are forgiving of others, helpful and considerate of them.

The third way by which the spirit bears fruit in us is the one referred to in John 15:1-8, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already made clean by the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples.”

It is the fruit of reproducing the spirit in others. It is multiplying the spirit through the seed, the Word of God. In Luke 8:4-12 where we got the explanation that the seed is the Word of God (verse 11) Jesus said that the seed yields a hundredfold (verse 6). The literal mathematical meaning is that the grain produces a hundred grains. It multiplies itself a hundredfold. Of course this is not meant to be taken literally. It simply means that the spirit produces other spirit beings, more numerous than itself.

As the fruit of the spirit we sow the seed of God’s Word in the hearts of those around us: by teaching, preaching, witnessing, seminars, workshops, a word of advice, reading the Bible in public or in small groups, serving others, etc.

We need to note that these are fruits of the spirit in us and others. They are normal, natural outcome of the life of the spirit in us. They are not produced by reminding us of our duty or obligation of keeping the proper attitudes in life, of doing good to others, or of sharing the faith with them. They are not a way of acting as we pose before a camera. They are simply produced in us and through us as we continue to abide in Jesus. And this abiding in Jesus is the work of the spirit itself. “And I am sure that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).

Thus spiritual development begins as a seed of God (his Word) which fertilizes the image of God in us—the egg cell of the spirit in us—grows with conception, is born, grows as a spirit being, matures and bears fruit.

27. Is there an end to spiritual development?

There is no end to spiritual development. Physical development ends with death. Also psychological development ends with death. We stop thinking with our brain. But there is no end to spiritual development. Even in the next life we will not end our spiritual development. We will always grow as spirits and bear more and more the fruit of the spirit. We will keep on loving God and others more and more, enjoying their fellowship without end.

There is also no end to learning about spiritual development. There is always something to learn about this kind of development.

28. Finally, as a parting and summarizing question, in what does the growth or development of the spiritual life consist?

It consists in knowing more and more Jesus Christ, as expressed by Peter the Apostle in the ending of his second Letter: “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen” (2 Peter 3:18).

What we have done so far is just to have a primer on spiritual development. This primer presented only the basics of this spiritual development. There are still many things we have to learn. Every week hopefully there will be one post or article here to make us advance in our spiritual development.


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Here are my other blogs which may be o help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

A Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 11)

Yesterday in our primer on spiritual development we saw how the seed of the spirit is sown in us, how it is conceived and born in us. Today our topic is how the spirit in us grows and matures.

25. After the spirit is born in us how does it grow and mature?

Like all other living organisms the spirit has an inner dynamism to grow. Like a child it will long for milk. So Peter says, “Like newborn babes, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up to salvation” (1 Peter 2:2).

So also Paul said to the Corinthian Christians, “I fed you with milk, not solid food; for you were not ready for it” (1 Corinthians 3:2). These Corinthian Christians who were born as spirits were fed with the milk of the spirit. Hebrews 5:12 tells us what this milk is. It is “the first principles of God's word.”

After milk, of course, it takes solid food. Hebrews 5:14 says, “But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their faculties trained by practice to distinguish good from evil.” Solid food refers to the “whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). Hebrews, chapter 6 onwards is an example of this solid food.

But the best food is Jesus himself, as he said, “For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed” (John 6:55). And he is found best in the Gospels. That is why Teresa of Avila has this to say of the Gospels: “I have always been fond of the words of the Gospels and have found more recollection in them than in the most carefully planned books” (WAY OF PERFECTION, chapter 21).

The child grows and matures also by doing the things that its family does. It learns the work or trade of the family. So also the spiritual child grows and matures by learning the work of the kingdom of God. Jesus considered this also as food, since working in the family makes the child grow and mature. In John 4:32-34 he says to his disciples, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.” So the disciples said to one another, “Has any one brought him food?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work.” So, doing the work of Jesus is also food for the spirit. It enables this spirit to grow and mature.

Secondly, just like the physical child, the spiritual child needs a lot of sleep. When a physical child sleeps it is left alone to rest. In a similar way the spiritual child needs a lot of time just to be with itself. It needs solitude, aloneness, to build up its strength.

Thirdly, again like a physical child, the spiritual child needs discipline. It needs to be directed by its parent, the God Father of spirits, along the proper path.

Hebrews 12:5-11 has an extensive discussion on this discipline. “And have you forgotten the exhortation which addresses you as sons? – ‘My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor lose courage when you are punished by him. For the Lord disciplines him whom he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.’ It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers to discipline us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time at their pleasure, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant; later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”

Fourthly, like a physical child, the spiritual child learns to talk to its parents, its brothers and sisters. Talking to our heavenly parent is called prayer. Talking with our brothers and sisters in the spirit is called fellowship.

But all these things are not imposed on the spirit. He just grows with this food, rest or solitude, discipline, work, prayer and fellowship. A physical baby naturally obtains these things with the help of its parents, brothers and sisters. So also the spiritual baby naturally obtains these things for its growth from God its parent and from its brothers and sisters who are also spirits.

Tomorrow we rest. When we resume on Sunday our topic will be how the spirit bears fruit and multiplies.


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Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

A Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 10)

Yesterday we answered the question why despite its relevance to the different areas of our life, spiritual development has not been given due emphasis in our personal development. Today we discuss how the seed of the spirit is sown in us, how it is conceived and born in us.

23. You said before that the spirit begins as a seed in us and this seed is the word of God. Can you elaborate on this, particularly how the seed of God’s word is implanted in us?

Yes, as we learned in number 12 of this Primer, the spirit has a seed, just like the plants, animals, and human beings. And this seed is the word of God and also the seed of the kingdom of God within us. This seed is normally planted in us through preaching. As the Decree on the Mission Activity of the Church of Vatican Council II says, “The chief means of the planting referred to is the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”

(These discussions are from a Christian perspective because I am a Christian, but I do not exclude the possibility that writers of other faiths can also express these truths using their own Scriptures and beliefs.)

It is most wonderful that we find similarities between our physical world and the spiritual world. This enables us to learn of spiritual realities through physical realities, those that we see with our eyes and perceive with our other senses.

In the physical world the seed of the human being comes from the human male. The egg is in the human female. The egg is fertilized by the seed or sperm of the male. In a similar way the egg of the spirit is already in us. It waits to be fertilized by the seed of the spirit, which is the Word of God, and which is planted in us by the preaching of the Gospel or Good News of Jesus Christ.

When the Word of God is preached to us, we notice a certain attraction to that Word. This is the moment when the Word is implanted in us. Just like in the physical body when the sperm fertilizes the egg, conception takes place, so also in the spiritual world when the Word of God is planted in us by preaching, if we receive this Word with open heart, conception of the Word begins in us. That is why Augustine the Bishop of Hippo in his Sermon 293, 3, said: “we must not lose the word conceived inwardly in our hearts.”

After a certain time of gestation this Word is brought forth as spirit, our spirit, just as in our physical body after more or less nine months a human being is born.

But in the world of the spirit the gestation is not measured by the same number of months. Each has his/her own unique length of gestation of the Word in him/her. Some may even take years after the conception of the Word before the spirit of that person is born.

24. How do we know that the spirit is already born in us?

We know this when we are already able to understand the Word of God and are able to pray with meaning. Some Christians say that this birth happens during baptism. Yes, to a certain extent it happens there, but it happens there as a mystery, as a hidden act of God through the ministers. We have to actualize this when we grow.

Here are beautiful words from Leo the Great, Bishop of Rome, in his Letter 31: “But through this wonderful blending the mystery of new birth shone upon us, so that through the same Spirit by whom Christ was conceived and brought forth we too might be born again in a spiritual birth; and in consequence the evangelist declares the faithful to have been born not of blood, nor of the desire of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

Notice what Leo says, “spiritual birth”. Our first birth is physical birth. Then when the Word of God has been conceived in us and born in us, we undergo this spiritual birth. We are born as spirit.

Thus the spirit is born in us. As Jesus said in John 3:6, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

Tomorrow our topic is how the spirit in us grows and matures.


Click Here!

Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

A Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 9)

We dealt yesterday with the relevance of spiritual development to our economic and political life. Today we discuss why despite its relevance to the different areas of our life, spiritual development has not been given due emphasis in our personal development.

22. If spiritual development is so important and relevant to our personal, social, religious, economic and political life, why is it not given due emphasis in our personal development?

There are two reasons for this. One reason is that for most people the human being is composed only of body and soul. The other reason is that of the three components of man the spiritual component is the most invisible.

Most people, because of the influence of Western education which is heavily dependent on the teachings of the Greek philosopher Aristotle, think that the human being is composed only of body and soul.

If you search online, there are some 5 million plus sites displaying the exact phrase “composed of body and soul”, while there are no results for “composed of body and soul and spirit”. And there are only 30 thousand plus sites for the exact phrase “body, soul and spirit”. This only shows that not much has been written on the body, soul and spirit as the components of the human being. How can writers discuss about something which they do not consider as part of our human composition?

In the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the word “spirit” is found in the phrase “in a spirit of brotherhood” (Article 1). In Article 26 mention is made of “the full development of the human personality”. But there is no reference in this document to the development of the spirit within us or to the spirit as a distinct component of the human being.

In Article 17 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child the word “spiritual” is there but it is used as an adjective parallel to “moral” in the phrase “spiritual and moral well-being”.

In the list of rights adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations at the Convention on the Rights of the Child on 20 October 1989, there is no mention of the right to spiritual development. The closest to this idea is the right to practice their own religion and culture.

In the authoritative CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH we read in Number 367: “Sometimes the soul is distinguished from the spirit: St. Paul for instance prays that God may sanctify his people "wholly", with "spirit and soul and body" kept sound and blameless at the Lord's coming. The Church teaches that this distinction does not introduce a duality into the soul. "Spirit" signifies that from creation man is ordered to a supernatural end and that his soul can gratuitously be raised beyond all it deserves to communion with God.”

In all these documents we see that the human race has not yet accepted as common belief or teaching that the human being is composed also of the spirit. But this is very crucial to our topic. If we are not also composed of spirit, in addition to a body and soul, this primer has no reason to continue. There is nothing to talk or write about if there is no such thing as spirit in us.

The Chinese martyr Watchman Nee in his book SPIRITUAL MAN, Volume 1, says: “How can a believer understand spiritual life if he does not know what is the extent of the realm of the spirit? Without such understanding how can he grow spiritually? To fail to distinguish between spirit and soul is fatal to spiritual maturity.” Notice what Nee says, Failure to distinguish these two components is fatal to spiritual maturity.

The other reason why spiritual development is not given its due importance is because of the three components of the human being it is the most invisible. The human body we can see with our eyes. The human soul we can perceive by the speech and actions of a person. But the human spirit is something that cannot be directly observed by the senses or easily deduced by our hearing or other means of perception.

When we hear a person speaking fluently with confidence we cannot say that that person has a good spirit. We say that he has developed his speaking skills, but not necessarily his spiritual capabilities.

Usually the action of the spirit is perceived when we pray or hear someone praying because prayer is an activity of the spirit. But how many of us observe real prayer? Most people know of memorized or spontaneous prayer, but not genuine prayer, as we may come to this topic later on.

And because the spirit is the most invisible of the three components, it is not perceived by most people as such.

This section has been quite lengthy, but I think it is necessary to make us think of the necessity of thinking of the spirit as really another component of the human being. Otherwise we have no point in continuing with this discussion on spiritual development.

Tomorrow we proceed with the topic of how the seed of the spirit is sown in us, how it is conceived and born in us.


Click Here!

Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

A Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 8)

Yesterday we investigated the relevance of spiritual development to our religious life. Today we discuss its relevance to our economic and political life.

20. What is the relevance of spiritual development to our economic and political life?

The relevance of spiritual development to our economic and political life is that it cures and prevents the social cancers spawned by these two aspects of our life.

Cancer is a disease wherein the cells grow abnormally with no control, destroying adjacent tissues, and spreading to other parts of the body.

That is what is happening to our society. Certain sectors of our economic and political systems are growing by leaps and bounds while the marginalized sectors suffer. Material goods are not distributed fairly to all sectors of the population. Instead there is an economic and political elite who hold a disproportionate amount of these material goods and the power to control them while the rest of the population languish in poverty and virtual slavery. Thus we have economic and political cancers in our society.

21. How does spiritual development cure and prevent these economic and political cancers in our society?

It does this by producing men and women who care for others and share the resources of creation equitably with them.

When a person is developed spiritually he/she becomes close to the Spirit who ultimately is the one responsible for creating our economic and political resources. This Spirit will move them to produce more and share what they produce in a fair and just way with others because he created all things for all people, not just for a few. In this way we will stop having small groups of people who control vast amounts of economic resources and political power to the detriment of the great majority. Those who are doing this now will reflect on their actions and change their ways once they are spiritually developed and people will be oriented towards producing and sharing with others, preventing the concentration of resources in the hands of a few people.

Tomorrow we will discuss why despite its relevance to the different areas of our life, spiritual development has not been given due emphasis in our personal development.


Click Here!

Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

A Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 7)

Yesterday we discussed the relevance of spiritual development to our personal and social life. Today we investigate its relevance to our religious life.

18. Besides our personal and social life are there other areas of our life to which spiritual development has relevance?

Yes, besides our personal and social life, there are other areas or aspects in our life to which spiritual development has relevance. Other main areas or aspects are our religious life, our economic life, and our political life.

19. What is the relevance of spiritual development to our religious life?

The relevance of spiritual development to our religious life is that spiritual development gives substance or meaning to our religious life. It is also the bond which unites all the groups of different religions in the world. Unless our religious life is accompanied by spiritual development it is merely following a set of doctrines and practices. It will have no lasting, beneficial effect on our way of life. Unless we develop our spiritual life the different groups of religion will always be fighting one another on grounds of teaching and practice.

We are all born into a society which has a definite set of religious beliefs and practices. As we grow we imbibe these beliefs and practices. These define our religious identity, our religious life. For most of us we do not question these. If we are Christians we believe in God and in Jesus Christ. If we are Muslims we believe in Allah. If we are Hindus we believe in Brahman and his diverse manifestations.

But if we do not grow in our spiritual life we take these beliefs and practices for granted. We do not question them nor do we internalize them, we do not make them our own personal beliefs and practices. We believe in them and do the things we are told to do by our religion because we simply think that those are expected of us. And because we have not internalized these beliefs and practices they do not really influence our lives. They are as it were a covering which makes us appear so to others but deep inside we are not what we appear to be.

I will take an example from Christianity. In Christianity we are taught to love our enemies and do good to those who hate us. We find this in the Christian Bible, particularly in Matthew 5:44. A Christian can memorize this and agree to this. But as we all know, not many Christians have internalized this teaching and practice. The two world wars were begun and waged by people who professed they were Christians. In our own society we know that so called Christians do not in general love their enemies nor do they do good to those who hate them.

The reason for this is because they have not really developed their spiritual life. They may have developed their religious life. They go to church regularly, read their bibles, give to the support of their religious leaders, etc. They do this not because they have internalized the teaching of their religion, but because they think that this is what is expected of them.

The second relevance of spiritual development to our religious life is that it is the bond which unites all the religious groups in the world.

There are around 20 major religions in the world. In the course of history up to the present time these religious groups have disagreed with one another, sometimes violently. Even Christian groups have violently disagreed with one another, persecuting those who did not believe what they themselves believed in. Wars have been fought in the name of religion. Countless lives have been snuffed out because they professed heretical views in the hearing of their judges.

But if we develop in our spiritual life we will realize that all of us are deeply united in spirit, no matter what our religion is, because it is the same Spirit who gives life to us, who guides us in our life. We will realize that there is an infinite variety in the expression of the life of the spirit, even as in our physical world there is an infinite diversity in the forms of life. We need not fight concerning the manifold expressions of this Spirit.

Tomorrow we will discuss the relevance of spiritual development to our economic and political life.


Click Here!

Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

A Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 6)

Last Friday we clarified a bit about the meaning of the seed of the spirit, that it is also the seed of the kingdom of God in us. And we began showing in general terms the relevance of spiritual development in our everyday life.

Now we discuss the relevance of spiritual development to our personal and social life.

16. What is the relevance of spiritual development to our personal life?

The relevance of spiritual development to our personal life is that it is the kind of development that makes us totally and finally happy.

Material development is the development of the material things around us. We produce more and more material goods that we can see, and feel with our hands, like food, shelter and clothing. And money is the usual symbol of this kind of development. It is the medium of exchange for material things. The more money a person has, the more able he or she is of acquiring material things. Money can buy goods, like food, but it cannot buy happiness. It can buy something to fill our stomachs but it cannot buy that which can satisfy the human heart, like love. You cannot buy love, although you can rent a body for sexual pleasure.

Material things may make us wealthy but they cannot make us happy. We have examples upon examples of persons who were wealthy but unhappy. On the other hand we know of persons who are not wealthy but who are happy. Maybe you are one of these not so wealthy but happy persons. What makes them happy? Deep inside they are satisfied with what they have because their spirits are developed, they have reached a stage where they no longer desire lots of these material things. Spiritual development enables a person to be happy amidst material scarcity.

17. What is the relevance of spiritual development to our social life?

The relevance of spiritual development to our social life is that it is the kind of development that can produce harmonious relationships in the family and in society.

When we realize that we are all also spirits, not just bodies needing this and that, but spirits who can create this and that, we will no longer be greedy. We are greedy because we think that there is not much to share. So we grab what we can, forgetful of the neighbor, whether he/she has something or nothing. When we realize our being spirits, we will share because it is in the nature of the spirit to create and share, like what God is and does. He is spirit and he created all things to share with his creatures.

Tomorrow we will discuss the relevance of spiritual development to our religious life.


Click Here!

Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

A Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 5)

Yesterday the meaning of “development” in the phrase “spiritual development” was discussed. Development is the uncovering of the seed of the spirit in us.

Now we discuss more about this seed and begin showing the relevance of our topic to our everyday life.

14. Yes, Jesus said that in Luke 8:11 but he was referring to the kingdom of God. He was not talking about the spirit. Do you mean to say that seed of the kingdom of God is also the seed of the spirit?

Yes, the seed of the kingdom of God is also the seed of the spirit. For the kingdom of God is his spirit, wherever his spirit reigns. That is why Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21). The spirit is within us.

And that is why when the spirit is born in us we enter into the kingdom of God (John 3:5-6). Notice what Jesus says in the sixth verse. What is born of the flesh is flesh, what is born of the spirit is spirit. The seed of our human father is the seed of the flesh. Through this seed we were born into this world, a being with flesh. The seed of the spirit is the word of God. Through this seed we are born as spirit into the kingdom of God. That is why verse 5 says we enter into the kingdom of God when we are born of the spirit. The kingdom of God, therefore, is a kingdom of spirits.

15. But why are we discussing these things now? What is the relevance of all this discussion in our daily lives? Maybe what we need more is economic or financial development because our need now is money to buy what we need such as food, clothing, shelter, medicines, education and other things?

Yes, most people think that what they need is money. With money they can buy what they need, such as food, and with money they can buy what they want, such as a beautiful house, a nice car, etc.

But paradoxically (that is, it sounds like a contradiction) most people are poor materially, are poor financially and poor in many other senses of the word “poor” because they have not developed spiritually. They do not realize that the things we see (such as money) come from things we do not see (such as the spirit). Hebrews 11:3 says, “By faith we understand that the world was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was made out of things which do not appear.”

A long time ago Jesus knew about this objection in the question above. That is why he said in Matthew 6:31-33, “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles (non-Jews, who do not know the real God) seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well”. And we said above that the kingdom of God is the spirit of God. So seek first the spirit of God, develop this spirit of God, and what you need will be given to you.

Tomorrow we rest. When we resume on Sunday we shall discuss the relevance of spiritual development to our personal and social life.


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Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

A Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 4)

Yesterday we learned why most people think that human beings are composed only of body and soul.

Today we continue our primer on spiritual development. Our topic is on the meaning of “development” as applied to spiritual development.

10. You have already explained something about the spirit. This topic is about the development of the spirit. What do you mean by “development” in the phrase “spiritual development”?

The root meaning of development is uncovering. Notice that the word has the letters “velo”, which sounds like “veil”. “To de-velo” or “de-velop,” therefore, means “to take away the velo, the veil, to uncover, to unwrap.”

Development, then, means the result or act or state whereby uncovering is done.

When this uncovering is done we discover the real spirit. Then the spirit can grow, can uncover its potentialities. It can fly. It can fill the world.

11. Your meaning of development is interesting. It reminds us of planting seed in the ground and covering it with soil. The development of this seed involves the gradual growth of the seed upward taking away the soil which covers it. Does something similar happens in spiritual development?

Exactly. In spiritual development the seed of the spirit is planted in us. Then this seed grows uncovering that which covers it, our human ideas, actions and our environment. As this spirit grows its effects become more and more visible (since we cannot see the spirit itself, only its effects, just as we cannot see air or wind itself, only its effects).

12. Now, it is getting more interesting. Do you mean to say that the spirit has a seed just as a plant or animal or a human being has a seed?

Yes, the spirit has a seed, just like the plants, animals, and human beings.

13. And what is this seed? Where can we get it?

This seed is the word of God. And we get this seed from the Scriptures, because these contain the word of God.

In Luke 8:11 Jesus said, “The seed is the word of God.”

Tomorrow we will explain more about this seed of the spirit and the relevance of spiritual development in our life.


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Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 3)

We learned already that in addition to having a body and a soul, we also have a spirit. And we learned also the difference between the two. But most people think human beings are composed only of body and soul. Today we learn why this is so.

9. If the soul and the spirit are two different realities, how come very intelligent people like Thomas Aquinas have understood and taught that the human being is composed of body and soul?

Yes, you can read this in the book of Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, First Part, Question 75, that the human being is composed of body and soul. That was the opinion and teaching of people during his time, and even today, those who follow his teaching, say the same thing, that the human being is composed of body and soul.

This is because Thomas Aquinas and those who follow his teaching used Aristotelian philosophy or ideas to describe the human being. Aristotle, the great Greek philosopher, taught that the human being is composed of body and soul. When people like Thomas Aquinas studied their philosophy they adopted the terminology used by Aristotle. They accepted his ideas as a good means to explain the message of God in the Bible. One of these ideas of Aristotle is that the human being is composed of body and soul. So they accepted this idea of Aristotle and used this to explain the human being.

Philosophers like Thomas have a maxim which in Latin reads, Quidquid recipitur ad modum recipientis recipitur. In English it reads, Whatever is received is received according to the manner of the receiver. A simple but very clear explanation of this is water. Water takes the form of the container which receives it. If the container is a bottle that water has the form of a bottle. If the container is a basin, then the form of the water is the basin.

The teachings of the Bible were received according to the ideas of Aristotle by Thomas Aquinas and other philosophers. These ideas of Aristotle were, as it were, the container which received the teachings in the Bible. Since in the ideas of Aristotle the human being was composed of body and soul, the teachings of the Bible had to be understood also in terms of the human being as composed of body and soul. That is why these people thought that the human being was composed of body and soul.

But actually these people realized that the ideas of Aristotle were deficient in teaching about the body and soul in the human being. Aristotle taught that when the human being dies, the soul also dies. These people did not accept this teaching of Aristotle. They understood and taught that the human soul does not die with the death of the body but it is immortal. It cannot die.

So for these people the spirit was a function of the soul of the human being, not something that composes the human being together with the body and the soul.

Tomorrow we are going to discuss the meaning of “development” as applied to spiritual development.


Click Here!

Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 2)

We continue our Primer on Spiritual Development. Yesterday we learned the basic meaning of spiritual development, how do we know that we have a spirit, and the basic meaning of spirit. Today we shall learn about the difference between a spirit and a soul.

4. Is the spirit the same as the soul?

Some people think that the soul is the same as the spirit. This is what we read in the dictionary. Another meaning of “spirit” in the dictionary is “soul.” This is the teaching of some of the great philosophers and theologians, like Thomas Aquinas.

But there are passages in the Bible which clearly indicate that the spirit is different from the soul. In 1 Thessalonians 5:23 we read, “May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (we use the Revised Standard Version). This passage tells us that the whole of us is composed of spirit, soul, and body. In Luke 1:46 and 47 we have Blessed Mary saying, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” She referred to her soul, she also referred to her spirit. So they are two different realities, the soul and the spirit.

Furthermore there are passages in the Bible where we cannot substitute one for the other. If they are the same it means that they are interchangeable. Instead of writing soul we can write spirit and instead of writing spirit we can write soul and the meaning would still be the same. But we cannot do this in certain passages in the Bible, like in John 3:8. We cannot say, ‘so it is with every one who is born of the soul’, instead of “born of the spirit”. In fact we never read an expression like “born of the soul” in the Bible. Again in Romans 8:15 we cannot say ‘For you did not receive the soul of slavery’ instead of “the spirit of slavery”.

So it is clear that the soul is different from the spirit.

5. What then is the distinction between the soul and the spirit? How do we know that this is a soul and not spirit, and vice versa, this is a spirit and not a soul?

The soul and spirit are different in source, in function and in destiny, although they have similarities. The similarities are that they are both invisible and both are inside of the human being. But they come from different realities, they operate differently, and their destination is different.

6. How are the spirit and the soul different in source?

While it is true that all things come from God because he created all things, the spirit comes directly from God. The truth is that our spirit is begotten of God. God does not create our spirit, he begets it, he makes it to be born from him. But the soul is created by God like he created the human body. When God created the human body he created the soul along with it because the body cannot function without a soul. A body without a soul is dead. That is why Aristotle said that even animals have souls. The body of the animals cannot be a living body without a soul.

Thus we read in Genesis 1:27, “So God created the human being in his own image, in the image of God he created him.” This human being was not only body. It had also a soul, and God created the body along with the soul.

7. How are the spirit and soul different in function?

The function of the soul is to make the body live. That is why it is also called the principle of life. Without the soul, the body is just plain matter, like meat in the market. But with the soul the body breathes. In this sense all living animals and plants have souls.

On the other hand the function of the spirit is to make the soul live. That is why the spirit is the breath of life. So, we read in Genesis 2:7, “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.” Here also we know that the spirit and soul are not the same. The word “breath” here can also be translated as “spirit”. The spirit or wind was breathed by God into the man, and the man became a living soul. The spirit caused the soul in man to live. That is its function, to make the soul live. When the spirit goes back to God, the soul dies, and the body also dies. It becomes a corpse. A soul cannot act separately from the body. But the spirit can act independently of the soul or body.

On the natural plane the soul is the most precious thing a man or woman can have, because without this soul, his or her body would just be meat. Even if a person has all the money in the world, even if he has all the world, if he or she does not have a soul, he or she is just meat, unable to do anything. That is why Jesus said, “For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? Or what shall a man give in return for his life?” (Matthew 16:26). The obvious answer is “Nothing.”

But even this soul cannot live without the spirit. The spirit makes our soul live and is our link with God. That is why Jesus said that without being born of the spirit we cannot enter into the kingdom of God (John 3:5).

So the function of the soul is to make the body live and the function of the spirit is to make the soul live and operate.

8. How are the spirit and soul different in destiny?

The destiny of the soul is to praise God, and the destiny of the spirit is to enjoy God. We find this in the beautiful hymn of Blessed Mary, the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:46-47). She said, “My soul magnifies the Lord.” The word “magnifies” means “makes the Lord great, glorifies, praises.” Then she added, “And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” The word “rejoice” means “to have joy in, to enjoy.” In other words, Mary’s soul praised God, and her spirit had joy in God. This is the experience of every person who becomes a Christian in adult life: He praises God and he feels joy in God.

In heaven by our body we will be able to sense God, by our soul we will be praising God, and by our spirit we will be enjoying God.

Tomorrow we shall learn why very many people think that the soul and the spirit are the same, particularly in the human being, and so they conclude that the human being is composed only of body and soul.


Click Here!

Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

Primer on Spiritual Development (Part 1)

Today we begin a series of question and answer to serve as a Primer on Spiritual Development. Feel free to comment at the space in the bottom or ask questions about this topic.

1. What is spiritual development?

Spiritual development is the development of the spirit in us. Just as physical development is the development of our physical component—our body—and mental development is the development of our mental component—our mind—so also spiritual development is the development of our spiritual component, the spirit in us.

2. It is quite obvious that we have a physical component, a body, and a mental component, a mind. So it is clear that we can have physical and mental development. But it is not clear that we can have spiritual development. First of all, how can we know that we have a spirit?

We can know that we have a spirit by knowing the meaning of spirit and by reflecting on our own life to detect the manifestations or indications of the spirit in us.

3. What is this spirit?

The word “spirit” comes from the Latin word “spiritus”. This word “spiritus” (which in Latin means “breath”) in turn is a translation of the Greek word “pneuma”. Pneuma basically means the wind or the air in motion. Thus pneuma or spiritus or spirit is that component of the human being which cannot be seen, like the air, but which moves the human being to do what he/she wants to do, like the wind. Some think of the spirit as an invisible force which inspires people to do what they want to do.

But the spirit is more than a force, because force does not necessarily have a mind, like the typhoon, or the force of a flood. But as we will see later on a spirit can have a mind, can know, can love. The spirit can be a person.

Tomorrow we continue with this Primer.


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Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

A Site on Spiritual Development

Spiritual development is the topic of this blog. I discuss ideas here that can help us develop spiritually, grow in our inner life and enjoy life to the fullest. As we go along we shall discover that everything else in life can be related to our spiritual life.

While the spiritual life cannot be separated from our physical and material life, it is governed by principles and processes which are uniquely its own. We will discuss those principles and processes here. We will find that the principles and processes of the spiritual life have analogies with the principles and processes in the physical and material life that enable us to understand better the development of the spiritual life.

I welcome your contributions to this blog on spiritual development. Together we shall understand better the workings of our inner life and hopefully achieve that inner peace and harmony which is beyond our understanding. I also welcome your questions on this topic, spiritual development.

Tomorrow I will begin writing here a simple, brief primer on spiritual development.


Click Here!

Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.