“It is I; Don’t be afraid.” (John 6:20)

Why is this miracle so important?

After the miracle of the loaves and fish, Jesus went up alone to the hills to pray to the Supreme Being. As the darkness of the evening came, the boat with his disciples was out on the sea and a storm had brewed up, so Jesus walked out to the boat.

When the disciples saw him, they became fearful. Jesus responded with the above statement.

This miracle of Jesus is certainly well known. Why? Because many do not trust in the Supreme Being. Many might believe in God's existence, but few trust Him and rely upon Him.

And this is one reason for Jesus' miracles: For those who do not trust that God will take care of us. In other words, we need to be impressed. They need to see something extraordinary before we can trust that the Supreme Being is in control, and He can send His messenger.

As for Jesus' students, they already believed in the existence of the Supreme Being. Rather, Jesus was trying to show them that he was God's representative and that the Supreme Being gave him authority. 

What was Jesus trying to show them?

He was trying to show them that they could rely upon the Supreme Being.

What Jesus was trying to teach his disciples was trust: That they need to trust that God will take care of them. This is more clear in Matthew and Mark, where Jesus asked Peter to step out onto the water and walk out to him. After Peter doubted that he could after seeing the wind, he became afraid and called to Jesus to save him. To this, Jesus said:

"You of little faith, why did you doubt?" (Matt. 14:31) 

The kind of faith that Jesus is speaking of here is not about believing that God exists. Peter certainly believed that God existed, as he was one of Jesus' most ardent students.

The faith that Jesus is speaking of is trust. Jesus wants Peter to trust that God will take care of him. Jesus wants Peter to trust that not matter what happens, the Supreme Being is there for him. He wanted him to realize that he could rely upon the Supreme Being.

This is also the case when Jesus was walking on the water, and spoke the words above to his disciples not to be afraid. Jesus wanted his disciples to understand that if one relies upon the Supreme Being, God will take care of him. Even if it means being able to walk on water.

The lesson is that each of us can rely upon the Supreme Being as well. Whatever calamity may exist before us, God is in complete control. And He cares for each and every one of us.

God is perfect, and everything that happens, happens with His authority. However, at the same time, He is always giving us the freedom of choice, as well as the ability to suffer the consequences of our prior actions. So it is not like He is pulling puppet strings or something. He is truly allowing us the ability to make our own decisions, as well as learn from those decisions.

What is the purpose of the physical world?

It is a training ground, complete with consequences. When we do something that helps others, we are rewarded with the consequences of helping others. When we do something that hurts others, we are punished by the consequences of that action. In both instances, we are being taught by the physical environment so that we can grow.

But why do we need to grow? We need to grow because we fell to the lowest point in existence: We rejected God. We decided that we didn't want to love and serve God: We decided that we wanted to be God. This, of course, is the story of Adam. Adam is analogous to each of us. Each of us disobeyed God and decided to eat of the forbidden fruit: The fruit of envy: The fruit of self-enjoyment.

Consider the parable of Adam and Eve in Genesis. God told Adam:

"you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." (Gen. 2:17)

But then the serpent said:

"You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Gen. 3:4-5)

The serpent, of course, is analogous to self-centeredness - the desire to enjoy. Thus we can understand that the fruit was analogous to becoming envious of God ("you will be like God").

So was God lying to Adam when He told Adam that if he ate the fruit he would die? Is God a liar?

Did Adam die?

Adam indeed did die, but he died spiritually. Once he ate the fruit of envy of God, he could no longer love God. He became self-centered, and thus could no longer dwell in the spiritual dimension, where love is the environment. God confirmed this in this statement:

And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever."(Genesis 3:22)

In other words, because he became envious of God ("like one of us"), Adam could not taste love for God. Love for God is the "tree of life." So Adam was tossed out of the spiritual world:

So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After He drove the man out, He placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life. (Genesis 3:23-4)

God "drove" Adam out of the spiritual world - the Garden of Eden - as a result of his eating of the fruit of envy, in other words. He also put a barrier in place to prevent Adam from getting back to the spiritual world and resuming love for God: This is the illusion of the physical world, which prevents us from accessing the spiritual dimension.

So where did Adam go, if he were banished from the Garden of Eden? Adam assumed a physical body in the physical world. This is confirmed:

The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. (Gen. 3:21)

What are "garments of skin?"

Most depictions of this event show Adam suddenly getting an animal skin to wear. But the text does not say he was given an animal skin. He says they were given "garments of skin."

This means they were given physical bodies. A physical body is a garment of skin. A physical body is a cloak or a covering over the spiritual individual.

This is illustrated at death. When the body dies, the spiritual individual leaves and the body drops lifeless to the ground. It is no different than removing clothes: All day we may be walking around in our clothes, but at the end of the day, we take them off, and they will lie lifeless on the ground.

Furthermore, "to work the ground from which he had been taken" illustrates that the body Adam was given came from the physical world ("ground").

The bottom line of this affair is that if Adam had trusted that God was telling him not to eat the analogous fruit of envy for his own good he would not have eaten it. Rather, Adam did not trust that God had his interest at heart. Adam doubted God and distrusted God.

This same distrust exists within us even as we are in these physical bodies. We distrust when God comes to ask us to come home to Him. We distrust God's representatives when they tell us that God will take care of us and we can rely upon Him.

What keeps us away from God?

Distrust keeps us away from God. This distrust simply keeps us here in this world of suffering:

"Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life." (Gen. 3:17)

In other words, the fruit of envy and self-centeredness causes us nothing but suffering. This is what the physical world teaches us.

God also has mercy, however. He truly cares for us. Should we decide to change, we have a way back home, back to the spiritual world (Garden of Eden). That way has been delivered by God's representative:

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment.” (Matt. 22:37-38)

"I did one miracle, and you are all astonished ..." (John 7:21-24)

"I did one miracle, and you are all astonished. Yet, because Moses gave you circumcision - though actually it did not come from Moses, but from the patriarchs - you circumcise a child on the Sabbath. Now if a child can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing the whole man on the Sabbath? Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment." (John 7:21-24) 

What does healing on the Sabbath have to do with circumcision?

Jesus is arguing the logic of institutional temple officials who were criticizing Jesus for healing a person on the Sabbath. Jesus is questioning them: Why do they permit circumcision on the Sabbath but not healing?

Both healing and circumcision are activities that relate to the physical body. In the case of circumcision, the issue is cleanliness. Circumcision during a time when bathing was not as available helped save men from getting infected.

This is now a proven part of the scientific record. Men who are circumcised tend to get fewer genital infections.

Healing is not that different because it also has to do with the health of the physical body. Jesus was healing people's physical bodies. This can be comparable to circumcision because of its positive effect on the health of the body.

Where does circumcision come from?

Jesus also points out that the instruction to circumcise came not from Moses, but from the patriarchs. Who are the patriarchs?

The patriarchs are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. These are considered the preeminent messengers of God prior to Moses.

Jesus was right. We find these verses in the Book of Genesis:

[God speaking to Abraham]"This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you." (Genesis 17:10-11)

This indicates that Jesus was well-versed in the scriptures we now describe as the Old Testament. While the teachers at the Temple referred to circumcision in relation to Moses, Jesus knew the teaching preceded Moses.

Was Jesus disavowing Moses?

Jesus was in no way indicating a lack of deference to Moses. He was stating a fact, that the teaching of circumcision did not originate with Moses.

Jesus acknowledged Moses' position as God's representative repeatedly. In fact, Jesus' central teaching was also the central teaching of Moses. Here is Jesus quoting Moses:

"'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment." (Matt. 22:37-38)

Moses' student, Joshua, after Moses passed, also taught the same message:

"But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, to obey His commands, to hold fast to Him and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul." (Jos 22:5)

In fact, all of the bona fide prophets and teachers of the Bible taught the same basic instruction, even though they also had specific instructions intended for their particular students, time and circumstance.

Why did Jesus heal people?

Jesus performed a minimal number of healings. He didn't heal everyone. He didn't open a hospital and take on the responsibility of healing everyone that was sick.

Rather, Jesus' healings were intended to increase people's faith in God. The purpose was to focus their attention on the power and authority of the Supreme Being. Jesus used his healings to project this instruction.

This is why his healings would be acceptable activities during the Sabbath. There was a spiritual purpose for them. They were not rituals.

Jesus is pointing out that these institutional temple authorities had put ritual ahead of purpose. They were not cognizant of the purpose of the instructions and the service of God's representatives.

The various rules and regulations given by the messengers of God (such as Moses, Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon, Jonah and Jesus) are meant to ultimately bring their followers closer to God. 

Yet we can easily see that some of those instructions were specific to a time and circumstance, and others were not. We can see this throughout the Bible, from the Old Testament leading up to the days of Jesus, and then amongst Jesus' disciples.

What is the purpose of God's messengers?

We can see from this chronology of teachers that the Bible is a history of the lives and teachings of God's messengers and their followers.

We can also see from the examples of Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Jacob, Isaac, Eli, David, Solomon and so many other great messengers from the Bible that each held in the highest regard, the instructions of their teacher, their teacher's teacher and so on.

Even Jesus illustrated this as he accepted initiation (baptism) from John the Baptist.

Each of these messengers from God, after receiving instructions from their teacher, presented instructions to their students, as God had empowered them to.

This is because following the teachings of God's messengers is critical to the success of our spiritual lives.

Not doing so can and has resulted in many speculative interpretations.

Hypocrisy in the name of Jesus?

The prime example of this sort of speculation is that today, many ecclesiastical sectarian teachers are teaching that we don't need a teacher because we can go directly to Jesus. Yet isn't it interesting that they need to teach us this? If they are teaching this, then they are a teacher. 

It is hypocritical to teach that a person does not need a teacher. It is also hypocritical to teach without having first been a student.

We can tell immediately that a person does not know Jesus or represent God when he gives this contradictory teaching. It means their teachings make no sense. Can we trust any other statement they may make about Jesus?

It might be said that a person with an official title of priest, minister, reverend, bishop, cardinal, or even pope should be authorized to represent Jesus and God because they were a student attended an official school and that school maintained teachers. However, are those teachers representing God or representing their respective ecclesiastical organizations?

The crux of the matter is how those teachers gained their positions of authority. These official seminaries and Bible colleges select their teachers by committee: A committee of men. This selection by committee is a political process (ecclesiastical). 

The candidate must impress the committee with their resume, credentials, reputation, interview and recommendations (who they know, in other words). This is no different from a candidate running for political office. It has nothing to do with representing God.

This is also how priests, reverends, ministers, bishops, cardinals, and popes are chosen for their respective titles or positions as teachers within a church. They are chosen by an election of a committee. In the case of Protestant churches, there is typically a church committee called the deacons. 

Once again, the candidate must impress the committee with their resume, credentials, reputation, interview and recommendations. This is a political process that does not represent God's empowerment.

Can God's representatives be elected by people?

A central reason why these sectarian organizations are hypocritical is that their teachers and officials are elected using a political process. Regardless of the type of committee, politics is always involved when a person must impress a group of people.

Again, this has nothing to do with representing the Supreme Being. For example, if a prime minister was elected by the people of Spain, could that leader represent the people of England? No. 

The elected leader can only represent those who elected him or her. In the same way, sectarian officials elected or appointed by people can only represent those who elected or appointed them. They can not represent the Supreme Being unless God chose them to represent Him.

But can't those officials elected by these committees also be chosen by God? No. Why? Because the Supreme Being is offended by a person who pretends to be His representative when they are not. 

A person who puts on the big robes, the crown, or whatever dress, and then accepts the title given by men cannot be in a position as God's representative without being empowered by the Supreme Being.

Such a person elected by men may well be a kind and considerate person. But God will never empower that person unless they abandon their fake position and go through the heart-changing process of developing a relationship with Him.

This is only logical. Let's say a person pretends they are an employee of a company when he is not. Say he goes out and sells the company's product, collects people's money, and then cannot ship the product. 

He is basically stealing the money while pretending to be part of the company. Will the company's management then hire him while he is stealing from their potential customers? Certainly not. The company would have the person arrested.

What if the fake employee quit the scam and came to the company and asked for a job? Would the company hire him? Think again. The only way they would hire him is on the condition that he gave back all the money and rectified all the lying and stealing they had done first.

As Jesus identified in a previous statement, the only way we can see who is empowered by God is if we sincerely want to do God's will. We must have the desire to do God's will in order to see who is doing God's will, as did Jesus, his disciples, John the Baptist, David, Isaac, Moses, Abraham, Solomon, Jacob, Jonah and so many others depicted in the scriptures.

This is why Jesus said:

"For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of Him who sent me." (John 6:38)"

"For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see ..." (John 9:39)

"For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind." (John 9:39) 

What does 'for judgment' mean?

Jesus makes this statement as the man healed from his blindness bowed and worshiped him.

However, the translation* is questionable.

Here the Greek word κρίμαa (krima) can be translated to 'judgment,' but then the sentence does not make sense. The word κρίμαa (krima) can mean a 'decree, judgment or decision'. 

The word before κρίμαa is εἰς (eis), which can be translated to 'into, unto, to, towards, for, among'. Therefore, the more appropriate translation of the phrase εἰς κρίμαa would be something along the lines of:

"it has been decided..."

Why did Jesus 'come into the world'?

Jesus has spoken about this elsewhere. He has clearly stated that God sent him, and his teachings are not his own, but come from God:

"I have not come on my own; but He sent me." (John 8:42)

"For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it." (John 12:49)

"The words I say to you are not just my own." (John 14:10)

So how can Jesus be anyone’s judge or make anyone blind or not blind outside of God’s authority? How could Jesus say that all his teachings are God’s and not his, yet be interpreted as saying that Jesus now can sit in judgment as God does?

In other words, Jesus has come into the world by God’s command. God made a decision to send him into "this world."

And what does Jesus mean by "this world?" "World" has been translated from the Greek word κόσμος (kosmos). According to Thayer's lexicon, κόσμος can also be used to describe "the ungodly multitude; the whole mass of men alienated from God." Now how does this sit in the context of Jesus' statement, where he is reflecting on the man being healed of blindness?

Here Jesus is referring to the physical world - that place where those who have rejected God dwell. In this physical world, we spiritual living individuals are operating temporary physical bodies in an attempt to gain fulfillment away from God. Just as a driver steps into a car to drive, we have stepped into these physical bodies in an attempt to enjoy independently of God. This is because we, at some point, became envious of God. We sought what God has. This is why the serpent told Adam:

"For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:5)

"You will be like God" is the crux. This indicates the symbolism regarding why Adam ate the "forbidden fruit." Adam represents each of us, and the fruit represents our desire to become like God.

Why do we want to be like God?

To desire what someone else has means we have become envious.

When a person becomes envious of someone, any relationship between them is over. This is what happened to us. We became envious of the Supreme Being. We wanted to enjoy like God. We wanted to have others worship us rather than worship Him.

So God sent us away from Him. In order to exercise our desire to be God, we had to be separated from Him:

The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. (Genesis 3:21)

So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. (Genesis 3:23)

What are "garments of skin"?

Are we talking animal skins or something? No. We are talking about our physical bodies - they are made of skin. In other words, the Supreme Being gave us physical bodies to dwell in, because our spiritual selves had become contaminated by our envy and self-centeredness.

Then it says Adam was "banished" from the Garden of Eden. This symbolizes that we were pushed out of the spiritual world and put into the physical world - where we 'wear' our new physical skins - these temporary physical bodies.

The physical world allows us to exercise our envy. We can try to make others worship us. We can pretend to be the owner as we accumulate money and material goodies. In other words, we can try to play God here.

But here we can never own anything, and others' worship of us is false. Others only want their own stuff and think that if they pretend to worship us, they will get something in return. And the money and goodies? We lose everything at the time of death, if not earlier. So we own nothing.

The reality is, this physical world is a place of rehabilitation. It is designed to teach us about ourselves, with options to change. This is why there are so many lessons within this world. We are here to learn.

How so? The physical world is a place of consequence. It is a place where everything we do has a consequence - good and bad. If we hurt someone, we'll be hurt. If we help someone, we'll be helped.

What does this teach us?

It teaches us to care about others. It teaches us the meaning of relationships, and possibly even the meaning of love. Why? Because this is our original identity. The spiritual world, where we are from, is a place of love. It is a place where we have a personal loving relationship with God and we serve God and His associates within that relationship. This place, however, requires us to be purified to re-enter it.

For those who learn the preliminary lessons of caring for others, they become ready for their final step in the rehabilitation process. This is the step provided by God as He dispatches His representative to come to our aid in finalizing our rehabilitation and taking us home. This is God's mercy.

God's representative reintroduces us to the Supreme Being. He shows us how we can re-develop our loving relationship with God. It is a difficult process because it requires us to leave behind our hopes to enjoy like God. It requires us to give up our envy.

And those who will not give up their envy - those who will go to any lengths, even using God's teachings to try to dominate and take advantage of others - they will be sent back for more rehabilitation.

This is what Jesus means by "the blind will see and those who see will become blind." Those who have progressed in their rehabilitation process and are ready to hear the truth and renew their loving service relationship with God are enlightened by the teachings of God's representative. By following those teachings, they advance gradually, eventually returning to the Supreme Being at the end of their physical lifetime.

For those who reject God's representative - such as the institutional temple Pharisees and high priests rejected Jesus - they will return for more rehabilitation within the hellish "garments of skin" of the physical world.

For those who have graduated in their rehabilitation process to a point of being able to innocently hear Jesus' teachings - without trying to take advantage of them as have many of the officials of the ecclesiastical sectarian churches of today - they can graduate as they hear and act on Jesus' most important teaching:

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." (Mark 12:30)

*Here is the translation of this verse according to the Lost Gospels of Jesus:

“It was decreed that I come into this world so those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.” (John 9:39)