|
July 6th, 1915
Received by James Padgett
Washington D.C.
I am here, a stranger, but a spirit interested in the work that
you are doing for the Master, and also for many spirits, good and
bad.
I am writing by permission of your band, and hence, do not feel
that I am intruding. So if you will kindly bear with me, I will
say a few words.
I am a spirit in love with the efforts that you and your band are
making to help the unfortunates who come to you with such pitying
tales of suffering and darkness, and ask for help. I was once, when
on earth, a man who suffered much because of my spiritual darkness,
and not until late in life did I find the way to my Father's Love
through prayer and faith - and even then I had many erroneous beliefs
caused by the interpretations of the Bible then obtaining in the
church of which I was a member - but since coming to the spirit
land I have learned the truth, and have gotten rid of any old erroneous
beliefs; and thank God, I am in the way that leads to life everlasting.
I was a teacher when on earth of what I thought were Bible truths,
and I know that some good resulted from my teachings, although they
were mixed with errors - but I have met many spirits of men who
listened to my teachings, and believed many things that I taught.
So you see, that even if the churches do teach many false doctrines
in their creeds, yet mixed with these false doctrines are many truths,
and these truths often find lodgment in the hearts of the hearers,
and result in their finding the Light and Love of the Father.
I am still teaching mortals whenever it is possible to do. But
I find that my task is a difficult one, because there are so few
mediums who are capable of receiving the truths of the higher things
of life, and the impressions that I make on mortals by the exercise
of suggestions are not very encouraging to them or to me. Sometimes
the impressions are received and understood but very often they
have no effect.
If we could have more writing mediums, such as yourself, who are
interested in these higher truths, and would believe that we could
communicate such truths to them, the salvation of mankind kind would
become much more rapid. But as Jesus said, the harvest is ripe and
the laborers are few.
You have a mission, which is greatly to be envied, I mean in the
best sense, because you by the exercise of your duties become the
medium between the Master and man. And I want to tell you that such
a mission is a glorious one, and will bring to you untold blessings
because you have now, and will have with increasing power the influences
of the higher world of spirits and angels.
The one Great Spirit, I mean the Master, is with you very often,
and seems to love you so much, and his love and power are beyond
comprehension. He is your friend and brother and the association
with such a one will give you much spiritual excellence and power,
which men have not often possessed.
At the same time that this mission holds forth so much glory and
power, it also brings with it a great responsibility, and one which
will demand of you the exercise of all your love and faith and energy.
So you see with the great favor comes responsibility.
I have written rather longer than I intended to when I commenced,
and I will now stop.
I live in the second Celestial Sphere where live your grandmother
and mother and wife.
Well, I did not have the love and faith that they had, and my progress
was very slow, and hence, they have overtaken me in my spiritual
progress. They are wonderful spirits and have so much of the Father's
Love in their souls.
I was a preacher, and lived the life of one after I separated from
the church in which I had been taught the doctrines. My name was
Martin Luther. Yes, Martin Luther, the Monk.
I now see that my teaching of justification by faith, is not of
itself, sufficient for man's salvation. The true doctrine is that
of the New Birth. I mean that with faith must come the inflowing
of the Divine Love of the Father into the souls of men. Merely having
faith will not suffice. Without this Love faith is futile, except
as it may help to bring the Love.
So you see that while I was in my teachings an improvement on what
I had been taught, yet I did not preach the great essential of the
New Birth in the sense in which Jesus taught it and which should
be understood by mankind.
Faith without works is not sufficient. Works without faith will
not bring about the great results desired; and both faith and works
without the New Birth or the acquiring of the Divine Love of the
Father, are not sufficient to bring salvation to mankind.
Love is the fulfilling of the Law and Divine Love is the Essence
of the Father, which, when possessed by men makes them one with
Him. Let all men know that of all Divine Things, Divine Love is
the divinest and makes man part of Divinity Itself.
Well, I have regretted so very much that my followers, believing
in my teachings, worship Jesus as God. Oh, the great error of this
belief and how much injury it has done and is now doing to men and
spirits!
But, thank God I see the truth breaking into the consciences and
minds of many of my followers, and I hope the time is not far distant
when this great heresy will no longer be believed.
And the other false doctrine which is common to all the orthodox
churches, has caused much unhappiness and infidelity and disappointment
both in the mortal world and in the spirit world. That is that Jesus'
blood saves from sin or that he made a vicarious sacrifice to appease
the wrath of an angry God, and thereby removed from men the penalties
and burdens of their sins. This false doctrine has caused more men
to lose their soul development, and rest secure in a false belief
that they were saved from sin and immune from punishment, than has
any dogma taught by the churches.
No blood, no death on the cross and no vicarious atonement saves
a man from his sins and the resultant expiations, but Love, the
Divine Love of the Father, which Jesus brought to the world and
declared the way in which it might be obtained, and that it is free
for all the Father's children, saves from sin both on earth and
the spirit world.
I must stop now and will come to you again if agreeable.
No I am not. To me all men are the children of God, and I have
long since forgotten any distinction between the Germans and the
other races of mankind.
But war is cruel and unholy and without valid excuse, and should
never arise. With the love of a brother who wants all men to seek
the light. I am the former monk and reformer.
Martin Luther
|
