{"id":112264,"date":"2025-03-20T12:05:22","date_gmt":"2025-03-20T19:05:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/?p=112264"},"modified":"2025-03-20T12:17:25","modified_gmt":"2025-03-20T19:17:25","slug":"easter-and-resurrection-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/archives\/112264-easter-and-resurrection-2","title":{"rendered":"Easter and Resurrection"},"content":{"rendered":"

“I am here to have an experience with the Christ. As I see it, that\u2019s not just part but the whole. It\u2019s integral to what we are all doing here. As it is a consciousness of God, it is pure and clear in the way that it comes to us. It\u2019s for each one of us to have our own discovery, our own awakening, to what that is.”<\/em> – John Morton<\/p>\n

This article appeared in the New Day Herald in 2010 and seems timely as Easter 2025 comes near.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Those\u00a0of us who are in some way charged to talk about the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness seem to repeat over and over again that the kingdom, the presence, our divinity, that which we focus upon, is within. This is the place of worship. What we focus upon and teach is that we are to go inside. We are to go into the kingdom within.<\/p>\n

Between Good Friday and the resurrection which is Easter\u00a0is a time when we celebrate that there is a consciousness in the Christ, of the Christ, that is not beholden to this world. The gospels of the New Testament talk about the time between the death and the rising, between the time when Jesus is \u201cnot here\u201d and when \u201cHe is here again.\u201d Jesus also referred to it as the raising of the temple. That\u2019s part of Jesus\u2019s own testament in advance of the events. He said that the temple would be brought down and then in three days it would be raised again.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s another aspect of this which would be the testing. To those who saw the death, part of the reaction was like, \u201cThis is the King of Jews?\u201d Since Jesus proclaimed himself a variety of things, there were arguments about whether he was proclaiming himself the Messiah.<\/p>\n

Jesus asked Peter, \u201cWho do you say I am?\u201d It was Peter who referred to Jesus as the Messiah. Jesus\u2019s response was, \u201cFlesh and blood did not reveal that to you.\u201d In other words, \u201cI didn\u2019t tell that to you, somebody or something else did.\u201d So, it wasn\u2019t Jesus\u2019s own proclaiming but the proclaiming of those who witnessed to him. What he was saying was, \u201cYour knowing of that, your experience of that, was of the Spirit.\u201d<\/p>\n

There\u2019s also an aspect of what and who the Messiah was that related to raising the dead, not just like Lazarus in the tomb or the child that died. If you go to the Eastern Gate of Jerusalem, which is also referred to as the Golden Gate, you\u2019ll see a large wall. The gate has been filled in. If you look closely, you can see that there\u2019s an arch there. Obviously, it was at one time designed to be a gate. You could say that maybe it was designed to look like a gate, but it\u2019s not really a gate, or maybe it\u2019s a gate for those who can pass through material things. But those who don\u2019t have the ability to go through walls don\u2019t go through, which makes an interesting point. Maybe the Messiah is of a spiritual nature or some nature that can penetrate material things, so they are not an obstruction.<\/p>\n

Scripture says, \u201cThe gates of hell shall not prevail against it\u201d [Matthew 16:8]. What does that mean? Whatever gates, walls, or obstructions hell has cannot prevail against what this is. Let\u2019s just consider that this gate wasn\u2019t really an issue for the Messiah. Whether or not it was walled up, if the Messiah is going to come through that gate, it\u2019s going to come through, period. At that time, there were those who foretold he would raise up those who were caught up in earthly bonds, or maybe in some form of hell or purgatory. Many people decided that it would be a good idea to be buried near the gate. If you go there, you\u2019ll see tombstones, basically a whole cemetery, right near the gate.<\/p>\n

Thinking practically, we might ask if when the Messiah comes, is he going to go thousands of miles away to raise the dead or will he start raising people close by? Personally, I\u2019d like to be one of the first to be raised up by the Messiah.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s much more important to consider who is the Christ, or to ask, \u201cWho is Jesus?\u201d My point of view is who that is, is alive. Who that is, is accessible. I\u2019m here to be a direct witness in my own experience, that I may speak in terms that are authentic and hold the energy that is the consciousness of truth that we share. This truth is something that is not dependent on anyone\u2019s interpretation or how I interpret or perceive it.<\/p>\n

I found out a long time ago that to attempt to articulate it or to give hard concrete evidence or empirical proof is futile. I don\u2019t really know how to do that, and I don\u2019t profess that I can do that for you. I am here to have an experience with the Christ. As I see it, that\u2019s not just part but the whole. It\u2019s integral to what we are all doing here. As it is a consciousness of God, it is pure and clear in the way that it comes to us. It\u2019s for each one of us to have our own discovery, our own awakening, to what that is.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t claim to have the ability of foresight, predicting or prophecy. I don\u2019t consider I need to have those abilities. It is my intention to be in high cooperation with the will of the Father, however that is working. I also want to do that with trust. I find that if I want to cooperate, I need to trust. That\u2019s the first step. It is calling upon me to reach in and find out where I find myself blind and don\u2019t understand.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m reminded about one of the scriptures from Jesus, \u201cThe kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u201d What was He saying? Was that meant to be literal? Or maybe it\u2019s invisible but touchable. Have you ever had an experience like that? I have. It\u2019s called electricity. It\u2019s invisible, but I feel it. So do you. There are lots of ways that we have those experiences of what is not apparent, what is very difficult to conceptualize or articulate.<\/p>\n

Consider that in between the death and the resurrection was this opportunity to trust and keep the faith. There\u2019s a part of the story where Jesus talked to Peter and said, \u201cBefore the cock crows three times, you\u2019re going to deny me three times.\u201d Peter is often associated with faith. Jesus was saying in effect, \u201cWhere is your faith? Where is your trust so that when they asked you if you knew me, are you with him, are you one of his guys, you said no?\u201d<\/p>\n

Peter had a good reason to deny. The people who questioned him looked like the people that arrested Jesus. If you were considering you were going to be arrested, imprisoned, tortured, or killed, maybe you wouldn\u2019t be so willing and upright yourself. It\u2019s easy to profess, \u201cOh, I would never deny. I would keep the faith. Jesus and me forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

The commandment here is that we love one another. That\u2019s what\u2019s been delivered. That\u2019s how they\u2019re going to know if you\u2019re part of the Christ. So maybe you need to leave some room so that you can say, \u201cI denied Him but after that I got around to the loving. I loved what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

At some point, each of us is on our own. Relying on someone to be the teacher, the interpreter, the intercessory, may at best be a stage in our development. There is value in having assistance and support in how this comes to us and how we wake up to our divine nature. But it\u2019s more important to realize that the consciousness of who and what that is lives in us as us. It\u2019s been born. It\u2019s been birthed. It\u2019s alive, walking, and breathing. We are to take responsibility for it.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important that we allow ourselves an opportunity to understand and appreciate the majesty and miraculous nature of God\u2019s work. Despite our best plans, God\u2019s plans will rule the day. I consider that\u2019s in our favor. God will dispense what needs dispensing, no matter what we think about it.<\/p>\n

Let me leave this with you. In the scripture Jesus started talking about the disciples that were near him, saying that when he was hungry, they fed him. When he was in prison they visited him. When he was sick, they took care of him. When he was without clothes or naked, they brought him clothes. Then the disciples had one of those moments and thought, \u201cWhat is he talking about?\u201d They asked him, \u201cJesus, when were we doing this?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jesus said, \u201cWhen you did it to the least one of them, my brethren, you did it unto me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Baruch Bashan<\/p>\n

\n
Blessing of Good Will<\/h6>\n

Lord, through Your beloved Jesus,
\nthat one who has prepared our way through the Christ,
\nwe do ask for understanding,
\nfor Your presence, to be with us again.
\nWe ask You to be anchored to us as a way of being and expression.
\nWe breathe You in.
\nLift from us, our doubts, our fears, again.
\nLet us come to You as Your children,
\nas those who gather with You in our innocence,
\nthat we have been cleansed.
\nWe have been clothed in what is clean and pure and beautiful.
\nYou have prepared a beautiful place for us
\nwhere we feast and celebrate.
\nWe gather as those who do love one another as You have loved us.
\nWe remember You again now.<\/p>\n

By our faith, we place our trust in You
\nand giving thanks
\nfor all that You have done to prepare, to set the tone.
\nWe put aside the clamoring and the confusion of the world
\nto be those who come in peace,
\nto have good will toward all,
\nto have a generosity of spirit,
\na place at our table, a willing hand.
\nWe give thanks for a beautiful place such as this,
\nthat we gather in Your beloved Spirit.<\/p>\n

Baruch Bashan<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

John gave the above blessing at an Easter seminar in March 1997. It is included along with many other of his beautiful blessings in his book\u00a0Blessings Here and Now<\/a>,\u00a0<\/em>available at msia.org\/shop<\/a>.<\/p>\n

EASTER 2025 EVENTS WITH JOHN MORTON<\/strong><\/p>\n

John is\u00a0participating in\u00a0three Easter\u00a0weekend\u00a0events this year:<\/p>\n

Good Friday Seminar<\/a><\/p>\n

Spiritual Exercises Workshop<\/a><\/p>\n

Easter, Resurrection \u00a0and the Covenant<\/a><\/p>\n

Information about each of these events, their pre-requisites, and how to register, is available on the calendar at msia.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“I am here to have an experience with the Christ. As I see it, that\u2019s not just part but the whole. It\u2019s integral to what we are all doing here. As it is a consciousness of God, it is pure and clear in the way that it comes to us. It\u2019s for each one of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":112266,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[258,266,261],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-112264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-christ-consciousness","category-featured","category-john-mortons-current-story"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112264"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112264\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/112266"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.msia.org\/newdayherald\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}