Living Two Lives

'Dividedness'

[QUOTING]

Paul (in Romans 7) speaks the words: 'Thus I find this law in me: when I want to do good, evil is present with me. Who will free me from the body of this death? Thanks be to God, Christ our Lord,' the pure, divine astral light. And then, in Romans 7, verse 26 there follows the accurate conclusion that he serves the law of God with his mind (which means to say, his soul) but that with his flesh (which means to say the nature-born personality), he serves the law of sin.

If we analyze this conclusion, we realize that many are in the same situation. As far as the mind, the soul is concerned, most of us are engaged in awakening in the Gnosis. By virtue of their soul-state, some people are being led into the life of the Children of God, into the life of glorification, and one can say of virtually all pupils of the young Gnosis that the life of the soul is a real joy to them.

So a mighty development of the soul aspect is underway. Pupils have an unmistakable, intense inner need to participate in the spiritual work and most spare no effort to do so. With their minds they are serving God's law. However, many remain in a state of miserable dividedness. With their minds, they serve the law of God as far as it is possible for them to do so, but with the personality, they are often driven by their earthly demons. With their personalities, they remain firmly attached to their type, to the character which has typified them since their youth. Thus, they are not yet free of their earthly personality, which is so much subject to the law of sin. As far as the soul is concerned, they are engaged in becoming newly-born, but as regards their personality, they are still entirely driven by their earthly demons.

Where lies the solution to this problem? Paul answers this question too, in Romans 8, a beautiful chapter in which he says, 'There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus; who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit. For they that are after the flesh, mind the things of the flesh, but they that are after the spirit, mind the things of the spirit'.

The full extent of the difficulty is explained in these words. You know a life of the needs of the awakening soul, in which you are completely satisfied. Quite apart from that is the life of every day, your life at home and in your position in society, and the intimate life behind the curtains of your own room, far, very far away from the Gnosis; completely one with your own type, your own character and the motive power of your earthly demons; the life, governed by the astral currents of the nature of death. Thus -- and there is no denying this --you live two lives.

This threatens to lead to your downfall. Although you may love the Gnosis ever so much, the divided state we have described will increase your misery hour-by-hour. For mind you, the astral influences of the nature of death are constantly increasing  in strength so that, if you do not intervene radically in your own life, you will be lost, even though you are soul-born.

How should you intervene? What is the formula?  Apart from living the life of the soul, you should no longer live according to the flesh, and you should apply yourself to this very consciously, scientifically and decidely. That is the only solution, however young or old you may be. The younger you are when you begin, the better, because if you lack resilience, if you can no longer summon up the necessary vitality in you nature-born state, it will be an almost impossible task.

'If you remain living according to the flesh, you will die'. Understand well what Paul means by this: in that case, you will remain imprisoned in the embryonic field and you will perish in the Cosmic Night. All the valuable soul-karma that has accumulated in your microcosm will then be destroyed. And in time, perhaps in a few hundred thousand years, you will be able to begin again. We say 'you', but we mean, 'your microcosm'.

'If you remain living according to the flesh, you will die. But if, through the spirit, you mortify the deeds of the body, you will live' as a True human being in God's great, joyful world.

Can one do that? Generally speaking, there is no answer to this question. We say, yes, you are able to do so, We have tried to make it clear that you possess the ability, and you can trace within yourself the extent to which this is so. But whatever your conclusion, you do possess an awakening new Soul-life. And in Romans 8, verse 11, Paul says: 'If the spirit of Christ dwells within you, He will also give life to your mortal body;'  your body will be taken up in this mighty process of Regeneration. So, as a person who is engaged in unfolding the soul, you are able to complete this work because this Power already dwells within you.

End Part I

[END QUOTING]

Excerpted from 'The Formula of the Path to Life" -- The Egyptian Arch-Gnosis And Its Call In The Eternal Present Vol. 3 by Jan van Rjickenborgh
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