The Guiding Light of the Father's Love
Greetings and good morning brothers and sisters. This is Dr. James Perry continuing with our series
where we seek to explore the deeper meanings of our relationship with Jesus Christ. Over the years,
the heavenly Father has revealed many revelations of spiritual truth to me, and I want to share them
with you. This morning we seek to understand the guiding light of the Father's love.
And now, sit back and listen to today's message.
The Guiding Light of the Father's Love
"Jesus saith unto him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father,
but by me.'" John, Chapter 14, Verse 6.
Brothers and sisters, the guiding light of love is truth. Always does the light of love guide the true
of heart. Always does the light of love supply our souls with the true values of love. And while the
meaning of the value itself is experienced in our minds, the value itself is experienced in our souls.
In our moral lives, our moral wills are constantly confronted with the choice of choosing the
emerging values of goodness. These values are selected by the Spirit of Truth.
The experiencing of new values in our souls prior to choosing by our moral wills creates a conflict
in our minds as we wrestle with the old meanings embraced by the old values, and the new meanings
embraced by the new values. This conflict continues until our moral wills choose. The guiding light
of love seeks to aide our moral will in choosing the higher values rather than the now familiar values,
by emphasizing the new values.
When we choose the higher value, the conflict disappears, and we experience fullness of the meaning
of the new value. If we choose the lower value, the conflict also disappears. However, in the place
of the new meaning of the new value will be the meaning of lowered self esteem. When we lower
our moral standards, we (often unconsciously) experience loss of self-respect and feel worthless,
which is a loss of value. This state is accompanied by psychic pain, more or less.
Psychic pain then becomes a stimulus for discipline, which serves to keep our souls on track. When
we retreat from moral struggles, we sacrifice truth. This unfailingly brings about a harvest of
emotional pain, suffering, and disappointment. After all, the command of life is progress: "Be you
perfect even as the heavenly Father is perfect." Our souls must not shrink from the disagreeable
realities of moral life. Instead, our souls must move vigorously in the direction of the Father's ideals.
And while it is true that our souls encounter difficulty at almost every turn as they try to practically
adapt their ideals to the rigorous requirements of daily living, nevertheless our souls can remain true
to their purpose--finding the heavenly Father through his Son, Jesus, and becoming like him in the
very process.
But often, in the course of pursuing the light of the Father's love, the needs of the self begin to re-
emerge, almost unconsciously. It is not absolutely under the control of the Father's will. Slowly the
impulses of resentment, anger, and impatience appear. We must jealousy guard our dedication to
doing the Father's will, for if we do not the self will sabotage our purpose. This happens because the
self, realizing that the moral will has chosen to do the Father's will, resents its resources being
directed to serve the interest of the higher self, the divine spirit. The self also enjoys the sometimes
material success associated with doing the Father's will. The self, not quite fully understanding that
occasional material successes are by-products, pursues the Father's will for these same by-products,
rather than for the sake of achieving a spiritual ideal. As it pursues the Father's will for this purpose,
it suffers frustration, disappointment, and resentment. There is only one way out of such a
predicament.
Pursuing the light of love must be our soul's delight--not the material results which may or may not
materialize within an acceptable time period. We must only concern ourselves with the display of
divine goodness, the wholehearted pursuit of the Father's will. We must learn to delight in showing
love, patience, mercy, and forgiveness. We must insist on the spiritual definition of success--the
revelation of the Father's love through his Son, Jesus.
All moral experiences--no matter how disagreeable--provide an opportunity for the divine light of
love to shine. The greater the darkness of evil, the brighter the light of love shines. All moral
experiences provide an opportunity to show love and patience, to practice mercy and forgiveness.
As our moral wills continue to follow the divine light of the Father's love, they grow stronger and
become more spiritual, escaping from darkness. And as our souls become more spiritual, they
increasingly enjoy divine peace and joy.
This concludes today's message on understanding the guiding light of the Father's love. We hope you
find something in this message to ponder and pray about as you go about your day. Until next time,
this is Dr. James Perry
Inspirational Messages
By Dr. James Perry
Your Kingdom Come, Your Will Be Done!
The Guiding Light of the Father's Love
