The Spiritual Experience
Greetings, 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 meaning of the spiritual experience
And now, sit back and listen to today's message.
The Spiritual Experience
Jesus said, " Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the
kingdom of God." John, Chapter 3, Verse 3.
Brothers and sisters, the spiritual experience begins with the soul's creation--the development of
moral self consciousness that allows us to distinguish relative right from wrong in the absence of all
prompting. A young child becomes self conscious long before he becomes moral. A child is aware
of being separate from all other selves. But this same child will just as soon hit you as kiss you.
Under training the child will choose a set of behaviors that is considered right. For the child, doing
right has no true meaning other than it brings about a reward. This is the same kind of behavior
observed in an intelligent animal. The difference being the child has the potential to acquire a moral
consciousness and subsequently a spiritual consciousness. The moral consciousness not only has the
ability to distinguish between right from wrong but also has the ability to choose between them.
When the self arrives at the point of achieving a moral consciousness, it signifies that it has crossed
the threshold of spiritual receptivity. It is at this junction that the soul is created by the heavenly
Father's spirit. Thus the self becomes a spiritual son of the heavenly Father. Such a consciousness
can now be taught, guided, and led by the spirit. All that is needed at this point for such a son to
recognize his sonship status is living faith, which is also provided by the heavenly Father.
Having become sons and daughters of the heavenly Father, we must grow up and become mature--
become spiritually perfect as the heavenly Father. We must compete the growth process by our moral
and spiritual decisions. Every time we choose a right moral decision, that decision redounds in moral
and spiritual growth: we progress in our comprehension of divine meanings and values. There are
several steps in this maturation process. Each stage of life is designed to prepare us for the stage of
growth just ahead. We have acquired a new level of growth when we are able to demonstrate our
ability and willingness to impart these meanings and values to those just below us in moral and
spiritual status.
When the soul reaches a certain level of maturity, it fuses with the Father's spirit, becomes one with
the Father through his Son, Jesus. Thus when the soul makes the choice of eternally choosing the
Father's will, that soul becomes complete in the spiritual sense (from the Father's point of view). Our
faith may grasp this state and live it in actuality and can enjoy the divine oneness with the Father
while the results of such an inexplicable partnership unfolds. This is eternal life that Jesus gives and
is in response to his desire that we become one with him as he is one with the heavenly Father.
When we believe Jesus and accept his divine oneness, we live on the eternal side of faith. When we
defer his invitation to be one with him, we live on the temporal side of faith. The attitude that we
display towards the challenges of life will depend upon which side of faith we live on---the temporal
or the eternal. If we live on the temporal side of faith, we will always have hope in the face of
difficulties. We will overcome all and any difficulties that stand in our way of achieving spiritual
perfection, and we will be comforted in our souls and strengthened in our purpose by this faith. But
if we live on the eternal side of faith, in addition to all of these qualities, we display an attitude that
transcends the difficulties of life. We live spiritually as if we have already overcome the barriers that
stand in the way of achieving perfection.
When we accept Jesus' invitation to be one with him as he is one with the heavenly Father we
become supremely dedicated to doing the Father's will. We become absolutely dependent upon the
Father for all things, meanings, and values. We are not free from living this life, but because of our
dedication to doing the Father's will, the Holy Spirit inspires our mind, in effect spiritualizing our
thinking so that we can comprehend the divine meanings and values that are concealed in these
commonplace experiences, while the Spirit of Truth guides us through the maze of evil and error as
we wholeheartedly pursue the ever increasing divine revelations of values and meanings provided
by the Father's spirit.
This concludes today's message on the understanding the spiritual experience. 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 Spiritual Experience
