Is this THE most profound question in the entire Bible?
When contemplated through an open, silence-infused mind this question brings about soul feed-back which is truly revelatory. Stirring the deeper consciousness, it addresses natural spiritual curiosity of who and what we really are at core level, and how we can integrate such in more meaningful and loving ways in our day-to-day life, thus progressing our soul into greater realms of spiritual awareness and experiencing.
For now, let us relax and explore this wonderful Jesus composed question: “Who do you say I am?”
Jesus, a true soul psychologist, evaluates wisely then puts the question succinctly, thus making each person responsible for its answer: in which orientation is our heart/soul set — to which inner frequency is our consciousness attuned — love born of Spirit or existence rooted in egoistic lower-self nature? To whom, or what, do we attribute Love, Healing and Forgiveness? What outer conditioning are we dependent on for Christ nature validation? What do we consider our true reality to be?
A simple set of inquiries, I hear you say.
Initially “Who do you say that I am?” sounds relating to a previous era, meant only for the historical disciples and nothing now to do with you/me in this twenty-first century. But, until we pose this question of ourselves now, then that’s how it will always be: other-era relating only.
The reality is, YOU are the single soul this question is being addressed to now in real time.
Similarly, as with biblical Peter — symbolizing lower-self ego, which scripture reminds us denied Christ three times, meaning denied Christ [within] in mind, body, spirit — sooner or later a time comes when we begin questioning words pertaining to eternal life, immortality and ascension, as spoken by Jesus. We begin questioning our purpose for being here: about God, Heaven, biblical names, titles and stories; the universe, pain, suffering, the after-life and everything we’re finitely capable of asking or fearing. As we mature in soul indeed many such profound questions arise, for, many non-clarified scriptural teachings, as the above, constantly emerge into the Truth-seeking mind.
While questioning is normal to a developing consciousness, such usually originates out of lower ego’s concern for its preservation orchestrated through fear-driven mind-sets. Thus Jesus reminds: “Be not afraid, it is I.” But, in relatable terms, who is this “I” we’re not to be afraid of? In other words, “who do you say I am?”
For instance — apart from imposed religious belief systems — how do we perceive biblical Jesus Christ in practical terms. Is it as a historical man, a two millennium ago person to be reverenced BECAUSE of his heroic status then — his healings, miracles and crucifixion — or do we acknowledge the biblical message of Christ [within] as You, a present day inner Potential, a Higher Self presence to be birthed tangibly within our own consciousness? Do we consider or ignore the biblical term/title “Jesus” as the Way — process of Enlightenment [in Christ nature] — or are we, as with most of the major religions, fixated primarily on the outer historical images and stories? Such is the enormity of the above Christ-sponsored question.
Here it may help if we clarify the word “religion.” It stems from the Latin root “Religire” meaning to join back. The purpose of religion, therefore, is to bind the soul back to its divine source. In today’s world of physical violence, power-grabbing, corruption and destruction, is religion achieving this? For some, maybe, but, for countless others, respectfully, no.
Finding Out For Ourselves
When put to the disciples: who do the people (conditioning, indoctrination dogmas) say Christ is, they replied: “some say Elijah, John the Baptist, Jeremiah or some other prophet.” Matthew 16:14
Jesus replied: “[but] what about you, who do you say I am?”
Peter responded: “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus replied: “You are blessed, for this truth did not come to you from any human being (flesh and blood, or man) but it was given to you directly by my Father in Heaven”- Matthew 16:17. The emphasis here is: coming into direct experience of unconditional love or Christ nature.
As mentioned earlier, biblical “Peter” symbolizes lower egoic nature, thus, this was ego’s challenged or commencement moment toward Christ realization — ready to enter the process of soul purification [biblically titled “the Way” or “Jesus”].
Without Peter answering as such — ego surrendering — then the rest of the Bible’s story loses the personally-relating aspect: “Who do YOU say I am?”, for, the Bible is all about YOU, not others. Compiled in coded-wisdom format Scripture represents symbolized word-dynamics for soul evolution, consciousness development, not chronicled history of places, people or events.
Referencing “John the Baptist” – ‘who some people said Christ was’ – is to qualify the difference between the birthing process of rising kundalini from the base chakra leading to Awakening and establishing Christ nature within consciousness. In other words, rising kundalini is the process-conduit of YOU becoming the Christ — pollinating Christ as conscious awareness [Matthew 16-17 above] — biblically termed “John the Baptist”: the level before Christ-coming or, “the One [Christ] who follows [soul Awakening]”.
Born Spiritually Ignorant
Later in Matthew 16-20, Jesus ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah: “Tell no man what you have heard today.” In other words, in the early stages of inner Christ discovering, our newly-sprouting positive soul seeds can be easy prey for “the crows of the earth” (negative thoughts, our own and others’).
It could also be interpreted: don’t push OUR version of Christ onto others who may not be as ready as we are, for, initially we’re each born spiritually ignorant — gentile. Jesus puts it: Lazarus, [you/me pre soul awakening] come forth” John: 11-43 — meaning, roll back the tombstone of subconscious generational soul ignorance, rise above the mire of lower ego dominance — raise our consciousness [through meditational/prayer-silence practice] come into the Light or consciousness of Christ within, now!
Desist from ego-pontificating on Christ until we’re personally experiencing unconditional love born of “water and the spirit”: “water” meaning that level of consciousness initiated through meditation, otherwise, ego maintains a controlling influence over the awakening process, thus, a tethered freedom, if you will.
While beneficial to a certain point, sermonized words, written or spoken, do not validate Christ nature. Here, each must witness personally to direct realization of Unconditional Love.
Acts: 12:16 states: “Peter kept knocking”. Although Peter acknowledged Christ as the Messiah, it was an intellectual reply only, it wasn’t a Heart experiential reply as could be expected from “John” — symbolizing Higher Heart nature.
Peter, we’re reminded, asked the Lord: “where are you going”? Jesus answered: “you cannot follow me now where I am going, but later you will follow me” John 13:36 – meaning, post [our] ego crucifixion we will know Christ within.
Peter’s reply: “Lord, I am ready to die [ego crucifying] for you” [John 13: 37] doesn’t signify full integration of mind, body, spirit: the Re-ligire state; rather only the “ready” or intentional moment to Full Humanity.
Like with Peter, to internalize the Messiah — Christ — we too must “keep on knocking” by regular daily performance of our selected meditation: “he motioned with his hind (commanded his intellect) be still” – Acts 12:17
But also in Acts: 12:17, notwithstanding Jesus’ earlier ordering “tell no one”, Peter says: “tell this to James and the rest of the believers”, which seems contradictory.
But, we remember in: “Transfiguration on the Mount” Matthew 17:1-13: Jesus took Peter (ego), James (mental aspect of soul) and John (higher soul nature) apart [within] up a high mountain [meditation], meaning mind, body, spirit of man attaining highest point [Mount] of inner Christ awareness, coming upon Christ status through meditational or inner Mount silence.
While Peter “acknowledged” Christ as the Messiah, he wasn’t a fully committed [to practice] believer, hence, it was only after persistent “kept on knocking”, of repeated meditation, that, “at last, they opened the door”: his thoughts calmed and he was allowed in — transformational process into Christ consciousness.
Thus, as an integrated believer — “allowed in” — qualifies Peter to tell the rest of the believers, meaning awaken the other inner apostles [in the brain], the spiritual qualities of the soul. In other words, by our own meditational endeavour we initiate the already in-place spiritual mechanisms of awakening kundalini in the base chakra — lower ego is now alchemising into higher spiritual personality.
Rising kundalini from the base of the spine is the practical initiating process of birthing the Christ nature at experiential well-being level.
As sure as midday-sun follows dawn, once our mental processes become familiarized in transcendental silence, transformation establishes automatically thereby achieving inner Christ awakening. Thus are “rest of believers” or the 12 disciples [12 Cranial nerves in the brain] becoming cosmically active — establishing of Christ nature in consciousness.
Who Am “I” – Who Is “You”?
Due to unrelenting addictive thought patterns, the seeming authentic nature of conditioned illusion makes identification with such compelling.
Thus, the transmutation journey of illusion into Christ Consciousness is primarily integration of small [illusory] “I” into Higher [Reality] “I” awareness.
Due to previous lifetime inheritances leaving each of us functioning at different levels of spiritual evolution, different vibration levels of ignorance, understanding and perceptions, we’re not all seeing the same green, blue or yellow through our standard red, green, yellow life-glasses. As such, until a degree of conscious integration is made, perceptions through the small “I” are somewhat blurred, out of sync when relating spiritually to, or identifying with, higher “You” as in “who do YOU say Higher “I” (Christ) am?”. In other words, consciousness assimilation through the small “I” gives a false or illusory perception of now reality, therefore, integration of the programmed mind — the subconscious or biblical “swaddling clothes” — is required by way of our selected inward meditation.
Conditioned mind will say: I am Catholic, I am Protestant, I am Muslim, Hindu or, I am no religion — which also qualifies as egoic labelling. We may say: I am Irish, I am American, she is Canadian, he is English, they are French, Australian, African, Asian etc or, we’re all one — until it comes to the emotionality of our imposed national/societal identities. But, does this labelling TRULY define us — give added spiritual status to our soul? Does it define higher “You?” No, not in the slightest! Then, who is defining or asserting on “You/spirit” identity?
The answer is, the reflection of the illusion, “the world hypnosis”, and the captured mind’s identification with living such untruth — the real rejected for the fake. The accumulations of faulty understanding [from birth] of society, parents and peers; the indoctrinations and dogma buy-ins of both political and religious establishments, to include sections of “corporate”.
Formal conditioning as such of the subconscious mind and the resultant contaminated thought prism through which it reflects, is THE single major barrier to experiential Christ consciousness. Many, as we see in the world today, act out this labelling (as belief systems), resulting in a fictitious “You”, thereby creating a self-identity crises where inner turmoil and rebellious anger overflow to devastating proportions, all to justify, at any cost, the programmed mind-sets and birthplace identity of the illusory small “I”.
Those who’ve worked at lower “I”/higher “I” integration – resurrection of spiritual/compassionate nature – pay little attention to such false labelling. Authentically-endorsed souls are almost incapable of violence against their neighbor. Think Mahatma Gandhi, for such is the benchmark approach of Christ realization: Unity through peaceful means within and without – “as above so below”.
Ask ourselves: to what end is MY Christ nature Potential being channelled daily – creatively or destructively, selfishly or Heart-cantered, wisely or through ignorance. The difference, on a personal/national/global level, is only to scale.
Of course, proclaiming status unto ourselves through the ego only defines our ignorance. Thus our mental state becomes overpoweringly left brain only driven, rendering spirit-nature-relating primarily intellectual rather than soul integrated left/right brain functioning.
Thankfully, from a practical perspective, remedying “the world” hypnosis is no more difficult then entering into the deep silence of meditation, where Transcendent “I” is directly experienced — the inner dynamic-status which crucifies lower ego, the illusion. It’s then, when small “I” is fully surrendered unto all-encompassing cosmic divine love nature that OUR answer to “who do you say I am?” becomes loud and clear. We discover, at the non-physical spirit level, that you are the eternally-existing “I”, the Risen Christ within our own transformed consciousness.