EIGHTEEN
'The most powerful thing you can do to change the world, is to change your own beliefs about the nature of life, people, reality, to something more positive... And begin to act accordingly' - Shakti Gawain, 'Creative Visualisation'
"Mine is a message of love"
Jesus stood perfectly still. His hands were open and his face a vision of serenity.
"Love is all there is… It is ultimate reality… It is the Truth behind every illusion… And the nature of the soul itself...
The soul is an aspect of God… A tiny fragment of the majestic whole. That is how you are one with God… and with everything else that exists… God is love and love is all there is…
As humans we operate in a reality that denies all this, of course. We see another and we think we are separate from them because that is how it appears...
But the Truth is… Your are One with all mankind. You are linked by divinity… And divinity lies inside each one of you...
Love is knowing this. And knowing this would change the world"
Jesus smiled knowingly at Martin and continued...
"Until mankind can embrace this one Truth your world will always be in conflict with each other. You will fight over who has the 'One True Faith' or who is 'Right', but 'right' is objective and no religion has 'The One Truth'… For if they did… they would not fight!
For THIS is The One Truth... We are One...
One with God... And with each other...
I and the Father are One...
Love is the energy that binds us. And the energy that binds us is Love...
Love is God. And God is Love"
He smiled lovingly at Martin.
"We are One with God"
Jesus turned his eyes towards the city below.
"The religions don't teach this, of course. I have been called a blasphemer many times for uttering such words. And I have no doubt the day will come when I will pay a price for speaking this truth out loud..." He looked sadly towards Nazareth as if having visions of future events. "But speak this truth I must... For I have a mission that I must see to its end"
He glanced over at The Doctor whose face was now sullen and 'neutral'. The Doctor returned the glance but only for a second before averting his eyes to the glare of the campfire.
Martin looked over at Jesus who had returned his gaze to the city below. How old was he now, thought Martin? Thirty-one? Thirty-two, maybe? How many years... or even months... is he away from been taken for crucifixion? That brutal death that will still be remembered, and worshipped, 2000 years later. Does he know what's going to happen? Is it part of his 'mission'? Does he already know how the story ends…?
Jesus reached out a hand and pointed at the tallest buildings in the city.
"Down there... and in your time... The religions teach that God and man are separate and that God is unknowable and doesn't even want to be known! And that he's angry with us and wants nothing more than to destroy us and punish us for our sins…Yet this is a blasphemy in itself because God loves everybody… And I mean EVERYBODY!
Because God IS everybody… and I mean… every… body…
Do unto others as you would have it done unto you… because they are you… and you are they…And what you give to others you give to your self… because there is only one of us...
Your soul knows all of this already. On entering the physical world it chose to forget… so that it could remember again Who It Really Is… and Who Everyone else is… This is the journey of life… And it is a journey that never ends because…"
"Life is eternal…" Martin whispered
"Yes" Jesus smiled and walked back over to Martin. He knelt down before him and took hold of his right hand. He looked directly into Martin's eyes and spoke softly... "Love is forever and can never die… because, in ultimate reality, 'death' does not exist. All of life is a part of God. And God is Eternal. Eternal love…
And the part of you that shines inside when you hear these words is the part of you that knows this already. That gentle inner voice is the voice of God. It always speaks with the most loving words and the clearest truth…all you have to do is listen to it… If the words are based in love then they are True… And Truth is God expressed...
So, as it has been said many times and in many ways, The Truth is within you… and always has been… but you've been taught to deny it… Not only by the outside world but also by your own ego…"
He released Martin's hand and stood up though he kept his gaze directly at Martin.
"I'm here to give you a new Truth… Or, at least, a Truth been expressed a new way…And it is a Truth that will surely set you free…
The Kingdom of God is within you… And you bring forth the Kingdom through you…
You bring forth the Kingdom with acts of love, peace and compassion... These are aspects of your true self... as they are also the aspects of God.
So seek first the Kingdom of God... which is within you... And all the gifts of life will come to you"
Jesus turned and walked over to the fire. He picked up some small branches and threw them casually on the burning flame. They popped and crackled and begun to burn.
"Because you are One with God you are a creative being… In other words… You create your own life… And you create with thought, word and deed… First thought is where it all begins and your thoughts are made manifest in your reality…"
"Like right now" interjected The Doctor. "If this isn't a prime example of thought becoming a reality I don't know what is!"
"Indeed" said Jesus "You've always wanted to come here, Martin, haven't you? You've always wanted The Doctor to come along and whisked you away and bring you to see me… So I could tell you The Truth"
"Have I?" Martin looked around at The Doctor who was sat in the other deck chair grinning proudly. "I can't really remember… I… seem to remember… Oh, I don't know… Bits of my memory keep coming back and, although I didn't think I knew the Doctor before meeting him in the graveyard, I do remember now seeing him… on telly…. I think…"
Martin looked around at The Doctor who was leaning forward in his deck chair as if enticing Martin to remember the full story.
"Have you been on TV before, Doctor?" Martin asked casually.
The Doctor let out a laugh. "Ah, yeah, once or twice, Marty!" He lent back in his chair and threw his right leg over his left. "It'll all come back to you soon and you'll kick yourself for not remembering earlier. But it's all part of the illusion… The parable, so to speak… The 'journey of the soul' and all that… The 'forgetting' and then the 'remembering' again… It'll all become clear, don't worry. You'll love it when we tell you…"
Martin frowned as a concerned look took over his face. "Tell me what?"
"Who I really am in all this, of course" The Doctor shrugged his shoulders and grinned like a naughty schoolboy who knew the location of his hidden Christmas presents.
"But you're The Doctor, aren't you? What else is there to know?" Martin's voice was soft and course.
"Oh, not much… and everything!" He grinned "But don't worry, everything's ok. You trust me, don't you?" The Doctor looked intently at Martin
"Yes… Yeah, I do" Martin whispered
"Then that's' all that matters, isn't it?" The Doctor sank further back into his chair and smiled warmly. He then produced a red lollypop from his right hand pocket and whipped off the wrapper in a flash before shoving it in his mouth. "Do carry on" He nodded to Jesus and gestured with palms raised, "You say it so much better than I do" he added plumb mouthed.
Jesus laughed gently. "Well, I've had a bit of practise" He looked over at Martin and tilted his head slightly. "Are you ok, Martin? You look a little… confused."
"Wha..? Yeah, I'm fine thanks… I just… well, I am confused, to be honest!" He sat up and rested his elbows on his knees loosely joining his hands together. "I'm confused about three billion things actually! But, you know, it's ok… I like where we are going with this… it's good… It's all good." He bent down to pick up his mug and sipped at the nearly cold coffee. "If this is all my thoughts been created reality… then I'm pleased with it" He smiled joyously "I mean… Look…" He pointed over at Jesus "I've got the most revered spiritual master who has ever lived giving me the secrets of creation one on one with cups of coffee, biscuits and deck chairs thrown in!" He then turned his finger towards The Doctor "And the most famous time traveller in the Universe carting me backwards and forwards in time! I mean…How cool is that!"
The Doctor laughed and took the lollypop out his mouth. "That's very cool, Marty" He grinned as he pointed the red ball towards Martin and then returned the sweet to his mouth. "You're doing great… Keep on keeping on…" he said between sucks.
"But… it's not real, is it?" Martin asked quietly, his face passive and inquisitive.
"It's as real as your life back home… It's as real as you want it to be" The Doctor said calmly. "Nothing is real, Marty… That's what you're been told here. Everything is an illusion… created by you and God so that you might experience it all as the vast rainbow of creation" He stood up and walked towards Jesus. He put his arm around Jesus' right shoulder and squeezed gently with his hand. "Young Jay here is as real as you and me and he's gonna teach you how to consciously create your own reality so that when you go back home you can teach others. You're gonna give people back to themselves… by bringing them closer to their inner selves… which is the 'god' in them. The world needs bringers of light and messengers of hope… And you are one of them" He moved towards Martin and took the lollypop out of his mout"You teach what you have to learn. It's a circle… like life. And this is how you will help me save the world. This is our mission and we mustn't fail. The ultimate hope is that as more and more learn The Truth they'll be a massive shift of consciousness on your planet and mankind's spiritual destiny will finally be achieved"
"Can that happen?" Martin asked breathlessly.
"It has already happened… in one reality. But realities are like branches on a tree" He opened his fingers out wide and held them up to Martin's face. "There's so many possibilities… so many roads that can be taken. Tomorrow is created by the thoughts of today. And the thoughts of your world can be dark indeed" He wiggled his fingers for a second before turning and walking slowly towards the camp fire. He stared into the flames and lowered his head. The fire crackled and spat and seemed to grow as The Doctor approached. "I have seen worlds on fire. I have seen races destroy themselves throughout the universe over and over again. Wars caused by petty, tribal squabbles over religion or land or possessions. I've seen mighty civilisations crumble to dust within the blink of an eye and millions of billions of innocents slaughtered in acts of stupid, pointless brutality …" He turned to look at Martin with a look of determination on his face. "And I've no intention letting that happen to this world" He said defiantly as he moved back over to his deck chair, lifted his coat tails slightly and plonked himself down. "So it's our job to wake humanity up and save them from their own mistaken beliefs about themselves and God… before it's too late"
Martin shrugged "No pressure, then" he said flatly.
The Doctor folded his legs and sank back into his chair. "Ahhh…Pressure is good, Marty. It gets stuff done!" He smiled confidently. "We'll do it… You and me… Along with Jesus… A few others… And a few others more… We'll be the change that we want to see. We'll make everyone aware of their own divinity and God will no longer be feared… but loved without reservation as the energy of life itself"
"The question is…" Jesus interjected. "How do you remove fear?"
Martin turned to Jesus "How? How do you remove fear?"
"By looking at it", Jesus said as he knelt by the fire. "You hide fear inside everything… Especially words. Fear is False Evidence Appearing Real. It is an illusion. You see through the illusion by staring right at it. Before too long… you will see right through it and know it as the illusion that it is" He glanced over at the TARDIS and then up above it at the night sky. "Take, for example, your fear". He pointed at Martin at then at the sky "You greatest fear is that God is the being called Yahweh… A tyrannical, vengeful deity that demands loyalty and obedience above all else. A physical, alien being from way out there who is ready to reclaim this Earth and all that is his in one last, bloodthirsty punch-up with the Devil himself…" Jesus turned his sitting position to face Martin. His back was to the fire. The light of the fire danced behind him and was hypnotic in its rhythm. "But, The Truth is, there is no Devil… And God is not fear"
Jesus leaned forward and picked up 'The Book of Life' from it's resting place on a soft clump of grass.
"Your fear was the opposite of Truth… It was false evidence appearing real" He stroked the cover of the book lovingly and played with the loose, golden thread on the spine. "Your fear of God made you depressed, stilted and lonely. Who could you share this with? If the future is pre-ordained to be doomed what is the point in 'today'? Thus you stopped living in the 'Now' and lived in fear of the future… A future you had created in your own head. Your thoughts were nothing more than a collection of negative energy and you sent this energy out into the universe. And the Universe responded… By bringing you here…" He opened the book and turned it around the face Martin. He stared into the mirror for a few brief seconds before returning his gaze at upwards. "You are here to remove the Fear of God from your heart" He shook his head slowly "It doesn't belong there anyway and you cannot love God if you Fear him… God is love and love is all there is…God is the energy of life… And you co-create your life with God by using that energy… So God is there to be used and not feared… And…."
"Enough! I have heard enough!" A mans voice rang out from behind the TARDIS. The Doctor leapt to his feet whilst Jesus remained in his seated position, his face still directed towards Martin.
"Blasphemers! Liars!" The voice was angry and broken and belonged to a darkened figure Martin could see slowly emerging from the right hand side of the TARDIS. "I cannot stand to hear another word coming from this heretic's lips!"
The man appeared in full view. He had long, dark hair and a beard, was pale in complexion and he wore cream robes with a red, silk shawl. His face was contorted with anger and his stare harsh and condemning.
Martin shrank back into his seat as the stranger came straight up to him.
"These two are lairs and deceivers…" He pointed towards The Doctor and Jesus, "They are evil spirits who are tempting you away from the One True God with their talk of 'co-creation' and 'using God'!" He spun around the face Jesus who had still not looked up at the newcomer. "You do not 'use' God, sinner! Your fear him and beg for forgiveness!" He lowered his body slightly and raised his voice "And you are NOT One with God… You are His imperfect creation…A termite in an ocean of filth… who sins with every movement of his lips " He shouted directly into Jesus' face…
Jesus still refused to acknowledge the newcomer and his face remained in its calm state and unchanged.
"Alright, steady on, fella…" The Doctor moved forward and took hold of one of the stranger's arms to pull him away from Jesus. "No need to get excited"
The man shrugged the Doctor's hand away "Unhand me, demon! I will have no part of me touched by your filth! You will not corrupt my soul with your lies. I can banish you with just a word. All authority has been given to me by my Father" He stared hard into The Doctor's eyes. "Do you not know who I am?"
The Doctor shook his head and, along with his best blank expression, raised his shoulders. "I've no idea… but I'm sure you're going to tell me"
The stranger turned to the sitting frame of Jesus and pointed. "I am who this one claims to be. I am the Life and the Way… And the only path to salvation…I alone have The Truth and I alone am the Son of God. I am the Messiah on Earth…I am Jesus…"
He turned to face Martin, his eyes dark and penetrating.
"I am the Real Jesus…"
'And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am the Christ; and shall deceive many' – Matthew 24:4-5, The Bible