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" Life Served as You Order It"
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The Twelve Disciples
| Posted on May 2, 2020 at 12:09 PM |
LEARNING TO MASTER
THE TWELVE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE HUMAN MIND a.k.a The
Twelve Disciples. by Neville Goddard
"And
when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against
unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all
manner of disease." Matt.10:1. The
twelve disciples represent the twelve qualities of mind which can be controlled
and disciplined by man. If disciplined they will at all times obey the command
of the one who has disciplined them. These
twelve qualities in man are potentials of every mind. Undisciplined their
actions resemble more the actions of a mob than they do of a trained and
disciplined army. All the storms and confusions that engulf man can be traced
directly to these twelve ill-related characteristics of the human mind in its
present slumbering state. Until they are awakened and disciplined they will
permit every rumor and sensuous emotion to move them. When
these twelve are disciplined and brought under control the one who accomplishes
this control will say to them, "Hereafter I call you not slaves but
friends." He knows that from that moment on each acquired disciplined
attribute of mind will befriend and protect him. The
names of the twelve qualities reveal their natures. These names are not given
to them until they are called to discipleship. They are: Simon, who was later
surnamed Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew,
James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Canaanite, and Judas. THE FIRST
DISCIPLE – SIMON/PETER or The Foundation Stone: The
first quality to be called and disciplined is Simon or the attribute of
hearing. This faculty, when lifted to the level of a disciple, permits only
such impressions to reach consciousness as those which his hearing has
commanded him to let enter. No matter what the wisdom of man might suggest or
the evidence of his senses convey, if such suggestions and ideas are not in
keeping with that which he hears, he remains unmoved. This one has been
instructed by his Lord and made to understand that every suggestion he permits
to pass his gate will, on reaching his Lord and Master (his consciousness),
leave its impression there, which impression must in time become an expression. The
instruction to Simon is that he should permit only dignified and honorable
visitors or impressions to enter the house (consciousness) of his Lord. No
mistake can be covered up or hidden from his Master, for every expression of
life tells his Lord whom he consciously or unconsciously entertained. When
Simon by his works proves himself to be a true and faithful disciple then he
receives the surname of Peter or the rock, the unmoved disciple, the one who
cannot be bribed or coerced by any visitor. He is called by his Lord Simon
Peter, the one who faithfully hears the commands of his Lord and besides which
commands he hears not. It
is this Simon Peter who discovers the I AM to be Christ, and for his discovery
is given the keys to heaven, and is made the foundation stone upon which the
Temple of God rests. Buildings must have firm foundations and only the
disciplined hearing can, on learning that the I AM is Christ, remain firm and
unmoved in the knowledge that I AM Christ and beside ME there is no savior. THE SECOND
DISCIPLE – ANDREW or Courage: The
second quality to be called to discipleship is Andrew or courage. As the first
quality, faith in oneself, is developed it automatically calls into being its
brother, courage. Faith in oneself, which asks no man's help, but quietly and
alone appropriates the consciousness of the quality desired, and in spite of
reason, or the evidence of his senses to the contrary, continues faithfully and
patiently waiting in the knowledge that his unseen claim, if sustained; must be
realized. Such faith develops a courage and strength of character, that are
beyond the wildest dreams of the undisciplined man; whose faith is in things
seen. The
faith of the undisciplined man cannot really be called faith. For if the
armies, medicines or wisdom of man in which his faith is placed be taken from
him, his faith and courage go with it. But from the disciplined one the whole
world could be taken and yet he would remain faithful in the knowledge that the
state of consciousness in which he abides must in due season embody itself.
This courage is Peter's brother Andrew, the disciple, who knows what it is to
dare, to do and to be silent. THE THIRD AND
FOURTH DISCIPLES - JAMES & JOHN or Justice and Love: The
next two who are called are also related. These are the brothers, James and
John, James the just, the righteous judge, and his brother John, the beloved.
Justice to be wise must be administered with love, ever turning the other cheek
and at all times returning good for evil, love for hate, nonviolence for
violence. The
disciple James, symbol of a disciplined judgment, must when raised to the high
office of a supreme judge be blindfolded that he may not be influenced by the
flesh nor judge after the appearances of being. Disciplined judgment is
administered by one who is not influenced by appearances. The one who has
called these brothers to discipleship continues faithful to his command to hear
only that which he has been commanded to hear, namely, the Good. The man who
has this quality of his mind disciplined is incapable of hearing and accepting
as true anything either of himself or another which does not on the hearing
fill his heart with love. These
two disciples or aspects of the mind are one and inseparable when awakened.
Such a disciplined one forgives all men for being that which they are. He knows
as a wise judge that every man perfectly expresses that which he is, as man,
conscious of being. He knows that upon the changeless foundation of
consciousness all manifestation rests, that changes of expression can be
brought about only through changes of consciousness. With
neither condemnation nor criticism these disciplined qualities of the mind
permit everyone to be that which he is. However, although allowing this perfect
freedom of choice to all, they are nevertheless ever watchful to see that they
themselves prophesy and do both for others and themselves only such things
which when expressed glorify, dignify and give joy to the expresser. THE FIFTH
DISCIPLE – PHILLIP or Consciousness / Awareness: The
fifth quality called to discipleship is Philip. This one asked to be shown the
Father. The awakened man knows that the Father is the state of consciousness in
which man dwells, and that this state or Father can be seen only as it is expressed.
He knows himself to be the perfect likeness or image of that consciousness with
which he is identified. So he declares, "No man has at any time seen my
Father, but I, the son, who dwelleth in his bosom have revealed him; therefore,
when you see me, the son, you see my Father, for I come to bear witness of my
Father." I and my Father, consciousness and its expression, God and man,
are one. This
aspect of the mind when disciplined persists until ideas, ambitions and desires
become embodied realities. This is the quality which states "Yet in my
flesh shall I see God." It knows how to make the word flesh, how to give
form to the formless. THE SIXTH
DISCIPLE – BARTHOLOMEW or Imagination / Visionary: The
sixth disciple is called Bartholomew. This quality is the imaginative faculty,
which quality of the mind when once awake distinguishes one from the masses. An
awakened imagination places the one so awakened head and shoulders above the
average man, giving him the appearance of a beacon light in a world of
darkness. No quality so separates man from man as does the disciplined
imagination. This I is the separation of the wheat from the chaff. Those ~ who
have given most to society are our artists, scientists, inventors and others
with vivid imaginations. Should
a survey be made to determine the reason why so many seemingly educated men and
women fail in their after-college years or should it be made to determine the
reason for the different earning powers of the masses, there would be no doubt
but that imagination played the important part. Such a survey would show that
it is imagination which makes one a leader while the lack of it makes one a
follower. Instead
of developing the imagination of man, our educational system oftentimes stifles
it by attempting to put into the mind of man the wisdom he seeks. It forces him
to memorize a number of text books which, all too soon, are disproved by later
text books. Education is not accomplished by putting something into man; its
purpose is to draw out of man the wisdom which is latent within him. May the
reader call Bartholomew to discipleship, for only as this quality is raised to
discipleship will you have the capacity to conceive ideas that will lift you
beyond the limitations of man. THE SEVENTH
DISCIPLE – THOMAS or Denial of Falsehood: The
seventh is called Thomas. This disciplined quality doubts or denies every rumor
and suggestion that are not in harmony with that which Simon Peter has been
commanded to let enter. The man who is conscious of being healthy (not because
of inherited health, diets or climate, but because he is awakened and knows the
state of consciousness in which he lives) will, in spite of the conditions of
the world, continue to express health. He could hear through the press, radio
and wise men of the world that a plague was sweeping the earth and yet he would
remain unmoved and unimpressed. Thomas, the doubter when disciplined would deny
that sickness or anything else which was not in sympathy with the consciousness
to which he belonged had any power to affect him. This
quality of denial when disciplined protects man from receiving impressions that
are not in harmony with his nature. He adopts an attitude of total indifference
to all suggestions that are foreign to that which he desires to express.
Disciplined denial is not a fight or a struggle but total indifference. THE EIGHTH
DISCIPLE – MATTHEW or the Gift of God: Matthew,
the eighth, is the gift of God. This quality of the mind reveals man's desires
as gifts of God. The man who has called this disciple into being knows that
every desire of his heart is a gift from heaven and that it contains both the
power and the plan of its self-expression. Such a man never questions the
manner of its expression. He knows that the plan of expression is never
revealed to man for God's ways are past finding out. He fully accepts his
desires as gifts already received and goes his way in peace confident that they
shall appear. THE NINTH
DISCIPLE - JAMES (son of Alphaeus) or Discernment: The
ninth disciple is called James the son of Alphaeus. This is the quality of
discernment. A clear and ordered mind is the voice which calls this disciple
into being. This faculty perceives that which is not revealed to the eye of
man. This disciple judges not from appearances for it has the capacity to
function in the realm of causes and so is never misled by appearances. Clairvoyance
is the faculty which is awakened when this quality is developed and
disciplined, not the clairvoyance of the mediumistic seance rooms, but the true
clairvoyance or clear seeing of the mystic. That is, this aspect of the mind
has the capacity to interpret that which is seen. Discernment or the capacity
to diagnose is the quality of James the son of Alphaeus. THE TENTH
DISCIPLE – THADDAEUS or Praise and Thanksgiving: Thaddaeus,
the tenth, is the disciple of praise, a quality in which the undisciplined man
is woefully lacking. When this quality of praise and thanksgiving is awake
within man, he walks with the words, "Thank you, Father," ever on his
lips. He knows that his thanks for things not seen opens the windows of heaven
and permits gifts beyond his capacity to receive to be poured upon him. The
man who is not thankful for things received is not likely to be the recipient
of many gifts from the same source. Until this quality of the mind is
disciplined, man will not see the desert blossom as the rose. Praise and
thanksgiving are to the invisible gifts of God (one's desires) what rain and
sun are to the unseen seeds in the bosom of the earth. THE ELEVENTH
DISCIPLE - SIMON (the Canaanite) or Hearer of Good News: The
eleventh quality called is Simon of Canaan. A good key phrase for this disciple
is "Hearing good news." Simon of Canaan, or Simon from the land of
milk and honey, when called to discipleship, is proof that the one who calls
this faculty into being has become conscious of the abundant life. He can say
with the Psalmist David, "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence
of mine enemies; thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over."
This disciplined aspect of the mind is incapable of hearing anything other than
good news and so is well qualified to preach the Gospel or Good-spell. THE TWELTH
DISCIPLE – JUDAS – Birth of the New Man: The
twelfth and last of the disciplined qualities of the mind is called Judas. When
this quality is awake man knows that he must die to that which he is before he
can become that which he desires to be. So it is said of this disciple that he
committed suicide, which is the mystic's way of telling the initiated that
Judas ; the disciplined aspect of detachment. This one knows that his I AM or
consciousness is his savior, so he lets all other saviors go. This quality when
disciplined gives one the strength to let go. The
man who has called Judas into being has learned how to take his attention away
from problems or limitations and to place it upon that which is the solution or
savior. "Except ye be born again you cannot in anywise enter the Kingdom
of Heaven." "No greater love hath man than this, that he give his
life for a friend." When man realizes that the quality desired, if
realized, would save and befriend him, he willingly gives up his life (present
conception of himself) for his friend by detaching his consciousness from that
which he is conscious of being and assuming the consciousness of that which he
desires to be. Judas,
the one whom the world in its ignorance has blackened, will when man awakes
from his undisciplined state, be placed on high for God is love and no greater
love has a man than this that he lay down his life for a friend. Until man lets
go of that which he is now conscious of being, he will not become that which he
desires to be; and Judas is the one who accomplishes this through suicide or
detachment. These
are the twelve qualities which were given to man in the foundation of the
world. Man's duty is to raise them to the level of discipleship. When this is
accomplished man will say, "I have finished the work which thou gavest me
to do. I have glorified thee on earth and now, O Father, glorify thou me with
thine Own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was." Be
at PEACE God is Laughing. |
Categories: Disciples
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