The Key Message of Jesus
The root cause of all difficulties experienced by man is forgetting his spiritual reality and identifying himself with his body. The body is only the vesture of the Indwelling Spirit. By immersing himself in body-consciousness, man develops egoism and possessiveness, which result in promoting many bad qualities. He forgets his inherent divinity and fails to use the senses and organs he is endowed with for the purposes of the Divine.
Two different characteristics are to be found among men. One characteristic, which is rather common, is for one to delude himself that he is a good man, with many virtues, intelligence and talents. The other quality, which is rare, is recognition of the good quality in others, their merits, abilities and good deeds, and appreciate their ideals. Jesus belonged to the second category. He saw the good qualities in others, rejoiced over their virtues and shared his joy with others.
Jesus grew up at Nazareth till He reached thirty. After Joseph’s passing, Jesus sought His mother’s permission to embark on His Divine mission. He got baptised by John, the Baptist, and spent forty days in penance in a forest. During the penance, He prayed to God for three things: One, He should be blessed with the quality of loving equally everyone; Two, He should have the strength and forbearance to suffer patiently any indignity or persecution that He might be subjected to by anyone; Three, He should be enabled to use his God-given body wholly in the service of God.
After forty days, Jesus emerged from His penance with the faith that His prayers had been granted. Jesus encountered the fishermen, at Galilee, who became His first disciples. He told them that He had come to establish the reign of love on earth and they would be His helpers in His mission. He spoke to them about the preciousness of human birth and urged them to seek the Kingdom of God within themselves.
By the way of illustration, Christ told them the following parable: In a river, when the water is flowing in a swift current, the tiny fish are able to swim in it and move about merrily. But a huge elephant is caught in the rapids and is likely to get washed away or drowned in spite of its enormous size. Whatever be the speed of the current, the small fish are able to swim freely in the river and enjoy themselves. But an elephant is unable to survive in it. The reason is: What you need for survival in a river is not bulk but the ability to swim. Likewise man who is caught up in the ocean of worldly existence (Samsara) needs, not so much metaphysics, scholarship or detachment, as the grace of Divine love.
