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For the past century some
Friends have been using the phrase "That of
God" in reference to the Peace Testimony and other facets of Quaker
theology. George Fox first used that expression in his epistles and
some other writings. Shortly after Fox's passing, Friends seemed to
abandon that phrase until Rufus Jones revived it towards the end of
the Nineteenth Century. Needless to say, Jones' interpretation
and use of this concept was much different from Fox's understanding.
Let us examine Fox's reference
to "that of God" that appears in two
early epistles: "And dwell in the power of God, and stand in it,
which comprehends the whole world that through it ye may answer the
witness of God in every one . . ." and "Be faithful, and spread the
truth abroad, and walk in the wisdom of God, answering that of God
in everyone . . ."
According to George Fox, that
of God - the Holy Spirit, the anointing within, is a witness of God
in the human souls directing us in the righteousness of the
everlasting Son, Christ Jesus. In other words, God is
witnessing in our various consciences in the same Inward Light.
We humans are receiving the same Light that our brothers and sisters
receive from the Holy One.
This light, in addition,
enables us to respond to the "witness of God. . . That power enables
us to elucidate error in our fellow humans and direct them to God's
light within them to confirm the truths we espouse in our allegiance
to Christ.
What God affords us is His
witness, His communication, that endures
after our physical demise. Of course, God may have different
messages for His listeners but they do not contradict each other
because God is Truth. But we may have different weaknesses
that the Lord confronts us in His grace. But Fox never implied
that God is a living being within us. To the contrary, each
one of us is a creation of the Lord.
Today some Friends, in unity
with Rufus Jones, claim that God directly
lives within us - even stating that if we kill someone we are
destroying our creator. Of course, it is contrary to the Lord's will
when we become violent towards our brothers and sisters. But
we do not annihilate our Creator by acting in disobedience. We
disappoint our loving Lord when we do sin. But God has sent
His Everlasting Son to expurgate our sinfulness and He does
eliminate our sinful rebellion when we listen and obey Him.
Let us welcome the witness of
God within to serve Him in all aspects of
life in Christ.
That phrase is not merely an
individual revelation of God's communication with and in individuals
souls but, more important, it relates to the Lord's contact with the
body of Christ. When we meet as a community of believers and
empty ourselves from our human illusions, God promulgates what His
friends need to
comprehend, spiritually speaking often leading us to share Jesus's
Truth with humans who have not received Christ.
In this gathering, God affords
us the inward talent to minister to our friends when needed in
addition to acting as a group witnessing to the needs of individuals
who may be suffering from economic poverty or family troubles.
At our best, we are Jesus' community waiting on His benevolence in
His everlasting community
- Arthur Berk
02-28-2007
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