The Gospel of Jesus Decoded, The Mystery of Shem

By Michael Bowes

Imagine the excitement if the Ark of the Covenant, the True Cross or the Holy Grail were found after all these years? The effect would be sensational to say the least! A scriptural discovery of that magnitude has occurred. I am certain that the authentic and original meaning of the message of Christ has been rediscovered; a message that bears little resemblance to commonly accepted Christian theology. As audacious as this claim may sound it is authenticated by the evidence provided in the Gospel of Jesus Decoded.

The original message of Jesus was lost in translation, couched in symbol and concealed by metaphor. But the innermost secret that was hidden in the Hebrew word Shem and lost in time has been deciphered once again.

A lifetime of religious studies, years of intense spiritual practices, as well as incredible luck have resulted in this astounding discovery which illuminates the essential elements of the message of Jesus, revealing the deepest secrets of the meaning of Christ. Apparently lost for centuries these findings which have been distilled from canonical texts and complimented by evidence from multiple sources, including the Yogic and Vedic tradition, reveal the incredible potential of humanity and have the power to eventually transform mainstream Christian theology.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Michael Bowes
• Release date: Apr 13, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301089413

Michael Bowes

MICHAEL BOWES has been passionate about spirituality since his early youth. He was born into a devout Christian family and eventually practiced Christianity in several different denominations. In his late twenties he felt an intense attraction to yoga and meditation. For many years, both in the U.S. and India, he studied the Bible and practiced yoga, meditation and the Vedanta. The Gospel of Jesus Decoded is the product of his life-long search for God. He hopes that the fullness of peace and joy will awaken within you.

Book preview

THE GOSPEL OF JESUS DECODED

The Mystery of Shem

Michael Bowes

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Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2013 Michael Bowes

www.gospeldecoded.org

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Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Appendix to Chapter 3

Appendix to Chapter 4

Appendix to Chapter 5

Introduction

People are fascinated by stories of beings from other planets, and tales of ghosts, demons, and angels have been told in many cultures throughout the ages. But there is nothing in life that surpasses an actual encounter with an otherworldly being, particularly if that being happens to be the Supreme Being, the Lord of the Universe.

Most people would scoff at the possibility of actually meeting God. But that is the message that Jesus tried to convey. He wanted humankind to know that it is possible to transcend normal consciousness and enter into actual communion with God itSelf.

Within the mighty hall of your heart, the Lord of the Universe is seated, waiting for you to arrive, waiting to welcome you and accept you for what you have always been—a child of God, a child of the Universe.

Imagine that you are sitting in a chair, resting for a moment, and suddenly, without any forewarning, you feel a strange, powerful, mystical, and supremely blissful power rise up your spine; you lose awareness of the outside world. You lose touch with your everyday self and are immersed, submerged in a vast, seemingly infinite and awesome ocean of bliss. You immediately recognize your new environment to be the source of All Life, the Living God—your very own awakened divine self—the essence and font of the universe.

And imagine that this experience also conveys the everlasting nature of your very own soul, as it exists forever in oneness with God.

Imagine that during this experience, you learn that you have always existed and that you always will, and that there is nothing to fear because you exist eternally united with, and immersed in, the inner and outer universe—the Supreme Being.

This is the new birth, the baptism in the Holy Spirit, the kingdom of heaven, the power of the Universe. And this is the gospel, the message of Jesus.

The true meaning of Jesus' message is more wonderful and more fantastic than anyone can possibly imagine. Only the experience of this unimaginable truth could cause one to attempt to articulate it.

I can only point the way to this knowledge. One must be born again, or one will never understand. One can experience a birth of a new and hitherto unknown facet of one's own self—Christ, the Son of God. I am not referring to a theoretical new birth achieved by taking Jesus as one's savior in a theological sense; I am referring to a spiritual birth that is more real than our physical birth. We don't even remember our physical birth, but we can never forget the new birth. Do you remember your own birth? I don't. But I do remember, and will always remember, my spiritual birth.

One can be born again. One must be born again to enter into the knowledge, power, and peace that is the reward of the initiation into the essence of the universe—Cosmic Being.

Even in this modern, capitalistic and hedonistic age, people yearn for spiritual truth. Books on spiritual topics have become wildly popular because they seem to offer a glimpse into the hidden truths of Christ. Even though it was fiction, one such book suggested that descendants of Jesus may be alive in the world today. I don't know if there are descendants of Jesus alive today or not, but the fact is that Christ, the son of God, is actually alive in the world today and has awakened in the hearts and minds of many fortunate people.

These fortunate few know God and know their relationship to God. They are completely aware of their own immortal nature, and they find peace in the new life that has awakened within.

This book was inspired by the illuminating grace and powerful presence of the Supreme Being. It will decode and reveal truths that inspire, transform, and unite people. Unfortunately, religion creates division, misunderstanding, and conflict. But the grace of God is a power that unites rather than divides.

The message of Jesus is that ...the kingdom of heaven, the power of the universe, the kingdom of God is within. That was his message two thousand years ago, and it is still the most important message of our time.

The goal of this book is to decode and elucidate this message in a manner that will lead us to an encounter with our own immortal soul.

Chapter One

I am convinced that the man we call Jesus was a human being who actually existed. His being, presence, and power immortalized him. But the message that Jesus tried to convey was lost long ago and has never been widely understood. This book elucidates the message that he actually tried to convey to humanity, a truth that is powerful, glorious, and sublime; a reality that lies beyond the realm of human imagination. Although the reality of the Universal Being is beyond our imagination, the experience of this spiritual truth is possible for all to achieve.

In order to prepare our minds to accept the unimaginable, we must examine how and why the true message of Jesus is radically different than traditional Christian theology. The fact that many sects and denominations of Christianity exist indicates that the meaning of Jesus' message is not perfectly clear. Christians agree that Jesus taught a path to "salvation, but it is my contention that salvation is achieved through spiritual experience," and not through blind faith. Our efforts to experience spiritual truths can be aided by an understanding of Jesus' teachings.

No one will ever be able to understand every detail of what Jesus said and taught. But there is enough evidence in the Bible to know what the principle content of his message was. It is not my intention to try to interpret all of Jesus' sayings in the Bible but to address the ones that are related to his primary message, a message that is vastly different than what is commonly believed.

Before delving into that portion of this work, it is necessary to point out several errors in traditional Christian doctrine and how these errors might have occurred. I would like to make one point clear from the beginning. This is not an attack upon the Christian Church. Although I do believe that errors in theology abound, it is also my heartfelt belief that the Church is in possession of enough truth to make its existence and its work more than worthwhile. I have benefited immeasurably from the general teachings of contemporary Christianity. During my early life, I practiced and studied Christianity, first in the Catholic Church and subsequently in various other denominations. These lessons that I learned were all valuable and irreplaceable steps on my personal spiritual journey. At each step along the way, I enjoyed the delights of a new spiritual oasis, but I was never totally satisfied, and eventually, I would resume my search, never knowing where my journey would take me or where it might end. In fact, I have come to believe that there is no end. I think that we simply move from glory to glory, perhaps for eternity.

Any criticisms of doctrine that I offer are only intended to be a wake-up call to those who are ready to continue their own spiritual journey. And just as primitive scientific truths have yielded to more refined theories and processes, so our attitudes and beliefs may also yield to more accurate insights. My intention is to highlight the essential truth of the message of Jesus, a truth that I believe the Church as a whole has never been in possession of.

Due to the relatively open and tolerant nature of modern society, it is now possible to try to communicate the true message of Jesus. Primitive societies would not have been so permissive. One only needs to consider the intolerant nature of today's fundamentalist Islamic governments to catch a glimpse of socio-religious attitudes that would be similar to those of many primitive societies.

The Christian Church, for the most part, declares that the Bible is the inspired word of God. In the case of the Catholic Church, the edicts of the pope are considered to be infallible. Let's investigate this for a moment. First of all, the major religions of the world all believe that their particular scriptures are the inspired word of God. Until fairly recently, peoples, tribes, civilizations, and countries were relatively isolated. Early religions and spiritual traditions evolved differently in different places. Oftentimes, spiritual law was synonymous with civil law. Even today, when we are born into a society, we learn the ways, rules, customs, and laws of that particular society. There are certain rules of conduct that must be adhered to or we will have to pay the price. For the most part, modern societies are much more liberal than in the past, and it is rare for religious law to serve as civil law as well. But in more ancient times, people were often governed by laws and customs that were inseparable from their religion. And if people in ancient societies had doubts about the philosophical and religious structure of their society, they would have to conceal or ignore those doubts in order to remain functioning members of that society. In other words, they were conditioned by their social/religious environment, just as we are conditioned by our society and upbringing. They would likely accept the teachings of their religious leaders as absolute truth. If there were scriptures associated with their society, they would be considered to be divine revelations that were beyond question. And to a certain degree, it is the same today. If we sincerely subscribe to a religion, we will most likely have to believe that our particular scriptures are the inspired word of God and that they contain a complete and utterly truthful account of spiritual issues. As I hope to demonstrate later in this work, most traditional religious doctrines actually deal with moral and social issues rather than spiritual truths.

I once met a young Israeli in a restaurant. We were both traveling and introduced ourselves. We began a conversation that covered many topics. Eventually, the discussion turned to the ongoing Israeli-Arab conflict. He felt that the Israelis had a valid claim to Jerusalem and the entire land of Israel because of his interpretation of the Jewish scriptures. I pointed out to him that it had been more than nineteen hundred years since the Jews had actually controlled that land, but this didn't make any difference to him. He considered his scriptures to be the final verdict on that subject. Understanding, compromise, and sharing are the real solutions to the Arab-Israeli issue, as well as so many other similar situations. I believe that the practice of loving, sharing, and understanding are God's way—the spiritual way—and it is counterproductive to let any scripture stand in the way of love.

Another point to be considered is that this life and this world are in themselves mysteries. Who can explain life? Yet, that is exactly the purpose of religion—to explain the part of life that is beyond our ordinary perception, the higher truths of life. People who take the time to think just a little about the mysteries of life will certainly be confounded by the philosophical issues of our existence. Life defies understanding. The rational mind is not a person's highest faculty, but at this time it is the highest faculty commonly used by people. The mind cries out for a reason, an answer to its questions. Because it is in control, it demands to be satisfied. Religious traditions and scriptures provide somewhat of a stable mental framework to keep the rational man from being overwhelmed by the mysteries of existence. If we feel that our mental framework is not secure, it becomes difficult for many of us to function. Consequently, we tend to believe that our traditions are the absolute truth.

Now let us say for a moment that the Judeo-Christian scriptures are inspired by the Spirit—and indeed they are, for all things everywhere are a working of the Spirit. Does that necessarily mean that they are 100 percent true or accurate? I don't believe so. Many people believe that the world and all existence were created by God. But is our world perfect? Most would say that it is not. But if God made the world and God is perfect, then why isn't this world a perfect world? The traditional Christian answer to this question is that Adam and Eve made a bad choice in the Garden of Eden and this has adversely affected the course of humanity. This would seem to indicate that Adam and Eve were more powerful than the Creator. Otherwise, how could the creation run afoul of the Creator? Sometimes, ministers and priests will say that Satan rules the world. Then Satan must be more powerful than God. Or God allows evil and error to have their place. In my opinion, the answer to the question of how evil and error exist is that they are an integral part of the Creation and they permeate existence alongside goodness and truth. The coexistence of good and evil, error and truth, extends into the sacred scriptures of all traditions, including the Bible.

Some of the errors contained in the Bible are deliberate perversions of the truth. Consider the following passage:

How can you say, We are wise, And the law of the Lord is with us? But behold, the lying pen of the scribes has made it into a lie. The wise men are put to shame, They are dismayed and caught; Behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord, And what kind of wisdom do they have?

(Jeremiah 8:8-9)

So we can see from the Bible itself that certain perversions of the scriptures were committed by the scribes and priests. Which portions were perverted we cannot tell from this passage of Jeremiah.

In addition to deliberate perversions, there are errors in scripture due to faulty opinion and human error. One of the clearest examples of this are the discrepancies found in the genealogies of Jesus presented in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. The Gospel of Matthew provides a genealogy of Jesus from Abraham to Joseph and the Gospel of Luke from Joseph to Adam. When one studies these genealogies, it becomes obvious that they do not agree in the portion that they both include—that is, from Abraham to Jesus. I include them here in the same order (from Joseph to Abraham) for the convenience of the reader. Since they do not match, I have tried to match like names when possible.

These genealogies are vastly different. One or both of them are erroneous. How can a person reconcile the differences in these genealogies with the belief that every word of the scriptures is literally true? I will let the reader decide. Also, most Christian theologies claim that Jesus was not the son of Joseph. They assert that he was conceived directly by God.

If that's the case, then why would the writers of the gospels trace his lineage through Joseph when his father was God? Undoubtedly, this was an attempt to show that Jesus was descended from the House of David because according to Jewish prophecy, the Messiah was supposed to be descended from David. But if Jesus was conceived by God and not by man, then Joseph was not Jesus' father. Why trace Jesus' genealogy through Joseph?

Virtually