Jesus On Spirituality: Jesus and Gospels

By Joseph Torie

Jesus said referring to Spirituality, "… Verily I say unto you, Except you be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18: 3 and 4). Thus, spirituality and being as one of the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven couldn't be as difficult as it is generally assumed.

'Jesus On Spirituality' is Joseph Torie's latest title of the series 'Jesus'. It discusses spirituality based exclusively on the words of Jesus and His life. He also told one of His disciples, "… I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me" (John 14: 6). Jesus is the way to God, the Father, first through receiving forgiveness of all sins and becoming a child of God; then, as the way to communicate with God through Jesus. Referring to where to 'practice and live one's spirituality' -the gospel of John also states that a woman from Samaria asked Him-, "Our fathers (the Samaritans) worshipped in this mountain; and you (the Jews) say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus said unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour comes, when you shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father … But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth" (excerpts of John 4: 20 to 24).

Read this free ebook to know what else Jesus said about communicating with the Spirit of God and therefore about being spiritual. In addition, find out about a number of spiritual locations mentioned in the gospels and why some eternal, but some temporary.

The eBook also discusses who will be saved (which will become the children of God and live with Him in Heaven) and who are the blessed, which will receive eternal time after the Final Judgment and receive the earth as their inheritance. Read also a comprehensive description of future events from now until Kingdom come, especially those related to the different resurrections.

Read about all of the above and much more, in "Jesus On Spirituality".

• Language: English
• Publisher: Joseph Torie
• Release date: Jun 24, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223177180

Joseph Torie

Joseph Torie believes in Jesus and writes books about Jesus, spirituality and commentaries on science and intelligent design. He offers his ebooks about Jesus and His words FREE to download, as in "freely you have received, freely give". While Joseph focuses on the gospels, when necessary for reference, he refers to other portions of Scripture. Joseph doesn't belong to, nor is associated with any church, Christian organization or denomination.

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Foreword

Parentheses included in the text of quoted scriptures mark explanatory notes by the author. Those shouldn’t be understood as being part of Scripture, nor should they be quoted as part of the original Biblical text under any circumstance. Those explanations are just the author’s interpretations and views. Notice also that this study quotes mostly the English King James Version of the Bible, in a few cases slightly edited (such as changing ‘thou’ to ‘you’, etc.), although there are other equally good translations. Some scriptures have been quoted more than one time in this text to address different aspects of the passage, and others just because the same are key scriptures and concepts in this study.

This book is dedicated to the people that would like to know Jesus, to those that already love and believe in Him, and to those that want to follow Him, by giving their lives to Him. The book doesn’t mean to either attack or defend religious Christian organizations, orders, groups or denominations, or anybody else, although as it speaks candidly on many subjects and some comments might reflect well or less so on the views of some groups of people. Those comments are necessary to uphold the central tenet of this study encouraging Christians to base their faith above all on the words of Jesus, as the foundation, regardless of which group or Christian branch any believer might attend or belong to.

Therefore, these pages focus on the Words and Life of Jesus, as recorded in the Gospels and bases any claims on the authority of the words of Jesus. If you agree to check out this study, you do so at your own risk and it is offered as is, and without any guarantees of perfection. It is assumed you have the maturity of judgment to check out, read someone else’s opinions, benefit from those valuable to you and discard the not so valuable.

Chapter 1 — Spirituality made as simple as possible

The Focus of this Study

This study discusses and focuses on spirituality according to the words of Jesus and as a means to communicate with the God of Heaven and Earth, the Creator of everything. Specifically, it focuses on Jesus, who is the Way to God, the Father, and to know Him. The gospel of John states, ... the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth (John 4: 23 and 24). Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me. If you had known me, you should have known my Father also: and from henceforth you know him, and have seen him (John 14: 6 and 7). Therefore, knowing Jesus and His words is the Way to know God, the Father. This is the focus of this study on spirituality.

In the first passage quoted, He was answering a woman who had asked Him which religion was the right one and which was the place to worship God (she was a Samaritan and not a follower of Judaism). He answered that it wasn't either in Jerusalem in the Jewish temple nor in the mountain where her religion offered sacrifices, but in spirit and in truth. In other words, He replied that it didn’t matter in which temple or in which mountain, or whether it was in a house or in a field, "for the Father seeks such to worship him’, those that worship Him in spirit and in truth. Jesus said that the place doesn't matter at all, but the Father communicates with those that do so from their hearts and in truth, the place where this happens is of no consequence to Him. Communicating with God through Jesus and following Him is the essence of spirituality, according to His words.

Anywhere, Anytime

According to most dictionaries, the ‘spiritual’ is all that is related to or influences the human spirit, but not directly related to the physical or material aspects of life. In addition, spiritual events are categorized as those associated to a religious belief, mainstream religion or an alternative religion, of which there are many. Therefore, in the broad sense and according to dictionaries, spirituality is defined as having faith in a god, or in spirits or taking part in religious activities.

In contrast, this study focus on spirituality only in the context of belief in Jesus, and faith only and exclusively on having faith in Jesus' words and promises, as well as communicating with Him in spirit and in truth and through Him with God, the Father. This study neither connects faith and spirituality to places, buildings, holy mountains or ceremonies, nor even to the strong devotion and loyalty many people have in any of the present religious organizations or temples. It doesn’t even refer to the trust and faith people might have on their particular branch of Christianity, church, denomination or religious leaders and traditions. 

Briefly put, this study refers only to faith in Jesus' words, which it identifies as the key to salvation and as the essence of spirituality, which could take place anywhere, anytime and all the time, whenever and wherever those who believe in Jesus are. As Jesus told His disciples, For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them (Matthew 18: 20) and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world (Matthew 28: 20).

Finally, the study doesn't refer to spiritualism, which includes beliefs and religious practices aimed at communicating with the spirits of the dead, or communicating with various other spirits and beings in the spiritual realm, often through mediums, etc. It is assumed the reader understand the infinite difference between communicating with God’s Spirit through Jesus, God’s Son, in one hand and communicating with the spirit of someone that had passed away or any other minor spiritual being directly or through the agency of a medium, a shaman or anybody else.

Spirituality made as simple as Possible

A popular view about spirituality is that it is something mysterious and definitely out of most individuals’ reach, while some even view it as something associated with the purely mental or intellectual domains, as a type of advanced discipline born of self-control and dedication. In consequence, a number of the formulas for spirituality available are often encapsulated in esoteric mystery, complex religious ceremonies, arcane knowledge, or secret mantras promising to help reach enlightenment and achieve spiritual prowess. As mentioned, many of those also promote and require the adherence to strict control over one’s mind or body as a way to attain to the spiritual dimension. Yet, some others propose diets and exercises assumedly leading to spirituality, while others offer expensive memberships in upscale exclusive groups or retreats for the enlightenment of the affluent.

If as it was quoted above, the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship him (John 4: 23 and 24), the body or the mind are no the means to either reach God nor to communicate with Him, but the spirit. According to the words of Jesus, God’s kind of spirituality is a lot simpler than the ones enumerated above, and it is even down-to-earth. He said that Verily I say unto you, Except you be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18: 3 to 5). Obviously, anyone called ‘great’ in the kingdom of Heaven would be what in God’s eyes is spiritual, but notice that little children don’t quite fit the popular definitions of spirituality assumed by some people and briefly mentioned above. According to Jesus words, being spiritual and being able to understand the things of the Kingdom of Heaven is something that little children can attain naturally through their faith, not requiring sophisticated initiations or complex procedures.

Jesus taught Faith is the Key to Salvation and to Spirituality

Jesus’ type of spirituality is directly related to having a straightforward and genuine faith in what He taught. Scripture offers many samples of individuals that were deeply spiritual, who communicated with the Lord at ease and did so solely because of their faith. Many of them, in fact, didn’t belong to a religious organization. The Patriarch Abraham, for example, had privileged spiritual communication channels with the Lord, yet he was a shepherd and in many ways a simple person. He was neither a religious priest, nor a theologian or a man of letters. In addition, he wasn’t given complex rules or elaborated rituals and ceremonies to communicate with the Lord, but his hallmark was that he had a strong faith in the Lord’s words and in whatever He told him. Abraham was blessed immensely and exclusively because of his faith, just for believing the Lord when He spoke to him, even when what the Lord told him seemed extremely unlikely or even might have seemed impossible. From the beginning, faith has been the determining factor and the secret of people's spirituality and success in the Lord’s eyes.

The gospels teach that those that believe in Jesus’ words are saved, are born again and become the children of God, as well as show that faith in His words is the key to spirituality. For example, Jesus’ disciples were quite simple folk, such as uneducated fishermen and local people. However, they simply put the Lord first in their lives and tried to follow His words and to adapt to the earthly lifestyle of the Master. Even at times, when they couldn’t understand what was going on, still they did great, just by trusting the Lord and following and doing what He had told them. Likewise, there are many other ‘ordinary people’ who believe in Jesus’ words and simply have faith in them, who although may not be aware of it, are a lot more spiritual than what many gurus, shamans, Kabbalah insiders, priests, pastors, theologians, writers of books about spirituality (such as this one) and even merchants of spirituality put together could ever be.

There have been many whom without knowing about the God of Heaven and Earth, have found much Truth and have understood much

It should be mentioned, that there are and there have been many people that without having access to the infinite source of Life, Wisdom and Light offered freely by God, through the words of Jesus, have tried to do what they could to do what’s right, and God has certainly blessed and will continue to bless them for that. In other words, there have been many, which without knowing about the God of Heaven and earth, or the scriptures declaring Him; had searched for truth, have been shown much of it, and have understood much. While teaching on a mountain, Jesus said, Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled (Matthew 5: 6). They will certainly be filled in the future, when the Kingdom of God is on earth as it is in Heaven, but many have been assisted also through their earthly lives to find enough righteousness to satisfy them until the Kingdom comes, even when they may have not known much about God’s Kingdom and the God of Heaven and earth.

Many among the searchers of truth through the centuries and throughout the world had perceived some or many spiritual truths in their search for righteousness, although as mentioned, they had not been aware of the Lord's words. Some of their findings and teaching were later included in different schools, faiths or beliefs, which others searching for righteousness have also benefited from. The Spirit of God had been present always trying to help anyone searching for truth and righteousness to find enough of it to be filled, at least enough to fare through this present world and life.

In fact, Abraham was such a person at the beginning of his search for righteousness. He didn’t belong to any group of spiritually enlightened or particularly religious individuals, he didn’t follow his ancestors’ religious teachings, which didn’t even know the God of Heaven, and he did great throughout his life, with the Lord’s help. His journey begun when the Lord spoke to him, he believed the Lord’s words, followed the direction he was shown, which helped him to learn much about the Lord and to grow spiritually. Since then, many who have had access to the scriptures recording Abraham's life and experiences have benefited of the knowledge of the Lord he acquired through his straightforward and simple faith in Him.

Jesus said ... many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which you see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which you hear, and have not heard them

Once, Jesus was speaking to a multitude that had come to Him, as they have heard about the miracles He was doing, although apparently they were not moved by faith, as much as by curiosity. Jesus taught them by telling them parables. Afterwards, His disciples asked Him why He taught the people in parables and not plainly. He answered, ... blessed are your eyes, for they see (the things you see): and your ears, for they hear (the things you hear). For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which you see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which you hear, and have not heard them (Matthew 13: 16 and 17).

He called His disciples ‘blessed’ because their ears and eyes were open and wanted to see and listen to what He said. In contrast, He had said the following in Matthew 13: 15 about those people He had been teaching. For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest ... they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. The problem with those people, which were also children of Israel as his disciples were, was that they didn’t want to hear or see. The fact is that a number of the children of Israel had grown callous to God’s voice, their hearts had waxed gross, their ears dull of hearing, and they had closed their eyes because they didn’t want to hear or see. However, He added about His disciples, But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear (Matthew 13: 16). That was part of His message to the disciples.

Then, He added that there have been also many righteous men and even prophets that had desired to see and hear the things His disciples hear and see, but have not seen them. In other words, there have been many other equally sincere people to His disciples that had desired to see and hear the things they (the disciples) did, but neither had seen nor heard those things, obviously, because in their times the Messiah hadn’t arrived yet. Fortunately, those that want to hear, see and learn today are blessed immensely, because today His words via the gospels are within the reach of many, if not most people. Since Jesus’ day, those that want to hear and see the truth would find it. He said, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened (Matthew 7: 7 and 8).

I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world (Matthew 13: 35)

The main difference between Jesus’ disciples and those righteous men and prophets that had wanted to see but didn’t wasn’t their personal attitudes and faith, as obviously both parties wanted to see and hear. The reason why the disciples saw and heard those things is that they were in the very presence of Jesus, unlike the prophets and righteous men that had lived before the coming of the Messiah. In other words, it wasn't that the former prophets didn’t want to see or hear, but they have lived before the time of the coming of the Messiah, who revealed those things. In addition, when He said ‘righteous men’, it is possible that He was referring also about the many righteous people that have wanted to know the truth, as mentioned previously, but who didn’t even know the words of God given formerly through the prophets of the Old Testament, obviously by circumstances beyond their control.

Some of the prophets indeed announced the future coming of the Messiah, although they didn’t hear and see the things the disciples did. One of the many prophecies fulfilled by Jesus, as quoted by Matthew in that same chapter 13 we quoted above, shows this. He quoted, That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, ‘I (the Lord) will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world (Matthew 13: 35). Since the time Jesus fulfilled that prophecy, all those that want to know those things that previously have been kept secret, can hear and see them.

Finally, notice that according to this last passage, not all parables are meant to conceal the meaning of God’s word, as in the case of the people that had allowed their hearts to become callous, their ears dull and their eyes blind. Some parables are actually meant to reveal things about God the Father and about God’s Kingdom that have been kept secret until the time of Jesus first coming. In fact, Jesus even taught His own disciples in parables, many of them about the Kingdom of Heaven. 

Being wise and prudent is good, but why God doesn't reveal His Secrets to them but instead to little Children?

In another occasion, when talking about who may understand the things of the spirit of God, Jesus said the following. I thank you, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you had hid these things from the wise and prudent, and (but) has revealed them unto babes; (It was) even so, Father: for so it seemed good in your sight (Matthew 11: 25 and 26). Arguably, being wise and prudent are desirable qualities, but why God choose to reveal ‘those things’ Jesus taught to babes, while He hid them from the wise and prudent? This may not make sense to many people, at least at first sight. 

To understand why it’s so, consider the following. The term wise applies to people who base their views on their own and on other people's experience, knowledge and proven sound judgment. The prudent are people who prepare for prospective potential events and are careful about the effect present decisions may have on their future. Yet, while those qualities aren’t bad at all, Jesus said that the Truth was not revealed to the wise and prudent, but to babes. Notice also that babes and little children mostly aren’t either, wise or prudent.

So, why had God chosen to reveal His truth to babes? The answer is that most little children and babes have unconstrained faith and they don’t base their views on their own experiences or those of others, or in the human intellectual capacity or power of deduction and careful judgment. Instead, the Babes and Little Children He referred to are those that simply believe the words God gives us through Jesus, without question and without stopping to judge them, to evaluate them or to try to analyze them to see whether they are true or not according to their judgment and past experience. Instead, babes simply believe what they are told by the Lord! When Jesus said 'babes' He wasn’t talking only about little children, as in that particular case He was talking about His disciples that believe His words and about people of faith, whom without questioning or analyzing what the Lord tells them, believe it, such as Abraham did.

Verily I say unto you, Whoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein (Luke 18: 17)

Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, Whoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein (Luke 18: 17). In other words, He said that unless their full acceptance of God's Words depends on faith alone and not on their careful analysis, wisdom and power of deduction, there is no way that they could enter the Kingdom of God. That's precisely the type of faith we refer to in this study, such as the faith of Abraham and of Jesus' disciples and followers.

As mentioned, most children and those who have faith simply believe, even if what they are told cannot be proved by any visible means. The kind of people God reveals His secrets to and the ones He looks for is the ones that believe what He says. When He sent His Son to earth to be born as a human, He chose His disciples among those that believed in what He said (with the exception of Judas, who betrayed Him) and none of them was the theologian or expert of the Law type. Those are some of the reasons why in this study, spirituality is not identified as an intellectual, theological, religious or philosophical undertaking but simply as the acceptance of the Truth God reveals through His Son, and His Spirit.

Are you a master of Israel, and don’t know these things? ... We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and you receive not our witness (You don’t believe what I say)

One such wise and prudent man mentioned in the gospel was Nicodemus, one of the ‘masters’ of the people of Israel and a learned member of their highest religious body, the Sanhedrin or Council. He secretly came to see Jesus and wanted to know more about His message. Jesus explained to him that to ‘see’ and ‘enter’ into the Kingdom of Heaven, he needed to be born spiritually and become as a little child. However, Nicodemus couldn’t understand or receive what He told him, even when he was such an expert in the religious Laws and religious matters of the children of Israel and a master and teacher of them.

When Jesus told him that he needed to be born again, Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? Jesus answered and said unto him, Are you a master of Israel, and don’t know these things? (Nicodemus was the equivalent of one of today’s high officers in a church or Christian organization, such as a cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church or a bishop or archbishop in other branches of Christianity) Verily, verily, I say unto you, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and you receive not our witness (You don’t have faith to receive what is said) (John 3: 9 to 11). While Nicodemus wanted to ‘understand’ and judge according to his knowledge, Jesus was telling him that he just had to believe as a baby would, instead.

Thankfully, Nicodemus didn’t give up, as obviously he desired to believe and receive the spiritual truth Jesus offers. In fact, the gospels record a number of occasions in which Nicodemus showed he believed Jesus was sent by God. Even in that first encounter with the Lord, he said to Jesus, Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that you do, except God be with him (John 3: 2). Nicodemus could see and rationally judge that the miracles Jesus was performing in God’s name weren’t human acts but supernatural acts and signs from God. Still, his knowledge and wise conclusions weren’t sufficient to match or replace simple straightforward faith. That’s why Jesus told him that he ‘must be born again’ and ‘be born of the Spirit’ to become as a little child, if he wanted to see and enter the Kingdom of God. When Nicodemus doubted and found it hard to accept what He said, Jesus also told him, If I have told you earthly things, and you believe not, how shall you believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? And no man has ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven (Jesus), even the Son of man which is in heaven (John 3: 12 and 13). Obviously, how could anybody judge according to experience the things of Heaven when only Jesus came down from Heaven? The only path open to understand Heaven is to believe the only one that came down from Heaven and directly from God, the Father.

... no man knows the Son, but the Father; neither knows any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whoever the Son will reveal Him (Matthew 11: 27)

In other words, believing Jesus’ words about Heaven and about God, the Father, is purely in the realm of faith, as Jesus is the only one that came down from Heaven and the only one that can teach us about it. None has ever done the same. Therefore, God searchs and looks for people that would receive the words of His Son, Jesus, as a young child and as babes would believe. 

After Jesus said that God reveals ‘those things’ to Babes and not to the prudent and wise, He added, All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knows the Son, but the Father; neither knows any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him (Matthew 11: 27). Therefore, there is no other man or human source that knows the Father and the only path left open to know Him is through faith in Jesus’ words and testimony or through belief in the testimony of those that believe in and proclaim Jesus’ words. God didn’t provide any other way to know Him, as it wasn't His will to do so and it didn’t seem good to Him to do so. Prophets and people of faith in the past had revealed things about God that were told them by the Lord, but none knew the Father directly, according to the words of Jesus.

As we quoted Him saying to Thomas, He is ... the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by Him. God only left open the path of a childlike faith in the words He gave through His Son as a mean to know Him. He purposely only reveals those truths to those that believe as babes do and those that become as little children. No other can see or enter into the Kingdom of God and as Jesus said, Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight, and God knows what is good and what isn’t. That’s the path of faith and that’s what this study defines as spirituality.

Free Will and the Path of Faith

In fact, from the beginning, the Lord intended for each individual to relate to Him based on faith in what He says, on His word. However, he gave each of us the choice to believe what He says or not. He could have restricted people to do only what He said or wanted, but instead offered choices to each individual, starting with Adam and Eve, while presenting the possible outcomes and consequences of whatever choices we might make. For example, He told Adam and Eve that they could choose to eat any of the many fruits in the Garden (including the Tree of Life that was also in the Garden). Then, He told them that if they ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, they would surely die and He advised them not to do it. However, He neither removed that tree from the Garden, nor stopped them from eating of it. The choice was entirely up to them. Once they ate of that tree, He kept His promise and death entered our world.

From the very beginning, the Lord established His relationship with humankind based on free will and on faith or lack of it. It wasn't a coercive relationship in which He forced us to do His will, but He gave us choices and the guidelines or ‘rules’ were few and clearly defined, as if given for children. He didn’t impose complex religious or social rules on humankind, but instead, the guidelines were drawn quite broadly and allowed for lots of freedom of choice, with many of the choices being good. Notice that in the Garden there were many, many trees and they were told to eat of any of them, except of ‘only one’ and were told that if they ate of that one, they would die. 

It wasn't until much later, thousands of years, that the Lord imposed the strict religious and social regulations and commandments of the Mosaic Law on the children of Israel. However, that wasn't His original plan, but in that case, it was out of necessity to offer a path to the children of Israel to return to belief in Him. Notice that those laws were not extended to or required from all the peoples of the world until then or since, neither were they imposed on Abraham and the Patriarchs. Why they were only imposed in the children of Israel?

Why the Lord gave the Laws of Moses to the Children of Israel, but not to other People?

The reason why the Lord had to impose the strict regulations, ceremonies and rituals included in the Mosaic Law to the children of Israel, was that they for the most part lacked the faith Abraham and the faith the Patriarchs had. However, the children of Israel were enjoying the blessings and privileges that their ancestors’ faith and the Lord’s promises to them afforded them, which other nations didn’t enjoy. In other words, although the Lord was blessing them for the sake of Abraham’s faith and the promises He had made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, they –the children of Israel- for the most part didn’t ‘deserve’ those promises because of their unbelief and lack of faith in the Lord and His prophets. 

You can simply verify this fact by reading in Scripture how after they have lived in Egypt for a few centuries, the children of Israel believed neither in the Lord’s words, nor in His prophet, Moses. The Old Testament shows that the majority of the children of Israel disbelieved the words of Moses, even disbelieving or discarding the countless outstanding miracles the Lord performed through Moses and in front of their eyes to help increase their faith and to deliver them.

Unfortunately, since that point many of the future generations of the children of Israel, sometimes even including their kings and religious leaders did the same and often aggravated the Lord with their unbelief and by following after the ‘gods’ of other nations. In addition, throughout the centuries, some of them, notoriously those residing in Jerusalem where the temple was, killed most of the prophets the Lord sent them to admonish them and to bring them back to follow the contract of the Law they have entered with the Lord and for which they have been promised to be blessed. Shortly before He was crucified in Jerusalem, Jesus said, ... it cannot be that a prophet perishes out of Jerusalem. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which kills the prophets, and stones (to death) them that are sent unto you; how often would I have gathered your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not (don’t want)! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate... (Luke 13: 33 to 35).

Moses told them, Behold, I set before you this day a blessing ... if you obey the commandments of the LORD ... And a curse, if you will not obey the commandments of the Lord (Deuteronomy 11)

The Lord didn’t demand other nations on the earth to follow the Law of Moses because those other nations have not been offered the extraordinary blessings and promises the children of Israel were offered and often received, because of the faith of Abraham. In other words, they received those extraordinary blessings simply because they were the descendants of Abraham and the Patriarchs, to whom the Lord had made the original promises. The Lord had promised to bless the children of Israel above other peoples of the earth because of their illustrious ancestors’ faith, Abraham and Israel. However, when their descendants lost the faith for which they have been blessed above others, the Lord was forced to impose the Law of Moses on them and they were required to keep them, if they wanted to continue to be blessed. Otherwise, why would the Lord bless disproportionally a people that neither believed in Him nor followed Him? Why would He bless them above other nations if they did what was wrong in the eyes of the Lord and if they didn’t believe in Him, His words and His prophets and messengers? 

The Law, unlike the relationship based on faith the Lord had with Abraham, clearly stated that if the children of Israel would comply with the Law, they would be blessed and if they didn’t comply, they would be cursed. In contrast, the Lord didn’t have to warn Abraham that He would be cursed if he didn’t what He was told, simply because Abraham believed in the Lord.

Moses told the children of Israel at the time he gave them the Law. Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; A blessing, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God (the Law), which I command you this day. And a curse, if you will not obey (and therefore disbelieve) the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which you have not known (Deuteronomy 11: 26 to 28). From that point in their history, there were times they were greatly blessed and other times when the Lord not only withdraw His many blessings but also cursed them for their disobediences and lack of faith in Him. The Old Testament offers plenty of examples of both. 

And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people (the children of Israel), and, behold, it is a stiff-necked people: Now therefore let me alone ... that I may consume them (Exodus 32: 9 and 10)

Therefore, the reason why the Lord had to put the children of Israel under the Law at the time of Moses was because while they have been promised to be blessed immeasurably by the Lord for the sake of Abraham’s faith; they hadn’t adopted the faith of Abraham, but instead doubted Him and His prophet. Their unbelief was even more aggravating to the Lord as He did much greater miracles for them than for Abraham or the patriarchs, in fact greater miracles that He had done for almost anybody else. However, the children of Israel still doubted the Lord incessantly. In other words, while Abraham received promises and believed the Lord, even though those promises could only be seen by faith, the children of Israel saw the powerful miracles the Lord did through Moses to bring them out of Egypt and to sustain millions of them in the wilderness for forty years. However, they still didn’t believe, often doubting and murmuring against the Lord and against Moses.

In fact, there was a time when the Lord, tired of their unbelief, wanted to destroy the whole nation of the children of Israel and start again with Moses. And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people (the children of Israel), and, behold, it is a stiff-necked (stubborn and incredulous) people: Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of you a great nation (Exodus 32: 9 and 10). The Lord was grieved that the children of Israel wouldn’t believe in His words through His prophet Moses, while He was performing outstanding miracles for them in their sight to bring them to the land they have been promised.

A simple childlike Faith in the Lord’s Words is the single most important Factor of true Spirituality

In contrast, Abraham wasn't given laws, ceremonies, regulations or priests to oversee him, as Abraham simply believed in what the Lord told him; his faith was enough. A simple childlike faith in the Lord’s words is the single most important factor of true spirituality in the Lord’s eyes. In the passage quoted previously, Jesus said that ‘these things’ had been ‘hid from the wise and the prudent’, such as theologians, experts of the Mosaic Law and people versed on religious matters, but were ‘revealed to babes’. Jesus even told the chief priests and the elders of the people of Israel, ... Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots (prostitutes) go into the kingdom of God before you. For John (the Baptist) came unto you in the way of righteousness, and you believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and you, when you had seen it, repented not afterward, that you might believe him (Matthew 21: 31 and 32). Jesus clearly said that the publicans and prostitutes go into the Kingdom of God because they believed, while the learned chief priests and elders of the people of Israel didn’t.

The same may apply to many of the present day wise, prudent and even to some priests or elders, if they have not converted and become as little children. Prostitutes out of a red light district, con men and second hand car dealers type of people may repent, be converted and become as little children, and therefore be forgiven and enter Heaven, while the wise and prudent might be left out of the loop of Heaven, if they don’t believe as a child does. Based on the things the Lord taught, there is no greater spirituality than to believe the words of God as a little child would do and no wisdom, prudence, ceremonies could even begin to replace the faith of a little child. 

Chapter 2 — Spirituality Down-to-Earth

Being spiritual doesn’t require any deep ‘Spiritual Experience’ other than trusting and following the Lord

We have stated that the path of spirituality in God's eyes is to follow Jesus and to put Him above everything else in our lives, rather than about being intellectually complex, and deal with hard to understand stuff, ‘reserved only for the initiated and gurus’. We have said that based on the Lord’s words, spirituality in God’s eyes is simply to believe, as little children do, in what He says.

When Abraham, or later, Jesus’ disciples decided to believe in what the Lord told them, and to follow Him, leaving lands and relatives, it was a spiritual decision that ran counter to the logic of the world, its materialistic ways and traditions. The people of the world don’t want to leave what they have, their possessions to follow a God they can't see, or to follow His Son who was crucified. In addition, often they feel that those who do so are extreme fanatics, or fools.

However, that’s what Jesus called His disciples to do. Notice that being spiritual doesn’t require any deep ‘spiritual’ experience other than trusting and following the Lord, although those who believe and follow Him might experience some of the awesome and out-of-this-world events of the Spirit of God, as some of His disciples and followers did and do. However, those experiences neither are necessary conditions to being spiritual, nor promised ‘rewards’ in this life. Faith in Jesus and therefore spirituality are not based in seeing or experiencing things, but in believing without seeing. As Jesus told Thomas, one of His disciples, "Thomas, because you have seen me (resurrected), you have believed: blessed are