FATHER DIVINE at 128th Street, New York City
It was Monday afternoon, but as far as the expression of the Worship of GOD was concerned, on the part of the loyal followers of FATHER DIVINE, it was the same as Sunday, for in the Kingdom the Angels Praise GOD with the same devotion, love and sincerity on Monday with which they Praise HIM on Sunday. In reality, it is the true revelation and fulfillment of the familiar expression, "In Heaven, congregations would ne'er break up, and sabbaths have no end."
FATHER Personally had been absent from the Kingdom for several days, and the Angels had longed for HIS Charming Presence. Now that HE had returned to them they feasted their eyes on HIS Beauty. Just one look accomplished the work for many, the burdens of their hearts rolled away. If their countenance showed a slight reflection of sadness because of HIS absence from them for such a period of time, it immediately turned into gladness as they enter the Dining Hall and beheld HIS HOLY PRESENCE. Some overflowed with joy, until their faces glowed with a radiant light as the result of their exceeding great joy. In many ways the Angels expressed their devotion to GOD—some were moved to speak and sing by the Inspiration of the Spirit, others just smiled and beamed all over with love. There were some who danced and leaped with merriment through the Spirit of Merriness, and throughout the entire Banquet Period, there was a season of Life, Joy, Peace, Happiness and Good Will for everybody.
The great number of visitors looked on, and with admiration they enjoyed the Spirit and the atmosphere of the Service. They listened intently for FATHER'S Voice, especially those who were in the upper Auditorium who were not able to look on FATHER because of the density of the crowd, they patiently waited to hear the fond and familiar Greeting of "Peace, Everybody."
At length the final greeting came, and after a few minutes of recipient applause, the great mass throng gave theirundivided attention to the profundity of the Message which came direct from Heaven. FATHER was merciful in HIS Statement and Warning to those who were concerned in publishing an outright and deliberate untruth in one of the local newspapers concerning a stolen car from one of the representatives by two young men. If the idea was conceived, as it evidently was, according to the write-up in this particular paper, that leniency should be granted these young men because of their respective so-called race, be it hereafter known that Righteousness, Justice and Truth cannot under any terms, compromise with sin, vice and corruption, especially if such sin, vice and crime approaches the portals of the Kingdom of Heaven, the very Foundation and Principle of Righteousness, Truth and Justice. Equity is our scale of Justice, hence it knows no race, color or creed in so far as human affection and human sympathy is concerned, but it must be meted unto every individual in accord with his works.
Let those who are concerned now, continue to publish their unfounded false statements, let them continue to poison the minds of the people en-masse against Righteousness, Truth and Justice, or let them take fair warning and cognizance of the facts disclosed in this Message, if they wish to be continuously successful and prosperous in their business and affairs and in their physical bodies. "A hint to the wise is sufficient." Let them take heed here and now, or let them prove each and all of their false statements before a Court of Justice. If this they fail to do, we the FATHER DIVINE'S Peace Mission will and shall seek to enforce Righteousness, Truth and Justice that it might be hereafter an d forever established in the hearts and minds of men and on the earth plane, for the common good of all.
Below is this marvelous Message given by FATHER on this occasion. Read it, if you so desire, and know the Truth, for the Truth shall forever prevail.
Peace, Everyone:
("Peace FATHER Dear!" returned the enthusiastic Assembly.) Good Health! Good Will and a Good Appetite, I believe you all have had, for you look something like it. I could say, a heart full of Merriness, because you look like you are merry. Your actions express enthusiasm and your emotions express devotion. Your devotions I might say also express your affection, and when your affection is directed in one direction, it is the expression of love unselfish. For this cause, we are rejoicing and we are exceedingly glad, but while sitting and thinking, I thought of how the mortal mind in those who are endorsers of vice and crime would desire to handicap this Great Conversion and would desire, if they could, to apprehend this great Dominion, that they might prevent and prohibit this Dominion from doing that for which I came—to cleanse this City as well as the people of vice and crime and corruption of every kind.
While thinking along this line, I thought of a certain local newspaper, in a very recent issue, carrying a message concerning ME, speaking as if though I had had someone arrested and charged them with grand larceny. This of course, the newspaper, those who are concerned, may have a chance to explain— —they may have a chance to explain whether I have signed with MY signature, or have Personally asked an officer to arrest either one of those boys who were concerned in taking one of the representatives cars. Now this certain paper may have a chance to explain it. Maybe they have a plenty of money and they would like to have a little chance to spend some of it.
My Representatives have a plenty of it too, and they do not mind spending it for ME. It is indeed wonderful, but we do try to avoid legal or social clashes, but, however, since they claimed I Myself signed such a complaint, it would good for them to explain—give us some information. If they have said it, now let them prove it. However, I can say those whomsoever they may be who carried out that report, they may be concerned to know that we know those who are trying to cloak thieves and robbers, we know who they are. We know we are here to get at corruption. We are here to catch the thieves and robbers.
How could you rid the city of vice and crime unless you set a trap to catch those who are committers of such crimes? As long as you endorse them and continue to encourage them to go on in vice and crime, we will continue to have it, even in your very homes, but because you think a person is your complexion, why should you have any affection or love or devotion for vice and crime and corruption just because it happens to be in a person of your complexion?
It is a crime in itself for men to try or desire to endorse a person in corruption and vice and crime because he is of their complexion or his complexion. A person who would do such should be found guilty himself of endorsing and encouraging such. If I would allow vice and crime to go on in this city and not seek to apprehend it, and those who are the committers of such crime, I would be the same as those who are committing it, but as I said sometime ago, "I AM here to Root Up sin. If I had not come you had a cloak for your sin, but since I came, you have no cloak for your sin."
It is written,
"I will make you fishers of men."
Whensoever a man will come in these Auditoriums and endeavor to steal, snatch purses and pick pockets, etc., why we mean to put an end to their wicked doings. We mean to capture them and cause them to be punished, according to the extent of the Law, for Righteousness, Truth and Justice would do so, and since we are endeavoring to bring about Righteousness, Truth and Justice, we will not endorse vice and crime and corruption in those who think they are of our complexion any more than we would those who are in opposition or may look somewhat different. it is indeed wonderful! (''TRULY WONDERFUL!" exclaimed the multitude.)
It is a privilege to know an official should not fill an office who has human sympathy for himself, according to his personal individual race or creed or color. If that person would have a special sympathy for a person because of his color, that person is not fit, neither is he worthy of filling an office as an official in this City, not only in this City, in no other City. As I said some time ago. if a man would come to you and tell you, "I am for the' so and so' people;e . . . I am standing for them especially," it is an evidence that that person or persons whomsoever they may be, who would endeavor to stand especially for some especial group, is selfish. Every individual should stand unselfishly for the common good of the people with whom his office concerns. It is indeed wonderful!
If we cannot lift up a standard unselfishly and non-racially, inter-denominationally, even inter-religiously when coming to a political issue, we are not the person or persons nor organizations to be represented as one for an office nor a mission to do work for the common people . . . Oh! It is something to consider. I know MY Method. MY Mission, MY Individual Personal Endeavors and other expressions concerning MYSELF, may be a little opposite to the average person, I know it is,
"for your ways are not MY Ways, neither are your thoughts MY Thoughts,"
says the lord, for
"as high as the Heaven is above the Earth, even so high are MY Ways above your ways and MY Thoughts above your thoughts."
Men have been living in self long enough. They have brought you in misery, lacks and wants and limitations, by living in selfishness. Through segregation and discrimination, they are trying to acquire everything for themselves. They will endorse you in vice and crime because of your complexion, because of your race and because of your creed and because of your color. When and wheresoever one will endeavor to do such, that person or persons or organizations are in themselves the committers of the crime which you would be ordinarily found guilty of.
There is a common phrase often used here in America:
"The receiver is the same as the rogue."
It is indeed wonderful! Therefore, if you endorse crime and encourage it by trying to protect it, you are the conceivers— not only the receiver, but you are the conceiver of the identical germs of vice and crime. Eventually you will produce those tendencies and commit the same yourself as an individual.
This is a psychological Truth, as a negative point of view for consideration concerning those who are workers of iniquity. The work of Righteousness is equivalent. If you copy after the fashion of Righteousness, and endorse the qualities and the endeavors of the Righteous, you are partakers of their characteristics, and their nature will be imposed upon you, automatically you will conceive their ideas and opinions, you will produce their ways and actions and reflect their tendencies. If the Positive is true as I have expressed it and explained it scientifically to you, the negative is equivalently the same. I have endeavored to reflect the Positive. Those of you who have copied after the Fashion, by endorsing it, you have become to be partakers of MY Characteristics, and you have automatically in some way walked in MY Statutes.
Oh, it is a privilege to realize all of these expressions, whether they be the Positive or the negative, the very germs and characteristics of them are contagious, hence, you will be partakers of that which you come in contact with, and harmonize with. It is indeed wonderful! We are endeavoring to oppose all vice and crime and dishonesty of every kind. By so doing,we will Fast out of our systems and out of our communities all corruption such as has heretofore been existing among this people. As in the case and the experience of Jesus speaking, and His Message concerning "casting 'the other fellow' out of an individual," Jesus said,
"Such kind cometh out only by fasting and by prayer."
If those of us among ourselves as well as within ourselves, will Fast out every corruptible tendency, fancy and pleasure, and Fast from our human would-be desires to endorse those who are committers of crime, we will be Fasting them out of our communities. They will not have an access to exist among us.
Now I did not Personally have anything to do with this experience of pressing a charge a charge against those young men who stole a car, but if I had, I would have been justified by so doing. If I do not endorse Righteousness and oppose corruption, I AM automatically the endorser of corruption. It is indeed wonderful! I have declared to the Authorities, I AM here to promote Righteousness, Truth and Justice, but if I would encourage crime by telling MY Believers, "you must not press a charge against wicked men who are committers of crime," I would be automatically fighting against Commonwealth Myself. It is indeed wonderful, but we are here to get at the corruption and I AM setting a trap daily for the wicked.
If they endeavor to keep it up, as they have been going, we will see that there will be more behind the bars than there are today. It is indeed wonderful. Some of them do it for contempt, some of them do it to try to provoke the Holy Spirit. It is indeed wonderful, but we are here to get at it wheresoever it is, and I have cars out there, and all over the City without keys in them, let them take them and see if we don't put them behind the bars. It is indeed wonderful!
These may be hard sayings, but as we are Separators and Segregators, we segregate the wicked from the righteous. As I was saying the other day, yea, even today in reference to a concern making segregation, I said, " they should segregate, but what should they segregate, and how should they segregate? They should separate the wicked from the Righteous." Those who are committers of crime, dishonesty, incompetence, those who are untrue, unworthy, non-reliable and n0n-trustworthy, they should be separated from the Righteous in the fulfillment of the Gospel. Oh! It is something to consider.
The parable of segregation between the different Nations, is but a parable, parably speaking of the Mystery of the great separation between the Righteous and the wicked. Why should you be separated from another person because of your complexion? Such an expression is to the extreme opposite to Righteousness, but when you are wicked, naturally according to the Scripture, you should be separated from the Righteous and be not partakers of the Righteous, neither the Righteous be partakers of your characteristics.
"Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful, but his delight is in the Law of the Lord;
And in His Law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."
Is not this an outer expression of the fulfillment of that Scripture? The Progressiveness of the Prosperous you can see openly reflected. We are daily manifesting Success and Prosperity, by living Evangelically—by walking not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standing in the way of the sinner, by refusing to be partakers of their folly and their gossips, etc. When you are subject to the different gossips of those who gossip daily in the way of folly, you are also lowering your vitality. You are directing your energy in a destructive direction, not only destructive to and for others, but it is destructive for yourself as an individual. You are destroying your energy foolishly instead of using your energy and your mentality constructively
.Take these thoughts to consideration. If you walk in the counsel of the ungodly and stand in the way of the sinner, and continue to gossip negative things, you will be partakers of the wicked and also the weakness of the wicked. You will weaken yourselves mentally and spiritually. You will weaken yourselves physically as well as mentally and Spiritually. You cannot advance physically, even if you continue to participate in gossip, and walk in the way of the ungodly and stand in the way of the sinner, but because you have been taken out of the wicked—from among them, etc., refusing to participate in gossip, refusing to indulge in walking in their counsel and standing in their ways, the Spirit of Success and Prosperity has been with you. You have become to be successful, prosperous, healthy and happy, for your energy has increased and your mentality has also developed. It has also given you the victory over difficulties. GOD, Himself, will express scientifically within you.
Just look at the progress of the Spirit of GOD as it is unfolded! Success and Prosperity, Health and Happiness, Peace and Joy and Plenty, the Abundance of the Fullness from every angle. All of these visible expressions are but the reflections of that which is within, by living according to the Teaching. Walking not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standing in the way of the sinner, nor sitting in the seat of the scornful, but delighting, each of you being one who would delight in the Laws of the LORD.
Now just think of it—you may notice a person who is talking negative talk, acting negatively one towards the other, they are losing their energy and abusing their power. There are many of them who cannot even hold a position because of the loss of energy and because of the dullness of their mentality, but if you live according to this Teaching, the very Spirit of MY Presence will inspire you with Wisdom, will inspire you with Courage and Zeal, will cause you to be persistent in your ambition, will also give you the Victory over every seeming limitation, for GOD within you is greater than all undesirable conditions.
Now you will notice closely hereafter, those who oppose you, which is to say, those who oppose ME, you find them going back. They are falling short of Success and Prosperity. Many of them are losing their business, their professions, trades, gifts and calling. They cannot even demonstrate educationally as they have been. They cannot express themselves from an educational point of view, even though they call themselves intelligent. Why is it? It is because they are objecting and neglecting to such a great Salvation.
Wisdom belongs to GOD, even though it may be called "human intelligence." Such an expression transmitted to humanity through mankind from one to the other, these expressions of human intelligence, belong to GOD, hence, GOD will attract them and draw them to HIM, and to those of you who will work in harmony with such an expression of human intelligence for the common good of the people and will not be selfish. This is another expression of the Mystery of the Great Separation.
GOD is calling for His Education through and by the human intellect, as it may be termed, calling for it to come forth into expression, to be His Real Servant. All of your human skill and ability, as it may be termed, will eventually come to ME and to those who will live in harmony with the Creator that gave it. It is the same as I was saying the other day, Success and Prosperity seeks harmony as water seeks its level. Wisdom, Knowlege and Understanding, all of these qualities are seeking the Creator of these Attributes and Qualities as well as the water seeks its level.
Men are losing their human intellect. They are becoming to be confused with it, having nervous break-downs, etc. Why is it? It is because they have not given the Glory and the Honor to GOD. When your human intellect desires to come to GOD in harmony, in union, and in faithfulness to the Maker, you will pervert it by your negative and perverted thinking, ideas and opinions, etc., and direct it in a different direction. GOD will take your human intelligence and give it to others who will serve HIM. The person who buried his talent in the ground— now notice that mystery—why is there more and more Wisdom, Know lege and Understanding coming forth into expression in this direction? It is because of the harmony and unity of Mind, of Aim and of Purpose, to love and serve GOD with your whole heart. By so doing, the very Blessing GOD has sent out through the Ages to and through humanity for each and all mankind will come in harmony seeking the very Fount and the Offspring of it.
Oh! it is a privilege to realize—"It takes steel to draw steel." Now isn't that wonderful! Love will draw its own Creation . . . will draw all of His Creation with its fruit into subjection harmoniously. Oh! it is indeed wonderful. Thus MY Love is attracting and drawing Peace and Joy and Happiness. It is attracting and drawing Wisdom, Knowlege and Understanding. It is attracting and drawing all Dominion and all Authority. It is attracting and drawing all Success and all Prosperity, all Health and all Happiness and all of the desirable Creation of your MAKER.
I say, "Water seeks its level" and all of these expressions lastly mentioned, they are something like a stinging nettle in water. You may scatter them , if you wish to, but so long as they are in the water, they will get back together. GOD will draw His Wisdom, Knowlege, and His Understanding, He will draw HIS Peace, HIS Joy, HIS Health and HIS Happiness, HE will draw HIS Success and Prosperity and all of HIS desirable Attributes and Qualities together for you!
"To him that hath, it shall be given."
Why shall it be given the same thing that he has? Because he has it. It is indeed wonderful! That something must come to him who has it, because it will attract it and draw it to him. Now isn't that wonderful?
We have Happiness. We have Peace. We have Joy and we have Pleasure. We have Success and we have Prosperity. We have Wisdom. We have Knowlege and we have Understanding. We have love and we have kindness. We are drawing each and all of them together by the thousand-fold, for each atom, yea, each atom of a germ of these expressions will attract and draw other atoms of the germs of those expressions to it.
Now just look at you. ("With this remark the throng that was filled with the transmission of GODS Love, burst forth in cheers.) All of your devotion will attract devotion. Your faithfulness will attract faithfulness. Your obedience will attract obedience. Your love will attract love. Your kindness will attract kindness. Your peace will attract peace. Your wisdom will attract wisdom. All of these Words which I have lastly spoken, are Evangelical. To prove they are Evangelical, may I quote a quotation for you? It is indeed wonderful! You read in the Gospel where it says,
"The word was with GOD in the beginning."
This aforegoing statement is not the exact quotation, but as I quote it , you will understand,
"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His Glory, as the Glory of the Only Begotten of the FATHER, full of Grace and of Truth."
When you beheld such Glory, as it was exhibited or manifested, full of Grace and full of Truth, then and there,
"of all of HIS Fullness have all we received Grace for Grace."
You attract and you draw these Graces to you, as you live according to the Virtues I have taught you. They will be produced and manifested, for they are producible and they were produced in the BODY called JESUS, and manifested. You observed it as I exhibited it. When I exhibited it, you observed it. When you observed it, you visualized it vividly—gazed upon it, immediately, then and there, you began to materialize it, and as you materialized it, you realized it; as you realized it, of its Fullness you have received it, as I have exhibited it.
Oh! it is a privilege to realize all of these desirable Attributes and Qualities can become to be a Living Reality among you, by daily concentration, visualizing and idolizing the Positive, the Real and the True. These qualities shall and will eventually be produced in you, and you will become to be the Personification of that which you have been visualizing. I thank you.
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