The Wisdom of Jesus Series
Click For Audio: Disturbance or Awakening?
Jesus said, “Those who seek should not stop seeking until they find. When they find, they will be disturbed. When they are disturbed, they will marvel, and will reign over all. [And after they have reigned they will rest]”(The Gospel of Thomas, #2).
If this statement attributed to Jesus does not look familiar, it is because it is taken from The Gospel of Thomas, a sayings gospel discovered in 1945 in a remote cave near Nag Hammadi, Egypt.
As with all spiritual writings, the object of seeking is to find the truth of our being. We want to know the truth of who we are, why we’re here, and what we are here to do. In other words, we want our lives to have meaning.
Many are seeking meaning for their lives in things, in accomplishments, in titles, and in positions of importance. While all of these things obviously have their place, the greatest discovery we can make is our direct relationship to God. While this may seem like an abstract concept or a call for more study of spiritual material, we should remind ourselves that God is that very near, indwelling impulse to be all that we can be. We respond to this impulse every time we acknowledge it. It is when we begin to understand it as the very “voice” of God that we become attentive to the transforming message this voice is whispering in our inner ear.
To be “disturbed” by what we find as we learn to be still and know, is to become open to guidance beyond that of our own preconceived notions. We do find ourselves marveling at the attention to detail concerning the direction our life gradually takes. We begin to think of God as paving the way, providing the very place where we set our next step. We reign over all doubt as to the meaninglessness and seeming insignificance of our life, and we find rest in knowing that we are indeed moving with purpose.
The value of any inspirational text, regardless of it source, is found in its ability to remind us of the truth that sets us free.