National Teaching Committee Bulletins/1922/January/Text
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A BRIEF ANSWER TO QUESTIONS ON THE FULFILLMENT OF SOME BIBLE PROPHECIES CONCERNING THIS DAY.
(By Louis G. Gregory)
Nineteen Hundred years ago, Jesus Christ walked the earth, but was despised, rejected and unknown to many of the religious doctors, although He was a perfect
man and the One whom they exerted, md for whose coming they continually prayed. On
one occasion He said to the Scribes and Pharisees, the advice of the age, "Ye searc:. the Scriptures for out of them ye think ye have Eternal Life. These also testify of me,"
The reason why Jesus Christ was known to the humble layman and the very lowly people, but rejected by many of the wise and learned, was on account of the pride and arrogance of the latter, by preferring their own human thoughts and limited interpretations, to Divine conception and insight.
The Messengers of God, BAHA'O'LLAH, His Greatest Manifestation, and ABDUL BAHA, the Servant of God and the Center of His Covenant have appeared, and the Divine Light in thia "Day of God," shines with the brilliancy of the sun. The principles which they proclaim are universal and are the "healing of the nations" and "the pacification of the world." If man will accept it, these twelve great principles are symbolized by the Tree, in the Book of Revelation, bearing twelve manner of fruits, and the leaves of this tree are for the healing of the nations. These Universal principles, briefly stated, are as follows:
The Search for Truth, A Universal Language,
The Oneness of Humanity, Universal Education,
The Unity of Religions, Universal Peace,
Religion and Science Agree, An International Tribunal, Equality of Men and Women, Solution of the Economic Problem, Abandonment of Prejudices, The Power of the Holv Spirit.
These principles applied to the sick body of the world will te a healing antidote for every disease,
Christ warned us against the false; as the false prophets in every cycle, were ever a veil for the True One. The false prophets against whom we were warned by Christ, were to appear in His name, and show great signs of wonders, but the True One was to come in a new name and the children of light, in these latter days, were to appear with a new name upon their foreheads. "He that is faithful and true, I will make a pillar in the temple of my God, and I will write upon him, MY NEW NAME." But the new name in meaning, fulfills prophecies.
Many of the prophecies of the Old Testament, which have been thought by the
divines, to apply to Jesus Christ, did not in reality apply to Him; but those
prophecies are, in this day, fulfilled in the appearance of Baha'o'llah (the
Glory of God) and in the coming of the Servant of God, Abdul Bana.
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Isaiah - 9:6: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the gevernment shall be upon his shoulders; and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, +>+ everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace."
It is very significant that Jesus Christ never claimed any of the above titles, The titles by which He preferred to be known were: "The Son of God" and "The Son of Man." His human name was Jesus. His title, "The Christ", means the annointed. He did not claim to be the Father, but He said, "the Father is in Me," meaning the Holy Spirit. He said, "I go to the Father, and the Father is greater than I." He promised that the Father would come, and bade His disciples, in the Lord's Prayer, pray for the coming of the Father. He also promises it in the parable of the vineyard, namely, that the Lord of the Vineyard would come!
Today, Baha'o'llah, in a marvelous way, fulfills all these prophecies and many others, made not only by Jesus Christ, but by all the prophets of previous cycles. *
"Arise, shine, for thy Baha, (Light) hath come, and Bahafo'llah (The Glory of God) hath risen upon thee. The Baha of Glory, of Abha, (God) shall cover the earth as the waters cover the deep. "Carmel and Sharon" shall see Baha'o'llah (The Glory of God.)" All flesh shall see Baha'o'llah (The Glory of God.)"
In the same way, Abdul Baha is the "Branch of the Lord" and "My Servant, the Branch," appears in many prophecies. One of them reads: "In that day shall the Branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious, and the fruits of the earth shall be comely because of Him, Another reads; "Behold my Servant, the Branch, He shall build the temple of the Lord." It is particularly significant that Abdul Baha directed and completed, im the Orient, the building of the Mashrak-ul-Askar, or Universal house of worship, in which all nations, races, classes, colors and religions are welcome. By Hjs instructions, another such great temple is being erected in Chicago. The reason why people, in the various cycles havo rejected the Divine Messengers when sent to them, is because they have misunderstood the symbols and prophecies of their own Holy Books. Whoever rejects Baha'o'llah, the Manifestation of God, and Abdul Baha, the Center of His Covenant, in this great day, is unwittingly condemned by the prophecies and Creative Words of the very book for which he professes faith. Bible prophecies point overwhelmingly to the Mystery of the Return and Wonders of this new dispensation. Those who profess belief in Christ, being sincere, should take all His words and promises and not reject Him in particular, for thus they deny themselves the Divine Bounty and Mercy in this day of His second appearance.
He said He would come "as a thief in the night." How would His coming de more likely to be unnoticed by people than if He came as He came before, in the temple of nan, the perfect man of this cycle? Would not such an ap,earance be "Na snare to everyone on the face of the earth?" These are only a few of the prophecies that prove the validity of the Bahai Revelation and its three Holy Messengers who have successively appeared in this day, and by whose appearance, the whole earth is filled with light.
God grant that all mankind may awaken out of their deep slumber and have “seeing eyes and hearing ears," that they may understand and find healing of their spiritual and material diseases.
If even the little that is stated in this brief letter, fall into a pure
heart, it will move the reader to investigate the prophecies of the Bible, in the
light of the Bahai Revelation and he will find that the whole Bible was written
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for this great day of God, in which we are now living, and that all these prophecies, as well as the prophecies of all the Holy Books, are now fulfilled. Consider the words of Christ, wherein He told us how to judge between the true and the false; "By their fruits ye shall know them! Men do not gather grapes of thornes, nor figs of thistles." We are also told that the fruits are Love, Joy, Peace, etc.
The Bahai Revelation is the divine way of applying the creed of God, which is Love and Union, to all the denisons of the earth,
Blessed are they who see!
Blessed are they who hear! Blessed are they who know the mysteries of God in this, the day of His Appearance, when His spirit is being outpoured upon all flesh.
The Ideal Comforter, the Spirit of Truth has come to guide humanity into all Truth, The heat and light of the Sun of Truth, which are the Bounty of the Holy Spirit, appear with great power and splendor from the Divine Messenger or Perfect Man. "If thou art able, take a portion thereof." His Words, which are life and spirit, are creative and bring into being the new civilization wherein peace and righteousness dwell.
Seattle, Wash. January-1922.
