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Tablet Nine
Chapter 3
"And unto the
angel
of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the
seven Spirits of
God, and the seven
stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and
art dead." (Rev. 3:1)
<1>The fifth church is represented by the
symbol of the nine-armed star of the
Baha'i Faith (
). The name Baha'u'llah
means the "Beauty of God." "That thou hast a name" refers to this name which the followers of
the
Baha'i Faith
should bring to the world. They should glorify the Lord. "That thou livest, and art dead": But this name is dead. They are not
glorifying the Lord (formless, nameless, and invisible). They are
glorifying their Prophet (Baha'u'llah).
<2>Also the fifth church is related to the
fifth psychic center (chakra).
"Be watchful, and strengthen the things which
remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works
perfect before
God." (Rev. 3:2)
<3>"I have not found thy works perfect before
God": The true founder
of the
Baha'i Faith
was Bab (one of the titles Bab gave to himself was
Baha'u'llah -- Bab means "The Door"), who was martyred. One of Bab's disciples by the name of
Baha'u'llah
tried to perfect his teachings and he changed many things.
<4>Also because the followers of Bab went
through much persecution, they lost much of their strength. To make
the movement survive,
Baha'u'llah's
followers had to compromise so that they might be able to survive in
their hostile environment. Also, through
Baha'u'llah
(Bab's disciple), these teachings spread west so that we might
become familiar with them. Otherwise it would have remained a small
group and never spread abroad as it did. This all happened by His
Will as it was predicted in these verses and shown in history.
<5>What remained and the main purpose of the
coming of the
Baha'i Faith is
its universal view which should be accepted and preserved, "Be
watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to
die."
"Remember therefore how thou hast received and
heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch,
I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I
will come upon thee." (Rev. 3:3)
<6>The
Baha'i Faith
was revealed in Persia.
Islam was the dominating religion. However, many people embraced
the faith and were slain in doing so. Later on, the followers of the
Baha'i Faith
lost their strength and changed many things in their ideology in
order to be able to live peacefully in that environment. That is the
meaning of "Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and
hold fast, and repent."
<7>Also, in the individual situation in this
level of spiritual progress, a person might again become an
escapist. That is because he can now see
God (Matthew 5:8) and His perfect universe, and he sees Its
perfection. So he might just sit back and enjoy his realization
without bothering to help others. He feels he should not
interfere with Its flow and alleviate some of the suffering.
With a little push, however, things can be accelerated. <8>These
people forget how they went through a great struggle to reach there. That is why it says, "Remember therefore, how thou hast received and
heard." So become active and help others also.
"Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have
not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in
white: for they are
worthy." (Rev. 3:4)
<9>However, in the beginning of the movement
a very few Great Souls supported the faith and were slain in doing
so. They were worthy to walk with the Spirit (Christ)
in
white (Pure
Consciousness,
light, knowledge). Those who overcome being escapists are worthy to reach
Pure
Consciousness (
).
"He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in
white raiment; and I
will not blot his name out of the book of life, but I will confess
his name before my
Father, and before
his
angels." (Rev. 3:5)
<10>He who overcomes the pitfalls of this
stage will overcome all attractions of
Maya. He will overcome the material world (the five elements). He will be spiritually purified. The
white raiment will be
given to him as mentioned in Rev. 6:11, "And
white raiment will be given unto every one of them." "Them"
refers to "the souls of them that were slain for the word of
God, and for the testimony which they held," who are the people
that were slain in the
Baha'i Faith
and those who reach the fifth
chakra but are not afraid to fight for their beliefs.
<11>So these are the ones who are blessed
because they are pure in heart and will see
God (Matthew 5:8). They will be given
white garments, their names will be in the book of life, and the
Spirit (Christ) will
confess their names before the
Father and His
angels (Rev. 3:5). They have been slain for the word of
God and for the testimony (of truth) which they held (Rev. 6:9).
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