THE PRICE TAG OF SELF-MASTERY

“Jesus portrayed conquest by sacrifice, the sacrifice of pride and selfishness. By showing mercy, he meant to portray spiritual deliverance from all grudges, grievances, anger, and the lust for selfish power and revenge.” [UB Paper 141, Section 3]

Thought Adjuster: “As you read the above statement, you got the feeling that it was a significant truth revelator. Indeed, sacrifices have been misunderstood for ages. Yet, no matter how obsolete and crude some forms of sacrifice have come to be considered, they had some value at the time of their offering. How so?

“Your ancestors were willing to offer in sacrifice to their gods the best of their very scare material possessions in order to ‘appease’ their perceived wrath and get on their good side. No matter how childish such beliefs may now appear, nevertheless, the intentions in their heart were genuine and it is what the Father looks at. Just as a little one deeply moves his parents’ hearts by gifting them with a field flower that he deems precious, the Heavenly Father is moved by your offerings when they come from your very heart rather than from a place of calculated and selfish profit-seeking.

“Jesus came to disclose to all that the most prized sacrifices are the ones that contribute to your self-mastery: the sacrifices of pride and selfishness. Indeed, if you could remove these character flaws from your being, you would be instantly ‘reborn’ as a totally new individual, as they are your greatest obstacles and the cause of much grief and dissension—both internal and external. By successfully removing these inner stumbling-blocks, you will simultaneously heal your relationships with others.

“Pride stands in the way of forgiveness. It over inflates the ego and looks down at others with a misguided sense of superiority, thus making them feel inferior and as amounting to little. Pride crushes their spirits while humility lifts them up and evens the playing field.

“Dear ones, examine your own life to understand how you can put this fundamental truth to the highest good—yours and others. Just as engineers use the laws of physics to move great masses with less effort, so should you use these inner laws to rid yourself of the heavy legacy of grudges, resentments, and the propensities to anger and such destructive emotions.

“One thing is for sure: You need to be ‘delivered’ from grudges, resentment, jealousy, and such, as they constitute a detrimental line of inner defense that prevents the sublime feeling of peace to move in and dissolve all fears and anxieties with its mighty presence and supernal authority.”