1/07/34 The following is Lesson No. II on DAY AND NIGHT
(Second Series), compiled by the NORFOLK STUDY GROUP NO. 1
of the ASSOCIATION FOR RESEARCH AND ENLIGHTENMENT, INC.,
Virginia Beach, Virginia.
"Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the
Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall
cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord
shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon
thee!" [Isaiah 60:1,2]
HOW TO STUDY A LESSON
1. Read the lesson as a whole.
2. Memorize the PRAYER given.
3. Study the lesson by topics.
4. Study the lesson by questions.
5. Meditate upon it.
6. Listen in meditation for the truth you need, for it
will come to all who seek.
7. Apply that learned in everyday life.
D A Y A N D N I G H T
AFFIRMATION
IN THY MERCIES, O HEAVENLY FATHER, WILT THOU BE THE GUIDE IN
THIS STUDY OF THE MANIFESTATIONS OF THY LOVE, EVEN AS IN UNTO
NIGHT "DAY UNTO DAY UTTERETH SPEECH AND NIGHT SHEWETH
KNOWLEDGE." SO MAY THE ACTIVITIES OF MY LIFE, AS A
REPRESENTATIVE OF THY LOVE, BE A MANIFESTATION IN THE EARTH.
INTRODUCTION
In the material world, day and night are only a relative.
Viewed from an outer sphere, there would be only varied
shades; that is, day and night would exist only in the
relation of the earth passing around the sun. These
conditions that exist in the material plane are but shadows
of the truth in the mental and spiritual planes.
For, matter is gathered in a direct plane of activity, called
the earth. Day and night came into existence with the
separation of the light from darkness. "These are figures
of that from the spiritual plane, termed in the mental world
as good and evil." Day is the facing towards the source of
light, which to the mind of those who seek to do His biddings
is the Voice, the Word, the Life, the Light, that may come
into the hearts, the minds, the souls, of each to awaken
them, as individuals, to that relationship with the Source
of Light. Night is the facing away from the source of light;
rebellion, self-destruction.
In the beginning, in the mental plane, day became the first
period of consciousness of the separation from the Source of
all Power. Thus, with the creation of day, the souls evolved
in their own undoing became conscious of their separation
from the Creator. In the plane in which physical activity
began, there was then the establishing of directors or rulers
of the day and of the night.
In the figurative sense, light and darkness, day and night,
represent those periods of growth and periods of recuperation
through the activities in that called matter from whatever
plane it may be acted from or upon.
So, in the beginning, the first soul created darkness in
turning away from the will of the Creator. This soul, and
all that followed after him, separated themselves from the
light. Then came the light, bringing the realization of
the fall and a preparation for the way back. Each soul
experiences in a small way the reality of this great division
and gradually becomes conscious of the real and the unreal.
WHY THE CREATION OF THE WORLD
"All souls in the beginning were one with the Father. The
separation or turning away brought evil; then there came the
necessity of the awareness of self's being out of accord
with and out of the realm of blessedness. As given from the
beginning, by becoming aware in a material world is or was
the only manner or way through which spiritual forces might
become aware of their separation from the spiritual
atmosphere, the spiritual surroundings of the Maker."
God said, "Let there be light." Awareness is to know. To
know is light. Thus was a way of escape prepared, for, "He
has not willed that any should perish." In passing through
the various forms of development, the soul may find in its
manifested forms the awareness of its separation from its
Creator. Darkness existed because a soul had separated
itself from the source of power. Hence the necessity of the
Way, and in His mercy He called Light into being; awareness
began.
As we become aware of our being, our relationship to our
surroundings, to our Maker, we walk more and more in the
Light. Who, then, is in the dark? Those who have not, will
not, become aware of Light. We came here for this purpose,
and even as the Son, who learned obedience through the things
which He suffered, we learn through day and night how far
away or just how close we are to the Father. Therefore, we,
through the love of the Father, have the opportunity through
experience, suffering, comparison, to become aware of day and
night, light and darkness, good and evil, right attitudes and
wrong attitudes, of our having turned away from the Father,
and come to recognize the way back - where alone is the full
satisfaction of the soul's desires. "Praise the Lord, O my
soul, and forget not all His benefits!"
DAY UNTO DAY UTTERETH SPEECH
Those who live in the Light are in the Day. In Him is Light.
To become aware of this truth is to walk in the Light. The
sun is but a shadow of His light to remind us that we may
choose Light rather than darkness.
Being urged on by the attributes planted within, the soul
seeks growth - truth, light, life. It may be submerged to
such an extent that we may seek gratification and
satisfaction in lower ideals for a time than was set by Him,
but eventually "every knee shall bow." "Seek the Kingdom of
God," was the admonition urged by the Divine One, and, "all
these things will be added unto you." What things? That
which man needs for happiness, for rest, for peace - life,
light, hope, love, truth, understanding, God. And it is only
those who abide in Him, who keep the Door Open so that He may
come in and sup, that grow in the true knowledge of these
things.
Would we have Light? Then turn within. Look into self.
Find the answer to the problem that is keeping us in the
dark. Judge no one, not even self, but know, be conscious
of, what we have done, are doing, with the knowledge, the
understanding, the opportunities given unto us. For each
individual must so live each day that he may look into the
face of that he has spoken, that he has lived, and say, "By
this I stand to be judged before myself, before my God."
Today is the day of opportunity. Each span of life is just
another extended opportunity that light may break forth
within us. We are only enjoined to use that we have in
hand, and are then promised that what we need for further
development will be supplied. How good, how long-suffering,
is the Father, that through patience and love waits - waits
for the growth of the souls of His children, and "upbraideth
not."
Then it is well that we take stock of ourselves often. See
if we are advancing or retarding our growth. "Are all thy
plans in keeping with that He would guide thee to do? Or in
keeping with thy own? Loveth thou the material things of the
world more than the praise from the grace or glory of God?
Then know that the way thou goest is the means for better
understanding. Remember, the mental is the builder, the
Spiritual is the guide (or the life), the conditions builded
in the material things are the results. While there may come
the pleasures of those things of the world for a season, the
step by step should be, "I show in my relationship to my
fellow man, in my conversation and in my deeds day by day,
that I consider my relationship to my Maker."
"For, when an individual is passing from the activities of
the stages of the material things, who carries on? That
which has been builded in self through constructive forces
or destructive forces? Then, let thy steps be in the way of
Light, that these may bring, not only to self but to those
who are dependent upon self, those things that make for the
worth while. Study to show thyself approved unto thy Maker.
DO NOT CONFUSE SELF, NOR CONSIDER OR FEEL THAT THE SPIRITUAL
OR MENTAL LIFE IS DIFFERENT FROM MATERIAL THINGS; for one is
the shadow and reflection of the other. If we live in the
light, the shadows fall behind. If the face is turned from
the light, there can be nothing in the life, in mental and
material things, but shadows. TURN TO THE LIGHT!"
We, therefore, speak according to what we know, or are aware
of. We may fool ourselves and think that we are expressing
other than what we really are, but sooner or later we will be
awakened to the realization that when the great search-light
of truth and understanding is turned on us we have only given
out little because we have had little to give.
Then, how may "Day unto day uttereth speech" become real to
us? Just in proportion to the light we are able to shed on
others in our walks and association among our fellow men and
our true understanding of the Kingdom of the Father within.
For, we know: In Him is no night, neither is there need even
of the sun; for He is the Light that shineth more and more
unto the Perfect Day.
NIGHT UNTO NIGHT SHOWETH KNOWLEDGE
In the evening, in the night, there comes to us an
opportunity for rest, reflection, meditation and inspiration;
or a time for misery, sin, mental torture. Just so in each
trying experience of life, it may teach us such a lesson of
love and sympathy that we may be ever after a changed person,
or may harden us, submerge us, until the blackness and
darkness of hell itself is our portion.
May we not learn that all life is but an opportunity to
learn, that we may better understand our relationship with
the Father? If we need the great and terrible experience of
being an outcast from society, we have a nearer companionship
with Him who was Himself an outcast and knows more fully our
loneliness than we ourselves are able to realize. He knows
because He suffered in all ways like unto man, but through it
He learned obedience. Then, if the experience is to make us
more like Him, more kind, more considerate of the fallen,
more tolerant of those in authority, even, then is not the
experience worth while? Let us not turn our troubles into
such darkness that we blind ourselves to the truth and block
the great development in store for us.
The night makes it easier for us to appreciate the light and
in the experience, "showeth knowledge." Night is as a film
upon which the real may be pictured. In this experience the
soul may obtain a picture of the activity of light and become
aware of whether it is making itself one with the light or
contaminating light with darkness.
Night is only a shadow of the first turning away. We cannot
appreciate what home is until we have left it. Therefore,
the shadow of that One who has returned is ever present.
"And there will be no need for the sun, for he will be the
light." As we, like the prodigal son, choose to return also,
there will be great rejoicing when He sees us "afar off" and
makes ready for our reception in the glory of His Presence.
We are composed of day and night and must make the separation
ourselves of the light and darkness in ourselves, even as God
did in the beginning with the whole universe. Creation is
going on all the time. We are either becoming children of
light or darkness. When we say a kind word, we are
reflecting the shadow of light. When we say a harsh word, we
are reflecting the shadow of night, and adding to the power
thereof.
While in the darkness, we may become conscious of the light
- of not being in the light, and can realize its value. That
is why God separated light from the darkness materially, so
that we might draw a comparison and come to the appreciation
of the light. "This day I have set before you good and evil,
(light and darkness); choose thou this day whom ye will
serve!" Man's activity must be in the day, in the light,
for night cometh when no man can work.
When the Master was tempted on the mount, He did not deny the
existence of evil; rather He recognized it for what it was,
and made the separation, saying, "Get thee behind me, Satan!"
When passing through the great trials of night, we have only
to turn our wills to His will to experience day, as we would
turn a house plant at a window. If the plant remains in one
position, we know it becomes one-sided. There is no fault
with the light; it is always there to help bring forth the
best in the plant. So we need to tune in constantly with the
Great Source of Light, which is better appreciated through
our nights of depression. Surely we come into the Light of
Day by passing through great tribulation, and need to wash
our robes in "the blood of the Lamb," or saying and LIVING,
"Not my will, but thine be done in me."
EXPERIENCES REGARDING DAY AND NIGHT
"Since beginning the meditation on Day and Night, I have been
constantly turning within with a keen desire for a thorough
cleansing of self. At times I have felt I was trying to
trace my soul from the beginning of its existence, a calling
of self for examination. In becoming aware of the separation
from the Source of all Light, I have become conscious of
those things that cause this separation, day by day - anger,
hate, malice, jealousy, self-esteem, etc. With this
realization has come a greater desire to bring myself again
to a one-ness with the Source of all Light and Life."
"There seems nothing so trying as days of petty disturbances
and small irritations that tax one to the very limit. There
have been times when I have been very sensitive to little
remarks of friends and loved ones. They seemed extremely
cutting and unkind. Upon studying myself, I have found that
it is I that am out of attune, that I have separated myself
from the light by turning to those thoughts and actions that
bring darkness. Thus I unfit myself to be a channel of
blessing to others and bring about the attitude of doubt and
misjudgment. It is so wonderful to know that we may choose
for ourselves good or evil, night or day. I have learned
that it is most necessary to be careful of word, act and
thought as we contact others day by day. We are either helps
or stumbling blocks to our brothers, and in choosing which we
will be, we choose night or day."
"I have come to understand that day is facing the Source of
Light with a mind that seeks to do His biddings. It is the
word, the life, the light that comes from the heart's mind,
in the souls of each, to awaken them as individuals to their
relationship with the Source of all Light."
"During meditation one night I suddenly became conscious of
a bright light, just as if the sun was shining through the
darkness of the night, and its rays were directed down on my
room. Then I noticed a light which looked exactly like a
star moving through space toward the larger light. As I
gazed upward, watching closely, I saw the star reach the
larger light and become one with it."
"Again I saw a large light in my room. I recognized it as a
manifestation of God. It moved over toward me and
disappeared within my inner self. It made me aware that the
body is in the temple of the living God, and that I must let
my light shine in such a manner as to hasten the day of the
Lord."
"In considering Day and Night, there comes to my mind the
scenes of the song, "The Holy City," in which there was no
night - a place of spiritual consciousness. 'No need of moon
or stars by night, or sun to shine by day. He is the Holy
City that will not pass away.'"
"When one lives according to the mind of the Spirit, which is
the understanding of God's laws, there is no need of day or
night, for in the spirit there is no time or space. I have
come to understand night as ignorance and day as
illumination; for, in the study of Truth, we understand there
is no difference in either day or night. What is day on the
earth plane to one may be night to another. Many on this
planet are living in the night; for the Master gave us the
commandment to go unto all the world and preach and teach and
heal - and until we have done all three we have not been
fully illuminated."
"Only when man turns himself away from God, or good, is he
living in the night of his life. When turned toward the Son
of God within himself, he lives in the day in which there is
no sickness, no sorrow, no poverty; but joy, praise, love,
health, happiness, and perfect self-expression - heaven on
earth."
"There is a constant struggle between the forces of the day
and the forces of the night. All over the world in all
countries, in various ways and manners, people are seeking
into the unknown for something to fill an unrest, turmoil,
confusion, that exists in the minds of people. This is being
done in all conceivable ways and manners. As people seek to
open themselves, however it may be, the forces (spirits or
entities) of the unseen are just as anxious to manifest in
their activities and, in a figurative way, there is a war
between the forces of day and night to use the channel.
Hence the injunction: "Try ye the spirits." The ideal set
in Christ, the symbol of the light to the world, will protect
and keep the way clear for understanding and development."
"Day and night are not to be measured in days and hours, but
by states of consciousness. 'As a man thinketh in his heart,
so he is.' The states of consciousness may be just as high
as the Thoughts of the Great Ideal, or so low that the soul
may be hidden in Egyptian darkness."
"What may I learn from the night? Have I built it or am I
suffering that others may see the light? My lord 'is brought
as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before his
shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.' I am
strengthened in considering this truth. If through suffering
I may help another to Light, I, with the apostle, shall
rejoice in tribulation, which shall work out for me a far
more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."
I AM ALPHA AND OMEGA
That we may fully realize that we are One with the Father and
worthy to be companions with Him in glory is the sum total of
the beginning and end of earth existence. Through day and
night, light and darkness, experiences and the overcoming of
same, conflict and conquest, love and service are means to an
end. Life battles are necessary, but the final triumph is
made the more glorious because it is founded on
righteousness. "I pray not that thou shouldst take them out
of the world, but that thou shouldst keep them from the
evil." Thus does the Spirit pray and with groaning utter in
our behalf. The experience on earth is necessary, but may we
for our own development keep ourselves from evil!
"Have ye not known, have ye not heard, hath it not been told
ye from the beginning, have ye not understood from the
foundation of the earth? It is He that sitteth upon the
circle of earth. Hath thou not known, hath thou not heard,
that the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the
earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? There is no searching
His understanding."
God is the beginning and end of that brought into material
manifestation, or of that known by man as the plane or
dimensions from which man reasons in the finite. "I am Alpha
and Omega, the beginning and the end." That God, the Father,
the Spirit, the Ohm, is the influencing force in every
activity is not wholly sufficient unto man's salvation,
in that he is a free-will being, as intimated - Alpha,
beginning; Omega, ending. For, the separation, the
confirmation, the segregation, the building, the adding to
it is necessary in relation to those activities that lie
between, for man's building is the beginning and end.
Our sonship is exhibited in our choice of free will, and the
urge that is always prompting us to press on. Thus, as we
were one with Him in the beginning, we will be one with Him
in the end, through Him who is the Light, the Truth and the
Way.
CONCLUSION
In seeking to become aware of, or to be conscious of one's
relationship to the Creator and to present one's body a
living sacrifice, wholly acceptable unto God, one must learn
to differentiate between the day and night side of life; that
is, be able to place true values where they belong. This may
involve a period of supreme testing as we develop toward this
ideal. As we develop toward the light, we imbibe that Divine
Wisdom which aids in rightly divining the Truth.
Everything must be judged by the results. If the results
are peace, harmony, justice, mercy, love, we know the day
is shining in our lives; if they are those opposites, then
we know the day has not dawned for us and we must continue
to wait in patience and prayer for the inner self to be
opened that the Light may shine through.
While waiting for our day to dawn, great upheavels may take
place in our lives. That which we thought was sure
foundation may crumble beneath our feet; that in which we had
the most implicit faith may take wings and fly away. Place
not the faith in tangible things, in material things. All
THINGS change from one fleeting second to the next. Only God
is unchangeable, and if the life is lived in accordance with
His divine laws and the seeker is sincere in his groping
after the light, those obstacles that would hinder will
become the stepping-stones; the impurities and drosses that
would despoil will be burned out, leaving a clean, bright
channel through which the blessings of God may flow. Painful
- yes - but very, very much worth while in attaining to that
goal toward which we are all striving.
Not selfishly may one seek, but with the purpose to let His
will be done in all things; not with the desire to override,
to outwit, or out-distance some other traveler. God knows
our possibilities much better than we know ourselves, and
when He sees a nook, a place, which we can fill acceptably,
the way is opened. Give all glory and praise to Him, the
Giver of all good and perfect gifts, for the example of His
son whom He sent into the world to guide it out of darkness!
The son's power has not been diminished. He is still the
Great Overcomer, and the world bows in homage and devotion
in His blessed Presence. His angels are constantly on the
watch to guide those who would be guided over the rough and
stony path, to lift up those who would stumble and fall.
Have faith in the Infinite Power of Good, and know that God's
plan for the world shall never be thwarted by man, unless man
chooses to bring upon himself his own destruction. If he
chooses the dark path, then God can raise up others to carry
on from the very stones over which he stumbles.
In meditation, humbleness, patience, service, joy, fortitude
and love - guided by the Holy Spirit - does the light break
through and shine in the darkened places. Shall we not say
with the Psalmist:
"Whither shall I go thy spirit? or whither shall I flee
thy presence?
If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make
my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the
uttermost parts of the sea;
Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand
shall hold me.
If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the
night shall be light about me.
Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night
shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both
alike to thee." (Psalms 139)
Have courage! You are not alone in a darkened world, but
when you turn within, the way will be made clear. God has a
plan for your life. Let not that opportunity to serve God
and your fellow man pass by, nor become overshadowed by the
pressing needs or turmoils of the moment.
Know ye: "Here we have no continuing city, but we seek one
to come, whose maker and finisher is God."
DEFINITIONS
(Questions & Answers)
(Q) Please explain the statement given in Genesis, "In six
days God made the heaven and the earth and RESTED THE SEVENTH
DAY."
(A) That each may interpret this to his own comprehension is
rather that each becomes aware of the power of the Father in
His manifestations in the earth.
When it is considered (as was later given, or WRITTEN even
before this was written) that "a thousand years is as but
a day and a day as but a thousand years in the sight of the
Lord," then it may be comprehended that this was colored by
the writer in his desire to express to the people the power
of the living God...rather than a statement of 'six days'
as man comprehends days in the present. Not that it was an
impossibility...but rather that men under the environ should
be impressed by the omnipotence of that they were called on
to worship as God.
(Q) Does the truth, "By becoming aware in the material world
was the only manner through which spiritual forces might
become aware of their separation form spiritual surroundings"
show that the reincarnation of those who die in childhood is
necessary?
(A) As the awareness comes by separation (which is being
manifested in materiality as we know it in the present),
there is the necessity of the sojourning in EACH experience
for the developments of the influences necessary in each
soul's environ, each soul's attributes, to become again aware
of being in the PRESENCE of the Father. Hence the
reincarnation into this or that influence, and those that are
only aware of material or carnal influences for a moment may
be as GREATLY impressed as were a finite mind for a moment in
the presence of Infinity. How long was the experience of
Saul in the way to Damascus? How long was the experience of
Stephen as he saw the Master standing...not sitting,
STANDING? How long was the experience of those that saw the
vision that beckoned to them, or any such experience?
When one considers the birth of a soul into the earth, the
more often is the body and the body-mind considered than the
soul...that is full-grown in breadth. For, did the Father
(or Infinity) bring the earth, the worlds into existence, how
much greater is a day in the house of the Lord...or a moment
in His Presence...than a thousand years in carnal forces.
Hence a soul even for a flash, or for a breath, has perhaps
experienced as much as Saul in the way.
(Q) What is the explanation of, "The Lamb slain BEFORE the
foundation of the world"?
(A) If this is taken in conjunction with many another
expression of the Master, it may be the more easily
comprehended in the intellectual activities of those who
would seek to experience same.
As the Master gave, "Before Abraham was I AM...before the
worlds were I AM." Hence, when there came the necessity in
the realm of the spiritual home for the coming of the Lamb
into the earth for its redemption, the Truth, the Light, the
Offering was made. Hence the expression as given. For, as
has been given, the thought, the mind, is the builder.
Then, as each soul builds for that it as a soul is to act,
whether in spirit, in mind, or in body, the SOUL-mind is
already in the throes of the influences necessary. Then,
when we comprehend we realize there is no time, no space,
and that divinity of the man, Jesus, was perfect in his OWN
activity in the earth. For, it was offered even from the
first.
QUESTIONS [Test ques. by Esther Wynne]
1. Explain what is meant by Day and Night as given in the
Introduction.
2. What is the purpose of life in the material world?
3. Why is each experience an opportunity to be in the Light?
4. What is meant by Light in this sense?
5. Of what is the material life a reflection?
6. What does the material comparison of Day and Night bring
to our minds?
7. Give two experiences of Day and Night, either of your own
or from the Lesson.
8. How can we judge if Day is shining in our lives?
9. With whom lies the final choice of Day and Night for us?
10. Who is the great Leader who knew both Day and Night?
Edgar Cayce Readings © 1971, 1993, 1994, 1995 by the Edgar Cayce Foundation