|
We often complain about adversity-- poverty, pain, despair, grief, disease, unemployment, depression, failure, and loss-- and do everything within our power to avoid them. Yet we seldom think of a far greater adversity-- remoteness from God for all eternity-- and do little to avoid it. This prayer from the Bab speaks to this point: (4:1) O my God! O my Master! I beseech Thee by Thy manifold bounties and by the pillars which sustain Thy throne of glory, to have pity on these lowly people who are powerless to bear the unpleasant things of this fleeting life, how much less then can they bear Thy chastisement in the life to come-- a chastisement which is ordained by Thy justice, called forth by Thy wrath and will continue to exist for ever.23 (4:2) We have total control over the heaven and the hell we create in both worlds. Love on earth leads to splendor, glory, and peace in heaven; hate on earth leads to sadness, grief, and pain in hell. An open heart to God's invitation on earth leads to an open gate to His heavenly banquet. A closed heart to God's invitation on earth leads to a closed gate to His heavenly banquet. (4:3) The greatest and most splendid crown of honor and glory a human being can ever acquire is recognizing the Redeemer of the age, loving Him, and living by His law. At death, each soul carries this precious crown from here to hereafter. To live and have an opportunity but fail to gain this glorious crown is a loss unimaginable. It is infinitely greater than all the losses, failures, and tragedies a human being can encounter over a lifetime. For no matter how severe the pains, they will pass away; but the pain of denying the greatest gift that God gives to human beings-- His supreme Messengers and Redeemers-- will endure for all eternity. (4:4) Better is guidance for him who is guided than all the things that exist on earth, for by reason of this guidance he will, after his death, gain admittance into Paradise...Hence God desireth that all men should be guided aright...However, such as are conceited will not suffer themselves to be guided. They will be debarred from the Truth, some by reason of their learning, others on account of their glory and power, and still others due to reasons of their own, none of which shall be of any avail at the hour of death.24 The Bab (4:5) The following passage from the Gospel shows that "eternal life" is bestowed on those who recognize God and His supreme Messenger Jesus Christ: (4:6) Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. John 17:3 (4:7) Honoring the One God sends is absolutely essential: (4:8) He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him. Christ (John 5:23) (4:9) The same principle holds true today. The Spirit is the same, only the name has changed. To gain eternal life, we must acknowledge the Bab and Baha'u'llah, who are sent for our time. What is the opposite of eternal life? It is spiritual "death." In God's sight, anyone who rejects His Redeemer has rejected Him and is counted as spiritually dead. For some people this awareness may be too painful, but it is everyone's right and responsibility to know. (4:10) Here are some Baha'i prayers for the departed: (4:11) O my God! O Thou forgiver of sins, bestower of gifts, dispeller of afflictions! (4:12) Verily, I beseech Thee to forgive the sins of such as have abandoned the physical garment and have ascended to the spiritual world. (4:13) O my Lord! Purify them from trespasses, dispel their sorrows, and change their darkness into light. Cause them to enter the garden of happiness, cleanse them with the most pure water, and grant them to behold Thy splendors on the loftiest mount.25 'Abdu'l-Baha (4:14) O my God! O my God! Verily Thy servant, humble before the majesty of Thy divine supremacy, lowly at the door of Thy oneness, hath believed in Thee and in Thy verses, hath testified to Thy word, hath been enkindled with the fire of Thy love, hath been immersed in the depths of the ocean of Thy knowledge, hath been attracted by Thy breezes, hath relied upon Thee, hath turned his face to Thee, hath offered his supplications to Thee, and hath been assured of Thy pardon and forgiveness. He hath abandoned this mortal life and hath flown to the kingdom of immortality, yearning for the favor of meeting Thee. (4:15) O Lord, glorify his station, shelter him under the pavilion of Thy supreme mercy, cause him to enter Thy glorious paradise, and perpetuate his existence in Thine exalted rose garden, that he may plunge into the sea of light in the world of mysteries. (4:16) Verily, Thou art the Generous, the Powerful, the Forgiver and the Bestower.26 'Abdu'l-Baha (4:17) References: |