Because He Lives and the Journey Through Death to Life

Posted on February 18, 2026 by jamesq

When Jesus spoke, He didn’t waste words. He gave us pictures we could understand. One of the clearest is this one from Matthew 19:24: “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” That’s a strong image. You can almost see that poor camel trying to squeeze through a sewing needle. It’s meant to make us stop and think.

Then Jesus said something else in John 12:25: “If you love your life, you’ll lose it. If you hate your life in this world, you’ll keep it for the life of the coming age.” Now, Jesus wasn’t telling us to walk around angry or bitter. In His language, “hate” didn’t mean the hot emotion we think of today. It meant letting go—refusing to cling to this world as if it’s all we’ve got.

Put these two teachings together and the message becomes clear. To enter God’s kingdom, a person has to see that the world, by itself, can’t give anything that lasts. It can offer comfort, success, applause, and a little excitement, but none of that carries over into eternity. It’s like holding sand in your hand—the tighter you squeeze, the faster it slips away.

Now think about someone who has done well in life. Maybe they’ve built a business, earned respect, or gathered up all the things the world says matter. There’s nothing wrong with hard work or success. But success can make it harder to see the truth Jesus is pointing to. When life has treated you kindly, it’s easy to believe the world is solid and dependable. It’s easy to think, “Well, things are going fine for me. Why question it?”

That’s why Jesus said the rich man has a tougher time. Not because God is against wealth, but because comfort can blind us. When everything is going our way, we don’t feel the need to look deeper. We don’t feel the need to ask what really matters. We don’t feel the need to loosen our grip on this world.

But Jesus is inviting us to do exactly that—to loosen our grip. To see that the world is temporary, and that real life, lasting life, comes from God alone. When we stop clinging to the world, the heart opens. The way becomes wider. And suddenly that camel-and-needle picture doesn’t seem so impossible anymore.

Jesus wasn’t trying to scare us. He was trying to free us. He was saying, “Don’t let this world hold you so tightly that you miss the life I’m offering.” And that’s a message every one of us—young or old, rich or poor—can take to heart.

Rediscovering Jesus

Posted on February 16, 2026 by jamesq

Teachings: Straight Talk on Inner Change and Real Understanding

Folks, in a world full of fancy rituals and highbrow debates, Jesus’ plain words cut right through the noise. He zeroed in on fixing up the folks who messed up, pushed for real getting-it over bowing down, and his ideas line up mighty well with that thinker Carl Jung. We’re sticking to what he taught—no side trips into miracles or history fights. Let’s get to it.

Focusing on Fixing the Sinners

Jesus didn’t waste time patting the good folks on the back. No, he went straight for the sinners—the cheaters, the wanderers, the ones society kicked to the curb. He said it clear: “It’s not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I came for the sinners, not the righteous” (Mark 2:17).

Look at his stories. The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) blows it all on wild living, hits rock bottom, and heads home. Dad throws a party—no questions asked. Or the Lost Sheep (Luke 15:3-7): the shepherd ditches the 99 safe ones to haul back the stray, happier about that one than the rest. Why? Because the sinner’s got the most to lose—big consequences here and beyond. Jesus knew turning them around stops the hurt at the source. It’s about owning your mess and flipping the script. Simple as that.

Chasing Understanding, Not Worship

Here’s the kicker: Jesus never begged for folks to worship him. He pointed ’em to God the Father every time. When some guy called him “good,” he shot back, “Why call me good? Only God’s good” (Mark 10:18). His big prayer starts with honoring God, not himself (Matthew 6:9-13).

Instead, he hammered on understanding. “If you love me, do what I say” (John 14:15). Stories like the Sower (Mark 4:1-20) show how truth needs to sink in deep to grow. He flat-out said, “The kingdom of God’s inside you” (Luke 17:21). Salvation ain’t some show—it’s getting the big picture, loving God and your neighbor (Matthew 22:37-40), showing mercy (Matthew 5:7), and aiming for real wholeness (Matthew 5:48). Check yourself first: “Yank the log out of your own eye before picking at your brother’s speck” (Matthew 7:5). That’s the road to freedom.

How Jesus Lines Up with Carl Jung

Now, Carl Jung—that Swiss doc who dug into the mind—his stuff clicks with Jesus like puzzle pieces. Jung talked about “individuation,” pulling your whole self together, conscious and hidden parts. Sounds a lot like Jesus’ inner kingdom.

Mustard Seed parable (Matthew 13:31-32): starts tiny, grows huge—just like Jung’s soul sprouting from a spark. The Pearl of Great Price (Matthew 13:45-46)? That’s your inner gold, worth everything to dig up. Facing your dark side? Jung called it the shadow; Jesus forgave sinners and said look inward. “Seek and find” (Matthew 7:7) matches Jung’s “wake up by looking inside.” Both push for wholeness, like Jesus’ call to be perfect as the Father (Matthew 5:48). It’s like old-school mind healing, folks.

The Bottom Line

Jesus’ words boil down to this: Fix what’s broken inside, especially if you’re the one breaking things. Get the understanding, and salvation follows. Jung shows it’s deeper than church—it’s human stuff. Ask yourself: Where’s my fix-up needed? What truth am I missing? Grab it, and you’ll find that real peace right now.

Was Jesus God? A Scriptural Look Beyond Politics and Tradition

Posted on February 10, 2026 by jamesq

Rethinking the doctrine that shaped Christianity

In mainstream Christianity today, Jesus is almost universally presented as God Himself — the second person of the Trinity, fully divine and co-equal with the Father. Yet when we read the New Testament with fresh eyes, free from centuries of doctrinal tradition, a very different picture emerges.The New Testament was not compiled in a vacuum. It was shaped by political forces, church councils, and imperial interests. Its original interpretation was likewise established politically. A plain reading of the scriptures themselves tells a story that contradicts the later “Jesus is God” claim.

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The Beatitudes: A Map to Heaven, Independent of Dogma

Posted on February 10, 2026 by jamesq

Exploring the “Ladder of Ascent” as a universal spiritual technology.

While traditional religious frameworks often tie salvation to specific events, many view the Beatitudes as a self-contained, logical path to spiritual enlightenment—a “ladder” that leads directly to the Kingdom of Heaven. This interpretation suggests that the afterlife was not a post-script to Jesus’ mission, but a reality already present in the “eschatological fact” of his teachings.

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Forgiveness Is Not Just For Sissies

Posted on March 11, 2025 by jamesq

Forgiveness Is Not Just For Sissie PDF
Forgiveness is almost universally misunderstood. Words conjure up images and impressions that change what a term really means. When the word forgiveness comes up, the image it usually brings up is something like a Bible – thumping preacher shaking his finger at a congregation, explaining what Jesus expects from everyone.

Does it make sense to let someone off the hook when what they did festers as hate and resentment ? It makes no sense to say “Its o.k., I can and will live with what you did. Now let’s get on with life. God bless you brother.”

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To Sin or not to Sin

Posted on March 8, 2025 by jamesq

I have explained that sin constitutes mal-adaptive behavior. There is not one sin mentioned in The Bible which would fail to make society progress in reverse over time.

Sin is rewarding because it has rewards. Take fornication, for an example. Fornication provides an immediate pleasure. The ancients had discovered the value of planned births. Fornication created unplanned pregnancies. It also spread infections, none of which could be cured back then. Such things work against mankind’s forward progress.

It is the nature of sin to provide benefits and it does. The benefits are immediate rewards but they are all up front. Costs and risks outweigh the benefits over time.

Costs of sin impact society as a whole. There are no victimless sins.

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Matthew 13:9 Whoever has ears, let them hear

Posted on February 19, 2025 by jamesq

Matthew 13:9

“Whoever has ears, let them hear.” Matthew 13:9

Scriptures – especially the words of Jesus, have universal meanings beyond applying to the immediate circumstances he was addressing.

Some people are born with a spiritual awareness. Some have a lot, some a little ….and some have none at all. Many feel the presence of a higher power that influences their lives. These are those Jesus understood who were capable of immediately receiving his message.

Atheists seem to be among those born spiritually impaired. Think of this as being handicapped spiritually.

Wisdom in Samuel 1

Posted on February 12, 2025 by jamesq

Wisdom in Samuel PDF
Find a passage in The Bible that describes a certain ongoing activity of the time. Notice how the situation is manifested. Then observe a parallel situation in the modern era. The outcomes will be completely similar.

The scripture below describes an eternal dilemma mankind faces with respect to their governance. Members of society opt out of accepting the opportunity to govern themselves and thus prostrate themselves before an authoritarian leader. The scripture explains the costs and other hardships of such behavior. Still, mankind insists that government make decisions for them, rule them and guide them throughout life.

Samuel 1, describes an ongoing eternal behavior that has always plagued mankind and continues to….

Samuel 1:10-22

¹⁰And Samuel told all the words of The Lord unto the people that asked of him a king.

¹¹And he said, This will be the manner of the king that shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and appoint them for himself, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots.

¹²And he will appoint him captains over thousands, and captains over fifties; and will set them to ear his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and instruments of his chariots.

¹³And he will take your daughters to be confectionaries, and to be cooks, and to be bakers.

¹⁴And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.

¹⁵And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants.

¹⁶And he will take your menservants, and your maidservants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work.

¹⁷He will take the tenth of your sheep: and ye shall be his servants.

¹⁸And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and The Lord will not hear you in that day.

¹⁹Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay; but we will have a king over us;

²⁰That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.

²¹And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed them in the ears of the Lord.

²²And the Lord said to Samuel, Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king. And Samuel said unto the men of Israel, Go ye every man unto his city.

Historical Accuracy of Bible

Posted on February 10, 2025 by jamesq

Historical Accuracy of Bible PDF

We would all be better off, if it was determined that everything written in the bible happened just as presented. Certainly, the stories themselves convey messages that are true whether the facts in the stories actually occurred or never took place.

Which are more important, facts or principles? Principles never change. Facts don’t change either, but they get disproven and sometimes conflict with each other. Jesus lives among us spiritually, due to our understanding of his principles.

So far, I have never found a principle written down in The Bible that was incorrect or flawed in any form. In my work, principles are what count. Facts are nice to have. I let others debate what actually happened or what was added or embellished

Whoever Has Ears

Posted on February 5, 2025 by jamesq

Whoever Has Ears PDF

^{9 “}Whoever has ears, let them hear.” Matthew 13:9

This could be deemed as a way of speaking to those listening who would grasp what he had to say automatically, like the adept in the crowd. Certainly it does mean that – but there is more to it.

This scripture indicates that some of the crowd could feel the presence of God in their lives before any words came out of the mouth of Jesus.

There are some who may not have the capacity to receive his message upon first hearing it. Spiritual adeptness was born into some. Only certain among us feel the presence of God within their being. Matthew 11 completes the story.

11He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. 13This is why I speak to them in parables:Matthew 13:3-9.

^{It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking the New Testament is a collection of feel – good platitudes. Some are going to have a hard time finding salvation}