Dealing With Our Internal Resistance to Truth
May 24, 2008
There is a wonderful story that illustrates the advice Jesus gave the disciples when He sent them out to tell people the good news - the news that the Kingdom of God is within. It’s about a conflict between the Wind and the Sun, about which was the most powerful. The Wind thought he was stronger because of his destructive might in tornadoes, hurricanes, sand storms, and electric storms. He pointed out his ability to turn a simple cigarette or lightning strike into a raging forest fire which could level hundreds of thousands of acres of forestland.
There wasn’t a day that went by without the Wind bragging of his strength. The Sun grew weary of the Wind’s arrogance and decided to settle the matter once and for all. He challenged the Wind to a contest.
“Look, you old wind bag,” bragged the Sun, “I’m going to prove you are not as powerful or influential as you think you are.”
“Oh, you are, are you? Just how do you plan to do that?” taunted the Wind.
“See that old Truth Student down there taking a stroll?”
The Wind whirled himself around to get a better look. The Wind smiled his joy and sent a taunting gust of wind to throw the Truth Student off balance.
“Ha! Ha! Ha! Yes, I see him. Kinda wimpy isn’t he? Surely you can find a more challenging subject than that weak old Truth Seeker!”
The Sun’s voice did not change as he leveled his dare. “I dare you to blow the Student’s jacket off his back.”
“Ha! You’re making this much too easy. In a short while,” he boasted, “I will rule Heaven and Earth.”
He began to blow, gently at first, to disorient the Truth Seeker. To his amazement, the man clung to his jacket. The Wind blew harder, sending the man ricocheting to and fro across the street - but the elderly Truth student grasped his jacket even tighter! The harder the Wind blew, the more the man resisted.
The Truth Student’s strength angered the Wind, so he blew huge gusts of wind, which pushed the man into parked vehicles and against the sides of buildings. But the man would not let go of his jacket. Another fierce gust of wind blew the man’s hat off and knocked him to the ground, but the man clung to his coat even harder.
Finally, the Wind gave up and challenged the Sun to succeed where he had failed.
The Sun grinned and sent radiant rays of warmth upon the Truth Student. The gentleman stood up and brushed off his coat and slacks, grateful for the change in the weather. In a short while, he began to respond to the heat. Beads of sweat began to appear on his forehead and neck.
The sun continued to send radiant light and warmth upon the Truth Seeker who first unbuttoned his jacket and finally removed it.
The Sun’s “soft sell” approach was much more persuasive, wouldn’t you say? The Wind’s agenda was to blow the coat off the man against his will. The Wind had mixed up loving invitation with harsh influence.
The Sun, on the other hand, understood the essence of tactful influence and that the greatest kind of persuasion is showing warmth, kindness, and understanding through letting its light shine - instead of intimidation, power, judgmentalness, or humiliation.
The Sun applied the same secret Jesus practiced when He warned His disciples not to force Truth principles on others. He recommended a soft metaphysical approach. The message is in three of the four Gospels, so it is a valuable teaching. It appears in Matt. 10:7;10-14; Mark 6: 7-11; and Luke 9: 1-5.
The literal translation is fairly straightforward. Share the Truth with those who are ready to hear it. If you meet with resistance or disinterest, don’t force things. Shake the dust off your sandals and non-judgmentally move forward on your Truth journey.
Metaphysically, this story is rich in timeless wisdom. I’ll explain the key words and concepts first and then offer a metaphysical interpretation:
Jesus: that within us which knows and conscientiously strives to fulfill our Christ Potential
Kingdom of Heaven: Christ Consciousness
Twelve disciples: the twelve higher consciousness powers inside us
Town or village: a group of accepted views, a belief system, a particular point of view, socially accepted behaviors
House: individual human consciousness
Shake the dust off your feet: denying the power of the shallowness of materialism or the unhealthy magnetism of outer appearances to cloud our spiritual understanding
Metaphysically, there are three valuable lessons with a spiritual meaning:
1.As we apply our growing awareness of Truth principles (the 12 powers, represented by the 12 disciples, which are strengthened by our (I Am-ness) to our existing beliefs and habitual ways of thinking, we will meet with some internal struggles. It is natural to feel some inner fighting whenever we are expanding our spiritual awareness.
2.Several of our beliefs will be easy to change. Others may take a while. Be patient with yourself as you refocus your thinking to the new, higher spiritual Truth.
3.When we encounter resistant thoughts, attitudes, and beliefs, we need to deny the power of materialistic inclinations to distort our understanding (shake the dust from our feet) and continue to walk the spiritual path on practical feet.
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