Other Sheep - other opinions, other streams
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hireling and not a shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hireling and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; I know my own and my own know me, as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life, that I may take it again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again; this charge I have received from my Father.” John 10:11 -18
Verse 17 seems to be at odds with this fourth I AM saying; we can accept that the wolves have their place, but what about “other sheep”?
And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd. Verse 17
We can look at this in two ways; an inner way and an outer way. We have been looking at the sheep as parts of our growing consciousness. One thing about our consciousness is that it is full of ideas and opinions. And we love to be right don’t we? If we are really honest, we often prefer it if others are wrong and we are right.
Yet to reach a full understanding of something we need many different points of view. The opinions of others contribute to the whole. Think about a large tree, each person’s view of it will differ. Some say, “Oh let’s have a holistic view, let’s look from a distance so we can see the whole thing - one elevated, holistic but blurry view. One person can never see every side of a tree at once. We can only really get a full picture of the tree when we take into account all the perspectives.
The secret lies in accepting the other person’s view that differs from our own. If we cannot immediately see it then we should hold their view in our heart until we can see how it gives our view another dimension or, if not, that we discard it. How often do we discard or dismiss another’s viewpoint too soon? To honour the view of others when it differs from our own requires effort. This striving for truth, the effort we put in, is like giving our soul a work-out.
Another way to look at these “other sheep” is to look outside ourselves. In the previous reflection we considered karma not as punishment but as something that provides the necessary resistance to propel us forward. Just like an aeroplane cannot soar into the air until it meets with the required resistance.
This resistance can come from people steeped in different belief systems. Or it can come from people within our own belief system who have come up through a different stream of the mystery teachings. When we reach the point of remembering our past lives we will see all the different streams that we have dedicated ourselves to life after life. There were healers – in Atlantis, Egypt, Palestine etc., there were astrologers, there were musicians, temple dancers, there were teachers of the mysteries, oracles, knights, builders, hunters, scientists, the list goes on - each skill appropriate for its time.
Many of these skills can no longer be used for consciousness has changed. Yet each one of us has a certain number of skills in our soul memory, some of which can be used now but in a different way. As memory awakens in people everywhere, as it is at present – even unconsciously- we can see that many people want to drag these old gifts into the present. But our I AM is not interested in that; the I AM is a unifier – there will be one flock and one shepherd. What works against this unification is like and dislike; sympathy and antipathy. The old memories, of different tribes, different cultures, different belief systems, rise up and we are at odds with each other face to face or behind the other person’s back we gossip. It’s best not to be too self righteous and place this in the other person’s arena.
This is simply the karma of the different streams. “I have other sheep that are not of this fold.” There are many theories about 2 streams, 3 streams and 4 streams but there could possibly be 12 streams and they may be linked to the zodiac. The issue is not how many streams but the unification that is necessary now.
Because we live in the presence of the etheric Christ these other sheep are hearing the voice of the Shepherd. We are coming together in groups to unify. Great teachers are unifiers and when they die the atmosphere of the different streams gives rise to factionalism. Now it is up to each person to act in a unified way. Karma is the opportunity to unify. Perhaps we could spell ‘karma’ a bit differently – c a l m e r.
By finding ways to embrace differences we will work with the Good Shepherd and hear his voice. The best way to get over any dislike we may have is to love. We don’t have to like a person to love them. It is our challenge today; to transform our likes and dislikes into love.
To stay calm in our differences, to embrace all points of view to see the whole, and to love where love may not be returned ensures that we will not become estranged from the I AM.