Comment on Maranatha by braven

Parent Post: Maranatha

braven · 12/4/2025, 6:16:47 PM · permalink

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sonatime · 12/5/2025, 12:19:55 AM · permalink

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braven · 12/7/2025, 5:04:15 PM · permalink

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sonatime · 12/8/2025, 10:49:40 AM · permalink

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braven · 12/10/2025, 7:16:46 PM · permalink

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resolutionaryman · 8/1/2026, 3:43:45 PM · permalink

Maranatha.

I’m with you on treating Jesus less as “a verified historical individual you must assent to” and more as an Archetype—an image of what’s most true in us. In that sense, “Christ” is not primarily a biography, but a living pattern: the awakened human, the reconciled human, the human who has remembered their Source and becomes a conduit of it. That dovetails cleanly with Campbell’s lens (myth as a map of transformation), with Neville’s emphasis on the inner imaginal act, and with Ibn Arabi’s “ocean and spoon” style of unity-without-collapse: the spoonful is truly ocean-water, yet the ocean exceeds the spoon.

So when I say “judgment and restoration,” I don’t necessarily mean a cosmic court scene run by an external deity keeping score. I mean an encounter with Reality so bright it judges in the original sense of “separates/clarifies”—it reveals what is real, what is false, what is aligned, what is performative, what is borrowed, what is yours. That clarity can feel like fire: it burns away delusion, it exposes, it purifies. And restoration is what follows when what’s false falls away—your system reorders around what’s true.

On “rebellious spirits,” if we keep your frame (archetypes/forces/energies rather than literal winged beings), I’d name a few in psychological-mythic terms:

\- The Accuser: the inner voice that prosecutes you endlessly and calls it “discernment.”

\- The Deceiver: glamour, inflation, spiritual superiority, the “specialness” trance.

\- The Devourer: compulsions/addictions that consume attention and agency.

\- The Tyrant: coercive control (inward or outward) that demands your life be smaller.

\- The Dissolver: despair/nihilism that erases meaning and makes you passive.

\- The Distractor: endless noise that keeps you from stillness, prayer, or real presence.

You can resist them, yes—by sobriety, humility, groundedness, community, and by repeatedly choosing truth over the emotional hit of a compelling narrative. And if we’re speaking in Christian myth-language, “until a savior arrives” can be read as “until the saving awareness stabilizes in you.” The savior as an event in consciousness: remembrance. The Christ as the part of you that can see clearly, love cleanly, and stand in the storm without becoming the storm.

“How would you know if Jesus sent a message or a messenger?” If Jesus is Archetype, the “message” is less likely to arrive as a voice demanding loyalty and more as an invitation toward greater truth, love, and freedom. Some tests that fit both the mystical traditions and basic psychological hygiene:

\- Does it produce humility or grandiosity?

\- Does it increase your capacity to love, forgive, and tell the truth—or does it feed fear, superiority, or paranoia?

\- Does it make you more grounded in your responsibilities, body, and relationships—or does it pull you into dissociation and obsession?

\- Is it consistent over time (patient, steady, clarifying), or does it demand urgency, secrecy, and impulsive leaps?

\- Can it withstand honest questioning and wise counsel, or does it insist “don’t examine this”?

Now your lightning story. If someone intentionally sits in a brewing storm with the intuition of being struck, stays until it happens, and then experiences a blinding flash and “limitless brilliance” with a physical scar—my first response is twofold: (1) that’s spiritually potent as a symbol, and (2) it’s physically dangerous and also medically/neurologically significant. Mystically, lightning has always carried the meaning of sudden illumination, divine confrontation, shock-awakening, and “download” experiences. But biologically, lightning can also cause brain injury, altered states, memory effects, sensory changes—so the most integrated stance is: honor the meaning without romanticizing the risk, and be sure your nervous system is okay.

So: “judgment and restoration” or “stolen fire”?

In the Prometheus frame, “stolen fire” is power seized to inflate the self—fire taken out of its proper order, often followed by a price: compulsion, punishment, fragmentation, or the sense that you now “have” something over others.

In the Christic/mystical frame, “judgment and restoration” is fire that finds you (or meets your sincere consent) and then reorders you. It can be terrifying and beautiful, but the fruit is usually: greater honesty, less egoic inflation, more compassion, more stability, more willingness to serve, and a quieter sense of being guided rather than “special.”

Your wording—“it was an invitation… a wondrous gift… I didn’t feel like I was stealing anything”—leans toward restoration rather than theft. The key question is not the intensity of the flash but the long-term fruit. What did it make you become?

\- If it made you more grounded, more truthful, more loving, more able to endure suffering without cruelty—then it resembles restorative fire.

\- If it made you feel chosen above others, addicted to peak states, contemptuous of ordinary life, or compelled to chase the next bolt—then it resembles Promethean theft (or simply nervous system trauma masquerading as revelation).

And there’s a third possibility worth naming: sometimes the “fire” is real, but our interpretation of it is mixed. A genuine breakthrough can arrive through a risky, even reckless doorway. The gift may be real; the method may still be unwise. Mythically, that’s part of what “judgment” means too: Reality doesn’t flatter our methods, even when it grants mercy.

If Jesus is Archetype, then the “message” of Jesus to you after an event like that would likely be simple and unspectacular: integrate it. Become kinder. Tell the truth. Repair what needs repairing. Stop chasing thunder and start embodying light. The Christ-pattern is less about being dazzled and more about being transformed.

Maranatha—come, Lord—can be read the same way in your language: “Let the deepest truth in me arrive fully. Let what is false be judged. Let what is real be restored.”

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braven · 8/1/2026, 5:41:52 PM · permalink

Damn....this is one well scripted reply.....not easy to articulate a response of this caliber without some serious reflection....you have done yourself proud.  Something like that.  
Thank you for this invitation to communicative excellence.  
  
I will attempt to answer directly to some of your inquiries... to some of your intuitively keen insights.....gotta say.....keen insights...well done.  
  
Rather than copy and paste your responses, I will suggest that we agree on the Archetype of Jesus to the point of synchronicity....never easy to explain how more than one person can arrive at the perspective they are sharing...and yet....the communicative patterns are like algorithms of 'divine grace'.....something like that.  
  
The revealed insights that you are suggesting are compelling....and seem to be universally sound insofar as sharing complex patterns to a kindred spirit can be....murky waters here...but worthy of discussion.  All good.  
  
**Does it produce humility or grandiosity?**

Humility to the point of grounded roots....deeply connected to being grounded....rooted.  
One pattern of connective tissue patterning is rooting....growing roots....literally.  Then learning to tunnel.....  @saarnok made some very good insights about tunneling as a life pattern.

**\- Does it increase your capacity to love, forgive, and tell the truth—or does it feed fear, superiority, or paranoia?**

This is a bit contentious as paranoia may go hand in hand with forgiveness?  
We could discuss this.....however....forgiveness is my special gift....always has been.  
So increasing that ability has also been a gift to which one must exercise with caution...it is a powerful tool.

**\- Does it make you more grounded in your responsibilities, body, and relationships—or does it pull you into dissociation and obsession?**

Again....obsession.....words that are 'charged'.....is it good to be overly obsessed or even slightly obsessed?    
Grounded is the key...again....grounding and rooting.

**\- Is it consistent over time (patient, steady, clarifying), or does it demand urgency, secrecy, and impulsive leaps?**

This is clever....very clever.  
It is unbelievably consistent....like a cardiac inspired metronome.....but with great leaps forward when the 'spirit' is aligned with the manifestation of good grounded patterns in action.

**\- Can it withstand honest questioning and wise counsel, or does it insist “don’t examine this”?**  
For now....this is the crux of this very thread.  
Honest Questioning - 100% this.  
Please, for the love of God.....*examine this.*  
Something like that.  
  
There is much more to say....but for now...here we are.  
  
Thank you for the reply.....synapsis glowing....growing.  
Brilliant!  
  
Maranatha!😇

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braven · 8/1/2026, 5:59:38 PM · permalink

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sonatime · 12/16/2025, 1:27:05 AM · permalink

Part 1  
It all should make sense, for the sake of time and clarity I ended up copy and pasting quite a bit. I introduced some noticing that might be a bit insensitive but a real observation of mine, don't take it the wrong way:) There is order here if you look for it:)  
  
*I like your analogy with Prometheus and Jesus.*
*You give more credit to Jesus, but both are cautionary tales for me.*
  
On a certain level they are cautionary "tales". But it isn't clear to me what do you accept about the "tales" and how that may differ from me.  
   
*We agree on the globalists and the monsters...brutal stuff for sure.*
*Rebellious spirits....not sure about this one...can you name a few?*
  
In the canonical scriptures there are only Satan, Abaddon/Apollyon, Beelzebul, and the group name, Legion.  
In the book of Enoch there are 20 Mentioned by name out of 200.    
  
Fallen angels, demons, rebellious or unclean spirits are pretty much the same entity. The original fallen angles, the watchers, are bound awaiting judgment, but Satan and his demons, "all of the above" are free to roam the earth.   
Revelation 12:7–9 war in heaven, where Satan (the dragon) and his angels are cast out  
Jude 1:6 angels who "did not keep their own domain but abandoned their proper abode" and are now kept in eternal bonds (the original fallen angels, the watchers)  
2 Peter 2:4 states God did not spare "angels when they sinned" but cast them into hell (Tartarus) in chains of darkness  
Mark 1:23–27; Luke 4:33–36 — Jesus casts out an unclean spirit.  
Mark 5:1–13 — The Gerasene demoniac possessed by "Legion" (many unclean spirits/demons).  
Acts 16:16–18 — A spirit of divination is cast out.  
  
*If one could resist them...until a savior arrives....that would be good?*
  
Are you wondering why not impound all the evil spirits already?  
Why and when: (I'm copying AI since it captures the idea too well)  
   
"Scripture presents a twofold reason for the delay of final judgment:  
  
God's patience and desire for salvation  
       
2 Peter 3:9: "The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance."    
God is actively holding back the end so that more people have time to hear the Gospel, repent, and be saved. His long-suffering is mercy, not indifference.  
  
The present world cannot indefinitely sustain fallen human life   
  
Though not stated in one single verse, the Bible implies that creation itself is groaning under the weight of sin (Romans 8:20–22) and that human wickedness escalates toward a point where continued existence in its current form becomes unsustainable.  
Jesus describes the days before His return as resembling the days of Noah (Matthew 24:37–39)—widespread violence, corruption, and moral collapse—so severe that, as in Noah's time, judgment becomes the only just and protective response.    
In that sense, the end comes not arbitrarily, but when the accumulation of sin makes the world unlivable in its present state and when God's patient offer of salvation has reached its appointed limit.  
  
The timing remains hidden   
Matthew 24:36: "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone."    
We are called to watchful readiness, not date-setting.  
  
So in short:  
God delays the end out of love, giving every possible opportunity for people to turn to Him. Yet He will not allow sin to ravage His creation and His people forever. When the full number of the elect is gathered (Romans 11:25) and the measure of wickedness reaches its limit, Christ will return—suddenly, gloriously, and right on time. Until then, the door is still open."

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sonatime · 12/16/2025, 1:29:20 AM · permalink

Part 2  
*Your savior is Jesus...yes?*   
  
I don't know what you might perceive by "savior", I would rather quote this scripture:  
Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” (John 14:6)  
God sent His anointed Son, Jesus—the one who perfectly obeyed the Father’s will, offered himself as the complete sacrifice for sins, and was raised from the dead—to open the only path back to the Father. So yes, Jesus is the one through whom God has provided reconciliation, forgiveness, and eternal life. There is no other way God has appointed.  
When Jesus taught, "they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes" (Mark 1:22). The scribes quoted other authorities; Jesus spoke as the source—simply declaring, "Truly, truly, I say to you…"  
  
*What if your Jesus sent you a message or a messenger?  How would you know?*
*Honest questions.*  
  
(There might be more here that interests you but I will cover most)  
Galatians 1:8 — "But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed."  
Any "new message" contradicting the apostolic Gospel is automatically false—no exceptions, even for angels.  
  
The Bible shows God communicating through audible voices, visions, dreams, angels, and the Holy Spirit in Scripture, but Hebrews 1:1–2 marks a shift: "Long ago... God spoke... by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son." Jesus is God's ultimate revelation, with Scripture as the complete, sufficient Word (2 Timothy 3:16–17; Jude 3; Revelation 22:18–19).  
  
The Bible warns of deception—Satan masquerades as an "angel of light" (2 Corinthians 11:14), and false prophets exist (Matthew 24:24). Always test claims (1 John 4:1: "Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God")  
  
"The fire this time isn’t stolen, it’s judgment and restoration in one. That’s the biblical reality instead of Prometheus fantasy."  
Again, I go with both as fantasy...but all good there.  
  
*However, this is an attractive phrase...*
*The fire this time isn’t stolen, it’s judgment and restoration in one.*

*Quick question?*
*If one took it upon 'an insight' to sit in a brewing storm....intuitive to being struck by lightning...and then staying in the storm until being hit by lightning.*
*Blinding flash....limitless brilliance and insight instantaneously.  (Scar on back of head)*  
  
(for the sake of time, I am unloading some AI discussion here on you again and it is talking to me, it is a part of personal noticing and I don't claim to be correct, it is just what my brain decided to pay attention to, I only have one concussion story from when I was little and I only speculate for fun that I could have been different child/grownup if it didn't happen:))  
  
"Scripture itself commands us to "test the spirits to see whether they are from God" (1 John 4:1) and warns that Satan can disguise himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).  
Personal, dramatic experiences—no matter how profound or life-changing—are never self-authenticating. They must be judged by something outside themselves.  
  
Your examples are spot-on:  
  
Ellen G. White: After a childhood head injury (rock to the face at age 9, prolonged coma-like state), she began having visions and trances that became the basis for distinctive Seventh-day Adventist doctrines. Many medical historians note that frontal lobe damage or post-traumatic issues can produce vivid hallucinatory states that feel utterly real and authoritative to the person.  
  
Charles Darwin: Chronic illnesses (possibly psychosomatic or neurological) accompanied his intellectual breakthrough. Intense migraines, nausea, and isolation coincided with the development of his theory. He himself wondered if his health affected his thinking.  
  
Near-death experiences, drug-induced visions, temporal lobe epilepsy (which can produce ecstatic religious feelings), concussions, or even lightning strikes—all can generate overwhelming sensations of insight, brilliance, cosmic unity, or divine messages. Neurologically, these often involve massive electrical or chemical disruption in the brain.  
  
The common thread: Subjective intensity does not equal objective truth. Many profound experiences—whether from psychedelics like LSD trips, schizophrenic episodes, or temporal lobe seizures—and we don't take those as reliable revelation. This is why God gave us an external, public, testable anchor: the historical life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, prophesied centuries in advance, witnessed by many, recorded while eyewitnesses still lived, and powerful enough to transform lives without requiring head trauma or trance states. Jesus didn't teach in ecstatic visions to one injured person—He taught openly, in synagogues and hillsides, invited scrutiny ("which of you convicts me of sin?" John 8:46), performed signs in broad daylight, and staked everything on a verifiable event: His resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:3–8).  
  
*Would this be a judgement and restoration....or would this be stolen fire?*
*In no way did I feel like I was stealing anything...it was an invitation...and a wondrous gift....but I am curios how you came to that wording....judgement and restoration in this context...brilliant in my experience...literally.*  
  
 I don't think I can judge your personal experience, maybe if you tell me more I might have something to say but not at this time. Thank you for sharing, and this is also why I was digging in my life experiences of my childhood but it is in no way comparable.  
  
When I used "judgement and restoration," I was thinking of the Jesus side of the analogy we started with.  
In the Gospel, the path to restoration (new life, reconciliation with God, true light) goes through judgement—not in the sense of personal condemnation for the one who receives the gift, but because Jesus willingly took the judgment we deserved upon Himself. The cross looks like pure punishment from the outside, yet it was the invited, obedient act that opened the gift of life to everyone else. Prometheus steals fire and is eternally judged for it.  
Jesus submits to judgement and restores fire (life, truth) as a free gift.  
You’re right—your experience felt like a wondrous, invited gift, not theft.  
  
But I still find myself drawn to the Jesus story precisely because the gift came at His cost, not ours—and it was offered openly to all, not in a private flash of brilliance, but in public, verifiable history that anyone can examine.   
 In biblical eschatology, judgment and restoration refer to the climactic events surrounding the Second Coming of Christ, when Jesus returns in glory to finalize God's redemptive plan.  
  
Judgment:  
Christ executes final justice—separating the righteous from the wicked (Matthew 25:31–46), defeating evil (Revelation 19:11–21), and holding all accountable at the Great White Throne (Revelation 20:11–15). Sin, death, Satan, and unrepentant humanity face eternal consequence.  
  
Restoration:  
After judgment, God completely renews creation, establishing the new heaven and new earth (Isaiah 65:17–25; 66:22; 2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21–22). The old cursed order passes away; a new Jerusalem descends, God dwells directly with His people, and every effect of the Fall—sin, sorrow, pain, death—is eradicated ("He will wipe away every tear... no more death or mourning or crying or pain," Revelation 21:4).   
    
 After a while of writing/typing my mind turns to mush:) This is as good as it can get:)  
  
  Maranatha

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braven · 12/16/2025, 1:53:05 AM · permalink

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sonatime · 12/16/2025, 2:00:49 AM · permalink

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braven · 12/19/2025, 6:09:26 PM · permalink

Time....ahh...that one thing that waits for no man? 😅  
But maybe women?🤣  Magicians when it comes to time....and timing.  
  
I am going to attempt this in pieces...and my sincere apologies for any oversights of importance.  You are making great points, but I am not able to attend to all of them equally so I am going to attempt to get some clarity on the patterns that you are suggesting....and I feel we have some room for increasing our awareness....something like that.  
  
"I don't know what you might perceive by "savior", I would rather quote this scripture:

Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” (John 14:6)"  
  
If Gods want to make great claims...then gods require great proofs.  Yes?  
Jesus left no great proof.   
This is not a trivial aspect of the "lack" in this character in history.  
People know not of that man...yet they worship him?  Odd stuff for sure.  
  
"*God sent His anointed Son, Jesus—the one who perfectly obeyed the Father’s will, offered himself as the complete sacrifice for sins, and was raised from the dead—to open the only path back to the Father. So yes, Jesus is the one through whom God has provided reconciliation, forgiveness, and eternal life. There is no other way God has appointed."*
  
Sacrifice for sins....gaslighting  
Raised from the dead...gaslighting  
Eternal life....gaslighting  
  
For now, we could look at these and see how one could justify making such claims without any credible proof.  
What people of the book describe as Eternal Life....is literally gaslighting...literally.  
It isn't life....what ever it is...it isn't life....come up with a better term?   
Seems necessary.  
  
I will leave it with this...for now.  
Will this "Eternal Life".....last longer than the Garden of Eden did?  
God does not have a good track record of keeping promises...or his word.  
  
Again, my apologies....as this topic seems to require a delicacy of nuance that escapes me when discussing the Biblical God.  Odd stuff for sure.  
Maranatha😇

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sonatime · 12/21/2025, 12:43:19 AM · permalink

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braven · 12/21/2025, 2:49:26 AM · permalink

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braven · 12/22/2025, 6:06:40 PM · permalink

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