The Gnostic Doctrine of Know Thyself

This is one of the Delphic Maxims that was inscribed in the forecourt of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi.

We see this in the movie “The Matrix” where the hero Neo is struggling with knowing his own Identity and the power associated with it, and the Oracle points him to this saying and tells him that he has to just know who he is.

In the ancient Greeko-Roman world the Python was the serpent worshipped at Delphi, as the symbol of wisdom, from whom the Pythian priestesses took their name, and from whom Apollo, as succeeding to the oracular power of the serpent, took the same adjective.
The Oracle was the title of the high priestess of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. She was a channeler, medium, soothsayer and had a spirit of divination like the woman who Paul encountered in Thyatira.

(Acts 16:16-18 KJV)
“And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.”

Now note that what the woman said was true. Paul and his friends were “the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation”, but she knew this by the Python spirit of divination.

Divination is always wrong, it doesn’t matter if it was accurate or not (and they usually are or people wouldn’t be able to make a living off of them).

(Deuteronomy 18:10-13 KJV)
“There shall not be found among you any one that … useth divination, … For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee. THOU SHALT BE PERFECT WITH THE LORD THY GOD.”
(Deuteronomy 13:1-4 KJV)
“If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.”

I just remembered all this as I heard another modern Identity preacher encouraging Christians repeatedly to “Know their Identity in Christ” as a way to become pure and holy and I couldn’t help but remember the words of 33rd Degree Freemason Manly Palmer Hall.

“Man can only expect to be entrusted with great power by proving his ability to use it constructively and selflessly. When the Mason learns that the key to the warrior on the block is the proper application of the dynamo of living power, he has learned the mystery of his Craft. The seething energies of Lucifer are in his hands and before he may step onward and upward, he must prove his ability to properly apply energy. He must follow in the footsteps of his forefather, Tubal-Cain who with the mighty strength of the war god hammered his sword into a plowshare. Incessant vigilance over thought, action, and desire is indispensable to those who wish to make progress in the unfolding of their own being, and the Fellow Craft’s degree is the degree of transmutation.”
-“The Lost Keys of Freemasonry” by Manly Palmer Hall

This is Gnosticism. It is drawing Enlightenment from Knowledge of Self rather than God’s way which is being Born Again of Water and of the Holy Spirit, which is Knowing the Truth = Jesus.

(Matthew 7:15-23 KJV)
“BEWARE OF FALSE PROPHETS, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I NEVER KNEW YOU: DEPART FROM ME, YE THAT WORK INIQUITY.”

Proverbs 18:2 tells us what God thinks of seeking knowledge of who we are.
“A fool hath no delight in understanding,
but that his heart may discover itself.”

Knowing/fearing God is the true beginning of wisdom.

(Job 28:28 KJV)
“And unto man he said, Behold, THE FEAR OF THE LORD, THAT IS WISDOM; AND TO DEPART FROM EVIL IS UNDERSTANDING.”
(Psalms 111:10 KJV)
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.”

When you fear God, you reverence Him, and you strive to serve Him, but that doesn’t make you free/saved from Sin. Only Jesus can make you free from Sin and that begins with true Repentance and Faith in Jesus.

(John 6:28-29 KJV)
“Then said they unto him, WHAT SHALL WE DO, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye BELIEVE ON HIM(Jesus) WHOM HE HATH SENT.”
(John 8:31-36 KJV)
“Then said Jesus to those Jews which BELIEVED ON HIM, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And YE SHALL KNOW THE TRUTH, AND THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE. They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, WHOSOEVER COMMITTETH SIN IS THE SERVANT OF SIN. And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. IF THE SON THEREFORE SHALL MAKE YOU FREE(from Sin), YE SHALL BE FREE INDEED(in action & in Reality).”

Paul discribes the same slavery to Sin in Romans 7:14-25.

Today many preachers are teaching that Romans 7 is part of the Christian life. They justify the idolatry of the Catholic Church and the fornication of pornography that is rampant in the denominational churches. Jesus rebuked them in Revelation 2:18-29 in the letter to the angel of Thyatira. They are enslaved to the Religious & Narcissistic spirit of Jezebel.

I now know that they are wrong because I myself was addicted to Porn (Fornication) for years and I couldn’t stop. I wanted to be pure and holy and I strove to be so. I prayed, I fasted, I read my Bible like crazy but none of it was enough. Nothing worked. Now I did know that it was God’s job to make me pure and holy and that I couldn’t do it by any of those things, but I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t changing or why He wasn’t changing me. I heard inspiring messages saying that I only needed to Believe in what He did and people told me that if I believed and had received the Holy Spirit then I was Born Again but I wasn’t changing. I was getting steadily worse all the time.

I didn’t know that Jesus wanted to and would save me through burying my Old Man of Sin by Baptism.
I had the Holy Spirit with me at times but I didn’t really have Him IN me.

This is my testimony of how He saved me from Sin:
https://wp.me/p57Tmn-4k

When you recognize that you are a slave to Sin and that Jesus wants to and will save you from Sin it is important to realize that it is God’s goodness that is leading you to Repentance.

(Romans 2:4 KJV)
“Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that THE GOODNESS OF GOD LEADETH THEE TO REPENTANCE?”

I had to come to a place of humility where I said to God, “Maybe I never really Repented of my Sin and Believed that You would save me.” At that point I started over and Turned my back on Sin and Trusted(Believed on) Him to keep me from turning back. Then I got Baptized to Jesus Christ for the Remission (Removal) of my Sins and burial of my Sin Nature (Romans 6).

(Acts 2:37 KJV)
“Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, WHAT SHALL WE DO? Then Peter said unto them, REPENT, and BE BAPTIZED every one of you IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST for the REMISSION OF SINS, and ye shall(promise) receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

It was Trust(Faith/Surrender) in Jesus that made it possible to receive the Holy Spirit.
(Luke 11:13 KJV)
“If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: HOW MUCH MORE SHALL YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER GIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT TO THEM THAT ASK HIM?”

This was the promise of the New Covenant that was promised in Ezekiel 36:27.
“And I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT WITHIN YOU, and CAUSE YOU TO WALK IN MY STATUTES, and YE SHALL(promise) KEEP MY JUDGMENTS, AND DO THEM.”

The 1 John Test is how you know if you know God/are saved.
(1 John 2:3-5 KJV)
“And HEREBY WE DO KNOW THAT WE KNOW HIM, IF WE KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and THE TRUTH (Jesus) IS NOT IN HIM. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: HEREBY KNOW WE THAT WE ARE IN HIM.”
(1 John 3:6-9 KJV)
“WHOSOEVER ABIDETH IN HIM SINNETH NOT: WHOSOEVER SINNETH HATH NOT SEEN HIM, NEITHER KNOWN HIM. Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. HE THAT COMMITTETH SIN IS OF THE DEVIL; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. WHOSOEVER IS BORN OF GOD (Born Again) DOTH NOT COMMIT SIN; for his(God’s) seed(the Holy Spirit) remaineth in him: and HE CANNOT SIN, BECAUSE HE IS BORN OF GOD.”

Do you have #FreedomFromSin ?

The Gnostic Doctrine of Free Will
The Gnostic Doctrine of Know Thyself
The Gnostic Doctrine of God Helps those who Help Themselves
The Gnostic Doctrine of the Mystery of Iniquity
The Gnostic Doctrine of Narcissism