Saying 28: Jesus said, “I stood at rest in the midst of the world. And unto them I was shown forth incarnate; I found them all intoxicated. And I found none of them thirsty. And my soul was pained for the children of humankind, for they are blind in their hearts and cannot see. For, empty did they enter the world, and again empty they seek to leave the world. But now they are intoxicated. When they shake off their wine then they will have a change of heart.”
Throughout the Gospel of Thomas, we begin to notice a pattern of repeating phrases that signify something deeper in a spiritual sense. Here, the idea of “standing” or saying “I stood…” is a metaphor for awakening. Because what is the first thing you do after you awaken from a long sleep? You stand up.
So, when Jesus says, “I stood at rest in the midst of the world” he is telling us that there was a day when he woke up from the illusion of separation and duality and realized the truth of our Oneness with God and all things.
When Jesus experienced this awakening, he stood at rest. Meaning his mind and his heart were at peace with all things.
The realization of that we are all One with God and one another brings us rest, and peace. It allows us to relax and to stop striving to attain something we already have.
As Jesus stood up, those around him began to notice he was awake in ways that they were not. They saw the incarnation of Christ was alive in him and this attracted them to Jesus.
Yet, Jesus says they remained intoxicated and were not thirsty for the whole truth. They believed there was something different about Jesus, but were not prepared to accept this reality for themselves. He was incarnate, but they were not. He was awake, but they were still half-asleep. He understood that the Kingdom was within but they weren’t convinced.
Seeing their blindness, and their satisfaction with the status quo, Jesus is heartbroken. His soul aches for them. He sees how empty they have become by believing the lie that the Kingdom of God is outside of them, and that Truth is an external reality they must find, or a code they must crack, or some information they must attain.
Their blindness to the inward reality of Christ within creates an emptiness, and this illusion intoxicates them and inoculates them to the Gospel of the Kingdom.
But, there is still hope for them, and for us, because Jesus affirms that a day is still to come when we “shake off” the wine and experience true “metanoia” which will allow us to awaken to the reality of our connection with God and with each other.
The Christ spirit has stood in our midst and appeared to us in the flesh of Jesus. His message to us was to awaken from our drunken stupor, to hunger and thirst for the Truth that sets us free, and to open the eyes of our hearts to see the reality of our fullness in Christ who fills everything, in every way.
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Keith Giles is the best-selling author of the Jesus Un series. He has appeared on CNN, USA Today, BuzzFeed, and John Fugelsang’s “Tell Me Everything.” His latest book, SOLA MYSTERIUM: Celebrating the Beautiful Uncertainty of Everything is available now on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle.
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