Ask and Receive E-Book

Aaron Martin Crane

• Herausgeber: Andura Publishing
• Kategorie: Ratgeber
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Beschreibung

Experience the life-changing power of Aaron Martin Crane with this unforgettable book.

Leseprobe

Ask and Receive

Aaron Martin Crane

Contents

PUBLISHER’S PREFACE

So many are the inquiries from those who have been impressed with the books of Mr. Crane and wish to know more of the man who could write so effectively that a personal statement may not be amiss.

Aaron Martin Crane was born in Glover, Orleans Co., Vermont, February 13,1839. The foundation of his education was laid in the public schools, a local academy, and at Newbury Seminary, but the extent to which it was carried was solely due to lifelong study of carefully chosen books. Nothing seemed beyond his mental grasp.

As a volunteer private, he joined the ist Vermont Cavalry, Co. I, August n, 1862, and won rapid promotion for gallant and intelligent service. He was mustered out in May, 1865, with the rank of captain.

He edited and published a paper in Winchester, QL Va., from 1865 until 1869, and entered Government service in the Internal Revenue Department.

Here he was an assessor until that office was abolished in 1873. After this he continued as special agent in charge at St. Louis, Cincinnati, Chicago, San Francisco, and other cities until 1884.

This was far in advance of the time when efficiency experts were a recognized feature of great establishments, but so compelling was Mr. Crane’s keen, thorough analysis, and so manifest his power of organization that he was repeatedly offered large fees and salaries to systematize work in which heavy investments were at stake. He persisted, however, in turning from the world of affairs to what he felt was the work to which he was called, that of a metaphysician. His noble mien and commanding stature aided his mental and spiritual gifts and warmth of heart to make his influence impressive. He taught, wrote, and healed, in the fullest sense of the word, all the rest of his life, which ended October 22, 1914.

His marriage, January 16,1867, to Lida D. Flint, of Irasburg, Vermont, was an ideal union. Mrs. Crane’s wide culture and constant partnership in all the activities of her husband enabled him constantly to be at his best, and her loss, after a long companionship, was the supreme test of his life.

Mr. Crane died rich in friends, and the gratitude of the host of former, sufferers would have made him opulent had he allowed it, but service was ever more to. him than income. No gift of his was ever withheld because any one seeking either truth or health was unable to pay for instruction.

The constantly increasing recognition given to his works, “Right and Wrong Thinking and Their Results” and “A Search after Ultimate Truth,” the former being known wherever the English language is read, makes it imperative that his unpublished writings be now given to the world. “Ask and Receive” is first of all a thoughtful study of the teaching of Jesus on the universal human need of prayer. In simple, forceful words, and with reasoning so clear that it is a pleasure to follow it, the author develops the sure possibilities of prayer and its necessary attendant, faith, including the vital subject of healing. This work gives the ripest conclusions of a great and honest scholar who by his life and teaching holds in the memory of the many who have known him, whether personally or through his books, a place second to no other master of thought, save only the Great Leader whose message he so well makes plain to us.

— Warren Fenno Gregory.

PREFACE

I Have a request to make of each one who for any cause may read the following pages. It is a simple request yet important, and unless complied with, the reader will, I fear, entirely, or at best very largely, miss the meaning of what I have tried to say. The request is that he will, as far as may be, dispossess himself of all preconceived ideas or conclusions and take what is here said for what it is worth without reference to the utterances or opinions of any others except our Master and Teacher, Jesus the Christ. This much I ask for the reader’s sake and for the sake of the single thought in these pages.

Aaron Martin Crane.

PRAYER

JESUS’ OWN WORDS

Directions Regarding Prayer

And when thou prayest,

Thou shalt not be like the hypocrites;

For they love

In the synagogues

And in the corners of the wide places

Standing

To pray,

That they may appear to the men.

Indeed, I say to you,

That they have in full the reward of them.

But thou,

When thou prayest,

Enter into the retired place of thee,

And locking the door of thee,

Pray thou

To the Father of thee,

To the (Father) in the secret;

And the Father of thee

Who (is) seeing in the secret place,

Will give to thee in the dear light.

But praying,

Babble not

Like the Gentiles;

For they imagine

That in the wordiness of them

They shall be heard.

Not, therefore,

You may be like to them;

For the Father of you knows

Of what things you have need,

Before you ask of Him.

Asking

Ask, and it shall be given you;

Seek, and ye shall find;

Knock, and it shall be opened unto you;

For Every one that asketh receiveth;

And he that seeketh findeth;

And to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

The Great Rule for all Prayer

Jesus, answering, saith unto them:

Have faith of God.

Verily, I say unto you:

Whosoever shall say unto this mountain,

Be thou taken up and cast into the sea;

And shall not doubt in his heart,

But shall believe

That what he saith cometh to pass;

He shall have it.

Therefore, I say unto you:

All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for,

Believe that ye have received them,

And ye shall have them.

And whensoever ye stand praying,

Forgive,

If ye have aught against any one;

That your Father also which is in heaven

May forgive you your trespasses.

I – Introduction

Christians recognize Jesus the Christ as their great leader and teacher in all moral and spiritual affairs. Many things were done by him which people of his time called wonderful works, and which later were known as miracles. He healed the sick, raised the dead, and controlled the elements.

It was generally believed that his works were wrought solely through the power of God, which Jesus manifested in the setting aside or suspension of natural laws. For centuries this belief was accepted by many, not only as a sufficient explanation of his works, but as the seal of his divine origin and character.

The deeds accomplished by Jesus were out of the usual course of events, and many men, learned in the science of the material world, have said that these so-called miracles were contrary to the invariable laws of nature and therefore could not have occurred; yet they have acknowledged that there is a vast domain of nature of which they are totally ignorant. Is it not, then, possible that with reference to these “miracles,” they have spoken dogmatically about that of which they had insufficient knowledge?

Scientific knowledge has increased in these later days, and many wonderful results have been attained in exact compliance with laws hitherto unknown. The idea has developed that possibly, if not probably, Jesus performed his works in absolute harmony with the inflexible laws of nature, laws which men do not even now fully recognize, but which they will some tune perceive and understand. This means that everything Jesus did was in strict accordance with natural laws, and that thus his acts were not miracles in the earlier understanding of that word. With this interpretation there is no occasion to question the story of these events. Thus a reasonable basis is given for expecting that finally, when mankind arrives at an understanding of these great laws, the things which Jesus said and did will be fully explained to the entire comprehension of every one. It also makes reasonable and intelligible the statement that Jesus made with much earnestness under circumstances of unusual solemnity: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto the Father.”

An unbroken tradition extending from that day to this testifies that the events narrated in the Gospels did actually occur, and this is supported by written narratives which date back almost to the origin of the tradition. Considerable portions of these narratives were written by persons who were eye-witnesses of the events, or who derived their knowledge from others who themselves were eye-witnesses. In any case a large amount of peculiar and individualistic moral teaching relating to human conduct has come down to us. This teaching is of extreme importance and was unquestionably derived from Jesus the Christ. No other events in the history of his tunes are better authenticated than is this teaching, and after all necessary and rightful allowances are made for possible mistakes and exaggerations, there is left a very extensive and substantial amount of truth regarding Jesus and his teachings.

Jesus presents to us his instructions regarding all moral living in words so plain that they cannot be misunderstood. An important portion of these instructions is included in what he said about two closely related subjects, prayer and faith.

Prayer is the natural attitude of man toward that infinite, all-powerful, all-wise, and everywhere ever-present Being, the Creator of the universe, by whatever name He may be designated and whatever may be any man’s conception of Him. Prayer is a universal instinct, a desire — even a need — of the race; and, so far as history, tradition, or even inference gives us any definite clew, it appears that prayer has been more or less believed in and practised by the entire family of mankind. Just as there has never been found a nation or a group of people of any development whatever, who had not some idea of God, so there has never been found any who did not have some idea of prayer. Prayer seems to be inherent in the human race; it seems to be something belonging to the race, which we see must exist wherever there is a recognition of a supreme being capable of bestowing gifts and protecting care, so that necessarily the idea of praying is as wide as the idea of God.

The consciousness of some need is generally the beginning of prayer and its usual accompaniment. With this is the belief to a greater or lesser degree that the one appealed to possesses the willingness and the ability to grant what is asked. But there is a higher form of prayer which is purely an expression of gratitude for benefits already conferred. Communion with God is prayer in its very highest form. In such prayer we do not beseech or ask, we know the truth, — that all things are indeed ours, — and the more of such communion that we have with God, the more do we understand our relationship to Him.

The entire subject of prayer in all its phases is of peculiar importance because not only is prayer of the widest use and application, but, whatever its form or object, it touches the secret, fundamental, sacred, and most important conditions of life. For these reasons what Jesus said about prayer is of the most intense interest and of the greatest value.

Evidently Jesus did not intend to remove prayer beyond the domain of human affairs nor to surround it with mystery, and it is especially noteworthy that he never connects prayer with ceremony or formality of any kind. In speaking of prayer, he uses his customary sunpie style of language, and with the dignity and earnestness characteristic of his utterances, his words are always positive, clear, and unmistakable. Not a doubt is expressed as to the certainty that prayer will be answered. His words on this subject are few, simple, and direct, but they are wonderfully comprehensive and complete.

All that Jesus said or did relative to prayer is included in the following: First, full instructions how to pray, concluding with the positive and unequivocal declaration that the request of the one complying with his instructions will be granted. Second, an unconditional, threefold statement that the desire of every one that asketh, seeketh, or knocketh shall be satisfied. Third, a definite, specific, and universal requirement for all prayer, concluding with the positive assurance that he who fulfills this requirement shall receive his request.3 Fourth, his own prayer, and his own attitude in prayer as shown in his complete surrender of purely material desires and his then perfect realization of the oneness with the Father and of the truth in his own statement made to his disciples, “For your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask Him.”

We see in his own prayer, at the final and extreme crisis when he asked his Father for relief from the supreme agony of his earthly career, that even in the midst of his plea came a revulsion of thought, and in entire self-surrender and in renunciation of his own request he cried out, “Nevertheless, not as I will, but as Thou wilt”; and though he passed through the shame and the agony, there followed the supreme joy and the glory of complete and perfect success.

II – HOW TO PRAY

Our Lord’s Prayer, which Jesus the Christ made for the use of every human being, is the most wonderful group of petitions known to man, for in its broad general terms it includes all that anyone can ask for; besides it is the most widely known, and most frequently repeated of any of his utterances. It is noticeable that in immediate connection with this prayer not one word occurs about the advisability, duty, or necessity for praying; and, indeed, it is only in comparatively few cases, and these exceptional ones, that Jesus commands any one to pray. He so clearly understands mankind that he assumes that all will wish to pray, and acting on that assumption he gives us his clear and explicit instructions regarding prayer, and then leaves each one free to pray or not as one chooses. Yet he knows that all will pray, for to desire intensely or to ask earnestly for what one wishes is, after all, prayer whether or not one calls the action praying.

Jesus’ introduction to this prayer is hardly less important than the prayer itself, for in it he sets forth the conditions and methods that should be avoided, as well as those that should accompany all prayer. It is not directly stated to whom these preliminary words are addressed, but, as in many another of his most earnest and important utterances, they are for “him who hears” and they thus clearly include all who hear and understand; they are for each one who is about to pray.

At the very beginning he unqualifiedly prohibits all praying, which is merely for the sake of publicity or pretense, and he lashes with the most scornful irony those who do “such things.” He says, “Thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men.” This is the same position that he took in regard to almsgiving, and the same conclusion: “Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.” Such praying was mere ostentation, a characteristic utterly foreign to his own nature and to his methods of teaching.

As he continues, he gives positive advice for privacy in all praying; and in this he follows the natural inclination of the human mind. Public praying rarely occurs except when two or more persons are moved by a common impulse or emotion, which in some cases may be no more than an earnest desire to influence listeners. We can easily understand the reasons that prompt to privacy in nearly all earnest praying, whether it arises from instinct, education, veneration, a natural shrinking from an exposure of secret desires or feelings, or from a combination of all these. Often Jesus went alone into the desert or into the wilderness to pray, showing that at such times he loved to be alone with God. His public prayers were few. The spirit of every man can best attune itself to a consciousness of the Father’s presence when he puts himself beyond all chance of interruption.