Meaning
The term Christ consciousness has become a popular one in recent times; this is more so as more public figures and celebrities are coming to the fore with the claim that they have found the «truth,» the truth is regarding spirituality. Many of these individuals refer to themselves as Christians, but it may surprise you that they seem to have an entirely different understanding of Christianity compared to what obtains in the Holy Bible. If a little research conducted about what they term as Christ consciousness, one will see that it is more or less a form of eastern mysticism.
Symbol Grid
The grid is the symbol of the consciousness of Christ.
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Definition
Christ consciousness represents the highest level of emotional maturity and intellectual development. It is given this term because the individuals involved in it are of the opinion that Jesus Christ attained a higher level of emotional maturity and intellectual development while he was in the human form on the earth. They also claim that Jesus was called Christ due to the emotional and intellectual achievements.
Looking at the definition above, it is clear that virtually anyone can associate with Christ consciousness, even if the person is not a Christian since al that is required is to become emotionally mature and intellectually developed. Anyone open to the idea of becoming a living vessel of truth and love can achieve Christ consciousness if the person strives with all the power in him or her to attain the feat.
Christ consciousness can also be defined as a state of awareness of one’s true nature, birthright and higher calling as a child of God, which are all identities traceable to Jesus Christ. This term has been given different names across the globe; some would call it Hinduism, Buddhism or Jainism. It has been called by virtually every mystical religion from the East. It is a pseudo-spirituality kind of thing, and the Christian version is highly popularised by Deepak Chopra. It can also be referred to like the latest version of mysticism. Notably, those practicing this idea make use of various Christian terms and bible verses in their discussions; as a result, anyone not reading the Holy Bible consistently may think Christ consciousness is the same thing as the real Christianity.
Christ consciousness works on the idea of mysticism, which says a human can transcend the physical existence using power from within himself and then experience his goodness as if he is one with the universe, existing in a higher place or even becoming a god. The proponents of this ideology sometimes use the name of Jesus in their discussions just as a prop. They are of the opinion that Jesus is the leader in showing them how they can exalt their inner goodness, which will set them aright with any deity they choose to acknowledge. They believe that Jesus Christ was called Christ because He channels the divine consciousness, which they believe is attainable by anyone that so desires. The connection of divinity with their ideology is the factor responsible for attributing the «Christ consciousness» ideology to Jesus Christ.
The general understanding is that those who champion the Christ consciousness idea are only using the name of Jesus Christ to as a means to worship themselves. Their real desire is to find absolution without acknowledging Jesus, confession of their sins or repentance. Christ consciousness can, therefore, be translated to a self-designed salvation being presented under a different guise and given a different name. It is more or less a means to deceive those individuals that want a part of Christianity and not its wholesomeness. The proponents only bring in the name of Jesus Christ to soothe their conscience when the real truth stares them in the face. The cover of Christ consciousness makes it easy for the followers of this ideology to acknowledge Jesus Christ in a way without accepting the Gospel that sounds unappealing to them. It is a way of picking only what they find acceptable in the idea of godliness.
Followers of the ideology start to see no error in any of their actions or any other human being; instead, they start to see everything and everybody as being perfect, irrespective of if their activities differ from what Jesus preaches. Followers of this ideology do not react negatively, do not condone, do not tempt, coerce or criticize, neither do they judge.
Does it truly follow Christ teachings?
Proponents of Christ consciousness see everything done by everybody as being perfect, but this is not what Jesus Christ taught. For example in Matthew 12:34, Jesus Christ was recorded to have rebuked the arrogant, made it clear that not everyone is thinking they can get to heaven by attaining Christ consciousness, and also commanded sinners to stop sinning. These points are opposed to Christ consciousness. Jesus Christ, while he was still on earth, was recorded to be angry, confrontational and even sad at some instances; all these are totally against the ideas of Christ consciousness being preached by the followers of this Eastern Mysticism.
Christ consciousness does not reject belief in Jesus Christ; in fact, it claims to have such a belief. Be that as it may, the idea also promotes having faith in oneself and one’s ability to make oneself appear pleasing to God via mystical experiences and attitudinal changes. This is also another point opposed by the Holy Bible about Christ consciousness; the Scriptures, in Galatians 2:16, stated that «a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.» Reading further, it said, «that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the work of the law because by the works of the law no one will be justified.»
The only place in the Scriptures where something related to the fundamentals of Christ consciousness was preached is in Philippians 2:5-7. This place prompts Christians to have the same mindset like Jesus Christ, who, despite having the nature of God, refused to see himself as being equal to God and also refused to use his divine nature to his selfish advantage, but instead humbled himself and became more like a servant. In conclusion, one can say that Christ consciousness is more of a human philosophy than true Godliness.