Recognition and action: faith becoming a way of life

I bear witness, O my God, that Thou hast created me to know Thee and to worship Thee.

From among all created things He hath singled out for His special favor the pure, the gem-like reality of man, and invested it with a unique capacity of knowing Him and of reflecting the greatness of His glory. This twofold distinction conferred upon him hath cleansed away from his heart the rust of every vain desire, and made him worthy of the vesture with which his Creator hath deigned to clothe him.

The beginning of all utterance is the worship of God, and this followeth upon His recognition.

The first duty prescribed by God for His servants is the recognition of Him Who is the Dayspring of His Revelation and the Fountain of His laws, Who representeth the Godhead in both the Kingdom of His Cause and the world of creation. Whoso achieveth this duty hath attained unto all good; and whoso is deprived thereof hath gone astray, though he be the author of every righteous deed. It behoveth every one who reacheth this most sublime station, this summit of transcendent glory, to observe every ordinance of Him Who is the Desire of the world. These twin duties are inseparable. Neither is acceptable without the other. Thus hath it been decreed by Him Who is the Source of Divine inspiration.

They whom God hath endued with insight will readily recognize that the precepts laid down by God constitute the highest means for the maintenance of order in the world and the security of its peoples. He that turneth away from them is accounted among the abject and foolish. We, verily, have commanded you to refuse the dictates of your evil passions and corrupt desires, and not to transgress the bounds which the Pen of the Most High hath fixed, for these are the breath of life unto all created things. The seas of Divine wisdom and Divine utterance have risen under the breath of the breeze of the All-Merciful. Hasten to drink your fill, O men of understanding! They that have violated the Covenant of God by breaking His commandments, and have turned back on their heels, these have erred grievously in the sight of God, the All-Possessing, the Most High.

O ye peoples of the world! Know assuredly that My commandments are the lamps of My loving providence among My servants, and the keys of My mercy for My creatures. Thus hath it been sent down from the heaven of the Will of your Lord, the Lord of Revelation. Were any man to taste the sweetness of the words which the lips of the All-Merciful have willed to utter, he would, though the treasures of the earth be in his possession, renounce them one and all, that he might vindicate the truth of even one of His commandments, shining above the Dayspring of His bountiful care and loving-kindness.

Say: From My laws the sweet-smelling savour of My garment can be smelled, and by their aid the standards of Victory will be planted upon the highest peaks. The Tongue of My power hath, from the heaven of My omnipotent glory, addressed to My creation these words: "Observe My commandments, for the love of My beauty." Happy is the lover that hath inhaled the divine fragrance of his Best-Beloved from these words, laden with the perfume of a grace which no tongue can describe. By My life! He who hath drunk the choice wine of fairness from the hands of My bountiful favour will circle around My commandments that shine above the Dayspring of My creation.

This verse does not mean that those who are veiled from God are all equal whether they be doers of good or workers of iniquity. It means only that the foundation is the recognition of God and that good deeds derive from this knowledge. Nevertheless, it is certain that among those who are veiled from God there is a difference between the doer of good and the sinner and malefactor.

… This blessed verse means therefore that good deeds alone, without the recognition of God, cannot lead to eternal redemption, to everlasting success and salvation, and to admittance into the Kingdom of God.

Briefly, good deeds become perfect and complete only after the knowledge of God has been acquired, the love of God has been manifested, and spiritual attractions and goodly motives have been attained. Otherwise, though good deeds be praiseworthy, if they do not spring from the knowledge of God, from the love of God, and from a sincere intention, they will be imperfect.

This is why in divine religions, the acceptance of human deeds is contingent upon recognition of the Dawning Place of God's command, and knowledge and recognition are dependent upon acting according to the counsels of the All-Bountiful King.

Say: Deeds must follow recognition - thus have you been commanded in all the Tablets and in this blessed, mighty and praiseworthy Tablet.

O handmaiden of God! Your call was heard and you have attained the Most Great Bounty which is the recognition of the Lord of Eternity. Now strive to act according to His ordinances which have been sent down from the Holy Pen in the Most Holy Book.

The first step is the recognition of God, exalted be His glory, and afterward to act according to that which hath been sent down in the Book from the Pen of the All-Bountiful.

Two most great matters have been and shall ever be: first, the recognition of the Ancient Being, and second, adherence to that which hath dawned from the horizon of His Command.

I summon the loved ones of God, exalted be His glory, to two most great matters: first, the recognition of the Ancient Being, and second, steadfastness in His Cause.

Give thanks to thy Lord for having aided thee to recognize the Dawning-Place of Revelation and for having made thee among those who have turned unto Him. The first duty is the recognition of God, exalted be His glory, and after this steadfastness in this mighty Cause.

The cause of eternal glory to man is faith and certainty and then living (or acting) according to the behests of His Majesty the Eternal God. My hope is that thou wilt attain to the three.

How vast the number of people who are well versed in every science, yet it is their adherence to the holy Word of God which will determine their faith, inasmuch as the fruit of every science is none other than the knowledge of divine precepts and submission unto His good-pleasure.

… All the letters of the sublime paradise of the Bayan return unto Him Whom God shall make manifest, Who is the First Gate of the paradise, and the Most Great Name Who is manifest by divinity.

… Do ye attend most carefully to this matter, and take heed (for it is inevitable that ye shall meet Him) lest ye show this degree of deference – and perform your works – for His name, while for the Bearer of this name ye do not what ye were performing for His mere appellation (albeit, did ye know it to be Him, ye would perform your works for Him; yet ye confuse the matter in your own eyes).

God desireth naught from you on this day save obedience to God's true Command through the truth -- an everlasting reward from God, the Ancient One.

In brief, two things are necessary and obligatory for man: First, religion, which preserves him from transgressions and sins - blessed is he who hath adorned his head with the crown of piety and his temple with the armor of the fear of God. Second are deeds, for through deeds and character man is distinguished from the animal....

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God hath created all specifically for the recognition of the Dawning-Place of His verses and the Dayspring of His evidences.

All the Books have been sent down in order to establish the truth of this Cause. Whoso turneth away hath verily denied God and His Messengers and His Books which were sent unto the worlds. Say: All Books have been expounded from this mighty Book. He who denieth this Book, naught shall be accepted from him though he act according to what is in the Books of God, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. All things have been made dependent upon this Cause - this if ye be of them that comprehend. Every mention hath been consummated by this Mention and every foundation by this firm Foundation.

The beginning of all things hath been, and continueth to be, faith in God, exalted be His glory; and the end thereof is steadfastness therein. Blessed is he who hath attained unto both the first and the last; verily, he is numbered among the people of inner meaning in the sight of God, the Lord of the worlds and the Desired One of them that have known Him.

We must strive to awaken sleeping souls, make the heedless mindful, and bring the divine teachings, which are the spirit of this age, to the ears of the people of the world. They must be published in newspapers and eloquently explained in gatherings. The approach should be like Paul's and the faith like Peter's.

Faith does not consist in belief, it consists in deeds. It is not sufficient to believe in Baha'u'llah and to say, "I am of the people of El-Abha"; we must act in accordance with the teachings of Baha'u'llah, who commands us to become centers of divine attraction, so that the attributes of God may emanate from us, that we may become wise and well intentioned to all the peoples of the earth in order to better the condition of all.

They should justify their claim to be Baha'is by deeds and not by name. He is a true Baha'i who strives by day and by night to progress and advance along the path of human endeavour, whose most cherished desire is so to live and act as to enrich and illuminate the world, whose source of inspiration is the essence of divine virtue, whose aim in life is so to conduct himself as to be the cause of infinite progress. Only when he attains unto such perfect gifts can it be said of him that he is a true Baha'i. For in this holy Dispensation, the crowning glory of bygone ages and cycles, true faith is no mere acknowledgement of the unity of God, but rather the living of a life that will manifest all the perfections and virtues implied in such belief.

A twofold obligation resteth upon him who hath recognized the Day Spring of the Unity of God, and acknowledged the truth of Him Who is the Manifestation of His oneness. The first is steadfastness in His love, such steadfastness that neither the clamor of the enemy nor the claims of the idle pretender can deter him from cleaving unto Him Who is the Eternal Truth... The second is strict observance of the laws He hath prescribed--laws which He hath always ordained, and will continue to ordain, unto men, and through which the truth may be distinguished and separated from falsehood.

Catalogue reference: BH07535 · passage alignment is approximate; supplied wording retained.

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I bear witness, O my God, that Thou hast created me to know Thee ('irfanika) and to worship Thee ('ibadatika). I testify, at this moment, to my powerlessness and to Thy might, to my poverty and to Thy wealth.

Catalogue reference: BH11209 · passage alignment is approximate; supplied wording retained.

The beginning of all things is the knowledge (irfan) of God, and the end of all things is strict observance of whatsoever hath been sent down from the empyrean of the Divine Will that pervadeth all that is in the heavens and all that is on the earth.

Catalogue reference: BH00026 · passage alignment is approximate; supplied wording retained.

The first and foremost duty prescribed unto men, next to the recognition of Him Who is the Eternal Truth, is the duty of steadfastness in His Cause.

Catalogue reference: BH00586 · passage alignment is approximate; supplied wording retained.

Although a person of good deeds is acceptable at the Threshold of the Almighty, yet it is first 'to know', and then 'to do.'... By faith is meant, first, conscious knowledge (danistan), and second, the practice of good deeds.

Catalogue reference: AB01398 · passage alignment is approximate; supplied wording retained.

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To accept the Prophet of God in His time and to abide by His bidding are the two essential, inseparable duties which each soul was created to fulfill. One exercises these twin duties by one's own choice, an act constituting the highest expression of the free will with which every human being has been endowed by an all-loving Creator.

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To accept the Messenger of God in His Day and to abide by His bidding are the two essential, inseparable duties which each soul was created to fulfil. One exercises these twin duties by one's own choice, and by so doing performs an act which may be regarded as the highest expression of free will with which every human being is endowed by an all-loving Creator.

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To 'get to heaven' as you say is dependent on two things - faith in the Manifestation of God in His Day, in other words in this Age in Baha'u'llah; and good deeds, in other words living to the best of our ability a noble life and doing unto others as we would be done by. But we must always remember that our existence and everything we have or ever will have is dependent upon the Mercy of God and His Bounty, and therefore He can accept into His heaven, which is really nearness to Him, even the lowliest if He pleases. We always have the hope of receiving His Mercy if we reach out for it.

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