Gnostic Gospel of God

I am Gabriel. I come in the name of God, and I have been sent to speak to you.

My spirit rejoices in God my Saviour. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men and women on whom His favour rests.

The Spirit of God is on me, because I have been anointed to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind.

Mankind does not live by physical food alone, so treasure these things and ponder them in your heart.

Salvation is through the forgiveness of sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, who guides our feet into the path of peace.

Seek the kingdom of God while you can. God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. Why do you look for the living among the dead?

No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognised by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. The good man brings forth good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.

Consider how the lilies grow, here today, and tomorrow thrown into the fire. Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. Unless you repent, you will perish, for every tree that comes to the end of its life without producing good fruit will be thrown into the fire.

You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind. Do this and you will live.

He told this parable: A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. Some fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown. When he had said this, he called out, He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

The seed is the word of God. Those along the path are the ones who are obsessed with conforming to the path that has been laid through life for them by the financiers, designers and builders of that path. The seed is lost and overlooked without having had any chance of rooting in their hearts. Indeed, by eagerly pursuing their journey along one or more of the chosen earthly paths, they trample the seed under foot.

The rocks represent those who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but have nothing to root the seed in. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away.

The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not allow the seed to mature.

But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, tend to it, and by persevering produce a crop vastly greater than what was originally sown.

Gabriel travelled from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God, curing many sick spirits and giving sight to many who were blind. The people were amazed at his teaching, because his message had authority.

He spent the nights praying to God.

One day as he was teaching the power of God was present for him to heal the sick. Some men came carrying a paralytic on a mat and tried to take him into the house. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd. Gabriel said to the paralysed man, Get up, take your mat and go home. Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. Everyone present was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, "We have seen remarkable things today." Gabriel told them, It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have come to call sinners to repentance.

A man was there whose right hand was shrivelled. Gabriel said to the man, Stretch out your hand. He did so, and his hand was completely restored.

Someone came from the house of Jairus. "Your daughter is dead," he said. Hearing this, Gabriel said to Jairus, Don't be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed. When he arrived at the house of Jairus, he did not let anyone go in with him except the child's father and mother. Meanwhile, all the people were wailing and mourning for her. Stop crying, Gabriel said, she is not dead but asleep. They laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. But he took her by the hand and said, Little girl, get up! Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up. Her parents were astonished, and Gabriel told them to give her something to eat.

Verily I say unto you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.

What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose his soul?

Consider how much God has done for you.

Blessed are those that hear the word of God and obey it. My mother, brothers and sisters are those who hear God's word and put it into practice.

No-one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl. Instead, he puts it on a stand, and uses the light to disclose and make known other things which are presently hidden or concealed. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight; and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs. Therefore consider carefully how you listen.

Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness.

Do not neglect justice and the love of God, the key to gnosis.

Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed. Pharisees are full of greed and wickedness, but a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid.

Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Verily I say unto you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night. You must be ready, because the messenger will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

He who hears these words and puts them into practice is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When the flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears these words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed.

I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.

Judge for yourselves what is right, and make every effort to enter through the narrow door.

What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air perched on its branches. What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.

When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honour, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, "Give this man your seat.' Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, 'Friend, move up to a better place.' Then you will be honoured in the presence of all your fellow guests. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

Blessed are those who eat of the feast in the kingdom of God.

He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. 'My children,' the Mother-Father will say to all of the ninety-nine, 'you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. Let us celebrate with music and dancing and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.'

If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, 'I repent,' forgive him.

He said to the Pharisees, who loved money, You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God's sight.

You cannot love both God and money. The people of this world are far greater in number than are the people of the light.

Having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Gabriel replied, The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you.

He who humbles himself will be exalted.

A certain ruler asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Why do you call me good? Gabriel answered. No-one is good, except God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, do not kill, do not steal, do not lie, honour your father and mother.'

"Lord, I want to see," he replied.

Gabriel said to him, Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.

Immediately he received his sight, praising God.

"Teacher," said the priests, "we know that you speak and teach what is right, and that you do not show partiality but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"

He saw through their duplicity and said to them, Show me a denarius. Whose portrait and inscription are on it?

"Caesar's," they replied.

He said to them, Then give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's.

Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Verily I say unto you, be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and the day of your death will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, such that you may be able to stand before God.

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Be merciful, just as your Father-Mother is merciful. The measure you use, it will be measured to you.

The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same. Do not take more than you need.

Do not extort money and do not accuse people falsely.

Why look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your eye? First take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.

You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers, relatives and friends, but not a hair of your head will perish. By standing firm you will gain life.

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

I am going to send you what our Father-Mother has promised.

He lifted up his hands and blessed his listeners. Then he left them and was taken back up into heaven, praising God.

Notes

The name Gabriel means "messenger of God" (Hebrew) or "man of God" (Greek) or "God is my strength." It can be both a male and a female name.

Gospel means "good news."

Angel means "messenger."

Gnosis means "knowledge."

Reference

Gideons International,  "The New Testament and Psalms," New International Version (NIV), Lutterworth.