Although the eternal Father is personally resident at the very center of the universe, He is also actually present in the minds of his children on earth, for he indwells them by means of his spirit which we refer to as the divine spirit fragments of the Father. Thus, the Father is at one and the same time farthest removed from, and most intimately associated with, his mortal sons by means of these indwelling fragments of Himself.
These spirit fragments are the absolute essence of the Father. We might understand this by comparing these fragments to a cup of water from the vast ocean. The complete substance and elements of the ocean water are contained in each cup. What is lacking is not quality, but quantity, and consequently power. Likewise, within each of us is the qualitative equal of the Father. This is what is meant when the scriptures tell us that we are “in the image of God he created them.” (Genesis 1:26-27)
As such, the divine fragments are in all normal minds, and have been ever since the times of Adam and Eve when God made man ‘in His image.’ So, in truth, all humanity are sons of God by the mere fact that we all are endowed with the divine fragments – the Father’s seed. But in order to attain to the reality of our sonship, we must act in harmony with it, ‘Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.’ (Matthew 5:48)
It is these fragments who create within us that unquenchable yearning and incessant longing to be like God, to attain Him, and to worship Him. They are the living presence which actually links us with the Father and draws us nearer and nearer to Him. That is the ‘attitude of your minds’ (Ephesians 4:23). And they are the unqualified assurance that we can find the Father due to the fact that he sent these divine fragments to find us and “sonship us” even while we are flesh. It is these spirit fragments that works in harmony with the spirit of truth to confirm our sonship.
“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.”
– Romans 8:16
These divine fragments were apparently dormant. Mankind did not understand the true nature of their relationship with God until the spirit of truth was poured out which ‘bears witness’ with the divine spirit fragments, already existing in each of us, and confirms that we are God’s children.
With the advent of Christ Jesus, and the subsequent pouring out of the spirit of truth at Pentecost, the divine fragments were activated and we understood, we knew, we were children of God. We had the testimony of two witnesses (Matthew 18:16) the divine fragment and the spirit of truth. This is what Paul meant when he said ‘For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.’ (Romans 8:19) (See our article Who are Led by Spirit?)
Understanding that we hold within us a fragment of the eternal Father should effect our conduct for the good, even without law. We are told:
“Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?”
– 1 Corinthians 3:16
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?”
– 1 Corinthians 6:19
This very fact should move us to live up to the image of the Father by endeavoring to ‘Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.’ (Matthew 5:48) While the Father is infallible in all ways, by the human indwelling of His divine nature, He makes the closest possible approach to sin and evil. For it is literally true that by means of these fragments, He must coexist in the mortal mind even in the very midst of human unrighteousness. They do not abandon us even in our darkest hours. Know also that the divine fragments are particularly tormented by those thoughts which are purely selfish, they are distressed by irreverence for that which is beautiful and divine, and they are virtually thwarted in their efforts to spiritualize the thinking of their mortal host by many of man's foolish animal fears and childish anxieties. We are told:
“Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”
– Ephesians 4:25-30
Further, we know that God is the actual personification of love. (1 John 4:8) Thus, these divine fragments are the Father's love incarnate in the minds of men – the incorruptible seed:
“Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.”
– 1 Peter 1:22-23
The love of these Father fragments is demonstrated by the fact that they remain with us in all disaster and through every sickness which does not wholly destroy the mind. But how unkind knowingly to defile or otherwise deliberately to pollute the physical body, which must serve as the earthly tabernacle of this marvelous gift from God. All physical poisons greatly retard the efforts of the spirit to exalt the material mind, while the mental poisons of fear, anger, envy, jealousy, suspicion, and intolerance likewise tremendously interfere with our spiritual progress.
As incorruptible elements, these spirit fragments further serve as the assurance of our eventual perfection and as a foretaste of the step by step ascension “from glory to glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18) until we finally attain the divine presence of the Father.
“For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.”
– 2 Corinthians 5:1-5
“[He] set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.”
– 2 Corinthians 1:22
“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.”
– Ephesians 1:13-14
The purpose of the divine fragments is to spiritualize our thinking. To gradually make over the mind (Romans 12:2), and to coordinate our thinking processes so that we can look beyond mortal uncertainty into the clear shining eternal future. It attaches a feeling of reality to our spiritual insights and even fosters better human communication with our brothers. It is this gift that most differentiates us from animals, that which allows us to be elevated from ‘earthly, animal, demonic’ thinking. (James 3:15)
The work of the divine fragment is not done on the conscious level such that we are vividly aware of its activities. Nor is it done on the subconscious level as if it were an automatic process. It works on what we might call the superconscious level, intervening in the vast gap between the divine mind of the Father, and the human mind of his earthly children.
The gulf between the human and the divine mind is vast. Thus, the Father fragments find it next to impossible to communicate directly with us. And when they do find it possible to flash a gleam of new truth to the mortal mind, this spiritual revelation often so blinds the creature as to cause a convulsion of fanaticism or some other intellectual upheaval which results disastrously. Many a new religion and strange " ism " has arisen from the aborted, imperfect, misunderstood, and garbled communications of the divine fragments.
As such, we are encouraged to remember that fostering divine ideas and ideals is the purpose of the Father fragments so when we are able to perceive a divine communication, we can maintain our emotional and mental stability. Although, it is far more likely that the ‘voice’ we hear, if any, is in reality a product of our own intellect.
It is also important that we do not confuse and confound the mission and influence of the divine fragments with what is commonly called conscience; they are not directly related. Conscience is a human and psychological reaction. It is not to be despised, but it is hardly the voice of God to the soul, which is indeed what the divine fragment’s voice would be if such a voice could be heard. Conscience, rightly, admonishes you to do right; but the spirit fragment, in addition, endeavors to tell you what truly is right, when you are able to perceive its leadings.
In this brief overview of the divine spirit fragments, we hope to have conveyed the truth that we are all children of God, whether we know it or not, and that our sonship has always been the Father’s purpose for his human creations. He has always desired our fellowship and continues to draw us closer and closer to him until we attain to the status of full spirit sons able to stand in his actual presence.
To help us realize and actuate the divine fragment, the Father sent his Son in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, to reveal the truth of our sonship, which is the message of the Kingdom of the Heavens – the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man. And after Jesus’ departure, the Father had another provision:
“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.”
– John 14:15-17
