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Teacher-Brother Dave's Compilation

of TOPICAL STUDIES from

The New Epochal Revelation of Truth, Page 347


(The current one is on our Home Page, left column)


Teacher-Brother Dave's initial comments: I am presenting some of my Topical Studies from the fully public domain, 2097 page, Fifth Epochal Revelation of Truth and with my added comments. The Revealed text is free of copyright, so you may freely share individually these supernal quotes with your friends and relatives. But my order of selections, font types for emphasis and my added comments are Copyright 2020 by Dave@PureChristians.org All Rights Reserved. Contact me first about using the whole Study or group of Studies.

[My added comments of explanation below are in these square brackets]

Topical Study number 133

"LOVE -- A New

Comprehensive Revelation",

Part 13


Compiled Feb. 10, 2021 by Dave@PureChristians.org


The Urantia Book

PAPER 132 THE SOJOURN AT ROME

2. GOOD AND EVIL

[Paper:Section.Paragraph]

132:2.5 Goodness is always growing toward new levels of the increasing liberty of moral self-realization and spiritual personality attainment — the discovery of, and identification with, the indwelling Adjuster. An experience is good when it heightens the appreciation of beauty, augments the moral will, enhances the discernment of truth, enlarges the capacity to love and serve one’s fellows, exalts the spiritual ideals, and unifies the supreme human motives of time with the eternal plans of the indwelling Adjuster, all of which lead directly to an increased desire to do the Father’s will, thereby fostering the divine passion to find God and to be more like him.

3. TRUTH AND FAITH

132:3.4 Revealed truth, personally discovered truth, is the supreme delight of the human soul; it is the joint creation of the material mind and the indwelling Spirit. [Your Thought Adjuster, God's pure Spirit Essence -- God's will indwelling all normal, moral humans !] The eternal salvation of this truth-discerning and beauty-loving soul is assured by that hunger and thirst for goodness which leads this mortal to develop a singleness of purpose to do the Father’s will, to find God and to become like him. There is never conflict between true knowledge and truth. There may be conflict between knowledge and human beliefs, beliefs colored with prejudice, distorted by fear, and dominated by the dread of facing new facts of material discovery or spiritual progress.

4. PERSONAL MINISTRY

132:4.2 Always the burden of his [Jesus'] message was: the fact of the heavenly Father’s love and the truth of his mercy, coupled with the good news that man is a faith-son of this same God of love. Jesus’ usual technique of social contact was to draw people out and into talking with him by asking them questions. The interview would usually begin by his asking them questions and end by their asking him questions. He was equally adept in teaching by either asking or answering questions. As a rule, to those he taught the most, he said the least. Those who derived most benefit from his personal ministry were overburdened, anxious, and dejected mortals who gained much relief because of the opportunity to unburden their souls to a sympathetic and understanding listener, and he was all that and more. And when these maladjusted human beings had told Jesus about their troubles, always was he able to offer practical and immediately helpful suggestions looking toward the correction of their real difficulties, albeit he did not neglect to speak words of present comfort and immediate consolation. And invariably would he tell these distressed mortals about the love of God and impart the information, by various and sundry methods, that they were the children of this loving Father in Heaven.

132:4.3 In this manner, during the sojourn in Rome, Jesus personally came into affectionate and uplifting contact with upward of five hundred mortals of the realm. He thus gained a knowledge of the different races of mankind which he could never have acquired in Jerusalem and hardly even in Alexandria. He always regarded this six months as one of the richest and most informative of any like period of his earth life.

132:4.6 To a Roman soldier, as they walked along the Tiber, he [Jesus] said: "Be brave of heart as well as of hand. Dare to do justice and be big enough to show mercy. Compel your lower nature to obey your higher nature as you obey your superiors. Revere goodness and exalt truth. Choose the beautiful in place of the ugly. Love your fellows and reach out for God with a whole heart, for God is your Father in Heaven."

APER 133 THE RETURN FROM ROME

0. Introduction

133:0.1 When preparing to leave Rome, Jesus said good-bye to none of his friends. The scribe of Damascus appeared in Rome without announcement and disappeared in like manner. It was a full year before those who knew and loved him gave up hope of seeing him again. Before the end of the second year small groups of those who had known him found themselves drawn together by their common interest in his teachings and through mutual memory of their good times with him. And these small groups of Stoics, Cynics, and mystery cultists continued to hold these irregular and informal meetings right up to the time of the appearance in Rome of the first preachers of the Christian religion.

1. MERCY AND JUSTICE

133:1.1 A very interesting incident occurred one afternoon by the roadside as they neared Tarentum. They observed a rough and bullying youth brutally attacking a smaller lad. Jesus hastened to the assistance of the assaulted youth, and when he had rescued him, he tightly held on to the offender until the smaller lad had made his escape. The moment Jesus released the little bully, Ganid [a young man from India working in Jerusalem with his merchant father Gonod] pounced upon the boy and began soundly to thrash him, and to Ganid's astonishment Jesus promptly interfered. After he had restrained Ganid and permitted the frightened boy to escape, the young man, as soon as he got his breath, excitedly exclaimed: "I cannot understand you, Teacher. If mercy requires that you rescue the smaller lad, does not justice demand the punishment of the larger and offending youth?" In answering, Jesus said:

133:1.2 "Ganid, it is true, you do not understand. Mercy ministry is always the work of the individual, but justice punishment is the function of the social, governmental, or universe administrative groups. As an individual I am beholden to show mercy; I must go to the rescue of the assaulted lad, and in all consistency I may employ sufficient force to restrain the aggressor. And that is just what I did. I achieved the deliverance of the assaulted lad; that was the end of mercy ministry. Then I forcibly detained the aggressor a sufficient length of time to enable the weaker party to the dispute to make his escape, after which I withdrew from the affair. I did not proceed to sit in judgment on the aggressor, thus to pass upon his motive--to adjudicate all that entered into his attack upon his fellow--and then undertake to execute the punishment whih my mind might dictate as just recompense for his wrongdoing. Ganid, mercy may be lavish, but justice is precise. Cannot you discern that no two persons are likely to agree as to the punishment which would satisfy the demands of justice? One would impose forty lashes, another twenty, while still another would advise solitary confinement as a just punishment. Can you not see that on this world such responsibilities had better rest upon the group or be administered by chosen representatives of the group? In the universe, judgment is vested in those who fully know the antecedents of all wrongdoing as well as its motivation. In civilized society and in an organized universe the administration of justice presupposes the passing of just sentence consequent upon fair judgment, and such prerogatives are vested in the juridical groups of the worlds and in the all-knowing administrators of the higher universes of all creation."

2. EMBARKING AT TARENTUM

133:2.1 While tarrying at the ship landing, waiting for the boat to unload cargo, the travelers observed a man mistreating his wife. As was his custom, Jesus intervened in behalf of the person subjected to attack. He stepped up behind the irate husband and, tapping him gently on the shoulder, said: “My friend, may I speak with you in private for a moment?” The angry man was nonplused by such an approach and, after a moment of embarrassing hesitation, stammered out — “er — why — yes, what do you want with me?” When Jesus had led him to one side, he said: “My friend, I perceive that something terrible must have happened to you; I very much desire that you tell me what could happen to such a strong man to lead him to attack his wife, the mother of his children, and that right out here before all eyes. I am sure you must feel that you have some good reason for this assault. What did the woman do to deserve such treatment from her husband? As I look upon you, I think I discern in your face the love of justice if not the desire to show mercy. I venture to say that, if you found me out by the wayside, attacked by robbers, you would unhesitatingly rush to my rescue. I dare say you have done many such brave things in the course of your life. Now, my friend, tell me what is the matter? Did the woman do something wrong, or did you foolishly lose your head and thoughtlessly assault her?” It was not so much what he said that touched this man’s heart as the kindly look and the sympathetic smile which Jesus bestowed upon him at the conclusion of his remarks. Said the man: “I perceive you are a priest of the Cynics, and I am thankful you restrained me. My wife has done no great wrong; she is a good woman, but she irritates me by the manner in which she picks on me in public, and I lose my temper. I am sorry for my lack of self-control, and I promise to try to live up to my former pledge to one of your brothers who taught me the better way many years ago. I promise you.”

133:2.2 And then, in bidding him farewell, Jesus said: “My brother, always remember that man has no rightful authority over woman unless the woman has willingly and voluntarily given him such authority. Your wife has engaged to go through life with you, to help you fight its battles, and to assume the far greater share of the burden of bearing and rearing your children; and in return for this special service it is only fair that she receive from you that special protection which man can give to woman as the partner who must carry, bear, and nurture the children. The loving care and consideration which a man is willing to bestow upon his wife and their children are the measure of that man’s attainment of the higher levels of creative and spiritual self-consciousness. Do you not know that men and women are partners with God in that they cooperate to create beings who grow up to possess themselves of the potential of immortal souls? The Father in heaven treats the Spirit Mother of the children of the universe as one equal to himself. It is Godlike to share your life and all that relates thereto on equal terms with the mother partner who so fully shares with you that divine experience of reproducing yourselves in the lives of your children. If you can only love your children as God loves you, you will love and cherish your wife as the Father in heaven honors and exalts the Infinite Spirit, the mother of all the Spirit Children [Universe Creative Mother Spirits] of a vast universe.”

4. PERSONAL WORK IN CORINTH

133:4.2 The miller he taught about grinding up the grains of truth in the mill of living experience so as to render the difficult things of divine life readily receivable by even the weak and feeble among one’s fellow mortals. Said Jesus: “Give the milk of truth to those who are babes in spiritual perception. In your living and loving ministry serve spiritual food in attractive form and suited to the capacity of receptivity of each of your inquirers.”

133:4.4 To the earnest leader of the Mithraic cult he said: “You do well to seek for a religion of eternal salvation, but you err to go in quest of such a glorious truth among man-made mysteries and human philosophies. Know you not that the mystery of eternal salvation dwells within your own soul? Do you not know that the God of Heaven has sent his Spirit to live within you, and that this Spirit will lead all truth-loving and God-serving mortals out of this life and through the portals of death up to the eternal heights of Light where God waits to receive his children? And never forget: You who know God are the sons of God if you truly yearn to be like him.”

9. IN MESOPOTAMIA

133:9.4 At last the day came for the separation. [of Jesus from the Indian merchants Gonod and Ganid] They were all brave, especially the lad, but it was a trying ordeal. They were tearful of eye but courageous of heart. In bidding his teacher farewell, Ganid said: “Farewell, Teacher, but not forever. When I come again to Damascus, I will look for you. I love you, for I think the Father in heaven must be something like you; at least I know you are much like what you have told me about him. I will remember your teaching, but most of all, I will never forget you.” Said the father, “Farewell to a great teacher, one who has made us better and helped us to know God.” And Jesus replied, “Peace be upon you, and may the blessing of the Father in Heaven ever abide with you.” And Jesus stood on the shore and watched as the small boat carried them out to their anchored ship. Thus the Master left his friends from India at Charax, never to see them again in this world; nor were they, in this world, ever to know that the man who later appeared as Jesus of Nazareth was this same friend they had just taken leave of — Joshua their teacher.

133:9.5 In India, Ganid grew up to become an influential man, a worthy successor of his eminent father, and he spread abroad many of the noble truths which he had learned from Jesus, his beloved Teacher. Later on in life, when Ganid heard of the strange teacher in Palestine who terminated his career on a cross, though he recognized the similarity between the Gospel of this Son of Man and the teachings of his Jewish tutor, it never occurred to him that these two were actually the same person.

PAPER 134 THE TRANSITION YEARS

2. THE CARAVAN TRIP TO THE CASPIAN

134:2.3 Of all his world travels this Caspian Sea trip carried Jesus nearest to the Orient and enabled him to gain a better understanding of the Far-Eastern peoples. He made intimate and personal contact with every one of the surviving races of Earth excepting the red. [when Jesus was Incarnate here. Today, He is worldwide upon all in his Spirit of Truth Presence !] He equally enjoyed his personal ministry to each of these varied races and blended peoples, and all of them were receptive to the Living Truth which he brought them. The Europeans from the Far West and the Asiatics from the Far East alike gave attention to his words of hope and eternal Life and were equally influenced by the Life of loving service and spiritual ministry which he so graciously lived among them.

4. SOVEREIGNTY — DIVINE AND HUMAN

134:4.1 The brotherhood of men is founded on th Fatherhood of God. The Family of God is derived from the love of God — God is love. God the Father divinely loves his children, all of them. [ALL humans are now divinely beloved sons of God with potential for eternal life !!!]

6. LAW, LIBERTY, AND SOVEREIGNTY

134:6.1 If one man craves freedom — liberty — he must remember that all other men long for the same freedom. Groups of such liberty-loving mortals cannot live together in peace without becoming subservient to such laws, rules, and regulations as will grant each person the same degree of freedom while at the same time safeguarding an equal degree of freedom for all of his fellow mortals. If one man is to be absolutely free, then another must become an absolute slave. And the relative nature of freedom is true socially, economically, and politically. Freedom is the gift of civilization made possible by the enforcement of LAW.

9. THE TIME OF WAITING

134:9.3 Both of them were present at the solemn services of the day of atonement. John [Zebedee, later an apostle] was much impressed by the ceremonies of this day of all days in the Jewish religious ritual, but Jesus remained a thoughtful and silent spectator. To the Son of Man this performance was pitiful and pathetic. He viewed it all as misrepresentative of the character and attributes of his Father in Heaven. He looked upon the doings of this day as a travesty upon the facts of divine justice and the truths of infinite mercy. He burned to give vent to the declaration of the real Truth about his Father’s loving character and merciful conduct in the universe, but his faithful Monitor admonished him that his hour had not yet come. But that night, at Bethany, Jesus did drop numerous remarks which greatly disturbed John; and John never fully understood the real significance of what Jesus said in their hearing that evening.

PAPER 135 JOHN THE BAPTIST

8. MEETING OF JESUS AND JOHN

135:8.6 There was a tone of finality and authority in Jesus’ voice. John was atremble with emotion as he made ready to baptize Jesus of Nazareth in the Jordan at noon on Monday, January 14, A.D. 26. Thus did John baptize Jesus and his two brothers James and Jude. And when John had baptized these three, he dismissed the others for the day, announcing that he would resume baptisms at noon the next day. As the people were departing, the four men still standing in the water heard a strange sound, and presently there appeared for a moment an apparition immediately over the head of Jesus, and they heard a voice saying, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” A great change came over the countenance of Jesus, and coming up out of the water in silence he took leave of them, going toward the hills to the east. And no man saw Jesus again for forty days.

9. FORTY DAYS OF PREACHING

135:9.7 It was early on the morning of Sabbath, February 23, [A.D. 26] that the company of John, engaged in eating their morning meal, looked up toward the north and beheld Jesus coming to them. As he approached them, John stood upon a large rock and, lifting up his sonorous voice, said: “Behold the Son of God, the deliverer of the world! This is he of whom I have said, ‘After me there will come one who is preferred before me because he was before me.’ For this cause came I out of the wilderness to preach repentance and to baptize with water, proclaiming that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. And now comes one who shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit. And I beheld the Divine Spirit descending upon this man, and I heard the voice of God declare, ‘This is my beloved Son in whom I AM well pleased.’”

11. JOHN IN PRISON

135:11.2 After he had been in prison several months, a group of his disciples came to him and, after reporting concerning the public activities of Jesus, said: “So you see, Teacher, that he who was with you at the upper Jordan prospers and receives all who come to him. He even feasts with publicans and sinners. You bore courageous witness to him, and yet he does nothing to effect your deliverance.” But John answered his friends: “This man can do nothing unless it has been given him by his Father in heaven. You well remember that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah, but I am one sent on before to prepare the way for him.’ And that I did. He who has the bride is the bridegroom, but the friend of the bridegroom who stands near by and hears him rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. This, my joy, therefore is fulfilled. He must increase but I must decrease. I am of this Earth and have declared my message. Jesus of Nazareth comes down to the Earth from Heaven and is above us all. The Son of Man has descended from God, and the words of God he will declare to you. For the Father in Heaven gives not the Spirit by measure to his own Son. The Father loves his Son and will presently put all things in the hands of this Son. He who believes in the Son has Eternal Life. And these words which I speak are True and abiding.” [A powerful Revelation !!]

135:11.3 These disciples were amazed at John’s pronouncement, so much so that they departed in silence. John was also much agitated, for he perceived that he had uttered a prophecy. Never again did he wholly doubt the mission and divinity of Jesus. But it was a sore disappointment to John that Jesus sent him no word, that he came not to see him, and that he exercised none of his great power to deliver him from prison. But Jesus knew all about this. He had great love for John, but being now cognizant of his divine nature and knowing fully the great things in preparation for John when he departed from this world and also knowing that John’s work on Earth was finished, he constrained himself not to interfere in the natural outworking of the great preacher-prophet’s career.

135:11.4 This long suspense in prison was humanly unbearable. Just a few days before his death John again sent trusted messengers to Jesus, enquiring: “Is my work done? Why do I languish in prison? Are you truly the Messiah, or shall we look for another?” And when these two disciples gave this message to Jesus, the Son of Man replied: “Go back to John and tell him that I have not forgotten but to suffer me also this, for it becomes us to fulfill all righteousness. Tell John what you have seen and heard — that the poor have good tidings preached to them — and, finally, tell the beloved Herald of my Earth Mission that he shall be abundantly blessed in the age to come if he finds no occasion to doubt and stumble over me.” And this was the last word John received from Jesus. This message greatly comforted him and did much to stabilize his faith and prepare him for the tragic end of his life in the flesh which followed so soon upon the heels of this memorable occasion.[John was beheaded soon thereafter !]

PAPER 136 BAPTISM AND THE FORTY DAYS

2. THE BAPTISM OF JESUS

[Paper:Section.Paragraph]

136:2.3 Ordinarily, when a mortal of the realm attains such high levels of personality perfection, there occur those preliminary phenomena of spiritual elevation which terminate in eventual fusion of the matured soul of the mortal with its associated divine Adjuster. [God's pure Spirit Essence living within and as you -- the will of God-- leading you into eventual Spirit-perfection !] And such a change was apparently due to take place in the personality experience of Jesus of Nazareth on that very day when he went down into the Jordan with his two brothers to be baptized by John. [on Jan. 14, A.D. 26] This ceremony was the final act of his purely human life on Earth, and many superhuman observers expected to witness the fusion of the Adjuster with its indwelt mind, but they were all destined to suffer disappointment. Something new and even greater occurred. As John laid his hands upon Jesus to baptize him, the indwelling Adjuster took final leave of the perfected human soul of Joshua ben Joseph. And in a few moments this Divine Entity returned from Divinington as a Personalized Adjuster and chief of his kind throughout the entire local universe of Nebadon. [Tremendous !!] Thus did Jesus observe his own former Divine Spirit descending on its return to him in personalized form. And he heard this same Spirit of Paradise origin now speak, saying, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” And John, with Jesus’ two brothers, also heard these words. John’s disciples, standing by the water’s edge, did not hear these words, neither did they see the apparition of the Personalized Adjuster. Only the eyes of Jesus beheld the Personalized Adjuster.

4. PLANS FOR PUBLIC WORK

136:4.13 #2. [Jesus is planning the remainder of his Earth life:] To live and work as he knew his Father would approve, to conduct his work in behalf of other worlds in need, [Jesus' (and our local universe named Nebadon) was made and is perfecting in Him, will have ten million human inhabited worlds when completed,] and to continue, in the establishment of the Kingdom, to Reveal the Father and show forth his divine character of love.

5. THE FIRST GREAT DECISION

136:5.1 On the third day after beginning this conference with himself and his Personalized Adjuster, Jesus was presented with the vision of the assembled celestial hosts of Nebadon sent by their commanders to wait upon the will of their beloved Sovereign. This mighty host embraced twelve legions of seraphim [5,971,968 seraphim] and proportionate numbers of every order of universe intelligence. And the first great decision of Jesus’ isolation had to do with whether or not he would make use of these mighty personalities in connection with the ensuing program of his public work on Earth. [Jesus decided he would not use any of these Spirit personalities unless it was the will of the Universal Father living within Jesus' mind and soul.]

9. THE FIFTH DECISION

136:9.7 The idea of battle, contention, and slaughter was repugnant to Jesus; he would have none of it. He would appear on Earth as the Prince of Peace to reveal a God of love. Before his baptism he had again refused the offer of the Zealots to lead them in rebellion against the Roman oppressors. And now he made his final decision regarding those Scriptures which his mother had taught him, such as: “The Lord has said to me, ‘You are my Son; this day have I begotten you. Ask of me, and I will give you the heathen for your inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron; you shall dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.’”

PAPER 137 TARRYING TIME IN GALILEE

4. THE WEDDING AT CANA

137:4.4 Early in the afternoon Mary summoned James, and together they made bold to approach Jesus to inquire if he would admit them to his confidence to the extent of informing them at what hour and at what point in connection with the wedding ceremonies he had planned to manifest himself as the “supernatural one.” No sooner had they spoken of these matters to Jesus than they saw they had aroused his characteristic indignation. He said only: “If you love me, then be willing to tarry with me while I wait upon the will of my Father who is in heaven.” But the eloquence of his rebuke lay in the expression of his face.

6. THE EVENTS OF A SABBATH DAY

137:6.5 Jesus instructed them to take up their regular duties until “the hour of the kingdom comes.” And to encourage them, he set an example by going back regularly to work in the boatshop. In explaining that they should spend three hours every evening in study and preparation for their future work, Jesus further said: “We will all remain hereabout until the Father bids me call you. Each of you must now return to his accustomed work just as if nothing had happened. Tell no man about me and remember that my Kingdom is not to come with noise and glamor, but rather must it come through the great change which my Father will have wrought in your hearts and in the hearts of those who shall be called to join you in the councils of the Kingdom. You are now my friends; I trust you and I love you; you are soon to become my personal associates. Be patient, be gentle. Be ever obedient to the Father’s will. Make yourselves ready for the call of the Kingdom. While you will experience great joy in the service of my Father, you should also be prepared for trouble, for I warn you that it will be only through much tribulation that many will enter the Kingdom. But those who have found the Kingdom, their joy will be full, and they shall be called the blest of all the earth. But do not entertain false hope; the world will stumble at my words. Even you, my friends, do not fully perceive what I am unfolding to your confused minds. Make no mistake; we go forth to labor for a generation of sign seekers. They will demand wonder-working as the proof that I am sent by my Father, and they will be slow to recognize in the Revelation of my Father’s love the Credentials of my Mission.”

7. FOUR MONTHS OF TRAINING

137:7.13 While Jesus later directed that the apostles should go forth, as John had, preaching the gospel and instructing believers, he laid emphasis on the proclamation of the “good tidings of the Kingdom of Heaven.” He unfailingly impressed upon his associates that they must “show forth love, compassion, and sympathy.” He early taught his followers that the Kingdom of heaven was a spiritual experience having to do with the enthronement of God in the hearts of men.

Topical Study number 133

"LOVE -- A New

Comprehensive Revelation",

Part 14


Compiled Feb. 12, 2021 by Dave@PureChristians.org


The Urantia Book

PAPER 137 TARRYING TIME IN GALILEE

8. SERMON ON THE KINGDOM

[Paper:Section.Paragraph]

137:8.6 [Jesus:] “I have come to proclaim the establishment of the Father’s Kingdom. And this Kingdom shall include the worshiping souls of Jew and Gentile, rich and poor, free and bond, for my Father is no respecter of persons; his love and his mercy are over all. [Yes, God loves all humans and beings, highest to lowest, equally !! There are no "classes" of humans; all humans are equally beloved in the Family of God !!]

137:8.17 “John came preaching repentance to prepare you for the Kingdom; now have I come proclaiming faith, the gift of God, as the price of entrance into the Kingdom of heaven. If you would but believe that my Father loves you with an infinite love, then you are in the Kingdom of God.” [Faith is a free Gift from God to always use !!]

PAPER 138 TRAINING THE KINGDOM’S MESSENGERS

1. FINAL INSTRUCTIONS

138:1.4 It had been arranged that the six [apostles in training by Jesus] were to labor for two weeks, after which they were to return to the home of Zebedee for a conference. Meantime Jesus went over to Nazareth to visit with Joseph and Simon and other members of his family living in that vicinity. Jesus did everything humanly possible, consistent with his dedication to the doing of his Father’s will, to retain the confidence and affection of his family. In this matter he did his full duty and more.

4. THE CALL OF THE TWINS

138:4.3 That night at a simple supper at the Alpheus home, the twin brothers were received into the apostolic family. Later in the evening Jesus gave his apostles their first lesson dealing with the origin, nature, and destiny of unclean spirits, but they could not comprehend the import of what he told them. They found it very easy to love and admire Jesus but very difficult to understand many of his teachings. [Even today. many humans still believe in evil, demonic spirit influences; even though Jesus fully removed all of them in A.D. 30 -on, just as he said in John 12:31-32 and 16:11 and others. "Unreasoned fear is a master intellectual FRAUD practiced upon the evolving mortal soul." Jesus constantly teaches us to "Fear not ! Be of good cheer ! Rejoice ! for I AM always here with you and within all Truth-lovers !"]

6. THE WEEK OF INTENSIVE TRAINING

138:6.4 In these early teachings Jesus sought to avoid controversies with his apostles as far as possible excepting those involving wrong concepts of his Father in heaven. In all such matters he never hesitated to correct erroneous beliefs. There was just one motive in Jesus’ postbaptismal life on Earth, and that was a better and truer Revelation of his Paradise Father; he was the pioneer of the New and Better Way to God, the way of faith and love. Ever his exhortation to the apostles was: “Go seek for the sinners; find the downhearted and comfort the anxious.”

7. ANOTHER DISAPPOINTMENT

138:7.6 Jesus enjoined them to devote themselves to fishing for two weeks, adding, “And then will you go forth to become fishers of men.” They fished in three groups, Jesus going out with a different group each night. And they all so much enjoyed Jesus! He was a good fisherman, a cheerful companion, and an inspiring friend; the more they worked with him, the more they loved him. Said Matthew one day: “The more you understand some people, the less you admire them, but of this man, even the less I comprehend him, the more I love him.”

8. FIRST WORK OF THE TWELVE

138:8.2 Jesus taught them to preach the forgiveness of sin through faith in God without penance or sacrifice, and that the Father in heaven loves all his children with the same eternal love. ...

138:8.8 Jesus made plain to his apostles the difference between the repentance of so-called good works as taught by the Jews and the change of mind by faith — the new birth — which he required as the price of admission to the Kingdom. He taught his apostles that faith was the only requisite to entering the Father’s Kingdom. John had taught them “repentance — to flee from the wrath to come.” [God has no wrath ! Wrath is sub-human/animalistic !] Jesus taught, “Faith is the open door for entering into the present, perfect, and eternal love of God.” Jesus did not speak like a prophet, one who comes to declare the word of God. He seemed to speak of himself as one having Authority. Jesus sought to divert their minds from miracle seeking to the finding of a real and personal experience in the satisfaction and assurance of the indwelling of God’s Spirit of love and saving grace.

9. FIVE MONTHS OF TESTING

138:9.1 This somewhat monotonous period of alternate fishing and personal work proved to be a grueling experience for the twelve apostles, but they endured the test. With all of their grumblings, doubts, and transient dissatisfactions they remained true to their vows of devotion and loyalty to the Master. It was their personal association with Jesus during these months of testing that so endeared him to them that they all (save Judas Iscariot) remained loyal and true to him even in the dark hours of the trial and crucifixion. Real men simply could not actually desert a revered Teacher who had lived so close to them and had been so devoted to them as had Jesus. Through the dark hours of the Master’s death, in the hearts of these apostles all reason, judgment, and logic were set aside in deference to just one extraordinary human emotion — the supreme sentiment of friendship-loyalty. These five months of work with Jesus led these apostles, each one of them, to regard him as the best friend he had in all the world. And it was this human sentiment, and not his superb teachings or marvelous doings, that held them together until after the Resurrection and the renewal of the proclamation of the gospel of the Kingdom.

PAPER 139 THE TWELVE APOSTLES

1. ANDREW, THE FIRST CHOSEN

139:1.11 Every one of the apostles loved Jesus, but it remains true that each of the twelve was drawn toward him because of some certain trait of personality which made a special appeal to the individual apostle. Andrew admired Jesus because of his consistent sincerity, his unaffected dignity. When men once knew Jesus, they were possessed with the urge to share him with their friends; they really wanted all the world to know him.

2. SIMON PETER

139:2.6 Simon Peter was distressingly vacillating; he would suddenly swing from one extreme to the other. First he refused to let Jesus wash his feet and then, on hearing the Master’s reply, begged to be washed all over. But, after all, Jesus knew that Peter’s faults were of the head and not of the heart. He was one of the most inexplicable combinations of courage and cowardice that ever lived on earth. His great strength of character was loyalty, friendship. Peter really and truly loved Jesus. And yet despite this towering strength of devotion he was so unstable and inconstant that he permitted a servant girl to tease him into denying his Lord and Master. Peter could withstand persecution and any other form of direct assault, but he withered and shrank before ridicule. He was a brave soldier when facing a frontal attack, but he was a fear-cringing coward when surprised with an assault from the rear.

139:2.13 But Peter persisted in making the mistake of trying to convince the Jews that Jesus was, after all, really and truly the Jewish Messiah. [Never would Jesus stoop that low and evil !] Right up to the day of his death, Simon Peter continued to suffer confusion in his mind between the concepts of Jesus as the Jewish Messiah, [No] Christ as the world’s Redeemer, [Yes, and more:] and the Son of Man as the Revelation of God, the loving Father of all mankind. [Yes !!]

3. JAMES ZEBEDEE

139:3.6 That characteristic of Jesus which James most admired was the Master’s sympathetic affection. Jesus’ understanding interest in the small and the great, the rich and the poor, made a great appeal to him.

4. JOHN ZEBEDEE

139:4.2 Since John was the youngest of the twelve and so closely associated with Jesus in his family affairs, he was very dear to the Master, but it cannot be truthfully said that he was “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” You would hardly suspect such a magnanimous personality as Jesus to be guilty of showing favoritism, of loving one of his apostles more than the others. The fact that John was one of the three personal aides of Jesus lent further color to this mistaken idea, not to mention that John, along with his brother James, had known Jesus longer than the others.

139:4.4 John Zebedee had many lovely traits of character, [he was the best theologian of of all the apostles. The so-called "Gospel of John" in the Bible reveals Jesus' eternal and divine nature best] but one which was not so lovely was his inordinate but usually well-concealed conceit. His long association with Jesus made many and great changes in his character. This conceit was greatly lessened, but after growing old and becoming more or less childish, this self-esteem reappeared to a certain extent, so that, when engaged in directing Nathan in the writing of the Gospel which now bears his name, the aged apostle did not hesitate repeatedly to refer to himself as the “disciple whom Jesus loved.” In view of the fact that John came nearer to being the chum of Jesus than any other earth mortal, that he was his chosen personal representative in so many matters, it is not strange that he should have come to regard himself as the “disciple whom Jesus loved” since he most certainly knew he was the disciple whom Jesus so frequently trusted.

139:4.6 Those characteristics of Jesus which John most appreciated were the Master’s love and unselfishness; these traits made such an impression on him that his whole subsequent life became dominated by the sentiment of love and brotherly devotion. He talked about love and wrote about love. This “son of thunder” became the “apostle of love”; and at Ephesus, when the aged bishop was no longer able to stand in the pulpit and preach but had to be carried to church in a chair, and when at the close of the service he was asked to say a few words to the believers, for years his only utterance was, “My little children, love one another.”

139:4.12 Several years after the martyrdom of James, John married his brother’s widow. The last twenty years of his life he was cared for by a loving granddaughter.

139:4.13 John was in prison several times and was banished to the Isle of Patmos for a period of four years until another emperor came to power in Rome. Had not John been tactful and sagacious, he would undoubtedly have been killed as was his more outspoken brother James. As the years passed, John, together with James the Lord’s brother, learned to practice wise conciliation when they appeared before the civil magistrates. They found that a “soft answer turns away wrath.” They also learned to represent the church as a “spiritual brotherhood devoted to the social service of mankind” rather than as “the Kingdom of Heaven.” They taught loving service rather than ruling power — kingdom and king.

6. HONEST NATHANIEL

139:6.5 The apostles all loved and respected Nathaniel, and he got along with them splendidly, excepting Judas Iscariot. Judas did not think Nathaniel took his apostleship sufficiently seriously and once had the temerity to go secretly to Jesus and lodge complaint against him. Said Jesus: “Judas, watch carefully your steps; do not overmagnify your office. Who of us is competent to judge his brother? It is not the Father’s will that his children should partake only of the serious things of life. Let me repeat: I have come that my brethren in the flesh may have joy, gladness, and life more abundantly. Go then, Judas, and do well that which has been intrusted to you but leave Nathaniel, your brother, to give account of himself to God.” And the memory of this, with that of many similar experiences, long lived in the self-deceiving heart of Judas Iscariot.

8. THOMAS DIDYMUS

139:8.6 Jesus enjoyed Thomas very much and had many long, personal talks with him. His presence among the apostles was a great comfort to all honest doubters and encouraged many troubled minds to come into the kingdom, even if they could not wholly understand everything about the spiritual and philosophic phases of the teachings of Jesus. Thomas’s membership in the twelve was a standing declaration that Jesus loved even honest doubters.

139:8.7 The other apostles held Jesus in reverence because of some special and outstanding trait of his replete personality, but Thomas revered his Master because of his superbly balanced character. Increasingly Thomas admired and honored one who was so lovingly merciful yet so inflexibly just and fair; so firm but never obstinate; so calm but never indifferent; so helpful and so sympathetic but never meddlesome or dictatorial; so strong but at the same time so gentle; so positive but never rough or rude; so tender but never vacillating; so pure and innocent but at the same time so virile, aggressive, and forceful; so truly courageous but never rash or foolhardy; such a lover of nature but so free from all tendency to revere nature; so humorous and so playful, but so free from levity and frivolity. It was this matchless symmetry of personality that so charmed Thomas. He probably enjoyed the highest intellectual understanding and personality appreciation of Jesus of any of the twelve. [Thomas had a logical, scientific mind.]

9. AND 10. JAMES AND JUDAS ALPHEUS

139:10.2 There is not much to be said about these two commonplace fisherfolk. They loved their Master and Jesus loved them, but they never interrupted his discourses with questions. They understood very little about the philosophical discussions or the theological debates of their fellow apostles, but they rejoiced to find themselves numbered among such a group of mighty men. These two men were almost identical in personal appearance, mental characteristics, and extent of spiritual perception. What may be said of one should be recorded of the other.

139:10.6 James Alpheus especially loved Jesus because of the Master’s simplicity. These twins could not comprehend the mind of Jesus, but they did grasp the sympathetic bond between themselves and the heart of their Master. Their minds were not of a high order; they might even reverently be called stupid, but they had a real experience in their spiritual natures. They believed in Jesus; they were sons of God and fellows of the Kingdom. [The Family of God]

139:10.8 The twins were good-natured, simple-minded helpers, and everybody loved them. Jesus welcomed these young men of one talent to positions of honor on his personal staff in the kingdom because there are untold millions of other such simple and fear-idden souls on the worlds of space whom he likewise wishes to welcome into active and believing fellowship with himself and his outpoured Spirit of Truth. Jesus does not look down upon littleness, only upon evil and sin. James and Judas were little, but they were also faithful. They were simple and ignorant, but they were also big-hearted, kind, and generous.

11. SIMON THE ZEALOT

139:11.7 He was a rebel by nature and an iconoclast by training, but Jesus won him for the higher concepts of the Kingdom of Heaven. He had always identified himself with the party of protest, but he now joined the party of progress, unlimited and eternal progression of Spirit and Truth. Simon was a man of intense loyalties and warm personal devotions, and he did profoundly love Jesus.

12. JUDAS ISCARIOT

139:12.4 There was no special trait about Jesus which Judas admired above the generally attractive and exquisitely charming personality of the Master. Judas was never able to rise above his Judean prejudices against his Galilean associates; he would even criticize in his mind many things about Jesus. Him whom eleven of the apostles looked upon as the perfect man, as the “one altogether lovely and the chiefest among ten thousand,” this self-satisfied Judean often dared to criticize in his own heart. He really entertained the notion that Jesus was timid and somewhat afraid to assert his own power and authority. [Judas was shockingly wrong !]

139:12.5 Judas was a good business man. It required tact, ability, and patience, as well as painstaking devotion, to manage the financial affairs of such an idealist as Jesus, to say nothing of wrestling with the helter-skelter business methods of some of his apostles. Judas really was a great executive, a farseeing and able financier. And he was a stickler for organization. None of the twelve ever criticized Judas. As far as they could see, Judas Iscariot was a matchless treasurer, a learned man, a loyal (though sometimes critical) apostle, and in every sense of the word a great success. The apostles loved Judas; he was really one of them. He must have believed in Jesus, but we doubt whether he really loved the Master with a whole heart. The case of Judas illustrates the truthfulness of that saying: “There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end thereof is death.” It is altogether possible to fall victim to the peaceful deception of pleasant adjustment to the paths of sin and death. Be assured that Judas was always financially loyal to his Master and his fellow apostles. Money could never have been the motive for his betrayal of the Master.

PAPER 140 THE ORDINATION OF THE TWELVE

1. PRELIMINARY INSTRUCTION

140:1.3 [Jesus to the new apostles:] “The power of this Kingdom shall consist, not in the strength of armies nor in the might of riches, but rather in the glory of the divine Spirit that shall come to teach the minds and rule the hearts of the reborn citizens of this heavenly Kingdom, the sons of God. This is the brotherhood of love wherein righteousness reigns, and whose battle cry shall be: Peace on earth and good will to all men. This Kingdom, which you are so soon to go forth proclaiming, is the desire of the good men of all ages, the hope of all the earth, and the fulfillment of the wise promises of all the prophets.

2. THE ORDINATION

140:2.2 [Jesus:] “My Father, I now bring to you these men, my messengers. From among our children on earth I have chosen these twelve to go forth to represent me as I came forth to represent you. Love them and be with them as you have loved and been with me. [Tremendous !!] And now, my Father, give these men wisdom as I place all the affairs of the coming Kingdom in their hands. And I would, if it is your will, tarry on earth a time to help them in their labors for the Kingdom. And again, my Father, I thank you for these men, and I commit them to your keeping while I go on to finish the work you have given me to do.”

3. THE ORDINATION SERMON

140:3.15 [Jesus:] “I say to you: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who despitefully use you. And whatsoever you believe that I would do to men, [all humans] do you also to them. [Love with fatherly love which is higher than the golden rule of brotherly love !]

4. YOU ARE THE SALT OF THE EARTH

140:4.6 Strong characters are not derived from not doing wrong but rather from actually doing right. Unselfishness is the badge of human greatness. The highest levels of self-realization are attained by worship and service. The happy and effective person is motivated, not by fear of wrongdoing, but by love of right doing.

5. FATHERLY AND BROTHERLY LOVE

140:5.1 From the Sermon on the Mount to the discourse of the Last Supper, Jesus taught his followers to manifest fatherly love rather than brotherly love. Brotherly love would love your neighbor as you love yourself, and that would be adequate fulfillment of the “golden rule.” But fatherly affection would require that you should love your fellow mortals as Jesus loves you.

140:5.2 Jesus loves mankind with a dual affection. He lived on earth as a twofold personality — human and divine. As the Son of God he loves man with a fatherly love — he is man’s Creator, his universe Father. As the Son of Man, Jesus loves mortals as a brother — he was truly a man among men. [And today and always, Jesus is here as one unified God-Man Spirit Person: He the Spirit of Truth !]

140:5.3 Jesus did not expect his followers to achieve an impossible manifestation of brotherly love, but he did expect them to so strive to be like God — to be perfect even as the Father in Heaven is perfect — that they could begin to look upon man as God looks upon his creatures and therefore could begin to love men as God loves them — to show forth the beginnings of a fatherly affection. In the course of these exhortations to the twelve apostles, Jesus sought to reveal this new concept of fatherly love as it is related to certain emotional attitudes concerned in making numerous environmental social adjustments.

140:5.4 The Master introduced this momentous discourse by calling attention to four faith attitudes as the prelude to the subsequent portrayal of his four transcendent and supreme reactions of fatherly love in contrast to the limitations of mere brotherly love.

140:5.5 He first talked about those who were poor in spirit, hungered after righteousness, endured meekness, and who were pure in heart. Such Spirit-discerning mortals could be expected to attain such levels of divine selflessness as to be able to attempt the amazing exercise of fatherly affection; that even as mourners they would be empowered to show mercy, promote peace, and endure persecutions, and throughout all of these trying situations to love even unlovely mankind with a fatherly love. A father’s affection can attain levels of devotion that immeasurably transcend a brother’s affection.

140:5.6 The faith and the love of these beatitudes strengthen moral character and create happiness. Fear and anger weaken character and destroy happiness. This momentous sermon started out upon the note of happiness.

140:5.9 Experiential righteousness is a pleasure, not a duty. Jesus’ righteousness is a dynamic love — fatherly-brotherly affection. It is not the negative or thou-shalt-not type of righteousness. How could one ever hunger for something negative — something “not to do”?

140:5.12 4. “Happy are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Spiritual purity is not a negative quality, except that it does lack suspicion and revenge. In discussing purity, Jesus did not intend to deal exclusively with human sex attitudes. He referred more to that faith which man should have in his fellow man; that faith which a parent has in his child, and which enables him to love his fellows even as a father would love them. A father’s love need not pamper, and it does not condone evil, but it is always anticynical. Fatherly love has singleness of purpose, and it always looks for the best in man; that is the attitude of a true parent.

140:5.13 To see God — by faith — means to acquire true spiritual insight. And spiritual insight enhances Adjuster guidance, [God's Spirit within you to guide and perfect you] and these in the end augment God-consciousness. And when you know the Father, you are confirmed in the assurance of divine sonship, and you can increasingly love each of your brothers in the flesh, not only as a brother — with brotherly love — but also as a father — with fatherly affection.

140:5.15 And then Jesus went on to instruct his followers in the realization of the chief purpose of all human struggling — perfection — even divine attainment. Always he admonished them: “Be you perfect, even as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” He did not exhort the twelve to love their neighbors as they loved themselves. That would have been a worthy achievement; it would have indicated the achievement of brotherly love. He rather admonished his apostles to love men as he had loved them — to love with a fatherly as well as a brotherly affection. And he illustrated this by pointing out four supreme reactions of fatherly love:

140:5.17 2. “Happy are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” Mercy here denotes the height and depth and breadth of the truest friendship — loving-kindness. Mercy sometimes may be passive, but here it is active and dynamic — supreme fatherliness. A loving parent experiences little difficulty in forgiving his child, even many times. And in an unspoiled child the urge to relieve suffering is natural. Children are normally kind and sympathetic when old enough to appreciate actual conditions.

140:5.21 So often persecution does follow peace. But young people and brave adults never shun difficulty or danger. “Greater love has no man than to lay down his life for his friends.” And a fatherly love can freely do all these things — things which brotherly love can hardly encompass. And progress has always been the final harvest of persecution. [Hard for some humans here to believe, but in the big picture; mankind as a whole family continues to steadily progress and perfect as God so wills.]

140:5.23 And so it is revealed that the beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount are based on faith and love and not on law — ethics and duty.

140:5.24 Fatherly love delights in returning good for evil — doing good in retaliation for injustice.

6. THE EVENING OF THE ORDINATION

140:6.3 [Jesus:] “I demand of you a righteousness that shall exceed the righteousness of those who seek to obtain the Father’s favor by almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. If you would enter the Kingdom, you must have a righteousness that consists in love, mercy, and truth — the sincere desire to do the will of my Father in Heaven.”

140:6.9 Then asked Nathaniel: "Master, shall we give no place to justice? The law of Moses says, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' What shall we say?" And Jesus answered: "You shall return good for evil. My messengers must not strive with men, but be gentle toward all. Measure for measure shall not be your rule. The rulers of men may have such laws, but not so in the Kingdom; mercy always shall determine your judgments and love your conduct. And if these are hard sayings, you can even now turn back. If you find the requirements of apostleship too hard, you may return to the less rigorous pathway of discipleship."

8. THURSDAY AFTERNOON ON THE LAKE

140:8.4 Jesus had great difficulty in getting them to understand his personal practice of nonresistance. He absolutely refused to defend himself, and it appeared to the apostles that he would be pleased if they would pursue the same policy. He taught them not to resist evil, not to combat injustice or injury, but he did not teach passive tolerance of wrongdoing. And he made it plain on this afternoon that he approved of the social punishment of evildoers and criminals, and that the civil government must sometimes employ force for the maintenance of social order and in the execution of justice.

140:8.5 He [Jesus] never ceased to warn his disciples against the evil practice of retaliation; he made no allowance for revenge, the idea of getting even. He deplored the holding of grudges. He disallowed the idea of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. He discountenanced the whole concept of private and personal revenge, assigning these matters to civil government, on the one hand, and to the judgment of God, on the other. He made it clear to the three that his teachings applied to the individual, not the state. He summarized his instructions up to that time regarding these matters, as:

140:8.6 Love your enemies -- remember the moral claims of human brotherhood.

140:8.7 The futility of evil: A wrong is not righted by vengeance. Do not make the mistake of fighting evil with its own weapons.

140:8.8 Have faith -- confidence in the eventual triumph of divine justice and eternal goodness.

140:8.11 3. Social attitude. The Jewish rabbis had long debated the question: Who is my neighbor? Jesus came presenting the idea of active and spontaneous kindness, a love of one’s fellow men so genuine that it expanded the neighborhood to include the whole world, thereby making all men one’s neighbors. But with all this, Jesus was interested only in the individual, not the mass. Jesus was not a sociologist, but he did labor to break down all forms of selfish isolation. He taught pure sympathy, compassion. [Our Master Jesus Christ] Michael of Nebadon is a mercy-dominated Son; compassion is his very nature.

140:8.19 5. Personal religion. You, as did his apostles, should the better understand Jesus’ teachings by his life. He lived a perfected life on Earth, and his unique teachings can only be understood when that life is visualized in its immediate background. It is his life, and not his lessons to the twelve or his sermons to the multitudes, that will assist most in revealing the Father’s divine character and loving personality.

140:8.31 The Master offered no solutions for the nonreligious problems of his own age nor for any subsequent age. Jesus wished to develop spiritual insight into eternal realities and to stimulate initiative in the originality of living; he concerned himself exclusively with the underlying and permanent spiritual needs of the human race. He revealed a goodness equal to God. He exalted love — truth, beauty, and goodness — as the divine ideal and the eternal reality. [You could look at a corner at the top of your room. The three planes connected at the triune point represent truth, beauty, and goodness. The whole volume in the room represents love -- freely distributed everywhere.]

10. THE EVENING AFTER THE CONSECRATION

140:10.4 This same evening Thomas asked Jesus: “Master, you say that we must become as little children before we can gain entrance to the Father’s Kingdom, and yet you have warned us not to be deceived by false prophets nor to become guilty of casting our pearls before swine. Now, I am honestly puzzled. I cannot understand your teaching.” Jesus replied to Thomas: “How long shall I bear with you! Ever you insist on making literal all that I teach. When I asked you to become as little children as the price of entering the Kingdom, I referred not to ease of deception, mere willingness to believe, nor to quickness to trust pleasing strangers. What I did desire that you should gather from the illustration was the child-father relationship. You are the child, and it is your Father’s Kingdom you seek to enter. There is present that natural affection between every normal child and its father which insures an understanding and loving relationship, and which forever precludes all disposition to bargain for the Father’s love and mercy. And the gospel you are going forth to preach has to do with a salvation growing out of the faith-realization of this very and eternal child-Father relationship.”

Topical Study number 133

"LOVE -- A New

Comprehensive Revelation",

Part 15


Compiled Feb. 15, 2021 by Dave@PureChristians.org


The Urantia Book

PAPER 141 BEGINNING THE PUBLIC WORK

2. GOD’S LAW AND THE FATHER’S WILL

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141:2.2 [Jesus:] “When you are the subjects of this Kingdom, you indeed are made to hear the law of the Universe Ruler; but when, because of the gospel of the Kingdom which I have come to declare, you faith-discover yourselves as sons, you henceforth look not upon yourselves as law-subject creatures of an all-powerful king but as privileged sons of a loving and divine Father. Verily, verily, I say to you, when the Father’s will is your law, you are hardly in the Kingdom. But when the Father’s will becomes truly your will, then are you in very truth in the Kingdom because the Kingdom has thereby become an established experience in you. When God’s will is your law, you are noble slave subjects; but when you believe in this new gospel of divine sonship, my Father’s will becomes your will, and you are elevated to the high position of the free children of God, liberated sons of the Kingdom.”

4. TEACHING ABOUT THE FATHER

141:4.1 While sojourning at Amathus, Jesus spent much time with the apostles instructing them in the new concept of God; again and again did he impress upon them that God is a Father, not a great and supreme bookkeeper who is chiefly engaged in making damaging entries against his erring children on earth, recordings of sin and evil to be used against them when he subsequently sits in judgment upon them as the just Judge of all creation. The Jews had long conceived of God as a King over all, even as a Father of the nation, but never before had large numbers of mortal men held the idea of God as a loving Father of the individual.

5. SPIRITUAL UNITY

141:5.2 [Jesus, in part:] “In this way you may experience a perfected unity of Spirit purpose and Spirit understanding growing out of the mutual consciousness of the identity of each of your indwelling Paradise Spirits; and you may enjoy all of this profound spiritual unity in the very face of the utmost diversity of your individual attitudes of intellectual thinking, temperamental feeling, and social conduct. Your personalities may be refreshingly diverse and markedly different, while your spiritual natures and Spirit fruits of divine worship and brotherly love may be so unified that all who behold your lives will of a surety take cognizance of this Spirit identity and soul unity; they will recognize that you have been with me and have thereby learned, and acceptably, how to do the will of the Father in Heaven. You can achieve the unity of the service of God even while you render such service in accordance with the technique of your own original endowments of mind, body, and soul.

7. AT BETHANY BEYOND JORDAN

141:7.14 More clearly John [Zebedee, an apostle] recognized that, notwithstanding all of his divine endowments, after all, he was human. Jesus lived as a man among men and understood, loved, and knew how to manage men. In his personal life he was so human, and yet so faultless. And he was always unselfish.

PAPER 142 THE PASSOVER AT JERUSALEM

1. TEACHING IN THE TEMPLE

142:1.1 Throughout this month Jesus or one of the apostles taught daily in the temple. When the Passover crowds were too great to find entrance to the temple teaching, the apostles conducted many teaching groups outside the sacred precincts. The burden of their message was:

142:1.2 1. The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.

142:1.3 2. By faith in the fatherhood of God you may enter the Kingdom of Heaven, thus becoming the sons of God.

142:1.4 3. Love is the rule of living within the Kingdom -- supreme devotion to God while loving your neighbor as yourself.

142:1.5 4. Obedience to the will of the Father, yielding the fruits of the Spirit in one's personal life, is the law of the Kingdom.

PAPER 142 THE PASSOVER AT JERUSALEM

2. GOD’S WRATH

142:2.1 There was in Jerusalem in attendance upon the Passover festivities one Jacob, a wealthy Jewish trader from Crete, and he came to Andrew making request to see Jesus privately. Andrew arranged this secret meeting with Jesus at Flavius’s home the evening of the next day. This man could not comprehend the Master’s teachings, and he came because he desired to inquire more fully about the Kingdom of God. Said Jacob to Jesus: “But, Rabbi, Moses and the olden prophets tell us that Yahweh is a jealous God, a God of great wrath and fierce anger. The prophets say he hates evildoers and takes vengeance on those who obey not his law. You and your disciples teach us that God is a kind and compassionate Father who so loves all men that he would welcome them into this new Kingdom of Heaven, which you proclaim is so near at hand.”

142:2.2 When Jacob finished speaking, Jesus replied: “Jacob, you have well stated the teachings of the olden prophets who taught the children of their generation in accordance with the light of their day. Our Father in Paradise is changeless. But the concept of his nature has enlarged and grown from the days of Moses down through the times of Amos and even to the generation of the prophet Isaiah. And now have I come in the flesh to reveal the Father in New Glory and to show forth his love and mercy to all men on all worlds. As the gospel of this Kingdom shall spread over the world with its message of good cheer and good will to all men, there will grow up improved and better relations among the families of all nations. As time passes, fathers and their children will love each other more, and thus will be brought about a better understanding of the love of the Father in Heaven for his children on earth. Remember, Jacob, that a good and true father not only loves his family as a whole — as a family — but he also truly loves and affectionately cares for each individual member.”

142:2.3 After considerable discussion of the heavenly Father’s character, Jesus paused to say: “You, Jacob, being a father of many, know well the Truth of my words.” And Jacob said: “But, Master, who told you I was the father of six children? How did you know this about me?” And the Master replied: “Suffice it to say that the Father and the Son know all things, for indeed they see all. Loving your children as a father on earth, you must now accept as a reality the love of the heavenly Father for you — not just for all the children of Abraham, but for you, your individual soul.”

142:2.4 Then Jesus went on to say: “When your children are very young and immature, and when you must chastise them, they may reflect that their father is angry and filled with resentful wrath. Their immaturity cannot penetrate beyond the punishment to discern the father’s farseeing and corrective affection. But when these same children become grown-up men and women, would it not be folly for them to cling to these earlier and misconceived notions regarding their father? As men and women they should now discern their father’s love in all these early disciplines. And should not mankind, as the centuries pass, come the better to understand the true nature and loving character of the Father in Heaven? What profit have you from successive generations of spiritual Illumination if you persist in viewing God as Moses and the prophets saw him? I say to you, Jacob, under the bright Light of this hour you should see the Father [in and as Jesus !!!] as none of those who have gone before ever beheld him. And thus seeing him, you should rejoice to enter the Kingdom wherein such a merciful Father rules, and you should seek to have his will of love dominate your life henceforth.”

3. THE CONCEPT OF GOD

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142:3.22 [Jesus:] “And then will you remember that once again — in the greater spiritual enlightenment of Isaiah’s day — these ten negative commandments were changed into the great and positive law of love, the injunction to love God supremely and your neighbor as yourself. And it is this supreme law of love for God and for man that I also declare to you as constituting the whole duty of man.” [Jesus' did not teach the human-evolved "ten commandments", but told us God's and Jesus' new and one Supreme Law of Love of God and all humans !! Huge difference !]

4. FLAVIUS AND GREEK CULTURE

142:4.1 Flavius, the Greek Jew, was a proselyte of the gate, having been neither circumcised nor baptized; [both are meaningless human traditions, not required by God] and since he was a great lover of the beautiful in art and sculpture, the house which he occupied when sojourning in Jerusalem was a beautiful edifice. This home was exquisitely adorned with priceless treasures which he had gathered up here and there on his world travels. When he first thought of inviting Jesus to his home, he feared that the Master might take offense at the sight of these so-called images. But Flavius was agreeably surprised when Jesus entered the home that, instead of rebuking him for having these supposedly idolatrous objects scattered about the house, he manifested great interest in the entire collection and asked many appreciative questions about each object as Flavius escorted him from room to room, showing him all of his favorite statues.

142:4.2 The Master saw that his host was bewildered at his friendly attitude toward art; therefore, when they had finished the survey of the entire collection, Jesus said: “Because you appreciate the beauty of things created by my Father and fashioned by the artistic hands of man, why should you expect to be rebuked? Because Moses onetime sought to combat idolatry and the worship of false gods, why should all men frown upon the reproduction of grace and beauty? I say to you, Flavius, Moses’ children have misunderstood him, and now do they make false gods of even his prohibitions of images and the likeness of things in Heaven and on earth. But even if Moses taught such restrictions to the darkened minds of those days, what has that to do with this day when the Father in Heaven is revealed as the universal Spirit Ruler over all? And, Flavius, I declare that in the coming Kingdom they shall no longer teach, ‘Do not worship this and do not worship that’; no longer shall they concern themselves with commands to refrain from this and take care not to do that, but rather shall all be concerned with one supreme duty. And this duty of man is expressed in two great privileges: sincere worship of the infinite Creator, the Paradise Father, and loving service bestowed upon one’s fellow men. If you love your neighbor as you love yourself, you really know that you are a son of God. [Tremendous truth, beauty and goodness taught by our loving Father and merciful Creator Son, now here in Spirit !!!]

5. THE DISCOURSE ON ASSURANCE

142:5.2 [Jesus:] “As to my message and the teaching of my disciples, you should judge them by their fruits. If we proclaim to you the Truths of the Spirit, the Spirit will witness in your hearts that our message is genuine. Concerning the Kingdom and your assurance of acceptance by the heavenly Father, let me ask what father among you who is a worthy and kindhearted father would keep his son in anxiety or suspense regarding his status in the family or his place of security in the affections of his father’s heart? Do you earth fathers take pleasure in torturing your children with uncertainty about their place of abiding love in your human hearts? Neither does your Father in Heaven leave his faith children of the Spirit in doubtful uncertainty as to their position in the Kingdom. If you receive God as your Father, then indeed and in Truth are you the sons of God. And if you are sons, then are you secure in the position and standing of all that concerns eternal and divine sonship. If you believe my words, you thereby believe in Him who sent me, and by thus believing in the Father, you have made your status in heavenly citizenship sure. If you do the will of the Father in Heaven, you shall never fail in the attainment of the eternal life of progress in the divine Kingdom.

142:5.3 “The Supreme Spirit shall bear witness with your [Divine, indwelling] Spirits that you are truly the children of God. And if you are the sons of God, then have you been born of the Spirit of God; and whosoever has been born of the Spirit has in himself the power to overcome all doubt, and this is the victory that overcomes all uncertainty, even your faith.

142:5.4 “Said the Prophet Isaiah, speaking of these times: ‘When the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, then shall the work of righteousness become peace, quietness, and assurance forever.’ And for all who truly believe this gospel, I will become surety for their reception into the eternal mercies and the everlasting life of my Father’s Kingdom. You, then, who hear this message and believe this gospel of the Kingdom are the sons of God, and you have life everlasting; and the evidence to all the world that you have been born of the Spirit is that you sincerely love one another.” [We are called to love all humans, even our alleged "enemies" ! When more do this will of God; there will be worldwide peace, joy, and true happiness worldwide.]

6. THE VISIT WITH NICODEMUS

142:6.8 Nicodemus was thoroughly sincere. He was deeply impressed but went away bewildered. Nicodemus was accomplished in self-development, in self-restraint, and even in high moral qualities. He was refined, egoistic, and altruistic; but he did not know how to submit his will to the will of the divine Father as a little child is willing to submit to the guidance and leading of a wise and loving earthly father, thereby becoming in reality a son of God, a progressive heir of the eternal Kingdom.

142:6.9 But Nicodemus did summon faith enough to lay hold of the kingdom. He faintly protested when his colleagues of the Sanhedrin sought to condemn Jesus without a hearing; and with Joseph of Arimathea, he later boldly acknowledged his faith and claimed the body of Jesus, even when most of the disciples had fled in fear from the scenes of their Master’s final suffering and [only physical] death.

7. THE LESSON ON THE FAMILY

142:7.4 [Jesus:] He next explained that the “Kingdom idea” was not the best way to illustrate man’s relation to God; that he employed such figures of speech because the Jewish people were expecting the [military, political, dominating "messianic"] kingdom, and because John had preached in terms of the coming Kingdom. Jesus said: “The people of another age will better understand the gospel of the Kingdom when it is presented in terms expressive of the family relationship — when man understands religion as the teaching of the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man, sonship with God.” Then the Master discoursed at some length on the earthly family as an illustration of the heavenly Family, restating the two fundamental laws of living: the first commandment of love for the Father, the head of the family, and the second commandment of mutual love among the children, to love your brother as yourself. And then he explained that such a quality of brotherly affection would invariably manifest itself in unselfish and loving social service.

142:7.10 5. Companionship and loyalty. The affectionate father holds intimate and loving intercourse with his children. Always is his ear open to their petitions; he is ever ready to share their hardships and assist them over their difficulties. The father is supremely interested in the progressive welfare of his progeny.

142:7.11 6. Love and mercy. A compassionate father is freely forgiving; fathers do not hold vengeful memories against their children. Fathers are not like judges, enemies, or creditors. Real families are built upon tolerance, patience, and forgiveness.

142:7.17 Jesus replied: “Thomas, Thomas, how long before you will acquire the ability to listen with the ear of the Spirit? How long will it be before you discern that this Kingdom is a spiritual Kingdom, and that my Father is also a spiritual Being? Do you not understand that I am teaching you as spiritual children in the Spirit Family of Heaven, of which the Fatherhead is an infinite and eternal Spirit? Will you not allow me to use the earth family as an illustration of divine relationships without so literally applying my teaching to material affairs? In your minds cannot you separate the spiritual realities of the Kingdom from the material, social, economic, and political problems of the age? When I speak the language of the Spirit, why do you insist on translating my meaning into the language of the flesh just because I presume to employ commonplace and literal relationships for purposes of illustration? My children, I implore that you cease to apply the teaching of the Kingdom of the Spirit to the sordid affairs of slavery, poverty, houses, and lands, and to the material problems of human equity and justice. These temporal matters are the concern of the men of this world, and while in a way they affect all men, you have been called to represent Me in the world, even as I represent my Father. You are spiritual ambassadors of a spiritual Kingdom, special representatives of the Spirit Father. By this time it should be possible for Me to instruct you as full-grown men of the Spirit Kingdom. Must I ever address you only as children? Will you never grow up in Spirit perception? Nevertheless, I love you and will bear with you, even to the very end of our association in the flesh. And even then shall my Spirit go before you into all the world.”

PAPER 143 GOING THROUGH SAMARIA

0. Introduction

143:0.2 The people of southern Samaria heard Jesus gladly, and the apostles, with the exception of Judas Iscariot, succeeded in overcoming much of their prejudice against the Samaritans. It was very difficult for Judas to love these Samaritans. The last week of July Jesus and his associates made ready to depart for the new Greek cities of Phasaelis and Archelais near the Jordan.

1. PREACHING AT ARCHELAIS

143:1.3 After Jesus had heard similar objections to the gospel of the Kingdom presented by Thomas, Nathaniel, Simon Zelotes, and Matthew, he said to the twelve:

143:1.4 "I have come into this world to do the will of my Father and to reveal his loving character to all mankind. That, my brethren, is my Mission. And this one thing I will do, regardless of the misunderstanding of my teachings by Jews or Gentiles of this day or of another generation. But you should not overlook the fact that even divine love has its severe disciplines. A father's love for his son oftentimes impels the father to restrain the unwise acts of his thoughtless offspring. The child does not always comprehend the wise and loving motives of the father's restraining discipline. But I declare to you that my Father in Paradise does rule a universe of universes by the compelling power of his love. [!!!] Love is the greatest of all Spirit realities. Truth is a liberating revelation, but love is the Supreme relationship. And no matter what blunders your fellow men make in their world management of today, in an age to come the gospel which I declare to you will rule this very world. The ultimate goal of human progress is the reverent recognition of the [loving] Fatherhood of God and the loving materialization of the [ever-perfecting] brotherhood of man." [This spiritual transformation is now beginning. Our backward planet is destined to progress into glorious Light and Life !]

143:1.6 [Jesus:] “Because my Father is a God of love and delights in the practice of mercy, do not imbibe the idea that the service of the Kingdom is to be one of monotonous ease. The Paradise ascent is the Supreme adventure of all time, the rugged achievement of Eternity. The service of the Kingdom on earth will call for all the courageous manhood that you and your coworkers can muster. Many of you will be put to death for your loyalty to the gospel of this Kingdom. It is easy to die in the line of physical battle when your courage is strengthened by the presence of your fighting comrades, but it requires a higher and more profound form of human courage and devotion calmly and all alone to lay down your life for the love of a Truth enshrined in your mortal heart."

2. LESSON ON SELF-MASTERY

143:2.3 [Jesus:] “Verily, verily, I say to you, he who rules his own self is greater than he who captures a city. Self-mastery is the measure of man’s moral nature and the indicator of his spiritual development. In the old order you fasted and prayed; as the new creature of the rebirth of the Spirit, you are taught to believe and rejoice. In the Father’s kingdom you are to become new creatures; old things are to pass away; behold I show you how all things are to become new. And by your love for one another you are to convince the world that you have passed from bondage to liberty, from death into life everlasting.

143:2.6 “Salvation is by the regeneration of the Spirit and not by the self-righteous deeds of the flesh. You are justified by faith and fellowshipped by grace, not by fear and the self-denial of the flesh, albeit the Father’s children who have been born of the Spirit are ever and always masters of the self and all that pertains to the desires of the flesh. When you know that you are saved by faith, you have real peace with God. And all who follow in the way of this heavenly peace are destined to be sanctified to the eternal service of the ever-advancing sons of the eternal God. Henceforth, it is not a duty but rather your exalted privilege to cleanse yourselves from all evils of mind and body while you seek for perfection in the love of God.

143:2.7 “Your sonship is grounded in faith, and you are to remain unmoved by fear. Your joy is born of trust in the Divine Word, and you shall not therefore be led to doubt the reality of the Father’s love and mercy. It is the very goodness of God that leads men into true and genuine repentance. Your secret of the mastery of self is bound up with your faith in the indwelling Spirit, [called the Thought Adjuster, Mystery Monitor, Divine pilot Light, God within you, God's will, the future Spirit-perfected You !] which ever works by love. Even this saving faith you have not of yourselves; it also is the gift of God. [Tremendous !!!] And if you are the children of this living faith, you are no longer the bondslaves of self but rather the triumphant masters of yourselves, the liberated sons of God. [True, God-given religious/spiritual liberty !]

3. DIVERSION AND RELAXATION

143:3.5 When they went up the mountain, Andrew’s head was full of problems. John was inordinately perplexed in his heart. James was grievously troubled in his soul. Matthew was hard pressed for funds inasmuch as they had been sojourning among the Gentiles. Peter was overwrought and had recently been more temperamental than usual. Judas was suffering from a periodic attack of sensitiveness and selfishness. Simon was unusually upset in his efforts to reconcile his patriotism with the love of the brotherhood of man. Philip was more and more nonplused by the way things were going. Nathaniel had been less humorous since they had come in contact with the Gentile populations, and Thomas was in the midst of a severe season of depression. Only the twins were normal and unperturbed. All of them were exceedingly perplexed about how to get along peaceably with John’s disciples.

6. THE SAMARITAN REVIVAL

143:6.4 The theme of Jesus’ teaching on Mount Gerizim was: That he wants all men to see God as a Father-Friend just as he (Jesus) is a [very elder] Brother-Friend. And again and again he impressed upon them that love is the greatest relationship in the world — in the universe — just as truth is the greatest pronouncement of the observation of these divine relationships.

PAPER 144 AT GILBOA AND IN THE DECAPOLIS

1. THE GILBOA ENCAMPMENT

144:1.1 As time passed, the twelve became more devoted to Jesus and increasingly committed to the work of the Kingdom. Their devotion was in large part a matter of personal loyalty. They did not grasp his many-sided Teaching; they did not fully comprehend the nature of Jesus or the significance of his Bestowal on earth.

2. THE DISCOURSE ON PRAYER

144:2.1 [Jesus:] “John indeed taught you a simple form of prayer: ‘O Father, cleanse us from sin, show us your Glory, Reveal your love, and let your Spirit sanctify our hearts forevermore, Amen!’ He taught this prayer that you might have something to teach the multitude. He did not intend that you should use such a set and formal petition as the expression of your own souls in prayer.

5. OTHER FORMS OF PRAYER [Phrases with the word "love"]

144:5.9 And to us, the eternal gift of the infinite love of your Son.

144:5.19 Be patient with us as we show loving-kindness to our fellows.

144:5.58 And lead us moment by moment in the pathway of loving service.

144:5.62 And the infinite love that is gracious to every creature.

144:5.63 Bestow upon us your patience and loving-kindness

144:5.67 Not as we wish, our loving Father, but as you desire the eternal good of your mortal children,

144:5.89 But be you merciful and love us as we desire to love you.

144:5.92 May the love, devotion, and bestowal of the majestic Son

144:5.93 Make available life everlasting with your endless mercy and love.

144:5.96 By the loving ministry of devoted seraphic hosts

PAPER 145 FOUR EVENTFUL DAYS AT CAPERNAUM

2. AFTERNOON AT THE SYNAGOGUE

145:2.4 [Jesus:] “You well know that, while a kindhearted father loves his family as a whole, he so regards them as a group because of his strong affection for each individual member of that family. No longer must you approach the Father in heaven as a child of Israel but as a child of God. As a group, you are indeed the children of Israel, but as individuals, each one of you [and all humans !!] is a child of God. I have come, not to reveal the Father to the children of Israel, but rather to bring this knowledge of God and the revelation of his love and mercy to the individual believer as a genuine personal experience. The prophets have all taught you that Yahweh cares for his people, that God loves Israel. But I have come among you to proclaim a greater truth, one which many of the later prophets also grasped, that God loves you — every one of you — as individuals. All these generations have you had a national or racial religion; now have I come to give you a personal religion. [Jesus stated these truths to all humans, not just to those in Israel ! See Luke ch 15 with Jesus' three Parables of the Lost Sheep, Lost Coin, and Lost Son. God is no respecter of persons;all humans and all beings, high to low, are equally loved !!. We should grow in God's Spirit to love and serve equally all humans without favoritism, even as our Sovereign Creator Father Jesus Christ Michael does !]

145:2.8 [Jesus:] "No more should you fear that God will punish a nation for the sin of an individual; neither will the Father in Heaven punish one of his believing children for the sins of a nation, albeit the individual member of any family must often suffer the material consequences of family mistakes and group transgressions. Do you not realize that the hope of a better nation--or a better world--is bound up in the progress and enlightenment of the individual?"

3. THE HEALING AT SUNDOWN

145:3.6 When the Master stepped out of the front entrance of Zebedee’s house, his eyes met an array of stricken and afflicted humanity. He gazed upon almost one thousand sick and ailing human beings; at least that was the number of persons gathered together before him. Not all present were afflicted; some had come assisting their loved ones in this effort to secure healing.

145:3.7 The sight of these afflicted mortals, men, women, and children, suffering in large measure as a result of the mistakes and misdeeds of his own trusted [junior administrative] Sons of universe administration, peculiarly touched the human heart of Jesus and challenged the divine mercy of this benevolent Creator Son. But Jesus well knew he could never build an enduring spiritual movement upon the foundation of purely material wonders. It had been his consistent policy to refrain from exhibiting his Creator prerogatives. Not since Cana had the supernatural or miraculous attended his teaching; still, this afflicted multitude touched his sympathetic heart and mightily appealed to his understanding affection. [Divine-Human perfect love !]

145:3.10 ... in a moment of time 683 men, women, and children were made whole, were perfectly healed of all their physical diseases and other material disorders. Such a scene was never witnessed on Earth before that day, nor since. [!! Today, not so much physical healings; but God and Jesus here in Spirit do more mighty mind and soul transformations and healings !!!] And for those of us who were present to behold this creative wave of healing, it was indeed a thrilling spectacle.


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