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640 lines
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Plaintext
Urantia Book Paper 147 The Interlude Visit To Jerusalem
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SPIRITWEB ORG, PROMOTING SPIRITUAL CONSCIOUSNESS ON THE INTERNET.
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Subjects Archive The Urantia Book Urantia Book PART IV: The Life and Teachings
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of Jesus : The Bestowal Of Michael On Urantia The Times Of Michael's Bestowal
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Birth And Infancy Of Jesus The Early Childhood Of Jesus The Later Childhood Of
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Jesus Jesus At Jerusalem The Two Crucial Years The Adolescent Years Jesus'
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Early Manhood The Later Adult Life Of Jesus On The Way To Rome The World's
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Religions The Sojourn At Rome The Return From Rome The Transition Years John
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The Baptist Baptism And The Forty Days Tarrying Time In Galilee Training The
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Kingdom's Messengers The Twelve Apostles The Ordination Of The Twelve Beginning
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The Public Work The Passover At Jerusalem Going Through Samaria At Gilboa And
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In The Decapolis Four Eventful Days At Capernaum First Preaching Tour Of
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Galilee The Interlude Visit To Jerusalem Training Evangelists At Bethsaida The
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Second Preaching Tour The Third Preaching Tour Tarrying And Teaching By The
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Seaside Events Leading Up To The Capernaum Crisis The Crisis At Capernaum Last
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Days At Capernaum Fleeing Through Northern Galilee The Sojourn At Tyre And
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Sidon At Caesarea-philippi The Mount Of Transfiguration The Decapolis Tour
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Rodan Of Alexandria Further Discussions With Rodan At The Feast Of Tabernacles
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Ordination Of The Seventy At Magadan At The Feast Of Dedication The Perean
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Mission Begins Last Visit To Northern Perea The Visit To Philadelphia The
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Resurrection Of Lazarus Last Teaching At Pella The Kingdom Of Heaven On The Way
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To Jerusalem Going Into Jerusalem Monday In Jerusalem ...
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Paper 147 The Interlude Visit To Jerusalem
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Introduction
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JESUS and the apostles arrived in Capernaum on Wednesday, March 17, and spent
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two weeks at the Bethsaida headquarters before they departed for Jerusalem.
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These two weeks the apostles taught the people by the seaside while Jesus spent
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much time alone in the hills about his Father's business. During this period
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Jesus, accompanied by James and John Zebedee, made two secret trips to
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Tiberias, where they met with the believers and instructed them in the gospel
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of the kingdom.
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Many of the household of Herod believed in Jesus and attended these meetings.
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It was the influence of these believers among Herod's official family that had
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helped to lessen that ruler's enmity toward Jesus. These believers at Tiberias
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had fully explained to Herod that the "kingdom" which Jesus proclaimed was
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spiritual in nature and not a political venture. Herod rather believed these
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members of his own household and therefore did not permit himself to become
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unduly alarmed by the spreading abroad of the reports concerning Jesus'
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teaching and healing. He had no objections to Jesus' work as a healer or
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religious teacher. Notwithstanding the favorable attitude of many of Herod's
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advisers, and even of Herod himself, there existed a group of his subordinates
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who were so influenced by the religious leaders at Jerusalem that they remained
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bitter and threatening enemies of Jesus and the apostles and, later on, did
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much to hamper their public activities. The greatest danger to Jesus lay in the
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Jerusalem religious leaders and not in Herod. And it was for this very reason
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that Jesus and the apostles spent so much time and did most of their public
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preaching in Galilee rather than at Jerusalem and in Judea.
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1. THE CENTURION'S SERVANT
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On the day before they made ready to go to Jerusalem for the feast of the
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Passover, Mangus, a centurion, or captain, of the Roman guard stationed at
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Capernaum, came to the rulers of the synagogue, saying: "My faithful orderly is
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sick and at the point of death. Would you, therefore, go to Jesus in my behalf
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and beseech him to heal my servant?" The Roman captain did this because he
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thought the Jewish leaders would have more influence with Jesus. So the elders
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went to see Jesus and their spokesman said: "Teacher, we earnestly request you
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to go over to Capernaum and save the favorite servant of the Roman centurion,
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who is worthy of your notice because he loves our nation and even built us the
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very synagogue wherein you have so many times spoken."
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And when Jesus had heard them, he said, "I will go with you." And as he went
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with them over to the centurion's house, and before they had entered his yard,
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the Roman soldier sent his friends out to greet Jesus, instructing them to say:
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"Lord, trouble not yourself to enter my house, for I am not worthy that you
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top of page - 1648
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should come under my roof. Neither did I think myself worthy to come to you;
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wherefore I sent the elders of your own people. But I know that you can speak
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the word where you stand and my servant will be healed. For I am myself under
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the orders of others, and I have soldiers under me, and I say to this one go,
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and he goes; to another come, and he comes, and to my servants do this or do
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that, and they do it."
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And when Jesus heard these words, he turned and said to his apostles and those
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who were with them: "I marvel at the belief of the gentile. Verily, verily, I
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say to you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel." Jesus, turning
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from the house, said, "Let us go hence." And the friends of the centurion went
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into the house and told Mangus what Jesus had said. And from that hour the
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servant began to mend and was eventually restored to his normal health and
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usefulness.
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But we never knew just what happened on this occasion. This is simply the
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record, and as to whether or not invisible beings ministered healing to the
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centurion's servant, was not revealed to those who accompanied Jesus. We only
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know of the fact of the servant's complete recovery.
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2. THE JOURNEY TO JERUSALEM
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Early on the morning of Tuesday, March 30, Jesus and the apostolic party
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started on their journey to Jerusalem for the Passover, going by the route of
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the Jordan valley. They arrived on the afternoon of Friday, April 2, and
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established their headquarters, as usual, at Bethany. Passing through Jericho,
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they paused to rest while Judas made a deposit of some of their common funds in
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the bank of a friend of his family. This was the first time Judas had carried a
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surplus of money, and this deposit was left undisturbed until they passed
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through Jericho again when on that last and eventful journey to Jerusalem just
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before the trial and death of Jesus.
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The party had an uneventful trip to Jerusalem, but they had hardly got
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themselves settled at Bethany when from near and far those seeking healing for
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their bodies, comfort for troubled minds, and salvation for their souls, began
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to congregate, so much so that Jesus had little time for rest. Therefore they
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pitched tents at Gethsemane, and the Master would go back and forth from
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Bethany to Gethsemane to avoid the crowds which so constantly thronged him. The
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apostolic party spent almost three weeks at Jerusalem, but Jesus enjoined them
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to do no public preaching, only private teaching and personal work.
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At Bethany they quietly celebrated the Passover. And this was the first time
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that Jesus and all of the twelve partook of the bloodless Passover feast. The
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apostles of John did not eat the Passover with Jesus and his apostles; they
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celebrated the feast with Abner and many of the early believers in John's
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preaching. This was the second Passover Jesus had observed with his apostles in
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Jerusalem.
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When Jesus and the twelve departed for Capernaum, the apostles of John did not
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return with them. Under the direction of Abner they remained in Jerusalem and
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the surrounding country, quietly laboring for the extension of the kingdom,
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while Jesus and the twelve returned to work in Galilee. Never again were the
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twenty-four all together until a short time before the commissioning and
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sending forth of the seventy evangelists. But the two groups were co-operative,
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and notwithstanding their differences of opinion, the best of feelings
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prevailed.
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top of page - 1649
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3. AT THE POOL OF BETHESDA
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The afternoon of the second Sabbath in Jerusalem, as the Master and the
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apostles were about to participate in the temple services, John said to Jesus,
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"Come with me, I would show you something." John conducted Jesus out through
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one of the Jerusalem gates to a pool of water called Bethesda. Surrounding this
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pool was a structure of five porches under which a large group of sufferers
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lingered in quest of healing. This was a hot spring whose reddish-tinged water
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would bubble up at irregular intervals because of gas accumulations in the rock
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caverns underneath the pool. This periodic disturbance of the warm waters was
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believed by many to be due to supernatural influences, and it was a popular
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belief that the first person who entered the water after such a disturbance
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would be healed of whatever infirmity he had.
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The apostles were somewhat restless under the restrictions imposed by Jesus,
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and John, the youngest of the twelve, was especially restive under this
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restraint. He had brought Jesus to the pool thinking that the sight of the
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assembled sufferers would make such an appeal to the Master's compassion that
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he would be moved to perform a miracle of healing, and thereby would all
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Jerusalem be astounded and presently be won to believe in the gospel of the
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kingdom. Said John to Jesus: "Master, see all of these suffering ones; is there
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nothing we can do for them?" And Jesus replied: "John, why would you tempt me
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to turn aside from the way I have chosen? Why do you go on desiring to
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substitute the working of wonders and the healing of the sick for the
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proclamation of the gospel of eternal truth? My son, I may not do that which
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you desire, but gather together these sick and afflicted that I may speak words
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of good cheer and eternal comfort to them."
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In speaking to those assembled, Jesus said: "Many of you are here, sick and
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afflicted, because of your many years of wrong living. Some suffer from the
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accidents of time, others as a result of the mistakes of their forebears, while
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some of you struggle under the handicaps of the imperfect conditions of your
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temporal existence. But my Father works, and I would work, to improve your
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earthly state but more especially to insure your eternal estate. None of us can
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do much to change the difficulties of life unless we discover the Father in
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heaven so wills. After all, we are all beholden to do the will of the Eternal.
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If you could all be healed of your physical afflictions, you would indeed
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marvel, but it is even greater that you should be cleansed of all spiritual
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disease and find yourselves healed of all moral infirmities. You are all God's
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children; you are the sons of the heavenly Father. The bonds of time may seem
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to afflict you, but the God of eternity loves you. And when the time of
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judgment shall come, fear not, you shall all find, not only justice, but an
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abundance of mercy. Verily, verily, I say to you: He who hears the gospel of
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the kingdom and believes in this teaching of sonship with God, has eternal
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life; already are such believers passing from judgment and death to light and
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life. And the hour is coming in which even those who are in the tombs shall
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hear the voice of the resurrection."
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And many of those who heard believed the gospel of the kingdom. Some of the
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afflicted were so inspired and spiritually revivified that they went about
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proclaiming that they had also been cured of their physical ailments.
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One man who had been many years downcast and grievously afflicted by the
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infirmities of his troubled mind, rejoiced at Jesus' words and, picking up his
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top of page - 1650
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bed, went forth to his home, even though it was the Sabbath day. This afflicted
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man had waited all these years for somebody to help him; he was such a victim
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of the feeling of his own helplessness that he had never once entertained the
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idea of helping himself which proved to be the one thing he had to do in order
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to effect recovery--take up his bed and walk.
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Then said Jesus to John: "Let us depart ere the chief priests and the scribes
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come upon us and take offense that we spoke words of life to these afflicted
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ones." And they returned to the temple to join their companions, and presently
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all of them departed to spend the night at Bethany. But John never told the
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other apostles of this visit of himself and Jesus to the pool of Bethesda on
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this Sabbath afternoon.
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4. THE RULE OF LIVING
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On the evening of this same Sabbath day, at Bethany, while Jesus, the twelve,
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and a group of believers were assembled about the fire in Lazarus's garden,
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Nathaniel asked Jesus this question: "Master, although you have taught us the
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positive version of the old rule of life, instructing us that we should do to
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others as we wish them to do to us, I do not fully discern how we can always
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abide by such an injunction. Let me illustrate my contention by citing the
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example of a lustful man who thus wickedly looks upon his intended consort in
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sin. How can we teach that this evil-intending man should do to others as he
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would they should do to him?"
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When Jesus heard Nathaniel's question, he immediately stood upon his feet and,
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pointing his finger at the apostle, said: "Nathaniel, Nathaniel! What manner of
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thinking is going on in your heart? Do you not receive my teachings as one who
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has been born of the spirit? Do you not hear the truth as men of wisdom and
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spiritual understanding? When I admonished you to do to others as you would
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have them do to you, I spoke to men of high ideals, not to those who would be
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tempted to distort my teaching into a license for the encouragement of evil
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doing."
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When the Master had spoken, Nathaniel stood up and said: "But, Master, you
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should not think that I approve of such an interpretation of your teaching. I
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asked the question because I conjectured that many such men might thus misjudge
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your admonition, and I hoped you would give us further instruction regarding
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these matters." And then when Nathaniel had sat down, Jesus continued speaking:
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"I well know, Nathaniel, that no such idea of evil is approved in your mind,
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but I am disappointed in that you all so often fail to put a genuinely
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spiritual interpretation upon my commonplace teachings, instruction which must
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be given you in human language and as men must speak. Let me now teach you
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concerning the differing levels of meaning attached to the interpretation of
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this rule of living, this admonition to `do to others that which you desire
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others to do to you':
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"1. The level of the flesh. Such a purely selfish and lustful interpretation
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would be well exemplified by the supposition of your question.
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"2. The level of the feelings. This plane is one level higher than that of the
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flesh and implies that sympathy and pity would enhance one's interpretation of
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this rule of living.
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"3. The level of mind. Now come into action the reason of mind and the
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intelligence of experience. Good judgment dictates that such a rule of living
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top of page - 1651
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should be interpreted in consonance with the highest idealism embodied in the
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nobility of profound self-respect.
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"4. The level of brotherly love. Still higher is discovered the level of
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unselfish devotion to the welfare of one's fellows. On this higher plane of
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wholehearted social service growing out of the consciousness of the fatherhood
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of God and the consequent recognition of the brotherhood of man, there is
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discovered a new and far more beautiful interpretation of this basic rule of
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life.
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"5. The moral level. And then when you attain true philosophic levels of
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interpretation, when you have real insight into the rightness and wrongness of
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things, when you perceive the eternal fitness of human relationships, you will
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begin to view such a problem of interpretation as you would imagine a
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high-minded, idealistic, wise, and impartial third person would so view and
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interpret such an injunction as applied to your personal problems of adjustment
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to your life situations.
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"6. The spiritual level. And then last, but greatest of all, we attain the
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level of spirit insight and spiritual interpretation which impels us to
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recognize in this rule of life the divine command to treat all men as we
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conceive God would treat them. That is the universe ideal of human
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relationships. And this is your attitude toward all such problems when your
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supreme desire is ever to do the Father's will. I would, therefore, that you
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should do to all men that which you know I would do to them in like
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circumstances."
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Nothing Jesus had said to the apostles up to this time had ever more astonished
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them. They continued to discuss the Master's words long after he had retired.
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While Nathaniel was slow to recover from his supposition that Jesus had
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misunderstood the spirit of his question, the others were more than thankful
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that their philosophic fellow apostle had had the courage to ask such a
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thought-provoking question.
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5. VISITING SIMON THE PHARISEE
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Though Simon was not a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin, he was an influential
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Pharisee of Jerusalem. He was a half-hearted believer, and notwithstanding that
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he might be severely criticized therefor, he dared to invite Jesus and his
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personal associates, Peter, James, and John, to his home for a social meal.
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Simon had long observed the Master and was much impressed with his teachings
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and even more so with his personality.
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The wealthy Pharisees were devoted to almsgiving, and they did not shun
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publicity regarding their philanthropy. Sometimes they would even blow a
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trumpet as they were about to bestow charity upon some beggar. It was the
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custom of these Pharisees, when they provided a banquet for distinguished
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guests, to leave the doors of the house open so that even the street beggars
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might come in and, standing around the walls of the room behind the couches of
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the diners, be in position to receive portions of food which might be tossed to
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them by the banqueters.
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On this particular occasion at Simon's house, among those who came in off the
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street was a woman of unsavory reputation who had recently become a believer in
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the good news of the gospel of the kingdom. This woman was well known
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throughout all Jerusalem as the former keeper of one of the so-called
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high-class brothels located hard by the temple court of the gentiles. She had,
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top of page - 1652
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on accepting the teachings of Jesus, closed up her nefarious place of business
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and had induced the majority of the women associated with her to accept the
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gospel and change their mode of living; notwithstanding this, she was still
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held in great disdain by the Pharisees and was compelled to wear her hair
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down--the badge of harlotry. This unnamed woman had brought with her a large
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flask of perfumed anointing lotion and, standing behind Jesus as he reclined at
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meat, began to anoint his feet while she also wet his feet with her tears of
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gratitude, wiping them with the hair of her head. And when she had finished
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this anointing, she continued weeping and kissing his feet.
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When Simon saw all this, he said to himself: "This man, if he were a prophet,
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would have perceived who and what manner of woman this is who thus touches him;
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that she is a notorious sinner." And Jesus, knowing what was going on in
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Simon's mind, spoke up, saying: "Simon, I have something which I would like to
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say to you." Simon answered, "Teacher, say on." Then said Jesus: "A certain
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wealthy moneylender had two debtors. The one owed him five hundred denarii and
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the other fifty. Now, when neither of them had wherewith to pay, he forgave
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them both. Which of them do you think, Simon, would love him most?" Simon
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answered, "He, I suppose, whom he forgave the most." And Jesus said, "You have
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rightly judged," and pointing to the woman, he continued: "Simon, take a good
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look at this woman. I entered your house as an invited guest, yet you gave me
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no water for my feet. This grateful woman has washed my feet with tears and
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wiped them with the hair of her head. You gave me no kiss of friendly greeting,
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but this woman, ever since she came in, has not ceased to kiss my feet. My head
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with oil you neglected to anoint, but she has anointed my feet with precious
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lotions. And what is the meaning of all this? Simply that her many sins have
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been forgiven, and this has led her to love much. But those who have received
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but little forgiveness sometimes love but little." And turning around toward
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the woman, he took her by the hand and, lifting her up, said: "You have indeed
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repented of your sins, and they are forgiven. Be not discouraged by the
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thoughtless and unkind attitude of your fellows; go on in the joy and liberty
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of the kingdom of heaven."
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When Simon and his friends who sat at meat with him heard these words, they
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were the more astonished, and they began to whisper among themselves, "Who is
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this man that he even dares to forgive sins?" And when Jesus heard them thus
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murmuring, he turned to dismiss the woman, saying, "Woman, go in peace; your
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faith has saved you."
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As Jesus arose with his friends to leave, he turned to Simon and said: "I know
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your heart, Simon, how you are torn betwixt faith and doubts, how you are
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distraught by fear and troubled by pride; but I pray for you that you may yield
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to the light and may experience in your station in life just such mighty
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transformations of mind and spirit as may be comparable to the tremendous
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changes which the gospel of the kingdom has already wrought in the heart of
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your unbidden and unwelcome guest. And I declare to all of you that the Father
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has opened the doors of the heavenly kingdom to all who have the faith to
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enter, and no man or association of men can close those doors even to the most
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humble soul or supposedly most flagrant sinner on earth if such sincerely seek
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an entrance." And Jesus, with Peter, James, and John, took leave of their host
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and went to join the rest of the apostles at the camp in the garden of
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Gethsemane.
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top of page - 1653
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That same evening Jesus made the long-to-be-remembered address to the apostles
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regarding the relative value of status with God and progress in the eternal
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ascent to Paradise. Said Jesus: "My children, if there exists a true and living
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connection between the child and the Father, the child is certain to progress
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continuously toward the Father's ideals. True, the child may at first make slow
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progress, but the progress is none the less sure. The important thing is not
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the rapidity of your progress but rather its certainty. Your actual achievement
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is not so important as the fact that the direction of your progress is Godward.
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What you are becoming day by day is of infinitely more importance than what you
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are today.
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"This transformed woman whom some of you saw at Simon's house today is, at this
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moment, living on a level which is vastly below that of Simon and his
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well-meaning associates; but while these Pharisees are occupied with the false
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progress of the illusion of traversing deceptive circles of meaningless
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ceremonial services, this woman has, in dead earnest, started out on the long
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and eventful search for God, and her path toward heaven is not blocked by
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spiritual pride and moral self-satisfaction. The woman is, humanly speaking,
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much farther away from God than Simon, but her soul is in progressive motion;
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she is on the way toward an eternal goal. There are present in this woman
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tremendous spiritual possibilities for the future. Some of you may not stand
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high in actual levels of soul and spirit, but you are making daily progress on
|
||
the living way opened up, through faith, to God. There are tremendous
|
||
possibilities in each of you for the future. Better by far to have a small but
|
||
living and growing faith than to be possessed of a great intellect with its
|
||
dead stores of worldly wisdom and spiritual unbelief."
|
||
|
||
But Jesus earnestly warned his apostles against the foolishness of the child of
|
||
God who presumes upon the Father's love. He declared that the heavenly Father
|
||
is not a lax, loose, or foolishly indulgent parent who is ever ready to condone
|
||
sin and forgive recklessness. He cautioned his hearers not mistakenly to apply
|
||
his illustrations of father and son so as to make it appear that God is like
|
||
some overindulgent and unwise parents who conspire with the foolish of earth to
|
||
encompass the moral undoing of their thoughtless children, and who are thereby
|
||
certainly and directly contributing to the delinquency and early demoralization
|
||
of their own offspring. Said Jesus: "My Father does not indulgently condone
|
||
those acts and practices of his children which are self-destructive and
|
||
suicidal to all moral growth and spiritual progress. Such sinful practices are
|
||
an abomination in the sight of God."
|
||
|
||
Many other semiprivate meetings and banquets did Jesus attend with the high and
|
||
the low, the rich and the poor, of Jerusalem before he and his apostles finally
|
||
departed for Capernaum. And many, indeed, became believers in the gospel of the
|
||
kingdom and were subsequently baptized by Abner and his associates, who
|
||
remained behind to foster the interests of the kingdom in Jerusalem and
|
||
thereabouts.
|
||
|
||
6. RETURNING TO CAPERNAUM
|
||
|
||
The last week of April, Jesus and the twelve departed from their Bethany
|
||
headquarters near Jerusalem and began their journey back to Capernaum by way of
|
||
Jericho and the Jordan.
|
||
|
||
top of page - 1654
|
||
|
||
The chief priests and the religious leaders of the Jews held many secret
|
||
meetings for the purpose of deciding what to do with Jesus. They were all
|
||
agreed that something should be done to put a stop to his teaching, but they
|
||
could not agree on the method. They had hoped that the civil authorities would
|
||
dispose of him as Herod had put an end to John, but they discovered that Jesus
|
||
was so conducting his work that the Roman officials were not much alarmed by
|
||
his preaching. Accordingly, at a meeting which was held the day before Jesus'
|
||
departure for Capernaum, it was decided that he would have to be apprehended on
|
||
a religious charge and be tried by the Sanhedrin. Therefore a commission of six
|
||
secret spies was appointed to follow Jesus, to observe his words and acts, and
|
||
when they had amassed sufficient evidence of lawbreaking and blasphemy, to
|
||
return to Jerusalem with their report. These six Jews caught up with the
|
||
apostolic party, numbering about thirty, at Jericho and, under the pretense of
|
||
desiring to become disciples, attached themselves to Jesus' family of
|
||
followers, remaining with the group up to the time of the beginning of the
|
||
second preaching tour in Galilee; whereupon three of them returned to Jerusalem
|
||
to submit their report to the chief priests and the Sanhedrin.
|
||
|
||
Peter preached to the assembled multitude at the crossing of the Jordan, and
|
||
the following morning they moved up the river toward Amathus. They wanted to
|
||
proceed straight on to Capernaum, but such a crowd gathered here they remained
|
||
three days, preaching, teaching, and baptizing. They did not move toward home
|
||
until early Sabbath morning, the first day of May. The Jerusalem spies were
|
||
sure they would now secure their first charge against Jesus--that of Sabbath
|
||
breaking--since he had presumed to start his journey on the Sabbath day. But
|
||
they were doomed to disappointment because, just before their departure, Jesus
|
||
called Andrew into his presence and before them all instructed him to proceed
|
||
for a distance of only one thousand yards, the legal Jewish Sabbath day's
|
||
journey.
|
||
|
||
But the spies did not have long to wait for their opportunity to accuse Jesus
|
||
and his associates of Sabbath breaking. As the company passed along the narrow
|
||
road, the waving wheat, which was just then ripening, was near at hand on
|
||
either side, and some of the apostles, being hungry, plucked the ripe grain and
|
||
ate it. It was customary for travelers to help themselves to grain as they
|
||
passed along the road, and therefore no thought of wrongdoing was attached to
|
||
such conduct. But the spies seized upon this as a pretext for assailing Jesus.
|
||
When they saw Andrew rub the grain in his hand, they went up to him and said:
|
||
"Do you not know that it is unlawful to pluck and rub the grain on the Sabbath
|
||
day?" And Andrew answered: "But we are hungry and rub only sufficient for our
|
||
needs; and since when did it become sinful to eat grain on the Sabbath day?"
|
||
But the Pharisees answered: "You do no wrong in eating, but you do break the
|
||
law in plucking and rubbing out the grain between your hands; surely your
|
||
Master would not approve of such acts." Then said Andrew: "But if it is not
|
||
wrong to eat the grain, surely the rubbing out between our hands is hardly more
|
||
work than the chewing of the grain, which you allow; wherefore do you quibble
|
||
over such trifles?" When Andrew intimated that they were quibblers, they were
|
||
indignant, and rushing back to where Jesus walked along, talking to Matthew,
|
||
they protested, saying: "Behold, Teacher, your apostles do that which is
|
||
unlawful on the Sabbath day; they pluck, rub, and eat the grain. We are sure
|
||
you will command them to cease." And then said Jesus to the accusers: "You are
|
||
|
||
top of page - 1655
|
||
|
||
indeed zealous for the law, and you do well to remember the Sabbath day to keep
|
||
it holy; but did you never read in the Scripture that, one day when David was
|
||
hungry, he and they who were with him entered the house of God and ate the
|
||
showbread, which it was not lawful for anyone to eat save the priests? and
|
||
David also gave this bread to those who were with him. And have you not read in
|
||
our law that it is lawful to do many needful things on the Sabbath day? And
|
||
shall I not, before the day is finished, see you eat that which you have
|
||
brought along for the needs of this day? My good men, you do well to be zealous
|
||
for the Sabbath, but you would do better to guard the health and well-being of
|
||
your fellows. I declare that the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the
|
||
Sabbath. And if you are here present with us to watch my words, then will I
|
||
openly proclaim that the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath."
|
||
|
||
The Pharisees were astonished and confounded by his words of discernment and
|
||
wisdom. For the remainder of the day they kept by themselves and dared not ask
|
||
any more questions.
|
||
|
||
Jesus' antagonism to the Jewish traditions and slavish ceremonials was always
|
||
positive. It consisted in what he did and in what he affirmed. The Master spent
|
||
little time in negative denunciations. He taught that those who know God can
|
||
enjoy the liberty of living without deceiving themselves by the licenses of
|
||
sinning. Said Jesus to the apostles: "Men, if you are enlightened by the truth
|
||
and really know what you are doing, you are blessed; but if you know not the
|
||
divine way, you are unfortunate and already breakers of the law."
|
||
|
||
7. BACK IN CAPERNAUM
|
||
|
||
It was around noon on Monday, May 3, when Jesus and the twelve came to
|
||
Bethsaida by boat from Tarichea. They traveled by boat in order to escape those
|
||
who journeyed with them. But by the next day the others, including the official
|
||
spies from Jerusalem, had again found Jesus.
|
||
|
||
On Tuesday evening Jesus was conducting one of his customary classes of
|
||
questions and answers when the leader of the six spies said to him: "I was
|
||
today talking with one of John's disciples who is here attending upon your
|
||
teaching, and we were at a loss to understand why you never command your
|
||
disciples to fast and pray as we Pharisees fast and as John bade his
|
||
followers." And Jesus, referring to a statement by John, answered this
|
||
questioner: "Do the sons of the bridechamber fast while the bridegroom is with
|
||
them? As long as the bridegroom remains with them, they can hardly fast. But
|
||
the time is coming when the bridegroom shall be taken away, and during those
|
||
times the children of the bridechamber undoubtedly will fast and pray. To pray
|
||
is natural for the children of light, but fasting is not a part of the gospel
|
||
of the kingdom of heaven. Be reminded that a wise tailor does not sew a piece
|
||
of new and unshrunk cloth upon an old garment, lest, when it is wet, it shrink
|
||
and produce a worse rent. Neither do men put new wine into old wine skins, lest
|
||
the new wine burst the skins so that both the wine and the skins perish. The
|
||
wise man puts the new wine into fresh wine skins. Therefore do my disciples
|
||
show wisdom in that they do not bring too much of the old order over into the
|
||
new teaching of the gospel of the kingdom. You who have lost your teacher may
|
||
be justified in fasting for a time. Fasting may be an appropriate part of the
|
||
law of Moses, but in the coming kingdom the sons of God shall experience
|
||
freedom from fear and joy in the divine spirit."
|
||
|
||
top of page - 1656
|
||
|
||
And when they heard these words, the disciples of John were comforted while the
|
||
Pharisees themselves were the more confounded.
|
||
|
||
Then the Master proceeded to warn his hearers against entertaining the notion
|
||
that all olden teaching should be replaced entirely by new doctrines. Said
|
||
Jesus: "That which is old and also true must abide. Likewise, that which is new
|
||
but false must be rejected. But that which is new and also true, have the faith
|
||
and courage to accept. Remember it is written: `Forsake not an old friend, for
|
||
the new is not comparable to him. As new wine, so is a new friend; if it
|
||
becomes old, you shall drink it with gladness.'"
|
||
|
||
8. THE FEAST OF SPIRITUAL GOODNESS
|
||
|
||
That night, long after the usual listeners had retired, Jesus continued to
|
||
teach his apostles. He began this special instruction by quoting from the
|
||
Prophet Isaiah:
|
||
|
||
"`Why have you fasted? For what reason do you afflict your souls while you
|
||
continue to find pleasure in oppression and to take delight in injustice?
|
||
Behold, you fast for the sake of strife and contention and to smite with the
|
||
fist of wickedness. But you shall not fast in this way to make your voices
|
||
heard on high.
|
||
|
||
"`Is it such a fast that I have chosen--a day for a man to afflict his soul? Is
|
||
it to bow down his head like a bulrush, to grovel in sackcloth and ashes? Will
|
||
you dare to call this a fast and an acceptable day in the sight of the Lord? Is
|
||
not this the fast I should choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo
|
||
the knots of heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every
|
||
yoke? Is it not to share my bread with the hungry and to bring those who are
|
||
homeless and poor to my house? And when I see those who are naked, I will
|
||
clothe them.
|
||
|
||
"`Then shall your light break forth as the morning while your health springs
|
||
forth speedily. Your righteousness shall go before you while the glory of the
|
||
Lord shall be your rear guard. Then will you call upon the Lord, and he shall
|
||
answer; you will cry out, and he shall say--Here am I. And all this he will do
|
||
if you refrain from oppression, condemnation, and vanity. The Father rather
|
||
desires that you draw out your heart to the hungry, and that you minister to
|
||
the afflicted souls; then shall your light shine in obscurity, and even your
|
||
darkness shall be as the noonday. Then shall the Lord guide you continually,
|
||
satisfying your soul and renewing your strength. You shall become like a
|
||
watered garden, like a spring whose waters fail not. And they who do these
|
||
things shall restore the wasted glories; they shall raise up the foundations of
|
||
many generations; they shall be called the rebuilders of broken walls, the
|
||
restorers of safe paths in which to dwell.'"
|
||
|
||
And then long into the night Jesus propounded to his apostles the truth that it
|
||
was their faith that made them secure in the kingdom of the present and the
|
||
future, and not their affliction of soul nor fasting of body. He exhorted the
|
||
apostles at least to live up to the ideas of the prophet of old and expressed
|
||
the hope that they would progress far beyond even the ideals of Isaiah and the
|
||
older prophets. His last words that night were: "Grow in grace by means of that
|
||
living faith which grasps the fact that you are the sons of God while at the
|
||
same time it recognizes every man as a brother."
|
||
|
||
It was after two o'clock in the morning when Jesus ceased speaking and every
|
||
man went to his place for sleep.
|
||
|
||
top of page - 1657
|
||
|
||
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
Subjects Archive The Urantia Book Urantia Book PART IV: The Life and Teachings
|
||
of Jesus : The Bestowal Of Michael On Urantia The Times Of Michael's Bestowal
|
||
Birth And Infancy Of Jesus The Early Childhood Of Jesus The Later Childhood Of
|
||
Jesus Jesus At Jerusalem The Two Crucial Years The Adolescent Years Jesus'
|
||
Early Manhood The Later Adult Life Of Jesus On The Way To Rome The World's
|
||
Religions The Sojourn At Rome The Return From Rome The Transition Years John
|
||
The Baptist Baptism And The Forty Days Tarrying Time In Galilee Training The
|
||
Kingdom's Messengers The Twelve Apostles The Ordination Of The Twelve Beginning
|
||
The Public Work The Passover At Jerusalem Going Through Samaria At Gilboa And
|
||
In The Decapolis Four Eventful Days At Capernaum First Preaching Tour Of
|
||
Galilee The Interlude Visit To Jerusalem Training Evangelists At Bethsaida The
|
||
Second Preaching Tour The Third Preaching Tour Tarrying And Teaching By The
|
||
Seaside Events Leading Up To The Capernaum Crisis The Crisis At Capernaum Last
|
||
Days At Capernaum Fleeing Through Northern Galilee The Sojourn At Tyre And
|
||
Sidon At Caesarea-philippi The Mount Of Transfiguration The Decapolis Tour
|
||
Rodan Of Alexandria Further Discussions With Rodan At The Feast Of Tabernacles
|
||
Ordination Of The Seventy At Magadan At The Feast Of Dedication The Perean
|
||
Mission Begins Last Visit To Northern Perea The Visit To Philadelphia The
|
||
Resurrection Of Lazarus Last Teaching At Pella The Kingdom Of Heaven On The Way
|
||
To Jerusalem Going Into Jerusalem Monday In Jerusalem Tuesday Morning In The
|
||
Temple The Last Temple Discourse Tuesday Evening On Mount Olivet Wednesday, The
|
||
Rest Day Last Day At The Camp The Last Supper The Farewell Discourse Final
|
||
Admonitions And Warnings In Gethsemane The Betrayal And Arrest Of Jesus Before
|
||
The Sanhedrin Court The Trial Before Pilate Just Before The Crucifixion The
|
||
Crucifixion The Time Of The Tomb The Resurrection Morontia Appearances Of Jesus
|
||
Appearances To The Apostles And Other Leaders Appearances In Galilee Final
|
||
Appearances And Ascension Bestowal Of The Spirit Of Truth After Pentecost The
|
||
Faith Of Jesus
|
||
|
||
<EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>Ŀ
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