ROUGH DRAFT
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Spiritual Unity
One of the most eventful evening conferences at Amathus was the session on spiritual unity. James Zebedee had asked Jesus, “Master, how do we learn to see alike and enjoy more harmony among ourselves?”
When Jesus heard this question it stirred his spirit to the point that he replied, “James, James, when did I teach you that you should all see alike? I’ve come into the world to proclaim spiritual liberty so that mortals can live individual, original, and free lives before God. I don’t want social harmony and fraternal peace to be to be the result of people sacrificing their free personality and spiritual originality. What I require of you, my apostles, is spirit unity, and you experience that through the joy you get from uniting in dedication to the wholehearted will of my Father in heaven. You don’t have to see alike or feel alike or even think alike in order to be spiritually alike. Spiritual unity comes from knowing that each of you is indwelt, and increasingly dominated by, the spirit that the heavenly Father has sent into your minds, and the harmony between you results from the fact that that spirit in each of you is identical in origin, nature, and destiny.
By each of you accepting that the spirit of God in each of you is one and the same with God the Ultimate, you become spiritually united in purpose and understanding. And you can enjoy this spiritual brotherhood regardless of how different your attitudes, thoughts, temperaments, and social abilities. All who see this spiritual unity among you will know that you’ve been with me, and hence have learned how to do the will of the Father in heaven. Each of you can and will use your own original endowments of mind, body, and soul when joining in service of God.
“Spiritual unity in a group harmonizes to imply two things between the people involved. One, that all of the people have a common motive in doing the will of the Father in heaven over all other things, and two, each of the group has the same reason for existence – finding the Father in heaven and proving to the universe that we have become like him.”
Jesus came back to this theme many times as he trained his apostles. Over and over he told them he didn’t want his believers becoming dogmatic or standardizing creeds and traditions to guide and control the people who believe in the gospel of the kingdom.
Last Week at Amathus
Toward the end of their stay at Amathus, Simon Zelotes introduced Jesus to a Persian named Teherma (tē’hərmə), who was doing business in Damascus. This man had heard about Jesus, went to Capernaum to see him, and then when he found out Jesus and the apostles had headed down the Jordan on their way to Jerusalem, he followed along hoping to find him. When Andrew learned this, he assigned Simon to instruct him on the kingdom of heaven. But Simon had difficulty because he considered Teherma a fire worshiper, even though the man tried hard to explain that fire was only the visible sign of the Holy and Pure One. So finally, Simon took him to Jesus, and after a short conversation with him Teherma decided to hang around for a few days and listen to the apostles teach and preach.
Later, when Simon Zelotes and Jesus were alone, Simon asked Jesus why Teherma wouldn’t listen to him but he would listen to Jesus. Jesus said, “Simon, Simon, how many times have I told you to not try and take something out of the hearts of those who seek salvation? How often have I told you to work only to put something into these hungry souls? If you lead men into the kingdom, the great and living truths of the kingdom will in turn drive out all serious errors. When you have shown a man the good news that God is his Father, it’s easier to persuade him that he is in reality a son of God. And when you’ve done that, you’ve brought the light of salvation to someone who was sitting in darkness. Simon, when the Son of Man came to you, did he come denouncing Moses and the prophets and proclaiming a new and better way of life? No. I didn’t come to take away what you had from your forefathers, but rather to show you the complete perfect vision of what your fathers saw only a part. So Simon, go and teach and preach the kingdom, and then when you have a man that is safely in the kingdom, that is the time, when that person comes to you with questions, for you to teach him about the progressive advancement of the soul within the divine kingdom.”
Simon was astonished at what Jesus said, but he did as he was told and Teherma, the Persian fire worshiper, entered the kingdom.
That night Jesus talked to the apostles about the new life in the kingdom. In part, he said, “When you enter the kingdom, you are reborn. You cannot teach the deep things of the spirit to those who have been born only of the flesh; first see that men are born of the spirit before you try to teach them the advanced ways of the spirit. Don’t try to show men the beauties of the temple until you’ve first taken them into the temple. Introduce men to God and as the sons of God, before you tell them about the fatherhood of God and the sonship of men. Don’t strive with men—always be patient. It’s not your kingdom; you’re only ambassadors. Simply go out and tell people that this is the kingdom of heaven: God is your Father and you are his sons, and if you wholeheartedly believe this good news, that is your eternal salvation.”
The apostles made a lot of progress while they were at Amathus. But they were also pretty disappointed that Jesus wouldn’t give them any ideas about how to deal with John’s disciples. Even when asked about baptizing the people, all that Jesus said was, “John did indeed baptize with water, but when you enter the kingdom of heaven, you shall be baptized with the Spirit.”
At Bethany Beyond Jordan
On February 26th, Jesus, his apostles, and a large group of followers traveled down the Jordan to the ford near Bethany in Perea where John first proclaimed the coming kingdom. Jesus and the apostles stayed there teaching and preaching for four weeks before they went up to Jerusalem.
The second week they were at Bethany, Jesus took Peter, James, and John into the hills across the river and south of Jericho for three days to rest. While there, Jesus taught them many new and advanced truths about the kingdom of heaven. These talks were reorganized for the purpose of this record.
Jesus tried to make it clear that he wanted his disciples, who had experienced some of the spiritual realities of the kingdom, to live their lives in such a way that other people who saw them would become conscious of the kingdom and ask them about it.
Jesus impressed on all of the teachers of the gospel that their only job was to reveal God to the individual man as his Father—to lead the person to first becoming son-conscious, and then presenting this same man to God as his faith son. In Jesus are both of these essential revelations. He became the way, the truth, and the life. Jesus’ entire religion was based only on his bestowal life on Earth. When he exited this world, Jesus left behind no laws, books, or anything else dictating a person’s religious life.
Jesus made it clear that he came to establish personal and eternal relations with men that would forever take precedence over all other human relationships. And he emphasized that this intimate spiritual fellowship with him was to be extended to all men of all ages and of all social conditions among all peoples. The only rewards that he held out for his children were, in this world, spiritual joy and divine communion, in the next world, eternal life progressing to the Paradise Father.
Jesus emphasized the two most important points of the kingdom: achieving salvation by faith and faith alone, and attaining liberty through the sincere recognition of the truth. “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” Jesus was truth in the flesh, and he promised to send his Spirit of Truth into the hearts of all his children after his return to the Father in heaven.
Jesus was teaching the apostles the truth for an entire age on earth. Often, the teachings they listened to were in reality intended for the inspiration and edification of other worlds. Jesus exemplified a new and original plan for life. In human terms he was indeed a Jew, but he lived his life for the whole world as a mortal of the realm.
To ensure his Father was recognized as the plan of the kingdom unfolded, Jesus explained that he had, on purpose, ignored the “great men of Earth.” He began his work with the poor, the very class that had been so neglected by most of the evolutionary religions of preceding times. He despised no man; his plan was world-wide, even universal. He was so bold and emphatic in these announcements that even Peter, James, and John were tempted to think he might possibly be beside himself.
Jesus tried to be easy on his apostles as he told them that he hadn’t come
to set an example for a few earth creatures, but instead to demonstrate a way of human life for all people on all worlds throughout his entire universe. And this standard approached the highest perfection, even the final goodness of the Universal Father. But the apostles couldn’t grasp what he told them.
Jesus announced that he had come to Earth as a teacher, a teacher sent from heaven to present spiritual truth to the material mind. And this is exactly what he did; he was a teacher, not a preacher. From the human viewpoint, Peter was a much more effective preacher than Jesus. Jesus’ preaching was so effective because of his unique personality, not because of his compelling oratory or emotional appeal. Jesus spoke directly to men’s souls. He was a teacher of man’s spirit, but he approached it through his mind. He lived with men.
Jesus hinted to Peter, James, and John that his work with us was limited in some ways by the instructions he had received from his elder brother Immanuel before he came to Earth. Jesus told his apostles that he had come to do his Father’s will, and only his Father’s will. This singularity of purpose kept him focused and unbothered by the evil in the world.
The apostles were starting to realize that even though Jesus was easy to approach, he always seemed to be separate from and above all other people. He was never subject to human frailty, and he never paid attention to public opinion or flattery. He almost never corrected people’s misunderstandings, or resented it when they misunderstood him or his teachings. He never asked people for their prayers, or any man for his advice.
James was astonished at how Jesus was able to see the end from the beginning. He almost never seemed to be surprised by anything. Jesus never got excited, rattled, or aggravated and he never apologized to any person. While at times he would get sad, he never got discouraged. John clearly saw that even with all of his divine endowments that Jesus was still human, yet faultless. And, he was always unselfish.
Although Peter, James, and John couldn’t understand a lot of what Jesus said at this time because he was, in effect, laying out his plan for a new age, his kind words lingered in their hearts. And after the crucifixion and resurrection what Jesus told them on this occasion did much to enrich their later ministries.
Working in Jericho
Throughout the four weeks’ they stayed at Bethany beyond Jordan, several times each week Andrew would assign a couple apostles to go up to Jericho and work for a day or two. John had many believers in Jericho, and most of those people were okay with Jesus and his apostles’ more advanced teachings. It was on these visits to Jericho that the apostles first focused their efforts on Jesus’ instructions to minister to the sick; they visited every house in the city and they worked to comfort every person who was ill. While the apostles did do some public work in Jericho, it took on more of a quiet and personal nature. They learned that the good news of the kingdom was healing and comforting the sick.
On the way up to Jerusalem the apostles only intended to spend a day at Jericho, but a group of people from Mesopotamia showed up to see Jesus. He talked with them for three days, and then they took their lessons home with them where they lived along the Euphrates river, and the apostles continued on to Jerusalem.
Departing for Jerusalem
It was on Monday, the last day of March, that Jesus and the apostles began trekking through the hills on their way to Jerusalem. Lazarus had come down from Bethany twice already to see them on the Jordan, and he had taken care of everything Jesus and the apostles needed to make their headquarters with him and his sisters in Jerusalem.
John’s disciples stayed at Bethany beyond the Jordan, teaching and baptizing the people. Only Jesus and the twelve went to Lazarus’s house. They hung out there for five days resting-up before going into Jerusalem for the Passover. For Lazarus and his sisters Martha and Mary, it was a great honor to be able to care for Jesus and the apostles.
On Sunday morning, April 6th, Jesus and the twelve went down to Jerusalem, the first time they had all been there together.