Ch. 13, The Transition Years

“Son of Man: Urantia,” 2nd edition

The Transition Years

The Thirtieth Year (A.D. 24)

This could be called the in between year for Jesus. He was transitioning from God appearing as a man, to a man appearing as God. His Thought Adjuster had been preparing his mind, and his personality was shifting his attitude to the world. Jesus returned to Nazareth and spent time with his family. His brothers, Simon and Jude, had been waiting for him to return so they could have his consent to marry, and then they had a double wedding in March. At this point all of the siblings except Ruth, who was now fifteen years old, were married.

While Jesus was in Nazareth, the conductor of a large caravan that was passing through town became ill and Jesus volunteered to replace him leading the caravan to the Caspian Sea. Since the trip was going to take a year and his mother Mary and sister Ruth were the only ones now living at home, Jesus suggested that the two of them move to Capernaum and live in the small house he owned there. They moved right after Jesus left with the caravan, and Jesus’ house in Capernaum was Mary’s home for the rest of her life. Jesus also called Capernaum home from this time forward, although when he was in town he stayed with the Zebedees and not with Mary and Ruth.

The Urmia Lectures

Jesus and the caravan left Nazareth on April 1, A.D. 24 for the southeastern region of the Caspian Sea. The route took them via Damascus and Lake Urmia and then through Assyria, Media, and Parthia. Jesus had responsibility for all of the cargo and the safe passage of the passengers.

When they arrived at Lake Urmia Jesus stopped the caravan to rest for a few days. On the western shore of the lake was the ancient Persian city of Urmia. A short distance off shore there was a group of islands, and on the largest of these was an amphitheater that had been built by a rich man named Cymboyton and his three sons. Cymboyton built this facility as a temple dedicated to studying various religious philosophies that recognized a single supreme deity. There were about seventy-five teachers on the faculty representing more than thirty cults and religions, as well as five independent scholars. These teachers had been chosen by their respective groups to represent their beliefs at the school.

All of the teachers were lodged in cabins holding about a dozen men each, and every month they cast lots to see who would sleep where. The rules were strict: everyone had to get along and anyone who did not was immediately replaced. During the week, lectures were held at 10 A.M., 3 P.M., and 8 P.M. Either Cymboyton or one of his three sons presided over the discussions.

While the passengers were resting at Lake Urmia, Jesus attended some of these lectures. Before he continued on with the caravan, Cymboyton arranged for Jesus to come back the next year and give twenty-four lectures on the brotherhood of humanity. In reality, these lectures turned out to be on the kingdom of God and the kingdoms of mortals. The celestial authors of the Urantia revelation disagreed over including these lectures in this presentation of Jesus’ life. The problem was adapting what Jesus said back then, to the world when this revelation was published, which was so much different in socio-political terms.

Sovereignty:

The Holding of Supreme Power and Authority, Divine and Human

The brotherhood of humanity is founded on the fatherhood of God. God is Spirit and a part of God is in each person, hence ours is a spiritual relationship with God and all in the family of God. All people are spiritually equal: there are no chosen people, or any group or religion that holds divine favor over others. The idea of personal freedom can only exist with laws. Somehow we must find the balance between granting all people the same degree of freedom, while at the same time protecting the freedom of all others. The only way groups of people who want the same degree of freedom can exist in peace is when they all place themselves subservient laws allowing their mutual freedom to exist.

God alone is the ultimate authority of all creation. Like God is no respecter of people, God is no respecter of religions: none hold divine favor over the others. For there to be peace among us, all people and all religious groups must surrender themselves to one overarching superhuman level of authority—God—and accept equality between ourselves under that supreme power. Until that happens we will continue to have religious wars on Earth.

When people and religions assume superiority over others, they become intolerant and willing to prosecute others for their beliefs. But for those people that recognize God’s sovereignty, in other words that God and God alone has ultimate authority over everything, then the kingdom of heaven that is in those people’s hearts and minds will create spiritual unity regardless of the specific religious dogma the people believe. Ideas of equality among humanity can only bring peace when everyone involved recognizes the absolute overcontrolling influence of an ultimate spiritual power—God our Father binding us together in brotherhood through his Spirit presence inside each one of us. When humanity and its various religions recognize the ultimate spiritual authority of God, we will find peace on Earth.

Political Power and Authority

Just like God is the one overarching spiritual authority that all faiths must recognize for there to be peace among those religions, so must all nations release their ideas of unlimited political authority and place themselves subservient to the overarching political authority of humanity as a whole. There are only two levels of ultimate authority on an inhabited world: the spiritual free will of the individual, and the collective will of humanity. Every other level of authority in between the person and the entirety of humanity’s collective will is relative, and should exist only as long as it enhances the welfare and progress of the people and the planet. Our purpose is to find the way forward that is best for the most number of people for the longest period of time. Otherwise, in the fight for one government to gain ultimate political control over all others, we will destroy ourselves.

Humanity has the right to say how life is conducted on the planet: the Earth is for all people to use and share in peace while we preserve and enhance it for the next generations to come. Humanity has the right to say how businesses and governments conduct their affairs on people’s behalf. People are not born to serve governments—governments were created to serve them. When humanity finds its collective voice, determines its shared values, and enforces its right to ultimate political power peace on Earth becomes possible. But as long as any one nation feels it has the unlimited right to act in its self-interest alone, we will continue to wage death and destruction on ourselves.

After Cymboyton died his three sons had to deal with their own version of these issues. The new Christian teachers that arrived after Jesus was killed were announcing Paul’s religion about the life of Jesus the man, instead of Jesus teachings on the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of humanity. These men were intolerant, egotistical, and acting in direct contradiction to Jesus’ example when they lorded their beliefs over all others. Paul’s new Christians caused so many problems that the three brothers ended their financial support and the school closed. Ironically, those later Christian teachers never realized that Jesus was the caravan conductor who had delivered the lectures on spiritual and political authority.

The Thirty-First Year (A.D. 25)

After returning from his trip to the Caspian Sea, Jesus spent the next year wandering through Syria and Palestine. He kept mostly to himself. The people he did meet during this year knew him variously as the scribe of Damascus, the carpenter of Nazareth, the teacher of Alexandria, and the boatbuilder of Capernaum. The longest time Jesus stayed anywhere was two months in Antioch working as a tent-maker. Before this year was over, Jesus’ Thought Adjuster signaled that it was time to leave the company of mortals—he was to go to Mount Hermon, finish mastering his mind, and plan the course of his final years on Earth. This period by himself on Mount Hermon was technically the end of Jesus’ time as a mortal, and has been wrongly understood as his time of temptation.

The Time on Mount Hermon

Jesus bought a donkey and hired a lad named Tiglath to go with him via the Damascus road to Beit Jenn, a village in the foothills of Mount Hermon. There he secured lodging for Tiglath. The first day, this was about the middle of August, A.D. 25, Jesus had Tiglath go with him part way up Mount Hermon. At about six thousand feet above sea level they found a place to build a stone shelter where Tiglath could put food and water for Jesus twice a week. Jesus then sent Tiglath back down the mountain and he continued up the slope. After a short way Jesus stopped to pray. Among other things, Jesus asked his Father to release the angels that were then watching over him so they could watch over Tiglath instead. God granted this request, which meant Jesus had only his Thought Adjuster to guide him through this final test of his mortal experience.

Jesus was on Mount Hermon to fight and defeat, in a real and literal sense, the superhuman archenemies who had been opposing his rule in the system of Satania. These struggles were actually more battles of truth, faith, and loyalty and took Jesus six weeks to complete. During this solitude on the mountain Jesus finished his mortal task of mastering his mind and personality, and he achieved the mortal goal of absolute harmony with his indwelling Thought Adjuster. Jesus now knew with absolute certainty that he was a Creator Son of God, and he was prepared to let his divine self supersede his human nature.

After five weeks of intense communion with his Paradise Father, Jesus asked to meet his archenemies as the Son of Man—as Joshua ben Joseph. God again granted his request. This event was the great temptation, the universe trial of the rebels of Satania. This temptation had nothing to do with earthly matters like food, glory, or the kingdoms of humanity: those presentations of these events were only offered to humanity because of the world’s backward and childlike thought at that time. But people today and in the future need to know that this was a real test of human loyalty. Jesus chose to be a man, in other words a mortal with no spiritual power except his faith in and loyalty to his Paradise Father in heaven, when he fought against the lies and treason of once mighty and glorious spiritual beings.

On Mount Hermon, Satan who was representing Lucifer and our Earth’s rebel Planetary Prince, Caligastia, were made visible to Jesus. On behalf of Lucifer these two tried many times and in many ways to bargain with Jesus. But to every attempt they made Jesus would only say “May the will of my Paradise Father prevail, and you my rebellious son may the Ancients of Days judge divinely. I am your Creator-father; I can hardly judge you justly, and my mercy you have already spurned. I commit you to the adjudication of the Judges of a greater universe.”

When this struggle was over, Jesus’ angels that had left him and were watching over Tiglath returned to minister to their creator. This event completed Jesus’ task of living the full mortal life in the flesh, and gained Michael of Nebadon unquestioned ultimate authority over his universe. While this accomplishment was not broadcast to the universe until his later baptism by John in the Jordan River, it took place that day. The Lucifer rebellion in Satania and Caligastia’s secession on Earth were settled, and Jesus was ready to return to his Father’s business. He gave the donkey to Tiglath and returned to Capernaum.

The Time of Waiting

Jesus, along with Zebedee’s son John, left for Jerusalem to attend the day of atonement and the feast of tabernacles. John could tell that Jesus had changed, and John spent much of his time wandering around Jerusalem alone while Jesus was out in the hills talking with God. Both Jesus and John were present for the temple ceremonies on the day of atonement. John was impressed as usual, but Jesus was not. He thought the scene was pitiful and pathetic, and although he stayed silent Jesus was burning to tell the people the real truth of his Father’s divine justice, infinite mercy, and loving character. Before the week’s celebrations were over, Jesus left John in Jerusalem and spent time in the hills before returning to Capernaum.

It was still not time for Jesus to begin his mission, so he returned to work in Zebedee’s shop. Jesus was a good carpenter and enjoyed crafting with his human hands. During this period he was working with his brother James, and they had many conversations. Later when Jesus became so controversial and everyone else had their doubts about him, James kept his faith in his brother because of these conversations. Eventually reports started to reach Capernaum that there was a man named John who was preaching the word of God and baptizing people down in the Jordan River. This man was announcing, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand; repent and be baptized.”

Jesus listened to these reports about his friend John, but he remained silent and continued working at his bench. John slowly made his way up the Jordan Valley, and finally in January A.D. 26 he reached an area near Pella and set up camp. When Jesus heard this news he stood up, laid down his tools, and told the others that “My hour has come.”

Jesus was going to soon present himself to John for baptism and begin his mission as the Son of God. He had changed much throughout the years as the son of man, and few of the people he had talked to in private recognized him as the later public teacher.