1. Ignorant and unlearned means the apostles weren’t formally trained in the scriptures like an actual rabbi. Most of the apostles, except the Alpheus twins, were well trained in the Hebrew scriptures and the current knowledge of that day.
2. Each of the apostles had different backgrounds and temperaments. They hadn’t been put through a ridged and stereotyped education like today. Jesus taught them about the kingdom of heaven; from them he learned about humanity on Earth and other worlds of time and space.
3. Andrew remained chairman of the apostles the entire time. He was thirty-three years old, a full year older than Jesus. He was the oldest of five kids, and the oldest of the apostles. He was born in Capernaum and fished with his bother Simon, and James and John Zebedee.
4. Andrew was the most capable of the twelve apostles, except for public speaking. The others called him Chief. He was clear, logical, and firm. His greatest strength was stability: he never wavered. Andrew abhorred flattery and insincerity, and seldom praised the others.
5. Andrew was the best judge of men. He had a great gift for discovering the hidden resources and latent talents of young people. He knew trouble was brewing in Judas before the others suspected it. Andrew admired Jesus most for his dignity and consistent sincerity.
6. Andrew and his brother Simon Peter were unlike in character and temperament, but got along like best friends. They never seemed to be jealous of each other’s abilities or achievements.
7. Andrew brought many thousands of people into the kingdom before he was finally apprehended and crucified in Patrae (‘patrā ə), in Achaia (ə’kāə). It took him two full days to die on the cross as he continued to proclaim the kingdom of heaven and bring new souls to God.
8. Simon was thirty years old, married, had three children, and lived at Bethsaida. Andrew lived with his family, and they were fishermen and partners with Zebedee’s sons. Jesus named Simon, Peter, with a lighthearted smile because Simon was erratic and impulsive.
9. Simon Peter was an impulsive optimist. He was always getting into trouble because he kept talking without thinking. He’d grown up freely indulging his strong feelings and letting everything inside, out.
10. Peter was an eloquent and dramatic preacher; a natural and inspirational leader. He was a quick thinker, but not a deep thinker. He asked more questions than all of the other apostles put together: most of them were good and relevant, but many were thoughtless and foolish.
11. The trait Peter most admired about Jesus was his exceptional tenderness. He never forgot Jesus’ lesson about forgiving the wrongdoer, not only seven times but seventy times and seven, especially after denying Jesus in the high priest’s courtyard.
12. Peter was one of the most unexplainable combinations of courage and cowardice ever to live on Earth. He was a brave soldier when he was facing a frontal attack, but he was a fear-cringing coward when surprised with an assault from the rear. He just couldn’t handle being ridiculed.
13. Peter’s greatest strength of character was loyalty and friendship. When following Jesus, either figuratively or literally walking down the road, he was either leading the charge or trailing way behind.
14. Peter was the outstanding preacher of the twelve. He did more than any other one man, except for Paul, to establish the kingdom of heaven. But right up to the day of his death, Simon Peter was confused between the ideas of Jesus as the Jewish Messiah, Christ as the world’s redeemer, and the Son of Man as the revelation of God, our loving Father.
15. Peter was finally caught by the Romans and condemned to die on the cross like Jesus had been, a sentence he considered to be a high honor. On that day his loyal wife, who went with him on all of his missionary excursions, was fed alive to the wild beasts in the arena at Rome.
Okay, folks, that’s it for the highlights of Son of Man: Urantia, Chapter 18, part 1, “The Twelve Apostles.”
This week we continue with part 2.
Have a fantastic week out there everyone.
Bob