Episode:Last Ministry of the Master—Jesus' Final Tour (Part 10)
Jesus spread good cheer everywhere he went. He was full of grace and truth. His associates never ceased to wonder at the gracious words that proceeded out of his mouth. Goodness always compels respect, but when it is devoid of grace, it often repels affection. Goodness is universally attractive only when it is gracious. Goodness is effective only when it is attractive.
Keywords: Urantia, Jesus, Healing Bartimeus, Visiting Zaccheus, As He Passed By
Note: Justin Armstrong filled in for Andrea this week.
Summary by Kermit
Commentary after Review
We explored thoughts on the “unquestioning loyalty and wholehearted devotion to supreme values” aspect of religious living. With respect to the 5th ER, wisdom dictates that as meaningful and valuable as one finds the 5th ER in pursuit of truth, unquestioning loyalty to any book is unwarranted. As repeatedly stated here, the 5th ER is not a religious text, and is treated so at one’s peril in the search for truth. After humble and sincere experiential testing of the meanings and values found in the revelation one may be persuaded to develop a questioning loyalty to it. I am confident each one of the SoS team will testify to recognizing The Urantia Book as the proverbial “pearl of great price.” That being said, regarding it as a religious object is hardly worthy of its value as a source of philosophic guidance and cosmic revelation.
Discussion ensued of the dangers of directing the 6th adjutant to outer life concerns in lieu of establishing the kingdom in the inner life. All of which leads to short circuiting the genuinely religious inner life in response to the cosmic insights while reinforcing the establishment of the oft-vilified scientific dictation, social usage, and religious dogma as standards of guidance in their place.
Elaboration of the born again, born again again analogy in some detail followed. Listen to the archive for the details and specifics.
In our current day intellectual and cultural environment, 6th adjutant attachment to and efforts in the service to secular-espoused causes is highly encouraged constituting one aspect of the multifaceted emergency which summoned the gift of the revelation to our world. Resistance to such encouragement is admittedly most challenging. But the 7th adjutant, with its philosophic focus on the whole, the big picture, is available to the courageous and sincere pilgrim to antidote and even sidestep the pernicious effects of misuse of the 6th adjutant impulses and energies when used in its intended top-down influence.
171:4.8-4.9 The Teaching at Livias (cont.)
The final two paragraphs of this section provide the context for the inability of the apostles and believers to comprehend the Master’s plain-speaking forecast of impending events, and the circumstances which nerved the apostles to enter Jerusalem.
Jesus’ tone of triumph in his declarations regarding the kingdom, coupled with the little or nothing in Jewish traditions indicating a suffering Messiah gave the believers ample reason to completely block out any notions that Jesus would be literally put to death. Even the Master’s promise to “rise on the third day” was interpreted in keeping with the common Jewish expression “third day” signifying “presently” or “soon thereafter” and was attached to the idea of the rising of the kingdom. The allegorical mindset of these first century believers virtually guaranteed that he would not be heard factually.
As previously mentioned the recent resurrection of Lazarus did much to embolden his believers to enter Jerusalem without overmuch fear, further we are told that it was the memory of the transfiguration that sustained Jesus at this trying period. We know from [158:3] that assurance and satisfaction of the Eternal-Mother Son and the Infinite Spirit concerning fulfillment of the requirements of incarnation bestowal were communicated to Jesus. However, the Father did not indicate that the bestowal was finished, communicating only, “This is my beloved Son; give heed to him.” Sustained in the testimony to success of his bestowal mission, he further sought the Father’s will, and accordingly decided to pursue the remainder of his bestowal to its natural end.
171:5 The Blind Man at Jericho
Parallels to this episode are found in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The midwayer narrative combines specifics from all three in ways which clarify the event. The parallels contain reminders of the prophecies in Isaiah, which suggests the gospel writers by their construction were reinforcing them.
171:6 The Visit to Zaccheus
This episode is found only in Luke. Both Bartimeus and Zaccheus demonstrate persistence and a wholehearted devotion which was counted by Jesus as faith. They were receptive to Jesus’ uplifting presence. We conjectured that in addition to Jesus, potentializing these two men for entrance into the kingdom, he also had an eye to generating public excitement and attention sufficient to restrain the rulers in Jerusalem from arresting him immediately upon his entry into Jerusalem, thus allowing the events of so-called Holy Week to unfold in their fullness.
171:7.1-7.4 “As Jesus Passed By”
We read the first four paragraphs of this section, commenting on the section title with its quote marks. These bullet point descriptions of facets of Jesus’ character were briefly examined in terms of the some aspects of the physics of mind and spirit, and levels of meaning. Grace was explained in terms of the part being automatically included in the whole through no act or consent of the part. The interplay of goodness with graciousness in distinction with gracefulness underscores the difference between inner and outer life attributes. Listen to the distinction between compassion and sympathy, apparent synonyms but not really.
We are encouraged to aspire being inner life directed so that each of us can follow Jesus in loving service as we pass by.
Notes by Brad
- Being a serious student
- Don't turn The Urantia Book into a religious object
- I'm loyal to the 5th ER, but it's an active and questioning loyalty. Unshakeable, questioning loyalty.
- That's how you can know it's true.
- The 6th adjutant can delight in unquestioning loyalty into the outer life. IF it's directed outward, you can't get inward.
- Set a guard on your inner life
- These days it's easier than ever pull outer life things into the inner life.
- And it's even easier to instill something secular into the inner life. Which is utterly polluting.
- It's an emergency because so many people have utterly polluted inner lives these days.
- Strive to be a second miler and bear that kind of fruit to shine a light in the darkness
- Don't pantomime the doing of these. Seek first the kingdom of heaven and the fruits come naturally.
- Can you do a little house cleaning in your inner life? Do some housecleaning?
- And be an active agent in your inner life instead of it unconsciously directing your outer life.
- Simply ask: have I misdirected my 6th adjutant--my religious impulse?
- Can you see around the 6th adjutant using the 7th adjutant--the philosophic impulse?
- "Maybe I need to gather more widespread data first to properly interpret this one sentence in the Urantia Book"
- THAT'S the kind of thinking the 7th adjutant can lead you on if you will let it.
- Don't turn The Urantia Book into a religious object
- Don't assume your outer-life misplaced loyalty is to something material. Better to look for ideas and ideologies.
- "If only it was coffee I am being unquestioningly loyal to," says this author. It's not that simple.
- Is there something someone is asking you to settle upon? Be unquestioningly loyal to?
- This author thinks he may have found what he is unquestioningly loyal to. Still.
- His resume and his material self.
- The incessant clamoring of his self.
- But no self-pity. let the 4th level of meaning be your foundation of self respect, not just self pity. True self respect is better.
- Do you feel utterly settled in something? Unquestioning loyalty?
- See around it. Want to see around it more than anything else.
- Are you settled in the idea that we awake on the literal 3rd day after death?
- Consider "The 'third day' was a common Jewish expression signifying 'presently' or 'soon thereafter.'"
- Analysis versus synthesis. Synthesis is better.
- Believing something fervently is not equivalent to knowing it.
- You go beyond being born again.
- At least during ecclesiastical totalitarianism there was a... thread that could lead to the inner life.
- If you're born again into evolutionary religion, you are indirectly aware of the shadow cast by the inner life.
- Not the same as being born again again
- Bartimeus had genuine faith in his superconscious inner life.
- That's what Jesus saw (with insight)
- Bartimeus was born again already (though probably not born again again as we talk about here)
- He ceaselessly glorified God. Would you ceaselessly glorify God in spite of the mockery others might cast on you?
- Zaccheus is such a treasured story (it's only in Luke in the Bible)
- He declares he will seek salvation "with all my heart." That's a humble man who is spiritually upliftable.
- Bartimeus and Zaccheus are both religionists--they are acting persistently.
- Where is "as Jesus passed by" in the Bible? John 9.
- "Look at MY good works," you say? They cannot be good if you use the work MY
- Start with the totality attitude, like Jesus did.
- Don't blow a trumped to extol your virtue.
- Can you follow your philosophic impulse and get over yourself? Be led to the whole and be in humble service to others, as part of a cosmic system?
- Graciousness is an attribute one exudes when they start with the cosmic whole.
- Goodness that is only done in a part-wise manner becomes... off-putting. Unattractive. It is flirting with self-righteousness.
- Sincerity is wholehearted devotion to supreme values.
- Compassion versus sympathy: properly inner-life founded compassion will naturally produce "practical, personal, and constructive" sympathy in the outer life.
