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170:2 Jesus' Concept of the Kingdom (view source)
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170:2.1 [[The Master]] made it clear that the ''kingdom of heaven'' must begin with, and be [[centered]] in, the [[dual]] [[concept]] of the [[truth]] of the [[fatherhood]] of [[God]] and the correlated [[fact]] of the [[brotherhood]] of [[man]]. The [[acceptance]] of such a teaching, [[Jesus]] [[declared]], would [[liberate]] man from the age-long [[bondage]] of [[animal]] [[fear]] and at the same time enrich [[human]] living with the following [[endowments]] of the new life of [[spiritual]] [[liberty]]:
*1. 170:2.2 The [[possession]] of new [[courage]] and augmented [[spiritual]] [[power]]. The [[gospel]] of the kingdom was to set man [[free]] and [[inspire]] him to [[dare]] to [[hope]] for [[eternal]] life.
*2. 170:2.3 The [[gospel]] carried a [[message]] of new [[confidence]] and true [[consolation]] for all men, even for the [[poor]].
*3. 170:2.4 It was in itself a new [[standard]] of [[moral]] [[values]], a new [[ethical]] yardstick wherewith to measure human [[conduct]]. It portrayed the [[ideal]] of a resultant new order of [[human]] [[society]].
*4. 170:2.5 It taught the [[Priority|pre-eminence]] of the [[spiritual]] [[compared]] with the [[material]]; it [[glorified]] [[spiritual]] [[realities]] and exalted [[superhuman]] [[ideals]].
*5. 170:2.6 This new [[gospel]] held up [[spiritual]] [[attainment]] as the true goal of living. Human life [[received]] a new [[endowment]] of [[moral]] [[value]] and [[divine]] [[dignity]].
*6. 170:2.7 [[Jesus]] taught that [[eternal]] [[realities]] were the result (reward) of [[righteous]] earthly striving. Man's [[mortal]] [[sojourn]] on [[earth]] acquired new [[meanings]] consequent upon the [[recognition]] of a [[noble]] [[destiny]].
*7. 170:2.8 The new [[gospel]] affirmed that [[human]] [[salvation]] is the [[revelation]] of a far-reaching [[divine]] [[purpose]] to be [[fulfilled]] and [[realized]] in the [[future]] [[destiny]] of the endless [[service]] of the salvaged [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_40#40:5._MORTALS_OF_TIME_AND_SPACE sons of God].
170:2.9 These teachings cover the expanded [[idea]] of the kingdom which was taught by [[Jesus]]. This great [[concept]] was hardly [[embraced]] in the elementary and [[confused]] kingdom teachings of [[John the Baptist]].
170:2.10 [[The apostles]] were unable to grasp the real [[meaning]] of [[the Master]]'s utterances regarding the kingdom. The subsequent [[distortion]] of [[Jesus]]' teachings, as they are recorded in the [[New Testament]], is because the [[concept]] of the [[gospel]] [[writers]] was colored by the [[belief]] that [[Jesus]] was then absent from the world for only a short time; that he would soon return to [[establish]] the kingdom in [[power]] and [[glory]]—just such an [[idea]] as they held while he was with them in the [[flesh]]. But [[Jesus]] did not [[connect]] the [[establishment]] of the kingdom with the [[idea]] of [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_176#176:2._THE_MASTER.27S_SECOND_COMING his return to this world]. That centuries have passed with no signs of the [[appearance]] of the " [[New Age]] " is in no way out of [[harmony]] with [[Jesus]]' teaching.
170:2.11 The great [[effort]] embodied in this [[sermon]] was the attempt to [[translate]] the [[concept]] of the ''kingdom of heaven'' into the [[ideal]] of the [[idea]] of [[doing the will of God]]. Long had [[the Master]] taught his followers to [[pray]]: " Your kingdom come; your will be done "; and at this time he [[earnestly]] sought to induce them to abandon the use of the term ''kingdom of God'' in favor of the more [[practical]] equivalent, [[Doing the will of God|the will of God]]. But he did not succeed.
170:2.12 [[Jesus]] [[desired]] to substitute for the [[idea]] of the kingdom, [[king]], and subjects, the [[concept]] of the heavenly [[family]], the [[heavenly Father]], and the [[liberated]] [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_40#40:6._THE_FAITH_SONS_OF_GOD sons of God] [[engaged]] in [[joyful]] and voluntary [[service]] for their fellow men and in the [[sublime]] and [[intelligent]] [[worship]] of [[God the Father]].
170:2.13 Up to this [[time]] [[the apostles]] had acquired a double [[viewpoint]] of the kingdom; they regarded it as:
*1. A matter of [[personal]] [[experience]] then present in the [[hearts]] of true [[believers]], and
*2. A question of racial or [[Planet|world]] [[phenomena]]; that the kingdom was in the [[future]], something to look forward to.
170:2.14 They looked upon the coming of the kingdom in the [[hearts]] of men as a [[gradual]] [[development]], like the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leaven leaven] in the dough or like the [[growing]] of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustard_seed mustard seed]. They [[believed]] that the coming of the kingdom in the racial or [[Planet|world]] sense would be both sudden and [[spectacular]]. [[Jesus]] never tired of telling them that the ''kingdom of heaven'' was their [[personal]] [[experience]] of [[realizing]] the higher [[qualities]] of spiritual living; that these [[realities]] of the spirit [[experience]] are [[progressively]] [[translated]] to new and higher [[levels]] of [[divine]] [[certainty]] and [[eternal]] [[grandeur]].
170:2.15 On this afternoon [[the Master]] distinctly taught a new [[concept]] of the double [[nature]] of the kingdom in that he portrayed the following [[two]] [[phases]]:
170:2.16 " First. The ''kingdom of God'' in this world, the [[supreme]] [[desire]] to [[do the will of God]], the [[unselfish]] [[love]] of man which yields the good fruits of improved [[ethical]] and [[moral]] [[conduct]].
170:2.17 " Second. The ''kingdom of God'' in [[heaven]], the goal of [[mortal]] [[believers]], the estate wherein the [[love]] for [[God]] is [[perfected]], and wherein the will of God is done more [[divinely]]. "
170:2.18 [[Jesus]] taught that, by [[faith]], the [[believer]] enters the kingdom now. In the various [[discourses]] he taught that [[two]] [[things]] are [[essential]] to [[faith]]-entrance into the kingdom:
*1. [[Faith]], [[sincerity]]. To come as a little child, to [[receive]] the [[bestowal]] of [[sonship]] as a [[gift]]; to submit to the [[doing of the Father's will]] without questioning and in the full [[confidence]] and genuine [[trustfulness]] of [[the Father]]'s [[wisdom]]; to come into the kingdom [[free]] from [[prejudice]] and preconception; to be open-minded and teachable like an unspoiled [[child]].
*2. [[Truth]] [[hunger]]. The [[thirst]] for [[righteousness]], a [[change]] of [[mind]], the acquirement of the [[motive]] to be like [[God]] and to find God.
170:2.19 [[Jesus]] taught that [[sin]] is not the child of a [[defective]] [[nature]] but rather the offspring of a knowing [[mind]] [[dominated]] by an unsubmissive will. Regarding [[sin]], he taught that [[God]] has [[forgiven]]; that we make such [[forgiveness]] [[personally]] available by the [[act]] of forgiving our fellows. When you [[forgive]] your [[brother]] in the [[flesh]], you thereby create the [[capacity]] in your own [[soul]] for the [[reception]] of the [[reality]] of [[God]]'s [[forgiveness]] of your own misdeeds.
170:2.20 By the time the [[John, the Apostle|Apostle John]] began to [[write]] the [[story]] of [[Jesus]]' life and teachings, the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_Christianity early Christians] had [[experienced]] so much [[trouble]] with the kingdom-of-God [[idea]] as a breeder of [[persecution]] that they had largely abandoned the use of the term. [[John, the Apostle|John]] talks much about the " [[eternal]] life. " Jesus often spoke of it as the " kingdom of life. " He also frequently referred to " the kingdom of God within you. " He once [[spoke]] of such an [[experience]] as " [[family]] fellowship with [[God the Father]]. " [[Jesus]] sought to substitute many terms for the kingdom but always without [[success]]. Among others, he used: the [[family]] of [[God]], [[the Father]]'s will, the [[friends]] of God, the fellowship of [[believers]], the [[brotherhood]] of [[man]], the Father's fold, the [[children]] of God, the fellowship of the [[faithful]], [[the Father]]'s service, and the [[liberated]] [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_40#40:5._MORTALS_OF_TIME_AND_SPACE sons of God].
170:2.21 But he could not [[escape]] the use of the kingdom [[idea]]. It was more than fifty years later, not until after the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destruction_of_Jerusalem#Destruction_of_Jerusalem destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman armies], that this [[concept]] of the kingdom began to [[change]] into the [[cult]] of [[eternal]] life as its [[social]] and [[institutional]] aspects were taken over by the rapidly expanding and crystallizing [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_Christianity Christian church].
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_170 Go to Paper 170]</center>
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=The_Urantia_Text_-_Contents Go to Table of Contents]</center>
[[Category:Paper 170 - The Kingdom of Heaven]]
170:2.1 [[The Master]] made it clear that the ''kingdom of heaven'' must begin with, and be [[centered]] in, the [[dual]] [[concept]] of the [[truth]] of the [[fatherhood]] of [[God]] and the correlated [[fact]] of the [[brotherhood]] of [[man]]. The [[acceptance]] of such a teaching, [[Jesus]] [[declared]], would [[liberate]] man from the age-long [[bondage]] of [[animal]] [[fear]] and at the same time enrich [[human]] living with the following [[endowments]] of the new life of [[spiritual]] [[liberty]]:
*1. 170:2.2 The [[possession]] of new [[courage]] and augmented [[spiritual]] [[power]]. The [[gospel]] of the kingdom was to set man [[free]] and [[inspire]] him to [[dare]] to [[hope]] for [[eternal]] life.
*2. 170:2.3 The [[gospel]] carried a [[message]] of new [[confidence]] and true [[consolation]] for all men, even for the [[poor]].
*3. 170:2.4 It was in itself a new [[standard]] of [[moral]] [[values]], a new [[ethical]] yardstick wherewith to measure human [[conduct]]. It portrayed the [[ideal]] of a resultant new order of [[human]] [[society]].
*4. 170:2.5 It taught the [[Priority|pre-eminence]] of the [[spiritual]] [[compared]] with the [[material]]; it [[glorified]] [[spiritual]] [[realities]] and exalted [[superhuman]] [[ideals]].
*5. 170:2.6 This new [[gospel]] held up [[spiritual]] [[attainment]] as the true goal of living. Human life [[received]] a new [[endowment]] of [[moral]] [[value]] and [[divine]] [[dignity]].
*6. 170:2.7 [[Jesus]] taught that [[eternal]] [[realities]] were the result (reward) of [[righteous]] earthly striving. Man's [[mortal]] [[sojourn]] on [[earth]] acquired new [[meanings]] consequent upon the [[recognition]] of a [[noble]] [[destiny]].
*7. 170:2.8 The new [[gospel]] affirmed that [[human]] [[salvation]] is the [[revelation]] of a far-reaching [[divine]] [[purpose]] to be [[fulfilled]] and [[realized]] in the [[future]] [[destiny]] of the endless [[service]] of the salvaged [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_40#40:5._MORTALS_OF_TIME_AND_SPACE sons of God].
170:2.9 These teachings cover the expanded [[idea]] of the kingdom which was taught by [[Jesus]]. This great [[concept]] was hardly [[embraced]] in the elementary and [[confused]] kingdom teachings of [[John the Baptist]].
170:2.10 [[The apostles]] were unable to grasp the real [[meaning]] of [[the Master]]'s utterances regarding the kingdom. The subsequent [[distortion]] of [[Jesus]]' teachings, as they are recorded in the [[New Testament]], is because the [[concept]] of the [[gospel]] [[writers]] was colored by the [[belief]] that [[Jesus]] was then absent from the world for only a short time; that he would soon return to [[establish]] the kingdom in [[power]] and [[glory]]—just such an [[idea]] as they held while he was with them in the [[flesh]]. But [[Jesus]] did not [[connect]] the [[establishment]] of the kingdom with the [[idea]] of [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_176#176:2._THE_MASTER.27S_SECOND_COMING his return to this world]. That centuries have passed with no signs of the [[appearance]] of the " [[New Age]] " is in no way out of [[harmony]] with [[Jesus]]' teaching.
170:2.11 The great [[effort]] embodied in this [[sermon]] was the attempt to [[translate]] the [[concept]] of the ''kingdom of heaven'' into the [[ideal]] of the [[idea]] of [[doing the will of God]]. Long had [[the Master]] taught his followers to [[pray]]: " Your kingdom come; your will be done "; and at this time he [[earnestly]] sought to induce them to abandon the use of the term ''kingdom of God'' in favor of the more [[practical]] equivalent, [[Doing the will of God|the will of God]]. But he did not succeed.
170:2.12 [[Jesus]] [[desired]] to substitute for the [[idea]] of the kingdom, [[king]], and subjects, the [[concept]] of the heavenly [[family]], the [[heavenly Father]], and the [[liberated]] [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_40#40:6._THE_FAITH_SONS_OF_GOD sons of God] [[engaged]] in [[joyful]] and voluntary [[service]] for their fellow men and in the [[sublime]] and [[intelligent]] [[worship]] of [[God the Father]].
170:2.13 Up to this [[time]] [[the apostles]] had acquired a double [[viewpoint]] of the kingdom; they regarded it as:
*1. A matter of [[personal]] [[experience]] then present in the [[hearts]] of true [[believers]], and
*2. A question of racial or [[Planet|world]] [[phenomena]]; that the kingdom was in the [[future]], something to look forward to.
170:2.14 They looked upon the coming of the kingdom in the [[hearts]] of men as a [[gradual]] [[development]], like the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leaven leaven] in the dough or like the [[growing]] of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustard_seed mustard seed]. They [[believed]] that the coming of the kingdom in the racial or [[Planet|world]] sense would be both sudden and [[spectacular]]. [[Jesus]] never tired of telling them that the ''kingdom of heaven'' was their [[personal]] [[experience]] of [[realizing]] the higher [[qualities]] of spiritual living; that these [[realities]] of the spirit [[experience]] are [[progressively]] [[translated]] to new and higher [[levels]] of [[divine]] [[certainty]] and [[eternal]] [[grandeur]].
170:2.15 On this afternoon [[the Master]] distinctly taught a new [[concept]] of the double [[nature]] of the kingdom in that he portrayed the following [[two]] [[phases]]:
170:2.16 " First. The ''kingdom of God'' in this world, the [[supreme]] [[desire]] to [[do the will of God]], the [[unselfish]] [[love]] of man which yields the good fruits of improved [[ethical]] and [[moral]] [[conduct]].
170:2.17 " Second. The ''kingdom of God'' in [[heaven]], the goal of [[mortal]] [[believers]], the estate wherein the [[love]] for [[God]] is [[perfected]], and wherein the will of God is done more [[divinely]]. "
170:2.18 [[Jesus]] taught that, by [[faith]], the [[believer]] enters the kingdom now. In the various [[discourses]] he taught that [[two]] [[things]] are [[essential]] to [[faith]]-entrance into the kingdom:
*1. [[Faith]], [[sincerity]]. To come as a little child, to [[receive]] the [[bestowal]] of [[sonship]] as a [[gift]]; to submit to the [[doing of the Father's will]] without questioning and in the full [[confidence]] and genuine [[trustfulness]] of [[the Father]]'s [[wisdom]]; to come into the kingdom [[free]] from [[prejudice]] and preconception; to be open-minded and teachable like an unspoiled [[child]].
*2. [[Truth]] [[hunger]]. The [[thirst]] for [[righteousness]], a [[change]] of [[mind]], the acquirement of the [[motive]] to be like [[God]] and to find God.
170:2.19 [[Jesus]] taught that [[sin]] is not the child of a [[defective]] [[nature]] but rather the offspring of a knowing [[mind]] [[dominated]] by an unsubmissive will. Regarding [[sin]], he taught that [[God]] has [[forgiven]]; that we make such [[forgiveness]] [[personally]] available by the [[act]] of forgiving our fellows. When you [[forgive]] your [[brother]] in the [[flesh]], you thereby create the [[capacity]] in your own [[soul]] for the [[reception]] of the [[reality]] of [[God]]'s [[forgiveness]] of your own misdeeds.
170:2.20 By the time the [[John, the Apostle|Apostle John]] began to [[write]] the [[story]] of [[Jesus]]' life and teachings, the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_Christianity early Christians] had [[experienced]] so much [[trouble]] with the kingdom-of-God [[idea]] as a breeder of [[persecution]] that they had largely abandoned the use of the term. [[John, the Apostle|John]] talks much about the " [[eternal]] life. " Jesus often spoke of it as the " kingdom of life. " He also frequently referred to " the kingdom of God within you. " He once [[spoke]] of such an [[experience]] as " [[family]] fellowship with [[God the Father]]. " [[Jesus]] sought to substitute many terms for the kingdom but always without [[success]]. Among others, he used: the [[family]] of [[God]], [[the Father]]'s will, the [[friends]] of God, the fellowship of [[believers]], the [[brotherhood]] of [[man]], the Father's fold, the [[children]] of God, the fellowship of the [[faithful]], [[the Father]]'s service, and the [[liberated]] [http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_40#40:5._MORTALS_OF_TIME_AND_SPACE sons of God].
170:2.21 But he could not [[escape]] the use of the kingdom [[idea]]. It was more than fifty years later, not until after the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destruction_of_Jerusalem#Destruction_of_Jerusalem destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman armies], that this [[concept]] of the kingdom began to [[change]] into the [[cult]] of [[eternal]] life as its [[social]] and [[institutional]] aspects were taken over by the rapidly expanding and crystallizing [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_Christianity Christian church].
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=Paper_170 Go to Paper 170]</center>
<center>[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=The_Urantia_Text_-_Contents Go to Table of Contents]</center>
[[Category:Paper 170 - The Kingdom of Heaven]]