PAPER 169
LAST TEACHING AT PELLA
169:0.1
LATE on Monday evening, March 6, Jesus and the ten
apostles arrived at the Pella camp. This was the
last week of Jesus' sojourn there, and he was very
active in teaching the multitude and instructing the
apostles. He preached every afternoon to the crowds
and each night answered questions for the apostles
and certain of the more advanced disciples residing
at the camp.
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Word regarding the resurrection of Lazarus had
reached the encampment two days before the Master's
arrival, and the entire assembly was agog. Not since
the feeding of the five thousand had anything
occurred which so aroused the imagination of the
people. And thus it was at the very height of the
second phase of the public ministry of the kingdom
that Jesus planned to teach this one short week at
Pella and then to begin the tour of southern Perea
which led right up to the final and tragic
experiences of the last week in Jerusalem.
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The Pharisees and the chief priests had begun to
formulate their charges and to crystallize their
accusations. They objected to the Master's teachings
on these grounds:
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1. He is a friend of publicans and sinners; he
receives the ungodly and even eats with them.
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2. He is a blasphemer; he talks about God as being
his Father and thinks he is equal with God.
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3. He is a lawbreaker. He heals disease on the
Sabbath and in many other ways flouts the sacred law
of Israel.
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4. He is in league with devils. He works wonders and
does seeming miracles by the power of Beelzebub, the
prince of devils.
1. PARABLE OF THE LOST SON
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On Thursday afternoon Jesus talked to the multitude
about the "Grace of Salvation." In the course of
this sermon he retold the story of the lost sheep
and the lost coin and then added his favorite
parable of the prodigal son. Said Jesus:
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"You have been admonished by the prophets from
Samuel to John that you should seek for God --
search for truth. Always have they said, `Seek the
Lord while he may be found.' And all such teaching
should be taken to heart. But I have come to show
you that, while you are seeking to find God, God is
likewise seeking to find you. Many times have I told
you the story of the good shepherd who left the
ninety and nine sheep in the fold while he went
forth searching for the one that was lost, and how,
when he had found the straying sheep, he laid it
over his shoulder and tenderly carried it back to
the fold. And when the lost sheep had been restored
to the fold, you remember that the good shepherd
called in his friends and bade them rejoice with him
over the finding of the sheep that had been lost.
Again I say there is more joy in heaven over one
sinner who repents than over the ninety and nine
just persons who need no repentance. The fact that
souls are
lost only increases the interest of the heavenly
Father. I have come to this world to do my Father's
bidding, and it has truly been said of the Son of
Man that he is a friend of publicans and sinners.
169:1.3
"You have been taught that divine acceptance comes
after your repentance and as a result of all your
works of sacrifice and penitence, but I assure you
that the Father accepts you even before you have
repented and sends the Son and his associates to
find you and bring you, with rejoicing, back to the
fold, the kingdom of sonship and spiritual progress.
You are all like sheep which have gone astray, and I
have come to seek and to save those who are lost.
169:1.4
"And you should also remember the story of the woman
who, having had ten pieces of silver made into a
necklace of adornment, lost one piece, and how she
lit the lamp and diligently swept the house and kept
up the search until she found the lost piece of
silver. And as soon as she found the coin that was
lost, she called together her friends and neighbors,
saying, `Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece
that was lost.' So again I say, there is always joy
in the presence of the angels of heaven over one
sinner who repents and returns to the Father's fold.
And I tell you this story to impress upon you that
the Father and his Son go forth to
search
for those who are lost, and in this search we employ
all influences capable of rendering assistance in
our diligent efforts to find those who are lost,
those who stand in need of salvation. And so, while
the Son of Man goes out in the wilderness to seek
for the sheep gone astray, he also searches for the
coin which is lost in the house. The sheep wanders
away, unintentionally; the coin is covered by the
dust of time and obscured by the accumulation of the
things of men.
169:1.5
"And now I would like to tell you the story of a
thoughtless son of a well-to-do farmer who
deliberately
left his father's house and went off into a foreign
land, where he fell into much tribulation. You
recall that the sheep strayed away without
intention, but this youth left his home with
premeditation. It was like this:
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"A certain man had two sons; one, the younger, was
lighthearted and carefree, always seeking for a good
time and shirking responsibility, while his older
brother was serious, sober, hard-working, and
willing to bear responsibility. Now these two
brothers did not get along well together; they were
always quarreling and bickering. The younger lad was
cheerful and vivacious, but indolent and unreliable;
the older son was steady and industrious, at the
same time self-centered, surly, and conceited. The
younger son enjoyed play but shunned work; the older
devoted himself to work but seldom played. This
association became so disagreeable that the younger
son came to his father and said: `Father, give me
the third portion of your possessions which would
fall to me and allow me to go out into the world to
seek my own fortune.' And when the father heard this
request, knowing how unhappy the young man was at
home and with his older brother, he divided his
property, giving the youth his share.
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"Within a few weeks the young man gathered together
all his funds and set out upon a journey to a far
country, and finding nothing profitable to do which
was also pleasurable, he soon wasted all his
inheritance in riotous living. And when he had spent
all, there arose a prolonged famine in that country,
and he found himself in want. And so, when he
suffered hunger and his distress was great, he found
employment with one of the citizens of that country,
who sent him into the fields to feed swine. And the
young man would fain have filled himself with the
husks which the swine ate, but no one would give him
anything.
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"One day, when he was very hungry, he came to
himself and said: `How many hired servants of my
father have bread enough and to spare while I perish
with hunger, feeding swine off here in a foreign
country! I will arise and go to my father, and I
will say to him: Father, I have sinned against
heaven and against you. I am no more worthy to be
called your son; only be willing to make me one of
your hired servants.' And when the young man had
reached this decision, he arose and started out for
his father's house.
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"Now this father had grieved much for his son; he
had missed the cheerful, though thoughtless, lad.
This father loved this son and was always on the
lookout for his return, so that on the day he
approached his home, even while he was yet afar off,
the father saw him and, being moved with loving
compassion, ran out to meet him, and with
affectionate greeting he embraced and kissed him.
And after they had thus met, the son looked up into
his father's tearful face and said: `Father, I have
sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no
more worthy to be called a son' -- but the lad did
not find opportunity to complete his confession
because the overjoyed father said to the servants
who had by this time come running up: `Bring quickly
his best robe, the one I have saved, and put it on
him and put the son's ring on his hand and fetch
sandals for his feet.'
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"And then, after the happy father had led the
footsore and weary lad into the house, he called to
his servants: `Bring on the fatted calf and kill it,
and let us eat and make merry, for this my son was
dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.'
And they all gathered about the father to rejoice
with him over the restoration of his son.
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"About this time, while they were celebrating, the
elder son came in from his day's work in the field,
and as he drew near the house, he heard the music
and the dancing. And when he came up to the back
door, he called out one of the servants and inquired
as to the meaning of all this festivity. And then
said the servant: `Your long-lost brother has come
home, and your father has killed the fatted calf to
rejoice over his son's safe return. Come in that you
also may greet your brother and receive him back
into your father's house.'
169:1.12
"But when the older brother heard this, he was so
hurt and angry he would not go into the house. When
his father heard of his resentment of the welcome of
his younger brother, he went out to entreat him. But
the older son would not yield to his father's
persuasion. He answered his father, saying: `Here
these many years have I served you, never
transgressing the least of your commands, and yet
you never gave me even a kid that I might make merry
with my friends. I have remained here to care for
you all these years, and you never made rejoicing
over my faithful service, but when this your son
returns, having squandered your substance with
harlots, you make haste to kill the fatted calf and
make merry over him.'
169:1.13
"Since this father truly loved both of his sons, he
tried to reason with this older one: `But, my son,
you have all the while been with me, and all this
which I have is yours. You could have had a kid at
any time you had made friends to share your
merriment. But it is only proper that you should now
join with me in being glad and merry because of your
brother's return. Think of it, my son, your brother
was lost and is found; he has returned alive to
us!'"
169:1.14
This was one of the most touching and effective of
all the parables which Jesus ever presented to
impress upon his hearers the Father's willingness to
receive all who seek entrance into the kingdom of
heaven.
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Jesus was very partial to telling these three
stories at the same time. He presented the story of
the lost sheep to show that, when men
unintentionally stray away from the path of life,
the Father is mindful of such
lost ones
and goes out, with his Sons, the true shepherds of
the flock, to seek the lost sheep. He then would
recite the story of the coin lost in the house to
illustrate how thorough is the divine
searching
for all who are confused, confounded, or otherwise
spiritually blinded by the material cares and
accumulations of life. And then he would launch
forth into the telling of this parable of the lost
son, the reception of the returning prodigal, to
show how complete is the
restoration
of the lost son into his Father's house and heart.
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Many, many times during his years of teaching, Jesus
told and retold this story of the prodigal son. This
parable and the story of the good Samaritan were his
favorite means of teaching the love of the Father
and the neighborliness of man.
2. PARABLE OF THE SHREWD STEWARD
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One evening Simon Zelotes, commenting on one of
Jesus' statements, said: "Master, what did you mean
when you said today that many of the children of the
world are wiser in their generation than are the
children of the kingdom since they are skillful in
making friends with the mammon of unrighteousness?"
Jesus answered:
169:2.2
"Some of you, before you entered the kingdom, were
very shrewd in dealing with your business
associates. If you were unjust and often unfair, you
were nonetheless prudent and farseeing in that you
transacted your business with an eye single to your
present profit and future safety. Likewise should
you now so order your lives in the kingdom as to
provide for your present joy while you also make
certain of your future enjoyment of treasures laid
up in heaven. If you were so diligent in making
gains for yourselves when in the service of self,
why should you show less diligence in gaining souls
for the kingdom since you are now servants of the
brotherhood of man and stewards of God?
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"You may all learn a lesson from the story of a
certain rich man who had a shrewd but unjust
steward. This steward had not only oppressed his
master's clients for his own selfish gain, but he
had also directly wasted and squandered his master's
funds. When all this finally came to the ears of his
master, he called the steward before him and asked
the meaning of these rumors and required that he
should give immediate accounting of his stewardship
and prepare to turn his master's affairs over to
another.
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"Now this unfaithful steward began to say to
himself: `What shall I do since I am about to lose
this stewardship? I have not the strength to dig; to
beg I am ashamed. I know what I will do to make
certain that, when I am put out of this stewardship,
I will be welcomed into the houses of all who do
business with my master.' And then, calling in each
of his lord's debtors, he said to the first, `How
much do you owe my master?' He answered, `A hundred
measures of oil.' Then said the steward, `Take your
wax board bond, sit down quickly, and change it to
fifty.' Then he said to another debtor, `How much do
you owe?' And he replied, `A hundred measures of
wheat.' Then said the steward, `Take your bond and
write fourscore.' And this he did with numerous
other debtors. And so did this dishonest steward
seek to make friends for himself after he would be
discharged from his stewardship. Even his lord and
master, when he subsequently found out about this,
was compelled to admit that his unfaithful steward
had at least shown sagacity in the manner in which
he had sought to provide for future days of want and
adversity.
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"And it is in this way that the sons of this world
sometimes show more wisdom in their preparation for
the future than do the children of light. I say to
you who profess to be acquiring treasure in heaven:
Take lessons from those who make friends with the
mammon of unrighteousness, and likewise so conduct
your lives that you make eternal friendship with the
forces of righteousness in order that, when all
things earthly fail, you shall be joyfully received
into the eternal habitations.
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"I affirm that he who is faithful in little will
also be faithful in much, while he who is
unrighteous in little will also be unrighteous in
much. If you have not shown foresight and integrity
in the affairs of this world, how can you hope to be
faithful and prudent when you are trusted with the
stewardship of the true riches of the heavenly
kingdom? If you are not good stewards and faithful
bankers, if you have not been faithful in that which
is another's, who will be foolish enough to give you
great treasure in your own name?
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"And again I assert that no man can serve two
masters; either he will hate the one and love the
other, or else he will hold to one while he despises
the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."
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When the Pharisees who were present heard this, they
began to sneer and scoff since they were much given
to the acquirement of riches. These unfriendly
hearers sought to engage Jesus in unprofitable
argumentation, but he refused to debate with his
enemies. When the Pharisees fell to wrangling among
themselves, their loud speaking attracted large
numbers of the multitude encamped thereabouts; and
when they began to dispute with each other, Jesus
withdrew, going to his tent for the night.
3. THE RICH MAN AND THE BEGGAR
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When the meeting became too noisy, Simon Peter,
standing up, took charge, saying: "Men and brethren,
it is not seemly thus to dispute among yourselves.
The Master has spoken, and you do well to ponder his
words. And this is no new doctrine which he
proclaimed to you. Have you not also heard the
allegory of the Nazarites concerning the rich man
and the beggar? Some of us heard John the Baptist
thunder this parable of warning to those who love
riches and covet dishonest wealth. And while this
olden parable is not according to the gospel we
preach, you would all do well to heed its lessons
until such a time as you comprehend the new light of
the kingdom of heaven. The story as John told it was
like this:
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"There was a certain rich man named Dives, who,
being clothed in purple and fine linen, lived in
mirth and splendor every day. And there was a
certain beggar named Lazarus, who laid at this rich
man's gate, covered with sores and desiring to be
fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's
table; yes, even the dogs came and licked his sores.
And it came to pass that the beggar died and was
carried away by the angels to rest in Abraham's
bosom. And then, presently, this rich man also died
and was buried with great pomp and regal splendor.
When the rich man departed from this world, he waked
up in Hades, and finding himself in torment, he
lifted up his eyes and beheld Abraham afar off and
Lazarus in his bosom. And then Dives cried aloud:
`Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send over
Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in
water to cool my tongue, for I am in great anguish
because of my punishment.' And then Abraham replied:
`My son, you should remember that in your lifetime
you enjoyed the good things while Lazarus in like
manner suffered the evil. But now all this is
changed, seeing that Lazarus is comforted while you
are tormented. And besides, between us and you there
is a great gulf so that we cannot go to you, neither
can you come over to us.' Then said Dives to
Abraham: `I pray you send Lazarus back to my
father's house, inasmuch as I have five brothers,
that he may so testify as to prevent my brothers
from coming to this place of torment.' But Abraham
said: `My son, they have Moses and the prophets; let
them hear them.' And then answered Dives: `No, No,
Father Abraham! but if one go to them from the dead,
they will repent.' And then said Abraham: `If they
hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they
be persuaded even if one were to rise from the
dead.'"
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After Peter had recited this ancient parable of the
Nazarite brotherhood, and since the crowd had
quieted down, Andrew arose and dismissed them for
the night. Although both the apostles and his
disciples frequently asked Jesus questions about the
parable of Dives and Lazarus, he never consented to
make comment thereon.
4. THE FATHER AND HIS KINGDOM
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Jesus always had trouble trying to explain to the
apostles that, while they proclaimed the
establishment of the kingdom of God, the Father in
heaven was
not a king. At the time Jesus lived on earth and
taught in the flesh, the people of Urantia knew
mostly of kings and emperors in the governments of
the nations, and the Jews had long contemplated the
coming of the kingdom of God. For these and other
reasons, the Master thought best to designate the
spiritual brotherhood of man as the kingdom of
heaven and the spirit head of this brotherhood as
the Father in
heaven. Never did Jesus refer to his Father as a
king. In his intimate talks with the apostles he
always referred to himself as the Son of Man and as
their elder brother. He depicted all his followers
as servants of mankind and messengers of the gospel
of the kingdom.
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Jesus never gave his apostles a systematic lesson
concerning the personality and attributes of the
Father in heaven. He never asked men to believe in
his Father; he took it for granted they did. Jesus
never belittled himself by offering arguments in
proof of the reality of the Father. His teaching
regarding the Father all centered in the declaration
that he and the Father are one; that he who has seen
the Son has seen the Father; that the Father, like
the Son, knows all things; that only the Son really
knows the Father, and he to whom the Son will reveal
him; that he who knows the Son knows also the
Father; and that the Father sent him into the world
to reveal their combined natures and to show forth
their conjoint work. He never made other
pronouncements about his Father except to the woman
of Samaria at Jacob's well, when he declared, "God
is spirit."
169:4.3
You learn about God from Jesus by observing the
divinity of his life, not by depending on his
teachings. From the life of the Master you may each
assimilate that concept of God which represents the
measure of your capacity to perceive realities
spiritual and divine, truths real and eternal. The
finite can never hope to comprehend the Infinite
except as the Infinite was focalized in the
time-space personality of the finite experience of
the human life of Jesus of Nazareth.
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Jesus well knew that God can be known only by the
realities of experience; never can he be understood
by the mere teaching of the mind. Jesus taught his
apostles that, while they never could fully
understand God, they could most certainly
know him,
even as they had known the Son of Man. You can know
God, not by understanding what Jesus said, but by
knowing what Jesus was. Jesus was a revelation of
God.
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Except when quoting the Hebrew scriptures, Jesus
referred to Deity by only two names: God and Father.
And when the Master made reference to his Father as
God, he usually employed the Hebrew word signifying
the plural God (the Trinity) and not the word
Yahweh, which stood for the progressive conception
of the tribal God of the Jews.
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Jesus never called the Father a king, and he very
much regretted that the Jewish hope for a restored
kingdom and John's proclamation of a coming kingdom
made it necessary for him to denominate his proposed
spiritual brotherhood the kingdom of heaven. With
the one exception -- the declaration that "God is
spirit" -- Jesus never referred to Deity in any
manner other than in terms descriptive of his own
personal relationship with the First Source and
Center of Paradise.
169:4.7
Jesus employed the word God to designate the
idea of
Deity and the word Father to designate the
experience
of knowing God. When the word Father is employed to
denote God, it should be understood in its largest
possible meaning. The word God cannot be defined and
therefore stands for the infinite concept of the
Father, while the term Father, being capable of
partial definition, may be employed to represent the
human concept of the divine Father as he is
associated with man during the course of mortal
existence.
169:4.8
To the Jews, Elohim was the God of gods, while
Yahweh was the God of Israel. Jesus accepted the
concept of Elohim and called this supreme group of
beings God. In the place of the concept of Yahweh,
the racial deity, he introduced the idea of the
fatherhood of God and the world-wide brotherhood of
man. He exalted the Yahweh concept of a deified
racial Father to the idea of a Father of all the
children of men, a divine Father of the individual
believer. And he further taught that this God of
universes and this Father of all men were one and
the same Paradise Deity.
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Jesus never claimed to be the manifestation of
Elohim (God) in the flesh. He never declared that he
was a revelation of Elohim (God) to the worlds. He
never taught that he who had seen him had seen
Elohim (God). But he did proclaim himself as the
revelation of the Father in the flesh, and he did
say that whoso had seen him had seen the Father. As
the divine Son he claimed to represent only the
Father.
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He was, indeed, the Son of even the Elohim God; but
in the likeness of mortal flesh and to the mortal
sons of God, he chose to limit his life revelation
to the portrayal of his Father's character in so far
as such a revelation might be comprehensible to
mortal man. As regards the character of the other
persons of the Paradise Trinity, we shall have to be
content with the teaching that they are altogether
like the Father, who has been revealed in personal
portraiture in the life of his incarnated Son, Jesus
of Nazareth.
169:4.11
Although Jesus revealed the true nature of the
heavenly Father in his earth life, he taught little
about him. In fact, he taught only two things: that
God in himself is spirit, and that, in all matters
of relationship with his creatures, he is a Father.
On this evening Jesus made the final pronouncement
of his relationship with God when he declared: "I
have come out from the Father, and I have come into
the world; again, I will leave the world and go to
the Father."
169:4.12
But mark you! never did Jesus say, "Whoso has heard
me has heard God." But he did say, "He who has
seen me
has seen the Father." To hear Jesus' teaching is not
equivalent to knowing God, but to
see Jesus
is an experience which in itself is a revelation of
the Father to the soul. The God of universes rules
the far-flung creation, but it is the Father in
heaven who sends forth his spirit to dwell within
your minds.
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Jesus is the spiritual lens in human likeness which
makes visible to the material creature Him who is
invisible. He is your elder brother who, in the
flesh, makes
known to you a Being of infinite attributes whom
not even the celestial hosts can presume fully to
understand. But all of this must consist in the
personal experience of the
individual
believer. God who is spirit can be known only as
a spiritual experience. God can be revealed to the
finite sons of the material worlds, by the divine
Son of the spiritual realms, only as a
Father.
You can know the Eternal as a Father; you can
worship him as the God of universes, the infinite
Creator of all existences.
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