Truths in the Gospel
The gospel is living. It is like a tree with a great trunk from which a great branch immediately comes forth, almost like a tree with two trunks, and from these two mighty upreaches of life come numerous other branches. By the trunk and the first branch I refer to the dual concept of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man.
This two-fold core has implications that spread out like a living network in which individual themes illumine each other in ever-new ways.
Jesus presented the gospel in a living way, knowing that truth, simply stated, would illumine the listener’s mind and soul; as a result, the door of the heart would be open to other truths. If we overteach, we oppress the intellect, block communication with the soul, waste our efforts, and create resistance to truth in the hearer.
If we are to live the gospel and teach it “in power and in the Holy Spirit,” our primary work is not scholarship but soaking in gospel truth until it penetrates our being, and growing, however slowly, as it increasingly pervades our interactions in our Father’s family.
Jesus gave different clusters of gospel truths as the occasion required. Intellectual hubris may try to create a definitive, systematized mega-list.
On a previous, much shorter list, I included quotes for each heading. https://sites.google.com/site/ubquestionsandstudies/a-gospel-school/the-many-sides-of-the-gospel
This particular list (my longest) I compiled by paging through Part IV, beginning with Jesus’ public career in his early sermon on the kingdom, and ending with his resurrection appearances.
The resulting list is yours to modify. Use it to select gospel themes that address the spiritual difficulties that you have identified in the people to whom you are reaching out.
By itself, a list of noun-phrases is dead. To come in contact with a superhuman expression of living truth, see the relevant portions of The Urantia Book.
At the end of this document are a few examples of Jesus’ expressions of the gospel in which we see the spontaneous gathering of clusters of themes, illuminate one another for their particular hearer(s).
The fatherhood of God 169:4/1855; 141:2/1588; 142:7/1604
Sonship with God “. . . this good news: That faith-quickened mortals are the sons of God." (1957.2 [181:2])
The brotherhood of man
The spirit of God within
Love 145:2.4/1629.5; 180:1/1944; 192:2.1-5/2047.5..
Mercy and forgiveness 146:2/1639:5; 146:3-7; the Jesus grievance procedure 159:1/1762; 165:3/1830; divine forgiveness 174:1/1898
Service 92:4.8/1008.1;
Faith and assurance 142:5/1601; 146:3/1641.7; 165:3.8/1820.7
Friendship with God 159:3.9/1766.5
Knowing the truth and living the truth 180:5.2/1949.4
Joy 178:1/1931
Liberty 178:1/1931
Righteousness 140:10.1/1584.4; 150:5.2/1682.4
Being like God 140:10.9/1585.7; becoming like God 1:0.4/22.1; character growth
Spiritual rebirth and salvation 142:6/1602; 150:5/1682; 165:3/1828..
Eternal life 181:1.2/1953; 191:4.2/2041.6; 193:1.2/2053.4
An eventual, glorious planetary destiny 143:1.4/1608.1
Prayer 144:2-5/1618-24; 1462:2/1638-41; 168:4/1848; 193:1/2053
Worship 92:4.8/1008.1; 193:1.2/2053.4; 144:7/1616;
Fear of the Lord 149:6/1675
The will of God 141:2/1488
Clarification regarding evil, sin, and iniquity 148:4/1659
Returning good for evil 140:5.24/1575.9
Understanding suffering 148:5/1661
Self-respect 156:5.14/1740.1; 159:3.3/1765.5
Spiritual force needed to overcome all earthly obstacles and personal resistance 166:3.8/1829.5
The dynamism of true religion 155:5-6/1728..
Science and religion 155:3.6/1727.6. 156:2.4/ 1736.1
Self-mastery 143:2/1609; anger 149:4/1673; contentment 149:5/1674
Sonship and citizenship 178:1/1929
Jesus’ divine sonship 152:5.6/1704.5; 165:2/1818-19; 162:5-6/1794-96;
Our divine sonship—and ours 152:5.6/1704.5; 156:2.6/1736.3; 164:5.1/1815.2
Sample passages for pondering
92:4.8 (1008.1) 4. Jesus of Nazareth. Christ Michael presented for the fourth time to Urantia the concept of God as the Universal Father, and this teaching has generally persisted ever since. The essence of his teaching was love and service, the loving worship which a creature son voluntarily gives in recognition of, and response to, the loving ministry of God his Father; the freewill service which such creature sons bestow upon their brethren in the joyous realization that in this service they are likewise serving God the Father.
140:10.9 (1585.7) John asked Jesus, “Master, what is the kingdom of heaven?” And Jesus answered: “The kingdom of heaven consists in these three essentials: first, recognition of the fact of the sovereignty of God; second, belief in the truth of sonship with God; and third, faith in the effectiveness of the supreme human desire to do the will of God — to be like God. And this is the good news of the gospel: that by faith every mortal may have all these essentials of salvation.”
143:1.4 (1608.1) “I have come into this world to do the will of my Father and to reveal his loving character to all mankind. That, my brethren, is my mission. And this one thing I will do, regardless of the misunderstanding of my teachings by Jews or gentiles of this day or of another generation. But you should not overlook the fact that even divine love has its severe disciplines. A father’s love for his son oftentimes impels the father to restrain the unwise acts of his thoughtless offspring. The child does not always comprehend the wise and loving motives of the father’s restraining discipline. But I declare to you that my Father in Paradise does rule a universe of universes by the compelling power of his love. Love is the greatest of all spirit realities. Truth is a liberating revelation, but love is the supreme relationship. And no matter what blunders your fellow men make in their world management of today, in an age to come the gospel which I declare to you will rule this very world. The ultimate goal of human progress is the reverent recognition of the fatherhood of God and the loving materialization of the brotherhood of man.
193:1.2 (2053.4) “Peace be upon you. You rejoice to know that I am the resurrection and the life, but this will avail you nothing unless you are first born of the eternal spirit, thereby coming to possess, by faith, the gift of eternal life. If you are the faith sons of my Father, you shall never die; you shall not perish. The gospel of the kingdom has taught you that all men are the sons of God. And this good news concerning the love of the heavenly Father for his children on earth must be carried to all the world. The time has come when you worship God neither on Gerizim nor at Jerusalem, but where you are, as you are, in spirit and in truth. It is your faith that saves your souls. Salvation is the gift of God to all who believe they are his sons. But be not deceived; while salvation is the free gift of God and is bestowed upon all who accept it by faith, there follows the experience of bearing the fruits of this spirit life as it is lived in the flesh. The acceptance of the doctrine of the fatherhood of God implies that you also freely accept the associated truth of the brotherhood of man. And if man is your brother, he is even more than your neighbor, whom the Father requires you to love as yourself. Your brother, being of your own family, you will not only love with a family affection, but you will also serve as you would serve yourself. And you will thus love and serve your brother because you, being my brethren, have been thus loved and served by me. Go, then, into all the world telling this good news to all creatures of every race, tribe, and nation. My spirit shall go before you, and I will be with you always.”
JHW 2/2018