John 4:48:
“Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe.”
In ancient times; before much was known about diseases and cures, just about every malady was on full display. The ancients were desperate for anyone who could be of assistance. Anyone who had any kind of higher reasoning, was considered a prophet. Prophets were expected to perform miracles, foretell the future, and heal people.
Jesus really wanted to share about how unselfish love could transform the world, but the emphasis was pressed upon him to perform physical acts of amazement to a population that felt the need to gratify their immediate need for solutions to their longing to be made physically well. He never told anyone they were made well in a physical sense, but that they could be made whole by their faith in God. With this in mind we can understand his dilemma.
Did Jesus actually multiply food for the masses? In ancient times, poor people made sure to take more than enough food and drink with them. Sharing all your food in the desert, could cost you your life, so when It was time to eat; the crowds were reluctant to eat in front of the large group; but were moved by the young man who brought out his loaf of bread and fish to be shared with Jesus.
Suddenly everyone decided to share. The same goes with the water into wine. Unselfishness prevailed. He didn’t want to be known as a faith healer and asked his zealous followers to downplay them; because this was not what he was about.
Was Lazarus actually brought back to life by Jesus after being dead for three days in the heat of the desert? Our spirit is born into this vessel we call our body at first breath, and leaves with the last breath. Breathing keeps the time our spirit is on this plane like clockwork. The body to be resurrected would have been in the depth of decaying.
(Just as an aside, the early Christians (mostly Jews) had to go underground. They were slaughtered for their belief in the Promise. Lit up as human torches at Roman parties…The leaders of Rome were afraid that their plan was to overthrow the government. If they were just asking God for forgiveness of syns, singing and passing the plate, I don’t think Rome would have seen them as a problem).
Again, Jesus message was so revolutionary, people wanted to claim many things about him.
Is it physically possible to walk on water?
The Greek and Roman gods could. Gods like Poseidon, and Orion could according to lore. The people wanted to share that Jesus had this ability too; to prove to the ancients, that the Jewish God was as good or better than the Pantheon of gods they worshiped.
How about the man who wandered the graveyard slashing his wrists?
The story says Jesus told the man he was being influenced by dark spirits and that he would send them into a bunch of pigs and they ran into the water and drown. Only one problem; ghosts can’t be drown. Jesus was practicing psychology here as they ceremoniously drown the pig.
As we already know, Jesus was most interested in preparing his followers for the continuation of their lives on the astral plane, as well as giving them the knowledge that would lead to “the kingdom of heaven on the earth”.
This kingdom, would be nothing like an earthly kingdom. No one to be crowned king or deified but God; the source of all that we know, and all that we are. He would finally be given control of everything through the sheer power of mankind practicing love and forgiveness, and reconciliation.
Jesus said the meek (representing all the everyday inhabitants of the known world) would act like “cells in one body”(my translation) to bring this about.
He taught that mankind was given the spiritual image of the Creator, and that through the connectedness of everyone; the entire course of history of the known world would be transformed; as mankind was to be taken from the bloodbath of war and self serving greed and hatred, to a place of unselfishness, peace and plenty.
A balanced planet.
Mankind was to bypass corrupt governments, and act together to make this global transformation. This was a time when word of mouth was the only means of communicating the message; long before access to the kind of connectedness the digital age has brought us to. He asked his fisherman followers to start fishing for people who could spread his message. Jesus sensed that the government would be against him, even as he taught this.
19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” 20 Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. – Matthew 16: 13-20.
Several hundred years after Jesus passed; leaders of the day were afraid that this Christian idea might eventually take down traditional control, so they organized the famous council of Nicaea in 325 ad. This part of his teaching was obviously deleted from record. This ‘body of mankind’ idea survived the council but is only seen long after Jesus death, in the writings of the Apostle Paul.
1 Corinthians 12
Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. … And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!
After all, was the reasoning; God gave us everything; and his teaching was that the responsibility of mankind was to take responsibility for the welfare of our planet, and all it’s inhabitants. He said only when we create the kingdom of heaven on earth; would we be able to experience it in the afterlife. Matthew 18:18
Also please see: THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT: Matthew 5.
Jesus was a Jew. The Jewish religion was the first break out religion. Ancients were still making idols to a pantheon of gods; while Judaism laid claim realization that there was just one God, they called YHVH, witch means “The unutterable name.” For this they were called the chosen people. Maybe this is a mistaken word, because we are all part and parcel of God’s energy; but God had prepared this tribe of people to receive a messiah that they still wait for.
Nevertheless, if Jesus teachings were the software, the Jewish people were also hard-wired to survive and thrive. As is normally the case with blessings, comes a curse. Jealousy of their odd worship to one God; bypassing the pantheon gods worshiped by the ancients; weren’t the only jealousy people held against them. They were also envious of their talent, and ability to create fortune. This led to the many atrocities instituted against them from early times.
Not only did they have that understanding; they also taught about God’s unconditional love and forgiveness. Something Jesus picked up on. (See The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32).
Jesus did a lot of talking about the light in you. He taught that only through manifesting God’s love in the world through unselfishness, could we grow the light in us. That it was important for everyone to become who they fully can be in order to contribute to the ideal for which this was all created. Ancients knew that syn is a Greek archery term; pre-dating Jesus; meaning “Missing the mark”; not being true to your best character.
The ancient Jewish people had already figured out that God was unconditional and therefore non judgmental; but they still lived in an age where they felt the need to sacrifice animals to God for forgiveness. This practice though totally unnecessary, can be traced back to pagan religions.
In actuality no matter your religion, or even lack of it; the practice of unselfish love to the people of the world, and respecting the planet is how we grow our light.
There is no judgment day when you pass from this plane; only a life review. We will clearly be able to see the light in us or the lack of it.
Our understanding and practice of these spiritually positive principles make us new people, and new people work together to create a new earth and therefore a new Heaven. If all of humanity were to be destroyed, there would be no hope for Heaven on the astral plane. “The light we bring here will always be the light we take there. ” In the beginning there was a Promise; and the Promise was with God, and the Promise WAS GOD. Jesus was the first person to ‘flesh it out’. If everything we know is composed of Gods’ energy, all of humanity must bring it about.
As God’s highest creation on this earth; it is left to all of mankind to turn the key.
All that God left us to do is complete the picture. Jesus’ death was a tragedy; but his truth will still set us free. He was not the Creator, nor was he the author of this truth; but when we take in Universal Truth; and practice it; this truth is made flesh in us too. This is the power of belief. Alone we can do nothing, but together we can do anything.
mcalester matters 