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The New Teacher-Leaders
A Training Manual

I Our Call
II The Spirituality Requirement
1 The Birth of the Spirit
2 Showing Forth the Fruits of the Spirit
3 What Are the Fruit of the Spirit?
4 Growing Up to Spiritual Adulthood
5 Jesus Lives Again in Us
III The Spiritual Regeneration Requirement
1 First, Be Spiritually Regenerated Ourselves
2 Spiritual Regeneration of Others through Personal Contact
3 Why Exclusively devoted to Spiritual Regeneration?
4 Working for Spiritual Regeneration
IV The Requirement to Depend Solely on Jesus
1 Why the Exclusivity Requirement?
2 Distinguish the Religion of Jesus from the Religion about Jesus
3 Jesus’ Incomparable Teachings
4 The Value of Jesus’ Life Demonstrating His Teachings
5 Only Jesus and his Teachings Possess the Power to Triumph over the Modern Threats to
Civilization and Bring the Spiritual Renaissance
V How Do We Work for the Spiritual Renaissance while Depending Solely on Jesus?
1 Pray and Commune
2 The Spirit of Truth Is our Partner and Guide
3 Focus on the Best of the Bible, Jesus Actual Life and Teachings
4 A New Resource: The Life and Teachings of Jesus
VI The Future
1 Our Target Audience is the Christian World
2 Jesus’ Kingdom Presently Exists within the Christian Church
3 Focus on Awakening Slumbering Christian Believers
4 Unified Christians Will Help Bring the New Revelation to the World
5 The Gospel of the Kingdom
6 The Success of our Mission
7 Let Us Go Forward

The New Teacher-Leaders

A Training Manual
I Our Call

There are many hopeful and inspiring statements about our future in the Urantia
Book, but few can match the promise and opportunity that is foretold in the following
lines:
Religion does need new leaders, spiritual men and women who will dare to
depend solely on Jesus and his incomparable teachings. (19:9.3/2082)
...the spiritual renaissance must await the coming of these new teachers of Jesus’
religion who will be exclusively devoted to the spiritual regeneration of men.
(19:9.3/2082)
Let us reflect upon the amazing implications of these statements. The revelators
are telling us that our world is in need of new teachers of Jesus’ religion. And they are
prophesying the coming of these new teachers, predicting that these new religious leaders
will help bring a spiritual renaissance to our “dark and confused world.”
(See Appendix 1.1 To Whom Is This Great Call Directed?)
In many places the revelators point out that today’s world is beset by serious
problems. The greatest of these are materialistic secularism, unceasing social
transformation, and spiritual stagnation. New religious leaders are desperately needed to
answer these problems by turning our world back to the true religion of Jesus.
(See Appendix 1.2 Our Present Situation: World Crisis and the Need for Spiritual
Religion)
Yes, we do face serious problems, but great things lie ahead, and we are called to
participate! We are called to join in a great adventure! Here is how the revelators describe
what is to happen on our world and the thrilling possibilities that lie in our future:
The call to the adventure of building a new and transformed human society by
means of the spiritual rebirth of Jesus’ brotherhood of the kingdom should thrill all
who believe in him as men have not been stirred since the days when they walked about
on earth as his companions in the flesh. (195:10.6/2084; my bold)
The time for a new revelation of Jesus has come! The leaders of this new
revelation will bring about the spiritual rebirth of Jesus’ brotherhood of the kingdom.

They will spark a great new spiritual renaissance. For those who feel inclined to help
bring about this new revelation, three fundamental requirements are set forth.

The Three Fundamental Requirements
The new teacher-leaders must:
(1) Be “spiritual men and women”

(2) “Be exclusively devoted to the spiritual regeneration of men”
(3) “Dare to depend solely on Jesus and his incomparable teachings”
If we seek membership in this now forming corps of new teacher-leaders it is
good to reflect upon each of these requirements. We will find that, just as the task is
great, so also are the requirements. What follows may be thought of as a guide and basic
training manual for those who aspire to become new teacher-leaders. As we ponder what
role we might play in this great adventure let us be mindful what Jesus requires of his
followers:
In accordance with the truth committed to your hands will the Master of truth
demand a reckoning. (176:3.8/1918)

II The Spirituality Requirement

The first and most basic requirement for the new teacher-leaders is that they be
“spiritual men and women.” What does it mean to be “spiritual”?
Spirituality is a reflection of our closeness to God; it is the measure of our
attunement to his indwelling spirit. It is directly proportional to the elimination of the
selfish qualities of love. And crucially, it is also a measure of the effectiveness of our
spiritual ministry. Here is how the revelators put it:

Spirituality becomes at once the indicator of one’s nearness to God and the
measure of one’s usefulness to fellow beings. (100:2.4/1096; my bold)

1 The Birth of the Spirit

The essential first step to becoming a spiritual person is to be “born of the spirit.”
What is the “birth of the spirit”?

The “birth of the spirit” is the change of mind that occurs when we
wholeheartedly choose to do the Father’s will. When we make this choice his indwelling
spirit is born into the light of our faith. Jesus explained it to Nicodemus this way:

Already does this spirit of the Father in heaven indwell you. If you would be led
by this spirit from above, very soon would you begin to see with the eyes of the spirit, and
then by the wholehearted choice of spirit guidance would you be born of the spirit since
your only purpose in living would be to do the will or your Father who is in heaven.
(142:6.7/1602)

It is important to realize that the birth of the spirit is a gradual process and is
mostly unconscious. When the process is complete it culminates in a “birthday.” Here is
how the revelators describe it:

Religion is functional in the human mind and has been realized in experience
prior to its appearance in human consciousness. A child has been in existence about nine
months before it experiences birth. But the "birth" of religion is not sudden; it is rather a
gradual emergence. Nevertheless, sooner or later there is a "birth day. (103:2.1/1130)

2 Showing Forth the Fruits of the Spirit

Since the birth of the spirit is a gradual process that is mostly unconscious, how
may we know if we have been born of the spirit? Put simply, if we are born of the spirit
we will begin to show forth the fruits of the spirit in our daily lives. Here is what Jesus
said:

…those who are born of the spirit will immediately begin to show forth the fruits
of the spirit in loving service to their fellow creatures. (193:2.2/2054)

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. (193:1.2/2053)

If professed believers bear not these fruits of the divine spirit in their lives, they
are dead. (193:2.2/2054)

We must also realize that the Father requires of his faithful followers not only that
they bear the fruits of the spirit, but also that they grow and progress in spiritual fruit
bearing. As we continue in the Father’s will we must increasingly show forth spiritual
fruit in our personal lives. Hear is how Jesus put it:

Increasingly must you yield the fruit of the spirit as you progress heavenward in
the kingdom of God. (193:2.2/2054)

My Father requires of the children of faith that they bear much spiritual fruit.
(193:2.2/2054)

3 What Are the Fruit of the Spirit?

“What are the fruits of the spirit? Basically they are the character traits that result
from our connection with God’s indwelling spirit. They are the characteristics of the
Spirit that flow through us and we exhibit in our life reactions. The domination of a
human life by the Father’s spirit is always accompanied by a growth in these perfections
of character. Following is a listing of some of the fruits of the spirit. The first list we are
familiar with from the Bible:

…the fruits of the spirit are love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith, meekness, and temperance. (34:6.13/381)

Jesus presented a second list at one of his last appearances:

And the fruits of the divine spirit which are yielded in the lives of spirit-born and
God-knowing mortals are: loving service, unselfish devotion, courageous loyalty, sincere
fairness, enlightened honesty, undying hope, confiding trust, merciful ministry, unfailing
goodness, forgiving tolerance, and enduring peace. (193:2.2/2054)

In fact, the fruit of the spirit are basically the character traits that Jesus
demonstrated in his perfected life on earth.

When man yields the "fruits of the spirit" in his life, he is simply showing forth the
traits which the Master manifested in his own earthly life. (194:3.1/2062)

So our first job is to be born of the spirit, but this spirit birth must be immediately
followed by spiritual fruit bearing. We must increasingly and spontaneously bear this
spiritual fruit throughout our lives. This is our ever-present goal and the measure of our
spiritual progress. As we go through life we may inquire of ourselves, “Am I increasingly
showing forth the fruits of the spirit in my daily life?” If we are, we may be confident that
we are advancing in the required spiritual training to become an effective teacher-leader.
And in this long spiritual journey it is good to remind ourselves that:

The quickest way for a tadpole to become a frog is to live loyally each day a
tadpole. (100:1.4/1094)

4 Growing Up to Spiritual Adulthood

We cannot stand still in the kingdom. We must go forward, and the culminating
result of such growth and advancement is spiritual adulthood and maturity. As new
teacher-leaders we must understand that to effectively reveal Jesus we will have to reach
spiritual adulthood. We are called to be living examples of the mature spirituality that
may be attained by a true follower of Jesus. Here is what he taught about growing up to
spiritual adulthood and maturity:

You may enter the kingdom as a child, but the Father requires that you grow up,
by grace, to the full stature of spiritual adulthood. (193:2.2/2054; my bold)

Childlike trust secures man's entrance into the kingdom of heavenly ascent, but
progress is wholly dependent on the vigorous exercise of the robust and confident faith
of the full-grown man. (102:1.1/1118; my bold)

Though Jesus taught that faith, simple childlike belief, is the key to the door of the
kingdom, he also taught that, having entered the door, there are progressive steps of
righteousness which every believing child must ascend in order to grow up to the full
stature of the robust sons of God.
(170:3.2/1861; my bold)
(See Appendix 1.3 Four Step Progression to Spiritual Adulthood)

5 Jesus Lives Again in Us

Spiritual adulthood and maturity qualifies us to progress to an even higher state of
spirituality. This is the level wherein Jesus, through his indwelling spirit of Truth, is
enabled to live again in us. The most successful teacher-leaders will reach this exalted
state. This will make them truly effective representatives and ministers of Jesus. It is this
level of spirituality that the revelators call for:

The world needs to see Jesus living again on earth in the experience of spirit-
born mortals who effectively reveal the Master to all men. (195:10.1/2084; my bold)

The new teacher-leaders are called to attain that level of spirituality such that their
lives naturally reflect Jesus and his inner spirit. Just as Jesus provided a living
demonstration of his religion to his day and age, so are we called to be the living
demonstrations of Jesus and his teachings to our modern world. We must be spirit-filled
such that when others see us they may see Jesus!

(See Appendix 1.4 Jesus Lives Again in Us)
(See Appendix 1.5 Summary of the Spirituality Requirement)

For further study and contemplation to guide us in attaining the requisite
spirituality the following are highly recommended:

(See Appendix 2 “Meditation in The Urantia Book” by Peter Holly)
Paper 100 Religion in Human Experience. The Urantia Book

Sample Prayers:

“May I increasingly show forth the fruit of the spirit in my daily life.”
“Jesus, live again in me.”
“Jesus, fill me with your spirit.”
“Jesus, shine through me.”

III The Spiritual Regeneration Requirement

The second major requirement we will consider is the directive that we be
“exclusively devoted to the spiritual regeneration of men.” Notice that this directive gives

us a clear and well-defined goal, the “spiritual regeneration” of others. This is the specific
and exclusive work we are called to, and it gives focus and power to our efforts.

1 First, Be Spiritually Regenerated Ourselves

If we truly seek to be a force for spiritual regeneration in others we should
recognize that to be most effective we must be spiritually regenerated ourselves. Only
after having been born of the spirit and having achieved a sufficient measure of spiritual
advancement, are we are rightly prepared to effect spiritual regeneration in others.

2 Spiritual Regeneration of Others through Personal Contact

We must realize that our greatest power to spark spiritual regeneration will come
not through our teachings, but rather through the contact of others with our spirit-filled
presence. It is the example of our spirit-dominated life, especially in the midst of our
secular and materialistic world, that will be most effective in inspiring spiritual
regeneration in others.

3 Why Exclusively devoted to Spiritual Regeneration?

We should also note that we are called to be exclusively devoted to spiritual
regeneration. Why exclusively? Here is the context in which we find the exclusivity
requirement:

If Christianity persists in neglecting its spiritual mission while it continues to busy
itself with social and material problems, the spiritual renaissance must await the coming
of these new teachers of Jesus' religion who will be exclusively devoted to the spiritual
regeneration of men. (195:9.4/2082)

Thus we see that the reason for exclusively devoting ourselves to spiritual
regeneration derives from the fact that Christianity has increasingly neglected its spiritual

mission and substituted a focus on social and material problems. Professed followers of
Jesus have become diverted from his commission to “effect the spiritual transformation
of successive generations of mankind.” (195:9.10/2083)
We are to avoid the mistake of Christianity. We must not be distracted and
diverted from our work; we are called to an exclusively spiritual mission. As new teacher-
leaders we must focus our efforts on this one clear goal—the spiritual regeneration of
our fellow man.

4 Working for Spiritual Regeneration

So how do we go about working for spiritual regeneration?
We may take our first step by simply choosing to work for this goal. We can
make it a conscious practice in our everyday life. It involves a new way of looking at
others and a new way of interacting with them. It is to see them, not through the lens of
our differences, but rather as fellow children of God whom we seek to advance
spiritually.
We add power to our efforts by praying that we may be a force for spiritual
regeneration in others. We may pray that Jesus live again in us and that he work through
us to spiritually inspire and uplift those we contact. Here is the ideal the revelators call us
to live up to:

Jesus' disciples should be more than conquerors, even overflowing sources of
inspiration and enhanced living to all men. (195:10.1/2084)

IV The Requirement to Depend Solely on Jesus

The last major requirement we will consider is the directive that we “dare to
depend solely on Jesus and his incomparable teachings.”

(See Appendix 1.6 The Need for Courage)

1 Why the Exclusivity Requirement?

Let us consider the exclusivity requirement. Why are we called to depend solely
on Jesus and his teachings? Why not, for example, depend on the best of Christianity,
which the Urantia Book calls “the best of the religions of the twentieth century?” Or why
not depend on a synthesis of the greatest teachings of all the world’s religions?

2 Distinguish the Religion of Jesus from the Religion about Jesus

There are three especially important reasons for this directive.
The first reason derives form the fact that the world knows Jesus only through the
lens of Christianity. Most people do not have any idea that there is a religion of Jesus that
is separate and apart from Christianity, which has evolved as a religion about Jesus. His
original gospel has been submerged within the overall Christian message. And the true
teachings of Jesus are identified with many non-Jesusonian teachings.
Further, Christianity early on began the process of applying all of Jesus’ teachings
regarding his spiritual kingdom to the temporal Christian church. To enter the kingdom,
to be born of the spirit and dedicate oneself to doing the Father’s will, was equated to
being baptized into the church. Thus an outward social organization was substituted for
Jesus concept of an inner spiritual kingdom. For these and other reasons Jesus’ teachings
must be clearly distinguished from the Christian message. Our work is to focus on and
exalt the teachings of Jesus.
(See Appendix 1.7 The Substitution Error)

3 Jesus’ Incomparable Teachings

A clue to the second reason for depending solely on Jesus and his incomparable
teachings is contained within the directive itself. His teachings are indeed incomparable.

They are the highest and greatest and most truly valuable teachings ever to appear on
planet earth. They are divine and perfect. All other teachings may be judged by their
compatibility with the teachings of Jesus. He is our touchstone to truth.

4 The Value of Jesus’ Life Demonstrating His Teachings

His teachings are best understood by observing the perfected life he lived on
earth. The perfection of personality and character he developed in living a trying and
testing earth life provides an ideal example for us to emulate in our own lives. Jesus life
is so valuable because it is not just a theoretical construct of an ideal moral philosophy,
but rather a living demonstration of the spiritual character he taught. This combination of
teaching the ideal character and then providing a real life example of that character is our
most valuable knowledge.

Of all human knowledge that which is of greatest value is to know the religious
life of Jesus and how he lived it. (196:1.3/2090)

(See Appendix 1.8 The Living Jesus)

5 Only Jesus and his Teachings Possess the Power to Triumph over the Modern

Threats to Civilization and Bring the Spiritual Renaissance

The third reason for the exclusivity requirement is the fact that only Jesus and his
incomparable teachings possess the power to bring about the spiritual renaissance. The
Urantia Book tells us that Christianity “has truly been one of the greatest powers for good
on the earth” (195:10.12/2085). It has done its job carrying the kingdom of Jesus’ concept
forward for 2000 years, up to and through our present material and secular age. But now
more is needed. Only Jesus and his personal religion possess the power to see us through
the three great problems that our world now faces: spiritual non-progression, materialistic
secularism, and unceasing social change. Only Jesus and his teachings possess the power
to stabilize us in this time of crisis and triumph over these modern threats to civilization.

Only through Jesus and his teachings will we attain the new spiritual renaissance. Here is
how the revelators put it:

Christianity has indeed done a great service to this world but what is now most
needed is Jesus. (195:10.1/2084; my bold)

(See Appendix 1.9 Summary of Reasons for the Exclusivity Requirement)

V How Do We Work for the Spiritual Renaissance while Depending Solely on Jesus?

We have discussed several reasons for depending solely on Jesus. Now let us turn
to another related question. How? How do we go about the prosecution of our task to

bring about a spiritual renaissance, all the while depending solely on Jesus and his
teachings?
(See Appendix 1.10 Learn, Live, and Teach the Way of Jesus)

1 Pray and Commune

Depending on Jesus begins with our inner life. We must consistently look to Jesus
within for help and guidance both in our personal lives and in our ministry.
Jesus said, “I am the vine, you are the branches.” This is a wonderful idea to
meditate on. Remember also his teaching to “abide in me” and “live in my love.” He
urges us to “commune freely with me” and to “maintain this living spiritual connection
with me.” (180:2.1/1945) These teachings, when followed, strengthen our inner life and
our ministry. In my experience the idea that we can maintain a spiritual connection with
Jesus is quite powerful.

2 The Spirit of Truth Is Our Partner and Guide

It should be clear that a revival of the actual teachings of Jesus that displaces the
Christian teachings about Jesus is a gigantic task, and will not be easy. However, we
may take solace and encouragement from the fact that our efforts to reveal Jesus will not
be solitary. We are not undertaking this great work alone. The Spirit of Truth will be our
full partner, in fact our guiding partner, in this great enterprise. The fact that Jesus’ Spirit
of Truth was poured out upon us at Pentecost means that we are specially equipped to
achieve our mission. In fact, our new revelation of Jesus’ life and teachings is really a
part of the on going mission of the Spirit of Truth to reveal Jesus to each new generation
of mortals on earth. Here is what the revelators tell us:

…the Spirit of Truth came to help the believer to witness to the realities of Jesus’
teachings and his life as he lived it in the flesh…. (194:2.6/2061; my bold)

This spirit was bestowed for the purpose of qualifying believers more effectively
to preach the gospel of the kingdom… (194:3.5/2063; my bold)

We should always remember and be strengthened by the fact that our revelation
of Jesus will be accomplished in partnership with his Spirit of Truth working in and
through us. We are not fighting alone, but rather in partnership with the God of the
universe. Jesus’ spirit will help and guide us. Our part is to maintain our spiritual
connection with him and grow ever more receptive to his spiritual guidance.
(See Appendix 1.11 Spiritual Weapons)

3 Focus on the Best of the Bible, Jesus Actual Life and Teachings

In seeking a revival of the actual teachings of Jesus we must keep in mind that the
world knows Jesus only through the Bible and Christianity. As much as we might wish
otherwise, the spiritual revival of Jesus and his actual teachings is not going to happen
through a widespread acknowledgement of the truth of the Urantia Book. The worldwide
acceptance of a 2000 page book that presents itself as a new revelation of truth will take
tine, and will really come to pass only after the present world crisis is behind us and we
have entered the new spiritual renaissance. I believe that The Urantia Book will be the
Bible of this oncoming new age; it will be like a third testament that will guide us in the
more spiritual age that is to follow our present material age.
This means that we cannot justify our teaching of Jesus by reference to the
Urantia Book. We must use the resources that are at hand, and our first and most basic
resource is the record of the life and teachings of Jesus as found in the New Testament
gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These records, sparse as they are in
comparison to the Urantia Papers, are our most basic resource. Besides the New
Testament gospels we have two other very important resources that will compliment our
usage of the Biblical record. First, we have the Urantia Book to deepen and broaden our
understanding of Scripture, correct errors, and clear up misinterpretations. Second, we
have Jesus’ indwelling spirit to both guide us and aid our ministry, and to work in others,
to aid their understanding and acceptance of our teaching.

4 A New Resource: The Life and Teachings of Jesus

Today I am happy to announce that there is another significant resource available
to us. I am referring to this book, The Life and Teachings of Jesus, which I first published
in 1991. It was created as a resource for those who seek to teach Jesus in the exclusive
manner mandated by the revelators. I began work on this book in the early 80’s. My goal
was to produce an acceptable and trustworthy source of truth that I could give to others
for guidance, comfort, and inspiration.
The basic idea for the book was to take all the true verses regarding Jesus from
the Bible and put them together in their proper sequence based on the chronology of The
Urantia Book. Erroneous passages, such as the virgin birth or walking on water, were
simply left out. The goal was to produce a book of Jesus’ life and teachings that would be
fully acceptable to most Christians and at the same time be fully harmonious with the
teachings of the Urantia Book.
My first use of the book was at graduation ceremonies at a small school I founded
many years ago. At these ceremonies I presented each departing student with a copy of
the book, and I am happy to report that it was always well received. More recently the
book has been given at graduation ceremonies at a small seminary in Texas. Also a
number of readers have reported that they have successfully used the book to teach
Sunday school. In India a group of some 30 pastors has used it for years to guide their
ministry. It has even been translated into Telegu, their native language, for wider
distribution. This group of Christian pastors uses both the Bible and The Life and
Teachings in their services.
I do believe this book can be a valuable tool in our efforts to expand the revelation
of Jesus. It provides us with a restatement of Jesus’ life and teachings that is wholly
constructed from Biblical passages, while at the same time it is free from the
misinterpretations, errors, and false doctrines, generally associated with the Bible and
Christianity. These words from the gospels are recognized and honored by Christians all
over the world and by many others as well. In fact, the pure life and teachings of Jesus,
freed from the surrounding Christian teachings and dogma, should also prove acceptable

both to non-believers and to those of other faiths. The book itself is always well received
as a gift, thereby providing an acceptable and trustworthy revelation of Jesus that we can
leave with others for guidance, comfort, and inspiration. It is an easy way to transmit the
true teachings of Jesus, here and now.

VI The Future

What does our future hold? What will be the results of our efforts? Following is an
outline of how I believe our mission will unfold.

1 Our Target Audience is the Christian World

As we dedicate ourselves to this undertaking it is instructive to first consider our
target audience, those who will be most receptive to our new message of Jesus. Here we
should clearly realize that our work must be directed primarily to the Christian world.
After all it is with Christians that we have the greatest affinity and shared beliefs, both
moral and spiritual. It is Christianity that recognizes and teaches Jesus as both the Son of
God and the Son of man. It is also Christianity that stands in desperate need of new
contact with Jesus and of deliverance from its error of emphasizing teachings about Jesus
to the detriment of the actual teachings of Jesus. And crucially, it is the Christian church
that contains within itself the actual kingdom of Jesus’ teaching—the divine brotherhood
of believers who have chosen to do the Father’s will. Here is how the revelators describe
the situation:

2 Jesus’ Kingdom Presently Exists within the Christian Church

Thus does the so-called Christian church become the cocoon in which the
kingdom of Jesus’ concept now slumbers. The kingdom of the divine brotherhood is
still alive and will eventually and certainly come forth from this long submergence, just
as surely as the butterfly eventually emerges as the beautiful unfolding of its less
attractive creature of metamorphic development. (170:5.21/1866; my bold)

We may learn much from these words; they contain three important insights:
First, the revelators make clear that Jesus’ brotherhood of the kingdom presently exists
within the Christian church. Second, they reveal that this divine brotherhood is in a
passive state, slumbering and submerged within Christianity. And third, they prophesy
that this brotherhood will eventually awaken and come forth in a higher and more
advanced form.

3 Focus on Awakening Slumbering Christian Believers

This prophecy points to a special focus for our efforts. This slumbering
brotherhood presently stands in need of awakening and spiritual rebirth. It is we who are
called to provide a new revelation of Jesus that will awaken these sleeping Christians to
higher levels of spiritual living. Bringing about the spiritual rebirth of Jesus’ brotherhood
of the kingdom will be our first major step in the initiation of the spiritual renaissance.
Here again is the revelators’ call:

The call to the adventure of building a new and transformed human society by
means of the spiritual rebirth of Jesus’ brotherhood of the kingdom should thrill all
who believe in him…. (195:10.6/2084; my bold)

4 Unified Christians Will Help Bring the New Revelation to the World

The Christian world is presently divided into many denominations, sects, and
cults. The only hope of a unification of Christianity lies in a return to Jesus’ original
gospel of the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of man. This is also part of our
work. By our exclusive focus on Jesus’ actual teachings we will supply the foundation for
the unification of the various Christian churches. And as this revival of Jesus and his
original gospel comes to Christianity, many believers will then join our efforts to bring
this gospel to the world at large. According to the Urantia Book this is the great hope of
our world:

The great hope of Urantia lies in the possibility of a new revelation of Jesus with
a new and enlarged presentation of his saving message which would spiritually unite in
loving service the numerous families of his present day professed followers.
(195:10.15/2086; my bold)

5 The Gospel of the Kingdom

What is this “saving message” that would spiritually unite the various Christian
cults? It is Jesus’ original gospel of the kingdom, the good news that we are all sons and
daughters of God, our loving heavenly Father, and brothers and sisters to one another. It
is this simple gospel of the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of man that has the
power to unite Christianity.
The kingdom Jesus taught is the Father’s will dominant and transcendent in the
heart of the believer. We enter the kingdom by faith in Jesus’ teaching that God is our
Father, and then by choosing to do our Father’s will. Jesus showed us the way to life in
the kingdom with his two great prayers, “your will be done,” and “Not my will but yours
be done.”
In his first appearance after the crucifixion Jesus made clear to his assembled
followers that, “Sonship with God by faith is still the saving truth of the gospel of the
kingdom.” (193:0.4/2052; my italics) He emphasized that what the world needs most to
know is that we are all sons and daughters of God and through faith we may actually
realize and daily experience this great truth. In our work we must always teach others to
see themselves as sons and daughters of God, our loving heavenly Father.

6 The Success of Our Mission

Will our efforts succeed? Consider these prophetic statements from the revelators
that outline both the history and future evolution of the religion of Jesus on our planet:

The teachings of Jesus, even though greatly modified, survived the mystery cults
of their birthtime, the ignorance and superstition of the dark ages, and are even now
slowly triumphing over the materialism, mechanism, and secularism of the twentieth
century. (195:9.3/2082; my bold)

[The Christian] church is only the larval stage of the thwarted spiritual kingdom,
which will carry it through this material age and over into a more spiritual dispensation
where the Master’s teachings may enjoy a fuller opportunity for development.
(170:5.21/1866; my bold)

The following quotes are two of my favorites. They foretell victory over the
powerful forces of materialism and secularism, and a wonderful new spiritual age to
follow:

A new and fuller revelation of the religion of Jesus is destined to conquer an
empire of materialistic secularism and to overthrow a world sway of mechanistic
naturalism. (195:9.2/2082; my bold)

Urantia is now quivering on the very brink of one of its most amazing and
enthralling epochs of social readjustment, moral quickening, and spiritual
enlightenment. (195:9.2/2082; my bold)

7 Let Us Go Forward

So, let us go forward! We have our marching orders and the encouraging vision of
our final triumph. We are to bring a new revelation of Jesus to our world, one that will
undo the teachings about Jesus and replace them with the actual teachings of Jesus. Our
work will spark a glorious new spiritual renaissance. We will awaken slumbering
Christian believers to a more inspiring vision of Jesus and a deeper, clearer understanding
of his original gospel. These newly awakened Christians will join our efforts to expand
the true religion of Jesus to both the Christian and the non-Christian worlds.
This revival of Jesus’ original gospel of the Fatherhood of God and the
brotherhood of man will also help to unite the various Christian churches. And a more
unified Christianity will contribute to the worldwide acceptance of Jesus and his actual
teachings. The religion of Jesus will eventually triumph and become the dominant world
religion in the new and more spiritual age we are now approaching.
The requirements to be an effective teacher-leader are great and not all will attain
the high level of spirituality required. However each person may participate in their own
way up to the level they choose. Just as there were various levels of devotion in Jesus’
followers, so there will be various levels of participation by those who work for the new

revelation. In large or small ways all may contribute to the coming triumph of the true
religion of Jesus. For example, one easy and effective way to advance Jesus and his
original teachings is to present The Life and Teachings of Jesus as a gift to family,
friends, and to those in distress. I have done this for years with great success and genuine
appreciation from those who received the book.
For those of you who truly feel this call to become a new teacher-leader, the first
step is simple. You may enlist now by whole-heartedly affirming this choice to your
Father within. Choose it, affirm it to God, and pray for his guidance and blessing.
Your initial training will focus on the first great requirement of becoming
“spiritual men and women.” You must be born of the spirit and undergo the long spiritual
assent through childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and maturity, to that high estate
wherein Jesus, through his spirit of truth, is enabled to live again in you. Essentially, this
means you must consistently choose to do the Father’s will and increasingly show forth
the fruits of his spirit in your daily life.
Remember, as new teacher-leaders we are called to both teach and lead. We teach
by restating Jesus’ actual teachings and we lead by living those teachings. Just as “a
picture is worth a thousand words,” it is our spirit-filled presence and our life example
that will make our ministry truly effective.
So let us be the ones who fulfill the Urantia Book’s prophecy of the coming of
new teacher-leaders. Let us be the ones who answer the call to bring to our “dark and
confused world” a new revelation of Jesus and a bright new spiritual renaissance.

Preston Thomas
2017 Fellowship International conference
University of Denver
July 21, 2017

Appendix #1

1.1 To Whom Is This Great Call Directed?
1.2 Our Present Situation: World Crisis and the Need for Spiritual Religion
Problem # 1 Lack of Spiritual Progress
The Problems of Modern Christianity
Problem #2 Social Transition to a New Age
The Need for the Stability of Religion in Times of Change
Personal Spiritual Religion as the Answer to the Crisis of Civilization
Problem #3 Modern Secularism
Summary of World Problems
1.3 Four Step Progression to Spiritual Adulthood
1.4 Jesus Lives Again in Us
1.5 Summary of the Spirituality Requirement
1.6 The Need for Courage
1.7 The Substitution Error
1.8 The Living Jesus
1.9 Summary of Reasons for the Exclusivity Requirement
1.10 Learn, Live, and Teach the Way of Jesus
1.11 Spiritual Weapons

Appendix 1

1.1 To Whom Is This Great Call Directed?

Let us consider this important and basic question: To whom is this great call
directed? And what part should we, the reader-believers in the Urantia revelation, play in
this great new revelation of Jesus?
In answering this question we must take into account the inescapable fact that this
call appears in the Urantia Book. Does it not mean that this call is directed to us, the
believers in the Urantia Revelation? After all, we are the ones who have been blessed to
receive the new and greater revelation of Jesus’ life and teachings. Are we meant to keep
this new revelation of Jesus to ourselves or share it with the world?
As the new revelation of Jesus expands and transforms our world many
others will join in this great effort, but it will begin with us. We must embrace the
fact that we are the select few who have received the Fifth Epochal Revelation of
Truth and we are called to bring this new revelation of Jesus to our world.

1.2 Our Present Situation: World Crisis and the Need for Spiritual Religion

This call for a new revelation of Jesus comes some 2000 years after the Master’s
bestowal on earth. It is instructive to ask, “Why now?” Why is this call directed to us
now at this particular point in world history?
The short answer to this question is that our world is in crisis and the only
effective answer to this crisis is a revival of Jesus’ religion of personal spiritual
experience. Spiritual progress, which will come through the world’s more general
acceptance the real religion of Jesus, is desperately needed to stabilize and guide us
through the existential challenges we now face.

Only the real religion of personal spiritual experience can function helpfully and
creatively in the present crisis of civilization. (99:2.1/1087; my bold)

This characterization of our world in crisis was originally written in the 1930’s;
the difficulties they describe have been verified by history and have only grown in
magnitude since that time. Our modern world faces ever more serious problems with each
passing year; they loom over us like the sword of Damocles, and threaten our very
existence. And they require true spiritual religion for their solution.
The revelators identify many serious problems that modern man must address, but
three stand out as the source of our greatest threats. Each of these challenges is fraught
with danger and each reinforces the others, thus adding to the severity of all. The first
step in effectively combating these problems is to clearly identify them and their
consequences.

Problem # 1 Lack of Spiritual Progress

The greatest problem our modern world faces is our lack of spiritual progress. We
live in a time that demands personal spiritual religion and trustworthy moral guidance,
but spiritual living is not progressing well on Urantia; in fact, it is not progressing at all.
Genuine spiritual religion, the answer to our modern problems, has not only ceased to
progress--it has become stagnate.

In the face of unprecedented scientific achievement and mechanical development
there is spiritual stagnation and philosophic chaos. (99:4.6/1090; my bold)

…modern civilization is at a standstill in spiritual development. (81:6.25/909; my
bold)

The Problems of Modern Christianity

Modern civilization is in crisis and desperately needs the genuine religion of
personal spiritual experience. But Christianity, our best hope among the modern
religions, is only a religion about Jesus; and in losing sight of his original teachings it
also lost the awesome potential and spiritual power of Jesus’ actual religion. Moreover,
Christianity itself has become secularized and lost much of its spiritual focus; it has been
diverted from its purely spiritual mission into secular and social work. It suffers from
many non-spiritual trends and is identified with the deficient moral standards of the social
systems and industrial policies of Western civilization.

The majority of professed Christians of Western civilization are unwittingly actual
secularists. (195:8.1/2081)

Paganized and socialized Christianity stands in need of new contact with the
uncompromised teachings of Jesus; it languishes for lack of a new vision of the master’s
life on earth. (195:9.2/2082)

In the end Christianity has failed to bring forth an acceptable level of spiritual
progress; it lacks the power to reverse the spiritual stagnation that besets our
world.

Problem #2 Social Transition to a New Age

Unfortunately, our lack of spiritual progress is not the only serious problem we
face. The advances brought about by the inventions of the Industrial Age and the spread
of knowledge that characterizes our present Information Age have transformed
civilization. We are in the midst of a historic transition from the old and passing order of
society to a new social order. We face a millennium of unceasing social change. This
unending change in the social, economic, and political arenas brings with it significant
challenges and dangers.
Here is how a Melchizedek describes our situation:

Mechanical inventions and the dissemination of knowledge are modifying
civilization…(99:1.1/1086)

Urantia society can never hope to settle down as in past ages. The social ship has
steamed out of the sheltered bays of established tradition and has begun its cruise upon
the high seas of evolutionary destiny. (99:1.3/1086)

This new and oncoming social order will not settle down complacently for a
millennium. The human race must become reconciled to a procession of changes,
adjustments, and readjustments. Mankind is on the march toward a new and unrevealed
planetary destiny. (99:1.1/1086)

Such times of significant social change as we are now experiencing are times of
great uncertainty and unsettledness. Constant change in the social, economic, and
political orders brings with it great potential for danger and disaster.

these dangerous times of transition from one phase of civilization to another, from
one level of culture to another. (99:1.3/1086)

During the psychologically unsettled times of the twentieth century, amid the
economic upheavals, the moral crosscurrents, and the sociologic rip tides of the cyclonic
transitions of a scientific era, thousands upon thousands of men and women have become
humanly dislocated; they are anxious, restless, fearful, uncertain, and unsettled…
(99:4.6/1090)
certain economic adjustments and social changes are imperative if cultural
disaster is to be avoided (99:1.1/1086)

The Need for the Stability of Religion in Times of Change

What is most needed in times of great change and upheaval is the stability
provided by sound morality and genuine spiritual religion. Our present transition
problems are made far more dangerous by the fact that traditional morality and religion
have been weakened by the advances of a scientific and materialistic age. Our lack of
spiritual progress has left our world without moral and spiritual anchorage in a time of
constant and accelerating change. This is a very dangerous situation. The revelators put
great emphasis on this need for true religion and moral guidance to see us through these
uncertain times of transition and unending change:

…as never before in the world's history [men and women] need the consolation
and stabilization of sound religion. (99:4.6/1090; my bold)

Religion must function to prevent these new and intimate interassociations from
becoming mutually retrogressive or even destructive. Religion must act as the cosmic salt
which prevents the ferments of progression from destroying the cultural savor of
civilization. (99:1.4/1087)

Personal Spiritual Religion as the Answer to the Crisis of Civilization

The modern problems resulting from spiritual stagnation combined with unending
social transformation are more dangerous and complex than anything we have faced in
the past. And the revelators make clear that nothing less than genuine spiritual religion
and true morality will suffice for their final solution.

Only the real religion of personal spiritual experience can function helpfully
and creatively in the present crisis of civilization. (99:2/1087)

Problem #3 Modern Secularism

The problems of spiritual non-progression and the dangers of unending social
change are made more acute by our third great problem—the devastating effects of
modern secularism. Since the Middle Ages society has become progressively
secularized. This growing power of secularism was effective in overcoming the
totalitarian control of life by the Catholic Church. It has also promoted material progress,
American industry, tolerance, civil rights, and democratic ideals. However, as the
revelators point out, the secular revolt against the totalitarian medieval church went too
far, and led to a revolt against God himself. Below is a sampling of the revelators’
depiction of the social and political problems we face as a result of modern secularism
and its disregard for, or denial of, God. With the benefit of some 80 years of history we
may clearly witness the truth of the revelators 1930’s characterization of our world as
well as their astoundingly accurate prophetic insight into our future.

But even after materialism and mechanism have been more or less vanquished,
the devastating influence of twentieth-century secularism will still blight the spiritual
experience of millions of unsuspecting souls. (195:8.1/2081; my bold)

For three hundred years Western thinking has been progressively secularized.
Religion has become more and more a nominal influence, largely a ritualistic exercise.
The majority of professed Christians of Western civilization are unwittingly actual
secularists. (195:8.3/2081; my bold)

Twentieth-century secularism tends to affirm that man does not need God. But
beware! this godless philosophy of human society will lead only to unrest, animosity,
unhappiness, war, and world-wide disaster. (195:8.5/2081; my bold)

This secularistic human society, notwithstanding its unparalleled materialistic
achievement, is slowly disintegrating. (195:8.10/2082; my bold)

Thus, the revelators warn us that modern secularism is a powerful force for evil in
our world. It blights the spiritual experience of millions and leaves the majority of

professed Christian believers without a genuine spiritual religion. In its rejection of the
totalitarian medieval church Western society went too far and this has brought about the
rise of the totalitarian political state. Denying God, replacing him with secular beliefs,
has fostered the slow disintegration of society; in losing belief in God we also lose the
glue holding us together. The revelators clearly warn us that turning away from God will
result in distress, unhappiness, animosity, destruction, and war on a world-wide scale.

Summary of World Problems

In summary, the question has been posed, “Why is the call for new teachers of
Jesus’ religion addressed to us now?” The answer to this question lies in present world
conditions. The revelators make clear that the world is now in crisis and the religion of
Jesus is needed to see us through. Three major elements of this crisis may be clearly
identified: lack of spiritual progress, the dangers inherent in the unending social
transformation, and the dire consequences of modern secularism. These elements
mutually reinforce each other and add to the severity of the challenges we must
overcome.
The religion of Jesus is required to combat and triumph over these modern threats
to our civilization. And this is why the Urantia revelation is calling for new teachers of
Jesus’ religion; they are needed now and in the coming years to secure the final victory
over secularism, to stabilize and guide us through 1000 years of social transformation,
and to set the world back on the path of genuine spiritual progress.

1.3 Four Step Progression to Spiritual Adulthood

The Urantia Book reveals a clear path to spiritual progression in Paper 170,
Section 3:

Though Jesus taught that faith, simple childlike belief, is the key to the door of the
kingdom, he also taught that, having entered the door, there are progressive steps of

righteousness which every believing child must ascend in order to grow up to the full
stature of the robust sons of God. (170:3.2/1861)

Faith is the price you pay for entrance into the family of God; but forgiveness is
the act of God which accepts your faith as the price of admission. And the reception of
the forgiveness of God by a kingdom believer involves a definite and actual experience
and consists in the following four steps, the kingdom steps of inner righteousness:

1. God's forgiveness is made actually available and is personally experienced by man just
in so far as he forgives his fellows.

2. Man will not truly forgive his fellows unless he loves them as himself.

3. To thus love your neighbor as yourself is the highest ethics.

4. Moral conduct, true righteousness, becomes, then, the natural result of such love.
(170:3.3-4/1861-62)

1.4 Jesus Lives Again in Us

This concept of Jesus living again in us is revealed in several places in the Urantia
Book:

As the indwelling spirit of the "new teacher," the Master has, since Pentecost,
been able to live his life anew in the experience of every truth-taught believer.
(194:3.1/2062; my bold)

…the Spirit of Truth came to help the believer to witness to the realities of Jesus’
teachings and his life as he lived it in the flesh and as he now again lives it anew and
afresh in the individual believer of each passing generation of the spirit-filled sons of
God. (194:2.6/2061; my bold)

1.5 Summary of the Spirituality Requirement

In summary the successful achievement of the spirituality requirement will
involve our traversal of the following levels of spiritual progression:

(1) First, we must choose to do the Father’s will and thus be born of the spirit.
(2) We must go forward throughout our lives increasingly giving forth the fruit of the
spirit.
(3) The fruit of the spirit include: love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith, temperance, meekness, patience, self-control, and self-mastery.
(4) If we observe in our daily lives that we are increasingly showing forth the fruit of the
spirit we may know that we are advancing spiritually.
(5) Having been born of the spirit we must advance through infancy, childhood, teen
years, to spiritual adulthood and maturity. This will take time.
(6) Advancing to spiritual adulthood and maturity qualifies us to reach that exalted stage
where Jesus in enabled to live again in us.
(7) The most effective teacher-leaders will reach this stage and become living
demonstrations of Jesus and his teachings to our world. They will be spirit-filled
examples of Jesus’ religion such that when others see them they can see Jesus.

1.6 The Need for Courage

The first thing we may note here is that we will be called upon to manifest
courage. We are to “dare to depend solely on Jesus and his incomparable teachings.”
This differs from the norm; most depend upon established religion for their religious
teachings. We need courage because we are teaching a new religion, the personal religion
of Jesus, in place of Christianity, the established religion about Jesus. In this sense we are
going against the grain of history and tradition. This will require great courage as well as
discretion and wisdom. Also, we live in a secular and materialistic age that tends to deny
true religion, and courage is required to espouse a religious point of view in the face of

widespread disbelief. So, as we go about our work bringing the world to a new
understanding of Jesus, let us remember the Master’s exhortation to:

“Be of good courage.” (176:2.3/1914)

1.7 The Substitution Error

This undertaking is complicated by the fact that the actual religion of Jesus and
his inspiring life example have become submerged and distorted within Christianity. The
teachings of Jesus have been effectively displaced by Christian teachings about Jesus;
and the social brotherhood of the Christian church has been substituted for Jesus’
spiritual brotherhood of the kingdom. Thus the teachings of Jesus are now combined and
confused in the minds both Christians and non-Christians with many other teachings,
such as those of Paul and the apostles, as well as traditions, dogmas, and creeds of the
early church leaders.
The following quotes from the Urantia Book help make clear the substitution
error and the problems it causes for understanding and realizing Jesus actual kingdom
teachings:

… his early followers who went about to create a sociophilosophical system of
belief regarding the fact of Michael's sojourn on earth. In a short time the teaching of
this story about Jesus nearly supplanted the preaching of Jesus' gospel of the kingdom.
In this way a historical religion displaced that teaching in which Jesus had blended
man's highest moral ideas and spiritual ideals with man's most sublime hope for the
future—eternal life. And that was the gospel of the kingdom. (170:5.19/1866; my bold)

The church, as a social outgrowth of the kingdom, would have been wholly
natural and even desirable. The evil of the church was not its existence, but rather that it
almost completely supplanted the Jesus concept of the kingdom. Paul's institutionalized
church became a virtual substitute for the kingdom of heaven which Jesus had
proclaimed. (170:5.7/1864; my bold)

The kingdom of Jesus' teaching, the spiritual ideal of individual righteousness and
the concept of man's divine fellowship with God, became gradually submerged into the
mystic conception of the person of Jesus as the Redeemer-Creator and spiritual head of a
socialized religious community. In this way a formal and institutional church became the
substitute for the individually spirit-led brotherhood of the kingdom. (170:5.9/1864; my
bold)

The church was an inevitable and useful social result of Jesus' life and teachings;
the tragedy consisted in the fact that this social reaction to the teachings of the kingdom
so fully displaced the spiritual concept of the real kingdom as Jesus taught and lived it.
(170:5.10/1864; my bold)

In this manner the kingdom became the concept of an age, the idea of a future
visitation, and the ideal of the final redemption of the saints of the Most High. The early
Christians (and all too many of the later ones) generally lost sight of the Father-and-son
idea embodied in Jesus' teaching of the kingdom, while they substituted therefor the well-
organized social fellowship of the church. The church thus became in the main a social
brotherhood which effectively displaced Jesus' concept and ideal of a spiritual
brotherhood. (170:5.15/1865; my bold)

Paul and his contemporaries applied all of Jesus' spiritual implications regarding
himself and the individual believer to the church as a group of believers; and in doing
this, they struck a deathblow to Jesus' concept of the divine kingdom in the heart of the
individual believer. (170:5.17/1865)

Thus it is clear that the historical Jesus of Galilee and his basic religious teaching,
the gospel of the kingdom, has become submerged within Christianity. His kingdom
teaching, that we are all children of the loving heavenly Father, is often neglected in
favor of teachings of Paul and other Christian leaders.

In modern times there is great confusion because of the association of the
teachings of Jesus with other Christian writers. Instead of clearly exalting Jesus’ actual
teachings above all others, New Testament and even Old Testament teachings tend to be
treated with equal validity; thus the incomparable teachings of Jesus suffer from dilution
with other teachings of lesser value. Christianity, through the substitution of its own
teachings for those of Jesus, has become only a religion about Jesus, not the actual
religion of Jesus. And in so doing it has lost much of its power for spiritual progress and
moral guidance in a world of growing moral confusion and spiritual stagnation.

1.8 The Living Jesus

It is important for our understanding that we clearly recognize the two distinct
concepts of “the living Jesus” presented by the revelators. Both are central to our new
revelation of Jesus. We have already discussed one meaning, Jesus living again in our
hearts and minds. This is “the living Jesus” that shines through us and enables us to
provide a real life demonstration of living the way of Jesus. This reflecting of “the living
Jesus” by the life we lead is an essential part of the revelators plan for the spiritual
baptism and renewal of our planet.
However, there is another crucially important sense in which “the living Jesus” is
central to our revelation. This is “the living Jesus” as contrasted with “the crucified
Christ,” whose perfected life on earth provides our most valuable knowledge. In our
study of Jesus we naturally tend to emphasize his teachings and give much less attention
to his life. However his inspirational life story of demonstrating those teachings is of the
highest value to our spiritual progression. Just as it is much easier to learn a new physical
skill when we have a visual demonstration, so we may best learn the way of Jesus by
studying his real life actions and reactions.

Of all human knowledge, that which is of greatest value is to know the religious
life of Jesus and how he lived it. (196:1.3/2091)

One of the most important things in human living is to find out what Jesus
believed, to discover his ideals, and to strive for the achievement of his exalted life
purpose