Jesus and Spiritual Liberty
By MaryJo – A Pilgrim Ponders
Jesus often spoke of spiritual liberty, or spiritual freedom. He spoke of setting the captives free. This article: 5 freedoms only Jesus can give by Alex McFarland talks about the Christian idea of freedoms that were supposedly won because of Jesus death through the so-called atonement. In my blog below, I want to discuss the ideas of spirirual freedom that Jesus promised throughout his LIFE, and that are available to all who enter the kingdom. But here’s the five things that the article discusses:
“It is significant to reflect on the freedoms we have through Jesus Christ. His hard-won victory on the cross gives us these five liberties:
- Freedom from guilt that all inherit
- Freedom from sinful deeds we personally commit
- Freedom within ourselves over personal struggles
- Freedom from judgment that is ultimately coming
- Freedom to face eternity, and our soul’s final destiny”
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I take some issue with some of the five freedoms that are discussed in this article above, but it’s really not my place to call out my Christian brethren for what they believe. Nevertheless, having been brought up in a church that was bloated with rules and regulations – a church that preached my inherent sinfulness – a church that blamed me and my sins (and God) for Jesus’ terrible death…well, I have to say that discovering The Urantia Book and the true teachings of Jesus was a truly liberating experience.
Ordinarily, this blog begins with a snippet from an article in the Christian press. I get ideas from certain articles; I like to comment on them using Urantia Book teachings. But at Easter, it is very depressing to find article after article about the atonement – how Jesus was a sacrifice for our terrible sins, and the sins of Adam. And, how God demanded this sacrifice. So, this Easter Week, I am making a blog that I hope will speak to all articles of that sort. They are just my personal musings, but I hope you can stick with me and see how The Urantia Book’s teachings about Jesus can really alter one’s perceptions of what’s real – and for the better!
All of us want to be happy. What stops us from achieving lasting happiness? This article: Jesus and the Psychology of Happiness by Shayne Looper caught my attention as a topic that could mean a lot to many people. Do the teachings of Jesus help us to find happiness? I’ll share some of my experiences with those teachings from The Urantia Book, but first here are some nice snips from the article, which is well-worth the read:
