The Urantia Book Fellowship

The Challenges of Faith in the Quest for Cosmic Citizenship:
5. Supplemental Study: Stages of Faith Development in the Life of Jesus

Developmental Stages in the Life of Jesus

A thorough study of Part IV of The Urantia Book will lead the student into a much deeper appreciation for what was involved in the traversal of these stages in the life of the Master. The following is only an outline provided for use by the reader in the pursuit of a deeper study.

"Thus ends the career of the Nazareth lad, and begins the narrative of that adolescent youth‑‑the increasingly self‑conscious divine human‑‑who now begins the contemplation of his world career as he strives to integrate his expanding life purpose with the desires of his parents and his obligations to his family and the society of his day and age." 124:6.18

The return of Ganid and Gonod to India marked the end of the chapter in Jesus' life which might be termed, "the mission of Joshua the teacher. 133:9.6

"Jesus now entered upon the fourth and last stage of his human life in the flesh. The first stage was that of his childhood, the years when he was only dimly conscious of his origin, nature, and destiny as a human being. The second stage was the increasingly self‑conscious years of youth and advancing manhood, during which he came more clearly to comprehend his divine nature and human mission. This second stage ended with the experiences and revelations associated with his baptism." 157:6.3

 "The third stage of the Master's earth experience extended from the baptism through the years of his ministry as tegether and healer and up to this momentous hour of Peter's confession at Caesarea‑Philippi. This third period of his earth life embraced the times when his apostles and his immediate followers knew him as the Son of Man and regarded him as the Messiah." 157:6.3

"The fourth and last period of his earth career began here at Caesarea‑Philippi and extended on to the crucifixion. This stage of his ministry was characterized by his acknowledgment of divinity and embraced the labors of his last year in the flesh. During the fourth period, while the majority of his followers still regarded him as the Messiah, he became known to the apostles as the Son of God. Peter's confession marked the beginning of the new period of the more complete realization of the truth of his supreme ministry as a bestowal Son on Urantia and for an entire universe, and the recognition of that fact, at least hazily, by his chosen ambassadors." 157:6.3 

"Just as men must progress from the consciousness of the human to the realization of the divine, so did Jesus ascend from the nature of man to the consciousness of the nature of God. And the Master made this great ascent from the human to the divine by the conjoint achievement of the faith of his mortal intellect and the acts of his indwelling Adjuster. The fact‑realization of the attainment of totality of divinity (all the while fully conscious of the reality of humanity) was attended by seven stages of faith consciousness of progressive divinization. These stages of progressive self‑realization were marked off by the following extraordinary events in the Master's bestowal experience:" 196:1.6  

Stages of "faith consciousness of progressive self-realization" in the life of Jesus:

  • 1. The arrival of the Thought Adjuster.
    • 1425:1, 129:4.2 "The purely human religious experience‑‑the personal spiritual growth‑‑of the Son of Man well‑nigh reached the apex of attainment during this, the twenty‑ninth year. This experience of spiritual development was a consistently gradual growth from the moment of the arrival of his Thought Adjuster until the day of the completion and confirmation of that natural and normal human relationship between the material mind of man and the mind‑endowment of the spirit‑‑the phenomenon of the making of these two minds one, the experience which the Son of Man attained in completion and finality, as an incarnated mortal of the realm, on the day of his baptism in the Jordan."
  • 2. The messenger of Immanuel who appeared to him at Jerusalem when he was about twelve years old.
    • Some time after this experience, during his 17th year, " Jesus made great progress in the organization of his mind. Gradually he had brought his divine and human natures together, and he accomplished all this organization of intellect by the force of his own decisions and with only the aid of his indwelling Monitor, just such a Monitor as all normal mortals on all postbestowal‑Son worlds have within their minds. So far, nothing supernatural had happened in this young man's career except the visit of a messenger, dispatched by his elder brother Immanuel, who once appeared to him during the night at Jerusalem. 127:2.12
  • 3. The manifestations attendant upon his baptism.
    • [See "The Baptism of Jesus," Page 1510, Paper 136, Section 2]
  • 4. The experiences on the Mount of Transfiguration.
    • 136:3.5While he tarried on the mountain, talking with Gabriel, the Constellation Father of Edentia appeared to Jesus and Gabriel in person, saying: "The records are completed. The sovereignty of Michael No. 611,121 over his universe of Nebadon rests in completion at the right hand of the Universal Father. I bring to you the bestowal release of Immanuel, your sponsor‑brother for the Urantia incarnation. You are at liberty now or at any subsequent time, in the manner of your own choosing, to terminate your incarnation bestowal, ascend to the right hand of your Father, receive your sovereignty, and assume your well‑earned unconditional rulership of all Nebadon. I also testify to the completion of the records of the superuniverse, by authorization of the Ancients of Days, having to do with the termination of all sin‑rebellion in your universe and endowing you with full and unlimited authority to deal with any and all such possible upheavals in the future. Technically, your work on Urantia and in the flesh of the mortal creature is finished. Your course from now on is a matter of your own choosing."
    • [See “Plans for Public Work” page 1514,  Paper 136, Section 4]
  • 5. The morontia resurrection.
    • [See “The Morontia Transit” page 2020,  Paper 189, Section 1]
  • 6. The spirit ascension.
    • [See “The Master’s Ascension” page 2057,  Paper 183, Section 5]
  • 7. The final embrace of the Paradise Father, conferring unlimited sovereignty of his universe.
    • [See “The Last Group Prayer” page 1963,  Paper 182, Section 1]

Parallels Between Major Contemporary Theories of
Structural and Psycho-social Development

Eras and Ages Erikson Piaget Kohlberg
Infancy  (0-1 1/2 years) Basic Trust vs Basic Mistrust  (Hope) Sensorimotor  
Early Childhood  (2-6 years) Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt  (Will)
    and
Initiative vs. Guilt  (Purpose)		 Preoperational or Intuitive Preconventional Morality: Instrumental Exchange
Childhood (7-12 years) Industry vs. Inferiority  (Competence) Concrete Operational  
Adolescence  (13-21 years) Identity vs. Role Confusion  (Fidelity) Formal Operational Conventional Morality: Mutual interpersonal relationships
Young Adulthood  (21-35 years) Intimacy vs. Isolation  (Love)   Awareness of social systems; Conscience
Adulthood  (35-60 years) Generativity vs. Stagnation  (Care)   Postconventional Morality: Principled social contract; Individual rights
Maturity  (60 -- years) Integrity vs. Despair  (Wisdom)   Universal ethical principles


Correlation Between Contemporary Structural-developmental Theories and
The Urantia Book's Structural Stages of Psycho-spiritual Development

Faith Stage

Average Age at Entrance

Psychic Circle
[110:6]

Progression Sequence

Level of Golden Rule
[180:5]

Phase of Philosophy
[101:7]
1

 3 years

        
2

 Arrival of Adjuster

 Seventh Circle

 Consciousness of Personal Morality

 Level 1

 Level 1
3

 Adolescence to Early Adulthood

       Level 2
4

 Early Adulthood to Midlife

 Third Circle

 Consciousness of Social Morality

 Level 2

 Level 3
5

 Midlife

 Second Circle

   Level 3

 Level 4
6

 Midlife and beyond

 First Circle
(The Faith of Jesus)

 Consciousness of Cosmic Citizenship

 Level 4