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What was the Gospel of Jesus?
If we search the Urantia Book for the occurrence of a concise phrase such as "gospel of Jesus," we get 13 "exact matches,"--not one of which provides any information on the actual content of Jesus' gospel. If the search is repeated using a King James translation of the New Testament, we get a single "exact match,"--the opening verse of Mark's gospel. However if a modern English translation of Mark is used, we may draw a blank.
What are our expectations? Initially they may be for a list of key teachings such as occurs in the "Sermon on the Mount." However, the following statement from The Urantia Book may either confuse or discourage us:
"The so-called "Sermon on the Mount" is not the gospel of Jesus. It does contain much helpful instruction, but it was Jesus' ordination charge to the twelve apostles. It was the Master's personal commission to those who were to go on preaching the gospel and aspiring to represent him in the world of men even as he was so eloquently and perfectly representative of his Father." (TUB 140:5)
In The Urantia Book the "Sermon on the Mount" is also called the "Ordination Sermon." If it does not contain the gospel of Jesus, what then should we be looking for?
One of the "exact matches" for The Urantia Book search on the "gospel of Jesus" referred to the apostle, Simon Zelotes, and his post-crucifixion career. About Simon we read:
"He was in despair, but in a few years he rallied his hopes and went forth to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom.
"He went to Alexandria and, after working up the Nile, penetrated into the heart of Africa, everywhere preaching the gospel of Jesus and baptizing believers. Thus he labored until he was an old man and feeble. And he died and was buried in the heart of Africa." (TUB 139:11)
So is the "gospel of the kingdom" simply a synonym for the "gospel of Jesus." Are the "gospel of Jesus" and the "gospel of the kingdom" identical?
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