“My Time Has Not Yet Come”

WED., MAR. 3, 1999, 8:37 AM
FPC, ASC

John’s Gospel… his account of My life as Jesus… has, of course, a strong affirmation of pre-destination. I am not destined to live a long life, of positive Teachings and reconciliation with the leaders of My Jewish traditional faith. It is My destiny that I am to die early in life (10 years or so earlier than Michael), and the death is to have quite a mystical quality to it.

That is… I am giving up My earth life freely and willfully, in order that all who truly believe in Me may never die, in spirit, but live on eternally. And… it can’t be a suicide; My life must be taken from Me. I have to be publicly executed, so that all may see Me… and remember that I did… die. These seem like classic “either/or” ’s, but the Scriptures… and I… say they are mystical “both/and” ’s.

The story tells that this destiny of Mine was not easy to “arrange.” I could not be My gentle, forgiving Self and have this “come to pass.” The Jews had no direct power to execute Me, and/but My spiritual stories, affirmations and words were not bothersome to the Romans, who did have the life or death powers. So I had to rile the Jewish leaders sufficiently that their words and actions might lead to community disorder. It then could be Pilate’s choice to order My crucifixion in order to pacify the leaders of a possible “insurrection.”

My title, today, for you, emphasizes that I had to “orchestrate” all of this with “holy wisdom.” One of My statements and/or actions could incite a few, but not all. So I had to “walk away” for a time, and then say or act in some other disturbing way. There had to be some variety in My words and actions, and I needed the “cumulative effect.”

Fundamentally, I had to declare, in My diversity of ways and words, that I was not just another prophet (as Mohammed came to accept), but the Son of the single One True God, with many, if not most, if not all, of the powers that the Yahweh they knew and worshipped had. And that I was not, finally, a Jewish man who had been born a baby in Nazareth, to Joseph’s family, but One Who was before even Father Abraham. (Remember that John’s Gospel commences with “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” I was that Word, both as Jesus and as Holy Spirit.)

( 9:08 / 9:13 )

I find it fascinating (or should I not, because it was “preordained”?) that it was the representative of the Roman Emperor who sentenced Me to death (to prevent some out-of-control unrest among “the natives”), but then the Roman Catholic Church has become the largest and most influential “forms” of My Body… and it has tried to be as rigid and “one-way” as the Pharisees had been.

But they could not succeed in being “the One True Church.” I, Holy Spirit, prevailed, with My love for diversity. Now there are large, strong R.C. parishes, but also large, strong Methodist and Baptist churches… and LDS (with some “latter day” signs and Scriptures”.)

If you’re an honest, “critical” reader, you find that these four Gospels do not give a consistent picture of Me, as Jesus. From them can come convictions about both free will and predestination. (And, as you learned years ago, the story of the man born blind offers a strong suggestion for karma as an important spiritual force.)

It is not yet Easter. My time, as Jesus, has “not yet come,” for another year. Your time on earth, as Bob Russell, a chosen servant of Mine, also has not yet come. But hear My encouragement to not only hear and record these Teachings from Me, but also to re-read and internalize, in your spirit (not just your rational mind) these as latter day guidance from Me, Holy Spirit.