Lesson 18 - Looking for Jesus - His Life and Times

Time for Intention

          How many times have you jumped into something without thinking about it first? Just jumped and saw how it all shook out? Well, we could do just that as we head back into the first century to get as close as we can to Jesus. But, I can’t help feeling I need to set a very clear intention at this point. If I am not totally and completely clear on how to research this amazing individual, I will add more than I should, or leave out some things that are vitally important. So, please join me as I lay out the clearest intention and plan for follow through that I can as we begin our search for Jesus.

          Let’s circle our chairs in the photography studio and start the process of setting intention.

          My intention is to stay true to the title: “Looking for Jesus, His Life and Times”. Well, that sounds simple. But, is it? From early childhood, Jesus has been an important part of my life. When I was only about seven years old, my sister was forced to drag me out of Sunday school on Good Friday. Our minister was telling us all about the crucifixion. I was shattered by the story. I could feel the terror, the pain, the dark emotions that swirled around that cross. Emotionally, I was there! My sobbing irritated the minister no end, and I was told to leave. He just didn’t understand.

Time moves on and later as an adult I had a dream of Jesus standing, smiling behind my father and mother. I woke up puzzled. By this time in my life I had rejected the church and was at loose ends, religiously speaking. Why did he show up in my dream? However, less than a week later ‘A Course in Miracles’, purportedly sent by him to this century was in my hands and I gobbled it up, studying and then teaching it for the next thirty years. I felt his presence close to me.

I mention this, because probably like you, I have had my share of inner, spiritual, hard to explain experiences. For me, that has led me to write several books based on my own mystical experiences with Jesus. Well, that is not what ‘Looking for Jesus, His Life and Times’ is about. Now, the focus is on history, wherever I can find valid, well researched sources. I want to understand the times, the politics, the religious atmosphere and the people orbiting Jesus. I want to discover which parts of the bible are reliable and which have been fabricated. And yes, much of it has been creatively written by well meaning followers of the Jesus movement, right from the get go. I want to discover what he actually said back then, as best I can.

So, we will be traveling back once more to get as close as possible to Jesus, himself. As I research deeply, we will share together this truly humble rebel and miraculous healer. We will see Jesus as clearly as we can. . . through the lens of history.

Questions to Contemplate and Discuss

1.     Take the time to meditate silently and ask for your own clear intention to enter your mind. Be sure to write it down. Each word in your intention will be very important and a guide for you in the future.

2.     How close is your intention to the one I stated in the above section?

3.     If your intention and mine are aligned great. If not, don’t stop but continue reading through this material and see what we discover.  Notice if your discoveries replace or reinforce your personal intention.