Inspiration

Isaiah tells us that God’s ways are not man’s ways. God’s words, the words of true prophecy are also not like man's words. God’s words start out as small seedlings, but over time they grow, give off branches, form buds, and finally burst into bloom. Just so, the word "Israel" starts out as the tiny seed of one man named Abraham, but through the ages, the word "Israel" grows, changes, and finally bursts forth into the brotherhood of all mankind. Words of prophecy often have past, present, and future connotations. Each word demands tremendous respect and study of all the contexts of its usage. Reverence for the source of prophecy is the key to its study, for it is God who must lead our minds into the understanding of what He himself has inspired?

Without the indwelling spirit there would be no prophecy and no interpretation of prophecy. But reason and the scientific method are also critical for the elimination of error, and for the building of a strong foundation from whence inspired intuition may leap safely. Therefore, both reason and faith are necessary for the complete appreciation of prophecy, just as they are for the full appreciation of all other phenomena.

The Dead Sea Scrolls are important because they provide crucial missing information to the overall prophetic picture of the Old Testament. The leader of the Qumran community, the Teacher of Righteousness (100-200 B.C.), is an inspired and master interpreter of scripture. He has much to teach us, and like the other Old Testament Prophets, the Teacher of Righteousness hints at a revelatory experience that very likely represents further "collaboration" with Melchizedek.

UB  1199 
Supreme and self-acting adjusters are often able to contribute factors of spiritual import to the human mind when it flows freely in the liberated but controlled channels of creative imagination.

Of course, God Himself is the ultimate source of all true prophecy. He tells us:

Isaiah 48:2 
I am He—I am the First,
And I am the Last as well.
My own hand founded the earth,
My right hand spread out the skies.
Isaiah 48:16 From the beginning, I did not speak in secret; . . .
Isaiah 48:3 Long ago, I foretold things that happened,
From My mouth they issued, and I announced them;
Suddenly I acted, and they came to pass . . .

UB  1087 
Institutional religion cannot afford inspiration and provide leadership in this impending, worldwide social reconstruction and economic reorganization because it has unfortunately become more or less of an organic part of the social order and the economic system, which is destined to undergo reconstruction. (Doesn’t reconstruction imply deconstruction first?)

UB  1088 
The religion of living experience finds no difficulty in keeping ahead of all these social developments and economic upheavals, amid which it ever functions as a moral stabilizer, social guide and spiritual pilot.

UB  2087 
The spiritual renaissance must await the coming of these new teachers of Jesus’ religion who will be exclusively devoted to the spiritual regeneration of men. And then will these spirit-born souls quickly supply the leadership and inspiration requisite for the social, moral, economic and political reorganization of the world. 

Isaiah 56:7 
I will bring them to My sacred mount
And let them rejoice in My house of prayer,
"For My house shall be called
A house of prayer for all peoples."
Thus says the Lord God,
Who gathers the dispersed of Israel:
"I will gather still more to those already gathered."

God himself is being quoted here by the prophet. Isaiah presents his inspired collaboration with Melchizedek with a certainty of mind beyond mere human assurance. God is clear: anyone who would, can come. He is a loving father, actively pursuing the embrace of every mortal being in the world. The eternal covenant is open to all who have faith and who would follow God’s Ways and Will. Man is not absolved of suffering, but he is lifted up over it, in the "peace that surpasses all understanding." And this is the "kingdom of heaven" that is "within" as spoken of by the Son of Man. What are God’s Ways? What would God have us do? Here is God’s answer through His inspired prophets. We will first review the Old Covenant with its external commands and then the New Covenant with its internal guidance. Together they are the Way of God.

Now, suddenly from out betwixt the lines of Micah comes a prophecy about the birth of Jesus, 700 years before it happens! It appears as part of a discussion about Israel in the latter days (Micah 4:12 to 4:14), about the Babylonian captivity in 587 B.C. (4:10 through 4:11) and about Assyria in 700 B.C. (Micah 5:4 to 5:6). The prophet himself probably knows nothing of the dates of occurrence of these separate events, or even their true import to the future they speak of. Thus, the interpretation of scripture is equally as important as the scripture itself.

God guides the interpreter, through the leading of the spirit within the interpreter, thus revealing his plans only to those who have harmonized their will to His. Only God Himself truly knows the future and any prophet that does not openly acknowledge this truth is by definition a false prophet. Conversely, a true prophet is known partly by the "fruits of the spirit" that his/her close inner relationship with God should yield. In fact, prophecy or prophecy interpretation is itself one of the fruits of this inner relationship with God, who is the very inspiration of the prophecy under consideration.

Micah 5:6 
The remnant of Jacob shall be,
In the midst of the many peoples,
Like dew from the Lord,
Like droplets on grass –
Which do not look to any man
Nor place their hope in mortals.
The remnant of Jacob
Shall be among the nations,
In the midst of the many peoples,…

The remnant of Jacob (equivalent to Israel) and not Jacob itself is what is gathered together in the upcoming trial period. These are those who know and love the one true God and who survive whatever destruction there is of that period. The remnant of Jacob is the remnant of Israel (Christians) plus the remnant of Judah (Jews). Of course anyone else who recognizes and knows the one true God in his/her heart is also included in this group. God cares little about who we are on the outside but everything about what we are on the inside. As always, whoever would come can come. The door to the kingdom of heaven is forever open to all. And so, through the process of deciding what we stand for in life we select who we will become, unlike the flower, who has no choice but to unfold. Further, we note that the geographic location is of little importance, as the remnant arises from within the midst of the world’s peoples "like droplets of dew on grass." These people "do not look to any man" or "place their hope in mortals" because they look only to God in everything they do.

UB 1745B There is no peace in the heart or progress in the mind unless you fall wholeheartedly in love with truth.

UB 2078A The pursuit of truth, beauty, and goodness leads to God.

UB 42D Truth is valuable because it can be acted out, it can be lived

UB 1459C Truth can never be man’s… Without the exercise of faith.

UB 1731A "fail not to discern the words of truth that come not through the traditional oracles of supposed inspiration" (Jesus)

UB 1466B "the man was not hungry for truth. He was not dissatisfied with himself. He was not ready to ask for help, and the eyes of his mind were not open to receive light for the soul…You cannot reveal God to those who do not seek for Him." (Jesus)

UB 1796C "You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free." (Jesus)

UB 247D (The Urantia Book) is assigned to enlarge truth.

Now prophecy is true both in the context of the time of its writing and in the time of its prophetic future fulfillment. And so, the church of Philadelphia spoken of in Revelation as existing in the latter days (now) would have characteristics like the church of Philadelphia existing at the time of John’s vision and writing. One might then expect this congregation or church of the latter days to be a group, like Abner’s, true to the message of Jesus (the gospel of the kingdom of heaven), and to be concerned with issues of brotherly love such as the brotherhood of man predicated on the Fatherhood of God. This is exactly the effect of the Urantia Book, ie; to explain and inspire the living of the kingdom of heaven within; the true way, the true gospel of Jesus that the apostles did not understand. The Urantia Book actually brings into being this latter day church of Philadelphia. The Urantia Book teaches the doing of God's Will. The elect are those who choose (elect) God's Will.

The Qumran community, of the Dead Sea Scrolls, foretell a final prophet called "the interpreter of the law" who reveals God’s truth through an inspired interpretation of the Olden Prophets. This demonstration of God’s omniscience through His prophets is one of the major events to unfold during the end and completion of this age.

The Thanksgiving Psalms are among the most beautiful ever to have been penned. The Teacher of Righteousness will one day take his place in history as a prophet of the greatest degree. His writing will inspire the human race for ages to come, and his prophecy will take its place in the foundation of God’s Kingdom to come.

It should also be noted that in addition to Isaiah, the Psalms are a great store of information regarding "servants" as they are flooded with references to such.

John the Baptist and the Last Prophet consider themselves (and all people) to be "a lump of clay kneaded with a little water." The final prophet makes it clear he has no strength, wealth, or earthly refuge and is totally dependent upon God for support, protection and inspiration.

One portion of this portrait of the Final Prophet is taken directly from the Psalms, which were inspired directly by Melchizedek 4000 years ago, at which time he already knew the future history of "Israel." Another portion is taken from the Thanksgiving Hymns written by the Teacher of Righteousness of the Dead Sea Scrolls. A large amount of Old Testament prophecy is concerned with the messianic, end of the age scenario, at a time today, when prophecy is nearly forgotten and largely ignored. Ironically, this ignorance occurs at the very time of its relevance.

The physical traits and the education of the Final Prophet are described in the Dead Sea Scrolls. One of the major roles of the Dead Sea Scrolls is to convey this hidden information about the Final Prophet over thousands of years of time, until today when the day of its usefulness and relevance comes due.

There are many references in the Dead Sea Scrolls to a community living in the "latter day" messianic period who are said to "elect" God’s will. Let’s see what information we can extract from the Teacher’s inspired interpretations about the elect from the Dead Sea Scrolls.

This is an extremely important passage written by the Teacher of Righteousness. Through his inspired revelation of truth from God, probably through collaboration with Melchizedek, he tells us that his interpretations concern both his present time, as well as "the end of the days."

Character types and event patterns repeat themselves, each end of the age time period has a little different outward appearance, but has the same inner conflicts of the human condition being played out. Also, in this same passage we are explicitly told that the messianic prophet (the Priest) will in part operate by interpreting "all the words of God’s servants the Prophets" through whom God foretells "all that would happen to His people and His land" in the last days. This prophet strikes down Ephraim with the rod of his mouth, where Ephraim has been previously identified in these writings as America. This fits with the prophet, God's servant, addressing the ‘coastlands’ in the servant passage of Isaiah 42:1. The information contained in the Old Testament prophetic scripture is under lock and key, sealed until the key is provided by God to the messianic prophet who is therefore called "the interpreter of the law" the law here being the Prophets of Old. This key is an "understanding" set by God in the "heart" of the Priest, the final prophet. This understanding unfolds naturally from within, as the Priest progresses in his personal spiritual journey; there are no visions, no dreams, no trances, no channeling – just faith, effort, obedience, and the desire to do God's will. Also, note carefully that the Teacher of Righteousness of the Dead Sea Scrolls identifies "those that will not believe when told," about the events prophesied to occur in the latter days as "the unfaithful of the New Covenant." Those of the New Covenant are Christians of today. This buttresses our previous identification of Lost Israel as Christendom and Ephraim as America.

Many copies of 1Enoch were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. 1Enoch was probably one of the most authoritative and popular scriptures of the Qumran Community. Ethiopic Enoch = 1Enoch and  is the oldest. 2 and 3 Enoch are later works.  Enoch was the seventh descendent of Adam and Eve in the Bible.  Enoch "walked with God. Then he vanished and God took him." (Genesis 5:24)  Enoch was the son of Cain and Ramona, and he led the Nodites. (UB  849)  Enoch was the first mortal fused with his thought adjuster. (UB  514)  Enoch is one of 24 members ‘Urantia advisory council.’ (UB  513)  The Book of Enoch was an inspiration to Jesus.(UB p. 1390) The title "Son of Man" was taken from the Book of Enoch. (UB  1390) Of all scripture the Book of Enoch "was nearest to the truth" regarding Jesus’ identity and mission as assessed by Jesus himself. (UB  1390).  Enoch is said to have been taken away by God, saw the secrets and mysteries of the universe, the future of the world, and the predetermined course of human history (Biblical literature).   There are three parts to 1Enoch. 1Enoch was found among the Dead Sea Scrolls pushing its date of origin back to at least 100-200 BC (except for part 2).   Part 2, the Similitudes, is the part containing all the references to the Son of Man and is the only part not yet found among the Dead Sea Scrolls.Therefore, its dating is unsure (? pre-Christian or not).  The New Testament was significantly influenced by 1Enoch.  Many early Church fathers were inspired by 1Enoch. 

190 B.C. Qumran community founded by Teacher of Righteousness. Inspired interpretation of Old Testament prophecy by Teacher of Righteousness.

 

Above quote is from "The Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand", by Edmund J. Roache

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