Paper 147 Overview: The Interlude Visit to Jerusalem

Jesus and the apostles spent two weeks at their Bethsaida headquarters in Capernaum before departing for Jerusalem to celebrate Passover in the spring of the year 28. During this period, Jesus demonstrated his compassionate nature by healing the Roman centurion's servant from a distance, an act that highlighted the centurion's remarkable faith. The trip to Jerusalem itself was uneventful, but once there, Jesus engaged in significant teaching activities while avoiding public preaching as instructed by the Master.

In Jerusalem, Jesus taught profound lessons at places like the pool of Bethesda and during private gatherings at Bethany. His teachings during this period focused on several key themes: the purpose of suffering, different levels of interpreting the golden rule, the power of forgiveness as shown in his interaction with a repentant woman, and the relationship between old traditions and new spiritual truths. Throughout this visit, Jesus balanced his time between spiritual teaching and avoiding confrontation with the religious authorities, who were growing increasingly hostile toward him and eventually assigned spies to monitor his activities.

Jesus and the apostles arrived in Capernaum on Wednesday, March 17, and spent two weeks at the Bethsaida headquarters before their journey to Jerusalem. During this time, the apostles taught the people by the seaside while Jesus often withdrew to the hills to commune with his Father. Jesus, accompanied by James and John Zebedee, also made two secret trips to Tiberias, where they met with believers and instructed them in the gospel of the kingdom.

Many of Herod's household officials believed in Jesus's message, which helped diminish Herod's opposition to him. These believers had explained to Herod that the "kingdom" Jesus proclaimed was spiritual in nature rather than a political challenge to his authority. While Herod himself maintained a relatively favorable attitude toward Jesus, some of his subordinates remained hostile under the influence of Jerusalem's religious leaders. It was precisely these Jerusalem religious authorities, not Herod, who posed the greatest threat to Jesus's ministry, which explains why Jesus and his apostles spent more time preaching in Galilee rather than in Jerusalem and Judea.

On the day before their departure for Jerusalem, Mangus, a Roman centurion stationed in Capernaum, approached the synagogue leaders requesting that they ask Jesus to heal his faithful servant who was near death. The centurion, respected for his love of the Jewish nation and for building their synagogue, was considered worthy of Jesus's assistance. When Jesus agreed to go to the centurion's house, the Roman officer sent friends to intercept him, expressing that he did not feel worthy for Jesus to enter his home and that he understood authority, believing Jesus could simply speak the word to heal his servant.

Jesus was astonished by the centurion's faith, declaring to those around him, "I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel." Without visiting the centurion's house, Jesus indicated the servant would be healed, and indeed, the servant began to recover from that moment and was fully restored to health. The account notes that no one knew exactly what happened in this healing—whether invisible beings ministered to the servant or if it occurred through other means—only that the servant's recovery was complete.

Early on Tuesday, March 30, Jesus and the apostles began their journey to Jerusalem for Passover, traveling by the route of the Jordan valley. They arrived on Friday, April 2, and established their headquarters at Bethany, as was their custom. While passing through Jericho, Judas made a deposit of some of their common funds at a bank, which remained untouched until their final journey to Jerusalem before Jesus's death.

The party had an uneventful trip to Jerusalem, but upon their arrival in Bethany, they were quickly surrounded by those seeking healing, comfort, and salvation. To manage the crowds, they set up tents at Gethsemane, allowing Jesus to move between locations to avoid being constantly thronged. The apostolic group spent almost three weeks in Jerusalem, during which they observed the Passover feast quietly at Bethany—their second Passover with Jesus in Jerusalem. When they later departed for Capernaum, John's apostles remained in Jerusalem under Abner's leadership to continue advancing the kingdom message.

On the second Sabbath in Jerusalem, John invited Jesus to visit the pool of Bethesda, where many sick people gathered hoping for healing. This pool featured five porches where sufferers waited for the water to bubble up, believing the first person to enter after this disturbance would be healed. John brought Jesus there hoping he would perform miracles that would impress Jerusalem, but Jesus gently challenged him about wanting to substitute wonders for the gospel truth.

Instead of performing healings, Jesus spoke words of comfort and eternal truth to the gathered sufferers. He acknowledged that some people suffer due to wrong living, some from accidents, and others due to inherited conditions, but emphasized that spiritual healing was more important than physical cures. Jesus taught that those who hear and believe the gospel of the kingdom already pass from judgment to light and life. His inspiring words led many to believe, and some felt so spiritually revived that they claimed physical healing as well. One man with mental affliction was so encouraged that he picked up his bed and walked home, even though it was the Sabbath.

During an evening gathering at Bethany, Nathaniel asked Jesus about applying the golden rule, questioning how it would work in cases where someone had lustful or evil intentions. Jesus expressed disappointment that his apostles still struggled to grasp the spiritual significance of his teachings, pointing to Nathaniel and asking what manner of thinking was in his heart. Nathaniel quickly clarified that he wasn't approving such interpretations but was seeking clarification on potential misunderstandings.

Jesus then outlined six progressively higher levels of interpreting the golden rule: first, the level of the flesh, representing selfish and lustful interpretations; second, the level of feelings, where sympathy enhances one's understanding; third, the level of mind, where reason and intelligence guide interpretation; fourth, the level of brotherly love, based on the recognition of God's fatherhood; fifth, the moral level, where one considers the rightness of actions; and sixth, the spiritual level, where one treats others as God would treat them. The apostles were deeply impressed by this teaching and discussed it long after Jesus had retired for the night.

Simon, an influential Pharisee of Jerusalem, invited Jesus along with Peter, James, and John to his home for a social meal. Though Simon was only a half-hearted believer, he was impressed with Jesus's teachings and personality and risked criticism for hosting him. During the meal, a woman known throughout Jerusalem as a former keeper of a brothel, who had recently become a believer in Jesus's message, entered the house as was customary for beggars during Pharisee banquets.

The woman stood behind Jesus as he reclined at the table, wetting his feet with her tears, wiping them with her hair, and anointing them with expensive perfume. When Simon mentally questioned Jesus's prophetic abilities for allowing such a woman to touch him, Jesus responded with a parable about two debtors—one owing five hundred denarii and the other fifty—both of whom were forgiven their debts. Jesus pointed out that the woman had shown great love because she had been forgiven much, while Simon had neglected even basic hospitality. Jesus then declared the woman's sins forgiven and sent her away in peace, while the other guests were astonished that he claimed authority to forgive sins.

The last week of April, Jesus and the twelve departed from Bethany near Jerusalem and began their journey back to Capernaum by way of Jericho and the Jordan. By this time, the chief priests and religious leaders had held many secret meetings, agreeing that something should be done to stop Jesus's teaching, though they couldn't agree on the method. Before Jesus left Jerusalem, they appointed a commission of six spies to follow him, observe his words and actions, and gather evidence of lawbreaking and blasphemy.

These six spies joined the apostolic party at Jericho, pretending to be disciples, and remained with the group until the beginning of the second preaching tour in Galilee. During the journey, the disciples plucked grain to eat on the Sabbath, and the spies seized on this as a violation of Sabbath law. When they confronted Jesus, he defended his disciples by citing scriptural examples of David eating the showbread and declaring that "the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath." Jesus further proclaimed himself "lord even of the Sabbath," leaving the Pharisees astonished and confounded by his wisdom.

Jesus and the twelve arrived at Bethsaida by boat from Tarichea around noon on Monday, May 3. They traveled by boat to avoid those who journeyed with them, though by the next day the others, including the official spies from Jerusalem, had found them again. That evening, during one of Jesus's question-and-answer sessions, the leader of the six spies asked why Jesus never commanded his disciples to fast and pray like the Pharisees and John's followers.

Jesus responded with several metaphors: the friends of the bridegroom do not fast while he is with them; no one sews a piece of new cloth onto an old garment; and no one puts new wine into old wineskins. He explained that prayer was natural for the children of light, but fasting was not part of the gospel of the kingdom of heaven. Jesus taught that his disciples wisely did not bring too much of the old order into the new teaching of the gospel. He concluded by warning against rejecting old truths, stating: "That which is old and also true must abide. Likewise, that which is new but false must be rejected. But that which is new and also true, have the faith and courage to accept."

Late into the night, after most listeners had retired, Jesus continued teaching his apostles by quoting from the prophet Isaiah about the true nature of fasting. The prophet had asked why people fasted for strife and contention while continuing to practice oppression and injustice. He proclaimed that the fast God chooses involves breaking the bonds of wickedness, helping the oppressed, feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, and clothing the naked.

Jesus taught his apostles that their assurance in the kingdom came from their faith in God's truth, not from afflicting their souls or fasting. He encouraged them to go beyond the ideals of Isaiah and older prophets, emphasizing that they should grow in grace through their living faith as sons of God. Jesus continued teaching until two o'clock in the morning, concluding with these words: "Grow in grace by means of that living faith which grasps the fact that you are the sons of God while at the same time it recognizes every man as a brother."