Christ Through the Ages, 6: Many Flavors of Messiah

<p>For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ <a href="https://www.douglasjacoby.com/christ-through-the-ages-6/" target="_blank"><strong>website.</strong></a></p><p>By clicking on the link, you can listen to the 6th lesson in our series,<i><strong> 1st Century Judaism: Many Flavors of Messiah.</strong> </i>The podcast is 20 minutes in length.</p><img src="http://www.douglasjacoby.com/wp-content/uploads/CR6.jpg" alt="CR6" /><p>Sectarian groups of the 1st century</p><ul><li>Pharisee – Torah (written and oral)</li><li>Sadducees – Temple</li><li>Essenes – Land (Qumran and library of Dead Sea Scrolls)</li><li>Zealots – Kingship (<i>Sicarii -- </i>extreme measures)</li><li>Herodians – Regime (Mark 3:6)</li><li>Scribes – Text (Shammai & Hillel; Mark 12:34)</li><li>Samaritans – Sectarian past (see 2 Kings 17; John 4)</li><li>Christians – Messiah (Christ)</li></ul><p>Later Judaism</p><ul><li>Remnant of Jews joined the Christian movement (Romans 9-11).</li><li>Escalating antipathy, esp. after 70 AD. Anti-Christian curses.</li><li>Did not deny Christian miracles, but rejected Jesus’ divinity.</li><li>Expected a political Messiah (John 6:15).</li><li>Heirs of Pharisees (rabbinic Judaism) codify oral law in <i>Mishnah</i>, c.200 AD.</li></ul><p>Modern Judaism</p><ul><li>Descendants of the Pharisees</li><li>Three main divisions<ul><li>Orthodox (right)</li><li>Conservative (center)</li><li>Reform (left)</li></ul></li><li>Mystics (kabala)</li><li>Charismatics (<i>chasidim</i>)</li></ul><p>Conclusion</p><ul><li>Divisions into sects -- each with its own take on the Messiah -- was not just a Jewish phenomenon of the first century.</li><li>As we shall see, division will come round again in the course of church history, and perhaps nowhere more so than in our generation – about 20 lessons from now.</li><li>This violates God's ideal that his people remain one (John 17:22-23).</li></ul><p><i>Next section: Christ in the Gospels.  Next podcast: Mark: Lord Caesar or Lord Jesus?</i></p>