Was Jesus a Christian or a Jew?
Maybe it's just me but I think the answer is pretty obvious.
Jesus was a Jew.
What would Jesus do?:
Jesus would eat kosher.
Jesus would worship corporately on Saturday.
Jesus would observe the Passover, the Feast of Booths, etc... all of the Jewish religious feasts.
Jesus's scriptures would consist of only the Old Testament.
Jesus would get his male children circumcised (had He married & had He then had children).
I think you get the idea.
The point of the Messiah (at least partly) was that He was the ultimate Human (that's what the phrase the Son of Man meant: the person who epitomizes what mankind was meant to be). In the context
of Judaism this means (in part) that the Messiah was to be the ultimate Law abider; as Jesus said, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." Matthew 5:17 (ESV).
I think this is part of why it is so important that we seek to truly understand the Old Testament and Judaism in general. After all, if the purpose of the Messiah was to fulfill God's purpose for the Law then shouldn't we, as followers of that Messiah, seek to understand exactly what it was that He fulfilled?
If we neglect to understand His purposes how can we truly be followers of Him?
Galatians 5:1 (ESV) says: "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." Paul says that we no longer need to observe the Law because Christ fulfilled the Law; to return to the Law would be slavery.
However, if we don't understand what we have been freed from are we really free?
Ignorance is not freedom...
... nor is it bliss.
What do you think?
What do you think it means that Jesus was the ultimate human?
What do you think it means that Jesus was the ultimate Law abider?
How important do you think understanding the OT is?
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7 comments:
I do have thoughts... however none of them are organized enough to be put into coherent words on your blog.
I also have a blog topic.
"Idolatry of Family"
Does this mean we're celebrating Hanukkah this year? A Menorah is much easier to set up than a Christmas tree. (Because that's what it's all about.)
I'm with Jared, coherent...organised..words...nothing... I think I used up all my thinking/debating power on his fb this morning.
No doubt you ask some interesting questions. Maybe we can talk about it when you get home:-)
No, my dear, no menorah for me (nothing against menorahs or Hanukkah).
That is all besides the point...
...although I do find it interesting that Jesus did observe Hanukkah (Jn. 10:22), considering that it was a man-made feast not a proper God-ordained religious feast. That just goes to show you how Jewish Jesus was...
... the point that I am shooting for is (and I am just throwing this out there for conversation`s sake) that maybe being a Christian isn`t about being like Jesus!
There. That should open a can of worms :)
How in your thinking is being a Christian not being like Jesus!!?
Please explain, so I can debate more!
How do you get that Jesus celebrated Hanukkah from that verse? Isn't it more there as a way to tell what time of the year it was. Was he celebrating it just b/c he was in the temple? Do explain. As to your other point, if being a Christian isn't about being like Jesus, then is it about NOT being like Jesus? Isn't being a Christian having a RELATIONSHIP with God the Father. And didn't Jesus have a very tight relationship with his father? Just wondering....
Alright!
So, I'm going to post more at length about what I think "being a Christian" is all about and that might answer some of your questions.
But for now, just a comment or two:
First of all, Jen, I think you may have a point; the text in Jn 10:22 doesn't actually say that Jesus was observing Hanukkah (the Feast of Dedication). However, Jesus did choose to be in Jerusalem during this feast and not just in Jerusalem but in the temple. So while we can't say definitively it does seem quite likely that Jesus was there for the feast.
Secondly, I'm going to be picky about your definition of being a Christian. Christianity isn't about having a relationship with God the Father; it is about having a relationship with Father, Son, and Spirit.
Anyway, we'll get into this more when I post next week.
Keep the thoughts coming!
John10:22 At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, 23 and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon.24 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
I have a topic I was wondering if you could discuss. With Christmas upcoming, could you talk about "angels." Specifically the idolization of angels. I know many people use an angel as a topper to their trees, and a lady at my work said today "we think of it as our guardian angel watching over us." The theology of that just bothers me for some reason. Also, it seems people have forgotten that Lucifer was an angel, or is he still but just fallen? Yeah, I'd like to hear more on angels.
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