Q. There seems to be several groups that contended for the religious attention of the people in the New Testament. Is this right and who were they?

A. Just like today, there was not one group that made up the religious ‘conscience” of the Jewish people in the first century. There was a diverse and very often violent opposition to one group by another. No one group spoke for all Jews, unless they got into some sort of political or highly powerful religious position of authority and could force their beliefs on others. Much like politics in the United States, if you can get enough of “your side” in power you can make things happen. There was no such thing as “Judaism” in the 1st century but “Judaisms” due to many different groups (sects), beliefs and teachings. Here is a basic rundown of just some of the varying groups and beliefs that made up the collective belief system in Israel that Yeshua was confronted with and had to “straighten” out, starting with His select group during His ministry, but what the 1st century believers had to contend with once they were sent out. That is only within the borders of Israel, among the people. This doesn’t even include what was waiting for them once they got outside the borders of Israel into the rest of the world.

· Pharisee’s – they had two main groups, but there were others:

*School of Hillel- Ist born was President (or Nasi) of the religious Sanhedrin , they were mainly based from the north, were more into the spirit of the law, wanted converts, Jewish halakah today is decided on their teachings, very eschatological, Paul was from this group.

*School of Shammai- based mainly in the south, strict, had one of their number as “Av Beit Din” (father of the house of judgment) as a “balance” to the Nasi from Hillel on the religious Sanhedrin, believed in the letter of the law, discouraged converts, very eschatological, would contend with School of Hillel over halakah

· Sadducees’s-opposite of the Pharisee’s,believed very little(no resurrection,angels, Messiah etc), accepted only the books of Moses, non-eschatological’

· Boethucians- rich Sadducees, upper class, many were High Priests, rejected the Oral law, non –eschatological

· Sicari- most radical, “cutthroat”, would assassinate anyone who helped Rome

· Zealots- politically opposed Rome, for the most part torah observant, could belong to other groups

· Chasidim- “pious ones”, in the north mainly but not like the Pharisee’s, very eschatological

· Essenes- confusion still exists as to who they were exactly, had many priests who were fed up with the Temple system and priesthood, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, very eschatological

· Theraputae- “healers”, related to the essences and may have been the same group, eschatological

· Am ha Eretz- “people of the land”, common folk, uneducated in the yeshiva’s, either not interested in Torah study or something else, followed the Pharisee’s mainly.

· Hellenists- goes back to the time of the Maccabee’s (Approx. 165 B.C.), influenced by Greek culture and were looked at with distrust by the more traditional groups.

*Judean- not real eschatological or Torah observant.

*Asia Minor-very eschatological and Torah observant.

* Alexandrian-Torah observant,

· Babylonian- Torah observant, did not have these other sects to contend with

Now, knowing this and knowing what these groups believe will help you understand many of the debates and controversies seen in the New Testament. For instance, in Acts 15.1 it says that certain believers came from Judea and taught other believers that a gentile had to get circumcised to be saved. Well, they were from the School of Shammai and we see that Paul, taught in the School of Hillel, opposed them. We’ll see the same argument in Galatians (Chapter 2) were the same doctrine was trying to be taught, and Paul opposed them again. Another example id in Mark 7 and the discussion over halakah and hand-washing. We know from what was being discussed that these Pharisee’s were from the School of Shammai who believed very strongly in ritual hand-washing, but the Scriptures never commanded it and Yeshua makes that point. Anyway, it helps to know who believes what when you read the Scriptures. When it says “Pharisee” it doesn’t mean all the Pharisee’s believed the same thing. Yeshua’s apostles came from some of these groups and had a diverse range of beliefs to deal with. Even after salvation, they still clung to some of these beliefs and you can see how God had to change them in order to receive the truth so they could effectively teach others. The same thing happens today. Just because someone becomes a believer doesn’t mean he automatically discards the belief system he has known. It takes time and good teaching from God to do that, so, patience is needed with believers without compromising the truth they need to know. So, there is nothing new under the sun. Even though we don’t have the same groups today as the 1st century, we still have many denominational beliefs that have to be discarded and replaced. Being called of God and teaching the Word is not to be done by novices. This comes through the revelation of the Holy Spirit and good teachers placed in the body to help guide these believers to the truth the Lord would have them to know in order to make their life a true testimony and a true light to the world, rightly dividing and handling the Word of Truth.

Continued from last weeks article

This week we will pick up where we left off with whether or not Jesus and the Holy spirit are God, and with the concept of the Trinity. Again, the current Jewish view of this would seem contrary but the concept was believed and discussed anciently and there was much agreement on this matter, although not readily discussed today. Certainly, the writers of the New Testament believed it and taught it without much opposition, so that tells you many of those who heard their teachings weren’t totally unaware of the concept.

All three are divine, unique persons , coeternal, coequal in essence (being). God has chosen to reveal this doctrine carefully and gradually. It is a guarded revelation due to our human limitations to understand it. Wrong ideas have produced many heresies that actually threatened the Faith in the past. God has given us many examples of this concept that we still have trouble understanding, and if we don’t fully understand the picture, we will truly struggle when confronted with the reality. For example, look at the mind. It is made up of conscience, will, emotion, intellect and so on. Psychiatric and psychological schools of thought have confronted the human mind and walk away dumfounded over the complexities, and yet we think we have the Creator of that mind figured out? Look at nature, the tree has the root, trunk and branches, the egg has the whites, yolk and shell. Light is one and yet it can be broken down to many colors, some of its essence we can’t even see with the human eye. Time is one yet distinct (past, present, future), space has length, breadth, height and so on. And the atom, well, we haven’t even explored all of that yet. Look at the cell and you will see the Lord giving us a glimpse of His essence. Even the names of God give us a clue. Elohim is masculine plural, used in a collective sense. YHVH is singular but is used for the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The names Father (Deut 32.6), Son (Rom 8.14) and Holy Spirit (John 3) represent the individual roles each have to make it easy for us to understand the relationship and functions they have. These roles are not meant to be pushed beyond the clear, intended purposes in which they were given to us. For example, the “Son” does not mean subordinate to in essence to the Father. The Spirit is not a force or wind. The Father speaks of a position of authority, the disciplinarian, the teacher, provider and so on. The Son speaks of the mediator and servant, the Holy Spirit as the helper, comforter.

So, in conclusion, the concept of the Trinity, the three divine “persons” of the Godhead is a biblical concept clearly taught within the pages of Scripture. We should not go beyond the boundaries given in God’s description of Himself, but I hope this brief overview gives you a better understanding of this.

Q.Are Jesus and the Holy Spirit God?

A. Yes and the Scriptures are very clear about that but there are many believers who have a different idea on this concept called the “trinity” but I believe the Scriptures are very clear about it. Contrary to current belief, there were ancient Jewish views on this that is very consistent with how the Trinity is viewed today in Christianity and it was not considered as idolatry or a violation of the Shema in Deut 6.4. There was a very interesting teaching on the Hebrew letter “shin” which has three heads, and there are other teachings, As Christianity developed a theology about this concept, the Jewish view would take the opposite view and that was true with many such teachings. Where Judaism taught something, Christian theology would counter with something different and vice versa. But, with all that said, let’s look at this concept. We’ll start in Acts 5.3 where Peter is telling Ananias that he has lied to the Holy Spirit. Now, if the Holy Spirit was just a “force” or a “power” how could Peter say he lied to an “it?”.You can’t lie to a force/power. You also were to be baptized in the name of the Holy Spirit (Matt 28.19) and you can’t be immersed in the name of a force/power. So, the Holy Spirit has to be something other than a force/power and He is. In Eph 5.30 it says that the Spirit can be “grieved, in Acts 13.2 the Holy Spirit “speaks.” In John 2Cor 3.17 and John 4.14 the Lord is called “Spirit” so that isn’t inconsistent. In Rom 8.26 He intercedes for us, and is called God in Acts 5.4,Genesis 1.2, Psalm 139.7 and 1 Cor 12.11. God is spoken of in the plural many times like in Gen 1.26, Isa 6.8. In Jer 30.5 it says that the Lord says “I have heard “ but it should be ”We have heard.” You can see all three together in Isa 48.16 and Matt 3.16-17. In Ecc 12.1 it says “creator” but it should read “creators” and in Job 35.10 “maker” should read “makers” and the list goes on and on. Yeshua is called God in John 20.27 and Phil 2.5. When you read the beginning of many epistles Yeshua is listed as a co-equal with the Father, and if He isn’t that is blasphemy. So, what does all this mean? God is one in essence (His being), distinct in “persons”, not some multi-faceted manifestation of one being, or “person” if you will. In Jewish mystical teachings like Kabbalah, this multi-faceted concept of one Person is taught through the idea of the ten “Sephirot” or “emanations” but this is just man’s feeble attempt to explain the Godhead. The Father is unique (Dan 7.13), the Son is unique (Psa 40.7-8) and the Spirit is unique (Rom 8.26). All possess a full, equal share of the status of Deity (Mt 28.19-20, Gen 1.26, 2 Cor 13.14). All three have been revealed uniquely in Scripture as God, with Father in Deut 4.35, the Son in Titus 2.13 and the Spirit in Acts 5.4. His nature is the composition of His essence, or being, having been revealed as infinite, a spirit, immeasurable, omniscient, all powerful, omnipresent and so on. His character is the “traits” of His essence, or being, having been revealed to us as perfect, holy, good, just, merciful, truth sovereign, love, light to name just a few. Next week we will continue with this concept in further detail and hopefully “pull” all this together to give you a better idea of who God really is according to His own description of Himself as found in the Scriptures. Please study the verses already given so that it can be built upon next week.

Q.Some people say that the Jews are different from the Israelites and try to make a distinction today. What is your opinion?

A. There are some who believe that the two terms mean different things but in actuality they are really the same people. There have been many false, theological concepts that have developed over the years based on this misunderstanding. So, let's do a basic study in definitions and get to the heart of the matter, using Easton's Bible Dictionary as a source. In the Bible, there are actually three terms used to describe the same people, Hebrew, Jew and Israelite. The name "Hebrew" is a name applied to the Israelites in the Bible only used by foreigners (Gen 39.14,17,41.12). It is also used by the Israelites themselves when talking to a foreigner( Gen 40.15, Ex 1.9). In addition it is used when compared to other nations (Gen 43.32, Ex 1.3,7,15, Deut 15.12). In the New Testament the same contrast exists (Acts 6.1, Phil 3.5). The name "Israel" is the given to Jacob after his struggle at Peniel (Gen 32.28) because as a "prince" he had power with God. This is the most common name given to his descendants. All twelve tribes are called "Israelites" or the "children of Israel" (Josh 3.17, 7.25, Judges 8.27, Jer 3.21) and also the "house of Israel" (Ex 16.31, 40.38). This name is sometimes used for the "true Israel" (Psalms 73.1, Isaiah 45.17, 49.3 John 1.47, Rom 9.6,11.26).After the death of Saul the ten tribes took this name forythemselves as if they constituted the whole nation (2 Sam 2.9,10,17,28, 3.10,19.40-43) and the kings of the ten tribes were called "kings of Israel" while the kings of the other two tribes were called "kings of Judah." After the exile the name Israel was used for the all twelve tribes. The name "Jew" comes from Judah, a son of Jacob. It was first used to designate one from that tribe or to the kingdom of Judah ( 2 Kings 16.6,25.25,Jer 32.12,38.19.40.11,41.3. It is used in contrast to those belonging to the kingdom of the the te tribes, who were called Israelites. While in Babylon ,and after, the name was given to all twelve tribes (Esther 3.6,10; Dan 3.8,12; Ezra 4.12,5.1-5). At the beginning the people were called Hebrews until after the exile when the name was not used used much. Paul described himself as a Hebrew in 2 Cor 11.22 and Phil 3.5 however. So, in conclusion, there are three names used in the New Testament to describe those who have descended from the twelve tribes. The name "Jew", in regards to their nationality and to distinguish them from the Gentiles, "Hebrews" in relation to their language, customs and lifestyle to distinguish them from the Hellenists (Greek-speaking Jews). this contrast can be seen in the Book of Acts very clearly. Lastly, the name "Israelite" will be used when they are described as a people chosen by God and the mandate they have to teach the nations about about God, the Messiah and the redemption. All three names are used to describe the descendants of Jacob, those that come from any of the twelve tribes. Confusion over these biblical defintions exist today and it has caused an "identity crisis" with many believers. Several denominations today believe they "Jews" or "Israelites" when in actuality they are not. This type of believe comes from a severe lack of teaching at one end and a severe lack of personal study with the Lord on the other. Somehow, some believe they are lacking in something, have fallen short spiritually and feel "left out" of something unless people consider them Jewish. In actuality, God doesn't care either way and that is quite clear from the New Testament where Paul says in 1 Cor 7.17-20 that we should walk as God has assigned us. If someone is "circumcised" (Jewish), let him not seek "uncircumcision" and if called by God as "uncircumcised" (Gentile) let him not seek "circumcision" . He says circumcision or uncircumcision doesn't mean anything but keeping the commandments do, as they apply. Peter came to the same conclusion in Acts 10.35 were he says that God is not partial to anyone (Jew or Gentile) and he "who fears Him and does what is right (keeps the commandments as they apply) is welcomed by Him".