Musing - How did the Messianic Church begin?

Hebraic Musing - How did the Messianic Church begin?

We know from Scripture that the Messianic Community in Jerusalem and other cities in Judea thrived in the first decades after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem. (“Messianics” are Jews who believe Yeshua is the awaited Messiah)  When Paul came back to Jerusalem to greet the apostles he gave his report and -- On hearing it, they praised God; but they also said to him, “You see, brother, how many tens of thousands of believers there are among the Judeans, and they are all zealots for the Torah.” CJB Acts 21:20     Consider these two observations:

First, the believers were Torah-honoring Jewish believers. They suddenly found deep meaning in the laws that they previously kept out of religious guilt or soul-ish zeal. Paul’s report was considered to be worthy of praise and with no hint they are moving away from Torah or their Jewishness, but closer.
Second, many translations use the English thousands for the Greek myriads. However a myriad is 10,000, so myriads plural, as is used in this verse, probably means tens of thousands!  

“The Way” continued to grow under the leadership of Jacob (James) until the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 70 CE.   That’s when things changed drastically for the Jewish believers in Israel. Yeshua had told his disciples less than 40 years before, “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near.  Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city.” Luke 21:20-21  NIV    “The Great Revolt” took place in 66 CE when the Jews rebelled against Roman rule; Romans responded by leveling the city, destroying the Temple and as many as one million Jews perished.

The Messianic Jews heeded the warning of Yeshua and fled across the Jordan River, and settled in a mountainous area in Jordan in expectation of the second coming of the Messiah. When the war ended and Yeshua had not yet returned, the Messianic Jews returned to Jerusalem where they suffered persecution from the Jews who had fought the Romans; they were labeled as traitors.

How did Pharisaic Judaism, a.k.a. Rabbinic Judaism, survive?  Rabbi ben Zakkai opposed the war and would have been killed except for a clever escape plan. He convinced General Vespasian to set aside a place where he could start a school and study Torah in peace.  Rabbi Zakkai was primarily responsible for the survival of Pharisaic, or Rabbinic, Judaism.  He put to paper the Oral Law which Yeshua referred to as the “Traditions of the Elders.”  In the 80 CE, he arranged for a 19^th paragraph to be added to the Amidah or Shmoneh Esri (18 blessings). That 19th benediction weeded out Messianic Jews because by praying it they would be praying a curse on themselves. This pushed the Messianics further out of the Synagogue.

But Rabbinic Law had to change?  Ben Zakkai convinced leadership of that day to replace the need for sacrifice with prayer, quoting Hosea 6:6a, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” This interpretation took away the need to rebuild the Temple and the need for sacrifice, both of which had been central to Judaism.  Temple ritual was replaced with prayer service in synagogues, building upon the practice of Jews during the Diaspora, or Babylonian exile. One of the main arguments Orthodox Jews use to refute Messianic Judaism is that prayer and repentance are enough to atone for sin; that was certainly not the Jewish view before the Temple was destroyed.  But Lev. 17:11 still says “For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life.” NIV

Points to ponder

Does this help us understand our Hebraic Roots?
Christianity, as we know it, has an interesting history!

Yosef   a.k.a.  Joe Brusherd                                                             January 20, 2015              

Author “Hebraic Insights”;  “Biblical Marriage” & “Musings v.1 – A Victorious Life”
Weekly e-mails “Hebraic Musings”
Yosef1@cox.net   or  www.InsightsByYosef.com

Note – Excerpted from “Birthed in Revival” by Ron Cantor; confirmed in numerous other sources