Sedona Christian - Paul Knew Jesus?


1. In the Old Testament, God (YHWH) promises a messiah or annointed one that will rescue mankind. A specific verse in Daniel allows calculating when he will likely come! The jews call it 'the end-time'!
* Interestingly, the jewish use of 'ossuary' or boxing up the dead's bones was specific to the some well-off in Jerusalem (only), and also only in the 1st century CE. They were expecting Ezekiel's resurrection?	2. Later writings like 'Enoch' and 'The Assumption of Moses' provide even more detail, with God's 'Holy Spirit' to come down and dwell in the saved!
3. John the Baptist among others are preaching 'repentence'! The end-time is coming! And the Jerusalem leadership is NOT at all impressed. The 'sadducees' don't even accept the prophets. The pharasees or 'separated ones' are ultra-religious, and can easily see John isn't one of them.	* Jude, the writer, seemed to assume his readers were well familiar with these writers, having referenced them.
	4. Herod the Great knows jews can easily 'get out of control'. John the Baptist 'has to go'. Forget the 'end-times'! (the Jerusalem leadership agrees)
5. A man shows up one day to meet John the Baptist. He wants to be baptized. His name is 'Yeshua' or Jesus. John immediately recognizes the promised one! How can he baptize the promised one?? But Yeshua insists. And God's Holy Spirt comes down to dwell in Yeshua.
* 'Baptism' was a jewish rite of purification for new converts to judaism at the time. Why Yeshua?	6. Satan or 'the Adversary' immediately recognizes a problem. His 'kingdom' is being invaded. Satan knows that all he has to do, is use Yeshua's human weaknesses against him. Yeshua will be defeated! Unfortunately, it doesn't work. Yeshua has the spirit of God!
7. Yeshua proceeds to gather his followers who will be key in the coming kingdom. His 12 followers are excited ... they plan to be right up there ruling Israel, just as the OT promised!	* The story of the adversary is in all the synoptics, but doesn't quite tie to the Old Testament. Most people assume 'the devil' is a given, but the it's only in the late OT writings. Re-read Adam and Eve.
* Yeshua preached in southern Judea right along-side John the Baptist, each with their followers.	8. Yeshua demurs. The kingdom is not even remotely as they imagine. The coming kingdom is in their hearts. To be like God, they must learn lowliness, humility and being 'last'. Plus something must happen before the coming of the kingdom. Hmmmm.
9. Yeshua moves throughout Israel demonstrating the coming kingdom. He says 'belief' is crucial. He seems to purposely seek out the lowest whom everyone else avoids. The jews question him ... obviously Yeshua is clueless, spending so much time with the 'defiled ones'. Yeshua's followers don't seem to understand the kingdom any more than the jews. But Yeshua is patient.
* One of the biggest mysteries of the story is that Yeshua's followers never seem to quite 'get it'.	10. 'Simplicity' seems to be the only way for people to understand. Yeshua calls them 'parables' and 'sayings'. He says to best understand God's kingdom, you need the mind of a child. In those days, children were not well regarded!
11. But Yeshua also seems 'in his own world'. Even his family thinks he's 'lost it'. Yeshua says 'he must die'. WHAT? How come? Peter, who seems like a puppy dog, says Yeshua must NOT DIE! Yeshua immediately recognizes Satan! 'Get behind me Satan!' Yeshua swears (well, not really 'swears'!).
	12. Yes, it is not enough for Yeshua to teach his followers about the coming kingdom. He must defeat Satan. And Satan is DEATH. Yeshua must defeat DEATH. That is his purpose. Followers who believe, can also defeat DEATH. This is the whole point.
13. But what could cause Yeshua's death? Yeshua's quite nice. Who would want to kill Yeshua? (Herod already died.). A traitor must act! A traitor gives witness of Yeshua's plans for a kingdom! JUST WHAT THE ROMANS HATE!	* Later on, Yeshua's death would be updated by followers as a 'sin sacrifice' for God.
	14. Surprisingly, events unfold quickly and almost effortlessly. Judas turns Yeshua in. The local roman leader isn't stupid. He doesn't NEED another KINGDOM. He orders Yeshua strung up with all the other loosers. No problem. Done.
15. Yeshua's followers promised they'd NEVER let it happen. Peter was adament. But when the romans showed up, Yeshua's followers ran and hid (great guys, huh). They didn't want to get STRUNG UP with the loosers like Yeshua was! Yeshua's mother was really sad. And many of Yeshua's women supporters were distraught at the hanging. What happened?	There's an interesting story here. Jesus tells Caiaphas the high priest that Caiaphas would personally see the Son of Man coming on a cloud in power (Mat 23:64). Recently archeologists found the Caiaphas tomb, ... which included ossuary. Caiaphas was likely expecting to be resurrected.
* It's kind of odd that 2000 years later, we can't quite identify why the romans/jews killed Yeshua. Seems to be something missing.	16. It was before a jewish special day, so they stuck Yeshua's body in a temporary tomb for the rich. Yeshua was definitely not rich. Then they came back later to 'pick up the pieces'. But they were shocked. Yeshua wasn't there. WHAT??? Somehow they missed Yeshua's discussion of his death. He wouldn't die! (It did sound a little nutty at the time, though.)
17. That's when they remembered. Yeshua said he had to die, battle Satan and then be raised. Yeshua called it 'the Sign of Jonah'? And since he won the battle, the messiah would save them too! Horaah!	* Jerusalem was solid rock beneath; thus burial caves. Only the rich had caves ... everyone else got buried in normal dirt outside the city. So, why a sealed cave? Were Jesus and his followers members of the 'ossuary' movement (resurrected bones)?
* Paul largely built 'Christianity' on the 'resurrection'. But oddly in 1st Cor 15:44, he's not quite sure what gets resurrected, even bringing in astronomy/astrology.	18. WOW were they excited. Pentecost had been discussed in the earlier writings, and Pentecost was important for the 'end-times' and the coming of God's Holy Spirit. They KNEW SOMETHING WAS ABOUT TO HAPPEN! They waited patiently.
19. Goodness did the Holy Spirit come. It was impressive. The Yeshua followers were now 'ambassadors', and the job was to tell everyone about 'the good news' and Yeshua's raising. They got busy quickly, teaching in the jews' temple and meeting in their homes. They pooled their wealth so everyone would be taken care of. Searching the Old Testament, it became more and more obvious the messiah had come! The 'end' was near!
	20. They began in Jerusalem, but the good news spread quickly to Samaria where once Yeshua had chatted with the Samaritan woman about the kingdom. Soon it encompassed all of Israel. But they just weren't 'sure' about those 'greeks'. Surely Yeshua didn't really mean them too!
21. But then Peter (the puppy-dog guy) had a dream, where God showed him ALL of creation. Peter immediately realized the truth ... Yeshua had been serious ... EVERYONE was invited to believe in Yeshua. Soon, more and more assemblies were appearing, many with gentiles. It was truly exciting.
	22. Saul of Tarsus. Big, bad, killing machine. (ok, 'arresting' machine). Apparently he was a short little guy, but a true Israelite. Where the romans FAILED, he would get the JOB DONE. Those Yeshua-ns would be brought back to Jerusalem for punishment. They said Yeshua was a 'son of God'. Literally! Blaspheme! But oddly, Saul had a vision, and suddenly Saul was a Yeshua follower. Said he met Yeshua. Believed in the resurrection. Huh?
23. The Yeshua followers didn't believe it. Saul a believer. Oh yeh, sure. Don't trust him! But a guy named 'Barnabas' was a friend of Peter and the leaders in Jerusalem. He had sold his estate and given it to the believers. He said Saul was on the level, and could be trusted.	* Interestingly, Paul never describes his unusual conversion vision etc. Probably forgot.
* After Paul's chat with Jesus and the subsequent heart-attack by Jesus-followers, he sits in Tarsus for 14 years, doing 'something' (per Luke). Thinking about it?	24. Saul, who renames himself 'Paul', procedes to begin preaching Yeshua, and goes to eastern Asia with Barnabas and his nephew Mark (all approved by the Jerusalem leaders). After seeing 'the lay of the land', Mark says 'forget it'. The jews in asia are not at all pleased with 'Yeshua', and beat Barnabas and Paul up. But even more believe the great news about Yeshua. Paul wants to do it again, but not with that lazy Mark. Barnabas disagrees (he's Mark's uncle) and says 'see ya'. Him and Mark take off for Cypress. Paul is on his own.
25. Paul has a natural knack for this, and gathers his own followers, returning to the new assemblies in eastern asia. Then Paul says God's spirit told him to go to Greece. Okay! As usual, the jews are not thrilled, but Paul is a bull-dog. He successfully starts up assemblies in the major cities of Greece. God is glorified! Throughout, the 'end-times' are being promised. In fact, the 'end-times' are so close, that Paul forgets to explain to the Thessalonians what happens if you die BEFORE the end-times. Personal resurrection hadn't been introduced??	* Mark's split with Paul catches your eye. The story generated an alternative 'smoothing' explanation later on in the 2nd century, so early believers wondered. I'd bet Mark listened to Paul, and 'did the math'. Barnabas (per Paul!) was a little more gullable.
	26. Paul's aggressiveness is both his strength and unfortunately his weakness. In order to convert more to the Yeshua cause, he argues the 'jewish law' has to go. Most of all 'circumcision' and the eating rules have to go, when it comes to getting gentiles to accept Yeshua. Paul builds a strong argument, going back to Abraham and 'rightousness'. Even though Paul says he met Yeshua, Paul doesn't try to use Yeshua's sayings ... he's never heard of them. He then heads for Jerusalem to convince the Yeshua leaders there.
27. This is where the whole story gets garbled up badly. The Yeshua'n historian, Luke, says the Jerusalem leaders decided to meet at the request of the Antioch assembly regarding the gentiles. Peter remembered Yeshua's comments, plus his vision from God. James, the main leader, chimed in and added that the OT also prophesied concerning the gentiles. Everyone happily agreed, and glorified God concerning the gentiles. Now, this was the 'Jerusalem' version.
	28. Paul's version was not quite so nice. First, he got a revelation to go to Jerusalem. He privately told them 'his' new policy for gentiles. Then, how shall we say this, someone 'noticed' one of Paul's gentile followers was not circumcised. It was all downhill from there. Paul makes a few bad comments about the Jerusalem 'esteemed', and then says James, Peter and John agreed with him. Later in Anthioch, he calls Peter a hypocrite and Barnabas as tricked by the James people (that James was such a trickster).
29. It's here where there seems to be a 'split'. Paul introduces his 'faith without works', presumably saying God won't judge based upon the works of the jewish law. James presumably hears about it, and writes a circular to the assemblies saying that faith and good works are inseperable. In contrast to Paul, James has the authority of the Jerusalem church. Paul is super-PO'd.
* Paul's 'faith without works' is another way of saying 'faith without the law'. I get the feeling that James thought Paul was referring to only the law's minutia, James saying that faith still needed rightousness. I don't think James realized Paul had dumped 2000 years of jewish history.	30. Apparently in the mean time, the jewish leadership (who are also trying to keep a lid on jewish rebels at the time), want Paul to answer charges of completely undoing the law of Moses. Paul seems to feel he has to 'answer up' (being through and through, jewish at heart). His fellow believers warn him of disaster.
31. Paul arrives in Jerusalem and James warns him the jewish leadership is REALLY MAD. James recommends that Paul demonstrate he's really jewish by joining four nazarite men with a vow for seven days. James doesn't seem to realize Paul still is pursueing his 'faith without works' and 'the law is dead' theologies. The jews are not fooled. His antagonists from asia see him, and accuse him of dumping the law, and bringing gentiles into the temple. Then for the next seven chapters of Acts, Paul gets arrested and ends up in Rome, where he basically 'disappears'.
* The story by Luke is odd, suggesting that 'James the Righteous' wanted Paul to 'fake it'. But, it is indeed possible that James still believed Paul was thru-and-thru a jewish 'law-man'. Paul did say he'd be anything anyone wanted 'for Christ'. 300 years later, Eusebius had the same philosophy (falseness has its uses).	32. The rest is not too clear, but tradition says both Paul and Peter get killed in Rome by Nero (hot times in Rome). James separately gets killed in Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem itself is blown up. Bad times!! What's even worse is that the 'end-times' don't happen and Jerusalem is gone! Ooooh myyyy ... gooooodness. Paul PROMISED the 'end-times'. Even said WHEN it would be. Obviously Paul did NOT have the 'breath of God'.
33. At this point, two things happened. Soon there were writings about James ... apparently he was well regarded by the jews, with even Josephus the historian discussing him. But also, many of the Yeshua-accounts were likely translated into greek, and then combined into Yeshua's writings (Matthew, Luke, John plus the 'Acts of the Apostles'). Strangely, the Yeshua accounts treated the Paul theology as very questionable. Piety was demanded. God would judge on what believers did. Yeshua demanded MORE than the law's requirements. In the 'Acts of the Apostles', the writer even skipped over Paul's unique theology, only suggesting the importance of repentence and Yeshua's raising. Paul was effectively finished.	* I find it strange that Christiandom doesn't seem to clearly recall Peter's death or Paul's. Part of the reason is probably the pastoral writings, which presume Paul survived Nero. The expectation of the 'end-time' and the destruction of Jerusalem must really have been a blow to both the Christians and jews at the time. The previous Chaldean captivity had the benefit of prophets to explain the problem. But, here, Israel was simply destroyed. Period. Yeow!
* Getting the Jesus-followers 'back-on-track' was a important turning point, almost equal to 'pentecost'. The criticality was to dis-associate Jesus from the calculated 'end-time' versus the fall of Jerusalem. Apparently Christian leaders were still promising a near return ... just not with Jerusalem in the picture.	34. Whoa! NOT SO FAST. Paul's followers hadn't thrown in the towel. With Jerusalem gone, they consolidated management of the assemblies, primarily in asia and greece. And with 'James' gone, new and more impressive theologies were created. Yeshua as sacrificing himself. Christians as sacrificing to God through their works (works??). Sealing of the Holy Spirit. 'Paul' as being a priest to the gentiles. Christians as being a temple for God. 'Foreordination of works' (what?). And best of all, gentiles as being the saviors of the jewish race. Wow!
35. How could all of this happen so easily? Simple. Church Management 101. Bishops, elders, and deacons. Centralized management. Most especially women to keep quiet, have babies, and widows to get new husbands. Slaves should be good slaves and everybody must obey the authorities. Don't be like those nasty jews that no one likes (true!). And 'end-times'? Didn't happen. One of the final writers explained God-years were longer than man-years. In other words, 're-calculate'.	* Most conservative commentaries associate the obstruse logic in Romans, Hebrews, and Ephesians as being 'Paul'. His 'signature'. I doubt this. First, the underlying greek doesn't match and is 'later'. And second, the 'obstruseness' seems to 'go over the top', even beyond Paul's comfort level. I suspect a 'redactor' that could out-Paul Paul himself.
* You really need to read 2nd Peter chapter 3 as a late writing, but still in the first century CE. The writer really makes a 'catch', when Jesus doesn't make the expected return and Paul is a big question mark.	36. It's now maybe 2,000 years later. Still got the bishops. Even a 'pope'. Women are still quiet, and slaves should remain slaves (if that's the culture, of course). Yeshua didn't make it back, and the end-times never happened. Much of western Europe has just 'moved on'. Christianity is mainly 'Paul' and pastors prefer Romans and Ephesians for their teaching. Jesus is interesting, but 'progressive revelation' is now the doctrine (meaning 'Paul').

They say that without 'Paul' and the churchmen, Christianity would have failed. As if God ... what?

Do you see the irony? Jesus said 'just believe'. But they couldn't. 'Jesus' was too simple. Too personal. Jesus could not be 'managed'. And without management, they couldn't build 'the church'.

They couldn't 'trust' Jesus for what might happen. They couldn't 'trust' God, that tight controls were never the point (remember Jesus?). They couldn't believe Jesus, and his prediction 'few would enter the kingdom'.

So, why didn't Jesus make it back? The Christians still say 'any time now'!! 'We're in the end-times!!'

I don't think so. Personally, I think 'Christianity' left the tracks when Paul showed up. Actually, I like Paul. I wish I were as strong. Paul was effective, and every Christian leader since then has had Paul's job to do.

But Jesus' message was personal. And Jesus said you must 'believe'.

The question is whether today's 'Christianity' 'believes'?

Read 'the red writing' in the New Testament again. Read slowly, and seriously.

Maybe He's 'waiting' on YOU.