Jesus was Jewish, and was raised in the Jewish religion.  It is helpful for us to understand that even in the Jewish faith of that time there was division and tension.  Sometimes we think that it is only the Christian church that has experienced division.  However, in Jesus day the Jews were not all united in their faith community.

Shelley's book describes the place nicely, and the author highlights the three main religious groups among the Jews, but also the close geographic proximity of other pagan religions.  Of course, it was in this setting and among these diverse religious factions that Jesus started the new movement that would become His church.

During the days of Jesus, Palestine never lacked for loyalties.  It was a cross-roads of culture and peoples.  It's 2,000,000 or more people, (the Jews were approximately half of this population) – ruled by Rome – were divided by region, religion and politics.  "In a day's journey a man could travel from rural villages where farmers tilled their fields with primitive plows to bustling cities where men enjoyed the comforts of Roman civilization.  In the Holy City of Jerusalem, Jewish priests offered sacrifices to the Lord of Israel, while at Sebaste, only 30 miles away, pagan priests held rites in honor of the Roman god Jupiter."

The divisions among the Jews in Jesus day included a number of groups.  Four major ones were:

• Pharisees – this was the group that emphasized the strict traditions and practices of Jewish law.  They had an extreme intolerance of people who they considered "unclean" in accordance with the law.  Pharisee means "separated ones."
   
• Sadducees – this was a conservative political group.  They controlled the Sanhedrin, the high Jewish council.  This included the high priest and the lesser priests.  Many Sadducees actually found Roman rule to be an advantage.  It allowed them to have positions in Jerusalem's aristocracy.
   
• Zealots – this party was bent on resistance to Roman rule.  They desired to combine religious zeal with their swords in order to stop their overlords.
   
• Essenes – this was a group that lacked political interest.  They withdrew into the wilderness and lived in monastic communities.  They combined together in studying Scripture and preparation for the Lord's kingdom. 

Centuries earlier the prophets had promised the day when the messiah, the anointed one, would come.  The fulfillment of this should not have been a surprise.  We read in Acts the pervasiveness of this prophesy.

^{Acts 3:24}“Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days.

In these days in Jerusalem following the death and resurrection of Jesus, the apostles set about reminding the people they encountered of the Scriptures that foretold the events.  As they did this, the body of believers grew in an amazing way.

Thanks and blessings,

Larry