Into
this mix of “people-types” in the synagogue came a young Jewish
Rabbi/Theologian named Yeshua ben Yosef (literally, “Salvation the son of
Joseph”) from Nazareth in the Galilee, teaching the people that the
Kingdom of G-d had come among them in fulfillment of the writings of the
Prophets. In fact, He went so far as to claim to be the Messiah the
Jewish people had awaited for centuries, and frequently referred to
Himself using the title “ben Adam” (“Son of Man” or literally “Son of
Adam”) that some of the Prophets had used to describe the Messiah. Many,
throughout the Galilee particularly, heard Him teach, some believed Him,
many did not, and many followed Him around the countryside more out of
curiosity than anything else.
Out of
those who followed Him, Yeshua selected twelve men to be his core group
of talmidim [disciples], and for about three years they traveled
throughout Israel from synagogue to synagogue, teaching Torah and
emphasizing that the Kingdom promised in the Torah, the Writings, and the
Prophets (the three sections of the Tanakh, or Hebrew Scriptures) had
finally come. When He wasn’t teaching in the synagogue, Yeshua loved to
teach in the Temple, which was filled with living illustrations that He
used to explain the Scriptures to His talmidim.
What we
must fully understand is that neither Yeshua nor any of His
talmidim after Him taught anything other than the Hebrew Scriptures and
how to live them out in daily life! They did not start a new
religion or even a new form of Judaism. They lived and breathed, walked
and talked, wrote and taught, all within the confines of Judaism, the
Temple, and the Synagogue. The only thing “new” that they taught was that
the long-awaited Messiah had come and had brought the Kingdom of G-d to
dwell among the Jewish people.
After
His execution and resurrection, Yeshua appeared to a core group of His
talmidim and instructed them to complete His work of taking the message
of the Kingdom of G-d, first to Jerusalem, then to all of Judea [to the
Jew first], then to Samaria, and finally to the rest of the world [and
then also to the Gentile] (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 1:7-8). After receiving
this commission, these talmidim were referred to as His Shliachim,
Ambassadors, or Emissaries.[40]
