Skip to main content

Waiting for the Messiah... the Zealots


While the Pharisees and Sadducees were generally limited to the religious class, there was another significant group within first century Judaism that wasn’t primarily theological; the Zealots. While the term “zealot” can technically be applied to anyone who is an extremist of their group, here it refers to something specific. The Zealots were the rebels of their day.
            
For the Zealots, the greatest enemy on the planet was the Roman Empire. Their entire life was devoted to the overthrow Roman rule and the independence of Israel, usually by any means necessary. This meant kidnappings, uprisings, murder, and more. Zealots hunted down Roman officers, politicians, and soldiers. They considered anyone who collaborated with the Romans an enemy (tax collectors, for example) and therefore fair game. In modern terms we would call them terrorists.
            
When we think of what first century Jews were looking for in the Messiah, it is usually the Zealots’ picture that comes to mind. They sought a military leader who would lead a bloody war against the Roman Empire and establish Israel as a global superpower. Their grand vision was the Messiah, sword in hand, standing over the groveling Caesar of Rome. While most of the Jews in Judea weren’t Zealots, most did support this view. When the Sadducees and Pharisees bring Jesus before Pilate they accuse him of being a Zealot (aka attempting to overthrow Rome). Barabbas, who is released instead of Jesus, was a Zealot charged with attempting an uprising.
            
What the Zealots got right about the Messiah is that he would come and defeat their greatest enemy. What they got wrong was the enemy. Jesus did indeed come to wage a war, and to win it. But as Paul tells us in Ephesians 6, this war isn’t against flesh and blood. It’s a spiritual war. Jesus did defeat our enemies, but it wasn’t the Romans. Jesus defeated sin and death.
            
Today it may seem that there are no Zealots in our midst. After all, few Christians are calling for the overthrow of the government and the establishment of a new superpower. However, the impulse of the Zealot is alive and well. How many Christians view some other group of people (be it Democrats, Republicans, Muslims, etc.,) as the enemy that needs to be overcome? More than we’d like to admit. Jesus did not come to destroy people, but to save them. Did he come to wage a war? Oh yes, but against he dark spiritual powers and against sin and death itself.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thankful

Today is Thanksgiving, the day that we are supposed to celebrate all the things we are thankful for. It is a time of family reunions, football, and turkey eating. I sincerely pray that each and every one of you has a good day today. I'll admit that being thankful has not been easy for me this year. As pretty much all of you know, my mother passed away December of last year. Though she had been in the hospital for months, we were not expecting it. In fact I was sure she would be finally able to come home within a matter of weeks. Instead she peacefully passed on into the arms of Jesus, whom she loved more dearly than anyone else. As you can imagine, the entire family was heart broken. After what can easily be described as the worst Christmas ever, I returned to home to Illinois. It was here that I finally broke down. I spent the next months doing everything except being thankful. I cursed God, wept, screamed, begged to have her back, and was generally not the nicest person to be...
3 comments
Read more

Proverbs, Wisdom

Wisdom is an essential part of living a godly life. The ability to make good judgments and identify potentially sinful situations are skills all Christians should have. The Bible repeatedly emphasizes that it is the duty of parents and older Christians to pass on these skills and train younger generations in wisdom. The book of Proverbs is a book all about wisdom. The various authors of the book are trying to pass on the things they have learned to a younger generation. They want all that come after them to know that true wisdom comes from God. Background Like the book of Psalms, the book of Proverbs is a collection of various sayings and proverbs from many different people. The primary author we associate the book with is King Solomon, who wrote the most out of any single author, but he is just one of several writers. It is a very interesting book in this regard. The book of Proverbs can be tricky because it isn't always consistent in how the text flows together. Some...
Post a Comment
Read more

What is Theology?

Greetings all! For the first true post I have decided to cover what will be one of the defining aspects of this blog; theology. I know that when I was growing up theology wasn't a word that was used in the churches I attended. In fact I don't recall ever hearing the word until I was in high school, and even then it was used negatively like theology was a bad thing. Theology is inseparable from Bible study, Christian living, and being a disciple of Jesus in general. It is an indispensable part of being a Christian. The thing is we haven't always treated it that way. We have allowed our theology to fall by the wayside, believing it to be useless or not appropriate. So what is theology exactly, and why is it so important? What is Theology? The word theology simply means "the study of God." The goal of theology is to reveal who God is, and when we know God we also come to know ourselves, sin, the world, and so on. What we've done in the past (and this may ju...
1 comment
Read more