Many people believe that Jesus was trying to renew, reform, or overhaul the religion of Judaism. The idea is that in general, Judaism is good, and Jesus just needed to tweak and modify a few things to make it universally applicable to all.
I don’t believe this one bit.
Sure, Jesus was Jewish. And sure, Jesus was a Rabbi. And sure, Jesus practiced, observed, and obeyed the Jewish law.
But none of this means that Jesus wanted all of His followers everywhere in the world and throughout time to also be “Jewish.” Jesus never taught this, and while some in the early church believed that following Jesus required conversion to Judaism, the idea was quickly condemned by the apostolic leaders within the church.
One of the places where Jesus explains the type of ministry and mission He was engaged in is Luke 5:33-39. With three short and humorous images, Jesus shows that He is not remodeling or patching up the old way of doing things, but is bringing a brand new way of doing things. A way built upon grace, love, and forgiveness.
Cars and Computers
He uses the images of clothing, wineskins, and wine, but we could use similar images today of a car or computer. Imagine you had a car that was barely running, and you took it down to the repair shop, and they told you that you needed a complete engine overhaul. You do not have the cash for this sort of repair, so decide to limp by as best you can.
One week, you go to the State Fair, and enter a drawing for one of those brand new cars. You get a call the next week that you won! So you go down, pick up the brand new car, take it and your old car to the shop, and tell them to rip out the engine from the new car, and place it in the old car.
Is that what you do? Of course not! You simply drive and enjoy the new car, and dump the old one for scrap metal.
The image would fit just as well with a computer. It is full of viruses and spyware, and you are told you need to buy security software, a bigger hard drive, and more memory. You cannot afford this. Then one day, you get a call, and discover you have just won a top-of-the-line computer. Are you going to rip the components out of that brand new computer to fix-up your old computer? Of course not. You will just use the new computer and dump the old!
Out with the Old! Enjoy the New!
This is the picture of Jesus in Luke 5:33-39. Jesus is saying that He has brought something brand new. It was actually what God intended all along, but regardless, this new way of loving others and being with God was not compatible with the old religion. If you tried to mix the two together, you would end up destroying both.
Jesus and religion do not mix. And Jesus did not come to patch up religion; He came to give us something brand new.
So sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.
Yeah, baby! You’re singing my song now! Welcome to the dark side…
Bonar,
Hah! But I’m still not throwing hammers! Or am I?
I’m not religious. When someone asks, I say I try to follow Jesus, and sometimes say that I consider myself spiritual. Saying either or both of those things promotes conversation. Saying I’m religious or a Christian (I avoid the term because too many religious people have repurposed it for their use) ends the conversation.
You’re right. Jesus gave us something new. It wasn’t a new religion, or a new version of Judaism.
Jeremy, maybe you have thoughts on what following Jesus, being Jesus to people in this world, looks like. Maybe you would want to contrast that with what religion looks like (maybe not).
I saw Jesus at least once last week, and Jesus didn’t look like anything I ever saw in a church.
Sam,
I think that more and more people are referring to themselves as spiritual, rather than as “religious” or even as “Christians.” I imagine that in time, even “spiritual” will collect its own baggage, and a new term will arise to identify those who simply want to follow Jesus with freedom and flexibility.
It’s posts like this that make jews believe that jesus was NOT the messiah. The old testament is perfectly clear that laws and commandments in them are forever. The ancient hebrew people were a circular thinking people, not linear. Jesus’s parables must been seen from that view. A jewish one. Note that he did not condemn the teachings of the pharisees, (Matt. 23.3) but their behavior. Saying that Jesus wouldn’t contradict what the torah taught is misleading. If christians don’t feel like keeping the commandments, then fine, don’t keep them. But don’t teach something Jesus obviously didn’t teach.
Yirmeyahu,
I have done a lot of study on the Jewishness of Jesus and the Jewish backgrounds of Scripture.
I believe that Jesus was teaching an interpretation of the Mosaic law which would make it easier for Jews to keep, and which would open the door of the kingdom to all people, not just to Jews, and that ultimately, eternal life is not about keeping the law anyway, but is all about grace, from first to last.
So I am not teaching something Jesus didn’t teach, but something that was right in line with His teachings.