The REAL Reason Why Jewish People Reject Jesus As The Messiah
Summary
TLDRThe video discusses why many Jewish people rejected Jesus as the Messiah despite the overwhelming evidence of His miracles and fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. The reasons include confusion between prophecies of Jesus' first and second comings, perceiving Jesus' claims to divinity as blasphemy, challenges to Jewish religious teachings and traditions, and hardened hearts resistant to the truth. The speaker highlights that while Jesus' first coming did not fulfill all messianic prophecies, these will be completed during His second coming.
Takeaways
- 📜 The video discusses why the Jewish leaders and many Jewish people rejected Jesus as the Messiah, despite the evidence of his miracles and fulfillment of some Old Testament prophecies.
- 🤔 The first reason for rejection is confusion between prophecies about the Messiah's first and second comings. Many expected all prophecies to be fulfilled in one coming.
- 📖 Jesus fulfilled several prophecies, such as those about his birth and suffering, but not others related to establishing an earthly kingdom, which led to doubts among Jewish leaders.
- ⏳ The concept of two separate comings of the Messiah, with a gap between them, was not understood by the Old Testament prophets or Jewish leaders, contributing to their rejection of Jesus.
- 🕊️ The Jewish people expected the Messiah to restore Israel's political and spiritual kingdom, free them from Roman oppression, and bring peace. Jesus did not fulfill these expectations in his first coming.
- 🕊️ Another reason for rejection is that Jesus was perceived as a blasphemer by claiming to be God, which contradicted the core Jewish belief in God's oneness as expressed in the Shema.
- 🔄 Jesus challenged Jewish religious teachings and traditions, including the Sabbath rules, ceremonial laws, and the way sins were forgiven, causing further tension with Jewish leaders.
- 🚫 The Jewish leaders viewed Jesus’ claim to forgive sins as blasphemous because forgiveness was supposed to be through sacrificial rituals, not through an individual's words.
- 💔 Some Jewish people's hearts were hardened against Jesus, leading them to reject him despite witnessing miracles, such as raising Lazarus from the dead.
- 🌍 The rejection of Jesus by the Jewish leaders opened the door for Gentiles to be included in God’s plan, according to Christian theology, allowing them to become part of God's family.
Q & A
What were some of the miracles Jesus performed that provided evidence of him being the Messiah?
-Jesus healed the sick, made the deaf hear, made the lame walk, cured lepers, and even raised people from the dead, all in front of the Jewish leaders.
Why did the Jewish people reject Jesus despite the miracles he performed?
-The Jewish people had different expectations for the Messiah based on Old Testament prophecies. They believed the Messiah would fulfill all prophecies in one coming, including freeing Israel from Roman oppression and setting up an earthly kingdom, which Jesus did not do during his first coming.
How did the Old Testament prophecies contribute to the confusion about Jesus being the Messiah?
-The Old Testament prophets did not understand that there would be two separate comings of the Messiah. The Jewish leaders expected the Messiah to fulfill all prophecies in one coming, including establishing a physical kingdom and purging evil, which Jesus did not do in his first coming.
What did Jesus teach about the kingdom he was bringing, and how did it differ from the Jewish expectations?
-Jesus taught that the most important kingdom he was bringing was a spiritual one, focused on spiritual blessings rather than material or physical blessings. This contrasted with the Jewish expectation of an earthly kingdom where they would rule with the Messiah.
Why did some Jewish leaders consider Jesus to be a blasphemer?
-Jewish leaders considered Jesus a blasphemer because he claimed divinity, referred to himself with the divine name 'I am,' and suggested that he existed before Abraham. This was seen as a direct challenge to the central Jewish belief in one God, Yahweh.
How did Jesus challenge Jewish religious teachings and traditions, leading to further rejection?
-Jesus challenged many Jewish religious teachings and traditions, such as ceremonial hand washing, the Sabbath, and the forgiveness of sins. He redefined some practices, emphasizing spiritual cleanliness over physical rituals, which the Jewish leaders saw as contradicting their laws and traditions.
What role did the Shema prayer play in the Jewish rejection of Jesus?
-The Shema prayer, central to Jewish faith, affirmed that God is one. Jesus’ claims of divinity and unity with the Father were seen as a contradiction to this core belief, leading to accusations of blasphemy.
How did Jesus' prediction about the destruction of the temple contribute to his rejection as the Messiah?
-Jesus predicted the destruction of the temple, which was central to Jewish worship and expected to be central in the Messiah’s kingdom. This prediction conflicted with the Jewish expectation of a Messiah who would restore and regenerate Israel's spiritual life, leading to further rejection.
What was the significance of Jesus forgiving sins in the eyes of the Jewish leaders?
-The Jewish leaders believed that only God could forgive sins and that this required a sacrificial system through the temple. When Jesus forgave sins directly, they saw this as blasphemy because it bypassed the traditional sacrificial system.
How did the Jewish leaders respond to Jesus' raising of Lazarus, and what does this reveal about their rejection of him?
-Instead of accepting Jesus as the Messiah after witnessing the miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead, the Jewish leaders began plotting to kill Jesus. This response reveals that their rejection was rooted in hardened hearts and a refusal to accept the truth.
Outlines
🔍 Reasons for the Jewish Rejection of Jesus as Messiah
This paragraph explores why Jewish leaders rejected Jesus as the Messiah despite overwhelming evidence and fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. The key reason discussed is the confusion between prophecies about Jesus' first and second comings. Jewish leaders expected the Messiah to fulfill all prophecies immediately, overlooking the gap between the two comings. This misunderstanding led them to reject Jesus, even though he fulfilled many significant prophecies related to his first coming.
❓ Misunderstood Messianic Expectations
This paragraph delves into the confusion surrounding the expectations of Jesus' role as the Messiah. The Jewish people anticipated a Messiah who would free them from Roman oppression and restore Israel's kingdom, as prophesied in the Old Testament. Even Jesus' apostles questioned him about this. However, Jesus' mission was to usher in a spiritual kingdom, not a political one. The paragraph highlights the disconnect between the people's material expectations and Jesus' focus on spiritual blessings.
⚖️ Jesus as a Blasphemer in Jewish Eyes
This paragraph discusses how Jesus was perceived as a blasphemer by the Jewish people. The Jewish faith, centered on the Shema prayer, emphasized the oneness of God. Jesus' claims to divinity, such as stating he existed before Abraham and declaring 'I am,' were seen as blasphemous. These statements directly challenged the Jewish understanding of God, leading them to attempt to stone Jesus. This perception of blasphemy was a major reason for the Jewish rejection of Jesus as the Messiah.
🚫 Challenging Religious Teachings and Traditions
This paragraph explains how Jesus' teachings contradicted the religious practices and traditions upheld by Jewish leaders. Jesus questioned the Pharisees' focus on external rituals, such as ceremonial handwashing, and emphasized inner spiritual cleanliness. He also redefined work on the Sabbath, advocated for loving enemies, and claimed the authority to forgive sins. These teachings conflicted with established Jewish laws and traditions, leading to further rejection of Jesus as the Messiah.
💔 Hardened Hearts Against Jesus' Miracles
This paragraph illustrates how the Jewish people's hardened hearts prevented them from accepting Jesus as the Messiah, even after witnessing miraculous events. The resurrection of Lazarus, a man dead for four days, should have convinced them of Jesus' divine power. However, instead of believing, many reported the miracle to the Pharisees, who then plotted to kill Jesus. This rejection stemmed from a refusal to accept the truth, with some even attributing Jesus' miracles to Satan.
🌍 The Shift from Jewish to Gentile Believers
This final paragraph reflects on the consequences of the Jewish rejection of Jesus, which opened the door for Gentiles to join the faith. Paul expressed his desire for Israel's salvation, acknowledging their zeal but noting that it was misdirected. He urged believers to pray for the Jewish people, hoping they would eventually recognize Jesus as the Messiah. The paragraph concludes by explaining that the unfulfilled prophecies from Jesus' first coming will be realized during his second coming.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Messiah
💡Old Testament Prophecies
💡Second Coming
💡Blasphemy
💡Shema
💡Roman Oppression
💡Spiritual Kingdom
💡Religious Traditions
💡Hardened Hearts
💡Gentiles
Highlights
Jesus performed numerous miracles such as healing the sick, raising the dead, and fulfilling various Old Testament prophecies.
Jewish leaders rejected Jesus because they expected the Messiah to fulfill all Old Testament prophecies at once, but Jesus did not accomplish all of them during his first coming.
Old Testament prophets did not understand that there would be two comings of the Messiah, which led to confusion about Jesus' role.
The Jewish leaders were expecting a Messiah who would free Israel from Roman oppression and establish an earthly kingdom, something Jesus did not do in his first coming.
Jesus emphasized a spiritual kingdom rather than the physical, material one that many Jews anticipated.
Jesus predicted the destruction of the temple, which conflicted with the Jewish expectation that the temple would be central to Israel’s spiritual regeneration.
Many Jewish leaders saw Jesus as a blasphemer because he claimed divinity, referencing himself as 'I am'—a term associated with God's name, Yahweh.
Jesus' claim of unity with God the Father, stating 'The Father and I are one,' was perceived as another instance of blasphemy, prompting the Jewish leaders to attempt to stone him.
Jesus challenged many Jewish traditions, including ceremonial hand washing, and redefined what it meant to work on the Sabbath, causing friction with religious authorities.
By forgiving sins directly, Jesus bypassed the established sacrificial system, which Jewish leaders saw as a violation of their religious laws.
Jewish leaders felt threatened by Jesus' growing influence, as his teachings contradicted their authority and traditions.
The Jewish rejection of Jesus can also be attributed to a hardened heart, as seen when some witnesses of the resurrection of Lazarus still sought to plot Jesus' death.
The Jewish leaders went as far as to accuse Jesus of performing miracles through the power of Satan, further hardening their opposition to him.
Jesus became a 'stumbling stone' for the Jewish people, as predicted by Paul, because they refused to believe despite the evidence of his miracles.
Paul suggests that the rejection of Jesus by the Jews opened the door for Gentiles to be included in God’s plan, as the gospel extended beyond Israel.
Many Old Testament prophecies that Jesus did not fulfill in his first coming will be fulfilled in his second coming, especially during his 1,000-year reign on Earth.
Transcripts
when Jesus came he gave overwhelming
evidence that he was the Messiah he
healed the sick he made the death here
he made the lame walk he cured the
lepers from their disease and he even
raised dead people from the grave all of
this in front of the Jewish leaders and
they also had access to all of the Old
Testament prophecies about the promised
Messiah and yet they still rejected
Jesus as the Messiah the question
remains why why in the midst of all the
evidence did the Jewish people reject
Jesus that's what we're going to talk
about today in this video there are many
reasons why the Jewish people by and
large rejected Jesus as the Messiah but
in this video I'm going to give you four
of them and the first one is that they
pretty much confused the Old Testament
prophecies that talked about Jesus first
coming with Jesus second coming there
were many prophecy is about the Messiah
that Jesus fulfilled at his first coming
prophecies like the character of the
Messiah in Isaiah chapter 11. prophecies
about where the Messiah would be born in
Micah 5 2 exactly how the Messiah would
suffer and die Isaiah 53 and also down
to the precise timing of when the
Messiah was going to come in Daniel
chapter 9 verses 24-27 we know all about
those but the problem is in spite of all
of these in addition to all of these
there were all sorts of other prophecies
in the Old Testament that Jesus did not
fulfill at his first coming and these
were the ones that the Jewish leaders
were looking at and focusing on and when
they saw that Jesus wasn't fulfilling
these they said nah man he can't be the
Messiah we need to reject him because
the Messiah is going to do the following
things now the key to understand this is
to know that at the Old Testament
prophets did not understand that there
was going to be a gap or an interval of
time between the first coming or first
Advent of the Messiah and the second
this was a concept that was hidden from
them and so when Jesus came and he did
not fulfill all of the Old Testament
prophecies about the Messiah it is first
coming they said this guy cannot be the
Messiah as a matter of fact this gap
between Jesus first coming and second
coming was something that Paul referred
to as a mystery that was kept hidden
from all previous generations and was
only revealed to Paul notice what he
says he says when you read this you can
perceive my insight into the mystery of
Christ here it is which was not made
known to the sons of men in other
Generations as it has now been revealed
to His Holy Apostles and Prophets by the
spirit now what is the mystery this
mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow
heirs members of the same body and
partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus
Through The Gospel so in a first century
Jewish mind and also in centuries past
they expected a messiah to do all of the
things that the Old Testament prophesied
not split it up into two comings now let
me give you a few examples of some of
the things that they expected Jesus to
do
that Jesus did not fulfill at his first
coming but before I do context is very
very important to this discussion so at
the time in which Jesus started his
Earthly Ministry really when he was born
the Jewish people were under severe
Roman oppression they were not free to
govern their land the way they had
wanted to and so there was this
expectation this Messianic expectation
that when the Messiah would come he
would then free Israel from all of their
Roman oppression he would set up an
Earthly Kingdom where the Jewish people
would be the main people group who would
be reigning and ruling with the Messiah
in their own land and obviously we know
Jesus didn't do this during his first
coming but he will at his second coming
now with that background let's talk
about a couple of things they expected
Jesus to do the first thing they
expected him to do is to restore the
kingdom to Israel you can look at
scriptures like Joel chapter 3 verses 1
through 17 which talks about how when
the Messiah comes he will Purge evil
from the world you can look at also
other
um uh prophecies like Psalm chapter 2
verses 6 and 9 which talks about the
Messiah who's going to Reign and Rule
with a rod of uh iron right you can also
look at other prophecies like Isaiah
chapter 2 verse 4 which talks about when
the Messiah comes he is going to bring
this sort of peace to the kingdom so
that people will not trained for war
anymore as a matter of fact even Jesus
own apostles were wondering and
questioning whether Jesus was going to
fulfill these prophecies in the Old
Testament before he ascended into heaven
notice in Acts chapter 1 shortly after
Jesus rose from the dead and before he
ascended into heaven they said this they
said John baptized with water but in
just a few days you will be baptized
with the holy spirit so when the
apostles were with Jesus they kept
asking him Lord has the time come for
you to free Israel and restore our
kingdom listen even these Apostles these
people who had been following Jesus for
some time they even understood that one
of the things that the Messiah was going
to do according to the Old Testament
prophecies was to free Israel from Roman
oppression and set up an Earthly Kingdom
but what they didn't realize is that
Jesus was coming to bring in or Usher a
kingdom but it just wasn't the type of
Kingdom that they were expecting notice
what Jesus said he said from then on
Jesus began to preach repent of your
sins and turn to God why for the Kingdom
of Heaven is near see the people in
Jesus day were expecting the Messiah to
bring forth a Kingdom that involved
physical and material blessings and
Jesus like no no no no you're you're not
getting it the most important Kingdom
that I need to usher in is a kingdom
that includes spiritual blessings and
for that reason Jesus spent much of his
Earthly Ministry teaching on the
principles of his kingdom and how you
could obtain these spiritual blessings
not so much focused on the material and
physical blessings of a kingdom not only
were they expecting the Messiah to
restore Israel but they were also
expecting the Messiah to regenerate
Israel's spiritual life because in
prophecies like Jeremiah chapter 31
which talks about the New Covenant where
they would receive these new hearts and
they would Rule and Reign and they would
obey the Messiah and obey the Lord and
so there was supposed to be some
spiritual regeneration and Central to
that experience was the temple
but here Jesus comes and he predicts
that the temple is going to be destroyed
so all of these things if you're kind of
following the the Jews were like no this
guy cannot be the Messiah because here
he is predicting that the central focus
of our worship where we're going to be
regenerated is going to be destroyed and
so for this reason and many other
reasons they rejected Jesus as the
Messiah the second major reason that the
Jewish people by and large rejected
Jesus as the Messiah is if I'm being
honest they saw him as a blasphemer
right so within the Jewish faith there
is a prayer called the Shema and this
comes from Deuteronomy chapter 6 Verses
4 and 5 and following and it says this
hear o Israel the Lord Our God the Lord
is one you shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart and with all your
soul and with all your might listen this
prayer is the central affirmation of the
people of the Jewish faith so much so
that even from a young age this was
drilled into them and so they had to
recite this prayer in the morning and in
the evening at least twice a day in
their services because they understood
from a young age that God is one there
is no other God other than Yahweh
worship Him and love him alone and here
Jesus comes talking about no you need to
worship me you need to serve me you need
to love me right you need to honor me
and they were like no no no no no no no
this this goes against what I've been
taught as a young Jewish person that you
are God that God could actually come
down from heaven and take on the form of
a man all of this was just too much for
the Jewish people then Jesus comes on
the scene and makes statements like this
in John 8 58. Jesus answered I tell you
the truth before Abraham was even born I
am hold on for Jesus to suggest that he
was born before Abraham
they knew exactly what he was talking
about he was making a claim that he was
God because how could you be born before
Abraham right which implies that you
have been uh
eternally existing but not only that
when he said the words I am they
understood that he was claiming Divinity
for himself because those two words are
What's called the Divine name in the
Jewish faith Yahweh when God said to
Moses Moses said who shall I say will
send me and God said look you don't need
to worry about that just tell them that
Yahweh I am that I am so every time
Jesus used the word Yahweh to refer to
himself they saw him as a blasphemer how
do we know because the next verse says
this at that point they picked up stones
to throw at him but Jesus was hidden
from them and left the temple you see
blasphemy in the Jewish faith was
punishable by death by stoning now later
on in the Book of John it says this
Jesus says the father and I are one now
they knew exactly what Jesus was saying
here because once again going back to
the Shema where it says the Lord our God
is one and now Jesus is coming back and
saying no no the father and I are one
they saw that as blasphemy and once
again in the next verse once again the
people picked up stones to kill him so
the second reason why they rejected
Jesus as the Messiah was because they
saw him as a straight up blasphemer the
third reason why Jewish people by and
large rejected Jesus as a messiah was
because Jesus was challenging some of
their religious teachings and some of
their religious Traditions many of Jesus
teachings they considered to have
contradicted much of the Old Testament
you have to remember that these rabbis
were passing down laws outside of the
Old Testament from generation down to
generation so when Jesus comes in and
starts challenging some of their sacred
laws and some of their sacred traditions
and practices this put them immediately
on the defensive as if to say who is
this guy to come and now bring some sort
of new law or new teaching to our
hearing let me give you an example in
Matthew chapter 15 it says some
Pharisees and teachers of religious law
now arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus
they asked him why do your disciples
disobey our age-old tradition for they
ignore our tradition of ceremonial hand
washing before they eat and so here it
is that Jesus once again is bringing
this idea that you know what it's not so
much about the dirt on the outside of
your hands yeah that's important but
what's more important is to make sure
that your hearts are clean right and so
for that Jesus now challenges them and
he says okay look I'm not going to ask
answer your question but let me ask you
a question why is it essentially that
you think that you're righteous by
making a vow and pledging to give a
certain amount of money but then when
your parents need that money you dis
obey the most basic commandment of
helping and honoring your parents
because you say hey I've already
committed this money to give to uh the
local religious system of that day so
Jesus is challenging some of their
practices and some of their Traditions
Jesus is also trying to redefine what it
actually means to work on the Sabbath
day Jesus is also telling them that they
need to love their enemies and pray for
them which was totally contradictory to
the Old Testament uh idea of purging
evil specifically in the context where
they were under this Roman oppression
and so these teachings were just rubbing
them the wrong way now here's another
way where Jesus was bringing a new
teaching to them and they were like nah
this dude can't be the Messiah in Mark
chapter 2 Jesus heals a paralyzed man
and notice it says here in verse 5
seeing their faith Jesus said led to the
paralyzed man my child your sins are
forgiven now right away this put the
religious leaders on the defense because
they're like wait a second matter of
fact they say but some of the teachers
of religious law who were sitting there
thought to themselves what is he saying
this is blasphemy only God can forgive
sins you have to understand in their
system the way that you were atoned for
your sins was through sacrifice through
going through a priest through bringing
the proper uh animal to the priest so
you can atone for your sins and also the
day of atonement Yom Kippur Leviticus 16
all of this was what was prescribed in
the Old Testament as the only way to be
forgiven of your sins and now this dude
comes on the scene and he's like yeah uh
you can be forgiven for your sins why
because I said so because it came out of
my mouth they were like what in the
world who is this who does he think he
is so the more Jesus started teaching
these things that were contrary referred
to what their religious leaders were
teaching the leaders started to feel
threatened and felt the need to control
because they did not want members of the
Jewish faith to start following Jesus
now as I said there are many other
reasons as to why Jesus was rejected as
the Messiah but let me give you the
fourth and final one we're going to talk
about in this video and that is simply
that their hearts were hardened towards
the truth and one of the ways that we
can see this is in John chapter 11 where
Jesus raises a dead man from the grave
who had been dead for four days his name
is Lazarus so notice the response of the
Jewish people after Jesus raises a man
from the dead something that you would
think if you saw this only God can do
such a miracle but notice how they
responded many of the people who were
with Mary believed in Jesus when they
saw this happen but some went to the
Pharisees and told them what Jesus had
done so instead of saying hey you know
what I just saw something that I've
never seen before something that only
God can do so you know what regardless
of what I've believed before this dude
has just proven that he is God In the
Flesh he is the Messiah so let me place
my faith in him no instead of that they
had this long drawn out conversation
about how they could stop Jesus how they
could control him and ultimately how
they could kill him notice it says here
from that time I'm on the Jewish leaders
began to plot Jesus death listen the
reality as to why the Jewish people
rejected Jesus as the Messiah was
because they did not want to believe
their hearts were hardened towards the
truth they even went as far as to claim
that Jesus was doing all of these
miraculous things by the power of Satan
himself and so because of all of these
reasons Jesus becomes what Paul says is
a stumbling Stone he is a stone that the
Jews have continued to stumble over but
then elsewhere the Bible says that this
stone that the builders rejected that's
Jesus the builders were the Jewish
people they rejected has now become the
Cornerstone of the Christian faith
because Paul says in Romans chapters 9
through 11 that because of the fall of
the Jewish people now that opens the
door for people like you people like me
Gentiles who have now been able to be
included or grafted into the family of
God why all of that happened largely
because the Jewish people rejected Jesus
Christ as the Messiah and so now God is
raising up a generation of Gentiles who
will now carry the torch and fulfill his
divine plan of being a light for the
world so what should we do as Gentiles
as it relates to how we can pray for our
Jewish friends well I will leave you
with this in Romans chapter 10 verses 1
through 4 Paul put it this way he said
dear brothers and sisters the longing of
my heart and my prayer to God is for the
people of Israel to be saved I know what
enthusiasm they have for God but it is
misdirected Zeal listen whenever I went
over to Israel in November this past
year I saw a people there who had Zeal
who had hunger who had thirst they were
praying day and night over at the
Wailing Wall they were reading their
Bibles their Old Testament uh Jewish
Bible they were praying they were
worshiping but as Paul said they have an
uh have a Zeal for God but they lack the
true knowledge for they don't understand
God's way of making people right with
himself refusing to accept God's way
they cling to their own way of getting
right with God by trying to keep the law
for Christ has already accomplished the
purpose for which the law was given as a
result all who believe in him are made
right with God so what should it be our
heart posture towards our Jewish friends
that we should join with Paul
in the longing of his heart that all
Israel will be saved now I said earlier
that there were two comings of Jesus
Christ and that many of the Prophecies
of the Messiah were fulfilled in the
first coming but all of the prophecies
in the Old Testament about the Messiah
that were not fulfilled at Jesus first
coming will ultimately be fulfilled at
the second coming of Jesus Christ
specifically during the 1 000 year
Millennial reign of Jesus where he will
set up an Earthly Kingdom and he will
regather all of the Jews and he will put
a heart within his own people to want to
worship Him and follow him but this is
not the reality in the first coming
these will see their fulfillment in the
second coming of Christ which has yet to
happen so I'd love to hear from you what
are your thoughts what do you think are
some other reasons why the Jewish people
rejected Jesus as the Messiah let me
know in the comment section below I'll
see you in the next video bye for now
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