Jesus

What most Christians don’t realize when they read the gospels is that every time Jesus contended with the Sadducees or Pharisees about the “law” or the “religious law” or the “law of Moses” or “God’s Law,” it was at that time the civil law of Judea which Jesus was addressing.

Biblical Definitions:

* Mosaic Law: The civil law and constitution of Judea during the time of Jesus. Jesus was continually condemning the Pharisees for violating God’s civil law - by adding to it, taking away from it, twisting it, or ignoring it.

* Sanhedrin: This was made up of 70 “elders or scribes” plus the High Priest. It was a combined religious and political body that had all three civil functions - supreme court, legislative, and executive branch - for all religious, legal, and political matters. It was composed of the two political parties in Judea - Sadducees and Pharisees.

Judea was under Rome but was given liberty to be ruled by their own civil law (Mosaic Law) and civil leaders (Sadducees and Pharisees) as long as they paid their taxes, did not rebel, and “rubber stamped” any Jewish execution. Nonetheless, the Jewish leaders did not always get Pilate’s “rubber stamp” for putting to death someone, as was the case of Stephen (Acts 7).

In Jerusalem there was the governmental Great Sanhedrin. Lesser Sanhedrims were in all the other cities of Judea. Each town with its Lesser Sanhedrim had 23 Elders as their political civil leaders.

* Scribes: They were the civil lawyers of the Mosaic Law, their Constitution. They examined the more difficult and subtle legal questions of the Law. They were enrolled in the Sanhedrin to provide constitutional critique for the Sadducees and Pharisees.

* Sadducees: The Sadducees party held the controlling majority and civil power in the Sanhedrin. The High Priest, Caiaphas, was also a Sadducee. They were the more wealthy and aristocratic party and collaborated more with Roman authorities and the Hellenistic culture. Though they only accepted God’s written Law, the Torah, nonetheless, they did not believe in any resurrection or any life after death.

* Pharisees: They were the party of the more common people. They accepted God’s written Law but also believed in adhering to their own oral traditions, their Oral Torah. As more oral law was added it was later called the Talmud. But they believed in resurrection, angels, demons, and afterlife.

The Pharisees were the larger of the two political parties and had the most influence on the common people. The Pharisees were in opposition to Rome and all Roman influence and often opposed them. They were especially looking for their Messiah to come and liberate them from Rome.

With the Sadducee / Pharisee government, they were all claiming to follow God’s Law, though like many Christians today, they were blind in seeing all of God’s Law as the law of “love.” As Jesus said, “You shall love… hangs the whole Law” (Matt. 22:37-40):

“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ Upon these two commandments hang the whole Law and the Prophets.”

The only thing right about the Sadducee / Pharisee government was the structure which continued to follow the structure model that God gave to Moses in the Law.

Interesting today, there happens to be one government structure that comes close to imitating God’s government structure. Now Jesus said to the Pharisees that “your father is the devil” (John 8:44). Even so, the one government today imitating God’s government structure, the devil is also their father - the Muslim rulers.

Satan has made them so ugly in the eyes of Christians, as their religion truly is, that it has blinded most to see how Satan has imitated some of God’s principles. They not only imitate God’s government structure but also God’s Bible with their Quran and God’s Law with their Sharia law. They are even identified as a “theocracy.” What a mockery! With the Muslims, Satan has imitated God’s:

* Government structure

* Bible

* Law

* Identity

The term “theocracy” originates form the Ancient Greek 1st century term “theokratia”, coined by the Roman Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus, to describe a government where God is recognized as the Supreme Ruler. The word “theocracy” is derived from theos (god) + kratos (ruler). The word literally means “God rules.” The word first appeared in 1600 in the English language describing the Protestant Reformation.

Josephus coined the word to describe the unique Hebrew government, with God’s Law, differentiating it from monarchies or democracies. Today Satan has hijacked the word for “God’s rule” to describe the devil’s rulers, as Jesus called them. And more amazing, there is no word in the English language for “Satan rules,” which accurately describes Muslim rulers. So I have coined a new word - “satacracy” (Satan rules), which accurately describe rulers rejecting Jesus and His Law.

The Muslim government is a government of:

* Suppression

* Fear

* Hate

* Lies

The Kingdom of God is a government of:

* Freedom

* Hope

* Love

* Truth

Do you realize that Jesus was the greatest moral political activist in the world! He preached it and He commanded His disciples to preach the same. Jesus said, (Matt. 6:33):’

“Seek first the Kingdom of God!”

A kingdom is a nation with a king and Jesus is to be that “King of kings!”

And Jesus sent out His disciples everywhere to announce His Kingdom (Matt. 10:7):

“Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near.”

Jesus’s final great commission began by Jesus declaring (Matt. 28:18):

“All authority has been given unto to Me… on earth!”

That would include all civil authority. And this is not just for some future millennial reign, but Jesus has all civil authority today. And therefore, Christians should be proclaiming the same and thus demanding that Jesus be recognized in our nation today - “Jesus… Supreme Ruler… and King of kings” - as the Apostle Paul publicly declared (Col. 2:10; 1Tim. 1:17, 6:15).

Jesus not only came to die for our sins but then rose with “all authority… on earth” to now be “King of kings!” Did you realize, every time Jesus contended with the Pharisees about the Law, He was being a political activist for God’s Law - for it to be obeyed in the nation!

Moreover, what Jesus told us to pray for would for sure include all nations on earth obeying God’s Law (Matt. 6:10):

“Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

Therefore, we are to pray that King Jesus rules in our cities and nation here “on earth” today, “as it is in heaven.”

Jesus was the world’s greatest political activist - always declaring and working to have all the civil leaders obey God’s Law - even being crucified for it!

John

What did Jesus say about John the Baptist (Matt. 11:11):

“I tell you the truth, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist.”

No greater words could Jesus have used to express the greatness of any man. What is especially revealing is the fact that Jesus said this about John the Baptist when he was thrown into prison for publicly condemning the highest civil authority in the land.

John was not put in prison for preaching the gospel. John was thrown into prison because he had been publicly and repeatedly condemning the top civil authority, King Herod, for violating the Mosaic Civil Law regarding marriage, “and for many other wrongs he had done” (Luke 3:19).

Herod was not disobeying Roman law, only God’s Law. John the Baptist was ultimately martyred for his public and relentless condemning of Herod breaking God’s Law.

John the Baptist was truly a political activist and according to Jesus, no man born was greater than him. We learn 7 things from John’s example:

* God’s Law is not just for believers but also for unrighteous civil authorities to obey.

* A civil authority should be publicly condemned if they violate any of God’s Law.

* The specific part of God’s Law that the authority violates should be publicly identified and proclaimed.

* All civil authorities, even the highest civil authority, should be publicly condemned when they violate God’s Law.

* The civil authority should persistently and publicly be condemned when violating any part of God’s Law.

* We should never be ashamed but fearless and publicly condemn any civil authority for violating God’s Law, even if it costs us our lives.

* Authorities who publicly disobey God’s Law should be publicly condemned.

After Jesus, John the Baptist, was the world’s greatest political activist - even being beheaded by King Herod for it!

Paul

Apostle Paul’s Example:

Acts 9:15:

“Go, for Saul [Paul] is my chosen instrument to take my message to the Gentiles and to kings.”

Acts 17:6-7:

“Not finding them there, they dragged out Jason and some of the other believers instead and took them before the city council. ‘Paul and Silas have caused trouble all over the world,’ they shouted, ‘and now they are here disturbing our city, too. And Jason has welcomed them into his home. They are all guilty of treason against Caesar, for they profess allegiance to another King, named Jesus.”

Acts 19:8:

“Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God.”

Acts 20:25:

“And now I know that none of you to whom I have preached the Kingdom will ever see me again.”

Acts 28:30-31:

“For the next two years, Paul lived in Rome... boldly proclaiming the Kingdom of God.”

To always be proclaiming the “Kingdom of God” - is always proclaiming a nation under God’s Law with Jesus as King.

Apostle Paul’s teaching:

Eph. 1:21:

“Jesus is far above any ruler or authority in this world.”

Eph. 1:22:

“God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made Him Head over all things for the benefit of the church.”

Col. 1:15:

“Jesus is Supreme over all.”

Col. 2:10:

“Jesus is Head over every ruler and authority.”

Jude 1:25:

“All power and authority are His in the present and beyond all time!”

1Tim. 1:17:

“Jesus is the eternal KING; He alone is God.”

1Tim. 6:15:

“Jesus is the only Sovereign, the KING of kings and LORD of lords.”

After Jesus and John the Baptist, the Apostle Paul was the world’s greatest political activist - even being beheaded in Rome for it!

Jesus, John, and Paul all did and taught other things but no less so, they were declaring to the nations to submit to a new king and kingdom - King Jesus and the Kingdom of God!

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