Issues On Apocalypticism Essay, Research Paper

Issues on Apocalypticism

In ancient Israel the Israelites were members of the Hebrew people. The Israelites were monotheist, which means the belief in one god. The Israelites believed in the god Yaweh. They believed this god had chosen them to become of the Hebrew religion. Prophets explained that the relationship to God must be a covenant one. To enter into covenant, followers must agree to

exercise in a deeply personal relationship with God. Prophets gained these views in the form of a revelation. They believed that God had reasons for doing what he must and these reasons were passed down to the prophets in order to spread the ideas of God to the believers. It was believed that God revealed to the prophets that there was a conflict between good and evil. This evil was

not of Gods doings but of some evil force. This evil force is in control and the good of God was not yet going to defeat this evil, but leave it be. The early Israelites believed that a messiah would return as promised from God. It is then believed that God s kingdom would reign and the good will be vindicated.

Jesus used parables such as the ones in Mathew :13 to teach faith to his followers. The parables were stories that used physical things that his followers could understand. Parables that Jesus used had special meanings which would teach a certain aspect of the religion to the followers. The parables that Jesus used were not for everyone. They were for those who chose

to listen and take the teachings to heart. Jesus taught that the kingdom of God is all around us and that we must decide to believe or not. The line of good and evil goes right through us and we must choose for ourselves. Jesus urged his followers to repent and that it was an unavoidable requirement in order to fulfill the wishes of god.

We can t know exactly why the Jewish leaders crucified Jesus. Jesus true followers believed that the crucifixion was not the end of the story. A group of Jews believed that Jesus was the messiah and that he would be resurrected. Some Christians in the New Testament period thought that Christ was about to return; others did not.(History pg.34) The author of Luke

and the Acts believed that the progress of faith needed to continue for a long time and that the return of Jesus would come far in the future.(History pg.34) Once the return of Jesus takes place, the true believers will be vindicated by the kingdom of God.