Here are your show notes for today’s class:

Today’s class started when I saw the following video:

Ben Shapiro is a good Sadducee: he only believes in the Pentateuch (the first 5 books of the TaNaKH/Bible).  Sadly, watching some other videos of him discussing Scripture has revealed he is very ignorant of his own ‘Jewish’ religion.  However, I’ll set that aside to focus on something I heard Shapiro saying in this video.

1st, he said the ‘Jewish tradition’ about what the Messiah is expected to be disproves Jesus as Messiah.  Tradition?  Wasn’t that exactly why Jesus condemned the Pharisees and Sadducees: for teaching tradition over Scripture?

2nd, Shapiro stresses the physical or worldly expectations of Messiah.  In short, unless the guy ‘Makes Israel Great Again,’ he can’t be the messiah.  Well, how nice of Shapiro to tell YHWH what does and does not matter.  I guess we need to start looking for the MIGA Messiah now:

This got me to thinking about the Sanhedrin.  How many believers know what it was?  Who was in it?  Or what it did?  Better yet, how many believers know why it matters today?

And so, I started to do some thinking about how — politically as well as religiously — things haven’t really changed that much since the time of Christ.  This similarity in times will be the focus of today’s class.

FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO STUDY AHEAD

I will be doing a more in-depth class on the Sanhedrin, Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, Zealots and Herodians in the near future.  Here are some helpful links to guide you in your own research (should you choose to follow behind me, that is):

THE SANHEDRIN PHARISEES and SADDUCEES

Jewish Religious Divisions (slide presentation)

Are You A Pharisee? (slide presentation)

Pharisee, Sadducees, Essenes (slide presentation)