. ____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER ____________________________________________________ "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ February 8, 2008 ____________________________________________________ Contents: 1) The Historical-Political Background of the New Testament (Part 2 of 2) (Russell H. Dunaway Jr.) 2) Self-Control (James Hahn) ____________________________________________________ -1- The Historical-Political Background of the New Testament (Part 2 of 2) by Russell H. Dunaway Jr. Under the Romans, the Jews paid heavy taxes; but their religious practices were not changed. Several Roman Emperors touch the New Testament narrative, especially these: Augustus (27 B.C.-A.D. 14), during whose reign the birth of Jesus occurred (Luke 2:1), and the census connected with his birth, as well as the beginning of emperor-worship; Tiberius (A.D. 14-37), under whose reign the preaching of John the Baptist (Luke 3:1-2) and Jesus Christ, as well as the crucifixion, burial, resurrection and ascension took place; Caligula (A.D. 37-41), who demanded worship of himself and ordered his statue placed in the temple at Jerusalem, but who died before the order was carried out; Claudius (A.D. 41-54), who reigned during much of Paul's preaching journeys, and who, due to civil disturbance, expelled Jewish residents from Rome, Aquila and Priscilla being among those thus expelled (Acts 18:2); Vespasian (A.D. 69-79), who as a general began to crush a Jewish revolt, returned to Rome to become emperor, and left completion of the military task to his son Titus, whose army destroyed Jerusalem and the temple in A.D. 70; Nero (A.D. 54-68), the Caesar to whom Paul appealed (Acts 25); and Domitian (A.D. 81-96), whose persecution of the church probably provides the background for Revelation, written to encourage oppressed Christians. Beginning in 63 B.C., Roman power was exercised in Judea through Antipater, who was named governor of Palestine. Antipater had one of his sons, Phasael, named governor of Judea, and another, Herod, made governor of Galilee. Antipater was murdered in 43 B.C. In 40 B.C. the Parthians invaded Palestine and made Antigonus, the last surviving son of Aristobulus, king of Palestine. Hyrcanus was mutilated by having his ears cut or bitten off so that he could not serve as high priest again. Phasael was captured and while in prison committed suicide. Herod barely escaped with his family. He went to Rome to have his future brother-in-law, Aristobulus, made king, hoping to rule through him as his father had ruled through Antipater. However, the Roman Senate, at the urging of Antony and Octavian (Augustus), made Herod king (40 B.C.). It took him three years to drive the Parthians out of the country and establish his rule. He was king until his death in 4 B.C. The years of Herod's rule were a time of turmoil for the Jewish people. He was an Idumean. His ancestors had been forced to convert to Judaism, but the Jews never accepted Herod. In fact, they resented him. He was the representative of a foreign power. Scheming, jealous, and cruel, he killed two of his own wives and at least three of his own sons. Just five days before his own death, Herod had his oldest son, Antipater, put to death. Augustus once said that it was better to be Herod's pig than his son (a wordplay, since the Greek words for pig, hus, and for son, huios, sound very much alike). His relations with Rome were sometimes troubled due to the unsettled conditions in the empire. Herod was a strong supporter of Antony, though he could not tolerate Cleopatra with whom Antony had become enamored. When Antony was defeated by Octavian (31 B.C.), Herod pledged his full support to Octavian. Herod proved himself an efficient administrator on behalf of Rome. He kept the peace among a people who were hard to rule. He was a cruel and merciless man. Yet, during a time of great famine, he used his own funds to feed the people. Among his many building projects in Jerusalem, his greatest contribution to the Jews was the beautification of the temple in Jerusalem. This beautification seems to have largely been an attempt to conciliate his subjects. The temple, decorated with white marble, gold, and jewels, became proverbial for its splendor: "Whoever has not seen the temple of Herod has seen nothing beautiful." It was during the reign of Herod that Jesus was born (Matt. 2:1-18; Luke 1:5). Herod was the king who ordered the execution of the male babies in Bethlehem (Matt. 2:16-18). At his death (4 B.C.), Herod left his kingdom to three of his sons. Antipas became tetrarch ("ruler of a fourth") of Galilee and Perea (4 B.C.--A.D. 39). Philip became tetrarch of the Gentile regions to the northeast of the Sea of Galilee (4 B.C.--A.D. 34). Archelaus was to be king of Judea and Samaria, but Rome refused to give him the title of king. He was ethnarch ("ruler of the people") of these two territories. He proved to be a poor ruler and was deposed (6 A.D.). His territories were placed under the direct rule of Roman procurators under the control of the governor of Syria. John the Baptist rebuked Antipas for divorcing his wife in order to marry Herodias, the wife of Philip, his half brother. In retaliation, Herodias induced her dancing daughter to demand the head of John the Baptist. Antipas yielded to the grisly request (Mark 6:17-29; Matt. 14:3-12). Jesus once referred to Antipas as "that fox" (Luke 13:32). Later Jesus stood trial before him (Luke 23:7-12). Except for brief periods, Roman governors ruled Archelaus's former territory. The fifth procurator appointed to rule over Judea was Pontius Pilate, before whom Jesus stood trial prior to his crucifixion. Interestingly, three times Pilate pronounced Jesus innocent, yet he lacked the courage to set him free (John 18). Herod Agrippa I, grandson of Herod the Great, executed James, the Apostle and son of Zebedee, and imprisoned Peter (Acts 12:1-5). He was smitten of God when he accepted the praise of the people, "It is the voice of a god, and not of a man." Luke tells us that because "he gave not God the glory," "the angel of the Lord smote him . . . and he was eaten of worms and died" (Acts 12:21-23). The governor Felix heard the Apostle Paul preach the gospel and trembled at the word, yet postponed obeying the gospel (Acts 24-25). He hoped that Paul would bribe him with money, but Paul never did and remained a prisoner for two years under the governor Felix. Festus, who took the place of Felix, also heard Paul's case (Acts 25). Willing to do the Jews a favor, Festus suggested that Paul return to Jerusalem to stand trial. Being a Roman citizen, and knowing that the Jews intended to kill him, Paul appealed his case to Caesar. This presented a problem for Festus. He had no choice but to send Paul to Rome. The problem was that he did not have any charges to write in the papers to accompany Paul to Rome. Thus, he asked Herod Agrippa II, great-grandson of Herod the Great, to listen to Paul's self-defense and see if he could determine what charges should be written against Paul before sending his case to Rome. Agrippa heard Paul's self-defense and was "almost" persuaded to become a Christian himself (Acts 26:28). Upon the death of Festus, Albinis and then Florus were appointed governors of Judea. It was the raiding of the temple treasury by Florus that ignited the Jewish revolt of A.D. 66-70 which ended with the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in A.D. 70. The clean-up operations of this revolt lasted till the capture of Masada, a fortress on the west side of the Dead Sea, where the last rebels and their families, numbering more than nine hundred, committed mass suicide just before the Romans entered. The Jews suffered even greater loss of life at the destruction of Jerusalem. Both the destruction of Jerusalem and the capture of Masada were preceded by long sieges. Apart from such events, and in spite of the Herods and the Roman governors, however, Jewish priests and Jewish courts controlled most local matters of daily life. Worship at the temple and its sacrificial system ceased with the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Jewish rabbis established a school in the Mediterranean coastal town of Jamnia (or Yavneh) to expound the Torah, the Old Testament law, more intensively. Unsettled conditions continued in Palestine until Emperor Hadrian erected a temple to the Roman god Jupiter on the site where the Jewish temple had stood. Hadrian also prohibited the rite of circumcision. The Jews revolted again, this time under the leadership of Bar Cochba, proclaimed by many Jews to be the Messiah (A.D. 132). The Romans crushed this uprising in A.D. 135, rebuilt Jerusalem as a Roman city, and banned Jews from entering the city. Thus the Jewish state ceased to exist until its revival in 1948. (For a more detailed discussion of the history of the Jews from the Babylonian Captivity through the intertestamental period, I highly recommend Old Testament History by Charles Pfieffer, as well as Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, Books 10-20, which cover the history of the Jews from the Babylonian Captivity on into the New Testament Period, to the governorship of Florus. For a detailed discussion of the destruction of the Jerusalem, see Josephus.) -- Via Truth Magazine Vol. XLIV: 9 p14 May 4, 2000 ____________________________________________________ -2- Self-Control by James Hahn The Bible clearly teaches that Christians are to exercise temperance or self-control (2 Peter 1:6) if we are to make our calling and election sure (2 Peter 1:10). There are those who profess to being Christians that do not exercise self-control and as a result they lose their temper; they use speech not fitting for a Christian to use or engage in actions unbecoming to one wearing the name of Christ. How can we develop self-control? Paul gives us the answer in 2 Corinthians 10:5; "...bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." When our every thought is controlled by the desire to be obedient to Christ in all things we will be able to exercise the self-control expected of followers of Christ. - Via The Beacon, February 3, 2009 ____________________________________________________ "Take hold of instruction; do not let go. Guard her, for she is your life. Do not enter the path of the wicked And do not proceed in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not pass by it; Turn away from it and pass on" (Proverbs 4:13-15). ____________________________________________________ CHURCH OF CHRIST 201 Rushing Road (at the Hampton Inn) Denham Springs, LA 70726 Sunday: 9:15 AM, 10:00 AM, 4:00 PM evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520 tedwards@onemain.com http://home.onemain.com/~tedwards/go DIRECTIONS: Take the Denham Springs exit (exit 10) off of I-12. At the end of the exit ramp, turn north. Go about a stone's throw to Rushing Road. (You'll see a Starbucks, Circle K, and two other gas stations; with each on each corner.) Turn left on Rushing Road, and go less then 0.3 of a mile. Hampton Inn will be on the right. We assemble in its meeting room, which is very close to the reception counter. ____________________________________________________