So what was Jesus up to? That is one of the questions which has occupied New Testament scholars for the past century and a half (at least). The debate was about whether or not Jesus was trying to create something new (the church), reform something old (Judaism) or simply trying to be a prophetic agent and/or wisdom teacher in the rural regions of Judea. There are schools of thought which argue for each of these positions. There is a school of thought which argues that Jesus had abandoned Judaism as corrupt and thus needed to create an alternative community of faith. There is another school of thought which argues that Jesus was simply trying to reform Judaism (as Luther was trying to do with Catholicism) but people like Paul took it too far and began a new community. Finally there are schools of thought which simply see Jesus as a wandering prophet or teacher who had no larger plans than to impact the rural regions of Judea.
Which is it then? What I would like to argue is that it is a bit of each. As we saw last week, Jesus' game plan was rooted and grounded in Judaism. The language that Jesus used was consistent with the work and words of the great prophets who had preceded him. In that sense what Jesus was about was a continuation of the great story of God's work in the world to restore creation to its original intent. As part of this process Jesus also picks up the idea that not all of the biological children of Abraham were going to be part of this recreated community. Again, this idea is not new, but is rooted in the concept of a "remnant." The Remnant was a subset of God's people who would, through their faithfulness live into and be a part of this new creation. This idea can actually be seen as early as I Kings 19 where we read the story of Elijah the Prophet who when believing he alone is left to defend God's honor, is told by God that no, there is a remnant of seventy thousand who will stand with him. Remnant theology is brought to full flower later in the work of Isaiah.
At this point it would appear that Jesus is simply working for the reformation of Judaism. However there are also hints that Jesus is about creating something new out of the midst of the old. First Jesus calls twelve disciples. This number appears to be intentional as if he is going to be creating twelve new tribes. Second, Jesus invites women into his inner circle. Though they are not part of the twelve they are still encouraged to be fully engaged in learning and ministry (something which traditional Judaism would never allow). Third Jesus engages with Gentiles and offers them the benefits of being part of this new community (which by the way is actually based in the Old Testament, though it was certainly not a part of the beliefs of Judaism of Jesus' day). Finally (at least for the purpose of this article) Jesus rejects the Temple as essential to the life and work of God in the world. While he teaches in the Temple he is clear that ultimately God is going to be about creating a new community which is Spirit and not ritual powered (again an Old Testament concept).
Thus what Jesus is creating is both in continuity and discontinuity with what has come before. There is continuity in that it looks somewhat like First Century Judaism (central beliefs about God, humanity and creation) but at the same time looks very different (women and Gentiles as integral members). This new community which ultimately is called the church was never intended to be a replacement for Judaism but was instead intended to be a community which resembled the teachings of Isaiah in which all nations would come and worship God and be Spirit empowered. This understanding is the basis of Paul's writings (which we will look at this week) in which he wants the church to know that it is a "wild olive shoot" that has been grafted into God's people; meaning that Judaism and its story are the church's roots for which the church must be grateful. In the end then Jesus created a new community which emerged from the old in order to be God's agent of reconciliation and renewal in the world.
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