The early Christians faced political and social challenges which most of them are similarly experienced today. In Rome, Caesar was the lord, and the Christians served him. The tax was paid annually, and residents of a city went to the local temple to pay their taxes declaring that “Caesar is Lord”. The Christians would be executed for treason if they failed to honour this declaration. However, Christians took their chances and ended up being persecuted in Roman society. The early Christians also earned serious social stigmas through their accustomed religious beliefs and practices and belief in Jesus as Lord. The Romans viewed the Christians as atheists, incestuous, cannibals and traitors to the Roman society.
In the early Christian era, Judaism was the legal religion which was divided into several groups. The most common groups included the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the Zealots, the Essenes and the Jesus movements. However, the different groups had fundamental beliefs besides their differences. They are all believed in one God, the covenant between God and the Israelites, the Torah or the Law of Moses. These groups had various differences. For instance, the Pharisees never believed in Jesus as the son of God, and they were commonly known for observing codes of purity and holiness. The Sadducees, on the other hand, they never believed in life after death. The Essenes also did not believe in observing the Law of Moses. The Zealots were also non-religious, and they never followed the religious leaders.
The Roman empire came to destroy the community-based life where the people of Israel shared the same class in the society. The priestly families and the Sadducees united with the Romans to acquire lands and other possessions. The empire also imposed high taxes to the ordinary people, and the tax collectors became richer as indicated in Luke 5:31. The Roman soldiers came to collect stored up wealth in the houses of ordinary people, which became hard to store up wealth. They also forced people to contribute to projects of buildings built by leaders and took away their lands as securities to cover their debts. During this time of the Roman Empire, life was challenging since almost everything was taken from them and wealth was only for a few.
Most people of Greek origin settled in Palestine and adopted the administration, legal, economic and official cult of the Greeks. They were ruled by Herod the great, and the minority in the society were oppressed through heavy taxes and grabbing their wealth and landholdings. Poverty and brutality were like a lifestyle to the people of Palestine.
Roles of Jesus
Jesus ensured he taught his disciples on the truth of the Word of God and the importance of various virtues in the society, such as giving and forgiveness. He also ultimately mentored them through parables and lessons of hope, charity and encouragement, to mention a few. Jesus was also a friend to people in that as he began his ministry, he made friends like Peter and John, who later became his representatives. Jesus portrayed leadership when he washed his disciples’ feet to teach them that leadership is always about serving others. Jesus is also a faithful companion in our daily lives since he sent us a helper (The Holy Spirit). The helper helps us turn our sadness to joy and peace, and more so, the Holy Spirit gives us hope when we feel disappointed in the spiritual journey.
God made a covenant with Noah by assuring him that he would never again destroy the earth by flood despite people’s wickedness. The sign of the rainbow reminds people of the agreement between God and Noah of the sanctity of human life. On the other hand, the New covenant is ushered in by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The new agreement demonstrates the forgiveness of sins of humankind justified by the grace and mercies of God. The new covenant is a fulfilment of the promise God made to Noah (not destroying his people).