One Who is Many
Many in Jerusalem thought that the darkness, the earthquake and the howling animals were signs of God’s sorrow and anger at the death of Jesus the Messiah. Many others denied any connection.
Other strange phenomena were also reported. During the execution wood beams and posts in the temple and elsewhere swayed and groaned. The stones of the temple wept salt water, and for days afterward, dogs and sheep licked the dried salt from the walls. At the ninth hour, people of every sort in the temple became alert, some set their faces as flint, while others beat their breast and wept.
It was reported to Caiaphas that the curtain of the inner sanctuary had been torn from top to bottom at the time of Jesus’ death. Caiaphas recalled the words of Jesus during his trial, he had said that both the living and the dead would tear their garments in grief. Caiaphas stood by his decision against Jesus in principle, but now wished he had sought the exile of Jesus, instead.
Caiaphas was shaken, so too the entire Sanhedrin. Most wavered, some changed their opinion. Caiaphas was now undecided at his core, but sought to bring stability to the group asking, “What has changed to reverse our judgment?”, and then answering, “Nothing!” The full Sanhedrin met the Sunday following the execution and then again four days following.
It was also reported to Caiaphas that hundreds of dead persons had been raised from their tombs. In the days following, Caiaphas had many interviewed, and many were known personally to him. Many reported that the prophet Jesus appeared to them as they waited in limbo.{111} All reported that the prophet Jesus was indeed the Messiah, and that they had to follow him as disciples.
Caiaphas was too committed to his understanding of who and what the Messiah would be, to consider Jesus...even in the face of mounting evidence, and much of it coming from friends raised from the dead.
Pilate returned to Caesarea, and meeting him enroute were messengers telling of isolated attacks on Roman garrisons, occurring in Galilee. They had been successful to a degree, but not sustainable. Initial report attributed the attacks to the Galilean Zealots...who else?
The Zealots in Judaea did not obtain a people’s uprising as they had predicted. It was hoped that the anger at the Romans for executing the people’s prophet would be so intense that revolt would be an unavoidable result. The theory was that an intense wave of anger would smash into every Roman garrison and outpost, the Zealots were to lead an army that appeared in an instant and that already surrounded and outnumbered every Roman in Israel. The darkness and the earthquakes gave pause to every enterprise and emotion in Judaea that day, and the Zealots just never mustered a following.
Two Zealots did stumble across Judas the morning after the execution and hung him from a tree, out of mixed motives. He was not found for two more days, and his body burst upon being cut down.
All involved were slowly realizing that Jesus was gone, and the Messiah was yet to come. The twelve — now eleven — were cowering at the home of Nicodemus. They were more scared than actually hunted for. No order had gone out to arrest anyone else involved, there was no need. None of the apostles wanted to continue, but no one would break ranks before the last minute of the third day. They owned that to the master. He had promised his own resurrection on the third day.
The temple also knew of this promise and was committed to maintaining the guard at least until then. A major topic at the Sanhedrin council was the idea of moving the body to a remote or a secret location.
There was an unspoken amnesty being observed. Few were interested in pursuing the matter, which continued to divide the faithful. As the rumors and the “miracles” ceased, Jesus would cease to be a matter of concern. A generation from now, he would be just another of the many false Messiahs. Hopefully this lesson would not have to be learned again.
The third day after the Friday execution, was the Roman day of the divine Sun. The Roman guard was still at the tomb, as were temple guards and some others from the temple. Several Pharisees had observed the body of Jesus being sealed in the new tomb owned by Joseph the Aramathean, who was a Pharisee of the temple.
The apostles were seized with indecision, the master was gone and he had left only the prophecy of his execution, and no real instructions. Peter wanted to split the group into three squads, if one or two groups were arrested, the other would survive.
They were not aware of the fact that there was no bounty or warrant issued against them. If they were not welcome, they were essentially free to move about. Instead they sent the women out — to find safe houses, to find food, to retrieve news of any sort. The apostles waited for the master to appear as promised. It was now dawn on the third day, and they waited.
The women set out at daybreak with burial items: water, spices, linen. They made their way to the cemetery; it was located near the junction of the valleys Kidron and Hinnom. The area was mostly gently graded, with stone outcroppings. In former centuries, it had been a quarry and much of the softer stone used for home construction in the city had come from this quarry. It was here that Jesus was entombed.
The women found the tomb, or what they believed was the tomb of Jesus. Mary thought momentarily that the bodies lying prostrate were recently dead awaiting burial...but they more resembled sleeping, or unconscious people. The women stepped toward the tomb, which was open, the huge boulder disk that normally sealed the entrance had been rolled aside. The women crept forward and peered inside. Cut into the wall were places for two bodies, the tomb was new and intended for Joseph and his wife, but it contained only a burial shroud. The shroud was bloody in every location, it had to be that of Jesus who was likewise lacerated on all parts of his body.
By now Mary Magdalene had fully entered and the others were just inside. Their hearts jumped into their necks when a voice spoke from behind, “Daughters of Israel, why do you seek the man Jesus among the dead? Do you not know that he will be found among the living?”
The women seized each other and turned. Suzanna was now closest to the voice, which had come from a young man who looked like an angel. The man turned to leave, the women looked at each other, and then again at the angel, who was now gone.
The bodies were still lying about, but no body of the master. The women were still joined in a mutual defense pact, arms around one another, and were looking about. They started making their way out the way that they had come in. Along this path a man came into view in the distance. He was a grounds keeper and had a spade, the women ran to him with their questions, but the man gave them the same abstruse answer that the angel had given. The man could have been the brother of Jesus, there was a distinct resemblance, which served to confuse the situation that much more.
Mary Magdalene would not release the man from her questioning, or her stare. She now realized that this man was the master. She exclaimed it, “Master!” All three now saw Jesus and exclaimed likewise.
Mary Magdalene seized the Christ with a strength of grip she did not realize, and would not release him. “Lord, do not leave us!” she exclaimed repeatedly, her white knuckles now contrasted next to her red finger tips. Jesus tried to step away from her grip, but she moved with him, telling to him all the reasons why he must stay with his disciples.
Finally he spoke firmly, “Mary, release me...Mary do not hold me, I must return to the Father!”
Mary rebutted, “No Lord, I am bound to you alone, and nothing else. This is at your command.”
Her theology was correct, and Divine command did not relax her grip...something else must effect his freedom. Jesus pried up one of her fingers with three of his own, bringing upward pressure on her finger tip, and downward pressure on the middle knuckle. Mary released her grip and bent her knees to avoid the increasing pressure on her finger joint. The technique freed the Christ and brought Mary to listening status.
Jesus now spoke gently, “Go now, and tell my disciples that I am risen. All who die as Messiah will also rise as Messiah. Tell them all to go to Galilee where I will meet them.”
In the weeks following the resurrection of Jesus, he appeared to many persons, or more correctly the Christ appeared to many. The Christ was now all who were the Christ — the body of Christ — and reports had the Christ appearing as faithful Jewish men and women, and even non-Jews of virtue. There was even news from Alexandria of the Christ appearing there.
The high priest Caiaphas was exasperated, it was a very fluid situation in more than one way, and he was unable to control it, or even lay hold of it. Several of his deceased friends, were now walking about Jerusalem! They had been raised from their graves the day that Jesus had died; the ongoing aftershocks continued to split the earth and crack open tombs. Each day a few more of the former dead reported in to their families!
The synagogues were overflowing, and there was hardly enough water to baptize the many seeking it. Two weeks ago this would be considered a windfall from Heaven, but it was the apostles that the new faithful were seeking, not the temple priests. It was the words of Jesus, and not of Moses that Jews, Samaritans and Romans wanted to hear.
Sixteen members of the Sanhedrin were now asking that Jesus be recognized as Messiah. A leading Pharisee in Israel, Gamaliel was advising that the new faith be left alone. The governor Pilate was demanding the body of Jesus, and demanding that the temple authorities take control of the Messiah sect, which was seen as a growing unknown quantity.
Caiaphas was wavering. He refused to call for any more meetings of the full Sanhedrin, it would only be a conference to reexamine their role in the death of Jesus and to revise their opinion of him as prophet or Messiah; more members would defect and it would not serve the ends that Caiaphas still wanted — a return to the order of three years prior.
Caiaphas started fresh. He cleared his mind of all assumptions and walked through the situation anew. He made some new conclusions and wrote out a statement to be read in the temple and in every synagogue. The statement read:
“It is acknowledged that rumors are occurring regarding the former rabbi Jesus, and they were not without some basis in fact. The basis however is not in any idea, teaching or resurrection of the Messiah, as the Messiah is still awaited by Israel. There have been resurrections around Jerusalem, and possibly in other locations. These were expected and are greeted with joy. These resurrections are a sign from our God that the teaching of the Law, the Prophets, and the temple priests is accurate. The authority of the Sanhedrin to confirm the Messiah when he is revealed is likewise confirmed.”
“The resurrections of the deceased faithful, are just that — Jewish faithful obtaining the resurrection predicted by our Jewish Pharisees. Other important ideas of these same Pharisees are obedience to the Law of Moses and awaiting the Messiah, who will one day lead Israel.”
“As to the false claimant Jesus of Nazareth, he was executed by the Romans, and without permission of the elders of Israel. His body was stolen but recovered, and is now in a sealed and guarded tomb to prevent another attempt at theft. Reports of his posthumous appearance are simply instances of the previously mentioned Jewish faithful who have been resurrected. This heretical sect is now disbanded and any reference to Jesus of Nazareth, is a mistaken reference to James of Nazareth, brother of Jesus, who would have assumed leadership of the now defunct sect.”
Caiaphas was certain that firm perseverance in their decisions made would prove to be the correct and best plan for Israel. Most reports put Jesus...or James of Nazareth in Galilee. It was difficult for the Sanhedrin to do business in Galilee, it was ruled by Herod Antipas, he was an occasional Jew, with regret over killing John the baptizing prophet. He had allowed Jesus complete freedom to operate in Galilee, mostly in order to spite the Sanhedrin. He would not now allow any type of search and seizure. These could be done, but not in a maintained fashion, or on a large scale.
In Galilee, the apostles were worried that they did not know where to seek the risen master, but it was then decided that he would find them. They remained together, and largely waited upon the master to appear. They made some fishing excursions in the boats of Peter, James and John.
Jesus met the disciples in Galilee, he appeared to them at the lake and stayed with them most of the day, for several days. He told them that he would soon ascend to the Father, and that they were to carry on the mission. He assigned a large task, but gave little specific instruction as to it. The apostles were to go to all the world to witness, teach, baptize the people and establish the new faith.
The apostles were increasingly on their own. A new and necessary sense of command was instilled in the apostles. The master stayed with them for much of five days, then much less frequently. When he did appear, he would make allusion to the ongoing mission, which the apostles were to continue. He would speak of his children in distant places awaiting the good news, or tell them to expect opposition when they revisited Jerusalem.
Now the master did not teach in public as he had done continuously for the previous three years. He would not take organizational questions, and would give a philosophical answer such as, “Let it be done according to your will.” He did however answer questions concerning the faith, and proactively so when it was needed. He encouraged the apostle’s efforts in planning and preaching; he would often appear in the evenings and ask, “What did you decide upon today?”
Again the old concerns of arrest were raised among the apostles, but now it was a real possibility. Three weeks after the master’s resurrection, the Sanhedrin put out arrest warrants for all the apostles and incredibly for Jesus, and they threatened with charges of blasphemy anyone who spoke of Jesus as Messiah. The Sanhedrin preferred to avoid a new persecution of the disciples of Jesus, but it was not possible. Hundreds witnessed the resurrected Messiah, and over a thousand had been baptized in Galilee since then.
Depending upon which direction the apostles literally looked, the mission seemed to be on the verge of collapse into failure, or explosive success. The apostles taught and baptized the many who still gathered, and the temple guards would work through the same crowd dispersing and arresting.
The growing mission would benefit from an administrative locus; but the threatened mission might be bagged in its entirety if such a central location were used. The evolving opinion was that the desired headquarters must be located outside of Judea or Galilee. It was a matter of distance and dispersion to avoid the arrest of the entire group. Equally necessary was the need for the apostles to be on site in the new faith communities that were being founded at diverse locations. Alexandria, Damascus, Antioch and other cities were already sending representatives to the apostles asking for instructions now that the master was gone. Everybody saw that their small ecclesiastical structure was already inadequate, and Peter called a general meeting.
The meeting was held at a disciple’s large home in Bethsaida. Bethsaida was not part of Galilee, much less Judaea and it was thought that they might be more secure there. Much had to be decided, finished and started. The new faith did not even have a name, and already the apostles were baptizing many non-Jewish citizens in the area, it was becoming more than a sect of Judaism.
As had happened before, many of the Pagan polytheists simply sought to add the god-man to their household inventory of gods. The apostles were not aware of the scale of industry their master had become. In Alexandria, enterprising clay workers were producing idols of “Jesus, son of the gods”. The solution was instruction of the new members in the basics of monotheism, which would hopefully eliminate demand for the objects.
At council, Peter put forth questions and all of these were decided upon, and all attending were of one mind. It was decided that:
— Each apostle was to work within a specific area or with a specific population. Half were to work inside Judaea and Galilee and half elsewhere. This was the survival mechanism long wanted by several. James, brother of Jesus was to minister to the Jews of Judaea. Peter was chief overseer, with duties in all areas as needed.
— The apostles would take with them current disciples as needed, including those of the 72 who were still available.
— The apostles were to establish themselves with the authority of the Messiah in their areas, as reports of profiteering false apostles were already being received. This had been a problem even during the life of Jesus, but less so due to his unquestioned authority. {112}
— Peter would retain his overall leadership, but directly rule all churches west of Jerusalem, while James would lead all churches in Jerusalem and to the east. {113} James was also to be Peter’s director in the development of doctrine and relations with the Jews.
— Jews observing the New Covenant may retain the dietary laws, but these would not be imposed on non-Jewish members.
— It was decided that to avoid piecemeal assimilation, the New Covenant would be lead from someplace other than the temple, even if invited. Several worried that as the new way grew in membership, the temple might feign its acceptance in an attempt to undermine it from within by assuming its rule.
Matthew, the organizational genius, restated the need for a central administrative location. This idea was immediately enlarged into a proposal for a temple of New Covenant. This need was conceded by all, but a location had to be found away from Judaea or Galilee, and the project was put on hold, awaiting environmental developments.
That evening the master appeared and asked, “What was decided today?” Peter spoke for the group as usual, and detailed the decisions arrived at, including the plan to split the apostles into local and regional missions.
Jesus said, “You do well to bring the faith to the world, but remain together until I have returned to the Father.”
Jesus’ smile beamed, and he walked about the group speaking more or less chit chat for once. He brought around the bowl of dates for any wishing to have some. He led them in prayer and hymn, then left, walking out the door. The apostles knew that he was gone from sight already, just outside the door. He would appear and then disappear according to no plan of the apostles.
It was more difficult to apprehend the apostles in Galilee than in Jerusalem, but the attempts continued. The large synagogue in Capernaum served as a regional Sanhedrin for Galilee, and it had armed men at its disposal if needed. Caiaphas was furious that the arrests were so slow in coming, the apostles would often speak publicly but still the arrests were not occurring.
Finally Peter was arrested. The following day Jesus appeared to the apostles and told them that the work of God was not exempt from the obstructions of the Devil, it was not so for Adam, and would not be so for them. The disciples said to Jesus, “Peter is imprisoned, and awaiting execution…we know that you will depart from us and return to the Father. Who is to be our leader?”
Jesus said to them, “You have already decided upon this. James of my own blood was appointed by Peter to serve in such circumstances.”
Jesus looked at James and said, “Wherever you are, you are to go to James the righteous, for whose sake Heaven and earth came into being.” {114}
Jesus said, “Friends, the time has come when I must return to the Father. Come, let us go to Jerusalem. Go there and wait for me at the orchard of olives, and I will be with you there.”
The eleven set out from Galilee, and arrived after three days. They assembled in the orchard of Gethsemane and waited upon the master. Jesus walked into the clearing and greeted the eleven and said, “Come with me to the rocks at the summit. From there I will return to the place that I am from.”
Jesus gave final instructions, “Go out to all the world and make disciples of all people. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. Cure the sick, raise the dead, and offer the New Covenant to all who will listen.”
“The life I have, I offer to you, and you are to offer it to others. Now for a second time, life is breathed into man. This life is greater than the life given to Adam at his creation, it is the life of the Father, and is given by his most Holy Spirit.” Jesus then breathed on the apostles.
“Be of good cheer now, for after I go, I will send your advocate, the Holy Spirit who will be your guide and protector. Remember that just as I suffered the evil of the world, so too must you. The Holy Spirit is the guardian of your soul, as one day you must give up the life of your body. But this too will be restored to you at the resurrection of the just.”
It occurred to Peter that he had not spoken an apology for abandoning the master. He wanted to do so now, but was not finding the correct moment. Jesus looked at Peter, then all the others and said, “I love you all, and I will be with you until the end of time and beyond.
Jesus looked upward, extended his arms to the Father, and ascended to Heaven.
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END