Judaism 101 with Dr. Michael Brown

Here is our list of questions (we might not get to them all, but we will try to give people an overview of what Jews believe today and how we can best reach them for Jesus). 1. What were the major sects of Judaism in the first century? a. Pharisees b. Sadducees c. Essenes d. Zealots e. Others 2. Where did they come from and how did they differ in what they believed? 3. When did synagogues begin, and why did they exist during the Temple period? 4. Once the Temple was destroyed in 70 AD, how did Judaism change? 5. How can one obey the OT law if the Temple does not exist? 6. What are the current denominations of Judaism and how do they differ from one another? 7. What are the writings outside the OT that Jewish believers think are authoritative? Talmud? 8. Where did these writings come from and why do Jews believe they are authoritative? 9. How do traditional Jews view the Law, as a burden or a blessing? 10. What are the main Jewish views of the Messiah? 11. What do the majority of Jews think regarding the afterlife? Why? 12. What do Jewish scholars think about the evidence for the Resurrection? Alternative theory? Why would the Jewish writers of the NT invent it? 13. What are the three biggest theological obstacles to a Jewish person accepting Jesus? 14. How do you overcome them? 15. If Jesus is the Messiah, why didn’t he bring in world peace? 16. What are some questions you can ask a Jewish person to get them to begin to consider Jesus as the Messiah?