Dr. Ken Calvert

I'm the guy. I have arrived. And this gets the leadership of Rome, excuse me, of Jerusalem very upset because the potential for warfare, the potential for bloodshed, all of this arrives with Jesus in Jerusalem. This is why they want to get rid of him. And the very fact that he is crucified, that's how they get rid of traitors and rebels.

I'm the guy. I have arrived. And this gets the leadership of Rome, excuse me, of Jerusalem very upset because the potential for warfare, the potential for bloodshed, all of this arrives with Jesus in Jerusalem. This is why they want to get rid of him. And the very fact that he is crucified, that's how they get rid of traitors and rebels.

Well, I could go on for an hour, Charlie. There's so much there. He is unique. And I think that when we talk about Jesus as the Messiah, for instance. In the first century BC, there was a huge expectation within Jewish groups for the coming of a Messiah. And the question then, looking at the old prophecies, what is this Messiah going to look like?

Well, I could go on for an hour, Charlie. There's so much there. He is unique. And I think that when we talk about Jesus as the Messiah, for instance. In the first century BC, there was a huge expectation within Jewish groups for the coming of a Messiah. And the question then, looking at the old prophecies, what is this Messiah going to look like?

Isaiah mentions that the virgin will give birth and his name, will be Emmanuel, or God with us. And so the question is, is this Messiah going to be God himself? There are questions about whether or not he'll be an angelic Messiah. There's a book of Tobit that the Jewish community used to use, and it's all about an incarnate angel.

Isaiah mentions that the virgin will give birth and his name, will be Emmanuel, or God with us. And so the question is, is this Messiah going to be God himself? There are questions about whether or not he'll be an angelic Messiah. There's a book of Tobit that the Jewish community used to use, and it's all about an incarnate angel.

There are questions also, and I think this is most powerful for the time of Jesus, There's questions of whether he's going to be a military leader and he's going to raise up in rebellion against the Romans. The Essenes who produced the Dead Sea Scrolls were among those who believed that the Messiah would be a military leader and they were going to be basically the shock troops for this Messiah.

There are questions also, and I think this is most powerful for the time of Jesus, There's questions of whether he's going to be a military leader and he's going to raise up in rebellion against the Romans. The Essenes who produced the Dead Sea Scrolls were among those who believed that the Messiah would be a military leader and they were going to be basically the shock troops for this Messiah.

And so Jesus is in the thick of this and he addresses so much of these questions about what the Messiah is. is who the Messiah is going to be. And he gives some really good counsel and directions, of course, to his disciples that he is not going to pick up the sword and he's not going to be this bloody military messiah.

And so Jesus is in the thick of this and he addresses so much of these questions about what the Messiah is. is who the Messiah is going to be. And he gives some really good counsel and directions, of course, to his disciples that he is not going to pick up the sword and he's not going to be this bloody military messiah.

but rather he is the Messiah that atones for the sins of the people, which was also a part of all of that Old Testament prophecy, that he is indeed God incarnate, atoning for the sins of these people. So he's answering the question of how to deal with sin, with personal sin,

but rather he is the Messiah that atones for the sins of the people, which was also a part of all of that Old Testament prophecy, that he is indeed God incarnate, atoning for the sins of these people. So he's answering the question of how to deal with sin, with personal sin,

And then, of course, in the resurrection, that this is the Messiah that is going to conquer death, that he conquers death itself. Now, one moment I love in scripture is in the book of Acts when Jesus, Gamaliel, this Pharisee, this leader of the Pharisees stands up at the Sanhedrin, before the Sanhedrin, this is in the book of Acts.

And then, of course, in the resurrection, that this is the Messiah that is going to conquer death, that he conquers death itself. Now, one moment I love in scripture is in the book of Acts when Jesus, Gamaliel, this Pharisee, this leader of the Pharisees stands up at the Sanhedrin, before the Sanhedrin, this is in the book of Acts.

And he basically says, if this is the real thing, if he's the real Messiah, we need to be careful. If he's not the real thing, if he's not the real Messiah, and he mentions, you know, we've seen this before, there have been other Messiahs, and it always ends up in a bloody mess, right? And that's what they're afraid of, that this is going to end up in a war.

And he basically says, if this is the real thing, if he's the real Messiah, we need to be careful. If he's not the real thing, if he's not the real Messiah, and he mentions, you know, we've seen this before, there have been other Messiahs, and it always ends up in a bloody mess, right? And that's what they're afraid of, that this is going to end up in a war.

He says, if this is one of those kinds of Messiahs, it'll go away and it will all end. But if he is truly the real Messiah, the true Messiah, if this is of God, we need to be careful. And I think that that moment in the book of Acts says so much about who Jesus is and his peculiar, his uniqueness as Messiah.

He says, if this is one of those kinds of Messiahs, it'll go away and it will all end. But if he is truly the real Messiah, the true Messiah, if this is of God, we need to be careful. And I think that that moment in the book of Acts says so much about who Jesus is and his peculiar, his uniqueness as Messiah.

Now, when we talk about virgin birth and these other things, you know, there are references to Egypt and the Isis and Osiris mythology and other things. There is nothing like that. the virgin birth and what happens in the gospels.

Now, when we talk about virgin birth and these other things, you know, there are references to Egypt and the Isis and Osiris mythology and other things. There is nothing like that. the virgin birth and what happens in the gospels.