The life of Jesus General Background stuff Template

The Romans • The Roman army had conquered the Jewish lands. • Jews had

Roman gods • Romans worshipped many gods 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com

The Jewish G-d • The Jews only worshipped ONE G-d. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005

Caesar’ was a title given to the man who ruled the Roman Republic. He was the Roman political and military leader (a bit like a President). The Jews were looked after by a governor called Pontious Pilate. ‘ 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 5

Living under the Romans • Life under the Romans could be good if you adapted to their ways. • The Romans built roads and cities, invented better systems of communication, put on entertainment, brought sanitation and their laws were strict but fair. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 6

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Life under the Romans • But no country likes being occupied and the Jews hated the Romans. » The Jews hope that their G-d would send a great King to lead them into battle and defeat the Romans. • This man would be called the, ‘Son of G-d’, ‘anointed’, ‘chosen’, the ‘Saviour’ – the ‘Messiah’. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 8

The Messiah • It was said that the Messiah would be a man who would unite the Jews. • He would be a King and a leader. • He would be a religious man who kept the Jewish laws. • He would bring healing to the sick and afflicted. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 9

Different Jewish ideas • However, not all Jews agreed on what this man would be like. • 4 groups of Jews had very different expectations about this ‘Messiah’. • They were the Essenes, the Sadducees, the Pharisees and the Zealots. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 10

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1. The Essenes • The Essenes were a group of holy people who lived together. • Their life was simple, strict and very religious. • They didn’t drink wine, eat forbidden foods and kept the 10 Commandments. • They helped the sick and strangers. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 12

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Essenes – a reminder • very civilised • religious people • lived a simple but strict life • kept Jewish holy laws • helped the sick and strangers 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 14

2. The Sadducees • The Sadducees were the richest and most powerful group of Jews, they were priests and aristocrats. • They kept their wealth and power by bribing the Romans. • The Sadducees believed in negotiating and civilised discussions with the Roman leaders. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 15

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Sadducees – a reminder • rich • powerful • priests and aristocrats • bribed the Romans. • believed in negotiating • wanted civilised discussions with the Roman leaders. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 17

3. The Pharisees • The Pharisees were a group of Jews who followed all 613 Jewish laws. • The Pharisees read the laws and told other people exactly what they could or could not do. • They believed that all Jews should be made to keep the Jewish laws. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 18

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Pharisees – a reminder • kept all the Jewish laws • made up new

4. The Zealots • The Zealots believed in using violence. • They thought only war and armed rebellion would get rid of the Romans. • They were called ‘freedom fighters’ or ‘terrorists’. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 22

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Zealots – a reminder • wanted war • believed in violence • used terrorist

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A man called Jesus What do we really know about him? Template copyright 2005

Hot Chocolate Jesus!!! Just before Easter this year, in Colombia, the face of Jesus was seen on the side of a mug of hot chocolate. A shrine has been set up for visitors to view the cup in the kitchen where it was discovered. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 27

Jesus at the Dentist 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 28

Open wide ……. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 29

Nacho Jesus …. Jesus in a nacho pan 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty.

Son of God? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 31

Trouble maker? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 32

Healer? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 33

God? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 34

A kind and gentle man? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 35

Hated wrongdoing? Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com

The Good Shepherd? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 37

Religious? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 38

Saint? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 39

Jewish rabbi? Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com

Leader of men? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 41

Supernatural? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 42

Holy? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 43

Dangerous to society? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 44

Teacher? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 45

Martyr? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 46

Saviour of mankind? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 47

Human ? 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 48

The Life of Jesus We can find out about the life of Jesus in the Bible. Surprisingly there is actually very little written about Jesus’ life The Bible can tell us about 1. His birth (from conception till about 2 years old) 2. When he gets lost and is found at the temple when he is 12. 3. The end of his life from when he is baptised aged 30 till he is killed at aged 33. (The in-between bit of this is when he preached) Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com

The Nativity (Story of Jesus’ birth) 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 50

This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. God sent the angel Gabriel

. . . to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, who was

The angel came to her and said, 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com

Mary was greatly troubled by his words, and wondered what this sort of greeting

The angel said to her, 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 55

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And the angel left her. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 58

Shortly afterward, Mary got up and hurried off to the hill country 2/5/2022 Template

She entered the house of Zechariah the priest and greeted his wife Elizabeth. Mary

Mary remained with Elizabeth for about three months, and then returned home. 2/5/2022 Template

Mary was found to be pregnant by the Holy Ghost. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005

Being an upright man, and not wanting to disgrace her in public, Joseph had

But as he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in

About this time, Caesar Augustus ordered a census of the entire Roman Empire, and so everyone went to their own towns to be registered. Because he was a descendant of King David, Joseph set out from Nazareth to the town of David, called Bethlehem, to register with his pregnant fiancée Mary. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 65

It happened, while they were there, that the time came for her to deliver

She wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because

There were some shepherds out in the nearby fields, keeping watch over their flock

An angel of the Lord appeared before them, and the glory of the Lord

But the angel said, “Don’t be afraid! 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com

Suddenly a multitude of the heavenly host was there with the angel, praising God

So the shepherds left in a hurry 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com

And they found Mary and Joseph, and the baby was lying in the manger.

Having seen the baby, the shepherds made known what they had been told about this child, and all who heard it marvelled at the things that the shepherds told them. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 74

After eight days passed and it was time for the child to be circumcised,

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in the days of King Herod, some magi from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose, and have come to do him homage. ” 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 76

When Herod the king heard about this, he was disturbed, as was all of

Gathering together all the chief priests and experts on the Law of Moses, King

Then King Herod summoned the magi. He sent them off to Bethlehem, saying, 2/5/2022

Having listened to the king, the magi set off. The star that they had seen rising went on before them until it came to a stop over the place where the child was. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 80

They came into the house and saw the young child with his mother Mary.

They bowed down and did him homage. Opening their treasures, they offered to him

But the magi were warned in a dream that they should not return to King Herod, and so they travelled back to their own country by a different route. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 83

When the magi had left, suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph

Joseph got up that night and took the child and his mother, and went

When King Herod realized that he had been tricked by the magi, he was

He sent out soldiers to kill all the male children two years old or

After King Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in Egypt

Joseph got up and took the child and his mother, and returned to the

But when he heard that Archelaus, the son of King Herod, was reigning over Judea, Joseph was afraid to go there. And having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the region of Galilee, and came to live in a town called Nazareth. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 90

The child grew and became strong and filled with wisdom. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005

And God's favour was with him. The End 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty.

Most people have an opinion… “Here is a man born in an obscure village,

He worked in a carpenter’s shop until he was thirty years old, and then

He never went to college, he never wrote a book, he never owned a

He never traveled more than 200 miles from the place where he was born.

Whilst still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against him. 2/5/2022

His friends ran away; one of them betrayed him. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www.

He was handed over to his enemies. He went through a mockery of a

He was publicly executed between two thieves. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com

His executioners gambled for the only piece of property he had on earth while

When he was dead he was taken down and buried in a borrowed grave

Twenty centuries have come and gone. Today he is the centre-piece of the human race. Calendars have been changed to mark his birth. Laws have been passed based upon his teachings Billions of people worship him and many have suffered and died for believing in him. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 103

About four years ago, a television production team produced a 3 -d model image of what Jesus might have looked like. They did this by taking a 1 st-century male skull found in Israel. “Jewish heads are very different today to 2000 years ago, so the team looked for a Jewish skull from the period of Jesus, " they said. Using a plaster cast of the skull, forensic medical artist Richard Neave from the University of Manchester began to reconstruct the face by building up layers of clay to represent muscle, fat and skin. Details such as the hair were decided by considering the hair of men in the Middle East, which tends to be thick, dark and curly, together with hairstyles current in the time of Jesus. The final image of Christ's head was produced as a 3 D computer model. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 104

This is probably what he looked like 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com

Jesus picks 12 loyal followers Disciple means pupil or student, and the disciples were people who chose to follow Jesus and to listen to his teaching. They called him rabbi, or teacher. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 106

What type of people would Jesus pick? • • • 2/5/2022 very educated and clever? people who knew the Jewish laws? can read and write? gentle and kind? good speakers and listeners? teachers, priests and those who worked in the temple? Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 107

One thing we know… • Jesus spent a lot of time in prayer before making his choice! • Why? • Because the destiny of the world and the fate of all men would rest on their shoulders. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 108

(1&2) Andrew and Simon Peter • Fishermen and brothers. • Have their own boat on the sea of Galilee. • Simon is nicknamed the Rock (in Greek the name Peter means ‘rock’ so he became ‘Simon Peter’) • For their belief in Jesus, Andrew and Simon Peter were crucified. Peter was crucified upside down. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 109

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(3 & 4) James and John • Sons of Zebedee - also fisherman. • Working on their father’s boat in Northern Palestine. • Nicknamed ‘Sons of Thunder’ • James was the first to die for his faith. • For their belief in Jesus, James was beheaded and John died in exile. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 111

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(5 & 6) Philip and Bartholomew • When told about Jesus he said, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth? ’ • Jesus saw him sitting under a fig tree and had a conversation with him. • After that conversation, Bartholomew left everything to follow the man he thought was the Messiah. • For their belief in Jesus, Philip and Bartholomew were beaten then crucified. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 113

(7) Matthew (Levi) • A tax collector – hated by the people. • Jesus invited himself to dinner at Matthew’s house. • He was criticised for eating with tax collectors and sinners. • Jesus said, “healthy people don’t need a doctor but sick people do. I came for the sinners – not the good people. ” • For their belief in Jesus, Matthew was speared to death. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 114

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The others … and the cost of believing • 8. Thomas - doubting Thomas (speared to death) • 9. James - son of Alphaes (stoned to death) • 10. Simon - the zealot (crucified) • 11. Thaddeus – Judas son of James (stoned to death) • 12. Judas Iscariot - a fanatic (hanged himself). 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 116

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Different personalities • • • 2/5/2022 Rough and ready Hot tempered Cynical Eager Loyal humble • These men doubted, failed, struggled and yet as a team they complimented each other perfectly and became powerful men of God. Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 118

What can we learn from this? • That Jesus’ mission would be carried out by ordinary people. • He chose people who could relate to people around them. 2/5/2022 Template copyright 2005 www. brainybetty. com 119