Who Is Jesus A Fear-Based Leader?

By the time of Jesus’ life in Palestine, participation in the Pan-Hellenic world was redefining what it meant to be Jewish. Hellenistic Jews adapted to the new culture, while the Pharisees fought this assimilation by choosing a strict interpretation of Jewish law (Smarr 1/18). Into this picture steps Jesus. It is my interpretation that the Jesus depicted by the Gospel of Matthew does not intend to be a radical revolutionary seeking to establish an entirely new faith, but a reformer attempting to revive the moral and spiritual strength of Judaism, yet Jesus’ message of love and mercy as a formula for human relationship departs radically from the traditional Jewish emphasis on law and justice. I attempt to prove this through

Throughout history, there is a copious amount of notable figures who were able to change the world around them. Jesus Christ, after his crucifixion, left an imprint on the human race with the establishment of Christianity and the spread of his beliefs through his followers. His accomplishments that were recorded in the Gospels will continue through the ages, spreading his wisdom and way of thinking. Even though it would beneficial for believers to truly fathom his significance to history and the human soul, challenges ascend that hold its effectiveness back.

In Matthew 1-2, the infant stories are used to prepare the ground for the theme of Jesus; the new and perfect Moses, the great teacher and interpreter of God’s ways. A parallel can be drawn between the experiences of the infant Jesus and the experience of Moses. This can be seen in Matthew 2:16-18, where the slaying of innocent male Hebrew children occurred around the time of the birth of Jesus, and in Exodus 1:15-22, where Hebrew children were also murdered at the time of Moses’ birth. Just as Moses came out of Egypt, leading the people of God, so does Jesus. Following the infancy stories, the rest of Matthew’s Gospel is structured around five long discourses where Jesus teaches. On each occasion, the evangelist indicates that a great teacher has been at work (Maloney, 1988, p. 133-34).

However, their understanding of Jesus and his teachings wasn't very good. They understood neither the amazing powers Jesus possessed nor the wonders he could perform. Even though he "would explain everything to them", in situations such as The Calming of the Storm and when Jesus walked on water, they just didn't have the strength to believe or the depth to understand. When the boat was filling with water in the Calming of the Storm (Mark 4:35-41), the disciples awoke Jesus to say, "Teacher, don't you care that we are about to die?", Jesus said back to his disciples "Why are you frightened? Have you still no faith?"

Using the methodology of both Snodgrass (2008) and Capon (2002) to interpret the parables of Jesus can offer us a well-rounded approach to understand the meaning of Jesus teachings so that people can examine their own spirituality as well as apply these understandings in ones lives. While seemingly on opposites sides of the interpretive divide, both support our ability to make meaning from Jesus parables. By studying this method one might miss that the real meaning of the message is to be seen in the time it was taught. While the methods by which Snodgrass (2008) and Capon (2003) interpret Jesus parables may be vastly different, their goal remains the same to provide a way for us to understand the teachings of Jesus in his parables. Snodgrass (2008) included

Jesus was a prime example to believers today in that He fulfilled the Father’s will to the point of death. Our amazing Father, creator of the universe, illustrated by His own life the need to be under authority. The point is illustrated well when Jesus said, “That the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, even so I do” (John 14:31). Christians can be comforted knowing that there is an example to follow. Paul said, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1; cf Luke 6:40; 1 Pet. 2:21).

Our Lord warned his disciples to prepare for persecution to avoid anything that would give an advantage to their enemies, there could be no interferance with worldly concerns or even the appearance of selfishness and evil at all measures. Christ foretold troubles, so that the troubles would not be a surprise, to His disciples, but that they might "affirm and bring to light their faith!"

Jesus' decision to physically cast out the moneylenders from the temple stands as one of the most interesting events of his life, because it represents what seems to be the only moment in the Gospel narratives where he becomes visibly angry to the point of physical action. While one could argue that Jesus is frequently (and justifiably) angry with the disciples from time to time, this is the only moment that Jesus' anger moves him to physical force. Although the event is recorded in all four of the Gospels, this study will focus specifically on its rendering in Matthew, because when considered in the context of Matthew's larger narrative, one can see how Jesus' decision to cleanse the temple does not represent an aberration in either his character or theological message, but rather the natural culmination of Jesus' life and works prior to that point, and demonstrates a kind of revolutionary, anti-authoritarian element of Jesus' message of salvation that is all too often overlooked by Christians and critics alike.

Today, Christianity is the world’s largest and most widespread religion, extending to individuals of all kinds of different nationalities and backgrounds. However, early Christian development in the late first and early second century was made up almost entirely of Jewish people converting to Christianity. This can serve as an explanation as to why early Christian writers often formulated many of their claims with a Jewish audience in mind. In biblical scenes such as the Sermon on the Mount, the Transfiguration, and the Last Supper, Matthew utilizes references to facets of the Old Testament in order to appeal to a Jewish audience, and also derives new implications from these scenic allusions in order to alter his audience’s perception of Jesus.

In the Gospel of Mark, Mark discloses the life of Jesus and his embodiment of God’s Kingdom. Throughout his Gospel, Mark focuses on accurately revealing Jesus’ identity to his readers, and explaining why Jesus was destined to die on the Cross. Mark uses his role as an arranger by employing a diverse array of literary tactics to highlight the lessons of his narrative. One of the most effective of these devices is intercalation—the process of sandwiching one story between the beginning and ending of a separate story. For most people, this tactic would at first appear as impractical or senseless; however, through this process Mark is able to convey a deeper meaning in the lessons he is hoping to share through the life of Jesus, and what it infers about the nature of God’s Kingdom. One of the most notable examples of intercalation in the Gospel of Mark is seen in Mark 5:21-43: the story of the raising of Jairus’ twelve-year-old daughter and the woman who suffered from hemorrhages. Through the intercalation of these two passages, Mark is able to express that the boundaries of God’s Kingdom expand beyond social status and wealth, and that faith alone is all that is needed to be a part of His divine realm.

This passage is preceded by a warning from Jesus about the Sadducees and Pharisees, and to beware of their false teachings, which is a common theme in Matthew. As usual, he rebukes them for their lack of faith and comprehension of his true mission and identity, and for their constant concern

The two books of the Bible, Matthew and Mark are alike in many ways, they do tell some of the same stories. On the other hand, if one takes a closer look there are small changes to the stories that bring a whole new meaning to the way that the story is told. I will focus on the stories of Jesus walking on water and the transfiguration of Jesus. In this paper, I will review the changes that Matthew made to the Gospel according to Mark. I will also explain the reasons why he may have made those changes and to what purpose those changes served.

How did the leaders respond to Jesus? The leaders hated jesus because he identified himself as the son of God so therefore he was equal to God . Feared they would lose their power and authority and popularity. Pontius Pilate a famous leader hated Jesus probably because he was scared to lose his power. Pontius Pilate killed Jesus because he was afraid and jealous.

As a leader is it better to be loved or feared? Many believe it is better for a leader to be loved, however, throughout history it has been proven that a leader who is feared is more effective because he has much more control of the people.

There are many people in scripture that God has placed in leadership roles. Jesus himself, David, Moses, Paul, Peter, Abraham and many others are some of those leaders. There are core attributes discussed in the lecture that personally reflect my opinion of what an effective leader of Christ needs such as, a shared vision, model of the way, empowerment of others, challenge of the process, and encouragement of the heart. Leaders establish a model of the way others should be treated and how goals should be pursued, with standards and examples of what others should follow by exemplifying God’s example. Christian leaders inspire a shared vision to make a difference