1:14 His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;
1:15 And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.
1:16 And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.


Jesus was a Jew according to biblical scripture. Jesus' family came from Arimathea (now Eritrea, part of Ethiopia), it makes complete sense to me that Jesus (Yeshua) would look more like Bob Marley and a lot less like the Kris Kristofferson stereotype we see in churches around the world.

Jesus was from the tribe of Judah which is one of the 12 tribes of Israel who are Black.

Matthew 2:1-2 – After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."

Numbers 24:17 – "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel."

Genesis 49:8-12 – Judah, your brothers will praise you; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father's sons will bow down to you. 9 You are a lion's cub, O Judah; you return from the prey, my son. Like a lion he crouches and lies down, like a lioness-who dares to rouse him? 10 The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his. 11 He will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest branch; he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes. 12 His eyes will be darker than wine, his teeth whiter than milk.

Revelation 5:5 – Then one of the elders said to me, "Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals."

1 Samuel 16:12 – So he sent and had him brought in. He was ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features. Then God said, "Rise and anoint him; he is the one." 13 So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of God came upon David in power.

1 Samuel 17:12 – Now David was the son of an Ephrathite named Jesse, who was from Bethlehem in Judah.

The Lemba, a Bantu-speaking people of southern Africa, have a Tradition that they were led out of Judea by a man named Buba.

The remarkable thing about the Lemba tradition is that it may be exactly right. A team of geneticists has found that many Lemba men carry in their male chromosome a set of DNA sequences that is distinctive of the cohanim, the Jewish priests believed to be the descendants of Aaron. The genetic signature of priests- a hereditary caste, different rabbis but with certain ritual roles- is particularly common among Lemba men who belong to the senior of their 12 groups, known as the Buba clan.

Over 2,700 years ago, the Assyrians exiled the ten tribes of the Kingdom of Israel. "In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and he carried them away to Assyria and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of Medes." In the years 722-721 BC (over 2700 years ago), the Ten Tribes who comprised the northern Kingdom of Israel disappeared. Conquered by the Assyrian King Shalmaneser V, they were exiled to upper Mesopotamia and Medes, today modern Syria and Iraq. The Ten Tribes of Israel have never been seen since. Or have they?

Tudor Parfitt, the protagonist of the NOVA documentary "Lost Tribes of Israel," made a journey through southern Africa to study the unusual traditions of a black African tribe called the Lemba. In an interview with NOVA, team member Dr. David Goldstein commented on the team's findings: "The first striking thing about the Y chromosomes of the Lemba is that you find this particular chromosomal type (Cohen modal haplotype) that is characteristic of the Jewish priesthood in a frequency that is similar to what you see in major Jewish populations.

The discovery of the Lemba's Jewish ancestry has come about through the intertwining of two unusual strands of inquiry. One was developed by geneticists in the United States, Israel and England who wondered what truth there might be to the Jewish tradition that priests are the descendants of Aaron, the elder brother of Moses.


B L A C K B L O O D I N I S R A E L.

* Genesis 12:16 – Not only Hagar, but many of Abraham’s servants were gifts from
Pharaoh and in this period it is fairly likely that many were Nubians. (approx. 1921 BC)
* Genesis 13: 6-8 – Abraham had a large number of herdsmen and 318 male servants who
were born into his house.
* Genesis 25 – Isaac, Abraham’s son and then Jacob inherited everything.

* Genesis41:50 – Joseph fathered two tribes, Ephraim and Manasseh, by an Egyptian wife, automatically making Israel nearly 10 percent Egyptian. Joshua was from one of these half-African tribes, Ephraim; in later years this tribe became so dominant that the norrthern tribes of Israel were sometimes simply called “Ephraim”. When the Israelites were subjected to slavery under the Egyptians, they and their former servants were now all defined as Israel together; this means that much intermarriage must have taken place.

* Exodus 12:38 – After 400 years, a “mixed multitude” left Egypt during the Exodus.


With Roman influence, Jesus became very much like Caesar, which made Christianity the legitimate religion for empire – they couldn't have coped with Jesus the illegitimate black Jew being the key to eternal life. We have taken the established pagan religions of Rome and converted them into the liturgy and ritual of church. We are wolves in sheep's clothing.

We can have Jesus representing our particular ethnic or religious group, but let's not forget what he was really saying. We have to get back to who Jesus, the disciples really were and what they were really saying". He was the black guy from the north of the country who didn't fit in. He was the outcast who came with these radical ideas. It was revolutionary what he had to say and if the Church could get to grips with it, it would be a completely different institution.

Jesus, his mother, Mary, and earthly father, Joseph, were Jewish by “faith”.

Jesus became Jewish by adoption through Joseph, who was of the bloodline of Abraham," he says, "and my journey of inquiry has led me to the understanding that Mary was of Egyptian and not Jewish ancestry."

Ezeogu who has been studying the Greek text of the gospel of Matthew, says that he (Matthew) was trying to answer one important question: "How was Jesus who was not of the bloodline of Abraham, able to fulfill the Jewish expectation of the coming of the Messiah?

"Citing the scriptures, the gospel writer noted the fulfillment of the prophecy that `... out of Egypt I have called my son.'" (Matthew 2:15).

The Jews in biblical times were non-white. They were people of colour like most of the people at that time in what is now called the Middle East. The white Jew, was a later development. Some researchers suggest that Jesus may have been of an olive complexion. But as Ezeogu explains: "If you're olive-coloured and you're African, you're considered black."

University of Toronto Professor John Kloppenborg, who lectures on early Christianity, notes that " the gospels are uninterested in describing what Jesus looks like. "It would be safe to say, however, that he did not look like the pictures you often see in churches of a long-haired, very Anglo-looking person complete with the halo and so forth.

"The historical Jesus probably looked like an Eastern Mediterranean person. And depending on how you classify Mediterranean people, one might reasonably say they are people of colour," says Kloppenborg.

Yes this line came from OT psalm 80:8 "The vine thou didst bring out of Egypt". Now Jesus came from the line of David and Solomon. Both of these Kings have no archaeology in Israel because they came from Egypt.

As Cain Hope Felder, a Professor of New Testament Language and Literature at Howard, once said, in an Ebony Mag. article [paraphrasing], “The question isn’t where are the Black people in the Bible, but where are the white people”.

The most sacred icons of the Catholic Church are the Black Madonna and Christ child, which are found in Europe's most venerated shrines and cathedrals. Each year, hundreds of thousands of European pilgrims ritually humble themselves before the image of Black Mary and her child Jesus at Black Madonna sites throughout France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Portugal and other Catholic countries. Many Black Madonna statues have the black paint literally kissed off of their hands and feet. In Poland, the Church encourages believers to pray to the Black Madonna of Czestochowka every morning before rising. It is reported that Pope John Paul follows this ritual. Time Magazine (June 11, 1979) reported on Popelaul II's visit to Czestochowka's holiest shrine, which prominently displays "The Lady" known for centuries as the Black Madonna.

In the hard-to-find classic, Anacalypsis, historian Godfrey Higgens writes, "...in all the Romish countries of Europe, in France, Italy, Germany, etc., the God Christ, as well as his mother, are described in their old pictures and statues to be black. The infant God in the arms of his black mother, his eyes and drapery white, is himself perfectly black. If the reader doubt this, he/she may go to the cathedral at Moulins -to the famous chapel of the Virgin at Loretto ...the whiteness of the eyes and teeth, and the studied redness of the lips, are very observable... There is scarcely an old church in Italy where some remains of the worship of the BLACK VIRGIN and BLACK CHID are not to be met with. Very often the black figures have given way to white ones, and in these cases the black ones, as being held sacred, were put into retired places in the churches, but were not destroyed...

St. Augustine stated about the conference of Nicea in 325 AD that, "When I read the proceedings, it makes me laugh. These people are trying to give us a religion we had three thousand years ago." St. Augustine WAS/IS the most influential Saint in
Catholocism's history. He was an African and he is the reason for the adoption of certain beliefs and structures in Christianity (Along side Tertillun and Cyperian).

St. Augustine, a person that many "Christians" know nothing about. They would be surprised to know that St. Augustine was African (Black) and that most of the early "Fathers" of Christianity were Black. Today's Christians would be perplexed by St. Augustine's statement, that "which is now called the Christian religion, really was known to the ancients..." St. Augustine was born in North Africa (today's Algeria). He lived between 354-430 A.D. If St. Augustine is right, that a religion was known to ancient people similar to "Christianity," then what was the name of that religion?

Judaism was one of the many religions originally practiced by African people. "Christianity" was the recorded history of a Black Revolutionary named Yeshua (Jesus is derived from a Greek word, Yeshua was not Greek) who rebelled against the Roman Empire and tried to teach the Black Hebrews at that time a clearer understanding of the word of God.

The blue-eyed, blond-haired "Jesus" hanging from the wall in many present day churches was actually the family member of some European artist from the 16th century who was commissioned by the leaders of the white Roman church to paint the Son of God in the image of a white man in order to enslave and dominate the original people of the scriptures.

Throughout Europe there remain a number of places of worship which feature paintings, statues and frescoes of a dark-skinned Jesus and His mother Mary such as the cathedral of Moulins in France, the Church of Annunciata, the Church of St. Stephen at Genoa, the St. Francisco at Pisa, the Church of St. Theodore at Munich, etc


________________________________________________________________________
In 325 C.E. Christian bishops, theologians, and imperial advisers attended a council meeting in Nicaea, by the request of Emperor Constantine; to discus the formation of a unified Christian church. Prior to this council there were numerous Christian Gospels and texts in use by different sects of Christians. This council meeting and others like it tried to resolve the controversies surrounding Jesus' divinity. These councils also formalized which of the Gospels and Texts would be included into the New Testament.

Modern scholars are still trying to resolve these same controversies. These controversies continue for two main reasons:

1. The original sayings of Jesus were passed on to his followers by word of mouth.
2. The historical Jesus has been obscured in Church dogma. Thus, the earliest writings we do have of Christianity were not written until some twenty years after Jesus' death.

Scholars believe that there was a sayings Gospel that recorded Jesus' teachings (similar in format to that of the Gospel of Thomas, written between 50-70 C.E. This anthology of Jesus' wisdom teachings and parables is believed to have been used as a second source by Luke and Matthew; when they revised the Gospel of Mark to create their own Gospels around 90 C.E. The sayings Gospel has been given the title of Q, based on the first letter for the German word source. The Gospel of Q however, is a hypothetical text that scholars believe has been lost over the years. Scholars have reconstructed this Gospel based on the material found in Luke and Matthew, but not found in Mark. Based on this, the Gospel of Q is mostly a collection of wisdom teachings. Thus, the Gospel of Q is not a religious text but a wisdom text.


_______________________________________________________________________________

THE PENTATEUCH


The Pentateuch (the Law of the Prophets) was of great importance to Jesus and those who surrounded him and adopted his teachings in their hearts in that time 2000 years ago. Jesus was very resolute to keep and FULLFILL this law.

Mat 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.


 The Pentateuch states that all are equal, that no person may oppress or exploit another, that all have the right to be free and be independent masters of their own fate.
 Every person is entitled as a matter of right to social security. This means that people are entitled to be supported by the community not only when they fall on hard times but also to maintain their independence as independent breadwinners for their families.
 For example, the community has to provide backup funds to those who need them and they have to be provided as and when required. To prevent people being exploited through their need these funds have to be provided without charging interest and such 'loans' are cancelled every seventh year if the borrower has been unable to repay them.
 The country's wealth, and this applies particularly to productive capital, belongs to all equally and has to be shared out. This equal and fair distribution of the community's wealth has to be updated at regular intervals.
 The role of those who are rich is seen to be that of administering their wealth and money on behalf of and for the community and not that of enriching themselves at the expense of the community.
Mat 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
Mat 7:12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law of the prophets.

“These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you — that everything written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms must (dei) be fulfilled” (Lk 24:44).
These laws of the Pentateuch were to have to be followed and applied by Jews as a matter of law in their daily lives.
However, it was such laws of behavior and such social system laws which the rich simply did NOT want to apply and they, the rich and powerful, had the application of the laws changed to suit themselves.
Jesus’ ministry was strongly opposed by the Pharisees (the Jewish society of “scholars” and “priests”) because of his interest in the poor and his criticism of hypocrisy within the Jewish community. Jesus saw that many of the Pharisees followed only the letter of the commandments and forgot the spirit. For this he denounced them; while they in turn looked upon him as a revolutionary, accused him of breaking the Sabbath because he healed the sick on the day of rest, and regarded as blasphemy his claim to be the Son of God, in which he claimed that we were all sons and daughters of God originally.
Jesus tried to reverse this situation and to have such laws (The Pentateuch) applied by people in their everyday lives.
Paul was Jewish and he persecuted the Christians who were renewing their knowledge of the laws and the application of the laws in their daily lives. So he was acting on the side of, that is for, the oppressive establishment.
THE CREATION OF THE BIBLE

In 325 C.E. Christian bishops, theologians, and imperial advisers attended a council meeting in Nicaea, by the request of Emperor Constantine; to discus the formation of a unified "Christian" church. Prior to this council there were numerous Christian Gospels and texts in use by different sects of Christians. This council meeting and others like it tried to resolve the so called "controversies" surrounding Jesus' divinity. These councils were to ones that also formalized which of the Gospels and Texts would be included into the New Testament.

Constantine the Great set out to conquer the world. It seems he had a vision (like Paul), then a dream, then a victory, and subsequently was “converted” to Christianity, and all this was due, it is said, to the miraculous power of Christ’s “cross”. But this is blasphemy of course because anyone who holds the True word of Christ would NEVER kill, but would "love thy enemies" and “love your neighbor as yourself”.

Who was this Constantine?

Constantine had lived the life of a soldier. Killing people was his business and in this enterprise he was very successful. Publicly, he had distinguished himself on the battlefield, first as a soldier and then as a general, and in his private life he had murdered his own father-in-law, Maximian Herculius.

Now to such a man, we are supposed to believe, the Lord gave exceeding precious privileges and blessings. What, then, were the results? Did Constantine immediately reform, turn about, abandon his old course and become a true Christian and faithful follower of Jesus’ example? Did he give up his emperorship and abandon this old world which is under the overlordship of the Devil, even as all true Christians must do?—Jas. 4:4; John 15:19; Luke 4:5-8.

No! Instead of abandoning his former course of iniquity Constantine simply enlarged his field of activity, increased his appetite for conquest, and expanded his business of killing people. His pride, high-mindedness and arrogance ripened to the full. Like the avaricious dictators of modern times, he coveted world domination in the worst way and was not content until he was sole ruler of the Western world.

Constantine’s sideline was a sort of “Murder, Inc.”, a hobby with him, out of which he seemed to get a special joy. Of his known murders, his father-in-law headed the list. His second victim, the first after seeing the vision of the cross, was his sister Anastasia’s husband, Bassianus by name. Next he killed his 12-year-old nephew, Licinianus, the son of his sister Constantina. His wife, Fausta, he killed in a bath of boiling water. Next was a friend named Sopater. Then his sister Constantina’s husband, Licinius, he murdered. Number seven on the list was his own son, his firstborn, Crispus, whom he beheaded.

THE WORD OF GOD

The original sayings of Jesus were passed on to his followers by “word of mouth”, NOT thru scripture. Thus the historical Jesus has been obscured in Church dogma. The earliest writings we do have of Christianity were not written until some twenty years after Jesus' death.

Some Scholars believe that there was a sayings Gospel that recorded Jesus' teachings (similar in format to that of the Gospel of Thomas, written between 50-70 C.E.) This anthology of Jesus' wisdom teachings and parables is believed to have been used as a second source by Luke and Matthew; when they revised the Gospel of Mark to create their own Gospels around 90 C.E.
The letters of the Apostle Paul were also being written at this time, but separate from Jesus’ first hand apostles. Paul's letters were written between 50-60 C.E. It is clear from, Paul's own letters that he did not know Jesus directly.

PAUL THE APOSLTLE

Who was he? Why did he stay away from Jesus’ first hand disciples?

Christians that knew Jesus directly were attacking Paul's authority as an apostle. He knew that he had no real authority to ‘preach’ but did so anyway. That is why he felt he had to explain himself.:

(Gal 1:11-12)
I want you to Know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from, any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from, Jesus Christ.

(1 Corinthians, 15:9)

For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle,...

(Galatians 1:13)
For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it.

Paul of course was often forced to defend his actions prior to his ‘conversion’. Moreover, he does not describe his vision of Jesus in any real detail, but simply maintains that he had a vision of Jesus the Christ and Heaven. When asked about his vision he down plays its importance.

(2 Corinthians, 12:6)
Even if I choose to boast, I would not be a fool, because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say.

Why would Paul not share his vision to inspire and gain the respect of Jesus very close disciples in order to receive approval for his own ministry? After his conversion, Paul did not take the time to learn Jesus' teachings directly from, the original apostles. In fact it seems that he goes out of his way to avoid the original apostles and started preaching in other churches without approval from Jesus’ disciples.

(Galatians 1:16-17)
... I did not consult any man, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see ‘those who were apostles before I was’, but I went immediately into Arabia...

Paul must have been afraid of the questions the original apostles would have asked him about regarding his vision. Being the “original apostles” and followers of Jesus they would have quickly realized if Paul had not seen the image of Jesus, and whether he knew Jesus' teachings or not. Paul was afraid to go to them.

Paul not only avoids the apostles, but he stays as far away from, the Jerusalem Church, as possible. Damascus is over one hundred and twenty miles away from, the Jewish Christian community. This may have been his way of establishing his credibility as a Christian apostle with the ‘Gentiles’. In this way he could gain entry into the Christian community. It also allowed Paul to “claim his apostleship” without any direct confrontation from, the original apostles. The Gentile Christians of Damascus (who loved by the power of Christ and refused no one entry into the wisdom of God) of course were more likely to accept Paul's vision story and conversion message than the Jewish Christians who “knew” the teachings of Jesus “first hand”.


(Galatians 1:18-19)
Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles - only James, the Lord's brother.

Paul then stays away from Jerusalem for “fourteen years”, maybe because his first meeting with the apostles Peter and James did not go so well. On his second visit he takes others with him (for support) to help him win over the original apostles.

(Galatians 2:1)
Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas.

Paul implies that this meeting did not go well. He clearly states that he did not submit to or even acknowledges the authority of the (original) apostles.
. . But I did this privately to those who seemed to be leaders; for fear that I was running or had run my race in vain.

(Galatians 2:6)
As for those who seemed to be important-whatever they were makes no difference to me. . . those men added nothing to my message.

Thus, not only does Paul not acknowledge their authority, but also he does not believe they even understood the true teachings of Jesus and denounces them. His dismisses Jesus’ first hand disciples entirely and goes onto preach the ‘word’ from his own understanding. (Be aware of the wolves who come in sheep’s clothing)

Understand the words of Jesus have been filtered to us through different authors. That is why the “holy ghost” was given to all those who “truly” seek to understand the wisdom of God and the understanding of ‘Christ’. By the grace of “love” all things will be made clear to you.

. Proverbs is so beautiful… I love it. I love some of the teachings of the bible; but I am also very aware of absolute horrors that went into its creation and selective compilation by the murderous authorities of Rome.

The word of God cannot be learned by just mere pages in a book. The scriptures are dead, but the “living word” of God is alive and inexplicably comes to us by way of the “Holy Ghost” (inner spirit) for all those have “eyes to see, and ears to hear”. That is why Jesus said he would send to us the “Holy Ghost”. He did not say “I will send to you the scriptures after I am gone”, but he gave us the Holy Ghost (spirit) by which all things would be revealed to find comfort in its Truth.

At the time of Jesus there were numerous Christian sects with different ways of life, enjoying the freedom of the Law – found in the Pentateuch. Jesus taught that we should not “secularize” ourselves but receive ALL walks of life into the holy wisdom of God where “love” was the first commandment. The Roman empire at that time were judging this as hypocrisy because of the differing sects and as well Jesus was stating that God can be found within, so they called it blasphemy.

Jesus was sometimes opposed to the Jewish authorities but only challenged (not with force but with wisdom) Judaism and its strict religious precepts when it's observance neglected the suffering of others, but remained true to the Law of his forefathers and the Torah. Jesus actually demanded more compassion for ones neighbors and towards ones enemies. For “Jesus’ God” is known through his love and compassion of both the good and the evil. His God is LOVE. Jesus focused on the “kingdom of God” as coming (“heaven on Earth”), thus God's judgment is coming or had already begun. (wow, imagine if you substituted the word God with Love?....the Kingdom of Love is coming!)

Paul on the other hand, taught that ‘Jesus’ was the true means of redemption. He focuses on Christ's death and resurrection. Paul also sees faith in the resurrection and in Jesus as overriding the former requirements of the Jewish law (which Jesus honored).
(Galatians 2:16).

Know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.


Whereas Jesus observed the Law of his forefathers and never sought to destroy them but “fulfill them”.

The word of God cannot be learned by just mere pages in a book. The scriptures are dead, but the “living word” of God is alive and inexplicably comes to us by way of the “Holy Ghost” (inner spirit) for all those have “eyes to see, and ears to hear”. That is why Jesus said he would send to us the “Holy Ghost”. He did not say “I will send to you the scriptures after I am gone”, but he gave us the Holy Ghost (spirit) by which all things would be revealed to find comfort in its Truth.

At the time of Jesus there were numerous Christian sects with different ways of life, enjoying the freedom of the Law – found in the Pentateuch. Jesus taught that we should not “secularize” ourselves but receive ALL walks of life into the holy wisdom of God where “love” was the first commandment. The Roman empire at that time were judging this as hypocrisy because of the differing sects and as well Jesus was stating that God can be found within, so they called it blasphemy.

Jesus was sometimes opposed to the Jewish authorities but only challenged (not with force but with wisdom) Judaism and its strict religious precepts when it's observance neglected the suffering of others, but remained true to the Law of his forefathers and the Torah. Jesus actually demanded more compassion for ones neighbors and towards ones enemies. For “Jesus’ God” is known through his love and compassion of both the good and the evil. His God is LOVE. Jesus focused on the “kingdom of God” as coming (“heaven on Earth”), thus God's judgment is coming or had already begun. (wow, imagine if you substituted the word God with Love?....the Kingdom of Love is coming!)

Paul on the other hand, taught that ‘Jesus’ was the true means of redemption. He focuses on Christ's death and resurrection. Paul also sees faith in the resurrection and in Jesus as overriding the former requirements of the Jewish law (which Jesus honored).
(Galatians 2:16).

Know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.


Whereas Jesus observed the Law of his forefathers and never sought to destroy them but “fulfill them”. Now Jesus was a humble man and he had said we could perform the miracles that he did and much more even after he was gone, if we “cleansed ourselves” and obeyed God. Yet Paul chose his ministry to worship ‘Him’ (Jesus) more than God; more than the ‘Law’ (which Jesus sought to FULLFILL).

Jesus told us that, like him, we would be able to acquire the “Spiritual gifts” if we stepped away from “all that defileth a man”. He never ONCE asked to be worshiped and put on pedestal but always expounded the wisdom and Law of God (love). God was to be worshipped, not himself. Jesus did not want to be put on a pedestal.

Clearly Paul changed what Jesus had taught. Paul's ideology served the “establishment” instead of the people, and this became Christianity's official dogmatic doctrine. This was the basis for all the bloody wars “in the name of God”.

At times it could have seemed like Jesus was prideful (which gave further credence to other prideful arrogant dogmatic Christian rulers) by saying things like “Come follow me… I am the Way” …but Christ led them to the wilderness to be taught they ways of “God”. I believe it is important that we should be going into the wilderness once in awhile to cleanse ourselves too. Instead we are raping and plundering our forests and devastating our resources here on this Earth. You could say that we are committing crimes against God for we are desecrating Gods Creation.

Another difference between Jesus and Paul's teachings can be seen from, their opposing views on government authority. Jesus clearly felt that government control hinders human's connection to God. Paul however, felt that “God had established these government authorities”. Paul (who was responsible for the killings of thousands of Jesus followers) felt he had the authority to contradict Jesus' teachings without even counseling with Jesus’ true disciples as to the policies of the Law and who were alive at that time.

Paul makes no references to Jesus' ethical and moral teachings in situations where it would have been in his best interest to do so. He, in fact, contradicts some of them. For example, Paul held that gentile Christians need not obey Jewish law to be saved (Galatians 3:8-9 and 5:6). Evidently he was unaware that this was a direct contradiction of the teachings of Jesus on this matter (Matthew 5:17-19). Furthermore when Paul does make such ethical pronouncements as "Bless those who persecute you" (Romans 12:14), he does not cite the authority of Jesus who first spoke these words as documented in (Matthew 5:10-12). Apparently Paul never heard of the Sermon on the Mount. When Paul says in Romans 8:26, “We do not know how to pray as we should,” (?) Does this mean he was unaware that Jesus taught the Lord’s Prayer to his disciples (Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:2-4)? Did Paul not know of Jesus’ prayer against temptation (Mark 14:35-36 and parallels) or the famous farewell prayer (John 17)?

Paul clearly ‘used’ Jesus (whom he had never met personally) to gain his importance in the ministry (without consent from the first hand disciples who ‘personally knew Jesus’) and created the “religion worshipping Christ” instead of using Jesus' teachings on worshipping the “Kingdom of God” first and FOREMOST*. Jesus did not want to be worshipped any more than he wanted his Birth-Day capitalized and celebrated. He wanted people to hear the word of GOD and follow his teachings to worship only God. Jesus understood the God in all things

Mat 19:17 - “And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? [there is] none good but one, [that is], God: but if thou wilt enter into ‘life’, keep the commandments (the commandments of the Law of his forefathers found in the Pentateuch – passed down thru the Prophets).”

Paul used the Hebrew Scriptures as his main support for his moral and religious arguments. When others harass him and question his knowledge he turned to the Hebrew Scriptures and not Jesus' teachings. This would have placed the Gentiles at a disadvantage. In this way Paul's authority came from his knowledge of the Hebrew Scriptures, and not his Knowledge of Jesus' teachings.

The only steadfast source for Paul’s life is his own writings. We could look to Acts but mainly Acts supplies a lot of information ‘about’ Paul, and a large amount of the information about Paul related in Acts does not agree with Paul’s own account. There are many discrepancies and contradictions in these gospels.

Some may ask, was it even possible for Paul to have know Jesus?

Yes. We know that Paul was a Pharisee and a persecutor of Christians (Galatians 1:12) until his “conversion”. He gave us two main clues for setting historical dates.

I. A reference to King Aretas. (2 Cor. 11:32-33). We know that King Aretas rule ended about 39 C.E.

II. Paul attended the Jerusalem conference of about 49 C.E.

Paul's dates are not definitely known, but he is believed to have lived from, somewhere around 5 to around 67. Although these dates may not be exact, the traditional dates of Jesus’ ministry (27-30) fall well within them. When Jesus was supposed to have been active in his ministry, Paul was a grown man in his mid twenties living and working in Jerusalem.