A leader, a rebel, a healer, a lover, a guide: Jesus. His was a life that forever changed the course of mankind. Just the name sparks an array of feelings. Very few men in history have achieved the fame, love and status as Jesus, who was considered a lowly outcast in his time. The name and story might live on forever, but will the Christian teachings a hundred or thousands years from now be the same as today? The answer is no. Religions and their teachings evolve over time, often integrating social values, traditions, politics and even other religions into them. Just like any other modern religion, Christianity and the teachings of Jesus, have gone through the same kind of facelift. Knowing this, one might question how the original teachings of Jesus, or at least how they were understood, differ from what they are today.
Christianity is the religion attributed to Jesus. It is the truth and the way of Jesus Christ, literally Jesus the Anointed One (McDowell, 11). Who was Jesus and what were his teachings? "Jesus was the divinely begotten Son of God who died for the sins of the world and whose message was about himself and his saving purpose and the importance of believing in him (Borg, 6)." This is what is considered to be the core of the religion by many Christians today. Another fundamental belief in Christianity is that one does not need to live by the Law of the Prophets, but by faith, faith in Jesus Christ, the Savior and Lamb of God. As the Christian author Josh McDowell puts it, Jesus is "the only avenue to a relationship with God, the only source of forgiveness for sins, and the only way of salvation (McDowell, 10)." Believing that Jesus was the son of God is the only way to enter heaven because man has original sin and by believing that Jesus died for everyone�s sin, man is forgiven of his sin. However, there are richer teachings and stories of Jesus than this basic creed which can found in the New Testament. Saying that Jesus is �the only avenue to a relationship with God, the only source of forgiveness for sins� is very conflicting with not only the Old Testament but also the New Testament.
Without reading the New Testament, one gets the idea that all Jesus talked about was himself and dying for the sins of humanity. Of the many aspects of Jesus that are overlooked by Christians today is that Jesus was Jewish. He was born a Jew and died a Jew. The Laws of Prophets were and still are an important part of Judaism, so one would expect Jesus to be a follower of the Laws too. This is clear in gospel of Mathew when Jesus says , "do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets...Anyone who breaks one the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven (Mathew, 5:17-19)." Another good way to see the teachings of Jesus in actions would be to look at his brother James. After all, James was the leader of early Church following the leave of Jesus. "James was a vegetarian, wore only linen clothing, bathed daily at dawn in cold water, and was a life-long Nazirite (Eisenman, summary)." "And alone he entered the sanctuary, and was found on his knees asking for forgiveness on behalf of the people, so that his knees became hard like a camel's, for he was continually bending the knee in worship to God, and asking forgiveness for the people (Eusebius, 23)." Some of the actions performed by James can be related to the teachings of the New Testament. James repented just as his brother had commanded. "[U]nless you repent, you too will all perish (Luke 13:3)." James often prayed alone in solidarity just like Jesus says in Mathew. "But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to the Father (Mathew 6:6)." As one can see from just a few passages out of the Bible and the examples set forth by Jesus� closest followers, there is much more to Jesus than what is commonly followed today. Even though Jesus might have commanded and behaved similar to James, modern Christianity does not emphasize his teachings, rather it focuses on having faith in Jesus as a Savior.
Although the Laws of the Prophets are heavily stressed by Jesus in the Gospels, modern Christianity does not view them important because as Paul said, "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us (Galatians: 3:13)." So in the end, it comes back to the fact that Jesus died for the sins of mankind and it is more important to live by faith than through the law. When looked at closely though, this seems contradictory to how Jesus he talked about the Law. Historically speaking, many of the doctrines of Christianity did not appear until after Jesus. This leads one to ask what the teachings of Jesus were during his lifetime and what was the way to salvation.
To understand Jesus, it is best to first understand the world and society in which he lived. Jesus was born into a society of Jews that was highly segregated. There were Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes and others. Each group had their differences in religious beliefs and political views. Each considered itself to be superior to the other in some way or another. Then there was the purity system; the idea that since God is holy, Israel should be holy. In the time period, "holiness was understood to mean 'separation from everything unclean' (Borg 50)." What the purity system ended up doing was dividing the Jews into a caste like system. "According to one purity map of the time, priests and Levites (both hereditary classes) come first, followed by 'Israelites,' followed by �converts�. Further down the list are 'bastards,' followed by those with damaged testicles and those without a penis (51)." There was another layer to the purity system based on behavior. Behavior included a person's occupation, so if a person was a tax collector, he was completely impure or an 'outcast'. A person could also be impure if he/she had a physical impairment. This included, "the maimed, chronically ill, lepers, eunuchs and so forth (51)." The purity system went as far as to calling women impure. What made the situation even worst was that in this time period, the word sinner could be understood as impure (51). Having knowledge of the purity system, the sayings of Jesus can be understood in context of his society and therefore one can see what Jesus was trying to reform. The Jews would say, "be holy as God is holy," while Jesus would say "be compassionate as God is compassionate" therefore ridding the idea that only certain people could be holy or inline with God. In another passage, Jesus is quite blunt in criticizing the Pharisees when he says, "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!... you have neglected the more important matters of the law - justice, mecy and faithfulness (Mathew 23:23)." He continues to say that it is infact the Pharisees who are impure, "You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean (23:27)." It should be noted that dead bodies were considered a source of extreme impurity so to say that the Pharisees were "full of dead men's bones" was a very harsh criticism. It is no wonder Jesus gained so many enemies. Another way Jesus combated the purity system was by eating with the impure.
To share a table with someone was a significant statement in the society which Jesus lived in. It meant that one accepted the person he was sharing the meal with. For this reason, the Pharisees, Sadducees and even the Essenes would have never eaten with anyone impure. In the Gospels it is stated that Jesus was criticized for eating with the tax collectors and sinners. He also spent time and healed people in a community of lepers and gave life to the dead. One cannot grasp the symbolism and importance of these acts until he/she understands the segregation and inequality in the society of Jesus. It was not only the Pharisees which Jesus criticized though.
It is known that the Dead Sea Sect and the Essenes were very exclusivistic and with the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, more of Jesus� sayings can be understood. There is a Qumran psalm that says "I thank Thee, O Lord, for Thou hast enlightened me through Thy Truth, in They marvelous mysteries.... Thou hast granted me knowledge (Hanson 135)." In this next passage, Jesus, it seems, is mocking the Essenes. "I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes (Matthew 11:25)." It is no wonder that the higher up Jews rejected Jesus. This whole side of Jesus, depicting his wisdom and humor, is not seen my modern western Christianity and it is not the only aspect that is forgotten.
When one takes out the teachings of Paul and his followers from Christianity, there emerges a whole new form of Christianity. Why take out the Paul from Christianity? Paul rarely ever mentioned the teachings of Jesus. He did not seem to care about "his [Jesus] followers or political leanings...never cited the companions trained by Jesus as authorities for any of his facts or doctrines (Maqsood 107)." Rather, he talked about Christ, the Risen Lord. He preferred to preach the message which he received in his vision. "Knowledge of the historical Jesus was actually irrelevant to him (Maqsood 86)." Therefore, by going on the teachings of Jesus rather than Paul, one would expect to understand Jesus much better.

As mentioned earlier, Jesus was strict when following the Laws of the Prophets. "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets....Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven (Mathew 5:17,19)." Abraham was arguably the greatest and most influential of all the Prophets, so one can assume that Jesus would have kept with the Covenant which God established with Abraham. "Every male among you shall be circumcised....My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant (Genesis 17: 10,13)." Therefore, unlike Paul�s Christianity, Jesus would have taught all males to be circumcised. Jesus would also have kept to all the dietary laws mentioned in the Older Testament. Another way to find out what Jesus might have taught is to look at early Christian texts.
One such text is the Shepherd of Hermas. This text was in heavy circulation and was "regarded as a book of Revelation by the Church (Rahim 9)." The text was later banned at the Council of Nicea because it taught the Unity of God. It is interesting to note that none of the Nicene Fathers regarded Jesus as divine (Maqsood 195). This all leads a person to conclude that the man Jesus probably never taught himself of being equal with God and certainly did not teach any Trinity for there was no Trinity until the Council of Constantinople in 381 in which the Holy Spirit became a part of the Godhead (Maqsood 201).
If it is true that Jesus kept to the teachings of the Prophets as he states in Mathew 5:17 instead of teaching Salvation through his death, then he would have taught forgiveness through prayer and action. Isaiah said "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon (Isaiah 55:7)." Then according to Isaiah, forgiveness is achieved through action and faith rather than just faith which is emphasized by Paul�s Christianity. Jesus is quoted to have said something very similar when asked how to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. He did not say �believe that I am the Savior� rather he simply told the man to keep his commandments (Matthew 19: 18-19). The next step into understanding Jesus is to hear him as if one was living in first century Palestine.
According to Theodore Zahn, the word Almighty was replaced by Father between 180 and 210 C.E. Before this, the article of Creed was, "I believe in God, the Almighty" (Rahim 9). If Jesus did not use the word father then he most likely used the word God when referring to the Creator. The word for God in Jesus� tongue was Alaha, literally meaning the Sacred Unity (Klotz 27). Referring to God as the Sacred Unity makes sense because the early followers of Jesus were Jewish and therefore as Douglas-Klotz says, "[w]hatever views they (early Christians) held about his divinity and humanity, they held them within the overall Jewish concept of God as Unity (Klotz 161)." Then what did the non-divine Jesus mean by son of God? The expression is never used in Matthew, Mark or Luke and is only mentioned a few times in John. When asked directly by the high priest in Jerusalem, he gives an ambiguous answer (Matthew 26:63). The earliest Jewish Christians saw Jesus as a prophet and it was only later that the Church, influenced by Paul, started viewing Jesus as the sacrifice of God (Borg 128). To the first century Jewish Christians, �son of Alaha� meant an adopted son of Alaha (Klotz 165).
Whatever Jesus said or did, he remains to be one of the greatest lives that this world has known. His teachings of peace and brotherhood have changed empires conquered eighty generations of hearts. Modern Christianity suggests that Christ was the only begotten son of God and through him will man be saved. Only through the Son can one achieve a relationship with God. In contrast, the early Christians and possibly taught that through prayer, faith and commitment to God will man establish a relationship with God.

Holy Bible New International Version. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984.

Ata ur-Rahim, Muhammad. Jesus Prophet of Islam. Tahrike Tarsile Qura'an, Inc.: Elmhurst, 1991.

Borg, Marcus. Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time. New York: Harper Collins, 1995.

Douglas-Klotz, Neil. The Hidden Gospel. Wheaton: Quest Books, 1999.

Eisenman, Robert. James the Brother of Jesus. New York: Penguin Books, 1997.

Hanson, Kenneth. Dead Sea Scrolls The Untold Story. Tulsa: Council Oak Books, 1997.

Maqsood, Ruqaiyyah. A Muslim Study of the Origins of the Christian Church. Karachi: Oxford University Press, 2000.

McDowell, Josh. More Than a Carpenter. Wheaton: Living Books, 1973.