The Jews vs. Rome
The Roman Republic (founded 506 BC) became an empire when Caesar Augustus consolidated
power in 31 BC. Augustus ruled until 14 AD. He “found Rome a city of clay and left it a city of
marble.” The Pax Romana (peace of Rome) reigned for two centuries throughout the empire
except for Judea. Messianic fever gripped the land of Judea culminating in the birth of two
unusual boys (Luke 1).
“In the fifteenth years of the reign of Tiberius Caesar…the word of God came to John son of
Zechariah in the desert.” Luke 3:1-2.
Four Jewish Groups John Challenges to Repent:
1. The __________(Separatists) or _________(Essenes)
a. The Essenes were monastics who lived communally in the desert. John the
Baptist may have been an Essene. “A voice of one calling in the desert,
prepare the way of the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall
be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall
become straight…and all mankind will see God’s salvation.” Luke 3:4-6.
b. Just as a king sends a servant ahead to make sure the road is clear, we as
believers are to prepare the hearts of others to hear the gospel of Jesus that can
save them.
c. God says, “Come out from among them and be separate.” II Corinthians
6:17. Yet, in the process of separating ourselves from evil, we can also
separate ourselves from our mission field. Jesus also commands us to be salt
and light wherever we are (Matthew 5:14-16), and to befriend sinners as he
did (Mark 2:13-17).
2. The ___________(Legalists) or ___________(Pharisees)
a. The Pharisees were popular with the crowds and upheld many biblical beliefs
(physical resurrection, heaven and hell, demons and angels, etc.). But they
also added their traditions to God’s Word. Man’s opinions were placed on par
with Scripture, leading to pride.
b. “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to
yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father’. For I tell you that out of these
stones God can raise up children of Abraham.” Luke 3:7-8.
c. John, like Jesus, focused on the heart. “What comes out of man is what makes
him ‘unclean’. For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts,
sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness,
envy, slander, arrogance and folly.” Mark 7:20-22.
d. Being godly has nothing to do with keeping man-made rules or having the
right pedigree. Read Accidental Pharisees by Larry Osborne!
3. The ___________(Compromisers) or the ____________(Sadducees)
a. The tax collectors were sympathetic to the Sadducees who worked hard to get
along with Rome. They repeatedly compromised their core convictions for
personal gain. And they fell away from clear biblical truths such as the
resurrection of the dead (Matthew 22:23) or the existence of an afterlife.
b. John challenges the tax collectors, “Don’t collect any more than you are
required to.” Luke 3:13. He encourages them to make sure their hearts are in
the right place.
c. We too face temptations to compromise the clear teaching of God’s Word
even though Revelation 22:18-19 warns us against adding to or subtracting
from God’s Word.
4. The _____________(Revolutionaries) or the ____________(Zealots)
a. Roman soldiers or Judean police are probably addressed in Luke 3:14.
“Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely – be content with your
pay.” Like soldiers, the Zealots also faced the temptation of taking justice
into their own hands. The Zealots wanted to restore the glory of an
independent Israel. They strongly resisted Roman authority.
b. There will never be a perfect government, nor perfect police, church leaders,
employers, or parents. Today many Christians believe that if we only elect
the right leaders we can turn this country around. And yet the heart is
desperately wicked, which is why we have three branches of government.
Our founders desired that each branch would keep the others in check.
John the Baptist, and then Jesus called for their followers to repent, seek forgiveness, and
accept Jesus as the Messiah, who will “baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” Luke
3:16. Jesus never took sides among the Jewish camps, calling all of them to himself
including Simon, the Zealot; Matthew, the tax collector; Paul, the Pharisee; and John the
Baptist, possibly an Essene. How about you? Does your heart belong to Jesus?
Discussion Questions
The Jews vs. Rome
1. What are the most interesting movies you’ve seen and books you’ve read about the
Roman Empire? Have you ever heard of Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, or Cleopatra?
What have you learned about them? Did you know these ones lived only 40-50 years
before Jesus was born? What did Caesar Augustus accomplish in his reign from 31 BC
to 14 AD? Why was there so much trouble in Israel while the rest of the Roman Empire
was mostly peaceful? What kind of Messianic fever gripped the land? What does Luke
3:1-2 teach us about the historical setting for the era when Jesus ministered? What four
Jewish camps existed at the time of Christ?
2. What evidence is there that John the Baptist was an Essene? What evidence is there
against this idea? Why is it important to understand that the Essenes often cited Isaiah
40:3-5 as describing their calling? Why do you think John the Baptist quotes this in Luke
3:4-6? What does it mean? Why is it important to understand that you can get far away
from civilization and still battle fierce temptations? What command is given in II
Corinthians 6:17? How have various Christians practiced this? Why must this command
be balanced with Jesus’ command to be salt and light in Matthew 5:14-16? What else
does Jesus teach us in Mark 2:13-17?
3. What things did the Pharisee get right? Where did they go wrong? Why were they so
susceptible to pride? What evidence is there that the crowds that John addresses in Luke
3:7-11 were influenced by the Pharisees? What does John teach here and what does
Jesus teach in Mark 7:20-23? Why is it important not to trust in rule-keeping or in our
human pedigree or statute? How does the modern evangelical church struggle with being
like Pharisees? How do you struggle?
4. What problems did the tax collectors and Sadducees struggle with? What core doctrines
had the Sadducees abandoned? Why? How does John challenge the tax collectors in
Luke 3:12-13? Why is it important to adhere closely to God’s Word (read Revelation
22:18-19) while rejecting ideas that are merely the opinions of man?
5. How did the soldiers cited in Luke 3:14 struggle with problems that the Zealots and
political revolutionaries of the first century also struggle with? Why is the idea of “might
makes right” always a temptation to us? How were soldiers tempted to take justice into
their own hands? How were the Zealots tempted in the same way? What is the problem
with thinking that we can change America if we elect the right leaders?
6. What ideology united all four Jewish groups? How did Jesus show them that the problem
wasn’t Rome, but deep within their own hearts? How did Jesus appeal to all four camps
during this public ministry? Does your heart belong to Jesus, or are you tempted to just
play the part of being a Christian? Why is this question so important?