Core Beliefs inherited by early Christians from the Jews

Jesus was a Jew and a Rabbi. Many of the teachings, beliefs and practices of the first Christians were inherited from Judaism. At the start Christianity was considered a sect of Judaism and, in order to become a Christian, one first had to become Jewish.

Here is a list of the beliefs which early Christians shared with the Jews.

• Monotheism
  • Belief in one God who is holy, just, righteous. merciful, loving, gracious, compassionate and generous.
• Creation
  • God created Heaven and Earth out of nothing. The creation was separate from God and is “very good”. In contrast to Plato and the Gnostics, the goodness of the material world is affirmed.
  • God created living creatures on Earth culminating with the creation of Humanity. Uniquely amongst God’s creatures, Humans were made in God’s image and God breathed His own Spirit into them. They were created to take care of the Earth and to rule over the other creatures.
  • God gave Humanity free will, including the freedom to rebel against God their Creator and to choose to disobey Him.
• Human disobedience
  • Humanity did choose to disobey God and the result was that the closeness between God and Humanity was broken. There was pain in childbirth, toil and frustration in work, human mortality and a general disruption of the harmony of Eden.
• Covenant God
  • God calls a people to himself, first Israel, then Jew and Gentile together in Christ.
  • God made binding promises to his people Israel (Abraham, Sinai, David), which defined their identity.
• Scriptures
  • The Hebrew Bible (what Christians call the Old Testament) as God’s authoritative revelation.
• Prayer & Worship
  • Early Christian worship was shaped by the synagogue liturgy (Use of the Psalms, Torah + Prophets reading, exposition) Early Christians initially observed the Sabbath; later they also gathered on the first day (Sunday) to celebrate Jesus’ resurrection.
• Holiness and Ethics
  • God’s people are called to holiness expressed through justice, mercy, and moral obedience.
• Hope in Resurrection and Judgment
  • Many Jews (esp. Pharisees) believed in resurrection of the dead and a final judgment — adopted fully by Christians.
• Messianic Expectation
  • Hope that God would send a Messiah/deliverer, though Christians interpreted Jesus as the fulfilment.
  • The narrative in the Hebrew Scriptures includes a number of cycles whereby the people are oppressed, sometimes as a result of their own wrongdoing and sometimes because of external forces, and are then rescued or redeemed by Divine action often involving a human deliverer.
  • The “Kingdom of God” was a central Jewish hope. Jesus proclaimed that the Kingdom was both in the present and the future. Christians believe has now been inaugurated by Jesus
  • Christians see Jesus as the ultimate Anointed One sent to rescue Humanity.