Jesus Christ and Functionalist and Conflict Theory Essay

Many aspects of social justice can be found in the Bible. Jesus partakes in many actions that would fall under social justice. He fed the hungry, stood up for women’s rights and welcomed the outcasts who were hated. Through history, there are very few people that stood up for equality and against oppression. One such person would be Martin Luther King, Jr. who based a lot of his work on the bible and the religious figures that are described in it.

The gospel describes Jesus as a great teacher who astounded the crowds who gathered to hear him. Though he engaged in debates with Pharisees and Sadducees, he took great interest in ordinary people. He often taught them in parables, stories that used vivid images from everyday life to illustrate spiritual truths (Invitation to World Religions, pg.416). The central theme in Jesus’ teachings was the Kingdom of God. For Jesus, the kingdom of God was not an ordinary kingdom, but that exists when human beings recognize God’s sovereignty over the world and respond in love and in

Luke’s Gospel is a portrayal of Jesus as a model of social justice. Hence, the reader is empowered and influenced by the Gospel to be actively involved in social justice issues. The Catholic Church has sought to reach out to those in need, and Luke’s Gospel demonstrates this through injustices that Jesus challenged. In addition, mental illness, which is a current social justice issue reflects and appeals to problems that Jesus faced and reacted to in his time.

In Jerusalem, Jesus was treated fairly by everyone, but Romans and Jews didn’t except him, so he had to be executed. This shows that Romans and Jews would kill anyone who was dangerous, or threatening. Till this day, Jesus is a major part of believe and religion.

To understand how Jesus broke various laws and social rules during His time it is important to understand why it was meaningful for Him to do it in the first place. It seems that most around the King of the Jews had a problem with His actions, words and timing. Yet, He didn’t come to please people, but to save them. The sense of urgency which carried His thoughts trumped any kind of social conduct He was expected to follow. For the Jews who held the law given to Moses at Mount Sinai, it was more than confusing to see the Messiah disregarding many of the laws which governed their lives. What the Jews didn’t comprehend was that Jesus came to crush the cycle of sin, by conquering all humanly limitations for the advancement of the Kingdom. Astonishingly enough they didn’t see that Jesus is the fulfillment of the law in the most perfect and ultimate way.

Although Christianity was well known throughout the affluent classes, Jesus’s philosophies touched the hearts of the plebeians. The self-proclaimed Messiah often spoke of money and riches not being needed in the afterlife, and that God measures you not on how much money you have but on your values you showed throughout your life. This touched the working class’s heart as it informed them that there is hope for a better life that everyone can achieve but not a lot deserve. Therefore, this was the main reason why Christianity was spread as quickly as it could.

The Gospel of Luke serves to provide a model for people to engage in issues that affect communities: such as poverty, health, and exclusion of certain peoples. Luke’s gospel interprets the story of Jesus from apparent eyewitness accounts and conveys a perspective of his own communal ideal in response to these socially and ethically based issues. Luke will represent Jesus’ attempt at building a community of followers that would accompany him in his preparation of the kingdom of God for the Jewish community. The purpose of this essay is to recognize and express the relationship between community

Jesus, on the other hand, presents to us a model of resilience. The setting given to us in Luke reveals multiple issues that place the option for violence as such a high priority – it would have been on everyone’s minds. The start of John’s ministry in chapter

In Evangelism, Salvation and Social Justice, Sider introduces different theologians’ (Graham, Scott, etc.) opinions on the definition of evangelism, the role it plays in the church mission, and the relationship between evangelism and the social actions. By reviewing current five viewpoints of evangelism, salvation, and social actions, Sider puts forward a sixth viewpoint by re-exploring the biblical foundations about the concepts of the Gospel, salvation, redemption, and the principalities and powers. Sider argues that evangelism and social actions are interrelated, but they are two different and equal important aspects of the mission of the church. In his idea, the Gospel is related to justification, regeneration, Jesus’s Lordship, and the church (Sider, p.256).

For the purpose of this thematic paper about opposition towards Jesus I chose the Gospel According to John. Even though the Book of John has so much love there are still many instances in which Jesus faced opposition. Within the book there is opposition from the Jews, Pharisees, Priestly Council (Sanhedrin), and the Disciples. We see the first opposition with the Jews in the temple and at the end of the Book of John we will still find the Jews opposing Jesus (2:12) . In this incident we read about the money changers in the temple and how Jesus becomes upset.

What did we really learn from Jesus Christ’s life teachings? Was it all about the afterlife and the kingdom of God? Or was it more for living a clean Christian life. How did these teachings affect Christianity in today’s world? These are the questions people are in search of. What religion is right and what are the answers. In gospels we are told that Jesus taught of God’s love for mankind and how he’s always looking out for those who follow him, and that our love for him should be great. He taught us of the Kingdom that awaits us in the afterlife and how reaching the kingdom should be one of the main goals of every religious individual. Then we have the lesson of treating others how we want to be treated, “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark

In the Bible, the four Gospels push different ideologies, views, lessons and different stories that center around the central figure of Jesus. The Gospel of Luke main themes center on Universalism, social justice, compassion for outcasts, the role of woman and the Holy Spirit.(Hauer and Young) These parables are able to connect to the context of when Luke was able bring these stories together in 85 CE. The Gospel was most likely written in Greek speaking area located in the Roman empire.(Coogan et al.) This time of stability allowed for the proliferation of Christianity and Gospels such as Luke. The passages that will be discussed will mainly focus on compassion for outcast seen in Luke 16:19–31 and warning against greed in Luke 12:13-34. Luke 13:6-9 focuses on a fig tree talks of the opportunities people and if they use them properly. Finally, the last parable is 7:11-17, which focuses on holy spirit and the possibilities for miracles and the importance of life. These parables in Luke are able to give a social justice commentary that can make a person feel compassionate for the poor and the reckoning they would receive in the afterlife if they didn’t follow Jesus’s teachings. As, well the story is able to push across a message that will everlasting importance to people. This has led to the Gospels of Luke becoming one of the main 4 Gospels and one of the most highly regarded of the Gospels. (Hauer and Young)

eternal Kingship. The expectations of those who anticipated a militaristic messiah met its reality in a martyred Messiah. Jesus' social context rife with injustice, oppression, and economic inequality under Rome's imperial dominance, longed for a King who would

Jesus taught about the Kingdom of God that you must help others to enter the Kingdom through his parables like the Good Samaritan, the Mustard Seed and the Final Judgment. As well as the Beatitudes, the Ten Commandments and the four EREA Touchstones. The Kingdom of God is visible in today’s world through the actions of the individuals: Pope Francis and Martin Luther King Jr.

When Jesus was alive, he often advocated for the sick and injured. While many people would stay away from them, Jesus did not. He taught everyone that being sick was not a punishment from God, and instead of shunning them, that it was the people’s duty to help them get better. He frequently taught that wealth, health, and power were not as important as helping people who are in need. Jesus brought with him a new way of thinking and living that was crucial in helping the world reevaluate their moral standards. All of these teachings however, first occurred long ago. Now, in this day and age, our belief systems, morals, identities, technology, and more has greatly changed, improved, and been altered.