WHAT is the "JUDAIZING NOTION"?
A brief note for this afternoon..
Christians, at various times, have accused each other of “Judaizing” which means something like making Christians Jewish, but “Judiazing” has meant different things throughout Church history. The distinct meaning of “Judiazing” can only be determined from the time and context of the usage.
The original bible reference is to a practice referenced in the book of Galatians and refers to Paul’s challenge of Peter’s circumcision of new believers.
The Greek Ἰουδαΐζειν (Ioudaizein), used there is roughly transliterated in English to “Judiaze” or to “live like Jews” [See all English translations].
At later times, it has been a variety of applications which appeared to, at various times, be reverting the Church back to Judaism.
In today’s situation, however, we are not talking about:
Circumcision— or first century “Judaizing”, although judging from the prevalence today, we might need to continue to remind this is no longer necessary.
7th Day Sabbath-keeping. This was a dispute about the true day of worship of which the Council of Laodicea had stated “Christians ought not to Judaize and to rest in the Sabbath” They equated true Sabbath-keeping with Judaizing in order to advance customary day of worship, the Pagan Sunday. [In this thought, they were incorrect.]
So, it’s neither of those things we’re talking about. Today’s “Judiazing” notion comes to us from Article 17 of the Augsburg confession and regards the order of events prior to the Second coming of Christ. This idea of a “Judiazing” notion, meant a very specific expectation held by those to take place during a temporal millennium.
Also:
“In like manner they (our churches) condemn those who circulate the judaizing notion, that, prior to the resurrection of the dead, the pious will engross the government of the world, and the wicked be everywhere oppressed.” [This is an archaic meaning of “engross”— more like “encompass”].
They condemned those “who are now spreading certain JEWISH OPINIONS, (or, notions) that BEFORE the RESURRECTION of the DEAD the GODLY shall take POSSESSION of [or so ENGROSS] the KINGDOM of the WORLD”.
This particular teaching (called “Jewish opinions” or the “Judiazing notion”) is CONTRA to, or against the teachings of the bible— and few issues could be of more interest to any Adventist or any person studying the 2nd Coming of Christ or Last Day Events.
The reason it is called “Jewish” or “Judiazing” is that the teaching was equated to a similar idea which is held by Jews of a coming period of JEWISH SUPREMACY during a MILLENNIUM, in which the Jews would hold all nations in subjection to themselves.
These are matters of church history, which you can see below are called “the millenary fable” and “Jewish fanaticism”
“It was sufficiently formidable in England to call for a distinct article of condemnation in the creed framed under Edward VI., 1552. The Church of England had in that day a creed of forty-three articles, of which the forty-first reads as follows: “Qui millenariorum fabulam revocare conantur, sacris literis adversantur, et in judaica deliramenta sese precipitant. They who seek to restore the millenary fable, oppose the holy Scriptures, and plunge into Jewish fanaticism.” See Henry Dana Ward’s History of the the Millennium.
There are many references to this idea throughout Adventist writings.
It is sometimes called:
A perceived period of Jewish Supremacy. —JH Waggoner.
“The Mountain of the Lord’s House (church) was to be exalted above the hills (earthly governments)” —James White (Bible Adventism) - This is the false message, as he is point out .
Whether it was to be the Jewish People (Judaism) or the Church or BOTH CONVERGED, it was believed that a period of pre-eminence or power would come to Israel and it would last during the theorized temporal millennium.
It should be pointed out that this teaching relates to nearly all of the Second Advent Stumbling Stones:
The Return of the Jews.
The Conversion of the World.
A 1,000 year Reign of Peace, prior to the 2nd coming of Christ. [The “temporal” (here and now) millennium.]
It is of intense interest to note, that many Churches and religious organizations today see the populist “MAGA” political movement to be doing just such a thing as taking over the government for the sake of “Christian Nationalism,” but in reality, their own leftist forays into Social Gospelism are a far better prophetic fit of those who, acting under a delusion, (Judaizing Notion), believe that by the spread of some vague idea of “Christian influence” far and wide, will eventually cause the whole world to be converted.
Its the perversion of Psalm 2:8 “Ask of me, and I will give ye the Heathen for thy inheritance,”as pointed out by James White in Bible Adventism, also the set of writings I call OFHA, BA, BI (Biblical Institute), and Words of Truth.
Destruction, and not a millennium of peace awaits the world, when all they see is a good time coming.
“Destruction, not conversion, awaits the world at the very time when many popular professors cherish the delusive hope of a good time coming. They see no danger, and brand as fanatical alarmists those who obey the prophetic injunction, “Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain; let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand.” Joel 2:1. But, says the apostle: “When they shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them.” 1 Thessalonians 5:2. At the very time when the Lord, by the prophet Joel, is saying, “Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up. Beat your ploughshares into swords, and your pruning-hooks into spears; let the weak say, I am strong,” chap. 3:9, 10, they are fulfilling the prophecy of Micah, which says, “And many nations shall come and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, ... and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks, nation shall not lift up a sword against nation; neither shall they learn war any more.” Chap. 4:2-3. —Bible Adventism, Page 38.