likelihood from the edict
of Hadrian which in 135 finally scattered the old church of Jerusalem.
As mentioned earlier, there was a distinct disagreement between Paul and
these believers from Jerusalem who are often referred to in the New
Testament as “of the circumcision” or “Judaizers.” It is important,
however, to note that the dispute was over the application of the law. It
was NEVER over the deity of Yeshua. Why? Because Paul’s perspective
on the subject did not differ from theirs. Most of the dispute over
the deity of Yeshua came long after Paul’s death.
If these early followers did not believe that Yeshua was God, what did they
believe?
In The Orthodox Corruption of Scripture,
Bart Ehrman writes:
According to orthodox sources, the Ebionites
self-consciously traced their lineage back to the apostolic times, and like
the earliest followers of Jesus worked to preserve their Jewish identity and
customs, including the practices of circumcision and kashrut.
They are most commonly portrayed as
adoptionists who reject both the notion of Jesus’ pre-existence and the
doctrine of his virgin birth, maintaining instead that Jesus was a “normal”
human being, born of natural generation. God chose him to be his Son at his
baptism and gave him his messianic mission. This he fulfilled by dying on the cross,
after which God raised him from the dead and exalted him to heaven.
Sources agree that the Ebionites accepted
the binding authority of the Old Testament (and therefore the continuing
validity of the Law) but rejected the authority of the apostate apostle,
Paul.
The sources do not agree about the character
and contours of the gospel used by the Ebionites. Most of