Islam - The Summit of Religious Evolution — Page 82
82 CHAPTER V THE REAL CRUCIFIXITION, RESSURECTION & ASCENSION OF JESUS Although Jewish scriptures foretold the advent of Jesus as the Messiah, 1, 2, 3 the Jews refused to accept him; instead, they rejected him as an imposter and a false claimant. To prove their point, they forced the Romans (the rulers of Judea at that time) to condemn Jesus to death by crucifixion. Death by crucifixion is pronounced an accursed death in Deuteronomy. 4 Hence the Jews forced Jesus' crucifixion to prove that he was an accursed of God. The main reason that reinforced their opposition and hostility towards Jesus' claim to be the Messiah was that the Jewish scriptures 5 also foretold that the advent of their Messiah would be preceded by the second coming of prophet Elijah who, according the Jewish belief, had physically ascended to heavens. 6 His second coming was considered as an essential prerequisite to the Messiah's advent. Consequently, when Jesus proclaimed himself as the Messiah whose advent had been foretold in the Bible, the Jews refused to accept him on the basis that Elijah had still not come. The question of Elijah's Second Coming was put to Jesus by one of the scribes to whom he responded that Elijah had already come. 7, 8, 9 Moreover, the New Testament also records evidence to the effect that Elijah's second coming was spiritual, rather than physical and it was to occur in the person of John the Baptist. 10 Thus, Jesus corrected a major misconception that prevailed among the Jews at that time about the physical second coming of Elijah. According the Jesus, the second coming of "a person ascended to heavens" will not be of a physical nature but will be of a spiritual nature. Jesus confirmed that John the Baptist was indeed the spiritual second coming of Elijah who came before Jesus and indeed fulfilled the Biblical prophecy about Elijah second coming (John the Baptist was about six months older than Jesus). By implication, Jesus' resolution of the question of second coming of "ascended personalities" also resolved the real meaning of the term "ascended to heavens". In effect, Jesus denied the "physical ascension" of Elijah, for if he had ascended physically, he should also descend physically, from the heavens. Thus in his answer to the scribe's question about Elijah, Jesus corrected the common Jewish misconception about physical ascension and also clarified that this term is used metaphorically, rather than literally. In short, Jesus himself denied physical human ascension to heavens and established precedence for the second coming of "ascended personalities". How can he then himself claim to have physically ascended to heavens? As a result of this Jewish wrong belief, they are still, until today, awaiting and praying for Messiah's advent. The few Jews who accepted Jesus as their awaited Messiah followed his teachings and helped him fulfill his stated mission, which was: Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. 11