They were open-minded people who were not locked into a prescribed way of thinking and acting.  They did not require their Messiah to echo their own religious prejudices.  In contrast to those who rejected Jesus, his followers were free to let the winds of a fresh spirituality blow upon their minds.  They were free to participate in a love that reached in all directions toward all kinds of people.  Forgiveness was no longer merely seven times at best, but "seventy times seven," or unlimited.  The other cheek could be turned without appearing weak.  Investing oneself for the good of others became a lifestyle rather than a reason to complain.

These and other great concepts of our Lord became the impetus for those first folk to follow Jesus.  Of course their commitment to Jesus was not a total departure from their religious upbringing.  It was not Jesus' intention to destroy the old, but to build upon it and to fulfill it.  He wanted to expand the concept of Messiah to include a God's-eye view of the world.  Traditional Judaism had tended to focus on the externals of their faith.  He wanted them to see beyond the law, the prophets, and the formalities of their religion.

Jesus accented fellowship with the Father as the focal point of faith.  The temple with all its religious paraphernalia was nothing if it became a substitute for a personal relationship with God.  Jesus respected the temple and all for which it stood.  He was often in the temple area teaching, healing, and pointing people to God.  He could not, however, tolerate the misuse of a place designed by God for godly purposes.