Chizuk Emunah (Pt 2) Under the Microscope: Chapter 60

Acts 5:34, 35, 38, 39, "Then stood there up one in the council, a pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, and said onto the Jews, Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what ye intend to do as touching these men; for if this council, or this work, be of men, it will come to nought, but if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest, haply (perhaps) ye be found even to fight against God." The subject is cited here for the purpose of following the order of the passages which claim a refutation. We have already noticed that the duration of a sect does not constitute a proof of the veracity of their tenets, otherwise, the Mahommedan faith would be entitled to nearly the same belief as that of the Christians. 

Gamaliel I is one of the most important figures in Pharisaic Judaism. Outside of the New Testament, the earliest records we have of Gamaliel are in the Mishnah, which only mentions him a few short times. The Babylonian Talmud, written almost 500 years after the New Testament, gives the oral traditions and legends surrounding this fascinating teacher.

This leads to another important point: mainstream historians consider the New Testament a much more reliable source for information about Second Temple Judaism than they consider the Talmud. This is because the New Testament was written at the end of the Second Temple era, while the Mishnah, and even more the Talmud were written long afterward.

Troki is also misunderstanding the argument of Gamaliel. he is not suggesting that every movement which is not from God will fail. Let's look at the passage.

When they heard this, they were enraged and wanted to kill them. But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in honor by all the people, stood up and gave orders to put the men outside for a little while. And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you are about to do with these men. For before these days Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. After him Judas the Galilean rose up in the days of the census and drew away some of the people after him. He too perished, and all who followed him were scattered. So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!” (Acts 5:33-39) 

 In the Second Temple era, there were many leaders who wanted to stir up the Jewish people, free Israel from the bonds of Roman law, and establish the nation of Israel as a glorious kingdom as in the days of Solomon. These movements inevitably generated fervor, and then burned out.

Gamaliel was requesting of his people the same patience. The Sanhedrin was not technically allowed to execute anybody, and Peter (unlike Stephen) was a bit too popular for the Sanhedrin to kill illegally and get away with it. Eventually, they did start acting in a way that conflicts with Roman law, and this eventually led to the revolts in the 60s which led to the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70, and the complete expulsion of the Jewish people after the failed Bar Kochba revolt of 135.

The rise of Islam is irrelevant to Gamaliel's argument, since Islam did not arise in this fashion. Instead, Islam arose in much the same way that Communism arose in the 20th century. A charismatic leader sells his people on a utopian state whereby he is the supreme commander. He rallies an army of fanatics, which he uses to take over his government, and then suppress not only opposition, but all thought that leads to opposition. If Orthodox Judaism is a cult, Islam is an Orwellian fascist police state. There is a reason that the novel 1984 is banned in Islamic countries.