So why didn't everyone flock to Jesus and declare him to be the chosen one of God? This is a question that has disturbed people from the time of Jesus until now. When we read the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) we read stories of amazing healings, transformational encounters and miracles of feeding and forgiveness. From our lenses (that of 21st century Christians) we can see what we believe to be the obvious. Jesus was the messiah, the Son of God and God incarnate. We shake our heads and wonder about those who were near him, that they could be so obtuse and not see what we see.
The problem with this kind of thinking is that we have the advantage of two thousand years of Christian interpretation and the Gospels themselves to show us the way to our particular set of beliefs. What we need to remember is that in the time of Second Temple Judaism (this is how the time of Jesus is referred to…the time of the second Temple in Jerusalem…the first one being destroyed by the Babylonians and then a new one built after the people returned from exile) there was no consensus as to who the messiah would be or how he would accomplish his task. And the idea that a human being could somehow be God incarnate was a heresy to be avoided at all costs.
While there was no clear consensus as to the "who" or "how" of the messiah there was consensus as to the "what" of the messiah. The "what" was the messiah would drive the Roman's from the land and restore Israel to its status as an independent nation where God's rule and reign and law would be observed. They would establish a political Kingdom of God. Israel would become a theocracy (in some ways like modern day Iran) where only God's people were allowed. Ultimately Jerusalem would become the center of all worship throughout the world as people realized that the God of Israel was the one, true God.
Looking at the life of Jesus through this lens then what we see is that Jesus was not fulfilling these expectations. Jesus was offering a very different version of the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God in Jesus' teachings was the fulfillment of God's rule and reign and not Israel's. What I mean by that is that Jesus had come to lead the transformation of the entire world into the world that God had originally intended for God's creation. This is a world in which people live in loving relationships with God, one another and with the world around them. This is a world in which people strive for peace and justice; caring and compassion.
This mission in which Jesus was engaged then pitted him against many people, both Jews and Gentiles. It pitted him against those who desired a political overthrow of the Romans. It pitted him against those who used the Law of God (the Law that is the Torah...the first five books of the Bible) as a way to exclude people from the community of faith and from God's Kingdom. It pitted Jesus against those who believed the Temple (and its rituals) in Jerusalem was the be all and end all of faith. It pitted Jesus against the Romans who believed that all people needed to give allegiance to them above and beyond any other allegiance. What Jesus was doing then was redefining (or actually clarifying) the role of the messiah as the one who was bringing the Kingdom of God for all people.
In terms of our vision then we would be wise to see Jesus in this role…as kingdom bringer and not merely saver of souls. By so doing we honor his work and find our own calling and mission in the world. For if we follow the kingdom bringer then perhaps we are kingdom co-workers with him.
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