Before moving forward, it is necessary to back up just a bit so that we might continue our effective contextualization and historical integration. Included within His commands to His appointed disciples, we hear Jesus saying, “Whenever you enter a house, first say, ‘May peace be on this house!’” (Luke 10:5) There would have been a number of reasons for giving this particular greeting, but there is one particular reason to which we have already alluded, which is that of Caesar’s notion of peace. Remember, Luke still has us in the context of that which is previously written, as chapters nine through nineteen (which includes chapter ten) of his Gospel are presented as a lengthy, single narrative. Caesar’s peace---Roman peace, or the “pax Romana,” would have been part and parcel of the message of the herald of the Caesar, as Caesar (as Jesus would do) “sent messengers on ahead of him… to make things ready in advance for him” (9:52a,c).
What would happen if Caesar’s peace and gospel message about himself and his kingdom was rejected? Death would come upon those that rejected the message, until there were either no more rejecters, or until all willingly bowed the knee to accept his “peace.” This is the context, as we have seen, for James and John wanting to call down fire from heaven and consume those that rejected Jesus. This is also the context for Jesus’ rebuke of them for wanting to adopt Caesar’s forceful and deadly way of establishing his rule and authority. Clearly, at that point, they did not understand Jesus’ true power or the nature of the kingdom and peace that He was bringing to the world, as they were steeped in messiah and kingdom expectation that was rooted in forceful overthrow by violent means and awe-inspiring displays of power.
So when Jesus’ disciples arrive in a village and in a house and say “May peace be on this house,” we can imagine them being met with some trepidation. Again, this is not un-familiar. We can imagine the people thinking, “Great, more peace,” as they envision Caesar’s notion of peace. Then, when those same disciples go out into the public square and begin speaking of the kingdom of God that has come upon them, that message of peace, coupled with kingdom, continues to invoke thoughts of Rome’s crushing domination and their means of establishing peace and extending the kingdom. This, of course, is where attentiveness to the sick comes in, as it was a distinctive badge for Christ’s disciples to wear. The usual, traveling preacher would pay little attention to the sick, as there was little to nothing to be gained from them financially; and naturally, the Caesar, or his representative, cared nothing for the sick, as such would be nothing more than a burden that the people were all to happy to shift to Rome. Still, even with the healing of the sick, this preaching of the kingdom of God that had come could create a natural skepticism, and induce a “here we go again” attitude amongst the populace, as they were fully cognizant of Caesar’s methods that would be meted out to those that rejected the message.
In this light, what does Jesus tell His disciples? He says, “whenever you enter a town and the people do not welcome you, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you’.” (10:11a) This was different. This was not a calling down of fire. Where Caesar would have whetted his sword with blood (which then need to be wiped off) and left men, women, and children lying in the dusty streets for their rebellion in rejecting him, Jesus suggests a significant, symbolic action. Beyond the action, Jesus instructs them to say these words, “Nevertheless know this: The kingdom of God has come” (10:11b). Even in rejection, they were to reiterate the message of the Gospel. There is no forcing. Naturally, Caesar did not ask for anybody to accept him or for allegiance to his kingdom. It was demanded at the point of a sword, as death was the only power that he truly had at his disposal. Jesus does go on to say, “I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town” (10:12), but that is God’s prerogative and God’s business. If God wants to call down fire (echoing James and John) in judgment, then God will do that. To this, Jesus adds, “The one who listens to you listens to Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me, and the one who rejects Me rejects the One Who sent Me” (10:16). Caesar could say the same thing, and he could justify his murderous actions to the people of his kingdom by saying that those that he slaughtered (or ordered to be slaughtered) had rejected Rome and the people of Rome (the one who had sent him).
The job of the disciple was not to pronounce judgment and call down fire and condemn, but rather, to preach the kingdom of God. The job of the disciple is to preach that Jesus of Nazareth was, is, and forever will be the crucified and resurrected Messiah of Israel and Lord of all, while consciously recognizing that it is God, by His Spirit, that goes to work to make that message effective and impactful and transformational in the hearts, minds, and lives of those who hear it, doing so according to His purposes for them. When we desire to call down fire, urging “conversion” or “acceptance” through the coercive preaching of eternal fire, or act as if we are functioning as God’s duly appointed representatives when we call down fire by referencing the judgment that God Himself brought to Sodom, we simply reject Jesus and assert that His Gospel message lacks any true functional power.
Is Jesus as weak as Caesar? Is death the only tool at His (and our) disposal when it comes to extending His kingdom? Are we not charged to speak the words of life in Resurrection? When we grasp these things, and are brought to the point that we fully and truly believe that there really is a power in the very proclamation of the Gospel, and that there really is a Holy Spirit that brings, activates, and works within that power, and that there really is a God in heaven that has a purpose and a plan for His creation, it is then that we can hear Jesus speaking to us and saying, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets and kings longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it” (10:23b-24).
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