In addition to what would have
been a widespread cultural familiarity with the method that was employed, the
message of “The kingdom of God has come upon you” would not have been
unfamiliar. Though it held particular and incredibly significant meaning
to those that dwelled in the land of Israel, not only was it the case that
Jesus’ disciples would not be the first to go out heralding the arrival of a
messiah, and thus the arrival of the kingdom of God, but it was also the case
that this was largely the same message that Caesar’s representatives dutifully carried
into the world that he had conquered as well.
Those that would come
to hear this message of the kingdom of God, whether inside or outside of Israel
as it was shared before and after the ordeal of the cross and the vindication
of the Resurrection, were likely to have been familiar with the “gospel of
Caesar.” This “gospel” was, among other
things of course (as the Caesar cult aided in the spread of imperial
propaganda), that the Caesar was lord of all and the savior of mankind. This message could easily be presented as the
“kingdom of the son of god has come upon you; and you do not need to feel
conquered, as Caesar extends his realm of peace and security to you.” This should serve as a reminder that one
would do well to always consider the setting into which the message of the
Christ had come.
Before continuing to
move forward, it is necessary to back up just a bit so as to continue what one
hopes is an effective contextualization and historical integration.
Included within Jesus’ commands to His appointed disciples, He can be heard to
say: “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 has already been
alluded, which is that of the Caesar and Rome’s notion of peace.
Remember, Luke still
has the reader of his work situated within the mental context of that which he
has previously written, as chapters nine through nineteen (which includes
chapter ten) of his Gospel narrative are presented as a lengthy, single story.
As would have been familiar to the Roman government official (most excellent Theophilus)
for whom Luke is presumed to have constructed his two-part series, 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 also be shown
to 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? As has been previously indicated, it is quite likely that death
would come upon those that rejected the message. This death would have fallen until there were
either no more rejecters, or until all willingly bowed the knee to accept his
“peace.” This is the context, as has been seen, for James and John
wanting to call down fire from heaven and consume those that rejected
Jesus.
This would also be
the context for Jesus’ rebuke of them for wanting to adopt Caesar’s forceful
and deadly way and contra-kingdom-of-heaven way of establishing his rule and authority.
It would seem to be clear that, 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 likely to have been steeped in messiah and kingdom
expectation that was rooted in forceful overthrow of a foreign oppressor by
violent means and awe-inspiring displays of power.
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