His Kingdom
Jesus proclaims a new political reality, the Kingdom of God, and it bears little resemblance to the political regimes of this world. When he arrived in Galilee, Christ proclaimed the “Kingdom of God” – “Repent, for the kingdom is at hand.” In him, God's reign was invading the earth. But His realm is of a different nature
than the governments of the present age, and on more than one occasion,
Jesus refused political power, especially when offered by Satan.
The Devil tempted him by
offering Jesus “all the kingdoms of the world.” To attain absolute power,
all he needed to do was “render homage” to the Tempter.
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| [Photo by Xavier Senente on Unsplash] |
Moreover, Jesus did NOT dispute Satan’s “right” to dispense political power, but he refused it all the same. Instead, he submitted to the path of the Suffering Servant of Yahweh - (Matthew 4:8-11, Luke 4:5-7).
Ever since his disciples have
faced the same test when the opportunity to obtain and wield political power
presents itself. Or perhaps better, is presented to them by the same entity
that confronted their Lord in the Judean wilderness. Will they succumb to the
temptation, or chose to walk the same path that Jesus did?
SATAN’S WAY
Satan requires submission to
his authority as the price of political power, and according to him, the
kingdoms of this age “have been delivered to me and I give them to whomever
I will.”
Although he was appointed by
God to rule over all nations, Jesus refused this satanic offer. Scripture
confirmed his destiny to reign over the earth, yet he refused the kind of political
power valued by the rulers of this age.
But how could Yahweh’s
designated king reign over the rebellious nations of the earth without the military and economic might of the
State? - (Psalm 2:6-8).
And his disciple faces the same dilemma. After
all, choosing the way of self-sacrificial service that leads inexorably to
Golgotha is contrary to human wisdom and the “way the world works.” How can
evil be stopped without resorting to evil means?
HIS WAY
But rather than resorting to the political
means of this evil age, Jesus embraced the way of the Cross. In the “Kingdom
of God,” true victory is achieved through self-denial and sacrifice.
In his realm, “greatness” is characterized by self-sacrificial service and acts of mercy for the benefit of others, and especially of one’s “enemies.” Rather than threatening or and dominating other men, Jesus “gave his life a ransom for many.”
Furthermore, his
real-world example provides his disciples with the pattern for implementing
God’s kingdom and achieving “greatness” in it through self-sacrificial service to others.
But the temptation in the “wilderness”
was not the end of Satan’s political intrigues. Following his rebuff, “the
Devil departed from him until an opportune time.”
ONGOING CONFLICT
After he miraculously fed a
multitude near the Sea of Galilee, certain members of the crowd planned “to
come and seize him to make him king.” But he walked away at the very point
the mob was determined to crown him, thereby turning many minds against him.
The Son of Man would not become
the militaristic messiah bent on destroying Rome that so many of his
contemporaries desired. And the closer he came to his death on a Roman cross, the
more the fickle crowds rejected him as the Messiah of Israel. A “suffering
servant” did not fit their concept of royalty and kingship - (Luke 4:13, John
6:15).
Prior to his execution, Pontius
Pilate inquired whether Jesus was “the king of the Jews.” He did not
deny his kingly position, and he responded to Rome’s representative - “You
say that I am a king, and for this, I was born.”
But Jesus qualified his
kingship by stating that “my kingdom is not from (ek) this
world. If my kingdom was from this world, then my own officers would fight that
I should not be delivered up to the Jews. But now, my kingdom is not from here”
- (John 18:33-36).
This did not mean his kingdom
was strictly “spiritual” or otherworldly, or that his messianic program was
nonpolitical. But the source of his sovereignty was other than the political
power that has characterized and tyrannized the existing world. It was of an
entirely different nature than the powers of this age.
Pilate found no fault in him
and was about to release Jesus. However, at the instigation of the Temple
authorities, the crowd demanded that Pilate release Barabbas instead, a man
described in the gospels as a léstés (Greek) or “brigand.”
Seemingly, the priestly leaders preferred a violent political revolutionary to
the Suffering Servant of Yahweh.
PATH OF THE CROSS
Contrary to the messianic
expectations of his contemporaries, Jesus “took on the form of a slave”
and became “obedient unto death, even death on a cross.” And because of his
choice, God bestowed on him “the name, which is above every name, that at
the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the
earth.”
Moreover, the followers of Jesus are summoned to adopt and live by the very same mind that he displayed when he gave his life as a “ransom for many”- (Philippians 2:6-11).
The choice before the disciples
of Christ is one between the cruciform and rough pathway trod by him or the
expedient and smooth highway offered by Satan. Jesus declared that when he was
“lifted up” on the cross he would “draw all men to me,” not by
seating him on Caesar’s throne.
And he calls all men and women
to “deny themselves, take up the cross,” and follow him on this same
path, and the only one that leads to the Kingdom of God. All men who refuse to
do so are “unworthy” of him and unfit for citizenship in his Father’s
kingdom.
