Imagine a Muslim man walking through the streets saying "Allah will rule this nation!" he'd get strange looks and someone would probably call the police thinking he might be a terrorist. After all he's part of a minority religion, a religion that's tolerated as long as it does not affect the wider community. Furthermore we have a society and rule of law that functions perfectly well. In fact we think it's the best system in history.
This is exactly the situation Jesus was in. Part of a tolerated minority religion in a wider society and rule of law which (at the time) was considered as good as it could possibly get. Yet Jesus cries out "the kingdom of God (not Caesar) is at hand change your ways and believe this good news (not the news that the roman empire is as good as it gets)" It's highly inflammatory talk. Especially since there were Jewish revolutionaries (terrorists from the Roman point of view) trying to free the Jewish people from the tyranny of Rome.
I can't help but think that right from the start Jesus would have been a suspected terrorist. Sure he might of been doing some kind things - a facade to win people over. But, he did clash with the mainstream religious leaders - like extremists do. Everyone would have suspected that deep down he must be plotting something violent (Roman soldiers pull out swords to arrest him) because, that is the only way that kingdom of God could over throw Caesar's reign over the people.
This is exactly the situation Jesus was in. Part of a tolerated minority religion in a wider society and rule of law which (at the time) was considered as good as it could possibly get. Yet Jesus cries out "the kingdom of God (not Caesar) is at hand change your ways and believe this good news (not the news that the roman empire is as good as it gets)" It's highly inflammatory talk. Especially since there were Jewish revolutionaries (terrorists from the Roman point of view) trying to free the Jewish people from the tyranny of Rome.
I can't help but think that right from the start Jesus would have been a suspected terrorist. Sure he might of been doing some kind things - a facade to win people over. But, he did clash with the mainstream religious leaders - like extremists do. Everyone would have suspected that deep down he must be plotting something violent (Roman soldiers pull out swords to arrest him) because, that is the only way that kingdom of God could over throw Caesar's reign over the people.
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