The Narrative
For 400 years, give or take a few, Israel as a nation was still suffering the effects of exile. Although people had returned from Assyrian and Babylonian captivity they still lived as though they were strangers in a foreign land. YHWH hasn't spoken through a prophet, Caesar was ruling, religious leaders were greedy, and Israel as YHWH's covenant people were longing for His Kingdom to come. YHWH's Torah wasn't being kept, the Temple itself had become nothing more then a den for thieves, now what was Israel to do? Where were they to turn when 95-97% of them were poor and broken?
Then a voice crying out from the wilderness: The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand therefore repent!
This man, John the Baptist seemed to enact an Old Testament prophetic position. The call to his nation was repentance because God's rule was arriving in the present. God is about to act so don't find yourself as a bad tree with bad fruit because the One is coming and He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. John the Baptist, as he was baptizing in the Jordan where Joshua centuries before laid 12 stones as a reminder to the children of Israel that YHWH lead them out of captivity into the Promised Land, looked up and saw the One who had the sandals he wasn't worthy to carry.
Jesus saying "Let is be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." was baptized in the Jordan. Immediately the heavens tore open and the eschatological Spirit of God descended like dove and rested open Jesus. Then YHWH spoke, "This is my beloved son with whom I am well pleased." This baptism and speaking was very important to this event. YHWH was appointing His Son to be the Chosen King by giving Him the Spirit and baptizing Him. The words of "beloved or chosen son" would have invoked the appointment of David as King and here is the Man who is now receiving this appointment Himself. Jesus is now in line of the Davidic reign not only by birth/right but by YHWH's divine choosing. Here is the One Israel has been waiting for; the Davidic Messiah who would establish YWYH's Kingdom and overthrow the pagan rulers.
Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! The same message of the prophets, the message that Israel wanted to here, and the message that would shake the foundation of the world. Jesus went teaching and proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom. This long awaited expectation of YWYH's divine reign has irrupted in the midst of history. The New Age has broken through the Old Age and now is the day of salvation. The Age to Come has invaded the Present Evil Age and now your allegiance is no longer to the Old but the New.
So seeing the crowds, Jesus went up on the mountain, when He sat down His disciples came to him and taught them saying;
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
The Gospel of the Kingdom and its ethics were being unpacked for His followers. In the midst of exile the one that follows the Messiah in this New Age will by blessed. The Kingdom of Heaven is theirs now. This is good news for those who have been looking forward to this day! Yet how can this be if Caesar is still presently ruling over Israel? This is the tension that the followers of the Messiah lived in; Their loyalty was to the Messiah's Kingdom and not to Caesar's. They were to live differently then others around them. Followers of the Messiah turn the other cheek, go the extra mile, and give to those who ask. They love them enemies and don't kill them like Caesar would have done. They give in order to be blessed by YWYH not so others will see them. They pray for YWYH's Kingdom to come and His will to be done. They seek His Kingdom in order that they might live. So they should ask, seek, and knock because the Father will give them what they need. This Kingdom is viewed as a narrow gate and a hard way. Those who walk this hard way will have good fruit and not bad. But beware because not everyone who call Him LORD will enter the Kingdom but only those to actively do YWYH's will. So once they hear the Messiah's words, they do them, their house in built upon the rock. If you they His word's and don't do them, they are a fool (Ps 14) and their house is built upon the sand. Therefore when judgment comes, they will fall.
This New Age that has broken in the midst of history caused an uproar in the religious establishment. The Messiah has come yet they don't recognize Him due to their blindness. It didn't look like the Kingdom they heard about from the rabbis. When will He go to Jerusalem and set up the Kingdom? Caesar is still reigning it looks like! Jesus said that He was the fulfillment of the Torah so follow Him. Don't live for greed and gain but live in humble submission to the Kingdom. Don't abide by the traditions of man but the commandments of the Messiah.
So the Tension
In the midst of exile and Caesar present reign how was one to live with their allegiance to the True King? Easy...follow the True King. Don't follow the system of Caesar and the form of "life" the Roman system lived on. Repent of your allegiance from one king to Another. This long awaited message of the Kingdom rubbed many in Israel the wrong way. It wasn't what they expected. Messiah was a humble servant who ate and drank with sinners. His followers weren't the brightest in Israel. Also His content message in the later part of His career was "taking up your cross". To enter into the Kingdom in the mind of Jesus meant that one must die. He must lose is life to find it. Your allegiance isn't to yourself, Caesar, or the greedy religious establishment, it is to the True King. Therefore...die. Simple...right? No not that simple. As the disciples, we get the message wrong too. Jesus gives us the radical call to die to ourselves but we rebuke Him. He shows us the way of the Kingdom but we'd rather follow our own way. But as the True King, He is always good to His followers. He allows repentance. The tension is between this world and His world. This Kingdom and His Kingdom. The Old Age and New Age. The question is where is your allegiance? Will you be anger at the Messiah because He ruins your theological strongholds? Will you get upset because He calls you to serve and not be served? Will you follow this present system of things or actually die in order that you might live?
