B
Ben_Masada
Guest
The Esoteric Kingdom of God - Luke 17:21
It was a custom among learnt Jews of the First Century, especially ambulant Rabbis and Teachers, to gather around them disciples in the mystical number of twelve, and to teach them Torah, as they would prepare new Teachers and Rabbis to proceed with the custom
There were many of such groups, but there was something special about the one of Jesus, that the main theme of his message was to teach about the Kingdom of God, which he would sometimes explain the esoteric character of it, as of being within ourselves.
The Kingdom of God, according to Jesus, was taught only to select number, and not intended to the general body of disciples, designed for and understood by the initiated. However, the secret, as is always expected to, would leak out into the larger populace, and even get into the ears of the Romans.
Juxtaposed to this Jewish custom of the First Century, there was to the Romans, a policy throughout the Provinces of the Empire, to arrest the head of any subversive group, and crucify him, so that the disciples dispersed. That’s exactly what happened in the case of Jesus, that when he was arrested, his disciples deserted him and fled, according to Mark 14:50.
Many were crucified in the same manner, scourged in the same manner, and suffered the same amount of torture. The only difference with Jesus is that Pilate was somehow aware of his special message about the Kingdom of God.
Of course, the Romans did not bother verifying what kind of Kingdom Jesus was talking about. For them, even the buzz about another kingdom which was not Roman, was enough to take one to the cross. That’s why it didn’t help Jesus to explain that the Kingdom he was talking about was not of this world. (John 18:36) The joke stuck to him, and he was crucified for being misunderstood as King of the Jews. Hence the plate on the top of his cross imposed by Pilate as a deterrant to any other candidate with the same aspirations.
Therefore, Jesus was crucified on mistaken charges. His Kingdom of God was esoteric. An inner state of mind. The Kingdom within.
Ben
It was a custom among learnt Jews of the First Century, especially ambulant Rabbis and Teachers, to gather around them disciples in the mystical number of twelve, and to teach them Torah, as they would prepare new Teachers and Rabbis to proceed with the custom
There were many of such groups, but there was something special about the one of Jesus, that the main theme of his message was to teach about the Kingdom of God, which he would sometimes explain the esoteric character of it, as of being within ourselves.
The Kingdom of God, according to Jesus, was taught only to select number, and not intended to the general body of disciples, designed for and understood by the initiated. However, the secret, as is always expected to, would leak out into the larger populace, and even get into the ears of the Romans.
Juxtaposed to this Jewish custom of the First Century, there was to the Romans, a policy throughout the Provinces of the Empire, to arrest the head of any subversive group, and crucify him, so that the disciples dispersed. That’s exactly what happened in the case of Jesus, that when he was arrested, his disciples deserted him and fled, according to Mark 14:50.
Many were crucified in the same manner, scourged in the same manner, and suffered the same amount of torture. The only difference with Jesus is that Pilate was somehow aware of his special message about the Kingdom of God.
Of course, the Romans did not bother verifying what kind of Kingdom Jesus was talking about. For them, even the buzz about another kingdom which was not Roman, was enough to take one to the cross. That’s why it didn’t help Jesus to explain that the Kingdom he was talking about was not of this world. (John 18:36) The joke stuck to him, and he was crucified for being misunderstood as King of the Jews. Hence the plate on the top of his cross imposed by Pilate as a deterrant to any other candidate with the same aspirations.
Therefore, Jesus was crucified on mistaken charges. His Kingdom of God was esoteric. An inner state of mind. The Kingdom within.
Ben