The world has always been soaked in violence and lust for power. Wars have always been followed by other wars. Times of peace have been very few and far between.
Power grabs have always resulted in resistance. Oppression has always spawned rebels. And so it was during the time of Jesus. It is likely that there were many who rebelled against the Romans and their surrogates. What set Jesus apart from the other rebels is his insistence on non-resistance. Meeting violence with more violence will only feed a vicious cycle of escalating violence. Jesus was different.
Apparently, Jesus did not stand out as unique in his own time and nobody found a reason to write anything down about him. It wasn’t until decades later that the gospel writers realized that something extraordinary had happened; what a revolutionary concept Jesus had been teaching. Luke may have honestly tried to write an accurate account of his life, but he most certainly elaborated on it. Matthew, himself a Jew, contributed to this narrative of a larger than life personality who had garnered such a following.
What may have contributed to the masses finally turning on him was that it wasn’t just the rich and powerful who needed to change. We, like the Jews in his time, have to change as well. Looking the other way, refraining from harming others, would no longer be a sufficient standard for doing the right thing. Jesus wanted us to actively be a blessing to everyone around us, people at the lowest levels in society, even our enemies and that was too much of a sacrifice for the Jews as it is for us today. Many claim to be following Jesus, but only few are willing to be all in. Exploitation and violence continue to be at the center of our society to this very day.
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