Jesus - Unique in Resisting Pressure to Use Violence to Establish God's Kingdom

In chapter 15 of Jesus Before Christianity, Albert Nolan speaks of how Jesus was tempted to bring about God's kingdom on earth by violent means. He points out two incidents close to the end of Jesus' life where it seems apparent that Jesus was tempted to accept the pressures on Him to the kingship of Israel. The first temptation came through a crowd of 4-5,000 men and the second pressure through Peter.

Nolan interprets the story of Jesus' feeding the 4-5,000 men as a gathering that was likely organized purposely to try to persuade Jesus to take on the powers and become king of Israel. Although this story became popular because of the miracle of the loaves and fishes, Nolan proposes that phrases from the different scriptural accounts about this incident hint that this crowd had gathered with the intention of making Jesus king (Mark 6:30-44; John 6:1-15)...

"He (Jesus) was a Galilean, a prophet and a wonderworker with a natural talent for leadership and he had recently made a name for himself by defying the authorities in Jerusalem and 'cleansing' the Temple. There may even have been some rumors that he was a descendant of David.

"Jesus was not unsympathetic toward their aspirations, their desire for liberation and their need of a shepherd. But he tried to persuade them that God's ways were not the ways of human beings and that the 'kingdom' of God would not be like the usual kingdoms of humans...

"But his teaching and the miracle of sharing only made them all the more convinced that he was the Messiah, God's chosen king. Before the situation could get out of hand he forced his disciples to leave in a boat and dispersed the crowds. He then felt the need for solitude, reflection and prayer.

"The second temptation came from Peter...Peter, on behalf of the other disciples, declares that he looks upon Jesus as the Messiah. Jesus responds by giving them strict orders not to say that about him to anyone and then he begins to tell them that it will be his destiny to suffer rejection. Peter takes Jesus aside and rebukes him but Jesus in his turn rebukes Peter...

"This must have been a very serious quarrel. Peter was angry with Jesus for talking about rejection and failure when the opportunity was there to seize power and become Messiah. Jesus was angry with Peter for playing the role of Satan, the tempter, and thinking as men usually do in terms of the power of force.

"We should not underestimate the reality of this temptation for Jesus. (see Lk 4:5-8; Mt 4:8-10) ...Jesus had to struggle with this temptation to seize power, to accept the kingship and to rule over a new empire - 'all the kingdoms of the world'. Would this not be the best way of liberating the poor and the oppressed? Could he not exercise authority as a service to all people after he had seized power by force?...

"Jesus was not a pacifist in principle, he was a pacifist in practice, that is to say, in the concrete circumstances of his time...The 'kingdom' of total liberation for all people cannot be established by violence. Faith alone can enable the 'kingdom' to come."

Teach us, Jesus, how to walk in the ways of the Father in the midst of a world that operates on the principle of violence and force to get things done. Help us trust that Your ways really do work and give us the courage to walk in them...