Jesus Christ became Incarnate for one purpose, to make a way back to God that man might stand before Him as He was created to do, the friend and lover of God Himself.” - Oswald Chambers
Jesus was the most popular figure of his day. Twice the Jewish people tried to make him king. And that was a huge problem, not only for Jesus’s enemies but for Jesus himself. He was destined for the office of King of kings— but on his terms, not the people’s. His kingdom would be established not by a rise to political power but by descent, becoming the Savior of all.
Taking the lead in his Father’s story of redemption, Jesus reestablished God’s kingdom and freed us, his believing image bearers, from sin’s domain. Similar to the TV series Undercover Boss, the Son entered humanity incognito in order “to seek and to save that which was lost” and reclaim, as the “last Adam,” what the first Adam gave away. His kingdom is one of power and authority, love and Life. That is why, when Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus replied, “It is as you say.” Jesus knew who he was and why he came. It wasn’t to be a nice guy. It was to be a warrior-king whose truth speaking, radical commitment to his Father’s agenda, and wild love for you and me rocked the religious and political status quo.
Nice guys don’t get crucified; troublemakers do. Jesus was a one-man wrecking enterprise against the oppressive Pharisaical system that Judaism had become. He also made trouble for Rome, whose corrupt government and brutal military occupied the Holy Land. Rome was not fond of mountainside picnic gatherings of five thousand, or of seashore sermons that taught any way other than the Roman way.
“Do not think that I have come to bring peace on the earth,” Jesus told his disciples. “I have not come to bring peace, but a sword [of division between belief and unbelief ]” - Matthew 10:34 AMP.
Beyond the Jewish leaders and Roman governors, Jesus came to make trouble for the greatest troublemaker of all: Satan, the reigning spiritual authority in the world. The existing religious operating system only enabled him by empowering sin. It was time for an upgrade. No more lambs and bulls, altars and blood. Instead, one Lamb, one cross, and one ultimate sacrifice to usher in a new, flawless system. Amazing!
