Storming the Gates of Heaven, Matthew 11:2-19

John the Baptist’s disciples come to meet with Jesus and ask him about his messiahship and Jesus simply points to his words and actions instead of giving a direct answer. Why does he do this? What does he mean when he goes on to say that the violent are laying hold of the kingdom? All of this goes together as we consider the. nature of repentance and who is repentant in most cases during Jesus’ ministry.

Image: Peasants Carrying Sticks, by Camille Pissarro, National Gallery of Art, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Kingdom and the Calling, Mark 1.14-20

Jesus’ preaches the kingdom and repentance and in this preaching calls his disciples. When Jesus calls Peter, Andrew, James, and John, it isn’t the first time they’ve met. They have all recognized him as the Messiah previously, but now, Jesus calls them out of their daily lives into ministry and discipleship apart from their everyday lives. Not all of us receive this kind of call into ministry, but we all receive the call into the kingdom just as his first disciples did. How do we respond? How do we react?

image: A print from the Phillip Medhurst Collection of Bible illustrations, Pieter van der Borcht (ca. 1540-1608), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Image location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:77_Life_of_Christ_Phillip_Medhurst_Collection_3543_Simon_Peter_%26_Andrew_with_Christ_Matthew_4.18-20_Mortier.jpg