If you had lived during the time of Jesus, would you have recognized him? How would you have known him to be the Son of God?
Indeed, we would have been hard-pressed to understand His true identity, as his own disciples were. It could be said that the Gospels are first and foremost an answer to this single question: Who is Jesus of Nazareth? What is He?
Recognizing Jesus
Jesus knew well the challenge inherent in revealing the fullness of His identity to the minds of men. After all, never before in history had God truly become one of us. The work of redemption hinged upon our belief in Him, and thus our understanding of Him. To manifest Himself to men without their proper disposition of faith would be like presenting a book to someone who could not read the words; the revelation would be lost on them.
How, then, does Jesus make known the meaning of who He is?
First Seek the Lost Sheep
Put simply, He brings the Good News first to the Jews rather than to the Gentiles. In today’s Gospel reading, he sends out his apostles and instructs them clearly, “Do not go to the Gentiles, and do not go to any city of the Samaritans. Make your way rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” At first glance this might puzzle us, for why would the Lord withhold the good news from all other nations?
Careful reflection reveals the wisdom behind this priority. The truth of who Jesus was could take root only in a soil prepared for His coming, in the minds of men who were earnestly awaiting the Messiah. Because God had already established a covenant relationship with the people of Israel, they were the bearers of salvation history.
By the time of Jesus’ earthly life, the Jews were fervently awaiting the coming of the Messiah. In particular, Daniel’s prophecy of the Kingdom of heaven had given them a timeline of when the former kingdoms of the world would be destroyed by a new heavenly kingdom. It was only in this context of prophecy and expectation that the singular, explosive reality of Jesus could make any sense. Jesus was not one among many; he was not even the greatest prophet, but the Lord Himself who had promised to come and shepherd his people.
The One
Along these lines, in a memorable scene from the TV series The Chosen, Jesus asks his disciple Andrew, “Who did John the Baptist say that I am?”; to which, Andrew replies after a pause, “The One.”
That simple phrase, “the One,” could resonate most fully only with the Jewish people. They had already been drawn into relationship with the one true God. They were awaiting the coming of the One who would redeem them, would deliver them out of bondage, and thus were prepared to recognize Him when He came amongst them.
The time for bringing the Gospel to all other nations would come, of course, but only later. It was vital that Jesus first gather the “lost sheep of Israel” because only them knew how to recognize him. Without the witness of the Jews who had been awaiting Him, the true power of Jesus’ identity would have been lost.
Certainly, it must have pierced Our Lord’s Heart to see so many of His chosen people reject Him. And yet, many saw and believed. Through the witness of the apostles, many thousands of “the lost sheep of Israel” were gathered together into the early Church, and from there the Gospel could be spread faithfully to the Gentiles. The reality of Jesus, the gift of Christ, could be given only through a Jewish lens of understanding. He was not one among many, but the One for whom every human heart has been waiting.
[Readings: Hosea 10:1-3, 7-8, 12; Matthew 10:1-7]
Related articles
