Jesus Remembered: Christianity in the Making, vol. 1

THE MISSION OF JESUS §12.4
is, redactional word 'gospel', (2) it interrupts the flow of the (anyway later) discourse
in Mark 13.9-13 (as its omission by Matthew and Luke confirms), and
(3) as we shall see, Jesus did not seem to envisage a mission as such to the
Gentiles. 270 It certainly provides no sure basis for any view that Jesus anticipated
a many-generation or century gap before the coming of the kingdom.
How the tradition just reviewed (§ 12.4h) related to the rest of the material
in §12.4 is unclear. The common and consistent element, even with the qualification
of some time elapse, is an expectation of an imminent event of climactic and
crucial importance, the coming of God's kingdom, a crisis determinative of the
future (final?) judgment. 271 Despite the diversity of imagery and detail it is difficult
to imagine the communities which performed this tradition not seeing it as
interrelated. The range and character of the traditions indicate rather a common
theme much reflected on and rehearsed in the communities which treasured the
Jesus tradition.
In sum, the kingdom references reviewed thus far cover an extensive range
of the kingdom tradition. We have still to examine more fully the richer Son of
Man tradition, including talk of his 'coming'; but that is more suitably dealt with
later (see below §16.4), and it is important to appreciate just how extensive the
future eschatological emphasis is within the Jesus tradition, apart from the Son
of Man sayings. 272 Moreover, the teachings so far cited are worthy of particular
attention since they were evidently seen to be important by those who performed
the Jesus tradition and by the Evangelists in turn: they provided summaries of Jesus'
preaching, they were linked to much cherished liturgical material, and they
expressed major themes of eschatological reversal, impending judgment, and the
sufferings and expected blessings of discipleship. Such traditions would have
been central to the identity of the small groups of disciples from the first, and
subsequently for the first churches founded in the 30s and 40s. They would have
been treasured and rehearsed no doubt often in their gatherings, stirring hope of
participation in the beatitude of God's future reign, stimulating repentance before
the imminent judgment, stiffening resolve in the face of anticipated suffering,
and encouraging prayer expectful of God.
What is striking about this material is the consistent emphasis within it on
the kingdom of God as future or as yet to come or yet to impinge fully on those
addressed. The imagery used varies substantially, but predominantly envisages a
final intervention of God, usually with final judgment implied. To 'enter the
270. See below, §13.7; for alternative views on Mark 13.10 see chapter 13 n. 248 below.
271. The earlier confidence is well summarized by Schillebeeckx: 'That Jesus prophesied
the imminent arrival of God's rule is beyond dispute' (Jesus 152).
272. Crossan, e.g., deals with the parables of crisis in a section headed 'the Apocalyptic
Son of man' {Historical Jesus 250-51, 253-55).
436