The Content of Christ's Didaché: The Kingdom and the Cross
denying His divine authority are incoherent. The authority is the point.
Remove it, and the teaching becomes mere advice from a dead rabbi.
3. Many Turned Back The third response was defection. When the teaching became too costly, too exclusive, or too confrontational, many abandoned Him. John 6 is the clearest example, but it happened repeatedly. The seed of the word fell on rocky ground and thorny ground, and when tribulation or the cares of the world arose on account of the word, it withered.
This response underscores the divisive mark of His didaché . Not all who are astonished believe. Not all who begin to follow continue. The teaching itself sifts the true from the false. As Jesus said, "He who is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God" (John 8:47). The response to His teaching reveals the heart. Those who are His sheep hear His voice. Those who are not, do not.
Thus, the three responses—ashtonishment, confrontation, and rejection— complete the picture. Christ's teaching demanded a verdict, and it still does.
• • • The Content of Christ's Didaché: The Kingdom and the Cross While the marks and effects of Jesus' teaching are critical, we must briefly consider its content. What did Jesus actually teach? The Gospels summarize
His message with several key themes, but two dominate: the Kingdom of God and the way of the Cross.
From the beginning, His message was, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel" (Mark 1:15).
The didaché of Christ was eschatological and urgent. The long-awaited reign of God was breaking in through His own person and work. He taught about the nature of this Kingdom: its hidden growth like leaven or a mustard seed, its supreme value like a treasure or a pearl, its present reality and future consummation. He taught the ethics of the Kingdom in the