The Kingdom of Heaven Suffers Violence, Matt. 11:12
John the Baptist was the herald, “EXTRA, EXTRA, Read All About It. The Message is here and has begun his CONQUEST! He is going to destroy Sin, Death, and Hell. Stamp your ticket here at the Jordan river, I’m baptizing sinners for entrance into Messiah’s kingdom.”
“Multitudes” according to the context were “pressing” to get in. But, the religious leaders were skeptical. They already had a good thing going right where they were. Certainly not going to listen to some homeless dude quoting scripture.
Pick up the rest of the story in Matthew and see what Jesus has to say about this situation. One man’s (“oh when the saints come marching in…”) marching band is another man’s noise.
Is it worth the (effort) violent force? Why is violence (literal spiritually) necessary? Can’t we all just chill?