The Kingdom (5): Freedom

If we are hoping to get a sense of what Jesus means when he uses the phrase "The Kingdom of God," we might not find a better word than freedom. It essentially means freedom from coercion and control, and freedom to be whatever and whoever we truly are. But controlling and dictatorial pressures exert their influence on us in a variety of ways, both from within and without. This means that becoming free will require different processes depending on the source of our bondage. In this teaching, Jesus invites a group of excited people to join in the freedom of the Kingdom, but when he tells them what it will like they turn into an angry mob set on killing him. What did they miss? Why could they not join him?