Rome

As we leave this Christmas season, I felt a need to write about the Roman Empire. Some people are not very interested in history, but I am. As the saying goes, "You can't make this stuff up." Since this was the world system at the time of the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus, as well as at the beginning history of the church, the Empire plays an important role in those events. I think it also teaches and warns us about circumstances concerning our present time, and also the events of the future, as we will see.
We start out with Rome as a republic, being governed by a body called the Senate. The United States borrowed this model of government as part our own as our country was founded.
In the time when Rome was still a republic, three very powerful generals conquered foreign territories and brought great wealth, and slaves back to a Rome that consumed everything on which they could get their hands. They were early examples of what we currently see in our own society: conspicuous consumption and invidious consumption. Even we today sometimes forget that the food, clothing, electronics, and other items that we buy and consume daily at bargain prices may come from exploiting other people's and nations'  resources and poorly paid labor.  
Eventually, foreign slaves made up 30% of the population of Rome. The harvests of all Northern Africa fed Rome for 8 months. It took 200,000-400,000 tons of grain to feed the all-consuming Romans for 1 year. The great economy of Rome had become expectant and dependent upon the spoils of these three great generals, called the Triumvirate (headship, or leadership, composed of three persons). Marcus Crassus, Pompey "Magnus" (The Great), and Julius Caesar made up this group of three.
It was Pompey the Great who conquered the area of Syria and Palestine in 63 BC.
Eventually, as happens with ambitious man, these three generals became rivals for power. Crassus had died earlier, and Rome entered into a civil war with Julius Caesar and Pompey in the final power struggle. Pompey did not live through it. He fled to what he thought was a friend, Egypt, where he was killed immediately.
Julius Caesar became the great power of Rome. The Roman Senate decided to give him the title of Emperor, which would virtually end the Republic. Before the title could be conveyed, Caesar was assassinated by a conspiracy of some of the Senators with their assassins. After his death, the Senate conferred divinity upon Julius Caesar. Caesar was survived by his great-nephew by marriage, who was his adopted son and designated heir, Octavius. Since Julius Caesar was made "divine", Octavius could be called, at this point, a "son of a god". Caesar's only birth child, a daughter, who had been married to rival general Pompey, had died young.
A second triumvirate now arises with Octavius (Julius Caesar's heir), Marcus Lepidus, and the great Mark Antony as rulers. This triumverate split up the governing of the empire, and ruled their territories as dictators. Rivalry entered into this triumvirate as well causing Lepidus to be exiled, and Mark Antony to commit suicide after being defeated in battle by Octavius.
Again, the Roman Senate sought to convey the title of Emperor, and succeeded with Octavius. He was given the name Augustus Caesar, Augustus meaning "worthy of veneration and worship". Coins of the empire carried his image, with the inscription "CAESAR DIVI". Emperor worship was practiced in Rome, and the other territories of the empire. Even Pontius Pilate would one day build a temple in the Syrian province to honor and worship Emperor Tiberius in the years that followed. More modern kings of history would take the same name of "Caesar", adapting it into a royal title in their language: Tsar, and Kaiser, and even the English word "king" (cyn in the old language) being examples of this, so powerful became this name, and the legacies of Julius and Augustus Caesar.
Augustus proves to be a very efficient administrator, and Rome prospers as never before. Even the conquered territories see great building projects and expanded trade, although they were ultimately taxed into poverty, and their most precious goods were taken for Rome's consumption. The relative peace, order and affluence (for some) brought by Augustus was heralded with phrases like "PAZ ATQUE QUIETA", and "PAX ROMANA".  Some nations even invite the take-over of the Roman Empire because of the peace, order, and economic advantages of Augustus Caesar's reign. When the Judeans were offered Jesus as their king by Pontius Pilate, the chief priests cried out, "We have no king but Caesar." (Jn. 19:15).
It is a good place to note that, impossible as it may seem, nations and peoples are sometimes willing to give up their own sovereignty, identity, and personal freedoms in exchange for promises of peace, order and economic stability and prosperity. We saw this same circumstance again in the last century when a newly free German republic, because of economic collapse, and the threat of communism from within and without, handed power to a small, extreme minority political party headed by Adolph Hitler. He didn't have to take power because it was handed to him. He was invited into a position of government leadership. Scripture tells us that we will see this same type of occurrence again in the future, when much of the world will hand power to an evil devil of a leader who promises the same kind of "peace" and economic order.
Back to our story. The tales that spread heralding Augustus Caesar's great rule and accomplishments were proclaimed with the Greek term "euangelion", from which we get the term "evangelize", and is translated to mean "good news", or "gospel". These great tales only served to increase Imperial Theology: that the Emperor was a god worthy of worship. At the height of his reign, Augustus headed 25 Roman legions in addition to "Auxiliaries"- armies of foreign troops conscripted from territories ruled by Rome. (As a side note, it is rumored in history that this "divine" emperor was poisoned by his wife, Livia, who thought he had lived long enough, and she was anxious to see his step-son heir, her son Tiberius, come to power. She believed that she would have much more power and influence under her son's reign than she had under her husband's.) These are the ways of the kingdoms of men.
However, something greater than the Caesars and their kingdoms appeared.
In the middle of this man-made divinity of Augustus Caesar, and the Roman kingdom of so-called peace and order, a child is born, and a host of angels comes to bring the real evangelism, good news and glad tidings of peace and good will regarding the birth of a truly divine King of all kings, who is Christ the Lord of all lords (Lk. 2:10-14, 1 Tim. 6:14-15, Rev. 19:16). Human history was changed, and the Kingdom of God was inserted into the earth!
There is much more to tell of the history of the Roman Empire as it intersects with the history of the Kingdom of God, but this seems like a good place to stop for now. Perhaps I can continue the story for the Resurrection season.

"...I will shake heaven and earth. I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms; I will destroy the strength of the Gentile kingdoms. I will overthrow the chariot and those who ride in them; The horses and their riders shall come down, everyone by the sword of his brother."

"Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!"            Hag. 2:22, Rev. 11:15

The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Father, and of His Son!

*note: Map at the top of the page: The area ruled by the Roman Empire

"Unto Us a Child is Born" (Handel's Messiah)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-61gjgy9GiE

"Hallelujah Chorus" (Handel's Messiah)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUZEtVbJT5c