From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." (Matthew 4: 17)

At the arrest of his teacher, John the Baptizer, Jesus withdrew to the largely non-Jewish city of Capernaum, beyond the reach of Herod Agrippa.

It was here, before choosing his disciples and among strangers, that Jesus began his ministry by urging repentence - metanoeo, changing of one's mind - and pointing toward the proximity of the kingdom of heaven.

This is a recurring theme of his teaching and arguably the core theme. In the weeks ahead we will consider what Jesus may have intended in regard to the nearness of this kingdom.