Division and Decision l Luke 12:49-59 l Chapel Hill Church Gig Harbor
The other night after a meeting of our elders, I was walking to my car and I noticed two of our elders, Serena and Stephanie, walking out ahead of me. The light was waning, they were by themselves…heads down…. in deep conversation. And they were approaching my car. I couldn’t help myself. As they stepped in front of my car…I pressed the alarm button. And they were…alarmed! They shrieked…and wheeled around to find me laughing my guts out in the middle of the parking lot. I know…not nice. But very funny!
This morning we turn to an alarming teaching from Jesus. It’s not funny. In fact, it is disturbing. This has been a hard one for me. But this is God’s word…these are the words of Jesus…and the Spirit intends for us to receive them and be formed by them. So…brace yourself. This will be a little alarming. But…it is the truth.
“I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law….” Luke 12:49-54
So…do you find this teaching alarming? Disturbing? And doesn’t it feel out of character for Jesus? Remember the message of the angels at Christmas? A message, by the way, that appears only in Luke’s Christmas story…the same writer as of this morning’s passage. The angelic host in the skies over Bethlehem announced the birth of Jesus with these words: “Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace, good will toward men.” When Jesus gathered with his disciples in the upper room before his arrest, he comforted them with these words: “Peace I leave you; my peace I give unto you. Let not your hearts be troubled….”
It sure sounds like Jesus came to bring peace on earth. Isn’t that the point of the gospel? We humans were at enmity with God. Because of our sin, we were objects of his wrath and faced judgment. But because God so loved this broken world, he sent his only son, Jesus, that we might not perish…but instead…have eternal life. A life of peace. Here…and for eternity? Isn’t that our gospel? So how here can Jesus say, “Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” Who would sing Christmas carols that go, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth, division among all people…”
And if that statement isn’t harsh enough…Jesus illustrates it in stark terms: “[People] will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother…”
Last week, my dad went home after spending more than a week in the hospital. Seeing him there…sensing his frustration… was hard for me. Because I love him. We are close. He’s nearly 92…and he still calls me to tell me he loves me, that he’s proud of me, that I’m a good son. I’m a quite grown man…but the praise of my father still matters to me. (Take note, dads…your sons and daughters never get tired of hearing your words of blessing.)
We don’t know much about Jesus’ childhood, but we do know that he lived in obedience and honor toward his parents. At his cross, one of Jesus’ last gasped requests was that John take care of Mary, Jesus’ mother. Jesus seemed to honor his family. But here, he speaks of dividing families rather than uniting them? Surely…we are missing something.