Divisions

Divisions

Luke 12:49-53, NKJV

I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! 50But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished! 51Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division. 52For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three. 53Father will be divided 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 her mother-in-law.

Setting the Scene

These words of warning begin a section (12:49–13:8) in which Jesus urgently invites his fellow Jews to recognize him while there is time. Jesus had just been referring to the relationships between servants and their master; now Jesus talks about how regarding him as master will affect relationships within families. Because many will not choose Christ, painful divisions will develop between people. Jesus offered no middle ground in belief about him (see Luke 11:23). He warned that conflict and division would develop between those who choose him and those who reject him.

When confronted with opposition because of your Christian faith, make sure the conflict is caused by the person’s rejection of core truth in the faith and not a personality difference or surface issue. If the problem is over the truth of Jesus, compromise isn’t an option; stand firm.

Jesus declared that he came to bring fire and division. John the Baptist had announced that the Messiah would “baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Luke 3:16, NKJV). By “fire” Jesus was referring both to God’s judgment and to the coming of the Holy Spirit. His own baptism would be to experience the wrath of God’s judgment as our substitute on the cross. But Jesus was also looking at the long view of God’s plan, and when he said, “how I wish it were already kindled,” he was expressing a longing for God’s purposes to be accomplished on earth. He knew that, in God’s timing, his own coming to earth had set the stage for the ultimate division of humanity.

Getting Personal

How has the decision you have made about Jesus affected your closest relationships?

What have you learned about living with divisions that can’t be bridged?

Once we are convinced of the truth, it is difficult to see those we love continue to reject it. We can’t decide for them, however. We must pray that they may yet come to see the truth in Jesus.

Talking to God

Pray that you might live peaceably with those who have rejected the Lord, even when those differences create a large divide between you. Ask the Lord to bring about the salvation of those you love, so that you can belong to him together.