For the Matthew 10:34-36 PODCAST, Click Here!
34 Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. 35 For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; 36 and a man’s enemies will be those of his own household. ~ Matthew 10:34-36
Today, we return to our study of what it looks like to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. Although the word "discipleship" never appears in the Bible, the Lord Jesus before He ascended to the Father after His resurrection told His followers to "make disciples." A Christian disciple is someone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. And, as a result of this, God grants them a personal relationship with Himself. To foster our relationship Him, God has given the believer His Holy Spirit to assist us in our relationship with Himself. The process involved whereby the believer is being trained to think in concert with God's definitions comes the closest to describing discipleship. Discipleship will always involve danger because as we are doing all that is involved with it, we will infringe upon the domain of darkness. It was Theodore Roosevelt who once said, “There has never yet been a man who led a life of ease whose name is worth remembering.”
In v.34 of today's passage we read, "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword."
The One referenced to in the Scriptures as "the Prince of Peace" makes what seems to be a contradictory statement here. This is the One of whom the angels said at His birth that He would bring peace on earth, goodwill toward men. A careful study of all of the Bible renders the conviction that the Messiah would bring peace between God and believing man. But, for the time being, it makes sense that the Messiah and His Gospel would bring division between those who believe and those who do not. At the end of the narrative we are assured that one day the Lord Jesus will bring peace to all who will come to know Him as Savior.
It was not that the Lord Jesus intended to create disharmony between family members, especially since He came primarily to make peace between us and God. So, even though His was and is a ministry of peace, one effect of His ministry would be conflict between those who believe in Him and those who do not. When the Lord Jesus said, "I did not come to bring peace, but a sword," He spoke primarily about the effect of His ministry, not the purpose of His ministry. The effect of His ministry is that it will divide, it will cut to the heart of all things because this world is at odds with His kingdom and His truth. In Hebrews 4:12 we read, "For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." There will always be incongruity between the truth and the lie and the Word of God makes that very clear.
In v.35-36 of today's passage we read, "35 For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; 36 and a man’s enemies will be those of his own household."
The Lord Jesus was in the midst of sending His disciples out into the world to spread the gospel as He uttered these words. He reminded them why persecution would later come to them. Of course, He in the previous section had told them to have no fear of those who would not believe their message. The disciple of the Lord Jesus is not intimidated by nor is he afraid of the world. When the world is hostile, when the world is persecuting, when the world moves against us, when the world ostracizes us and alienates us, we will not be afraid, because we have committed ourselves to the Lord. Even though the disciple of the Lord Jesus will at times suffer greatly because of persecution, the Lord reminded him to fear not. The disciple of the Lord Jesus is instructed to proclaim the gospel of His Kingdom from the housetops. To the degree that we will be opposed by this world, we are encouraged by the Lord to remain faithful to the proclamation of His timeless message of forgiveness and grace.
The most difficult people in the world to share our faith in the Lord Jesus with is our unbelieving family members. When one family member enters into a personal relationship with the Lord and another doesn't, there will always be tension because the two will see and live life differently. It was Martin Luther who once said, "If our Gospel were received in peace, it wouldn't be the true Gospel." Back in October of 1981 when I first believed in the Lord Jesus as my Savior, I was so anxious to see my family members right with the Lord that I turned them off from Him. Sadly, shortly after that, the Lord made it clear to me that He would be able to do the necessary work in their hearts only if I were to get out of His way. So, at the end of the day, it is the Lord who draws people unto Himself and we mustn't ever believe that we were the ones who did this work. We must remember that the Lord has chosen to include us in on what He is doing in this world. And yes, sometimes we must get out of His way.
