Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father and from
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen!
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:
[Intro]
Jesus tells us: “Do you think that I have come to
give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division” (Luke
12:51).
Like Jesus, anyone who follows Him will face persecution from
the sinful world. But, what about persecution within our own households? Or,
persecution from within our own churches?
We rarely think about being persecuted by the ones we know best.
I know I sure don’t.
But, many Christians do face persecution from their own families
for following Jesus.
This is the case especially for Muslims who convert to
Christianity.
Not long after Faraidoun Fouad converted to Christianity, he received
death threats.
He said, “Directly after my conversion to Christianity, I
received the first threats. People who I thought were my friends, became my
enemies.”
At the same time, Christians can also be persecuted from within
the church family.
Well, how could this be? Well, in the past few decades, many
churches have begun teaching a different gospel, instead of the true Gospel.
This has left many in the pews wondering what to believe.
Now, this is nothing new. It’s sad, but again, this is nothing
new. The Word of God cuts us to the core. God’s Word is both Law and Gospel.
God’s Word afflicts the comfortable and comforts the afflicted.
[Jeremiah]
Our Old Testament reading this morning dealt with this. In our
reading, the prophet Jeremiah lamented about what was being told to God’s
people from false prophets. In the reading, he warned the people that there
were false prophets in their midst who were not speaking God’s Word at all, but
were instead speaking visions of their own minds.
He wrote: “[These false prophets] say continually to
those who despise the word of the LORD, ‘It shall be well with you’; and to
everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall
come upon you’” (Jeremiah 23:17).
So, what was going on here? Well, these false prophets and
preachers were scratching the ears of their hearers. They were telling the
people what they wanted to hear, rather than what God’s Word actually said. You
see, God’s people were sinning in obvious and open ways, but instead of
preaching the Law to bring about repentance, they said: “It shall be
well with you.”
These prophets and preachers did not want to cause division
amongst the people, but by not speaking the Law, they were perverting God’s
Word and causing much more division between the people and God.
You see, these prophets and preachers were persecuting the
church by not following God’s Word. They wanted to be liked. But, God’s
judgment always comes upon sin.
[What about Today?]
Now, could this happen today? Well, we pray that it wouldn’t
happen. In fact, this prayer was included in our Collect of the Day this
morning. We began this prayer saying: “Merciful Lord, cleanse and defend Your
Church by the sacrifice of Christ.” We also concluded our prayer saying that we
would “daily follow in His way.”
In this prayer, we pray to God the Father to get rid of all
impurities in the Church and defend the Church from false teachings.
So, could we pervert God’s Word? Yes, and very easily. As
sinners, we want to be liked by the sinful world. It’s always hard to say tough
words from God’s Word that don’t bring peace to our friends, but division.
And for our church leaders, especially our pastors, when we do
not say God’s Word truthfully, what we are really doing is persecuting the
church from within. When this happens, we are thinking of ourselves and our own
self-interests, rather than “looking to Jesus, the founder and
perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2a).
[Division and Peace]
This is the division that Jesus is talking about in the Gospel
text.
“Do you think I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell
you, but rather division” (Luke 12:51).
Now, division is nothing new to God. Ever since the Fall of Adam
and Eve, there has been division between God and man.
And, now with Jesus walking amongst mankind, that division is
very visible.
Some believed Jesus to be the Messiah and followed Him, while
others — especially the Pharisees and Scribes — rejected Jesus.
Then, even within Jesus’ own family, they all didn’t believe
Jesus to be the Messiah until His resurrection.
Likewise, even today, many people continually reject Jesus. He
is as divisive as ever. Our own families are divided. All we can do is to keep
witnessing to our loved ones and keep praying for them.
Last of all, even us. We would often rather listen to our own
minds, rather than Jesus.
Even with all this division, Jesus desires to bring peace to all
of mankind.
This is what Jesus came to do. He came to bring peace to this
divided world. But, the peace that Jesus brings is not what the world expects.
The world expected a worldly peace, not eternal peace between God and man.
[Christ’s Bloody Baptism Brings Peace to All Believers]
Jesus tells us: “I came to cast fire on the earth,
and would it were already kindled! I have a baptism to be baptized with, and
how great is my distress until it is accomplished!” (Luke
12:49-50)
At this time, there was much division, but here Jesus says that
His baptism to come will bring further division.
His baptism to come would bring peace between God and man, but
not peace between earthly enemies. This baptism is not a water baptism, but a
bloody baptism. He is yearning for this bloody baptism to provide
reconciliation to everyone who acknowledges Him as the Messiah.
At His bloody baptism, Jesus would receive the fire of God’s
wrath against our sin. He would face the suffering we deserve and die for you
and me. Three days later, He rose from the dead to show that His sacrifice for
our sins was accepted by God the Father.
Because of His bloody baptism upon the cross and His
resurrection from the grave, everyone who trusts in Jesus as their Lord and
Savior is at peace. We are at peace, because by grace through faith in Jesus,
we have received forgiveness of sins, eternal life and salvation.
Now, this is not worldly peace, but everlasting peace.
We will continue to face persecution for our faith in Jesus
until that day when Christ returns for the final judgment. But, don’t let your
hearts be troubled, everyone in Christ is already at peace with God the Father.
And, in the life to come, there will be no more divisions, but perfect peace
and unity.
So, Lord, keep us steadfast in Your Word; Curb those who by
deceit or sword Would wrest the kingdom from Your Son And bring to naught all
He has done. Amen. (Lord, Keep Us Steadfast
in Your Word LSB 655, stanza 1)
The peace of God which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.
T SOLI DEO GLORIA T
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