LEARNING DAILY

 

Matthew 10:34, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.  Jesus

 

Read the verses following this verse in order to get the full context of what Jesus was saying at this time.

 

Isn’t this the Deliverer, the Savior the people were looking for? Jesus came to set the Jewish people free from the oppressive and hated the rule of the Romans; He had finally come to establish His government on earth. Nope! Isaiah called Jesus the Prince of Peace but His coming to earth, the proclamation of the gospel would bring division on earth. Yes, it is true that the King of kings, the Lord of lords will ultimately return to earth to bring peace and establish His government for eternity; that may be very soon.

 

Jesus was saying that those who would choose to follow Him would face division and conflict; they would face separation from family and friends. Why does believing in Jesus Christ as one’s Savior cause this? The answer is really quite simple and often causes people to walk away from the Lord. Faith in Jesus Christ separates the Believer from the sinner and from the world (Go back and read verses 32-37). To choose to follow Jesus Christ often causes misunderstandings and “a man’s enemies will be those in His own household” (v. 36). Such times can be difficult. Jesus was saying that choosing one’s loyalty to family rather than loyalty to Him disqualified him/her from being one of His disciples.

 

A person who lives their life according to the standards set by Jesus and the Word of God is going to face ridicule at some time. I have been mocked and laughed at by men who I once hung out with. I have been told I might be better doing some church related job than what I was presently doing. I have been ridiculed when stating my beliefs because I did not go along with the status quo. I have been told that not everyone believes the way I do. I wonder what has become of those individuals. I do believe that those who reject God, who reject Jesus as the only way to be saved will find themselves continually in conflict with Him. I am so glad I do not live like that!

 

It is interesting in verse 38 Jesus said, “And he who does not take up his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.” The cross of Jesus is a symbol of suffering, death, ridicule, rejection, and self-denial. When Believers take up their cross and follow Christ, they deny themselves and live their life on a narrow way. That means to constantly deny or crucify our own sinful desires in order to fight sin. Daily we need to just say no to those thoughts and things that cause us to sin. We pick up our cross to stand against the huge amount of false teaching and lies we are exposed to daily. There are far too many teaching lies about what the Bible calls sin. Believers need to stand up against those calling evil good and good evil. When we do, expect to be persecuted and spoken against! Like Jesus, we will be persecuted and ridiculed by even those in the “religious” world. Yes, Jesus came with a sword that would cause division and separation.