Christ - The Great Divider

You know, I love Christmas. You don't know, you know that if you've been here long enough, Christmas is my favorite time of the year. A couple of years ago, we had a Christmas in July where we decorated the whole auditorium for Christmas because our vacation Bible school theme was around Bethlehem and what the Lord taught when he came to earth the first time.

And so we decorated the whole auditorium with Christmas trees and it was all decked out and visitors came and they'd walk in, they'd turn around and leave because they thought we were a little wacko. And so we lost some people during that month of July because they thought we were kind of off our rocker. And that's okay because we sort of are. And just a great opportunity that month in July to celebrate the blessings of Bethlehem as we looked at the vacation Bible school and the whole Christmas story.

And of course, December is a big month for us because we focus the whole month on the Christmas story and the prophecies concerning the coming of the Messiah and what that means for us. And so we love Christmas and at least I do. And maybe you don't love as much as I do. That's okay. Just indulge me just for a few moments because when we get Christmas cards, inevitably we will get a Christmas card with Isaiah 9 6 on it. For unto us a child is born and for unto us a son is given. And his name shall we call wonderful, counselor, the mighty God, the Prince of Peace, the everlasting Father.

And we have those cards and we even get those cards out. And we talk about Christmas as being a time of peace, the coming of the Prince of Peace. And with that comes all the different scripture references centered around peace. When the angels came and looked at the two glory to God in the highest and peace among men with whom he is pleased. And we send out those cards and people read them and they think, oh yeah, Christmas is a time of peace. I have a new idea for a Christmas card. I'm not sure Hallmark's going to take me up on it or Dayspring or anybody else, but I would suggest that this be the verse written in every Christmas card.

Here it is. You ready? Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you no, rather division. I think that verse ought to be on every Christmas card because that would get everybody's attention because that would accurately portray the mission and ministry of the Messiah, which would allow the world not to have a mistake about what peace is. You say, well, why would Jesus say that? That's in our text today in Luke chapter 12, verse number 51. Why would he say that? I thought it was all about the coming of the Prince of Peace.

I mean, that's what Isaiah 9, 6 says. That's what the prophets of old said. I mean, if you go back to Psalm 72 verse number seven, it says in his days, may the righteous flourish and abundance of peace to the moon is no more. So if I'm a Jew, I'm anticipating the Messiah and an abundance of peace to fill the earth. I know what Isaiah 9, 6 verse number says. I know what the prophets of old, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Ezekiel, what they all pointed to. I know the promise of the new covenant. Ezekiel chapter 37, when the Lord God says that I will make a covenant of peace with them, it will be an everlasting covenant with them.

And I will place them and multiply them and will set my sanctuary in their midst forever. So whether it's Ezekiel 34 or Ezekiel 37, the whole new covenant is about the covenant of peace. So would it not be that when Jesus came, he would have brought peace. But Jesus specifically says, do you suppose, do you think, or do you actually think that I came to bring peace? Someone says, are you kidding me? I didn't come to bring peace. I came to bring division. We're like, wow, that just doesn't seem right.

I've been in church all these years. I've heard about the prince of peace. And now Jesus says this, is that really what he means?

And yet the angels proclaimed glory to God in the highest, peace on earth with whom he is well pleased. Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist would say this in his prophecy. That when the Messiah came, he would come in verse 79 to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death to guide our feet into the way of peace. Okay. He comes to guide our paths in the ways of peace. Zacharias understood that he was the father of the forerunner to the Messiah, John the Baptist. So isn't it about the coming of the prince of peace to bring peace upon the earth?

Isn't it true in Luke chapter seven, in Luke chapter seven, verse number 50, that there was a woman who was, who was a harlot. And Jesus said, your faith has saved you. Go into peace. And that what Jesus said. And then over in Luke chapter, chapter eight, in Luke chapter eight, over in verse number 48, the Lord says to a woman with a hemorrhage, daughter, your faith has made you well go into peace. Well, I mean, here's the prince of peace telling a harlot to go into peace, telling a woman who had this hemorrhage is bleeding for a number of years to go into peace.

So evidently they receive peace. And yet Jesus says in Luke 12, do you suppose I came to bring peace on this earth?

I tell you, no, instead I came to bring division. How? In fact, in Luke 10, in Luke 10, he sends out the 70. He says in verse number five, in whatever house you enter first say, peace be to this house.

He doesn't say division be to this house. He says, peace be to this house. And then he says in verse six, and if a man of peace or a son of peace or one who has the character in nature that's in accord with peace, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. And so when the 70 went out, they went out preaching the gospel of peace. And Jesus says, do you suppose that I came to bring peace?

Did you get it right? Or did you miss it? It makes you stop and wonder, doesn't it? What it is we're saying and how we're portraying the Christ of the scriptures. Because if you go and you begin to read what the Bible says in John 14, Christ said in verse 27, my peace I give unto you.

Not as the world gives, but my peace I give unto you. In John 16, 33, Christ says that in these things I've written or spoken to you, that you may have peace.

That's what Jesus says. So what does he mean in Luke 12, verse number 51, where he says, do you suppose that I came to bring peace on this earth? And yet he tells people to go into peace, my peace I give unto you. In fact, if you read the book of Acts and Acts chapter 10, it says this, that the apostles in verse number 36, the word which he sent to the sons of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ, he is Lord of all. So the apostles went about preaching peace through Jesus Christ because he's Lord of all.

Over in Ephesians chapter 2, Ephesians chapter 2, quoting from the book of Isaiah, Paul says, and he came and preached peace to you who were far away, that's the Gentiles, and peace to those who were near, that's the Jews. So what is it? Did he come to preach peace or did he not come to preach peace? Did he come to give peace or did he not come to give peace? Are you confused? I'm sure that the listeners of Luke chapter 12 were a little perplexed about the message that Jesus gave on that day when he says, do you suppose that I came to bring peace on the earth?

You see, the problem with the nation of Israel is they were looking for a national peace. They were looking for a peace for their nation. And yet, in order to receive national peace, you must first of all have personal peace.

And Israel had missed that. We know that the kingdom of God brings peace because Romans 14, 7 says that the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. So we know the kingdom of God brings peace. When Jesus came, he followed on the heels of John the Baptist who came preaching the kingdom of God is at hand, which was the kingdom of peace. Jesus comes and he preaches the kingdom of God, the kingdom of heaven is at hand, that kingdom brings peace.

Peace brings peace because that's what the kingdom is about. But there's a condition. There is no peace for Israel, the Jewish nation, any nation, unless first of all, there is peace in the heart of man.

There is no national peace unless there's first of all, personal peace. When you come to Luke chapter 12, Israel is fixed in their rejection of the Messiah who came to preach about the kingdom of peace. Their hearts and minds are fixed against them. They rejected the prince of peace, therefore they would reject the kingdom of peace. So Jesus says, do you suppose, in other words, does it seem right to say that I came to grant peace on the earth?

Based on all the prophecies of the Old Testament, is it right to say, do you suppose that peace will come to the earth? Well, the answer to that is the promise of peace that comes with the kingdom of God was taken away and hidden from Israel because they rejected the prince of peace. It could only come through individuals giving their life to the king who is the prince. That's it. There was no other way. So they look for a national peace. They look for relief from their oppressors. They look for a freedom from Rome.

They look for that kind of national peace, but that's not going to come until there's personal peace in the hearts of man. So when you come to Matthew chapter 10, Jesus says it this way.

Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. Okay, now we have a little bit more idea as to what the purpose of Jesus' coming was. To bring a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, and a man's enemies will be the members of his household. That's the Christmas message. That's the one you put on your cards. But we don't want to put that in the cards because that doesn't sell.

Who's going to buy that card? Nobody. So we can't put that on a card. Nobody's going to buy it. And after all, it's all about money. Not making ends meet. It's not about the truth. It's about making money. But if you want the truth, you must understand what Jesus said. I came not to grant peace, but a sword. A sword is that which separates. A sword is that which divides. So Jesus, the divine, came to bring division. That message just doesn't sell. But that's what Jesus came to do. And that's exactly what he's trying to portray to us in Luke chapter 12.

He came to bring a sword. Now remember, in Luke 12.1, there are so many people. This is the biggest crowd that Jesus has ever spoken to. Luke 12.1. So many thousands of people that are stepping on one another. Remember the context of Luke 12. This is one big long sermon from 12.1 all the way to 13 verse number 9. It's a huge sermon interrupted twice by some guy in the crowd who wants his brother to divide the inheritance. And Peter asks a question about the parable. But other than that, this is one long discourse, one long sermon that Jesus is preaching.

And he's preaching it to these people, all these people who have come together to step on him, to his, quote, mafeites, who are his disciples. And we've told you that among the people in the crowd, there are four categories. There are, number one, the curious.

They're in it for to know more. They want to know more. There are the casual who have got on the Jesus bandwagon because so many people are following Jesus at this time. It's unbelievable. It's got a huge crowd. In spite of the message that he came to bring, division, not peace. In spite of the fact he said, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me. Thousands upon thousands upon tens of thousands of people follow Christ because of his miracles. And so here they are following him. And so there are the casual, there are the curious, there are the counterfeits, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the people who pretend to be followers of Christ.

And then there are the committed, the apostles. So these people, this crowd is, consists of one of those four people. And the church today, you here today, fall into one of those four categories. You're either here as a counterfeit, thinking you're saved and you're not, trying to fool everybody that you are. Or you're here as someone who's a casual observer trying to figure out what's going on. Or you're really curious because you want to learn more. Or you're committed, committed to Christ and following him no matter what.

Every church has those four kinds of people in them, as there were four kinds of people in the crowd that Jesus was addressing. And they were there and he helps them understand what it means to be a follower of him. So you've got to be aware of the false teachers, right? You've got to be aware of the leaven of the Pharisees. It's going to, it's going to kill you. You've got to watch out for that stuff. You've got to break away from the hypocritical teaching of the Pharisees. You've got to break away from that.

And you have to stop fearing man. And fear only me. Just fear only me. Why do you say that? Remember way back in Psalm 147, it says these words, verse number 11. Because if you understand what Jesus says in Luke 12 about stop fearing man, fear only me.

And you read Luke 2 verses 10, 11 or verse 14, excuse me. It talks about glory to God in the highest, peace on earth with those in whom he is pleased. Then you need to know Psalm 147, verse number 11, it says, the Lord favors those who fear him, those who wait for his loving kindness. So the peace offered in Luke 2 only comes to those with whom he is pleased, with whom find favor, who are the ones who find favor with God, who are graced by God, those who fear God. That's it. So Christ says, stop fearing man, fear only me in Luke chapter 12.

Confess me before men. If you confess me before men, I'll confess you before my Father who is in heaven. So confess me before men. Say the same thing about me to others, and I will say the same thing about you to my Father in heaven. Confess me before men. Trust your life to the care of the Holy Spirit. Stop pursuing covetousness and greed. Go after it for yourself. He says, reject the love of material things. Turn away from the world. Pursue me with all of your heart. Why? Because I'm coming again.

I'm coming again. Stop fearing man, I'm coming again. Beware the love of the Pharisees, because I'm coming again. Stop pursuing greed and materialism, because I'm coming again. Confess me before men, because I am coming again. At an hour that you do not expect, but I'm going to arrive again. See, it's all one big sermon, and if you just jump in in the middle of it, you kind of lose the whole picture of what Jesus is saying on this day in Luke 12, verse 1 down to chapter 13, verse number 9. It's a very important passage of scripture, as it relates to the number of people that are following Jesus.

He wants them to know the truth. He wants them to understand the truth. And so, because Israel has come to a place where they have said, he does what he does by the power of Beelzebul. He does what he does through the power of Satan, because they've come to that fixed mindset, and the religious establishment has led them to that belief. They have come to a place where they have forfeited national peace. They have forfeited the opportunity to experience the kingdom of peace, because Jesus came preaching the kingdom of heaven was at hand.

They had no desire for the king's forgiveness. None. No desire for his grace or his mercy. He came to his own, John 1 11, and his own received him not. They rejected him. He came to them, and they rejected him, and they have fixed their heart and mind in that rejection. He's on his way to Jerusalem. He's got about a little under a year left in his ministry, and they have rejected him. So now, the warnings that Jesus gives become severe. Do you think that I came to bring peace? Oh no. No, don't think about that.

Instead, I've come to bring division. He says over in verse number 56, you hypocrites. Same sermon. This is next week's sermon for us, but this is the same sermon in this day in Jesus. He says, you hypocrites, you know how to analyze the appearance of the earth and the sky, but why do you not analyze this present time? I mean, you're good weathermen. You can determine the weather, but you can't determine the times of today and the spiritual condition of man. Go down to chapter 13, verse number 3.

He says, I tell you no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Now he begins to talk to them about their end and their perish. He says the same thing in verse number 5. I tell you no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. And then in verse 9, he says about the parable of the fig tree, and if it bears no fruit next year, fine. Or if it bears fruit next year, fine. But if not, cut it down. Get rid of it. It's of no use to me. Verse 24, strive to enter by the narrow door.

For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and not be able to enter. Verse 35 of chapter 13, behold, your house has left you desolate. I say to you, you shall not see me until the time comes when you say, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. It tells him your house is left unto you desolate. Chapter 14, verse 26. If anyone, or sorry, verse 24, for I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner. He's saying that to the Jewish nation who was invited to the supper of the king, but they turned him down by giving a variety of excuses as to why they will not come to his table.

So he says, none of them will be there. And then he says over in verse 26, if anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. And then over in chapter 19, at that great triumphal entry, he says, if you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace, but now they have been hidden from your eyes. Do you think, do you suppose I came to bring peace? Oh no. No, I came to bring division.

I've come to bring a sword. I've come to separate families. Well, I thought Jesus was in the families. Jesus said, I've come to separate your family. I've come to separate your relationships. I've come for a specific reason. Now this is important because we're going to look at what it means as looking at the divine's distress and then the divine's division.

Okay. Two points. The divine's distress, the Lord God's distress, and then the Lord God's division, Christ's division. There's two points this morning. Then we'll look at your destiny in terms of where you are at.

This is so important to understand. Israel missed the peace that was offered them. Because they missed the peace, they rejected it. It now was no longer offered to them. And the same is true today. Christ has come to bring peace. If you reject his peace that he offers, you are in danger of it being hidden from you and never offered to you again. People miss that. That is so important. That's what Jesus is teaching in this passage. He wants them to understand. Time's short. I'm coming again. He rejected what I've offered.

What has he offered? Well, notice what it says. Verse 49. I have come to cast fire upon the earth. And how I wish it were already kindled, but I have a baptism to undergo. And how distressed I am until it is accomplished. This is the divine's distress. Christ being distressed, grieved, in turmoil. Why? Notice what he says.

He says, I have come. What you do is you take that phrase and trace it to the New Testament. Because theologians tell us it is a technical phrase to describe the mission and ministry of the Messiah. For example, I have come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly, John 10. That's the design of his mission and ministry. I have come. He said in Matthew 5, verse number 17, I have come not to abolish the law, but to fulfill the law. Again, an expression as to the mission and ministry of the Messiah Luke 19, 10.

I have come to seek and to save that which is lost. I have come. Jesus says in John chapter 6, verse number 38, I have come down not to do my will, but the will of the one who sent me.

Again, a phrase describing the mission and ministry of the Messiah. And now he says, I have come to cast fire on the earth. I have come to give you life, an abundant life. I have come to fulfill the law. I have come to seek and save you who are lost. I have come to do my father's will. In John 12, he says, I have come to be the light of the world. If I come and I am those things and you reject that, I have come to cast fire on your life. Make sense? That's why he came. That's the mission of the Messiah.

I have come to offer life. I have come to offer joy. I have come to offer my grace. I have come to fulfill all the law. I have come for this reason. But if you reject all the reasons why I come, then I've come to cast fire upon your life. I've come to judge your life. Fire is always a picture of judgment in scripture. Always is. In fact, over in John 12, Jesus says these words, I have come as light into the world.

So he comes as the light. Again, a descriptive phrase describing the mission and ministry of the Messiah. I have come to give light to the world. They need to see, he says, that everyone who believes in me may not remain in darkness. And if anyone hears my sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. He who rejects me and does not receive my sayings has one who judges him. The word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day.

God's word saves and God's word condemns. Remember back in Jeremiah 23, 29? Is not my word like a fire? Right? Sure it is. God's word is a fire. God's word saves and God's word judges. In fact, put it this way. God's word punishes and God's word purifies. That's what fire does. God's word cleanses and God's word condemns. It's a two-edged sword, right? God's word does both because God's word is a fire that passes judgment upon all man. If you believe in what his word says, you're cleansed. If you don't believe, you're condemned already.

John 3. That's what Jesus said. So now we begin to understand a little bit more about what Jesus is saying here in Luke chapter 12. It's a picture of judgment. Luke 9 verse number 39 says it this way. Jesus says, for judgment I came into this world.

Now that goes along with Luke 12 where he says, I have come to cast fire upon the earth. For this reason I have come to judge the world that those who do not see may see and that those who see may become blind. Wow. I've come to judge that those who are blind can see. But those who say they see I will make blind. That's a very important verse to understand about the ministry and mission of the Messiah and why it is he came to this earth. In Luke chapter 3, that's what John the Baptist said. In verse number 9 he says, and also the axe is already laid at the root of the trees.

Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire, the fire of judgment. Verse 16, John answered and said to them, as for me I baptized you with water but one is coming who is mightier than I and I am not fit to untie the thong of his sandals, he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. In other words, the one who is coming after me is mightier than I and he will baptize you with Holy Spirit and with fire. He's coming to save. He's coming to judge, to condemn those who do not believe in the purpose of his arrival.

Those who believe experience the fire of purification. Those who don't believe experience the fire of punishment, the fire of condemnation. See, so Jesus says I've come to cast fire upon the earth.

But those who don't believe experience the fire of punishment. He says next, and how I wish it were already kindled. So in other words, the fire hasn't been kindled yet. The question is what kindles the fire? That's important. And that which kindles the fire, listen to this carefully, is the cross of Christ. Because the dividing point in every person's life is the cross. What do you do with the cross? What do you do with the one who died upon the cross? You see, Christianity is all about the cross.

Christ who came to die on the cross. And if any man came to me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. Christianity is all about the cross. It's central to the Christian faith. And so here Christ comes and Christ says, do you suppose I've come to bring peace?

Oh no, I have come to cast fire upon the earth. And oh, I wish that the fire was already kindled. Because you see the kindling for the fire, listen carefully, is the judgment of Christ upon Calvary. The Father judging the Son for your sin and mine. And once that judgment is accomplished, the fire is kindled. The cross is set ablaze. The division is enacted because the cross is that which kindles the fire of judgment. What you do with the cross determines your eternal destiny. What you do with the one who died upon the cross determines your eternal destiny.

And so Christ says that his death is a fire of judgment, a fire judgment when the Father will consume him, the Son, in his wrath, the just for the unjust, his punishment for our sins.

And he wishes it was already over. He says, oh, how I wish it were all ready kindled. You see, Jesus lived a conscious Gethsemane. It wasn't that once he got to Gethsemane, everything was, the temptation was full and its force upon him. No, he lived a conscious Gethsemane. And that's why he says these words. He says, but I have a baptism to undergo and how distressed I am until it is accomplished, how grieved I am, how gripped with fear I am, how the relentless pressure is upon me until it happens.

That's Christ speaking in his humanity, telling us about what it is he's going through as he anticipates the cross. It's that stress between the pain and the plan of God. It's that stress that comes between the suffering and the purpose of the suffering, the stress that comes because not his own will, but the will of his Father in heaven is accomplished. You see that? And never at one time did he ever back away from the cross. It was nevertheless, not my will, but your will be done father. This was the divine's distress.

I've come to cast fire upon the earth and I wish it was already kindled. I wish the judgment was enacted. I wish that it was going full bore. It's not, but I wish that it was. There's a baptism I must undergo. There's an immersion I must undergo. He was immersed in the wrath of God. Remember back in Mark chapter 10, when the disciples came, the sons of Zebedee came and I guess it was really their mother who came and said, I could grant one son to sit on your right and one son to sit on your left in the kingdom of God.

After all, these are good boys, James and John. Every mother today has an over inflated view of their kids, right? Well, this is John and this is my son, James, and they're good boys, but one on your right, one on your left. And Jesus said, that's not mine to give. My father was in heaven. And then he says to James, do you think that you could drink the cup, which I'm about to drink? Do you think you can be baptized with the same baptism that I'm about to be baptized with? And James and John say, sure.

Yeah, we can do that. They had no idea what they were saying. No idea. The cup was of course, symbolic of the wrath of God that would be poured out, that would immerse the son of God in the wrath of God as he bore the penalty for your sins on Calvary's cross. See, that baptism, oh, it's coming. I wish it was already accomplished. That's the divine's distress. It's the only plan that works. It's the only plan there is. I came preaching the kingdom of God is at hand. I came preaching that life is abundant.

It's here. Peace is available. I am the light of the world. I've come for that purpose. You reject all that. I have also come to cast fire upon the earth. That fire is just about kindled because the cross is that division. It's that dividing point. What you do with Christ on Calvary's cross determines whether or not your family's together or divided, whether or not your relationships are together or divided. It all centers on the cross of Christ. So you go from the divine's distress to the divine's division.

Okay. He says, do you suppose that I came to grant peace on the earth? I tell you no, but rather division. For from now on, five members in the household will be divided three against two and two against three. They will be divided father against son, son against father, mother against daughter, daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. This is the divine's division. And it falls into two categories, one tomorrow and one today. In our text in Luke 12 verses 52 and following it's today.

But in the previous text, it talks about the division tomorrow. Remember, we'll take you back just a couple of weeks when Peter asked the question about, are you speaking this parable about this master who went away to a wedding and comes back and finds the faithful servant and that faithful servant is blessed and given honor by his master. Are you talking about that parable concerning us or somebody else? And Jesus gives the parable of the master and his slaves because Christ is the sovereign ruler of all.

He is the master of all men. So to some degree, all men are his slaves because all men are going to bow in submission to his lordship, to his masterhood because he's the master. And he gives the parable. He says up in verse number 42, who then is the faithful and sensible steward whom his master will put in charge of his servants to give them their rations at the proper time. Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. Surely I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.

This is the faithful sensible slave. This is the one who hears the word of God. This is the one who obeys the word of God, who understands the implications of the word of God and submits to the authority of the master. He does what God prescribes for him to do because that is the essence of Christianity. Christianity is obeying what the master says. I live in conjunction to what the Lord God says.

If I don't live in conjunction as to what he says, I fall in the category of the unfaithful slaves. If I live in conjunction with what he does say, then I fall into the category of the faithful slave and that one's blessed. And then he goes and talks about the division in eternity, the division tomorrow with the word, but he says, but if that slave says in his heart, my master will be a long time in coming and begins to beat the slaves, both men and women and to eat and to get drunk. The master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and an hour he does not know and we'll cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

Okay. So it goes from a story to reality with the phrase unbeliever. Got that? Then he says, and that slave who knew his master's will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will shall receive many lashes, but the one who did not know it and committed deeds worthy of flogging will receive, but few. And from everyone who has been given much shall much be required into whom they entrusted much of him. They will ask all the more. He gives three categories of unfaithful slaves. One who was insolent, one who simply is, um, indifferent and one who was ignorant.

All three, whether ignorant, indifferent, or insolent experience hell, but in different degrees, the insolent one, the arrogant one who knew his master's will and said, I'm not going to do that. I'm going to do what I want to do. I'm going to be in charge of my own life, my own destiny. He might come back. He might not come back. Who knows when he's going to come back. I'm going to do what I want to do. He was arrogant. He was defiant. He was insolent. He just did what he wanted to do. He lived his own life.

He knew what the master said. He defied what the master said. When the master comes back, he's cut into pieces, the most violent terminology to describe the worst of all hells. He's cut into pieces. And back in Leviticus chapter 26, back in the book of Numbers, Numbers chapter, uh, 15, it talks about the degrees of punishment that if you defy my word and you do this, I will come back and I will do this. But if you continue to defy my word and do this, I will come back and do this. And if you continue on defying my word, then I will come back and I will cut you into pieces, God says.

So there is this defiant attitude that people have where they live in the realm of insolence. They do whatever they want. They're arrogant. They're prideful. They just want to live their life. They don't care what God says.

They know what he says. They refuse to follow what he says. And therefore they suffer a punishment so flagrant, so horrible that they experienced the worst of all hells. It's, it's like, it's like Corazon or let's yeah, Corazon and Bethsaida and Capernaum. They are suffering the worst of all hell because if what had happened in Sodom and Gomorrah and Tyre and Sidon that happened in those three cities, they would have repented in dust and ashes long ago, but they did not. So those Sodomites in Sodom and Gomorrah, those homosexual lesbian Sodomite people do not suffer near the hell as those who go to church and hear the word of God and defy it.

That's what God said. It would be more tolerable on the day of judgment for Sodom and Gomorrah, for Tyre and Sidon than for Capernaum, Corazon and Bethsaida because all those miracles happened in your cities, right before your eyes. You heard the word of the Lord. You saw me. You walked with me. You talked with me. You ate with me. And you'll be among those who say, did we not know you? Did we not do for you? Did we not give you? And Christ would say, I never knew you. Depart from me. And they would experience the worst of all hells.

Those are the insolent people. But then there's the indifferent people. I mean, they're not outwardly rebellious and insolent against the commands of God. They just are indifferent. They could take it or leave it. They're not really violent aggressors against the word of God. And they will receive seven lashes or seven lashes or many lashes, it says. I think it says. Yeah, they'll receive many lashes. They're negligent. They just don't get around to following what God's word says. They're negligent.

And they will be also in hell. But their hell, as bad as hell is, won't be as worse, as worse as those who defy the truth of God's holy word, having known it and refuse to obey it. And then there's just the ignorant. It's the one servant who did not know and committed deeds worthy of flogging, will receive but few. He didn't know. This servant somehow was on the backside of the field, never heard the message from the master. This is the people who live in those outskirt countries that never hear the gospel.

You know, the popular message today is that God will save them anyway. God will let them in because they believe in some kind of higher being of the stars. No, He won't. They're still going to burn in hell because faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word about the Christ. You don't hear a word about the Christ, you're not going to get saved. That's what the Bible teaches. You need to remove your emotions from your theology to understand the truth of God's holy word. Remove your rationalism out of your theology and submit it to the authority of God's holy word.

What does He say? And these people, these servants, they didn't hear it, didn't know it, they were just ignorant. They still go to hell. Their hell won't be as severe as those who knew the truth and defied that truth by living in disobedience to it, but they still will experience the same hell as those who've gone before them. And so there's going to be a division. The divine divider, Christ Himself, will divide them in eternity. But before that, He divides them today. Listen to what He says. He says, from now on.

Another unique phrase. Remember we told you back in verse 49, I have come, unique phrase, talking about the mission and ministry of the Messiah. Trace it through the New Testament, through the Gospels, and see why Christ came. This phrase, from now on, same kind of phrase, but it speaks of what's going to happen from this point forward. For instance, when it says in Luke chapter 5 to the disciples, from now on, you will be fishers of men. In the end of Luke's Gospel, it says, from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of God the Father.

From now on, from this point forward, this is where I will be. Now He's saying, from this point forward, from this point today, this is the way it's going to be in the future. This is what the Gospel of fire is going to do. From now on, five members in one household will be divided. Three against two, and two against three. They will be divided. Father against son, son against father, mother against daughter, daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law, and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.

It's kind of hard to fathom. Listen carefully. That Jesus is the divider of man. Today's message is unity. Everybody coming together, being one. Jesus said, no, disunity, division. I'm going to divide families. I'm going to divide on the most intimate of all levels. I'm going to divide, because it all centers about what they do with the fire that's just about ready to be kindled and the immersion that I will experience through the cross, the dividing point for all men. Now, remember John chapter 7?

John chapter 7, verse number 43. Jesus said this, or John says this about the Lord God. So there arose a division in the multitude because of him. There arose a division in the multitude because of him. Chapter 9, verse number 16 of John says, therefore some of the Pharisees were saying, this man is not from God, because he does not keep the Sabbath. But others were saying, how can a man who is a sinner perform such signs? And there was a division among them. Chapter 10, verse number 19. There arose a division again among the Jews because of these words, the words that Jesus spoke.

Listen, whenever you speak the words of Jesus, whenever you follow Jesus, division is the inevitable consequence. Inevitable. Because the world hates the truth. They hate it. The truth condemns them. The truth calls them sinners. The truth calls them what they really are. And they don't want to be called that. And that automatically divides because they don't want to be called sinners, separated from God. They want us all to come together. They want us all to be one, tolerate our sin, tolerate all of our differences.

It's okay. All of us be one because Jesus is a God of peace. Really? That's not what he said in Luke 12. I've come to bring division. And I've come to bring division at the most intimate level that you experience this side of eternity. Because the division you will face in eternity is far worse than the division you face here. But it came to bring the division here on this earth. The gospel is divisive because Jesus was divisive because of what he said. So the point of division is the family. Sometimes it's so severe it can even cause death.

Matthew 10 verse 21 says, and brother will deliver up brother to death. And the father's children and children will rise up against his parents and cause them to be put to death. So even the division that God brings will cause some in the family to die because of the arrogance against the truth and their hatred for the truth of God's holy word. Now, if I'm a Jew and I'm listening to this sermon, this is nothing new to me. It's nothing new. Why? Because Jesus takes it from the book of Micah 7 chapter 6 verse.

Listen to what it says in Micah 7 verse number 6. For son treats father contemptuously, daughter rises up against her mother, daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. A man's enemies are the men of his own household. Household. Those are your enemies, your own house. See, Jesus is saying, I have come to give you life. I have come to give you light. I have come because I am love. I have come to give you everything you could possibly want. But if you reject that, I have come to bring the fire of judgment upon the earth.

I have come to divide. And that dividing point is the cross of Christ. For what you do with Jesus Christ on that cross determines, determines your eternal destiny. There will be a division in eternity for those slaves who are not obedient to their master, for those slaves who are indifferent to the master, for those slaves who are ignorant of the master's call, there will be division from the one who is faithful and obedient. But today there is also a division and that division is the members of your own household.

I wonder if you are willing to experience that, if you're willing to stand strong in the truth no matter what, if you are willing to make the break, as one man said, no matter what the breach. We can do that, to follow Christ no matter what, no matter what it costs you and your family. That's why Christ said, if any man come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me. What's the profit of a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? Peter would say in Matthew 19, we've left it all, we've made the break.

We followed you, what's in it for us? And Jesus said, what's in it for you is more than you can ever imagine. Matthew chapter 19 verse number 27, Jesus says to Peter when he asked the question, should I say to you that you have followed me in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you also shall sit upon 12 thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel.

And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for my name's sake shall receive many times as much and shall inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, the last first.

You will inherit more by breaking away from your family than staying with your family. If you follow me, hard to believe in it. If you follow me in a way to make a break from your family because of the cross and you're going to serve me no matter what, there will be a division. There will be father against mother, mother against father, husband against wife, wife against husband. It's going to happen. Daughter-in-law against mother-in-law, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law. It's the inevitable result of following the truth.

It's inevitable. Christ is a divider of man. He came to bring division. He came to bring a sword. He came to separate the godly from the ungodly, truth from error, the false from the true. That's what he came to do. Can't you not accept that? Can't you not see that? And when you make the break and follow Christ, he says, what I'm going to give you in this life is more than you can ever imagine, more than what your family could ever give you. I will give you by giving you multiplying mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers in this life.

I'll multiply your relationships. I'll make them more intimate than your family could ever give you because you follow me. You made the break and you gave your life to me. Can you imagine the people in the crowd hearing this? I said, I don't want to do that. I'm not sure. I'm not sure it's worth it. Really? You'd rather experience the torments of eternal hell and eternity than to make the break today from your family? Really? Your family is more valuable to you than that, than Christ? Your son, your daughter is more valuable to you than Christ.

Your husband, wife is more valuable to you than Christ. Is anything more valuable than the truth? It can't be. The truth is the most valuable thing on this earth because it's all about the God of truth who speaks it. When you embrace that truth, you hold on to that truth, it will divide your family. It will. But the blessings you receive are so much greater than your family can give you because it's God who's doing the blessing. And when God does the blessing, you can't match it on this side of eternity no matter how hard you try.

You can't because he is the blesser of man. What is your destiny? Where are you going? Are you following Christ no matter what? Are you serving him no matter what? I would trust that you are. Let's pray together. Father, we thank you for today. The great joy of your word. The truth is there. How it is you explain to us so easily. This is why you're here. This is what you've come to do. Help us to accept that. Any man, woman, boy or girl here today who's yet to give their life to Christ, may this be the day of their salvation.

May they give their life to Christ today and follow you with all that they have because they love you so. We pray in Jesus' name, amen.