Written by Paul Lane.
The Word
49 “I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! 50 I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished! 51 Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. 52 For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. 53 They will be divided, father 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 mother-in-law.”
-Luke 12:49-53 (ESV)
10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled[wise] master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13 each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
-1 Corinthians 3:10-15 (ESV)
36 And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household. 37 Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.
-Matthew 10:36-38 (ESV)
12 Now the Lord said[had said] to Abram, “Go from your country[land] and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.
-Genesis 12:1
Reflection
It is summertime and people are taking vacations. I just dropped my wife and daughter off at the airport, so that they can have a wonderful time in Europe with the family, while I stay home with the two boys. Two on one side of the ocean and three on the other. So this is the perfect time for my family to live out the words that Jesus spoke. Wife and daughter are free to fight over there, while father and sons are free to fight over here. I’m not sure that this is what Jesus meant exactly, but the parallel was too rye for me to pass it by.
Looking at today’s passage, the first thing I noticed was that there is something that Jesus feels that he has to do and he is eager to have it done quickly. “…and how great is my distress until it is accomplished!” This is a holy zeal that is hard for me to understand. What is it that has him so bothered that he should speak this way? Is it the cross? He speaks of a baptism that he is to be baptized with, though he was already baptized by John a while ago. He says he is not bringing peace on earth, though we know him as the prince of peace. And he speaks of the divisions that he is bringing to our family lives.
Is this about sin? Or is this about the work God intends for us? Is he looking to teach us to not hold on too tightly to friends and family here, in the light of heaven? How would that relate to the second baptism that Jesus is expecting. Well, there is the baptism in the Holy Spirit that we are to receive in Acts Chapter 2. Is Jesus expecting something like that for himself? I’m not sure anything like that is recorded in the gospels. When Jesus tells his disciples about the Holy Spirit, he says that he has to go away for the Spirit to come. So, maybe it is about the cross.
There is a fire that Paul talks about in 1 Corinthians 3, which is meant to test the works of each man (person). This is not the fire that determines if you will make it to heaven, but rather a fire that divides wood, hay, and stubble from gold, silver, and precious stones. This fire is not so interested in whether you did the work. It is concerned with the quality of your work. So much of what we are taught as Christians is to simply obey, but we do need to be reminded that the quality of our obedience matters. Christ lays the foundation, and we are to build upon it, according to his master plan. So, our attitude toward God and his kingdom matters. And the time and effort we put into tending the garden of our heart matters. At the end of the day, there will be a report card, and this teacher does not grade on a curve. The quality of your work will depend on no one except you.
Application
Is it strange to hear that something in your Christian life depends on you? So often we hear that Jesus does it all, and he does. There is nothing that you can add to the work of salvation that Jesus does. But once saved, what is next for you? Obedience must be your main focus, if the work of our Lord is to mean anything in your life. But not all will obey. Not all will understand. Are you willing to obey, even though it cost you the most valuable relationships in your life?
Look at Abraham. God told him to leave his land and his family, to go to a place that he knew nothing about. His work was to obey God’s call, and we are blessed by his obedience.
Then comes the question, “what if I am not able to stay faithful.” I struggled with that one a lot when I was first saved. There is a simple teaching that really helped me. I was told, “that which the Lord is able to save he is also able to keep.” Simply obey and trust in the work of the Lord. He knows what’s going on with you, and it is a joy to him.
Prayer
139 O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
3 You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.
5 You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.7 Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
9 If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
10 even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,”
12 even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you.-Psalm 139:1-12 (ESV)
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