"[Jesus said] 'Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come 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 person's enemies will be those of his own household. 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. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.' "When I read this, I almost dropped my Bible! Whoa was all I could think. Did Jesus just say that He didn't come to bring peace on earth? What about all those Christmas carols where we sing about Jesus bringing peace on earth and goodwill toward men? But right here, I had just read that Jesus didn't come to bring peace, but a sword. Now what does that mean? If you keep reading, He tells you. "For I have come 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 person's enemies will be those of his own household." What??? Is Jesus saying that He wants to set us against our family? Not ultimately, but what He does want us to do might result in conflict with our loved ones. "And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me." So what does Christ want us to do? Quite simply, follow Him. He wants to be our all, our everything. He doesn't want anything or anyone to come in the way of that, not loved ones, not money, not possessions, not anything. He wants to be enough for us.
But as I think about today, the International Day of Peace, and I remember that Jesus didn't come to bring peace on earth now, He did come to bring it in the end. Because of Christ's death and resurrection, one day, when this old, dying, sinful planet is destroyed and we're living in the New Heavens and New Earth, peace will reign. Not the peace that's celebrated on IDP, but a peace that is everlasting, that will never wane, that will never diminish, a peace that unites all men. Not simply a peace that celebrates the absence of war, but a peace that celebrates the unity of all people in Christ. So, today, while the world sings "peace on earth," let's remember that:
- Christ did not come to bring temporary, worldly peace. He came to bring temporary division, a division that will root out the unbelievers and sanctify His children and prepare us for the day when His eternal peace will reign.
- Though Christ's peace does not cover the world now, it will. One day we will see "a new heaven and a new earth ... “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”" (Revelation 21:1, 3-5)