Luke 12 51 just a few verses this verse 51 suppose ye that I am come to
give peace on earth I tell you may, but rather division. For from henceforth there shall
be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against
three. The father shall be divided against
the son, and the son against the father. The mother against
the daughter, and the daughter against the mother. the mother-in-law
against her daughter-in-law and the daughter-in-law against her
mother-in-law. Now when our Lord says, suppose
ye, of course he says that because we do. It's exactly what people
did and do suppose. Religion teaches
that the Lord just wants everybody to be lovey-dovey and get along
with everybody else and all cuddle up and sing Kumbaya together.
And you know, all the religions, you know, to unite. Representatives
of different religions are always having summits to promote religious
unity. And they might well do that because
all of the false religions of this world are the same. They're
all anti-Christ. They have a strong bond of unity
in their hatred of our Savior and in works-based free will
heresy. And so they might find a bond
with one another. But if you are a believer in
the Lord Jesus Christ, you're not going to have unity with
the religion of this world. Nor should you desire it. Or
likely, our Lord says, even in your own family. For that matter. I got an email years ago, I think
I've told you before, from a leader of one of the so-called churches
in College Grove asking if we wanted to be part of their Christmas
program that year. They were trying to unite the
area churches, so-called, for some kind of Christmas program.
And I wrote back and I just simply said, if you believe and preach
that the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died to save people
who were already in hell when he died, then we don't want to
have anything to do with your program. And of course, I got
no response. There is no unity between light
and darkness, between Christ and Antichrist. And think for
a second how far off people's suppositions are. Do you suppose
peace? And the Lord says, nay, rather
a sword. division. That's about as far
off as you can be in your suppositions. So let's learn something about
people's suppositions. They suppose peace and the truth
is rather a sword, just the opposite. And this is a miss now with regard
to why Christ came. That's kind of an important thing
to miss on. This is a solemn warning against
sinners such as we supposing anything. Nothing that we think or believe
or say should ever be based upon what we suppose. If you know
and believe the word of God, you don't need to suppose anything.
You just know what God said by his grace and bow and believe
and proclaim it. Now when our Lord says a sword,
and he does that, and he uses the word sword in another place,
in the same event, another account, does
that mean that we're supposed to be contentious and divisive
people, that his people are just divisive and contentious people? Clearly that is not what it means,
and it's important that we see that. Our Lord said, blessed
are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children
of God. Peacemakers here are people who cause peace, promote
peace, and commit peace. Peace is something they do. And
they're peace lovers. According to the Greek definition,
and I believe that describes God's people wouldn't you say?
We don't want to dispute with anybody. We don't want to have
a we don't like turmoil and what we call now drama I'm not interested
in that are you? And when our Lord says a sword
some take it to mean that we're to argue with and berate everyone
that doesn't agree with us about anything Our Lord strictly forbids
that He told his disciples as they observed the error of the
Pharisees and those that followed them, he said, leave them alone. Paul in his epistles forbids
and warns against vain disputes and disagreements about words
and debates. There's to be unity among the
brethren and those who openly hate the Lord Jesus Christ are
to be separated from and not allowed to disturb the worship.
That's clearly taught in the epistles. Watch for them. And get rid of
them. And even though we can never
have true fellowship with someone who hates our Lord, we're to
strive for a kind of peace even with them. That's clearly taught. Listen, Romans 12, 17, recompense
to no man evil for evil. Somebody does something evil,
insults you or cheats you in some way, Don't get back at them. As I like to say, and I like
that it's true, God's keeping the books. His people aren't
going to suffer wrongdoing. Everything is for our good. Recompense to no man. He will
provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible,
as much as lieth in you, as much as it depends upon you, as much
as you can possibly make it happen, live peaceably with all men. As much as life in you means
that there should be nothing lacking on our part for the sake
of peace. If there cannot be peace, the
blame should lie completely with the other party. That's what
he's saying. And it may. It may be impossible to have
peace. But as far as it's on your part, live peaceably with
all men. There is a peace that our Lord
did not come to bring when our Lord was born into this world. The angel said glory to God in
the highest and on earth peace and goodwill toward men. So there
is a peace that he did come to bring. Our text clearly says
there's a peace that he didn't come to bring. But peace on earth, that's the
announcement of his birth. This is peace between sinners
and God. Not all sinners, but all for
whom Christ made peace by the blood of his cross. It pleased
God, it pleased the Father, that in Christ should all fullness
dwell, and having made peace through the blood of his cross,
by him to reconcile all things unto himself. By him, I say,
whether they be things in earth or things in heaven, that were
at one time alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works,
yet now have he reconciled in the body of his flesh through
death to present you holy and unblameable and unapprovable
in his sight." Now clearly that's believers, that's saved people,
that's those whom he shed his precious blood for. There's peace
with God for them, but only them. Not all men are made holy in
the sight of God by the blood of Christ. If that were true,
nobody would be in hell. There wouldn't be a hell. There
wouldn't be any use for it. But those who were made holy
by his blood are at peace with God. That's what we just read. Reconciled unto God by the death
of his son. So when we read, I didn't come
to bring peace, We have to understand that in the context of the Bible.
He clearly came to make peace with God for his sheep by the
blood that he shed on Calvary. That's what the angels were saying
at his birth. They're not contradicting what
he said in our text. You just have to understand there's
different kinds of peace. So number one, there's peace,
reconciliation between God and sinners, between God and his
people, God and his elect, accomplished by the sacrificial, satisfactory,
substitutionary, successful offering that Christ made of his own blood
on Calvary. And I don't just rattle those
words off because it sounds good in a sermon. The sacrificial
blood of Christ. You need a lamb before God. And
there's no remission of sins without blood. He made his soul
an offering for sin. He is the sacrificial lamb of
God that takes away sin. Satisfactory, God was pleased. He accepted that offering for
us. The blood is sufficient. Substitutionary,
he died in my place. I'm the one that deserved the
wrath of God. He took it for me. successful. He accomplished salvation when
he shed his precious blood. Secondly, there's peace, there's
unity in his church. We just thank God for that in
our prayer and in our worship. It's to be desired and to be
strived for. Ephesians 4, 1, I therefore the
prisoner of the Lord beseech you that you walk worthy of the
vocation wherewith you are called with all lowliness and meekness,
with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love, endeavoring
to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. Endeavoring. And that's going to involve,
according to the context, some humility and some forgiveness. And what is the basis of our
peace now? What's the basis of peace with
God? The blood of his son. What's the basis of our unity
in the church? Ephesians 4.4, just a few verses
down from what I just read about unity of the spirit in the bond
of peace. There's one body. Whose body is that? It's Christ. And one Spirit,
the Spirit of Christ. Even as you are called in one
hope of your calling, what's the hope of your calling? Christ.
One Lord. One faith. What's the object of faith? One
baptism, one God and Father of all who is above all and through
all and in you all. Christ in you, the hope of glory.
That's our unity in this place, in this church, wherever we are.
It all starts with that one body, the body of the Lord Jesus Christ.
First Corinthians 12, 27, now you are the body of Christ and
members in particular, but one body. Thirdly, there is peace in the
hearts of God's sheep because of the peace made on Calvary.
Now there's peace between us and God, That's just a fact, but we also
experience peace in our hearts. And what's the basis of that
peace? Philippians 4, 6, be careful for nothing, be anxious for nothing. I wish I could obey that. I want
to obey that. But in everything, by prayer
and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known
unto God, and the peace that's the opposite of care that's the
opposite of anxiety don't be anxious about things just cry
out to God and having done that may the peace of God which passeth
all understanding it doesn't make any sense how we could just
be okay with everything with everything falling apart around
us And yet we are, aren't we, in a sense, to some degree, and
should be always. The peace of God which passeth
all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds. Oh, what a precious thing. Through Christ Jesus. Christ
is all. Where there's peace, there's
Him. In the church, between you and God, in your heart, Christ
is the Prince of Peace. And then there's peace desired
with all men. We're to be forgiving. We're
to turn the other cheek. We're to be kind and generous
and understanding. This is what we want. Proverbs 16, 7. When a man's
ways please the Lord. And how is that going to happen?
That's Christ. When a man's ways please the
Lord, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him. Don't
you want that? He's got to make that happen.
We desire that and don't miss the fact that Christ is the cause
even of that peace that we have with this world, the relative
peace that we have. There can be no unity, no true fellowship
with this world. but he'll make even our enemies
to be at peace. How can a sinner's ways please the Lord? Through
Christ. And the same cross by which our Savior
made peace with God for us with his precious blood that cross
also does something else and that's where our text comes in.
By that same cross Whereupon he made peace with
us and God through his precious blood. By that same cross, Paul
said, God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our
Lord Jesus Christ. By whom? By Christ crucified. By that precious blood. By my
Savior, the Redeemer of sinners who bled and died and suffered
and sacrificed himself for me. By him, this world is crucified
unto me. an island to the world. There's
a separation, there's a division caused by that cross also. Peace was made by that precious
sinatoning blood, but also by that same cross there was a separation,
a division. A life and death difference made. And this is the sword of which
our Lord speaks in our text. This is the division. And notice
carefully that it is specifically the Lord Jesus Christ crucified
that causes the separation. He's the reason for the peace,
and He's the reason for the sword. We can get along with this world
just fine, as long as you take Him out of the equation. We got a lot in common with this
world, have you noticed that? if you take him out of it. He said, you shall be betrayed
both by parents, Luke 21, 16, and brethren, and kinfolks, and
friends, and some of you they shall cause to be put to death.
And you shall be hated of all men. You know what the next words
are? For my name's sake. It's him, isn't it? That's the
solution and that's the problem. John 7.40, many of the people,
therefore, when they heard this saying, when they heard Christ
preach, said of a truth, this is the prophet. Others said,
this is the Christ. But some said, shall Christ come
out of Galilee? Hath not the scripture said that
Christ cometh of the seed of David and out of the town of
Bethlehem where David was? So there was a division among
the people because of Him. This is our text. There's a division
in families sometimes, oftentimes. There's a division in churches
sometimes. There's division in this world
because of Him. If the world hates us because
of Him, why do they hate Him? We could talk a long time about
that, couldn't we? But listen to what he said in John 15, 25.
This cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that
is written in their law. They hated me without a cause. Why do they hate him? For no
good reason. And they'll hate you for the same, just because
of him. They hate him. They don't have to have any other
reason for it, but him. that's the same word without
a cause in the original that's the word same word for freely
in Romans 3 24 being justified freely by his grace through the
redemption that is in Christ Jesus and so he who loved and
justified sinners freely his elect was hated freely by sinners consider this Consider our text
in this way, if our Lord made peace with God and with each
other for all of his sheep, for all for whom he died, all that
he saved, and also, he says in our text, he came to send a sword
between some, even of the same household, then he did not come
to die for or to save everyone. Everyone he shed his blood for
we just read have peace with God and with one another So where
does the sword come in? He didn't come to save everybody.
He didn't redeem everybody. He didn't make peace for everybody
If he had then he would have brought peace for everyone in
between everyone And notice that he does not say
in the text that a sword, that division, is an unfortunate consequence
of some not believing on me. He said he came to bring it.
He deliberately brought it. Why is that important? Oh, my. It's all important. It means quite simply that our
Lord did exactly what He came to do. That's important because if He
didn't, we don't have a Savior. If Christ came to bring peace
for everyone and some don't have it, most don't have it, then there's no hope for anybody.
There is no Savior. The death of Christ has nothing
to do with salvation or peace with God. And we're all on our
own before God. You don't want to be there. And
I don't either. In other words, no hope for anybody.
So it's very important that he brought it. If there's division,
I want him to have brought it. Don't you? And he did. He came for that as well as peace. So we see that some have peace
with God and each other and some don't. And it's a great comfort
to hear from our Savior that that's exactly the way He wants
it. I want things to be exactly the
way He wants them, don't you? I'm glad that nothing is beyond
His sovereign purpose and will and control. I'm glad that He's
not trying to give everybody peace and failing. I'm glad that
nothing is up to me or any other sinner. It is just as he said
it would be and it is that way because of him. Thank God for
that. That's why we have peace. Do you have peace with God? The natural mind, the carnal
mind is enmity against God. You weren't born having peace
with God. The Lord Jesus Christ had to
make peace between you and God by his accomplished death and
sacrifice and salvation on the cross. Do you have peace in your
heart? If you have peace in your heart
and not peace with God, it's a false peace in your heart.
If you have peace in your heart, Christ must be the basis of it,
the cause of it. He must be that peace. Do you have relative peace with
everybody? Do you have peace with God's sheep? There's one reason, clearly from
God's Word, there's one reason. It's the precious blood of His
Son. He is the Prince of Peace and
I've seen him turn even the enmity between light and darkness, I've
seen him turn that into peace by his beautiful light. Have
you not? He can turn enemies into friends. I believe that's happened among
us. Turn with me to Ephesians chapter
2 and let's desire this. And thank God for this. Ephesians 2.12, and we're through.
Ephesians 2.12, that at that time you were without Christ,
being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from
the covenants of promise, having no hope. and without God in this
world. But now, in Christ Jesus, isn't that wonderful? You who were at one time far
off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. Don't you desire that
for some that you know that are still far off? May the Lord bring
them nigh. Only He can do that. He does
that by His precious blood, by Christ crucified, by the preaching
of Christ crucified, by the reality, by the success of Christ crucified. For He is our peace. Isn't that wonderful? Because
you know what's beautiful about that? If He's our peace, we can't
mess it up. Isn't it wonderful to have peace
with one another and with God? Within that word peace is friendship
and fellowship and love and unity in Him. He is our peace. Who hath made both one and hath
broken down the middle wall of partition between us Oh, how
we desire that. How we thank him for that, as
we've already experienced that, and how we desire it. More and
more. Having abolished in his flesh
the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances were
to make in himself of Twain one new man, so making peace. And that he might reconcile both
unto God. Not only are we One with one
another, we're one with God. That's how, remember our Lord's
prayer in John 17 in Gethsemane? That they may be one, even as
we are one. That he might reconcile both
unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby,
and came and preached peace to you. That's how it happened for
me. He came where I was and proclaimed
himself, who is our peace, unto me. Which were far off and to them
that were nigh, we still, now that we're nigh, we still want
to hear about him, don't we? We still want to hear him. For through Him we both have
access by one Spirit unto the Father. Now therefore you are
no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the
saints." Don't you want that for some? Thank God that it's
true. For us. And I'd like to see some more
of that, wouldn't you? If it's His will. and of the household of God. Thank God for him who is our
peace. So it's okay to have enemies
for the right reason. It's necessary. There is peace
that should not exist. But also, God has been known
to turn enemies into friends. And that'd be just fine, wouldn't
it? And this is our message to those who hate us and our Lord. This is our message to them.
All things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus
Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. To wit that God was in Christ,
reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses
unto them, and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. So we preach it to them, to those
who are far off. We have this ministry of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for
Christ as though God did beseech you by us. We pray you in Christ's
stead, be you reconciled to God. And I'll tell you this, if you're
reconciled to God and they're reconciled to God, you're gonna
get along with each other just fine. For he hath made him, on what
basis? How are we going to have peace
with God? By what he did. He hath made his son to be sin
for us, who knew no sin. The sinless son of God took my
sin in his own body on the tree and suffered and died for my
sin. Who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness
of God in Him. So our message is Christ crucified. And it is a message of peace,
of reconciliation. And that message of peace may
cause just the opposite. To some we're the saver of life
unto life, to others death unto death. But what a glorious ministry
it is, this ministry of peace. this ministry of unity and reconciliation
because of Christ crucified, because of his substitutionary
death, because Christ the sinless one bore the sins of his elect
that they might be the righteousness of God in him. Therefore be ye,
be ye reconciled unto God. Not on the basis of anything
you've done or imagine that you might do, but because of Christ
and what he did. Bless God, may he make it so.
Let's pray.