On the one hand, Christ says "blessed are the peacemakers." It appears that He's fond of humans trying to make peace in the world. I always feel personally better when I find peace with someone I disagree with or where human relations were tense. Strife, violence, stress, animosity, resentment, bitterness, and related feelings, situations, or emotions leave a knot in my gut. Laughter, trust, joy, and peace are all good things to strive for.
Matthew 5:9, “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.”
But Christ literally says that He did not come to bring peace but a sword!!
His Word is a Sword!
Luke 12:51, "Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:"
Matthew 10:34, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.”
God is a God of division in many ways. He divided the light from darkness; the earth from the water; the wheat from the tares; the lambs from the goats; righteousness from evil/the world; etc.
Matthew 10:35-39, "For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it."
Christ's very Word is divisive. We see major disagreements within the Christian community all the time. That's not even counting the division between Christianity and all of those religions that deny Christ. It would seem that division plays a major role in man's existence. May God's will be done.
Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
The deeper we get into His Word the more isolated from the rest of mankind we're likely to find ourselves.
Joshua 24:15, “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”
We're at a turning point here in America and the globe on which we live. It's a real challenge in many ways and on many fronts but the wisest and most prudent thing we can do is seek God's Word and His will even at the risk of losing popularity with your family, friends, and neighbors.
“Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth?"
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