No Middle Ground
Jesus warns
Luke 12:49-53
I have come to bring fire to the earth, and, oh, that my task was completed! There is a terrible baptism ahead of me, and how I am pent up until it is accomplished!
“Do you think I have come to give peace to the earth? No! Rather, strife and division! From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against—or perhaps the other way around. A father will decide one way about me; his son, the other; mother and daughter will disagree; and the decision of an honored mother-in-law will be spurned by her daughter-in-law.”
The “baptism” to which Jesus referred was his coming crucifixion. Jesus was dreading the physical pain, of course, but even worse would be the spiritual pain of complete separation from God that would accompany his death for the sins of the world.
Taking a Risk
In these strange and unsettling words, Jesus revealed that his coming often results in conflict. He demands a response, so intimate groups may be torn apart when some choose to follow him and others refuse to do so. There is no middle ground with Jesus. Loyalties must be declared and commitments made, sometimes to the point of severing other relationships. Are you willing to risk your family’s disapproval in order to gain eternal life? God so Love the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that who so ever believes
in Him shall not perish but shall have everlasting Life (John 3:16). Do you believe?
