The more I read and study the Bible the more I see that Biblical truth, rightly understood, is very polarizing. The next couple of paragraphs might be uncomfortable to read if you haven’t studied them before, but just stick with me.
Part of the commission that Jesus gave His disciples before sending them out to share the gospel in the surrounding towns and villages included this statement:
“Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. 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.”
Matthew 10:34-35 (read Matthew 10:32-40 for even more perspective).
To take it a step further, a Christianity that doesn’t cause this type of polarization is referred to in Revelation 3:16 as being “lukewarm”. Not that we should approach ministry with the intent to offend–not at all–but we are to follow Jesus’s example, and He himself in Matthew 11:6 references the prophecy from Isaiah 8:14 that points out His ministry would be a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense when He says “And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.”
What About A Gospel Of Peace and Unity?
You might be scratching your head at this point and saying “Wait, this doesn’t sound like the typical message I hear at church each week about how we are all supposed to come together in love and unity. Isn’t His message supposed to be a gospel of peace? What did Jesus mean by this statement?”
The gospel is a message of peace for those who are convicted and converted by God’s Holy Spirit, and those true followers will be united and reconciled to each other by it.
But, for people who enjoy living by the dictates of their own hearts, and who enjoy worldly habits which run contrary to Biblical truths, that won’t be the case. Jesus wasn’t saying that He wanted or encouraged this type of confrontation in families, but rather because the undiluted, gospel message was so different from the comfortable traditions, or pagan beliefs that were prevalent in the world at that time (and are even more so today), that it would happen.
The pure Christian life by its very nature stands in condemnation of rebellion and evil desires. God’s way isn’t called the “narrow way” for nothing. But, it is the best way.
Rightly Understanding Scripture
In his 2nd letter to Timothy, Paul talks about some of the same ideas as Jesus was talking about in Matthew 10 and 11. In 2 Timothy 2:15 he encourages to the young evangelist, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” Just because Timothy was committed to working for God didn’t mean that he had “arrived” and no longer needed to study scripture. To the contrary—it was especially important now because Timothy’s was a job of preaching the truth to people who had a lot of ideas that were completely opposed to what God’s word said, and to the events that the Apostles had experienced first-hand. Diligently studying the Bible, and praying for God’s spirit to make the message clear to him, was the only way Timothy could be protected from the deceptions that would only increase ungodliness.
A few verses later, Paul warns Timothy that “all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (see 2 Timothy 3:12), making all this prayer and study time a crucial factor in supporting his faith and assuring him that he was on the right track when he faced the trials that were sure to come. Being a true, Bible-believing Christian still requires backbone, perseverance, and a whole lot of the Holy Spirit. We must love God so much that we are ready to do His will no matter what opposition we face.
Watered Down “Truth” Isn’t Truth At All
It’s tempting in our day and age to water the message of the Bible down and make it easier to swallow by leaving out what God requires of those who claim His name. In fact, it feels so good to focus on the idea that God is love that many of the more modern, progressive churches have switched to only preaching about God’s love and not about our responsibilities as believers to God’s law, but we do a great injustice by this practice.
In Matthew 7:21 Jesus says, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” We must be doing the will of the Father. The “doing” is not a means to earn salvation of course, but rather it is the evidence that we are saved. You don’t just tell your husband “I love you”, you show it through the way you interact with him.
The words “I love you” are meaningless unless there is action to back them up.
The Transformative Power of Divine Love
When reading the Bible cover to cover with the discernment of the Holy Spirit we can see the profound way in which God cares for and fights for His people despite the weaknesses of fallen human nature. God’s love isn’t just some touchy-feely emotional high we get during the praise service at church. God’s love is transformative. People who have truly experienced that kind of divine love don’t stay in the same spot. They run back and tell whole villages what God has done. They turn away from lives of sin because they have experienced the “real deal” in God and the fake joys that the devil offers lose their appeal. Do you see how a belief this courageous could be polarizing?
Ephesians 6:13-18 reminds us that we are in a spiritual fight between good and evil, and that we, like Timothy, must arm ourselves with truth, righteousness, faith, and the knowledge of the scriptures (among other things) for this fight. It is only by the power of God that we have any hope of overcoming deception and fears that tempt us to make the Bible more “politically correct” to reach the masses.
This week I encourage you to stand fast in the faith. Read and study God’s word daily, and pray for discernment that your heart will be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit (and not a false spirit) as you minister and witness to those around you. “…[B]e strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” 2 Timothy 2:1b-2
💕
-Kirsten
PS: Do you know someone who would be blessed by this message? Please feel free to share the link so they can be encouraged too!