““I have come to set the world on fire, and I wish it were already burning! I have a terrible baptism of suffering ahead of me, and I am under a heavy burden until it is accomplished. Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other! From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against—or two in favor and three against. ‘Father will be divided against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother; and mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.’ ” Then Jesus turned to the crowd and said, “When you see clouds beginning to form in the west, you say, ‘Here comes a shower.’ And you are right. When the south wind blows, you say, ‘Today will be a scorcher.’ And it is. You fools! You know how to interpret the weather signs of the earth and sky, but you don’t know how to interpret the present times. “Why can’t you decide for yourselves what is right? When you are on the way to court with your accuser, try to settle the matter before you get there. Otherwise, your accuser may drag you before the judge, who will hand you over to an officer, who will throw you into prison. And if that happens, you won’t be free again until you have paid the very last penny.””
Luke 12:49-59 NLT
Jesus called for individuals to make their own choices to follow Him, even if that meant division in the family. It may not sound strange to us, because individual choice is one of the pillars of western civilization. But it was not always so. Rather than following what your family or community or government wanted, Jesus called for people to follow Him, even if it meant suffering.
Christ calls for radical commitment. He expects to be a higher priority than anything or anyone else in our lives. This brings division, but loving God is more important than making others happy or following society’s rules. This doesn’t mean we disrespect our parents or isolate ourselves; God made us to be in families and commands us to be in community. It means our highest passion—the fire of our hearts—is set on Christ above all. He deserves the highest place of honor, and when we love Him first, every other love is put in proper perspective. When His fire is burning in your soul there is passionate worship, deep time in the Word, a commitment to obedience, deep love for people, and a heart and drive for justice.
What does it mean for you to be “on fire” for Jesus? What does it mean for you to put Christ higher than anything or anyone else in your life?
