By
Allen White
Do not suppose that I have come to bring
peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come
to turn
a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
a man’s enemies will be the members of his
own household.’ Matthew 10:34-36
The Prince of Peace (Isaiah
9:6) didn’t bring peace after all? What? We like the Jesus who calmly
soothes our fears. But, this Jesus stirs things up. He says what’s what. What
happened to that meek Jesus we all love?
And, why is Jesus predicting all of
this strife in family relationships? We understand the tension around in-law
relationships. We live that. But, fathers and mothers and families becoming
enemies over Christ – that’s hard to understand.
Alphonso is an evangelist in Sierra
Leone. He converted from Islam to Christianity. His family didn’t take it so
well. In fact, his aunt poisoned him in an effort to kill him. Alphonso
survived.
He is bringing the message of Jesus
Christ to thousands of Muslims. God is blessing his ministry. His family is not
so happy about it.
In Jesus’ day, the turn was from
Judaism to the fulfillment of the Jewish law – Jesus Himself. But, if the
Jewish people are God’s people, then becoming a Christ-follower meant they were
becoming something else. Family heritage, traditions, worship and holidays were
all at stake. Becoming a Christian wouldn’t have gone over very well.
For us, most of our families will
tolerate our relationship with Christ. But, there are still some tensions. For
folks raised Catholic who join Protestant churches, there is tension. For
others who grew up in one denomination, then later move to another, there’s
also tension. For those who give God one hour a week, there is tension when a
family member devotes himself to serving the church or pursues full-time
ministry.
Jesus doesn’t want family members to
hate each other. But, He does want first place in our life. Our most primary
relationship should be our relationship with Christ. Every other relationship
follows behind.
If we put another relationship ahead of
Christ, then our commitment to Christ will be compromised. We can only give
what another person will allow. We can never give ourselves fully to Christ.
Please understand – this is not an
excuse to ignore our families for the cause of Christ. That is out of balance
too.
Who has more influence over your life
than Christ? Who doesn’t understand your commitment to Christ? Where are you
tempted to bend? Who is opposed to your relationship with Jesus?
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