Kingdom Principles- Part 4

Introduction- Luke 12:49-59

The theme of last week’s message was a simple one which can be summed up in the words which Jesus spoke to His disciples in verse 40— “Be ye therefore ready.”

Jesus challenged His followers to be mindful of the coming of their Lord and to live in a manner such that they would be always ready for His return.

He reminds them that the precise timing of His coming is unknown—thus the importance of a constant readiness.

He also challenges them to be found faithfully executing their duties that they may be found to be a faithful and wise steward upon their Lord’s coming.

A principle is also here established that unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required—this is to indicate that responsibility is connected with accountability.

Those who will prove themselves faithful will be given even greater responsibility which brings the possibility of greater reward but also requires greater accountability.

Today we will consider a passage where Jesus details the impact which His ministry shall have upon men—bringing fire on the earth and creating divisions among men.

He then speaks to the entire audience, concerning their lack of discernment and the need for urgency in being reconciled to God lest they face harsh judgment.

Divisive (Vs. 49-53)

This passage opens with what may seem to be somewhat of a surprising statement from the Lord Jesus concerning the effects of His coming into the world.

Jesus expresses the fact that He has come to “send fire on the earth” and then indicates that the fire of which He speaks is already kindled or started.

In order to understand the nature of what Jesus is saying we must consider this statement in its broader context—Jesus goes on to speak of the reality that His coming will not bring peace but rather division.

The idea of fire here is that it has a revelatory power—fire either purifies or destroys depending upon the substance of that which it touches.

The same is true of Jesus Christ’s coming into the world—the response of men to Him would serve to reveal their true nature.

When fire sweeps across a landscape it reveals the substance of all that it touches—that which cannot withstand the flames will burn up and that which can will only be made purer by the flames.

Jesus Christ came into the world professing Himself to be the Son of God and the Savior of men and He gave more than sufficient evidence to support these claims.

This then forced men to respond to Him—every man who came into contact with Him would either in faith receive Him or in unbelief reject Him showing the true substance of their spirituality or lack thereof.

Jesus speaks also here of a baptism that he would be baptized with and of the distress that weighed heavily upon Him until it be accomplished.

This is not a reference to His water baptism which had already taken place much earlier but to the baptism of death—the time when He would suffer and die for sinful men.

Jesus’ death upon the cross and then His resurrection from the dead would become an event which would separate men on the basis of their response to it.

Some would rightly believe that His death upon the cross and the miraculous events surrounding it were proof that He is the very Son of God—while others would insist that His death proved that He was not the promised Messiah and that He was unable even to save Himself much less deliver men from their sins.

Jesus did not come into the world to bring peace on earth—though there will come a day in the future when He shall establish His kingdom and there shall then be peace upon the earth.

Jesus came rather to bring division—He speaks of how this division will divide homes and families and even the closest of relationships.

This division will be centered around how each individual responds to Jesus Christ—the division will be between those who believe in and receive Him and those who reject Him in unbelief.

This has been true throughout history as families, homes, cities, and even nations have been divided in their response to Jesus Christ.

There are many situations today where parents and children are divided because of their acceptance or rejection of Jesus Christ.

There are circumstances where husbands and wives are divided because of their response to the Savior.

Jesus Christ is the dividing line by which men shall be judged and it should come as no surprise that this brings division in the lives of men.

Amos 3:3 “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”

2 Corinthians 6:14–16 “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

It is impossible that those who believe in Jesus Christ should live in harmony without conflict with those who have rejected Him.

Discernment (Vs. 54-56)

Jesus now addresses the entire audience and questions their spiritual discernment.

He commends them first for their ability to discern the weather by looking to the sky and taking note of the clouds and the wind.

In doing so they were able to predict what weather was on the horizon and to do so fairly accurately.

Jesus then uses their ability to discern the weather to point out their lack of discernment with regard to the signs of the times.

Matthew 16:3 “And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?”

These were capable of paying such close and careful attention to the clouds and the wind in order to discern the patterns of the weather, but they had utterly neglected to recognize the working of God among them.

God had provided powerful evidence to support the claims which Jesus made concerning Himself and yet so many still refused to believe in Him.

Jesus openly preached and taught and performed numerous public miracles which defied explanation by any other means than the power of God.

Yet with all these signs being present so many still refused to acknowledge that Jesus was the Messiah which had been promised.

All the evidence was there—the miracles, the fulfillment of Old Testament prophetic scripture, the authority and wisdom with which Jesus spoke—and yet so many still insisted upon denying Him.

This same principle applies today and even more so—men have devised cunning ways to predict the weather and to predict the outcome of a wide variety of events by observing patterns and details and building models to predict what will happen—and yet the majority of men still fail to recognize God’s working in this world.

Jesus then asks them the question why “judge ye not what is right”?

The point He is making here is that they have falsely judged Him in declaring that He is anything less than all that He claimed to be.

If they had made and objective observation of His life and ministry they would have come to the right conclusion that He must be the Messiah and that He is indeed the Son of God and the Savior of men.

The problem is that their judgment of Him was not objective but subjective—influenced by their own pride and sinfulness they rejected His claims.

They were unwilling to consider His claims on their merits alone—rather they allowed their emotions and the influence of the religious leaders to cloud their judgment.

Diligence (Vs. 57-59)

Jesus closes this conversation with another illustration which is meant to instill a sense of urgency in His hearers.

The illustration involves someone who has wronged another and who then meets his adversary in order to approach the magistrate with the issue at hand.

Jesus speaks of the fact that a man ought to diligently attempt to reconcile with his adversary—making things right before his adversary has the opportunity to bring the case before the judge.

This idea is a familiar one in our world today especially in the corporate environment—often a case is brought against a corporation and in many instances if there is some merit to the case being brought the corporation will work toward a settlement with the offended party with the belief that doing so will cost them less than the court proceedings and the judgement that would be awarded if the case were to go to trial.

There is wisdom in attempting to settle a matter in this manner because in all likelihood this will come at a lesser cost than might otherwise be the case if the matter is brought before a judge.

Jesus indicates that a failure to do so will ultimately result in one being haled to the judge, then delivered to the officer of the court, then ultimately facing prison where one must remain until every last mite (a very small coin resembling a penny) is paid.

The point which Jesus is making is that before the case goes to trial there is the possibility of leniency and mercy, whereas once it is brought before the judge, justice demands judgment of an exacting nature.

This illustration is meant to urge the audience to act now to be reconciled to God while the opportunity remains—to delay is to risk judgment without mercy.

When we stand before the judge, justice demands judgment, and those who have rejected Jesus Christ shall be justly condemned without mercy.

On the other hand, those who will act now to be reconciled to God will find mercy in Jesus Christ and have the opportunity to have all their sins forgiven—when these stand before the judge they shall be justly pardoned on the basis of the merits of Jesus Christ.

It is far better to act while there is opportunity for mercy and reconciliation than to wait until the day of judgment and to face certain condemnation because of your sin.

Too often men act as though they have forever to live and as though the opportunity to be reconciled to God is open to them for eternity—when in reality the time to be reconciled to God is now.

Every moment that a man delays in receiving the Savior leaves him vulnerable to judgment and the just wrath of God.

John 3:36 “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

Those who feel no urgency to receive the Savior fail to understand that they have no guarantee of another opportunity to be reconciled to God.

Conclusion

This passage is a record of Jesus’ attempt to cause His audience to recognize the nature of His coming and the importance of their response to Him.

Jesus quite literally serves as a dividing line among men—every man shall ultimately be judged upon the basis of their response to Him.

His coming would kindle a fire which would sweep over the entire world revealing the true spiritual state of men and creating a sharp divide between those who receive Him and those who reject Him.

It is vital that we would “discern this time”—that we would carefully consider what God is doing in the world and how we should respond to Him.

We are presently living in what many have termed to be an “age of grace”—this means that we have an opportunity now to receive Jesus Christ and to be reconciled to God in spite of our sinfulness.

God is at work among men—convicting men of sin and drawing them to the Savior—we must recognize this reality and act accordingly.

We must act first and foremost to receive the Savior—placing our faith and trust in Jesus Christ—and once we have done this we must act to share the good news of the gospel with others while there is yet time.

There ought to be an urgency among men to act now to be reconciled to God through faith in Jesus Christ before the opportunity to do so has passed.

Those who reject God offer of salvation through Jesus Christ will ultimately face just condemnation when they are brought before the judge and these will face eternal torment as the just punishment for sinning against a holy God.

You must not delay—now is the time to act—today can be the day of salvation if you will but come to Jesus Christ and receive Him as your personal Savior.