When Jesus says, "Do you think I came to bring peace?" Our immediate reaction is, "yes - Jesus - Isaiah said you are the Prince of Peace - so we assumed you came to bring peace!" Jesus continues, "I have brought division." And that stops us cold. When He continues, "families are going to be divided over Me" - and gets very specific - we are lost and confused and hurt all at the same time. Why would Jesus do that?

We need to broaden our understanding by seeing these verses in context. When Jesus says, “ I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled” - that sounds crazy - like God is going to burn the whole world down. But if we go back to Luke 3:16 where John the Baptist says, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming…He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire" we find the context we need. God isn't going to burn the world down - He's going to purify it. And the way He is going to do that is by placing His Holy Spirit and the fire of His Gospel within His people.

This whole Gospel is about Jesus’ giving us a glimpse into the heart of God. And when I say heart - I'm not talking about the blood pumping organ - I'm talking about the very core of God's being. When St. John said, "God is love" - he wasn't trying to create a branding logo for God's Instagram or TikTok - he was stating a facet of who God is at His core.

Far too many people complain they don't know God or don't know enough about Him or are confused by His essence. If God's core is love - it allows us a glimpse of why He does things. Jesus said, "if you've seen Me - you've seen the Father." If we read the stories of Jesus in the Gospels - healing the sick, knocking tables over in the temple when people were being cheated, forgiving sinners, sacrificing Himself for the world - we get a very good idea of what God's heart is all about: LOVE.

The church isn't perfect - but it was given a gift from God to share with the world. I can't eliminate the pain and fears from your life - but I can promise you that you don't have to through them alone. When you confess your sins - when you lay your burdens before the cross - the stories are always difficult - and some people will never understand - but don't worry about them - some will - and that's the point.