Wheat Ridge Evangelical Lutheran Church

Jesus can be divisive. And perhaps it should be better said not that Jesus can be divisive, but that Jesus is divisive. Remember what is happening here in our text for today: Jesus is sending out His apostles so that they can be His mouth pieces in the world. Think of this as a test-run before Pentecost finally shows up. The apostles are going to be Jesus’ “sent ones” and they are going to proclaim His message. That’s why Jesus says if anyone receives them, they receive Him. The apostles are Jesus’ emissaries and they speak Jesus’ Words. And so the things that they say do not come from them, but from their Lord. … Jesus then goes one step further and talks about the sword that He is bringing upon the earth. Jesus is going to divide. People are going to hate the things that He says. People are going to call Him a bigot and they are going to call the people that He sends the same exact thing. His Law is going to make people uncomfortable, but so is His Gospel. So much so that He will die because of it as well as the majority of His apostles. But have no fear! His Word will still be proclaimed and still accomplish the purpose for which He sends it, for not even the demons themselves can silence what He has come to proclaim.

The Birth of John the Baptist & Zechariah's Prophecy - Luke 1:57-80