34 Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. 35 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. 36 And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. 37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. 39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it. (Matthew 10:34-39 KJV)
Not Peace, but a Sword
Matthew 10:34-39 guides us to distinguish between Christ’s intentional aim for coming and its unintended consequences. His main purpose was to spread and promote peace in the world, but due to human corruption, the result has often been conflict and division. These are not the natural fruits of the gospel but rather incidental effects.
The gospel is intended to reconcile people to God and to one another. If all men were consistent Christians, peace would be universal. But “the world lies in wickedness” (1 John 5:19) and under the power of the evil one. Therefore, the situation is that Christians must profess the truth in opposition to error and obey the Lord despite worldly customs, fashions, and vices. Christ came to establish his heavenly kingdom amid Satan’s dominion, built upon its ruins.
Where there is no true religion, people may avoid theological disputes because they are basically of one party, able to share beliefs and practices. However, when the cross is lifted and sinners enlist under Christ’s banner, they no longer belong to this world but to another kingdom. The laws, values, and interests of Christ’s kingdom stand in direct opposition to those of “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4).
This inevitably provokes hostility from Satan and his followers; they slander, oppose, and persecute Christ’s followers – even the most gentle disciples, and ministers. When the enemy stirs worldly authorities against the gospel, religious wars, massacres, and persecution follow. The wolves devour the innocent sheep and then blame them as the cause of the conflict.
True Christians do not persecute others, making us understand that those who claim to be Christians and yet persecute others are not true Christians or do not understand the faith they professed. True Christianity is marked by patient endurance of persecution and stanch faithfulness amid suffering. Jesus foretold that the gospel would provoke intense and even violent opposition, dividing families and turning loved ones into adversaries. This has happened in every place where the gospel has taken root.
Instead of the prosperous days the Jews expected with the Messiah’s arrival, his coming led to the most violent conflicts their nation had ever seen, ending in divine judgment. However, these disasters were not a direct result of Christ’s coming but rather of Israel’s rejection of him, which led God to give them over to judgment. The Evangelist, in quoting Micah 7:6, does not use the exact words of the Septuagint but preserves the same meaning as both the Greek and Hebrew texts.
Christ does not speak against natural love and affection for our relatives or even for our own lives; rather, he teaches that love for him must come first. We may have a deep affection for our family, but when obedience to Christ’s truth is at stake, our commitment to him must take precedence—even over our lives. As Jesus said, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26).
Those who refuse to take up their cross, just as condemned criminals carried theirs to execution, are unfit to be his disciples, for they fail to follow his example of patient suffering for God’s truth. Whoever saves his life by denying the Christian faith during persecution will ultimately lose it; he will forfeit true peace in this life and also eternal life. But whoever loses his life for Christ’s sake will gain eternal life in heaven.
In these verses, Christ demands the supreme love that the law requires for God: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). He would not have made such a claim unless he was “one with the Father” (John 10:30). Loving him as Emmanuel will prove that our relation with God is restored. No mere human could make such a demand without becoming a rival to God, who declares, “I will not give my glory to another” (Isaiah 42:8). But “whoever honors the Son honors the Father who sent him” (John 5:23).