The Sword of God

As Christians we know we are supposed to love our neighbors.  We are even called to love our enemies (see Matthew 5:43-48).  The problem is that we get confused about what this means. 

Some people think it means we must never say anything that offends anyone.  They call this tolerance (see my past article “Tolerance, Hate Speech, and Dialogue”).  Tell me, where did Jesus say we should never offend anyone?  Weren’t the Jews who did not accept him as the Messiah offended by him?

We must never speak with the purpose of offending a person.  That is not the same as never offending them.  What is the difference?

The difference is about how we offend them.  What is it we are saying that offends them?  Are we saying intentionally mean words or are we speaking the Truth of Jesus Christ?

The former is sinful, rooted in hate.  The latter, speaking the Truth of Jesus Christ is rooted in love for if we love our neighbor, if we love our enemies, then we want what is best for them and that is to follow Jesus as the way and the truth and the life (John 14:6).

People need to hear the truth that Jesus brought us for the salvation of their souls.  Unfortunately, not everyone wants to hear it.  Why?  Because they want to live their life their way.  It is unfortunate that their way is based on what brings them pleasure in this world.  We have a word for this, Hedonism.

It is in this context that Jesus says in today’s gospel, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth. I have come to bring not peace but the sword.  For I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and one’s enemies will be those of his household.”

We speak of wanting to keep the peace and this leads us to silence, especially with our family and friends.  We don’t talk about Jesus because we think that not offending them is being nice to them.  We think that in keeping the peace in this sense, we are loving them.

It is not love to hide the truth from someone, most especially the Truth that Jesus teaches us.

This is not a call to physical battle.  We do well to heed the words, “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; One nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again” (Isaiah 2:4).  We need to lay down the weapons of earthly wars and take up the sword that Jesus gives us.

What is this sword?  I think of this sword in two ways.  First, think of the shape of a physical sword.  Now, think of the shape of the Cross upon which Jesus hung.  Is not the Cross of Jesus a sword turned upside down.  We are not to fight physical wars.  We are to fight by following Jesus.  Our efforts must always be rooted in the love that Jesus showed for us when He willingly laid his life for us on the Cross (see John 15:13).

The second way in which we can take up a sword for Jesus is rooted in Hebrews 4:12, “Indeed, the word of God is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating even between soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.”

Our sword as Christians is not made of metal.  No, we are called to take metal swords and beat them into plowshares.  Our sword as Christians is the Word of God, the Word that Jesus brings us that penetrates our souls and our whole being. 

There are people who choose to ignore what Jesus teaches us.  For them, I think of the words found in Psalm 50:17-19, “You hate discipline; you cast my words behind you!  If you see a thief, you run with him; with adulterers you throw in your lot.  You give your mouth free rein for evil; you yoke your tongue to deceit.” 

We must pray for those who give themselves over to earthly ways.  If we want to do our part to save them, we need to speak the Lord’s Truth.  This requires learning about our faith and it requires us to trust that the Lord will tell us when to speak and what to say (see Mark 13:11). 

A great price is presently being paid for our silence about our faith.  What is the price?  Many souls are being lost because of our silence.  We see this each Sunday at Mass when we think about how many fewer people are coming to Mass.

Looking at the context behind today’s first reading, the Israelites in Egypt were becoming “numerous and powerful.”  They were increasing in numbers and becoming a great people because they were following the ways of the Lord in a strange land.

The Egyptians began to fear them.  So, their king said, “Come, let us deal shrewdly with them to stop their increase.”  The Egyptians oppressed the Israelites but did not defeat them.  Why?  Because the Lord himself fought the battle and set them free from Egypt.

The Israelites in Egyptians grew in numbers because they followed the Lord.  We are decreasing in numbers because of our silence. 

It is time to end the silence so that we may proudly proclaim the Word of God and the love of Jesus to the world.

Peace,

Fr. Jeff