In this Sunday’s gospel (Luke 12:49-53) we hear three discomforting statements from our Lord Jesus: “"I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing.” “There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished.” “Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.”
We know that fire destroys lives and properties, but this is not the kind of fire that Jesus brings. In Exodus 19:18, fire symbolized the presence of God. In Exodus 13:21-22, the pillar of fire also symbolized God’s presence as the Israelites traveled in the desert, protecting them in the night time just as he protected them in a pillar of cloud in the day time. And in Acts 2:3-4, tongues as of fire appeared to the apostles on Pentecost, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Fire is thus the consuming presence and love of God for us, his people.
Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River was already done when he spoke about his need to be baptized. Does that mean that he was looking forward to another baptism? No, in the literal sense. Yes, in the figurative sense. He was symbolically looking forward to another baptism – his death, burial, and resurrection.
On our part, it is our baptism that establishes our identification with him. St. Paul writes, “Are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life” (Romans 6:3-4).
His third and last statement is the most unsettling – that he came not to establish peace on earth but division. At first glance, this appears to be contrary to the message of the gospel. Even long before Jesus was born, among the many titles given to him was that of “Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). In 1 Corinthians 14:33, we are taught that God is not a God of confusion but of peace, and in Ephesians 2:14, we are told that Jesus, himself, who has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility, is our peace. So, what might Jesus’ declaration of him coming not to establish peace but division mean?
It means that obeying Jesus and living the Christian faith will not always be easy. One thing sure is that there will be much opposition and conflict. Jesus knew this ahead of time. He warned his apostles that they are being sent like sheep among wolves (Luke 10:3). He also said, “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world, the world hates you. Remember the word I spoke to you, ‘No slave is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. And they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me” (John 15:18-21).
All these conflicts might be misconstrued by the world as lack of peace in the life of a believer, but in reality, this is not so. The truth is that a Christian enjoys a kind of peace that non-believers do not understand or even know. In John 14:27, Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.” Despite all the troubles, a Christian can always rest on God’s promise, “In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world” (John 16:33).