Scripture
This is the second Sunday of Advent. Advent is the season of the Christian year in which we remember the first coming of Jesus and also anticipate the second coming of Jesus.
In our study of the Gospel of Luke Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem from Galilee. He only had a few months left to live before his death. He knew that he was going there to die to pay the penalty for sin. He would sacrifice his life in order to reconcile sinners with a holy God.
In Luke 12 Jesus gave his followers some very important teaching regarding discipleship. He also gave a series of warnings. Commentator Philip Ryken notes, “Luke 12 ends with a fiery blaze of judgment and an urgent warning to find safety in Christ before it is too late.” I would say that we could call the final verses of Luke 12 a call to prepare for the coming crisis.
Let’s read about the coming crisis in Luke 12:49-59:
49 “I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! 50 I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished! 51 Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. 52 For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. 53 They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
54 He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. 55 And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and it happens. 56 You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?
57 “And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? 58 As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. 59 I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.” (Luke 12:49-59)
Introduction
Commentator Tom Wright tells the story about the great composer Ludwig van Beethoven who sometimes played a trick on polite salon audiences, especially when he guessed that they weren’t really interested in serious music. He would perform a piece on the piano, one of his own slow movements perhaps, which would be so gentle and beautiful that everyone would be lulled into thinking the world was a soft, cozy place, where they could think beautiful thoughts and relax into semi-slumber. Then, just as the final notes were dying away, Beethoven would suddenly bring his whole forearm down with a crash across the keyboard, and laugh at the shock he gave to the assembled company.
That is not very proper. Nevertheless, the jarring shock of the crash of notes following beautifully quiet and peaceful music is a good illustration of what Jesus did at the end of Luke 12.
Jesus was urging people to become citizens of the kingdom of God. He knew about the coming crisis, and he wanted everyone to be prepared for that coming crisis.
In planning this preaching series I was going to divide today’s lesson into three separate messages. However, in preparation for today’s message, I noticed that the sequence of the three messages was significant, and Jesus really was pressing home a single idea: prepare for the coming crisis!
Lesson
The analysis of the topic of the coming crisis as set forth in Luke 12:49-59 teaches us to settle our eternal destiny before it is too late.
Let’s use the following outline:
1. The Coming Crisis Shows Us the Cause of Division (12:49-53)
2. The Coming Crisis Calls Us to Interpret the Time (12:54-56)
3. The Coming Crisis Calls Us to Settle With Our Accuser (12:57-59)
I. The Coming Crisis Shows Us the Cause of Division (12:49-53)
First, the coming crisis shows us the cause of division.
Jesus said in verse 49, “I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled!”
What does the fire represent? Some say it is a reference to the Holy Spirit, a symbol of God’s Word, the gospel, faith, or spiritual fervor. But I think R. C. Sproul is correct when he says, “Frequently when the Bible uses the image of fire, it uses it in one of two ways: either, the refiner’s fire that purifies, or the fire of judgment which destroys.” As Philip Ryken says, “So Jesus was talking about coming in judgment and fulfilling John the Baptist’s promise that he would baptize ‘with the Holy Spirit and with fire’ (Luke 3:16).”
Jesus then went on to give a second image, that of baptism in verse 50, “I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished!” Now what does baptism mean here? In coming to cast his fire on the earth, Jesus also had to undergo a baptism. This obviously does not refer to his water baptism in the Jordan River, as he had already received that baptism. Here in verse 50 Jesus was looking to a baptism that was yet to be accomplished.
The baptism to which Jesus was referring was his death on the cross by crucifixion, which was now only a few months away. He would experience a fierce, fiery trial when he suffered the unmitigated wrath of a holy God as he bore the penalty of our sin on the cross at Calvary. Jesus was speaking about the pains of hell that he would suffer on our behalf in order to secure our salvation.
In verse 49 Jesus said that he wished that the fire of purification and judgment that he had come to cast on earth were already kindled. But, that would happen only after Jesus’ baptism of his death by crucifixion. Jesus said that he was in distress until it was accomplished. Jesus’ anticipation of the cross was growing, months before he died on the cross. Nevertheless, Jesus wanted it to happen because he knew that his death would bring about the salvation of the elect.
Early in his ministry Jesus told people not to reveal his identity. He often spoke in parables and was more nuanced in his proclamation about his identity and mission. However, as he came to the last few months, Jesus’ preaching became increasingly urgent as he urged his listeners to repent of their sin and believe that he indeed was the Christ sent by God to seek and to save the lost.
After Jesus’ death on the cross, he would of course be buried. Three days after his burial, God the Father raised him back to life – a sign that he had accepted the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus to pay the penalty for sin.
It is at that point that the fire is cast on the earth. It is the fire that either purifies or destroys. It purifies those who repent of their sin and believe in Jesus, and it destroys those who reject Jesus.
That is why Jesus said in verse 51, “Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” When we think of this verse, particularly during Advent, it seems utterly incongruous to the message we hear all around us. The constant message of the season is “peace, peace, peace.” Growing up in South Africa, I remember often listening to the Queen of England’s Christmas message, as well as the Christmas message of our various Prime Ministers. The theme of virtually every message was peace, the need for peace, the importance of peace, and the need for peace. But that was not what Jesus said here in verse 51, is it?
Now someone may say, “But what about the message in Luke 2:13-14 of the multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!’”?
Well, it is important to remember that individuals may become Christians and “have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). This is the peace on earth that the angels were praising God for. Christians have the peace of the Holy Spirit. Christians have an inner peace that comes from knowing that our heavenly Father loves us and cares for us. But, until Jesus returns again there will not be peace with all people. And that is because sin is still present in this world. When Jesus returns in all his glory to consummate his kingdom he will then usher in a universal peace in the new heavens and the new earth. But until then, according to Jesus, there will be division.
Now, we all know this to be true, don’t we? Making a decision about the person and work of Jesus forces a choice. Some believe that Jesus is indeed the Christ, the savior of sinners, and they repent of their sin and believe in Jesus. Others, however, do not believe that Jesus is the Christ, the savior of sinners, and they will not repent of their sin and believe in Jesus. And so tension arises between believers and non-believers. Jesus put it this way in verses 52-53, “For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
Some of you have experienced this division in your family. You became a Christian by repenting of your sin and believing in Jesus, and then you experienced opposition and rejection in varying degrees. We have a number of members in our church family whose spouses are not believers, and you know exactly what Jesus is talking about because you have experienced it.
Now when Jesus originally spoke these words that are recorded in Luke 12 he was still looking ahead to the coming crisis in his life and also in the lives of his followers at that time. However, he has now gone to the cross and been crucified. We live on this side of Jesus’ crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. And in a very real sense the crisis is more urgent for us because we know what the disciples in Luke 12 did not yet know. We know about Jesus’ excruciating death. We know about the fiery judgment that has now arrived. We know that Jesus calls people to repent of their sin and believe in him. We know that choosing to follow Jesus invariably causes division between others and us. And we know that Jesus is coming back again one day, “soon, and very soon,” as the gospel hymn says.
There is a very real sense in which Jesus came to bring peace. But that very peace, which is first peace with God and then the peace of God, may cause division among people. What causes division is that some people refuse to repent of their sin and believe in Jesus. Bishop J. C. Ryle put it this way:
Let us never be moved by those who charge the Gospel with being the cause of strife and divisions upon earth. . . . It is not the Gospel which is to blame, but the corrupt heart of man. . . . So long as some men and women will not repent and believe, and some will, there must needs be division. To be surprised at it is the height of folly. The very existence of division is one proof of Christ’s foresight, and of the truth of Christianity.
So, the coming crisis shows us the cause of division.
II. The Coming Crisis Calls Us to Interpret the Time (12:54-56)
Second, the coming crisis calls us to interpret the time.
Jesus pressed for a decision. He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and it happens” (12:54-55). Weather forecasting was not very sophisticated in Jesus’ day. A cloud coming off the Mediterranean Sea brought rain (cf. 1 Kings 18:44-45), and a southerly wind from the desert brought oppressive heat.
But then Jesus said, “You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?” (12:56). They knew how to interpret nature. But they had no idea whatsoever how to interpret matters of temporal significance, which, in the case of Jesus, had eternal significance.
So, what should the people in Jesus’ day have seen? They should have paid attention to Jesus’ miracles and his message. Jesus repeatedly demonstrated God’s power over disease, demons, nature, and even death itself. And he said again and again that he was indeed the Christ, the anointed one sent by God to seek and to save the lost. In a few months God would provide the ultimate, irrefutable proof that Jesus was indeed the Son of God and savior of sinners by raising him back to life.
The coming crisis for us will be greater. We live on the resurrection side of the cross of Jesus. We have the completion of the Bible. We have seen the amazing expansion of the church of Jesus Christ. And we have witnessed the remarkable transformation of sinners.
Jesus urges people to interpret the time. The storm of judgment is fast approaching. As I said last time, we don’t know when Jesus will return again. But we do know that every day is one day closer to his return. Many people in our day do not prepare for the Second Advent of Jesus. “On account of their unbelief and spiritual blindness,” says commentator Norval Geldenhuys, “they do not see the cloud of grace and blessings which appears with Him to all who believe in Him, nor do they observe the glowing heat of the judgment which He brings for those who are disobedient.”
If you have never repented of your sin and believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, I urge you to do so today. Don’t delay. You have more than enough information to know who Jesus is and what he came to do. Repent and believe today!
So, the coming crisis calls us to interpret the time.
III. The Coming Crisis Calls Us to Settle With Our Accuser (12:57-59)
And third, the coming crisis calls us to settle with our accuser.
Jesus went on to give an illustration to press his point home in verses 57-59, “And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.”
Jesus pictured a situation in which his hearers had become indebted to another person. The case is so bad against you, Jesus is saying, that you know that the very best thing to do is to settle the case with your accuser before he gets you in front of the magistrate. Once that happens, you will lose miserably, and you will be thrown into prison, where you will languish forever.
Jesus’ illustration is now in the context of the final judgment. Jesus is urging his listeners to be aware that there is a coming crisis. That crisis has to do with the moment we stand before God in his court, either at the moment of our death or at the return of Jesus. Jesus is urging his listeners to settle out of court with God before we stand before him, when it will be too late. The only sensible thing is to recognize our enormous debt of sin that we will never be able to pay ourselves, and accept Jesus’ willingness to pay the debt on our behalf. When we ask Jesus to pay our debt, we do so by believing that he is the Son of God and is able to pay that debt, and we repent of our sin.
All of us are sinners. Every one of us deserves to go to hell. But, thank God, Jesus has paid the penalty for sin.
Many of you know that there is a coming crisis, and you have settled the accusation against you by believing in Jesus and repenting of your sin.
But maybe you have never done that. You have not settled the accusation against you. I urge you to settle with God today. Believe that Jesus has paid the penalty for your sin, and turn from your sin.
Conclusion
Therefore, having analyzed the topic of the coming crisis as set forth in Luke 12:49-59, we should be sure that Jesus is our Savior.
Today is December 7, 2014. On this day 73 years ago, on December 7, 1941, the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, HI. In the weeks prior to the attack there were a number of warnings, but the authorities did not heed them. Even on the morning of the attack, there were two early warnings of the approaching Japanese attack, but both of them were ignored. We all know how surprised people were at Pearl Harbor by the attack, which caused enormous loss of life and damage.
Friends, Jesus has warned us as clearly as he possibly can about the coming crisis. He tells everyone who will listen to prepare for the coming crisis when each individual will stand before God. On that day it will be too late to settle for peace.
So, repent of your sin and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ today! If you do so, you will be prepared for the coming crisis. Amen.
