Scripture: Matthew 10:34
“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, search but a sword.”

Thought for the Day: Not exactly the words you expect to hear spoken by the “Prince of Peace, store ” are they? But while we desire peace on earth, goodwill towards all humans, Jesus makes no bones about the fact that earthly peace will only happen when each of us individually finds spiritual peace. This is probably part of the reason he rejects the earthly title of “king” so often.

Moreover, because the spiritual peace we find by following Jesus is radically opposed to empire of any sort, Jesus does indeed bring a sword to the planet. Our desire, as people of faith, to radically transform our lives—which means loving our enemies and putting God and others before our selves, is akin to taking a sword and slicing it through reality. We see differently. We think differently. When we truly follow Jesus (and stop worshipping him like a golden calf), our lives change, and we change the world. The internal, spiritual peace we find in God by actually listening to Jesus’ teachings and living his example causes turmoil in the establishment of selfishness, greed, hatred, warmongering and envy.

We are the swords Jesus speaks about. Not in a violent, human, warlike manner, but simply because we refuse to participate in war and violence; because we love our enemies as much as we love God, because we have a radically different idea of human relationship. Because we’re different, people of faith cause countless wounds in the side of an Empire that’s totally out of control, today as it was in Jesus’ time.

As we await the birth of the Christ child, we also wait for people to realize that the birth of Christ in the world—the breaking in of God to this reality in a very physical way, is not a call to arms, but a call to disarm; not a call to hate, but a call to love; not a call to fight over dogma, but a call to end all dogma.

And still, a little more impatiently with each day of Advent, we wait.

Prayer: God whose presence is embodied in every bit of creation, inspire us to remember that this season is a celebration of the birth of a completely new and radical way of thinking about how we live, together, as one human family, made in your glorious and loving image. Amen.