Day 299 of the timeline, chronological reading plan is significant in that Jesus Himself clarifies that one of His sub-purposes is to divide people against each other. What an odd thing to say from our Powerful Creator, particularly if we were created with a complete sense of “free will.”
Luke 12:51-53 NLT – “Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other! From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against--or two in favor and three against. 'Father will be divided against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother; and mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
Consider the companion passages for Luke 12:51-53 (below):
Matthew 10:34-36 NLT - "Don't imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword. '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. Your enemies will be right in your own household!”
Should we be thanking Jesus for this foreknowledge? Should we thank Him for telling us what He will do, which is to cause us to be at psychological war with one another? While this may seem silly to suggest, who, in the above passage set, is taking responsibility for the division of families? Should credit be given to Satan? After all, nothing would please Satan more than to cause domestic division. Should we credit the individual for exercising their “free will” to hate their Christian family member? Neither, for the text tells us clearly that Jesus will cause this Division. God takes full responsibility for families to become divided because of Jesus.
Again, the logical question should be: Why would God do this? The answer is the same . . . God has an Eternal Plan that He is exercising for the express purpose of demonstrating His Power to the Rulers and Authorities in the Heavenly Realms. We are an exercise of God’s Almighty Power as if the Lord had said to those Rulers and Authorities, “Watch what I can do!” Ephesians 3:9-11 below explains this clearly:
NLT – “I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning. God's purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Beginning with Genesis, the Power of God was on full display, and we are not talking about His physical creation. Instead, we are talking about the Power of God to have created an entire, Eternal Plan and then begin to implement and execute it flawlessly . . . without error.
1 Corinthians 2:7 NLT – “No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God--his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began.”
What is this? The Lord created this Plan for our ultimate glory, yet we have the ability to live independently of that Plan? How can we say we are in control of every decision process made within our lives when the Bible presents clear and competent demonstrations that express otherwise? Is there any reason that we should not accept the Biblical discussion Paul had with the Ephesians, which is that God had and still has an Eternal Plan? Is there some reason to believe that because we allegedly have “free will,” this “free” sense about us somehow places us outside the Lord Almighty’s grip? Is not the whole world within His Hands?” How would the Lord execute His Eternal Plan if humans possess “free will” to do perfectly as they wish?
Imagine the General of an army of men who are expected to do exactly according to the Generals commands if the army and its nation are expected to “win” and survive a war. Unfortunately, all military men are free to choose to do whatever they desire. They can either obey the orders and commands given by their General, or they can choose to follow their own plan . . . and this is done without penalty. Commands are given, but because of “free will” to choose to obey or disobey without consequence, how could this army possibly survive and win a war if there is no required plan established through submission?
Submission to our Powerful God must exist to be within a Right relationship with Him. If we have not submitted to the Lord in all ways, we do not belong to Him . . . we have yet to become His Holy Property. We can indeed know that we belong to Him when He begins to apply His Holy Discipline. And, of course, Discipline implies personal hardship, but if we begin to change and become more like Christ, we can be more assured of genuinely becoming His Property. When we discover that our personal grip and power over this physical life have begun to diminish, the proof of God controlling our lives will become evident.
Romans 8:9 NLT – “But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)”
Luke 12:51-53 NLT – “Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I have come to divide people against each other! From now on families will be split apart, three in favor of me, and two against--or two in favor and three against. 'Father will be divided against son and son against father; mother against daughter and daughter against mother; and mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
Consider the companion passages for Luke 12:51-53 (below):
Matthew 10:34-36 NLT - "Don't imagine that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came not to bring peace, but a sword. '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. Your enemies will be right in your own household!”
Should we be thanking Jesus for this foreknowledge? Should we thank Him for telling us what He will do, which is to cause us to be at psychological war with one another? While this may seem silly to suggest, who, in the above passage set, is taking responsibility for the division of families? Should credit be given to Satan? After all, nothing would please Satan more than to cause domestic division. Should we credit the individual for exercising their “free will” to hate their Christian family member? Neither, for the text tells us clearly that Jesus will cause this Division. God takes full responsibility for families to become divided because of Jesus.
Again, the logical question should be: Why would God do this? The answer is the same . . . God has an Eternal Plan that He is exercising for the express purpose of demonstrating His Power to the Rulers and Authorities in the Heavenly Realms. We are an exercise of God’s Almighty Power as if the Lord had said to those Rulers and Authorities, “Watch what I can do!” Ephesians 3:9-11 below explains this clearly:
NLT – “I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning. God's purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Beginning with Genesis, the Power of God was on full display, and we are not talking about His physical creation. Instead, we are talking about the Power of God to have created an entire, Eternal Plan and then begin to implement and execute it flawlessly . . . without error.
1 Corinthians 2:7 NLT – “No, the wisdom we speak of is the mystery of God--his plan that was previously hidden, even though he made it for our ultimate glory before the world began.”
What is this? The Lord created this Plan for our ultimate glory, yet we have the ability to live independently of that Plan? How can we say we are in control of every decision process made within our lives when the Bible presents clear and competent demonstrations that express otherwise? Is there any reason that we should not accept the Biblical discussion Paul had with the Ephesians, which is that God had and still has an Eternal Plan? Is there some reason to believe that because we allegedly have “free will,” this “free” sense about us somehow places us outside the Lord Almighty’s grip? Is not the whole world within His Hands?” How would the Lord execute His Eternal Plan if humans possess “free will” to do perfectly as they wish?
Imagine the General of an army of men who are expected to do exactly according to the Generals commands if the army and its nation are expected to “win” and survive a war. Unfortunately, all military men are free to choose to do whatever they desire. They can either obey the orders and commands given by their General, or they can choose to follow their own plan . . . and this is done without penalty. Commands are given, but because of “free will” to choose to obey or disobey without consequence, how could this army possibly survive and win a war if there is no required plan established through submission?
Submission to our Powerful God must exist to be within a Right relationship with Him. If we have not submitted to the Lord in all ways, we do not belong to Him . . . we have yet to become His Holy Property. We can indeed know that we belong to Him when He begins to apply His Holy Discipline. And, of course, Discipline implies personal hardship, but if we begin to change and become more like Christ, we can be more assured of genuinely becoming His Property. When we discover that our personal grip and power over this physical life have begun to diminish, the proof of God controlling our lives will become evident.
Romans 8:9 NLT – “But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all.)”
