Day 2312 of the 7 day Bible verse challenge.


Matthew 10:34 NIV

Well, I think this one pretty much sums up the last 10 or so posts. A very good friend of mine shared this one with me yesterday and it's that perfect exclamation point to this topic of dealing with sin and not living in fear of those who don't like us for it. That's one of the biggest hurdles to sharing our faith these days. Some people just don't want to hear it. They don't want to be confronted with the truth. They don't want to face the discomfort of acknowledging their sins and shortcomings. Many just want to be left in peace to sin without restraint.

You know, I think in many ways we've become far too soft. Yep, said it! We're too soft on sin. We're too appeasing of those who tell us to be quiet and go away. We're too conforming to what this world says is good enough. We're too willing to either say what people want to hear or just whisper the truth so we don't rock the boat. We're too willing to compromise what we know to be right. We're too scared of offending people because we know that folks are offended by basically everything these days. We've forgotten what Christ Himself is saying here in Matthew.

Yes, our faith has a peaceful side. The Bible talks about living in peace with others. It talks about the peace we have in Christ and the gift that He's given us. It talks about having peace in the trials we face. Peace is undoubtedly a big topic in Scripture. But I think we've gotten it in our minds that we need to always be meek, timid, quiet, and even passive. Maybe we've forgotten that the Bible also tells us that there's a time for everything. A time to be silent, but also a time to speak up. A time to mend, but also a time to tear apart. A time of peace, but also a time for war!

That's what Jesus is reminding us of right here. He didn't come to this earth to be everyone's friend. He didn't come to spread a message of doing anything that pleases you and allowing others to do the same. He didn't come to passively tell people to try to stop being so wicked. "Come on guys, that's not good, knock it off please. If you want to. Sorry." He came to confront sin, evil, and darkness head-on. He came to tell people to stop living in filth and get their minds and lives right. He came to go to war with the evil ways of this world! He came to cut through the nonsense and calls us to do the same.

We don't have to pick one or the other. We don't have to just be gentle or just be harsh. We don't have to find some kind of middle ground where we stand up for the truth but do so quietly so we don't hurt feelings. We definitely don't need to take this spineless position that tells us to please the masses. Doing so only impedes the true meaning and purpose of the Gospel. It's not about trying to confront sin in some way that takes the sting out of hearing the truth. It's about going to war against it because if we don't then it will cost people eternal peace!

This has truly become something that I am beyond passionate about. I look around at what our world is doing, what people say is good and acceptable, and the way that sin is holding people down and I can't stand it anymore. Going easy and not calling sin what it is will only allow it to keep the power that it has over people. We can't settle for that. Christ calls us to follow Him and to share His message. The ultimate goal is peace, but that doesn't mean we don't have to fight for it. We can't help fight against sin if we're too scared to even speak up against it. Make no mistake, this is a war, and if we don't treat it like one then too many people are going to end up on the losing side of it. That will never be okay!

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