Division

Luke 12:51 NIV Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.

Spend time in almost any church and you will soon hear discussions on unity. It will be preached in messages and prominently displayed on wall hangings, posters, or websites. Jesus and the Apostle Paul spoke about the importance of unity: “Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace” (Ephesians 4:3). So, was Jesus contradicting what he taught about unity? What was Jesus saying when he said he brought division?

This word division is translated from the Greek word “diamerizō”—meaning to be separate or divided into separate parts. Jesus was not saying he came to create disunity but separation. Separation from the world is to be a defining characteristic of Christ’s people, set apart for His glory. Throughout scripture: “I have set you apart from all other people to be my very own” (Leviticus 20:26) and “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession” (1 Peter 2:9). Being set apart is not an option for the believer—it is a command and a part of every Christ follower’s calling.

Romans 12:2 instructs us: “Do not copy the behavior and customs of this world but let God transform you into a new person.” James 4:4 goes even further: “Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God?” God has set his people apart for his kingdom purposes to be instruments of change, to make a difference in the world. Yet, too often, we allow ourselves and our churches to conform to the world’s values rather than to those of Jesus. “Jesus gave himself for us, to rescue us from all wickedness and to make us a pure people who belong to him alone” (Titus 2:14).

We are called to live differently than the world, always reflecting the nature and character of God, never compromising just to fit in. “So, live as God’s obedient children, not slipping back into your old ways to satisfy your own desires. But be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy” (1 Peter 1:15-17). But what does it really mean to be holy in a world that normalizes sin? The world has watered down holiness to mean little more than being a “good person,” but Scripture presents it as something far greater—it is being set apart, consecrated for God’s purposes. Holiness is the evidence of a changed heart and a life that is truly yielded to Christ. Holiness is an ongoing transformation, a continuous work of the Lord that occurs when we lay down our fleshly wants and desires, always surrendering to God’s will, His word, and His ways.

When the holiness and truth of God confront the pride of man, there will always be offense and turmoil. The same message that gives life to the humble will provoke hostility in the self-righteous. That is why scripture says the preaching of Christ is “a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles” (1 Corinthians 1:23). The gospel unmasks sin, exposes idols, overturns human boasting, and removes any grounds for confidence in the flesh. It comforts the brokenhearted and carries God’s tender love but also strips away excuses and leaves us with nothing but God’s grace and holiness.

God has called us to be separate, but never through our own efforts or righteousness. Holiness does not come because we try harder or snap our fingers and become holy; it is a lifelong pursuit. Like every area of our walk with God, holiness comes through yielding to the indwelling presence and holiness of the Lord. “He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace” (2 Timothy 1:9). Then the world will see Him.  

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Gary and Sandy Anthony

Luke 12:51-53 NIV Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, 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 daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.

1 Peter 2:9 NIV But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, so that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

Leviticus 20:26 NIV You are to be holy to me because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own.

James 4:4 NLT You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.

1 John 2:15-16 NIV Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.

Romans 12:2 NLT Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Jeremiah 1:5 NIV Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.

Deuteronomy 7:6 NIV For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.

John 17:16-17 NIV They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.

John 17:13-17 NASB But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves. I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.

Matthew 10:34-39 NIV Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law— a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household. Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.

2 Corinthians 6:16-17 NLT As God said: I will live in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the Lord.

Hebrews 4:12 NIV For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

1 Peter 1:15-17 NLT So you must live as God’s obedient children, not slipping back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. But be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.