Not Peace but a Sword
Scripture Reading: Matthew 10:24-39
24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for a
disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the
master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household! 26
Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden
that will not be known.
27 “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on
the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather
fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a
copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. 30 But the
very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Do not fear therefore; you are of more value
than many sparrows.
32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father
who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My
Father who is in heaven.
34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a
sword. 35 For 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’; 36 and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his
own household.’ 37 He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he
who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 38 And he who does not take
his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he
who loses his life for My sake will find it.
We should not expect to be treated any differently than Yeshua was treated. His
family thought He was crazy. The people from His hometown gave Him no respect.
Many times we expect people to like us or even just to understand us but He clearly
tells us hear that as His disciple we can not expect to be above Him. They insulted
Him, they beat Him, they spat on Him, they called Him the devil, they even crucified
Him. When the difficulties of this world come against you, take heart that the came
against our Savior first. Then He says something that is either very comforting, or
very scary. Everything is going to be revealed. There is not one thing hidden that
will not be made clear. That is comforting to you if you are walking in His
righteousness, but it’s not comforting if you sneaking around doing things you
wouldn’t want people to know about. Eventually, everything will be made known/.
For me, it is more than apparent that we, as believers, should not live in fear.
YHWH makes the point of telling us over and over throughout scripture not to fear.
Hear Yeshua tells us that we do not need to fear those who can kill on the body.
God has our back, always. Even in death, we need not fear. What we need to
make sure is that we confess Him before men, so He will confess us before God.
Criminals will often times have an attorney on retainer. Because they know that they
are guilty of crimes, they know that when they go before the judge, they need to
have a good lawyer ready to defend them. Well, Yeshua is our Advocate before the
judgment seat of God. And He’s better than Matlock because He has never lost a
case, and never will.
Then He says something that I don’t think many people understand. He said He did
not come to bring peace but to bring a sword. So, does He mean that He came for
His followers to start wars?
Matthew 26:51-53
51 And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his
sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.
52 But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish
by the sword. 53 Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me
with more than twelve legions of angels?
It seems obvious that He’s not telling us to go start a fight. He’s not telling us to start
a crusade and go out to force people to believe, like the Muslims do. That goes
back to the free will that God gave to mankind. It wouldn’t be free will I we were
force to believe, now would it? God is righteous. He did not create us with free will
only to take it away. Even the dominion He gave us He did not take from us. We
gave it away to the enemy, and unfortunately many people still do. But look at what
YHWH promises when we walk in righteousness.
Leviticus 26:6-8
6 I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none will make you afraid; I will rid
the land of evil beasts, and the sword will not go through your land. 7 You will chase your
enemies, and they shall fall by the sword before you. 8 Five of you shall chase a hundred, and
a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight; your enemies shall fall by the sword before
you.
Now, I’m pretty good at math. He says that five will chase a hundred and a hundred
will chase ten thousand. The mathematician in me says, wait a minute, if five chase
a hundred, shouldn’t a hundred chase two thousand. But see, I’m thinking with
human math, not God math. We have so much more power as we fellowship with
like-minded believers. Whether it’s two or five or a hundred we need to make a
point of fellowshipping with believers on a regular basis.
Revelation 19:11-16
11 Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called
Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. 12 His eyes were like a
flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew
except Himself. 13 He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The
Word of God. 14 And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him
on white horses. 15 Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike
the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress
of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16 And He has on His robe and on His thigh a
name written:
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
His name is the Word of God. In His mouth is a two-edged sword. Who puts a real
sword in their mouth?
Hebrews 4:12 - For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged
sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a
discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Here it compares the Word of God to a two-edged sword.
Ephesians 6:17 - And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the
word of God;
The sword of the Spirit (the Word of God) is our ONLY offensive weapon to use
against the enemy. Who here has not yet read your Bible from cover to cover?
Ephesians 2:19-22
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the
saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the
apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the
whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also
are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
We are the stone for God’s Temple. How were the stones of the Temple to be
made?
1 Kings 6:7 - And the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the
quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was
being built.
It is the Word of God that will make us into a usable stone. Not a Baptist mold, or a
Methodist mold or a Catholic mold or even a Messianic mold. We are not going to
be made into that stone here in the sanctuary. It will be out there in the world that
we are hammered and chiseled into what God needs us to be
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date August 19, 2007
Scripture Reading: Matthew 10:24-39
24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for a
disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the
master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household! 26
Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden
that will not be known.
27 “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on
the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather
fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a
copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. 30 But the
very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Do not fear therefore; you are of more value
than many sparrows.
32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father
who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My
Father who is in heaven.
34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a
sword. 35 For 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’; 36 and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his
own household.’ 37 He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he
who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 38 And he who does not take
his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he
who loses his life for My sake will find it.
We should not expect to be treated any differently than Yeshua was treated. His
family thought He was crazy. The people from His hometown gave Him no respect.
Many times we expect people to like us or even just to understand us but He clearly
tells us hear that as His disciple we can not expect to be above Him. They insulted
Him, they beat Him, they spat on Him, they called Him the devil, they even crucified
Him. When the difficulties of this world come against you, take heart that the came
against our Savior first. Then He says something that is either very comforting, or
very scary. Everything is going to be revealed. There is not one thing hidden that
will not be made clear. That is comforting to you if you are walking in His
righteousness, but it’s not comforting if you sneaking around doing things you
wouldn’t want people to know about. Eventually, everything will be made known/.
For me, it is more than apparent that we, as believers, should not live in fear.
YHWH makes the point of telling us over and over throughout scripture not to fear.
Hear Yeshua tells us that we do not need to fear those who can kill on the body.
God has our back, always. Even in death, we need not fear. What we need to
make sure is that we confess Him before men, so He will confess us before God.
Criminals will often times have an attorney on retainer. Because they know that they
are guilty of crimes, they know that when they go before the judge, they need to
have a good lawyer ready to defend them. Well, Yeshua is our Advocate before the
judgment seat of God. And He’s better than Matlock because He has never lost a
case, and never will.
Then He says something that I don’t think many people understand. He said He did
not come to bring peace but to bring a sword. So, does He mean that He came for
His followers to start wars?
Matthew 26:51-53
51 And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his
sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.
52 But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish
by the sword. 53 Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me
with more than twelve legions of angels?
It seems obvious that He’s not telling us to go start a fight. He’s not telling us to start
a crusade and go out to force people to believe, like the Muslims do. That goes
back to the free will that God gave to mankind. It wouldn’t be free will I we were
force to believe, now would it? God is righteous. He did not create us with free will
only to take it away. Even the dominion He gave us He did not take from us. We
gave it away to the enemy, and unfortunately many people still do. But look at what
YHWH promises when we walk in righteousness.
Leviticus 26:6-8
6 I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none will make you afraid; I will rid
the land of evil beasts, and the sword will not go through your land. 7 You will chase your
enemies, and they shall fall by the sword before you. 8 Five of you shall chase a hundred, and
a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight; your enemies shall fall by the sword before
you.
Now, I’m pretty good at math. He says that five will chase a hundred and a hundred
will chase ten thousand. The mathematician in me says, wait a minute, if five chase
a hundred, shouldn’t a hundred chase two thousand. But see, I’m thinking with
human math, not God math. We have so much more power as we fellowship with
like-minded believers. Whether it’s two or five or a hundred we need to make a
point of fellowshipping with believers on a regular basis.
Revelation 19:11-16
11 Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called
Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. 12 His eyes were like a
flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew
except Himself. 13 He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The
Word of God. 14 And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him
on white horses. 15 Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike
the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress
of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16 And He has on His robe and on His thigh a
name written:
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
His name is the Word of God. In His mouth is a two-edged sword. Who puts a real
sword in their mouth?
Hebrews 4:12 - For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged
sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a
discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Here it compares the Word of God to a two-edged sword.
Ephesians 6:17 - And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the
word of God;
The sword of the Spirit (the Word of God) is our ONLY offensive weapon to use
against the enemy. Who here has not yet read your Bible from cover to cover?
Ephesians 2:19-22
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the
saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the
apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the
whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also
are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
We are the stone for God’s Temple. How were the stones of the Temple to be
made?
1 Kings 6:7 - And the temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the
quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was
being built.
It is the Word of God that will make us into a usable stone. Not a Baptist mold, or a
Methodist mold or a Catholic mold or even a Messianic mold. We are not going to
be made into that stone here in the sanctuary. It will be out there in the world that
we are hammered and chiseled into what God needs us to be
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date August 19, 2007
