51 Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. — Luke 12:51 (ESV)

During Advent, we often reflect upon the titles of Christ that are listed in the ninth chapter of Isaiah. The fourth and final title given is Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). The Apostle Paul, when addressing the tensions and conflicts that existed between Jews and Gentiles in the early Church, declared that Jesus is himself our peace (Ephesians 2:14). But in Luke 12:51, Jesus said that he came to bring division, not peace. So which is it? Did Jesus come to bring peace, or did he come to bring division?

Jesus is not in the business of causing trouble just for trouble’s sake.

The solution to this apparent contradiction is to understand what kind of division Jesus came to bring and what kind of peace Jesus values. Jesus is not in the business of causing trouble just for trouble’s sake. Neither is he interested in cheap peace, the kind that simply sweeps conflict under the rug and moves on as if nothing had ever happened. Rather, Jesus desires true peace, and true peace requires division.

You see, the division that Jesus came to bring is the division of truth and lies, life and death. As the incarnate Word of God, Jesus is himself the truth (John 1:1, 14:6). And because he is the truth, he always exposes all lies and all falsehoods. But Jesus didn’t just come to reveal false beliefs or statements. Jesus came to reveal and expose false righteousness.

False righteousness is the kind of righteousness that we project outwardly, while inwardly being unrighteous (Matthew 23:27). That kind of righteousness is not only false, it’s deadly. It declares peace when, in reality, there is no peace (Jeremiah 6:14). False righteousness is like a doctor who intentionally lies about a patient’s terminal sickness.

Jesus... came to expose our sickness and to heal it. He came to divide the truth from lies and health from disease.

Jesus is not like that. He came to expose our sickness and to heal it. He came to divide the truth from lies and health from disease. He came to divide and distinguish true righteousness from false righteousness, true salvation from false salvation, and the truth of God from false and pretentious religion. In doing so, he divides those who embrace and love the truth from those who hate and oppose it. He divides those who cling to him alone for righteousness from those who trust in their own good works. To the former, he brings true and everlasting peace, but to the latter, he exposes their fraudulent faith and false sense of security.

Liturgy

Prince of Peace,
With tender love, unmatched skill, and infinite perfect
wisdom, you divide all things.

What we cannot discern, what we cannot see,
what we do not understand… you reveal.

You expose the lies that enslave
us and replace them with truth and freedom.

You invade the darkness within us with your light,
making us brand new in you.

You unravel all that we have entangled.

With masterful precision, you remove all that is corrupt
within us, yet you preserve all that is good.

By your wisdom, we are spared
from countless miseries and afflictions.

Lord, teach us to trust all that you say and do.

Give us the faith to accept all that you choose not to do.

When you are silent, may we abide in your promises.

May we lean upon you, and nothing else.

Increase our knowledge, that as your people we too might
divide truth from error, and in doing so, we might know
and love you more.

Amen.