I am come to send fire on the earth

There has been much debate about the nature of the fire to which our Lord here alludes. Is it the fire of the judgement of God that will eventually fall on sinners in the end times? He has hardly already kindled that! Is it the fire of persecution that had already begun and will find its most vehement expression at the cross? Is it the fire of the preaching of the gospel, as some speculate? It would appear to be linked to the baptism He tells his disciples He must yet undergo: a spiritual baptism of suffering and anguish, a baptism where all God’s waves and billows will go over His soul. Fire and water are often mentioned together in the scriptures. Here our Lord mentions the fire He has come to bring and he speaks of its beginning; in alluding to the water of baptism He longs for its ending. Both together, therefore, probably relate to His sufferings on the cross.

He knew that ahead of Him lay the prospect of His being made an offering for sin. ‘Thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin’. Such an offering necessitated the burning of fire. Fire speaks of the judgement of God, which His beloved Son endured on our behalf. How He longed for that to be kindled so that it would be soon accomplished! The baptism of suffering was one He also knew He could not avoid. Someone has rightly said that the prospect of His sufferings was ‘a perpetual Gethsemane’. He tells His disciples He would be overwhelmed with anguish until it was accomplished. He knew He would sink in deep mire where there was no standing. He is not here complaining about what lies ahead of Him; but bears the burden of it long before it comes to pass. He must be about his Father’s business.

Also, would the disciples be of the same mind as others that, when the Messiah comes, there will be a time of great peace upon the earth?‘No’, said He.‘I am come to bring division’. There were many occasions when there was a division of the people because of him. It will ever be so. Even families will be torn asunder by the Prince of Peace. Fire, suffering, strife. The work of God for Him was a natural thing to do, but surely not an easy one. Should it be any less for us?