In this Scripture we have one of the most difficult passages spoken by Jesus. He says in verses 32 – 33, “Everyone therefore who shall confess Me (as all I represent, and have spoken) before men, I will also confess before My Father Who is in Heaven. But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father Who is in Heaven. Jesus makes our public profession of faith in Him (as the Living Word of God) the Sword which divides those whom He will proclaim before His Father, against those who deny Him publicly. Ephesians 6: 17b: says, “And the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” He is emphatic that there is no middle ground for anyone.
He also brings it home when He portrays a family divided within, because of the individual choice by each member to follow, or deny Him, as in Verses 35 – 37: saying, “For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household. 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.” It is obvious that not all will answer the call to accept Jesus, and follow Him without reservation, and it is especially painful when it happens within families. However, we have the precious promises of God that give us hope for answered prayers for Salvation, for all our loved ones.
Jesus desires implicit, absolute, and total commitment from those whom He calls, because the inheritance is so astronomically great. Luke 18: 29: says, “ And He (Jesus) said to them, “Truly I say to you, “there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the Kingdom of God, who shall not receive many times as much at this time and in the age to come eternal life.”
Isaiah 25: 6a + 8: says, “And the Lord of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; He will swallow up death for all time, and the Lord will wipe tears away from all faces, and He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; for the Lord has spoken. Revelations 21: 7: says, “He who overcomes shall inherit these things, and I will be His God and he will be My son.” Daniel 7: 18 + 27: says, “But the saints of the Highest One will receive the Kingdom and possess the Kingdom forever, for all ages to come. Then the sovereignty, the Dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole Heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One; His Kingdom will be an everlasting Kingdom, and all the dominions will serve and obey Him.”
Dearest Holy Lord Jesus: thank You so very much for the High Price you paid to give us such everlasting Heavenly citizenship. Come by Your Holy Spirit, and show us the magnitude of the riches in Glory you came to bestow upon us, through Salvation. Move upon all hearts in this very late hour, to give us conviction from your Word, that no one can come to the Father and His Kingdom, but through You. Glory to You Alone!
