Sacred Fire - 10th Sunday after Pentecost
Author: Pastor Scott Schul
August 17, 2025
There’s an old saying
among preachers that “a text without a context is a pretext.” In other words, those who pluck an isolated
verse out of the Bible with no reference to the broader story of Jesus usually
do so in order to twist that verse into a weapon they wield to threaten and
control others. A hammer can be used to
build a cathedral or to tear down a church. The same can be done with the Bible.
Way back in 397, one of
Christianity’s greatest teachers, Augustine of Hippo, wrote a book called “On
Christian Doctrine” in which he established the proper way to interpret the
Bible. He wrote that: “Whoever… thinks they
understand the Holy Scriptures, or any part of them, but puts such an
interpretation upon them as does not tend to build up… love of God and our
neighbor, does not yet understand them as they ought.”1
And so let’s look at
today’s Gospel through that lens of love, and examine it in the full context of
Luke’s Gospel and the entirety of Jesus’s ministry and mission. Because if we simply read that first verse in
isolation, Jesus comes across as an unhinged tyrant who is angry with humanity,
and eager to judge us, condemn us, and burn all of creation to the ground. And indeed, I’m sure there’ve been preachers
and theologians who’ve eagerly read this verse in just that manner, because
fear cloaked in God’s authority is a dangerously effective tool for controlling
others.
But in the full context
of Luke’s Gospel, and through that lens of love, a vastly different and
grace-filled story emerges. This fire
Jesus is so eager to cast upon the earth is the Holy Spirit. This is evident from Luke 3:16 and Luke
24:49. Out of love for us, Jesus wants
to immerse us in the Holy Spirit’s healing and transformative presence, and grant
us forgiveness, salvation, resurrection, and new life. Jesus wants this even though he knows that
the road to our salvation passes through a brutal wooden cross. His crucifixion is the “baptism” he
references in verse 50.
You see, the opening
verse to today’s Gospel isn’t intended to terrorize or intimidate us. It’s a verse overflowing with the divine love
of Jesus for us; sacrificial love, costly love that will willingly carry him to
a cross, not because we deserve it but because he loves us with a fervor beyond
anything any of us can imagine. That is
very, very good news.
But in that time
between our mortal “now” and our heavenly “someday,” not every day will be
filled with smiles. Every person on this
planet, even those who follow Jesus, say their prayers, and come to church,
experiences suffering. Much of it is
unjust and undeserved. I can’t explain why
that is, but I think it’s important that you at least hear your pastor
acknowledge that bad things happen to good people. Please don’t ever presume to judge someone
else’s suffering.
But sometimes what we
perceive as suffering is more like a growing pain. Jesus isn’t content with leaving us in the
sewage and sludge of our selfish and self-centered sins. His love intends to transform us. Since we’re already talking about fire, let’s
analyze this concept from that direction, with a little story. When I was a boy, I’d sometimes get slivers
in my hands from playing outside. They
weren’t life threatening, but they hurt and, if unremoved, could become
infected. So when I couldn’t pull the
sliver out on my own, I’d get some help from my dad.
Remember, this was the
1970s, back when seat belts were optional and safety an afterthought, so you
might not want to try this at home. Dad
would gently extract the sliver with a straight pin or a small knife
blade. But first he would always purify
the pin or blade with a flame. As Dad
probed around in my sore finger, it sometimes hurt for a moment, but it was
only a moment, and it spared me a far worse pain down the road. That’s how I want you to think of the Holy
Spirit’s work in your life – a purifying agent that enables our infectious sin
to be surgically removed from us.
Look, we all know there
are things, attitudes, habits, idols, and addictions in our lives that need cut
out for us to thrive. The purifying fire
of the Holy Spirit is the means of that sacred surgery. When you’re going through that process of
holy transformation, it usually feels uncomfortable. Jarring. Maybe even a little painful. That’s to be expected. Don’t fear it. Never forget that Jesus loves us and only
wants the best for us. Welcome that holy
discomfort. It’s evidence of the Spirit
working in your life.
Now let’s set fire
aside for a moment, because there’s another part of today’s Gospel that I’m
sure also left you feeling more than a little uncomfortable. That’s the part where Jesus spoke about division. In Jesus’s day, family and kinship were of
utmost importance for survival. So for
Jesus to not only state that disunity would occur because of him, but to
explicitly admit that he came not to bring peace but division, would have been
shocking to first century ears. It’s
shocking to ours too.
So let’s spend our
remaining time on this, because division seems to be a constant and growing
affliction in our day and age. On the
one hand, it’s natural to think of division as something to be avoided, because
as followers of Jesus we are called to be hospitable, welcome everyone, and
love our neighbor. And indeed we should endeavor to be and do all those things. But in doing them, Jesus does not call us to surrender our faith and our
core beliefs. As I stated at the outset
of this sermon, not every interpretation or understanding of the Bible is
faithful or correct. As Lutherans we
have strong and unyielding beliefs about the Bible, the Holy Trinity, the
divinity and humanity of Christ, the primacy of God’s grace, the importance of God’s
Holy Sacraments, and the inherent dignity of all people. Those are not negotiable. If your friends or your family encourage you
to deny those core beliefs or even pressure you to skip worship, some degree of
division may be justified. That’s a more
complex issue than I can address in one sermon, so see me if you’re wrestling
with this.
So sometimes division is the righteous route to pursue. But far
too often in our country, and even our congregations, our tendency nowadays is
to race in the opposite direction and embrace division way too eagerly. If you have a quarrel with another member or disagree
with something the pastor says or does, out you run. I also see some deciding that their politics will
dictate where they go to church. Let’s
call that what it is: idolatry. Your theology should determine your politics, not the other way around. Look, in any church community, conflict is
inevitable. Now more than ever, when it happens,
we need to avoid the easy out of retreating to our comfortable, affirming
little echo chambers, and instead intentionally spend time with people who
think differently than us. That’s what
Jesus did. That’s the hard but holy work
of reconciliation and relationship building. That’s how hearts and minds are changed. And remember: it may be our hearts and minds that are the ones
which need to change.
Friends, I’ve often
said it’d be a tragedy if Beaver Stadium becomes the last place in Centre
County where people of all political persuasions feel comfortable gathering
together. Our churches need to be such
places too. Grace needs to remain that
sort of place. Because in the end, that
sacred fire Jesus brought to the earth is something we are privileged to bear, and he calls us to share that flame with our neighbor. We can’t do that if we’re hiding in our
self-constructed fortresses of solitude. We are the matches with which Jesus intends to set our world ablaze in
grace, and that happens together, person-to-person, heart-to-heart. Amen.
Citations
1 Book I, Section 36.
© 2025 Rev. Scott E. Schul, all rights reserved
Gospel: Luke 12:49-56
[Jesus said:] 49 “I have come to cast fire upon the
earth, and how I wish it were already ablaze! 50 I have a
baptism with which to be baptized, and what constraint I am under until it is
completed! 51 Do you think that I have come to bring peace to
the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division! 52 From now on
five in one household will be divided, three against two and two against
three; 53 they will be divided:
father against son
and son against father,
mother against daughter
and daughter against mother,
mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law
and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”
54 He also said to the crowds,
“When you see a cloud rising in the west, you immediately say, ‘It is going to
rain,’ and so it happens. 55 And when you see the south wind
blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and it happens. 56 You
hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why
do you not know how to interpret the present time?
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