Mk 13.12-13,
Mt 10.21-22,
Lk 12.16-19,
Jn 16.2-3.
Mark 13.12-13 KWL - 12 “And sibling will betray sibling to death,
- and parent to child,
- and children will revolt against forebears,
- and put them to death.
- 13 You’ll be hated by everyone because of my name—
- and this person will be saved
- when they endure to the end.”
Matthew 10.21-22 KWL - 12 “Sibling will betray sibling to death,
- and parent to child,
- and children will revolt against forebears,
- and put them to death.
- 13 You’ll be hated by everyone because of my name—
- and this person will be saved
- when they endure to the end.”
Luke 21.16-19 KWL - 16 “You’ll also be betrayed by parents, siblings,
- relatives and friends,
- and they’ll put some of you to death.
- 17 You’ll be hated by everyone because of my name.
- 18 But if every hair on your head isn’t destroyed,
- 19 save your souls by your endurance!”
Rough stuff, right? But something Jesus’s students needed to hear. Something all Christians need to hear. ’Cause if we’ve grown up in not-so-dysfunctional families, where parents and siblings don’t stab you in the back on a regular basis, we’ll assume that should continue to be the case when times get rough. But the reality is this isn’t always so. Parents turn on their kids all the time. Even “good Christian parents.”
Give you an obvious example: All the “good Christian parents” who disown their gay kids. Now these parents will use the argument, “But the kids are sinning.” So what? When has sin ever been a justification for disowning one’s kid? Did King David ben Jesse disown his son Absalom after the young man not only tried to overthrow his dad, but publicly raped his dad’s
So the day will come (and already has, multiple times) when self-described “good Christians”