Moment of Meditation: Die by the Sword (Matthew 26:53)
''Then Jesus said to [Peter], "Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword" (Matthew 26:53).''
For my periodic Star Trek reference, the warrior race of the Klingons have a warrior's creed: "Today is a good day to die!" Warriors want to fall in battle.
And Christians are no different. While we abide by Jesus' chastisement, we are warriors in spiritual battle "against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:12). In the following verses to the Ephesians, St. Paul outlines the Christian's armor. Only one piece is offensive: "the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God" (Ephesians 6:17).
As Christians, we live and die by the sword of the Spirit. While Jesus chastises the use of a physical sword, He prophesies that the Apostles and all those who follow after them--you and me--will live and die by the sword of God's Word. You and I might not be called by God to die, but you and I are called to be martyrs. Witnesses. We witness to Jesus and His Word. If that makes us unpopular, we take comfort that people didn't like Jesus either. They crucified Him. But by His death, we live. And we can die in peace.
The Klingon creed can be the Christian's as well: "Today is a good day to die" in Christ. Amen.
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