One of the most costly minerals today is the diamond, which develops in unique geological situations and in conditions of extreme heat. In the metallurgical industry, the smelting processes often involve the application of significant heat to ores in order to extract the desired metal and to remove waste material. The end product in each case is something more precious and/or more useful. 

Jesus says today the He has “come to bring fire to the earth.” He is alluding to the “consuming fire” of Deut 4:24; the “devouring fire” of Isaiah 33:14 and the “refiner’s fire” of Malachi 3:1-3.  Jesus here indicates that He is an agent both of judgment and sanctification.  Fire – symbol of judgment and symbol of the Holy Spirit, who always works with Jesus.

Jesus also indicates that He has a baptism to receive – clearly not a repetition of John’s baptism because Baptism can be received only once. He is not referring to Baptism in water. However, He is indicating the true meaning of water baptism, which is death and resurrection, as He prophesies His own passion, death and resurrection.

He knows the tremendous suffering which will precede His death, and so “great is my distress till it is over.”Jesus knows that He must be faithful to the word/call He has received. 

Jeremiah, writing 600 years before the birth of Jesus, also knows that he must be faithful to the word/call he has received. The nation of Israel has repeatedly proven unfaithful to Yahweh, by worshipping false gods, and by general disobedience. Israel rejects Yahweh’s repeated attempts to woo her. So Yahweh “abandons” Israel to exile.

Yahweh tells Jeremiah of his decision – Jeremiah tells the king that there is no point in trying to defend Jerusalem because Yahweh has sealed its fate. Surrender or be decimated!  

The leading men want to kill Jeremiah because “he is disheartening the soldiers. …He does not have the welfare of this people at heart...” But Jeremiah proclaims Yahweh’s judgment, despite the consequences.

 He too is “baptised” – but in a well from which he is eventually rescued. Many prophets were not so fortunate. Some were flogged, chained, stoned, sawn in half, beheaded (Heb 11:37-40), but they remained steadfast in the face of opposition of every kind. 

Jesus says today that He has come to bring “division”. This sounds ironical – the Prince of Peace has come to bring division? But his purpose here is to present a vision of a kingdom whose values contrast starkly with those of the world, and to enable people to decide where their loyalties lie. Once one truly encounters Jesus, one is forced to choose.

The resulting realignment of one’s life is not so much against one’s prior allegiances as a re-defining of all one’s allegiances towards Yahweh. Jesus clearly understands this, as is reflected in His rebuke of Peter in Mark 8:33. He makes his way “resolutely” to Jerusalem – the place where the prophets are killed.  He knows Jeremiah’s experiences.

But He also knows that peace will not come by compromising God’s word.
And so today the Church brings us face to face with the hard questions of our lives. The Book of Joshua enjoins on us a choice:

“Choose today whom you will serve . . .” Joshua gives his reply:  “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15).  The author of the Letter to the Hebrews suggests a host of models for our consideration – the “many witnesses in a great cloud on every side of us.”

In the Old Testament, the faith of our ancestors is cited in Hebrews 11:1, and on the New Testament side, there are the many saints whose lives we remember and celebrate in our liturgies. 

But of course, the model par excellence is Christ himself: “Let us not lose sight of Jesus” who “leads”,“brings”, “endured”, “disregarded”and“stood”so as to model the way to live a life in obedience to the will of God.

But what is God’s will for me here and now? The old catechism taught that God’s will is that I know Him, love Him, serve Him, and be happy with Him in this life and the next. 

And this as we work with Him, in community, day by day.  Jesus had a strong sense of his identity and mission. So must we. Let us not lose sight of Jesus, who knew his vocation and fulfilled it completely. Like Jesus we were baptised by water and the Spirit (fire). Let us live by the food of the will of God.

Lord, may zeal for your Father’s house consume us!  Amen.

Gospel Meditations for August are by Kenneth and Bernadette Phillips, catechists of St Joseph’s parish, Scarborough.