What that particular verse means to me is that Jesus himself created dissent by challenging religious hypocrites, people who ostracized the strangers--like Samaritans, the proud who bragged about their own religiosity while condemning others.
He never carried a weapon. His sword were his incisive words that laid bare the moral deficiencies of the legalistic and the proud.
That's not that far off from what I believe he is saying.
So let's apply that to this situation. Here we have an athlete that was invited to give a commencement speech that none of us would have ever heard had the media not decided that it was an outrage that he dared to utter the word "homemaker". Some people disagree with him, and that's perfectly fine. I didn't agree with everything he said, but let me tell you what I (and likely the majority of the audience that gave him a standing ovation) heard.
What I heard was that for the vast majority of women (and men), you will not find the same fulfillment in a career as you do in the family that you build. Butker alluded to this regarding men when he said, "She's [Butker's wife] the one that ensures I never let football or my business become a distraction from that of a husband and father." In other words, I don't believe that he was saying that women shouldn't work. In fact, he led his comments to women by saying, "Ladies present today, congratulations on an amazing accomplishment. You should be proud of all that you have achieved to this point in your young lives. I want to speak directly to you briefly, because I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you. How many of you are sitting here now, about to cross this stage, and are thinking about all the promotions and titles you are going to get in your career?"
You see, what I believe Butker was trying to say, albeit not in the best way, is that it's OK to find fulfillment in your family. Not that women can't (or shouldn't) lead successful careers, but that the core family values of the church are where you generally find the most fulfillment for both men and women. The "diabolical lie" that I believe he is referencing is the idea that the title of "homemaker" is a somehow lesser title than CEO. A sentiment worthy of a standing ovation.
Simply by stating these thoughts and ideas publicly, division was created.
Jesus made it clear that he did not come to bring unity, and the idea that we can somehow have unity with the world is
completely contrary to scripture. We are
in this world, but we are not
of it. And when we dare to speak what we believe boldly, you can rest assured that even those in your own family will turn against you. That is what I believe Jesus is saying here.
