First Baptist Church Delray

Sermon Application Questions

February 1, 2026

Pastor Steve’s Message: “We Just Disagree”

Scripture: Luke 12:49-59 (ESV)

Review the Exegesis of the Scripture:

Read Luke 12:49–50

(Jesus said,) “I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled! I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished!”

1.     How is it that the Holy Spirit can be referred to as “fire?”

2.     What is the “baptism” that caused Jesus great distress?

Read Luke 12:51–53

(Jesus continued,) “Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three. 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.”

3.     What kind of peace did Jesus bring in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy in Isaiah 53:5:

But He was wounded for our transgressions he was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace – and with His stripes we are healed.

4.     How did Peter use the prophesy of Isaiah 53 to describe how we receive the peace Jesus offers?

He Himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

5.     When Jesus said that He did not come to give “peace on earth… but rather division” what was He indicating about the great divide between people who will receive His peace and people who won’t?

6.     How have you experienced the difference between the two kinds of people in this world, that is, worldly people and other-worldly people?

a.     Worldly people are offended that anyone would think they need the gift of salvation while other-worldly people grieve for those who reject it.

b.     Worldly people strive to be good enough and believe that are on course to be good enough. Other-worldly people know they can never be good enough and rejoice in the greatness of Jesus.

c.     Worldly people constantly defend and justify themselves. Other-worldly people rest in being justified by Jesus.

d.     Worldly people are relying on self-prescribed substances and activities to soothe their brokenness. Other-worldly people are healed from brokenness by Jesus.

e.     Worldly people always keep score. Other-worldly people know they have already won.

7.     How can it be that one person might recognize their separation from God and rejoice in the greatness of Jesus to provide the way to Him while their closest relation, such as their mother or their son, reject it?

8.     What is God’s instruction in Romans 12:18 about building bridges to people who have yet to come to know Jesus?

If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

9.     How does the Bible describe what is it about us that turns people off when we long to live like Jesus and cannot live like everyone else?

a.     For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death or death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. 2 Corinthians 2:15-16

b.     For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ. 2 Corinthians 2:17

c.     What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you.” 2 Corinthians 6:16–17

Read Luke 12:54–56

He (Jesus) also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, ‘A shower is coming.’ And so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and it happens. 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?”

10.  What would this illustration have meant to people who have lived their whole lives with the moisture of the Mediterranean Sea to their west and the high temperatures of Africa to their south?

11.  What was Jesus pointing out about why they weren’t easily repenting and turning to Him?

Read Luke 12:57–59

(Jesus continued,) “And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drag you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison. I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.”

12.  How did Jesus use this well-known scenario about the punishment for financial debt to get them to think about how they would stand before a holy God without payment for their sin?

13.  Does it even seem logical that people refuse the fire of the Holy Spirit knowing they are doomed?

Make Personal Applications of the Scripture:

14.  Evaluate your life compared to the worldly lives around you.

a.     Are there any differences?

b.     Is your life marked by turning and trusting? Failing to turn means failing to trust.

c.     Are you at war with Jesus or are you in His army?

d.     Have you received the gift of salvation?

e.     Does the fire need to be rekindled?

15.  If you turned from your sin and trusted in Christ’s atonement at some point in your life, how will you keep the flame alive?

For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 2 Timothy 1:6

16.  Do you have a co-worker, next-door neighbor, parents, a spouse, or children or who are worldly?

17.  Will you make a plan for how you are going to relate to each of the worldly people in your life, expecting to disagree?

a.     Recognize the division between you and worldly people in your worldview, lifestyle, attitude, dependence, and source of peace.

b.     Ruthlessly resist compromise, confident that fire always impacts what is around and that worldly people are starved for an other-worldly example.

c.     Prayerfully build a bridge of rescue, beginning by fasting and praying for them, and then resisting the urge to be judgmental, establishing a space where the relationship can exist, and always being ready to share the good news of Jesus Christ.