Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat

 

 And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."  

 

And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written much still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough."

 

- Luke 22:31–38 

 

Yesterday we read that there was also a dispute among the disciples, as to which of them should be considered the greatest.  And Jesus said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called 'benefactors.'  But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves.  For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves?  Is it not he who sits at the table?  Yet I am among you as the One who serves.  "But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials.  And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

 

  And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."   My study Bible tells us that when Jesus says, "Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat," the form of you in Greek is plural, indicating that Satan has asks for all the disciples.  But when He says, "But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren," the form of you used in this verse is singular, meaning that Jesus prays especially for Simon Peter.  My study Bible explains that because Peter's faith was the strongest, he would be tested the most.  Regarding Christ's words to St. Peter, "When you have returned to Me," see John 21:15-17.  "Strengthen your brethren" refers not only to the other disciples, but even to all the faithful until Christ returns.  

 

 And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written much still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough."  My study Bible comments here that the sword is not to be understood literally (compare to verses 49-51), but refers to the living word of God in the battle against sin (Ephesians 6:17; Hebrews 4:12).  There is an additional meaning added by St. Ambrose of Milan, who says that giving up one's garment and buying a sword represents surrendering the body to the sword of martyrdom.  Because the disciples were thinking literally of swords, Jesus ends the discussion abruptly, with the words, "It is enough," or better translated, "Enough of this!" (see Deuteronomy 3:26; Mark 14:41).  Jesus quotes from Isaiah 53:12.

 

In today's reading, Jesus gives the disciples a sort of preview of the life to come as we await His return, even the life that we live today until the end of the age when He will judge in the fullness of the Resurrection.   For we do have still Satan at work in the world, seeking to sift as wheat those who love God.  This is why Jesus begins to prepare the disciples for the persecutions and difficulties and tribulations to come.  It is why we still need to be aware of spiritual battle, and to put on, in the words of St. Paul, "the whole armor of God" (see Ephesians 6:10-18 for St. Paul's full description of what that is).  We may wonder why, if Satan is indeed defeated, as Jesus has indicated (Luke 10:18), believers continue to do battle "against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:12).  It is St. Peter himself who writes of this time that we await Christ's return and Judgment, "But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.  The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:8-9; see also Psalm 90:4).  But certainly throughout this age in which we await Christ's return, our own participation in this spiritual battle as faithful is important in the sight of God, for otherwise it would not have been so to start with.  What we can conclude is that God's love for us is so strong that, although of course God needs nothing from us, we are invited in to this "good fight" as St. Paul calls it in 2 Timothy 4:7.  Just as God works through God's holy angels, so God also invites us, those faithful who struggle in this way, to be a part of God's "forces" and works in the world.  For we human beings, God's creatures as are the angels, are those whom God would also like to work through and share His power and authority with, as indicated in so many places in the Gospels, and throughout the Scriptures.  Repeatedly we are told that we, also, may become "sons of God" by adoption, a phrase which indeed is also used for the spiritual beings, the angels of all ranks, who serve God.  In John 10:34, Jesus replies to the religious leaders, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods" '?"  He quotes from Psalm 82:6.  These "gods" also refer to angelic beings, God speaking to human beings and our own capacity to become like angels as Christ tells the Sadducees in describing the Resurrection (see Luke 20:35-36).  It is this process, playing out in this world and in this age as we await His return, into which we are all born with Christ's words in today's reading to His disciples.  Ultimately, as Jesus indicates to Peter, this is a battle for faith.  So let us be prepared, and take up His charge and commission to follow Him in the way we are taught, and knowing the spiritual landscape into which we go forward.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one

 

 And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."  

And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough."

 

- Luke 22:31–38 

 

Yesterday we read that when the hour had come to eat their Passover, Jesus sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him.  Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God."  Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, "Take this and divide it among yourselves; for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."  And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."  Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.  But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table.  And truly the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!"  Then they began to question among themselves, which of them it was who would do this thing.  Now there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest.  And He said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called 'benefactors.'  But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves.  For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves?  Is it not he who sits at the table?  Yet I am among you as the One who serves.  But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials.  And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

 

 And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."   My study Bible tells us that the form of you is plural here (in "Satan has asked for you"), indicating that Satan has asked for all of the disciples.  But the you in "I have prayed for you" is singular, indicating that Jesus prayed especially for Simon Peter.  My study Bible remarks that because Peter's faith was the strongest, he would be tested the most.  This we can see by the words "when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."   Strengthen your brethren refers not just to the other disciples, but to all the faithful until Christ returns.  See John 21:15-17.

 

 And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough."  My study Bible comments that the sword (in "he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one") is not to be understood literally (compare to verses 22:49-51), but rather it refers to the living word of God in the battle against sin (Ephesians 6:17; Hebrews 4:12).  St. Ambrose adds another meaning in his commentary:  that to give up one's garment and buy a sword is a reference to surrendering the body to the sword of martyrdom.  Because the disciples were thinking of swords literally, Jesus ends the discussion with an abrupt, "It is enough."  My study Bible comments that this phrase is better translated, "Enough of this!" (see Deuteronomy 3:26; Mark 14:41).  Jesus quotes from the prophesy of Isaiah 53:12.

 

 It is in this time of betrayal, which Jesus warned about in yesterday's reading (see above), that Jesus teaches the disciples, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end." The time of His public ministry has effectively reached the end, and it is an end that is prophesied by Isaiah, "He was numbered with the transgressors."  Jesus is going to be characterized as a criminal and put to death.  But this warning to the disciples is a warning that they must now take heed in ways that they did not before.  They must prepare for persecution, for this is the beginning of the "end times" which Jesus has recently prophesied to them Himself (see the readings from Luke 21:5-36).   The persecutions which He foretold for the Church begin with Him, and so His warning about being prepared for long travel (with a money bag and knapsack), and taking the sword as in going into battle, become the context of the future missions for these apostles.  Their lives, and the life of the Church, will not be the same.  The sword, of course, is that spiritual sword of truth which my study Bible reminds us is the living word of God in the battle against sin (Ephesians 6:17; Hebrews 4:12).  These are the preparations for the mission of the future, after Christ's Ascension, when the Church begins its life and ever-expanding mission in the world.  Therefore, if we as Christ's followers find that in some ways our lives also bear the hallmarks of needing to be prepared for our own missions as faithful, waging our own spiritual battles, clinging firmly to a truth for which we may face difficulties and persecutions, then we should not be surprised that our lives might be characterized that way.  For, as we quoted from Jesus in yesterday's reading and commentary, "a disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master" (Matthew 10:24).  In keeping with the literal travels these apostles would make across the world to spread the gospel and found the Church, we read in Christ's language the language of travel, and in particular, of the road.  In this context, let us consider Christ's words, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6).  For the word translated as "way" into English is one commonly used in Greek for "road."  We take up money bag and knapsack, and that sword of the gospel message and His truth not simply to go out and make converts in the world, but rather so that we live as He has taught us is our nature as His followers and those who participate in His community and call ourselves by His name, as "Christians."  For this is really the life He teaches us, that our sword is the sword of His truth, our treasure is that which anchors the Kingdom in this world, our knapsack is what we take with us so that we remember that ultimately we belong to Him and not to the world.  If we can remember where our true treasure is, and upon whom we ultimately rely for the truly blessed life, then we are following Him as He has asked, and we are remembering who we are and what we need to be about.  When the road gets tough, when we are not accepted, or when we struggle with our own beliefs and choices in a confusing and conflicted world, then we should remember precisely these words that He teaches, and expect that this is what He taught us our lives would be like as His followers.  For we "work out our salvation" as we go along His road, and that challenge is always with us.  Let us remember the light we are to follow as we come closer to the commemoration of His birth.

 

For the things concerning Me have an end

 

 And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."

And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough."

 

- Luke 22:31–38 

 

Yesterday we read that when the hour had come to eat the Passover, Jesus sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him.  Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God."  Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, "Take this and divide it among yourselves; for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."  And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."  Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.  But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table.  And truly the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!"  Then they began to question among themselves, which of them it was who would do this thing.  Now there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest.  And He said to them, "The kings of Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called 'benefactors.'  But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves.  For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves?  Is it not he who sits at the table?  Yet I am among you as the One who serves.  But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials.  And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may eat and drink My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

 

  And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."  In the first two verses here, my study bible notes for us that the form of the word "you" changes.  In the first verse, in which Jesus says that Satan has asked for you, "you" is plural.  This means that Jesus is saying "Satan has asked for" all the disciples.  But the "you" in the next verse, when Jesus says, "I have prayed for you" is singular, meaning that Jesus has prayed especially for Simon Peter.  A note says that because Peter's faith was the strongest, he would be tested the most.  Regarding what Jesus refers to when He tells Peter "when you have returned to Me," see John 21:15-17.  "Strengthen your brethren" refers not simply to the other disciples, but to all the faithful until Christ returns.  Christ's prophecy regarding the rooster's crow will manifest after His arrest (Luke 22:54-62).  

And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough."  My study bible says that the sword which Christ mentions is not to be understood literally (compare to vv. 49-51), but rather refers to the living word of God in the battle against sin (Ephesians 6:17; Hebrews 4:12).  St. Ambrose gives us an additional meaning:  to give up one's garment and buy a sword is a reference to surrendering the body to the sword of martyrdom.  As the disciples were thinking literally of swords, Jesus abruptly ends this discussion by saying, "It is enough," which is better translated, "Enough of this!"  (see Deuteronomy 3:26, Mark 14:41).  

Jesus warns the disciples, yet one more time, of what is to come.  He tells them, "the things concerning me have an end," letting them know again what is coming by quoting from the prophesy of Isaiah:  "And He was numbered with the transgressors" (Isaiah 53:12).  Jesus will be taken as a criminal and sentenced to the death penalty reserved for the worst criminals in the Roman Empire.  He will be hung on a Cross, carry a curse in His own people's eyes, and His movement will be subject to hostility and persecution.  It's easily possible to believe that this is what He was referring to in telling the disciples that they must now carry moneybag, knapsack, and sword -- as these are images of those who will be traveling and must prepare themselves for travel in places among those hostile to them, and unwelcoming.  He may also be preparing them for the time that begins here with the Passion, with His Crucifixion, death, Resurrection, and Ascension, the "end time" which is the epoch we have been in since that time.  For this is a time in which judgment is being facilitated through the work of the Holy Spirit and the word of the Gospel.  We are in a time which is essentially one of testing for all people, and indeed, we might even call it a time of the sword in a symbolic sense.  That is because the word of God itself is understood as such.  St. Paul writes, "For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12).  Revelation describes "one like the Son of Man" in metaphorical imagery:  "He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength" (Revelation 1:16).  This sharp two-edged sword coming out of His mouth is clearly the word of God, the same thing to which St. Paul is referring in similar language.  That "two-edged sword" is one of judgment, because it is how we fall upon that word, so to speak, that determines where we are.  Do we embrace its truth?  Or do we cut against that sharp side?  Like St. Paul says, it pierces even to the division of soul and spirit . . . and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.  This is the language of God's judgment, of that "one like the Son of Man," for it is the Son of Man who will judge, based upon His capacity for discernment and understanding and the knowledge of our hearts, and depending upon how we all respond to that word and to the work of the Spirit in the world in this age, this time of the end.  It is this age in which we live, and have lived during the entirety of the period of the Church.  We must consider Christ's words to the disciples, as they are the ones who will be sent out as His apostles on all the roads of the Roman Empire and into the known world and beyond, bringing the word of God as they travel among strangers and those who will persecute them, sowing the seeds of that word.  As we go about our lives today, some of us know Christians who face persecution even in those lands where Christianity first took root.  Let us consider the powerful words of warning that Christ tells the disciples, and remember also the metaphorical meaning of this sword of truth, and consider how we will respond today.  The apostles responded through evangelization, and our mission remains the same, with the same warnings, and following the same Son of Man for whom "the things concerning Me have an end."  Each of us, in our own way, must follow along that road, and take up that same sword of truth.

Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren

 And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."

And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough." 

- Luke 22:31-38

 Yesterday, we read that at the Last Supper, after Jesus instituted the Eucharist, there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest.  And He said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called 'benefactors.'  But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves.  For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves?  Is it not he who sits at the table?  Yet I am among you as the One who serves.  But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials.  And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."   When Jesus says, "Satan has asked for you," this you is in the plural form, meaning that Satan has asked for all the disciples.  In the next verse, in Jesus' statement, "I have prayed for you," you is in the singular -- meaning that Jesus has prayed especially for Simon Peter.  Because Simon Peter's faith was the strongest, my study bible says, he would be tested the most.  "When you have returned to Me" -- see John 21:15-17.   That Peter is told, "Strengthen your brethren," refers not just to the other disciples, but rather to all the faithful until Christ's return.

And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough."  My study bible says that Jesus' mention of a sword is not meant to be understood literally.  It refers, it says, to the living word of God in the battle against sin (Ephesians 6:17, Hebrews 4:12).  St. Ambrose gives us yet another meaning:  that to give up one's garment and buy a sword refers to surrendering the body to the sword of martyrdom.  Because, as with so many passages in the Gospels, the disciples misunderstand -- interpreting the words literally and beginning to speak of swords, Jesus abruptly ends the discussion.  "It is enough" is better translated as "Enough of this!" or "That's enough!"  (see Deuteronomy 3:26, Mark 14:41). 

In Jesus' words there is a sense conveyed to the disciples of imminent danger.  He warns them all that "Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat."   He tells them that now, in contrast to the time they were sent out on their first mission, "he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."    Jesus quotes from the prophesy of Isaiah 53:12 -- "Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong, because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."  Jesus becomes One who is numbered with the transgressors, an enemy of the state and of the people.  But in so doing, He also becomes intercessor for all those seen in the same light, the outcasts, the transgressors.  Since "a disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher" (6:40) and "If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you" (John 15:18), then Jesus is now teaching them about the time that is at hand, the time of the initiation of the present age, in which conflict becomes the norm.  Persecution and hatred are all a part of the work of the judgment.  To stand up for the truth -- to use that sword of which He speaks -- is also to encounter hatred and dissension and betrayal.  He warns the disciples several times in various places in the Gospels that this is the reality that is now theirs, the time that has come to be and will be initiated through His Passion, death, and Resurrection.  We, as followers of Christ, can take His words to heart that He tells to Peter:  "Strengthen your brethren."  This is the call to those of faith; we must help one another to remain strong in the ways He has taught, in the things He has taught us.  We must help one another as disciples, and we shore up that Kingdom that is both within us and among us.  It's not that we can, of ourselves, withstand all the assaults both spiritual and worldly that will come to test us.  But we can help one another.   At the very end of John's Gospel, Jesus tells Peter, "Feed My lambs."  Repeatedly asking him, "Do you love Me?" the answer comes from Christ:  if we love Him, we will feed His lambs, feed His sheep.  And that is what we can do through all things.  We must seek to feed one another with the good things of faith, to strengthen one another in love and joy and peace and truth.   This is the word He gives us as faithful, and it is what we must do for Him and for one another if we love Him.