Well, I kinda thought that myself actually.....LDS beliefs are so non-biblical IMO, that a man covered in tattoos with long hair (both condemned in the scriptures) is not going to tell me anything about a book that he does not see as the unique word of God.
Jesus used the “sword” to ‘cut through’ the teachings of the Pharisees.....and with no apology. He roundly condemned them as a body because they were not upholding the teachings of Moses in a right way.....they had distorted many things by adding their own definitions and interpretations of God’s word. Jesus came and told the truth...unashamedly exposing the lies.
How will people make informed decisions if they cannot examine all aspects of the faith? Jesus said that “the truth would set us free” so let’s hear it! We will respond to what resonates with us...but we need to hear it from all sides before we make a decision....even from this guy.
No one has anything to fear from the truth....the “sword” cuts where it strikes....at the conscience. It divides people as it is designed to do....as Jesus said....
“34 Do not think I came to bring peace to the earth; I came to bring, not peace, but a sword. 35 For I came to cause division, with a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 Indeed, a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.” (Matthew 10:34-36)
This is how far the divisions can go....the sword was a divider of hearts which are the soils for the seeds of truth to be implanted.....only the fine soil will germinate and nurture that seed.
It isn't the pharisees only. In the gospels is the idea that Jesus will be spoken against, and this will reveal what people think and further that when he is justified this will turn hearts, as people realize they have misjudged him. Even his own mother will be cut by the sword, which is to say she will have to choose, too. She will discover that she has misjudged her son.
[Luk 2:34-35 NIV] 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."
At the same time Jesus has one of his twelve apostles carry a sword, but this is not the same as the sword. The physical sword is part of the sign that will be spoken against, as Jesus imitates Israel's part of being numbered with the transgressors (Isaiah 53:12) Being numbered with the transgressors is the job of any martyr including Christian martyrs. To stand up for something and to be accused of being evil, that is the martyr's job and the means of bearing sins of others. 1Peter talks about we can bear the sins of others by doing so. It expands upon the words from Isaiah 53.
The division begins when Jesus is numbered as a transgressor, not merely by carrying a sword but also by being accused of evil. This happens on levels. He's accused by the priests. He's accused of being a human also, and therefore worthy of Adam's death. He also has the sword which is merely a prophet symbol. He is thought evil and is killed but then is proven justified by his resurrection -- or perhaps on some level by people realizing he did no wrong. God answers his prayer, saving him from death, proving he is an innocent. This is the model of how other martyrs also function. They hold up under steady fire, and when people realize the martyr isn't evil but is doing good that changes hearts, sometimes after the martyr is dead. People believe. So the 'Sword' isn't killing though it is revealing. It is for benefit and not harm. Some do not repent, and some don't ever realize that the martyr is innocent.
[1Pe 1:7 NIV] 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith--of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire--may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
[1Pe 2:12 NIV] 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
[1Pe 3:13-14, 17-18 NIV] 13 Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened." ... 17 For it is better, if it is God's will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit.
[1Pe 4:12,16 NIV] 12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. ... 16 However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.
This I think is the sword that divides. It is analogous to Solomon's sword challenge where he pretends he'll half the baby. Instead he reveals the hearts. The sword separates, reveals, exposes; but there must be martyrs for this to happen. You must become a martyr, then people realize you aren't merely pretending, and in this you can bear their sins.
