“I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!” ~Luke 12:49

The teens in my West Brothers series of contemporary Catholic YA fiction call their youth group Fire Starters. This verse in Luke’s gospel inspires them, along with the powerful experience at the end of the first book in the series, Roland West Loner. Having witnessed the grace of God, these teens want the fire of Christ’s love to burn in their hearts. They want to be instrumental in sharing it with others, intentionally doing their part to set the world on fire with the love of God.

But what does this verse really mean?

When my husband was a teen, he went camping with friends. It rained the day before and they couldn’t get their campfire started. So one of his friends grabbed the charcoal lighter fluid. Yeah, not a good idea. Maybe you already know where I’m going with this. Fire can spread quickly. The can of lighter fluid caught fire too and my husband’s friend took off, leaving a trail of fire following after him until he finally dropped the can. Fortunately, the grass was wet or who knows what havoc he could’ve started.

 

Jesus uses the metaphor of fire.

He came to cast a fire on the earth. Let’s continue to think about what He means by that. Fire is useful. We need it for cooking and staying warm. But when Jesus says He’s come to cast a fire on the earth, that sounds bigger. That sounds like a forest fire, to say the least, maybe even something we would consider a natural disaster. Fires like that consume everything in their path, burning acres of land in mere minutes. They clear from four to five million acres of land in the US every year.

“I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!”  ~Luke 12:49

The verses that follow are a bit shocking too.

“There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three; a father will be divided against his son and a son against his father, a mother against her daughter and a daughter against her mother, a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law” ~Lk 12:50-53.

At first glance, it seems like Jesus doesn’t want peace.

It almost sounds like He even wants our families divided. But we read elsewhere in the Bible just how important families are in the plan of God. In fact, they are a model of the Blessed Trinity (the eternal Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). And we know that God wants us to live in peace. Psalm 133:1 says, “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!”

So what is this division that Jesus is talking about?

What is this fire that Jesus is talking about? It sounds destructive, like a forest fire.

No one likes a forest fire, especially if homes and people are threatened, but did you know that they are important to nature?

A forest fire returns nutrients to the soil; they disinfect the land, removing disease-ridden plants and harmful insects, and they get rid of the thick canopies and bushy undergrowth, allowing sunlight to reach the forest floor—and allowing a new generation of seedlings to grow. So the fire gets rid of the old, disease-ridden plants and whatever blocks the sun from the forest floor, and it allows the new to grow.

When you take an honest look at our culture today, what do you see?

Riots, murder, abortion, destruction of communities; pornography is on the rise, taking its toll on young people, marriages, and families; sex trafficking, drug addictions, violent crime . . . The persecution of Christians surpasses numbers of previous generations.

Even in our own lives, how attentive are we to the will of God?

Do we keep the Commandments? Do we pray as we ought? Do we think of God even once a day? Do we waste too much time entertaining ourselves, rather than seeking God’s will? What bad habits have we allowed to sneak in? What virtues do we need to work on?

Here is an Examination of Conscience for Kids.

The fire that Jesus longs for is a refining and purifying fire.

This fire has consequences. It is meant to purify and refine our lives, just as fire is used to purify silver and gold. It is meant to consume all that would lead us away from God’s loving and perfect plan for our lives. It empowers us to become those new creations that Paul wrote about in 2 Corinthians “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away, behold, the new has come.” This fire changes us into the image of Jesus Christ and shines through us into the darkness of the world. This fire is meant to spread rapidly through our families and our culture. And sometimes it does bring division, but hopefully it will also reunite families anew in Him. This fire is meant to draw us into a participation in Jesus’ Divine life and mission.

But the message of Jesus is not always met with openness.

Many reject it. Maybe it sounds too boring. Maybe it sounds too hard; we have to change too much or give up too much. Maybe it sounds painful; we would have to risk ending certain relationships or turning friends and even family members against us. We want to be liked and accepted by others; we want peace in our relationships. God wants these things for us, too, but above those things He wants us to be truly happy. And He is the greatest happiness we could ever know. So He wants us to know, love, and serve Him in this world so we can be happy with Him forever in eternal life.

He doesn’t want us to make it into heaven—or purgatory—by the skin of our teeth.

He wants our hearts on fire with the flame of love that burns in His heart, that flame that burned in the hearts of the saints. He wants that flame to burn in my heart and in yours. He longs for it.

We admire the saints, and many stand out to us because of the radical way they lived the Gospel.

The saints went “all in” for God, holding nothing back. And that really appeals to us. We love the story of Saint Francis giving up everything, even the clothes on his back. Of Saint Catherine of Siena promising herself to Jesus alone at a young age and letting no one change her mind. This young saint even spoke up courageously to kings, clergy, and popes. All the saints provide role models. None of them were dissuaded by their family members and friends who didn’t understand. They went all in for God.

I love writing for teens because they can really identify with going all in for something.

Teens seem to have a unique ability to give themselves wholly to someone or something. In fact, at that age, we long for something that will give meaning to our lives. God placed that longing in our hearts. We recognize, even without fully understanding it, that we were made to be wholly given over to something, or someone. We were made for God. We were made for the Almighty One, the Creator of the universe, Who lives outside of time, Who knows all things and Who can do all things. He alone can fulfill the longings of our hearts. Everyone in the world senses this, even when they don’t fully understand it.

Maybe it’s why many end up addicted to or obsessed with one thing or another.

If the focus isn’t on God and His will for our lives, chances are it isn’t healthy and it can lead to our own destruction. But even addicts are searching and sensing that need to go all in.

This is one reason it’s so important that we go all in for God.

It’s so important that we let the flame of His love burn in our hearts. Jesus longs for that fire in our hearts that can set the world on fire. Saint Catherine of Siena once said, “Be who you were made to be, and you will set the world on fire.”

Let’s go to the upper room now, in the days after Jesus ascended into heaven.

The Apostles and the Blessed Mother were gathered there, praying for nine days for the coming of the promised Holy Spirit. And on the ninth day, how does Scripture say that He came?

“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.  And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.  And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them.  And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit …” (Acts 2:1-4).

John the Baptist foretold two of the three Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism and Confirmation).

John the Baptist said, “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” ~Matt 3:11

The Holy Spirit came on Pentecost Sunday as tongues of fire.

The Holy Spirit comes to us in Confirmation in much the same way, even though we don’t see the tongues of fire. We first received the Holy Spirit in Baptism, and we also received an indelible character—a permanent mark on our souls—just as we do in Confirmation.

So how are these sacraments different?

To understand the differences, look at the outward signs of the sacraments. The water used in Baptism signifies the washing away of original sin, re-birth as children of God, and fruitfulness of life given by the Holy Spirit. The oil used in Confirmation signifies healing, strength, consecration, and the anointing of the Holy Spirit. The Confirmed Catholic is set apart for a special purpose within the Church.

Confirmation kindles a fire in us from the spark received in Baptism.

The sacrament of Confirmation strengthens the supernatural life received in Baptism. It increases sanctifying grace, and the Holy Spirit deepens His gifts within us. He gives us the power to live our faith boldly, to resist evil, to become more Christlike, and to witness to Christ in the world.

Fire symbolizes His transforming love.

And just like a forest fire, the fire of Jesus’ love is meant to spread. Christ instituted this sacrament so that His followers would witness to Him, to His love and His bride the Church, even to the ends of the earth.

Confirmation is the sacrament of witnessing to Christ in the Church and in the world.

You probably learned in Confirmation class, or you will learn, that the Greek term for witness is martyr. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit on Pentecost Sunday to enable His disciples to be His martyrs until the end of time. Confirmation makes us fire starters.

We are Christians. We belong to God. We are set apart from the rest of the world and called to be that light that shines in the darkness around us. It is our responsibility while on this earth—no, it is our privilege—to come to know, love and serve our amazing God, our Lord and Savior. We want God’s fire burning in our heart, the flame of His love which instills a longing in us to spread this fire.

This article originally appeared on Amazing Catechists on March 15, 2025.