Not much on "bring a sword"

That’s because Jesus spoke a lot more about other subjects, most of which contradict the idea that he supported violence, including the passage you cited earlier:

“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person's enemies will be those of his own household”.

Was Jesus advocating fratricide?

Hardly.

Rather, the truth is a bit more radical….

Try acting like someone who takes Jesus’ words seriously, and you may find yourself ostracized by your own family.

Just imagine being a second century Roman citizen and coming home one day and announcing to your parents ( or spouse, or children) “Hey guys, I’ve decided to become a follower of Jesus.”

Of course, we see things now from a triumphalist perspective. Today, it’s as easy joining a church as it is the Rotary Club.

But there was a day when that was not true. And that is the world Jesus was speaking to with those words.

Peace,
Bill Z