At first glance, the startling severity of Jesus' words unsettles our comfort. It jars our sensibilities and disrupts the smooth contours of our ordinary spiritual rhetoric. These are not gentle, reassuring sentiments.

Imagine a father building a fire pit behind his house—not just for warmth, but for memory-making. An altar of laughter, storytelling, and late-night lessons. He warns his children gently about the nature of flame: beautiful, yes, but unforgiving when mishandled. His cautions carry love, but to young ears, they feel abstract.