Making Peace
“Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God” (Matthew 5:9).
What is a peacemaker? There is difference between peacemaker, and a peacekeeper. A peacekeeper wants to keep things quiet — a peacemaker is not as much concerned about quiet, as about ultimate peace. Blessed are the peacemakers.
Jesus was a peacemaker. In Romans 5:1 Paul said that we are justified by faith, and now “we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Jesus was, is, and will be, the greatest peacemaker this universe has ever seen. So when he says to us, Blessed are the peacemakers, he is saying, I want you to be like me.
If we look at the list of Beatitudes from Matthew 5:3 forward, we might see a random list of commendable qualities that we should develop and reflect. However, we suggest looking at this list in a slightly different way. We suggest that there are seven beatitudes, and seventh being “blessed are the peacemakers” — that the first six intend to lead us up to what is required to be a peacemaker — and the three statements following that, express what we might experience, in the effort.
In this case, being a peacemaker is the central theme of what our life in Christ is about. Jesus made peace. “He is our peace, who … hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us … so making peace” (Ephesians 2:14, 15).
THE FIRST SIX BEATITUDES
“Blessed are the poor in Spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” The first rung of successful peace making is humility. One cannot make peace without stepping outside of oneself, and this requires humility. As a peacemaker, the issue at hand is not you, not what you would like to be, not what you wish, not what you want to see. The issue is the unrest.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Mourning indicates a willingness to feel hurt. Those who mourn will feel comfort. Jesus wept; Jesus mourned. To be a successful peacemaker, we have to enter into the hurt, harm, and turmoil, of ourselves and others.
“Blessed are the gentle: for they shall inherit the earth.” Here Jesus tells us to use a gentle and meek spirit. Peacemakers approach life with gentleness, because they are looking for ways to solve the issues of life.
Blessed are the peacemakers
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” We should have an insatiable appetite for godliness and for righteousness. Real, true, bottom-line lasting peace, cannot happen without godliness. Any other basis will eventually fail.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.” You can see Jesus’ life in each of these beatitudes. Be like me, Jesus says. Let us emulate the mercy that Jesus showed to those around him. Mercy is a necessary feature of peace making.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” Purity of conduct and mind, purity of intent and purpose, should attend our every effort. We should have Godly intentions behind our actions. “Not my will, but thy will, be done.” For a true peacemaker to be successful, their objective must be utterly selfless, in order for the peace they seek to actually work.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Jesus is saying that he wants us to be like him. Jesus was a son of God. If we become peacemakers, we can become like him, a son of God.
CONSEQUENCES
See clearly, think righteously, and begin to act appropriately. This is not a common place to be. And to be a peacemaker, it is the power and Spirit of God that brings us to that level of ability.
Now, we see what happens. “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” You are not trying to pacify people, but problem solve. This effort is likely to bring persecution.
There is a world of difference between pacifying, and peacemaking. Jesus was the ultimate peacemaker because he solved the problem of sin in the world. We have been given the ministry of reconciliation, and will work with men in the future, to help finish solving that problem. But meantime, brethren, what do we have? We have us. And the application of being a peacemaker, absolutely, must apply here and now, among us. Not peacekeepers, but peacemakers.
“Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Being persecuted for righteousness sake — that is what Jesus lived with. He was persecuted for doing good, and being righteous.
In the latter part of his ministry, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. It was then that persecution came to him with stronger, more evil, and dark intentions. These were the final experiences — now his enemies determined to kill him. They had had enough. Why? Because he was a peacemaker. “That’s it, we have got to get rid of him.” The raising of Lazarus from the dead brought the forces of darkness together. They could not stop the power of the Gospel.
Jesus completes this portion of his lesson with one final comment, in Matthew 5:12. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
A peacekeeper wants to reduce conflict. A peacemaker wants to refocus the consciences of those involved. It is difficult work, it is often thankless work, but it is the core of the work that Jesus came to do. The scripture said, he was our peace between us and God (Ephesians 2:14). If we walk in his footsteps, we need to make peace also. In this world, peace making may not achieve great results.
Most of us, naturally, would rather not get involved. Just ignore it, and it will go away.
If we look at those who disagree with us on this, that, or the other thing, are we peacekeepers with them? If so, is that what we should really be doing? Peacemaking is more difficult, and it is riskier. But, we submit, being a peacemaker is what Jesus wants us to do.
Blessed are the peacemakers.
— Br. Rick Suraci