Embracing Our Call as Peacemakers in Christ

 

Summary

In today's reflection on Matthew 5:9, we delve into the profound calling to be peacemakers, as Jesus declared, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God." In a world rife with conflict, we are called to reflect God's glory by being agents of peace. This begins with having peace within ourselves, which stems from a pure heart. God, the ultimate peacemaker, exemplifies peace through the unity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and through the sacrificial act of Jesus on the cross. As His children, we are to mirror His approach to peace, which involves not standing on our rights, moving towards trouble, and loving before being loved in return.

To be effective peacemakers, we must adopt practical tactics. First, we must recognize and acknowledge problems rather than avoiding conflict. Avoidance only postpones and potentially worsens conflicts. Second, we should address conflicts early, as the beginning of strife is like a trickle of water that can become a flood if left unchecked. Third, practicing restraint, especially with our words, is crucial. The culture idolizes self-expression, but true peacemakers know when to hold back. Fourth, we must prepare for a long journey, as peacemaking is often a process, not an event. Lastly, taking a single step towards peace, even a small act of kindness, can initiate the journey towards reconciliation.

Peacemaking requires humility, not humiliation. Jesus, our ultimate example, approached us with humility, not by asserting His rights but by winning us over with love. When wronged, we must trust the injustice to God, following Jesus' example of not retaliating but entrusting Himself to God. Prayer, sharing the gospel, and cherishing peace wherever we find it are also vital components of peacemaking. As we strive to be peacemakers, we reflect the heart of God, who relentlessly seeks peace with us.

Key Takeaways:

1. Reflecting God's Peace: To be a peacemaker, one must first have peace within, which comes from a pure heart. This inner peace enables us to reflect God's glory and be agents of peace in a conflicted world. [00:35]

2. God's Approach to Peace: God, the ultimate peacemaker, did not stand on His rights but moved towards the problem of sin, exemplifying love before being loved. We are called to mirror this approach in our peacemaking efforts. [02:20]

3. Practical Peacemaking Tactics: Recognizing problems, addressing conflicts early, practicing restraint, preparing for a long journey, and taking small steps towards peace are essential tactics for effective peacemaking. [06:22]

4. Humility in Peacemaking: True peacemaking involves humility, not humiliation. Jesus' approach was marked by humility, winning us over with love rather than asserting His rights. We are called to emulate this in our relationships. [27:20]

5. Trusting God with Injustice: When wronged, we must trust the injustice to God, following Jesus' example of not retaliating but entrusting Himself to God. This trust allows us to pursue peace without seeking personal vindication. [34:41]

Youtube Chapters:

- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:14] - Introduction to Peacemaking
- [00:35] - Inner Peace and Purity of Heart
- [01:07] - God as the Ultimate Peacemaker
- [02:20] - Giving Up Rights for Peace
- [03:13] - Moving Towards Trouble
- [04:00] - Loving Before Being Loved
- [05:28] - Broad Strategies to Practical Tactics
- [06:22] - Recognizing Problems
- [09:46] - Dealing with Conflict Early
- [13:17] - Practicing Restraint
- [17:48] - Preparing for a Long Journey
- [23:22] - Taking Steps Towards Peace
- [27:20] - Humility in Peacemaking
- [34:41] - Trusting God with Injustice
- [42:03] - Praying and Sharing the Gospel of Peace
- [43:16] - Cherishing Peace

Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide: Peacemakers

Bible Reading:
- Matthew 5:9
- Philippians 2:8
- 1 Peter 2:19-23

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Observation Questions:

1. According to the sermon, what is the connection between having peace within oneself and being a peacemaker? [00:35]

2. How does the sermon describe God's approach to making peace, and what are the key actions He took? [01:07]

3. What are the practical tactics mentioned in the sermon for effective peacemaking? [06:22]

4. How does the sermon illustrate the importance of addressing conflicts early, using the analogy of water? [09:46]

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Interpretation Questions:

1. What does it mean to reflect God's glory as a peacemaker, and how does this relate to having a pure heart? [00:35]

2. How does the sermon suggest that giving up one's rights is foundational to peacemaking, and what example does it use to illustrate this? [02:20]

3. In what ways does the sermon suggest that humility, rather than humiliation, is essential in peacemaking? [27:20]

4. How does the sermon explain the role of trusting God with injustice in the process of peacemaking? [34:41]

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Application Questions:

1. Reflect on a current conflict in your life. What is one small step you can take this week to move towards peace, as suggested in the sermon? [23:22]

2. Consider a situation where you feel wronged. How can you entrust this injustice to God, following Jesus' example? [34:41]

3. Identify an area in your life where you might be standing on your rights. How can you practice giving up these rights to promote peace? [02:20]

4. Think of a relationship where you have been avoiding conflict. What practical step can you take to address the issue early, as advised in the sermon? [09:46]

5. In what ways can you practice restraint, especially with your words, in a challenging relationship this week? [13:17]

6. How can you incorporate prayer for peace into your daily routine, particularly in situations of conflict? [42:03]

7. Reflect on a time when you were humbled rather than humiliated in a conflict. How can you aim for humility in future peacemaking efforts? [27:20]

Devotional

Day 1: Inner Peace as a Reflection of God's Glory
To be a peacemaker, one must first cultivate inner peace, which is rooted in a pure heart. This inner peace is essential for reflecting God's glory and becoming an agent of peace in a world filled with conflict. The journey towards inner peace begins with self-examination and a commitment to purity of heart, allowing God's presence to transform us from within. As we align our hearts with God's will, we become vessels of His peace, capable of influencing the world around us. [00:35]

"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful." (Colossians 3:15, ESV)

Reflection: What steps can you take today to cultivate a pure heart and experience God's peace within you?


Day 2: Emulating God's Approach to Peace
God, the ultimate peacemaker, exemplifies peace by not standing on His rights but moving towards the problem of sin with love. This divine approach to peace is characterized by selflessness and a willingness to love before being loved in return. As followers of Christ, we are called to mirror this approach in our peacemaking efforts, prioritizing love and reconciliation over personal rights and grievances. By doing so, we reflect God's heart and contribute to healing and unity in our relationships and communities. [02:20]

"Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." (Romans 12:21, ESV)

Reflection: In what ways can you move towards a conflict in your life with love and selflessness, rather than standing on your rights?


Day 3: Practical Tactics for Effective Peacemaking
Effective peacemaking requires practical tactics, such as recognizing problems, addressing conflicts early, practicing restraint, and preparing for a long journey. By acknowledging issues rather than avoiding them, we prevent conflicts from escalating. Practicing restraint, especially with our words, is crucial in a culture that idolizes self-expression. Peacemaking is often a process, not an event, and taking small steps towards peace can initiate the journey towards reconciliation. [06:22]

"Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding." (Proverbs 17:27, ESV)

Reflection: What is one small step you can take today to address a conflict in your life and move towards peace?


Day 4: Humility in Peacemaking
True peacemaking involves humility, not humiliation. Jesus, our ultimate example, approached us with humility, winning us over with love rather than asserting His rights. As we engage in peacemaking, we are called to emulate this humility in our relationships, prioritizing love and understanding over pride and self-assertion. By doing so, we create an environment where reconciliation and healing can flourish, reflecting the heart of God in our interactions with others. [27:20]

"Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves." (Philippians 2:3, ESV)

Reflection: How can you practice humility in a specific relationship or situation today, prioritizing love and understanding over pride?


Day 5: Trusting God with Injustice
When wronged, we must trust the injustice to God, following Jesus' example of not retaliating but entrusting Himself to God. This trust allows us to pursue peace without seeking personal vindication, knowing that God is the ultimate judge and will bring justice in His time. By releasing our need for revenge and trusting God with our hurts, we free ourselves to focus on peacemaking and reconciliation, reflecting God's heart in our actions. [34:41]

"Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.'" (Romans 12:19, ESV)

Reflection: Is there an area of your life where you need to release your desire for revenge and trust God with the injustice? How can you begin to do that today?

Quotes



Blessed are the peacemakers says our Lord Jesus for they shall be called the sons of God we began last week to look at this and to see that in a world of conflict God calls us as children to reflect his glory by being agents of peace and we saw that a peacemaker is a person who has peace in him or herself and therefore is able to bring it to others. [00:14:42]

Peacemakers who reflect the glory of God do not stand on their rights that being prepared to give up your rights is really foundational to all effective peacemaking Christ was in the form of God and it was his right to enjoy an unbroken uninterrupted heavenly joy for all eternity but he gave up that right and why did he do that he came into the world and why did he do that in order to make peace. [00:33:59]

True peacemakers move towards the trouble and I don't know if you're like me at all but just my natural instinct is always one of those trouble my instinct is I want to withdraw from it and you may feel that that's in your nature as well but peace can never be made by moving backwards away from a problem and and when the world is in rebellion against God what does God do he moves towards the problem. [00:47:40]

To be a peacemaker reflecting how God does this involves loving before we are loved in return if God think about this had waited for you or for me to love him before he loved us there would never have been peace there would just have been an eternal standoff so thank God that he makes the first move he is the great peacemaker and we are able to say tonight one hour we love him because he first loved us. [00:54:31]

Peacemaking is not the avoiding of conflict very important to understand that it is not sort of burying your head in the sand like the ostrich and just pretending that everything's okay and just hoping that things will change it is not anything for a quiet life that's not what peacemaking is in fact a conflict avoided can often be a conflict postponed and therefore a conflict that ultimately becomes worse. [01:07:29]

Deal with conflict early the beginning of strife the first evidence of it what's it like is it a little thing that you turn a blind eye to no it's not it's like letting out water so says the writer of the Proverbs quit before the quarrel breaks don't let the small thing fester in your marriage don't let it take root because if you do it will grow and then you will wish that you had addressed it sooner. [01:15:57]

Peacemakers practice restraint at times when you could unload if you are a peacemaker you will you will hold back this is surely one of the most obvious tactics and it is surely one of the most important now think about this with me what are the leading idols of our culture I want to suggest you the one that will make the list is that self-expression is a leading Idol of our culture. [01:23:47]

Seek peace and pursue it now think about these words the word seek means that sometimes peace will not be easy to find otherwise why would they say seek it seek it sometimes peace will not be easy to find and why does he say pursue it because sometimes peace will be a long way away will be a long journey and you need to go after it you need to stay on that journey this reminds us seek peace and pursue it that peacemaking is a process not an event. [01:50:08]

Take a step towards peace we've gone from thinking about a massively long journey to a single step which of course is the way that every long journey begins I'm thinking here of Romans in chapter 12 and verse 20 another great passage on the subject of peace in the Bible where God says to us this if your enemy is hungry feed him and if he is thirsty give him something to drink your enemy the person with whom you would hope one day there will be peace. [02:18:38]

Aim at humility not humiliation now think about the character of the Lord Jesus Christ as God comes to us in Christ as the great peacemaker and here I'm thinking about Philippians chapter 2 in verse eight the coming of Christ from all the glory that is his and being found in human form he humbled himself isn't that an amazing statement not just that he humbled himself by taking human form even when he was in human form he humbled himself and you see that all the way through the Gospels in the life and in the character of the Lord Jesus. [02:45:58]

Trust the injustice you have suffered to God now friends it is a terrible thing to be wronged and I'll be surprised if there's anyone in this congregation today who doesn't have a story of being wronged and some of you have stories of being wronged in terrible ways it is a terrible thing to be wronged to be slighted to be treated unfairly to be passed over to be taken for granted to have evil returned for good that you have done to have given yourself and to have received wounds in return friend Jesus knows all about that nobody has been wronged more than he has been wronged and no one is a peacemaker like Jesus Christ is a peacemaker. [02:58:21]

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree he bore this injustice he bore what was done against him he absorbed the pain of it without passing it on bearing shame and scoffing rude in my place condemned he stood sealed my pardon with his blood hallelujah what a savior abhorrent bore our sins in his body on the tree and Peter says this is an example that you may follow in his footsteps and what came of it verse 24 his wounds you have been healed Christ's wounds have brought healing for you and in terms of human relationships your wounds can be healing wounds also by His grace that's what it's saying if you bear them and you trust yourself to him who judges justly. [03:43:16]

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Transcript
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