Jesus declared that “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of GOD.”
I believe It should be the goal of every follower of Jesus to be known as a “peacemaker.” I also believe these words of Jesus are a strong reminder that following Jesus demands the active pursuit of peace. I further believe that a peacemaker is not just a peaceful person. A peacemaker is someone who actively pursues peace among people who are antagonistic toward one another. This beatitude was directed at those in the crowd and those in Matthews community who were unwilling to take an active role in bringing peace between parties that were at odds with one another. There were people in that crowd and in Matthews community who wanted to use violence to usher in the Kingdom of GOD. They called themselves Sons of GOD. But Jesus is saying to them and to us that violence is not the answer. Violence only begets more violence. Vengefulness is not the answer because the Bible tells us that “vengeance is mine saith the Lord.” Aggression is not the answer because the Bible teaches us that a “soft answer turns away wrath.”
This 7th beatitude challenges us that where there is animus, we should be striving for reconciliation. Where there is the threat of violence, we must be actively pursuing a peaceful resolution. Where there is the hint of vengefulness, we must not act as instigators of retaliation and revenge but as facilitators of peaceful resolution and reconciliation. Peacemakers are those who devote themselves to the important work of reconciling individuals, families, groups and nations. Peacemakers don’t feed the fire. They don’t bring a bone and carry a bone. Peacemakers are those who try and reconcile folk who are not seeing eye to eye. Peacemakers don’t return evil for evil, they return good for evil. Peacemakers love those who don’t like them. They pray for them that despitefully use them. They seek to be a blessing to those who curse them. Peacemakers work hard to build bridges and not walls.
Our world is in trouble. Our communities are besieged. Our families are languishing and we need more peacemakers. We need more peacemakers in our halls of power. We need peacemakers in our most vulnerable communities. We need peacemakers in our schools and in our classrooms. And less I lose focus, we need peacemakers in the church. We need persons who are willing to stand in the gap and remind us from time to time that discord and envy and strife are what quenches the spirit. We need some peacemakers who are able to remind us that our coming together is for the edifying of the body. We need some peacemakers who are willing to promote reconciliation and not retaliation.
One commentator said that peacemakers are those who seek to create shalom for everybody. The word shalom means peace but it literally means total well being. It reveals a concern about the total welfare of an individual or group. The ministry of peacemaking wants to make sure that everybody is alright. It embraces the spirit of the prayer of Saint Francis of Assis, “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.”
When we work toward that kind of peace; When we truly become instruments of God’s peace then we will be imitators of GOD. And together, our nation, our communities and our families will experience God’s shalom. SDG
Live Abundantly,
Paul D. Flowers, Sr. 