Blessed Are The Peacemakers
Feature 3 – December 2024 – Grace & Truth Magazine
“Blessed Are The Peacemakers”
When our Lord Jesus Christ started His message in Matthew 5–7, called the “Sermon on the Mount,” He began with several wonderful blessings. One of these blessings is found in Matthew 5:9 ( KJV ), which says, “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” This blessing links the believer to God as one of His own. It is no wonder that this is the case, since this is a significant attribute of God: He brings sinners peacefully to Himself through the work of the Lord Jesus Christ on Calvary’s cross. In a sense, God is the true Peacemaker, and all those who act as peacemakers shall be called “God’s children,” or in some translations, “God’s sons.”
As believers in Christ, we are told in Romans 5:1, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Furthermore, we read in Colossians 1:20-21: “And, having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself, by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled.” These and many other verses of Scripture highlight the peace God has brought into the life of everyone who believes. God is the preeminent peacemaker.
As such, it is God’s desire that those who trust in His Son for salvation would reflect this character of being peacemakers. This is very practical, and we will explore some examples in Scripture to see what other attributes are needful in order for us to be peacemakers.
Unselfishness
In Genesis 13 we have an example of peacemaking in the life of Abram, who was later called Abraham, and his nephew Lot. After returning from Egypt to the Land of Promise, from where Abram should never have left, he found himself in the middle of a controversy.
In Egypt, Pharaoh gave Abram many cattle (12:16), wanting Sarai for himself. Because of what he was told, Pharaoh thought Sarai was simply Abram’s sister. Pharaoh later learned that Sarai was Abram’s wife. He then rebuked Abram and sent him away.
Upon returning to the Land of Promise, the many cattle that had been gifted to Abram by Pharaoh gave reason for conflict between Abram’s and Lot’s herdsmen, regarding needed grazing land. This strife was almost certainly noticed by the Canaanites and Perizzites, who were still in the land (13:7). In view of this, we ask, “Do we ever consider the negative impact strife between believers has on those around us?” How sad it is when believers cannot get along! It is to our shame when there is strife between believers, and unbelievers can accuse us of being no different than them – and maybe even worse. How sad a spiritual condition we display when this is true of us!
Abram, being the older man and uncle of Lot, spoke to his nephew about the situation. He first acknowledged the strife and indicated that it should not continue. Abram then reminded Lot, “we be brethren” (v.8). This should be motive enough for us to want to walk in peace. It is very important not to lose sight of the fact that we are fellow believers in Christ! As fellow brethren, we should not have strife, but peace should be the normal condition among ourselves. Lastly, Abram offered Lot the choice of where to graze his cattle. Whatever Lot decided, Abram would accept his selection and have his cattle graze elsewhere. This was an unselfish proposal on Abram’s part.
Lot should have confessed his part in the strife immediately and given Abram the opportunity to decide first where to graze his animals. Unfortunately, Lot was in a low spiritual condition at the time he made his choices as to where to graze his animals and live. He acted selfishly and chose for himself the land that appeared best. This decision eventually led to Lot’s downfall (see vv.10-11, 19:1-38). Yet, we are thankful to know from 2 Peter 2 that Lot was a true believer: “God … delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked” (vv.4,7).
A key lesson to see is the unselfishness of Abram and his offer to Lot. When acting as a peacemaker, one may be required to sacrifice what appears to be a better choice in order to help achieve peace. Abram was not worried at all about which land Lot would choose; he was confident that the Lord was able to bless both of them regardless of Lot’s choice. What appeared to Lot outwardly as the better choice was actually less favorable because of the corruption seen in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
After Abram and Lot went their separate ways, God blessed Abram immediately (Gen. 13:14-18). Abram was promised all the land that he was able to see, after lifting up his eyes upon God’s command. This included the land Lot had chosen for himself. The promise of Abram’s seed receiving this land was to remind him of God’s original promise (see 12:1-3).
This story about Abram provides a wonderful example in peacemaking for us. His willingness to act unselfishly resulted in peace between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot. We too can follow Abram’s example and act unselfishly to resolve conflict, knowing that the Lord will reward such conduct. This approach to peacemaking is stated in Philippians 2:3-4: “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.”
Humbleness
John the Baptist provides another example of peacemaking that we should consider. In his case the attribute of humility can be seen. In John 3:22-36 and 4:1-4 we have the events that arose from John and his disciples baptizing, and the Lord Jesus and His disciples also baptizing. We know that the baptism of that time was for repentance, and it should not to be confused with Christian baptism, which was introduced after the Lord’s resurrection (see Mt. 28:18-20). There really was no strife until the religious leaders of that time, the Pharisees, tried to stir up controversy on the subject of purification and baptism. They wanted to create conflict between John’s disciples and those who followed the Lord Jesus. The Pharisees implied John was losing followers while the Lord Jesus was taking over John’s role.
John immediately took a lowly position before these troublemakers. Speaking about the Lord Jesus, John stated that what He was doing was blessed from heaven above, otherwise there would have been no fruit. He reminded the Pharisees of his own personal testimony, which was that he was not the Christ but was sent as one preparing the way for Him. John the Baptist gave an illustration and stated that he was very happy just to hear the Bridegroom’s voice and be invited to the wedding as the Bridegroom’s friend. Hearing the voice of the Bridegroom – Christ – was enough to make John the Baptist joyful. Finally, John took a very humble and low place by saying, “He [Christ] must increase, but I must decrease” (Jn. 3:30).
This personal testimony was enough to silence the troublemakers, but John the Baptist went on to reveal the greatness of the Christ. In verses 31-36 John revealed that the Christ was come from heaven and is above all; His words which He spoke are the Word of God, and the Christ is the Son of God, loved by God the Father. John the Baptist then closed with a word of warning: each of us must decide whether we will believe in the Christ, the Son of God. The wrath of God abides on us until we find refuge from judgment in the Lord Jesus Christ, as our personal Savior.
John the Baptist showed us the attribute of humility in seeking peace. We should follow his example. If we find ourselves in the middle of controversy, not only should we act unselfishly like Abram but we should also be humble like John. We are reminded about the value of humility in 1 Peter 5:5-6, which says, “Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.”
John’s humbleness is viewed in contrast to the pride of the Pharisees. The Lord Jesus later commended John the Baptist to others by saying he was the greatest prophet born among women (see Mt. 11:11). We can see the exaltation given to him by the Lord and how humility was needful to create peace when there was strife.
Wise Intervention
In 1 Samuel 25 we have the story of Nabal, his wife Abigail and King David. With the Lord’s help, we will see the wisdom shown by Abigail to intervene and make peace between her foolish husband and the anointed king, even though he was not yet on the throne. Nabal means “fool,” and we will see how well it described him!
As the story unfolds, David wanted to celebrate a feast (1 Sam. 25:8) and sought an animal from Nabal for that purpose. Nabal was a very rich man and would not have suffered loss by giving such a gift to David and his men. There was also an obligation on the part of Nabal, for the young men who were shepherding Nabal’s flocks had been protected by David and his men both day and night, receiving nothing in return.
But Nabal refused to give David anything and spoke badly about him (vv.10-11), and Nabal’s words were repeated to David. This man’s proud and foolish response created strife and angered David. Therefore, David, with 400 armed men, sought to confront foolish Nabal in person. As David began to move forward from his camp to seek vengeance, word got to Nabal’s wife Abigail regarding the crisis.
From 1 Samuel 25:18 onward we see the peacemaking actions of this very wise woman. Abigail knew her husband was arrogant and proud, and that he had insulted David. She wanted to intervene to avoid any loss of life and to appease the future king. Therefore she prepared and sent to David a special gift of bread, wine, sheep already prepared for cooking or eating, grain, raisins and cakes of figs.
Abigail wisely did not tell her foolish husband what she was about to do to make peace, for she was going out to meet David. She fell on her face before the anointed king and begged for mercy. Reading what Abigail said, we see the wisdom in her words and the transparency of her story (vv.24-31). She held nothing back from David and appeased him with a substantial gift for his men. She also desired blessing upon David and did not want him to have any future regrets because of seeking vengeance and possibly punishing the innocent. Her pleas reached David’s heart, and her intervention was successful. David retreated from his vengeful plan and blessed Abigail.
As the story ends, we learn that God judged Nabal, as he lost his life ten days later. David heard of Nabal’s death and desired to make Abigail, a wise woman, his wife. She married David and was brought into a place of greater blessing.
The example of Abigail shows the need for wisdom when making peace. In a very practical way, she knew what David had asked for from Nabal and she made a better gift than was originally requested. She acted quickly, therefore David’s anger would not have an opportunity to increase. Abigail showed the benefit of intervention. There are certain situations that require intervention on the part of those not directly involved with the strife. God can use such intervention in a mighty way to produce outcomes that bring glory to His name.
Paul’s letter to Philemon is another example of one intervening with wisdom to produce peace when there is strife between the Lord’s people. He wrote: “If thou count me therefore a partner, receive [Onesimus] as myself” (Phile. 17). May we be like Abigail and Paul and see our part in wisely helping others close to us to resolve controversies and thus be among those who are called peacemakers.
No Inappropriate Compromise
There is a danger when discussing peacemaking that some may suggest peace is needed under any circumstance, including by making inappropriate compromises. Yes, compromise may be needed, but it should never be at the expense of what is right before God. The Lord will not bless efforts that include unjudged sin or sacrificing scriptural principles and truths in order to achieve peace. We are exhorted to “follow after the things which make for peace” (Rom. 14:19) and, “If it be possible, as much as [depends on] you, live peaceably with all men” (12:18).
However, it is important to recognize when those who are striving are not interested in God’s perspective, we are not to pursue peace at the cost of compromising the truth of God’s Word. This would be sinful. Let us also guard against compromise that would displease the Lord.
May the Lord help each of us to be more like Christ and to be peacemakers who show that we follow the Prince of Peace!
By Bill Kulkens
“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” —Isaiah 9:6 KJV