Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called Sons of God.
Matthew 5:9
What is a peacemaker? It is a multifaceted term.
First, it implies someone who actively promotes peace among the body of Christ—the church.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
Colossians 3:15
Strife, envy, division, gossip, malice, bitterness, anger… these things have no place in the body of Christ, but so often are all glaringly represented in our churches. If Christ’s own body can’t live holy, love-led lives, how can we expect to draw the world away from their collision course with eternal disaster? What is there in our churches to attract them when they look inside and see the same smut and filth that they are so tired of outside it? Are our churches nothing more than “whitewashed tombs” (Matthew 23:27-28), looking so good on the outside, but full of filth on the inside?
The fruit of that righteousness will be peace; its effect will be quietness and confidence forever.
Isaiah 32:17
Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other.
Psalm 85:10
Righteousness (achieved through Christ's death on the cross) is what enables us to be God’s children. The effect of righteousness is confidence of an eternal life with God. The result of righteousness is a love of peace, both within ourselves and in the body of Christ. As Sons of God, we should be seeking peace and love first within our own body, and then in the world.
The second thing we must consider about this verse is the meaning implied by the Greek. The word used for “peacemaker” is eirēnopoioi, which is made up of two words, eiréné(“whole”) and poieó (to “make”). So, literally, the Greek word used can be translated to read “to make whole”.
A peacemaker is one who proclaims the good news of Christ’s sacrificial act on the cross to a world lost in darkness. They seek to awaken the spirit of the lost to an understanding of God. Doing so results in a unification of spirit, soul, and flesh, thereby making them whole. This is the process sometimes referred to in scriptures as a “new birth”. When we are born into this world, we are born with three “layers” to our being. The first layer is our flesh, our physical being. This is the part of us that is in control until we accept Christ as our savior. It is the part that chooses to sin rather than to do good. The second part of each man is the soul. The soul is the part of us that is eternal. Though the flesh will eventually die and rot away, the soul lives on into eternity, either in Heaven, or in Hell, depending on the choice we make in life. The third part is our spirit. The spirit is the part of each human that connects us to God. It is the part of us that longs for fellowship and re-unification with our Creator. If a person never accepts Christ as the redeemer of their soul, then their flesh continues to be in control and the spirit lies dormant and "un-awakened”. The moment we reach out for redemption, however, our spirit is “born” within us and creates a link between us and our God. It is the spirit that finds connection and guides us instead of our flesh. This is why salvation is referred to as the “new birth”, because it is as though we have been re-born into this life through the awakening of our spirit to God—we are finally made whole.
But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.
James 3:17-18
So, promoting peace with God to a world at odds with Him will result in an outpouring of good in not only our lives, but the lives of those we help to make whole.
Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth...
Matthew 10:34a
So, if Jesus tells us to be peacemakers, then what do we do with the above verse? The word for peace in this verse is the same Greek word Jesus used above. In one sense it seems He is telling us to be peacemakers like Him, then later tells us that He didn’t come to bring peace at all. That statement is true, and yet it’s not a contradiction. The difference is in the verbs: making peace and bringing peace. The disciples, and the rest of the Jewish community, believed that the Savior would come and rescue them from their physical captivity and reign over them as their earthly king, therefore bringing them peace and prosperity through his rule. They thought the kind of peace that Jesus had come to give was a lifestyle of ease and carefree living.
You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
Matthew 10:22
Jesus explained to His disciples in this passage that anyone who chooses to follow Him will face persecution in some form. He is warning them that the Christian life is not always one of carefree ease on this earth, and that to follow it, we must be committed to standing firm against any adversity we may face for the reward is truly greater than the cost.
…I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
Matthew 10:34b
In the second half of that verse, Jesus tells us that instead of peace, he brings a sword. Some people will use this passage to justify all sorts of violent deeds, but I don’t believe that violence is the correct interpretation of this passage.
For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12
The scriptures refer to the Word of God as a sword, a powerful weapon in the battle for the hearts and the minds of this world. Jesus did not come to this earth as the disciples first thought, to force peace on the earth through an autonomous rule, but, instead, He gave us a way to make peace (wholeness) in our spirits and left us a weapon with which we can battle for the peace of others as well.
Look, there on the mountains, the feet of one who brings good news, who proclaims peace!
Nahum 1:15
This verse, written hundreds of years before Christ came to earth, seems a perfect picture of Him, standing on the Mount of Olives, encouraging us to be peacemakers in the earth and share the good news of His salvation to the world. It is His desire that we promote peace within His body, and that we encourage those at odds with Him to become whole and find peace in His gift of eternal redemption. Anyone who does these things is truly a child of God.
