Life In The
Kingdom Of Heaven – Part 3
Matthew 5:9-10
by Paul
George
Blessed are the
peacemakers
This seventh Beatitude has to do more with conduct than
with character. The first four may be grouped together
as the negative character of the heart of the godly.
They are not self-sufficient, but consciously poor in
spirit; they are not self-satisfied, but mourning
because of their spiritual state; they are not
self-willed, but meek; they are not self-righteous, but
hungering and thirsting after righteousness. In the next
three, the Lord names their positive character, having
tasted of the mercy of God, they are merciful in their
dealings with others; having received a spiritual
nature, they now hate impurity and love holiness; having
entered into a peace with God they now wish to live in
harmony and peace with all mankind.
In a world where there is no strife there is no need for
peacemakers. Where the world is filled with malice and
envy, hateful and hating one another" (Titus 3:3):
though attempts are often made to conceal this by the
cloak of hypocrisy yet it soon comes forth again in its
hideous nakedness, as the history of the nations
attests, peacemakers are needed.
The desire of peacemakers is to live peaceably with all
men and abstain from deliberate injury of others,
promote unity and heal broken relationships. Peacemakers
pour sooth oil on troubled waters, reconcile those who
are alienated, right wrongs, and strengthen the kindly
ties of friendship. As the sons of peace they bring into
the hostile atmosphere of this world the pure and
calming air of heaven.
The disposition of the peacemakers is a vastly different
disposition of the easy-going indolence which is often
nothing but selfishness, of the wickedness of this
world. The peace Jesus refers to is not a peace at any
price. It is a peace that is not to be sought at the
expense of righteousness. It is a peace God Himself
approves of.
It is the duty of every Christian to see to it that we
conduct ourselves in such a way no just complaint can be
filed against us. It is also for our own peace we do
this because it is impossible to be happy when we are
involved in strife and enmities. When disturbance and
turmoil is aroused, we should diligently examine
ourselves before the Lord as to whether the cause for it
lies in us and if it does confess the sin to Him and
seek to reconcile those offended. Peacemakers must
constantly be on their guard against an invasion by the
spirit of bigotry, intemperate zeal, and a quarrelsome
spirit and keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of
peace" (Ephesians 4:3).
In order to develop a peaceful disposition we must first
cultivate the grace of "lowliness," which is the
opposite of pride, of meekness, which is the opposite of
self-assertiveness, and the grace of long sufferance,
which is the opposite of impatience. We are not only to
do all we can to heal broken relationships we are to
reconcile men to God. This is a contrast in the task
given to Joshua and his officers under the Mosaic
economy, of taking up the sword to slay the enemies of
the Lord! In this age the servants of Christ are
commissioned to seek the reconciliation of those who are
at enmity with God. Peacemakers are the ambassadors of
God, calling sinners to come to God, throw down the
weapons of their warfare and enter into peace with God.
They know there is no peace for the wicked, and
therefore they exhort them to make peace with God.
There is still another way in which it is the privilege
of believers to be peacemakers, and that is by their
prayers. In the day when the Lord’s anger is kindled
against a sin-laden people and the dark clouds of
providence threaten an impending storm of judgment, it
is both the duty and the privilege of God’s peacemakers
to stand in the breach and in earnest supplication plead
with God to withhold His judgment as Moses did (Exodus
32:10), Aaron did (Numbers 16:47, 48), and David did (2
Samuel 24:14). This is indeed a blessed work of peace:
to intercede as Abraham did for Sodom. Only in the Day
to come will we know what the wicked gained by the
presence of the righteous remnant in their midst.
The reward for being peacemakers is decisive proof that
these Beatitudes are not directed toward the moral
virtues of the natural man, but rather the spiritual
graces of the regenerate. To be called a child of God is
to be renewed in His image and likeness and to be a
peacemaker. The Lord Himself is "the God of peace"
(Hebrews 13:20), and where this peaceful disposition is
manifested by His people He owns them as His children.
Furthermore, peacemakers are recognized as children of
God by their spiritual brothers. Ultimately, God will
make it manifest to the entire universe that we are His
children (Rom. 8:19).
Eighth: Blessed are those who have been persecuted
The Christian life is one that is full of strange
paradoxes which are not understood by human reason, but
which are easily understood by the spiritual mind. God’s
children rejoice with joy unspeakable, yet they mourn
with a lamentation the children of wrath don’t
understand. They rejoice because they have been brought
into contact with a source of satisfaction which is
capable of meeting every longing, yet they pant with a
yearning for righteousness like that of the thirsty
deer. They sing songs in their heart to the Lord, yet
groan deeply and daily over the lost condition of the
ungodly. Their life is often filled with pain yet they
would not part with it for all the gold in the world.
These puzzling paradoxes are among the evidences which
they possess that they are indeed blessed of God. But
who by mere reasoning would ever conclude that the
persecuted and reviled are "blessed"! They are not
compatible with the world’s idea of blessed but are
actually a manifestation of the miseries of life.
The reason why the children of God are persecuted,
reviled, and have all manner of evil said of them is the
wicked of this world hate justice and love those who
defraud and wrong their neighbors. They hate
righteousness. If the children of God would cease
walking humbly with God, they might go through the
world, not only in peace, but with applause. Because
they refuse to cease their walking humbly with God they
suffer persecution because their life reveals the
ungodliness of men and this provokes their resentment.
The wicked in this world hate God and those who bear His
image.
The blessed in this world are those the world detests.
Although those the world detests are persecution it is
really a blessing in disguise. The opposition the child
of God encounters in this world enables them to be aware
of their own infirmities and needs. They are made aware
of the fact they cannot stand for a single hour unless
Divine grace upholds them. By persecution they are often
kept from certain sins into which they would most likely
fall were the wicked at peace with them. Persecution
affords the believer an opportunity to glorify God by
his constancy, courage, and fidelity to the truth.
This persecution "for righteousness’ sake" calls upon us
to honestly examine ourselves before God when we are
being opposed: "But let none of you suffer as a
murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a
busybody in other men’s matters" (1 Peter 4:15). The
same qualification is made in the verse which
immediately follows the last quoted: "Yet if any man
suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let
him glorify God on this behalf": this is a most
necessary caution, that the believer see to it that he
is suffering for doing what is right and not on account
of his own misconduct or foolish behavior.
Jesus warns His servants what they may expect to
encounter, and then defines how they are to respond. The
glory worldly leaders value and crave is flattery and
honor, but the glory the disciple of Jesus crave is
conformity to Jesus who was "despised and rejected of
men." Instead of being downcast over and murmuring at
the hostility they meet with in this world, they are to
be thankful to God for the high honor He confers upon
them in making them partakers of the sufferings of His
Son.
The Lord Jesus pronounced blessed or happiness on those
who, through devotion to Him, would be called upon to
suffer. They are "blessed" because such are given the
unspeakable privilege of having fellowship with the
sufferings of the Savior. They are "blessed" because
such tribulation works patience, and patience
experience, and experience hope, a hope that will not
make ashamed. They are "blessed" because they shall be
fully recompensed in the Day to come. The child of God
must not be dismayed because the fiery darts of the
wicked are hurled against him. We must remember that
"The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to
be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in
us" (Romans 8:18).
The afflictions which come upon the children of God for
their faithfulness are to be endured not only with
patience and resignation, but thanksgiving and gladness
because they come upon them for Christ’s sake. He
suffered so they must and they should rejoice to suffer
a little for Him. Because they shall be richly
recompensed, great is their reward in heaven. These are
a reason to rejoice, no matter how fierce the conflict
may be.
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