“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.”
There is an important distinction to make between peacemakers and peacekeepers.
Peacekeepers think all other virtues must be sacrificed on the altar of so-called “peace.” Peacekeepers are unwilling to endure the discomfort of conflict, and so they seek quick-fix compromises when conflict arises. Peacekeepers believe that sinful means justify the end of maintaining harmony. So-called peace is maintained through people-pleasing by appeasing the emotionally immature, walking on eggshells, and quietly making sure no one brings up the wrong topics to the wrong people. Peacekeeping is cheap and fragile.
On the other hand, peacemaking is a long-game. Peacemakers recognize that true peace only exists where the truth is upheld. Peacemakers know that true peace comes on the other side of battles won with the sword of truth. True peace can only exist where sin does not.
Paul tells us in Romans 12:8: “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.” If we are to live peaceably so long as possible, what would make living peaceably with all men an impossibility? Well, when the truth is at stake. This is what made Luther once cry out, “Peace if possible, but truth at all costs.” That is the motto of a peacemaker, not a peacekeeper.
There are times when temporary peace must be sacrificed in order that true, lasting peace—peace that is built upon the truth—might be brought about. And to those who commit themselves to pursuing that kind of peace, Christ issues this promise: “They shall be called children of God.”
Now, why is this a fitting promise for peacemakers? Consider Christ’s words from Matthew 10:34–36: “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household.
For peacemakers committed to true peace that is built on the truth, there is a real risk that those closest to you will turn their backs on you. There is a real risk of being disowned, of being disinherited. Families previously built on the sandy foundations of cheap peace will be torn down when the Lord shakes that which is not eternal.
And so when you face real conflict and turmoil, even in your own family, as a result of your commitment to making true peace by proclaiming the truth, what hope can you cling to? If things get as bad as possible in your family, even if you are disowned and disinherited as a son or daughter, you have a promise to cling to. So take heart, he will never leave you. You shall be called a child of God.
Zach Wilke – June 9, 2024
