Messages from Matthew: Peacemakers (Matt 5:9)

MESSAGES FROM MATTHEW ON THE MINISTRY OF JESUS:
Peacemakers (Matt 5:9)

pdf

Dr. Paul Manuel—1999
 

This weekend we have been discussing the peace only God can bring. Sometimes we think that, having found this peace, we have come to the end of a long and difficult journey, and we can rest at last. While there is, indeed, rest for those who receive God's peace, there is responsibility as well; for in the new journey we begin with God, He wants us to minister to others what we have received. That is, He saved us so that we could serve Him. He wants us who know peace to be agents for peace in the lives of others.

 

In Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, he begins with a series of beatitudes. These are brief, pithy sayings that extol the value of certain actions or attitudes. They begin with the Hebrew phrase which many English translations render, "Blessed is the [one] who..." (so KJV, ASV, RSV, NAS, NIV). This "blessed" is not the same word the biblical writers use when God blesses us or when we bless God. In fact, this word is never used of God. It does, however, refer to those qualities that lead to success in life and is especially common in the Psalms. There, they deal with situations whose advantage is self-evident, and we could translate the Hebrew phrase that way: "O the advantage of the [one] who..."

Ps 1:1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers.

"O the advantage of the one who does not sin, because he will prosper."

Ps 146:5 Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God.

O the advantage of the one who trusts in God to help him, because God will help him."

 

The benefits of the beatitudes in Matt 5, however, are not quite so obvious, because the consequences Jesus offers are not what people would normally expect.

• "O the advantage of the one who is poor because he will inherit a kingdom" (v. 3).

"But, Jesus, if I come from a poor family, how will I inherit anything?"

• "O the advantage of the one who gets stepped on (meek) because he will succeed in life" (inherit the earth; v. 5).

"But, Jesus, the only way to get ahead—to move up the corporate and social ladder—is by stepping on or over someone else!"

 

These sayings probably puzzled many in Jesus' audience, and the one in Matt 5:9 no less than the others.

Matt 5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

What is the advantage of peacemaking, and what does it have to do with sonship?

The answer, first, lies in understanding the meaning of "peace." In the political arena, we often think of peace as the cessation of hostilities between warring factions, as is the current situation in Iraq, or the absence of hostilities, as that which characterized our relationship with the Soviet Union during the Cold War. At that time, we were at peace with the Soviet Union but still considered it the "Evil Empire." Nevertheless, we would not use that term to characterize our relationship with Great Britain. To say we are at peace with our neighbor across the Atlantic does not describe the close ties we have, the many common interests our two nations share. The reason is that in international relations, peace is more the absence of war than the presence of friendship. Indeed, the English word "peace" refers more to what is missing than it does to what is present.

 

The Hebrew word, however, commonly refers to what is present in a relationship, the quality of that association. Shalom means that which is sound, whole, healthy. For example, when Paul writes that "we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom 5:1), he means more than the cessation of hostilities. Although "we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son" (Rom 5:10; emphasis added). The nature of our relationship has changed completely. God has made it sound, whole, and healthy.¹ To be a peacemaker, then, is to foster those same qualities in other relationships.

 

As a minister, one of my duties is to promote good communication between boards and committees as well as among individual members. Usually this involves simply conveying information, letting the right hand know what the left hand is doing. On occasion, though, when there is the potential for conflict, it requires that I remain impartial and that I exercise diplomacy, either to resolve a problem or to prevent one. For example,

• To someone who is upset or offended, I may advise caution in interpreting another's intentions, indicating that the motive for the alleged affront may not have been malicious.
• To someone who is especially sensitive to criticism, I may relay a message in more neutral terms than I received it.

Whatever the relational setting—church, family, school, work—and whatever our role—as one of the parties or as an observer—we must be the kind of person who promotes peace not one who disrupts it. As Paul writes to the church at Corinth.² "God... reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation" (2 Cor 5:18). God wants us to relate to others what we have received?³ He wants us who know peace to be agents for peace in the lives of others. This brings us back to the original question.

 

In the beatitudes, there is usually some obvious corollary between the behavior and its benefit.

• Those who are merciful will, in turn, receive mercy.
• Those who become pure will ultimately see Him who is pure.

The relationship in this beatitude, however, is not immediately transparent. How does peacemaking result in sonship? The answer lies in the way impartiality, a quality necessary to mediating successfully between factions, reflects the character of God. It is a common theme in scripture that God shows no partiality⁴ and that He expects the same of His people.⁵ Later in this chapter, for example, Jesus tells his disciples to treat their enemies as they treat their neighbors, and for the same reason he gives here:

Matt 5:43 You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44 But I tell you: Love your enemies...that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. [For] He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

This kind of impartiality is not easy, but it is essential to peacemaking. It also applies not just with an enemy but with all kinds of relationships, even those in the church. Moreover, it is what identifies us with God, as we reflect His character, and, Jesus says, it is what God will use to identify us as His sons.⁶

For a pdf with Bibliography and Endnotes go here.