Matthew 5:9
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.”
As we have been looking at the beatitudes we have seen that Jesus was a perfect example of how we should be living our lives. There is not a single beatitude listed that He did not demonstrate to us during His short life that He spent on earth in human form.
There was time that Jesus exerted His authority in the temple where it was being used as a trading place rather than a place of prayer. Matthew 21:12-13
“Jesus entered the temple are and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. (13) “It is written, He said, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of robbers.’”
At first glance you may say that was not being a peacemaker because He overturned tables but at a closer look you can see that it was being a peacemaker. These men were cheating people and taking their focus off of the purpose for being at the temple. They were supposed to be there praying. Prayer gives me more peace than anything else in this world. By distracting the people from the purpose of being at the temple they were distracting them from prayer and thus no peace. What distracts you when you go into the house of God? What is your purpose for being there?
Another example of Christ exerting His power of peacemaking can be found in Matthew 26, the account of Jesus arrest. Matthew 26:49-52
“Going at once to Jesus, Judas aid, ‘Greetings, Rabbi!’ and kissed Him. (50) “Jesus replied, “Friend, do what you came for.”
First of all notice that He called Judas ‘friend’. I don’t know that I would particularly want to call him friend at this point! Have you ever been betrayed by a friend, someone you trusted? It is very difficult for me to regain that trust with that person and even more difficult to call that person ‘friend’. Yet, Jesus, knowing what was happening, and knowing what was to come, still called Judas, ‘friend’. That alone displays to me someone who was being a peacemaker. But it gets even more amazing in the following verses.
(50b)“Then the men stepped forward, seized Jesus and arrested Him. (51) With that, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword drew it our and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.”
In Luke 22: 51 we read:
“But Jesus answered, ‘No more of this!’” And He touched the man’s ear and healed him.”
Wow, He healed a man who was about to take Jesus to be sentenced to death. Let’s read on in Matthew 26:52
“Put your sword back in place, Jesus said to him, ‘for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.”
You may also want to note that Jesus mentions His peacemaking tactics to the crowd in Matthew 26:55
“At that time Jesus said to the crowd, ‘Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I sat in the temple courts teaching, and you did not arrest me. (56)But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples deserted Him and fled.”
Do you notice what might happen when we are peacemakers? Others may desert us. We may be left standing alone. We need to be careful that our tactics are truly to give God the glory and praise. If we are deserted, how do we react? When that happens to me I have a difficult time accepting those people back into my life but Jesus seeks them out after He has risen and draws them back to Him, yet another example of being a peacemaker.
Today, as you seek Him with all your heart, ask Him to give you the ability to draw men unto Him by being a peacemaker.
Seeking Him with all my heart,
Sheila
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