“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” MATTHEW 5:9
When faced with conflict, problems or relational issues, there are ways the world seeks peace, but these fall short of Jesus’ reconciling peace.
PERSONAL PEACE
A false personal peace often sees us avoiding confession, confrontation or reconciliation. It is not biblical because it is treated as a personal commodity, is a feeling and is deceptive.
AGREE TO DISAGREE
A false desire to compromise rather than reconciliation is not biblical, because in scripture we are called to agree (1 CORINTHIANS 1:10; PHILIPPIANS 4:1-2; MATTHEW 18:19) on the necessary things.
FORGIVE AND FORGET
This approach is evasive and doesn’t desire repentance, restitution and restoration. It is not biblical because it doesn’t require redemptive change.
PEACEKEEPING
When we are passive and reactive and seek to make a problem go away, we are peacekeeping. It is not biblical because it is not the active and proactive nature of peacemaking, which is committed to speaking the truth in love, repentance, forgiving and restoring.
TRUCE
To seek a truce is an attempt at relaxing tension and allows people to stay in their own opinions and points of view. It is not biblical because it is grounded in mistrust and doesn’t engage people in confronting sin, confessions and reconciliation.
What do your responses reveal about the kind of peace you are seeking?
We all seek peace in different ways. False peace is founded and guided by human control and emotion. True peace is found in being under the lordship of Jesus Christ. It is about obedience and submission.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” MATTHEW 5:9
May we be a people, a church family who doesn’t seek a false peace, but rather reconciliation.