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Psalms
122:1-9 A Song of
Ascents. Of David. I was glad
when they said to me, "Let us go into the house of the LORD." Our
feet have been standing Within your gates, O Jerusalem! Jerusalem is built As a
city that is compact together, Where the tribes go up, The tribes of the LORD,
To the Testimony of Israel, To give thanks to the name of the LORD. For thrones
are set there for judgment, The thrones of the house of David. Pray for the
peace of Jerusalem: "May they prosper who love you. Peace be within your
walls, Prosperity within your palaces." For the sake of my brethren and
companions, I will now say, "Peace be
within you." Because of the house of the LORD our God I will seek your
good.
Father God, we want to be peacemakers.
If we aren’t then we ask that you create a contrite and clean heart in us so
that we can serve you. In
Jesus
name we pray, Amen!
Matthew 5:9 NKJV
Blessed
are the Peacemakers! Mankind has been looking for peace since the fall of Adam
and Eve. Just read the OT and you will see unrest and fighting then just like
today. Although some of that was God ridding the Promise Land of evil for His
people, but there has always been someone with the thought of wanting more land
and power or didn’t like a race because of a certain belief or color of their
skin. All of this because of the sin nature human beings are born with. Without
that gift of grace we get from God when we are Born Again we will not have true
peace within that will shine forth in love thy neighbor as thy self.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall
be called sons of God.
Many people have promoted
peace throughout the years, but still the peace we have in the world is only
temporal. The United States promotes a form of peace to all that arrive in the
harbor and is welcomed by the Statue of Liberty. The Statue of Shalom in Israel
promotes, “there is another way”, in their harbor. Around the world in many
nations, man promotes peace but there is very little peace. The root of the
problem lies with our sin nature in wanting control, power, money, everyone to
conform to our standards, etc. True peace will never happen here on earth while
man is trying to fix the problem. The only true answer is making Jesus a part
of one’s life on a daily basis worldwide. It is the Blessed Hope that will fix
this world. When Jesus returns and sets up his ruler-ship, then and only then
will true peace be possible. If man would only realize he was made by God and
for God, things would be different. Colossians 1:16 For by Him all things were created
that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether
thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created
through Him and for Him. When Jesus taught us to pray He was promoting
peace at that time when he said, “Your will be done on earth as it is in
Heaven”. Matthew 6:10 Your kingdom come. Your
will be done On earth as it is
in heaven. The
saints under the alter cry out, “how long?” How long will it be before your
wrath comes upon mankind. Revelation
6:10 And they cried with a loud
voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and
avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?" God alone knows what brings peace,
and He says that until we accept Jesus as our Prince of Peace there is no
chance of getting out of the war zone. Strife and bickering will continue
whether in nations, schools, churches, work places, families, etc.
So this Beatitude, just
like the previous ones, hinges on the first one, “poor in spirit”. What Jesus
is saying here is that a true peacemaker in His eyes is one that has accepted
Him into their lives and is out preaching and teaching peace by means of the
Gospel so that people around the world can have that true inner peace that will
flow forth from them to others through love for one another. Now don’t get me
wrong there are those who strive to prevent contention, strife, and war, who
use their influence to reconcile opposing parties, and to prevent lawsuits and
hostilities in families and neighborhoods. Everyone may do some of this; and no
person is more like God than he who does it. Friends, neighbors, people of
influence, lawyers, physicians, ministers of the gospel, may do much to promote
peace, and sometimes early intervention in a situation can bring peace, but
without the love of God within us many times it is to no avail because our
flesh is too prideful. Many times we may accept a solution with our lips and
not our heart, resulting in resentment which will surface at a later date. Many
times without the love of Jesus within we don’t truly accept and buy into
solutions.
How many times have you
witnessed people disputing about something in a church, school, or at work like
the color of a carpet or paint, a hymn, a parking place, or a certain issue
that needs to be resolved? Sometimes these significant and insignificant things
escalate and result in people not speaking to each other. Why, because it is
the love of self within and not the love of God residing in ones heart. This is
what this Beatitude is all about, the Gospel and what truly lies in our heart. Have
you ever been in situations, or know of situations where solutions appear to be
agreed on verbally by all parties, but to find out later by peoples speech and
actions they only agreed with their mind and not their hearts? The
self-righteous person, whether believer or not, has no peace within their
heart, because they have no true peace with God. This person can be a very good
person, but their self righteousness blinds their heart and they are deceived. Self-righteousness
could be the worst sin there is, because pride is so deceptive.
Self-righteousness is a
war that rages between us and God. Mankind constantly thinking we can save
ourselves despite the fact that the Bible constantly says we are spiritually
and morally bankrupt. Many times the harder we try the further we sink into the
miry clay. David realized that and that is the reason he said this; Psalms 40:2 He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out
of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps. It is through these Beatitudes by means of self
examination that we need to look deep inside and see where our heart is. Paul
sums it up in his letter to the Philippians; Philippians 2:1-5 Therefore
if there is any consolation in
Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any
affection and mercy, 2 fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the
same love, being of one accord,
of one mind. 3
Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or
conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than
himself. 4
Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the
interests of others. 5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ
Jesus.
God’s word tells us about
the nature of peace and describes at least three kinds of peace. Peace with
God, Peace of God, and Peace from God. Let’s look to God’s word and see what He
has to say about each of these.
Peace
with God; Paul tells
us in Romans that being justified by faith, we will have peace with God. Romans 5:1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. When we are born we are born with a
depraved nature. Romans
3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. There
is nothing our parents or we can do, not to be born with this sin nature. To
observe this nature in action, place two 1 year old babies in a room with one
toy. There will be a squabble over the toy and one will prevail over the other.
No one taught them this nature they were born with it. We as parents then have
to teach our children to share, don’t hit, don’t bite, don’t push, etc. This is
the depraved nature at work that each of us is born with and at an early age
with the help of our parents, we start learning right from wrong. But to have
true peace with God, we have to be redeemed of this depraved nature. This is
why Jesus came to earth to redeem those who choose to accept Him into their
lives. It is through faith in the acts of the Cross that we can be justified
and sanctified. Without this we cannot have true peace in our hearts and become
peacemakers of God.
Peace
of God; Many
Christians may have peace with God, but may not have peace of God. This is very
evident with all the books on the market expressing what a person must do to be
happy. Many of these books are based on psychology and not Jesus. Jesus tells
us He wants us to have peace in our lives, but not the peace of the world which
doesn’t satisfy the soul. John
14:27 Peace
I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to
you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. He wants us to have inner calmness no
matter what the circumstances are in our lives. Do you have inner calmness, the
quiet assurance within that all is well? Can you remain peaceful in the face of
chaotic circumstances? Life here on earth is like a war zone with all that life
has to throw at us. Financial strain, job stress, being a spouse and parent,
juggling schedules, etc., but with Jesus in our heart we can give it all to Him
to resolve and give us peace. David had many ups and downs in his life, but his
faith was in God to bring him through all situations. Psalms 4:1-8 A Psalm
of David. Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have
relieved me in my distress;
Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer. 2 How long, O you sons of men, Will you turn my glory to shame? How long will you love worthlessness And seek falsehood? 3 But know that the LORD has set apart for Himself
him who is godly; The LORD will hear when I call to Him. 4 Be angry,
and do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still. 5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, And put your
trust in the LORD. 6 There are
many who say, "Who will show us any
good?" LORD, lift up the light of Your countenance upon us. 7 You have
put gladness in my heart, More than in the season that their grain and wine
increased. 8
I will both lie down in peace, and
sleep; For You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.
Peace
from God; God has
given us a manual to guide us through life if we choose to accept what is in
it. It gives us some “thou shall nots” and some “thou shalts”, but from time to
time we encounter situations in our lives that present some grey areas and we
don’t know what the right decision is. I’m not talking about good and bad
situations, but good and better decisions. We have all had things come up in
our lives where we have struggled with a decision, like a vehicle. One day you
decide to trade in the vehicle and the next day you decide to do the repairs,
and a battle rages within. It all boils down to the family budget and the best
thing to do short and long term. In these situations it is okay to pray, “Lord,
I don’t know what to do in this situation, so I’m going to go this way. Please
give me your peace.” Many times we struggle with something instead of involving
God, I know I do, it is our human nature that causes us to try and do it all on
our own. This is why so many of us try to work our way to Heaven instead of
having child like faith. Colossians
3:14-15 But above all these things put
on love, which is the bond of perfection.
15 And let the peace of God rule in your
hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.
Dr. David Jeremiah says
this about peacemakers, “Christ says that
those with peace will be happy, blissful, joy-filled, ecstatic people. They
know in their hearts that they are at peace with God. They have a certainty that
they are no longer under condemnation, but have been set free from sin. They
are righteous in the eyes of God, and that allows them to become peacemakers.
The man or woman who has peace can help other people find peace with God. In
one sense, a peacemaker is an evangelist because he goes about finding people
at war with God and sharing the peace of Christ with them. Whenever I preach
the Gospel and tell people how to know Jesus Christ, I have functioned as a
peacemaker. If you are sharing your faith with others, you have become a
peacemaker; and the Bible says there is great joy in being a peacemaker. For
me, the greatest joy I’ve known has been introducing other people to the Lord
Jesus. It’ the most wonderful experience you can have. If you’re not sharing
your faith, you are missing a great blessing.”
What
do peacemakers do?
They bring unity between God and mankind. They also bring unity between human
beings. A person that is a peacemaker is blessed when they can show people how
to get along, instead of competing or fighting.
Where
are peacemakers needed?
With the present condition of the world today, we need many Christian
peacemakers. We need Christian peacemakers/counselors in our families, in our
workplaces, in our schools, in our courts, in our government, in the United
Nations, in our communities, in our churches, in racial disputes, etc. Without
the true God, it is inevitable the end time prophecies will come true.
In closing, peacemakers
will be called “Sons of God”, because they will be living and doing God’s will,
and not their will.
visible and invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All
things were created through Him and for Him.
Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you,
unless one is
born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
Bill
Wiesbrock https://www.facebook.com/bill.wiesbrock?ref=tn_tnmn
The
Lighthouse Full Gospel Church
Sinners Prayer; Pray this, and if you believe
it with your heart, Jesus will save you!
“Lord Jesus
I know I am a sinner. I confess my sins
to you; I am sorry for my sins; I repent (Meaning, desiring to turn from a
sinful lifestyle.) of all my sins, and I am asking for your forgiveness of all
of my sins. I believe that only you can
forgive sin. I commit my life to you and
ask you to come into my heart, direct, and take charge of my life. I believe that you died to set me free from
my sinful lifestyle and you rose from the dead to give me eternal life, and
right now you are seated at the Right Hand of God Almighty. I believe you are
the Son of God; the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, and my
Savior.” I believe this and have faith
you will make a new person out of me, by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in my
heart and lead me in a new life. In Jesus name I pray Amen.” (John 3:16,17;
Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-10; 1
John 5:11-14; 1:6-10) (Sin: Rom.
1:22-32; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 5:3-7)
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