Peacemakers

Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)

6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

The Apostle Paul gives words of encouragement as he tries to settle a disagreement between two women, Euodia and Syntyche. They had worked hard serving The Lord and Paul wanted to bring peace into their lives.

In his book Sermon on the Mount: A Foundation for Understanding, author and professor Robert A. Guelich writes of the role Christ-followers play as peacemakers:

The peace intended is not merely that of political and economic stability, as in the Greco-Roman world, but peace in the Old Testament inclusive sense of wholeness, all that constitutes well-being…

The "peacemakers," therefore, are not simply those who bring peace between two conflicting parties, but those actively at work making peace, bringing about wholeness and well-being among the alienated. [Robert A. Guelich, Sermon on the Mount: A Foundation for Understanding (W Publishing Group, 1991)]

In this world there are peacekeepers and peacemakers. Peacekeepers try to maintain a status quo. They try to hide the things that would destroy peace. They may say such things as, “Let’s just forget about this and move on.

Peacemakers on the other hand don’t avoid conflict; instead they face it. They call attention to a problem and seek a resolution. Peacemakers help mend relationships and break down barriers that separate people.

God wants to bring peace into your life. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all he has done; then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.