Beatitude #7: “Blessed are the peacemakers”
“SERMON ON THE MOUNT – AND BEYOND !!!”
Jeremy Stopford, Semi-Retired Pastor
“Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.” (Matt. 5:9).
We have come to the 7th of the 8 beatitudes of our Savior’s “Sermon on the Mount” {SOTM!) found in its entirety in Matthew 5-7.
“Blessed”. Do you remember what “BLESSED” means? The Latin word for “blessed” is properly translated… “BEATITUDE”. AND the Greek word for “blessed” is “makarios”. “Makarios” is…GOD’S HAPPINESS, HIS JOY! It is GOD’S kind of “happiness” which is not dependent upon “happenings”. It is dependent upon…GOD HIMSELF!
So in this beatitude, the blessing is for the “peacemakers”. Do you remember one of the Old Testament titles for the soon coming Messiah? Remember carefully as you read these verses:
For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, PRINCE OF PEACE.
Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. [Isaiah 9:6-7]
The Messiah, the Lord Jesus, is the One Who is the ultimate Peacemaker! He is the One Who can make peace between countries and even between peoples. But most importantly, because of the cross, He can make peace between God and me!
Jesus paid the price of peace! Listen to Isaiah 54:10,13 where the prophet Isaiah is looking forward to the day when the Messiah, the Prince of Peace, will be orchestrating peace because of the price He paid:
For the mountains shall depart
And the hills be removed,
But My kindness shall not depart from you,
Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,”
Says the Lord, who has mercy on you. [v. 10]
All your children shall be taught by the Lord,
And great shall be the peace of your children. [v. 13]
So our Savior is the Author of peace, which is effected when His death on the cross is applied to the sinner who trusts that that death and shed blood was indeed done in his, the sinner’s place!
Have YOU trusted the Lord Jesus as your Savior, your peace?
Have you ever heard the story of Peter Bilhorn? He was born in Mendota, Illinois in 1865 (and lived until 1936). Since his father died when Peter was about 8, Peter quit school and did all he could to support his mother. When he was 15, the family moved to Chicago so he could be near where his voice could be used as an attraction in concert halls.
But then at age 20 an amazing thing happened – he was converted to saving faith in the Lord Jesus! Over the remaining years of his life, he would be used to write songs or their music on behalf of such evangelists as Dwight L. Moody (founder of Moody Bible Institute, as well as a worldwide evangelist).
Peter Bilhorn was asked by a friend to write the words for a song. He asked the friend what the theme should be, and she replied “any sweet piece.” Years later, the music for a song came to him, but he didn’t have the words for it. Shortly afterwards, while he was riding on a train to Iowa, the train came to a sudden stop. A dead body had been found on the train tracks. As the body was carried away, it left behind a pool of blood.
A friend, Major Whittle, suggested to Peter, “Do you know that is all Jesus Christ left on this earth? His body rose for our justification, but His blood was left to atone for our sins.” Peter replied back, “Yes, that is what gives me sweet peace.” Here comes the song, “Sweet Peace, the Gift of God’s Love”:
There comes to my heart one sweet strain,
A glad and joyous refrain,
I sing it again and again,
Sweet peace the gift of God’s love.
Through Christ on the cross peace was made,
My debt by His death was all paid,
No other foundation is laid,
For peace, the gift of God’s love.
When Jesus as Lord I had crowned
My heart with this peace did abound
In Him the rich blessings, I found
Sweet peace the gift of God’s love.
Our Savior offers His PEACE to every sinner. And all who come to Him through the shed blood of Calvary’s cross will immediately have that sweet peace.
When we have that SWEET PEACE then we are called the “children of God”. Hmm…that sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Even the Apostle John records, in John 1:12-13:
“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
We who have found that peace with God are called “children of God”, or better, “sons of God.” !!!
The early disciples were to make a difference in the world in which they lived. Perhaps in their limited “worldview”, they were thinking mainly Jerusalem, or even Galilee. But you and I can look back and see that in the BIG picture, when the Apostle John wrote in John 3:16 that “God so loved the WORLD”, He was talking about a picture well beyond the first disciples’ comfort zone!
But what are WE to do with that SWEET PEACE?
There are at least 3 pre-requisites to our being a peacemaker for Jesus:
#1—be at peace with God
#2—be at peace with yourself
#3—be committed to bringing others to Christ and showing them the Prince of peace.
Be at peace with God – IF/SINCE your have come to know the Lord Jesus as your Savior/your Peace, you have Peace with God! Romans 5:1 says, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ…”. This is a present position! It is not some future “hope so” but rather a present “KNOW SO”! We have peace with God.
But further, we are to be at peace with ourselves. That means that we have “nothing between our soul and the Savior”, as the old song says.
And then? We are to be committed to bring others to Christ, the Prince of Peace! We are to show our family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, enemies, strangers, EVERYBODY – what Jesus has done for us, and for THEM! We are to have the Lord Jesus’ view of people. We are to look at people through His eyes. We are to be instruments of reconciliation between the sinner and the Savior, pointing the sinner to the cross and His available redemption in Him.
And when we do that, do you know what we’ll be? Yep! We’ll be…PEACEMAKERS! Because being a peacemaker is what God’s children are and do!
“Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God..”