Peacemakers

As I continue my Challenger Deep voyage into the mind of Christ, I consider his blessing on peacemakers. There are a number of conclusions I have reached and share with you.

* A peacemaker seeks to bring stability or homeostasis into a life.

*A peacemaker promotes reconciliation between estranged parties.

*A peacemaker has to work out "terms of peace."

*A peacemaker's outcome may be a sword or more conflict when the necessary terms of peace are rejected.

*A peacemaker's peace must conform to truth or reality or it is no peace at all.

*A peacemaker will be ineffective when others do not accept his/her role as a peacemaker.

*A peacemaker always pursues peace but recognizes he cannot always attain peace because it does not always depend on the peacemaker.

*A peacemaker seeks to bring the parties into agreement with God, not with one another.

*The resulting state is to be "undisturbed."

*A degree of peace must exist between or among people for the gospel to be heard and accepted.

*The battle for peace is the battle between flesh and Spirit.

This ten-fold outline is the framework for understanding the role of a peacemaker. Each component is essential to the process. Because there is so much conflict in marriage and in the church the process of peacemaking is so important to understand. Jesus has taught us. Will we listen or will we merely continue to separate and go our own way? Remember the peacemaker will be called a son of God.