In the last few decades of the 19th century, the American Wild West was a dangerous and lawless place. The Civil War had ended not long before this time, Native Americans continued to fight back as they were pushed off their lands, and yet loads of people still went west to acquire land and gold. Keeping order in an era of rapid expansion like this was a great task. Especially because this was the time of shootouts, some of which would become the stuff of legend. But one man changed all of this. Samuel Colt, born in 1814 Connecticut, invented a new gun that could not only fire faster than other guns, it could be mass produced, it could be easily fixed when something went wrong, and it only cost $13 to purchase. This was the gun used at Custer’s last stand, it was used by President Rosevelt’s Rough Riders, and it was the gun used by Wyatt Earp and Doc Holiday in the shootout at the O.K. corral. It. might be an over generalization to say it, but many believe this gun by and large settled the Wild West. There’s even a famous saying that displays this, “God created all men and the Colt 45 made them equal.” What was the name of the gun? Officially it was called the Colt 45, but it popularly went by its nickname, the Peacemaker.
Ironically, this is a fitting introduction to our sermon today. Because we have arrived at Jesus’ description of the peacemaker. While a gun isn’t quite the best image of this one pursues and makes peace, it does give us an idea of it. Why? Because if the peacemaker is anything, he or she is one who ends strife and conflict.
Before we begin, as we’ve done many times now, let’s back up to see the whole of the Beatitudes up to this point.
We can divide the Beatitudes in half, into two groups of four. The first four are all internal, dealing with our soul before God. See them in order. In v3 we begin by coming face to face with our spiritual poverty. This exposes us as fallen sinners, lost, and spiritually dead. This leads to v4. Having been so exposed and called out for our sin nature, we mourn and we grieve over our lost condition. This leads to v5. After seeing our sin and mourning over sin, we find our pride giving way to humility as we become meek. This leads to v6. From being so empty we desire to be filled with and grow into the very thing what we lack, the righteousness of Christ.
The second group of four Beatitudes come after this. These are all external, dealing with our soul before the world. In v7 and v8 we find the first two things the Christian must be in the world. The Christian must be merciful, embracing the mercy of God offered to us the gospel, and then extending the same mercy to others. And the Christian must be pure, rejoicing in the purity that is ours already in Christ, while also pursuing purity in all of life. This leads to where we are today, in v9, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” See first…
The Peacemaker
Let’s ask some questions to get at what exactly is being taught to us here in v9.
First, what is a peacemaker?
The answer comes most clearly when we look at the word itself. Curiously enough, this word peacemaker only occurs here in the entire NT.[1] To dissect it, one can easily notice how it’s two words put together. The word for peace in Greek is eirene but most know the older Hebrew equivalent shalom. Both of these words are in view in v9, and they both mean far more than just the absence of trouble or conflict. When Israelites of old prayed for shalom, for themselves, for others, or for the nation they were praying for God to give a whole peace, an entire peace, a well-being rooted in God’s presence, regardless of what was going circumstantially around them.[2] That’s what peace means.
Now see the second word, maker. What is this word? Well, it’s certainly not a passive word. Maker is a very active word.[3] Someone busy in activity, someone busy in production of something. The difference between active and passive can be seen in the difference between the words peacekeeper and peacemaker. A peacekeeper just manages or maintains peace. A peacekeeper never puts their neck out there on the line, never makes themselves vulnerable, but always stays safe trying to sustain. A peacekeeper might notice a problem around and they just walk away in to keep peace and not cause a problem. A peacemaker does far more. A peacemaker notices a problem, and rather than walking away they choose to get in the mess and face it head on. So a peacemaker is very active yes, but further they’re proactive in that that they intentionally put themselves out there in a vulnerable position in order to pursue peace. Sure it might end badly but the goal of peace is worth the risk to the peacemaker. The call of v9 is this very thing. To seek peace, to pursue peace, to labor to arrive at peace, and work with all who will to establish peace. This is to be our active pursuit.
Now, because of images that come to mind when we think of word peace, we might not automatically see this for what it is. Peace often makes us think of hippies and tree-huggers, Bob Marley, or maybe even the peace-corps. Those images are not the peacemaker of v9. Those people do pursue a kind of peace, but it’s not rooted in the gospel. It’s not created by the first six Beatitudes before this one. I think, the peacemaker of v9 is a person who has great deal of courage and confidence in the Lord. Courage and confidence because in order to pursue, establish, and make peace the peacemaker will likely have to do some things, say some things, and go some places that many would not find very comfortable. The peacemaker will have to help people overcome our natural desire for revenge and retribution.[4] In a true sense the peacemaker will have to change things. Things that are likely firmly established yet in need of uprooting.
This gives us the image of godly men and women who acted in great courage to end hostility, to overcome evil with good, to bring those wrangling back together.[5] This means there’s a kind of godly-stubborn-feistiness to a true peacemaker. One who looks straight at a loaded and volatile situation, and is willing to assess honestly, to speak clearly, and to act bravely for the sake of true peace. In other words, true peace doesn’t mean the absence of conflict.[6] True peace doesn’t mean the compromising of truth.[7] I’d even say that the peacemaker will, at times, need to start conflicts and start disrupting things in order to establish a peace currently absent. This is what peacemaking is.
Let’s go further and ask a new question. Where do we see examples in Scripture of this kind of peacemaking? There are simply loads of examples! Jeremiah and Ezekiel could tell us much of what peacemaking isn’t. In Jeremiah 6 and Ezekiel 13 we find that certain people would come after these prophets to contradict them and their message. Both Jeremiah and Ezekiel would warn the people to leave their sins behind, to repent, and to return to the Lord lest they be destroyed. Their hearers were a people at peace, and Jeremiah and Ezekiel came in and warned that this peace was about to end. Yet as soon as they finished preaching others would stand up and shout ‘Peace, peace, all is well, you need not worry about these prophets.’ Now, these folks were trying to make peace, certainly. But they were ignoring truth and downplaying sin. This is not what peacemaking looks like, no. The prophets would respond with woe’s against such people saying “Woe to those who cry ‘Peace, peace!’ when there is no peace.” So in a way Jeremiah and Ezekiel were peacemakers.
To go into the NT peacemaking looks like Romans 12:18 which says, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” Peacemaking also looks like Romans 14:19, “So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.” These two passages in Romans remind us that living at peace with all and pursuing what makes for peace is central to the Christian life. Insofar as it depends on us, peace ought to be the preferred state of things in all our relationships as opposed to friction, distance, or unresolved conflict.[8] Peacemaking looks like Ephesians 4:1-3 where Paul urges us to, “…walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” This seems to present peace as the binding factor among the Church which is why its so important to pursue. James 3:17-18 is similar saying, “The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” Church, Christians are to be a people a peace.
But what about some other verses? Aren’t there some passages that would seem to contradict this seventh Beatitude? Well, at first glance there are some, like Matthew 10:34 which says, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Though you could pick out a phrase in here that goes against the peacemaking idea, it would be out of context. In Matthew 10 Jesus is referring to what the gospel does to all kinds of relationships after some believe and others don’t. In this sense the gospel doesn’t create peace, it separates all kinds of people. That’s what Jesus means there, not what He means in the Sermon on the Mount.
Others really enjoy this idea of peacemaking, but they view it wrongly, as if this seventh Beatitude were teaching something like pacifism. This is, of course, the belief that all war, of whatever kind, for whatever purpose, is wrong and should be never occur. Those who say Jesus teaches this are mistaken. Being a peacemaker does not mean all war is wrong. Some wars happen because whole groups and nations are seeking to rid the world of wicked tyrants, to bring peace. So while war, strife, and injustice is truly part of our fallen world, not all wars are evil, some do create peace.
Ultimately, we ought to say peacemaking looks like Jesus, the Prince of Peace. Isa. 9 predicts His coming with the words, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end…” When He was born the heavenly host sang, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased” (Luke 2:14)! And when Jesus was teaching us of His Kingdom, His rule, and His redemption He said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27).
This was so impactful for the apostle Paul you could say peace is the main theme for back half of Eph. 2, “…in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near.”
Church, Jesus brings us peace. Jesus bought our peace. Jesus is our peace, and Jesus leads us out to bring His peace to all the world. This is peacemaking.
The Reward of Peacemaking
Hear Matthew 5:9 again, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
How fascination that the reward of peacemaking is a kind of recognition. See that? “…they shall be called sons of God.” This is a very Matthew way of putting it. He often uses this language. In Matthew 8:12 he speaks of sons of the kingdom, in 13:38 he speaks of sons of the evil one, and in 23:31 he speaks of those who are sons of those who murdered the prophets.[9] In all this its clear to see that Matthew has groups of people in mind as he’s writing. He does this to clarify who’s who in the first century world. And the group that belongs to Jesus, he calls sons of God.
But ask, who is the one doing the calling and recognition here? First and foremost it is God, who has sent His Son to save His children and to bring them His peace. The very fact that a Christian is a Christian means they are at peace with God, and are filled with the peace of God. But more, being Christians we then desire everyone to be at peace with God, so we go to them with the gospel. In this sense God is One who calls us His children as He sees His own peace in us and moving through us.
But in another sense the world around us is doing some recognition as well. They see us busy and proactive in working to make peace in various situations and they recognize we must be the followers of the Prince of Peace. Some will enjoy this, and praise God for seeing God’s peace in our lives. While others will not enjoy this, and will persecute us for this as the next Beatitude shows.
All in all, I think the reward of peacemaking, that we are called God’s children, shows a family resemblance. All those who have been saved by Jesus Christ the Prince of Peace, will themselves become a people a peace. In this manner, we resemble our Savior. We show by our lives that we are in His family. Yes, in a true sense everyone who believes in Jesus is a child of God, that is true all day long. But, the point here in v9 is that those who make peace fulfill what membership in the family of God really means, they make plain what all the family members should aspire to.[10]
Conclusion:
The question this all leads to is clear: are you a peacemaker or a troublemaker?
It is true, sometimes peacemakers cause trouble, but that doesn’t justify anything in us. If others would describe us as discontent, omnicritical, fault-finding, or eternally displeased you’re likely not a peacemaker.[11] But if you are at peace with God, if you are filled with the peace of God, than you are a child of God, and every child of God is called to walk in peace and make peace.
So Church, let’s be who we are.
Psalm 34:14, “Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.”
[1] Donald Alfred Hagner, Matthew 1-13, Volume 33A, ed. Bruce M. Metzger, David Allen Hubbard, and Glenn W. Barker, Revised ed. edition (Zondervan Academic, 2018), 94.
[2] R. Kent Hughes, The Sermon on the Mount: The Message of the Kingdom, Preaching the Word Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2001), 64.
[3] Hughes, 64.
[4] R.T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, NICNT (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007), 169.
[5] Leon Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew, PNTC (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1992), 101.
[6] Daniel M. Doriani, Matthew 1-13, Reformed Expository Commentary (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2008), 126.
[7] R. C. Sproul, Matthew, St. Andrew’s Expositional Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2013), 68.
[8] A.W. Pink, An Exposition of the Sermon on the Mount (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1969), 37.
[9] France, The Gospel of Matthew, 169.
[10] Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew, 101.
[11] Hughes, The Sermon on the Mount: The Message of the Kingdom, 69.
