True peacemaking eludes the unconverted, who are “hateful, and hating one another” (Titus 3:3). Sinners may have a sense of peace, but it is the false peace of Satan’s undisturbed reign over their lives (Luke 11:20-21), the peace of a graveyard. True peace is from the Lord, but sinners are at war with him… True peace begins with reconciliation between God and sinners by faith in Jesus Christ (Rom. 5:1).

We can certainly foster peace as a virtue which the Spirit yields in our hearts, but it can only be cultivated once the seed has been sown. For this reason, Beeke and Smalley note that:People try to get away from it all–to the country, to the beach, to the mountains. You always wish that you could too. Which is idiotic: you can get away from it anytime you like. By going within. Nowhere you go is more peaceful–more free of interruptions–than your own soul. Especially if you have other things to rely on. An instant’s recollection and there it is: complete tranquility. And by tranquility I mean a kind of harmony. (Meditations, 4:3)

While that may sound like self-help advice from mindfulness guru on social media, it is actually from Marcus Aurelius, who was emperor of Rome from AD 161-180. He wrote those words to himself in his private journal that was published after his death. He was a devout Stoic, which is a philosophy that emphasizes discipline and self-mastery. Given the unbridled hedonism that the internet now offers, it makes sense that Stoicism is quickly regaining popularity. Indeed, as the dopamine wears off and the wars and rumors of wars keep looming overhead, people are increasingly taking Marcus Aurelius’ advice: they are looking for peace within themselves. Sadly, that is not the way to achieve true and lasting peace. As we shall see in the Seventh Beatitude before us, true peace only comes from Christ, which He then produces within His people.

Blessed Are the Peacemakers

“The Beatitudes,” says John Blanchard, “are not a programme but a portrait, not a directive but a description” (217). We ought to especially keep this in mind as approach this Beatitude, for as with being meek and merciful, being a peacemaker necessitates action.

The truly and eternally happy are peacemakers. As with the other Beatitudes, we can begin by ruling out some ideas that are not being expressed here.

Peacemaking is not the same thing as appeasement, of doing whatever people want to avoid conflict. Indeed, the people-pleaser will do whatever it takes to avoid conflict because he views conflict as intrinsically wrong. Yet the stark reality is that some conflict is necessary. For instance, peace should never be bought at the cost of the truth. In fact, since the truth must prevail, forsaking truth for the sake of appeasement only guarantees a greater conflict still to come.

Neither is Jesus summoning us to dishonesty by ignoring problems, suffering, and sin. Sadly, many churches today fit the description given in Jeremiah 6:14: “They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace.” Especially within the Word of Faith movement, turmoil is often seen as coming from a lack of faith, but Jesus Himself told us that in this world we will have tribulation (John 16:33).

What then does Jesus mean by peacemaker?

As in English, the Greek is a compound word. The first part is peace (ειρηνη), which is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word shalom. While it certainly entails the cessations of combat, shalom often means far more. It refers to wholeness, completeness, and harmony in all realms of life. Indeed, while Marcus Aurelius does not use the word ειρηνη above, his usage of tranquility (ευμαρεια) and harmony (ευκοσμια) match the idea of shalom/eirene well.

Indeed, Wilhelmus a Brakel notes that “this word is derived from a root which means ‘to bind together,’ for peace unites the hearts, and binds people together” (91). Thus, we may do well to think of peace as harmony in the greatest sense of the word: harmony with God, with others, and with our own consciences.

The second part is maker (ποιεω). Like the verb hacer in Spanish, it can mean both doing and making. James uses the same word in 1:22 whenever he writes: “But we doers (ποιηται) of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” It is a word that necessary connotates action.

Putting the two together then see that Christ is not simply describing an inner peace within Christians. Rather, a Brakel’s definition of peaceableness is very fitting:

Peaceableness is a believer’s quiet and contented disposition of soul, inclining him toward, and causing to strive for, the maintaining of a relationship with his neighbor characterized by sweet unity–doing so in the way of truth and godliness. (91)

To be a peacemaker certainly requires that inner peace, “the quiet and contented disposition of soul,” but it must also work outward, “striving” for peace with those around us. Lloyd-Jones notes quite frankly that “it is in practice that you prove whether you are a peacemaker or not” (124). How then are we to do this? How are we to make peace around us?

Again, true peacemaking requires a readiness to contend for the truth. There is a paradox here similar to meekness. Jesus’ great meekness was seen most gloriously in the crucifixion precisely because He had the power to bring it to an end at any time. Meekness requires strength; otherwise, it is nothing more than weakness. Self-control works the same way, for it is most expressed toward our greatest desires. For instance, I have zero desire to gamble; therefore, my avoidance of gambling is not a great display of self-control. In the same way, a person who cannot stand for truth is not a peacemaker but a pushover. Making peace requires having the capacity make proper conflict. Indeed, Jude 3 summons us “to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.” The key, of course, is noting that we contend for the faith, not for our own honor or reputation.

Peace Flows from Love

We must also understand that pride fuels strife, while love produces peace. James 4:1-4 tells us plainly what the default cause of fighting is:

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

Of this passage, Blanchard writes:

The key phrase her is ‘your desires that battle within you’. The word ‘desires’ translates the Greek hedonon, from which we get the word ‘hedonism’, the doctrine that self-satisfaction is all-important. The word ‘battle’ translates the Greek strateumenon, the same militant word used by Peter when he writes of ‘sinful desires, which war against your soul’ (1 Peter 2:11). James is saying that the cause of all human conflict is man’s deep-rooted determination to get his own way, an attitude which inevitably brings him into contention not only with God but with his fellow men. It would be simplicity itself to show that every conflict in human history, from global war to a broken marriage, has proved the accuracy of James’ diagnosis. (215)

Indeed, the insistence of having my own desires fulfilled is ultimately rooted in pride, for it reveals that I value myself more than I value others. Love, however, is the opposite. After all, love, says Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:5, “does not insist on its own way.” Whenever we act in love, we treat others are more important than ourselves, valuing their good over our selfish desires. Indeed, a Brakel gives us a four-point summary of this point:

“If you are desirous to live in peace:

(1) Crucify your desire for money, honor, and love; it is impossible to have and maintain a peaceable heart without self-denial.

(2) Keep to yourself and let others govern their own matters. Do not appoint yourself as a detective and judge concerning the deeds of others; close your ears for backbiters.

(3) Be always the least—both in your own eyes as well as in your conduct toward others. Endure being wrong, and forgive such deeds (Col. 3:13).

(4) If someone else encounters you in an unpleasant manner, or if you detect the first stirring of displeasure, arm yourself at once and resist strife at the very outset; be completely silent. (100-101)

To quote Lloyd-Jones again:

As peacemakers, we should be endeavoring to diffuse peace wherever we are. We do this by being selfless, by being lovable, by being approachable and by not standing on our dignity. If we do not think of self at all, people will feel, ‘I can approach that person, I know I shall get sympathy and understanding, I know I shall get an outlook which is based upon the New Testament.’ Let us be such people that all will come to us, that even those who have a bitter spirit within them will somehow feel condemned when they look at us, and perhaps may be led to speak to us about themselves and their problems. The Christian is to be a man like that. (125)

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