Blessed are the Peacemakers

Friends,

I shared this paragraph a couple of months ago in my "Spiritual Balance" post: Balancing the tensions of the roles we play in our lives -- husband, father, counselor, minister, preacher, friend...is important; we need to be able to "bend" without "breaking" – "blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape"...other tensions needing to be balanced in our lives are -- immanence and transcendence; sovereignty (God rules) and free will (God gives us freedom of choice); grace and obedience; and unity and doctrinal purity.

I share this again in order to lead into another principle which is in tension and which should be understood and balanced. Another tension in the spiritual world that frequently comes into play in our lives relates to how we deal with circumstances and relationships. Some gravitate toward the need to pacify or, perhaps, as Jesus would say -- "turn the other cheek." Some have interpreted this principle over the years as "peace at all costs," but I do not believe that this is what Jesus is saying. Jesus said "blessed are the peacemakers" in relationship to "turning..." and this is a very different principle from "pacifism." Pacifism taken to an extreme often leads to enabling, which is to help someone "to continue to go down the wrong path." This is psychologically and spiritually unhealthy. A peacemaker needs to understand "the necessity of going to battle" or "doing some battling" in order to get to "lasting peace." This is not an easy or comfortable principle to grasp, but is essential to good stewardship or leadership. Others gravitate more toward this "stewardship" or "taking a right stand" because it is necessary, at times, to give an apologetic or defense of a principle, which can be as comprehensive as "standing for the Gospel of Christ." Paul tells us to "put on the full armor of God" (Ephesians 6). This is an admonition for the soldier who is readying for battle. This provides the impetus for the song..."Onward Christian soldiers marching as to war, with the cross of Jesus going on before..." As "turning..." is a "defensive posture," so "marching" is an "offensive principle." "Marching" taken to an extreme leads to "dogmatism" which is a mindset that insists that it is correct and that there is no other way. The first mindset can become too pliable, the second too rigid. We must take care not to be too stubborn in the application of either of these mindsets. The key is this -- wisdom comes in knowing when to stand and march and also when to acquiesce and defend and when to do so in the right way and with the right spirit. Food for thought.

Don