Blessed are the Peacemakers

The Call to Peace: Blessed Are the Peacemakers

Bible Passage: Matthew 5:9

Summary: In Matthew 5:9, Jesus declares, 'Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.' This beatitude highlights the importance of actively promoting peace in a world filled with conflict and strife.

Application: This passage encourages Christians to embody peace in their relationships and communities, seeking reconciliation and harmony rather than division and hostility. By embracing this call, believers can find personal peace and contribute to the broader peace of the Church and society.

Teaching: The sermon teaches that peacemaking is not passive but an active pursuit of reconciliation that reflects God's character. It challenges the audience to evaluate their own lives and question how they can become agents of peace in various aspects of life, such as at work, in family dynamics, and within the church.

How this passage could point to Christ: In the grand narrative of Scripture, Christ embodies the ultimate peacemaker, reconciling humanity with God through His sacrifice. His life and teachings exemplify perfect peace and set the standard for believers to follow in their own lives.

Big Idea: True blessing comes through the pursuit of peace, revealing our identity as children of God and reflecting Christ's nature in a divided world.

Recommended Study: As you prepare this sermon, consider using Logos to delve into the historical context of peacemaking in the first-century Jewish culture and explore the differing interpretations of peace in contemporary Christian thought. Pay attention to text-critical issues in Matthew's Gospel that may shed light on the beatitudes as a whole, particularly the implications of sonship in relation to peacemaking.

1. Pursuit of God's Peace

Matthew 5:9

You could explore how being a peacemaker involves actively seeking to mend broken relationships throughout the community, reflecting Jesus' peacemaking mission. This passage suggests that peacemakers are uniquely aligned with God's character, reflecting His desire for healing and reconciliation. Use examples from Jesus' life, such as His interactions with sinners and outcasts, to illustrate how believers can embody these attributes in their everyday lives. Ultimately, this point could encourage believers to take intentional steps towards peace in the varied contexts they find themselves, be it in their families, workplaces, or communities

The word in Mt 5:9 would, perhaps, be better rendered “peace-workers,” implying not merely making peace between those who are at variance, but working peace as that which is the will of the God of peace for men

Matthew 5:1–9 Christ’s “Blessed,” spoken on the mount, refers not only to his present time but also to the end times, when his blessing will be established forever. “Poor”—the poverty-stricken. “In spirit”—those whose internal hearts are not proud, those who humbly know that they don’t depend on themselves but on God. “Mourn”—people who grieve because the world is broken. “Comforted”—in the coming kingdom. “Meek”—not fainthearted, but meek as Moses was meek (Numbers 12:3) when he outfaced Pharaoh. “Righteousness” does not mean to hunger for a right piety, but to be filled with the righteousness of the Savior. “Merciful” isn’t an attitude. It is those who do acts of mercy. “Pure in heart”—those with an undivided devotion to God alone. (See Psalm 86:11.) “Peacemakers”—people who reconcile those who are in conflict (as is the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa).