PEACEMAKERS

CONFLICT

OPENING STORY: [PICTURE OF THORDIS ELVA AND TOM STRANGER] THORDIS AND TOM WERE IN HIGH SCHOOL WHEN THEY BEGAN A DATING RELATIONSHIP. HE WAS AN EXCHANGE STUDENT FROM AUSTRALIA WHO HAD COME TO THORDIS’ ICELAND, AND WAS SMITTEN BY HER. CHRISTMAS DANCE…RAPED HER FOR TWO STRAIGHT HOURS. ABSOLUTELY HORRIFIC. BROKE UP SOON AFTER…FOR THE NEXT NINE YEARS SHE WAS ABSOLUTELY DEVASTATED AND TRIED TO MOVE ON WITH HER LIFE BUT COULDN’T. SHE CAME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT FOR HER PEACE WOULD NOT COME UNTIL SHE REACHED OUT TO THIS MAN WHO HAD VIOLATED HER. SO SHE DID ON EMAIL. FOUND HIM TO BE BEYOND CONTRITE…THEY DIALOGED VIA EMAIL FOR THE NEXT 8 YEARS…SOMEWHAT HELPFUL, BUT SHE STILL DIDN’T FIND THE COMPLETE PEACE SHE WAS LOOKING FOR. CONVINCED SHE HAND TO MEET HIM FACE TO FACE…HALFWAY POINT BETWEEN THE TWO OF THEM AUSTRALIA. THEY SPENT A WEEK TOGETHER THERE. SHE EVEN INVITED HIM TO HER HOTEL ROOM…HEARD EACH OTHER’S STORIES. WHAT THEN HAPPENED NEXT BAFFLED THE WORLD- THEY WROTE A BOOK TOGETHER CALLED, ‘SOUTH OF FORGIVENESS’…TED TALK VIEWED OVER TWO MILLION TIMES IN ITS FIRST WEEK. THEY ARE A PICTURE OF WHAT THE BIBLE CALLS PEACE. AND THEIR PEACE IS A MODEL TO THE WORLD.

NEED:

YOU AND I LIVE IN A FALLEN WORLD WHERE UNFORTUNATE HORRIFIC ACTS LIKE THE ONE TOM DID TO THORDIS HAVE BECOME THE NORM. THE REASON FOR THIS, THE BIBLE SAYS IS SIN. SIN IS SOCIAL, IT RIPS AT THE FABRIC OF RELATIONSHIPS. ADAM AND EVE HIDE FROM EACH OTHER AND GOD…THEIR SON CAIN MURDERS ABEL. THE STORY OF THE BIBLE IS THE STORY OF CONFLICT. CONFLICT BETWEEN FAMILY MEMBERS, SPOUSES, TRIBES, NATIONS AND HUMANITY WITH GOD. WHY DO PEOPLE STEAL FROM EACH OTHER- SIN. WHY DO PEOPLE BETRAY? SIN. BECAUSE THERE’S SIN THERE’S CONFLICT. AND WHEREVER THERE’S CONFLICT THERE’S A NEED, A YEARNING FOR PEACE.

APPLICATION: ALL OF US IN HERE HAVE A RELATIONSHIP OR TWO THAT IS BROKEN. EXAMPLES- YOUR FATHER IS NOT IN YOUR LIFE MAYBE BECAUSE OF HIS OWN SIN. OR YOU AS A PARENT MAY BE ESTRANGED FROM A CHILD BECAUSE OF THEIR REBELLION, POOR CHOICES, OR BECAUSE OF SOMETHING YOU DID. YOU MAY HAVE A CHILD WITH A PERSON WHOSE NO LONGER YOUR PARTNER, AND EVERY TIME YOU SEND THAT CHILD SUPPORT PAYMENT YOU ARE REMINDED OF THE BROKEN RELATIONSHIP, AND WHAT ONCE WAS. THERE’S THAT FRIEND YOU NO LONGER SPEAK TO, THAT CO-WORKER YOU’RE DISTANT FROM. WE ARE IN THE MIDST OF CONFLICT AND BROKENNESS. THIS IS THE NORM IN OUR WORLD. AND GOD HAS CALLED US TO BE PEACEMAKERS. BUT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

PEACEMAKING DEFINED: A PEACEMAKER IS ONE WHO AT RISK TO THEMSELVES AND THE RELATIONSHIP STEPS INTO THE CONFLICT AND THE BROKENNESS WITH THE SINGULAR AIM TO BRING ABOUT RESTORATION AND WHOLENESS.

POINT: PLEASE NOTE, JESUS DOESN’T SAY BLESSED ARE THE PEACE LOVING, OR PEACEFUL, BUT BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. “The peace which the bible calls blessed does not come from the evasion of issues; it comes from facing them, dealing with them and conquering them. What this beatitude demands is not the passive acceptance of things because we are afraid of the trouble of doing anything about them, but the active facing of things, and the making of peace, even when the way to peace is through struggle”- William Barclay. PEACEMAKING IS RISKY BUSINESS. PEACEMAKING IS NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART. AND HERE IS THE COUNTERINTUITIVENESS OF THIS BEATITUDE, FOR JESUS DOESN’T SAY BLESSED ARE THE CONFLICT AVOIDERS, BUT BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. TWO KINDS OF PEOPLE WHEN IT COMES TO CONFLICT…TURTLES AND SHARKS.

TURTLES: IF I DON’T SEE IT I WON’T HAVE TO DEAL WITH IT, AND I REALLY DON’T WANT TO RISK DISCOMFORT…SUBWAY ILLUSTRATION.

APPLICATIONS: SOME OF YOU ALL THE CONFLICT IS ALREADY THERE, IT’S OBVIOUS. LIKE YOU’RE ALREADY HAVING ANXIETY OVER THAT PERSON WHOSE HOUSE YOU’RE GOING TO FOR THANKSGIVING DINNER…SO YOU’RE LIKE, LET ME NOT EVEN SAY ANYTHING…LET ME JUST KEEP THE PEACE…THAT’S NOT PEACEMAKING. OR SOME OF YOU HAVE A REAL SENSITIVE FRIEND, OR A REAL SENSITIVE SPOUSE, AND YOU KNOW IF YOU SAY SOMETHING IT’S GOING TO BE A PROBLEM. THEY’LL EITHER EXPLODE, SHUT DOWN AND PASSIVELY MOVE AWAY FROM YOU. SO YOU’RE POSTURE IS LET ME NOT EVEN GO THERE BECAUSE IT’S GOING TO REALLY BE A PROBLEM…LET ME JUST KEEP THE PEACE…THAT’S NOT PEACEMAKING. NOT BLESSED ARE THE CONFLICT AVOIDERS, BUT BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS.

SHARKS: OTHERS OF YOU ARE SHARKS. YOU SMELL BLOOD, YOU FLY TO IT. NO, WE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THIS TODAY. YOU’RE LIKE, ‘I LOVE CONFLICT.’ CAN I GIVE YOU JUST A REAL GENTLE PASTORAL WORD, FROM ONE SHARK TO ANOTHER- YOU’RE SICK. YOU NEED HELP…DO YOU KNOW THAT SHARKS CANNOT MOVE BACKWARDS, ONLY FORWARDS. SHARKS DON’T KNOW WHEN TO JUST BACK OFF OF THINGS. SHARKS NEED TO REALIZE THEY’VE GOT SIX BULLETS IN THEIR GUN AND THEY CAN’T SHOOT AT EVERYTHING. THERE ARE TIMES TO JUST LEAVE IT ALONE. SHARKS ARE RELATIONSHIP KILLERS, NOT PEACEMAKERS.

INSTEAD, PEACEMAKERS ARE TO BE LIKE SURGEONS. SOMETHING GOES WRONG THEY SPEND SIGNIFICANT TIME DIAGNOSING THE PROBLEM, AND THINKING THROUGH THE BEST WAY TO DEAL WITH THE ISSUE. SOMETIMES THE DOCTOR WILL SAY, NOT A BIG DEAL, DON’T DO ANYTHING. OTHER TIMES THERE WILL BE PLEASANT, NON INVASIVE WAYS TO BRING ABOUT WHOLENESS TO THE BODY. BUT THEN, IN EXTREME CASES THEY’LL SAY, NO WE NEED TO OPERATE. THE BASIC IDEA OF OPERATION IS, WE NEED TO CAUSE SOME CONFLICT. THERE’S GOING TO BE SOME PAIN IN ORDER FOR US TO GET TO THE ISSUE. BUT YOU WILL NOT BE WHOLE UNTIL WE JUMP IN AND DEAL WITH THIS. WE’RE CALLED TO BE SURGEONS. BUT WHAT DOES THIS LOOK LIKE

CEASE FIRE

EXPLANATION: JESUS SAYS BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS, AND AS WE HAVE LEARNED TO BRING PEACE ASSUMES THERE’S CONFLICT. BUT THERE’S MORE. THE GREEK WORD FOR PEACE THAT JESUS USES HERE IS THE IDEA OF SETTLEDNESS, OF RESOLUTION. TO USE WAR TERMINOLOGY, WE WOULD SAY THAT IT’S REALLY THE IDEA OF A CEASE FIRE. IT IS THE CESSATION OF CONFLICT AND STRIFE. THE GUNS HAVE STOPPED FIRING, AND ARE PUT DOWN. THERE’S A CEASE FIRE.

ILLUSTRATION: ALBERT AND LAROSSAS DAUGHTER WHO WAS ALWAYS CAUSING CONFLICT WITH HER MOUTH…JUST POPPING OFF AT THE MOUTH AND IT WAS BRINGING A LOT OF CONFLICT AND TROUBLE. SO HER MOTHER SAID WHENEVER YOU FEEL LIKE YOU ARE GOING TO SAY SOMETHING THAT WILL CAUSE PROBLEMS WITH YOUR SIBLINGS, I WANT YOU TO PUT YOUR HAND OVER YOUR MOUTH. ONE DAY IN TARGET, AND SHE WANDERED OFF. MOTHER FINALLY FOUND HER AND SCOLDED HER REALLY BAD. IN THE MIDST OF THE SCOLDING THE DAUGHTER IMMEDIATELY PUT HER HAND OVER HER MOUTH. THE MAMA BACKED UP AND WAS LIKE, OH NO, WHY DID YOU DO THAT? I WAS ABOUT TO SAY SOMETHING BAD TO YOU MOM? WELL WHAT WAS IT? I WAS ABOUT TO TELL YOU TO SHUT UP. THE MOTHER STOPPED HER HAND. DAUGHTER WAS LIKE WHAT WERE YOU ABOUT TO DO? SPANK YOU. CEASE FIRE.

APPLICATION: ON A PRACTICAL, GROWN UP LEVEL WHAT DOES PEACEMAKING AND THIS IDEA OF CEASE FIRE LOOK LIKE IN OUR LIVES? TIME KORIE CURSED ME OUT AND SLAMMED THE DOOR. WE MADE AN AGREEMENT. THE IMPORTANCE OF HEALTHY CONFLICT RESOLUTION. - SPEAKING THE TRUTH IN LOVE. SOME OF YOU ALL ARE IN RELATIONSHIPS WITH PEOPLE AND THE FIRST THING YOU NEED TO DO IS TO CALL A CEASE FIRE TO THE CURSING, THE YELLING, THE SLAMMING OF DOORS. IT’S CHILDISH. EXPAND TO HOW YOU SPEAK TO YOUR CHILDREN, FRIENDS…NOT SPEAKING…CEASE FIRE.

SHALOM

EXPLANATION: BUT WE REALLY HAVEN’T EVEN TOUCHED THE SURFACE, OR GOTTEN A REAL PULSE ON PEACEMAKING. JUST BECAUSE YOU STEP INTO CONFLICT AND CALL A CEASE FIRE DOESN’T MEAN YOU’VE BROUGHT PEACE. MATTHEW MAY RECORD JESUS AS SAYING BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS IN GREEK, BUT NEVER FORGET JESUS WAS A JEW, AND THE JEWISH IDEA OF PEACE IS SHALOM. YOU NOW WHAT SHALOM MEANS? IT MEANS RESTORATION AND WHOLENESS, THE RESTORING OF A RELATIONSHIP. DALE BRUNER PICKS UP ON THIS AND SAYS, “We can almost translate the keyword ‘peacemakers’ with the word ‘wholemakers’”- Dale Bruner. TO BE A PEACEMAKER IS NOT JUST TO PUT THE GUNS DOWN, BUT IT IS TO EMBRACE, AND HUG. DON’T YOU SEE PEACEMAKING IS NOT JUST NOT FIGHTING, BUT IT’S RESTORING THE RELATIONSHIP.

ILLUSTRATION: DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CRM AND APARTHEID. CRM SETTLED FOR THE CEASE FIRE AND ENACTED LAWS. SOUTH AFRICA TOOK THINGS A STEP FURTHER AND SAID WE NEED TO BE IN RELATIONSHIP WITH ONE ANOTHER. TUTU QUOTE FROM NO FUTURE WITHOUT FORGIVENESS?

STRONG APPLICATIONS: WHO DO YOU NEED TO HUG? IN YOUR MARRIAGE…NOT GOOD ENOUGH TO NOT FIGHT. GOD’S CALLING YOU TO HUG. OTHER EXAMPLES. ME GETTING CALLED NIGGER IN COLLEGE. GOD SAYING I NEED YOU TO ACTUALLY REPAIR THE RELATIONSHIP WITH THAT PERSON…OUT OF YOUR MIND!

CONCLUSION: CALLED SONS OF GOD. THIS IS A DESCRIPTION OF CHARACTER. WHEN WE CALL SOMONE A SON OF A DOG WE ARE NOT DISPARAGING THE DOG BUT THE PERSON BY SAYING YOU HAVE TAKEN ON THE CHARACTER OF A DOG. OR WHEN A CHILD DOES SOMETHING THE MOTHER DOESN’T LIKE SHE LOOKS AT THE FATHER AND SAYS THAT’S YOUR CHILD. TO BE CALLED A SON OF GOD MEANS THAT WE HAVE TAKEN ON THE TRAITS OF OUR FATHER. SO THAT WHEN THERE IS CONFLICT IN THE WORLD WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO EITHER LOOK LIKE THE WORLD AND TAKE VENGEANCE, OR LOOK LIKE OUR FATHER. THAT ESTRANGED RELATIONSHIP, THE HURTFUL COMMENT IS A DNA TEST...

GOSPEL CONCLUSION

EXPLANATION: SO WHAT IS TO BE THE MOTIVATION? WHAT IS TO FUEL AND FEED OUR PEACEMAKING? JESUS…HE IS CALLED IN THE PRINCE OF PEACE. WHY IS HE CALLED THAT? THERE WAS A CONFLICT GOING ON…YOU AND I WERE AT ODDS WITH GOD, AND THE BIBLE SAYS THAT GOD WAS ANGRY WITH US…WE WERE BY NATURE CHILDREN OF WRATH. LIKE REBELLIOUS CHILDREN, WE DUG OUR HEELS IN AND WERE FULLY COMMITTED TO LIVING LIFE ON OUR OWN TERMS. AND WHAT WAS GOD’S RESPONSE? PRAISE GOD HE WAS NEITHER TURTLE NOR SHARK. HAD HE HID FROM US IN PASSIVITY AND DID NOTHING WHILE WE MARCHED TO HELL WE WOULD HAVE NO HOPE. BUT HAD HE BEEN SHARK AND UNLEASHED HIS WRATH ON US WE WOULD HAVE BEEN CONSUMED. INSTEAD HE PLAYED THE SURGEON. ON THE CROSS JESUS DEALT WITH THE CONFLICT. HIS DEATH SERVED AS THE PROPITIATION OF SIN…THAT MEANS HE SATISFIED THE WRATH OF GOD. THE CONFLICT WAS OVER…BUT THERE’S MORE. JESUS DIDN’T JUST CALL A CEASEFIRE TO OUR SIN, HE INVITES US INTO SHALOM. . WE HAVE PEACE. THE BEEF IS SQUASHED...

APPLICATION: BUT THERE’S MORE. BECAUSE OF WHAT CHRIST HAS DONE FOR US, IN STEPPING INTO THE CONFLICT, CALLING A CEASE FIRE BY SATISFYING THE WRATH OF GOD AND BY BRINGING ABOUT SHALOM CHRISTIANS SHOULD BE IN THE FRONT LINES OF PEACE MAKING, AND THE GREATEST ACT OF PEACEMAKING WE CAN BE ABOUT IS WHEN WE SHARE OUR FAITH WITH OTHERS! . WHEN YOU SHARE JESUS WITH OTHERS YOU ARE INVOLVED IN PEACEMAKING.