Sermon on the Mount-Blessings 9-10

Matthew 5:⁹ Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. ¹⁰ Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Peacemakers are unique, Jesus-centered people who unselfishly sow peace wherever they go. I am not always a peacemaker, even though I have some characteristics of peacemaking. In my daily walk, the Holy Spirit is showing me more and more how to be a peacemaker, but my wanting to be right can sometimes derail my progress. I do know there is a blessing when I am a peacemaker, and as I respond in love, and live spreading peace wherever I go. My problem is, I try to pick my own times to be that peacemaker, and God is helping me learn to respond at all times, not just when I pick, so He wants it to be a life result of my faith walk.

Paul wrote a formula that can help all of us in getting to the point of being a peacemaker, because it further confirms the peace in our lives, and it is found in Philippians 4. Philippians 4:⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! ⁵ Your kindness should be known to all. The Lord is near.⁶ Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. ⁷ Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

1. Rejoice in the Lord always. His presence in our life gives us a heart and life of rejoicing, and that is a firm foundation for new and better lifestyle choices. Paul doubles down on the rejoice part as it is vital to the other part of getting to peace.

2. Kindness should be shown to all! Not just the ones I approve of or like. The Lord is near and gives us the power to live this life of kindness. Scripture says this kind of life is a contrast to the way we perceive things in the world. That is why the fruit of the Spirit is Galatians 5:²² In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control.

3. No anxiety!! We are not to "fret" about things that we cannot change, and we should never go through life worrying about useless things that we should leave in God's hands. We are called to pray about EVERYTHING with thanksgiving. We should always make our requests to God and quit worrying about useless things because GOD HAS GOT THIS. Paul says THEN the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard our hearts and minds IN Christ Jesus. What comes from our life of peace is a life of peacemaking, and prayer is a vital part of this formula. It truly means something when we pray in the name of Jesus, so do it.

   We will have persecution for living this kind of "Jesus" life, but we are blessed because when we look in the mirror, we see a new person who looks an awful lot like Jesus, and oh, the blessing of that moment. I will admit I am not there yet, but God is drawing me closer to Him in my faith walk, and He can do that for you also. Let's take this journey or pilgrimage together, because in the Sermon on the Mount, this is just the beginning.

The Pilgrimage Continues,

David Warren