by Brandee Brown on Thursday, January 22, 2009 at 5:09pm · I wrote this back in 2004, but still find it very relevant and inspiring today! I'm not gonna edit or change a thing...even names...so you're seeing it like it was originally (back in the Xanga days! haha)
PeaceMAKER or Peace keeper?
The difference between a "Peace-Keeper" and the "Peace-Maker".
I, thank you Jesus, that I fall into the category of the latter....a full fledged Peace-Maker. Always have been, always will be. It is part of the personality that my Lord gave me to use in strength and service to Him.
Ask me where I found all of this and I can point you to numerous Teachers of the Word (look up Kay Arthur, Charles Stanley, or the late Adrian Rogers) whose doctrine is sound, personal friends, & mature Christians who have lived long enough to know the need and biblical call of the Peacemaker. And the inerrant, infallible, transcendent Word of God.
Jesus is the great peacemaker. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God," Jesus said in Matthew 5 when he addressed his disciples during "The Sermon on the Mount." Too many people think the Bible said Peace-Keepers. One of the greatest problems in the Christian Church is that we have men and women who want to be peacekeepers rather than the peaceMAKER that they were commissioned to be. The Bible is peace primer. 88 times in the NT the word "peace" is used. Every Epistle begins and ends with a prayer for peace. Christ's last will and testament to the disciples was,"Peace I leave with you. My peace I give unto you" (John 14:27. It is not enough to be peace-lovers, or even peace-keepers---we must be peace-makers.
Every privileged nation, race or class naturally prefers peace-loving and peacekeeping to peacemaking. When faced with a grievance, the peacekeeper tries to keep things as they are. The peacemaker, on the other hand, tries to change things to arbitrate the hostility. That's our job as Believers!
Peacemakers are architects who build bridges with wood from a Roman cross.
The peace the world gives is peace by escape. This kind of peace secures a temporary tranquility by refusing to face reality. It pretends there is justice where there is injustice, love where there is lust, virtue where there is vice, and immortality where there is certain death. The peace Jesus gives is peace by conquest. It enables us to face dreadful circumstances without hearts that are troubled and afraid. We are content and confident because we have surrendered to Jesus Christ, the final winner who overcomes the world.
A peacekeeper:
Always guides conversations away from the subjects that might cause strife. Peacekeepers are compromisers. They avoid confrontation at all costs. They are the inventors of the "No Talk Rule." They are experts at changing the subject, and misdirecting the conversation. The peace attained by a peacekeeper is a pretend peace, it is a momentary peace. This peace is outward, external and incapable of changing anyone's heart or mind. The result of the "No Talk Rule" actually allows wickedness to continue. It keeps dysfunctional families in abusive cycles. The cure for all of this is that peace makers will step forward and say "There is a problem here, and we need to solve it now!" A peacekeeper, much like the rebellious Israelites in Jeremiah 6:14, who ignored Jeremiah's warnings hoping it would "just go away"....they cry Peace, Peace, when there is no peace.
A peacemaker:
Sees a problem and immediately goes to work to correct, reconcile and restore. They implement long lasting solutions. When peacemakers do this, they are often accused of being unloving, judgmental, trouble makers, legalistic, or intolerant. When a peacemaker points out improper behavior they are all too often vilified and the guilty party is given a pass. John the Baptist was a peacemaker and he lost his head for calling sin, SIN. Jesus is the Prince of Peace, but he called the Pharisees a den of vipers, and they crucified Him. Most of the 12 Apostles were martyred because they pricked men's consciences. (OUCH!)
Peacemakers do not keep their mouths shut when they see improper behavior. Nor, do they merely go discuss it among others. They go straight to the source, and boy, does it ever hurt at times. Lots of people FEAR the Peacemaker, and rightfully so....but the Peacemaker is doing what Jesus SAID to do in order to be called Sons of God. Peacemakers are confrontational, but they are confrontational in a loving way. (even if they don't have a sugar-drippy-sweet soprano voice!) Truth without love is HARSH, but love without truth is COMPROMISE.
Being a peacemaker is a hard but necessary process b/c we are dealing with the hearts of men and women. People do not , in the flesh, want to die to their own desires and they don't appreciate being confronted. {{i pray and beg God every single day that I might die to my own desires, agendas, intentions, and ignorance...may His will be done...B.B.}}
Peacemakers are pure in their motives. Isaiah said "woe is me" before he said "woe unto you" They are willing to move into conflict even when their flesh does not want to, because they love God and His word above all else. Peacemakers exhort and rebuke will all long-suffering in season and out of season (2Tim4:2-5. They are not appeasers. They will stand (when others may be compromising)...in order that there may be lasting change. They are willing to expose heresy and lack of faith. Caleb and Joshua were peacemakers!
I learned, in the past month,of the great truth spoken in John 15:18-20, where Jesus spoke about who if the world hated and persecuted Him, the world would also hate and persecute His followers. When we (i) am not being persecuted, then perhaps we (i) are not following His teachings. Peacemakers lead others to have peace with God. Peacemakers are willing to do the tough things. People who teach truth and apply it to the hearer's lives are true peacemakers.
In Matthew 5:13, Jesus speaks about those who are unwilling to shine His light of Truth: You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. {it is only good for paving streets} Salt is good. It prevents spoilage by preventing decay by bacteria, fungi, etc. Ultraviolet light also kills bacteria. Salt and light are confrontational with their environment because both prevent decay.
In Ezekial 3:18-19 God said, in-effect, Peacekeepers will be held accountable for the sins of the wicked because they did not warn the wicked; while the peacemakers will not be held accountable because they have done what God told them to do and warned the wicked.
The question is do we love people enough to tell them the truth?
Jesus did, and His only crime was in telling the world the Truth.
I love you friends. Truly love you. Even when my blunt, sometimes harsh, Drill Sergeant personality doesn't show it. {{not to mention Assertive...haha, thanks Christian}} (hey~at least you never ever have to worry about me being fake!) Please bare with me and love me with all of my personality flaws and gifts.
God has shown me soooo much favor in the last 2 months!! Will you join me in praising Him for His faithfulness, mercy, justice, and goodness?
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