Study Peace
When Jesus sent out the 70 disciples in pairs, he told them to look for ‘people of peace’.
The Greek ‘eirene’ has a meaning that is the cessation of war, or law and order that brings blessing or prosperity. The Hebrew word for peace is ‘Shalom’ which is used as a greeting and has a deeper meaning, that relates to wholeness, a general well-being, health, harmony and happiness.
The fall of humanity resulted in the loss of shalom, as represented by Eden. Cain is depicted as restless, a wanderer, fearful of his own life. God’s face was hidden from him. The people were characterised by violence, following the guidance of Cain an example of jealousy and murder.
God wanted to provide an alternative for humanity and therefore called Abraham as father of a nation, to express shalom. Abraham’s son Isaac showed shalom when encountering Abimelech and the Philistines. Instead of escalating a dispute over wells, the access to water, Isaac and those with him moved on to a place where there was room for them. He could have flexed his muscles and insisted on staying. Abimelech recognised that Isaac was stronger. Isaac received blessing from God. Blessing leads to shalom. Unlike Cain, God’s face was towards His people. Shalom was part of Jubilee, a time of security with friends and family.
Although the people were to express shalom they were surrounded by aggression and violence. At the time of the judges, the people were being oppressed by the Midianites. Gideon has a face to face encounter with Jesus (a christophany, ‘the angel of the Lord’) who brings a message of peace such that Gideon builds an altar and calls it ‘Yahweh-shalom’ translated ‘The Lord is Peace’. Following God’s guidance, using some strange tactics that show that it was down to God not human effort, Gideon defeats the oppressors and ushers in a generation of peace.
Peace was always the objective. David was a man of war so was forbidden to build the temple. It passed to his son Solomon.
In the Old Testament there is a message of shalom in the midst of a humanity following in Cain’s footsteps bringing restlessness and aggression. Isaiah states ‘there is no peace for the wicked’. However, he also has a prophecy that promises a child who will, among other names, be called the ‘Prince of Peace’.
Jesus fills the shoes of that title, bringing peace through his death on the cross.
In his teaching in the sermon on the Mount, one of the beatitudes states ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God’. The Kingdom of God is characterised by people who are peacemakers. The instruction is to make peace, not to just keep it. Peacekeepers may not resolve conflicts, but can just hide them until they emerge again. Making peace is not about compromise or tolerance.
Jesus, through his death and resurrection, established peace in our own lives and with others. Peace is an outcome of salvation. The Holy Spirit brings unity and a bond of peace. Peace is a fruit of the Spirit.
Jesus put an end to violence and aggression. When he said to Peter, who had just lopped off someone’s ear with a sword, “Stop! No more of this”, this was an instruction to end all violence. He healed the wound and then established peace through his own wounds.
Division and conflict have nothing to do with the Kingdom of God.
We still live in a world that follows Cain rather than the Holy Spirit. It results in anxiety, fear, restlessness and aggression, even warfare.
Church needs to express the Kingdom of God. Any aggression, violence or oppression has no place here. Historically the church, here referred to as “Christendom” is tainted by violence and division. As such it therefore does not express the Kingdom of God.
We are called, not just to walk in the Spirit expressing peace, but to seek out those who similarly are people of peace.
Background
When Jesus sent out the 70 disciples in pairs (Luke chapter 10 verses 1 to 24), he told them to look for ‘people of peace’ (verses 5,6).
The fall of humanity resulted in the loss of shalom, as represented by Eden. Cain is depicted as restless, a wanderer, fearful of his own life (Genesis chapter 4 verses 13 to 15). God’s face was hidden from him. The people were characterised by violence, following the guidance of Cain an example of jealousy and murder (Genesis chapter 6 verse 5).
Abraham’s son Isaac showed shalom when encountering Abimelech and the Philistines (Genesis chapter 26). Instead of escalating a dispute over wells, the access to water, Isaac and those with him moved on to a place where there was room for them (verses 18 to 24). He could have flexed his muscles and insisted on staying. Abimelech recognised that Isaac was stronger (verse 16). Isaac received blessing from God (verse 24). Blessing leads to shalom (Numbers chapter 6 verses 22 to 27). Unlike Cain, God’s face was towards His people. Shalom was part of Jubilee, a time of security with friends and family (Leviticus chapter 25 verse 18).
Although the people were to express shalom they were surrounded by aggression and violence. At the time of the judges, the people were being oppressed by the Midianites (Judges chapter 6). Gideon has a face to face encounter with Jesus (a christophany, ‘the angel of the Lord’ verse 22) who brings a message of peace such that Gideon builds an altar and calls it ‘Yahweh-shalom’ translated ‘The Lord is Peace’. Following God’s guidance, using some strange tactics that show that it was down to God not human effort, Gideon defeats the oppressors and ushers in a generation of peace (chapter 8 verse 28).
Peace was always the objective. David was a man of war so was forbidden to build the temple. It passed to his son Solomon (2 Samuel chapter 7).
In the Old Testament there is a message of shalom in the midst of a humanity following in Cain’s footsteps bringing restlessness and aggression. Isaiah states ‘there is no peace for the wicked’ (chapter 57 verse 21). However, he also has a prophecy that promises a child who will, among other names, be called the ‘Prince of Peace’ (Isaiah chapter 9 verse 6).
Jesus fills the shoes of that title, bringing peace through his death on the cross (Colossians chapter 1 verse 20).
In his teaching in the sermon on the Mount, one of the beatitudes states ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God’ (Matthew chapter 5 verse 9). The Kingdom of God is characterised by people who are peacemakers. The instruction is to make peace, not to just keep it. Peacekeepers may not resolve conflicts, but can just hide them until they emerge again. Making peace is not about compromise or tolerance.
Jesus, through his death and resurrection, established peace in our own lives and with others (Ephesians chapter 2 verses 13 to 22). Peace is an outcome of salvation. The Holy Spirit brings unity and a bond of peace (Ephesians chapter 4 verses 1 to 6; 6 verse 15). Peace is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians chapter 5 verse 22).
Jesus put an end to violence and aggression. When he said to Peter, who had just lopped off someone’s ear with a sword, “Stop! No more of this”, this was an instruction to end all violence (Luke chapter 22 verse 51). He healed the wound and then established peace through his own wounds.
Division and conflict have nothing to do with the Kingdom of God.
We still live in a world that follows Cain rather than the Holy Spirit. It results in anxiety, fear, restlessness and aggression, even warfare.
Church needs to express the Kingdom of God. Any aggression, violence or oppression has no place here. Historically the church, here referred to as “Christendom” has been tainted by violence and division. As such it therefore does not express the Kingdom of God.
We are called, not just to walk in the Spirit expressing peace, but to seek out those who similarly are people of peace (Luke chapter 10 verses 5 to 9).