The Priority of Peacemaking | Part 2

What does God want for your life?

Love Worth Finding featuring the dynamic biblical lessons and insights from Adrian Rogers. Now in part one of today's message, we learned that until we are right with God, we'll be troublemakers, not peacemakers. And peace is not appeasement. In fact, appeasement never brings peace. Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace himself, was not an appeaser.

He will never make a truce with sin. Jesus came to put a line of demarcation between truth and error, between light and dark, sin and righteousness. And as agents of peace, we need to learn to do the same. If you have your Bible, turn to Matthew chapter five. We'll look at verse nine as Adrian Rogers shares more about the priority of peacemaking.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. Now we're very intelligent people. We know a lot. We can build jet airplanes. We can build rockets. We can build all of this.

We have television that can circle the globe. We've made the world a neighborhood, but we haven't made it a brotherhood. There is a desperate cry, a desperate need for peace. Now, my dear friend, until you're right with God in this world, you're going to be a troublemaker and not a peacemaker.

Just put it down big and plain and straight. Until you're right with God in this world, you're going to be a troublemaker and not a peacemaker. Now, the Bible says, blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God. First thing I want you to see today, the attributes of peace, the attributes of peace. What do we mean by peace? Peace, my friend, is not appeasement. Don't get the idea if you're a peacemaker that you are an appeaser. Appeasement never brings peace. Don't think that you're honor bound to get along with everybody. There is something wrong, something desperately wrong with the person who can get along with everybody. You just can't do it.

Now, you can try. The Bible says, if it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men, which means that it's not always possible. As a matter of fact, sometimes you're going to be known by the enemies you make. Friend, listen, Jesus Christ did not get along with everybody, and everybody did not get along with Jesus Christ. And peace is not appeasement. And peace is not truce making. Now, you can have a truce, and a truce is better than hot war, perhaps, but that only means that is the secession of hostilities. And there can still be a cold war.

It goes underground to fester and to grow, and then perhaps to break out again. Peace is not even the absence of war of any kind, hot or cold. There's no strife in the cemetery, but incidentally, that's not peace.

And then you go in a cemetery, and you'll see where it says on the headstone, rest in peace. Well, friend, I want to tell you it takes more than a grave marker to bring peace to a troubled soul. Peace is not just simply the absence of war. When the Bible uses the word peace, the word peace is not a negative word, the absence of war.

It is a positive word. Now, my dear friend, let me tell you what peace is. Peace is not appeasement. Peace is not truce-making. Peace is not even merely the absence of war. What is peace? Peace is a right relationship.

Listen carefully, because this is a technical point, but a very important point. Peace is a right relationship with God that leads to a right relationship with self and guides us in a right relationship with other people. That's what peace is. It is a sense of well-being, and literally, literally, peace is the result and the fruit of righteousness. Now, if you don't see anything else, I want you to get this now. I want you to see how righteousness and peace are linked.

This is not an artificial link. If you're an unrighteous person, you can never have peace. There is no peace, saith my God to the wicked. The only way that you can have peace is to have righteousness. Bless the beatitudes, blessed are the pure in heart, and then blessed are the peacemakers. There is no peace without purity. Put these verses down in your margin. First of all, James 3, verse 17, the wisdom that is from above is first pure and then peaceable.

Did you get it? First purity, then peace. Blessed are the pure in heart, blessed are the peacemakers. The wisdom that is from above is first pure and then peaceable. Put this one down, Psalm 85 and verse 10, mercy and truth are met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed one another.

Isn't that a great verse? Righteousness and peace have kissed one another. There's a love affair between righteousness and peace. There's a marriage between righteousness and peace and what God hath joined together.

Let no man put asunder. In Hebrews chapter 7 and verse 2, the Bible shows Melchizedek as a picture, a type of the Lord Jesus Christ. And Melchizedek is called two things. First of all, king of righteousness, and secondly, king of peace. First he must be king of righteousness. Here he is king of righteousness, then he becomes king of peace. You see, righteousness and peace have kissed one another. My dear friend, you cannot have peace without righteousness. What is peace? Peace is a right relationship with God, a right relationship therefore in your heart and a right relationship with one another.

It is a positive thing. It is the righteousness of God ruling and reigning in your heart. Now that is the attribute of peace, secondly. Not only do I want you to see the attribute of peace, but I want you to see the adversary of peace. Let me give you these verses. Isaiah chapter 48 and verse 22, there is no peace, saith the Lord unto the wicked.

That's it. You want peace? This world wants peace? Sin is the problem. Can you imagine standing up in the Pentagon and saying, gentlemen, the problem is sin? Can you imagine standing up in one of the great universities and saying, gentlemen, the problem is sin? People are saying, what are we going to do about war?

What are we going to do about all these problems? Ladies and gentlemen, there is no peace, saith my God to the wicked. Righteousness and peace are linked together. Sin separates men from God. Sin brings inner turmoil and it separates men from men. Here's another verse.

Put it down. Jeremiah 8, 11 and 12, key verse. For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my peace, slightly saying, peace, peace when there is no peace. And then he says in Jeremiah 8 verse 12, were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? Nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush. We have a group of people today yelling, peace, and they can't even blush over their sins. Did you know that a human being is the only animal they can blush? And friend, he's the only one that needs to.

But we've forgotten how to blush. Here are these people going around saying, peace, peace, peace. The Bible says they've committed abominations. This generation of unblushables wondering why we don't have peace.

It's very obvious. The adversary of peace is sin. That's the reason the Bible does not teach peace at any price. One of the strangest verses that ever fell from the lips of the prince of peace, Jesus, is this. He said, think not that I've come to send peace on the earth. I came not to send peace, but a sword. That's incredible, because the Bible calls him the prince of peace. I mean, he's known as the prince of peace.

When he was born, the angel said, peace on earth, good will to men. The Bible says, blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God. And yet in this passage, Jesus Christ said, don't think I came to send peace. I didn't come to send peace, I came to send a sword.

What's he talking about? He is saying, I did not come to bring some sort of a false peace and amalgamation of good and evil. I came with a sword to put a line of demarcation between truth and error, between light and dark, between sin and righteousness. And what Jesus is saying is this, that when God's standard of righteousness is set, there will always be a division. Without righteousness, there can be no godly peace. And the sword that Jesus has is like a scalpel. It must first hurt before it heals. Peace can never come. Are you listening? Peace can never come where sin remains.

God will never make a peace treaty with sin, never. I remember reading years ago in history about Admiral Nelson, Lord Nelson, he'd won a sea battle. And there was a French admiral who was surrendering to Lord Nelson. And that French admiral came and he was dressed up in all of his regalia with his special hat. He had all those scrambled eggs on his shoulders and he came with spit and polish to approach Lord Nelson on the deck of a ship. And he had his sword down by his side in the scabbard. And Lord Nelson saw him coming. Remember now, he was coming to surrender.

And that admiral with a, almost a smile on his face as an equal, put out his hand to Lord Nelson. Lord Nelson just stepped back and said, your sword first. Lay down your sword.

My dear friend, there are a lot of people who just think they can walk up and glad hand the Lord Jesus Christ. He says, your sword first. Surrender first. Jesus, my dear friend, is not an appeaser and he will never make a truce with sin, never. To that degree, Jesus said, don't think that I came to send peace, I came to send a sword. What he meant by that is this, there will be no peace, there can never be peace without, first of all, a surrender to the lordship of Jesus Christ.

Now here's the third thing I want you to see. I've talked to you about the attribute of peace, which is righteousness. I've talked to you about the adversary of peace, which is sin. There is no peace, saith my Lord, to the wicked. Now I want to talk to you about the attainment of peace, the attainment of peace. How can you attain peace?

Let me give you some wonderful news. First of all, this peace has been planned by the Father, Jeremiah 29 and verse 11. If you don't know this verse, you need to learn it. Jeremiah 29 verse 11, for I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, not of evil, to give you an expected end. You know when God thinks of you, you know what God wants for you?

Peace. This is what God desires for you. God's thoughts to you are not thoughts of malevolency. God is not some vengeful deity sitting up there on a throne making a lot of rules and laws to make you squirm like a worm in hot ashes trying to keep them, throwing down thunderbolts of wrath.

That's not the idea of God. God says, the thoughts I have toward you, the things that I think to you, the plans that I have for you, they're plans of peace. Six times in the New Testament, he is called the God of peace.

The book of Judges, Judges chapter 6 and verse 24, he is called Jehovah Shalom. Jehovah Shalom, the Lord our peace, peace. Peace has been planned by the Father, secondly. Peace has been purchased by the Son, planned by the Father, purchased by the Son.

Put these verses down. Ephesians 2 verses 13 and 14, but now in Christ Jesus, ye who are sometimes far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ, for he is our peace. You who are far off, you who are enemies, you are made near nigh by the blood of Christ, for he is our peace. Then put this one down, Colossians 1 verses 19 and 20, for it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell, that is in the Lord Jesus Christ, and having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself. Jesus Christ on the cross provided this peace. How does the cross bring peace? At the cross, wickedness was not appeased. Wickedness was confronted. At the cross, sin was not overlooked.

At the cross, sin was atoned and paid for, and God's greatest righteousness confronted man's greatest wickedness, and righteousness won, and peace was attained through the blood of the cross. Thank God for that. Thank God for that.

I say thank God for that. A lady lay dying. Some people did not know her very well.

She was a stranger in those parts. They thought they ought to witness to her. One came and stood by her bedside and said, Madame, do you know how ill you are? She said, yes, I believe I'm dying. They said, well, we don't want to alarm you, but have you made peace with God? She said, no. They said, may we help you to make peace with God? She said, no. Don't you realize you're dying?

Yes. Don't you want to make peace with God? She said, no. She said, I have no need to make peace with God. I am resting in the peace that Jesus made at Calvary.

She was way ahead of them. I am resting in the peace that Jesus made. We don't make peace. Jesus made peace, the blood of his cross.

Now listen, it was planned by the Father. God says, I know the plans I have for you, the plans of peace, purchased by the Son. And my dear friend, I want to tell you it is provided by the Spirit, the Holy Spirit of God. You see, the Bible says in Galatians chapter 5 and verse 22, the fruit of the Spirit is peace.

It's provided by the Spirit. Remember Jesus in John chapter 14? Jesus said, I'm going to pray the Father and he'll send you another comforter that he may abide with you and he's going to teach you all things, bring them into your remembrance. And then he says in verse 27, peace I leave with you. Peace I leave with you. My peace give I unto you, not as the world giveth, give I unto you.

Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. That's the Holy Spirit that brings us to our hearts and minds. He's the one who gives us this peace in our hearts and tells us that we're at peace with God. Planned by the Father, purchased by the Son, provided by the Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is the executor of the will of Jesus Christ. Jesus' last will and testament before he died, he said to you, peace I give unto you. That's what he left you.

That's his legacy, my dear friend. It's peace. Then he said, not as the world gives, give I unto you. It's peace as the old song says, the world didn't give and the world can't take away. The world didn't give it to me and the world can't take it from me. It is the peace that passes understanding.

No psychologist, no psychiatrist without Jesus Christ could have any understanding of this, my dear friend. Now, last of all, look at our text and it says very wonderfully, blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the sons of God. Let me talk to you last of all about the agents of peace, the agents of peace. We've talked to you about the attribute of peace, the adversary of peace, the attainment of peace. Now, here's the agent of peace and that's me. That's you. We are God's agents.

I saw a cartoon in a magazine one time that in a preacher's study there was his file, you know, this four drawer file and in the one next to the top it said sacred and in the one right at the very top it said top sacred. Well, dear friend, this is, you are a sacred agent. You are sacred agent 777. You are God's agent of peace. Now that's, that is so true.

You are an ambassador. And you know what we said that peace is? It is reconciliation. And the Bible says in 2 Corinthians 5 verse 18, all things are of God who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ. We've been saved. We've been given peace. And then he says, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. That's our ministry. Oh, my dear friend, what is the ministry of reconciliation? It's just simply soul winning.

It's just simply telling people about Jesus. He's given to us the ministry of reconciliation. I was invited to Washington for the inauguration and after the inauguration I got in the cab and I came out the door, you know, where I'd been a guest there at a particular building and the cab driver thought I was important because of the door I came out and he said, what do you do? I said, I am an ambassador. Boy, he looked up. He was impressed, you know. And so he said, after a while, he said, who do you represent? I said, a king. Boy, he was really impressed, you know, and we went on a while back and he said, well, who is he?

I said, he's the greatest. Well, on and on and I just toyed with him for a while and then I told him I'm a son of God, an ambassador of Jesus Christ and an emissary of peace and I preached Christ to that young man. And my dear friend, I want to tell you, I had rather be an ambassador for Jesus than to be a prince or king here on this earth. We are ambassadors for Christ. He has committed to us the ministry of reconciliation, the grandest thing, the greatest thing you can ever do is to receive the peace that Jesus Christ made on the cross and let the peace of God rule and reign in your heart and then be not just simply a peace lover.

But my dear friend, a peacemaker, not an appeaser, not making peace with sin and unrighteousness, and lifting up the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Do you have peace? Old Corrie ten Boom said, you look around, you'll be distressed.

She said, if you look within, you'll be depressed. But she said, if you look to Jesus, you'll be at rest. That's where the peace comes. Do you have peace with God?

Do you? Remember, you'll never have peace till something's done about this problem of sin. Father God, I pray today that you'd help us to understand how to be peacemakers. And Lord, we know that we cannot make peace until first of all we've received peace and rest in the finished peace of Calvary. Lord, I pray today for many who need you. Now, if you don't have peace with God, the Bible says, therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

You're not justified any other way but by trusting Christ, justified by faith. Today, if you're trusting, then you can have peace with God and then peace with yourself and peace with others. Have you placed your hope and trust in what Jesus Christ has done for you? Are you ready to have peace with God, peace with yourself and with others? Let me lead you in this prayer.

Pray it from your heart. Father in heaven, I know that I'm a sinner. I know that I'm separated from you.

I'm your enemy. You tell me that in the scripture. But Jesus came to give his life so that I might have his righteousness. And right now I trust in what he accomplished for me on the cross. I trust in his blood, in his salvation that he's offering. And I claim him as savior and Lord today.

Come in and change me from the inside out. I pray in Jesus name, amen. If you've just prayed to receive the forgiveness and the mercy that God has offered you through Jesus, let us celebrate with you. Go to our discover Jesus page on the website. You'll find answers you may need about your new found faith.

There's a response section. Tell us about this change in your life. Just go to lwf.org slash radio and click the tab, discover Jesus. Welcome to God's forever family. We can't wait to hear from you today. Again, go to lwf.org slash radio and click discover Jesus. Now if you'd like a copy of today's message to hear again, or maybe pass along to a friend, call us at 1-877-LOVEGOD to order the priority of peacemaking. You'll receive the entire message, which we haven't had time for today. This lesson is also part of the insightful sermon on the Mount series, the keys to the kingdom for the complete collection, all eight powerful messages.

Call that number 1-877-LOVEGOD, or go online to lwf.org slash radio, or write us at Love Worth Finding Box 38600, Memphis, Tennessee 38183. Thanks for studying in God's word with us today. Remember we are agents of peace. Share the hope of reconciliation with someone else today, and be sure to join us next time for more timeless truth right here on Love Worth Finding. We were so encouraged by a Facebook friend who wrote on our wall recently. Let me share this. God is exercising his love through Love Worth Finding. Please keep sharing these life-changing messages from Adrian Rogers.

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