This week we are considering the seventh Beatitude,
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)
We can define a peacemaker as those who seek to bring people to peace with God and others.
Today we are considering that Christians are sent by God as His ambassadors of peace. Any workplace, neighbourhood, friendship groups should feel the unifying force of a Christian who is among them. Now, the next Beatitude speaks of persecution so we will not always be well received! However, it should always be our endeavour to help people to have peace with God and with one another.
Christians are God’s ambassadors of peace. We read,
‘All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.’ (2 Corinthians 5:18-21)
All of us have a ‘ministry of reconciliation'. We are to do all that we can to help to bring reconciliation wherever God has put us.
How would you summarise ‘the message of reconciliation’?
We are described as ‘Christ’s ambassadors’. We represent the true peacemaker - Jesus. As Jesus left heaven in order to bring peace on earth, so we are to go and do all that we can to help bring people into peace with God through Christ.
RESPONSE
God has reconciled you. He has dealt with your sin. Now he has made you an ambassador with the ‘message of reconciliation’ to share.
Spend a moment meditating on 2 Corinthians 5:18-21. Allow the Spirit to stir up worship, passion and prayer in you.
COMMUNITY GROUP STUDY - BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS
Notices
It might be good to begin with notices. Please share from this week’s Church News.
Suggested opener/Ice-breaker
When have you acted as a peacemaker and/or have you had an example of your efforts to make peace going wrong?
Introduction - please share in your group
This week in our discipleship series, we are considering the seventh of the Beatitudes,
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)
We can define a peacemaker as those who seek to bring people to peace with God and others.
Being a peacemaker, most importantly, involves our being at peace with God and then helping others to have peace with God.
Peace with God is the biggest need of all human beings. All face God's wrath for sin and need salvation.
A Christian is ‘justified through faith’. Justification is a legal idea. It’s to be declared righteous (without sin!) regardless of our behaviour. At the moment of faith, God sees us as having kept the law perfectly in Christ. Peace with God is not the result of our good works. Rather, it by faith in Christ. We read,
‘Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.’ (Romans 5:1)