“And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;” (Eph. 6:15)
“Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” (Matt. 5:9)
To be a peacemaker requires war to be present, not so much with weapons of destruction, but with envy, strife, greed and any number of other evils against mankind.
“Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” (James 4:3)
Taken in context, peacemakers attempt to hinder lust in those who are becoming consumed with it, who desire more than what they are supposed to be content with.
In our day the word lust almost always presupposes a sexual reference, which in some forms could requires a peacemaker, assisting that person in seeing the folly of their desire, it is, as far too many of us have experienced in our lives, a war within our flesh. But the Gospel of peace can only be used against those who have determined to take that which is not rightfully theirs, and in a Spiritual and Scriptural context, what they who attempt to take is the sovereignty of the Most High God for themselves.
The wicked have very little desire to fully serve anyone, much less die to self solely for the glory of God, and therefore are in a war they will lose. Our responsibility is to forewarn them about this truth. The excuse they will offer is that of not needing to obey fully, that God is love, that not all of their life has been intentionally lived in sin against Him, and that the scales of heaven will prove them justified.
Romans 3:23 is not a truth to them, for there are levels of sin in their minds, and as such they do not view themselves in open rebellion against the judge of all mankind, they are not at war with God.
You could spend hours, perhaps days or even years attempting to reveal to them what is required to be at peace with the Lord, but until they acknowledge the Lord Jesus Christ as the only means of salvation, they will never fully understand that the wrath of God already abides on them.
And how could they? Life is going well for them, there have been no serious hurdles, no pitfalls, nothing more than the expected inconveniences and the normally expected items of everyday life. They do not believe that they are at war against God.
“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.” (Heb. 12:6)
There have been those I have witnessed to in the past that seemed to ride the fence, so to speak, one day they seem receptive to the Scriptures, and the next they are almost at war with me for continuing to attempt to reach them for the Lord. I have done two things in these times, and then left them to themselves.
One was to tell them to prove the Lord, ask Him to perform a miracle in their life, something that could not be attributed to anything or anyone else but the Living God.
The other was to simply bring peace to them and do as they asked, to leave them alone, but then I have asked the Almighty to reveal to them that indeed they are at war with Him who never has and never will lose a battle or any war.
“It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Heb. 10:31)
“To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” (1st Cor. 5:5)
Peace my friends does not always mean allowing one whom you desire to see saved by the grace of God leave your presence unscathed, we do not bring the battle to them, we let God do that, and sometimes it is not always done in what could be considered a peaceful manner.
But here is a truth for you, it is better than an eternity of torment.
Peace is our path, but when it does not work, give them over to God, let Him fight with them.
