Blessed Are the Peacemakers: Why Following Jesus Means More Than Keeping the Peace

Have you ever stood six feet away from someone, using the same lure, casting in the same spots, and walked away completely empty-handed while they caught nine fish? That's exactly what happened to me a couple of weeks ago when I went fishing with Rebekah and Jackson. Rebekah caught nine fish. I caught zero. Skunked. No logical explanation. It just was.

The teachings of Jesus can strike you the same way. At face value, they don't always compute. But that's because there are two ways of living — The Way of the World and The Way of Jesus. And today, those two ways couldn't be more different. The Way of the World is division. The Way of Jesus is reconciliation.

What Does "Blessed" Actually Mean?

We're in part 7 of our series on the Beatitudes — the opening section of Jesus' most famous teaching, the Sermon on the Mount, found in Matthew 5. Jesus takes familiar ideas and restates them, not as checkboxes to complete, but as a hopeful expectation of what someone who trusts him should experience.

Today's verse is Matthew 5:9 (NIV): "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God."

But before we can understand what Jesus is saying, we need to understand what he means by blessed. It's a word that's been hijacked. We use it to describe our circumstances — a loving family, good health, a roof over our heads. But that misses so much.

The original Greek word is makarios, and it has nothing to do with your circumstances. It's about the state of your soul. Being blessed is deep fulfillment, inner wholeness, and satisfaction that transcends the circumstances of life. Even when it's all falling apart, you can be blessed because your soul is settled. It's more than happiness.

Peace Is More Than a Bumper Sticker

If you lived through the 60s and 70s, you probably remember tie-dye and peace signs. Which is nice. But that kind of peace — the "no wars and be nice" kind — isn't what Jesus was advocating for.

Jesus doesn't say, "Blessed are the peaceful" or "Blessed are the pacifists." He says peacemakers. That's a different way of living entirely.

To understand the fullness of what Jesus is saying, we need to go back to first-century Jewish culture. For Jewish people, the word for peace — shalom — was a powerful word. Theologian Roger Hahn describes the Jewish idea of peace as "total well-being rather than absence of conflict."

Shalom is both a hello and a goodbye. It's a statement of well wishes for a person, not a political position. And Jesus is pointing to something even deeper — restoring wholeness to people. As the prophet Isaiah wrote in Isaiah 52:7 (NLT): "How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns!"

To be a peacemaker is to carry the Good News. This isn't about being Switzerland. It's about preparing the way for a Savior.

Peacemaking Is the Character of God

Here's where it gets powerful. Matthew 5:9 (NIV) says peacemakers "will be called children of God." In first-century culture, to be called someone's child was to share their character. Like father, like son.

As pastor and theologian J.A. Broadus put it, "There is no more godlike work to be done in this world than peacemaking."

That's what Jesus did — he made peace between God and humanity. Peacemaking isn't just something God does. It's who God is. Paul makes this clear in his letter to the church at Colossae in Colossians 1:19-20 (NLT): "For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross."

Through Jesus, we see how the work is done. And through Jesus, we see how much being a peacemaker can cost.

What About War? A Tension Worth Naming

This is where it gets complicated, and we shouldn't pretend it doesn't. Jesus spoke these words during a time of intense social and political unrest. Hatred was running hot. And we aren't so different today, especially as our nation finds itself engaged in an unofficial conflict with Iran.

For centuries, Christians, philosophers, and political leaders have wrestled with what's called Just War Theory — asking the difficult question: When, if ever, is war morally justified? Theologians Augustine of Hippo and Thomas Aquinas summarized the tension this way: human life has dignity and peace should be pursued, but evil sometimes must be restrained to protect people.

Here's how I think about it: the government carries a different responsibility than you and I do as followers of Jesus. Romans 13:4 (NLT) says, "The authorities are God's servants, sent for your good...They are God's servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong."

The government is to bring order. We are to bring peace. Those are not the same calling.

Putting It Into Practice

Step 1: Find Peace With God

Peacemaking starts here. Not with fixing everyone else. Not with solving conflict around you. It begins with reconciliation between you and God.

The story of Scripture is that humanity drifted. Sin fractured the relationship. But Jesus stepped into the gap and did what we could not do for ourselves. Romans 5:1 (NLT) says, "Therefore, since we have been made right in God's sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us."

Before we become peacemakers, we first become peace receivers. You cannot give away what you have never experienced.

Step 2: Live at Peace With Others

This part gets complicated because people are complicated. Living at peace does not mean you have to agree with everyone. It does not mean you approve of everything. It certainly does not mean every relationship gets restored.

I love how Paul says it in Romans 12:18 (NIV): "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."

You're going to want to write that down. Because it's not always possible, and there isn't always something you can do. Someone needs to hear that today — it doesn't matter how many times you apologize or bend over backwards, it will never be enough with some people. But you've covered the "as far as it depends on you" part. You are only responsible for you.

Step 3: Help Others Find Peace With God

This is the good part. This is where peacemaking puts us on mission with God. Jesus did not make peace with us so we could quietly enjoy it while everyone around us keeps wandering.

In 2 Corinthians 5:20 (NLT), Paul writes, "So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, 'Come back to God!'"

An ambassador lives in one place while representing another. You are not just raising kids. You are representing Jesus in your home. You are not just working a job. You are representing Jesus in your office, classroom, neighborhood, and ball field.

The world does not need more Christians who simply consume church. The world needs peacemakers who carry the presence of Jesus into everyday life.

Somebody around you is carrying anxiety and pretending they're fine. Somebody is holding grief they've never spoken out loud. Somebody is angry, exhausted, lonely, addicted, skeptical, or quietly asking questions they don't know how to voice.

Maybe God put you in their life for a reason.