Building Blocks For Kingdom Living-Part 4 Series

NOTE: Study materials used for this message were taken from the following: "The Message of the Sermon on the Mount" Stott; "The Complete Biblical Study Library" Matthew. Since Michael King’s message "Assurance of Salvation" which I used for reference on part 1 only named the first 3 attitudes, the remainder I tried to create in order to build from one beatitude to the next. I also have power points for all the messages in this series, if you would like to use them, feel free to email me pastordeb@firstassemblyonline.net.

BEATITUDES - PART IV

TEXT: Matthew 5:9-10

INTRODUCTION

Finishing up our series on the “Be” Attitudes

Jesus is laying out the “Constitution” by which all of His Disciples are to live.

TRANSITION: The 7th “Be“ Attitude that follows the Attitude of Transparency is an ATTITUDE OF RECONCILIATION.

I. Attitude of Reconciliation.

Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

1. True, Jesus was to say later that he had ‘not come to bring peace, but a sword, for he had come ‘to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’, so that a man’s enemies would be ‘those of his own household’.

2. We should never ourselves seek conflict or be responsible for it. On the contrary, we are called to peace (1 Cor. 7:15), we are actively to pursue peace, we are to ‘strive for peace with all men’ and so far as it depends on us, we are to ‘live peaceably with all’. (Romans 12:18)

3. Peacemaking is a divine work.

4. The sequence of thought from purity of heart to peacemaking is natural, because one of the most frequent causes of conflict is intrigue, while openness and sincerity are essential to all true reconciliation.

5. Every Christian, according to this beatitude, is meant to be a peacemaker both in the community and in the church.

6. The words ‘peace’ and ‘appeasement’ are not synonyms.

7. God made peace with us at immense cost, even at the price of the life-blood of His only son. We too--though in lesser ways--will find peacemaking a costly enterprise.

8. One of the responsibilities of correct Bible Study is not to proof-text.

9. We must not take one Scripture and build a doctrine or force our beliefs into it. We are on the other hand required to search the other Scriptures to come to a better understanding of what God’s intentions are.

10. That brings us to the next foundational approach to Bible Study and that is, “Scripture will never contradict Scripture.”

11. As we look at other Scriptures involving our role as peacemakers, we find 3 threads of truths regarding our roles involving reconciliation. The first of which is:

A. Reconciling with God

2 Corinthians 5:18-20 Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ, and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that god was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

1. Pitfalls of the Reconciler of People to God

Dietrich Bonhoeffer ‘cheap grace’

2. There is such a thing as ‘cheap peace’ which in other words is proclaiming peace when there is no peace (Luke 17:3). This is the work of the false prophet (not the Christian witness)

3. When we look at the magnitude of the task before us today to fulfill the GREAT COMMISSION we run into danger of:

Becoming Overwhelmed

Becoming Desensitized

Becoming Cynical

4. But that does not negate the fact that we are called to be ambassadors of Christ reconciling the world to Him!

B. Reconciling with One Another

Hebrews 12:14-15 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord; looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God.”

1. Jesus never said, “Blessed are the peacekeepers”; He said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.”

2. What is the difference? A peacekeeper maintains peace at all costs. Thus, he will compromise truth to avoid confrontation.

3. The problem with this is that people remain comfortable in their present state when they need godly change.

4. A peacemaker on the other hand, seeks true peace, and if need be, he tenaciously confront with truth or righteousness to bring forth real peace.

5. A peacemaker loves righteousness and hates sin. He does not back off. He calls sins just what it is: sin, not a mistake or weakness.

6. His hatred for sin grows out of his love for God and for people. His true desire is to see what is best for people, not necessarily what makes them happy or makes him popular.