Patient Peacemakers

Being patient does not come easy with me. I am not a patient guy. But I have learned, especially since coming to Russia twenty years ago, that patience is a Biblical virtue. Waiting five years to get a construction permit, instead of the normal eighteen-month wait because we would not pay bribes, taught me about patience. It is also an important reality for peacemakers.

"St James the Elder"
Peter Paul Rubens, c. 1612

The Apostle James, the brother of Jesus, developed into a major leader in the first century church. Although he did not believe in Jesus as the Messiah and even challenged his claims (John 7:2-5), James became a believer when he saw the resurrected Jesus. The Apostle Paul referred to James as a “pillar” of the church (Galatians 2:9) and Luke records James’ critical role as a mediator during the debate at the Jerusalem council over whether or not Gentile Christians must observe Jewish practices required by Mosaic law.

The Book of James was written to a Jewish audience and is one of the earliest of all New Testament writings. James’ letter shows his great familiarity with Jesus’ teaching and its central concern is the vital link between faith and works. James persuasively argues that “faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (2:17).

James then goes on to compare two kinds of wisdom, “earthly wisdom” and “wisdom that comes from heaven.” In ways that would be very familiar to his Jewish readers, James describes the relationship between God’s wisdom and shalom – “the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all, pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.” And then James adds this note: “Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness” (3:17-18).

To Jesus’ brother, sowing in peace would result in creating conditions of justice. But James also warned the followers of Jesus to be patient: “See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the fall and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm” (5:7b-8a).

James’ message is clear – and we all need to hear it: Be an obedient peacemaker and trust that God will bring a “harvest of righteousness” in his own timing, as he promised.

So What?

• Do you find it as hard as I do to be patient, especially when you feel you’ve done something important and are waiting for the results? Can you think of any example in your life? How do you handle this timing of waiting when patience is needed?
• Being patient is not an act of passivity – it requires actively trusting in God’s promises that he will bless your efforts at peacemaking and reconciliation in his time. Has this been your experience?

The Big Story

Do you wake up in the morning sometimes, look around, and wonder what is going on in our crazy world?   I do.   When this happens, it reminds me of the observation made by Brent Curtis and John Eldredge in their book, The Sacred Romance, that “most of us live our lives like a movie we’ve arrived at twenty minutes late.  The action is well underway and we haven’t a clue what’s happening.  Who are these people?  Who are the good guys and who are the bad guys?  Why are they doing that?  What’s going on?  We sense that something really important, perhaps even glorious, is taking place, and yet it all seems so random.”  This insight appears in a chapter in their book entitled “A Story Big Enough to Live In.”

For many of us, when we read the Bible, it can be a confusing book and it is hard to understand what the principal themes are and how they hold together.  How do the Old and New Testaments relate to each other?  More importantly, where do we fit into this story, if at all?

Theologians talk about a meta-narrative– about the big story – of Scripture and it seems to me that getting a firm grasp on this big story is very important if we want to live as disciples of Jesus, if we want to be peacemakers in our broken world.

           

Recently I gained a fresh insight on the subject of “the big story” that I am excited to share with you.  Oxford Professor N.T. Wright suggests that we should view the Bible as a drama in multiple acts.  The creation story is Act I, where God’s plot for the world is initially revealed; Act II is the fall, where there is conflict in the story.  The remainder of the drama is the torturous resolution of this conflict and it can be divided into four further acts. 

Act III is the story of Israel, Act IV is the story of Jesus (who begins to unravel the plot conflict at is deepest roots), Act V is the story of the church, and the sixth and final act is the consummation when God’s intentions for creation are fully realized and when Jesus returns to earth in glory.

What is unusual about the Biblical drama is that the script breaks off in the middle of the fifth act, resulting in a sizable gap between Act V, Scene I (the story of the early church) and Act VI.   While there are hints in the Bible about how the story will end, there is no clear line leading from the break in Act V to the conclusion of the drama.

William Shakespeare

Professor Wright offers a creative insight on how we can think about “the big story” in the Bible and figure out where we fit in.  Suppose, he says, that there exists a Shakespeare play whose fifth act had been lost.  The first four acts provide a wealth of characters and a crescendo of excitement within the plot and those who found the lost play agree that the play ought to be staged.

The challenge is how to write a fifth act.   The best solution, Wright argues, would be to give key parts to highly trained, sensitive and experienced Shakespearian actors, who would immerse themselves in the first four acts, and in the language and culture of Shakespeare and his time, and who would then be told to work out the fifth act for themselves.

The first four acts, existing as they did, would be the undoubted authority for the task at hand.  The experienced Shakespearian actors would now have to improvise without developing behaviors that were inconsistent or unrelated to the existing text.  These actors would have to improvise and be innovative, while staying faithful to Shakespeare’s authority.

It is not necessary to draw this out much further.  When I read Dr. Wright’s insights on this, I was immediately drawn to the power of this analogy.  What a great way to think about our role as disciples in light of the authority of God’s Word.   As disciples, we need to be like highly trained, sensitive and experienced actors who know God so well that we can improvise and figure out how to live according to his teachings in our own particular context.  We need to immerse ourselves in God’s Word, so we can speak and live in light of the big story God has unfolded for us in Scripture.  Our job is to figure out, in light of God’s character and the teachings of Jesus, how we ought to live now.  This is an essential part of our calling as Jesus’ disciples.  It is indeed “A Story Big Enough to Live In”!

So What?

• Does this analogy help you?  In what ways?

• If one of your colleagues at work asked you to explain why you go to church and what your religious beliefs are, how would you answer their questions?  How would you explain “the big story” in the Bible?

Taking Shalom to the Streets

For many of us, there is a very long distance between our brains and our hearts. Those twelve inches can stretch into miles. I know I struggle with this. What I believe sometimes doesn’t make much difference in how I act.

Jesus knew this and that’s why he constantly reminded his disciples to listen to what he said and then to do it! The Apostle James repeated this message: “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (James 1:22).

My recent posts have discussed what Jesus taught about shalom, about being a peacemaker, and how his disciples interpreted this message and put it into practice in their own lives, after Jesus’ ascension to heaven.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

One remarkable example of how Jesus’ teachings were put into action comes from the civil rights movement under the leadership of Martin Luther King, Jr. If you wanted to be a volunteer and serve as part of his team, you had to sign a pledge agreeing to the following:

•  Meditate daily on the teachings and life of Jesus.
•  Pray daily to be used by God in order that men might be free.
•  Walk and talk in the manner of love, for God is love.
•  Sacrifice personal wishes in order that all men might be free.
•  Observe with both friend and foe the ordinary rules of courtesy.
•  Seek to perform regular service for others and for the world.
•  Refrain from the violence of fist, tongue and heart.
•  Strive to be in good spiritual and bodily health.
•  Follow the directions of the movement and of the captain of the demonstration.

Martin Luther King, Jr., whose statue and memorial are now located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., claimed that his civil rights efforts were grounded in the Sermon on the Mount, combined with Mahatma Gandhi’s method of nonviolent resistance. He said “It was Jesus of Nazareth that stirred the Negroes to protest with the creative weapon of love.”

Birmingham police with dogs
confront peaceful demonstrators

King took Jesus’ teachings to the streets where he lead peaceful demonstrations against the discrimination that Blacks faced in America. Like many other peacemakers, he sacrificed his life to do what he was called to do.

So What?

• Reading about King’s life and his role in the civil rights movement has been inspiring to me. While other black radicals called for violence and riots, he remained committed to the way of peace. Can you think of other people who lived out Jesus’ teachings on peacemaking and who took their beliefs to the streets?

• Do you agree that the pledge that King’s volunteers were asked to sign is not only applicable to the civil rights movement, but it is good practical advice for how we ought to live every day as followers of Jesus? What would you add to this list?

• I was really struck by the pledge to “refrain from the violence of fist, tongue and heart.” How do you understand “violence of the heart”?

Live In Harmony

Jesus’ disciples help us by giving practical illustrations and guidance on how to live out the “gospel of peace.” They witnessed how Jesus lived and heard what he taught on this subject and after Pentecost they became bold witnesses for Jesus and implemented a life of peacemaking as they understood it.

As a leader in the first century church, the Apostle Peter’s actions and teachings give us helpful insights. As we saw in my last “Reflections,” Peter’s vision and his subsequent journey to the house of Cornelius provide evidence of how Peter understood the message of Jesus about peacemaking in a very practical way. He now realized that the good news of the Kingdom of God was for all people and that God was not limiting his message to the Jews. This meant that Peter had to violate practices of his day that forbade association with non-Jews -- which he did and for which he was repeatedly persecuted.

Peter’s first letter, written to Jewish and Gentile Christians scattered throughout Asia Minor, was intended to encourage these young believers to live holy lives. After explaining that the God who called them was “holy,” he argued that Christians should therefore “be holy in all you do.” Peter then described what this meant in terms of practical living.

Here are Peter’s insights in his own words (I Peter 3):

• “Live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic and humble.”
• “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing . . . .”
• “Turn from evil and do good; . . . seek peace and pursue it.”
• “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.”

Peter’s instructions are not idealistic, utopian statements, but practical counsel that he learned from Jesus. Later Peter warned that people would speak maliciously against Christians and that they will suffer for their faith, but he encouraged his readers with these words: “It is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil” (I Peter 3:17).

In a similar way, the Apostle James, the brother of Jesus, also shared with his friends what it meant to follow Jesus and to live as a peacemaker. In his letter to a Jewish audience, one of the earliest of all New Testament writings, James demonstrated his great familiarity with Jesus’ teaching and his central concern that faith be linked to action. James persuasively argues that “faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (James 2:17).

One of James’ great insights is his discussion of how wisdom is related to shalom and then how shalom is linked to the “harvest of righteousness (justice),” a link that reminds us of Isaiah’s prophecies. James puts it this way: “The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow peace raise a harvest of righteousness” (James 3:18).

To Jesus’ brother, taking actions that nurture peace would result in creating conditions of justice. But James also warned believers to be patient and trust that God will bring the “harvest of righteousness” he promised.

So What?

• The Bible is a helpful guide for living a productive, healthy life. It has so many powerful insights about how to live in peace, how to confront injustice, how to deal with conflict, and how to build a more just world. This is why regular Bible reading is such an important discipline for followers of Jesus. Have you made it a part of your daily routine?
• I am not a “bumper-sticker guy,” but once in awhile I see one that really grabs my attention. Here’s a favorite: “Peace & Justice: Weapons of Mass Instruction.” Have you seen any lately that focus attention on peacemaking?
• Have you had any experiences within your family, social life or work you can share that helped you see some of the powerful links between peace, justice and wisdom?

Breaking Down Racial Barriers

So we have had a chance to see how Jesus lived and what he taught about peace. Now the question is: Did it matter? Did his closest friends, his disciples, take these actions of Jesus and his teachings and put them into practice in their own lives? This next series of reflections will look at this.

When the disciples were “filled with the Holy Spirit” at Pentecost, everything changed for them. They were no longer afraid for their lives nor did they hesitate to talk about their faith in the risen Jesus. They were now fearless witnesses of the gospel of peace.

The Gospel of Luke gives us numerous examples of how Jesus offered reconciliation between people despite their racial and cultural differences. In the same way that Jesus freely offered salvation to the Samaritan woman and to her neighbors, the Book of Acts makes it clear that the disciples now understood that the gospel was not just for Jews, but for all people. Societal prejudices that forbade communication or friendship with Gentiles were to be ignored. The gospel of peace was a message of harmony and love not to be constrained by racial or national distinctions.

"Philip Baptizes Eunuch"
Abel de Pujol

The Apostle Philip went to Samaria and preached the gospel to people whom the Jews traditionally hated. He was soon joined by Peter and John and they all traveled throughout Samaria preaching the message of peace (Acts 8:25). Philip also witnessed to the Ethiopian eunuch and “told him the good news about Jesus” (8:35).

After Pentecost, the Apostle Peter began to live out his faith with a freedom and exuberance that was contagious, but that also generated considerable opposition from Jewish religious leaders. One of the most powerful illustrations of what the gospel of peace meant to Peter in practical terms is recorded in Acts 10. Here we read about Peter’s vision and how God vividly illustrated how the gospel involved overcoming differences that divided people and kept them from hearing the truth about Jesus. When the three men sent to Peter by Cornelius, the Roman centurion, came to his house, Peter invited them in – an act in itself that was a violation of Jewish practice at that time.

Peter’s practical actions were a clear sign that he was a different man now, that his attitude and behavior toward non-Jews had changed. He was becoming a peacemaker, a reconciler between people.

"Peter Baptizing Cornelius"
Francesco Trevisani

When Peter went to the house of Cornelius, accompanied by Cornelius’ two servants and one of his soldiers, he explained to these non-Jewish listeners who Jesus was. What did Peter say to them? God does not show favoritism to certain people, but accepts anyone who believes in him and lives accordingly. He then summarized the message of Jesus by describing it as “the good news of peace” (Acts 10:36).

Of all the words Peter could have used to briefly describe Jesus’ teachings, he chose the word “peace.” The Old Testament promise of shalom was now fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Reconciliation was now possible between people of different languages and races. For Peter and his friends who went with him to Cornelius’s home, the gospel of peace had real practical application – it meant breaking down racial barriers.

So What?

• I remember my first trip to China in 1984. We met with Chinese Christians through some secret connections and I have vivid memories of standing in a circle with them, holding hands and quietly mouthing the words of several hymns. It struck me that these men and women were my brothers and sisters in Christ and that they were “family members” of mine. In fact, my relationship with them was closer than to my non-Christian neighbors back in the States. Have you ever had an experience like this where differences of language and ethnicity seemed to dissolve?
• Can you think of examples from your own experience where you saw racial barriers overcome and people of faith engaging with others with whom they normally would not relate?
• Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Had a Dream” speech is one of the most powerful statements I have ever heard on the “gospel of peace” and its reconciling power to bring different races together. Do you know of others?
• How can you apply this practical application of peacemaking in your own context?

One of My Heroes

Do you have any heroes?  More than one or two?  Who are they?  I have a small number of heroes in my life, some that I know or knew personally and others who I have only read about.

I’d like to share with you one of my heroes, a man who exemplifies a peacemaker or reconciler who chose to stand up against evil and resist oppressors even at the cost of his own life.   He was a man who was a committed follower of Jesus, who served other people – especially young people, and who wrestled with how he should live out his faith in a country increasingly captivated by Adolf Hitler.   I am focusing on this man because he had to make some very difficult decisions, decisions that some of us today might question.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German Lutheran pastor and theologian born in 1906.  A number of his books were influential in my own understanding of the Christian faith, particularly The Cost of Discipleship and Life Together.  This brilliant man, who was the sixth of eight children from a prominent middle-class family in Breslau, was an exceptional pianist as well as an outstanding student and he earned his doctorate in theology at the age of 21 from the University of Berlin.

While I read these books by Bonhoeffer years ago, I’ve been thinking about him lately because I recently finished an outstanding new biography about him by Eric Metaxas, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy.  Metaxas tells the story of Bonhoeffer’s amazing life and his incredible moral courage in the face of monstrous evil. 

As he witnessed acts of violence against Jews, he was troubled by how other Christians were manipulated by Hitler’s cronies into supporting “German Christianity” – a mixture of Nazi beliefs and traditional Christian teachings. Eventually Bonhoeffer decided to join forces with a small group of German leaders who planned to assassinate Hitler, a plot that failed and resulted in his arrest, imprisonment and execution in April 1945, only 23 days before the surrender of the Nazi regime.

Metaxas quotes a speech Bonhoeffer gave in August 1934, as he struggled with how to respond to the evil of the Nazi regime.  Here are the words of the 28-year-old pastor:

There is no way to peace along the way of security. For peace must be dared, it is itself the great venture and can never be safe.  Peace is the opposite of security.  To demand guarantees is to want to protect oneself.  Peace means giving oneself completely to God’s commandment, wanting no security, but in faith and obedience laying the destiny of the nations in the hands of Almighty God, not trying to direct it for selfish purposes.  Battles are won, not with weapons, but with God.  They are won when the way leads to the cross (p. 241).

Bonhoeffer had no idea in 1934 how prophetic his words would be in terms of his own life.  I see him as a hero because he understood that following Jesus in the modern world can be a dangerous undertaking and that being a peacemaker does not mean tolerating injustice and evil.  He lived what he believed, no matter the cost.  I will never forget his words “Cheap grace is the mortal enemy of the church.  Our struggle today is for costly grace.”

So What?

• I encourage you to take the time some day soon to think about and write down a list of your heroes and then some short observations about why you chose them.
• Being a peacemaker is not necessarily a safe way to live.  Can you think of some peacemakers in recent history?  What happened to them?
• Bonhoeffer recognized that the energy and strength he needed to be a peacemaker – to defy Hitler’s call to make war on the innocent – came from the Holy Spirit’s work in his life.  Have you ever experienced this in your life?

Forgiveness & Peacemaking

I am not very good about forgiving people who have hurt me. Sometimes the pain is deep and when the hurt comes from someone you are close to, it is especially difficult to handle emotionally. One powerful lesson that Jesus taught his followers was the importance of forgiveness, a lesson I need to keep relearning. Being able to forgive is an essential quality for peacemakers.

Rembrandt's "The Denial of Peter"

Do you remember when Jesus is in the Upper Room, during the days before his arrest and execution, and tells his disciples that “one of you will betray me”? Later that evening, Peter boldly declares that he would lay down his life for Jesus. But Jesus tells him that “the rooster will not crow until you have denied me three times.”

Following Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, his beloved disciple Peter does indeed deny he knows Jesus, not once, but three times as predicted, out of fear for his own life. How painful that must have been for Jesus to have one of his closest friends betray him!

Jesus Eats With His Disciples
at the Sea of Galilee

After his resurrection, the third time Jesus met with his disciples was when they had breakfast together on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. During their breakfast, Jesus asks Peter three times “Do you love me?” Here is Peter, who had boldly stated he would lay down his life for Jesus and then shortly thereafter denied he even knew him three times. But Jesus restores his relationship with Peter. He asks him three times if Peter loves him and then makes it clear that he is forgiven by inviting Peter to “Follow me.” Do you think Peter got the message, especially the third time Jesus questions him? What an incredible act of forgiveness!

So What?

• On a personal level, we all know this, right? Unless we are willing to forgive someone who we think has wronged us, a healthy friendship with that person is not possible. Jesus teaches us to be people who forgive others, just as God forgives us for our sins. That is a key part of the Lord’s Prayer – “forgive us our debts as we forgive the debts of others.”
• Another important lesson to be learned here relates to how the lack of forgiveness on the part of the person who has been hurt keeps them a victim with continuing anger and bitterness. God knows this and instructs us to forgive because he wants our lives to be full of joy and peace – an inner Shalom.
• In our broken, violent world, forgiveness is an important beginning for any healing to take place on a national level. We saw this in South Africa, when after years of apartheid, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was formed to bring together the various racial communities of this country, to share their personal stories of what had happened – to tell the truth, but to also forgive those who had done wrong. It began the difficult process of healing.
• In many autocratic regimes where much violence has been perpetrated by the ruling elites on the majority of the population, there have never been apologies by anyone accepting responsibility for past or current injustices. A healthy, just society can never be built on the basis. In the early 1970s, Alexander Solzhenitsyn wrote an essay in which he said that Russians needed to stop blaming others for their troubles and start searching for their own errors and sins. Then they needed to ask for forgiveness because repentance “is the only starting point for spiritual growth.” The same challenge applies to the countries in the Middle East who are wrestling with popular opposition movements.
• The importance of forgiveness and its relationship to peacemaking has application on the personal, national and international levels. Can you think of some examples in your own life where, if you forgave a friend for something that they did that hurt you, a relationship could be restored? Just do it!