In a baseball game, when tempers flare and a fight breaks
out, it's an American tradition that players and coaches clear the benches and
rally to support their teammates. You do not want to be seen sitting alone on
the bench with all your teammates out fighting on the field. That would surely bring an early end to your
career.
One Christian who played for the Seattle Mariners explained
how he dealt with such bench-clearing brawls.
He writes: “When a fight was imminent, I would scan the opponents' bench for a
friend or a former teammate. When the fight erupted, I would bolt from the
dugout and race toward my selected friend, grabbing him by the jersey and
saying, ‘If you don't hurt me, I won't hurt you.’ We
would clench, fall to the ground and do our best acting job of fighting. In the end, we would appear manly, supported
our team members and avoided getting hurt or hurting anyone.” Smart idea,
but I'm not sure this is exactly what Jesus had in mind when he said, "Blessed are the peacemakers."
On this World Communion Sunday, we celebrate our membership
in the One Holy Catholic Church, the world-wide Christian family, with over 2
billion other Christian believers. We
affirm our unity with our Christian brothers and sisters around the globe. Yes, we Protestants acknowledge some
theological and organizational differences with other members of the Christian
family, but we also respect and listen to and pray for Pope Francis, the 266th
Pope, the Holy See of the Roman Catholic Church. We trust that God will use him with all of
his spiritual influence over millions of believers to further the work of God's
Kingdom on earth.
Today Christians focus on our common faith: our faith in one
God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and one Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and one
Church, the body of Christ, and one baptism, the sign of forgiveness and
admission into the church, and one Lord's Supper, the sign of Christ's atoning
sacrifice and continued power and presence and in one mission to love our
neighbors and reach unbelievers for the gospel of Jesus Christ.
A central theme of World Communion Sunday is Jesus’ call to
his followers to be peacemakers. Jesus
declares: “Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called children of God.”
It is a high calling, a holy calling, a sacred calling, a noble calling.
What is a peacemaker?
A person, group, or government that strives to make peace by reconciling
parties who disagree, quarrel or fight.
It's one thing to know how to define it.
It's quite another thing to roll up one's sleeves and enter into the
messy work of peacemaking. Today we ask:
Is it my calling? Is it your calling?
Without question, peacemaking is complicated and difficult. Its a risky and sometimes dangerous
calling. Although you can always count
on one thing, there's no shortage of opportunities to be a peacemaker. There are lots of job openings. Have you noticed?
Why? Conflict,
division, dissension, discord appears to be ubiquitous. In our cities and towns, in government, in
politics between Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and liberals, who
blame each other for the economy's ills, or violence in our communities, or
global terrorism, or immigration, or failed foreign relations. We see tragic violence in schools, like last
week's tragic shooting in a community college in Roseburg , Oregon
For example, recently a brawl broke out in a Florida courtroom. No, not between the defendant and a bailiff,
as you might expect, but between a judge and a public defender. Video footage
shows the judge, John Murphy, instigating the fight with public defender Andrew
Weinstock. The pair started arguing in front of the entire court. The Judge said, "You know, if I had a rock, I would throw it at you right now. Just sit
down." Weinstock responded, "You
know I'm the public defender. I have a right to be here and stand and represent
my client." On the video, the judge then appears to ask Weinstock to
come to the back hallway, an area where there are no cameras, which is where
the fight broke out. There were no
images of the fight, but the video does capture sounds of scuffling and several
loud thuds. Two deputies broke it up and the attorney was immediately
reassigned to another court. Judge Murphy agreed to take a leave of absence, so
he could undergo anger management counseling. What a grand example of
professionalism in our halls of justice.
At its core, the Gospel is a story about peacemaking. God sent His Son Jesus into the world to make
peace with humanity, to save humanity, to reconcile humanity, to bring humanity
back into a relationship with the creator.
The church continues to engage in God's holy work of peacemaking: to
bring sinners and saved, unbelievers and believers, men and women, all races
and ethnic groups, rich and poor, slave and free into the one church, the body
of Christ.
Making peace doesn't mean peace at any price, Jesus showed
us this. Peacemaking doesn't mean making
everybody happy because they all get what they want. It doesn't mean allowing unjust or evil
behavior to continue in order to keep the peace. It is striving to find common ground and
common agreement. It means speaking out
for what is right, rather than being silent.
It means holding true to your principles. Peace and justice, justice and peace are
bound together in the business of peacemaking.
I am inspired by the many individuals and organizations in
the world who risk their lives everyday as peacemakers in war-torn
countries. For example, the Carter
Center, founded by former president Jimmy Carter, and its work in Syria and the
middle east, Christian Peacemaker Teams in Iraqui Kurdistan, Women Peacemakers
in Iraq in the US Institute of Peace, the Afghan Peacemaker Association, and
the Peacemaking Unit in Africa just to name a few. God is at work in these groups and others
toward reaching God's end of bringing about peace in the world. Their stories are exciting and they are making
progress.
One must also acknowledge that as a peacemaker, there are
situations where you need to be honest with yourself. Where no matter what you do or how hard you
try or how many hours you invest, trying to reconcile with someone or finding a
peaceful and equitable solution may not work.
Despite our prayers, despite our attempts, and the time and energy we
invest, there are situations that are beyond our power and ability. And we must let go, trust in God and turn it
over to God. No, that is never easy.
God may not be calling you to be a peacemaker in
international conflicts, between the Jews and Palestinians, or the Christians
and Muslims, or Russia and
the US . But that doesn't let you or me off the
hook. God may be calling you to be a
peacemaker in your circle: in your family, in a friendship that has soured, in
your neighborhood, as a teacher in your school, in your community, in your
church, or in your job. I truly believe
God calls us all to be peacemakers at one time or another, but not in every
situation. We are not qualified for some
situations.
But there are contexts in which you are qualified. God only calls us to situations where He has
imparted to us the mind, gifts, abilities, talents and temperament, and competence
to be effective. God desires success,
not failure. Can you think of an example
when you acted in the role of peacemaker?
How did you do?
Jesus said: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall
be called children of God.” My
friends, hear this, Jesus promises to bless us as peacemakers. Jesus honors your work. God uses your efforts
for His glory and purpose. God will
grant you a gift of grace now or in the future, because you are engaged in this
work. Children of God means because you
are involved in the business of peacemaking, you are doing a God-like work, a
holy work. You are engaged in the very
work which the God of peace is doing in this world.
Peacemaking also applies to the spiritual realm. It is about making peace with God in one's
own soul and heart. “God I am sorry,
forgive me.” Forgiving another
person or accepting their apology is a form of peacemaking. Peacemaking requires courage and heart and
perseverance. Peacemaking requires faith and trust in God. And peacemaking requires being realistic; peacemaking
is rarely if ever peaceful. It is doing
the work of God and finding through struggle and set-backs and disappointment a
way to peace.
Scripture says, “If
you are in worship and you remember that someone has something against you, go
and be reconciled.” Leave worship, go to the person and seek reconciliation. Then come back to worship and present your
offering. Come to terms quickly with
your accuser. Strive to resolve your
differences before they become intractable.
Peacemaking is God's work and as Jesus' followers, it is
your work and mine. Is there someone you
are striving to make peace with? Is
there some task that God is calling you to step in to as a peacemaker?
I close with the Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi , founder of the 12th
century Franciscan order of monks: “Lord, make me an instrument of your
peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow
love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there
is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness,
joy. O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to
console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is
in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in
dying that we are born to eternal life.” Amen!
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