The wary crowds were struggling under the tyranny of the powerful Roman empire. The Romans ran an oppressive regime. They were foreign occupiers imposing their values and beliefs on the local people. They imposed their unjust laws and exacted unfair taxes everywhere their rule extended. The Romans lorded their power over the people.
The influence of the Roman empire even reached the crowds who were at Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Roman influence touched every aspect of the crowd’s life. According to thecrowd, the Romans were to blame for just about everything that ailed Jewish society. To say that the crowds yearned for deliverance from the Roman empire would be an understatement. They were full of anger and hostility and demanded peace. For the crowds, peace could only come one way. Peace would come through a political messiah and king, the Christ of God, who would forcefully overthrow the Roman empire.
The crowd's first assumption was that they were victims of circumstance.
Beyond any shadow of a doubt, the crowd was making two major assumptions. Their first assumption was that the problem lay external to themselves. The crowds had sculpted a convenient view of their world in which everyone else was to blame and they themselves were never to blame.
This is what is known as the victim mindset. The victim is always looking out the window, pointing at his neighbor, and lamenting all the offending people and circumstances far beyond his control. The victim never looks in the mirror at himself. "It's my neighbor’s fault. It's my employer’s fault. It's my ex. It's my children. It's the educational system. It's the government. It's my genes. It's because I'm Irish. It's something in the water. Those people keep pushing my buttons. Did you hear the latest of how that person hurt me? They did this. They did that. I have such bad luck. The sun never comes up in my world. It's always raining, snowing, and icy."
Victims are some of the most unhappy, frustrated, and cynical people you’ll ever meet because they never look within themselves in order to change. They look perpetually at others as the source of their problems. The victim never takes responsibility for how her actions and attitudes may have contributed to a situation. A victim is always blaming, accusing, gossiping, pointing at others, and tirelessly choosing the status quo.
The crowd's second assumption was that any solution didn't involve them directly.
The second assumption that the crowds made was that any solution lay external to themselves. Now I need to be careful here, because the ultimate solution for our salvation does lie external to ourselves. We cannot save ourselves. We need a savior to rescue us from the power of sin and from the grip of death. Without a savior, we are slaves to our sinful desires and death is our destiny. There is no possibility of eternal life. What I am referring to is a further extension of the victim mindset. Not only does the problem lay external to the victim, but the solution lies external to the victim as well.
The victim waits on others to take the initiative and fix his problems. For this reason, the victim spends his whole life living with the status quo. The victim will have the same problems today that they’ll have tomorrow, the next day, the next year, and a decade from now. They won’t take any action to make themselves well. In fact, the victim doesn't think that there is anything wrong with himself. It’s other people who need to change. That will solve his problem. I am describing the mindset of the crowd. "The problem is those blasted Romans. The solution is a political messiah who will come vanquish the Romans."
Jesus comes bringing the good news of his kingdom.
And so here comes Jesus in Matthew5 proclaiming the good news of his kingdom. "Blessed are the poor in the Spirit." "Amen, Jesus! Those Romans have beaten us down." "Blessed are those who mourn." Amen, Jesus! Look at everything I’ve lost. Look at all the injustice. Look at how our people have been punished, even executed, at the hands of the Romans. We are torn in grief." "Blessed are the meek." "Amen, Jesus! We keep on getting trampled in life." "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness." "Got that one right. We could sure stand a little righteousness in other people these days."
"Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy." "What did you just say? Mercy? I don’t think so. Have you seen how much we’ve been hurt? How can you expect us to be forgiving?" "Blessed are the pure in heart." "Jesus, I have a right to be angry. I have a right to condemn my enemies. I’m being civil here. It doesn’t matter what is in my heart."
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God." Matthew 5:9 (NIV)
But notice here how Jesus continues to dial the crowd in. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God." "Jesus, are you out of your mind? What do you mean, 'Blessed are the peacemakers?' You can’t be serious! Are you expecting us to go and make peace with our enemies? Are you expecting us to actually reconcile these hurts and lay them to rest? That’s what we are waiting on the Son of God to do for us! You make it out like we have the power to change our own situation. You make it out that we can be part of the solution. We don’t care too much for the angle this Sermon on the Mount is taking."
In wartimes, the peacemaker was an ambassador of peace. The peacemaker would wear leather sandals in order to be swift-footed. He would set aside his sword and armor. At risk of great harm, he would run ahead of approaching armies in order to make peace. With great courage, peacemakers sought to end wars before they started, to bring physical safety and health to people, to seek people’s well-being, and to bring about proper justice. [Source: Dictionary of Biblical Imagery]
In Romans 10:15 (NIV) we read, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news." In Ephesians 6:15 (NIV) it suggests that our feet be fitted, "with the readiness that comes that comes from the gospel of peace." Both of these verses refer to peacemakers. Peacemakers take responsibility for their own circumstances.
Peacemakers own their situations and circumstances. They courageously look the enemy in the eye, face to face. They go the extra mile, they surrender their tunics, they humbly consider a situation in all its dimensions, and they do whatever it takes to engage the problem and work toward a solution. There are two things we humans absolutely resent. Taking responsibility for our problems and being challenged to become part of the solution. The warm fuzzies would have evaporated for the crowd around the sixth or seventh beatitude.
Jesus' words about peacemakers.
In Matthew 5:13 (NIV) Jesus tells this same crowd, "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men."
In Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV) he tells them, "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, thay they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
In Matthew 5:21-26 (NIV) Jesus tells this crowd, "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift. Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny."
Or consider Matthew 5:38-42 (NIV). "You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you." Jesus' words don’t need too much commentary, do they?
In Matthew 5:43-48 (NIV) Jesus says, "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect."
And what about our prayer lives? Should our prayers be left untouched by Jesus' words? Matthew 6:12-15 (NIV) tells us, "Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."
And how about Matthew 7:1-5 (NIV)? It's all about looking in the mirror first. "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."
Peacefakers, peacebreakers, and peacemakers.
A few months back I came across a helpful little book by Ken Sande called Peacefakers, Peacebreakers, and Peacemakers. You can insert these three words into your outline. These words refer to the ways in which people typically respond to conflict.
Peacefakers seek to escape and avoid conflict at all costs. They will deny that a problem exists. They will refuse to take steps to work toward a solution. Peacefakers take flight from problems. They leave the house, end a friendship, quit a job, file for divorce, or change churches. They withdraw and simply run away. In extreme situations, peacefakers can even commit suicide, which is the ultimate step of avoidance and which is never the right way to deal with a conflict! Faking peace only prolongs conflict and never truly resolves anything.
In contrast, Ken Sande describes peacebreakers for whom conflict is more about winning, and less about preserving a relationship. For peacebreakers, conflict is an opportunity to control others, assert themselves, or take advantage of someone. Peacebreakers will seek to overcome an opponent with verbal attacks like name-calling, slander, or gossip, physical violence, or trying to damage a person financially or professionally.
Peacebreakers will seek to overcome an opponent with litigation or lawsuits. Peacebreakers will even resort to killing someone who opposes them. Killing is the ultimate step, the climax to harboring hatred and resentment.
How does the peacemaker deal with conflict?
But what does the peacemaker, who is blessed and called a son of God, do? The peacemaker pursues reconciliation constructively, just as the Son of God did. The peacemaker will make a deliberate decision to forgive an offense instead of talking about an offense, dwelling on it, and letting resentment grow and build.
The peacemaker will proactively resolve a personal or relational issue through confession, loving correction, and forgiveness. The peacemaker will negotiate differences with the offending or offended party. They will work through matters related to money, property, or other rights in order to find a settlement that meets each side's legitimate needs.
The peacemaker will pursue mediation with a third party if he cannot resolve an issue. The peacemaker will submit to an arbitrator if necessary, who objectively decides how an issue must be resolved. The peacemaker welcomes accountability from other Christians and church leaders, in order to move toward repentance, justice and forgiveness. Peacemakers take responsibility for the problem and take responsibility for the solution.
Jesus' promise is that the peacemakers, "will be called sons of God."
Here is Jesus’ promise. "Blessed are the peacemakers, they will be called sons of God." Ultimately, we are to do with a handful of others what Christ did for all of mankind!
2 Corinthians 5:14-6:2 (NIV)
"For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. As God’s fellow workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain. For he says, 'In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.' I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation."