MacArthur’s devotional for today expresses my thoughts so well that it’s a temptation to just copy it here instead of posting how God is speaking to me. However, that would violate copyright law so I must resist and quote only what is allowed to express my agreement with what he says.
The main idea is that peace is linked to righteousness and truth which makes obvious the reality that their opposites — sin and lies — not only hinder peace but are at the root of all conflict and strife. Unless sin and lies are confronted and dealt with, there can be no peace, certainly not the kind of peace that the Lord God offers.
Why sin? Since the fall into disobeying God happened in Eden, all of humanity is born with a sinful heart. Some people may appear less sinful than others, but each of us is plagued with that desire to go our own way and not listen to God. This applies to both the unsaved and Christians, yet we who know and follow the Lord Jesus Christ fully know the truth of the prophet’s words and what Jesus says:
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9)
For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person. (Mark 7:21–23)
This sinfulness resists God’s peace and is multiplied in the world. It is ironic how some will claim to want no more wars yet “pay huge sums of money to watch two men beat the daylights out of each other in a boxing ring.” We put tough guys and strong women on pedestals and are told to stand up for our rights. Selfishness and independence are encouraged rather than serving others and being in community. This breeds competition at best and wars at worst. The heart rejects God’s peace and everyone suffers the consequences.
Besides that, anyone who is a peacemaker for God is considered ‘intolerant’ and resisted, Jesus included: “But they were urgent, saying, ‘He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, from Galilee even to this place.’” (Luke 23:5)
Paul was also resisted. He tells of his imprisonments “with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers” and near escapes (2 Corinthians 11:23–33) and was described falsely: “For we have found this man a plague, one who stirs up riots among all the Jews throughout the world and is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes.” (Acts 24:5)
He knew the reality of how sinful hearts hate the truth because of lies, and how the righteous who love God’s truth will suffer because of it:
Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. (2 Timothy 3:12)
It is said that if any Christian is not suffering for their faith, they are disobeying God in some way. I can keep my mouth shut and live a nice little life, but the NT is clear — a faithful peacemaker is willing to speak the truth regardless of the consequences. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” (Matthew 5:9)
Jesus, You are the solution for the world’s problem of sin and falsehood. You died to deal with sin and give us new hearts, and You are “the way, and the truth, and the life.” No one comes to the Father except through you and no one can overcome sin and lies without You. (John 14:6) The refugees who come here to escape death demonstrate greater faith than we who live in relative ‘peace’ and those who die because they refuse to denounce Jesus put my faith to shame. Enable me to obey You and proclaim God’s peace, God’s deliverance from sin, and God’s truth at every opportunity. May “words be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel” (Ephesians 6:19) and may I be faithful to say them.
CONSIDER Matthew 10:16–25. How might others treat me if I fully do as God says?
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