“Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Ephesians 6:14
The danger in having a wrong view of peace is that it gives us a false and ineffective gospel. The Humanistic definitions of peace must not be allowed to corrupt God’s meaning. A wrong view of peace then goes on to distort the entire relationship between man and God and man and man to produce a purely humanistic outcome, not a Christian one. This is another major area where the Humanists have corrupted a meaning to foster their god of nice.
What true peace is about.
“Let not thy peace depend on the tongues of men; for whether they judge well of thee or ill, thou art not on that account other than thyself. Where are true peace and true glory? Are they not in God? And he that careth not to please men, nor feareth to displease them, shall enjoy much peace.”
―Charles H. Spurgeon, Eccentric Preachers
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: Romans 5:1
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Matthew 5:9
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men Luke 2:14
For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Ephesians 2:14
The walls between men are done away with in Christ. It is our oneness with Him that is our basis of peace. Any peace between brothers that is not based on peace with God is a false and humanistic peace and has nothing to do with Christianity. Yet so many strive for peace among men ignoring the peace that is available with God.
Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.. 1 Corinthians 1:3 Galatians 1:3 Ephesians 1:2
It seems self evident that Jesus’ mission was to bring peace between God and man. So, what about peace between men?
Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. 35 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. 36 And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. 37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Mt 10:34 -37
That does not seem to be the same mindset that Christianity and Humanistic “peacemakers” have. Rather they interfere with what God is doing in relationships. Human relationships often interfere with man-God relationships by competing and displacing. It is only when one’s relationship with God is stronger than any other that we can have right relationships with another. Yet that is not the focus of popular, Humanistic Christianity. God is certainly not against devoted human relationships. Scripture abounds with examples of such relationships. The most devoted of relationships shown in the bible are between those devoted to God above all.
This concept of greater relationships was well expressed by Shakespeare through the mouth of Brutus who had just killed the tyrant Caesar. Brutus says, “Not that I loved Caesar the less, but that I loved Rome the more.”
The problem with Christians is not that they don’t love Jesus, it is that they don’t love only Jesus. “Solomon, loved the Lord but…” Eric Gilmour
Spurgeon knew the that the wrong love of Peace causes a destructive plague within the church at the expense of truth. True peace is not at odds with truth. The peace promoted by Christian Humanism is a cowardly peace, fear of man more than fear of God; the sacrifice of truth on the altar of the happiness of man.
If there were so general a soundness in the rank and file, would they quietly endure the abounding errors of the pulpits, and the babyish amusements with which congregations are being drenched? We fear the plague is among the people as well as among the priests. Yet, surely, there must be some who will fling aside the dastard love of peace, and speak out for our Lord, and for his truth. A craven spirit is upon many, and their tongues are paralyzed. Oh, for an outburst of true faith and holy zeal!
– Charles Spurgeon
The corruption of the intent and meaning of peace in the bible is proof of the encroachment and mixture of humanism, secularism and psychology in our interpretation and understanding of scripture. They have succeeded in turning something that was primarily meant to be a state between God and man and have made it between man and man, first and foremost.
We have peace with God through Jesus Christ, but God has never made peace with our flesh and our sinning or our error. He continues to be the God who will not relent regardless of tears. He allows and even causes much pain and suffering simply because truth is departed from. He means for our own wickedness and backslidings to correct and reprove us (Jer 2:19).
Humanistic peacemakers will weep and pray over the dissension between brothers, and it does not occur to them that there is a breach between God and man that needs to be addressed first. Where are the tears and prayers for that? Christianity has become more about man pleasing man than man pleasing God. Christianity now represents Humanism more accurately than Christianity. Popular Christian counseling is the biggest purveyor of Humanism. It is heavily laden with scriptures about conflict resolution, but with no balance, twisted with the perspective of man, not the perspective of God.
Many of the “peace keepers” would readily assent to the statement that it is about reconciling men to God. However, they are betrayed by their own practice and methods and speech and the way they interact with others and the topics focused on – first last and primarily in their attempts at reconciling men to men and to focus on rectifying the issues between men so they can get along with each other. Such intervention is now focused on soothing hurt feelings of man and protecting egos and rights. I know of few, if any, whose first objective is to get men reconciled to God in any given issue of conflict (almost always due to unforgiveness).
So, are such men who have bought into and practice those ministries wicked and evil men? No, rather they are like the many pastors and counselors who have traded the scriptural concept for the secular. They have confused tradition and teaching with the word of God. They think the secular is the spiritual because of the conditioning they were told to use as the pattern. They are not to be hated nor reviled, nor pitied. They are to be set free which begins first with a love for God and truth above all else. They are victims of their learing and traditions and are only promoting what they have been taught by men to believe and put trust in methodology clothed in scripture which does not reflect the intent of scripture. Instead of allowing the Holy Spirit to teach them, they accept a pre-approve package of Humanistic Christianity that is mixed with truth.
There can not be peace among men who have no peace with God. Those who are at peace with God will have peace with men. Those who have peace with God will have peace with His ways and His dealings with man. Yet these heretics have created an entire ministry by Humanistic misinterpretation and have brought this Trojan horse into the church as a valid ministry.
They have all sorts of psychological ideas dressed up in scripture so as to deceive the very elect (after first having deceived themselves). The life of scripture is turned into a methodology that is to be applied. It is reason and psychological manipulation that rules the outcome, not the Spirit of the Living God. Certainly, the right spiritual terminology is used, but underneath that thin cloak lies the stench of dead bones and the old man.
Is making peace among men a valid ministry? Yes, but we have no mandate to do that. It is not part of the great commission, but reconciling men to God and bringing them into the peace He offers is the only peace that God and His true ministers know of. Paul, in addressing errant and fleshy behavior says, “you have not so learned Christ”
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, 18 Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: 19 Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. 20 But ye have not so learned Christ; 21 If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: 22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; 23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; 24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. 25 Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. 26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: 27 Neither give place to the devil. Eph 4:17-27
Notice how simple are Paul’s instructions which encompass worldliness, fleshiness, and sin. His entire remedy is to be Christlike, and that it is not to be a struggle, (except against the flesh). Put off and Put on is his solution. Since we don’t know how to do it, it should be a matter of intense seeking, because obviously it is God’s way and can be done. Compare that to the elaborate but ineffective methodology that “peace” counseling uses.
Jesus also tells us how to break down the barriers between man and God and man and man.
But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in Heaven forgive your trespasses. – seems to be a truth which ties the notion of peace with God and the peace between men together. Lack of peace with man is a result of not having peace with God. Mark 11:26
The lack of forgiving others shows a lack of appreciation for the forgiveness offered by God. The unforgiving person is not right with God, even though forgiven.
When we are in concord with the Spirit, we will be in godly concord with others, even if they continue to reject us and malign us. We are to make no other adjustments to others. Our only “adjustment” is to be in concord with Christ.
Our peace with God is only because He has forgiven us, and the expectation is that the same forgiveness and peace we have with Him will be extended to all we have in our lives. We love and forgive others as a result of the love and forgiveness we have received. The parable of the King and His servants is a good representation of God’s order, and the problem of man.
Therefore is the Kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. 24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents. 25 But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt. 28 But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. 29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt. 31 So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. 32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: 33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? 34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. 35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses. Mt 18:23-35
These heretics have made it impossible for God to be a God of wrath who is not nice to sinners. In actuality, His “niceness” is always manifested in first making man uncomfortable about sin, then hating it, then He forgives it as they repent.
It is now believed that His people must always be gentle and speak nicely to all, never in righteous judgment or condemnation to those in sin, though God’s servants have routinely presented an opposite picture throughout the OT and NT. Gentle and nice would be the last thing men would describe the bible heroes as. Even the resurrected Christ was blunt and with no schmooze He did not take into consideration the feelings of any (so far as scripture reveals), but rather took them directly to task for the errors that came because they followed their passions rather than Christ. He was most kind (in the secular sense) to those who were ignorant and humble.
The entire book of Revelation does not match the picture of Jesus or His people that the peacemakers of today want to portray. Revelation portrays a weak, anemic, compromising church who is focused on being nice and being accepting of persons regardless of their doctrine or practices. Those churches that were the exception were commended for their stand against error. Others allowed. tolerated, and promoted false doctrine, doing good works ahead of loving God. That is also the major teaching in most churches today.
God was not nice to the woman He called a dog (Mt 15:26), He was not nice when He rebuked Peter (Mr 8:33), He was not nice when He killed Ananias and Sapphira (acts 5:5), or brought blindness on Elymas (Acts 13:11), or when He allowed His Son and His apostles to be beaten, tortured and killed. He will not be nice at the battle of Armageddon. Yet, we are told that Christians must be nice. They can never be the ones through whom He will issue His condemnation or strong and “rude” rebuke or judgments. Evidently, we are only to be His voice when He is soft and gentle – but that is not the testimony of scripture. We must not fail to remember how often God used His prophets and apostles to pronounce judgment on people and nations.