The Peacemakers

Jesus said that those who make peace will be sons of God. His commands to love one’s enemies and do good to them, to offer the other cheek when struck, and to give up one’s shirt as well when one’s coat is taken, show what that peace looks like in practice.

To make peace with sinners, God had Jesus, the Word made flesh, nailed to the cross, where all his water and blood were poured out. No one can love an enemy by human strength. Yet whoever first takes the plank out of their own eye, hears the faults of others as a voice calling them to mend their own, and repents, is able to rise to it with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Worship, too, God cannot receive when it is dressed up in human righteousness and devotion, apart from his will, like stones shaped with a chisel; he accepts only a living sacrifice offered as it is, like an altar of earth. To the faithful who take the lowly place, give themselves up, and restore broken relationships, God says, ‘You are my son,’ and grants them the blessing of entering the Kingdom of Heaven.