A reminder to consider others Please: Turn off your cell phone or set to vibrate only Use the nursery or cry room if your child is fussy Get up during the preaching only if absolutely necessary (please sit in back if you must leave early)

Grace Bible Church Glorifying God by Making Disciples of Jesus Christ

O worship the King, All glorious above, And gratefully sing His power and His love; Grant, Robert & Guthrie, David, Stanza 5 text © Copyright 1997 by Word Music (a div. of WORD MUSIC), ARR, ICS,UBP CCLI 378119

Our Shield and Defender, Pavilioned in splendor, The Ancient of Days, Pavilioned in splendor, And girded with praise!

O tell of His might, O sing of His grace, Whose robe is the light, Whose canopy space!

On the wings of the storm. His chariots of wrath The deep thunderclouds form, And dark is His path On the wings of the storm.

Thy bountiful care What tongue can recite? It breathes in the air, It shines in the light,

It streams from the hills, It descends to the plain, And sweetly distills In the dew and the rain.

Frail children of dust, And feeble as frail, In Thee do we trust, Nor find Thee to fail:

Thy mercies, how tender How firm to the end, Our Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend.

All hail to the King! In splendor enthroned; Glad praises we bring, Thy wonders make known.

Returning victorious, Great conqueror of sin, King Jesus, all glorious, Our victory will win.

Grace Bible Church Glorifying God by Making Disciples of Jesus Christ

A reminder to consider others Please: Turn off your cell phone or set to vibrate only Use the nursery or cry room if your child is fussy Get up during the preaching only if absolutely necessary (please sit in back if you must leave early)

Blessed Are the Peacemakers Matthew 5:9 The world desires peace, but diverse ideas on how to gain it often result in conflict Since World War II, a host of nations have experienced wars of various types, serious conflict or terrorism

Blessed Are the Peacemakers Matthew 5:9 Within our own nation, there are conflicts between world-views, cultures and classes

Context Righteousness is the theme of the Sermon on the Mount and the pivotal Beatitude The first three Beatitudes result in craving righteousness The following three are the result of it

Being a Child of God Romans 8:14-17 Galatians 4:4-7 John 1:12 You become a son of God only through the work of God - Father, Son and Holy Spirit

Being a Child of God Professing to be and the reality of being a child of God are not the same thing - people make false professions No human can live a righteous life by his own ability

The Nature of Peace There are people are at peace (serene & tranquil), yet are still in their sins & heading to Hell Christians have Jesus’ peace, yet will have tribulation and will be persecuted (John 16:33; 2 Timothy 3:12) In classical Greek, eijrhvnh / eirānā was the opposite of war

The Nature of Peace Shalom (שָלוֹם): opposite of war, well being (Prov. 3:17), goodness (Num. 6:26), salvation (Gen. 15:15) In New Testament, peace can refer to a reconciled, harmonious relationship North and South Korea do not have peace, only an absence of open kinetic warfare

The Nature of Peace Romans 5:1; Ephesians 2:14-18 : peace with God through justification and reconciliation Man neither could nor would reconcile with God on his own God reconciles us to Himself through Jesus’ atonement - Romans 5:10

The Nature of Peace Additional peace comes after reconciliation with God by walking in trust of Him (Isaiah 26:3; Phil. 4:6-7) A peacemaker strives to help others find peace with God through salvation and walking in His ways

Being a Peacemaker Jesus both pointed men to God and provided what was necessary for there to be reconciliation You are only human, but the Holy Spirit indwells and empower the believer to accomplish God’s will A peacemaker must be poor in spirit - one beggar humbly pointing other beggars to the source of life

Being a Peacemaker A peacemaker is mournful over sin - humbly seeking to restore those caught in sin (Gal. 6:1-4) A peacemaker is meek - subsuming his own desires in the desire to do God’s will A peacemaker is merciful - extending to others the mercy he has received from God

Being a Peacemaker A peacemaker craves to be righteous outwardly and inwardly with a pure heart In purity of godly wisdom, a peacemaker pursues peace without compromising righteousness (James 3:17) A peacemaker will not compromise holiness in the pursuit of peace (Hebrews 12:14)

Being a Peacemaker A peacemaker pursues peace so far as it depends on him (Rom. 12:18), but never violates God’s standards Being a Biblical peacemaker will result in opposition from the world for it demands reconciliation with God Jeremiah was a true peacemaker, yet was always in conflict because the people would not turn from sin

Conclusions Peacemakers are reconciled with God, empowered by the Holy Spirit, and characterized by righteousness Peacemakers seek to fulfill their role as ambassadors of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18) with love for enemies

Conclusions Peacemakers use godly means and methods - speaking the truth in love (Eph. 4:15) Peacemakers consider life - focused on God’s will & glory and reconciling others to Him

Grace Bible Church Glorifying God by Making Disciples of Jesus Christ

We've a story to tell to the nations We’ve a Story to Tell the Nations #446 We've a story to tell to the nations That shall turn their hearts to the right, Nichol, Henry Ernest © Public Domain ARR UBP – CCLI License No. 378119

A story of truth and mercy, A story of peace and light,

For the darkness shall turn to dawning, And the dawning to noonday bright,

And Christ's great kingdom The kingdom of love and light. shall come on earth- The kingdom of love and light.

We've a song to be sung to the nations That shall lift their hearts to the Lord,

A song that shall conquer evil And shatter the spear and sword,

For the darkness shall turn to dawning, And the dawning to noonday bright,

And Christ's great kingdom The kingdom of love and light. shall come on earth- The kingdom of love and light.

We've a message to give to the nations- That the Lord who reigneth above

Hath sent us His Son to save us And show us that God is love,

For the darkness shall turn to dawning, And the dawning to noonday bright,

And Christ's great kingdom The kingdom of love and light. shall come on earth- The kingdom of love and light.

We've a Savior to show to the nations Who the path of sorrow hath trod, That all of the world's great peoples

Might come to the truth of God, Might come to the truth of God.

For the darkness shall turn to dawning, And the dawning to noonday bright,

And Christ's great kingdom The kingdom of love and light. shall come on earth- The kingdom of love and light.

Grace Bible Church Glorifying God by Making Disciples of Jesus Christ