Peace With All People – Romans 12:18
If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.
Has another treated you unjustly? Has this person violated your rights and slandered your good name without cause? Someone probably has done these things to you just as they have done them to me. The real question is, “What will be our response to another’s offense against us?”
Will we pay back evil for evil? Will we obey our flesh’s cry for vengeance, retaliating in even subtle ways, such as refusing to pray for our offender’s needs? Will we give harbor to malice and anger? If so, we embark on a perilous journey of disobedience to God’s Word. For, by so doing, we enter into sin. Rather than taking the well-trodden road traveled by those who take offense at others, we should honor God by refusing to strike back when we are hurt, never taking our own revenge, loving and praying for our enemies, and putting aside bitterness.[1] Far higher and superior is the way of grace, for when we commit to loving others as we love ourselves,[2] considering not their offenses against us, we follow the pathway Jesus paved with His sacrifice on our behalf.
When we are injured or insulted, which will we choose? Will we choose obedience to God’s Word or deliberate sin against our loving Father?
Choose God’s way; choose peace. I testify before you that I have wallowed in my sin and suffered its consequences often enough to know that peace is immeasurably preferable to the temporary satisfaction we may derive from our vengefulness and anger. Choose peace, and rest in the conviction that our Father in heaven, who has counted the hairs on our heads, stored our tears in a bottle, and engraved our names in the palm of His hand, is in control of our situation.[3] Be assured that He will bring good out of the most painful circumstances for those who delight in Him and make Jesus their constant champion.[4]
Allow the Sunrise from on high to guide your feet along the way
of peace.[5] To the extent that it is within your power to
do so, live in harmony with every person the Lord puts into your life, and in
so doing, you will bring glory to God and find peace for your soul.
Blessed are the lips
That in steadfast kindness chose
To hold back the comments
That love would not disclose
Faithful is the heart
That refuses to delight
Regardless of the circumstance
In another’s plight
Tender are the arms
Which in love and kindness hold
The one who’s lost and broken
Shivering in the cold
Gentle is the soul
Who turns away another’s wrath
Charging insults to his own account
Serving on his friend’s behalf
Peaceful is the mind
That rests fully assured
That all will work unto the good
For those who love the Lord
[1] Romans 12:17, 19, Matthew 5:44, Ephesians 4:31
[2] Matthew 22:39
[3] Luke 12:7, Psalm 56:8, Isaiah 49:16
[4] Romans 5:3-5
[5] Luke 1:78-79
