Blessed: Part 7 - 'The Peacemakers'

This Sunday, Simon Lace brings us the talk in the latest of our EBC services. We encourage you to reflect on the bible text and join us in the prayer that follows below.
 
Here are some questions to consider:

Readings:

Matthew chapter 5 verses 1 - 9

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
 
See also Acts, chapter two, which you can read here.



Prayer and Reflection:

Dear loving heavenly Father, God of all peace, forgive us our sins and fill us afresh with your Holy Spirit. Grant us, O God, by Your heavenly power, the ability to speak to all kinds of people in a way that they will understand. Speak through us, Lord, so that what we say will touch their hearts and just as we pray that you would give us tender hearts, give them tender hearts too. Help us to speak from human heart to human heart, and to listen lovingly, compassionately and with deep understanding. Dear God, enable us to be peacemakers for one another, for ourselves, for our brothers and sisters in humankind in our neighbourhood and around the world. Amen.



Questions to Consider

1. Have you personally ever experienced conflict with someone that ran deep? What was the situation and how was it resolved or left?
2. What is the most “unforgivable” thing someone has ever done to you? What would be the other person’s perspective on the same events? (Try really hard to imagine what they would say, and imagine yourself listening to them as a friend might).
3. As you reflect, is there anything you could have done (or perhaps could still do) to bring peace into that situation – or peace in yourself, or the other?
4. What’s the worst thing you’ve done to someone? Have you confessed this to someone and, if it were possible, did you say sorry?
5. Is there anything you need to say sorry to God about?
6. Do you have a Christian friend or friends that you can talk to about any peacemaking you might want to do?
7. As you think about conflicts nationally and globally (politics, wars, religious conflicts, even Baptist conflicts!) how might you be a peacemaker?