Title: Christian Peace
Text: Mark 9:50
Liturgical Date: Pentecost 19, Proper 21 B
Calendar Date: September 29, 2024
Location: Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church in Door County, Forestville, WI
Preacher: Rev. Dr. Christopher D. Jackson
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TRANSCRIPT
The following transcript is an ai rendered transcript from the sermon audio. Therefore, it does not match the audio 1:1. It has also been modified for readability.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Peace is valuable. Peace is fragile—at least, peace as we know it in this world. Yet, it’s so valuable that we’ll go to great lengths to get it. Peace in our hearts. Peace in our minds. If we aren’t resting in peace—whether in our hearts or our minds—it can make every moment of our lives quite miserable, can’t it? Our households can hardly be considered homes if they aren’t marked by peace. When communities or nations are marked by conflict instead of peace, think about all the wasted energy that could be used for the common good. Instead, it’s wasted on conflict.
It’s no accident that when a nation is at war or caught in civil war, famine and disease often follow. All the energy that could be used to bless one another is expended on conflict, and everyone suffers in the process. Peace is so valuable that one of the great emperors of old paid a large price for it. In 532, Emperor Justinian of the Roman Empire—what some call the Byzantine Empire, though they knew themselves as Romans—wanted peace with their only real rival: Persia. So, what did he do? He formed a treaty with Persia, which is now modern-day Iran, and sealed it by gifting Persia 11,000 pounds of gold. They called it the “Treaty of Eternal Peace.” It was supposed to end warfare between Persia and Rome forever. Yet, it lasted only eight years.
Peace is valuable, and people are willing to pay a great cost for it, but it’s also fragile and rare. Peace is elusive. But as Christians, we have the source of true peace—the peace which passes all worldly understanding. This is the peace of God.
Today, we’ll talk about the three “P’s” of Christian peace: Patience, Purification, and Pridelessness. Peace is something God offers as one of the gifts of salvation. In fact, we could say that peace is salvation itself. After all, what is sin but hostility and conflict with God? Saint Paul says the sinful mind is enmity against God. That’s one of those church words that means “conflict.” The sinful mind is in conflict with God. God is the source of all good blessings and the source of life. When we sin, we act against God’s interest and life itself. We hurt and harm our neighbors, and in doing so, we find ourselves at odds with God.
God Makes Peace with Us Through Christ
Sin is conflict with God, the source of light. When we sin, we align ourselves with the forces of darkness and evil. Because God is in opposition to all darkness, evil, and wickedness, our sin puts us in conflict with Him. Yet, praise be to God that He has established peace with us. Though we put ourselves in conflict with God through our sin, God has reconciled Himself to us through His Son.
How did He do this? Jesus became the propitiation for our sins. Yes, that’s another fancy church word, but it means that Jesus took upon Himself the wrath that we deserved because of our sin. God, who is opposed to all that is unholy, poured out His wrath upon Jesus on the cross 2,000 years ago. There, Jesus became sin itself and bore the punishment for us. Praise God, this reconciling work didn’t just stop with God reconciling Himself to us; He also reconciles us to Him.
The message of grace, mercy, and forgiveness in Jesus Christ is used by the Holy Spirit to transform our hearts. The Spirit pours the love of God into our hearts, creating a new inner self. As Saint Paul says, “I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” We receive the Spirit, which no longer opposes God but cries out, “Abba, Father!” Our hearts are reconciled to God by the power of the Holy Spirit and the message of the Gospel.
Christian Peace is Patient
This peace we have with God brings about inner peace, which in turn leads to peace with one another. But to have peace with one another, we need patience—probably the most critical virtue. In our Gospel lesson today, we see an example of this. The disciples encountered a man who was casting out demons in Jesus’ name, yet he wasn’t fully following them or Jesus. The disciples asked Jesus if they should stop him, but Jesus said no. He told them, “No one who does a mighty work in my name will soon afterward speak evil of me.” Jesus was telling them to have patience with this man, as he was on a journey toward a fuller understanding of who Jesus is.
This kind of patience is commanded elsewhere in Scripture. Love is patient, love is kind, and love does not insist on its own way. As Christians, we are uniquely gifted to have peace with one another through patience and kindness that doesn’t insist on having its own way. Why? Because we, as Christians, have all the time in the world. In fact, we have more time than the world itself. This world is passing away, but we have eternal life.
Those who are worldly have to have everything now. It’s “my way or the highway” because they know each moment might be their last. They have no patience for circumstances. But as Christians, we can be patient with one another because we know that God will bring about all things in His own time. We don’t mark time by moments; we mark time by eternity. This gives us patience not only with others but also with our circumstances.
Sometimes, our conflict isn’t with other people; it’s with our situation. We wish our careers were going better, or that we were at peace with our health or wealth. As Christians, we can have patience and contentment with our lot in life, knowing that while this life offers good gifts, the greatest gift is still to come—the gift of eternal life.
Christian Peace Comes Through Purification
Peace also comes through purification. This is another key point Jesus speaks about in Mark 9 when He talks about cutting off the hand or foot that causes you to sin, or gouging out the eye. When He speaks of being “salted with fire,” He is referring to the process of purification—of eliminating the passions within us that are contrary to God’s will. As Jesus indicates, when we have this purification, it leads to peace with one another.
James speaks about this in our Epistle lesson from last week. He asks, “Why do you have conflicts among yourselves? Isn’t it because your passions are at war within you?” You desire but do not have, so you murder. The conflict we have with one another stems from the conflict within us—the old sinful self that seeks its own good rather than the good of others. It wars against the Spirit of Christ that dwells within us and causes us to do things contrary to Christ’s way.
How are we purified? James gives the answer at the end of that passage in chapter 4: “God gives more grace.” It is the grace of God that purifies us from the passions at war within us. As we confess our sins and embrace the grace, mercy, and forgiveness won for us by Christ on the cross, the old selfish Adam in us dies little by little. Day by day, more of the new man arises within us and shines out.
The Pridelessness of Christian Peace
Finally, the third “P” of Christian peace is Pridelessness. This is another element of Christ’s teaching in Mark 9. The disciples had been arguing on the road to Capernaum about who was the greatest among them. Jesus, knowing this, explained to them that the greatest in the kingdom of God is the servant of all—referring ultimately to Himself. In the same way, when we humble ourselves and serve others without pride, this leads to peace.
The world is filled with people in conflict, clamoring over one another, trying to put others beneath them in order to elevate themselves. But the Christian opts out of this game—a game that has no winners and only breeds conflict. The Christian, following Christ’s example, humbly serves others. In that service, we find peace with our neighbors, as we seek not to serve ourselves, but to imitate Christ and serve others.
Prayer and Christian Peace
Finally, if it’s not obvious already, all of this—patience, purification, and pridelessness—comes only by the power of God. It is by the power of God and the eternal life we have in Christ that we can be patient. It is by God’s grace that we are purified. And it is only through the power of Christ dwelling within us that we can humbly serve our neighbors without pride.
Therefore, peace—whether it’s peace with our circumstances, peace with our neighbors, or inner peace—comes through prayer. Peace is valuable. Emperors of old were willing to pay 11,000 pounds of gold to secure it, but peace in this world is elusive and fragile. Our peace, however, is an eternal peace, because it has been purchased by something far more valuable than gold or silver. It has been won for us by the blood of Christ Jesus.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church in Door County serves Egg Harbor and other communities throughout Northeast Wisconsin.