Is God an Egomaniac? Part 5: Make Love Not War -- Blessed are the Peacemakers

You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Matthew 24:6

In the late 60’s and early 70’s there was the Vietnam War.   My brother goofed off a lot in high school, but he worked liked crazy to do well in college to stay out of fighting in Vietnam.  His draft number was not called to serve in Vietnam.  My husband was under the conviction that his asthma kept him out of the war.  He was a 4-F because of it.   The catch-22 is that my husband believed his chronic asthma could kill him which I do believe sterroids and inhalers took a toll on his heart, but it kept him out of the war and I got to meet him and marry him because of asthma.  People and children are gifts and we can determine are we happy we got the gift at all?  Yes I’m happy I got 15 years with my husband.  I believe my husband is happy to finally see his son in heaven who died of SIDS at six weeks old.

There were many people talking about peace and love during that time, but it was not love it was sex.  The freedom of the sexual revolution with no commitments that lead to many that caught venereal diseases and had unwanted pregnancies.  The peace that people were seeking was through alcohol and drugs.   I remember my friend’s sister went to Talbot Street here in Indy to score her weed.  The peace and love later turned into a crime scene in Talbot Village where junkies would knife people for money.  What happened to all the peace and love that everyone was singing about in my brother’s college time?  I’ve posted lyrics to Peter, Paul and Mary’s song below.  They forgot that Jesus is the Prince of Peace and they forgot that God is Love.   Even as Christians, we can forget this.

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.  Luke 2:14

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 1 John 4:16

I was dancing with someone on New Years Eve and he made a comment to me that he served in the Vietnam War and he did not like fighting.  He was divorced after 35 years of marriage and he said that he could not continue to fight with his wife either.  I can relate to this although I never have been in a war, because after going through a second divorce where we constantly argued from sun up to sun down, I determined that I can’t be in a relationship with a person who enjoys arguing.  I realize that is what my ex-spouses saw modeled in their childhood.   My ex-marriages were war zones.

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you? James 4:1

When I met my husband Mike, we both hated arguing and bickering so much we were in agreement not to fight.  Our agreement was that we would make love not war!   We did not agree on everything in life, but we came to a peaceable truce on issues in life that we agree we disagree.  There were a few times I tested my husband’s love.

When we first got married I noticed a nurse at work had flowers and she said her husband sent those flowers because they got in a fight.  We were newly married and I wanted to see if my husband would send me flowers so I picked a fight.  It was easy to do being a newlywed.  I got flowers sent to my office.  That was the only time I purposely picked a fight, and I did it to see if I would get flowers from my husband.  To see if he cared enough to make amends that way.  I heard on the radio recently how flowers are proven to cheer a person up and that is why they are sent to  hospitals when people are sick and to funerals.  I was overwhelmed at all the flowers that were sent to my family when my husband died.  God created flowers and he knew those flowers would cheer woman up didn’t He?

I know many people live in strife, but it’s something I've avoided in my life.  When people have a bad day and they want to take it out on me I recognize that it’s their bad day not mine.   Recently, someone got me angry and I rarely ever get angry and literally I felt like my blood was boiling.  I’m a peacemaker.  I don't believe in arguing and rarely get angry.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Matthew 5:9
Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness. James 3:18
I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. Romans 16:17

What bothers me about getting angry is that Moses got angry and it kept him out of the promise land.  He misrepresented God when he got angry.   I read where the children of Israel made Moses mad on several occasions.  Moses was the meekest man on the earth.  I’m glad I don’t live under the law (the old covenant).  I’m glad I’m under God’s grace.

However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell. So Moses was angry with them. Exodus 16:20
They made Moses angry, and he spoke foolishly. Psalm 106:33
Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth. Numbers 12:3

The other thing is I don’t like correcting people.   I’m a grandma now, but I can’t spoil my grandsons and let them walk all over me if I love them.

To discipline a child produces wisdom, but a mother is disgraced by an undisciplined child. Proverbs 29:15

Love is tough and we can’t expect that we can do anything we want in life and that God sits on this throne and he winks at what we are doing?

Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Galatians 6:7

I like the movie, “Bruce Almighty.”  Bruce gets mad at God and he shakes his fist at God.  He is blaming God for all the things that go wrong in life.  Next he steps in a puddle of water and gets the leg of his pants wet which is a part of all the bad things happening to him.   Very typical of people blaming God for their problems when they don’t even have any relationship with God.  Bruce did not care about God, he was doing his own thing.  Do men like to duke it out with their fathers and then with God?  I remember one time my brother smarted off to my dad when he was in college.  My brother had hair down to his shoulders and he had an attitude to go along with his hair.  My dad chased after my brother in the house and he caught him and he punched my brother in the face.   My brother thought he could smart off to his old man.   My brother learned his lesson that day.  Don’t talk back to dad.

I was not the best daughter, but I learned that I can’t smart off to my dad.  I could get a lot more out of my dad with sugar than vinegar.  My dad was also bigger than me.  Over 6 feet tall to my being 5’7”  It’s the same thing now.  I’m going to seek what pleases my heavenly Father and not smart off to him.  I’m looking to negotiate with God like I negotiated with my dad for the keys to the car.  Now sometimes I push the limits with God and stay out after midnight.   There are times I’ve asked God for his grace in life when I mess up.  It’s not only when I got saved, but I need God’s grace daily in my life.   Maybe you are a perfect kid and walk the line, but I find that I still get attitudes in life that I have to put under the blood of Christ daily. 

Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker, to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, 'What are you making?' Does your work say, 'He has no hands'? Isaiah 45:9

It’s taken me three years to get used to not having a guy in my bed at night and be alone.  And although I’ve gotten used to it, it suc_s.   And it’s not just being alone, it’s not having the person I loved for all those years that I finally got along with in life. "God you know what you are doing in my life and although I don’t like it, I accept the fact that you understand life a lot better since you are God."  If that is accepting the fact that my husband died?  I don’t know.   

I think Catholics got it partially right about purgatory only purgatory is not the next life.  Purgatory is this life.  This life is the testing ground.   I don’t believe it’s a punishment, but many times it seems like it when we go through battles in life.

Purgatory is the condition or process of purification or temporary punishment in which, it is believed, the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven.

I believe that life is a warfare like the Bible says.  We are not battling against people but there is a spiritual battle.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Ephesians 6:12

I had a dream when my husband and I were first married that a bunch of evil men were encamped around our house pointing guns at our home.  When Elijah asked for his servant’s eyes to be open he saw a bunch of chariots of God around Elijah’s house.

And Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes so he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 2 Kings 6:17

I remember in high school there were girls that ran around with motorcyle gang of guys that were always trying to beat me up and back then I would not fight them.  They were constantly trying to provoke me to fight.  Three of them would gang up on me and they always carried knives around with them.  They enjoyed being a bully like their motorcycle gang boyfriends.  I know Satan enjoys being a bully in life.

I’ve had many encounter with thieves in my life and those thieves have stolen things in my car, cut the cable to my tire and stole the tire under my car, stolen a few things in my house.  Recently, the Lord spoke to my spirit how upset and mad I get with thieves, but I allow the thief (Satan) to steal joy in life and bully me like those girls bullied me when I was a teenager.  I’m learning to get joy back in my life and the joy comes from focusing on Jesus and then loving myself as I love others. (Jesus, Others, You--- JOY).  If you don’t love yourself you can’t love others very well.   I’m convinced there are a lot of people walking around that are not happy with their self and don’t love their self.  If you don't love and accept yourself how can you love others?

The battle is not our battle in life.  The battle is the Lords. 

All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give all of you into our hands." 1 Samuel 17:47
He said: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's.  2 Chronicles 20:15

The children of Israel stood still at the Red Sea and they saw the salvation of God.  Standing on God’s promises and his word.  There are certain laws that govern the universe those are Newton’s three laws of motion...the law of gravity.  As Christians, we know that God created the world through his word and His word will not return void.  His word is what governs the universe.

so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:11
By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. Hebrews 11:3

Putting on the full armor of God and standing in the evil day, when that evil day comes in your life is standing and resting on God’s word.  We never know when the evil day is going to come in our life so standing on God’s word is important.

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Ephesians 6:13

David had God’s word in his mouth and God defeated a Goliath for him.

David said to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 1 Samuel 17:45

Jesus also used God’s word to defeat Satan.  I know God’s word is the key to our freedom in life.  Jesus said, Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." John 8:32

The song belows talks about freedom.  Freedom comes through God's word.

Peter, Paul & Mary If I Had a Hammer If I had a hammer, I'd hammer in the morning, I'd hammer in the evening, All over this land. I'd hammer out danger, I'd hammer out warning, I'd hammer out love between my brothers and my sisters, All over this land. Oooh-oooh-oooh. If I had a bell, I'd ring it in the morning, I'd ring it in the evening, All over this land. I'd ring out danger, I'd ring out warning, I'd ring out love between my brothers and my sisters, All over this land. Oooh-oooh-oooh. If I had a song, I'd sing it in the morning, I'd sing it in the evening, All over this land. I'd sing out danger, I'd sing out warning, I'd sing out love between my brothers and my sisters, All over this land. Oooh-oooh-oooh. Well, I got a hammer, And I got a bell, And I got a song to sing, All over this land. It's a hammer of justice, It's a bell of freedom, It's a song about love between my brothers and my sisters, All over this land. It's a hammer of justice, It's a bell of freedom, It's a song about love between my brothers and my sisters, All over this laa-aaa-and