EP 12: PEACEMAKING IN A POLARIZED WORLD
Christine chats with Jason Porterfield, author of Fight Like Jesus, who offers a definition of peace and outlines how Jesus exemplified living as a peacemaker in a polarized world. Together, they discuss some “Kingdom Contrasts” Jesus makes during the week leading up to his crucifixion and resurrection and what Kingdom allegiance really looks like. They also explore our call to embody peace in our communities and why doing so proves we are children of God.
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Our Guest
Jason Porterfield
has made his home in places abandoned by society, from Canada’s poorest neighborhood to the slums of Indonesia. His passion is to cultivate God’s shalom wherever it is painfully absent and to help churches embrace their peacemaking vocation. He’s the author of Fight Like Jesus, a groundbreaking book that equips readers with practical peacemaking skills while examining how Jesus waged peace on each day of Holy Week.
NOTE: Featuring a guest, resource, or organization on The Holy Shift does not necessarily constitute a blanket endorsement of their entire body of work.
We’ve highlighted some key points from this episode below. Feel free to share these on your blogs/feeds with proper attribution to the writer/speaker/podcast. Or stay tuned—we will be posting several of these verses and quotes, along with clips from this episode, on our IG page and you can save/share from there.
Scripture
Jesus, in Matthew 5:3-10
“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 be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
Luke 19:36-44
As Jesus rode along, the crowds spread out their garments on the road ahead of him. When he reached the place where the road started down the Mount of Olives, all of his followers began to shout and sing as they walked along, praising God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen.
“Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the LORD! Peace in heaven, and glory in highest heaven!”
But some of the Pharisees among the crowd said, “Teacher, rebuke your followers for saying things like that!”
He replied, “If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!”
But as he came closer to Jerusalem and saw the city ahead, he began to weep. “How I wish today that you of all people would understand the way to peace. But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from your eyes. Before long your enemies will build ramparts against your walls and encircle you and close in on you from every side. They will crush you into the ground, and your children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place, because you did not recognize it when God visited you.”
Quotes
“Jesus says blessed are the peacemakers those who contend for peace, labor for peace, seek to cultivate Shalom.” Jason Porterfield
“The thing about forgiveness is that it has an uncanny ability to create a future when none seems possible.” Jason Porterfield
“When you seek to make peace and when you seek to love your enemies, that is the spitting image of your father of Heaven. It’s the spirit and image of God. Nothing shows the character of God more fully than that.” Jason Porterfield
“It is a whole lot easier to pick up a hammer and wield a weapon than it is to lay down your life, and lay down your rights, and lay down your freedom, and be willing to be the lamb… and yet that’s what we see Jesus do in scripture.” Christine Chandler Prater
“We live in a time when the majority of Christians, or perhaps just the most vocal ones, have chosen the way of the hammer.” Jason Porterfield
[Quoting Dietrich Bonhoeffer] “Our hearts have room for only one all-encompassing allegiance.” Jason Porterfield
“Where is our allegiance? Are we seeking the will of God, the kingdom of God, the face of God as the lamb of God, or are we seeking a hammer and a revolution?” Christine Chandler Prater
Resources
At the start of Holy Week, tears streamed down Jesus’ face as he cried out, “If only you knew the things that make for peace.” From that moment, until a week later when he triumphantly declared, “Peace be with you,” Jesus spent each day confronting injustice, calling out oppressors and contending for peace.
Throughout Holy Week, two competing approaches to peacemaking collide. What if we’ve embraced the wrong one?
other recommended/related resources
How does the way Jesus demonstrated peacemaking during Holy Week 2000 years ago instruct us to embody it in the world now?
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