James 3:18 ^- Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.

Some people thrive on conflict. I’m not one of them. By nature, I like it when everyone is happy and getting along. But, for quite some time now, I’ve been chewing on the difference between peacekeeping and peacemaking. There is one. Peacekeepers are placaters. They hide and cover up wounds. They shy away from conflict. Peacemakers are different. They move toward conflict. They build bridges. They heal wounds. They reconcile.

Once again, James seems to be echoing something he heard his brother teach. Interesting that he uses the image of planting crops in talking about peace. It takes time. The harvest isn’t immediate. Also, the fruit you harvest is different from what was planted. You plant peace, you reap righteousness. I’m sure there is some reference to personal righteousness here.

What if it’s a little bigger than that though? Here’s what I mean. As a peacemaker, if I plant peace in a painful and broken relationship, the potential for a healthy, God-honoring outcome goes up exponentially. Planting peace yields righteousness.

One other thing. Verse 17 tells us that loving peace is an indicator of possessing wisdom from heaven. Whenever there is a list like the one that appears in verse 17, I like to restate the opposite. We are living in earthly foolishness that is tainted with selfishness when we’re inconsiderate, unsubmissive, full of judgment and poisonous fruit, partial and insincere.

Looking at that list, I gotta long way to go. How about you?

Let’s start with being a peacemaker today…