Gonna lay down my sword and shield

 

On my travels over the weekend, I spent a couple of hours at the National Museum of the US Air Force.  Within just a few years of building of the first successful airplane by the Wright brothers,  the Army looked for ways to make the amazing machine into a useful weapon of warfare!  The quick development of technology for air war unfolded as I strolled through the vast buildings of the museum.  In just 50 years, the war plane went from a slow, clothed covered machine to a flying fortress capable of raining death and destruction on  entire cities.  What would the world look like in 2015 if all the billions of dollars of wealth that those displays represent had been spent instead on education and economic development? 

One of the Bible’s great promises is peace! Isaiah, peering through the telescope of God’s Spirit, saw the day when the lion and the lion would lay down together! What a vision.  God told him that the day would come when streets would be full of peace, when a man would enjoy the vineyard he planted without fear of raiders. The Psalmist sings, "Come and see the works of the LORD, the desolations he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear, he burns the shields with fire." (Psalm 46:8-9, NIV)  "The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah" (Psalm 46:12, NIV)  With all the threats of our present world (and that we knew in the past!) peace is almost inconceivable, a utopian vision, beyond our reach.  The only hope is the coming of the King that brings justice and peace on earth!

Let’s turn our minds this Monday morning to peace closer to home. Those who control armies and air power are well beyond our reach, but what of our relationships? Do you live in peace or does conflict follow you wherever you go? Is your life full of fighting?  The gentle Christian who refuses to raise his hand in violence, who follows Jesus’ path literally turning the other cheek, is viewed by most as foolish or at best, deluded by an unattainable ideal. We are so accustomed to pushing for our rights, to protecting ourselves with words and guns that to think of a radical pursuit of peace as an expression of our Christianity is almost an afterthought.  

Jesus, our Lord, offers us His care and teaches us to lay down our sword and shield!  Christians are to be people of peace.
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God." (Matthew 5:9, NIV)  
"Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness." (James 3:18, NIV)  

Peace will not come to us just by wishing it were so nor will it arrive without great cost. (I am speaking personally, not politically.)   If we want to show the fruit of the Spirit, which includes peace, we will have to learn to trust God and to suffer loss gladly. Yes, friend, that is often the price of peace.  Meditate on the words of Christ and ask Him how you can live at peace with your family, your coworkers, your world.  The word from the Word is a familiar passage.  Don’t rush through it. Ponder the way of peace.

“Here’s another old saying that deserves a second look: ‘Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.’ Is that going to get us anywhere? Here’s what I propose: ‘Don’t hit back at all.’ If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously.

“You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that. " (Matthew 5:38-47, The Message)

Peace!

___________________

Down By the Riverside

Gonna lay down my sword and shield
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Gonna lay down my sword and shield
Down by the riverside

Ain't gonna study war no more.

I ain't gonna study war no more,
I ain't gonna study war no more,
Study war no more.
I ain't gonna study war no more,
I ain't gonna study war no more,
Study war no more.

 
Gonna stick my sword in the golden sand;
Down By the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Gonna stick my sword in the golden sand
Down by the riverside
Gonna study war no more.