Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.
Matthew 5:9
Jesus made peace between sinners and God, who is holy. In so doing, Jesus did not pretend that sin does not matter. Not even close.
In September of 1938, Nazi Germany was gobbling up small European countries on the continent. British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, met with the German Chancellor (Fuhrer), Adolf Hitler. The topic of discussion? Peace.
Chamberlain signed a treaty and returned home to England promising that the treaty ensured “Peace in our time.” It was one of the most naïve diplomatic blunders of all time. In order for Hitler to sign, England gave everything and demanded virtually nothing from Germany. Hitler’s diabolical track record exhibited the fact that he had no plans to halt his quest to rule all of Europe. And all who knew the Fuhrer knew that his word meant nothing at all anyway.
Sure enough, the Nazi war machine continued its stampede across Europe. Beginning in September 1940 until May 1941, the Nazis were reducing London to rubble with frenzied bombing raids.
Who can say for sure what would have happened had Chamberlain been wise enough not to make such a foolish diplomatic agreement for the promise of peace. Chamberlain’s faulty version of diplomacy is called appeasement.
Believers are called to be peacemakers in our world. But how often are we guilty of appeasement? While we must seek always to be loving and winsome, we must not compromise truth with those who reject truth. Whenever we do—seeking to make friends with the unbelieving world—we are not only foolishly guilty of appeasement, we make ourselves enemies of God! (James 4:4 Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. )
When Christians wink at sin in hope of the gaining the world’s friendship, we are not peacemakers. We are fools, pushing God away. While there is a blessing for being peacemakers, there is no blessing for being foolish agents of appeasement.
The basis for peace with God is the gospel (Romans 1:16), which begins with calling sin, sin—and offering peace with God (forgiveness) to those who trust in Christ and who repent. No other terms result in peace.