Justice of Peace

Isaiah 11:1-10; Psalm 72:1-4; Matthew 3:1-12; Romans 15:4-13

Central Baptist Church—Lowesville, VA

09 December 2007

“Where have all the flowers gone?”^[1] Peter Seeger’s lyrics call for pause and reflection on the senseless tragedy of war. They speak of endless cycles of death, loss, and broken dreams. Yet, while they speak against the way of war and violence, they give no hint as to how we might establish peace.

I have heard Seeger’s lyrics all my life, but doubt any ever considered him a peacemaker. That he stood against war and for peace seems obvious. That is not the same as making peace. Peace with one another and peace with God must begin somewhere other than viewing war as tragic or futile. Peace must begin with hope that our needs can and will be satisfied. It must begin with hope. The gospel speaks of God hearing us, knowing our needs before we think them. This is the first step to peace. It is the hope for a righteous justice that enables peace. Are we truly concerned with making peace?

It was one more of those hot, dusty, wilderness days. The sun beat down. Sweaty odors added to the oppressive discomfort. The river afforded a break from the heat, speaking hope and release. John the Baptizer spoke to crowds who came out to hear his words. The camel’s hair and leather belt bespoke a common man, not the cultured power-broker of social standing. The people saw him as eccentric, but one with a worthwhile message they could not quite grasp. They sensed that here was something they needed, even if they did not understand quite what it was.

John yearned for peace. The nation yearned for peace. It was the longing of his people for generations back. They awaited release, redemption, and a new lease on life. It all seemed illusive. They had yearned for peace and redemption for generations, so far to no avail. Peace seemed mirage, not reality. Back in the days of Isaiah, they were already anticipating peace, freedom from impending oppression, and restoration to new life. The heat of the day, the smell of sweat, the burden of Roman taxation, and the presence of the soldiers—these were no illusion. Could peace ever be just as real?

Isaiah had cast a vision of God’s peace. The crowds gathered on the bank yearned desperately for that vision’s fulfillment. Isaiah spoke of a reign of peace and justice in the same breath. Isaiah expected Yahweh’s anointed to inaugurate a peace engraved with due justice for all. Oppression would find release. Poverty would find voice. Needs would be met in kind. Fighting, death, and violence would end. All would be satisfied. This was Isaiah’s vision of peace. It was a world in which the cares of all were considered and met with responsible action.

Isaiah never saw that vision fulfilled. He knew that before this vision could become reality they people would be marched off into exile. Regardless, he had cast the picture of what Yahweh’s ultimate reign would look like. He had set in motion a sense of what could be, what should be, what the nation should hold out as its ideal. It was a vision of Yahweh’s reign that included all the nations. They would not be dominated, but would flock to Jerusalem to learn peace and justice.

John clung to that vision. He understood peace as more than a cessation of hostile action. He understood that peace must be built upon justice—not revenge, but righteous action in response to the needs of all. Peace needed the backing of efforts to enact this quality of justice. John would never lead an army to coercively enforce a pronounced peace. He would lead others to live according to Isaiah’s vision at a personal level. The Baptist urged preparation for the messianic kingdom of peace by living peace under the banner of righteous justice.

Most of the wilderness crowd did not understand. Their questions were too basic to give room for much sense of understanding. They did not know how to apply the simplest principles of peace and justice. “What does this have to do with us?” They were looking for the messianic reign, but one inaugurated with violence. They sought a leader to muster the nation to arms against Rome. Peace should come from an uprising that would intimidate Rome and its armies. Messiah would be king, general, and peacemaker by the power and might of Yahweh, King of Creation. Some hoped John would marshal the troops. They waited for him to bring peace through initiating the uprising.

John turned the burden on the crowds. “You want peace. You want freedom. You want release from tyranny and oppression. Stop looking for some other to assume responsibility for bringing peace about. Begin living the righteousness of justice. You will be the peace of Yahweh in Israel. Prepare for Messiah by living the reality of Isaiah’s vision today.”

John did not really understand it all. He did grasp that a reign of peace began with justice, love, mercy, compassion, and caring for the just needs of others. He understood that peace depended upon the basics of unselfish living. It demanded assuming responsibility for others. Rather than looking upon a heritage of faith, it required repentant action to establish God’s justice and righteousness in one’s own life. It began with turning over a new leaf in life. For this, he took the people into the water to assume their own role in bringing peace. They were to repent of waiting for others to bring about peace. They were to assume the burden of responsibility to become the righteous presence of Yahweh.

John’s vestments were a marked contrast to the religious leaders of his day. His life was an anomaly. He lived simply. He put on no show of wealth, position, or power. He called for no position or privilege for himself. He did not settle himself in the courts of the Temple or the synagogues in the towns all around. He matched his living to the content of his preaching. He encouraged others to live so as to bring peace to their own communities in preparation for the coming of Messiah’s reign of peace.

Not everyone was happy with him. Some of the religious power-brokers were concerned for what they might lose as the people began flocking out to John. Herod would become jealous of John’s esteem in the eyes of the people. He would see John as a threat to the continued wielding of power and intimidation of the masses. Herod would fear the erosion of his security of intimidation and force. John had nothing left to protect, only peace and justice to share with others. On the banks of the Jordan, he called others to answer the call of the messianic reign by living peace and justice, allowing God to rule in the confident hope of God’s provision.

Do I consider peacemaking a worthy and blessed enterprise? For John the Baptist, that meant a life devoted to bring about justice, love, and care for the needs of others. He would not cast the burden of peace upon a political system, but leave it at home on our own shoulders. Is our desire for peace sufficient to impact our actions with the drive to bring righteous justice to those in need? Anything less is little more than that endless cycle of broken dreams, loss, and senseless destruction.

—©2007 Christopher B. Harbin

¹ Peter Seeger, “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” ©1961, 1977 Falls River Music, Inc..