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Something I haven’t done for a couple of years now, is get away on my own to some sort of continuing education seminar for a few days. Leave the family behind. Leave the churches behind. Leave my routine behind. Go forth and maybe learn something new, maybe. Meet some new people and see people from previous events. Wear a name tag. Introduce myself to stares that blatantly say “I’m glad I’m not him”. The food is usually beyond excellent, but you have to struggle to make small talk at meals…and there’re always those people that I have to exercise extreme patience with because they think they know the solution to all the church’s problems and absolutely will not shut up long enough to listen to me, the one person who actually does.
If you can’t tell, I just love continuing education events and so it is no surprise that when the week is done and that Friday morning final worship is over, I am a man on a mission. I just want to get home to be with my wife and my kids and my dog. Sleep in my own bed. No strangers in my bathroom. I waste no time getting home. I make haste to get home. My whole life is devoted to getting home. I’m compelled almost to the point of anxiety to get home. I drive faster than I should. Some people will take advantage of those lost few moments of being away from home and the routines and will stop here and there along the way to see this and that. Not me. I make haste and waste no effort to get home.
Peter here writes “Strive to be found at peace”. That word translated there as “strive” in New Testament Greek is the word I would use to describe how I am about getting home after being away. It is the ardent, zealous desire to make haste to arrive at that which you are foremost devoted to. It’s pouring your whole heart and soul into a particular purpose.
Peter is saying for us to ardently devote our every effort to being found at peace by Jesus when he returns. He also adds being spotless and blameless to that, but I consider that to be a part of what it is to be at peace. Having your conscience clean of moral indiscretion is a component of peace. Spotless and blameless was also a term used for sacrificial lambs, which was an image that turns up with reference to those about to be martyred. And it maybe that spotless and blameless means are you ready to meet your Lord should you be martyred; are you at peace. But, I digress. The emphasis of the verse is on whole-heartedly striving to be found at peace by Jesus when he comes again.
This verse begs a question of us which I will revisit momentarily, but I want to introduce it now so that we’re prepared for it. The question: What am I, what are we singularly focused on, impassioned by, that we devote our total beings to? What do I/ we strive for with everything we got? Let that perk.
Let’s take a look at that word for being found. This is like your mother always telling you to wear clean underwear in case you wind up in an accident and have to go the hospital, you don’t want the doctor to find you in several days of filth. That would reflect poorly not only on you but more so on her. Or, it’s like somebody dropping by your house unexpectedly, would you be able to invite them in or would you rather them not see the disarray as to not make a judgement call about your character. People do judge the character others on the cleanliness of their house. I do. It’s like being in a game of poker and somebody calls your hand and you have to reveal your cards. Do you have a strong hand or are you just bluffing? What will your cards reveal? So “to be found” is to be laid bare like on judgement day in such a way as to reveal who you really are.
There’s a question that arises here that is more or less the same question that popped up a minute ago: If I/we were to be laid bare at the very core of who we are, could/would peace be found there? If we suddenly had to reveal our hands in this game of life, would the cards say “at peace”? If someone showed up unexpectedly at your house, would they find your home be at peace? Strive to be found at peace.
So peace, what is peace? People often define peace as the absence of conflict. Yet, people can live lives free of open conflict with others and still not be at peace. That leads others to define peace from an inward perspective; inner peace, contentment, self-acceptance, being free from shame and guilt, a clean conscience. Well, peace with others and peace with self are certainly components of what Peter means by peace here. We could also add a sense of being at peace with God. Yet, peace as we find it in the Bible is still even more that those three elements combined. It is an interesting animal that is profoundly community oriented and arises the outflow from God’s presence in a group of believers.
In John’s Gospel on Easter evening Jesus risen from the dead suddenly appears to the disciples behind locked doors. He said, “Peace be with you.” Then he breathed the Holy Spirit upon them and gave them the instruction to forgive each other. Peace and forgiveness are linked. Yet, the Biblical understanding of forgiveness isn’t this transactional thing that we have made it out to be in our culture where somebody wrongs another, feels remorse, and then apologizes and then the offended one accepts the apology and they try to go on as if it didn’t happen. Biblical forgiveness is to bear with those in your community who act on their brokenness, bear with them and continue to lead them to Jesus to be healed even if they have no desire to apologize. In the Gospel of John peace is not the transaction of forgiveness. It is found in bearing with one another in the love of God for the benefit and healing of each. It is, if fact, that the presence of God is in our midst healing us each of our brokenness and our striving for this healing with each other. Peace cannot be done alone. For peace, we need the presence of God and we need each other.
In the Old Testament Prophets and in the other three Gospels peace is the distinguishing mark of the type of community that arises when God’s salvation comes to earth. “Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” is a prayer for peace. We can have a taste of that peace now by striving to live according to the way human community will be when God’s Kingdom finally does come. Peace now is life lived with the presence of God in our midst. It is everyone having a thriving devotional life. Peace now is people living together free of covetousness and greed and lust and power seeking. Peace now is community where everybody has the abundance of enough and we share. Peace now is people living together in a way that gives praise and thanksgiving to God and resounds with “Amen.” Peace now is people being together relating to one another in such a way that the glory of God shines forth which means eliminating poverty, classism, racism, and all the ism’s which are a blemish on community. When Peter invites us to “Strive to be found at peace”, working towards this kind of peaceful community is what he means.
Looking at the way things are today, COVID has shown up at humanity’s door and has laid us bare and revealed that humanity is not at peace. It’s first wave showed us that we have a lifestyle problem, a value of life problem, that shows up in the way we care for our elderly. It hits harder among the poor and the non-white revealing our classism and racism. Amidst government restrictions substance abuse has raged and marriages are dissolving. These profoundly show us that we don’t know how to be with ourselves and each other in constructive ways when we are stripped of those places and things that we use to avoid each other. Household finances are tanking and small businesses are going under. Meanwhile, the billionaires are growing exponentially wealthier. That’s a blatant sign that something is terribly wrong. Yet, without these restrictions more people will needlessly die as the result of COVID and our healthcare system will be so overwhelmed with COVID that other health matters cannot be properly managed. A spirit of contentiousness over things like wearing a mask and just put your party life on hold for a few months have arisen that just simply reveals that we are spoiled brats. These restrictions are not dictator governments taking away personal liberties. They are how we protect the vulnerable in our communities from a virus that is more lethal than the flu.
COVID has revealed to us that we lack peace. Peace is living together in the presence of God according to the love of God so that our community, our neighbourhoods, and families foreshadow the way community will be when Jesus comes. This peace simply eludes us. Why? Well, we humans are obviously striving for something other than peace.
Returning to the question: What am I, what are we singularly focused on, impassioned by, so that we devote our total beings to pursuing it? What do I/ we strive for with everything we got? Is it peace? If it is not peace, then what? Wealth? Family? Reputation? Winning? Or just simply and honestly nothing? Are we just apathetic, striving for nothing? Strive to be found at peace. Amen.
