Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.
Actively pursue what produces peace and what builds up others so they grow in faith. That peace comes from receiving Christ's righteousness, which brings peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, since no one can be truly happy apart from God. Following after peace never means surrendering truth or sacrificing principle to avoid discord or division. It means laying aside sharp words, blame, censure, sarcasm and criticism, and instead cultivating tenderness, kindness, courtesy, humility and the meek spirit of Jesus to heal divisions and guard the interests of one another. Such a course is acceptable to God and approved by others, because it puts the spiritual good of others ahead of pleasing self and directs them toward heaven by complete self-surrender and holy example.
Meaning of Peace and Edification
The call is to actively pursue what produces peace and what builds up another, and building up means strengthening others so they grow in faith. That pursuit belongs especially to dealing with the Lord's household, where it requires avoiding words of blame or censure, healing divisions, and cheerfully joining in efforts to rescue an endangered institution. Its call to make for peace applies to humble cooperation and unity, so that a Christian's influence strengthens piety and increases spiritual effectiveness instead of causing division.
Peace means receiving Christ's righteousness, which always brings peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, and no one can be happy apart from God. Knowingly sinning against God destroys this peace and drives away the Spirit. Holiness therefore means wholeness to God in life and character, with a heart emptied of self and filled with the Holy Spirit and never left divided or uninhabited.
Serving Christ in this way is acceptable to God and approved by people. It requires putting others' spiritual good ahead of pleasing self and not letting one's good be spoken of as evil. It calls for complete self-surrender and a holy example that directs others toward heaven, following Christ who emptied Himself of glory, clothed divinity with humanity, lived not to please Himself, and came to seek and to save that which was lost. This involves guarding the lips from guile, bringing no false principles into dealings with others, being strict against false principles that would lead souls from the safe path, adhering to correct principles whatever the cost, working the works of God, letting light shine in appeals and warnings, practicing economy and plain simplicity to have means for the cause of truth, economizing pence to have pounds, keeping tables free from useless pictures and ornaments in comparison with the Word of God, and drawing the sympathies of friends heavenward.
The verse gives part of what it means to be Bible Christians. When spoken and explained in the power of the Holy Spirit it carries power unto eternal life, and with living testimony and fervent intercession in prayer it brings conviction and conversion and reconversion, bringing souls from darkness into light. Seeking what brings peace means choosing influences and conduct that preserve the soul's moral sensitivity rather than damage it. A humble willingness to do God's will produces an influence that makes for peace and strengthens piety and spiritual effectiveness.
Peace Without Sacrificing Principle
Following after peace never means buying peace by surrendering truth or sacrificing principle to prevent discord or to ward off division. Faithfulness requires speaking against a course that would ruin souls, even when faithfulness to principle brings opposition, so peace does not mean avoiding all conflict. True brotherhood can never be maintained by compromising principle. Peace and harmony secured by mutual concessions to avoid all differences of opinion are not worthy of the name.
On points of feeling between person and person concessions should sometimes be made, but never should one iota of principle be sacrificed to obtain harmony. As Christians grow purer in spirit and action and search out and reprove sin, they will meet opposition from the devil and from those who reject obedience. This opposition is stirred by spiritual Christianity itself. Those who love Jesus and the souls for whom He died follow peace and edify others by exerting a correct influence and returning kind acts for mischief and malice after Christ's pattern, with standing in the Judgment in view. Differences of opinion, such as whether to eat butter, should not cause disunion. People should be allowed to follow their conscientious convictions even when others do not share them, since believers are to pursue peace and help one another grow rather than divide over such things.
Practicing Peace Toward Others
Doing the things that make for unity and peace between brothers brings the Lord's great blessing. Building up means strengthening others, and this calls for healing divisions and cheerfully joining to rescue what is endangered. Ministers carry this out by following public preaching with private personal effort, urging people to seek the things that bring them peace.
The command is kept by helping a brother through sheathing the sword of sharp words and showing tender, thoughtful affection. Sharp and severe words, including wholly uncalled-for sarcasm spoken to a brother or to others, break the command and displease the Lord Jesus, so a change to kind speech brings blessing. Words of blame or censure are to be avoided. Criticizing, finding fault, questioning motives, sitting in judgment on those who disagree, and speaking words that injure those Christ calls His brethren are also forbidden, since Christ counts such injury as done to Himself. A spirit of criticism, self-will, and opposition to fellow workers lacks peace and edification and burdens others instead of fostering harmony.
In its place are to be cultivated thoughtfulness, tenderness, respect, tact, kindness, affection, courtesy, purity, humility, and the meek and lowly spirit of Jesus. The interests of one another are to be guarded, wounds bound up rather than made, and souls won rather than repelled, through humble cooperation and unity. Then labors leave a Christlike mold and meetings are filled with the Spirit of Christ. A Christian's influence in this course strengthens piety and increases spiritual effectiveness instead of causing division. Where criticism rules the Spirit of God leaves, angels do not accompany the meetings, and a weak and sickly condition follows that unfits the church to correctly represent Christ, to be fit to lead souls to truth, and to have God add souls to it.
The same pursuing of peace and edification requires complete self-surrender and a holy example that directs others toward heaven. It requires guarding the lips from guile, bringing no false principles into dealings with others, being strict against false principles that would lead souls from the safe path, adhering to correct principles whatever the cost, working the works of God, and letting light shine in appeals and warnings. It follows Christ, who emptied Himself of glory, clothed divinity with humanity, lived not to please Himself, and came to seek and to save that which was lost. He who so serves Christ in place of pleasing self is acceptable to God and approved by men. This course includes practicing economy and plain simplicity to have means for the cause of truth, economizing pence to have pounds, keeping tables free from useless pictures and ornaments in comparison with the Word of God, and drawing the sympathies of friends heavenward.
Actively pursue what produces peace and what builds up others so they grow in faith. That peace comes from receiving Christ's righteousness, which brings peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, since no one can be truly happy apart from God. Following after peace never means surrendering truth or sacrificing principle to avoid discord or division. It means laying aside sharp words, blame, censure, sarcasm and criticism, and instead cultivating tenderness, kindness, courtesy, humility and the meek spirit of Jesus to heal divisions and guard the interests of one another. Such a course is acceptable to God and approved by others, because it puts the spiritual good of others ahead of pleasing self and directs them toward heaven by complete self-surrender and holy example.
Meaning of Peace and Edification
The call is to actively pursue what produces peace and what builds up another, and building up means strengthening others so they grow in faith. That pursuit belongs especially to dealing with the Lord's household, where it requires avoiding words of blame or censure, healing divisions, and cheerfully joining in efforts to rescue an endangered institution. Its call to make for peace applies to humble cooperation and unity, so that a Christian's influence strengthens piety and increases spiritual effectiveness instead of causing division.
Peace means receiving Christ's righteousness, which always brings peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, and no one can be happy apart from God. Knowingly sinning against God destroys this peace and drives away the Spirit. Holiness therefore means wholeness to God in life and character, with a heart emptied of self and filled with the Holy Spirit and never left divided or uninhabited.
Serving Christ in this way is acceptable to God and approved by people. It requires putting others' spiritual good ahead of pleasing self and not letting one's good be spoken of as evil. It calls for complete self-surrender and a holy example that directs others toward heaven, following Christ who emptied Himself of glory, clothed divinity with humanity, lived not to please Himself, and came to seek and to save that which was lost. This involves guarding the lips from guile, bringing no false principles into dealings with others, being strict against false principles that would lead souls from the safe path, adhering to correct principles whatever the cost, working the works of God, letting light shine in appeals and warnings, practicing economy and plain simplicity to have means for the cause of truth, economizing pence to have pounds, keeping tables free from useless pictures and ornaments in comparison with the Word of God, and drawing the sympathies of friends heavenward.
The verse gives part of what it means to be Bible Christians. When spoken and explained in the power of the Holy Spirit it carries power unto eternal life, and with living testimony and fervent intercession in prayer it brings conviction and conversion and reconversion, bringing souls from darkness into light. Seeking what brings peace means choosing influences and conduct that preserve the soul's moral sensitivity rather than damage it. A humble willingness to do God's will produces an influence that makes for peace and strengthens piety and spiritual effectiveness.
Peace Without Sacrificing Principle
Following after peace never means buying peace by surrendering truth or sacrificing principle to prevent discord or to ward off division. Faithfulness requires speaking against a course that would ruin souls, even when faithfulness to principle brings opposition, so peace does not mean avoiding all conflict. True brotherhood can never be maintained by compromising principle. Peace and harmony secured by mutual concessions to avoid all differences of opinion are not worthy of the name.
On points of feeling between person and person concessions should sometimes be made, but never should one iota of principle be sacrificed to obtain harmony. As Christians grow purer in spirit and action and search out and reprove sin, they will meet opposition from the devil and from those who reject obedience. This opposition is stirred by spiritual Christianity itself. Those who love Jesus and the souls for whom He died follow peace and edify others by exerting a correct influence and returning kind acts for mischief and malice after Christ's pattern, with standing in the Judgment in view. Differences of opinion, such as whether to eat butter, should not cause disunion. People should be allowed to follow their conscientious convictions even when others do not share them, since believers are to pursue peace and help one another grow rather than divide over such things.
Practicing Peace Toward Others
Doing the things that make for unity and peace between brothers brings the Lord's great blessing. Building up means strengthening others, and this calls for healing divisions and cheerfully joining to rescue what is endangered. Ministers carry this out by following public preaching with private personal effort, urging people to seek the things that bring them peace.
The command is kept by helping a brother through sheathing the sword of sharp words and showing tender, thoughtful affection. Sharp and severe words, including wholly uncalled-for sarcasm spoken to a brother or to others, break the command and displease the Lord Jesus, so a change to kind speech brings blessing. Words of blame or censure are to be avoided. Criticizing, finding fault, questioning motives, sitting in judgment on those who disagree, and speaking words that injure those Christ calls His brethren are also forbidden, since Christ counts such injury as done to Himself. A spirit of criticism, self-will, and opposition to fellow workers lacks peace and edification and burdens others instead of fostering harmony.
In its place are to be cultivated thoughtfulness, tenderness, respect, tact, kindness, affection, courtesy, purity, humility, and the meek and lowly spirit of Jesus. The interests of one another are to be guarded, wounds bound up rather than made, and souls won rather than repelled, through humble cooperation and unity. Then labors leave a Christlike mold and meetings are filled with the Spirit of Christ. A Christian's influence in this course strengthens piety and increases spiritual effectiveness instead of causing division. Where criticism rules the Spirit of God leaves, angels do not accompany the meetings, and a weak and sickly condition follows that unfits the church to correctly represent Christ, to be fit to lead souls to truth, and to have God add souls to it.
The same pursuing of peace and edification requires complete self-surrender and a holy example that directs others toward heaven. It requires guarding the lips from guile, bringing no false principles into dealings with others, being strict against false principles that would lead souls from the safe path, adhering to correct principles whatever the cost, working the works of God, and letting light shine in appeals and warnings. It follows Christ, who emptied Himself of glory, clothed divinity with humanity, lived not to please Himself, and came to seek and to save that which was lost. He who so serves Christ in place of pleasing self is acceptable to God and approved by men. This course includes practicing economy and plain simplicity to have means for the cause of truth, economizing pence to have pounds, keeping tables free from useless pictures and ornaments in comparison with the Word of God, and drawing the sympathies of friends heavenward.