Person of Peace
If we are intentional in seeking persons of peace, then we will quit obsessing over those who are not open to hearing a word from us. They are simply not persons of peace to us, at least not at this time.
Gregg Reflection
Mike Breen’s book Building a Discipleship Culture fleshes out a concept that I have found profound, the person of peace. It is a tool to guide us in our evangelism, and to relieve us of the anxiety of not being able to reach certain people with a Gospel message.
This idea of the person of peace comes directly from scripture. As He is sending the seventy-two in Luke 10:3-6, Jesus says: “Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road. When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you.”
Jesus never pursued anyone. He made himself available to the willing, to those who were sincerely seeking God. In this passage, he is telling us to do the same. This is a wonderfully liberating idea. Jesus tells us to look for persons of peace in our lives. What does that mean? It means God is in the equation. There are certain people who are open to hearing your truth and supporting your calling. Those are persons of peace. God is at work on the hearts of people all around us. He touches people with His word, with His Spirit, and through other people.
So, if we calibrate our radar, commit to investing ourselves where we have an opening, and work with the willing, we will be following God’s plan. Only the Holy Spirit can open a heart to hear the Gospel. When those opportunities arise, we are to be His witness, to tell our story of God’s movement in our lives.
It is wonderfully reassuring to know that God is our partner in this work. The Spirit is planting seeds and preparing hearts. Our job is to be attuned to those we encounter. Breen emphasizes discerning what season of life a person is living. In scripture there are seasons of planting, seasons of watering and times of harvest. Paul points this out in 1 Cor 3:6, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.” So, we are challenged to discern whether it is a time for planting seeds, a time for watering, or a time for harvest. If we truly understand this is God’s work, we will be much happier doing planting and watering, even when we don’t see the fruit of the work.
If we are intentional in seeking persons of peace, we will quit obsessing over those who are not open to hearing a word from us. They are simply not persons of peace to us, at least not at this time. We are to offer up our peace. If it is not accepted, it returns to us. Then, we shake the dust off our sandals, and move on to the next person. Sadly, some of those closest to us, dear friends and family, will not be persons of peace to us.
This concept has been very liberating to me. I set a design principle when I walked away from my business to only work with the willing. The person of peace idea is very consistent with that principle. Too bad I spent years ignoring that principle, causing me to crash and burn several times.
It’s hard to push a rope, but sometimes we try anyway. Robert Fritz helped me learn that all we can do is make an offer. People are free to say no. If we aren’t comfortable with that, then at the end of the day are manipulating others. I have painfully come to realize that if the path I’m pursuing is truly God’s path, He will provide the persons of peace needed to complete the journey. Since I tend to dream big, the resulting visions can rarely come to pass without the enrollment of a team. If we are moving with God’s will, then we will find the people and resources to attain the vision.
Sometimes, I’m so determined that even when I don’t find the persons of peace, I’ll bull ahead anyway, bent on proving something. That’s how I crash and burn, been there, done that. God’s not really interested in helping me prove something. May you be spared from falling in that trap.
Journaling Prompt
Who are the persons of peace in your life? How will you ascertain if someone is a person of peace? Are you OK that people are free to say no, even your closest friends and family? Even your children?
Scripture
Whatever town or village you enter, find out who in it is worthy, and stay there until you leave. As you enter the house, greet it. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet as you leave that house or town.
Matthew 10:11-14
Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.
Matthew 10:40
For not even his brothers believed in him.
John 7:5 (don’t be surprised if your closest family are not persons of peace)
Ancient Writings
If we live in peace ourselves, we in turn may bring peace to others. A peaceable man does more good than a learned one.
Melania was a person of peace to Evagrius, with great impact
Modern Writings
A Person of Peace is not just a friendly and hospitable person. Many people in today’s society are kind and welcoming, but not a Person of Peace. A Person of Peace is one whom God has prepared to receive us into a community for the first time (Read Luke 10 or Matthew 10). And when we engage with them, they joyfully open up their home and communities to the Gospel. These are people who are receptive to Christ and the vision of getting His news out for others to hear, share, and grow.
What is a person of peace? In the New Testament, the “person of peace” is the person who opens the way for the gospel to enter one’s social group or even their village. Jesus taught his disciples to search for a “worthy” person or “person of peace” on entering a village. Throughout the book of Acts, we see this played out as Jesus’ apostles find persons of peace who help them share the gospel.
The most impressive example of a person of peace is in John 4 when Jesus spoke with the woman at a well outside Samaria. She is an outcast because of her having had five husbands and now living with a man who was not her husband. Jesus welcomed her and encouraged her without being harsh or judgmental. He shared with her the heart of the Gospel—himself.
(1) The Lord must have opened her heart, for she returned to the village (John 4:28). (2) She invited everyone in the village to come and see the one who knew all about her life (John 4:29). (3) Many Samaritans believed (John 4:39-42). The Samaritan woman was a person of peace.
In the book of Acts, this also occurs. Peter has a dream of a sheet being lowered down from heaven with clean and unclean animals. God commands him to kill and eat one of the animals. While he ponders this strange dream, men arrive to get him. God has already arranged a person of peace in Caesarea, a military man of the Italian cohort by the name of Cornelius. The Lord heard Cornelius’s prayers and commanded him to send for Peter (Acts 10:1-8). Cornelius opened his home and called all his friends to hear the Gospel from Peter (Acts 10:27-43). Cornelius and all his friends began speaking in tongues, and Peter and his companions baptized them (Acts 10:44-48). Cornelius was a person of peace.
The apostle Paul had a similar experience with Lydia outside Philippi.“The Lord opened her heart to Paul’s message” (Acts 16:14, NIV). She opened her home while Paul, Silas, Timothy, and Luke stayed in Philippi (v. 25). Lydia and members of her household were baptized. Lydia was a person of peace.
Disciples who want to make disciples who make disciples need to tap into the workers of the harvest God has already put into the field: the person of peace.
Tom Marshall, Renew.org
As we live our lives, be alert to discover “Persons of Peace.” Missionaries and church planters talk about finding “persons of peace” in a neighborhood, city, or marketplace. Often the person of peace will have friends and relatives who are open to gospel witness and are welcoming to followers of Jesus. Often, these people or “households of peace” are like a gateway relationship into a family, neighborhood, or community. Consider prayerfully seeking them out as you go about living more intentionally.
While we’re not required by Scripture to use this approach, we can see this pattern or principle in the New Testament:
Luke 7:1–10 (The Centurion)
John 4:1–30 (The Samaritan Woman)
Acts 8:26–40 (The Ethiopian Eunuch)
Acts 10:9–11:1 (Cornelius)
Acts 16:13–15 (Lydia)
Acts 16:22–38 (The Philippian Jailer)
We can often recognize the person of peace because they will: welcome you, receive you, be open to you and your friendship, be open to what you have to say about Jesus, be interested in and open to the life you live as a follower of Jesus, assist or serve you in some way.
GO AND DO. As you go about your daily life, learn to pray and be alert to these people of peace. Be intentional; look for them. Calibrate your spiritual radar so you can “catch” the opportunities God provides as you simply pray and look around.
Be intentional about seeking out people of peace, and expect that God will be at work in some. Pray to encounter people of peace, listen to and learn their stories, and then be ready to tell your own story (testimony). Finally, though, be sure to tell them the gospel.
As you meet these potential people of peace, remember to let Jesus be the filter. We go in Jesus’ name, with His authority to be and make disciples, so we need not fear if we meet some people who are NOT people of peace. It’s true that some won’t welcome us or want our friendship. As we identify with Jesus, they may reject us. They may not be open to friendship with us. That’s okay—Jesus is a divisive person. Let Jesus be the filter.
When I meet someone, I lean in and see if they lean in. If they do, I lean in a bit more, and am constantly in discernment if this is a person of peace. Gregg