Pilgrim Course

Follow Stage Book 4

Steven Croft

• Publisher: Church House Publishing
• Year: 2015
• Print ISBN: 9780715143926
• eBook ISBN: 9780715144299
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Ministry

Pilgrim is a teaching and discipleship resource from the Church of England that helps enquirers and new Christians explore what it means to travel through life with Jesus Christ.

Opening Prayers

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Generous God, help me to live as a child of your kingdom

Give me the mind of Christ.

Let us hear our Lord’s blessing on those who follow him.

‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’

MATTHEW 5.3–10

God of our days and years

We set this time apart for you.

Form us in the likeness of Christ

So that we may learn of your love

And that our lives may give you glory.

Amen.

Conversation

Think of some people who you would call ‘peacemakers’. What is it about them that is so special?

Reflecting on Scripture

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Reading

Come, O children, listen to me;

I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

12Which of you desires life,

and covets many days to enjoy good?

13Keep your tongue from evil,

and your lips from speaking deceit.

14Depart from evil, and do good;

seek peace, and pursue it.

15The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,

and his ears are open to their cry.

16The face of the Lord is against evildoers,

to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

17When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears,

and rescues them from all their troubles.

18The Lord is near to the brokenhearted,

and saves the crushed in spirit.

19Many are the afflictions of the righteous,

but the Lord rescues them from them all.

20He keeps all their bones;

not one of them will be broken.

21Evil brings death to the wicked,

and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.

22The Lord redeems the life of his servants;

none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.

PSALM 34.11–22

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• Read the passage through once
• Keep a few moments’ silence
• Read the passage a second time with different voices
• Invite everyone to say aloud a word or phrase that strikes them
• Read the passage a third time
• Share together what this word or phrase might mean and what questions it raises

Reflection HELEN-ANN HARTLEY

‘Blessed are the peacemakers ...’, ‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake ...’

Words like ‘peacemakers’ and ‘persecuted’ are familiar enough, but what do they really mean? It can seem difficult to unpack them from the midst of diverse contemporary political and social contexts. Part of the challenge of appreciating the richness and deep challenge that Jesus sets out in these verses lies in the invitation to learn from present-day contexts where these words have urgent meaning. This is especially true of a word like ‘persecution’, which in some parts of the world can literally be a matter of life or death. While not wishing to downgrade whatever our personal struggles might be of living out our faith openly wherever we are located, the knowledge that one of our sisters or brothers in Christ might face death because of their faith heightens the shocking nature of Jesus’ statement that the reward of persecution is the kingdom of heaven. Future promise impacts on present vulnerability. Future reward gives hope for present troubles. With that, the command is to seek peace, for that is reflective of the very character of God.

The word that Matthew uses for ‘peacemakers’ is worth noting because its Greek form in this verse is found nowhere else in the New Testament or in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of our Old Testament). It is significant because as a word it combines both an action as well as a reflection on the character of the action. It is as if Jesus is saying: ‘Blessed are those who seek peace peaceably’. The emphasis on the manner of the action is important because that is where the real challenge lies. It is one thing to seek peace, but to attend to that seeking in a way that is utterly peaceful requires some effort, which becomes something of a virtue in itself. This is not to rule out the possibility of discord or even stronger than that, war, but the point seems to be that the distinctiveness of a Christian response might be known in the risk taken by seeking peace against the odds. In a first-century context where the Roman war machine was everywhere, this must have been shockingly challenging. But the surprises don’t end there. The intentional peaceful search for peace enables the peacemaker to be reflective of God’s very nature, which is both distinctive and transformative. Distinctive, because Christian discipleship constantly seeks to proclaim the particular good news of Jesus Christ, and transformative because that is the hallmark of the kingdom of heaven: everything is changed.

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In short

Jesus calls us to ‘seek peace peaceably’. This intentional peaceful search for peace reflects the deep character of God who also always and everywhere seeks for peace in the world.

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For discussion

• How do you understand the words ‘peacemaker’ and ‘persecution’?
• How should you be involved in making peace?

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God’s kingdom prevails

The eighth beatitude raises the topic of persecution, which in the context of the gospel might point to physical or verbal abuse. The type of persecution that is in mind here is brought on b...

Table of contents

• Authors and Contributors
• Title page
• Copyright information
• Contents
• Welcome to Pilgrim
• Introduction
• SESSION ONE:
• LIVING WITH OPENNESS TO GOD
• SESSION TWO:
• THIRSTING FOR WHAT IS RIGHT
• SESSION THREE:
• LIVING TRANSPARENTLY
• SESSION FOUR:
• PEACEMAKING
• SESSION FIVE:
• LIVING AS CITIZENS OF GOD’S KINGDOM
• SESSION SIX:
• FOUNDATIONS
• NOTES