"Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God," MAT 5:9.

The Sermon on the Mount unfolds a wealth of treasures of knowledge. The Lord Jesus Christ opened His mouth and broke the seals from the mysteries which were hidden from the foundations of the world and brought forth the fullness of the gospel.

Seven is the symbol of fullness throughout Scripture. Seven is the symbol of perfection. When the number seven is seen in Scripture, it draws attention to a climax. In our series, we have come to the seventh beatitude. There are seven beatitudes. The seventh is the climax of the beatitudes. The next verse speaks of the reaction of the world toward this true Christian.

The seven beatitudes truly describe the character of the Christian. Being a peacemaker is a characteristic of a Christian. To become a peacemaker is the evidence of maturity in a Christian. MAT 5:9 says, "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God."

Christ was the great peacemaker. Let's analyze what broke the peace. Disobedience did! What makes peace? The restoration of that which was broken makes peace, i.e., obedience, but there must also be the payment of the penalty for disobedience.

Direct your attention to the fact that peace cannot be found without purity. It is essential to take notice what JAM 3:17 says, "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure," [and] then peaceable." The Lord Jesus Christ was the great peacemaker. Before there could be peace, purity had to be restored. Purity comes before peace. Impurity broke the peace.

COL 1:20 says, "And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven." By the blood of His cross, the Lord Jesus Christ made peace. Yet don't forget that the shedding of His blood on the cross was an act of obedience. This was the full restoration of purity. This was walking in perfect harmony to the will of God. Take notice that purity must be restored before there can be peace.

This topic will be covered with four points. The first two points will be covered in this message, and the last two in the following message. Peace making is the climax of all Christianity, and therefore it must be dealt with very extensively, and very delicately.

FOR OUR FIRST POINT, purity must come before peace.

FOR OUR SECOND POINT, we'll look at the character of the peacemaker.

FOR OUR THIRD POINT, we'll look at Christ the true peacemaker. FOR OUR

FOURTH POINT, we'll examine the experience of a true peacemaker. The experience is blessed. The experience of a true peacemaker is one of the overwhelming objets in Holy Writ.

FOR OUR FIRST POINT, purity comes before peace. The seventh beatitude rises above the sixth, which says, "Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God," MAT 5:8. We must understand that the peacemaker must have a pure heart. The Lord looks at the heart as the fountain of all peace. From the heart must come this fountain of peace. If the heart is impure, one cannot be a true peacemaker.

To become a peacemaker, we must first understand how essential a pure heart is. The working of regeneration and conversion must purify our heart's desires. This is why we cannot become peacemakers if we are strangers to the first six beatitudes.

In JAM 3:17 we read, "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable." Purity must come before peace. This must be understood in several areas. Especially since anything that defileth shall never enter heaven. Christ has opened the gate of heaven far enough that the chiefest of sinners can enter in, but that way is too straight and narrow to allow the slightest grain of impurity to pass through. Purity must come before peace.

Until the heart has been purified, no person shall ever be a true peacemaker. No person can be a true peacemaker until they have undergone the work of regeneration and conversion. It is essential that this be understood.

I was speaking with a young gentleman earlier about this. We were pointing out the need of true conversion as the fruit of regeneration. The young gentleman then mentioned Ananias and Sapphira. He asked what their problem was. I pointed out that they had an outward conversion. They sold their land and were joining the crowd.

Their problem was that their heart was never renewed. In their heart they still had covetousness. Purity had never been established in their heart. They lied about the price of the land. We must have a true conversion which flows from the work of regeneration and a change of heart. Purity of heart is essential before a person can become a true peacemaker.

The Lord looks upon the heart. It is important to understand that everything comes from the heart. Every desire and motive comes from the heart. We read in JER 17:9-10, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings."

We have to understand that the Lord rewards every man according to the fruit of his doing. The fruit of our doings comes from the heart. If the heart has never been made pure, we can never understand peacemaking because we have never come to peace with God. Until the heart has been changed and regenerated, we will never have peace with God. If enmity against God is still in the heart, we can never be a true peacemaker with our fellow man.

Peace must first be restored between God and us in that new heart. The Lord says, "...I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings." The fruit of our doings will never be anything but corrupt until regeneration is worked in the heart by grace.

Before we can ever be a true peacemaker, we must understand David's prayer in PSA 26:2 "Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart." He knew he had a heart that was deceitful above all things. He knew he needed the Lord to search his heart and to try the reins.

David wanted to come to the light and have the corruption of his heart revealed, so he could repent and ask God to forgive him. He wanted to be delivered from the corruption of his heart because he understood that the Lord rewards every man according to the fruit of his doings. He saw the corruption in his heart and understood the impurity of his heart. He cried out, "Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart." This is very essential to understanding true peace making.

Isaiah was told to expose the sins of the heart. Take notice in ISA 58:1, "Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins." The Lord was telling Isaiah to reveal the heart's sin. It is so easy to put on a whited sepulcher when the inside is full of dead man's bones. Isaiah was called upon to unfold and reveal the inner sins of the heart, i.e., their private sins.

On the surface it seemed as though God's people delighted in God's ways. I want to direct your attention to ISA 58:2, "Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God."

On the surface it seemed as if they were doing all the right things by the numbers, and had it all straight. They seemed delighted to know His ways and were seeking the ordinances of justice. The problem was heart sin. If we are to be true peacemakers, peace has to be between the Lord and us. The fruit of that peace will be that we become peacemakers with our fellow man.

The Lord was not answering their prayers. The people came to Him as though they delighted to know His ways, but He would not answer their prayers. Read what it says in ISA 59:1-2 "Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear."

The inner secret sins of the heart were the problem. These were the sins inside that were not revealed to the human eye. These were the sins that the Lord was looking at. He says in ISA 59:2, "But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear." This is why there was no peace between their heart and the Lord.

God's people seemed so religious. They said all the right words, but their hearts were divided. Listen to what it says in EZE 33:30-32, "Also, thou son of man, the children of thy people still are talking against thee by the walls and in the doors of the houses, and speak one to another, every one to his brother, saying, [See what they are saying, they are saying the right things.] Come, I pray you, and hear what is the word that cometh forth from the LORD. And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them...."

I preached about what the Lord Jesus Christ said in LUK 6:47-49. "Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great."

EZE 33:31-32 continues, "...but they will not do them: for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness [The Lord is dealing with the sins of the heart.] And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear thy words, but they do them not."

That is the heart's sin. This is the lack of conversion. They claimed regeneration and the desire to do the will of God, but their fruits were not there. They heard the Word of God, but they did not follow it. The Lord is pointing out that Isaiah must cry aloud, lift up his voice like a trumpet and show His people their sins. He showed them that they have not received peace with God. They are not peacemakers and do not understand true peace.

The Lord told Isaiah to cry out against this divided heart. We read in ISA 59:5, "They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper." Now He is crystallizing their heart sin.

Webster's Christian Series tells us that cockatrice means, "The king-serpent." This is the king of all serpents, or the most devilish thing that could ever enter your heart. Concentrate on this fact as we look at that verse. We are speaking of the center of the devil's kingdom, the king serpent. The word cockatrice means, "The king-serpent, a serpent imagined to proceed from a cock's egg." A rooster does not lay eggs. This is speaking of a superstition. This was said to imply a condition.

It is a viper, "1) A serpent . . . whose bite is remarkably venomous." In other words, it bites like an adder. "2) It is also a person or thing that is mischievous or malignant." When we refer to a cockatrice, we are speaking of a person or a viper. As we unfold this, let's see that a cockatrice is one whose tongue is not a peacemaker. The root of Satan's kingdom is when he can use the tongue and that person to go forth as a serpent, a snake in the grass.

They come before the Lord, and with their mouth they shew much love, "And, lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear thy words, but they do them not," EZE 33:31-32. Now we want to start dealing with this cockatrice to show how the peacemaker has to understand these heart sins.

God's controversy with His people was the sins of the heart. The mind is the womb of the heart. Stop and think about this. Where is the womb where these eggs are hatched? The eggs are hatched in the heart, but the mind is the womb of the heart. The thoughts are the seeds and/or the eggs. When this thought is seeded in your mind, it is also seeded in your heart. This is where it hatches and brings forth its venom. It is so important that we see this.

Read what it says in PRO 23:7. "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he." The thoughts planted in the heart fill the mind. Evil thoughts are cockatrice eggs which will hatch into serpents if they are not immediately destroyed.

FOR OUR SECOND POINT, let's look at the character of the peacemaker. The peacemaker's mind cannot remain a stronghold of Satan. These strongholds must be pulled down. If these evil thoughts, evil imaginations, and cockatrice eggs that Satan plants in our mind are not immediately destroyed, they grow into serpents. The character of a true peacemaker is that the strongholds must be pulled down.

By nature we all have fallen. Satan is able to plant these evil, conniving thoughts in our mind. They must immediately be stomped on. Read what we see in 2CO 10:4, "(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)" Which stronghold are we going to pull down? We must pull down the stronghold of Satan. Where does Satan set up his stronghold? He sets up his stronghold with the king of serpents, which is cockatrice eggs. The king of serpents dwells in the thoughts and intents of the heart. These must be pulled down.

V:4-5 says, "(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty [This speaks of the peace-maker.] through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, [Watch the heart sins.] and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." The strong holds must be pulled down. This is the character of the peacemaker.

The peacemaker cannot harbor evil thoughts. If they are not cast down immediately, they will poison the soul. Satan shoves his darts into every heart. The difference between a peacemaker and a carnal mind is that the strongholds have been pulled down. "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ."

The peacemaker can not harbor evil thoughts; they must be pulled down. If they are not cast out immediately, they will poison the soul.

In ISA 55:6-9 we read, "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. [See God's reasoning.] For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

These evil thoughts must be cast down. They are the strongholds of Satan. The king of serpents has his kingdom in the thoughts of the heart. It is so important that the nest of cockatrice eggs is cast down. Otherwise, we cannot be peacemakers.

The peacemaker must look unto Jesus to crush the serpent's head with His heal. The head of the serpent must be crushed by the heal of the Lord Jesus Christ. Only looking unto Jesus can do this.

HEB 12:3 says, "For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds." Only by looking unto the Lord Jesus Christ can we pull down the strongholds of Satan. We cannot set our eyes on the things of this world and the pleasures of sin if we are going to have the strongholds pulled down. Only by fixing our eyes upon the Lord Jesus Christ can the strongholds be pulled down.

When people come against us, when false witnesses rise against us, when bitter thoughts are being seeded in our mind, the cockatrice eggs will hatch into serpents; these serpents will destroy our souls. When we have hatred, envy, bitterness, and striving, what is the result? We are not peacemakers. Those strongholds of Satan must be pulled down, and how do we pull them down? By looking unto Jesus; we must look to the Lord Jesus Christ when we are in troubling situations.

Once my name was so marred. I thought it was impossible for me to ever come into the ministry because of the destruction of my name. Then the Lord raised my eyes unto my lovely Saviour when He spoke to me from, ISA 52:14, "As many were astonished at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men."

This blessed revelation of Christ and how His marred visage was no hindrance to His ministry showed me that those slanderous marks on my name were no hindrance to the Lord. When God showed me the beauty of the Lord Jesus Christ, and that His visage was so marred, I saw that the Lord could yet use me. He could use me even if my visage was so marred.

The true peacemaker must consider what Christ suffered. PSA 35:11 says, "False witnesses did rise up; they laid to my charge things that I knew not." David had false accusers that came against him, but his eyes were fixed upon Christ. HEB 12:3 says, "For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds."

This is so blessed if we truly have the work of grace in our hearts. The peacemaking was by the blood of His cross and the things which He suffered. The Lord suffered much more than only hanging upon the cross. His visage was so marred.

PSA 35:11-13 says, "False witnesses did rise up; they laid to my charge things that I knew not. They rewarded me evil for good to the spoiling of my soul. [When this happens to you, "consider Him lest ye become weary and faint in your mind." David goes on to say in a prophetic way,] But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into mine own bosom." PSA 35 was prophetic.

The Psalmist had his eyes fixed by faith upon the walk of Christ. We must consider Jesus when things come against us. If we are going to be peacemakers, we must look unto Jesus the Authority of our faith as we suffer these trials. We mustn't allow cockatrice eggs to hatch in our souls. They will hatch into serpents. Then we will bite like an adder.

V:14 says, "I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or brother: I bowed down heavily, as one that mourneth for his mother." What did the Lord Jesus Christ do for His people? What did He do for you and me? He bowed down and allowed His enemies to walk over Him. They spit in His face. They mocked Him. They buffeted Him. They blasphemed Him. What did the Lord do in return? As He hung on the cross, the Lord Jesus Christ prayed for them saying, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do," LUK 23:34.

When we are in a trial, we must look unto Jesus and consider Him, lest we become weary and faint in our mind. V:15 says, "But in mine adversity they rejoiced, and gathered themselves together: yea, the abjects gathered themselves together against me, and I knew it not; they did tear me, and ceased not." We must see what the Lord Jesus Christ went through. V:16 says, "With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth."

What did He do? As a lamb before His shearers so He opened not His mouth. The Lord Jesus Christ did not allow the cockatrice eggs to hatch in His soul. If we are going to be peacemakers, we must be conformed unto that blessed image of Christ; we must consider Jesus and look unto Him. We must be able to pray for those who despitefully use us.

"With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth," PSA 35:16. "For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds," HEB 12:3. It is so important that we tear down the strongholds of Satan where he has planted evil thoughts in our hearts. To do this, we must look unto Jesus as our peacemaker.

The peacemaker cannot feed on evil thoughts or cockatrice eggs. We must understand this. Have you noticed that we tend to let evil thoughts come into our heart, and we feed upon them? As we feed upon those evil thoughts, they expand until these cockatrice eggs hatch into serpents.

ISA 59:5 says, "They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web: [It is so important that we do not feed upon these evil thoughts. We cannot harbor these evil thoughts or muster them. They have to be removed. A true peacemaker will break down these evil thoughts and throw them out because he cannot feed upon them because] he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper."

If someone misunderstands you or says something unkind about you, do you allow this to harbor in your mind? Do you feed upon it? Do you let this seed into your heart? Do you let this burn into your soul? This is hatching cockatrice eggs, which is venom or bitterness in your heart. The venom of the serpent is bitterness, and a peacemaker cannot harbor bitterness in his heart. He cannot feed upon bitterness because it turns into serpents.

Injurious thoughts are most dangerous, but the true peacemaker will consider Jesus, lest he faints in his mind. We are having injurious thoughts when we pity ourselves. We feel like we've been injured! We've been wounded in our feelings and our first reaction is self sympathy.

These thoughts are cockatrice eggs. What ever comes upon us comes by the will of God from His sending. We must be able to say as the Lord Jesus Christ in MAT 6:10, "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." If we feel injured, if we pity ourselves, if we are having injurious thoughts, we must consider Jesus--the perfect peacemaker.

Let's look at PSA 41:5-9. V:5 says, "Mine enemies speak evil of me, When shall he die, and his name perish?" When people speak evil of us and slander us, we feel injured. We pity ourselves. We must be careful of this because these evil thoughts are the king of serpents. The thoughts of the heart are the kingly palace which Satan desires to occupy. This stronghold of Satan must be pulled down.

V:6 says, "And if he come to see me, he speaketh vanity: his heart gathereth iniquity to itself; when he goeth abroad, he telleth it." In a prophetic way, the Psalmist saw the footsteps of Jesus and spoke the mind of Christ. The Psalmist prophesied that Jesus' enemies would speak evil of Him. Didn't His enemies call Him a blasphemer? They called Him a devil, and they called Jesus every injurious name. If we are going to walk in the footsteps of Christ, if we are going to fellowship in His sufferings, these things will come against us. Are we peacemakers? Can we pull down these injured thoughts and self pities? These are the strongholds of Satan. We must look unto Jesus, lest we become weary and faint in our heart and mind.

V:7-9 say, "All that hate me whisper together against me: against me do they devise my hurt. An evil disease, say they, cleaveth fast unto him: and now that he lieth he shall rise up no more. [The Psalmist spoke of what would happen with Judas. The Psalmist spoke the mind of Christ.] Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me."

If we have injurious thoughts and feel injured, we have to look unto Jesus instead of pitying ourselves. We are only fellowshipping in His suffering. This is only so by the Lord's sending.

The peacemaker finds no place for revenge. We will dwell on this because revenge is one of the most common seeds that Satan puts into the human heart. The heart of a peacemaker has no place for revenge. HEB 10:30 says, "For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people." It is absolutely important that this is understood.

Once I had a controversy with another gentleman. I felt that the Lord really comforted me in this situation. I felt that I was bearing it as a chastisement from the Lord. At a later date when I spoke to the gentleman about this, I found out that he had felt the same way. The Lord sent that trial to profit us both spiritually. The Lord knows the heart.

The Lord says that He will recompense. This is so important because the Lord knows the heart and intent of the other person as well as our own. The Lord may have brought a struggle for both of us so we could profit. If I become revengeful, think of how horrible wrong I am. The Lord gave me, as well as the other gentleman, a blessed message in that particular struggle.

Later we were able to talk about it in the love and communion of the Lord. We could see the wisdom of God there. He had brought a struggle that we could both benefit from. "For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people," HEB 10:30. Let the Lord judge the heart of the other man. Take the trial as it is, in fact sent by the Lord. The Lord will reward every person according to His doing. If we take revenge upon ourselves, we are out of place.

If we would obtain revenge by crushing our adversary, the Lord says in ISA 59:5, "They hatch cockatrice' eggs, and weave the spider's web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper." A viper is a person who is a serpent. When a person seeks to avenge himself, he is making the other person want all the more revenge in return.

"That which is crushed breaketh out into a viper." When we try to crush our adversary with our revenge, we are making him into a serpent. He will seek revenge against us. In such a time Satan sits back and warms his hands while the fire roars.

Revenge pertaineth to God only. We should never entertain revengeful thoughts! We should do unto others as we would that they do unto us. The Lord knows their heart, and He will take revenge if He sees it is needed. Vengeance belongs to God. In crushing our enemy, we turn our enemy into a viper.

The peacemaker, knowing that the Lord knows the heart and rewards every man according to his ways, has no desire for revenge. JER 17:10 says, "I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings."

The peacemaker seeks no revenge because the Lord says in ISA 59:6-8, "Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands. Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace."

Can a peacemaker follow those crooked paths? No, he cannot. It is important that we don't get tripped by Satan. If we allow Satan to make us stumble in the womb of our hearts, the mind, we will start hatching cockatrice eggs. We will hatch evil and revengeful thoughts. These are not the fruits of a peacemaker. "...whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace." There should not be an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, revenge for revenge. This is not peace. If we go out to crush someone, they break out into a viper. We may not use revenge.

The true peacemaker learns to bridle his tongue. This is very important. JAM 3:2 says, "For in many things we offend all. [Don't we?] If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body." Don't we all offend? It is so blessed if the Spirit of God comes with a reproof to show us where we have offended. This brings repentance and remorse. We must be so careful with the tongue.

The true peacemaker not only denies self out of love to God, but also seeks to prevent personal confrontations from developing. A well-meaning Christian who is a peacemaker can seed evil thoughts. The Christian can do this by not bridling their tongue. They can seed a thought that turns into cockatrice eggs in their fellow man. By a word we offend all. This is important to understand. There is such a need to avoid and prevent personal confrontation.

The true peacemaker is one who knows that an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure. In JAM 3:5 we read, "Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!" When we speak a few offending words, they go into the womb of the heart which is the mind. The words start hatching cockatrice eggs. We don't realize the fire we are lighting.

A peacemaker must be on guard with his tongue. He must be careful not to wound or offend someone. When you wound someone, you cause hard thoughts in their heart. They are not able to forgive, and this can continue for months or years. The hatred builds up. The cockatrice eggs just keep hatching.

"...Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!" With a single match you can set a forest fire that will cover hundreds of thousands of acres. One word can also cause a fire of great magnitude.

It takes much more energy to smother the flames than it does to light the match in the first place. Forest fires cannot be contained when the wind gets behind them. The wind symbolizes the wrong spirit. With a little bit of the wrong spirit behind the fire, the fire starts making its own draft. This fire is unquenchable, and it was all lit by one small match, or one word, that offended.

JAM 3:6 says, "And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell." That is horrible. We must realize how these cockatrice eggs hatch.

The blessed peacemaker knows by experience that Satan loves to ignite the fires of our emotions and then with pleasure stands back to warm his hands in the flames as the fire begins to roar.

I talked to people who have watched a forest fire. They said that the flames rose about 200 feet above the trees. Then the heat started generating its own draft. They said that it reminded them of the fires of hell. That is what the Scripture is speaking of in James 3:6.

The fire becomes so hot that you can't come within two or three miles of it. In fact, the heat waves will carry the embers for five miles. The embers set more fires miles away. Think how with the modern use of a telephone, these embers are carried and ignite fires thousands of miles away. All of this can be started with one match, i.e., with one offending word. We must understand that Satan relishes getting these fires burning. Then he can sit back, warm his hands in the flame, and watch the fire roar.

Purity of heart must precede peacemaking. Evil thoughts cannot harbor in the heart of a peacemaker. The evil tongue, evil thoughts, those strongholds of Satan, must be pulled down. MAT 15:18-19 says, "But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies."

All of these things proceed out of the heart. The purity of heart must precede peacemaking because a man with an unclean heart cannot be a peacemaker. This is why peacemaking is the fullness of the beatitudes. Peacemaking is the climax of the character of a Christian.

Little sparks ignite such great fires. Satan can stand back with delight and rub his hands in his devilish pleasure as that fire roars for weeks, for months, and sometimes for years. In JAM 3:5 we read, "Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!"

Realizing this dangerous potential, the true peacemaker handles his tongue and his actions as you would handle fire if you were in the area of explosive materials. This is something to think about. We should handle our tongue as we would handle fire if we were among explosive materials.

PRO 17:28 says, "Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding." My mother used to say, "If speaking is silver, silence is gold." Sometimes what we say might be unintentional, but it can cause such a fire.

In Paradise there was a beautiful and a perfect peace--peace between man and God--peace between man and man--man and wife-- peace between man and creation; there was no killing. When self- centered sin entered into Paradise, man--the crown of God's creation--became a peacebreaker instead of a peacemaker.

ROM 8:22 tells us, "For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now." Speaking with a divided tongue resulted in the fall. The divided tongue of the serpent in paradise lied and told man that he could be as God. Satan said, "Yea, hath God said..." but he was speaking with a divided tongue. Speaking with a forked tongue is such a devilish thing.

We must set our face as a flint against anything that would break the peace. ISA 50:6-7 says, "I gave my back to the smiters, [This is looking unto Jesus.] and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting. For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed." A peacemaker must set his face as a flint against anything that will break the peace.

We must first be pure and then peaceable. JER 48:10 says, "Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood." In JER 15:19 we read, "...if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth." What is more precious than truth? What is more precious than to bring forth the blessedness of the peacemaker? What is more vile than error? "...if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth." This is speaking of a tongue that speaks for the honor of God.

The peacemaker, while distinguished by his character, still has a human nature. We must understand this. In JAM 5:17 we read, "Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, [When he was on Mount Carmel, the Lord brought down fire from heaven in answer to his prayer.] and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months."

This man's prayers were heard, but he was, however, a man of like passions even as we are. A peacemaker is a man of like passions. He has all the capabilities of having Satan seed discord in his soul. The difference is that this man has the renewed heart. The renewed heart does not feed on evil thoughts but abhors them; he pulls down the strongholds of Satan.

EPH 4:26 says, "Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath." You can be angry. We are all human, and we all get upset at times. We must, however, pull down the strongholds of Satan. Forgive, take up the cross daily, and follow Christ.

LUK 9:23 says, "And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me." Taking up our cross daily means never going to bed with bad feelings. The strongholds of Satan must be crucified before you go to bed.

In MAT 5:44 we read, "But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." This is the peacemaker.

We must rather suffer wrong than bring reproach. Look at the example of Abraham in GEN 13:7. "And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram's cattle and the herdmen of Lot's cattle: and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land."

This means that Abraham saw the Canaanite and the Perizzite would not look upon him and Lot as Christian brothers if they were contending with each other. They would bring a reproach upon themselves and upon the name of God. "...and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land." In other words, we may not be a reproach before the heathen.

Abraham would rather part with Lot than strive. GEN 13:8-9 says, "And Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren. Is not the whole land before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left."

PRO 21:9 says, "It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman in a wide house, [or in society]." The woman is a type of the Church. You can much rather part, than to go to a church where there is contention and strife. It is so important that we seek peace because God has called us unto peace.

Our text says, "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God," MAT 5:9. Amen.