Words Are Important

I have heard it said from the pulpit, God only goes or responds to those churches that desire Him, that seek His presence. The word "only" in this sentence makes the speaker seem to know of absolute knowledge about the exclusive behavior of God. According to Scripture, I believe this is not true.

Romans 5:8-10 states, "But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

Jesus does not just or only go to those or respond to those who seek Him, He sought out His own Disciples and even taught about seeking after The Lost Sheep and The Lost Coin. God is The Pursuer of Souls.

Does The Lord reward those who earnestly seek Him? Of course He does! But using the word "ONLY" paints Christ as a spoiled brat that runs off to receive praise from another church or area of the nation or world who is prepared to give Him "proper praise". The time of The Law was conditional, we live in a time of The Spirit of Grace. 

If there is any condition that seems to be required for God's presence to arrive and move, that requirement comes from mankind. Believers cannot make or whip-up the presence of God. We can simply invite the Holy Spirit and create an environment of praise that His Majesty deserves.

Meanwhile, because The Church is the representation of Jesus on earth, The Church has to balance the cherishing of God's presence exemplified through Mary and the obedience through service exemplified through Martha. That is the corporate view. Personally the Mary/Martha balanced lifestyle could translate to private time with Christ to start your day followed by obedience to any and all leadings of the Holy Spirit. 

However, to pigeon-hole God into this exclusive behavior, when knowing that His nature is a Pursuer and The Church is His arms, hands, legs and feet - is incorrect. Words Are Important.

Doors

Doors, they are a physical reality and they hold many facts about life metaphorically. This proves true in Scripture.

In Matthew 6:6 we read the red words of Jesus instructing believers to use the door in order to acquire privacy for prayer. This is an important element of prayer because Jesus discourages the opposite type of prayer in the verse before (v.5) - "do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others." Get secluded with God.

Then in Mark 13:34, Jesus teaches for His own to be on guard and watch at the door for the return of the house owner.

Doors as barriers or obstacles are not to be feared with the Lord on your side. Jesus proved that to the resurrected body walls and closed doors were no problem as He appeared to the Disciples - 

"On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, 'Peace be with you!'" (John 20:19)

Since we do not have our resurrected bodies at this writing, the Lord may elect to send an angel to open the barricaded doors. Peter and the apostles were imprisoned for preaching The Gospel and according to Luke in Acts 5:17-23, God sent an angel to open those jail doors and told them to continue the good work.

Many citations of doors talk about the figurative aspect also. In particular, taking advantage of or walking through the door God has blessed you with is exemplified in such verses as 1 Corinthians 16:9; 2 Corinthians 2:12; Colossians 4:3 and Revelation 3:8.

There is also the lesson of shut doors or missed opportunities found in Matthew 25:10 and Luke 13:25. In the Matthew verse, half of the virgins miss the opportunity to leave with the groom when He returned. And in the Luke passage there will come a time when the owner of the house, Jesus, closes His door.

Jesus is The Door to "every good and perfect gift from above" (James 1:17). He is known as the "narrow door" from Luke 13:24 and calls Himself "the gate" or "the door" according to John 10:9 - "I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture." When Jesus describes Himself as The Way, The Truth and The Life in John 14:6 there is no doubt this lends support to the picture of the narrow door.

Jesus has made way for His people the Jews, but also all others who believe in His completed, sacrificial work and resurrection. These additional people are referred to as Gentiles in Scripture and Luke reports the successful outreach of Paul and Barnabas in Acts 14:27 calling the campaign "a door of faith" -

"On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles."

John, in writing the Book of Revelation, speaks about the open door of Heaven in chapter four, verse one. 

"After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, 'Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.'"

Because of the sacrifice and victory over life, death, Hell and the grave by Christ Jesus - this door is both a real door for believers to pass through and symbolic of Christ's provision of eternal redemption, restoration and cohabitation in Heaven.

If you would like the doors in your life to never be viewed as an overwhelming barrier then allow Christ Jesus to be the opener and closer of your doors. One of the most crucial keys that The Lord Jesus Christ purchased for humanity with His death, burial and resurrection was The Keys of Death and Hades. Jesus says in Revelation 1:18, "I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades." No more fear of death or Hades.

However, of all the Keys the Lord Jesus possesses, the one that seems the most important - He does not forcefully use. Jesus paid for The Key to our Heart with His life, but He elects not to use it and awaits acceptance of His invitation as you hear His knock on the door of your heart and hear Him say, "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me." - Revelation 3:20

God holds all the keys. He even has The Master Key for all the doors of your heart/life. He will unlock many a room inside your heart; He will open many a door in your life too - but first, you have to open up to Him, the front Door. 

Perfect Fitting (Reprised)

Christians whether they acknowledge the concept or not are in a daily struggle that is unseen.

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." (Eph. 6:12)

To help with this daily battle there are several outfits that the Lord has made and placed in our Christian Wardrobe to wear during our faith journey. The garment of praise, garments of salvation and robe of righteousness are all promised for the believer in the Millennial Reign of Christ (Isa. 61), but Christians can start trying them on now. That perfect fitting is coming with those outfits.

Another "hat" or outfit that the Christian is charged to wear is the evangelist attire. The Great Commission is the foundation of these threads (Matt. 28:16-20) and 1 Peter 3:15 supports that foundation nicely by stating -

"Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander."

When the choice comes to wearing armor, you might comment, "I am a cook." Or "I am the stable-boy." Or "I am the seamstress of the kingdom." An enemy gives no mind to these things as he slaughters you. It is the same with the The Enemy of our soul. The enemy cares not about your rank or occupation, he will kill you, steal all from you and corrupt you unto destruction just the same. This is why, for those Christians who think they fill a less important militaristic role in God's Kingdom - they are dead before they even begin their ministry with Christ - they need to suit-up with The Armor of God also.

Mr. Rick Renner, in his book Dressed To Kill, firmly challenges the believer to stay in God's Word and be equipped with God's Armor as he says,

"Let me ask you this question: Do you still ask your mother to dress you? .....that is exactly what many believers do! When they come to church on Sunday or to midweek service, knowing they haven't been in the Word all week long, they are saying, 'Preacher, would you please dress me in my armor? Would you put my belt on me?

Understand this: The teaching of the Word from the pulpit should only confirm what you have already heard God say personally to you through His Word during the week.

It's intended by the Holy Spirit to pull the belt that is already on you a little tighter.

...righteousness fits even better. ...sense of peace is locked on even more securely." (pp.278-279, Dressed To Kill, Rick Renner)

Here is an encouraging word from a familiar event in Scripture. Big and ferocious things were not strange encounters or battles to David. This shepherd boy had to learn at an early age how to kill animals several times his size, weight and speed. His flock of sheep depended upon him.

Fast forward to David's encounter with Goliath and David is protecting a particular flock once again - the nation of Israel. One of the big takeaways from this battle is what happened just prior to David walking out on the battlefield. 1 Samuel 17:38-40 says,

"Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them.

'I cannot go in these,' he said to Saul, 'because I am not used to them.' So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine."

Most of us know the rest of the story, David showed everybody how to get ahead in life or a head of a giant (hahaha-a little biblical humor there). Meanwhile, David taught us the lesson of wearing the armor that was perfectly suited for us.

God took David's shepherd-like qualities and militaristic skills as a boy, developed them in the pasture, then promoted him and his next set of lessons to that of a higher level - Shepherd, General, and King of Israel.

God does the same for believers. Willing minds and hearts before The Creator will yield what God has already blessed us with and develop us more into the man/woman His Plan had for us all along.

One element that some need to be reminded of is - to stand. After taking care of yourself, taking care of God's Armor and renewing those pieces on our Spirit-man or Spirit-woman - Stand! Even after entering the battle, don't run away from the challenge or conflict - stand! Observe how many times the command - "to stand" - comes in Ephesians 6:10-17 -

"Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes." (6:11)

"Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand." (6:13)

"Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist," (6:14)

The Enemy is trying to win battles because he knows he has lost The War. It does not matter where one is in the Christian journey - whether one just accepted Christ or is a seasoned saint - we all need God's Armor, but then we need to stand! And we can take great confidence in knowing that "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." (Philippians 1:6) Just remember, God has supplied us with His Armor, Not Ours which for every believer is A Perfect Fitting.

God's Armor, Not Ours - Part 7 (Spear of Prayer and Supplication)

In Ephesians 6:18-20, in just three verses Paul uses some form of the word pray, five times. Paul does not display prayer as a weapon or Roman gear piece like the other pieces mentioned. However, I believe the reader cannot avoid the conclusion that Paul had one last major item that could be metaphorically applied to prayer - The Spear. 

This idea comes from Mr. Rick Renner and I will be summarizing thoughts from his chapter - The Lance of Prayer and Supplication within his book, Dressed To Kill. 

The Roman spear or lance came in a variety of different sizes, shapes and lengths. Modifications went all the way to adding more iron to the correct part of the weapon in order to either throw it further, create more damage or both. 

The different variety of spears or lances in the Roman army represented different strategies to approach their enemy. One of the many known Roman army spears was the Pilum. This was a distance specialist weapon. The pilum was six feet long and all iron - shaft and spear-head. Another one at their disposal was the Vegetius - a 3.5 to 5.5 foot lance used for close-quarters-combat.

Because the last emphasis of Paul's instruction is prayer and the last gear piece/weapon not mentioned is the Roman soldier's spear or lance, marrying the two seemed logical to me also as I studied Mr. Renner's research. 

As you can imagine, there were more than just two types of spears in the Roman arsenal. Likewise, there are a variety of different prayers that the Christian can use to thrust or hurl at the enemy in our ongoing spiritual struggle. Ephesians 6:18 is better translated in the New Internation Version as saying - "And pray in the spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests." Mr. Renner provides six types of prayer found in the New Testament that the believer can utilize in his/her daily faith journey.

1. Prayer of Consecreation

2. Prayer of Petition

3. Prayer of Authority

4. Prayer of Thanksgiving

5. Prayer of Supplication

6. Prayer of Intercession

Be advised, "no one kind of prayer is better than the others. Rather, each serves a different purpose and is necessary for the life of faith." (p.442, Renner)

Remember, results will vary, but God always answers and is always on time. If Christians ever really get a grasp on the power they possess in prayer - the respectful communication between humans and God - then look out "powers of this dark word" and "spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms". As Paul instructs, so I strongly encourage "pray always" and "with all different kinds of [spears] prayers and requests."

God's Armor, Not Ours - Part 6 (Sword of the Spirit)

We have now come to examine The Sword of the Spirit. The verse in Ephesians 6:17 reads - "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." Since we have already dealt with the helmet of salvation, our focus will be on "the sword of the Spirit".

The previous pieces of armor - the helmet of salvation, breastplate of righteousness, belt of truth, shoes of peace and shield of faith - have all been observed as mainly defensive or protective gear pieces of the Christian's faith-outfit. Now, the study turns to the believer in Christ stepping out in his/her faith and taking the active role of fighting the good fight as Paul charged Timothy in his first letter - 

"Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses." - 1 Timothy 6:12

According to the research Mr. Rick Renner has provided in his book Dressed To Kill, there were mainly five types of swords the Roman soldier used for various reasons. The first sword mentioned was the Gladius. This weapon was a heavy, cumbersome, sword that required two hands to wield it.

The second sword presented was a 17 inch sword that was much lighter and easier to swing. Then the third sword was really a dagger that was hidden in a scabbard underneath the soldier's coat. The fourth sword was a long, slender sword used for sport called the cavalry sword. 

However, the fifth sword and the one Paul uses in the phrase "sword of the Spirit" is translated as the "machaira" or the Greek word for machete in this Ephesian 6:17 verse as well as Revelation 1:16, Revelation 2:12 and Hebrews 4:12 .

This weapon was a two-edged, nineteen inch long sword that turned up to a point at the end of the blade. The tactic used was not so much of a hacking or slashing maneuver, although I'm sure that was used, but with this sword mainly a thrust with a twist added on was used. If the thrust did not initially kill you the twist would.

So, how does the machaira or machete translate over to "the sword of the Spirit" for the Christian? The stress is on understanding and acting on whose sword it is and discerning when and how to use the sword. A Roman sword is used for attacking enemies of the flesh, the "sword of the Spirit" is used to attack "the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms" spoken about in Ephesians 6:12.

Like I mentioned in the study on The Belt of Truth, I have heard sermons and teachings by pastors and teachers as they wave their Bible and claim "the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God" (Eph. 6:17) is our weapon. When researching the original Greek for "Word of God" here, the meaning is Rhema Word of God or the revealed, quickened Word of God that comes from being rooted or having your foundation in the Logos or Written and Spoken Word of God which is The Belt of Truth. 

"...Paul likens the Word of God [Logos] to a Romans soldier's loinbelt." (p.265)

"What does the loinbelt represent in Ephesians 6? The written Word of God. Therefore, this tells us that most of the time the 'word from the Lord' we need will come directly out of the Bible - just as the Roman soldier's sword came right out of a scabbard that hung on his loinbelt. The loinblet and the sword were connected." (p.273)

"So do you need a special word from the Lord? Do you need a rhema, a 'sword of the Spirit'? This is how you get it: Make it a priority to read and study the Word of God, and your rhema will most likely be quickened to you as you walk in the Word." (p.273)

A word about receiving and giving Rhema or revealed words of God. In both receiving and giving a Rhema Word of God, the believer should be short, sweet and to the point. The beginning of many journeys with God in Scripture were called forth by a revealed word from the Lord that only took one to a few verses. People like Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Mary and Paul all received simple, succinct words by God. Mr. Renner elaborates on this point by stating - 

"the reason we enjoy many of our spiritual blessings today is that godly men and women obeyed the simple, specially spoken rhema words they received from the Lord." (p.414, Renner)

"Remember, a two-inch penetration by a sword is all that is required to fatally wound an enemy. When the Holy Spirit puts a sword - rhema - in our hands, it will probably be short, concise and succinct. The Lord knows that a long word would be confusing to the majority of us. Therefore, He speaks clear, vivid, unmistakable, undeniable, certain, definite and easy-to-understand words to us." (p.415, Renner)

This revealed word, this right-on-time instruction from the Lord, will always come from the written word, "the belt of truth". If you hear a supposed rhema that is not supported by Scripture, do not receive it into your life. And if you feel compelled to give a rhema, check your feelings, feelings are fickle - make sure the word is Scripturally sound and pray about your communication beforehand, but do speak.

Why have all this armor on and a sword and not use the sword when the time calls for it? The fact that this sword in Ephesians is the machaira or two-edged should not be lost on the Christian. What then does it mean spiritually for a rhema word to be two-edged?

The actual Greek word for two-edged is distomos which means two-mouthed. How does two-mouthed translate spiritually? First, the Christian warrior hears the rhema word God wants to deliver, then that word has to pass out of the mouth of the believer. God is one edge, the Christian is the other. This is the meaning behind the "two-mouthed sword". 

When handling God's "sword of the Spirit", the Christian will eventually have to put his/her faith into action. This requires the believer to take the sword off the Belt of Truth and deliver a blow to the enemy. The notion of just head knowledge of Scripture is a good start for Christians but it should never be the start and end of the believer's growth and development. The knowledge of Biblical truths must be married with obedient, good deeds of the Christian, namely the delivering of a timely, revealed word of God. However, we can be our own worst set-back at times and Mr. Renner speaks to that.

"One reason people don't experience results when they confess God's Word is that they speak before the Word has personally done its life-transforming work inside of them. They hastily begin to mimic what someone else confessed or what someone else did before the Word has had time to take root in their hearts and to renew their minds. But because the Word of God hasn't yet become personal revelation to them, it produces no lasting results." (p.420-421, Renner)

This is why the Christian's unity with The Trinity and God's Word is so crucial to delivering massive blows to the enemy and helping people with their habits, hang-ups and hurts. I believe some sensitivity is in order here. Just because a Christian has a revealed word for another person does not mean a force to comply should follow. Obedience to a rhema word is the receiver's responsibility. 

The sender's edge of the sword combined with the spiritual power behind God's edge and whatever else the Holy Spirit has in mind will be sufficient. Remember, the writer of Hebrews goes a step further and states - You think a machaira is sharp, God's Word is sharper. (NC Paraphrase). Hebrews 4:12 actually reads - "For the Word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." This is just a taste of what the Scripture reveals on how to wield The Sword of the Spirit.

God's Armor, Not Ours - Part 5 (Shield of Faith)

In Romans 6:16, Paul instructs the Christian to spiritually arm himself/herself with The Shield of Faith by saying, "In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one." (NIV)

The King James Version of this verse states - "Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the firery darts of the wicked." A special note about the first part of the verse in the King James Version translation is that the phrase "Above all" in "Above all, taking the shield of faith..." according to the original Greek, epi pasin, describes position in battle and not importance in the line-up of armor pieces. "Faith is designed to be out in front where it can completely cover you in every situation of life!" (p.353, Renner)

I mention this special note because Mr. Renner brought up an excellent observation due to the phrase "Above all" - 

"Some have mistakenly thought that faith is more important than any other piece of spiritual weaponary. This cannot be! The loinbelt of truth - the Bible, the written Word of God - is the most important piece of weaponary we possess.

How do we know that the Word of God is more important than faith? Faith comes from the Word of God. How then could the shield of faith be more important than the loinbelt of truth, the Word of God? Let's not get the cart before the horse." (p.352, Renner)

Romans 10:17 states - "faith comes from hearing the message and the message is heard through the word about Christ." This Scripture creates a critical link between The Belt of Truth or Word of God (Bible) and the believer's faith represented by The Shield in the soldier's armor. Remember, there is a notch even for the shield to latch onto and rest in times of non-engagement. This is a clear depiction of the Christian's faith being attached to God's Word. 

The Roman soldier possessed two types of shields - one smaller, decorative shield for public ceremonies and parades called the aspis and the other well-known, larger shield called the thureos which referred to "a door that was wide in width and long in length" (p.347, Renner, Dressed To Kill). 

One of the major points of these military or large battle shields was to cover the entire body in their protection. In the same manner, the Christian's faith finds full coverage in God's Word and His many promises. Romans 12:3 states -

"For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you."

Mr. Renner elaborates - "How much faith has God given you? He has given you enough faith to make certain you are covered in life!" (p.348, Renner)

When the arrows of life start to fly - like doubt, depression, shame and insufficiency - remember your faith is strong, long-lasting and durable. Paul viewed these characteristics due to usually six layers of thick animal hide that was compactly woven together to form a steel-like Roman shield. God has granted you His shield of faith, remembering this is God's Armor, Not Ours.

However, part of this Shield of Faith is not only the basic, foundational beliefs Christians find in God's Word, but the Shield of Faith is also comprised of our personal testimonies of God's faithfulness. Without a test there is no testimony. Without a test and testimony, there is no need for a Shield of Faith. And there are plenty of tests in life along with developing moments for the Christian warrior.

The Roman shield was a piece of the armor that had to be tended to regularly for maintenance. Chinks and dings needed to be removed and the leather had to be oiled and watered to be kept fresh for the next encounter. 

One of the weapons that the Roman shield was defending against was one of three types of arrows that was commonly used - the thucydides. Ephesians 6:16 calls them "firery darts" but Paul likened them to this arrow because they possessed a combustible, explosive payload. These arrows were meant not only to do surface damage but to inflict additional damage around the soldier and in possible cracks in the shield.

So, as a preventative measure the shield was oiled to keep the hardness, stiffness and brittleness from setting in. Afterward, the shield was saturated in a tub of water to combat fire arrows and the like, giving life to the imagery of Ephesians 5:26 with the "washing by the word" and Ephesians 6:16 - "In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one."

Some major encouragements here for the believer in Christ are three-fold:

1. Maintain your faith, your shield of faith by allowing the Holy Spirit to anoint you or massage His presence and promises into your faith and life. 
2. Maintain your faith, your shield of faith by saturating your faith or shield in His Word.
3. Knowing your faith is based in His Word, the believer's shield of faith should now proceed him/her in battle or daily life.

There is just one additional crucial element to this piece - the Christian must decide to pick it up or activate his/her shield of faith. Mr. Renner states the idea like this - 

"Notice that Paul says, '...taking the shield of faith...." The word 'taking' is from the word analambano, which is a compound of the Greek words ana and lambano.

The word ana means up, back or again and the word lambano means to take up or to take in hand. When compounded together into one word, it means to take something up in hand or to pick something back up again.

This plainly means that our shield of faith can be picked up or it can be laid down. The choice is ours to make. Moreover, it reassures us that if we've laid down our faith at some point along the way - if we've gotten discouraged and stopped believing God to work in our lives - it is not too late for us to 'pick up' our shield and walk in faith again!" (p.353-354, Renner)

Even though there was an offensive element to the Roman shield with a big knob on the outside meant for punching the enemy in close-quarters-combat, the shield was mainly used for defense. Likewise, the believer's faith must act as the daily help in protecting the mind, emotions, and integrity of the Christian. This means the believer keeps their faith in front of them, keeps their shield maintained and healthy as he/she "takes up The Shield of Faith".

God's Armor, Not Ours - Part 4 (Shoes of Peace)

Shoes, most of us wear them daily to traverse our world to and fro. There are so many variations now-a-days, trying to keep up is a challenge. We have athletic shoes, dress shoes, work shoes, casual shoes, things called flip-flops, sandals and boots.

When Paul mentioned the shoes of peace in Ephesians, he was looking at the shoes of a Roman soldier. These shoes were sandal-like at first glance but had an additional feature about them. 

The Roman soldiers marching to war would make a loud sound when approaching their enemy. This was not just due to their shear huge number of troops, but what was on the bottom of their shoes. The shoes of Roman soldiers had knobs, spikes or ancient cleats that they used not only to get a grip on their terrain but also to "keep the peace" if the case warranted. 

This visual image aligns with the Christian's life by remembering the earlier stated perception in Ephesians 6:12 that life is not only a physical and mental challenge, but a spiritual struggle also. Scripture supports this by speaking of the very spiritual mission of Christ - "The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work." (1 John 3:8). Christ did that through His death on the Cross and victory from death, Hell and the grave. 

However, Paul informs us that God now spiritually equips His own family with spiked-shoes that are meant to control and defeat the enemy, while establishing peace. 

Jesus said in His sermon on the mount - "Blessed [happy] are the peacemakers for they will be called children of God." (Matt. 5:9) Peacemaker here, according to the original Greek word eirenopoios (i-ray-nop-oy-os) is a term that refers to actively promoting and making the peace. In keeping with the soldier imagery, everyone, especially Christians, acting as peacemakers should always try to exhaust every effort to diffuse a situation peacefully before resorting to firmer measures. Keeping the peace is everybody's responsibility. 

However, peacemakers "will be called children of God". The original Greek word for "children" here, uihos (hwee-os) means offspring or kin. So, in essence, one of the ways unbelievers can tell if you are part of the family of God, a Christian - is to be a peacemaker, an active seeker of peace. 

One of the many marvelous names of God found in Isaiah 9:6 is "Prince of Peace." When the Christian has lost their composure or calmness in this world, he/she can regain both by having quality time with the Prince of Peace. Perspective, strength, restoration, rejuvenation and the like are found in His presence of peace. With this regular meeting with The Prince of Peace, believers in Christ can go forth and wear effectively The Shoes of Peace.