“Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.” (Matthew 7:6, NASB)
When asked who some of my favorite players on tour are, I have found that my list often differs from the casual fan. This probably has to do with growing up with a father on the PGA Tour, having played competitively myself, and caddying many times out there. I don’t necessarily pull for the best players or longest hitters; instead, I pull for the nice guys. I observe the way players treat their playing competitors, caddies, and fans and how they handle themselves in adversity, and the ones that show the most graciousness and class tend to endear themselves to me.
Some of my favorite players are great players, but not all are household names or major champions. If there is one characteristic that I appreciate the most, it is players who seem to be at peace on and off the golf course. Not only are these the players I pull for, but they are also the guys the other players enjoy being paired with most in a tournament.
We all appreciate having people of peace in our lives. Peace is a quality we find attractive in others and greatly desire to be around. After all, it is listed with the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). Have you ever noticed in Scripture that nearly every epistle begins with the writer greeting his reader(s) with peace from God?
When we follow Jesus faithfully, we understand that we are called to make disciples of others (Matthew 28:19). We are not called to evangelize every person we see.This is because the kingdom of God and the gospel of Jesus cannot be fully received or experienced without peace. This is two-fold. When sharing Jesus with others, we must be at peace ourselves, but we must also be looking for peace in the people with whom we serve and share the good news. Jesus warned his disciples about the latter in today’s verse. When he sent them out ahead of him to the towns he planned to visit he said, “Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house.’ If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you.” They were instructed to minister just as they had observed him do with these people and in these towns. Albeit, they were told to leave and shake the dust off their feet if they were not welcomed in peace.
We find this to be the case in Paul’s missionary journeys as well. The Holy Spirit would not allow him to enter cities that did not have a person of peace to welcome him and then was directed by the Spirit to another city that did (Acts 16:6-15).
When we follow Jesus faithfully, we understand that we are called to make disciples of others (Matthew 28:19). We are not called to evangelize every person we see. This is probably why the evangelist preaching from a megaphone on the street corner at a major sporting event has very little effectiveness. One, their message often does not come in peace, but second, they are trying to give what is holy to those that that do not want to receive it.
We should be praying that God will fill us with his peace and develop this fruit in us, and then we should pray for God to put people of peace in our lives. These people will be sources of encouragement to us as we live out our faith and serve others, and people of peace will be the people that God has already planned for us to minister to.
“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 1:2)
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Josh Nelson
September 17, 2018
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The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.