Peace vs. Truth

In my post two weeks ago, we looked at what it means to be a peacemaker. As children of God, we are called to reflect the character of our Father—and He is a God of peace. But if we’re honest, peacemaking isn’t always simple. Sometimes, standing for truth seems to put us in direct conflict with the very peace we’re trying to pursue.

So how do we live as peacemakers without compromising the truth?

Jesus Didn’t Always Bring Peace

Jesus Himself tells us something surprising in Matthew 10:34–36 (ESV):

“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person's enemies will be those of his own household.”

That sounds like the opposite of being a peacemaker. But Jesus isn’t contradicting Himself. In fact, this tension is the very reality He wants us to understand: truth sometimes causes division, even when our spirit is peaceful.

Jesus is the ultimate peacemaker, yet He also brought a message that divided families, communities, and even nations. Why? Because the truth exposes sin, demands change, and confronts false beliefs. Not everyone welcomes that.

We’re Still Called to Be Peacemakers

Romans 12:18 (ESV) gives us a balanced approach:

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

We can’t control how others respond to the truth. But we can control our tone, our motives, and our love. Peacemaking doesn’t mean peace at all costs. It means doing everything we can to pursue peace—without compromising righteousness.

When we stand for truth, we might still be hated. That’s not failure. Jesus prepared us for this in John 15:18–19 (ESV):

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”

Truth will often cost us something. But that doesn’t mean we abandon our peacemaking spirit.

You can't always blame the gospel.

There’s an important distinction we have to make. Just because someone doesn’t like us or receive our words well, doesn’t automatically mean we’re being persecuted for righteousness. Sometimes, people reject the gospel. But sometimes, people reject us because we delivered it poorly.

As Jefferson Bethke put it in his book,

“Sometimes people will hate us because we preach the same gospel Jesus preached, and sometimes people will hate us because we’re jerks. Let’s be careful not to do the second one and blame it on the first.”

Just because we are speaking truth, it doesnt give us the right to be rude or to deliver the message in a way that is unnecessarily harsh with people. Our message being right does not justify us being rude to people. We need to check our hearts and ensure that we arent the problem. Are we sharing truth with gentleness and respect? Or with pride and self-righteousness?

Being a Peacemaker Doesn’t Always Result in Peace

Peacemaking and peacekeeping are not the same. Peacekeeping avoids conflict. Peacemaking steps into conflict with the goal of reconciliation.

Romans 12:18 says, “if possible.” That phrase tells us something: peace isn’t always possible. You may reach out, forgive, explain your convictions lovingly—and still be rejected. That’s not on you.

What matters is that you made the effort. That you loved sincerely. That you didn’t wait for the other person to come to you. That you took the first step.

Truth First, but Always with Love

Ephesians 4:15 (ESV) gives us the model:

“Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.”

Truth and love are not enemies. In fact, truth without love isn’t really truth—and love without truth isn’t really love. Peacemaking means holding both. It means caring enough to speak up, but also caring enough to listen, to weep, and to forgive.

Final Thoughts

Yes, we are peacemakers. That calling never goes away. But peacemaking doesn’t mean compromising the truth to avoid uncomfortable conversations or strained relationships.

Jesus didn’t do that. The apostles didn’t do that. And neither can we.

But even when truth creates conflict, we never stop loving, never stop hoping, and never stop trying to build bridges. We are people of truth—but we carry that truth in a spirit of peace.

As Jesus said in the Beatitudes:

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” (Matthew 5:9, ESV)