When I was growing up, my mother assured peace in the family by force. My brother and I had a thousand reasons to bicker and quarrel, but Mother squelched irascible behavior by means of creative and onerous punishments. She wanted peace, and she achieved it by means of aggression and power if she had to. Communities faced with rising crime and nations faced with internal rebellion or external aggression do exactly what my mother did. They undertake to enforce or “keep” the peace by making unpeaceful behavior painful.

Unfortunately, my mother’s punishments did not transform the attitudes that led to brawling between my brother and me. We may not have bickered or yelled or hit each other, but our objectives, and objections, grated and ground on our spirits with the result that our sense of being wounded and oppressed made us angrier, not more amiable. More police on the streets or more soldiers on the battlefield do not transform the attitudes that made them necessary, either. The “peace” that exists due to fear of punishment is not at all peaceful. The situation between two siblings or between two nations may have the appearance of peace, because no aggression is being acted out. Under the cover of polite words, however, everyone is scheming to find a way to achieve the goal of the aggression without incurring the pain of the punishment. 

Such a situation only looks like peace when we are willing to consider the lack of aggressive behavior as peace. Better laws, stronger enforcement, harsher punishments, more powerful guns, more soldiers on the ground – all these efforts may contain or even suppress aggression between opposing parties. They will never transform the attitudes of the opposing parties and bring peace to their relationships with each other. 

The breakup of Yugoslavia after the end of the Cold War is a perfect model for the inability of force to bring peace. Yugoslavia was created by gluing together a number of political entities that had fought with each other for hundreds of years. The country of Yugoslavia was governed by military force, which ruthlessly suppressed aggressive behavior between historic enemies. The country appeared to be at peace, but the enmity and hatred that existed before Yugoslavia never died.  The death of the strong man who had made it all work precipitated the death of the fake peace that had existed there. History is littered with “peaceful” solutions that are only facades that cover smoldering resentments that flare explosively when the enforcing power disappears.

 At the end of World War II, a lot of people put their faith in a movement to create a world-wide forum where disputes and aggression could be worked out with words, not bullets, and the United Nations was born. The UN was to be the place where nations could settle disputes peaceably. We could finally bring an end to war.

 Sadly, this dream, too, is now dust. Rather than a forum where disputes are resolved, the UN has simply become a place where chicanery and human greed find yet another opportunity to flourish. The world has not become a more peaceful place due to the existence of the UN. In fact, the history of the UN is a demonstration that even a peaceful forum does not transform attitudes. The nations of the world come together with the same agendas that have sent them to the battlefield, and if any nation fails to achieve its objective in the UN, it proceeds to the tried and true methods of aggression and military action just as if the UN did not exist.

 Why don’t we have world peace? Why doesn’t anything work?

 The answer is in the Bible. In Genesis, it is recorded that “The Lord saw that the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually.” [Genesis 6:5] Isaiah said, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way.” [Isaiah 53:6]  Paul wrote, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” [Romans 3:23] In simple words, while we may create the appearance of peace, we cannot create real peace, because human beings are sinful. They would rather serve themselves than others. They cannot give up their bad attitudes, because they don’t want to. If we want world peace, human beings need to be different. Just as my mother could not make me want to share with my brother, the UN cannot make Palestinians want to share with Israelis. Under the most implacable force the resentments seethe as furiously as ever, waiting impatiently for a crack in the barrier to aggression.

 We all can pray for peace, and we all should pray for peace. There certainly won’t be any peace without God’s intervention. The peace we want, however, is not the façade that covers up violent hatred. What we really want is the end of hatred. We even make laws against hate speech and hate crimes, but the laws do not end hate. UN sanctions against aggressor nations do not end aggression. So far, human legal action has been completely impotent in bringing about peace. How can we have peace? Peace in families. Peace in communities. Peace in the world.

 There is an answer. In the same hour that one of Jesus’ closest friends was betraying him to enemies, Jesus spoke to the remaining eleven disciples. He warned them what was coming his way. Even as Jesus warned his friends of the hateful aggression in their future, he said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.” [John 14:27] The peace Jesus gave was internal peace. This peace was a transforming experience that gave the disciples the ability to face aggressive power with a peaceful attitude. This is the kind of peace that we all really want.

 We all should pray for peace, but when we pray, we should not be hoping simply for better disarmament treaties or for dictators to comply with economic sanctions. Rather, when we pray for peace, we should pray for transformed human hearts. When we pray for peace, we are praying for one of the fruits of the indwelling Holy Spirit, a fruit that only matures when there is also the fruit of love, joy, patience, kindness, generosity and faithfulness. I pray fervently for peace, but I pray with the full knowledge that the cessation of hostilities is not real peace. I pray for the transformation of human hearts and the peace we all will know when time ends and “Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more.” [Revelation 21:4]

 To some, this notion sounds like “pie in the sky by and by.” What do we do, you may ask, until then?

 One answer, a concession to reality, is to keep making laws that punish aggressive behavior. Continue to do everything possible in international relations to prevent aggressor nations from hurting other nations. The Bible tells us that one of God’s purposes for human government is protection of citizens from both internal and external aggression. Until every human heart is transformed by love, we must realistically expect that natural, sinful human nature will manifest itself in crime and war, and we must be prepared to stop it.

 However, the best answer is to do what Jesus told us what to do. Early in his ministry, he sent his disciples out to tell Israelites that the kingdom of heaven had come near. They were to tell everyone the good news that God loved them and that God had come down to bring the kingdom to them. They were practicing the work that would become their permanent calling, and the calling of everyone in whom the Holy Spirit dwells. As Jesus ascended to heaven, he commissioned his followers again in that ministry of love, saying, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” [Matthew 28:19-20] We work for world peace when we gospelize the people around us – that is, when we envelope them in our love and God’s love by telling them this good news. The good news of God’s love and grace through Christ is the power that transforms people and puts out the fires of aggression, greed, and hatred. Only God can bring about world peace, and it only happens when he dwells in the hearts of people everywhere. If we want world peace, we need to say to everyone we meet, “God loves you, and I love you.” That’s it.