Essay 1: THE FOUR G’S OF PEACEMAKING
The Four G’s of Peacemaking
Jasmine Vega
COMS 560
February 7, 2018
Essay 1: THE FOUR G’S OF PEACEMAKING
Whenever someone does something against what we intend to happen, we feel the need
to give justice to ourselves which leads to conflicts. Conflict is a clash or disagreement caused by
individual differences, unmet psychological needs, competitions, and other factors. And because
of our uniqueness, we also view conflicts differently. It may be a negative or positive situation
depending on how we are able to handle it. There are those who see conflicts as threats that
would bring pain or as challenges that need to be conquered no matter what. But conflicts are not
necessarily destructive; they can also be viewed as opportunities to solve problems in ways that
can glorify God and give benefits to all people involved. These opportunities involve a chance to
glorify God, a chance to serve other people, and a chance to grow to be like Christ. These, in
turn, gave rise to Sande’s (2004) four principles of peacemaking are glorify God, get the log out
of your own eye, gently restore, and go and be reconciled which will be further discussed in this
essay.
Glorify God
The scripture says “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory
of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks, or the church of God” (1
Corinthians 10:31-32). Apostle Paul told this to the Corinthians; to bring praise to the name of
God in their daily lives and that includes resolving conflicts. However, it might get hard for some
to glorify him while going through conflicts. One way to fulfill this principle is to keep asking
one’s self how to please and honor God in these kinds of situation (Sande, 2004). People react to
conflicts differently; some would avoid and deny the existence of conflicts; others respond to it
by attacking those people who are opposing his ways; while others use peace-making responses
which are in favor of God’s commands. It is proven to be difficult to be forgiving and
considerate to people who have wronged you at all times. Nevertheless, the best way to
Essay 1: THE FOUR G’S OF PEACEMAKING
overcome this and be able to glorify God is to depend on and draw attention to his grace the
undeserved love, mercy, forgiveness, strength, and wisdom He gave us through Jesus Christ. This
can be done by trusting, obeying, imitating, and acknowledging God.
A scripture based lifestyle that gives glory to God is sure to bring positive outcomes and
that is certainly applicable to conflict resolution. By carefully tracing God's Word as found in the
Bible, we will not merely cope with stress, but can learn to respond to stress in a way that
glorifies God, shows love toward our neighbor, and produces joy. If two individuals are in a
conflict and one or both parties are focusing on self-justification of their actions, they will get
nowhere. However, if glory is given to God, both parties can realize that resolving the conflict is
much bigger than them and the important thing is mending the emotional wounds through faith
and scripture.
Get the Log Out of Your Eye
Hypocrisy is another issue that certainly needs to be avoided in conflict resolution. As the
glorifying God section taught, one must not focus on themselves in the midst of a conflict.
Additionally, it is important for people to hold themselves accountable for their own actions.
Playing the “I’m innocent” card or acting like a victim during a conflict will surely hinder any
peacemaking efforts from either party. Matthew 7:3-5 encourages Christians to avoid hypocrisy
and hold themselves accountable in the following verses; According to Sande (2004), “why do
you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?
Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye, when there is the log
in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see
clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye” Hypocrisy does not only affect one-on-one
Essay 1: THE FOUR G’S OF PEACEMAKING
conflict resolution; it can also adversely affect larger scale peacemaking efforts. The following
has been said regarding hypocrisy during organizational conflict; “It may produce or exacerbate
gaps between commitments and resources, undermine reforms if they are decoupled from
practice, and impede efforts to mitigate harmful peacekeeping externalities” (Lipson, 2007).
Hypocrisy can be quite damaging to conflict resolution because it involves one party basically
placing all the blame on the other party even though they themselves contributed just as much if
not more to the conflict.
Gently Restore
Ken Sande (2004) connects the process of Matthew 18 with the wisdom of Galatians 6:1,
“Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently.” The
emphasis in The Peacemaker is on the gently that is so frequently missing from the process. The
circle of loving confrontation is widened over time as the one party seeks to restore the other to
usefulness in the kingdom. The process escalates as appropriate in response to the response or
non-response of the parties being confronted. The goal is always true biblical reconciliation with
God and others.
Instead of pretending that conflict doesn’t exist or talking about others behind their backs,
we will overlook minor offenses or we will talk personally and graciously with those whose
offenses seem too serious to overlook, seeking to restore them rather than condemn them. When
a conflict with a Christian brother or sister cannot be resolved in private, we will ask others in
the body of Christ to help us settle the matter in a biblical manner (Sande, 2004).
We read in Galatians 6:1 that we are to restore someone who is caught up in sin gently.
We are to be as merciful and forgiving to others as God is to us. If we are like minded with
Essay 1: THE FOUR G’S OF PEACEMAKING
Christ, then our heart should be on of gentleness and our intent to restore. Sande (2004) does
write that there are times when it is proper to overlook offenses. Proverbs 19:11 tells us that we
have latitude to defer our anger and pass over someone’s transgressions.
According to Sande (2004), if you can answer no to all of the following questions then
overlook the offense. Is the offense seriously dishonoring God; has it permanently damaged a
relationship; is it seriously hurting other people and is it seriously hurting the offender
themselves. However, if you answer yes to any of these, then the offense is too serious to
overlook and must be dealt with scripturally. The goal is to always remember that restoration and
the offender has to be in serious rebellion before it becomes a matter for the church as a whole to
deal with.
Go and Be Reconciled
One of the most unique features of peacemaking is the chase for genuine forgiveness and
reconciliation. Christians, though they are the recipients of the greatest gift in the world, seem to
have the largest capacity of unforeseen for others, saved or non-saved. It is not uncommon for
Christians to say I forgive you, but I don’t want anything to do with you anymore (Sande, 2004).
Thankfully, we have a great God whose mercies are never-ending. He forgives us and through
the cross, has provided the way to ultimate reconciliation.
Our God expects us to forgive others in the same manner. According to Sande (2004),
Colossian 3:13 says we are to forebear one another and forgive one another. If any man has a
quarrel against any of you even as Christ forgave you, so you do likewise. Sande (2004) writes
that the problems inherent in rebuilding a relationship while attempting forgiveness and
Essay 1: THE FOUR G’S OF PEACEMAKING
reconciliation can be reduced by utilizing three levels. The first is “in thought”, where you
replace negative thoughts with positive ones. The second is “in word”, where you make the effort
to speak well of the person who offended you and stay away from spiteful gossip. The third level
is “in deed.” Jesus teaches in Luke 6:27-28 to love our enemies, do good to those who hate you,
bless those that curse you and pray for those who spitefully use you. It is good to keep in mind
that forgiveness is a spiritual process. It is a process you cannot do on your own. We can do all
things through Christ who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13).
Sande (2004) writes about the four promises of forgiveness which consist of: I will not
dwell on this incident, I will not bring up the incident again and use it against you, I will not talk
to others about this incident, I will not let this incident stand between us or hinder our personal
relationship. In keeping these promises the divisive walls between a person and their offender
cannot stand. So how shall we then live? As we have seen with the four G’s that Sande has
written about, if we find ourselves in conflict with another, our first thought should be how to
please and honor God in the situation. As Christians, we should constantly be on guard to not let
the enemy get a foothold in our lives that could destroy relationships. We need to stand fast on
the word of God as our barricade.
Do not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that
you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Use
discernment as to what is a conflict that needs to be addressed and what is not. Have the goal of
reconciliation through Jesus as the standard.
