Jesus’ call to his followers to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9) is tied to intimate relationship with God, and echoes God’s dreams for peace for all of creation as expressed in Micah 4:1-4:
“In days to come, / the mountain of the LORD’s house / shall be established as the highest of the mountains, / and shall be raised up above the hills. / Peoples shall stream to it, / and many nations shall come and say: / ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, / to the house of the God of Jacob; / that he may teach us his ways / and that we may walk in his paths.’ / For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, / and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. / He shall judge between many peoples, / and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away; / they shall beat their swords into plowshares, / and their spears into pruning hooks; / nation shall not lift up sword against nation, / neither shall they learn war any more; / but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees, / and no one shall make them afraid; / for the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken” (NRSV).
Micah’s prophetic dream points to a time when all peoples will journey to God’s presence so God “may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths” (4:2). Micah describes God as the final judge and the nations will travel to God’s presence out of their desire to live in peace without violence and bloodshed.”
“As followers of Jesus, called to live into the reality of God’s dream of shalom as described by Micah, we must address the epidemic of gun violence so “that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in God’s paths.” Therefore, we call upon United Methodists to prayerfully address gun violence in their local context.
The United Methodist Book of Resolutions, 2016
At ESUMC we are responding to this call by loving God and neighbor with our head, our hearts, and our hands. To aid and guide our collective response, we invite you to use the below resources as you follow Jesus with your:
Head—Read and learn
Heart—Lament and pray
Hands—Advocate, petition, and call policy makers.
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On Sunday, May 29, Revs. C. Greg Moore and Will McLeane preached sermons on the recent killings in the United States. Click the PDFs below to read their manuscripts, and watch the recorded Sermon from Rev. Will McLeane.