Why Does the Lord Counsel Us to Seek Peace?

My Come Follow Me studies for this week took me to Doctrine and Covenants 98-101 and a lesson titled “Be Still and Know That I Am God.” The lesson was introduced by the following information. 

For the Saints in the 1830s, Independence, Missouri, was literally the promised land. It was “the center place” of Zion (Doctrine and Covenants 57:3)—the city of God on earth—and the gathering of Saints there was an exciting prelude to the Second Coming. But their neighbors in the area saw things differently. They objected to the claim that God had given the land to the Saints, and they were uncomfortable with the political, economic, and social consequences of so many unfamiliar people moving in so quickly. Discomfort soon turned into persecution and violence. In 1833, the Church’s printing office was destroyed, and the Saints were forced from their homes.

Joseph Smith was more than 800 miles away in Kirtland, and this news took weeks to reach him. But the Lord knew what was happening, and He revealed to His Prophet principles of peace and encouragement that would comfort the Saints—principles that can also help us when we face persecution, when our righteous desires go unfulfilled, or when we need a reminder that our daily afflictions will eventually, somehow, “work together for [our] good” (Doctrine and Covenants 98:3).

The scripture block taught numerous important concepts, including the following principles: (1) My trials can work together for my good (Doctrine and Covenants 98:1-3, 11-14, 22; 101:1-16, 22-31, 36); (2) The Lord wants me to seek peace in His way (Doctrine and Covenants 98:23-48); (3) The Lord takes care of people who serve Him (D&C 99-100), and (4) Following God’s counsel helps keep me safe (Doctrine and Covenants 101:43-65).

This essay will discuss Principle #2 “The Lord wants me to seek peace in His way.” Not everything taught in this scripture block will apply to yours or my personal interactions with others, but each of us can probably find something to guide us to ending personal conflicts in our individual lives. First, we will look at the scriptures.

23 Now, I speak unto you concerning your families—if men will smite you, or your families, once, and ye bear it patiently and revile not against them, neither seek revenge, ye shall be rewarded;

24 But if ye bear it not patiently, it shall be accounted unto you as being meted out as a just measure unto you.

25 And again, if your enemy shall smite you the second time, and you revile not against your enemy, and bear it patiently, your reward shall be an hundred-fold.

26 And again, if he shall smite you the third time, and ye bear it patiently, your reward shall be doubled unto you four-fold;

27 And these three testimonies shall stand against your enemy if he repent not, and shall not be blotted out.

28 And now, verily I say unto you, if that enemy shall escape my vengeance, that he be not brought into judgment before me, then ye shall see to it that ye warn him in my name, that he come no more upon you, neither upon your family, even your children’s children unto the third and fourth generation.

29 And then, if he shall come upon you or your children, or your children’s children unto the third and fourth generation, I have delivered thine enemy into thine hands;

30 And then if thou wilt spare him, thou shalt be rewarded for thy righteousness; and also thy children and thy children’s children unto the third and fourth generation.

31 Nevertheless, thine enemy is in thine hands; and if thou rewardest him according to his works thou art justified; if he has sought thy life, and thy life is endangered by him, thine enemy is in thine hands and thou art justified.

Basically, these verses tell us that we should seek peace even when an “enemy” “smites” us more than once. The Lord promised rewards for patience. President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been urging members of the Church to be peacemakers. In the April 2022 General Conference, he said: “Followers of Jesus Christ should set the example for all the world to follow. I plead with you to do all you can to end personal conflicts that are currently raging in your hearts and in your lives” (“The Power of Spiritual Momentum,” Liahona, May 2022, 97). 

In his April 2023 General Conference address, President Nelson said, “As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are to be examples of how to interact with others – especially  when we have differences of opinion. One of the easiest ways to identify a true follower of Jesus Christ is how compassionately that person treats other people” (“Peacemakers Needed,” Liahona, May 2023). 

Four days prior to his 101^st birthday, President Nelson shared two “enduring truths” in an op-ed published in a Time magazine op-ed on Friday, September 5. Here are the two “enduring truths” that he learned in his life, as reported by Church News. 

1. ‘Inherent worth and dignity’

“Each of us has inherent worth and dignity. I believe we are all children of a loving Heavenly Father,” President Nelson wrote. “But no matter your religion or spirituality, recognizing the underlying truth beneath this belief that we are deserve dignity is liberating – it brings emotional, mental and spiritual equilibrium – and the more you embrace it, the more your anxiety and fear about the future will decrease.”

2. ‘Love your neighbor … with compassion and respect’

“Love your neighbor and treat them with compassion and respect,” he wrote. “A century of experience has taught me this with certainty: Anger never persuades, hostility never heals, and contention never leads to lasting solutions. Too much of today’s public discourse, especially online, fosters enmity instead of empathy.”