Mathew 5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called sons of God.
We are all children of God but when we are faced with a difficult choice, when we meet with hostility it is tempting to fight back and to meet hostility with hostility, thereby making a bad situation worse, perhaps passing the problem down to another generation.
Short-term solutions can often lead to long-term consequences, putting peace beyond our reach.