PEACE – PART 1

Last Sunday, we visited a congregation in Kentucky while taking Stephen back to school. The preacher presented a lesson on Philippians 4 concerning peace. Do you have peace?

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds through Christ Jesus" (Philip. 4:6-7). One of the most precious and comforting promises in scripture is the promise of peace of mind. Some of the greatest problems we have in our society are unrest, confusion, unhappiness, and the lack of emotional stability in the lives of so many people. The divorce rate, the increase in the use of drugs and alcohol, and the climbing rate of suicide, are simply statistics that revolve around the fact that people have not found peace of mind.

The Lord does not want us to live in such a way. He wants us to have peace, to enjoy a peaceful life. Jesus said, "I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). The happy, blessed, peaceful life that Jesus came to give, and that He wants you to have, is not just a life that we look forward to living at the end of time. The wonderful life that Jesus gives is a blessed spiritual life that begins here and continues throughout eternity. However, that life is available only in Him (John 14:6). Without Christ, without faithful obedience to Him in our lives and taking advantage of His wonderful promises, life is miserable.

That is where it all begins – in Christ. Many have probably seen the sign in front of a church building somewhere: “No Christ, No Peace; Know Christ, Know Peace.” Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “(T)hat at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:12-13).

If it is the case that the Lord wants us to have peace, why is it that so many do not? Next week, we will look at some of the things that rob us of peace.

--Lamar