PEACE OF MIND IN A TROUBLED WORLD
MAN IN TURMOIL
"Man that is born
of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble." JOB 14:1
The
Book of Job presents an interesting case study. This book tells the story of a man called Job lived in a country
called Uz. This man was good and honest. He loved God and refused to do evil
deeds. He trusted God. But he had terrible troubles. Job loses his wealth, his family, his health, and the support of his
wife. Besides that his friends show up and dump on him. Job calls them
"miserable comforters." The devil caused Job’s troubles (Job
1:12; Job 2:6-7). But Job did not know this fact. So Job thought that God
caused the problems (Job 19:1-12). In fact, God did not cause Job’s troubles.
God merely permitted Job to suffer. Still, Job trusted God and refused to
offend God (Job 2:9-10).Job’s friends tried to help him. But their advice was
wrong. They did not think that God would allow an innocent person to suffer. So
they thought that Job was guilty. They guessed that Job had done many wicked
things (Job 22:4-11).Job argued with them. He explained that he was innocent
(Job 31:1-40).
Job thought that
God should help him. But Job was still suffering. So Job supposed that God was
unfair (Job 23:13-17). But this idea was wrong. Nobody should blame God. God is
always fair (Job 34:10-12).God was kind to Job, even when he was suffering. God
taught him many things. He learned that death is not the end of everything (Job
19:25-27). Job discovered that God would rescue him (Job 14:13-17). And Job
knew that God is wonderful (Job 26:5-14).Then Job was sorry that he said the
wrong things about God. And Job’s friends were sorry too. They asked Job to
pray for them. And God forgave them all (Job chapter 42).After Job prayed for
his friends, God made Job successful again (Job 42:12-17).One of the profound
truth we learn from this book is that our lives on earth are short. Job said
that we are like flowers. Some flowers are very beautiful. But they may last
only for a few hours. Or Job said that we are like shadows. A shadow has a
clear shape. And it moves like a person. You could almost think that your
shadow was alive. But your shadow disappears in a moment. So our lives may be
beautiful, like the flowers. And they may be active, like shadows. But we shall
soon be dead.
This book is a reminder that we are only “human.” We are mortals and are
subject to death. Our life is like a flower, it is a shadow,
the flower is fading, and all its beauty soon withers and is gone. The shadow
is fleeting, and its very being will soon be lost and drowned in the shadows of
the night. The shortness and uncertainty of human life too: Man is of few days.
Life is here computed, not by months or years, but by days, for we cannot be
sure of any day but that it may be our last. Man, as he is short-lived, so he
is sad-lived. Though he had but a few days to spend here, yet, if he might
rejoice in those few, it were well but it is not so. During these few days he
is full of trouble, not only troubled, but full of trouble, toiling or
fretting, grieving or fearing. No day passes without some vexation, some worry,
some disorder or other. Three things we are here assured of :-(1.) That our
life will come to an end; our days upon earth are not numberless, are not
endless, no, they are numbered, and will soon be finished, Dan. 5:26. (2.) That
it is determined, in the counsel and decree of God, how long we shall live and
when we shall die. The number of our months is with God, at the disposal of his
power, which cannot be controlled, and under the view of his omniscience, which
cannot be deceived. It is certain that God's providence has the ordering of the
period of our lives; our times are in his hand. The powers of nature depend
upon him, and act under him. In him we live and move. (3.) That the bounds God
has fixed we cannot pass; for his counsels are unalterable, his foresight being
infallible.
What is the meaning of
this word, ‘trouble?’ Webster defined it as, to agitate mentally and
spiritually. The Hebrew word is roqez, ro’gher, which means commotions,
disquiet, which means to take away the peace or tranquility of, anger, fear,
noise, rage, and wrath.
Paul told Timothy, in 2
Timothy 3:1-5, that this would get worse. He wrote, "But mark this:
There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of
themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to
their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving,
slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the
good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather
than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power.
Have nothing to do with such people."
Doesn’t most of this
define trouble? Of course it does! People seem to be in total unrest each and
every day of the year. People seemed to be dragged down by the world’s problems
and day to day living. We have put ourselves in a position to have a great
fall. We’ve decided, in ways, that God’s ways are wrong, so we will make our
own way. This attitude is the key to failure.
Why don’t we experience
it more consistently? One obvious reason is sin—choosing to act independently
of God’s will. Every time we resist His instructions or convictions and go our
own way, we are in conflict with Him. We cannot have tranquility when walking
in opposition to the Lord. The conviction of the Holy Spirit will cause internal
turmoil in our hearts.
Another reason for
emotional commotion is a lack of faith. Remember the meaning of the
word peace—“to bind together.” Sometimes we fail to connect what the Lord
says is true of us with what we feel about ourselves. Then, feelings of
inadequacy can overrule the truth of His Word, which says, “Our adequacy is
from God” “Such
confidence we have through Christ before God. Not that we are
competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence
comes from God. He
has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant —not of the letter but of the Spirit; for
the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”(2 Corinthians
3:4-6) Thoughts of worthlessness outweigh His promise of value and acceptance “For
he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and
blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption
to son ship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and
will” (Ephesians 1:4-5), and fears overtake His guarantee to provide for all our
needs “And my God will meet all your
needs according to the riches of
his glory in Christ Jesus.”(Philippians
4:19).In the same way, when we look at the suffering and difficulty in our
lives and perceive God as uncaring or unable to help, we’re relying on our own
understanding instead of on the truth of Scripture. Anytime we begin to
distrust and doubt God, our confident assurance will be shaken.
MAN SEARCH FOR PEACE.
Peace of mind is the
most sought after 'commodity' in human life. It appears that most of us are in
a state of perpetual restlessness. On analyzing the causes of this
restlessness, I have endeavored to discover God’s principles that need to be
followed from the Bible if we are serious about achieving perfect peace. It is
no secret that the world is always in constant turmoil. Violence is committed
in the name of hunger, greed, fear, and political and religious ideology. Both
within and without, chaos rules our psyche and the world. Is peace of mind
possible in such a troubled world? The great search is on! Multitudes are
seeking peace in fame and fortune, in pleasure and power, in education and
knowledge, in human relationships and marriage. They desire to fill their heads
with knowledge and their purses with wealth, but their souls remain empty.
Others are seeking to escape the realities of life with drugs or alcohol, but
the peace they seek eludes them. All their seeking only takes them in a vicious
circle of frustrations and futility. They are still empty and lonely, still in
a troubled world with a troubled mind and daily seekers of inner peace, joy and
happiness.
God created man and
placed him in a beautiful garden to enjoy perfect peace, joy and happiness. But
when Adam and Eve disobeyed, they were at once stricken with guilt before they
hid themselves with shame. Guilt and fear replaced the peace and happiness they
knew. Here was the beginning of a troubled world- and a troubled mind. Like
Adam and Eve, when you are out of tune with God, fears and anxieties crowd into
your life. When you focus your attention on the uncertainties of life, on a
changing, decaying world, your security and confidence are shaken. Your peace
is disturbed. Sin has separated man from God. “All we like sheep have gone
astray” (Isaiah 53:6).” “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
(Romans 3:23). Guilt, fear, irritation, resentment, selfishness, and other
hostile impulses plague man wherever he goes. They bring weariness and mental
exhaustion. The love of self was at the root of the first disobedience of man.
It continues to be the one of the first basic evil inclinations that takes you
down the path of despair and heartache. The longer you travel the path of
self-centeredness, the more troubled you become.
THE BATTLEGROUND IS IN MAN’S HEARTS.
One of man’s greatest
desires is to live in peace, or the absence of war and conflict. However,
hostilities are the result of man’s sinful nature and will never be abolished
on this sin-cursed earth. Bible says. “The heart is deceitful above
all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I
the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to
reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their
deeds deserve.”(Jeremiah 17:9-10)
Although our soul longs
for God, our sinful nature rebels at His ways. Part of us yearns for God and
part of us reaches for fleshly desires. Our hearts are a battleground of
continual conflict. This inner struggle causes tension and excessive strain.
Without God we are “like troubled sea. “But the wicked are like the troubled
sea, for it cannot rest, and its waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no
peace, says my God, for the wicked” (Isaiah 57:20)
There can be no peace
until all of life- mind, body, and spirit- are coordinated by the One who made
us and understands us. He is not only master of the world but knows your life
and mine from the beginning to the end. He was thinking of us when He came into
the way of peace. “Because of the tender mercy of our God,by which the rising
sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in
darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet
into the path of peace.” (Luke 1:79)
Many search among
outward and tangible things, but neglect to look within. They are afraid of
what they may discover. They would like to blame a troubled world for their
troubled minds, but the cure must begin within their own hearts. Inner peace
ultimately leads to external peace. By creating peace in our inner world, we
bring it into the external world, affecting other people too. World history is
the history of wars; wars of kingdoms against kingdoms and nations against
nations. People live in constant conflict—almost as walking war machines. We
live in conflict with God, with others, and with ourselves. "The way of
peace they have not known," (Romans 3:17 ). Men don't understand what
brings conflict and, therefore, what brings peace. We can see this at the
individual level, within the family circle, in a church, in a company, in a
state, in a nation, and among the nations of the world. It is always the same
problem -- men do not know the way of peace
Since world peace is an
outward reflection of our inner psychological state, it is imperative for us to
discover an inner peace not borne of the world. It is important for us to be in
the world but not of it. Of course, peace is not only the absence of strife; it
is also the fullness of love. We constantly look at ourselves, others, and the
world through the pale cast of thought. We emphasize labels rather than
relationship. We overlook simple acts of loving kindness as if they were
exceptions to the rule, rather than a natural expression of our true nature.
Love is an inner realization of a multidimensional higher truth; yet, we still
have the ‘free will’ to pursue negative and unproductive behavior patterns,
and, in this regard, evil must be equated with human cruelty. Thus, what the
world needs now is new paradigm thinking replaced by new paradigm loving. Love
is the only true paradigm, and it is the only hope for the future of humanity.
In this violent world, where quite often our foes can be found in our own
homes, Jesus is presented as our peace. But peace in Jesus is not measured by
the absence of conflict or struggle in our lives or in the world around us.
Peace is not just a serene feeling or even a pleasant condition.
As the Prince of Peace,
He invites you to come to Him. ““Come to me, all you who are weary and
burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from
me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your
souls..” (Matthew 11:28-29). When you come to Him, you will find relief and
relaxation in the freedom He gives. “If only you had paid attention to my
commands, your peace would have been like a
river, your well-being like the waves of the sea.” (Isaiah
48:18)- An active, sparkling peace that is refreshing and strong, “And the
peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts
and your minds in Christ Jesus “(Philippians 4:7). Will you come to Jesus,
casting your burden upon Him? He says, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give
unto you.. Let not you heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”(John
14:27)
JESUS CHRIST, THE PRINCE OF PEACE.
God’s
greatest gift to humanity:
"For
For unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his
name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting
Father, The Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)
These words were
written by the prophet Isaiah more than 700 years before the birth of Jesus. As
far as I’m concerned, that simple fact is sufficient proof that the Bible is
God’s word. This prophecy tells us that a child will be born. The child will be
unique – the child will be special. The child will be the one we know as Jesus.
According to Isaiah, He will be called:
Wonderful Counselor
Mighty God
Eternal Father
The Prince of Peace
Today we will look at Jesus as being “ Prince of Peace”.
Shalom is the word for peace. In the Hebrew
language, peace is a rich and powerful concept. Shalom = well-being, happiness,
peace. Jesus is the governor of well-being, the captain of happiness, the ruler
of peace. If you can embrace this, you will see the Christ differently for the
rest of your life. Do you remember what the angels said when they announced
Jesus’ birth?
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” – Luke 2:16
His first moments brought peace to all who visited
him, his miracles brought peace to all who experienced them, and his words
brought peace to all who received them, first to last. The last time Jesus gave
a formal talk, you know what He said? “Do not let your hearts be troubled.
Trust in God; trust also in me.” (John 14:1) He concludes the speech by
saying, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you
as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” –
(John 14:27)
Peace is a person; origin
and source of peace is Jesus Christ. Jesus made the peace, offers the peace,
and is the prince of peace. Peace is not the absence of war and tragedy in
one’s life; it is the presence of Jesus in one’s life. It is through
Jesus Christ that one recovers the peace that Adam and Eve had with God before
the Fall; it is only in and through Jesus Christ that one acquires peace with
others.
“For he himself is our peace..” (Ephesians 2:14)
The word
peace occurs eight times in the Book of Ephesians (1:2; 3:14; 2:15;
2:17; 4:3; 6:15; 6:23). Paul begins this Epistle with greetings—“Grace and
peace” (1:2). In this salutation, grace comes first and then peace. As a result
of God’s grace in and through Jesus, one experiences peace, reconciliation, and
wholeness with God (Isaiah 53:5). It is because of this Peace that Christians
are to “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of
peace” (Ephesians 4:4).
The
word peace in Ephesians 2:14 is about the Prince of Peace
that Isaiah (9:6) prophesied about seven hundred years before His coming in
human flesh (John 1:14). One can say that Christianity had a life before its
birth (Genesis 3:15). This One that is called Jesus is the One who reconciles
lost people to God. It is in this same vein that Isaiah also predicts: “I will
also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the
ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6). Again, Isaiah proclaims: “But he was
pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the
punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are
healed” (53:5). One can say that the Gospel is the Good News that God is
creating a new world in which peace dwells. This peace can only be found in the
One who became flesh.
Paul, as he seeks to
grasp the richness of God’s grace, calls out: “For he himself is our peace”
(Ephesians 2:14). Again, Paul puts across the very center of this peace as
existing only in Jesus, as he expresses elsewhere in very concrete words:
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). Jesus enters
the world of sinful history in order to redeem. Just a perusal of God’s whole
revelation reveals God coming down to save sinful men and women. As one
reflects upon the Incarnation, one quickly realizes that the cross of Christ
and the message of the atonement are the last phases of the Incarnation. One
cannot understand the life of Christ if one does not understand His life as
culminating in the Cross. God makes “peace through his bloodshed on the cross”
(Colossians 1:20). It is obvious that the death of Jesus was not a tragic
defeat; it was a component of God’s age-long purpose (mystery) for the
deliverance of both men and women from condemnation.
The Cross of Jesus
makes it impossible for us to take forgiveness lightly. The
crucifixion of Jesus is the outcome itself that gives forgiveness its complete
weight. In the Cross of Jesus, one witnesses divine holiness and divine love.
God Himself has provided the divine safeguard—the Cross of Jesus. God wants to
have communion with His creation, but this peace is found only in one’s
acceptance of Jesus as God’s message of free grace. Forgiveness and justification
and peace of the sinner can only be found in the suffering Savior (Isaiah 53).
In order to have peace with God, there must be forgiveness. When one reflects
upon his or her guilt, one realizes that guilt is too great to be removed by
forgiveness pure and simple, that is to say, God could not just speak: “I
forgive you.” The doctrine of forgiveness is established upon the Atonement of
Jesus. The Atonement for sins is not offered by men and women, but by God
Himself. In the Atonement, one observes God descending and running after lost
humanity.
God makes peace through
the Cross of Jesus. It is in the Cross that one observes God’s holiness and
God’s mercy coming together. In the words of the psalmist, one can also say
that “righteousness and peace kiss each other” (Psalm 85:10). Deliberation upon
the Cross of Jesus causes one to reflect upon the words of Paul to the
Galatians: “But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a
woman, born under law, to redeem those
under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons” (Galatians 4:4-5). As
one studies the Book of Ephesians, one should pray that this Scripture would
sink into his or her heart and stand fast. The very essence of the Christian
faith is to believe that “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no
other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
One cannot live with God unless one’s sins are forgiven. Forgiveness is only
found in Jesus. Paul writes with power as he ponders God’s grace: “In him we
have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with
the riches of God’s grace” (Ephesians 1:7).
THE PEACE OF GOD
Bible says “For he himself is our peace, who has
made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall
of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands
and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new
humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile
both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their
hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away
and peace to those who were near.” (Ephesians 2:14-17)
In this very remarkable
passage of Ephesians, the apostle gives us the way of peace. He uses as an illustration
the fact that Jesus Christ bridged the widest chasm which ever has existed
between men -- the gulf between the Jew and the Gentile. If you don't think
that conflict can claim title to being the most difficult gulf to bridge, why
it is it has been so difficult to settle the Arab-Israeli problem in the Middle
East. The greatest minds of our day have tried to work that out, and no one has
gotten anywhere near a settlement. It is because this conflict is extremely
difficult to bridge. Paul describes how Christ actually does it. And this is a
wonderful picture for us of how peace can be brought in any area of conflict or
hostility, whether among individuals or groups or nations. Paul says, "He
is our peace,” speaking of Christ, and He has made peace “so making
peace"), and, "He came and preached peace to you who were far off and
peace to those who were near." In those three occurrences of the
word peace, you have the apostle's outline of how Christ makes peace, the
way he goes about it. So it is very important that we note these. He is our
peace -- that is the origin of peace. Then there is the process of peace, how
it is actually brought about -- he came and made peace. Finally there is the
means of laying hold or possessing that peace -- he preached peace.
If you are having a
conflict with anybody -- whether it is in your home, at your work, in your
neighborhood, in the church, or in the world, this is the way of peace. This is
the secret of peace. This is the key to peace. First, the origin of peace: "He
is our peace, who has made us both one." Paul starts with a definition of
what true peace really is. True peace is oneness. It is not merely the
cessation of hostility, the absence of conflict; it means being one. This is
very important to know. Otherwise, when you talk about peace, you are only
being superficial. Is it peace when you get two armies to lay down their
weapons and stop fighting each other? Well, we call it that. And certainly it
is to be preferred over armed conflict. But it is not really peace -- not
according to God's definition. Is it peace when a husband and wife agree not to
get a divorce but to stay together, perhaps for the sake of the children, but
that home continues in coldness and divisiveness, with no harmony or joy? Well,
it may be peace according to man's definition, but it isn't according to God's.
Is it peace when two friends who haven't spoken to each other for some time
finally decide to agree to disagree, to speak civilly to each other, but they
don't seek each other's company anymore? Not according to God's definition.
Peace is oneness, harmony. It is sharing mutual enjoyment. It is being one.
Anything else is superficial and temporary and highly unsatisfactory. You know
this to be true, don't you? You have made peace on superficial terms, and have
found it only external. If you merely agree not to fight, it is not peace. And
invariably it results, sooner or later, in a new outbreak, with all the
previous animosity surging to the surface once again. It is only temporary, and
never very satisfying. This is why what we call peace among nations never lasts
-- because it isn't really peace. It isn't oneness at all. It is only a
weariness with warfare, and agreement to stop it for awhile until we can all
recuperate and rearm. Then it breaks out all over again, because nothing is
ever settled. God isn't interested in that.
But here the apostle
tells us the secret of peace. The secret of oneness is a Person: "He is
our peace." When Christ Jesus makes
peace between individuals or between nations -- that peace will be a
satisfying, permanent, and genuine peace. It will be a real peace that will
last. What Paul is saying is that in order to live at peace, we must have
peace. The problem with us is that we want to start by clearing up only the
results of conflict. God never starts there; he starts with the person. He says
peace is a Person, and in order for you to live at peace with someone else, you
must be at peace with the Person of Christ. If you have his peace, then you can
start solving the conflict around you. But you never can do it on any other
basis. So the place to start, the origin of peace, is the settling of any
problems between you and Jesus Christ. That is always the place to start.
Many people are upset,
troubled, discouraged, and angry. They blame others at great length all the
terrible things the others has done, and all the reasons why they are justified
in being so angry, and feeling so mistreated. But their basic problem is that
they don't have any peace themselves. They are not at peace. They are upset,
angry, and emotionally distraught. And everything they do and think is colored
by that emotional state. They can't see anything straight, they don't see
things in balance, their perspective is distorted, and everything is out of
focus. And it is impossible to solve the problem -- until they themselves
acquire peace. And once their attitude is changed, once their heart is settled,
once they have put the matter into the hands of the Lord, and they see that he
is active in it, that he has a solution, and their own heart is therefore at
peace, then they can begin to understand what is happening and can apply some
intelligent remedies to the situation which will work out the problem. There is
profound psychological insight in the fact that the apostle begins with the
declaration that Christ is our peace. He alone can accomplish it -- making us
one. Now look at the process of peace. How does it happen? It comes in three
stages, Paul says. Three things must happen before you really have oneness. But
this is what Christ can do, and this is the way he does it:
First, he "has
broken down the dividing wall of hostility, [the hostility must end first] by
abolishing in his flesh the law of commandments and ordinances,” And, second,
"that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so
making peace," And, third, "might reconcile us both to God in one
body through the cross, thereby bringing the hostility to an end." Paul is
talking about the ending of the great conflict between the Jews and the
Gentiles of his day. He says the first thing Jesus did was to break down the
"dividing wall of hostility." Paul is referring to a feature of the
temple in Jerusalem. He was a Jew, and He understood the temple -- he had been
there many times. And he remembered the wall, about 3' or 4' high, which ran
through the court of the temple, dividing it into two sections, separating the
court of the Gentiles, where the Gentiles were permitted to come, from the
inner court, into which only Jews were permitted. There was a sign which warned
anyone who wasn't a Jew that if they dared to venture into this inner court,
they did so on pain of death. In fact, in the year 1871, archaeologists,
digging around the temple site in Jerusalem, actually uncovered the very stone
marked with this warning. These were the actual words, translated from both the
Hebrew and the Greek: "No man of another race is to proceed within the
partition and enclosing wall about the sanctuary. Any one arrested there will have
himself to blame for the penalty of death which will be imposed as a
consequence."
Now, the wall is a
symbol. Actually it was not destroyed until A.D. 70, several years after
this letter was written, when the temple itself was destroyed. But Paul says
the hostility it represented was demolished in Jesus Christ. At best, the Jews
treated the Gentiles with aloofness; at worst, they despised and hated them.
There was enormous hostility between these two peoples. There are walls like
that among us. There are walls in homes like that. There is hostility and
hatred and defiance and suspicion and distrust between husbands and wives,
between communities and Nation, and between neighbors and religions. These
walls of hostility arise. They are what most of us run up against. We feel the
hostility, the anger, the deep-seated resentment and bitterness and we say,
"It's no use; there's nothing we can do." But the apostle says that
Jesus Christ knows how to remove these walls. How? Well, Paul tells us:
"by abolishing in his flesh the law of commandments and ordinances."
That is the way. It is the Law which makes the hostility, and if you remove the
Law, you'll end the hostility.
We are dealing here
with a very profound psychological insight. The strength of any hostility is demand.
This is what the apostle is saying. What creates hostility? Why, a
self-righteous demand upon someone, a demand without any admission of guilt on
the part of the one demanding, a one-sided justice, a holier-than-thou
insistence. This is what creates hostility. The Jews despised the Gentiles
because they considered themselves better than Gentiles. "We have the Law
of Moses," they said. "The Law is right and true; it reflects the
character of God. You Gentiles don't have the Law." And in their blindness
and self-righteous hypocrisy, they thought they were keeping this Law because
they didn't do some of the outward, external acts the Law prohibited. And so
they hated and despised the Gentiles because they thought they were superior.
The Gentiles, on the other hand, hated the Jews, because they knew they lived
in self-righteous hypocrisy. So there was intense hostility between them.
Jesus' solution is to take away the Law. Remove that from the picture -- help
them to see that the Law judges both alike -- and you'll end the hostility. Put
them on the same level -- so they both need grace, both need forgiveness and
salvation -- and you remove hostility.
This is so beautifully
exemplified in a story in the eighth chapter of John's gospel. Jesus is
confronted with a woman taken in adultery. “The teachers of the law and the
Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the
group and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act
of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such
women. Now what do you say?” They were using this question as a
trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and
started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on
questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who
is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he
stooped down and wrote on the ground. At this, those who heard began to go
away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the
woman still standing there. 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her,
“Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” “No one, sir,” she
said.“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave
your life of sin.” (John 8:3-11).
No one knows what Jesus
wrote. I've thought that perhaps he wrote what the finger of God wrote on the
wall of the palace in Babylon, when Belshazzar had his feast: "Mene, mene,
tekel, upharsin (You have been weighed in the balances and found
wanting)," (Daniel 5:25). Whatever he wrote, those who watched him became
convicted of their own guilt, and, beginning with the eldest, they began to
find excuses to get away and so they began to disappear. Finally only the woman
and Jesus were left there together. Now, what had he done? Well, he had simply
applied the Law to the judges as well as to the judged, that's all. He'd
brought them under the same Law. He'd taken the judges and the judged, had put
them into the same bag and shaken them up together, as a woman would with
pieces of meat before cooking, and they had come out covered with the flour of
the same guilt. When he did this, there was no accusation left.
And this is what Paul
says Jesus has done with the Law. He fulfilled the Law in himself, and by doing
so, he rendered both Jew and Gentile unacceptable before God. He showed them
how the Law was meant to be fulfilled. And when they saw his impeccable life,
the Jews knew they were just as guilty as the Gentiles. This is what Paul
argues at great length in Romans 2, 3, and 4 -- that the Jew has
no advantage over the Gentile at all simply because he knows more truth, but
that he stands on exactly the same ground -- Jew and Gentile need to be
forgiven. And so our Lord gave them a common ground of forgiveness. And when he
did that, there was no hostility left.
So this is the way to
start ending hostility: Stop being self-righteous. Remove the
self-righteousness, the demand that one change without any admission of a need
for change on the part of the other. This removes hostility. But as long as one
insists that the other is all wrong, and there is nothing at all he needs to
change, then of course hostility and resentment remain. I've seen this work
with parents and children. As long as parents insist they never make mistakes,
never do anything wrong, never need to apologize, never say "I'm
sorry" to their children, those children invariably grow up resenting and
hating their parents. Because self-righteousness always creates hostility. It
is only when parents see themselves as able to be wrong, needing forgiveness
themselves, needing to be understood and set free by the forgiveness of their
children, as well as granting forgiveness to them, that there can be harmony.
Then what? Is that all?
Is God content merely with ending hostility? Never. There is a second step:
"that he might create in himself one new man." Notice the
word create. That is what only God can do. Man cannot create. We say of
somebody, "He's creative." What do we mean? We mean he is able to
take things which are already there and put them together in a new way, thus
bringing about something perhaps somewhat different. He's rearranged the
material, and we call that creativity, but, in the ultimate sense of the word,
only God is creative. Men may be ingenious, but they're not creative. Only God
can take a situation which is nothing, and make out of it something. God
creates out of nothing. He makes a new man, a new unity which never existed
before.
Many people have
experienced this. People often say , "You know, since I stopped trying to
judge my husband (or my wife), and we've come together acknowledging that we
both need God, both need forgiveness, I've discovered that we have a whole new
relationship I never dreamed was possible. It is better than anything we had
before. Something new has begun, a greater unity than ever has developed."
Sometimes people say, "Our marriage is dead. Our love is gone. There's no
way we can restore it. We might as well end the marriage." It is such a
joy then to be able to point out to them that in Christ a new relationship
comes into being, something which never was there before. And many have laid
hold of this and found it indeed to be true that in the new unity, the new man
which grows out of the relationship brought to Christ, there is a freedom and a
glory and a beauty and a richness which was never there before, and it is
better than it ever was.
Here in Ephesians, of
course, the new man Paul refers to is the church itself. The church is a
picture of what Jesus Christ does. In the church, there is neither Jew nor
Gentile. The Jew does not have to become a Gentile; the Gentile does not have
to become a Jew. There is a new man, a new person created. And the same is true
of any other division among men. In that sense, the church is never to
integrate; it is to make a new man. They both bring what they are, and they
discover that there is a oneness, a fellowship, a union, a beautiful
relationship which ultimately has nothing to do with cultural heritage. There
is a sense of belonging to one another, and a joy in that relationship. The
same is true of the poor and the rich. The poor don't have to live like the
rich; the rich don't have to live like the poor. There can be different
standards of living within the church, but there is a oneness and a joy and an
acceptance of one another. The same is true between male and female. Males
don't have to be female; females don't have to act like males, Women's Lib
notwithstanding. In the church there is oneness. A new unity is formed, which
cannot be discovered apart from the settling of hostility on the ground of the
peace that Jesus Christ gives.
There is still a third
step: "and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross."
In other words, ultimate peace must be with God. A man or a woman, parents or
children, husband or wife -- wherever the conflict may have been -- once the
hostility has been ended by the removal of a self-righteous spirit and they
have begun to experience this new unity in Christ, must see themselves as being
forgiven and accepted by God. Otherwise, self-righteousness will begin to arise
again, sooner or later. If there is any area in which one feels superior to the
other, in which one says, "I didn't need quite as much forgiveness as that
one did; my level of life was higher," then self-righteousness starts in
again. But if they stand before God on the same level, on the same ground
exactly, both needing the same forgiveness, then the hostility is brought to an
end. This is what the apostle says, "thereby bringing the hostility to an
end."
We are to see each other as no different
whatsoever, before God. If in one area of our life we think we don't need to be
forgiven -- in that area we are utterly unacceptable to God. If there is an
area where we think we have never done wrong, in that area we are totally
unacceptable to God. The only ground we have to stand on before him is that of
forgiveness, and "not of works, lest any man should boast,"
(Ephesians 2:9). Therefore, everyone stands before God on the same level. When
people see this, hostility is brought to an end. Nobody is pointing a finger,
nobody is blaming the other, nobody is saying, "Well, if only you'd done
this, then I could have done that." All such division and schism and
hostility is brought to an end, and there is only the reception of the grace
and the forgiveness of God. Hearts are healed, and hostility ends. This is what
is brought out in the last section -- the means of possessing peace. How do you
do this? How do you actually lay hold of it? Well, the apostle says,
“He came and preached
peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For
through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.” (Ephesians
2:17-18)
Two steps are necessary
actually to lay hold of this kind of peace: The first believes the message God
has given you. "He came and preached peace," says Paul to these
Ephesians. That is, "Jesus preached to you." How did he do it? He
didn't come in person; he came in the person of Paul. Paul was sent by the
Lord. That is what the word "apostle" means. Paul says in Second
Corinthians, “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were
making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled
to God." (2 Corinthians 5:20). Paul's preaching was Jesus' preaching
of peace. Christ seized the initiative and sent the apostle to proclaim the
fact which God has already brought into being. All that remains is to believe
it. When you believe that the ground of self-righteousness has been removed,
that you have no more standing before God, because of what you think has been
proper behavior, than somebody who has failed openly and blatantly, then you
have begun to believe what God has said. You have begun to believe the
preaching of peace. Preaching is never an argument, never a debate or dialogue.
Preaching is simply the announcement of a fact. You can either accept it or
reject it, but you can't quarrel with it. It is what God says is true. And this
is what God says is true -- that the ground of self-righteousness has been
removed, and a new relationship is possible. A new relationship will come into
being which will be better and more beautiful, richer than anything you've
known before. And God says he is satisfied with the arrangement, that he
accepts you both on those terms.
Then what? Well, the
last step is beautiful. It is communication with the Father: "through him
we both have access in one Spirit to the Father." You can come before him,
upheld by the mystery of the entire Trinity at work on your behalf. This is
probably the greatest statement in the book of Ephesians. "Through him
[the Son] we both have access in one Spirit to the Father." There is the
Trinity of God -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -- all working together to bring
us into the closest possible relationship with God: the understanding and the
daily experience of his Fatherhood, his Fatherly care over us. So we begin to
understand that the circumstances of our life are chosen by the Father, that
the trials and pressures and joys and sorrows all have been selected by a
loving Father. We begin to see that his provision of power and truth and life
is all available in Jesus Christ, and we understand that we can appeal to him.
We can cry out to him. He invites us to communicate with him, to unload before
him all the burdens and pressures of our life. And we begin to live in this
relationship with the Father.
There is nothing higher
than this. When the full glory of this relationship breaks upon us, we will
have discovered that nothing can be greater. "This is eternal life,"
Jesus said, " Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only
true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent," (John 17:3 ).
A story was told about
a man, when he was young. He jumped from a bridge into a river and he was
drowning. There was another young man who was watching him what was happening.
After some time, he also jumped into the river. Brought the man to the shore,
took him home, after giving him the hot bath, gave him new clothes and food ,
made him sit down, spoke to him gently and ask him to lead a good life and sent
the man away with hope and faith.
Twenty years later, in
a courtroom, there was a judge sitting and a criminal was brought with charge
sheeted for murder. When the criminal came in, he looked up and the judge was
looking very familiar so he said, excuse me Sir? And somebody said quiet
please. The case proceeds. The judge was about to pronounce the verdict, the
man again said, Sir Do you recognize me?
The judge looked in his eyes and told him, “yes, I recognize you, I
remember you. Twenty years back, you jumped into the river, to commit suicide,
I jumped behind you; saved your life; brought you home, spoke to you as a
friend, told you to live a good life. I
was an advocate at that time, today you stand as a criminal before me, and I
sit as a judge. I can’t help you . So the judge pronounced the life-long death
for this criminal. Friends, Jesus Christ is Savior today, but judge tomorrow.
Jesus Christ did not
come to this world to judge us; He came to be our Saviour. God looked on this
sinful world, and He knew that only by sending His Son Jesus to this earth
could anyone be saved. Jesus is holy, perfect and good, He came willingly to
die in our place, a sacrifice without spot or blemish, so that if we ask Him to
forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness, He will forgive
us and cleanse us so that we can go to heaven. Today Jesus Christ is your
Saviour, but tomorrow He will be your judge.
Before you sleep this
evening I wish that you would open your Bibles. I would like you to start with
the first words— "In the beginning, God!" This is the right starting
point for a man's faith. Now turn to the last Book in the Bible, to Revelation
20:12: "I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God." Start
with the one and end with the other, and this is the story of God's dealings
with His people. We see Him as Creator. We behold Him as the ruler of nations.
We see Him as the judge of His ancient people. We behold Him as the father of
Jesus Christ. We hear Him crying out through the lips of His Son to a wicked
generation. At last we see Him seated upon the Throne. Time is being finished.
The Books are being opened, and the dead, small and great, are standing before
God. Stop for a moment and think about Him. He has showered His love upon you
ever since you came into the world, yet you have resisted Him. Prepare to meet
thy God, because He is God. Acknowledge your sins. Accept Him as your Saviour.
Confess Him before men. Follow Him faithfully. One day you will meet God, and
will hear His welcome — "Well-done."
At the heart of this
amazing peace-making process, Paul tells us, Through Jesus we have peace with
God and we have the peace of God. Peace with God has to do with our right
relationship with God (Romans 5). The peace of God has to do with our hearts
and minds being filled with assurance, hope, and contentment in Jesus
(Philippians 4:7).Jesus is the Prince of peace, the ruler of the kingdom of
peace, and his subjects are peacemakers. Jesus is the only one who can calm the
tempests of the soul, quiet the churning waves of the heart, and lead us safely
to divine peace. What is peace of mind? It is a state of inner calmness and
tranquility, together with a sense of freedom, when thoughts and worries cease,
and there is no stress, strain or fear. Jesus invites all men to the most
meaningful, life- changing experience. “If any man will come after me, let him
deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” (Matthew 16:24) “Therefore
if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things have passed away; behold
all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Will you accept His
invitation, “Come unto me”? He offers light for darkness, trust for doubt,
peace for strife, joy for sorrow, rest for weariness, hope for despair, and
life for death. God made man with a living soul which longs to be in fellowship
with its Maker. Psalmist cried “As the deer pants
for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul
thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and
meet with God?” (Psalm 42:1, 2). Only the living God will satisfy the soul. Of
this you may be certain: you will never be at peace until you are at peace with
God.
CHRIST -CENTERED LIVING BRINGS PEACE
“Let not your heart be
troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many
mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for
you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive
you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. . . . Peace I leave
with you, my peace I give unto you. . . . Let not your heart be troubled,
neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:1–3, 27)
Instead of seeing
yourself as the center of existence, you need to turn to God and make Him your
central purpose in your life. Without God as your center, you fall easy prey to
petty worries, self-pity, fears, and anxiety. With God in the center, every
area of your life will reach out from the “hub” like spokes in a wheel and make
your life complete and worth living. Only a heart centered in God can be kept
steady and peaceful. The psalmist declares, “My heart is fixed, O God, my heart
is fixed, I will sing and give praise.”(Psalms 57:7). With the whole trust in
God, he could rejoice in quietness of mind. With our hearts fixed on God, we
have inward peace in the midst of outward troubles. It is possible to be
“troubled on every side, yet not distressed… perplexed, but not in despair” (2
Corinthians 4:8)
I heard a story of a little
girl who walked to and from school daily. The weather one morning was
questionable and clouds were forming, yet she made her daily trek to the
elementary school. As the afternoon progressed, the winds whipped up, along
with thunder and lightning. The mother of the little girl felt concerned that
her daughter would be frightened as she walked home from school and she feared
that the electrical storm might harm her child. Following the roar of thunder,
lightning, like a flaming sword, would cut through the sky. Full of concern,
the mother quickly got into her car and drove along the route to her child's
school. As she did so, she saw her little girl walking along, but at each flash
of lightning, the child would stop, look up and smile. Another and another were
to follow quickly and with each the little girl would look at the streak of
light and smile. When the mother's car drew up beside the child she lowered the
window and called to her, "What are you doing? Why do you keep
stopping?"The child answered, "I am trying to look pretty. God keeps
taking my picture." It’s all about our heart...A hearts fixed on God can
be the salvation of a difficult situation.
When you come to Jesus
Christ with your whole heart, your search for peace of mind will be over. He
will give peace, and a calm that comes only from trusting Him. You will have
peace of mind in a troubled world! Open the door of your heart to Christ—just
now—and someday He'll open the door of heaven for you, where perfect peace will
reign and never end.
One of the wonderful
names of our Lord is Prince of Peace. And Jesus is the key to peace —
whether it’s personal peace in your heart, domestic peace in your home, or eternal
peace in heaven. It is in Jesus that the love of God breaks through His wrath.
The Cross remains the sign of this Peace. It is only in the coming of Jesus
that the barriers that are opposed to forgiveness are torn down. The picture of
salvation is this: God descends and runs after men and women. If one wishes
God’s Peace, this peace can only be found in the One who is the Prince of
Peace.
“Jesus Christ came not
only to preach a Gospel but to be a Gospel, and He is the Gospel of God in all
that He did for the deliverance of mankind.” Jesus is the very heart of
God’s Gospel because it is in His Person that God unites the human and the
divine natures. It is in Him that one finds peace, because Jesus is the Prince
of Peace.
Jesus said “Do not let your hearts be
troubled. You believe in God believe also in me. My Father’s
house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am
going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a
place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also
may be where I am.(John 14:1-3) The Bible uses a lot of different words to
describe heaven. In one place it is called "a country” indicates the
vastness of heaven. In another it is called "a city” indicates the number
of inhabitants. It is called "a kingdom" indicating that there is a
governmental structure to it all. It is called "paradise" indicating
its beauty and desirability. But here it is called, "My Father’s
house," and that is another way of saying, "It is our home."
A little child, whose
mother was dying, was taken away to live with some friends because it was
thought she did not understand what death is. All the while the child wanted to
go home and see her mother. At last, when the funeral was over, and she was
taken home, she ran all over the house, searching the sitting-room, the parlor,
the library, and the bedrooms. She went from one end of the house to the other,
and when she could not find her mother, she wished to be taken back to where
they brought her from. Home had lost its attractions for the child when her
mother was not there. My friends, the great attraction in heaven will not be
its pearly gates, its golden streets, nor its choir of angels, but it will be Our
Lord and savior Jesus Christ. Heaven would be no heaven if Christ were not
there. When you are in your most severe crisis, the last thing you can
hear is often the one thing you need to hear."Let
not your heart be troubled, Jesus says, "Believe in God, believe in
me."
The
single most valuable Prayer you can pray from the depth of your heart to God
is: “Dear Jesus, I acknowledge that, I am a sinner and confess my sins I
believe that you are the Wonderful,
Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace and you Died for my Sins, Rose from the Dead and
Will Come Again. Please forgive my
sins. Jesus, come into my heart and be
the Lord of my life. I accept you as my Personal Savior and Lord.” Amen. God bless you
