OPINION —
I’ve got troubles. That’s no surprise because everybody’s got troubles. If you’re alive, you’ve got troubles. And your troubles will weigh you down and wear you out — unless you also have peace. If you’ve got peace, God’s peace, then you can make it.
I don’t mean peace will spare you from trouble. That’s not how God works in our lives. He gives us peace in the midst of our troubles so we can hold on and hope for a better day.
When Darlene Kelly was walking through the Valley of Sorrow, she stitched the word “hope” on handkerchiefs and gave them to friends. She found peace by focusing on joy rather than grief. I treasure the handkerchief she gave me for it reflected the peace God had given her after the death of her daughter.
My wife, Dean, spoke about finding peace “in the furnace of solitude.” God did not spare her from the furnace heat of her hardships, but the peace of His presence made her aware that God was with her. She wrote, “God led me into the wilderness, not to break me, but to soften me so He could mold me into a more surrendered person. God did not want to break me, but to make me more yielded to Him.”
Dean’s testimony reveals the key to peace with God. It comes through surrender. I was constantly amazed at the degree of her surrender. What does surrender to Jesus mean? It means you have given up being your own God and in your own Gethsemane cried out to your heavenly Father, “Not my will, but Yours!”
Once you are surrendered to Jesus, you have an new CEO running your life. And you discover that His peace is found in doing the will of your Father. How yielded are you?
Isaiah’s awesome vision of the Messiah gave Jesus the title, “Prince of Peace.” Jesus is God’s peace; He is the Source of peace. The prophet’s vision is worthy of being memorized: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (9:6, ESV).
It was Isaiah who gave us the memorable words: “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you” (26:3, ESV).
The word “peace” appears in the Bible almost 400 times, 299 times in the Old Testament and 98 times in the New Testament. Through the ages Christians have spoken of salvation as being “at peace with God.” This makes sense because until we are saved from our sins, we are enemies of God (see Romans 5:10-11).
To help us understand the nature of peace, and our need of peace, the Gospel of John gives us three inspiring quotations from Jesus: John 14:27 – Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. John 16:33 — I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace.
In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. John 20:19 — On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” Paul gives us this encouraging promise of God in Philippians 4:7 — And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
We cannot write about peace without remembering that in his beatitudes Jesus said, Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called sons of God (Matthew 5:9, ESV).
In summary, consider these three observations about peace:
- Everyone needs God’s peace.
- Everyone can receive God’s peace by trusting Jesus.
- Everyone can please God by living as a peacemaker.
When you’ve got peace, you can live with hope, not fear.
When you’ve got peace, you can rejoice and sing, “I’ve got peace like a river in my soul.”
Praise God, I’ve got peace!
You got peace?
