Is Your Heart Sitting Down?

Is Your Heart Sitting Down?

Col 3:12-17

12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

13 Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.

17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

MATTHEW HENRY SAID, “When Christ died He left a will in which He gave His soul to His Father, His body to Joseph of Arimathea, His clothes to the soldiers, and His mother to John. But to His disciples, who had left all to follow Him, He left not silver or gold, but something far better—His PEACE!

This “peace of Christ” that Paul says should rule our hearts (vs.15) is that inner calmness of soul that we all long for. Lack of inner peace is usually due to one or more of 4 things:

 A restless spirit

 A guilty conscience

 A lonely heart

 A troubled mind

John 14:27: 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.

Now if Jesus promised us this inheritance, how come we worry and fret so much? How come we don’t exhibit a life filled with peace?

Well, that’s what this sermon is all about

SOME MISSIONARY BIBLE TRANSLATORS were working very hard to find a word for peace in a primitive tribal language. At last, a native who was working with them found a combination of words that had the concept—“a heart that sits down.” So they translated John 14:27 as having Jesus say, “I will make your heart sit down.”

It’s the peace that says, “I don’t understand everything, but I’ll just rest in God and He will bring me through.”

It’s the peace that says, “Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear.”

It’s the peace that says, “If God be for us, who can be against us?”

It’s the peace that says, “I will trust the Lord and not fear what man shall do unto me.”

It’s the peace that says, “I know who I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.”

So how do we acquire this peace of mind?

1. By Admitting That We Need It

Peace can never be obtained by one who claims he has no need of it. We must be willing to admit to God, and ourselves, that we do not have it.

I believe that there is someone here today that is troubled about something. It might be unresolved guilt over some sin; or fear is gripping their life due to some circumstance. The first step to inner peace is admitting that it is missing in our lives.

With appealing humor, Ron Hutchcraft, busy author, speaker, and counselor, tells about his battle with stress. One day Ron decided to "interview" the family gerbil. "Tell me, Gerbie," Ron asked, "what do you have planned for today?" "First, breakfast," he replied, "and then get started." "Doing what?" Ron questioned. "Why, the same thing I did yesterday, and the day before that." "What’s that?" Ron asked again. "The wheel." And sure enough, Gerbie climbed on his little wheel and started running in circles. Hours later, he was still running. The more Ron watched that gerbil, the more he saw himself. He had his own personal "wheels"--demands, deadlines, aggravations, ambitions. He felt as if he was running in circles, and he longed for peace. In his search, he made this discovery in Psalm 34: Peace isn’t automatic or passive; it must be pursued. Not only that, but peace is also a result of a right relationship with the Lord.

As never before, Ron enthroned the Lord as the Shepherd of his life. As he did, peace, instead of the stressful wheel, became normal.

2. By Getting the God of Peace

Before you can have the peace of God, you must have the God of peace! According to Eph.2:14, Jesus is our peace. There is no peace with God apart from Him. There is no peace of God apart from Him.