Peaceful Living In A Not So Peaceful World Series

Fruit of The Spirit – Peace

Peaceful Living In A Not So Peaceful World

If you recall the text for this series is:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” Gal 5:22-23 (NASB)

Everyone wants to have peace of mind. Whether you have a job or stay at home – whether you are male or female – whether you are fifteen or fifty. Everyone wants to have peace of mind. But most of us have to admit that we experience more stress than peace.

How familiar are you with stress? Here is a little quiz. Complete each of these sentences with the appropriate word:

I am ready to throw in the ____________________.

I am at the end of my ____________________.

I am just a bundle of ___________________.

My life is falling ____________________.

I am at my wits’ ____________________.

I feel like resigning from the human ____________________.

How do you know those answers? Because you have heard them before and you may even have experienced them. You are an expert on the subject of stress!

Stress is an unfortunate fact of life in our modern world. Everyone is under stress. Everyone is tense. Millions of aspirin are consumed in the United Sates every day. Sales of tranquilizers are at an all-time high. Books on peace of mind have become instant sellers.

We are told that too much stress is unhealthy. What else is new? We have known that for centuries. Nearly three thousand years ago, Solomon wrote,

“A sound mind makes for a robust body, but runaway emotions corrode the bones.” (Proverbs 14:30 Msg)

The Bible has a lot to say about stress, and even more about its antidote – peace of mind. Did you know that the Bible speaks about three kinds of peace? But what is peace?

YOU NEED THREE KINDS OF PEACE

The Bible talks about three kinds of peace. First is spiritual peace.

1. SPIRITUAL Peace

Spiritual peace is peace with God. Romans 5:1 says:

“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Rom 5:1 (NASB)

That is the foundation of all peace – the bottom line. We have to have peace with God before we can have any other kind of peace. I hope you have found that peace. There is only one way to obtain it, and that is though Jesus Christ. Jesus said:

"I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6 (NASB)

Next comes emotional peace.

2. EMOTIONAL Peace

First we must have peace with God – spiritual peace. Then we can have the peace of God – emotional peace. This is what most of us think about when we think of the word peace – an internal sense of well-being and order.

Colossians 3:15 says:

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.” Col 3:15 (NASB)

The Greek word translated “rule” here is used only this one time in the Bible, and it means “to umpire”. This verse says we should let the peace of God be the umpire in our lives.

What does an umpire do? He keeps the peace. He makes sure the game is played in a smooth and orderly manner. God wants to give you an internal umpire who will keep you at peace even when everything around you seems chaotic.

Have you ever heard anyone say, “I need to get away?” Maybe you have said it yourself. Have you ever been so tired at night that your body collapses into the bed but your mind won’t turn off? Your mind just races from one thought to another. Well, you can get away. You could go to Tahiti, but if you do not have emotional peace, your mind will still be racing while you are getting a tan on the beach. You cannot run away from yourself. You need both spiritual peace and emotional peace.

Third, you need relational peace – peace with other people.

3. RELATIONAL Peace

Romans 12:18 says:

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.”

Rom 12:18 (NASB)

Relational peace reduces conflict.

You must know from experience that relationships can be a source of stress. For most of us, our biggest problems are people problems: getting along with your boss – your friends – your in-laws – your out-laws – your family can be frustrating at times. We must deal with conflict, competition, and criticism on a regular basis. These things can rob us of peace. But to have true peace – we need spiritual, emotional, and relational peace! But can we find it?