Galatians 5:22–23 (NLT)
22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!
Peace is a major theme of the Bible and that is rather strange since the land of the Bible has seldom enjoyed what we would call peace. Israel is a place of constant conflict. Last week on the anniversary of the day of the founding of Israel, a day that the Palestinians and neighboring Arab states hate, Israel had conflict on three borders. They are surrounded by millions of people who absolutely hate them and would be willing to die in order to wipe them out. And that is really nothing new for them. They have been a people who are almost constantly in a state of non-peace – of conflict.
If you ever get the chance to go to Israel, you will get the opportunity to see places like Masada – the mountain fortress of King Herod, down by the Red Sea, where in the first century, some Jewish rebels held out against the Romans who put them under siege. When the Romans finally gained access to their compound they found that they had all been willing to die by their own hands rather than surrender. Not a place of peace.
Or you can go to places like Beth Shan – a mound some 300 ft high near the Jordan Valley. The mound is composed of over 5000 years of ruins from civilizations that were defeated and destroyed – their city walls becoming the foundation for the next city to be built. And you are struck with the endless wars, the fear and the insecurity of people in that region, living between the great empires of Babylon and Egypt.
Yet with that history, God announced through his prophet Isaiah that there would be a Messiah who would come who would be the “Prince of Peace.” And when the Messiah was born, angels were sent to proclaim “peace on earth and good will to men.” And we can only imagine, since we have probably never lived in fear of neighbors who raid you in the night or bomb your children as they board the bus, what it might mean to them to be promised peace. It would be everything. To read the words of Isaiah and to receive the promise from God that there would be a new age of peace – of Shalom -- when the whole world would enjoy peace, when you would no longer need a sword or spear, but they could be remade into garden tools – when all of creation would live in harmony – when lamb could live with the lion – when children would have nothing to fear. It would be the New Kingdom – the peaceable kingdom it would be. What a promise!
The Old Testament word for peace that is often used is shalom. It means completeness and wellbeing. It encompasses physical peace as well as inner peace. It is associated with righteousness – a life of faith and obedience to God. To be in a covenant relationship with God means that you will have shalom – inner peace as well as living in a land of peace. But of course, we know the story of how that worked out – of leaders who led a nation into idolatry that brought about God’s judgment and discipline – and not peace or shalom – but enemies on the borders, suffering, and captivity.
And yet they still wait for shalom. They wait like so many others in our world. Peace on earth is illusive and it is for the most part – just a matter of where you live and the color of your skin or the name of your country. It is geographical.
And yet we are promised that peace will grow in develop in our lives if we walk in the Spirit. And we know that peace as it is used in this way is not about guns and wars as much as it is about our inner wars. We realize that we may live in a place that is secure, where we are never physically threatened, and yet we may be at war on the inside. In fact, the inner war of guilt, shame, regret, anger, and bitterness may be extremely dangerous. The inner conflicts can be devastating because they work themselves to the outside and cause harm not just to ourselves but to others. The majority of violent deaths occur among people who are related in some way.
It is not about them, but about us. Our battles, our inner wars, and our unresolved anger, are what keep us from that shalom. And yet we are assured that if we walk in the Spirit – if we listen to the Spirit and seek the will of God – we will develop peace in our lives.
Peace= the state of being complete and well from the inside out.
Think about it. Just think about our quest for inner peace and tranquility.
We approach peace as a physical matter. The number two remedy by Americans when they suffer from anxiety is exercise of some kind. We walk, run, dance, pump iron, or some other activity that releases those wonderful chemicals in our brains. And it works for a while. We actually alter our chemistry the natural way and we are less anxious. But it comes back. People are now being treated for their addiction to exercise, because they are obsessed with the high and the release from the inner anxiety. But it can’t be maintained.
We also medicate ourselves – either with a prescription, a 12 pack of beer, or something else to settle the conflict within.
Or we try to run away. Entertainment has turned into a major part of life. When King Saul was anxious and had no peace he called for young David who played his harp and calmed the king down. We still do that. The number one remedy by Americans to stress is listening to music. We attempt to lose ourselves – to take our mind off the problem. But of course, the problem is still there when the music stops.
But no matter what we do – peace – or at least the absence of conflict – is temporary and for the most part illusive.
And then we see someone go through external conflict and have peace and we are shocked. How do they do it? How is he holding it together? And to put it simply – it just has to be God – because only God could give a person inner peace.
Years ago my former pastor and mentor lost his wife suddenly to a stroke and a car accident that resulted. We were shocked and very anxious for him until we arrived at the funeral. There we saw him as he really was -- a man of peace. He was in the midst of the greatest loss of his life – the lost of his “bride” as he called her, and yet he was filled with joy. He had within him a power that was a result of the Holy Spirit that gave him peace in the midst of the storm of life. What a witness that was of the power of God and man whose life was filled with peace, not just the absence of conflict. I am sure that you know someone like that, as you think about it now, who has gone through severe change or grief and yet was at peace on the inside, and it showed.
And we are brought to this great truth – this gift is for all of us. God promises us that if we walk in the Spirit that peace will grow in our lives. We do not produce the fruit. God does. Peace, like the other marks of the fruit of the Spirit – are a result of abiding in Christ. We do not have to work on the fruit crop. We do not have to read books about it or study real hard. We are told that if we walk in the Spirit – the fruit will develop.
Now last week we looked at Acts 16 where Paul and Silas were in jail and were singing at midnight and we spoke of the joy of the Lord that was theirs. That whole scene took place in Philippi a church remember that Paul and Silas started with the help of Lydia, the Jailer and his family, the demon possessed girl and others. Years later, Paul was in prison again in Rome and he wrote the church at Philippi a letter. And that letter to them is so fantastic because we see firsthand the power of the Spirit as Paul is not an old bitter man, but although he is in jail – in the midst of some real conflict – he has peace on the inside and it shines through in his words to the church.
Philippians 4:6–7 (NIV84)
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
That is a refrigerator passage.
It is so clear and easy to understand. Paul says “Do not be anxious about anything.” The Message says “Don’t fret or worry. Pray.” It sounds so simple.
And for some people it is easier. Let’s be real about this. Some people may not worry, and yet they are not walking in the Spirit. Some people don’t care enough about anything or anyone to worry -- and they still don’t have peace - -because they don’t trust God, they don’t walk in the Spirit. The absence of worry does not mean you have peace.
And then some of us have personalities that need to examine everything and plan as much as we can, and we are always “concerned” and others just go through life living off of us. They let you worry for them and prepare for them. But let’s not get sidetracked into personality issues. Some people are more “laid back” than others – but that does not mean they have faith – much less peace. And then others are wired a little hotter – they get a little more involved in everything – and they are going to have to pray more – to make their requests known.
In an issue of the AARP Bulletin, readers were asked to respond to the question: What's your strategy for coping with stress? The answers ranged from "eat a chocolate chip cookie" to "have a stiff drink." But Don Betz of Oakdale, Minnesota, offered his own unique solution. Every January 1st, Betz says, "I give my wife $1, and she worries about everything for both of us."
That is not the entirety of the plan. Betz added, "If someone else wants to be worry free, they can also send her a dollar."
But look at what Paul says about peace. He says it will transcend our understanding. We will not understand it. And it will guard our hearts and minds. Isn’t that a great promise?
The last night that he was with the disciples Jesus said John 14:27 (NIV84)
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.
It is the same thing. It is not the peace of the world. There may be severe conflict around you but there will be peace in you, because Jesus says that he is going to give it to you. Again, this is not a “to-do” thing. “I need to work on my peace. I need to be less anxious.” Jesus says “Peace. It is yours. This is not like the cheap imitation that is going around this world.”
This peace transcends – goes beyond your ability to understand it. It doesn’t make any sense. Only God can do it. And God wants to grow that peace in you if you will walk in the Spirit. The peace that God speaks of is never our peace but always his peace. It is the peace of God.
In his book The Divine Commodity, Skye Jethani shares a story from a trip he took to India with his father. While walking the streets of New Delhi, a little boy approached them. He was "skinny as a rail, and naked but for tattered blue shorts. His legs were stiff and contorted, like a wire hanger twisted upon itself." Because of his condition, the little boy could only waddle along on his calloused knees. He made his way toward Skye and his father and cried out, "One rupee, please! One rupee!" Skye describes what happened when his father eventually responded to the boy's persistent begging:
"What do you want?" [my father asked].
"One rupee, sir," the boy said while motioning his hand to his mouth and bowing his head in deference. My father laughed.
"How about I give you five rupees?" he said. The boy's submissive countenance suddenly became defiant. He retracted his hand and sneered at us. He thought my father was joking, having a laugh at his expense. After all, no one would willingly give up five rupees. The boy started shuffling away, mumbling curses under his breath.
My father reached into his pocket. Hearing the coins jingle, the boy stopped and looked back over his shoulder. My father was holding out a five-rupee coin. He approached the stunned boy and placed the coin into his hand. The boy didn't move or say a word. He just stared at the coin in his hand. We passed him and proceeded to cross the street.
A moment later the shouting resumed, except this time the boy was yelling, "Thank you! Thank you, sir! Bless you!" He raced after us once again—but not for more money but to touch my father's feet. …
This, I imagine, is how our God sees us—as miserable creatures in desperate need of his help. But rather than asking for what we truly need, rather than desiring what he is able and willing to give, we settle for lesser things. God offers us peace and we settle for managing our stress. God says I want you to be complete and whole – shalom – and we seek peace in every other manner – thinking it is up to us – when all along God wants to give it to us. (Skye Jethani, The Divine Commodity (Zondervan, 2009), pp. 113-114)
We are told that God wants to give us much more than we can understand. The peace won’t make any sense because it is God’s peace – not ours.
Colossians 3:15 (NIV84)
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
See – there it is again. And we get the message that this is not about us. This is about being connected to Jesus Christ and allowing the Holy Spirit to direct your life. Peace is not promised if we are casual followers. Peace is promised as a natural result of being connected to the Prince of Peace – who will give us his peace.
Now think about that for a minute. Think about the peace of Christ.
• One day the disciples and Jesus were in a boat on a lake and there was a terrible storm that came up and Jesus went to sleep. That is peace in the midst of the storm.
• The Scribes – the religious lawyers – the best they had asked him their toughest questions and he stumped them. That wasn’t just smarts – that was one cool guy. He had peace.
• One day he said “It is time to go to Jerusalem. When I get there they are going to arrest me and crucify me. Peace.
• When one of his closest friends died – Lazarus – and his sister actually blamed him – she said “If you had been here none of this would have happened.” First he cried, because he loved Lazarus. And although he had been dead for 4 days he commanded him to come back to life. That is a powerful peace. He didn’t panic, he didn’t worry -- he had connections. He and the Father were one.
Strength of Peace
We may have this mistaken impression that peace is weak – but it isn’t. The person who has God’s peace, knows who he is, and is connected, and although the world may be in chaos – the person who has God’s peace has no inner conflict.
I have experienced that peace myself. I have had peace about situations and problems that others might think should worry me. There are areas in life where the inner conflict still rages, but I am learning that the conflict is not so much about them, or that problem – as it is about me and my walk in the Spirit. And we have all heard people say “I have peace about it. The doctor says it could be serious – but I have peace about it. I know that the money is not there - -but I have peace about it. I don’t know what will happen - -but I have peace about it.” If you have ever had that experience, you know that it is a gift from God – it is God’s peace - -and you did not produce it.
