Galatians 5:22-24 “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”
A week ago Sunday, Pastor Herk continued in his sermon series on the effects of trusting God and the fruit of the Spirit is surely one of those effects. We live in a world buried under an avalanche of existential darkness in global turmoil, pandemic, oppressive partisan politics, crime and natural disasters relentlessly magnified by social and mainstream media. Everyone encounters hardships in the life on this side of Heaven, in a fallen world where we will continue to encounter circumstances and situations that may cause us grief and misery on a regular basis until the day of glory. But, we can always find peace in troubles, trials, sorrows and the storms of life, if we look to God.
The Apostle Paul says in Colossians 1:2, “To the saints [all those who have been sanctified in Christ] and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our [Maker] Father.” If we could live in a world with no difficulties, conflicts, worries, illness or injury, then maybe we would never experience trials and sorrows. Peace in our soul may be found in much the same way as joy that we seek in life. They are an acquiescence in God’s will the soul delights itself in the presence and experience of God Himself to live victorious, extraordinary, abundant Christian lives. We live in a broken and sin-sick broken world which seems like whenever we get through one difficulty, another comes along, in a cyclical continuation of problematic circumstances that invade our lives and at times make us struggle to find peace. Yet, where does true peace come from?
The Lord Jesus said in John 16:33, “These things I have spoken to you so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” The Lord explains spiritual peace of his disciples in John 14:27 “Peace I leave you, My peace I give you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, nor fearful.” Have peace, take heart and do not be troubled or afraid is what Jesus is telling us. Peace of heart and peace of mind. We need to hear those words of Jesus and remind ourselves of those words of peace when we get into those times of turmoil and we are struggling. We know that peace is the standard and norm of life because Genesis 1:31 tells us from creation of the world that, God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. Original sin created the fallen world being reconciled through Christ today, and we need to experience that piece of peace which only Jesus can bring.
Philippians 4:6-9 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and pleading with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, think about these things. As for the things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”
Whatever circumstances that we are facing, Christ’s supernatural peace (which surpasses all comprehension) is what we need to experience. We can experience peace in our hearts when we trust God. When we pray to God, we commit our circumstances and situations to God, lifting them up and turning them over to our heavenly Father, trusting that He is going to handle them for us, all the time thanking the Lord for the incredible blessings and amazing things has done for us that we can so easily lose sight of amidst the chaos around us: God’s love, grace and mercy, God’s Word, our salvation, our family, Christ’s church and ministry and our liveliness that has given so much light, fulfillment, encouragement, hope, joy and peace. The Lord God will continue to bless our lives, if we continue to trust, obey and thank Him.
Are your thoughts fixed on the Lord’s Word, Will and Way? Are you talking to God about your life in fervent prayer? Are you making and taking quiet devotional time to converse with your heavenly Father? We have a tendency to think that we can rely on our own ability to handle problems in our lives, to pull up your bootstraps [to improve one's life or circumstances through one's own efforts, rather than relying on others] and work out your own problems. But, our trust is not supposed to be in our own abilities, in other people or the ideas and philosophies that the secular humanistic world gives us. Our trust must be in God to relieve us from the ignominy of selfish heathenism. This would place us openly under the Divine protection and providence we have personally claimed. It’s very simple: trust God.
Let's continue Pastor Herk's message on godly "peace" in the next post.
In Christ, Brian
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