Peace Principles

Are you a checklist type of person? Ever wonder what you need to do to achieve peace? Would you like to have a list of things you can do to realize peace in your life? Do you know there are principles and practices you can use to acquire peace?

Some of us are checklist people. We make lists of tasks and check them off as we complete them. We develop step-by-step processes and follow them religiously. We may even organize our lists so we can complete them in the most efficient manner.

Paul put together a list of principles or practices we can follow to realize peace in our lives. They are not always easy. In fact, they can be quite challenging to adhere to in some situations. Take a look at the list he provides in today’s passage. The list holds us to a high standard. It requires us to take a hard look at our own lives, giving up our selfishness, biases, and personal desires.

We cannot achieve the standard Paul lays out for us on our own. We need someone we can trust to hold us accountable, even if it is simply someone we don’t want to let down. Who is the best person to hold us accountable? Why not the only One who lived perfectly? Yes, Jesus. He can both help us change our lives and hold us accountable so we can live up to the high standard. Jesus can bring us peace. He sent a Helper to us—the Holy Spirit. Peace comes to us as we accept Jesus into our lives and follow Him. Paul simply puts together a list He recognized as He followed Jesus himself.

I pray we all hold ourselves to a higher standard. I pray we accept Jesus into our lives as our Counselor. I pray each one of us strives for the inner peace we desire. Follow the principles and practices Paul documented. Accept Jesus into your life. Follow Him. Ask Him to fill you with His Spirit. Seek peace. Experience the peace of Christ.

Philippians 4:8-9 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Peace Offered

Are you tired of all the discontent, violence, hatred, and utter chaos you see in the world? Do wish people would learn to just get along? Would you truly, honestly like to do something about it?

We see reports in our daily news of violence in schools, malls, and office buildings. News reports of discontent, discrimination, and abandonment are reported on a nearly daily basis. It can become overwhelming, and we can become numb to it.

At the time of Jesus coming into this world, there were two groups of people—the Israelites (God’s chosen people) and the Gentiles (everyone else). Of course, there were national disputes among a variety of nations. However, as far as God was concerned, there were those who knew Him and those who did not. We still see this dynamic today.

Jesus came into the world to reconcile all people to God. He came so that everyone, no matter their nationality, culture, gender, or personal preferences could be reconciled to Him, if they chose to. Through reconciliation, He brought peace to this world. Peace both personally and as a people.

So, how do we help bring peace to this world? Bring God into the equation. We pray for peace. We pray for more people to choose God. We tell others about God working in our lives. We invite people to come into our churches. We work toward a revival of God’s Word being the driving force behind our communities and ourselves.

I pray we all choose to pursue peace in our communities and our personal lives. I pray we tell others about the peace God offers. I pray each one of us spends time in God’s Word and in prayer for peace. Choose God. Accept the peace of Jesus. Be reconciled. Tell others about Jesus. Invite others to church. Work for revival.

Ephesians 2:14-18 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

Peace Beyond Understanding

Is your life in complete disorder? Are you struggling to bring order out of disorder? Are you seeking a source to bring about peace in your life? Have you sought out God? Have you trusted Him with the struggles you are going through?

We all go through struggles in our lives. We all face times of disorder. There are times in our lives when it seems anything that can go wrong has gone wrong. It is in times such as these that we need a source we can count on to bring peace in the midst of chaos.

Chaos can pile up on us quickly. One thing goes wrong on any particular day, and we can deal with it. A second thing goes wrong on the heels of the first, and we begin to fret. A third goes wrong shortly thereafter, and our stress level increases, sometime exponentially. Facing more than three bad situations in our lives at once, and we likely to find ourselves overwhelmed.

It is when we face troubling times, we need a rock to lean on. In our humanness, we may look to a person we feel we can trust. Perhaps someone who has been a trusted agent in the past. We seek them for advice, comforting, or simply a sounding board.

But there is One who can provide the peace we seek. As today’s passage states, God is not a God of disorder. He provides peace in troubling times. He grounds us in truth. He calms our souls. He quells our anxieties. He knows what is going on and why—the pieces we do not have. And, because He sees and knows the entire picture, we can trust Him. When we trust Him, He grants us the peace we desire.

I pray we all seek God during troubling times. I pray we trust Him in all situations. I pray each of us accept the peace that is beyond understanding from God. Seek God. Trust God. Accept His peace. Especially when we experience troubling times.

1 Corinthians 14:33 For God is not a God of disorder but of peace—as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people.

Pursuit of Peace

Is peace evading you? Do you wonder what it will take for you to finally find peace? What have you been doing in your pursuit of peace? Have you been pursuing peace? Or have you simply been wishing for it to appear?

Peace doesn’t simply drop in on us. Oh, we might experience it for a short period of time by pure happenstance. But long-lasting peace doesn’t come to us by accident. We must take an active part in acquiring the peace we desire.

Is acquiring peace difficult? Yes. Why? We must give up being the person we’ve come to be as we have been influenced by this world. Paul compiles a list of eight Scriptures into a single quote as he provides reasons for the lack of peace. Notice the first reason he provides is our lack of seeking God. To seek God is not passive attendance at Sunday morning worship services. It requires us to actively go about following God’s commands.

Paul goes on to say we are not doing good, our speech is despicable, and we purposely seek to cause ruin for others. We deal in misery rather than love, grace, and mercy. Can we, in good conscience, really wonder why we have no peace?

Actively seeking peace is difficult, but only because we must give up being like the world. As we seek to follow God’s commands, seek to be more like Jesus, we will find peace. Asking the Holy Spirit to rule our life rather than the way of the world means giving up our broken selves and be made whole.

I pray we all seek to follow God’s commands. I pray we give up the way of the world. I pray each one of us will allow the Holy Spirit to rule our lives, demonstrating love, grace, and mercy. Seek God. Allow the Holy Spirit to rule. Give up your old life. Be more like Jesus. Find the peace you desire.

Romans 3:10b-18

“There is no one righteous, not even one;

there is no one who understands;

there is no one who seeks God.

All have turned away,

they have together become worthless;

there is no one who does good,

not even one.”

“Their throats are open graves;

their tongues practice deceit.”

“The poison of vipers is on their lips.”

Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”

“Their feet are swift to shed blood;

ruin and misery mark their ways,

and the way of peace they do not know.”

“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Peace of Christ

Is peace missing from your life? Have you been pursuing peace without finding it? Have you found peace for a short period of time, and it does not last? Have you turned to the One who can bring lasting peace into your life?

Many of us will say we seek peace. We will try all sorts of options. We may try yoga. We may give meditation a try for a while. We may even spend time in prayer but grow tired of it or get busy and no longer make time for it.

Inner peace can be a challenge to acquire and keep. Often, we will feel at peace when things are going our way. That peace will only last for a short while. Sooner or later, there will be a disruption in our life and our peace will be fractured.

Lasting inner peace can only come from the One who is the Prince of Peace. We only acquire lasting peace when we fully submit to Him. It is part of the good news of Jesus Christ. As we submit to Him, seeing this world as He sees it, and seeing the larger picture and plan of God do we acquire lasting inner peace.

Accepting lasting inner peace from Jesus is more than a simple mental exercise. It requires us to give our heart to Him. It requires full submission to Him. Yet, as we submit, we acquire the inner peace our spirit’s desire. We acquire the peace of Christ.

I pray we all pursue the peace of Christ. I pray we submit to Him with our whole heart. I pray each of us commit to spending time in prayer each day, asking God to provide the inner peace our spirit’s desire. Submit to God. Acquire the peace of Christ. Acquire the peace you desire.

Acts 10:36 “You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.”

Hope of the Heart

The hope of our heart is the hope of Jesus Christ. What does that mean? Is there power in our hope? Is our hope in the power of Jesus? Why should we continue to hold on to the hope we have in Jesus?

Jesus and His power is the genesis of our hope. It is because of what He has done for each of us that we put our hope in Him. It is because of the promise He gave us that our hope is strengthened and made solid.

Jesus has promised an eternal inheritance, one that is more glorious than anything we can imagine. Our inheritance is to live with Him in eternity in a perfect creation of His. It is the perfection we all long for in the here and now. Are we willing to hold on to our hope while living in this broken world to inherit the perfect creation Jesus has waiting for us?

How can we trust in God’s promise? We can trust because we know that He raised Jesus from the dead on the third day. Jesus told His disciples this would happen…and it did. Jesus told His disciples He was going to return to the Father…and He did. Jesus was given power and authority over all creation. He rules the nations—both now and for eternity.

We may sometimes question whether God is in control or not. That is due to our inability to see the whole picture. We have a narrow and short-sighted view of the world and all that is happening. Unfortunately, we also pick and choose from who and where we acquire our perspective…and too often it is not God’s.

Yet we can continue to put our hope in His power, His authority, His dominion, and His promises. Our hope will continue to carry us through the tough times, the good times, and the times we simply don’t know where to turn.

I pray we all hold on to the hope of Jesus in our heart. I pray we believe in His authority and rule. I pray each of us believe God will deliver on His promises in His time. Seek your eternal inheritance. Trust God’s promises. Put your hope in Jesus. Hold on to your hope. Believe Jesus rules over all.

Ephesians 1:18-21 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hopeto which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people,  and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.

Hope of Abraham

Waiting can make holding onto hope very challenging and difficult. The longer we must wait, the more difficult it becomes. We are an impatient people. Holding onto our hope may even become too challenging for us.

But holding onto our hope is more rewarding than any other thing we can do. It is our hope that gets us through the tough times. It is our hope that carries us on when we don’t want to go any further.

As we see in today’s passage, Abraham held onto his hope and was rewarded. Abraham’s hope was put in God’s promise and God delivered on His promise. Though both Abraham and Sarah were well beyond childbearing age, God gave them the son He promised them. Can you imagine how often Abraham and Sarah were ready to give up?

Sarah became impatient and offered her servant to give Abraham a son. But God ultimately gave Abraham and Sarah a son of their own, though they waited for more than 15 years for God to deliver on His promise. What promise are you waiting on? How long have you been waiting?

At the same time God made His promise to Abraham, He told him his offspring would be in a foreign land for four-hundred years. Can you imagine what Abraham thought? He was about to start waiting for a son. He might have been wondering how long he would have to wait.

We are waiting for Christ to return. We don’t know how long we will continue to wait. We do know that by holding onto our hope, we will spend eternity with Him. We can reasonably assume it won’t always be easy. Yet we can also believe, with our entire heart, that it will be more than worth it. We can believe that God will deliver on His promise to us just as He delivered on His promise to Abraham.

I pray we all hold onto our hope in God’s promise. I pray we wait patiently for Christ’s return. I pray we continue to believe God will deliver us into His presence for eternity. Hold onto your hope. Believe in God’s promises. Continue to wait. Wait patiently.

Romans 4:18-21 Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.

Hope of Advent

Thanksgiving is over and Christmas is on its way. The scramble to get bargains is on. Finishing off the shopping list is top priority. After all, most of us have already had our Christmas decorations up for a couple weeks.

For many Christians it is also the time for our tradition of Advent. Advent is a time of waiting. The waiting is both past and present. We look back at the waiting of the Jews for the Messiah to come. For many, that is their only focus during Advent.

Yet, we also wait today. We wait for the return of Jesus Christ. We wait for the final fulfillment of God’s plan. Much like the Jews waited for hundreds of years after the prophecies about the Messiah, we have been waiting for nearly two-thousand years since He promised He would return. Perhaps that is why we have become cynical and even lost interest in the wait.

Traditionally, the four Sundays of Advent cover four different topics or subjects. The first topic covered is hope. Just as the Jews put their hope in the coming of the Messiah, we put our hope in Him who came and will come again. Jesus came to give us hope. He has been and continues to be the reason for hope throughout history.

Matthew quotes from the prophet Isaiah in today’s passage. The prophecy was written more than five-hundred years prior to the birth of Jesus. Matthew states in the verse just before he quotes Isaiah that Jesus fulfilled this prophecy.

What does this mean to us today? We can solidify our hope in God’s promises. As God promised the coming of the Messiah hundreds of years before Jesus walked this earth, He has promised that Jesus will return. We can trust God to fulfill that promise, just as He fulfilled His earlier promise. Our hope is built on His promises.

I pray we all strengthen our hope in Jesus through His promises. I pray we trust Him to fulfill His promises. I pray each of us will hold on to our hope in Jesus and look forward to His return. Put your hope in Jesus. Strengthen your hope through evidence of fulfilled promises. Trust Jesus. He never fails.

Matthew 12:18-21

“Here is my servant whom I have chosen,

the one I love, in whom I delight;

I will put my Spirit on him,

and he will proclaim justice to the nations.

He will not quarrel or cry out;

no one will hear his voice in the streets.

A bruised reed he will not break,

and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out,

till he has brought justice through to victory.

In his name the nations will put their hope.”

Are You Thankful?

Are you thankful? Do you live a thankful life? What does a thankful life look like? We all get caught up in our daily lives of school, work, parenting, sports, and watching too much TV. Today’s society needs something occupying its mind every moment of every day and we wonder why we can’t sleep at night. We want continuous entertainment and wonder why we have no peace. We are continually on the go and complain of never having time to take care of things at home.

Here’s a cure you might consider, take time to be thankful. Set aside time to thank God that you woke up this morning, for the food you ate, for the clothes you wore, for the house you live in, for the warm bed you have, for the electricity you have, for the job you have, for the ability to learn, for the ability to speak, for the ability to think, for the ability to see, for the ability to read and understand, for your families, for your relationships, etc., etc., etc.

You see, when we live a life that is thankful, we recognize that God provides everything for us. He provides for all our needs. When we live a life that is thankful, there is no room for complaining, there is no room for quarrels, there is no room for satan to put evil intent in our heart. God will fill your heart with His Spirit, with His principles. When we live a life that is thankful, we see others as God sees them. We see them as His children. We love them as He loves them. We pray for them and their struggles, often seeing ours as insignificant in comparison.

We just had our Thanksgiving Day celebration. Many of us spent time with family and friends. But, did you really open your eyes and see them as God sees them? Were you really thankful or were you just ready to eat? I pray that each of us will live a life that is thankful, a life that reflects God’s great love for us.

Psalm 107:1

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

Philosophy On Life

How do you view the world? What is your philosophy on life? Do you know your philosophy, or do you simply follow the current trend? Is your philosophy one that has been built over years? Have you ever taken time to identify it and how you came by it?

Whether we realize it or not, we all live by a philosophy on life. Many of us do not consciously think about it. It is just how we are. We don’t question it. We don’t attempt to change it. We simply follow along, many times blindly.

In 1 Thessalonians 5:12-25, Paul gives us some real meat to chew on. In just a few verses, he lays out a philosophy for life and encourages us to follow it. His philosophy is steeped in God’s commands and guidance. I’m sure that many of us will agree with much of what Paul writes. However, I’m also sure some of us will disagree or have some heartburn with one or more of Paul’s advisements.

Agreeing with Paul’s advisement may not be our problem. In fact, for many of us, I’m sure it isn’t. Our issue is with adhering to them. We may agree we all should live in peace with one another but have a hard time doing so. We disagree with one another, or someone does something we don’t like, and peace goes out the window.

We may agree being patient with one another is good, especially when we want others to be patient with us. Yet, we struggle with being patient with others. It is especially difficult when we have instructed someone on the right way of doing things and they repeatedly do them wrong.

We may agree that rejecting evil is something we all should do. Yet, we have our favorite sins. And when we are tempted to act on that sinful behavior, we find it extremely difficult to resist. We may even justify it in our heads by reminding ourselves that Jesus will forgive us.

All these are reasons to pray every day. We need to pray for God to work in our lives to mold us into the person He would have us be. Of course, it won’t happen overnight, though God could do that. Instead, He uses life’s situations to teach us lessons and guide us to the destination He has in store for us.

I pray we all seek to follow a philosophy of life according to God’s will. I pray we read Paul’s philosophy, which came from God. I pray each one of us prays that God will mold us into the person He wants us to be. Follow God’s guidance. Build your life philosophy around His. Ask God to make changes as He sees fit in your life. Be willing to be molded by God.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.