Peace Beyond Understanding

     “Peace which passes all understanding.” That’s what Christ promises to give us as we look to him for life and purpose.

     In walking by the ocean today, I took some time to sit awhile and watch the waves with their rhythmic patterns as they crashed against the rocks.  Peace came to mind as I soaked in the beauty of God’s creation. But that’s not what Jesus was talking about – peaceful thoughts stirred by gazing upon something beautiful. In fact, the peace he promises has nothing to do with pleasant circumstances or surroundings.

     Jesus specifically contrasted his peace with the world’s to help us understand that the two are diametrically opposed. The peace offered by the world is evasive, threatening to leave at any moment. It’s conditional, based upon circumstances and good times. It’s imperfect, mingled with fear at the possibility of losing those things which brought peace to begin with. Someone with all that the world has to offer can still be completely without peace. Pride keeps them longing for more while fear strips them of the ability to bask in and enjoy their material comforts.

     I remember as an unbeliever thinking that once I achieved certain goals I’d have peace. Yet when I got what I thought I wanted, peace was nowhere to be found. Like a mirage, it eluded me every time. With each disappointment, my insatiable thirst for peace propelled me into a more obsessive quest for it. Running determinedly in the direction of my dreams, I became blinded to the reality that past conquests were ineffective in achieving what I most longed for – a heart and mind at peace with God.

     I look around me and see that the world’s quest for peace is no different. We search for it in our surroundings and relationships, our health, security and professions. We’re obsessed with staging peaceful lives only to have the winds of adversity and change blow them apart. A perfect vacation promises to give us that repose we so long for. Once we climb that mountain, looking out over the vast countryside, we see beauty that looks peaceful but it fails to provide us with an inner peace that’s healing or lasting. No matter how many trips we make to the beach to gaze upon the sparkling waves and listen to their calm roar, we’ll not find peace “that passes all understanding.” That peace can only be found in Christ.

    We may lose all that the world deems valuable, but God has promised that he’s with us and will supply all of our needs, that our hope isn’t derived from the things of the world, but in belonging to him and fulfilling his purposes on earth. We are his children, adopted into his family and given a guarantee that nothing can ever separate us from his love. His peace is meant to impact us internally, affecting the very essence of our souls so that we’re able to experience calm in the midst of storms.

     On many occasions I’ve forfeited peace while undergoing trials. I’ve panicked and allowed myself to fear the future instead of standing on God’s promises that he’s secured it for me. At the core of this fear and lack of peace is a lack of faith that God is who he says he is and will do all that’s he’s promised in his word. When I go through times like this, it doesn’t in any way disprove Christ’s promise of perfect peace, but rather shows my sinful decision to choose fear over faith.

         As much as we long for it, we’re not perfect and won’t be this side of heaven. We’re living in the time of the already and the not yet, and the tension of this in-between time means that the complete realization and application of all of God’s promises is not yet perfected in our lives. We’ll have seasons, and hopefully ever increasing ones as we grow in grace and knowledge of God, where we experience great peace. But we also have times when we struggle with fear and anxiety. The goal during these times is not to embrace the struggle and so get stuck in it, but to accept it as reality with the prayerful anticipation that God will give us the faith to grow past it in the future.

     We’re not stagnate creatures but people created to change so that we reflect Christ’s image. We do this in an ever increasing manner as we abide in his word, in prayer and walk by faith. He shows us daily his faithfulness and love, penetrating through those dark areas of doubt and fear which cause us to shrink back from walking by faith. The more we abide in him and find him faithful, the greater our faith becomes so that when hard times come that challenge our peace we’re more and more inclined to rest upon the Rock of Christ who has proven himself to be reliable. He himself is our peace. 

Seek Peace and Pursue It

Peace. It seems to be God’s theme for me this month as I’ve been reading through the Epistles and now through James. Each day I wake up to a fresh reminder that while God calls us to be zealous for his name and his glory, he also commands us to "live at peace with others as far as it depends on us" (Rom. 12:18). The words "live at peace" imply action rather than a passive emotional experience. In fact, we’re told to “seek peace and pursue it,” or look for it and chase after it (Ps. 34:14).

From a purely doctrinal perspective, these exhortations appear rather harmless. Peace is a noble idea and, for the most part, we’re in favor of living tranquil lives. We join with the world’s chorus for peace until we stumble upon a situation that challenges our security, our identity, our pride. And right away we find our defenses rising, along with our blood pressure. The unpleasant incident, which may not at all have been leveled against us, becomes a personal attack and we take offense.

Seeking peace and pursuing it is costly when it’s personalized. We can drone on for days about being peace-loving and desiring to maintain good relationships within the body of Christ. But the real test comes when we’re confronted with losing something valuable. It's at this juncture that we make the vital decision about whether to respond in obedience by faith or to walk according to our own fleshly knowledge and the wisdom of the world (Lk. 6:45, Jas. 1:22, Rom. 8:5, Eph. 4:31-32).

I know many truths about the importance of being a peacemaker. And it’s often not until I’m embroiled in a personal battle that I realize I’ve taken up another goal all together. Instead of pursuing peace, I begin to defend myself, attack the other person, and go for the jugular. My response, at times, is so instant that I’m left clueless as to where the shift occurred or even how it happened. One minute I'm determined to live in harmony, the next I’m waging war.

The Bible says that we fight and quarrel because of the selfish desires lurking within us. We want something but can’t get it so we push and shove, often verbally, as we wrestle for victory (Js. 4:1). Many reformed evangelicals cite Luther and Calvin as their role models to justify using harsh and angry words. But they forget that these men, though outstanding theologians and leaders, were sinful, flawed people like everyone else. Their actions fell short of God's glory at any given time, making it impossible for us to elevate their behavior in areas that clearly or even vaguely contradicted Scripture. We can have a plethora of biblical truths and principles on the tip of our tongues and yet still be in sin if we communicate them with a harsh or angry spirit (Eph. 4:26, 1 Cor. 13:2).
 Jesus calls us to a higher road, a superior walk (Matt. 5:43). Luther, Calvin or a host of others are not our litmus test for righteous living, but instead we’re called to emulate Christ and his perfect righteousness. The apostle Paul himself refuted this kind of self-justification when he said, “We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise” (2 Cor. 10:12).

Each of us will stand before God and give an accounting for what we’ve said and done (2 Cor. 5:10). His greatest desire is that we walk in love and humility (Eph. 4:2), speaking the truth indeed, but doing it with the greater goal of honoring Christ and building up and strengthening those who listen (Eph. 4:29). “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.  If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” 1 Cor. 13:1-10

God is Able to Make All Grace Abound

     I’ve been thinking a lot lately of what it means to be bold for Christ. I remember about twenty years ago going through evangelism training with a group of other Christians. We went out in the community, knocking on doors and sharing the gospel with total strangers. As easy as this was for me, sharing the same message with my roommate or coworkers was grueling. I was consumed with images of hypocrites in my own past who threw the truth at me in grenade fashion. Memories of their graceless presentations left me feeling too frightened that I might come across the same way. And fear, finding its home, kept me from sharing the best news I’ve ever heard with many people who desperately needed to hear it. I reasoned that if I simply lived out the gospel they would see the truth and come to salvation. I was prepared to give a reason for the hope within me, but seldom if ever took the initiative to proclaim it in a way that would bring others face to face with their own hopelessness apart from Christ’s redemption.

     I’d love to say that I’ve radically changed and matured over the years in this area of sharing my faith. But, I haven’t. As I go into classrooms each day, teaching over 150 college students, I’m terrified at the thought of putting my faith out there so boldly that no one can miss the message. I pray for these students in class, and I speak with them about God’s grace in my own life. Most of them would say, if asked, that I’m a Christian. They may even say that I’m a nice person and seem to do kind things. The main problem with this image is that it’s all about me. 

     God is reminding me that I’ve forgotten something essential. Yes, I am called to live out the gospel so that my works bring honor to God (Matt. 5:16). Yes, I’m called to pray for these students that they’ll come to salvation (1 Tim. 2:1-3). But I’m also called to proclaim the good news to them which will be good news to some and bad to others (2 Cor. 2:15-16). Some will embrace it, turning to Christ and putting their hope in him. But others will reject the truth and be highly offended when I say what Jesus said – that they must be born again. Some will hate me, no matter how kind I am, for daring to tell them that their good deeds are filthy rags before a holy God who requires perfect obedience. They may gnash their teeth at me when I tell them that coming to salvation means acknowledging their sinfulness and putting their hope in Christ’s perfect righteousness, trusting him alone to rescue them from the dominion of darkness.
     I’m hearing God call me to step out of the boat and onto the water. I’m afraid of rejection, no doubt, but even more afraid of the blessings I’m missing by not being faithful, of remaining in fear and becoming so accustomed to living in it that I don’t dare to take a risk for God. I want to say with the apostle Paul, and really mean it, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes." I can't do it in my own strength or with my own determination but God is able to make all grace abound to me, so that in all things at all times, having all that I need, I will abound in every good work (2 Cor. 9:8). I don't know about you, but by faith I'm believing God!