Tag Archives: the God of peace

PRAYING GOD’S WAY – 23

Prayer, ,

HOLY AND BLAMELESS

‭1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 NLT‬
[23] “Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. [24] God will make this happen, for he who calls you is faithful.”

What a benediction for a happy church! After commending them for their faith, hope, and love, and encouraging them to do what they were doing even more, Paul prays for them to be holy and to be preserved blameless for the entire course of their lives until Jesus returns.

A few words in this prayer need clarification.

Paul, first, calls on ‘the God of peace’. Three attitudes pervade the atmosphere of God’s presence… love, joy, and peace. This is who He is. In a sin-soaked world of chaos and confusion, God’s peace is an oasis of tranquility and serenity, a priceless gift to those who trust Him, not only His peace but His presence soaked in His peace.

‭Philippians 4:6-7, 9 NLT‬
[6] “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. [7] Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus….
[9] Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.”

It’s this God to whom we entrust everything about our lives that will escort us to the heavenly haven of rest in His eternal presence. It’s this God who promises to keep us safe in every storm and deliver us from every threat and danger until we leave ‘down here ‘ for ‘up there’.

What could be more secure than this, especially when Paul assures us that

“God will make this happen, for he who calls you is faithful.”

So, what will God do while we are here?

  1. He will make you holy.

Since God demands holiness as the qualification for seeing Him, and seeing how impossible it is for us to be holy without Him, we need this assurance that, just as salvation is His work in us, so is holiness.

‭Hebrews 9:12 NLT‬
[12] “With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.”

‭Hebrews 10:14 NLT‬
[14] “For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy.”

What is holiness? Holiness is God’s attitude to sin. God is holy. He is utterly separate from sin. He cannot sin; He hates sin; He calls for the judgment and death of the sinner but.. He also dealt with sin by punishing His own Son in our place.

For us, holiness has two parts…
Simply put, we are to be separate from sin and separated to God.

Part one – belonging

The essence of this separation is belonging. Holiness does not mean we must be morally as perfect as God is. In this life, we are still plagued by our old sin nature. Holiness means that we must live according to the one to whom we belong. He bought us. We belong to Him. He wants us to show that belongingness by the way we live… not perfectly but purposefully, remembering that we have an Advocate who represents us when we mess up.

‭1 John 2:1-2 NLT‬
[1] “My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. [2] He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.”

‭1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NLT‬
[19] “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, [20] for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.”

God bought us from the slave-market and dominion of sin,

‭1 Peter 1:18-19 NLT‬
[18]” For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. [19] It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.”

We belong to Him, body, soul, and spirit. We are called to live out that belongingness by being separate from everything that contradicts who He is.

Part two – living

‭1 Peter 1:14-16 NLT‬
[14]” So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. [15] But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. [16] For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

So, living by the standards of the one to whom we belong is an important part of being holy.

How is this possible?

  1. He will preserve you blameless.

We have another Advocate, the Holy Spirit, who lives in us. He provides the power, by God’s grace, to obey God’s Word when we trust and obey Him.

‭Romans 8:11-14 NLT‬
[11] “The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. [12] Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. [13] For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. [14] For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.”

The Holy Spirit in us guarantees that we belong to God and that He will finish what He started.

‭Ephesians 1:14 NLT‬
[14]” The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.”

Since we belong to God and since He is working in us by His Spirit to separate us from sin and to Himself, will God answer Paul’s prayer?

A resounding” YES!” because God is faithful and He will make it happen!

THE GOD OF PEACE

Bible Study, ,

THE GOD OF PEACE

“Everyone has heard about your obedience. So I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.

“Timothy, my co-worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my fellow Jews.

“I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.

“Gaius, whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings. Erastus, who is the city’s director of public works, and our brother Quartus, send you their greetings. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.”  Romans 16:19-24.

“The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” That doesn’t sound very peaceful, does it? It sounds rather ruthless but let’s look at the statement from God’s perspective.

Satan was first of all a traitor. He took what God gave him, beauty, perfection, power and the highest office in heaven and turned it against Him. Then he stole the allegiance of one third of God’s angelic creation. Then, not satisfied with that, he deceived Eve and turned Adam, and through him, the whole human race, against Him because he deceived them into believing that he was Lord. The whole of creation was corrupted because of him, became chaotic and the very image of God was distorted in man and the universe. 

As if that were not enough, Satan turned God’s own people,Israel, against Him. They rejected Him and nailed Him to a cross, causing Him the most horrendous suffering any human being could ever endure. They mocked, insulted, humiliated and killed Him and then turned on His followers in the name of God! At the very time that Paul wrote this letter, the followers of Jesus were being persecuted by Jews and at the hands of the madman, Nero. Soon enough, Paul himself would be one of his victims. 

And yet Paul could confidently write, “The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.”

What made him so confident? The resurrection! Satan had dished up the worst he could offer; Jesus took it on the chin and walked away, the victor. The enemy, vanquished by the Son of God, was counted out. Finished! Defeated! Overthrown! All that was left to do was the mopping up – collect the spoils of war – the sons and daughters of God who were waiting to be released from prison.

Satan is still around, though, waiting for his final judgment and going around with his lies, deceiving those who still believe he is in charge, masquerading as Lord when God has declared Jesus to be Lord and given Him the name above every other name.

However, for those who believe it, the truth is out. The devil has been unmasked, defeated and stripped of his weapons – the lies he has been propagating all over the world. Contrary to what he wants people to believe, he is not in charge. God is – and Jesus made that very clear to him in the wilderness.

“It is written…”How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!'” Isaiah 52:7.

There will only ever be true peace when Satan has been crushed and dispatched forever but, in the meantime, it’s our job to live out and proclaim God’s rule because it is our confidence that God reigns, despite our circumstances, that “crushes” Satan under our feet. As long as we have niggling doubt about who is in charge, the devil will continue to have a field day with us and the world will not be convinced that Jesus is Lord.

“Our God reigns!”

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

8 – ENGAGING THE POWERS OF THE KINGDOM – THE POWER OF PEACE

Christian Life, ,

8 – ENGAGING THE POWERS OF THE KINGDOM – THE POWER OF PEACE

Our life in the kingdom of God is very secure. However, we have an enemy who will use every weapon at his disposal to knock us off balance and derail us as we walk with Jesus in the Word.

Jesus left us a legacy on the eve of His death that protects us against the devil’s wiles. Woven into His teaching about the Holy Spirit in John 14-16, He promised His disciples the three most powerful defensive weapons against the devil’s deception. Mankind lost these weapons when Adam sinned and was left with guilt, shame and fear. Jesus restored them to us when the Holy Spirit came to live in us as His temple.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace…”

HIS LOVE, HIS JOY and HIS PEACE

Today we focus on God’s PEACE because

  1. His peace is the gauge that monitors our progress in believing and living by the truth provided for us in the Word.
  1. God’s peace is the referee in this game of life. It tells us when we are on the path and leaves us when we have wandered off in our beliefs and behaviour and need to return (repent).
  1. God’s peace us our weapon against Satan’s attempts to drive a wedge between us and God.

How can we know if we are believing and walking in the truth rather than falling for deception?

“And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” Colossians 3:15 NLT

God gives us His peace like shoes to protect our feet as we stand against all the schemes of the devil. In order to be secure in our position in Christ, we need to be standing on both feet to enjoy the full benefits of this power of peace.

“For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.” Ephesians 6:15 NLT

  1. PEACE WITH GOD

Everyone born into the world is God’s enemy until he/she is reconciled to Him through faith in Jesus.

“But there is no peace for the wicked,” says the Lord .” Isaiah 48:22 NLT

However, God intervened while we were still enemies. He provided forgiveness through the sacrifice of His Son. By faith, we receive His forgiveness and He reconciles us to Himself in response.

“And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ… For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them…” 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 NL 

“For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son.” Romans 5:10 NLT

Now we have a standing in God that is permanent…We are not guilty… We have been declared RIGHTEOUS. No matter what we do, we are righteous in God’s sight. We have been delivered from Satan’s power to influence us and are now under the influence of the Holy Spirit who indwells us.

“For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son,” Colossians 1:13 NLT

The outcome is PEACE WITH GOD.

“Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.” Romans 5:1 NLT

This is the one shoe that protects our minds against the guilt, shame and fear that Satan uses to alienate us from the Father. Whenever the devil tries to bring us into condemnation, God’s peace reassures us that we are righteous, no matter what.

When we have sinned, we feel guilty because it is a natural inclination to revert to feelings of guilt, shame and fear, and the devil reinforces our guilt feelings by accusing us.

It is the Holy Spirit’s task to convince us that we are righteous when we have sinned. He does not convict us by making us feel guilty. He calls us back because we are righteous.

PEACE with God, then, deals effectively with the sin issue. Jesus forgave all our sin, past, present and future. God has declared us permanently righteous.

  1. THE PEACE OF GOD

Although we have peace with God, we are still vulnerable if we only stand on one foot. We need to have both feet fitted with the shoes of peace and firmly planted on the ground of truth.

The PEACE OF GOD is the other shoe that protects the other foot.

How can we experience this “peace of God”?

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 NLT

Worry or anxiety diverts our attention from God’s promises to our circumstances. Worry, anxiety and fear are three of Satan’s most effective distractors to get us away from our confidence in God. Fear is the opposite of faith.

Two definitions will help us understand the difference.

Faith is “calling those things that are not as though they were.”

Fear is “calling those things that have not happened as though they had.”

Paul adds thanksgiving to our prayers as the way to focus on God and move our attention from our bad experiences and feelings to God.

I focus on three non-negotiable truths about God.

– God is here

– God is good

– God is in charge

Prayer in and of itself will not deal with our anxieties. We tend to tell God what we think He wants to hear. We need to be honest about the way we feel. I call it “spilling our guts” to God. Our bad feelings are the confirmation of the lies we believe. When we “spill our guts” to God, we are actually confessing that our beliefs are contrary to the Word.

When we “come clean” with God, a miracle happens. He sweeps our hearts clean of all that stuff and replaces it with His peace so powerful that it guards our hearts and minds against the anxieties and fears that plagued us.

Once we experience the security of standing firmly on both feet with the shoes of God’s peace in place, there is an infallible way to maintain that peace.

“eceived from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of pAnd now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honourable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and reace will be with you.” Philippians 4:8-9 NLT

Once again, we come back to the importance of renewing our minds. This is war!

“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NIV

Paul tells us how to wage war with the lies in the mind that control our lives and the lives of others. Our weapon is “the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God”. We use truth to destroy the strongholds of lies that open us to worry, anxiety and fear.

The outcome of victory over Satan’s devices is amazing.

“Then the God of peace will be with you.” This means much more than God’s passive presence. This means that God has your back. He is 100‰ for you and will fight for you, no matter what!

When we do our bit… put on the shoes of peace and stand firmly on both feet, God will do His bit.

He will place a garrison of peace around your heart and mind and fight for you in every struggle against the wiles of the devil.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

All Scripture quotations in this series

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.