In The Word – Rest in Peace
While
reading an article recently about a war hero who had passed away, among most of
the comments were, “rest in peace,” or “RIP”. I began thinking about resting in peace when
this life is over, and it became very clear to me that the only way to rest in
peace is to live in peace. In John 14:27,Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it
be afraid”. Let’s look at how we can
live, and truly rest, in peace.
Jesus
makes a distinction between His peace and worldly peace. “The peace of the world is peace of escapism,
of avoiding trouble, of refusing to face things, of unreality. It is a peace sought through pleasure,
satisfaction, contentment, and the absence of trouble, positive thinking, or
the denial of problems. The peace of
Jesus is a peace deep within, a peace that is calm in the face of bad
circumstances and situations. Something
far more than feelings”.
To
have peace with God, you have to be in the right relationship with God, and you
have to be reconciled with God. Romans
5:10 tells us that we are saved when we “were reconciled to God by the death of
his Son”. In the process of being
reconciled to God, we become justified (declared righteous) in Christ Jesus. Where does this peace that Jesus speaks of
come from? Paul said in Romans 5:1,“Therefore
being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus
Christ”. Did you catch that? We “have peace with God”. “Peace with God” is not an emotional
experience, it is not something that comes from within ourselves, and it never
can be diminished nor destroyed. It is
the peace we get from Jesus when we receive him as our Lord and Savior.
Along
with the “peace of God,” we can also enjoy the “Peace of God”. In Philippians 4:7, Paul said, “And the peace
of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds
through Christ Jesus”. Paul explains the
process we must take to have the “peace of God”. In this fourth chapter of Philippians, he
tells us to “stand fast”, agree with the Lord, “Rejoice in the Lord”, don’t
worry and pray about everything, think and act positively. It is a choice to keep our eyes on Jesus, our
hearts devoted to Him, and our minds continually being renewed in His Word. The “Peace of God” is never available apart
from “Peace with God”. You can have both
today!
Elder Tim White
Ider,
Alabama
