Peace in Suffering
He (Christ) Himself is our peace. Ephesians
2:14
Brothers and Sisters,
I heard said this past week that,
“Peace doesn’t reside in circumstances; peace
resides in the heart.”
Thankfully this is true. I thought of the apostle Pau. Even with
all he suffered in life, He trusted God to be with him, and lead him every step
of the way. Read this next paragraph and really look at each trial Paul lists.
Stop and mentally put yourself in his place… for we know how easily we stop thinking and fall into just
reading words!
Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my
mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison
more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again
and again. Five times I
received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once
I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a
day in the open sea, I have been constantly
on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in
danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in
danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have labored and toiled and have often
gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without
food; I have been cold and naked. Besides
everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. 2 Corinthians 11:23-28
Paul had little reason to have peace. But that is exactly
what He had, “A peace that passes all understanding.” We are all learning to
choose faith and endure.
Always be full of joy in the Lord. 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 4:4-7
In all but one of Paul’s letters to the churches, his
salutation is “grace and peace to you from God our
Father and the Lord Jesus Christ”. He knew the struggling churches
needed exactly that, supernatural grace and peace. But look at verse 4 it
speaks of joy! “Always” be “full” of the JOY of the Lord. Now that is asking
the humanly impossible! “Always” is asking too much right?
Quite!
Seldom does a human being humble himself and run to Yaweh
for help unless he has no where else to go. The impossibility of working up any
level of joy should do just that, exposing our need for His help! Just as
surely as we cannot manufacture our next breath, we cannot make joy happen. It
is a gift. It is fruit of the Holy Spirit. It is ours to ‘receive’!
We talk about loving Jesus and usually it’s in reference to our
‘feelings’ about Him. Our emotions can be stirred but it takes the power of the
Holy Spirit to embrace seriously Luke
9:23 “If anyone will come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross
daily and follow Me." Christ’s stirring words challenge me.
Not an emotional ply! Jesus own words say distinctly to each one of us: Jesus is our peace. Ephes 2:14 Am I trusting Him to be my peace
no matter what threatens? even suffering? Great pain or death? Paul said, “I die daily!” God could use Paul because
he denied himself, taking up his cross daily and following.
People will volunteer to serve and many will give financially
to help others and support missionaries. Less will share the Gospel with others
and far less will be willing to suffer. Has called you to suffer? Paul was. And
because Paul loved what God told him and believed God’s word to him, Paul stood
strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. When in jail again and again,
Paul used this time to record God’s words to His church, through the Holy
Spirit’s revelation. I for one am thankful. It sets my feet to dancing from the
wonder of it all. Paul stood strong by the power of the Holy Spirit in him, for
this produced the fruit of the Spirit in Paul…. Galatians
5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness,
self-control.
Will I trusting Jesus enough to stand strong, letting
the Prince of Peace reign in my heart? Paul could
have given up, given in, quit, given into discouragement and self-pity, but he
chose to trust God was with him and would never leave him or forsake him. We
too, must make the same choice. When the battle rages speak it aloud: “Lord
Jesus You are right here with me. The battle is Yours. I choose to trust You
right now.” Then praise Him.
Stop trying to fix it or insist on
understanding ‘why’ it has been allowed, instead start trusting! My mentor
said, “If you are trying, you are not trusting”. God is there for you just as
He was for Paul. God will lead and strengthen you. Make Christ your focus. He
gives hope. He sees the tears you shed, the tears you have not shared with
anyone else. He loves you immeasurably. He will carry you through.
I love this verse: Romans
15:13
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by
the power of the Holy Spirit.
Every believer is accepted by God
the Father. Being justified by faith, we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Rom 5:1) The peace is God’s toward us, through Christ. Our peace is
based upon this alone! Jesus made peace through the blood of the Cross. (Col 1:20)
We must never forget that His peace is founded solely upon the work of the
cross, totally apart from anything whatsoever in or from us (mjs), since God commendeth His love toward us, in that ,
while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. (Rom 5:8)
Be reminded God will never leave you nor forsake you. Hallelujah!
He invites you to give Him all your worries. Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty
hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He
cares for you. I Peter 5:6-7 The Prince
of Peace will guide you and give you peace. Peace is not something you work up
by trying, but something received by faith. There is a battle for your mind. Guard it. Put on the whole armor of God in Ephesians
6:10-18.
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. Philippians 4:8 & 9b
I will leave you with one final thought: God’s word
is the key to enduring suffering and the key to
Peace for Christ Himself is our peace!
Praying for all, near or far, whether it is
places I have never been or those who are denied freedom to have a Bible or
worship. O God, Remind them You love them and are right there with them in the
thick of the suffering. I pray my brothers and sisters will stand strong in You
Jesus. Give endurance to those who suffer greatly. Remind them they are not
home yet. Come soon Lord Jesus, prince of Peace. amen
Until every knee shall bow,
az
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