The Peace of God

By Pastor Craig Sicilia

“Peace! Peace!” is the agonizing cry of thousands today.

Some believe absence of conflict automatically ensures peace.

Some believe exercising kindness to others and a strong “love your neighbor” policy guarantee peace.

But real peace never comes from external circumstances;

It comes from the soul of man.

And how dose that peace get into the soul?

Through Almighty God Himself!

The bible teaches two kinds of peace in our relationship to God.

First, sinners can have peace with God through salvation.

Then surrendering, ….    bringing that war against Christ to an end, brings peace with God

Paul talks about that kind of peace:

“therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God”

The second kind of peace is the peace of God.

This peace has nothing to do with salvation;

It has to do with sanctification

We have all heard that word, but do we know what it means,

Its our daily walk as a Christian

But more specifically its the inward disposition of our hearts.

Lets pause here to reflect on a portion of God’s Word regarding the truth of real peace:

Philippians 4:5-7

Show a gentle attitude toward all.  The Lord is coming soon.    Don’t worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need,  always asking him with a thankful heart.  And God’s peace which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe, in Christ Jesus.

All Christians have peace with God

Christ established that on the cross –

But not all Christians experience the peace of God.

This is why the Apostle Paul says, 

And God’s peace which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe, in Christ Jesus.

Having the peace of God is dependent upon our obedience to the Word of God.

Great peace have they which love thy law

Yes you can have great peace if you love and obey the Word of God

People are seeking individual peace.

We want peace in our homes

But must of all we desire soul peace

From this text we can learn some spiritual truths about the peace of God in the soul.

 Lets look at verse 7 again

And God’s peace which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe, in Christ Jesus.

Here we see that the peace of God comes to us through Christ Himself.

The same Christ who saves also gives peace.

Not only is there a cessation of warfare with God, but there is peace that comes from God.

Jesus said, “My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you

People try to find inward peace everywhere except at Calvary.

The secular world feels that inward peace is finding your own way out of living and walking therein.

But the Bible says, Lean not unto thy own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shat direct thy paths.

Peace dose not come through rules and regulations that we establish.

Peace dose not come from traveling to some Tibetan mountain to have a monk tell you how to get peace.

Soul peace comes from Christ.

Verse 5 of Philippians 4 is interesting

Let your gentleness be evident to all.  The Lord is near

The Greek word is epieikes which means gentleness and kindness

From this we can presume it is possible to experience the peace of God as we practice the gentleness and kindness of Christ.

Part of the fruit of the Spirit is gentleness.

Christ was a gentle soul

He came as a lamb.

In Matthew 12.20 it is recorded, “A bruised reed shalt he not break.”

A reed is a fairly common plant,

Kind of like a stack that grows in Palestine

When a reed is bruised, it is weakened.

Ordinarily, one would say a bruised reed is no good because it is weak.

The Bible is telling us that Christ is to be so gentle that the bruised reed will not break.

When the Messiah comes, He will be so gentle with sinners and especially with the little lambs who stray.

A Christian with the peace of God in his heart is not harsh nor bitter, hardhearted nor spiteful, nor brutal, but kind and gentle.

One disosition of the soul at peace with Christ is kindheartedness.

Those possessing peace are sweet tempered.

Those kindhearted, compassionate, merciful, sympathetic people are the reason the ancient world could not rock, ruin or destroy the church.

The people of the church weren’t like the world around them.

It matters not how hardhearted you are, or how rough;

The Gospel is the softening agent.

If you have been born again, your soul can be at peace, and you should portray the Lord Jesus by showing kindness and gentleness.

There should be no bitterness and no revengeful spirit:

And maliciousness should be foreign to you

Believers experience the peace of God also as they patiently wait for Christ to return.

Read all of verse 5

Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

You will not have soul peace if you are not looking for Jesus.

If the second coming of Christ is not the hope of your soul, you have no peace of God.

James tells us,

Be patient there fore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord

And in Luke 21:19

By standing firm you will gain life

The peace of God doesn’t come automatically.

One has to practice obedience to the Word.

When we lack patience, we will not be able to endure hardship and distress.

When hasty, impetuous, edgy, overanxious or irritable, we do not have the peace of God.

When we are young, we are impatient, reckless and hasty to form conclusions and opinions.

Quickly you grasp friendships and alignments.

But the older you get the more careful and patient you become.

Patience gives you the power to endure hardships and distresses.

Patience with on another specially our mates, would prevent many divorces.

Now lets not confuse patience with tolerance.

Toleration causes you to hold in frustrations until you reach the boiling point and explode.

That is not the peace Jesus gives.

His peace gives patience.

Now look at verse 6

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

We experience the peace of God as we seek to follow the example of Christ in prayer and thanksgiving.

Christ is our supreme example in the matter of prayer.

Don’t pattern your prayer life after any human being,

Pattern your prayer life after Jesus.

Men don’t always fulfill their prayer obligation to God.

Sometimes they fail to pray before going to sleep;

Sometimes they fail to pray when getting up.

I always pray when I fly, I can remember flying once that I forgot and I fell asleep to be awakened by rough turbulents

When I realized I forgot to pray , I said Jesus I am so sorry please forgive me.

The spirit is willing, but the flesh at times is so weak.

Don’t pattern your prayer life after Preacher Jones or mom or dad or anybody else

Use the prayer life of the Lord Jesus as your pattern.

The Bible tells us in Mark, chapter 1

That the Lord prayed in the morning.

Then in chapter 6 of mark it says

He prayed in the evening

In Luke 6 it says,

He went out into a mountain to pray and continued all night.

Then it says that He prayed alone in Matthew 14

If you follow that prayer pattern,

The pattern that is for you and Christ that he has chosen for you

You will have a successful prayer life

You will have peace of God

I am convinced that if Christians pray when they wake up in the morning, their day will be better.

The conviction of their souls would be keener

Some Christians are so conscious of dental hygiene that they would never leave the house with out brushing;’

But they leave without praying- more attention to the body than to the soul

Without prayer, we cannot have the peace of God!

Peace is like a pipeline from which the power flows.

If the pipeline is jammed nothing can get through

So to have the peace of  God, you have to pray,  and pray with thanksgiving.

You have heard it said that cleanliness is next to godliness.

That is not true.

Being well bathed and wearing clean clothes does not ensure a clean heart!

But thanks giving is next to godliness.

We need to learn to thank God for all circumstances.

When a minor accident happens and were told everything is all right

We say Thank God

But when its not all right can we thank God as quickly.

Dome people don’t thank God for anything, not even for their food….

If a person won’t pray over his food, he won’t pray for anything.

Go into the average restaurant and watch

Americans eat but they never look up

We are fast becoming barbarians when it comes to giving thanks to God.

It is impossible to have peace with Good without saying,

Thank You, Lord

Ungrateful people, thankless people, self centered people, unmindful people, unappreciative people cannot have peace of soul.

Continue being thankful to God, no matter how thankless the world becomes.

Lets look at verse 7 it not only tells us that the peace of God comes to us through Christ Jesus, but it tells us that the peace of God passes all human understanding.

And the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

The peace of God is not dependent upon circumstances.

Modern day theologians have manufactured a doctrine;

Whatever is convenient for you to do is okay

This is a terrible philosophy, based on circumstances.

This nation is reaping the whirlwind from that philosophy.

When you possess God’s peace, circumstances can not stop you.

Paul and Silas were in jail at Philippi amid hard circumstances.

These two were in a dingy old dungeon, which was nothing but a hole in the ground, with all kinds of vermin running over them.

Not only that, their feet were in stocks!

Don’t you think they would be complaining just a little..

Or grumbling

What a surprise,

They were singing the songs of Zion

Circumstances did not stop them from praising God

When you and I are in trying circumstances, the battle will separate the babes from the spiritually mature.

Some Christians moan and groan every time a little incident interrupts their regular, comfortable routine.

Maybe a check was late arriving, or a tire went flat, or innocent remark borough despair.

They lose their soul peace so quickly

Let’s take a look at the children of Israel leaving “Egypt.

Moses was leading perhaps two and a half million people out of the country

They got as far as the Red sea and could go no further.

There the deep sea was before them, the huge mountains around them, and the rushing chariots of the enemy behind them.

They were in the midst of hard circumstances.

They could not go over the water or walk on the water.

They could not go around the mountains

And if they turned back, they would run into the enemy

What did God tell Moses?

He told him to tell the children of Israel to stand still and see the salvation of the Lord.

Stand still and allow the Lord to Work!!!

We too have had, and still have, Read Sea experience,

But instead of standing still, we usually run here and there , frantically trying to figure out a solution, scheming and cheating instead of humbly submitting to the Lord and saying,

Lord, I am your child, will you give me peace in my soul.

I can not see the way out of my dilemma, but You said to stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord.

So I am standing still

Give God the chance to prove his word to you, he will not disappoint you

God was above the Israelites

That direction the people forgot

But Moses did not forget about it.

The mountains on the side of them

The red sea in front of them

And the chariots of Egypt behind them

There was no recourse but UP

Moses hallelujah

We forget that UP direction.

We look all around for money when it is needed.

I wonder if I should hit old Tommy for a few hundred dollars.

Or, Maybe I could cash in a few bonds

We scheme and hook and crook, instead of falling on our knees and crying

Heavenly Father, I am Your child.

I am in hard circumstances

Please make a way for me

You might be thinking this is too simple.

But that is Gods way.

I can remember when I was young my grandmother would always pray and ask the Lord for everything  I mean everything

Then she would start praying “Lord show me the way, or Lord show me what to do

And very soon grandma would know where the way was or what to do

Is God concerns with are little problems

Of course He is

He is concerned about each little sparrow that falls to the ground.

Do not ever get the impression that God is so big He is not concerned about you.

He loves every one of his children and cares about each of our problems and obligations.

So circumstances can not bother us who have soul peace.

Christians need not live in the dark

Despite how circumstances look, the peace of God is not reserved for special people

The peace that God gives is for all His children

The disciples thought Jesus had come exclusively for the Jews.

Then on day some Greeks came to them.

The disciples asked

What do you gentiles want

They replied, we would see Jesus.

Jesus did not turn them away

Oh, no  His peace is for all mankind

Philip shared Christ with the Ethiopian eunuch, and the Bible says he went on his way rejoicing

That is soul peace

Consecrated, dedicated believer,

You and I can have that same soul peace

Neither death nor life nor principalities or powers or fear or anything else can touch you when you have the peace of God in your soul.

Legal rights will not give you peace.

Affluent businessmen and sportsmen with money and cocaine won’t find peace.

The devil fools people into believing there is peace in drugs

There is no peace through needles, bennies, speed, smack, heroin or anything else of its kind.

Soul peace comes only through the Lord Jesus.

Any Christian can have this peace, even though we are not perfect

All of us have to go to a clinic now and then.

We all get weak now and then

All of us get bruised now and then

Christ is compassionate and tenderhearted to the bruised reed.

Our Savior is tenderhearted

He doesn’t break the bruised reed

A Christian can have the peace of God if he is obeying the word and talking with the Lord.

Peace knows no boundaries

It reaches out to all men

Our text not only tells us that the peace of God comes from Christ and that peace in our soul passes all human understanding.

But it also tells us that,

The peace of God which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus

Peace of God protects our hearts form gloom and depression

Verse 4 rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice.

People are dying from broken hearts, from frustration, from un-fulfillment.

People are so depressed, so gloomy

But the peace of God will protect you from the depth of depression that makes you want to die.

The cross did not cause gloom and depression to the Lord.

In fact, the cross did just the opposite.

The bible states in Hebrews12:2

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Getting ready for the crucifixion, nailed, stretched out, thirsty, naked, wearing a crown of thorns- gloom and depression

No Joy How could Jesus have joy in those trying circumstances

He saw the sins of all mankind and knew that He was about to pay the penalty – to die in the sinner’s place

But there was no gloom or depression on His part.

I think it is a terrible testimony for Christians to walk around depressed and gloomy all the time

What a false picture of the peace of God

A lost person cannot have the peace of God.

He is lost

He has not experienced peace with God;

Therefore, his soul may be in terrible shape

But when on trusts Christ,

I d not expect him to be walking around like a hound dog with his nose to the ground

I do not expect him to project gloom or have a frown on his face

I do not expect him to go to psychologists to check out his feelings.

I do not expect him to be sour , dark and forbidding

The peace of God in our souls protects us from gloom and depression.

The bible says His peace shall keep our hearts and minds.

Walking with the Lord gives you protection from gloom and depression.

God will guard your heart, just like the government guards Fort Knox

So a Christian who is right with God will not be gloomy, depressed, always sour, always thinking life will get worse.

The word of God tells me so very beautifully that I will greatly rejoice in my Lord

Isaiah says

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God

For he hath clothed me with garments of salvation

He has covered me with the robe of righteousness

No more will I be walking around in a depressed state.

You throw out the question

Preacher, what happens when you lose your job.

That’s all right God has got another one for me

What if you have an accident

That’s all right, I did not get killed

What about your emotional needs., your children your wife,

That’s all right Jesus is my everything

It is virtually impossible to disturb one who has anchored his soul at Calvary and committed himself to the sovereignty of an all wise and Almighty God.

He cannot be touched

He cannot be reached

He cannot be moved

He has the peace of God.

When the doctor says, you have cancer

He says praise the Lord, I am going home

No child of God should be gloomy, depressed or in despair

The peace of God in the soul protects the heart form self sufficiency.

Let your requests be made known to God

Verse 6

Self sufficiency doesn’t do the heart or soul any good as far as obtaining peace is concerned.

Some people are so proud they won’t tell God about their troubles.

But strong Christians cry out to God and make their requests known to Him

Others strut around saying I am man enough

I can make it alone

No you can not  you need the Lord

I am reminded of self sufficient Samson

God gave him great strength, strength to slay thousands of philistines.

The secret of his strength was in his hair.

It revealed his Nasserite separation to God.

But he got a bad haircut one day

While he was sleeping Delilah had his hair cut.

His strength was then gone.

But he didn’t know it.

When he was awakened the philistines were at his door

He thought, well ill take care of these fellows as I have always done.

Previously they had been slain by Samson or had run from him

But this time they took him

Why, self sufficiency

He forgot his power was not in his hands, but in Gods

Often we need to be reminded that our sufficiency is of God.

Without his help, we are not adequate to save lives.

The condition of your soul, child of God,

Depends upon your relationship to Christ,

Upon your Christ likeness

Your character, your disposition.

The purity of your mind and body, the gentleness that you have with someone else,

All reveal the depth of your walk with the Lord

Practice speaking kindly

When the woman was taken in adultery, the scribes and Pharisees must have been rather rough with her

But Jesus spoke to her kindly

Oh that we would speak kindly not just to sinners

But to one another

We must guard our minds from wrong thoughts because as we think

So are we

We need to bring all our thoughts into captivity

We need to live our lives Christ like

So the condition of our heart our soul

Is dependent on how close we walk with the Lord and how much time we spend in the word.

Daily, Christians should desire the peace of God

The world gives a false peace

If a man has a little money in the bank and a good job and he has all his physical desires satisfied ,  he thinks he has it made

You don’t have real peace until you have peace with God through Christ.

And you don’t have the peace of God until you walk like a Christian ought to walk,

Talk like a Christian ought to talk,

And act like a Christian ought to act

In addition to the blessing of peace with God within

You won’t have to worry about unconfused sin or a grudge you had against somebody

Your can look the world in the face and say

I am a Christian

Every day of your life you will desire the peace of God

Please do not misunderstand

You will not always have it easy

God will test your spiritual condition from time to time

He will put some clouds in your life to test your spiritual temperature

But when you have the peace of God in your soul, the Devil can do you no harm

You can tell the Devil, move back, Devil, you are on holy ground,

With Gods peace in your heart,

The troubles of this world can do you no harm.

And with God’s peace in your heart, you know the sinful lifestyles of the world won’t tempt you

Drunkenness parting, good timing or making money

The goal in life for some is to make money

If you think money will bring you happiness you are going to be sorely disappointed

We can look the work in the face, but her lifestyle cannot entice us

God promised peace, and when we have this peace we can say

The world did not give me this peace, and the world can not take it away

Only Jesus gives peace

Your heart can sing the song of old.

Tell me, how did you feel when you cam out of the wilderness.

How did you feel

Did you feel happy

Did your soul feel happy when you came out of the wilderness

Thank God, I have experienced the peace of God and the peace with God.

You too my have experienced that peace.

Now if you are saved but have not experienced that peace of God,

Allow the Lord to have first place in your heart and life.

Yield to Him today