The Peace of God
by Terry Wane Benton
Ezekiel 37:25-27 prophesied of Jesus (son of David) in this manner: "My servant David shall be their prince forever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore."
Zechariah 6:13 prophesied of Jesus in this manner: "Yes, He shall build the temple of the Lord. He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule on His throne; so He shall be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace shall be between them both."
John 14:25-28 records Jesus as making this claim: "These things I have spoken to you while being present with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. You have heard Me say to you, 'I am going away and coming back to you.' If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, 'I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I."
In Acts 10:36-38, Peter preaches Jesus as the means of real peace. "The word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ — He is Lord of all — that word you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which John preached."
Paul said that peace is in Jesus Christ. "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God" (Romans 5:1-2). "For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace" (Romans 8:6).
The gospel of Christ is a call to peace with God within. When we allow Jesus the preeminent place in our hearts, and His word dwells in us richly (Colossians 3:16), we learn the ways of peace, and a peace that passes all understanding guards our hearts and minds (Philippians 4:4-8). When we focus too long on the storms of life, we begin to sink and drift away from His peace. When you catch yourself drifting away from the peace of God, get your bearings, give Him the position He deserves. In Judges 6:23-24, we find this significant reminder: "Then the Lord said to him, 'Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die.' So Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it The-Lord-Is-Peace."
