The Gift of Peace

 

Jesus said,

Peace I leave with you. 

My peace I give to you. 

I do not give to you as the world gives. 

Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful.

John 14:27

Jesus parting gift to his disciples is the Gift of Peace. What is the difference between the peace that Jesus offered and the peace we exchange when we wish one another? What we offer one another is our wish to live in peace with one another. It is down to earth, human. It is our wish for our families, companies or nations to live in peace without any conflicts.

The Hebrew word for peace, shalom (שׁלום) is derived from a root denoting wholeness, salvation, one with God and neighbor. This is the word used when Jews greet each other giving and receiving peace from one another. It was this gift of Shalom with which Jesus was blessing his disciples.

Jesus said, “I give you my peace and my gift is nothing like what the world has to offer.” The peace that Christ has to offer is not the absence of problems and conflicts, but the confidence of the living presence of God with us and in us. It is the assurance that God is in control and will help us through it all come what may, and whatever be the outcome. It is the blessed assurance that all is well with our Souls. 

The peace that Jesus offers is not merely absence of war. Nor is it great wealth or worldly comforts. These give tangible benefits for a temporary period of time. Often they do more damage to our hearts and minds if we begin to crave for them. Jesus offers peace in our souls that our sins have been forgiven and we can live in a loving relationship with the Living God who will guide and lead us through our lives. It is the peace that came from the blood Christ shed on the old rugged cross (Colossians 1:20).

One of my favorite hymns that comforts me and fills me with hope in times of trials is, ‘It is well with my soul.’ It was written by Horatio G. Spafford following a family tragedy in which his four daughters died aboard the S.S. Ville du Havre on a transatlantic voyage. In this hymn he affirms that it is well with his soul despite the trials and tribulations that he faces in his life. He is confident that he has been forgiven and one day he will see the Lord. It is the peace he knows deep within his soul.

Paul says, “Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans‬ ‭5:1)‬ He goes on to say that we can rejoice because problems and hardship help to develop endurance, character and hope in Christ Jesus.

Paul says, “Be Anxious for Nothing, but in Everything By Prayer and Supplication, with Thanksgiving, Let your Requests be made known to God”( Philippians 4:6-7). He says that we should turn our anxieties and fears over to Jesus. When we do that, the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.The troubles and fears that crop up in this world are only temporary, Christ is always in control of our lives. The blessed assurance that Christ offers is everlasting peace within us. Christ is our Peace.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, even as we contemplate the mystery of your pain, suffering and the blood shed on the old rugged cross, we thank you for the gift of everlasting peace you have offered us in You. Help us to follow in the ways you have set for us and one day come to share in the glory prepared for us. Amen

The Way

 

Jesus said,

I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. 

No one comes to the Father except through Me.

John 14:6

Time after time Jesus told his disciples throughout his ministry that he was going away. The disciples really did not grasp what he meant by that. Nor did his disciples ever imagine that the way he eventually goes away would be “The Way of the Cross”. When Thomas frankly asked Jesus at the last supper where he was going, Jesus spoke of himself as the way, the truth and the life. What did Jesus mean when he took three themes of the Jewish faith and declared that it was fulfilled in him? Eugene Peterson says, there are two biblical characterizations for people of faith disciple and pilgrim. Disciple (mathetes) are apprentices to our master, Jesus Christ. We live in a growing-learning relationship. The Pilgrim (parepidemos) are people who spend their lives heading home. To be a disciple and pilgrim is to make a conscious decision to go the way Christ leads us, believing that all our concerns, desires, and talents, find the way to integrate all our interests, passions, and gifts, with our present problems and needs, and our eternal hopes and expectations. It is following the way the Lord leads us to green pastures that nourish and strengthen us for the growth and understanding of the work he gives us to do. He empowers us to persevere and endure the hardship that come our way by standing beside us and guiding us along the way to our eternal home.

1. Jesus referred to himself as “The Way.” The One through whom all who seek to approach God must pass to enter into fellowship with God the Father. It was the prayer of David in Psalm 86:11, “Teach me thy ways, O Lord.”  Or John the Baptist cry (Mark 1:3), “Prepare the way of the Lord,” also found in Isaiah 40:3. It was Christ’s way of saying that I am with you and in you and will lead you in the way you should go to live in fellowship with God. It is interesting to note early Jewish Christians in the first century referred to themselves as followers of “The Way” (Acts 9:2). However in Antioch the Non Jewish followers of Christ first referred to themselves as Christians (Acts11:26 -  Χριστιανούς (Christianous) From Christos; a Christian, i.e. Follower of Christ.)

2. Jesus said he is “The Truth.” Jesus was the only person who could claim to be the very embodiment of truth. He lived a life without sin. All of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. It is Christ alone in whom we can call upon in truth to live in fellowship with God. It is through Christ we come to know God. It is his wise words that enter into our hearts and minds filling us with the joy of living in fellowship with God (Proverbs 2:10).

3. Jesus said he is “The Life.” To the Samaritan woman at the well, he said he would give her springs of living water that would quench her thirst for God. The springs of living water is also a reference to the fountain of life (Psalm 36:9). Here the Psalmist says, “For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.” Jesus says in John 4:14, “ But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” Eternal life is based on the promises of God (The Truth), not how we feel or think. The eternal life we receive when we believe in Christ is not only here on earth but goes on eternally to our divine life in The Trinity.

The way Jesus portrayed to the disciples, was a living parable of washing their feet before the last supper. He said they should do the same by being humble and loving in their ways of reaching out to the world. How can we humbly and faithfully practice the example of servant leadership that Jesus showed ? Jesus is the way through whom our prayers go to God the Father. This way Jesus paved for the whole world was by dying on the old rugged cross, he saved us from our sins and defeated death. The curtain that separated us from God was torn. Now we all have access to God the Father through Jesus who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Jesus blazed the trail for us to journey through life to our home in Heaven. He has promised to be with us not only in this life but to be with us when we pass on from this world to he next. Christ says, “I am with you and in you and will lead you in the way you should go to live in fellowship with God.”

Lord Jesus, Show me your ways,

Teach me your paths. 

Guide me in your truth, 

For you are my God, 

My life is in your hands.

Amen.

The Helper

 

Jesus said,

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.

John 14:26

Jesus speaks to his disciples telling them that the time for his departure is looming ahead. Be that as it may, God the Father will send the Holy Spirit (Paraklētos) as an emmisary for Jesus. The actual Greek word used is Παράκλητος (Paraklētos) means advocate, intercessor, consoler, comforter, or helper. An Advocate will plead on their behalf before God about their trials and tribulations with God’s laws. A Comforter will calm, console and cheer them through the great challenges they face in their ministry.

The Holy Spirit will play a role in two key areas of their lives. The Holy Spirit will teach and remind them and all of us who follow Jesus in the years to come of things, as he had been doing with them during his time with them.

1. Teach (Direct or Admonish) us all things :- To be a disciple of Christ is to be continuously learning to walk humbly with the Lord. It is to seek God’s will through the highs and lows of life. To be listening to the prompting of the Holy Spirit and reading God’s Word as the Spirit guides us as we grow in understanding of the truth of God.

2. Bring to remembrance (call to mind) all things :- The Psalmists (Psalm 119:11) says, “Your word have I hid in my heart that I may not sin against Thee”. The Holy Spirit brings truths to us when we face tough choices and enticing temptations. The key role the Holy Spirit plays in these times is as an early warning to keep us away from trouble. 

Ignorance is bliss they say. A person who doesn’t know about a problem doesn’t worry about it. Spiritual ignorance or blindness can equally be damning for us too. Let us pray for the Holy Spirit to alert, guide and council us through our life’s journey. The Holy Spirit lives with and in us, and opens the eyes of our hearts to see the truth. Along with guiding us to do good works, and live lives that are pleasing to God.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, you know what it was to be tempted when you fasted for forty days in the wilderness. Give us grace to restrain ourselves and live in obedience to your words. You know our weaknesses and nothing is hidden from you. Pray for grace to live faithfully in your sight all the days of our lives. Amen.

Walking with Jesus

Whoever says, “I abide in Him,” 

Ought to walk just as Jesus walked.

1 John 2:6

In 1 John, the Apostle John writes this letter at a time when there were many false teachers leading Christs followers away from the faith. He wanted the followers to continue to live in fellowship with God and one another just as he had all the years of his long life on earth. So St.John emphasized three aspect of God in his letter.

1.    God is love and invites us to abide in God’s love. 

2.    God is light and we have fellowship with God when we walk in God’s light. 

3.    When we abide in Christ and Christ lives in our hearts, God gives us eternal life.

How do we come to know Christ in our hearts, minds and daily lives? It is by reading the Bible and how he reveals himself to his followers and the whole world. Through Christ’s life and ministry we come to see a God who loves us and wants us to live in loving fellowship with him and other followers. To know Christ is to let  his words speak to us and walk in the light of his words. So St.John says if we say we abide in Christ we must walk in the footsteps of Jesus and all those who followed after him. 

Prayer

Lord Jesus dispel all the darkness that surrounds me and be the light of my life. Teach me to walk in your words of faith, hope and love. Amen.

Love Rules

In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis sheds his practical light on The Rule of Love. "The rule for all of us is perfectly simple. Do not waste time bothering whether you love your neighbor, act as if you did, as soon as we do this, we find one of the greatest secrets.” When we behave like we love someone, we will come to love, or hate less. When we base our deeds on faith and love in the grand scheme of life, God reveals to us the good.

How do we faith it until we make it? Prayer is our litmus test to see where we stand with the Lord. When we pray we should examine our lives to see what we do with our intentions. When we busy ourselves trying to live pure lives in a way just so that others may admire our dedication we are on shaky ground. Then again there are times when our hearts are filled with anxiety and anger, our hearts get darkened, and in the end faith in God becomes a struggle. Sometimes, we find ourselves listening to all the perfect precepts but never practicing them. This usually leads us to pointless contemplation and controversy, and we sometimes find ourselves leading double lives.  How can we lead transformed lives?

Jesus Christ alone through the Holy Spirit working in our hearts and minds can bring about this transformation. We ask the Holy Spirit to come into our lives and direct us to do His will. What is the will of God? Jesus clearly tells us that the Golden Rule is to love God and our neighbor (Mark 12:30-31). It is in these relationships of love that our faith resides. St. Paul further illustrates this by saying that if he has the gifts of tongues but no love within him, he is nothing but a clanging cymbal or noisy gong (1 Corinthians 13:1). He ends the chapter saying three remain in his heart, faith, hope and love, the greatest of these is love (1 Corinthians 13:13).

To St. Paul, the essence of it all was faith expressing itself in love (Gal 5:6). When we lead our lives closely governed by the law, we become a slave to the law. But if we live our lives governed by the gospel of grace we find ourselves free to love and forgive. Seeing through the lens of love our thoughts and actions find a new reality in life. Our focus is no longer on the law but on our relationship with Jesus Christ and others.

We must see faith and love as gifts from God. Using these gifts in our daily lives will lead to a beautiful fruitful life. Faith that leads us to deeds of love is to base our work on the Golden Rules of Love.

Prayer

Lord please draw near to us, that we may come to know you and open our hearts to your presence in our inner being. Ignite our darkened hearts and minds haunted by anxieties and fears with the light of your love. May we by your grace come to love you and our neighbors. Amen