The Peace of God

Peace.  What does the word conjure up in your mind?  Peace and quiet?  Peace and harmony? Five minutes peace?  Peace after the storm?

The dictionary defines it as:

1.

the normal, nonwarring condition of a nation, group of nations, or the world.

2.

( often initial capital letter  ) an agreement or treaty between warring or antagonistic nations, groups, etc., to end hostilities and abstain from further fighting or antagonism: the Peace of Ryswick.

3.

a state of mutual harmony between people or groups, especially in personal relations: Try to live in peace with your neighbors.

4.

the normal freedom from civil commotion and violence of a community; public order and security: He was arrested for being drunk and disturbing the peace.

5.

cessation of or freedom from any strife or dissension.

It is interesting that twice in there it uses the word ‘normal’.  Peace is the way things are meant to be, yet so often it feels that the opposite is true.

John 14:23-29  (CEV)

²³ Jesus replied:

If anyone loves me, they will obey me. Then my Father will love them, and we will come to them and live in them. ²⁴ But anyone who doesn’t love me, won’t obey me. What they have heard me say doesn’t really come from me, but from the Father who sent me.

²⁵ I have told you these things while I am still with you. ²⁶ But the Holy Spirit will come and help you, because the Father will send the Spirit to take my place. The Spirit will teach you everything and will remind you of what I said while I was with you.

²⁷ I give you peace, the kind of peace that only I can give. It isn’t like the peace that this world can give. So don’t be worried or afraid.

²⁸ You have already heard me say that I am going and that I will also come back to you. If you really love me, you should be glad that I am going back to the Father, because he is greater than I am.

²⁹ I am telling you this before I leave, so that when it does happen, you will have faith in me.

This passage is part of Jesus promise of the Holy Spirit.  It begins by saying, “Jesus replied”, so the first question is, what question is Jesus replying to?  It is a question from Judas – no, not that one:

²² The other Judas, not Judas Iscariot, then spoke up and asked, “Lord, what do you mean by saying that you will show us what you are like, but you will not show the people of this world?”

Jesus is telling them that the Holy Spirit will come and help them – and keep on living in them.  The Spirit is coming to take Jesus place.  God will still be with them.  The work of the Spirit is to remind them of all Jesus has said whilst he is with them.  Jesus is preparing them for when he is no longer with them, able to physically guide them through everything.

He tells them that he gives peace.  True peace.  Not the kind of peace that the world offers.  Not a sit down and a cup of tea; not five minutes left alone; not even the absence of battles.  Jesus’ peace is one that truly means we do not need to be worried or afraid.  A deep inner assurance of his presence, his prompting, his guiding.  Knowing, in a way that we may not be able to explain, but being sure that God is in it all with us, whatever might be going on around us.  The gentle prompting and reassurance of his presence.

And so may the peace of God, be with each and every one of us, now and always

Waiting and Wondering

This passage is a story of after the event.

You know when there has been a massive build up to something – meticulous planning, great hopes, high expectation – and even when it has gone well, there is an anti-climax feeling afterwards.  What now?  That had been the focus of your life for so long.  Now what do you do?

Imagine how it must have felt for the disciples.  Things had entirely not gone to plan – and yet, somehow it was all ok – but what was happening, what now?

John 20:19-31

The Message

To Believe

^19-20 Later on that day, the disciples had gathered together, but, fearful of the Jews, had locked all the doors in the house. Jesus entered, stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.” Then he showed them his hands and side.

^20-21 The disciples, seeing the Master with their own eyes, were exuberant. Jesus repeated his greeting: “Peace to you. Just as the Father sent me, I send you.”

^22-23 Then he took a deep breath and breathed into them. “Receive the Holy Spirit,” he said. “If you forgive someone’s sins, they’re gone for good. If you don’t forgive sins, what are you going to do with them?”

^24-25 But Thomas, sometimes called the Twin, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples told him, “We saw the Master.”

But he said, “Unless I see the nail holes in his hands, put my finger in the nail holes, and stick my hand in his side, I won’t believe it.”

²⁶ Eight days later, his disciples were again in the room. This time Thomas was with them. Jesus came through the locked doors, stood among them, and said, “Peace to you.”

²⁷ Then he focused his attention on Thomas. “Take your finger and examine my hands. Take your hand and stick it in my side. Don’t be unbelieving. Believe.”

²⁸ Thomas said, “My Master! My God!”

²⁹ Jesus said, “So, you believe because you’ve seen with your own eyes. Even better blessings are in store for those who believe without seeing.”

^30-31 Jesus provided far more God-revealing signs than are written down in this book. These are written down so you will believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and in the act of believing, have real and eternal life in the way he personally revealed it.

They locked themselves away, worried and afraid.  And Jesus came to them.  He allowed them to touch his wounds, his pain, to do what they needed to – to be sure that he was real, that it had all happened.

What a relief it must have been, to realise that they hadn’t imagined it.  Jesus, the Jesus they knew and head learned so much from, was alive.  This is no imposter, it was no fake death – he is here, with them, bringing them faith, hope and forgiveness.

God comes to us – where we are, meets us and allows us to touch him.

Where are you today?

In a place of joy at the Risen Lord?  Or more in a place of despair, disillusionment, in a place of anti-climax, feeling abandoned and bereft?

Whichever it is, the risen Jesus comes into that place and speaks his peace.  God is here, with you.

Peace to you

And as he gives us his peace, he sends us to take his peace where we go – and the forgiveness of sins.

We are now God’s disciples here on earth, filled with his peace – and called to do his work.

Lord,
help me to believe,
in you, where you are,
what you can do.

When life is good and happy,
when it is dark
and painful
may I know your presence
and your peace.

And knowing your peace,
and receiving your forgiveness,
may I share it with others
who need it too.

Kindness and Peace

Carschten [CC-BY-SA-3.0-de (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/de/deed.en)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

I would imagine if you were to ask almost anyone what they think the world needs more of, both kindness and peace would be up there in the top answers.

Revelation 1:4-8

⁴ From John to the seven churches in Asia.

I pray that you
will be blessed
with kindness and peace
from God, who is and was
and is coming.
May you receive
kindness and peace
from the seven spirits
before the throne of God.
⁵ May kindness and peace
be yours
from Jesus Christ,
the faithful witness.

Jesus was the first
to conquer death,
and he is the ruler
of all earthly kings.
Christ loves us,
and by his blood
he set us free
from our sins.
⁶ He lets us rule as kings
and serve God his Father
as priests.
To him be glory and power
forever and ever! Amen.
⁷ Look! He is coming
with the clouds.
Everyone will see him,
even the ones who stuck
a sword through him.
All people on earth
will weep because of him.
Yes, it will happen! Amen.

⁸ The Lord God says, “I am Alpha and Omega, the one who is and was and is coming. I am God All-Powerful!”

We all need people to be kind to us.  And boy does the world need peace.

Both peace and kindness find their origin in God, and all that Jesus has done for us – but they need to find their way to be a focus of our lives too.

Perhaps peace can begin with kindness.

Giving kindness can bring peace to ourselves as well as the one to whom it is offered.

Finding peace, brings us to offer peace.

Jesus offers us peace by his death on the cross conquering all those things that might rob us of peace – greed, injustice, inequality, our worries, pain, anger, shame.  He has defeated them – and offers that we might share in that.

Do we want peace?  Will we receive from Jesus all he offers us?  And will we spread his peace and kindness in the places where we are?

Lord,
I pray that there may be peace and kindness,
that we may see them in you
and know them in our lives,
that then we can pass them on to others.