they may lay hold on eternal life" (I Timothy 6:19).
God's Perfect Peace
There is nothing like God's perfect peace. It is like a
refreshing, cleansing, cool, rushing river. It is that living water that
Jesus told the lady at the well about, "If thou knewest the gift of God,
and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked
of him, and he would have given thee living water" (John 4: 10). The woman
didn't understand that Jesus was not speaking of drawing physical water from
the well, but His life giving well spring of life, "Jesus answered and
said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever
drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water
that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting
life" (John 4: 13-14).
God's peace is a well spring that has no end. God will pick you up and refresh you time and again with renewed strength, "Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint" (Isaiah 40: 28-31).
In the presence of God, there is liberty, "Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (II Corinthians 3: 17). Where God is, it doesn't matter what the situation may be, there is peace, joy, strength, and liberty. The first martyr, Stephen, was being gnashed upon by an angry, Christ rejecting crowd, "But he (Stephen), being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God" (Acts 7: 55-56). They then cast Stephen out of the city and stoned him, "And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep" (Acts 7: 59-60). In the midst of persecution and death, God is there. Stephen was filled with the Holy Ghost and was able to overcome the onslaught that came against him because of the victorious presence of God. His strength was not in himself, but entirely in Jesus Christ.
When everything is falling apart, God's perfect peace will keep you. It is everlasting and will abide with you, if you keep your eyes fastened solely on Jesus, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee" (Isaiah 26: 3). Trust in God at all times, "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths" (Proverbs 3: 5-6). If you trust and keep your eyes on Jesus, God will give you His perfect peace. This does not mean that you will be exempt from trouble, but that God will strengthen you in the midst of your fight.
So many are looking for peace and do not know where to find it. People are looking to fill the void in their heart, but they do not know why it is there. They cannot understand that no matter how hard they try, the emptiness does not go away. Some turn to drugs or alcohol to replace their emptiness, others engage in pornography or immorality. Others bury themselves in their work, or press themselves to achieve some worldly accomplishment. Many are completely absorbed with sports and entertainment.
Instead of spending time in prayer and Bible study, people that claim to be followers of Jesus Christ, spend hours in front of ungodly television sets, where filth, murder, violence, and every sort of evil is glamorized. Marriages are being destroyed because of the influence of pornography. God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah because of its lewd ungodliness. How many homes today have become Sodom and Gomorrahs because of the television set or internet? Never in history has there been a time when people can have such easy access to sin and evil.
Churches are turning away from the truth and falling away from the faith. Homosexuals are being ordained ministers, sin is winked at, watered down messages are delivered from pulpits with only the desire to tickle people's ears. Church buildings are getting bigger to house the increased demand to give the people what they want to hear.
From all exteriors, people appear to be really happy. They have what they want and are satisfied by getting it. All the while, people are still looking for peace, and the only true peace is found in Jesus Christ. Nothing can satisfy like the peace that God gives. Jesus will take our burdens and replace the desire for worldly satisfactions with the desire to spend time with Him.
Where the Spirit of The Lord is there is liberty and He will sustain you, if you will continually keep your eyes on Him, "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever thing are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you" (Phillipians 4: 8-9). You cannot get true peace from a pill or any other substitute. Only God can provide lasting contentment.
Paul instructs us that it is prayer and supplication with thanksgiving that settles your heart to the peace of God, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Phillipians 4: 6-7).
Pray to God with thanksgiving, trust and seek Him at all times, and God will give you His perfect peace. If you feel you have nothing left and that nothing ever seems to go as planned, then look up to Jesus. Call out to Him, read God's Word, and stand on it. This does not mean that you will always feel victorious. It is where faith comes in. Exercise your faith by trusting in God and keeping your eyes on Jesus, and you will have God's perfect peace.
Jesus breathed on the disciples and they received the Holy Ghost, "Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord. Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost" (John 20: 19-22).
It is the Holy Ghost that brings rivers of living water and gives you refreshing peace. The Holy Spirit is given to you as the Comforter, "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." (John 14: 16-18). "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you" (John 14: 26). Then, we are given God's perfect peace, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid" (John 14: 27).
Trust and keep your eyes on Jesus, and do not let the things of this world rob you of God's perfect peace. There are many distractions to get your mind off of the things of God, but in Christ only is there true, everlasting peace. He is the One that gives His well spring of life, and the world cannot take this away. It is you only that can distance yourself from God. He is always there, promising to never leave you nor forsake you. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. His Word is true and cannot fail. It is the enemy that lies and distorts the truth and says that God's promises are not for you. You must stand upon the Word of God and trust in Christ at all times, even when you do not feel a thing and your flesh tells you to give up. Hold on, and God will strengthen you.
If you fret over things as Martha, and do not allow yourself to rest at Jesus' feet, you will not be able to have God's perfect peace, "Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word. But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her" (Luke 10: 38-42).
Jesus was telling Martha to come and sit at His feet like her sister Mary. Mary was receiving of The Lord and focusing on what was truly important and could never be taken away from her. Instead of frantically scrambling to get things done, Mary was enjoying Christ's presence and hearing His Word. Jesus was saying to Martha that He was all that she needed and that she should rest in Him. He was letting her know that sitting in her home was the One who was able to calm all her fears, hush all her tremblings, and carry all her burdens. She needed to stop, so that she could see that the things of this world will perish and the love of Christ was with her to ensure her of His perfect peace.
People do not stop long enough to realize what is truly important. Many are just like Martha, cumbered about with much serving, taking little or no time at all to sit at the feet of Jesus. They are seeking after everything, but the One that can give them true peace. The things of the world will pass away, but he that does the will of God will abide forever. Trust and keep your mind on Christ. This is where you will find true, perfect peace, that only God can give!
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God's peace is a well spring that has no end. God will pick you up and refresh you time and again with renewed strength, "Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint" (Isaiah 40: 28-31).
In the presence of God, there is liberty, "Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (II Corinthians 3: 17). Where God is, it doesn't matter what the situation may be, there is peace, joy, strength, and liberty. The first martyr, Stephen, was being gnashed upon by an angry, Christ rejecting crowd, "But he (Stephen), being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God" (Acts 7: 55-56). They then cast Stephen out of the city and stoned him, "And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep" (Acts 7: 59-60). In the midst of persecution and death, God is there. Stephen was filled with the Holy Ghost and was able to overcome the onslaught that came against him because of the victorious presence of God. His strength was not in himself, but entirely in Jesus Christ.
When everything is falling apart, God's perfect peace will keep you. It is everlasting and will abide with you, if you keep your eyes fastened solely on Jesus, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee" (Isaiah 26: 3). Trust in God at all times, "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths" (Proverbs 3: 5-6). If you trust and keep your eyes on Jesus, God will give you His perfect peace. This does not mean that you will be exempt from trouble, but that God will strengthen you in the midst of your fight.
So many are looking for peace and do not know where to find it. People are looking to fill the void in their heart, but they do not know why it is there. They cannot understand that no matter how hard they try, the emptiness does not go away. Some turn to drugs or alcohol to replace their emptiness, others engage in pornography or immorality. Others bury themselves in their work, or press themselves to achieve some worldly accomplishment. Many are completely absorbed with sports and entertainment.
Instead of spending time in prayer and Bible study, people that claim to be followers of Jesus Christ, spend hours in front of ungodly television sets, where filth, murder, violence, and every sort of evil is glamorized. Marriages are being destroyed because of the influence of pornography. God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah because of its lewd ungodliness. How many homes today have become Sodom and Gomorrahs because of the television set or internet? Never in history has there been a time when people can have such easy access to sin and evil.
Churches are turning away from the truth and falling away from the faith. Homosexuals are being ordained ministers, sin is winked at, watered down messages are delivered from pulpits with only the desire to tickle people's ears. Church buildings are getting bigger to house the increased demand to give the people what they want to hear.
From all exteriors, people appear to be really happy. They have what they want and are satisfied by getting it. All the while, people are still looking for peace, and the only true peace is found in Jesus Christ. Nothing can satisfy like the peace that God gives. Jesus will take our burdens and replace the desire for worldly satisfactions with the desire to spend time with Him.
Where the Spirit of The Lord is there is liberty and He will sustain you, if you will continually keep your eyes on Him, "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever thing are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you" (Phillipians 4: 8-9). You cannot get true peace from a pill or any other substitute. Only God can provide lasting contentment.
Paul instructs us that it is prayer and supplication with thanksgiving that settles your heart to the peace of God, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Phillipians 4: 6-7).
Pray to God with thanksgiving, trust and seek Him at all times, and God will give you His perfect peace. If you feel you have nothing left and that nothing ever seems to go as planned, then look up to Jesus. Call out to Him, read God's Word, and stand on it. This does not mean that you will always feel victorious. It is where faith comes in. Exercise your faith by trusting in God and keeping your eyes on Jesus, and you will have God's perfect peace.
Jesus breathed on the disciples and they received the Holy Ghost, "Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord. Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost" (John 20: 19-22).
It is the Holy Ghost that brings rivers of living water and gives you refreshing peace. The Holy Spirit is given to you as the Comforter, "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you." (John 14: 16-18). "But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you" (John 14: 26). Then, we are given God's perfect peace, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid" (John 14: 27).
Trust and keep your eyes on Jesus, and do not let the things of this world rob you of God's perfect peace. There are many distractions to get your mind off of the things of God, but in Christ only is there true, everlasting peace. He is the One that gives His well spring of life, and the world cannot take this away. It is you only that can distance yourself from God. He is always there, promising to never leave you nor forsake you. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. His Word is true and cannot fail. It is the enemy that lies and distorts the truth and says that God's promises are not for you. You must stand upon the Word of God and trust in Christ at all times, even when you do not feel a thing and your flesh tells you to give up. Hold on, and God will strengthen you.
If you fret over things as Martha, and do not allow yourself to rest at Jesus' feet, you will not be able to have God's perfect peace, "Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word. But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her" (Luke 10: 38-42).
Jesus was telling Martha to come and sit at His feet like her sister Mary. Mary was receiving of The Lord and focusing on what was truly important and could never be taken away from her. Instead of frantically scrambling to get things done, Mary was enjoying Christ's presence and hearing His Word. Jesus was saying to Martha that He was all that she needed and that she should rest in Him. He was letting her know that sitting in her home was the One who was able to calm all her fears, hush all her tremblings, and carry all her burdens. She needed to stop, so that she could see that the things of this world will perish and the love of Christ was with her to ensure her of His perfect peace.
People do not stop long enough to realize what is truly important. Many are just like Martha, cumbered about with much serving, taking little or no time at all to sit at the feet of Jesus. They are seeking after everything, but the One that can give them true peace. The things of the world will pass away, but he that does the will of God will abide forever. Trust and keep your mind on Christ. This is where you will find true, perfect peace, that only God can give!
Rich Fyke
Eternal Life Ministries
P.O. Box 23453
Belleville, IL 62223-0453
etrnlife@midwest.net
http://home.midwest.net/~etrnlife/
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