I was thinking about how hard it is to know peace at the moment - personally, when I can’t breathe properly and my body won’t behave itself, when I’m anxious about my family and friends, when I’m left with feelings of helplessness and despair at the suffering Covid 19 has brought worldwide, when I’m going stir crazy at home and long to hold my kids and grandsons . . . how can I know peace?
And then, as a Christian, I add GUILT to that toxic mix! Shouldn’t I be experiencing peace every moment if I really trusted God? what sort of witness am I - even if nobody except Graham can see my angst behind my closed doors?
It seems my first step is to remind myself that there is NO condemnation for those in Christ Jesus - no place for guilt, God understands me, he made me, he knows how hard life is for all of us right now . . .
Then I started thinking about this elusive concept of PEACE - and I went back to some sermons I’d preached a few years back, and the wisdom of trusted preachers I'd heard talking on Peace and decided its time I started practising what I, and they, preached!
So here are a few thoughts on peace - and some Scriptures which I hope will help you if you are struggling with finding peace in these strange times. Maybe you’re not having a problem at all - in which case please tell me your secret.
John 20:19-23 and Luke 2:13-14
“Peace be with you” “Peace to men on whom his favour rests”
Shalom
I don't know what you think about when you think of the word peace?
Shalom was and is a Hebrew greeting – hello, peace.
So in this story Jesus – whose lifeless body only three days ago had been taken down from the cross and buried in a tomb – was he just appearing to his friends and saying “Hi! Surprise surprise!” ?
“Peace” is not just lack of conflict, harmony, quiet – in Hebrew Peace is only one small part of the meaning of the word SHALOM.
A Concordance definition of Shalom is peace, harmony, wholeness, completeness, welfare, tranquillity, prosperity, perfectness, fullness, rest, the absence of agitation or discord - I put all those on my wish list!
The root verb Shalom means to be complete, perfect and full.
Hundreds of Hebrew words come from SH-L-M
Shelem means to pay for, and Shulam means to be fully paid - echoes of our redemption?
Sar SHALOM (Prince of Peace) is of course one of the names the Bible uses of the Messiah:
Isaiah 9:6 –
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Sar Shalom)
The angels announced shalom (Luke 2:14), people who were healed were told to “go in shalom”, the people sang about it on Palm Sunday (Luke 19:38) and when Jesus wept over Jerusalem he wept because they didn’t understand his coming meant shalom (salvation).
Before he died Jesus said he left his followers shalom.
John 14:27 “Peace (shalom) I leave with you, my shalom I give to you. I do not give you as the world gives”
John 16:33 “I have told you these things that in me you may have shalom – peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart, I have overcome the world”
We certainly have trouble in this world! But the word tells us that God’s peace – shalom – is not threatened by the world’s circumstances, by covid 19, by tragedies or joys, pains or pleasures – shalom has to do with a wholeness, a well-being, a place of safety and salvation that is outside of anything this world can offer.
The worlds understanding of peace is based on a humanistic, ancient Greek philosophical understanding of life – that peace is a state of being – something that can be found through circumstances, through meditation, through reaching goals so that we can get a feeling of wellbeing.
That is not how the Bible defines peace.
Shalom is ultimately only found in relationship with God through Jesus Christ – He is our shalom.
Paul gives us the recipe for finding shalom in Phil.4:4-9; 11-13.
God’s shalom is supernatural and lifts us above our circumstances – well-being, assurance, safety, hope can only come from God.
JESUS is our shalom.
But does all that help?
I have discovered that knowing these things in my mind is one things, but unless they move from my head to my heart they are worthless. and in a time such as this, I need to KNOW peace in my heart.
and I can only know shalom if I know and understand that I am fully known and fully loved, that whatever my circumstances NOTHING can separate me from God’s love in Christ.
I am still working on that on a daily basis!
Numbers 6:24ff
“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face towards you and give you shalom – peace”
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