Perfect peace

Luke 1:76-79 (NIV)

“And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for Him, to give His people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.”

These prophetic words were spoken by Zacharias, filled with the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:87), and father of John the Baptist.  I wish to focus on the last part of this passage…….”to guide our feet into the path of peace”. 

We live in a world that is an affront to the imagery of peace.  We live in a world filled with noise pollution, busy schedules, fast cars, job pressures, deadlines, economic roller coasters, stress points all around us.  The only time you might have some experience of peace and quiet is after the kids are asleep, but it’s late and you are exhausted.  Even vacations can be hectic whether driving or flying and when you arrive home and have to return to the stressful business world, you do not feel “re-created”. 

The Bible claims that God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is a source of peace.  You’ve heard of the Hebrew word “shalom”?  Shalom is the Old Testament Hebrew word for peace, e.g. Pslam 29:11, 35:37, 73:3, and Isaiah 26:3.  The New Testament Greek word for peace is “eirene” that has the same meaning as shalom (e.g. Luke 2:14, Romans 5:1; Mark 9:50, John 14:27).  . 

So what does the Bible say is the answer for you having peace of mind and heart in your life?  Well, first, to reiterate, God is the source of peace.  If you are trying to find it in other ways and places, you’re not going to find it.  Second, peace is a result of sincere faith that you conscientiously choose to believe with all your heart that God is in control and you trust Him to work things out in your life.  The classic book by Billy Graham, Peace With God (Thomas Nelson, revised edition, 2000), elaborates on what peace with God really means in the life of a Christian. 

The more you understand what the Bible teaches about peace, the more your life will be at peace with Him and with the world around you.  May I suggest that you spend some time studying not only the passages already given above, but also the following---Psalm 119:165, Proverbs 3:13-17, John 16:33 , Romans 8:6, Romans 14:17-19, Galatians 5:22-23, Ephesians 2:14-18, Philippians 4:6-7, Colossians 3:15, Hebrews 12:14. Let the Word of God become richly ingrained in your mind and heart and have a great effect on the actions that you take 

Are you at perfect peace with your life?  What must you do to have God’s peace?  How would you define  the peace of God?  What Bible verse means the most to you?  And meditate on these profound words of wisdom:

“Christianity means certainty, security, and peace of mind” –- Billy Graham

“Lack of peace means that you are outside the will of God” –- Unknown

“Peace rules your life when Christ rules your mind” – -Unknown