Study 11 - Peace With and From God

Study 11

PEACE WITH AND FROM GOD

Before we begin our study let us pray.

Dear Heavenly Father, Almighty God,

I come before You in the Name of Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Father God, please enable me to understand Your Word. Help me to begin to comprehend the tremendous blessings You have bestowed upon me through Your Son, Jesus. Dear Lord, please bless this time with You.

Amen

INTRODUCTION

In our previous study we saw that as a born again believer in Jesus Christ we are a child of God, a temple of the Holy Spirit and have our citizenship in Heaven. Lord willing in this study we shall find that now, in our new position, we are at peace with God and can have peace from God.

To help us to understand the peace we now have in Jesus Christ, we will:

1. Briefly review some Old Testament Israelite history

2. See throughout the history of Israel God foretold a time will come when He will bring peace between Him and those who belong to Him.

3. Find that in Jesus Christ we have the promised peace with and from God.

With the above introduction in mind we now begin with a brief review of,

SOME OLD TESTAMENT HISTORY OF ISRAEL

Throughout the Old Testament history of the nation of Israel we read that the nation of Israel kept falling away from truly following God. During these times God told the Israelites that because of their sins and trespasses against Him, He will bring various judgments upon them. Throughout the Old Testament we read about many of these judgments. These judgments were done to bring the Israelites back to Him and His ways.

Amazingly enough, even after their return from their captivity from Babylon to Jerusalem, Israel continued to fall away from serving the Lord. To see this let us read how God, through His prophet was calling the people of Israel to return to Him. This is recorded in,

Zechariah 1:1-4

[1] In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying, [2] “The Lord has been very angry with your fathers. [3] Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Return to Me,” says the Lord of hosts, “and I will return to you,” says the Lord of hosts. [4] “Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets preached, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Turn now from your evil ways and your evil deeds.”’ But they did not hear nor heed Me,” says the Lord.

In reflecting upon the above one is left with the question of; “Why did Israel keep falling away?” The answer to this question is twofold.

First, as we found in previous studies, mankind’s problem is the fact that we have a fallen nature. Consequently, to truly walk with God and please Him we must live our lives by faith in Him. To see this let us consider the following,

Romans 9:30-32

[30] What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; [31] but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness. [32] Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone.

Let us notice the following verses,

30 … It was the Gentiles, those who were not Israelites, who obtained, by faith in God, righteousness.

32 … The Israelites did not pursue righteousness by faith in God. Instead they pursued it trying to diligently follow, in their own will power, strength and efforts, the Old Testament Law.

To expand upon this let us look to the example of Abraham. Abraham believed that whatever God said He would do; He will do it. Thus, when God told Abraham he was going to give him and his wife Sarah a son, even though Sarah was not physically able to have a baby and that he was too old, Abraham believed that God somehow would do it. Consequently, because of his faith and belief in God, it was accounted to him for righteousness. To see this let us read from,

Romans 4:3

[3] For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Approximately 15 years later¹ God fulfilled His promise to Abraham and Sarah. The boy’s name was Isaac (Genesis 21:1-5).

It is the same for us. Instead of trying to make ourselves holy or righteous by our own efforts or will power, we must place our faith and trust in Jesus Christ to fulfill His promise to do it for us.

The second reason for Israel’s failure to attain righteous by diligently obeying the Old Testament ceremonial laws and Temple services was because these laws and services did not have the power to change an individual. These laws were instituted to foretell of what was to come. Specifically, it was pointing to the Messiah, Jesus Christ, and the work He was going to do for us. To see this let us prayerfully read from,

Hebrews 10:1-2

[1] For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. [2] For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins.

Consequently, God also foretold that a time will come when the Messiah or Anointed One will come to bring peace between Him and His people. To see this we will read two examples of,

GOD’S PROMISE OF PEACE

In our first example notice that one of the Messiah’s Names or attributes is that He is the Prince of Peace. To read this prophecy we go to,

Isaiah 9:6-7

"[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 Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. [7] Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this."

To see that this prophecy was fulfilled in Jesus Christ, let us read what the angels said when they announced the birth of Jesus Christ to the shepherds who were living in the fields and caring for their flocks. To see this let us read from,

Luke 2:8-14

"[8] And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. [9] An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. [10] But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. [11] Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. [12] This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." [13] Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, [14] "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.""

Let us notice the following verses,

10-11 … The angel announced to the shepherds that he brings to them good tidings and great joy. He then proceeded to tell them that the promised Messiah, the Savior had been born.

14 … The angels praised God and announced that peace and goodwill towards men had come. Thus, the angels were telling them that the time had arrived. The Messiah had been born and through Him God has extended peace and goodwill to men on whom His favor rests. In other words, the Prince of Peace had come!

In the second example concerning the promise of peace we find that the Messiah or the Anointed One will not only bring peace to Israel but will also bring peace to the rest of the nations. To read this prophecy we go to,

Zechariah 9:9-10

"[9] Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. [10] I will take away the chariots from Ephraim and the war-horses from Jerusalem, and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth."

Let us notice the following verses,

9 … Through the prophet Zechariah God foretold that the Messiah, Israel's true King, who brings with Him salvation, will enter Jerusalem on a donkey amid great shouts of joy.

10 … God further foretold that the King, the promised Messiah, will extend His peace to Jerusalem and to the other nations.

To see that this prophecy was fulfilled by Jesus let us read about His triumphal entry into Jerusalem,

Matthew 21:1-11

"[1] As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, [2] saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. [3] If anyone says anything to you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away." [4] This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: [5] "Say to the Daughter of Zion, 'See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'" [6] The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. [7] They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. [8] A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. [9] The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Hosanna in the highest!" [10] When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, "Who is this?" [11] The crowds answered, "This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.""

Unfortunately, for the majority of the people of Israel, they never grasped the significance of what was going on. Specifically, they thought Jesus was only a prophet and not that He was fulfilling God’s His promise to save them and us. Consequently, just before Jesus entered into Jerusalem, He wept and lamented over it. To read what He said we go to,

Luke 19:41-44

"[41] As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it [42] and said, "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace--but now it is hidden from your eyes. [43] The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. [44] They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God's coming to you.""

Let us notice the following verses,

41-42 … Jesus wept about the fact that the people did not know that it was He, Jesus Christ, who had come to bring them peace.

43-44(a) … Jesus foretold that the days will come when Jerusalem and the Temple will be destroyed. This prophecy was fulfilled in 70AD². Approximately 37 years after Jesus’ prophecy, as the Babylonians did in the Old Testament, the Roman army under the command of General Titus came and destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple.

44(b) … The reason for this judgment was because many of the Israelites did not recognize that their Lord and God had visited them!

With all this background, let us now explore,

THE PEACE OF JESUS CHRIST

Specifically, let us now look into the peace that the born again believer has in Jesus Christ. To see that through the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ we have peace, let us read from,

Colossians 1:19-20

"[19] For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, [20] and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross."

In other words, when Jesus was preparing His disciples for His upcoming ordeal one of the things He told them was that in Him they and we will have peace. This is recorded in,

John 16:33

""[33] I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.""

Notice that Jesus tells us that the peace we have in Him is not from or with this world. To expand upon this a bit let us read one of the things Jesus said relative to the cost of being a disciple of His. It is given in,

Luke 12:51

[51] Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division.

In other words, Jesus is telling us that even though those who are born again believers desire to be at peace with all people, this will not happen. We must remember that those who are born again have been transferred into the Kingdom of God. To see this let us read from,

Colossians 1:13-14

[13] He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, [14] in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.

In addition, as children of God and citizens of His Kingdom our desire is to live a life that is pleasing to Him. To see this let us consider the following Scripture,

2 Corinthians 5:9-10

[9] Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. [10] For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

However, unfortunately those who are not born again still belong to the kingdom of the evil one and follow his ways. This is recorded for us in,

1 John 5:19

[19] We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.

More specifically, Jesus is warning us that if they, the non believers of this world, would persecute Him then do not be surprised that you too may be persecuted. To read what He said to His disciples we go to,

John 15:18-21

[18] “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. [19] If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. [20] Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also. [21] But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me.

Thus, one is left with the question of, “What kind of peace do we have in Jesus Christ?” As it turns out, in Jesus Christ we have two kinds of peace:

With God – And - Of God

The first type of peace we have in Jesus is,

PEACE WITH GOD

To see this, let us first review the essence of the Gospel. To do that, let us read from,

Colossians 2:9-14

"[9] For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, [10] and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. [11] In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, [12] having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. [13] When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, [14] having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.”

Let us notice the following verses,

9 … In other words, Jesus Christ is the second person of the Godhead and is fully God who came to earth in a physical human body.

10 … In Jesus we too have been given the divine nature. In other words, God the Holy Spirit lives inside the born again believer.

11 … Our old self (the one without the Holy Spirit) was crucified with Christ.

12 … In water baptism, by faith in God, we buried our old self and rose to new life in the resurrected Christ.

13-14 … On the cross at Calvary Jesus Christ made atonement for our sins. Specifically, He paid the debt for our sins that we could not pay. Consequently, because of His sacrifice we have been forgiven, redeemed and justified, which means to be in right standing before God.

With this in mind, let us now read from,

Romans 5:1

"[1] Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ"

In other words, since we are forgiven and have been justified through faith in Jesus Christ and what He did for us, we are now at peace with God, our Maker.

Another way to see and understand this is by reading the following excerpt from the letter to the believers in the church in Colossae.

Colossians 1:15-23

"[15] He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. [16] For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. [17] He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. [18] And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. [19] For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, [20] and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. [21] Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. [22] But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation-- [23] if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant."

Let us notice the following verses,

15-17 … All things were created by Him and for Him.

20 … In other words, God is not longer angry with us. Through Jesus Christ’s sacrifice that paid the penalty for our sins, He has extended His hand of forgiveness and fellowship to you and me.

22-23 … We are now considered by God to be without blemish and free from accusation. However to remain in this state we must continue in our faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Consequently, we have peace with God.

In addition we also discover that in Christ Jesus we have,

PEACE FROM GOD

Our first hint to this type of peace, which is different than peace with God, comes to us from reading the salutations or greetings of the epistles written by the Apostle Paul. As we read three of them notice the phrases “Grace and peace to you from God …”

Romans 1:7

"[7] To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ."

1 Corinthians 1:3

"[3] Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ."

2 Corinthians 1:2

"[2] Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ."

In reflecting upon the above Scriptures, one is left with the question of, “Are these just nice polite standard greetings of that day?” (Or) “Is there more to it?” To find out, let us read what Jesus once said about the peace we have in Him in,

John 14:27

"[27] Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

Notice what our Lord Jesus Christ said:

(1) Peace I leave with you.

(2) Peace I give to you.

(3) Be not troubled or afraid.

What did Jesus mean? To find out, let us first go to the sermon on the mountain and read how Jesus encourages us to place our complete and total trust in Him and not to allow material things to rule and control us.

Matthew 6:24-34

""[24] No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. [25] "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? [26] Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? [27] Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life ? [28] "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. [29] Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. [30] If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? [31] So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' [32] For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. [33] But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. [34] Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

This does not mean we are not work and just sit around waiting for God to miraculously provide us and our family with food, clothing and shelter. To see this let us read from,

2 Thessalonians 3:7-10

[7] For you yourselves know how you ought to follow us, for we were not disorderly among you; [8] nor did we eat anyone’s bread free of charge, but worked with labor and toil night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, [9] not because we do not have authority, but to make ourselves an example of how you should follow us. [10] For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat.

Let us notice the following verses,

7 - 8 … In the book of Acts 18:3 we discover that for his physical needs Paul worked as a tent maker.

9 … Being an apostle Paul could have asked donations from those to whom he preached and taught. But, Paul did not do that. Paul worked for two main reasons: (1) he was making himself as an example for us to follow and (2) Paul worked so he could preach and teach without charge.

10 … If anyone one does not work; they should not eat. Of course this would not apply to those who were or are ill or physically unable to work.

SUMMARY

To summarize this portion of our study let us read the following words of encouragement as recorded in,

Philippians 4:4-7

"[4] Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! [5] Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. [6] Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. [7] And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Let us notice the following verses,

4 … We are to rejoice and be thankful in the Lord always. This includes bad times along with the good.

6 … Do not worry about anything but with thanksgiving and prayer we are to present our concerns and requests to God. When we do this we must believe and trust that He not only heard us but will also answer in a way that is for our eternal benefit. Now when we do this, God promises that He will fill us with His peace. To see this, let us reread the following verse,

7 …” And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

CONCLUSION

By reading the following Psalm, let us close our study with praise and thanksgiving to our Lord and God.

Psalm 145:1-21

"[1] I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever. [2] Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever. [3] Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. [4] One generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts. [5] They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty, and I will meditate on your wonderful works. [6] They will tell of the power of your awesome works, and I will proclaim your great deeds. [7] They will celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness. [8] The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. [9] The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made. [10] All you have made will praise you, O LORD; your saints will extol you. [11] They will tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might, [12] so that all men may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. [13] Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The LORD is faithful to all his promises and loving toward all he has made. [14] The LORD upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. [15] The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. [16] You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. [17] The LORD is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made. [18] The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. [19] He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. [20] The LORD watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy. [21] My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD. Let every creature praise his holy name forever and ever."

Blessed be the Lord forever!

AMEN and AMEN

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