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. John 14:27 NIV
Context:
Jesus takes time to teach his disciples about the coming kingdom. He was about to go the way of the cross but he gave the disciples the assurance that it would not end in disgrace. The cross was a necessary part of the plan of God for the salvation of all men. With Jesus dying on the cross and rising up again from the dead, hope of eternal life has been sealed for all who will believe in Jesus. Help is also now available for all who will come to the saving knowledge of this same Jesus.
Message and Response:
The reason why I can look forward to all that is ahead is because of the quality of the person making the promise in today's extract. Who is he? In various parts of the bible, he is referred to as the Prince of peace. This means that he is the heir of God, the king of righteousness and peace. The one who is peace is the only one who can guarantee the right kind of peace.
Oh, there are various versions of peace as defined by the world. There is a kind of uneasy peace that having nuclear weapons can give you, but it is an uneasy peace because other enemies too will seek to build their nuclear arsenal. There is a kind of deceptive peace where ignorance is bliss, and you can ignore facts and figures staring you in the face. However, we know that the only kind of peace we should focus on is the kind that lasts for all of our lifetime, and can guard our hearts even when everything is going to pieces around us. That is the kind of peace Jesus talks about here.
It is not surprising then that he speaks about his own version of peace, not the fake versions that are available everywhere. How does the world give you anything? It will promise you heaven and earth, yet it does not have either. It fills you with a sense of worthlessness if you do not measure up to a certain standard, yet it cannot define that standard, but can only show you by comparing you to someone else. The world will give you something, yet take something of even greater value from you. Sometimes, the world will give you riches, yet take sleep from your eyes. It may give you wealth beyond compare, yet take away your health. Taking the peace that God offers sets your heart at rest. You can have trouble all around you, yet you can smile because you have someone inside of you who sets your heart at rest.
That is the major difference between the world and those in God. We may all have the same experiences, the same pain, the same loss, but in the hands of the God of peace, you know it will end in praise. God gives free of charge, demanding nothing in return except my heart. He wants total control so that he can be all he is in my life. If I limit him to some areas of my life, how does he come through and intervene against the exercise of my freewill? If I place boundaries on what areas of my life he can touch, how can I complain when those areas not under his control get out of hand? Can I turn around and blame him for not intervening?
The end of the verse is also instructive: Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. You can only claim this when you are also in line with the earlier part of the verse. Trouble will come, if it has not yet come. Things that would normally induce fear will come, but ahead of them, God speaks to my heart and tells me not to be afraid. I am privileged to have a God who knows the end from the beginning, and who speaks into that future with certainty, because he is able to make all things work together for my good. This is the God the apostles came to know, and the one who seeks to make himself known to us today. He knocks on the door of your heart, would you let him in? He will not break down the door or force himself on you or go against the exercise of your freewill. It has to be your personal decision; choose the peace of God today. Your eternity will be glad you did. His time of favour is here.
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