Peace in the Midst of Trouble



“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.” – John 16:33

“You will have trouble…” Jesus promises us.  It’s not one of those promises we jump up and claim and hold dear to our hearts but there it is.  You will have trouble.  Not you might or you may sometime or it could possibly happen but definitely, at some point, you will have trouble.  Maybe you have fallen out of sorts with a loved one and are hurt beyond what you thought you could bear.  Maybe the pressure at work is overwhelming and you find yourself dreading Sunday because it’s the last day before Monday.  Maybe you have no work and don’t know how things are going to work out.  Maybe the bills are bigger than the paycheck, the hunger more than the food, the need greater than the supply.  Maybe you just feel empty inside, just going through the motions.  You are so busy but nothing seems to get done.  Maybe you live day to day but nothing really seems to change and you feel unfulfilled.   You find yourself wishing for some significance in life and asking “is this really it…really…I mean this is what life is about?”  The bad news: I don’t have the answer to your problem.  The good news: I know what you need in the middle of your problem—God’s peace!

Jesus tells us in John 16:33 that in this world we will have trouble.  The Greek here portrays “a situation so difficult that it causes on to feel stressed, squeezed, pressured or crushed.” ¹  Maybe you find yourself there right now—crushed, stressed and pressured.  There’s still hope, in the same verse, Jesus tells us that in Him we may have peace.  He actually tells us “In this world you will go through some distressing times, but take heart and be courageous.”²  Jesus goes on to tell us He has, is, and always will overcome the world.  He has provided “a continuous and abiding victory.”³ 

He tells us, “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” (Jn 14:27).  He gives us His peace and commands us not to let our hearts be troubled or afraid.  His peace and fear cannot dwell in the same heart.  You have one or you have the other.  The verse just before this ties in an interesting connection.  The Father will send the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit will teach us all things and remind us of everything Jesus has said to us.  Notice the connection between the Holy Spirit and the peace mentioned in the preceding verse.

Romans 14:17 informs us the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  The Kingdom of God is tied to peace in the Holy Spirit.  God actually desires to grow His peace in us.  Peace is one of the fruits of the Spirit.  If you crucify your sinful nature with its passions and desires, then the Holy Spirit will grow His peace in your heart (Gal 5:22-25).  One of the ways to know His Kingdom is alive in you is to monitor your heart’s reaction to trouble in your life.  Do you have peace or pestilence, plague, and pandemic?  Are you worried and fearful or does the peace of God reign in you?  Are you anxious or restful?

So how do we gain God’s peace in the middle of our circumstances? Philippians 4:4-9 helps us out here. 

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.

8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

This passage of Scripture tells us to rejoice always—not for our circumstances but in our circumstances.  It gives us seven ways to overcome our anxiety, fear and worry.

1. Remember the Lord is near (v5).  In our troubles we should remember God promises to be with us (Heb 13:5) and when we draw near to God, He will draw near to us (James 4:8).

2. Prayer and petition to request what you need from God (v6).  God delights in answering the legitimate needs of His children (Mt 7:7-11).  The Greek here illustrates a “close, up-front, intimate contact…a passionate, earnest, heartfelt sincere prayer…adamant in requesting and demanding assistance to meet tangible needs, such as food, shelter, money, and so forth…a full expectation to receive what was firmly requested.”⁴

3. Thanksgiving  (v6) – think of who He is and what He’s done in the world and in your life to this point and thank Him for it.  The Greek here pictures “an outpouring of grace and of wonderful feelings that freely flow from the heart in response to someone or something…an earnest outpouring of thanks.”⁵

4. Think about the right things (v8).  Make a conscious effort not to focus on your worry, fears, and anxiety.   Focus your thoughts on the noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, and praiseworthy things all around you.  Choose not to be the negative naysayer, persistent pessimist, continual complainer, or wearying worrywart.  Be the buoyant benefactor, overjoyed optimist, eternal encourager, or truthful trustee.

5. Focus on things above (v8).  The injunction to “think on such things” leads us to consider God who is noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, and praiseworthy.  Mull over your pretentiousness and forgetfulness that God is in control and He is good.  Set your mind on Him (Col 3:2-3).

6. Quote Scripture (v8-9).  When we need something to fill up our thoughts and have difficulty pondering on God, Scripture we have memorized can be a great comfort to us.  Psalm 23 assures us that even though we are not good followers all the time, God is the Good Shepherd and He will care for our needs—rest, sustenance, restoration of the soul, comfort, strength in Him, His presence always with us, His guidance, peace in the presence of enemies, goodness, love and mercy.  Endeavor to memorize some of the Scriptures on peace in this article.  Let Psalm 85:8 jog your memory, “I will listen to what God the Lord will say; he promises peace to his people” 

7. Get an eternal perspective (v9).  Remember God is with you and He is so much bigger than your current disconcerting circumstance.  Remember this won’t last forever.  Determine to run the race with perseverance and diligence and trust in His abundant goodness (1 Cor 9:24-27, Heb 12:1-3,  Phil 3:12-14).  Isaiah 26:3 reminds us, “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.”

In the midst of your trouble, control your thoughts and “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful” (Col 3:15).  The Greek here gives us the portrait of the peace of God being our umpire or referee over our emotions.  When worry, fear, and anxiety threaten our thoughts, “we can stop it from happening by making the choice to let God’s peace rise up from deep inside like an umpire or referee to moderate our emotions.  As we do, we will be kept under the control of that divine peace as it rules in our hearts.”⁶  Philippians 4:7 gives us the same portrayal in the Greek, “And the peace of God—a peace so wonderful that it cannot be compared to any other type of peace; a peace that stands in a category by itself and rises far above and goes beyond anything the human mind could ever think, reason, imagine, or produce by itself—will stand at the entrance of your heart and mind, working like a guard to control, monitor and screen everything that tries to access your mind, heart and emotions.”⁷

2 Thess 3:16 Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.

O Lord of Peace, come to us now and fill us with the peace that passes understanding in the midst of our circumstances.  Help us to seek you with all our hearts, at all times, especially in times of trouble.  Help us to trust in Your goodness, kindness, and love for us.  Fill us with Yourself!  Amen!

Footnotes

¹ Renner, Rick. "Jesus Has Overcome Everything" Sparkling Gems from the Greek: 365 Greek Word Studies for Every Day of the Year to Sharpen Your Understanding of God's Word. Tulsa, OK: Teach All Nations, 2003. 792. Print.

² Renner 792.

³ Renner 792.

⁴ Renner, "Five Important Steps To Move From Fear to Faith, From Turmoil to Peace, And From Defeat to Victory" 709-711.

⁵ Renner 710-711.

⁶ Renner, "Let God’s Peace serve as an Umpire for Your Mind and Emotions!" 2.

⁷ Renner, "Peace That Passes Understanding" 322.

References

All Scriptures not specified are quoted from Life in the Spirit Study Bible (NIV). Stamps, Donald C., and John Wesley Adams. Life in the Spirit Study Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003. Print.



God Wants Us to Be Thankful

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” 1 Chron 16:34

We live in a fast paced, critical, demand-your-rights society.  Our thinking is often completely focused on ourselves and, eventually, how we have been wronged.  We become critical and judgmental, demanding what is fair.  We soon find ourselves sharing our woes with each other.  It is about this time I find the Holy Spirit reminding me “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” Eph 4:29.  The Word also reminds us “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Prov 15:1).  If a gentle answer turns away wrath, what does a down-right kind answer do?  What would a thankful answer do?

Kindness, gentleness, and thanksgiving all seem to go hand in hand.  It is difficult imaging one of them without the other.  It is even harder to define them without each other.  Certainly the gentle person is kind and the kind person is thankful.  Ever stop for a moment and consider how life would be different if the people around you were more thankful – if you were more thankful?  What would happen to your relationships with these thankful people?  I cannot help but think it would grow and you would grow closer to these people as you become more aware of how they value you.  Giving thanks is something we do because we are grateful for what another has done for us or is to us.  We are grateful to our parents for raising us, for protecting us, for providing food, clothing, shelter, means of communication and transportation for us, for time spent invested in us, for their encouragement, and so much more. 

If we are this grateful for our parents how much more grateful should we be toward God, who has, forgiven our sin, freed us from our sin, saved us, filled us with the Holy Spirit, granted us every spiritual blessing in Christ, seated us with Christ in Heavenly places, adopted us into His family, given us Himself and His nature to live in us allowing us to be good.  Surely we are obligated to “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” 1 Chron 16:34; Ps 107:1; 118:1; 136:1; 118:29, etc.  We give thanks to God because of who He is and what He does with, in, and for us.  “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.” 2 Cor 2:14  “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” 2 Cor 9:15  No wonder God tells us “give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess 5:18), because no matter what is happening to us, what has happened for us is better.  Not only that but who is for us is the best!  He, God of all that is, perfect in Holiness, unfathomable in love, gracious beyond measure, is for you!  Why should we not find ourselves “giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light” Col 1:12. 

Even under the old covenant God had established the fellowship offering as an offering of thanksgiving.  He was showing us a pathway to intimacy (fellowship) with Him through thanksgiving.  “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.  For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” Ps 100:4  Thanksgiving helps us keep our focus right and it humbles us.  It helps us remember we did not get to where we are on our own.  It opens the gates of His presence and reminds us how good and faithful He is.  It keeps our thinking on God and others.  How can we be all caught up in what is right and fair when we are busy thanking Him for all He has done, is doing, and will continue to do?  This is not to mention thanking Him just for who He is, the ever faithful, always benevolent one!

If we look to Phillipians 4:6-7, we see how thanksgiving and prayer are coupled together and lead to the peace of God guarding our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.  We pray over our circumstances, casting our cares on Him and we thank Him for being willing and able to help us.  We also build our faith by thanking Him for the times in the past when He has helped us through similar and not-so-similar situations.  (Remember He has already solved our most harrowing situation: sin and separation from Him.)  “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”  Colossians 3:17

A glimpse of Heaven tells us that thanking Him is not something for this life alone, but something that will occupy some of our attention in eternity as well.  “They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: ‘Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!’”  Revelation 7:11-12 

References

All Scriptures not specified are quoted from Life in the Spirit Study Bible (NIV). Stamps, Donald C., and John Wesley Adams. Life in the Spirit Study Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003. Print.