2008-07-05 - Peace With God

Numbers 6:26, "The Lord lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace."

Do you have peace with God, and if you do, what color is it? It is my hope that none of us miss out on having final peace with God through Christ, but it is also my hope that you will experience at least a taste of having peace with God here in this life. I have no desire to give false hope to those who should have no peace, but are many who miss out on having peace with God altogether in this life, and I would like to encourage them that it is possible to obtain peace with God in this life. The principal act of saving faith is accepting, receiving, and resting in upon the Lord Jesus Christ alone for our justification, sanctification, and eternal life - by virtue of the covenant that God has made with sinners who come to him in repentance and faith. That may seem very formal, but if you own personally the contents of the above sentence, I tell you without hesitation that you do have peace with God in a final, eternal sense. You may not always feel it, but if you rest in the Gospel of salvation through Christ alone, you do have peace with God.

We ought to experience joy in our faith. It is often that our souls do not have this joy, and thus do not know the peace that the Lord can and does give. It is not my place to judge anyone, and so I will only go here from personal experience. My experience is that when I lack joy and/or peace in my Christian walk, the cause can almost always be traced to indwelling sin. Sin is nothing short of a fatal blow to peace with God. While sin reigns in our lives there can be no peace with God. God will not share company with habitual sin - any habitual sin - and we cannot expect to experience His tender care and kindness when we are living under the power of indwelling sin. It is my experience, and I am sure it is the experience of others, that settled peace can only come when we draw close to God, and purify our hearts.

We constantly hear about free will, and the rights we have before God. I would like us all to consider that our existence, irrespective of our rights before God, depends upon His will. Let us speak rather of the rights of God. The Lord has absolute rights, as He is the Creator. This being true, why is it that the Lord is such a stranger in our world? Would the creature have peace with the Creator? Let the creature submit to the Lord, His perfect will, and he/she will know peace with God. We are so willing to accept the favors of the Lord, but we give Him very little due for the air we breathe, the sun that shines, the rain that nourishes, and the endless supply of providential care we experience every second. Would you have peace with God? You may only have it, if you give up your self-will rebellion and come to Him, humbly seeking His favor. The Lord is so wise, so kind, and so full of love that we do ourselves the greatest service by doing all we can to secure the peace that He gives. It is the life of pleasantness. It is the life of safety. It is the life of peace to live faithfully before Him in all our ways. Blessed peace with God is a joy you may have. Live before Him in truth, and you will know what the Apostle Paul knew, "And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus," Philippians 4:7

Soli Deo Gloria,
T-

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