In his commentary on this text, William Barclay wrote: "In the New Testament ‘eirene’ (eiraynee), the Greek word for peace used here, stands for the Hebrew word 'Shalom.' This word does not just mean freedom from trouble, but everything that makes for a man’s highest and best and good." Peace as a fruit of the Spirit does not just mean an absence of conflict, but denotes a positive, upbeat, benevolent view of all of life. We would say that when a person has this peace, he or she is at peace with the world and with their circumstances, though there might be trouble all around. Paul certainly knew the meaning of this peace as he dealt with all of the troubles that he encountered. We need to look at three results, though there is more than that, of the “eirene” peace in our lives.
It is peace with God. In 1 Thessalonians 3:16, Paul wrote: “Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in every way.” (NIV) The idea is that the Holy Spirit does not just give us peace; rather, it means that He is peace within us. Peace with God is part and parcel with being a Christian. Peace with God is not something that we merely hope for. It is a fact because it is the fruit of the Holy Spirit who indwells us. It is a peace that we can claim in all aspects of our lives. We can claim it when things are going well and when things are not going well. We need to remember this and claim it. It is peace with ourselves. Pogo (Remember him?) was right when he said: “We has met the enemy and he is us.” Sometimes in the matter of peace of mind and heart we are our own worst enemies. As alluded to above, quite often we Christians do not claim the peace that we possess because we are unaware that we already have it. Paul encouraged the Philippians, and us, to claim it: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present request to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV) We need to remember this as we deal with ourselves. We can be awfully rough on ourselves, particularly when we know that we are not doing our best, and, perhaps, we should be, but somewhere along the line we need to forgive ourselves and be at peace with ourselves. When life has us down and it does not feel worth living, we need to remember that God loves us, has, or will, forgive us, and that He has given us the peace that only His Holy Spirit can give you. This peace either is or can be yours in Jesus. It is peace with others. If the Holy Spirit can give us peace with God and with ourselves, He can surely give us peace with other people. Again, it is a matter of claiming it. Paul encouraged the Thessalonians to “live in peace with each other.” (1Thessalonians 5:13b NIV) In Romans 5:13 Paul wrote: “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all (people).” In other words, if there is no peace between you and another person, don’t let it be your fault. You can’t control the other person, but you can let the Spirit control you. If we really and truly lived at peace with God, we would have peace within ourselves, and if we have peace within ourselves we should not need to be reminded that we should live at peace with other people. But the advice is still necessary, because we Christian human beings need to be reminded that we are to live at peace with others. Think of what would happen if every Christian suddenly claimed peace with others. Oh Lord let it be so --- and soon. Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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