In the
Christian heart there are many things that make for war. Daily it seems we are
met with many a covert affection that will relentlessly tug for our hearts
loyalty. The Bible refers to this as the “Flesh
lusting against the Spirit,” Rom. 13:14, Gal. 5:17. In the battlefield of
the mind we say we would like to be close to God and His church but we also
find that apart from Him and the fellowship of the church, there are other things
we also enjoy. Some are harmless but others are not so. Some will simply pull
you into their vortex to the point that you are so overcome by their captive
magnetism you find yourself entrapped. The “Peace of God” no longer rules and emptiness
begins to ensue.
So it is
with all believers. On a regular schedule we are confronted with decision
making that should really be made with the salving inner peace that Christ provides in mind. When chaos rules we live on
the edge—we live with unnecessary stress that takes over our lives and directs
our action and attitude. The end result is a feeling of ineptness and low
self-worth. This causes us to live on the defense—always battling these attacks
till spiritual exhaustion sets in. But that is not what God intended for our
lives and it certainly does not make for peace. The key is to never let the
sway of the world to get a foothold. Those who have been there will tell you
the turn-around is slow and painful in many respects. However, it is not
impossible. The good news is as a child of God you are promised Peace, so if
there is a promise there will also be the ability to attain it.
A first step
toward peace is realizing that in our fallen human condition we can do many
things well, but not all things well. So what we really need is a helper;
someone who can come in alongside and give us the help we need to straighten
out that which is dislocated—that which places chaos in our lives. The Bible
tells of such a “Helper.” It is a miraculous book that God chose to give to man
as a gift. In it we are taken on a journey into God’s world, that is, His realm—a
realm that we will never find or understand if we do not step into it through
faith in Christ. In it we find the Christmas story when God left His throne to be
born in a manger. He was then reared up in like manner as we. Through the
experience of clothing Himself with flesh He is now fully able to identify with
us in all our struggles. As God, I do not believe His incarnation was for His
benefit, but ours—it was His greatest gift. When He, that is the Second Person
of the Trinity, Jesus, reached the appointed time as an adult, He chose twelve
apostles as companions in ministry. He also taught many disciples who then followed
Him. These followers loved Him so much that they became very dependent upon His
presence. As time passed, He revealed and taught more and more about who He was,
validating His words by performing miraculous wonders and bringing healing and
help to many in need. These disciples easily saw Him as the Messiah that God
the Father had promised would one day come. That being said, you can easily
envision why they became so enamored with his presence.
But something
bothered them about Him. He said in John 7:33, “I will be with you a little longer, and then I am going to him who
sent me." In effect, He was predicting His would-be death and
resurrection or defeat of death. If he would have left them with the thought
that He was leaving, never to be seen again, they would be crushed. He knew
this, so He states again, in John 14:16-18:
"And I will ask the Father, and he will
give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom
the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know
him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as
orphans; I will come to you."
In the
passage, Jesus reassures them that although He would be leaving and going back
to Heaven He would still be with them through the abiding presence of a “Helper”—the
Holy Spirit.
The tough
battles we face each day within our minds and hearts can indeed be countered. Through
His presence we can live on the “offensive” and therefore find the inner peace
we all desire. God has given us many promises in His word. These promises are
given to us as an assurance that in His love for us He also desires our peace. If
we desire a Helper to come alongside of us that we can learn from and be
empowered by then we will find Him when we give our hearts and lives fully into
the loving hands of the Lord Jesus.
Learning to
trust in Him through prayer and confession will produce in us the inner
assurance that He is the One who is in control. The Bible calls this faith. It
is by faith that we receive our salvation and become the child of God that He
desires. The Bible says it this way, “And without faith
it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe
that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him,” Heb 11:6. In short, the
Bible teaches that if we will cast all our cares upon Christ he will give us
that peace, 1 Pet. 5:7, Matthew 11:28.
Won’t you
take that step today?
God Bless,
Bro. Mike
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