“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:7)

It is the announcement of the Angels at Jesus’ birth, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” (Luke 2:14 KJV) Through Jesus Christ, God is to be glorified and mankind will find peace. At this point we can hear Isaiah with a prophecy of the Messiah which will include, “The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them.” (Isaiah 11:6) Now the question is, where is the peace?

Jesus Himself would say, “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’” (Matthew 10:34-36) This has been evident not only in Jesus’ life but through the ages since. Where is the peace?

The peace starts with God. When we sinned against God’s direction in the garden, peace became elusive. We see this with the jealousy of Cain which led to the murder of his brother Abel. Or when the ten sons of Jacob sold their brother, Joseph, to traders and lied to their father Jacob. Throughout history we see the elusive nature of peace.

The problem is sin. When we sin, we are now under God’s judgment. Isaiah would describe the situation “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” (Isaiah 59:2) “There is no peace,” says the LORD, “for the wicked.” (Isaiah 48:22; 57:21) Sin has always taken away our peace.

This is why Jesus has come to again give us peace. Jesus has taken our sin upon Himself and died in our place for our sin. He rose again for us to live our lives in relationship with Him. In this relationship, He brings us peace. “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) After His resurrection, Jesus would greet them with “Peace be with you.” (Luke 24:36; John 20:19)

As the Disciples and Jesus headed toward Gethsemane, He said to them, “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) Here is the answer to, where is the peace? It is found in a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Paul would remind the church, that our peace is found in Jesus. The peace that comes from Jesus is beyond our understanding because now, in times of trial, we find peace when our minds are focused on Jesus. Fulfilling Paul’s statement, in Jesus, God will “guard our hearts and our minds.” (Philippians 4:7) This is because as we live in Jesus, both God the Father and Jesus have sent to us the Holy Spirit. Whose presence in our lives brings us peace. This is a part of the fruit of the Spirit, “walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. . .. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (Galatians 5:18, 22-23) Now our minds and our hearts are not focused on our sin. They are focused on Jesus and following Him, Who will bring us God’s peace.

In the Love of Jesus,

Michael Block