Sermon on 22 January 2023 by Ps Justin Chia
Peace, in Hebrews, is Shalom. Many blessings are captured in the word Shalom. Reunion meals are meant for unity and peace. Peace is not just between countries or governments and people. It includes peace between families and in the Lord. This means having a close relationship with God and often communicating with God. We do so by reading the Bible, obeying and praying. Through this, we can truly live in the peace of God. When Jesus was resurrected, the first thing He said to His disciples was Peace Be With You. Even until today, every Jewish person will greet each other with Shalom Elohim. Shalom has a deep meaning. Peace and joy always come together. In Jesus, we are a new creation. The old has passed and everything is renewed. We have a new being, character, and hobbies. Everything is done for the glory of God. Peace includes perfection, harmony, health and success.
The first book in the Bible is Genesis. The peace was not mentioned in the first line. But from God’s creation, we can see peace. Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s instructions. This destroyed the perfect peace that God created. Adam and Eve started to doubt each other. Before that, they had so much peace and a close relationship with God. The moment they broke the harmony, they hid from God. They didn’t want to talk to God.
Some Christians find it hard to pray because they have a disrupted peace with God. The devil destroyed this peace we have with God. God has to redeem this world to restore this peace. Jesus came down to Earth to restore our relationship with God. The world will never have peace unless we have Jesus. When God came down, He said that peace has to be upon this world.
Genesis 1:31 - “Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good! And evening passed and morning came, marking the sixth day.”
Isaiah 9:6 - “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Luke 2:14 - ““Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.””
Jeremiah 29:11 - “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”
John 14:27 - ““I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”
Jesus didn’t say that He would make us wealthy. God wants us to be satisfied. God will not give you prosperity for you to stray away from the Word. Some people who receive these riches say that they don’t have time for God. They forget that their life comes from God. The peace that we have should be very natural as long as we follow God.
The word ‘Peace’ is worth thousands of gold, and thousands of gold is hard to buy true peace. As long as you have peace, you can have everything prosperous. It encapsulates all the blessings. If you want to have peace, you need to have peace that comes from Jesus. He gave it to us freely. You have to come before God to repent, believe and renew yourself then you can experience peace.
This portion of the scriptures is where Jesus was resurrected and appeared in front of His disciples.
John 20:19 - “That Sunday evening the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them! “Peace be with you,” he said.”
John 20:21 - “Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.””
John 20:26 - “Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said.”
In verse 22, it actually says that Jesus showed them His wounds. After the disciples saw Jesus, they were full of joy. When we see Him, we naturally have joy as He gave us peace. Some Christians have no joy because they are not doing things for God. It is unnatural. A Christian should have peace and joy.
1. Peace is what we all need most as Christians
Peace is already given to us but we need to keep close to it. We need to read the Bible daily. Christians leave behind a life. Jesus’ physical body was not found. Jesus was crucified for our sins. We can see God and get joy. When we receive peace, we would bring love and unity to one another. It would be easy for us to love others.
John 13:34-35 - “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.””
The night before Jesus was crucified, Jesus gave His disciples a new command. We have to love one another like how He loved us. The old commandment was to love one another just as how we loved ourselves. As long as we can obey that command, we can love others. This shows we have God’s love. We just have to pray continually. We can love someone that’s hard to love. The impetus to love one another is obedience to the new commandments of the Lord and peace in Him. We can worry about everything. But these worries won’t let us grow. We have to be reminded that everything is under God’s control. Every Christian has to seek peace by reading the Bible.
2. True peace comes from Jesus
John 14:27 - ““I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”
Hebrews 12:14 - “Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.”
John 16:33 - “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.””
Those who pursue peace are blessed and are called the children of God. We need to live it out. Thus, Christians who don’t have peace are not children of God. We need to live out peace and preach the gospel of peace.
3. Preaching the Gospel of peace is our duty
John 20:21 - “Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.””
Now that we have received peace, we need to be a good steward of peace through our time, money and everything that God has given us. We need to share this Gospel of peace. Peace is something that is most important to Christians. Peace is given by Jesus.
Live out the peace of the Lord. Exercise the joy of the Lord. Speak words that glorify the Lord. Let’s be a good steward of the Gospel of peace.
Amen.
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