His Peace

John 14:25-27
Philippians 4:7
John 16:33
 
There are people all over this world looking for peace; there are many that desire peace.  There are countries that want to sign peace treaties and agreements - trying to attain peace.  Yet, the peace of this world, the world’s peace, can disappear; in fact the world’s peace can disappear quickly.  The world’s peace is not a lasting peace.   It is a temporary peace.

You may hear it announced “This country has made peace with that country”.  Except even a single action can threaten that peace.   One country can go and fire a shot or drop a bomb or something of that nature and  -boom - that “peace” is gone.

Now the peace that Jesus gives us is a legacy; it is a lasting peace.  It is not a peace that will disappear as the world’s peace will.   

When Jesus was about to go the cross the bible talks about Jesus preparing his disciples for his departure.  In a sense Jesus left a will. It’s pretty common to leave a will.  You find people everywhere around the world that leave a will, people in the community, even people in our own family may leave a will. 

We know that when He was hanging on the cross He committed His soul or He willed His soul to God the Father.  After Jesus died Joseph of Arimathea went to Pilate and begged the body of Jesus, so in a sense we can say that the body of Jesus was willed to Joseph of Arimathea.

Not only that but Jesus had a robe and the bible says the robe was woven from the top to the bottom without seam.  The soldiers said let’s don’t destroy it - let’s cast lots and see whose it will be. In other words His robe fell to the soldiers.

Not only that but when Jesus was hanging on the cross, with His mother Mary there He turned to one of His disciples and told him “Behold thy mother and woman, behold thy son”.  In a sense I would say He willed His mother to John who was one of His disciples.

But what did he leave for the disciples?
His soul went to the Father.
His body went to Joseph of Arimathea.
His clothes went to the soldiers.
His mother went to the disciple John.
But what did His disciples get?  What did He will to them; what did He leave to them?
Did He leave them silver?
Did He leave them gold?
He had none of that. He couldn’t leave them riches.  

But there is one thing as we look in the word of God in the 14th chapter of John. 
25 These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you.
26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

What did Jesus leave to those disciples?  He left them His peace. That’s what He said. He said “Peace I leave with you”.

He is telling them that He would speak to the Father and the Father would send them a Comforter that would teach them all things and bring all things back to their remembrance.  Then He said “Peace I leave with you” -  I’m going to leave this peace with you.  He says “My peace I give to you”- in other words I’m going to give you something that will keep you.  I’m going to give you something that will sustain you.
We’re talking about a peace that passes all understanding.
We’re talking about a peace that will calm the raging sea.
We’re talking about a peace that is beyond anything that man can attain.

I tell you one thing, you can be going through some things.  You can be experiencing some things. You can be going before the highest court in the land, the Supreme Court, and they could say that you deserve the death penalty.  But even though you’re going through, you’re not going by yourself.  You’re going under the power of the Holy Ghost and you can trust that His peace is going to be with you.

Jesus said “My peace I give unto you; not as the world giveth…..”. As I said earlier the peace that the world gives you is going to fade away. The peace that the world gives you is a temporary peace.  But the peace that Jesus is talking about is an eternal peace.  It is an everlasting peace.

There are people all over this world - all over this land there are people right now my brothers and sisters – that have chaos in their homes.  There are people wishing that they had peace in their houses right now.   There are people right now, brothers, whose homes are tore up. There’s no structure. Somebody in that house is saying I wish I could come home and have a nice quiet evening. I wish I could come home without all the fussing and all the fighting.  I wish I could come home without all this noise and all this ruckus.

There is somebody looking for peace this morning but a lot of times they look for peace in all the wrong places.  A lot times they just end up going here and there, wandering around, looking for peace.
If you want peace - start with your knees; start going before God on your knees.  Say: God give me that peace - that peace that Jesus talked about.  Give me that peace that will pass all understanding.  Tell God “I need peace”.   And you know what? He will give it to you.

This peace that we are talking about is a deep peace.  It is an everlasting peace.  As Jesus says in John 16:33 “These things I have spoken unto you that in me ye might have peace”.  If you want peace you need to be in Him.

We look over at Israel and see the Israelis and the Palestinians.  There’s all the fighting and bombing and all that stuff going on there.  I’m here to tell you that peace is not going to come to that region until the Prince of Peace establishes it.  They can sign peace treaties or whatever.  In the scriptures it talks about when they shall say peace and safety, (then) certain destruction shall come upon them (I Thessalonians 5:3).   In other words there may be a temporary peace, a worldly peace, but there’s not going to be a permanent peace in the Middle East until the Prince of Peace establishes that peace. There are homes where there’s not going to be peace until somebody gets down on their knees and cries out “Lord bring peace and stability to my home”.  Until then, it’s not going to come.

The second part of John 16:33 says “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”  That’s what Jesus said: “I have overcome the world”.  In other words, you can overcome the world, if you abide in the Word and the Word abides in you. I’m here to tell you, brothers, we can have that peace.
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God give us peace. We need that peace; that peace, as You said in Your Word, that passes all understanding.