Justin Matthew Reid

Bible Teachings - Peace is a choice

Psalm 46:10

Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

In Leviticus 11:44, God says, "be holy, for I am holy". In all things we are to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. To be a Christian, we must be like Christ. Christ is holy, therefore Christians must be holy. To be holy is to be set apart unto righteousness.

While it's not phrased exactly this way in the Bible, God also says: "be still, for I am still".

What does God mean when He commands us to be still?

He is speaking spiritually, as God is a Spirit. Of course, we know that God is actively moving in the earth, working to bring the world to Jesus Christ, that they might be saved. When God says "be still", He isn't saying "do nothing". He's commanding us to be at peace. He's asking our spirits to be at rest with the fact that He is God and is doing all that we cannot do. That does not excuse us from laboring in His harvest, however.

1 Kings 19:11-12

And He said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.

That still small voice is none other than the Holy Spirit. A major reason the Lord asks us to be still is so that we can hear the voice of His Spirit. If we've ceased from our own labors, that shouldn't be any problem. If our eyes and affections are still on the world and what IT says, that's a lot of noise! Can anyone hear the quiet, soft, subtle, precious voice of the Lord while listening to the crash, boom and bang the world emits? We don't have to wonder why it's that way. The god of this world, Satan, is the author of confusion. His goal is to distract us from what God says in His Word or by His Spirit. Why? Because the enemy knows the Word is only effective when people are sold out to it. Our enemy is definitely crafty, but he has no new tricks. We are not ignorant of his devices (if we are living in God's Word).

Mark 4:37-40

And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And He (Jesus) was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake Him, and say unto Him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And He arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And He said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?

Look at Jesus' reaction to the circumstances of this world! He was so at peace that He was able to sleep/rest during a storm! If the disciples would have been focused on Jesus, they would have said, "hey, if the Christ, the Messiah isn't worried about this circumstance, why should we be?". They were in the same boat, after all. Jesus is still with all His saints in this world. He's walking/traveling with us through this life. He's promised to never leave us nor forsake us, even unto the end of the age.

Why should it be such a big deal to trust the Lord in all situations? Isn't He worthy of ALL trust? Hasn't He promised to provide all need IF we'll seek first His spiritual kingdom? A few things happen when we refuse to completely trust the Lord.

#1 - we try to assume God's role in our lives. Rather than just giving the situation to Him, we stress and worry and rely on SELF. We were not created to be Lord of our own lives. We are not equipped to do that job! Any attempt to do that will result in defeat, every time.

#2 - we can't be at peace when we are trying to do things ourselves. It can't be done, because what we are trying to do is impossible for us to do. We can never have peace in that.

#3 - most importantly, it ROBS God of the glory of being Lord of our lives. It points to distrust of God. We would surely never say, "Lord, I don't trust you to provide this need, I'll trust in myself on this one". Yet, that's exactly what our actions say. Then, we might continue to labor and rationalize that God is answering our prayer through our labors. That gives the person the self satisfaction that they are still "relying on God", yet taking their comfort in the fact they are relying on themselves. That's a deception. God is the source of ALL Truth in the universe. When we depart from Him IN ANY WAY, it must, by definition, lead us into deceptions and lies. God has provided a better way, hallelujah!

Let's look at Jesus' reaction to the disciples' fear:

"And He said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?"

Now, if Jesus can honestly make that statement, it means that the disciples did not have to react the way they did. He wouldn't be justified in rebuking them for their fear if that were their only option. There are always two options, always. Trust God or don't trust God. Jesus had to ask them WHY because He was having trouble understanding the WHY of their actions. The only honest answer the disciples would have been able to offer would be "because we did not trust in God". God is not going to accept that as a reasonable answer, when He's provided EVERYTHING we need to trust in Him, aside from doing the trusting for us!

So then, faith is the answer to this problem of not trusting God. Faith in what? Faith in what God's Word says about God. "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God" (Romans 10:17). Our faith must be a LIVING faith. We can't rely on past experiences and victories for the here and now. We can't coast. Can we afford to be negligent of God's Word when it's the ONE THING in this world that is telling us the Truth about our lives?

We see what Jesus did to the circumstances. HE CHANGED THEM. Circumstances have to obey Jesus Christ. They have no choice in the matter. We see that Jesus was still Jesus while the disciples were running around worrying themselves. They even went so far to say that Jesus didn't care about their circumstances and that they were perishing/dying. It should be self evident that God cares about our circumstances, always. He made us to have eternal relationship with us. Of course He cares about ALL our circumstances. How could the disciples say that they were perishing? They had Jesus, THE LIFE, in their presence! We see how irrational distrust of God is and the absurd actions it leads people to. God has provided a better thing: faith in His Word.

John 14:27

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.

God is at peace. Even though the world is in the sad state it is, it does not rob God of His peace. How could He be our peace (Jehovah-Shalom - Judges 6:23-24) if He would let circumstances change who He is? It would be impossible. We can't let circumstances change us, either. Jesus Christ gave His peace to us! We have no right to reject such a precious gift. Jesus says, "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid". Again, this points to a choice, an option for us! It's a choice to have the peace of Jesus Christ in our hearts. We have to allow it to be there? How do we do that? By trusting the Word of God. We have to. It's the only way. When thoughts come to us that would suggest that we worry about something and lose our peace, we MUST cast that thought down IMMEDIATELY. We must choose to then quote what God says. For example - It is written: "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid".

As we labor for the Lord, it's important to remember that the works are HIS, being performed through us. We are just the useful vessel the Lord uses to do His works. Praise the Lord for such a high honor. If we start doing our own works (what seems right in our own eyes), the works are no longer the Lord's, no matter how religious and pious they may appear to men. We cannot counterfeit the Lord's spiritual works by natural actions we originate!

Hebrews 4:9-12

There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into His rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. For the Word of God is quick (alive), and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Trust. the. Lord. May the peace of Christ be with you all, amen.

-Justin

May 27th, 2008