Peace: The Transcendent Fruit

Transcription

1 Peace: The Transcendent Fruit And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:7 What is peace? 1. Imagine an anxiety scale numbered 1-10 (1= very peaceful; 10 = very anxious) How would you rate your life on this scale? Explain. 2. According to Philippians 4:7, the peace that God gives transcends all circumstances. Can you think of a specific time in your life when you had this transcendent peace? What does God s peace depend on? We live in tense, anxious times. Stress-related illnesses have reached epidemic proportions. Nightly news reports give vivid details of the latest power struggles, illicit drug deals, hostage takings and suicides. How can we know the peace of God when the world seems to be falling to pieces? How can we experience the calm, quiet fruit that God s Spirit offers? Isaiah 43 reveals the love and care of the One whose Spirit lives in us. Israel had sinned greatly by going after other gods and by seeing alliances with heathen powers instead of resting quietly on God. This is what the people found themselves in exile in Babylon (about 540 B.C.) Isaiah 42:23-25 describes something of Israel s sin. Then Isaiah 43 begins: But now The time of exile is almost over, and God is ready to bring his people to safety and security.

2 Read Isaiah 43:1-7: 1 But now, this is what the Lord says he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. 3 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. 4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life. 5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. 6 I will say to the north, Give them up and to the south, Do not hold them back. Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth 7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made. FOR DISCUSSION: 3. What words and phrases indicate God s special relationship with Israel? 4. Twice God tells people not to be afraid. What dangers might they face? 5. If the peace of God does not depend on freedom from adversity, on what does it depend?

3 6. What role then can adversity play in developing peace? 7. How do verses 3-4 foreshadow what God eventually does for his people? 8. What relation do you see between knowing who God is and being able to receive the peace he offers? 9. Think of the most significant human being in your life, someone you love, trust and understand. How did you get to know this person so intimately? 10. In what similar ways can you get to know God? 11. Consider the things you are anxious about currently. How can knowing God intimately produce his Spirit s peace in you? 12. What steps will you take in the next week to help develop such a relationship?

4 What are Three Areas Where We Need to Have Peace? A Talk by Joyce Meyers John 14:27 Amplified Bible: Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.] 1 Peter 3: Amplified Bible 10 For let him who wants to enjoy life and see good days [good whether apparent or not] keep his tongue free from evil and his lips from guile (treachery, deceit). 11 Let him turn away from wickedness and shun it, and let him do right. Let him search for peace (harmony; undisturbedness from fears, agitating passions, and moral conflicts) and seek it eagerly. [Do not merely desire peaceful relations with God, with your fellowmen, and with yourself, but pursue, go after them] I. Peace with God: Be Quick to Repent Psalm 32: 1-5 (Amplified Bible) 1 Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is he who has forgiveness of his transgression continually exercised upon him, whose sin is covered. 2 Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man to whom the Lord imputes no iniquity and in whose spirit there is no deceit.(a) 3 When I kept silence [before I confessed], my bones wasted away through my groaning all the day long. 4 For day and night Your hand [of displeasure] was heavy upon me; my moisture was turned into the drought of summer. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that] 5 I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord [continually unfolding the past till all is told] then You [instantly] forgave me the guilt and iniquity of my sin. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]

5 II. Peace with Yourself: Face your faults but don t focus on them : Hebrews 12:2 (Amplified Bible): Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and perfection]. He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God Stop comparing yourself with other people Stop putting your confidence in outward things Stop determining your value by how other people treat you Learn how to be at led by the Spirit Let go of the past and press toward the future Listen to what God says about you in His Word, not what people say about you III. Peace with Others FOR DISCUSSION: 13. Re-read 1 Peter 3: As long as you are in relationship with people, they will do things that irritate you, hurt you and disappoint you; we re all works in progress According to the verses above, what disciplines can you practice to change your attitude toward people who get on your nerves? 14. What habits can you practice to ensure that your circumstances don t rob you of your peace?

6 LET S PRAY: Lord, today I surrender the need to know how everything is going to work out. I leave my situation in Your hands. Your Word promises that everything is going to work out for my benefit if I simply trust You. Help me continue leaning on You during troubled and uncertain times. Fill me with peace that transcends every circumstance, so Your light can shine through me. Thank You, Jesus, Amen REFLECTIONS AND ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE ON PEACE: Luke 24:36 While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, Peace be with you. John 16:33 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. Romans 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ Romans 15:13: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. The moment we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior, the Bible says God takes away our sin and gives us His righteousness. It's a gift, and we don't need to earn it. But we do need to put it on, and every time we do, we receive His peace. If you are ever feeling bad about yourself, feeling ashamed, guilty or condemned, I encourage you to ask yourself, Do I know who I am in Christ? Am I walking in righteousness? When you are pursuing God's will for your life, He will give you peace. Peace is not the absence of turmoil, but the presence of tranquility even while in a place of chaos. It is a sense of wholeness and completeness that is content knowing that God controls the events of the day. Question: Do I find myself frazzled by the crashing waves of turmoil in my life, or am I experiencing that peace which transcends all understanding? 1 1: Resources Used: Life Application Bible NIV and notes Fruit of the Spirit by Hazel Offner. A Lifebuilder Bible Study Fruit of the Spirit Action Plan: How to Water God s Word in Your Life and Relationships and Secrets to Exceptional Living: Transforming Your Life Through the Fruit of the Spirit. by Joyce Meyer. Reflecting the Fruit of the Spirit by Scott Williams:

7