“Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” 2 Peter 1:2
Recently I listened to the news as they attempted once more to discredit our president and other national leaders. I felt an immense despair within me since this has been ongoing since the elections of 2016, and no end is in sight.
Last week I read an article about a celebrity who made a statement against a certain cultural group. This group spewed so many hateful comments about the actor that he eventually apologized for his “insensitivity.” I was angry that this type of bullying is so commonplace and accepted throughout our nation.
Yesterday I heard about multiple mass shooting locations in Texas and Ohio. Innocent men, women, and children were gunned down in the middle of the day. I was stunned by these senseless acts of violence in our “civilized” country. It was incomprehensible to me and very frightening.
Today, I read the above verse, and I felt my fears begin to subside, being replaced by something that passed all understanding.
I felt peace.
Isaiah 26:3 states, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” I desperately want peace in my life, and this verse tells me how to achieve it. In order to have peace in my life, I must seek it through God. As we get closer to the period of time when Jesus will appear in the clouds to take Christians to heaven for all eternity, the conditions of this world will worsen. The Bible vividly describes what has come to be known as the “last days,” and it is not difficult to see that we are living in those “perilous times” (2 Timothy 3:1-5), but there is no need for me to be afraid. No matter what I read, hear, or see, I need not fear because I walk with Jesus, and He has overcome the world (John 16:33). Jesus promised to never leave me or forsake me (Deuteronomy 31:6, Hebrews 13:5), and with Jesus, there is peace.
2 Peter 1:2 says that God’s peace will grow in me as I gain more knowledge of Him, and the way to attain that knowledge is by reading and studying the precious, inerrant Word of God. As I spend more time with Him, in His Word and on my knees, His peace within me will grow more and more!
Ah, soul! are you here without comfort and rest,
Marching down the rough pathway of time?
Make Jesus your Friend ere the shadows grow dark;
O accept of this peace so sublime!
Peace, peace, wonderful peace,
Coming down from the Father above!
Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray
In fathomless billows of love!
(from “Wonderful Peace” by W. D. Cornell)
“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7
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Need peace? Open the Bible!