Fruit of the Spirit: Peace
harmony in personal relationships peace, harmony
a state of freedom from anxiety and inner turmoil—‘peace, freedom from worry.’
In place of the frantic busyness that self-dependence requires, those on whom the Spirit falls will be able to live in continual “quietness” and trust (NIV “confidence,” 32:17), because they will have truly relinquished their lives into the hands of their covenant Lord. Their “homes” will be places of “peace,” trust (NIV “secure”), and “rest” (32:18).
Unlike those whose trust is placed in mere physical circumstances, this rest cannot be disturbed by physical disaster (32:19). Resting in the Spirit of God, they have inner resources of blessing that transcend the changing physical and material world. They have “streams” by which to plant the “seed” of their lives and from which to nourish those who depend on them.
One common meaning of shālôm is the “absence of conflict and strife.”
Isa. 26:3 has the words “perfect peace”; but the Hebrew from which this is rendered reads: “peace, peace,” “Which means positive well-being, not merely lack of strife.”
To set one’s heart on God in steadfastness
“His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord.” He is neither fickle nor cowardly; when he is undecided as to his course he is still fixed in heart: he may change his plan, but not the purpose of his soul. His heart being fixed in solid reliance upon God, a change in his circumstances but slightly affects him; faith has made him firm and steadfast, and therefore if the worst should come to the worst, he would remain quiet and patient, waiting for the salvation of God.
“I have believed,” is in the perfect tense in the Greek text. It is in its full meaning, “I have believed with the present result that my faith is a firmly settled one.” It is like hammering a nail through a board and clinching it on the other side. It is there to stay. So, Paul’s faith was placed permanently in the God whom he knew, which faith was immovable. Again, “persuaded” is perfect in tense. Paul had come to a settled persuasion regarding the matter and was fixed in an immovable position. You could not budge him.
נָצַר nāṣar: A verb meaning to guard, to keep, to observe, to preserve, to hide. The word refers to people’s maintaining things entrusted to them, especially to keeping the truths of God in both actions and mind (Ps. 119:100, 115). God’s Word is to be kept with our whole hearts (Ps. 119:69); our hearts, in turn, ought to be maintained in a right state
Peace.18 Peace (Gk. eirēnē) results in an ordered, settled, and undisturbed response to whatever life brings one’s way (Phil. 4:6). This peace is beyond human understanding (Phil. 4:7), an inner calm that results from confidence in one’s saving relationship with Christ.
peace of God (v. 7)—Inner calm or tranquillity is promised to the believer who has a thankful attitude based on unwavering confidence that God is able and willing to do what is best for His children (see Rom. 8:28).
“What is peace?” A little boy answered, “Peace is when you feel all smooth inside.”
“Rule” is brabruō (βραβρυω), an athletic term, “be umpire.” Lightfoot says: “Wherever there is a conflict of motives or impulses or reasons, the peace of Christ must step in and decide which is to prevail.” Vincent comments: “Literally, be umpire.
to control the activity of someone, based presumably upon correct judgment and decision—‘to control.’
in deciding on any course of action, let that be chosen which does not ruffle the peace within you.
allow the peace of Christ be in control and be “the decisive factor.”
to surrender to the lordship of Christ and to the peace that accompanies it.
The verse does not promise peace to those who perfectly keep God’s Law, for who can keep it? It promises peace to those who “love” God’s Law
Reconciliation suggests changing an enemy into a friend. Through Jesus Christ, we have been reconciled to God. The cross of Christ is God’s weapon for breaking down barriers between God and man, and man and man.
This reconciliation is an act of grace. There was enmity between man and the law. The law contained rules and ceremonies man could not keep. Therefore, man and the law were always at odds. But this enmity was removed through the death of Jesus.
If Christ paid the penalty for everyone’s sins, how could God sentence people to hell for sins that Christ bore the punishment for? And if He did not pay for the sins of those who are eternally lost, then in what sense was God … in Christ reconciling the world to Himself?
The answer to that apparent dilemma is that the universal language (e.g., “world,” “all,” “everyone”) in the above-mentioned passages must be understood as referring to mankind in general. Christ did not die for all men without exception, but for all men without distinction. World, in this context, indicates the sphere in which reconciliation takes place; it denotes the class of beings with whom God seeks reconciliation—people from every national, racial, and ethnic group.
That God reconciled us to himself implies that we were alienated from him. But what is alienation? Alienation may be defined as the absence of trust and respect between persons. It is a word often applied to broken marriages, to industrial disputes or to antagonism between nations. Alienation implies enmity, division and the loss of communication.
reconciliation is the divine act by which, on the basis of the death of Christ, God’s holy displeasure against sinful man was appeased, the enmity between God and man was removed, and man was restored to proper relations with God.
Eternal Security
It is said that D. L. Moody was once accosted on a Chicago street by a drunk who exclaimed, “Aren’t you Mr. Moody? Why, I’m one of your converts!” Said Moody in reply, “That must be true, for you surely aren’t one of the Lord’s.”
The gospel promises not only forgiveness of sins but also new life. When a person receives this new life, his or her life should begin to show some changes.
One Greek lexicon defines the New Testament word for peace (eirēnē) as “the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is.”
True peace comes from yielding all to the will of God. Let him have his way, let him solve the problem, then the heart can be at peace. This is the peace Jesus had as he faced the agony of Calvary. It is peace grounded in the promise of the “joy set before him” (Hebrews 12:2). This is the peace offered to us. Christians do not need pleasures, affluence, influence, gratification of desires. Instead, they obtain peace through fellowship with God. Their peace is within, and the world cannot understand it, nor can it take that peace away.
M. G. Gutzke
One of the most popular Christian anthems is also the simplest. It says, “Jesus loves me! This I know, for the Bible tells me so” (Anna B. Warner, “Jesus Loves Me”).
At the height of persecution in Communist China, a Christian sent a message to a friend. The message escaped the attention of the censors, because it said simply: “The this I know people are well”—but that phrase, the “this I know people” clearly identified the Christian community in China. (Donovan, “Jesus Loves Me”; emphasis original)
“This I know people.” Our confidence is in the love of Jesus. We know he loves us because we’ve experienced his love. His love defines us individually and as a community.