“God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; Though its waters roar and foam, Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride. Selah. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, The holy dwelling places of the Most High. God is in the midst of her, she will not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. The nations made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered; He raised His voice, the earth melted. The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah. Come, behold the works of the Lord, Who has wrought desolations in the earth. He makes wars to cease to the end of the earth; He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two; He burns the chariots with fire. “Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.” Psalms 46:1-11
The God Of Peace
“The Lord Is Peace.” Judges 6:24
God is our refuge and strength and He is a God of peace. His name is Jehovah Shalom. The Lord Is Peace. Peace is a part of His nature. An attribute of His character. Peace is an overflow from Himself. When He is present there is peace. The fruit of knowing an ever present and all knowing God is perfect peace!
The Greek word for peace means wholeness and quietness and rest. The Hebrew word for peace means wholeness and completeness. My definition of peace is: the overflow of wholeness from His presence that produces quietness, stillness, and rest.
Even if mountains tople and move, oceans rage, and the land shakes around us, we can remain unshaken because He is our refuge and He is our peace.
“Now may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all!” 2 Thessalonians 3:16
How do we continually have peace in every circumstance? The Lord of Peace being with us. God intends for us to live from the rhythm of peace. An internal system of stillness and rest. The peace He releases, has power. Power to govern and rule our internal world and power to shift and bind chaos in our external world. The wholeness He brings to us and around us through His presence shifts attitudes and atmospheres.
The Power Of Internal Peace
His peace (the overflow of wholeness from His presence) has power to govern and rule our hearts. It creates an internal wholeness and completeness that surpasses our reason.
“For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.” Isaiah 9:6-7
He is the prince of peace. The government rests on His shoulders and His government is a government of peace. The fruit of coming unto Him and letting Him take our burdens is peace. The fruit of placing the government on His shoulders is peace and rest! The fruit of carrying the government is anxiety and stress.
Any area or thought that doesn’t have peace is outside of His government. The indication of us being submitted to His Lordship is peace. Peace is always the fruit of His leadership because He IS peace.
“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” John 14:27
The world gives trouble and fear to the heart. He gives peace to the heart. The fruit of His presence is peace. The result of fellowship with Him is peace. The effect of His government is peace. When He leads, peace follows. His domain and realm is a dimension of peace. It supersedes this realm!
The world gives busyness, anxiety, and restlessness. It runs on a system of frantic motion. God is a God of peace. He has a government of peace. He has a totally different operating system. A system of peace. A rhythm of stillness and rest. When we come unto Him, internal wholeness is the result.
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.”
Colossians 3:15
In the midst of chaos and calamity we have an anchor. The peace of Christ. It doesn’t say the peace FROM Christ. It says the peace OF Christ. It is His peace gushing from His very being.
His peace is intended to rule our hearts. We let peace master our inner world through our attention and affection. Whatever dominates our attention will have our affection and in turn will affect the attitude and atmosphere we walk in. When we give Him our attention and affection as the Prince of Peace, His peace will master our hearts.
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
Be anxious for nothing. How? Prayer and supplication with thanksgiving. Prayer, praise, and thanksgiving are relational and communicational. It is the practice of fellowship with Jesus. The prince of peace! When we cultivate prayer, praise, and thanksgiving, we cultivate intimacy with Him.
It’s impossible to pray, praise, and give thanks without there being an increase of awareness of His presence and in turn an increase of peace. The fruit of fellowship with Him is peace. Peace that releases wholeness and completion.
Peace produces stillness of heart and soundness of mind. This is a stillness of the heart and soundness of the mind. There is a stability and soundness of mind that comes in peace. Peace binds chaos. Peace is key to mental health.
“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” Psalm 23: 1-3
His peace makes still waters. When we are in peace we are led to still waters on the inside. Stillness of heart. Soundness of mind. This still water reflects the deep. As our soul is in stillness the Spirit reflects off the surface and we see and behold Him and we are restored. Restoration and healing of heart and soundness of mind is a fruit of His peace.
Fire fighters can’t run. Two reasons: one is when they run they are more likely to incur injury or make a mistake. Frantic movement is dangerous for the person running and for all those involved. Secondly: because when they run, they look panicked and don’t look to be in control of the situation from onlookers.
When we are anxious it is as if we run around frantically. We get into an anxious and restless state of busyness. This leads to more mistakes, stress, and less productivity. When we stay in peace (quietness and rest) we actually gain mental soundness. We have more focus and increased productivity. We come into wholeness in every way when we walk in peace. Mentally and physically. His Peace is good for the heart spiritually and physically. Lower blood pressure.
“You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.” Isaiah 26:3
“When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your consolations delight my soul.” Psalm 94:19
Peace is the result of resting in His presence and His thoughts. Keeping our mind on Him and His consolations.
The Power Of External Peace
Peace has power in the world to bind chaos. As we walk in His internal peace, we carry His peace to the world around us.
“On that day, when evening came, He *said to them, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd, they *took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. And there *arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up. Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they *woke Him and *said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “peace, be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”” Mark 4:35-41
Whatever storm you have peace in, you have authority to end. Where we have peace is where we have authority. The fruit of His internal peace (stillness of heart and soundness of mind) is external peace released through authority to bind chaos. Authority flows from peace.
““Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Matthew 5:9
When we walk in peace we become peacemakers. Peacemakers are called sons of God. We aren’t peacekeepers. We aren’t avoiding conflict and trying to keep the peace. We are peacemakers. We step into chaos and shift the atmosphere. We step into war zones and release peace.
I remember this one time I was prayer walking in a neighborhood that has some of the highest crime rates in the whole city of Springfield. I stumbled upon a domestic violence situation. There was an all out family fight under way. As I approached the situation I released peace. I stepped right into the middle of the fight and spoke peace. As I got in the middle I noticed one individual who was the most belligerent had a knife and as I approached he immediately stopped and ran away. As tangible peace rested in the front yard I shared the gospel with the remaining family and they all prayed to be born again and had an encounter with Jesus. This is being a peacemaker. This is what it looks like to carry the tangible peace of God into chaos.
“Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.” James 3:18
When we sow peace into environments (neighborhoods, workplaces, schools) we will reap a harvest of righteousness. Atmospheres shift, attitudes change, repentance and forgiveness flows, mercy flows. Justice rolls down like a river.
People catch what we do more than what we say. Only 10% of communication is words. The remaining 90% is body language, tone of voice, eye contact, and our actions. People remember how we made them feel before they remember what we said. As disciples of Jesus, what if the people around us and the people who followed us, felt the tangible presence of Jesus in our life? What if they saw and felt tangible peace on us?
“for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Romans 14:17
We advance His Kingdom when we carry peace and become a peacemaker. Releasing powerful peace into every environment we come into brings heaven to earth. When chaos collides with peace, the kingdom advances.
Written By Micah Level
How has this blog impacted you? Do you have a story on the power of peace? Leave a comment below.