Real Peace

Real Peace as revealed in Philippians 4:1-9

Previous posting was on P - PRAYER.  Adding on that subject I heard Dr. Tony Evans message on the radio where he indicated, Prayer is a demonstration of our Dependence on God, and while God knows what we will ask, He still wants us to ask before he will answer.

This week the letter E of PEACE:

E          Expectation – that word is not specifically used here, but it is implied in  v5  "The Lord is near."   The word that Paul uses here has a dual concept of nearness in terms of spatial distance (as in the presence of the Lord) and nearness in terms of time (as in when the Lord returns).  Thus with the knowledge that both of these facets are true, there is less for the believer to be anxious about, because he or she is not alone in whatever they are facing.  The Footprints picture and story serves as a reminder for us of the truth that when we feel alone, in reality we’re not.  The Lord knows, the Lord understands and He is acting as He knows best.

Real Peace

Real Peace begins with:

P          v6 Prayer is a vital part of experiencing the peace of God.  Prayer is something that is                easier to talk about than it is to actually do, at least as God desires.    For most of us                    it’s:

·         an event - something we know we’re supposed to do;

·         something we expect when we go to church or act spiritual;     

·         a spiritual 911 call (use for emergencies only).  

 But God desires prayer to be a state of being (as automatic and natural for us as breathing or our heart beating).   If we’re honest, most of us use prayer to remind God about some things we want or think are important.  But a God who knows everything doesn’t forget, and doesn’t need to be reminded.  So then why is prayer so important?  Because God uses it to remind us of what is important to Him, and He causes us to think about how we might be involved.  It’s been said that Prayer changes things.  It really doesn’t change things, but it definitely changes those who pray and has the potential to bring about a change in those that we pray for. Plus, our Father wants his kids to stay close to Him and to know our Heavenly Father is there for us.

Real Peace

Would you like to know and experience Real Peace?  It’s something that’s very elusive in this world of ours but something we’d all like to have.   First let’s begin by recognizing that it’s something we cannot possibly achieve on our own.  And consider, based on the Genesis chapter 4, it didn’t exist when there were only 4 people in the world in a single family unit.  If it wasn’t possible with 4, how can it be possible for 7 billion people?   In future postings the letters of the word PEACE will be used as an acronym to remind of the peace God promises.  Look up Philippians 4:4-9 in preparation for the future posts. 

IS THERE A HEAVEN AND WHAT WILL IT BE LIKE?

It's your choice to become a Son or Daughter of God and to spend eternity with Him in heaven.
How?  It's as simple as ABCD:

A – Rom. 3:23 ALL have sinned and fall short of God’s standard of perfection

            But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the 

            requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets 

            long ago.  We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And 

            this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.   For everyone has 

            sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.   (Rom 3:21-23 NLT)

B – Acts 16:31  BELIEVE in the Lord Jesus Christ and You will be Saved 

Then he brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”   They

replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, along with everyone in 

your household.”  And they shared the word of the Lord with him and with all who

 lived in his household.    (Acts 16:30-32  NLT)

C – Rom. 10:9  CONFESS and Accept the Forgiveness God offers you.

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that 

God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your 

heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth

that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never 

be disgraced. Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same               

Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For “Everyone who calls on the 

name of the Lord will be saved.”    (Rom 10:9-13  NLT)               

D – 2 Cor. 6:2  DO it now.

As God’s partners, we beg you not to accept this marvelous gift of God’s kindness 

and then ignore it. For God says,  “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of 

salvation, I helped you.”  Indeed, the "right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.   

(2 Cor. 6:1-2   NLT)

IS THERE A HEAVEN AND WHAT WILL IT BE LIKE?

A Summary Analogy

What God is offering you is similar to the movie portrayal of “Little Orphan Annie.”  Like Annie, we are born into a world to the likes of Miss Hannigan (the cruel keeper of the orphanage) and her sidekick Rooster.  But Daddy Warbucks extends us the opportunity to be adopted into a new life that we could never imagine or hope for.

 

Your way to Heaven has been purchased and fully paid for.  Eternal life in Heaven and forgiveness of your sins is freely offered to you as a gift from God.  And with any gift, it is your choice to accept it, which Jesus will freely give you, or to decline it. It is your choice.

 

           In fact, the Scriptures says, “The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and

in your heart.”  And that message is the very message about faith that we preach:  If

you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised

him from the dead, you will be saved.   For it is by believing in your heart that you are

made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.  As

the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”  Jew and

Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously

to all who call on him.  For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” 

           Romans 10:8-13 New Living Translation

IS THERE A HEAVEN AND WHAT WILL IT BE LIKE?

Continuing the "How Do You Get to Heaven" string:

Here are the requirements for getting to Heaven. WE HAVE TO BE:

• Perfect like God – no mistakes, no failures, no sins – ever
• Holy like God – completely set apart and not blemished by sin or any imperfection
• Blameless like God – no one, including and especially God, can have anything against us  

Now do you understand why we cannot make it there on our own?  None of us are capable of measuring up to this unreachable, impossible standard.
 
BUT, here is the Good News:

For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God

reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on

earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.  This includes you who were once

far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts

and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ

in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you

are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.

            Colossians 1:19-22 New Living Translation

But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were

dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is

only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)  For he raised us from the dead along

with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with

Christ Jesus. So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible

wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are

united with Christ Jesus.  God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t

take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we

have done, so none of us can boast about it.  For we are God’s masterpiece. He has

created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long

ago.    Ephesians 2:4-10 New Living Translation

Next time a Summary Analogy.

IS THERE A HEAVEN AND WHAT WILL IT BE LIKE

How Do You Get to Heaven?

The answer to this question is HUGE – “You cannot get there on your own – someone has to take you there.”  And the only someone who is uniquely qualified is Jesus.  Randy Alcorn is his book, Heaven, makes an excellent point: “Heaven is not our default destination.  No one goes there automatically.  Unless our sin problem is resolved, the only place we will go is our true default destination … Hell.”

Here are the requirements for getting to Heaven. WE HAVE TO BE:

• Perfect like God – no mistakes, no failures, no sins – ever
• Holy like God – completely set apart and not blemished by sin or any imperfection
• Blameless like God – no one, including and especially God, can have anything against us  

Now do you understand why we cannot make it there on our own?  None of us are capable of measuring up to this unreachable, impossible standard.