2023-01-13
Good Morning Dear Ones,
The Holy Spirit directs me to write about the price of peace. EPH 2: 12-17, “…Remember that at the time [in the past before coming to faith] you were separated from Him [Christ], excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenant of the promise, without hope and with God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he Himself is our peace, who has made the two groups [believing Jews and Gentiles] one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in His flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility.” This lengthy citation contains the ticket to peace on every level, whether it be in interpersonal relationships or efforts toward world peace, between the parts of a divided country, or international disputes. It can mean peace of mind amidst contentiousness.
We might ask why are their wars at all? To me, it seems obvious because there is a clash between parties with different points of view, or countries which compete for territory. We must deal with cultural differences, and in today’s world, that is not done respectfully or well. That is the stuff of which horrendous trouble is made. My way of thinking is that there are the set of true believers vs the set of those who reject the Lord. Patience and compromise seem to be tossed away. My observations of what is going on in our own ideological split in our own country and with the war between the Russian government and Ukraine lead me to question: How much attention to the Lord’s word is paid? These differences have always existed in our world, but this time the stakes are much larger due to capacity for insurrection or outright nuclear destruction.
In the Jewish culture, names matter. They express the essence of one’s purpose or character. The power God has is supreme, and we have only the reconnaissance found in the books of Daniel and Revelation upon which to rely. There are many details left out because our need to have faith and trust in the Lord. PS 147: 4-6, “He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; His understanding has no limit. The Lord sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.” He has told us the ultimate outcome but not at how it is arrived. In other places in the Scriptures, the Lord tells us to trust Him and not worry. IS 41: 10, “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” There should be no question that He loves us, as is shown in IS 49: 15-16, He has engraved our names on the palms of His hands! We must remember that the Lord’s power is great enough to stop the proceedings at the end of the sixth seal judgment for 30 minutes, so He can mark the believers to protect them from destruction [REV 7: 13-17; REV 8: 1-5].
Our attention should be drawn to IS 9: 6, which gives us a wonderful description of Who the Lord is. “For unto us a Child is born, A Son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
In Hebrew, Prince of Peace is “Sar Shalom.” Yes, our Lord is all of these things! The responsibility we have is to learn what the Father has given to inspire the human writers of the Scriptures and to recognize our need to trust and have faith in our Lord. Praise and thanks be to Him!
PRAYER: O Lord, the importance of our studying the Scriptures cannot be underestimated, if we want to gain eternal life. Our Lord Jesus gave His physical life on the cross, so that we would be saved and not perish [JN 3: 16]. Our Lord, through the apostle Paul, has told us why we must study the Scriptures, in 2 TIM 3: 16-17, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful in teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” We do not receive grace for anything we do, but instead, it is a free gift from You, Who prepare us in advance for how we should serve You [EPH 2: 8-10]. Other belief systems may teach that salvation comes from doing good works, but our belief is that it is from Your grace and the Atonement of the Lord Jesus. Peace, love, and joy are some of the gifts that You give us through Your grace. We know there are more but are grateful for the perspective You give us. Praise and thanks be to You! In Christ’s holy name, we pray. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: The Holy Spirit directs me to write on what must happen before real peace can be established. The question still arises: Do we trust God and what does He say to us in the Scriptures? We are urged to let His perspective be placed on the circumstances of our lives and to pass the tests of our faith we have while here on earth. The Lord never promised us it would be easy, particularly for those who are called to leadership in heaven. Passing these tests and allowing our faith in Him not to be weak are probably the ways God determines the quality of our heavenly lives. God has made Jesus Christ the final Judge of our fate [DN 7: 12-14; JN 5: 22] He is a fair and just Judge if one does or doesn’t deserve eternal life. PS 89: 14-18 and DT 32: 3-4 describe just how fair and just our Lord really is. Be sure to read them and proclaim His name. Praise and thanks be to Him!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn, JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2022. All Rights Reserved.
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