Sharing.... Moments With God. Advent Week 2 PEACE Monday, December 6

Please click the Jukebox to select music. "Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father--to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen." These are the words of John the Apostle as he begins the book of Revelation. He desires for his readers that they would experience this inner peace that he has experienced. But how can this be accomplished? After all, when we look at our life today, peace would not be one of the words we would use to describe it. Our lives sometimes seem to be filled with turmoil, frustration, disappointments, disagreements and chaos. So where will this peace come from? What will it do for us? John provides the answer. The only real peace we will ever find comes from the Eternal One, God. He gives this peace to us through His Son, Jesus. The kind of peace that John is talking about can only be found in a pure heart. Peace, in this case, is not the absence of conflict, but the calmness of spirit in the midst of conflict. The storms may rage all around us, but we are sheltered beneath the greatest umbrella man could ever find. It is like watching a great thunderstorm from the comfort of your favorite lounge chair in your living room. You know that if you venture outside you will have to be prepared to resist the storm. But if you stay inside, the storm will not harm you. But the peace that comes from Jesus does more than just make us feel good in the midst of trouble. John says that Jesus has freed us from our sins by his blood. If we try to escape the bondage of sin on our own, we are doomed to failure. But if we turn our lives over to Jesus, freedom will come. Of course, we must admit the presence of sin in our lives before we will turn to Jesus for deliverance. In the Epistle of I John, chapter one, verse nine, John writes: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." Our part is to confess our sins. His part is to forgive us and cleanse or purify us from all unrighteousness. But we would have no basis to come to God the Father if it wasn't for Jesus going to the cross to die in our place. When we become a Christian, that is, a follower of Jesus, we also take on new responsibilities. John says that now we have become a kingdom of priests. We each can go to God directly. In Revelation chapter one, verse seven, John refers to Jesus coming back to earth again. This is the Christian's blessed hope. It is something to be looked forward to with confidence and joy. How long will this peace last? Revelation 1:8 quotes Jesus as saying: "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty." God's peace that comes through Jesus will never end. This is the real gift of peace from God. Life is a puzzle. Jesus is the missing "peace". David Lyons Prayer Father, Jesus spoke the words regarding peace, "Not as the world gives..." The world tries so many ways to give inner peace and though they may relax a bit or put troubles out of their mind for awhile they never find the precious gift of peace you give without turning to you. Thank you for such a wonderful gift. To have a peace that will last throughout eternity can never be compared to anything the world offers. We do not deserve such a gift but our hearts fill with gratitude because of it. Amen Suggested Daily Scripture Reading [Psalms 25] [Amos 7:1-9] [Revelation 1:1-8] [Matthew 22:23-33] You may send e-mail comments or suggestions to Yvonne Edwards. Edited: Dec. 2, 1999 3:20 p.m. Page designed by: Cecil Wallace The background set is provided by Huggin' Pup Copyright © 1999 NazNet All rights reserved. International copyright secured.