Elder Chew Chong Kiat

God’s Will & Peace with God

Many Christians believe that the way to seek the guidance of God is to first consult the Bible, see God’s working in circumstances, i.e. read God’s providence, and then watch out for good inner feelings like peace.

Is the idea of "peace" a Biblical method of discerning God's will? When you have peace in your heart, does it mean that the decision you make is definitely according to God’s will? When you have no peace in your heart, does it mean that it is not the will of God?

What does the Bible say about "peace"?
Peace is not an absence of trouble. Peace transcends circumstances like trouble, danger, or sorrow. The apostle Paul in the midst of great suffering in the jail at Philippi was content and had the peace of God which enabled him to pray, sing to God (Ac 16:25) and communicate God's goodness to the Philippian jailer which led to salvation for him and his household. We saw Jesus asleep in the midst of a fierce storm in the Sea of Galilee when everyone was frantically rowing and scooping water out of the boat to keep it afloat. (Luke 8:24-25)

The Source of Peace
Where do we find this kind of peace? Christ teaches us that the source is divine. John 14:27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Notice the occasion this declaration was made. It was on the night Christ was betrayed! Despite what He knew He would be facing, instead of great anxiety, He took time to comfort His disciples with this message of peace.

The Nature of Peace

We see two kinds of peace: objective & subjective. Objective peace has to do with our relationship with God and Subjective peace with our experience in life.

The Objective Peace
Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
2 Cor 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled [i.e. restored to peace] us to himself by Jesus Christ..
Because of our reconciled relationship with God, we have peace with God. This is also why we experience the peace of God which is the subjective type.

The Subjective Peace
Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
You need objective peace before you can enjoy subjective peace. The latter is not based on feeling but the God of peace, as the source, who says to us, "Peace I gave unto you…"

Christ our Lord demonstrated this peace with His unperturbed demeanour before His enemies who sought to kill Him. His calmness confounded Pilate who became greatly disturbed and furious, "Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee? Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above" (John 19:10-11)

This is the kind of peace Jesus gives to His believers. It is steadfast, fearless and trusting. The source of such peace is Christ. It is Christ because we have been delivered from the bondage of sin and the penalty which is death and hell. We are no longer enemies of God but have become children of God through Christ. Therefore we have peace with God through Christ. It is based on our complete faith in God who is in control at all times.

This peace is different from what the world can give. The peace that the world gives is the absence of war, externally. That is not peace because the world cannot get rid of our last enemy called death! Christ alone can do that. To all who trust in Him, He has. When you pray to God in faith, you will experience the peace that God gives.
1 Pet 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
Phi 4:6-7 Be careful [i.e. full of anxiety and care] for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

God knows that we can become anxious and have no peace over many cares in this world. They can be legitimate cares- children matters, aged or sick parents, stress and deadlines, duties and responsibilities.
The remedy is to pray and trust in the Lord and not despair for He will undertake to lead, strengthen and deliver us. To pray to God means to trust Him, our Heavenly Father, to take care of all our cares!

Phi 4:6-7 and 1 Pet 5:7 are promises of peace from God to us when we pray in faith for such things as He has promised in His Word.
Do not confuse this peace with a sense of peace that is not due to faith in God nor due to our submission to His good, acceptable and perfect will in our lives. It is true that there is a sense of peace that comes when the believer prays and trusts God to take care. However, that sense can also be false when it is not based upon trust in God but in man or in self denial.

One may be doing things which are contrary to the known will of God and yet experience a peace of some sort. This sort of peace that the people of the world also experience - a state of mental and emotional calmness because of an absence of trouble and worries – is a conscious manipulation of the mind. Some use meditation techniques, rationalization and worldly philosophies, or anchor on carnal hopes such as mammon and powerful leaders. The world in the end time is characterized by this sort of counterfeit peace.
1 The 5:2-3 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
False teachers, too, give false hopes to people which results in false peace.

Jer 8:10-11 … for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness, from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely. For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
So beware and examine the peace that you have when seeking the will of God. Is it part of the fruit of Spirit of God and is it based on an assurance of the promises of God and borne out of your acknowledgment of God in prayer and in faith (Prov 3:5-6)?
If what you are doing is contrary to the known will of God, and you have an experience of peace, then it is false. Away with such carnal peace! Make your peace with God by repentance, obedience and submission. Know that the will of God is always the best for you and that will instantly bring peace to your heart.

Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope: 5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Remember that peace has been wrought for us by Christ our Redeemer and how He wants our hearts to experience this peace always, having made peace with our God. Nothing should come between us and God: not even tribulations, for they shall only test the strength of our peace. Let us have patience and hope in God, for He who spared not His only begotten Son for us to reconcile us to Him, will not withhold any good thing from us, nor will He be unfaithful to test us beyond what we cannot bear, but He will work all things for our good always. So let us rest in Christ always and let nothing rob us of this peace of God.

God’s will and God’s peace are so intertwined that you cannot have peace from God if you have no regard for God’s will. Also, it is in the doing of His will alone that you experience the peace of God, for we know that if He is for us, no one can be against us! May God's peace be your portion every day of your lives. Amen