Session 13 - PEACE and PATIENCE
(TAKE YOUR PEACE!)
Peacemakers shall be called the children of God
(Matthew 5:9)
We are Sanctified by truth John 17:17
We are Sanctified wholly Psalm 103:3
How many don’t have
peace? I’ve heard people say, “I just
want peace of mind.” The same is true
for those who want stability. I had a friend tell me once that she would pay a
million dollars for stability. “A double-minded man is unstable in all his
ways.” James 1. And it goes on to say
that a double minded man would get nothing of the Lord.
Double-mindedness is our
own thoughts against God’s thoughts. Peace starts in what we are thinking. If
we are in constant array of doubt, belief, doubt, belief, this is double
-mindedness. The Bible tells us to be of a singleness of mind. The mind of Christ is available to us.
If we desire peace, we
must also desire patience. Patience and
peace go hand in hand. If you have peace, you have patience, if you have
patience, then you have peace. I believe this is why people don’t have peace;
they aren’t willing to acquire patience.
James 1:3-4 “Let patience
have her perfect work, that you may be perfect and entire wanting
nothing.” (If any of you lack peace, if
any of you have wants, if anyone is discontented, then you probably don’t have
patience.)
Jesus came to give us
peace, not as the world gives though. (John 14:27) He came to give us peace
within our hearts and minds. Because He knew that “world peace” starts in the
hearts of men, in the minds of men.
We need to think like God
thinks so we CAN take our peace.
Isaiah 26:3 says that
perfect peace is for those whose mind is stayed on Him BECAUSE we trust Him.
Many forget to read the rest of that scripture that says, a person who is in
peace has their mind on God, but ALSO trusts Him. We cannot have peace without
trusting the peace giver! It’s like trying to get something from someone you
are mad at. It won’t work.
When we know God’s
thoughts, when we receive Him into our own lives and accept all He says about
us, when we Know what He thinks of us personally and BELIEVE it, THEN we shall
have peace. We won’t worry, fret, be
anxious or get upset over anything.
“Be careful for nothing,
but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your
request be made know unto God, and the peace of God which passes all
understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
(Philippians 4:6-7)
It goes on to say what we
should think of. “Whatsoever things are
true, honest, just, pure, lovely, good report, any virtue in it, if there be
any praise, think on these things.” (Boy that leaves a lot out of the things we
DO think of!)
By thinking the way God
thinks, will produce peace.
In the armor of God, we
are told to “Put on the shoes of peace.” Peace just doesn’t fall on you. It’s
to be pursued. We cannot lay hands on someone and impart peace, it’s a process
through PATIENCE that gives us peace.
Enduring all that comes
our way with patience produces peace.
Hebrews 12:14 says to
follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the
Lord. (This looks like a criterion to
see God)
Zechariah 8:16-17 Speak
the truth, exercise judgment, that brings peace. If you are in fear, you will not have peace.
Proverbs 2:1-5. Knowledge is very vital in living in
peace. We are told in proverbs over and
over that we are to seek knowledge, but with all our getting, get
understanding. (I believe knowledge and understanding is breeding ground for
peace to come.)
Acts 2:25 says that David
took his peace – always putting God before him caused him to be able to do
this.
Romans 26:3 “To be
carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Revelations 3:10 “Because
you have kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of
temptation, which shall come upon all the world to try them that dwell on the
earth.”
Revelations 3:12 “Behold I
come quickly, hold that fast which you have, that no man take thy crown
(patience).” If you read the verses
above, “thy crown” is patience. How
many times have you heard, “I lost my patience again.” That is what this is talking about. Patience IS peace.
Isaiah 57:21 “There is no
peace for the wicked.” Who is
wicked? A person with an unbelieving
heart. (Hebrews 3:12) Do you have
peace? If not, I would look closer at
your heart to see if you are in unbelief and doubt?
Psalms 91:1 He that dwells in the secret place of the
most high shall abide under the shadow of the almighty. (And rest of the
chapter)
John 15:7 If ye abide in my and my words abide in you
ask what you will and it shall be done.
James 4:8 Draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh to
you, cleanse your hands ye sinners; and purify your hearts ye double-minded.
Peace comes from Jesus, He
reconciled us to our Father thereby making peace. (Ephesians 2:14-16)
Proverbs 3:1-8 “Keep the
commandments… for long life and peace shall be added to you.
What are the commandments
of God? Jesus summed it up in Matthew
22:38-40. “We are to love the Lord our
God with all our heart, soul and mind, and love our neighbor as ourselves.”
II Timothy 2:24-26 says is
so completely: “A servant (teacher,
minister) of the Lord must not strive, but apt to teach, patient… so that those we instruct will recover
themselves from the snare of the devil.”
Mark 5:34. “Daughter, thy faith has made thee whole, go
in peace, and be whole of thy plague.”
Peace comes when we are healed, healing comes by faith, faith is
believing, believing brings peace.
James 3:17 “But the wisdom
that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle and easy to be
entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without
hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that
make peace.
Now we are getting down to
the nitty-gritty. A person who has no peace or patience more than likely
doesn’t have a revelation about the Righteousness of Christ. It appears that a
person who has peace, is walking in righteousness. (See the “Righteousness” session for more details.)
OK, now this is the
interesting part. I have found, in my own life, that until I trusted God, I had
a hard time with peace and patience. Perhaps you say you do trust God yet you
don’t have peace, let’s take a deeper look within.
1) Do you have fear?
2) Do you doubt?
3) Do you have any unbelief?
4) Are you frustrated and confused at times?
5) Are you stressed?
6) Do you ask God “why” all the time?
7) Do you lose your temper easily?
8) Are you easily provoked to anger?
9) Do you compare your life to other Christians?
Do the things listed
produce peace? Not hardly. We need to
be honest with ourselves. Because if you are any of these things (or more) then
it is more thank likely that you may not trust God.
Isaiah 26:3 "Thou
wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee, BECAUSE he
trusteth in thee." This is a
powerful scripture, so let's look at it closely.
God keeps us in peace, we
don't keep ourselves. As a matter of fact, if we do anything, we are to pursue
it. We pursue it by keeping our mind on Him!
He does the rest. But, we can't really keep our minds on Him as long as
our minds are filled with other things that is robbing us of peace. And the
reason we cannot keep our mind on Him is that we don't really "know"
Him. We don't really "know" that
He is with us in every breath we take, every move we make and that He's ever
watchful of us. We don't really know His character, one of love and peace and
compassion. Some still see God as very mean. We cannot trust someone we don’t
know. We cannot walk in righteousness if we don't really know the
"righteous" one.
I’m not talking about
Salvation, but perhaps I should, because a person who is saved has believed on
the one who sent Jesus. Hebrews says that “We must first believe that He is…”
First things first. Since I had a problem with doubt and unbelief, I focused
all my attention on “knowing God” existed, all the time. What I mean is that I can believe God was
there in some of my situations, but not in all. I could believe God to get me up in the morning, but I couldn’t
believe Him to pay my bills. So then I took it upon myself to “do” something
because answers weren’t coming from God quick enough, or it seemed, at
all. This is where doubt sets in. We
have to believe He is there ALL THE TIME, and He is good ALL THE TIME. We do
this by getting a revelation on His, Love, His Righteousenss, and His Joy. “The Kingdom of God is not meat and drink
(outer condition) but Righteousness, peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost.” (Romans
14).
So far we have recognized
some things about our own heart condition that pertains to peace, patience and
righteousness. All ingredients for
living the abundant life that is spoken of in the Word.
We do have a part to do
here. Patience comes by trials.
Patience produces peace. Peace results in righteousness. It all works
together and not one without the other for completeness in God.
Jesus IS our peace. “My peace I leave with you, not as the world
gives, give I unto you.” He bequeathed us His peace. It’s yours for the taking.
Take Your Peace! Nothing outside of you will give you
peace. “Outside” peace is what the
world wants to see. All beauty queens
are asked what they would like to see in the world, and their candid answers
are “World peace.” When Jesus came, He
didn’t come to bring peace (worldly kind) but a sword (inner peace). Peace comes from your own thoughts. But know that with peace come trials of
patience because they work together. By
working together will result in you having contentment in all things. No stress, no worry, no anxiety ONLY
PEACE. The kind that no matter what is
going on around you, you cannot get upset.
If you’ll notice, peace
was something everyone needed to pursue.
If you look in the Bible, many greetings and departures address this. For example, ending in the book of II
Thessalonians says, “now the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always by all
means..” And the greetings in I Timothy
says, “UntoTimothy, my own son in the faith, grace, mercy and peace from God
our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.”
It’s throughout the whole Bible!
There is a reason, we all need to remember to “take our peace.”
If you are willing to
pursue peace, then follow along with this prayer::
“Father, I am not walking
in peace like I want to. I know that I have caused much of my own upset by not
trusting you. I confess my lack of patience Father. I confess my fear of
“desiring” patience because I know that everyone knows what happens when we ask
for patience! But, I will not fear, and
I ask you now for more patience. I confess my distrust and my guilt. Forgive me
for not trusting you in all things.
Help me to trust you Father. Help me to believe you. Help me to know you. Help me to gain more
understanding on the way you think. I know that to think like you, and the
things you want me to think about will produce peace. Help me to get a
revelation on your Love for me. Help me to receive your love every single day,
no matter what I have done. Help me to
get a revelation on Righteousness. That to be righteous is to believe. Help me
to pursue peace and not fear having to go through trials for patience that will
bring peace. I confess my doubt and unbelief. I confess my fear of what I may
need to experience to attain peace. I am determined to hope in You Lord. Help
me to put on my shoes of peace daily, and walk the talk, dying to myself daily
that produces patience, which results in peace and relationship with you and
with others. I receive healing and restoration now and give you permission to
work things out in my life that causes patience to be tried, so that it
produces peace. Help me to trust you more every day, help me to believe you
have my best in mind, every day. In
Jesus name, Amen.”
Along with pursuing peace,
be sure to continue forgiving. Forgiving
keeps the way open for God to pour more peace and love into your life.
Forgiving causes us to walk “peaceably with all men” as the scripture tells us
to do. We don’t have to “try” to be in peace, we will just “be” in peace.