The Things That Belong To Thy Peace

There were tears in the Master’s eyes as He spake these words.

Lu 19:42,43. "And when He was come near, He beheld the city, and wept over it, saying, "If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong to thy peace! but now are they hid from thine eyes."

Jerusalem, the city of peace, a city chastened so many times for her forgetfulness of that One Who so loved. Some of the most beautiful language in scripture is used to describe the tender affection His Father had displayed towards a people who seemed bent on breaking that heart of love. How great a love had been revealed towards those whose only consistency was over and over again to prove their utter unworthiness. And now the greatest single act of love was met with stony coldness. There were some who, with their glad Hosannas, welcomed their King, but their voices were to be drowned by the cries for His destruction. And the perfectly balanced emotions of that perfect Son of God were overwhelmed with deep sorrow as the tragedy of the whole situation bore down upon Him. Of all the peoples of earth these only had His Father recognized, "Ye only have I known.." To these only had He revealed His Name, His mighty Name, and His wise and gracious purpose, and the greatness of His power, and the readiness of His outstretched arms. And this had He done by the Angel of His Presence, and Paul tells us... this was Christ.

Deane states in his book, Daniel, his life and times. "Even Jewish tradition had admitted that it was the Word, the first begotten Son, who undertook the care of God’s sacred flock in the wilder-ness, and that it was He Who spoke to Adam, and to others." So deeply involved was that Logos in all His Father’s works.. "How often," He said, "would I have gathered you... but ye would not." That great conflict of will... The perfect holy Will of God shared by our Lord, based upon perfect holy love, and the desire to share so much, ... and the wayward fleshly will of those who were called by His Name, but were His only in name.

"This people have I formed for Myself. They will shew forth My praise." That great purpose would yet be fulfilled, but the way to its realization seemed so far off. "If you had only known... those things on which your true peace depends... but now are they hid from thine eyes." It was the harvest of an age. Here was a field, a vineyard, that, whatever planted therein, however earnest the care of its Husbandman, seemed capable only of producing briars and thorns, fit only for burning. Nothing but a handful of wheat, not as a bonus or surplus abundance on the top of the mountains, but one handful representing the total harvest of an age.

And do we read that these things are written for our admonition on whom the ends of the ages are come? Do we recognize that just as the vision Moses received in the mount was to be a pattern of the Tabernacle, which itself was a pattern of what was to come, so the whole age of the Lord’s dealings with that people was to be a pattern, a volume full of exhortation and warning for the people of God of a later age, this Christian age now ending in our day. Can there be some solemn need in such tragic situation to thus underline and impress as it were with an iron pen a vital lesson for our own day and hour? Can there be a parallel in these our times to such a state as that described? Does a Lord today, at the end of an age, visit His people? Is this their day? The day they have professedly waited for? And as He looks now upon Zion, upon all those who own His Name, do His sorrowing words apply? Are there today glad Hosannas going up from the hearts of His own? Do they welcome in their King.with gladness and unspeakable joy? Is this their day indeed, the hour of triumph in the Lord?

We know that it is so.

As some recognized the significance then of the things they witnessed, saw the fulfillment of prophecy in the meek and lowly approach of the One riding upon the colt of an ass, so we today welcome as infallible proofs of the presence of our King those prophecies fulfilled before our eyes that we know could not take place before His return.

Back in the days of Peter, in Acts 1 to 3, every Jew knew that one of the prominent feature of the work of Messiah would be the restoration of Israel. The disciples showed great concern when the Master prepared to leave the scene without fulfilling this work. Ac 1:6 They therefore, when they were come together, asked him, saying, Lord, dost thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? (ASV) We recall the sadness when the two spoke to the unrecognized stranger of their sorrow and concern...Lu 24:21 But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel: (lutroo to release and deliver from bondage) With recognition of Messiah had come excited expectation...Lu 19:11 "And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear."

When Peter declared to the crowd of Jews that their Messiah had come and again had gone he knew there was an enormous obstacle to any Jew accepting such a statement. He knew he had to explain about the failure of Messiah to fulfil the role of the Messiah in restoring the kingdom to Israel, in bringing into being once more a sovereign state of Israel. So Peter explains the truth, that this event will mark the second advent of the Lord Jesus. Ac 3:21 "whom the heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, whereof God spake by the mouth of His holy prophets that have been from of old." (ASV) That word, "restoration", is the noun of the verb used "to restore" in Ac 1:6, and these are the only places in the whole book that either form of the word appears. Undoubtedly they refer to the same event. The restoration work described by the prophets so meaningful to every Jew was the restoration of Israel. It was this that would commence an even wider work of blessing for all mankind as Isa 49:6 declares. To His Servant Jesus there He says: "It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth." (NIV) Brethren, we have the strongest Scripture evidence here of the parousia of Our Lord today.

Jews who know their scriptures know that the restoration of Israel can only commence with the coming of their Messiah. They are deeply puzzled by what is taking place, indeed, many even resisted the work of restoration, believing it to be blasphemous to attempt before the Messiah was come. We know the answer to their enigma. Blessed are our eyes for they see and recognize the signs, the unmistakable evidence, the many proofs in Israel today of the very presence and work of Messiah. This is the day for which the Lord’s people have prayed throughout the age.

Yet again this time of great joy and gladness for the saints is also a time of searching judgment of all that claims to be the house of God. Mr 11:11 " And Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple: and when he had looked round about upon all things, and now the eventide was come, he went out unto Bethany with the twelve." Soon He would take.scourge in hand and cleanse that place of all that offended. Mt 23:38-39 "Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord."

The glory of that house departed. The flames would follow sparing nothing, until the whole edifice lay in ruins to be built no more. Lu 19:42-43 "If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. 43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side," What does the Master find as today He looks round upon that which claims to be the house of God? Earnest Simeons, devoted Hannas who departed not from that place, these have been largely replaced by many who in their hearts despise His Word and put Him to open shame.

By wisdom of this world the impact of the Gospel message is destroyed and the Son of Man cast out, despised, and crucified afresh. Professors of godliness, earnest leaders of men, yet denying the very power of the Word of God, divesting it of all divine authority, correcting it, and denouncing it as the words of misguided men.

There were some clever minds among the Pharisees, Rabbis and Scribes of that day, and there are clever minds in the churches today, and an abundance of wisdom that is not from above and that knoweth not God. Yet are there some, as declared so long before, whose hearts are not satisfied with religious chaff. The Nicodemus’s of that day, the wise who are led to an understanding in this our day, an understanding of what the true situation is, who know, not only that their Lord is here, but why He is here, for what great purpose He has come, and what this entails in the removal of all that offends.

Once more the harvest of an age has produced but a handful of wheat.. in all 144001 grains.

If the harvest of one season in this land produced such a return we would be in state of famine. But that handful of wheat is very precious in the hands of the Husbandman. This is the seed wheat of a new age, every grain specially prepared. And through this seed will all families of earth be blessed for all eternity.

Brethren, where do we stand with regard to what is now taking place, and with respect to Our Master’s searching surveillance and words? It is easy to note the correspondence with others, "Thou knowest not", .. the Master used almost identical words at both harvests.. "Thou knowest not." He speaks of a complacency amongst those that call themselves by His Name, yet who lack the fervor of one betrothed for the husband of her desires. The days of Laodicea are running out. So are the days of His church on earth.

Each ecclesia of the Lord’s people shines, each in its place, according to the light that is held forth. In the midst of the lamp-stands walks the Lord, and to this hour, wherever His Spirit burns in the heart He tends the needs of His own. Have some of the lamps flickered and gone out? It is because the saints of that place have departed to be with Christ, or it is because a different spirit has emerged, and the lamp-stand has been removed. And to this last hour the test remains, to hear and discern the voice of the Lord, and to distinguish it from the voice of strangers, to hear and obey what the Spirit says to the churches, to discern what the will of the Lord is... and what are the things that belong to our peace.

The Jews were such a privileged people, the nation the Lord had blessed. Isa 5:1&2 speaks of the great care He took over His vineyard. Then at His advent what feast of truth, what.opening of the mind to truth’s treasured depths, especially concerning the blessed nature and reality of that kingdom so long promised. A mine was opened up during that harvest time, the living freshness of God’s Spirit breathed through so many old truths and mingled with new gleams of the divine character and ways, new revelation of divine love, new gems of truth and glorious hope. Yet that very feast of truth would lay bare the mind and character of those who were called by His name and as a nation had made a covenant with God by sacrifice.

That strange prophetic warning remained in the ears of Mary... Lu 2:34 "And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against; " What those words contained time would reveal. The greatest hour of truth was to become the greatest time of testing for that people. Either they would receive, or they would reject, and accordingly would one be taken and another left. Face to face with truth the hearts and thoughts of many would be revealed. And what then can be said of the blessing of His people today during the harvest of this age? Blessed indeed have been those living into this appointed time at the close of the 1335 days.

It has been like Isaiah 5 over again. He has fenced in His covenant people, separating them from all others by the truth. He gathered out the stones, the stumbling stones of many errors and human misunderstandings of His ways and plan. This was a fruitful hill indeed, fertile ground for the growth of true spirituality of the choicest vine. And in the midst He built a watch tower and appointed those who would watch over the interests of His people. There stands the winepress ready to receive the choicest grapes. What could He have done more?

The Lord knew well what experiences were yet required to achieve His blessed design. He knows just what He is about, knows what will achieve His purpose in us to bring forth that full fruitage of His vine. He will not be disappointed, whatever the outward appearances may seem. This time of great blessing, time of feasting, time of truth in a fullness not known since the apostles fell asleep, was to be a time of great testing, the time of judgment of the house of God. Nor would that harvest work cease at the first gathering out of the truth people from the churches of Christendom. Further tests, further shakeups would follow, and for many would the truth lose its compelling power, and the Master would turn to those yet clinging to His word ..." Will ye also go away?" It happened at the first harvest, and again at this second harvest.

Many of Paul’s epistles were written because the first satisfaction of truth gave way to a hankering after the old things once left behind. Then, it was Judaism, and Judaism was a very carefully systemized concept with many wise men devoted to its cause... Paul, himself at one time among them. Making that clean break was not easy. Today it is the teachings of the churches on matters such as the New Covenant, the rapture and visible return of the Lord yet future, and so on. With the testing of time these concepts have returned like a snare.

Everything that can shaken will be shaken. We each, at this late hour, need to know what we believe and why we believe it. It is dangerous to lean on the understanding of others, we each need make the truth our own. Do I believe the Lord has returned? Why do I believe? What are the implications of my belief?

* Joh 11:28, " The Master is come, and calleth for thee."

* Song 2:8 "The voice of my beloved! behold, he cometh leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills."

* Re 3:20 "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open.the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."

* Song 5:2 "it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled:" Could truth in its beauty be more personally expressed? Only His betrothed will thus respond.

To others the Lord’s "parousia" is a doctrine, even a battle-ground. To His future Bride, it is the most compelling realization, calling forth the most diligent preparation, the greatest joy.

But over so many of those who are called by His Name, does the Master now share a similar emotion to that of those days of Israel’s harvest?

Lu 19:41-42 "And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace!

but now they are hid from thine eyes."

Brethren, do we know the things that belong to our peace? Are they in the forefront of our mind?

Do we treasure them in the depths of our heart? Lu 21:34-36 "And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man." It was on this very ground that so many would fail to stand before the Son of Man at each advent.

The things that belong to our peace. What are these? Peace is a beautiful word, and in Scripture, most expressive. The very name Jerusalem means "city of peace", and this adds even greater pathos to Our Master’s tears. It is the Prince of our peace Who is now present.

Shalom, as many of us will know, is a Hebrew word with depth of meaning.

* I Kings 8:61 "Let your heart therefore be perfect with the LORD our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day."

* I Kings 11:4 "For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father."

* De 25:15 "But thou shalt have a perfect and just weight, a perfect and just measure shalt thou have: that thy days may be lengthened in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee."

In these and certain other texts the word Shalom is rendered "perfect"..

In Ru 2:12 it is rendered "full". "The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust."

This is a beautiful and oft-quoted passage, expressing in the life of Ruth, the Moabitess, the call and engrafting of the mainly Gentile church of this age.

"A shalom reward be given thee...." a complete, full reward.... nothing lacking, no imperfection, entire, whole..Vine thus speaks of the equivalent Greek word "Irene". The corresponding Heb. word shalom primarily signifies "wholeness": see its use in Jos 8:31, "unhewn"; Ru 2:12, "full"; Neh.

6:15, "finished"; Isa 42:19, marg., "made perfect." Hence there is a close connection between the title in 1 Thes. 5:23 and the word holokleros, "entire," in that verse.

_ 1Thes 5:23 "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ."

In the Sept. shalom is often rendered by soteria, "salvation, e. g., Ge 26:31; 41:16; hence the "peace-offering" is called the "salvation offering." (from Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words) The word has the thought, then, of perfection, completeness, fullness. It speaks of harmony and well-being, prosperity, health. It is the word chosen to convey the concept of a full fellowship with God. Indeed we may speak of the three "Rs"of the Peace of God.

Reconciliation, Relationship, and Rest.

Does this cause us now each one to ask "What is my standing at this hour with the Lord?"

What has been the result of all the lessons, all the Bible study meetings, and all the experiences of the Way? Where am I? What have I become? How ready for the perfect day?

We turn our eyes to the Lord. He it is Who knows exactly where we are and what we have become. Would I like to know what He has written down about me thus far?

A brother who died some time ago bequeathed to us his diaries covering many years of truth movement experiences. They included, of course, our own period of fellowship with him, and it is illuminating to note his observations on our course, his noting of the apparent trends in our lives and our progress. Sometimes he speaks with pleasure of our apparent growth, in his eyes.

Sometimes he reveals concern. It can be quite an interesting experience, though rarely flattering, to see ourselves as others see us, to hear their inner and frank thoughts, and we take kindly the interest revealed in even the notes of criticism to which we are most ready to take heed.

We know there is a limitation to our brethren’s ability to judge us even in the most kindly light. "Could we draw aside the curtain that surrounds each other’s lives," Yes, know what prompts each course of action, what the spur for every word... we would indeed, as the poem says," love each other better if we only understood." In those holy perfect searching eyes of Our present Lord, there is perfect understanding. He judges not by appearances. He sees everything. There is nothing hid from the eyes of Him with Whom we have to do.

Ps 139:1-6 1 O LORD, you have searched me and you know.(me) 2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.

5 You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. (NIV).And what a comfort it is to know this! It is My Savior Who knows it all. It is the Lord Who died for me who recognizes those weaknesses within, that frailty, that total dependence upon His mercy and love. He is able to make all grace abound towards me, so that my cup, the emptiness and needs of this vessel of His grace, runneth over with that fulness. His strength made perfect in my weakness.... Oh yes indeed... as our dear sister Hannah sang 1Sa 2:8-9 "He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s, and he hath set the world upon them.

9 He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail." (KJV) And dear Mary echoed those thoughts in her joyous realisation of divine grace in her life.

Lu 1:51-53 "He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away." (KJV) In each case a new life was the cause of the joy, and that new life was of God. Lu 1:35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee: wherefore also the holy thing which is begotten shall be called the Son of God. (ASV) The Lord was at work within by His Spirit, and, indeed, these very same words lend themselves perfectly to the realization of what the Lord is even now accomplishing within each one of His people. It is the work of the Lord, our first concept of truth, that planted seed, the growth and development... all of Him. He it was Who prompted within us a certain desire, to be with Him, to be like Him. To acknowledge His Headship in our lives, be entirely His, as instruments of His perfect holy will... Yes, dear brethren, to be the instruments of His peace.

What a beautiful thought that is! II Th 3:16 Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all. (KJV) The things that belong to our peace are the things that belong to our reconciliation, our grateful acknowledgement of the Lord’s provision for all our needs in Christ.. The shed blood, and the priestly intercession on its basis. We are made acceptable in the Beloved.

Without Him, we are nothing, strangers from the family of God. The things which belong to our peace are the things that bring about and seal our relationship with the Lord, a precious closeness, a bond of eternal and uttermost love. The things that belong to our peace are the things that lead us into rest. Every day of our lives we are learning to live with the glory of God, each hour we are learning to live with the peace of God.

The mind and heart of each saint is centered on this living bright reality. This is a NOW experience, for NOW are we sons of God, we have been translated into the marvelous light of His glorious and holy presence. Seated with Him, even now in spirit, in heavenly places, we are learning how to dwell in the shekinah radiance. It is this conscious awareness of that Holy Presence in our lives that emphasizes the import of each aspect of the peace of God. We remember the response of faithful ones of old to a sudden glimpse of that glory of the divine... Isaiah, Daniel, John. As dear brother Peter, when the Master spoke those gracious words of truth and holiness from his fishing boat, he was overcome by the awareness of something so pure, so other-worldish, about the One Who spoke and the things He spoke, and.especially the things He could do.

Lu 5:8 ... he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!"

(NIV) Isaiah was likewise overwhelmed. Isa 6:5-7 Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts. Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.

Daniel fell prostrate at the glorious vision of Christ. Da 10:8-11: "Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength. Yet heard I the voice of his words: and when I heard the voice of his words, then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward the ground. And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands. And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling."

Brethren, would we ever forget such an experience? Did Paul ever lose that vision? Did he ever lose sight of that glory of God that shone in the face of Jesus and lit up the very road?

...a glory brighter than that of the sun at its height.. Once glimpsed that glory can never be forgotten. It stays in the mind, and continues to shine upon the way we tread each day. Both Daniel and Paul had companions, but they did not share that vision. Ac 9:7 "And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man." (KJV) In Ac 22:9 Paul said, "And they that were with me saw indeed the light, (not the person,) and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me." (KJV) It seems they heard something, but they did not receive the message that Paul received. It seems that the Lord grants to His saints alone that concept in the mind, that blessed but awing glimpse of the glory of our King, and from that time we become changed men and women, changed by the glory of God perceived, not by any fleshly ability, but by the divine grace of the One revealing Himself to us.

Brethren, if the Lord has revealed Himself to you, if He has filled your mind with the sense of deep wonder and awe that He should want to show Himself to you, if He has lit up your heart with the light of His countenance, then blessed are your eyes and blessed your heart. The Power of the Highest is overshadowing you and producing within you a holy thing that will be known for all eternity as His own offspring, a love-child of God.

In the presence of One so pure, so holy, so absolutely righteous and true, are we not at once aware more than any others of our total unworthiness, our garments so soiled, our righteousness as rags? Our boldness of entry and standing in such hallowed presence comes from no complacency as to any merit on our part. This fact remains though we have been in the way of truth these many years. It is only the blood-washed robe He provides that gives us confidence to stand before Him, so close to One so Holy. Contrition of heart, deep awareness and appreciation of divine grace, such an attitude is pleasing to Our God. It opens the way for reconciliation, for that daily cleansing away of all that would come between us and the Lord.

It enables us to go on, knowing the comfort of the embrace of Our Savior and the warmth of.His understanding love.

Peace is reconciliation between me and my God, a loosing away from all the bitter dark hopeless estrangement of sin. Our Father paid a great price to bring us into His presence. He gave Jesus... He is our peace. By Him He brought us out of darkness into light, out of the shadow of death into life more abundant than anything we could have dreamed.

This new and living way, ( we sometimes call it, being in the truth. ... like being swallowed up in the effulgence of that light of the knowledge of the glory that surrounds His throne,) this newness of life is close relationship with Our Beloved Lord. He IS the WAY, the TRUTH, the LIFE for each of His saints. That relationship is a bond, a personal bond now being forged between the heart of each saint with the heart of the Lord. The new goal in the heart, the whole direction of the life, is that I might know Him.. that is the prize held out before me. If it is the most precious thing that we could conceive then will we gain that prize.

Then will this earnest yearning that He has put into our hearts be realized, and we shall be satisfied. For the peace of God means rest, the entering in to a state of perfect satisfaction of the highest aspirations. It means the enjoyment of the fulfillment of His purpose in me. It means the satisfying of my Savior, and the satisfaction of the heart of my God in the gathering of His family around Him in the blessed bonds of heavenly love. Ps 107:9 For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness.

Those only will be there who long and who hunger, who pant as does the hart for water brooks, for that appearing before Him, no longer needing a covering, but in the perfection of His finished work and masterpiece, and to His eternal glory and praise. It is not what He gives that is our satisfaction, but what He is. He Himself satisfies the longing of saints... He Himself is the goodness that filleth those who hunger and thirst. Have we entered yet into that rest? As the Pastor said, to the extent that faith can have it now, yes we have.

It is pleasing to the Lord that we fully indulge the new mind in all the spiritual blessings that are ours at this present hour... the present truth... that means the truth that is ours now, the truth that surrounds us, engulfs us at this very moment. The reconciliation, and the relationship, that is ours today. To the degree that we enjoy and enthuse over these things now, to that degree we enjoy that peace of God, and that rest. "We have enough, but not too much to long for more... a yearning for a deeper peace not known before." We are content, for are we not a blessed people, ... but when we awake in His likeness, then will we be satisfied.

These are the things that belong to our peace. The Spirit that He has given to us will lead us in countless ways to a deeper appreciation of that peace. The peace of God is not as that which the world calls peace. Such a peace depends upon the sense of well-being that comes from a calm sea, from good health, friends, family, and earthly comforts. It is precarious because it rests on so many factors that can change at any time. By various means do we learn how to live with the peace of God, and these various means may involve sometimes the removal of some of those earthly comforts. Then it is that know that we have the peace that passeth human understanding.

2Th 3:16 Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all help.