Be At Peace

There are three powerful words written by the Apostle Paul to Timothy, his beloved son in the faith. These are found in I Timothy 1:2. They are packed with meaning that sometimes escapes the modern reader. Let’s take a moment and examine these three words, which have rich insights for us.

GRACE: The word means, “unmerited favor.” When you apply this to a Christian it means God’s unmerited favor towards those who believe. We can’t earn grace, we don’t deserve grace, yet God turns His attention towards you and lavishes His favor upon you. This should cause the recipient to be filled with gratitude, humility, peace and thanksgiving.

MERCY: The word means, “not getting what we deserve.” Every single person is born with a rebellious sinful nature. We are not sinners because we sin, we sin because it’s our nature to sin and rebel. Romans 3:10-11, “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God.” Yet, God often stays His hand of judgement when a person sins, this is mercy. God extends great mercy to all, unbelievers and believers alike, but only believers have the opportunity to receive complete mercy, because of Christ.

Proverbs 28:13, “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.” The sins that tear at our souls are outlined by the apostle Paul in Galatians 5:19-21. “Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality (Pornographic material is in sensuality) idolatry, sorcery (enchantment with drugs is included in sorcery) enmity, strife, jealously, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warned you…that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

If you do the things mentioned above, you will not enter into heaven. But if you confess and forsake these sins, you will obtain mercy. If you turn to Christ, you will be forgiven, your destiny will be heaven.

PEACE: Two different types of peace are mentioned in the scriptures. The first is, peace with God. This is referring to our salvation, every non-believer is at war with God. As Romans 3, mentioned above, no one is good and no one seeks for God, why? Because we hate Him. That’s pretty strong John, non-believers don’t hate God, or do they? John 15:18, “If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me first.” John 3:19, “Men love darkness rather than light.” Christ died for us while we were His enemies, and His death removed the strife between God the Father and us who believe. We are now at Peace with God, because of Christ.

The second type is the peace of God, this is a blissful surrender to the promises of God. Philippians 4:7, “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus,” Who doesn’t want this type of peace? The world today is filled with anxiety, fearfulness, and strife, it seems that is all we hear about. What would it be like for our hearts and minds to be at perfect peace? How do we get this peace? Philippians 4:6, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer…with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God…and the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds.”

Prayer changes things and the change is usually us. Once we pray, and by faith, leave our anxious thoughts before the throne of grace, the peace that is promised guards our hearts and minds. You can interrupt God’s peace over you by refusing to believe that He is in control.

Pray, trust that God hears you because of Christ. Leave your anxious thoughts with Him for God wants you to be filled with peace, He wants you to comprehend His grace, and to experience His mercy.

John