Sunday School Lesson on Peace
by Mrs. Jennifer Kearns
“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” Philippians 4:7-8
The peace of God is given to the righteous by the God of peace!
1. We must have peace with God. Romans 5:1 “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:” When we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour, we have peace with God and are no longer under the condemnation and judgment of his almighty hand. We are no longer the children of disobedience .
Ephesians 2 “ 1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.”
I want every one of you to close your eyes. Think back to the day, the place, the time…whatever you can remember ….of when you got saved….Think about what you felt like before you knelt down and accepted him as your Saviour. You were probably afraid, your heart was beating out of your chest, your knees were weak. Now, think about the moment you trusted him…what you felt…that overwhelming sense of peace that flooded your soul like you’ve never felt before, the great joy of knowing that you were at peace WITH God. ( I know that salvation is not about feelings per say but no doubt you feel something when you trust God!)
The peace that we have after we accept Jesus Christ can never be taken away; it can not be broken because of the eternal life that he has given us. Therefore it is eternal peace WITH God. Jesus Christ through his sacrificial blood atonement has knocked down the wall between God and man and allowed us to be partakers of eternal peace with God.
“13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;” Ephesians 2:13-14
2. The Peace OF God:
A. In Philippians 4:7-9 the Bible tells us that the peace of God will keep our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Unlike the peace we have WITH God the peace of God can be broken by the things we allow our hearts to ponder on….In verse 8 of Philippians 4 the Bible tells us a list of things to keep in our hearts in minds in order to continue to walk in the peace of God.
1. Whatsoever things are TRUE (truth)
2. Whatsoever things are HONEST(honorable)
3. Whatsoever things are JUST(innocent, holy, right)
4. Whatsoever things are PURE(perfect)
5. Whatsoever things are LOVELY(acceptable)
6. Whatsoever things are of GOOD REPORT(well spoken of)
If I were trying to describe something or someone to you that was true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of good report…what would be the first thing or person you would think of?
There are some things that can help you to meditate daily on the Lord.
1. Prayer – “Pray without ceasing.” I Thessalonians 5:17
2. Daily Bible Study – “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” II Timothy 2:15
3. Memorizing Scripture and Meditating on them during the day. – “But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” Psalm 1:2
4. Be Faithful to the house of God – “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” Hebrews 10:25
5. Be faithful to the work of the Lord and the evangelizing of the lost – “But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:” II Corinthians 4:3
6. Count the blessing God has given you – “O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.” Psalm 34:8
These are just a few things that will help us to daily meditate on God….so that we may have the peace of God. When we pray there is a sense of peace because we know that he sees and answers our prayers. When we study our Bibles…God shows us through his Word something great and mighty and it just stays in our minds. When we momrize scripture God uses that to remind us about faults we may have during the day or temptations that come on us during the day…or even just how blessed we are to have him as our Lord and friend! When we are Faithful to the house of God we receive blessing after blessing in exhortation from our brothers and sisters in Christ. When we are faithful to the work and evangelization of sinners it energizes us to want to keep going for Christ. And when we count the blessings he has given us it reminds us daily of what Jesus did for us and what he is continuing to do!
Then in verse 9 it goes on to tells us that if we do all the things that we have learned and heard and seen then the God of peace shall be with us! Praise the Lord I’m glad I can have that peace! As the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth and bears witness with and to the truth, He will bear witness with and to the mind filled with the truth. The result will be a mind filled with the peace of God.
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” Isaiah 26:3
During this time of war there is an overwhelming fear gripping so many hearts and lives.
BUT those of us who know Christ need not to worry about what is going to happen to us. If we know Christ as our Saviour we have peace with God. If we will just let him rule in our hearts and think on things of God…true, honest, pure, just, and of good report, we can have the peace of God in our hearts and minds. If we just sit and listen to the news then we will begin to worry instead of putting our troops and loved ones in God’s hands. I am not saying that I do not care but if I’m just going to sit and worry about what is going to happen next I will not have to peace of God ruling in my heart.
That is why the Bible tells us to let the peace of God rule in your hearts…..also it tells us specifically what things we are to meditate on. IF we meditate on those things daily then the worries of this world will not have room in our hearts. If we trust God with the things and people dear to us then we can have peace in our hearts that God will take care of them.
“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” II Timothy 1:7
B. Another thing that is required of us if we are to have the peace of God is to keep God’s commands and laws. The laws of the Lord are what revealed our sin to us and they are there also as guidelines in our everyday life.
Some scriptures that come to mind are Matthew 22:35-37 which says
“35 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying,
36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.”
Jesus told him that we are to love the Lord with all of our hearts, all of our souls and all of our minds….if we do that then there leaves no room for other things to take the place of Jesus. The peace of God can then rule in our hearts….we are keeping one of God’s laws if we love the Lord with all of our hearts, souls and minds. Thus another verse that tells us a promise when we keep God’s law.
Psalm 119:165
“Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.”
God has promised peace to all those who love His law.
I want to end with some verses on peace:
“For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.”
I Corinthians 14:33
Many times I have quoted this verse. The Lord will not cause confusion in a persons heart (thus no peace) because as the verse says here…the Lord is not the author of confusion. But it says he is the author of peace…so that means that God is the one who gives peace. So we need to trust him, and love him, and meditate on HIM!!!!!
“The LORD will give strength unto his people; the LORD will bless his people with peace.”
Psalm 29:11
How many times have we a Christians just felt an overwhelming sense of strength in times of weakness and peace in times of worry? Here it says the Lord gives us that strength and the Lord gives us that peace! What a blessing to know that the Lord is a very present help in trouble.
“And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.” Romans 16:20
I like this one….The God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly….Praise God the Lord is coming back one day VERY SOON and that old devil that causes so much confusion and worries in our hearts and lives will be trodden under foot…..Just remember that when the devil comes at you and tries to get you to worry…He won’t be able to worry you much longer!
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