Dwelling in God’s word: can there be peace in the world?
Can there be peace in the world? In our church? In your life? At Christmas time?
At times during my life, I have been very unsettled, arguing with and questioning God about what is happening. My sleep has been interrupted. I have been ill at ease. There’s been a definite lack of peace in my life.
You may be in a situation like that at the moment. Or perhaps as you hear and read about wars, or corruption, or the breakdown of political and corporate institutions, you may be a little unsettled too. Where is that promised peace? What even is peace?
Read Jeremiah 6:13,14 and 8:11. Who can we trust to bring news of peace?
Read Matthew 10:34–36. Is peace promised? What is going on here?
Read John 14:27. What is different about this saying of Jesus?
Okay. Perhaps we need to rethink our understanding of peace.
Share what peace means to you, or write it down and see if you can expand the meaning.
The word peace in Hebrew is Shalom. There is no simple English translation. Peace does not capture all the nuances of Shalom. Shalom includes wellness, delight, living with good neighbours, a healthy life, a people that support one another, spiritual wholeness, nourishing relationships.
Which of those aspects of peace appeal to you?
Read Colossians 3:15, then the whole passage of Colossians 3:12–17. What does peace involve according to these verses?
As mentioned above, peace involves much more than we usually think of. In Jesus’ appearances to his followers after the resurrection, he speaks the words: ‘Peace be with you’, three times. It is interesting to look at the context of each of these sayings.
Read John 20:19–29 in three sections: vv19,20; vv21–23; vv24–29. In each of these sections, tease out the context. What situations does he address? What is happening, with Jesus and with his followers?
It seems to me that he addresses three different areas: the bodily (v20), the spiritual (v22), and the very common human setting of doubt (vv25,27).
Perhaps peace is actually offered to all, for every situation we can think of. Perhaps it is available in places we don’t think of.
Where do you believe peace is available? Where have you experienced God’s peace?
Certainly, it is offered in the Bible, and when we hear the forgiveness of sins spoken in worship. But God’s peace is not limited to those events. The Psalms suggest it is when we are in the presence of God.
Read Psalm 73:28; 29:11; 23:2. Where do you experience the presence of God?
Perhaps you experience God’s presence in a piece of music, observing a work of art, in the company of friends, as the blessing is spoken in worship, a walk along a sandy beach, or in the deepest forest. God is present in each of those places.
Wendell Berry in his poem ‘The Peace of Wild Things’ states the following:
‘When despair for the world grows in me … I come into the peace of wild things … I come into the presence of still water … For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.’
The other night I couldn’t sleep. Sometimes, when that happens and I am restless, I move to one of our lounge chairs and drift off to sleep with the sound of frogs croaking from the dam near our house in the background. The Prince of Peace restores me to rest (and peace) through the grace of the world.
As we celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace, be comforted that Jesus comes to us in our unsettled times, in a quiet voice, through the whisper of the Spirit, through the Creator’s gifts. And may you indeed know peace beyond all understanding.
Peter Bean is a retired pastor, with a love of creation, marvelling at God’s wonders constantly.
