Peace with God, ourselves and others shared John 20
Peace in our lives John 20
Peace used in the Gospel here is the greek word eirene which we get our English word for peace, irenic. Peace is used in the sense of rest, quietness and of course in the Jewish sense of peace with God and others, now our Christian faith. It also means : irḗnē (from eirō, "to join, tie together into a whole") – properly, wholeness, i.e. when all essential parts are joined together; peace (God's gift of wholeness)." Biblehub.com John 20:19
Bishop Sheen in his Life of Christ said this about peace & John 20 at the appearance of Jesus here, "...(He) brought about peace by the Blood of the Cross, He came in His own Person to bestow it. Peace is the fruit of justice...Peace is the tranquility of order, not tranquility alone; for robbers can be tranquil in the possession of their spoils. Peace also implies order, the subordination of the body to the soul, of the sense to the reason, and the creature to the Creator. Isaiah said there was no peace to the wicked because they are at enmity with themselves, with one another, and with God."
Here we hear more about peace after He says Peace be to you, He showed them His hands and His side. He breathed on them the Holy Spirit, and talked about forgiveness of sins.
I like the prayer book in its lovely prayers on peace. We will listen to a few here and then dissect what peace truly is , its constituent parts. It is not automatic just because one believes in Jesus. There is a process of transformation that must take place . Trust in Jesus is the beginning but there is a process in our lives to know so that we may practice peace among others as we have received it from God first.
" For the Spirit of Prayer"
" O ALMIGHTY God, who pourest out on all who desire it, the spirit of grace and of supplication ; Deliver us, when we draw nigh to Thee, from coldness of heart and wanderings of mind, that with stedfast thoughts and kindled affections , we may worship thee in spirit and in truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord. " Amen.
" For Quiet Confidence"
O GOD of peace , who hast taught us that in returning and rest we shall be saved, in quietness and in confidence shall be our strength; By the might of Thy Spirit lift us, we pray thee, to thy presence, where we may be still and know that thou art God; through Jesus Christ our Lord. " Amen.
" For Trustfulness"
O MOST loving Father, who willest us to give thanks for all things, to dread nothing but the loss of thee, and to cast all our care on thee, who carest for us; Preserve us from faithless fears and worldly anxieties, and grant that no clouds of this mortal life may hide from us the light of that love which is immortal, and which thou hast manifested unto us in thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord." Amen.
---Later on at the end I will quote another one which I really have liked about peace and tranquility and how much that prayer has been a use to me when going through trials and distress.
What is the process of peace? We have received from God through His Son as we said in the beginning, but it is not enough so to speak to hold it to ourselves and imagine we are being peaceful. Yes, we may have eternal life but we may not know how to express that to others if we ourselves have not let God's peace transform us. Let us take a deeper look.
Conversion means we are going through transformation. Some of the stages leading to the " birth of the whole human being" which leads to " reconcilitation and communion" ( all of this paragraph is from Haughton's book in The Transformation of Man as in Mentoring by Sellner). This is not behavior that can be imposed but comes from the " AUTHENTIC SELF". The only choice is to love or not to love remains.
" Such a response is made possible when one has the knowledge of being loved already. Although it may be very painful at times, since it can lead to a dying to self, surrender of ourselves in love has the possibility of creating a new life, one that is shared." Sellner
Repentance is a part of this process. This comes from knowing one is loved by God.
" Experiencing the power of love in our lives can lead us all to become active as agents of change in our society and church, with our families and friends. We come to lovingly challenge institutions that are causing people to suffer for the wrong reasons ; we intervene gently but firmly when we see others bent on self-destructive and sometimes suicidal behavior; most of all, we invite others to a possibly healthier and more spirtually enriching way of life..."
As we conclude look at peace differently to know that there are times when our peace is challenged by others, God and His Word. We need to listen attentively, retreat and be in silent adoration that He cares for us. He wants us to grow in our depth of knowledge of Him and His ways but mostly to act out His love in concrete actions of concern from our true selves, not the phony ones we put on sometimes. Others will know we truly love God and His people and we react positively if they see these things in word and deed.
As the Father sent Me Jesus said, so also I am sending you. Through the power of the Holy Spirit and reconciliation with others we interact for their benefit, not ours, but we too experience grace when all this happens.
Here is the prayer I try and live up to through God's grace in my life. May it be true for you too: " For Peace of Mind---1929 Free Church Book of Common Prayer
" O GOD, let us never seek beyond Thee what we can find only in thee, peace and rest, joy and blessedness. Lift our souls above the round of harrasing thoughts to the Eternal Presence, the pure bright atmosphere in which thou art, that there we may breathe freely, there be at rest from ourselves, and from all things that weary us; and thence return, with thy peace within us , to do and to bear whatsover pleaseth thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. " Amen.
Peace used in the Gospel here is the greek word eirene which we get our English word for peace, irenic. Peace is used in the sense of rest, quietness and of course in the Jewish sense of peace with God and others, now our Christian faith. It also means : irḗnē (from eirō, "to join, tie together into a whole") – properly, wholeness, i.e. when all essential parts are joined together; peace (God's gift of wholeness)." Biblehub.com John 20:19
Bishop Sheen in his Life of Christ said this about peace & John 20 at the appearance of Jesus here, "...(He) brought about peace by the Blood of the Cross, He came in His own Person to bestow it. Peace is the fruit of justice...Peace is the tranquility of order, not tranquility alone; for robbers can be tranquil in the possession of their spoils. Peace also implies order, the subordination of the body to the soul, of the sense to the reason, and the creature to the Creator. Isaiah said there was no peace to the wicked because they are at enmity with themselves, with one another, and with God."
Here we hear more about peace after He says Peace be to you, He showed them His hands and His side. He breathed on them the Holy Spirit, and talked about forgiveness of sins.
I like the prayer book in its lovely prayers on peace. We will listen to a few here and then dissect what peace truly is , its constituent parts. It is not automatic just because one believes in Jesus. There is a process of transformation that must take place . Trust in Jesus is the beginning but there is a process in our lives to know so that we may practice peace among others as we have received it from God first.
" For the Spirit of Prayer"
" O ALMIGHTY God, who pourest out on all who desire it, the spirit of grace and of supplication ; Deliver us, when we draw nigh to Thee, from coldness of heart and wanderings of mind, that with stedfast thoughts and kindled affections , we may worship thee in spirit and in truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord. " Amen.
" For Quiet Confidence"
O GOD of peace , who hast taught us that in returning and rest we shall be saved, in quietness and in confidence shall be our strength; By the might of Thy Spirit lift us, we pray thee, to thy presence, where we may be still and know that thou art God; through Jesus Christ our Lord. " Amen.
" For Trustfulness"
O MOST loving Father, who willest us to give thanks for all things, to dread nothing but the loss of thee, and to cast all our care on thee, who carest for us; Preserve us from faithless fears and worldly anxieties, and grant that no clouds of this mortal life may hide from us the light of that love which is immortal, and which thou hast manifested unto us in thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord." Amen.
---Later on at the end I will quote another one which I really have liked about peace and tranquility and how much that prayer has been a use to me when going through trials and distress.
What is the process of peace? We have received from God through His Son as we said in the beginning, but it is not enough so to speak to hold it to ourselves and imagine we are being peaceful. Yes, we may have eternal life but we may not know how to express that to others if we ourselves have not let God's peace transform us. Let us take a deeper look.
Conversion means we are going through transformation. Some of the stages leading to the " birth of the whole human being" which leads to " reconcilitation and communion" ( all of this paragraph is from Haughton's book in The Transformation of Man as in Mentoring by Sellner). This is not behavior that can be imposed but comes from the " AUTHENTIC SELF". The only choice is to love or not to love remains.
" Such a response is made possible when one has the knowledge of being loved already. Although it may be very painful at times, since it can lead to a dying to self, surrender of ourselves in love has the possibility of creating a new life, one that is shared." Sellner
Repentance is a part of this process. This comes from knowing one is loved by God.
" Experiencing the power of love in our lives can lead us all to become active as agents of change in our society and church, with our families and friends. We come to lovingly challenge institutions that are causing people to suffer for the wrong reasons ; we intervene gently but firmly when we see others bent on self-destructive and sometimes suicidal behavior; most of all, we invite others to a possibly healthier and more spirtually enriching way of life..."
As we conclude look at peace differently to know that there are times when our peace is challenged by others, God and His Word. We need to listen attentively, retreat and be in silent adoration that He cares for us. He wants us to grow in our depth of knowledge of Him and His ways but mostly to act out His love in concrete actions of concern from our true selves, not the phony ones we put on sometimes. Others will know we truly love God and His people and we react positively if they see these things in word and deed.
As the Father sent Me Jesus said, so also I am sending you. Through the power of the Holy Spirit and reconciliation with others we interact for their benefit, not ours, but we too experience grace when all this happens.
Here is the prayer I try and live up to through God's grace in my life. May it be true for you too: " For Peace of Mind---1929 Free Church Book of Common Prayer
" O GOD, let us never seek beyond Thee what we can find only in thee, peace and rest, joy and blessedness. Lift our souls above the round of harrasing thoughts to the Eternal Presence, the pure bright atmosphere in which thou art, that there we may breathe freely, there be at rest from ourselves, and from all things that weary us; and thence return, with thy peace within us , to do and to bear whatsover pleaseth thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. " Amen.
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