Perfect Peace - Himalayan Heights – May 14 Readings: Colossians 3:15 – Ruled by Peace

 Colossians 3:1-17 A Primer in Christian Living

All Scripture is God-breathed and useful, but there are some Scriptures that we can consider the Himalayan mountaintops of the Bible. In the next few months, we will be looking at a series of great texts that inspire and move us - the "Himalayan Heights" of God's Word.

Today's Reading:  Colossians 3:1-17

Colossians 3:1-17 is a step by step guide to Christian living. It is a series of 12 commands, each of which builds on the previous one, laying out how we should live as followers of Jesus Christ. Each day, read the entire 17 verses, then meditate on the verse or verses that are the focus passage.

15 And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also called in one body, rule your hearts.

Phase 3: The Final Four
Step 9: Ruled by Peace

NOTES: The last phase, consisting of the "final four" commands in this series of twelve, is a series of admonitions about our basic attitudes appropriate to our new life in Christ. Today, we are told to walk in peace in Christ.

Through the Bible Readings: 2 Samuel 17-18, John 1:1–18, Psalm 61:4–8, Proverbs 13:1-2

If you wish to read through the Bible in a year, follow these readings. 

Devotional: Perfect Peace    

Two thousand years after the angel appeared to the shepherds on the hillside near Bethlehem to tell that the Prince of Peace had come to earth we still live in world of war, of turmoil, of stress, and of terror. Most of those who read this, if they are honest, will admit that they do not live in the "perfect peace" that the Bible talks about, that they do not know the "peace that passes understanding" which Paul promised in Philippians 4. Jesus promised to give his disciples peace but most of the time we live in fear, in stress, in worry, or in anger.

Has Jesus failed in bringing peace? Did his promise go awry? Or is there something which we are not doing right to appropriate the peace that Jesus offers? I am guessing you know my answer?

Colossians 3:15 gives us the first of our four "New Life Attitudes" in verses 15-17. "And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body." This command calls us to live in the peace that Christ brings when he rules our hearts.

The Hebrew word shalom is the foundation of the New Testament concept of peace. It means more than simply the absence of conflict. In fact, this peace is possible in the middle of conflict, in the vortex of great storms. It is an inner peace, rooted in a right relationship with God. When we are at peace with God, our hearts are at peace and we can be at peace in this world. Our peace is Christ-active, derived from our faith in Christ and our relationship with him, not from the circumstances of the world. Isaiah 26:3 says that God keeps in perfect peace "whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you." Peace comes from knowing God is in control and walking in submission to him. 

There is a sequence that brings us into peace. First, we must have peace with God. Isaiah 53:5 says that the "chastisement that brought us peace was on him." We are born separated from God and nothing in this world seems right because the fellowship with God we need is broken. Jesus reconciles us to God and we have peace with him. When we have peace with God, our hearts can be filled with shalom, the peace that passes understanding. We have a deep inner sense of well-being not built on what is happening in this world, but on our relationship with Jesus. That inner peace we have because of peace with God enables us to walk peacefully with one another. Peace with God gives us inner peace that helps us live in peace with others.

Father, rule over my heart with your peace, your perfect peace, the peace that passes understanding. 

Think and Pray:

Is it accurate to describe your daily life as "perfect peace" or as a "peace that passes understanding?"

Are you trusting God in every circumstance of life?

Are your relationships marked by peace and love, or strife and quarreling?