Finding Inner Peace in an Unsettled World

Brethren, have you ever found yourself struggling to maintain inner peace? Or in recent times, as you look around the world today and things happening around us, do you ever find your inner peace is perhaps threatened? That you run the risk of having that robbed from you. You know, it doesn't take long. Turn the news on, give it 10 minutes, and it may be near or it may be far, but we see things that threaten to take away maybe what would be our inner peace. Certainly, we see the peace of the world crumbling in various ways, but inner peace is something that is very personal, right? Very close to us. We live with it day to day if we do or we do not have inner peace. I gassed up my car yesterday. Had a few errands to run, and I always come down here with a full tank in the car, and I'm cruising through Spokane Valley. I'm looking for the best deal yet, oh, and it's $5.29, $5.29, $5.29, $5.29, which I know is cheap compared to down here, coming up the drag. But I was beginning to feel a little unsettled personally as I looked around, and you know, diesel's $6.15 a gallon or whatever it is, and you know, they say it's just going to continue going up. There's things in this life that can cause us to be unsettled. And again, I'm looking at this, and I need to gas up. I'm feeling a little uneasy, but suddenly I was comforted by the thought that, you know what, at least I'm not dealing with what Lindy's dealing with. At least I have a car to put fuel into.

Most of you know here, but I guess most on up in Spokane wouldn't know, but a little over a week ago then, here, Lindy and her aunt is with us and her daughter, all three of their cars were smashed into by drunk drivers or parked out in front along the curb, and Lindy's car was totaled. The other two very badly damaged, still yet to be determined if they're a total loss or not, but you know, you're minding your own business, and you know, 11 o'clock at night, suddenly there's a knock on the door, the police officer's there, and now there's stress, right? And it's not just a momentary stress. This is kind of a continual stress because now there's police reports, there's talking to the insurance company, and there's the joy of used car shopping. Has this been a peaceful experience, Lindy? No. No. So there are things that threaten to, I would say, rob our peace if we allow them. On top of the challenges that this world is facing, we all honestly just day-to-day life face individual challenges as well. Sometimes it's financial, sometimes it's health, maybe it's relationship challenges, but we all face those things. And when we add them all together, our lives can become unsettled in a hurry, and the peace of mind that we would have, the inner peace of mind, can be threatened also. The title for today's message is, Finding Inner Peace in an Unsettled World. Finding inner peace in an unsettled world, because you know what? We're not going to escape an unsettled world. That's the unfortunate reality of it. These things will just continue to increase, but you know, we want to take time and figure out what does God's Word say about how we can maintain inner peace, even when life around us maybe isn't necessarily peaceful. Even when we're going through a struggle or a challenge, or again, we turn on the news and see what's happening all around us. How can we maintain inner peace? Because I do believe God would have us to do so. It's a challenge, and if we're looking at the world as a source of our inner peace, I would say it's an impossibility. But the truth from the Bible is a source comes from a different place altogether than that.

I want to begin today by looking at the one who set the perfect example for us in this matter, one who carries the titles Prince of Peace and Lord of Peace, or some referring to Jesus Christ, and in his life, frankly, he understood distress as well. He understood what it meant to look around and see things around him that were unsettling and yet still maintain peace of spirit in his heart. Let's go to John chapter 14 to begin. John chapter 14, as in all things he set the example we look to to see how this is done.

John chapter 14 in verse 27, here Jesus speaking to his disciples, says, to them, peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you, not as the world gives, though I give to you. He says, let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

And you know, these are comforting words, and frankly, they're impressive words as well when you consider what's the time frame here that Jesus Christ spoke these words. Well, this is immediately following the final passover with his disciples on that night, and it's in perspective of understanding what it is that now lies before him. His arrest, his crucifixion, all that which he would endure in just a matter of hours. Jesus said, peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. He says, I'm at peace, and I give that to you. Now Jesus Christ understood what crucifixion was about.

You know, he'd grown up in that region of Judea and Galilee, and yet this was under Roman occupation and oversight. And if you grew up in that area and you traversed the roads in that area, you understood what crucifixion was about because, you see, the Romans like to crucify their people and put them up on street corners, busy intersections, public places. People would walk and see and learn and fear, crossing paths with the Romans in a way that made you an enemy of the empire. They were there as an example that you would look and understand the consequence of crossing the line in some way.

And so he understood this. He knew what was about to come upon him. And on the very same night that Jesus expressed the words of peace to his disciples, he also told them some other words as well. He said, my soul is exceedingly sorrowful even unto death. That's in Matthew 26 and verse 38. He says, my soul is exceedingly sorrowful even unto death. He expressed to them his anguish as he considered what he was about to endure. We know the accounts. We've read them so many times.

His sweat became like great drops of blood as he prayed to his father regarding the matter, saying, you know, if there's any other way, if this cup can pass from me, but nevertheless not my will, but your will be done. And Luke describes it in Luke 22 44 as being in agony as Jesus cried this out. And yet we just read as well on the same night he says to his disciples, you know, my peace I leave with you.

So on one hand he's experiencing incredibly distressing circumstances that he was not immune from, and yet on the other hand could still have inner peace, knowing even what would happen, knowing who it was that was in charge of his life. He said, I'm at peace and I'm leaving that with you as well.

When we come to understand in all of this brethren is that it's this kind of inner peace that he had that he's passed to us is not dependent on the conditions on the ground around you. You know, we look around and can become unsettled very very quickly in this world or personal circumstances, but the peace that Christ had that he said I give to you is not dependent on the circumstances on the ground to maintain.

It's actually dependent on a completely different source altogether. For the remainder of today's message, I want to cover four points to obtaining the kind of inner peace that Jesus Christ had. The kind that he said I leave with you as my disciples, the kind that we're to pick up and maintain in our life, even as distress and anguish and trouble is ever about us. He wasn't immune from that. He walked through that.

He was still disturbed by that, and yet inner peace was something he could still maintain, even through the circumstance. How did he do it? Point number one, we'll just jump into it here, point number one to finding inner peace in an unsettled world is draw close to the God of peace in a harmonious relationship. Draw close to the God of peace in a harmonious relationship. That's where Jesus Christ was. Right time and time and time again as he walked, as he preached, as he expressed the gospel message and what it is that God sent him to deliver. He says, these aren't my words, these are my father's words, and it was clear an intimate relationship existed between the two. And in multiple occasions Jesus said, my father and I are one, and it is a unity of spirit that they had that he actually prayed that his disciples would have, and that we would have not only between each other but between ourselves and God, ourselves and Jesus Christ as well. So a close relationship to the God of peace was foundational to Jesus' ministry, and it's foundational to our life today as well.

He had such a trust in God, trusted him so implicitly, that he said, not my will but your will be done. And in the end he was willing to subject himself to the crucifixion, to the agony of death, and ultimately unto the grave, recognizing that his faith was in God, to resurrect him after three days and three nights. The trust, the relationship was just that intimate, and that's how we can see him expressing this concept of inner peace, even in the midst of distressing times, because he lived in perfect harmony with his father, and he knew that he was never truly alone.

No matter what all he went through, he was never truly alone. John chapter 16, in verse 32, John chapter 16 verse 32 says, again, Christ to his disciples says, Indeed, the hour is coming, and yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each of to his own, and you will leave me alone. And he says, Yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me. Another unsettling degree of what he would go through is the fact that, you know, the 12, which became, I guess we would say, the 11, following Passover and Judas' departure, but the unsettling part of this was that his disciples, his friends, those who were by his side for three and a half years, would scatter and depart and, frankly, leave him at the time of this distress.

And he said, You would leave me alone. And indeed, Luke records that they all forsook him and fled upon his arrest. So that's one aspect, right? In the physical sense, he's standing alone, and yet, on the other hand as well, he knew he was not alone, because his Father was with him always. Verse 33 says, These things I have spoken to you, that in me, notice, you may have peace. Okay, how are you going to have peace in light of all of this? That you may have peace. He says, In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. So, verse 32 ended with saying, I'm not alone, because the Father is with me.

Verse 33 begins by, you know, that in me you may have peace. And the ultimate result was, he overcame the world, and you can as well. But that peace came as a result of his personal and intimate relationship with his Father. He experienced inner peace and inner joy, even in spite of the terrible trials, and we can as well. If we acknowledge that our peace is not dependent on the conditions on the ground around us, you know, on what's happening even maybe next door, or what's happening in nations across the world, those things certainly are unsettling to the peace of the world, and unsettling to our lives just go to the store.

But our inner peace, our comfort, and our confidence, such as Jesus Christ had, if we follow his lead of this relationship, won't be disrupted by the conditions on the ground around us. Through a harmonious relationship with our Father in heaven through Jesus Christ, we can maintain that as well. We won't turn there, but Isaiah chapter 26 and verse 3 states, you will keep them in perfect peace.

Speaking of God towards those who put their faith in him, says, you will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you because he trusts in you. And so when Jesus said that in me you may have peace, that's what he was referring to, the reality again that we can have peace of spirit as we draw close to God through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and experience the same kind of relationship of oneness with the Father that he had.

That peace will come. That peace will be a blessing. Brethren, harmony with God is the ultimate answer to dealing with all of the stresses in the world today. Doesn't mean they go away, right? Doesn't mean that they're easy. Doesn't mean we're not going to be impacted by the challenges around us. Jesus Christ clearly was. There was a time in a window where he agonized over what he would go through because he knew intimately what that would be.

And yet it's not in conflict, it's just reality he also maintained an inner peace of spirit that allowed him to submit himself to the will of God, knowing that God works out all things for the good in the end. And he does so as well. So let's notice how this relationship of harmony with God begins. Colossians chapter 1 and verse 19.

Colossians chapter 1 verse 19. How does this relationship that brings peace, how is that even established? Colossians 1 and verse 19, this is foundation and fundamental to this, says, For it pleased the Father that in him, in Jesus Christ, all the fullness should dwell, and by him to reconcile all things to himself, to God, by him, Jesus Christ. Whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made notice peace through the blood of his cross. Verse 21, And you who were once alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now he has reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and blameless and above reproach in his sight. And so ultimate peace comes, brethren, when we make peace with God through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. There's a number of verses that tell us in multiple places that, you know, apart from coming under that sacrifice, you are enemies of God because of sin, and you have the death penalty on your head, and yet while we were enemies of God, he sent his only begotten Son to reconcile us to himself. And that's a blessing, but peace does not come in terms of ultimate inner peace. As long as we're enemies with God, it comes when we're reconciled with him, and his Spirit dwells in us, and then the peace of God will be a part of our life. It starts with baptism, the washing away of our sins, and is built upon then by the receiving of the Holy Spirit through the laying of hands. We become the children of God. We cry out to him as our Father, the Father with all power, and in confidence knowing that he indeed does deliver us in our times of distress. God is the author of true peace. He needs the source we must trust in our times of distress. That's the example Jesus Christ set, and that's how he could say, in me you will have peace, because we see his example, and we've entered into that relationship as well through his sacrifice, and it is a blessing. Brethren, there's many scriptures in the New Testament that declare God to be the originator of peace. And we're not going to turn to all of them today, but I do want to reference some of them for you here. Jot them down, and here's your homework for this week. If you're hunting for the homework in my sermon, go look up these verses. Read through them, but read the context as well. These again show us that God is the originator of peace. 1 Corinthians, excuse me, 1 Corinthians chapter 14 and verse 33. 1 Corinthians 14 verse 33 says, For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints. God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints. So God's the author. You could say that God wrote the book on peace, what peace looks like, and ultimately all peace springs from him. He is the source, and as a result of a relationship with him, peace will be the result as well. Romans chapter 16 and verse 20. Romans 16 verse 20, And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. It's actually a reminder that there is indeed an enemy to peace in this world, Satan the devil, but his time is limited, and frankly his head is marked, and the God of peace will put away that obstacle to true peace for all of mankind one day. That's an encouraging prophecy. That's something that should give us peace today as God dwells in us by his spirit. Second Corinthians chapter 13 verse 11. Second Corinthians 13 verse 11. Finally, brethren, farewell, Paul says, be come complete. He says, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.

So God is the God of love and peace. He's the author of peace. He is the source of peace. This is where we run to for a relationship that ultimately brings inner peace and joy to our life as well, even as we go through the challenges. Just as Jesus Christ knew what he would face and all the agony of it, he understood, and yet peace was still a part of what he could tell his disciples. I have that, and I'm giving that to you. One more I want to share with you. Second Thessalonians chapter 3 and verse 16. This one's actually referring to Jesus Christ if you look at the context. Second Thessalonians 3 and verse 16 says, now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all. And so what you're going to find if you just do a Bible study on peace as it associates with God the Father and Jesus Christ is that the God we worship is the God of peace. His son Jesus Christ through whom we have this relationship with the Father is the Lord of peace and also he's the Prince of peace, right? That's what Isaiah chapter 9 and verse 6 tells us when he comes and establishes God's kingdom on this earth. Prince of peace indeed is one of his titles. And if we yield ourselves up in a harmonious relationship with them and we maintain it, we exercise our spiritual disciplines of prayer and Bible study and fasting and meditation. These are how we draw close to God and Jesus Christ. If we maintain that relationship, then you know what? You and I by the Spirit of God will be a people of deep inner peace as well. Because peace is a identifying characteristic of the family of God. It should be. It must be. Even in spite of everything happening in the world around us today.

So first is that harmonious relationship with God. Point number two in finding inner peace in an unsettled world is to love the law of God with all your heart.

Love the law of God with all your heart. Because if you love it, what will you be doing?

You'll be keeping it, won't you? Love the law of God with all your heart. The bullseye scripture to this point is Psalm chapter 119 verse 165. I do want to turn there. Psalm chapter 119 and verse 165. It says, Great peace have those who love your law and nothing causes them to stumble. God's law, brethren, brings peace and not just a little bit of peace. It says it brings great peace. Right? Great peace who love your law. It comes to them if they love it. Because if they love it, they'll live it. They'll live according to it. And the benefits of doing so will be theirs.

Great peace have those who love your law and nothing causes them to stumble. All throughout the Psalms you'll find King David and the other psalmist praising God, praising his law for the goodness and for the many blessings that it brings. And yet sadly what we find in the world around us today is that so many people characterize God's law as a burden. Right? This is a hassle. This is a weight that Christ has freed you from. Right? He took the burden of the law so you don't have to.

At one level that's true. He took the penalty of the law. The wages of sin is death upon himself. So he lifted that burden off of us. But is keeping God's law a burden?

Is it seeing the blessings and the benefits of your life a burden? You know, Mr. Freaky has been going through the Ten Commandments series lately, and I really appreciate the fact that not only does he show the consequences of breaking God's law, because of course that's one side of the commandment we have to see and understand there's a consequence, he also though shows the result of keeping it. That these aren't laws of bondage, these are laws of liberty and they're freeing. Right? If you break a commandment of idolatry and you go after the idols of this world, that is not peace to your relationship with God, it's bondage. But God has called us to peace, and so the keeping of those commandments bring peace. The keeping of the commandment of not committing adultery brings peace to your marriage, not bondage. Freedom, liberty, inner peace through the keeping of these things and the living of God's way. Bondage is never the consequence of living according to God's law, but peace is. Peace is always the consequence of living God's law, and that's why this verse concludes by stating that those who keep this law have no stumbling block in their path. Nothing's going to trip them up, nothing's going to cause them to fall flat on their face. If they love the law of God and they live it, they're going to be among the most free, the most peaceful people on the face of the earth. But again, this is not just because, you know, whatever happened in your neighborhood, it's not just because your car didn't get smashed into, you know, peace comes ultimately because God is there, and you're living His way, and the benefits and the blessings are there.

One of the biggest destructive forces to inner peace that I can think of, brethren, is simply looking over your shoulder at every turn because you've broken the law of God or man. You know, just have you ever run into somebody that's just constantly looking over their shoulder? You know, we don't want to be like a criminal where we've broken the law, we know we've broken the law, and now we're guilty and we're carrying around this weight, and now you're looking over your shoulder at every turn. Twenty-six, twenty-seven years ago, I worked for a company. I was out riding around in the truck with a couple of other employees, and on this guy in the far passenger seat, we'd be driving along, and if there was a police car, they'd either pull up next to the truck or you pass the police officer on the side of the road, maybe you had a radar gun out. Whenever you were by an officer, this guy would just, like, lay over flat in the seat. I'm sitting in the middle, and suddenly he's in my lap, just laying flat, and I'm like, what's the deal, man? He says, well, you know, I missed my court date, and now there's a warrant for my arrest. So whenever you're out with this guy driving around, if there's a police officer, one pulls up next to you next to you, he's laying in your lap, is that peace? That's bondage.

Right? We don't ever want to be looking over our shoulder because of offenses we've committed. We want to be reconciled with God. Okay? Indeed, if we commit an offense, get on your knees, be reconciled with God, but it's a robbery to inner peace, to simply walk around guilty, looking over your shoulder. James chapter 1 verse 25 calls God's law the perfect law of liberty. And why would he call it that? The perfect law of liberty. Because it's freedom, right? It's freedom that comes to our life through the keeping of the law of God. Again, it's never, ever bondage. Notice Proverbs chapter 3.

Proverbs chapter 3, this section is written as a father to a son. You can say Solomon to a son.

It's wisdom, but ultimately it's wisdom from God. So let's approach it from the perspective as from God to us, his children, because it does very much apply. Proverbs chapter 3 and verse 1 says, My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart keep my commands. For length of days and long life and peace they will add unto you. Again, it's peace that extends out as a blessing from loving God's law and keeping it. Verse 3, Let not mercy and truth forsake you, bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart, and so find favor and high in steam in the sight of God and man. There's benefit on both fronts when we keep this way. Verse 5, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, and all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and depart from evil, and it will be health to your flesh and strength to your bones. Again, it's describing a blessing of peace and the life of us all as we adhere to the ways of God.

Dropping down to verse 13, Happy is the man who finds wisdom. And again, wisdom, although it is a separate thing, it ties in directly with if you're wise, you're going to be living this way, okay, and the benefits that come from that. Happy is the man who finds wisdom and the man who gains understanding for her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, and her gain them fine gold.

Are you worried about the value of inflation and everything costing so much?

That is a worry, right? That is a concern, but it says wisdom has far more valuable to you than all the gold, all the silver, all that you could have. So we do live in this world, and in a lot of ways we're long for the ride, aren't we? You're still going to pay $5.29 a gallon at the corner station, more if you're in Eureka. Okay, that's just the way this is. But God has called us, and ultimately, peace comes in knowing what He has called us to live by and what He has set before us as that destination. She is more precious in rubies, and all the things you may desire cannot compare with her. Length of days is in her right hand, and her left hand riches and honor. Just wonderful and beautiful consequences of this way. Verse 17, her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all of her paths are peace. She is the tree of life to those who take hold of her, and happy are all who retain her. Living in liberty, brethren, before God is one of the greatest contributors to inner peace in our lives. And it comes by loving the law of God and keeping the law of God. Inner peace will be the result. For close of God and we give it a try, we will see that result. Point number three, defining inner peace in an unsettled world is cast all your cares upon God, as there are times in this life that there are storms. Times of challenge, real difficulties that we face, and they can threaten to overwhelm us, and we need someone with the power and the ability to calm the storms we face and to give us peace of mind again. And going back to the Gospels, Mark chapter 4, we're going to find is that Jesus Christ was one such individual to the 12.

To those that followed him, to those who looked to him, he had the power and the ability to calm the storm and restore peace of mind again. Mark chapter 4, verse 35. Again, you'll recall he was Emmanuel, God with us, God in the flesh. And Jesus Christ had the power that his father supplied to him in the flesh, and he used it in a way that brought peace and brought calm in the midst of the storm. Mark 4, verse 35 says, on the same day when evening had come, and he said to them, let us cross over to the other side. Now when they had left the multitude, they took him along in the boat as he was, and other little boats were with him also, and a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat on the boat so that it was already filling. But he, Jesus Christ, was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. Do you think he was that sound of a sleeper that, you know, you just couldn't wake him up no matter how much water was coming over the side of the boat and how much it was rocking? That wasn't the point. The point was even in the midst of the storm, he had peace.

Right? This is the son of the God of peace. We are children of the God of peace. He had peace as he rested in the boat. Verse again 38, but he was in the stern asleep on a pillow, and they woke him, and they said to him, teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? And he arose, and he rebuked the wind, and he said to the sea, you know, this tumultuous sea that's going to swamp them, he said, peace be still. Peace be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. But he said to them, why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith? And they feared exceedingly and said to one another, who can this be that even the wind and the sea obey him? It's an incredible story, brethren, and it's don't just leave it on the pages of the Bible because it talks to us. And it reminds us of the power of God, and the intervening of God, and the fact that the God who created the earth and the sea and the wind has the power to control them all. And likewise, he can easily calm the storms that surround us in life.

Maybe some of the physical storms we have to sail through, and you're going to be experiencing the turbulence along the way, but he still has the power to say in our life, peace be still.

Declare that to the storm. Declare that to the inner turmoil that we that we pick up along the way. He can stand ready, and he does stand ready, to intervene with comfort and peace. 1 Peter 5 verse 7 says, casting all your care upon him, for he cares for you. And again, that's talking about a relationship, isn't it? God says, I care for you, you're my children, let me know what it is that threatens to rob your inner peace. Cast those cares upon him, and the God of peace, the one with the power to intervene.

He will, indeed, stand in the gap for us. If you ever feel, brethren, like your peace of mind is slipping away over various issues, don't hold back. Those seem to be the times we want to run, we want to retreat. Maybe we want to go hide in the closet and shut the door, because, you know, the world is a big scary place, but that's not the time to run from God. That's the time to draw near. To cry out to him, to seek after the help that only he can provide, and he will provide that inner peace for us. Philippians chapter 4 verse 6.

Philippians chapter 4 verse 6. You hear the Apostle Paul writing, and he says, Be anxious for nothing. That's kind of easy for me to stand here and say, and we might say, well, Paul, that's easy for you to say, easy for you to write, because, you know, you were doing miracles, you were healing people, you had this incredible power which came from God, you know, be anxious for nothing. What do you know about it? Well, what does the author of Philippians know? Or was Paul, when he wrote this? This is a prison epistle under Roman guard. He'd been stoned probably multiple times by this point as well. What did he say? Shipwreck. Night in the day I spent in the deep. All these things he went through in serving God. I find in another place he had this ailment that he pleaded to God for deliverance from. He pleaded three times, and God said, My grace is sufficient for you. And when we understand what the grace of God is, that surpasses, frankly, anything he can give us in the flesh. But, in spite of all this, under Roman guard and in imprisonment, Paul says, Be anxious for nothing. He knew a lot about it. He says, But in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God. You catch that? The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. This is a very comforting passage, and I hope we believe it. And I hope we trust in it, and we approach God, casting our cares upon him. Verse 8, Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are good, report, whatever things that you could add to this list that are right and positive and edifying. Okay, says, If there's anything praiseworthy, meditate on these things. Fill your mind with the goodness of God and the blessings he's poured out in your life if you ever start down that road of your inner peace being destroyed. Remember who God is and who he's called you to be.

Remember these things which are praiseworthy. Meditate on these things. Verse 9, The things which you have heard and received and heard and saw in me, Paul says, these do, and the God of peace will be with you. So again, the God we worship is the God of peace, and that is a divine title, okay, that expresses the fact that he is the source of peace.

He's the source of the Spirit he gives us through the laying on of hands. And what is one of the fruits of that Spirit? It is peace. The divine inner peace of God can dwell in you and me. Cast all your cares upon him and that inner peace will follow, but we have to trust in the process.

Finally, point number four to finding inner peace in an unsettled world. Pursue the things that make for peace. Pursue the things that make for peace. This is an essential element to our peace both on an individual and on a collective level. We find this concept expressed by Paul in Romans chapter 14. So let's head there next. Romans 14.

The context here of Romans 14 is addressing doubtful things that actually can lead to contentions and divisions in the body of Jesus Christ. And those are things that threaten to disrupt our peace and our inner peace as a body. But Paul addresses here the solution. Again, Romans chapter 14. Beginning in verse 15, he says, yet if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are no longer walking in love. He says, do not destroy with your food the one for whom Christ died. So we have a dispute. And again, as Paul addresses it, over doubtful things that have entered into the church. If you go back to verse two and three, it's about, you know, one believes he may eat all things and another is weak and believes that he may eat only vegetables. We're not talking about clean and unclean meats, but the background, you know, if there's meat offered to the idol that's for sale in the market and you don't even know what the source of that meat is, even if it's beef, someone says, I'm just gonna eat vegetables and that's safe. And someone else says, I can eat that beef with a clear conscience that I bought in the market. And the point is, don't now stand in judgment of one another. Don't condemn him who eats meat. Don't condemn the other that eats vegetables. It causes dispute that leads to a destruction of peace. So again, back to verse 16 now, Romans 14 and verse 16, Paul says, then therefore do not let your good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Spirit. Verse 18, for he who serves Christ in these things is acceptable to God and man. Therefore, let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify or build up another. So as the chapter is lined out, there's actually things that can cause an eroding and a destruction of peace within the congregation. But on the flip side, there's many things that can be pursued, then that cause the building up and the edifying and the creating of peace between us on a collective basis. And Paul's telling them to go after those things, grab hold of those things, and invest yourself as a congregation into things that produce peace.

Psalm chapter 34 and verse 14 instructs us to depart from evil and do good, seek peace, and pursue it. Pursue it. Again, go after it. So this isn't something we can just sit back and let somebody else take care of and hope that we pick up a little along the way. This is an active process of the entire congregation to pursue the things that make for peace, to seek peace, and to pursue it. It is an active role that we play to the benefit of all. The blessing is the peace of God and the Spirit of God, the God of peace, will be what's active among us.

Romans chapter 12, just back a couple of pages, Romans 12. Here Paul talks about presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice and in practical application that's laying our lives down in service to one another. And as we do so, then peace is going to be the result. I serve you, you serve me, it is the giving of ourselves in sacrifice, and the result is peace. So let's notice we could say a listing here that the Apostle Paul gives us for this type of sacrificial service. Romans chapter 12 and verse 9, he says, let love be without hypocrisy. Now, pour what is evil, cling to what is good, be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love and honor giving preference to one another. He says, not lagging in diligence, but fervent in spirit, serving the Lord, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer, distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. He says, bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse. It's a lot easier to be at peace with your enemy if you pray for them and not God give them what they deserve because that's what our carnal nature seeks to pray for. But God, pray for your enemy that you may be reconciled with them. Pray for yourself that you may find the olive branch to extend to mend that relationship. But again, this is about pursuing the things that make for peace in our midst. Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse. Verse 15, rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind towards one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion. Repay no one evil for evil. Have good regard for good things in the sight of all men. And if it is possible, as much as it depends on you, right, he lays it at the feet of each and every one of us, as much as it depends on you, live peaceably with all men.

So this is our calling. This is what we're to be convicted of. If our father is the God of peace, our elder brother is the Lord of peace and the Prince of peace, and we're called to be a people of inner peace, then our relationships need to be a reflection of this. And I would say for me, I believe in this area, it is a blessing.

To me, coming to church, if it's not peaceful, is one of the greatest eroding factors to inner peace. Those things keep me up at night, right, if that's the issue. But I thank God that we do have peace, and we can come together and rejoice on the Sabbath day. We're having a potluck this afternoon at the Marquesas after services. You know, it's a blessing when God gives us peace in the midst of one another that we can build each other up and build that inner peace in our lives directly as well.

The Bible describes the church as a body, right, and a chief characteristic of the body's function is cooperation among its members. So maybe you didn't know this, but it takes 300 muscles just to simply stand still and keep your balance. You know, I'm moving my mouth right now, so that's probably like a thousand muscles, right? But very little activity. Let's just stand still and stand in your place. Stand idle, 300 muscles. How much more than that to put one foot in front of the other moving forward? But that's what God has called us to be and do as a body, right? A body that is moving forward, moving towards His kingdom, putting one foot in front of the other, but it takes everybody together in a harmonious relationship in this process. Relationship with the Father, relationship with the Son, relationship with one another. And Christ prayed that we may be one as they are. Ultimately, that is the source of peace. Clause in chapter 3 will conclude here today. Clause in 3, it continues for us a, if we want to call it a listing of the things that make for peace.

Apostle Paul actually had a lot of insight into this characteristic. Clause in chapter 3 and verse 12 says, therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering, bearing with one another, forgiving one another. It says, if anyone has a complaint against another, even as Christ forgave you, so you must also do. Verse 14, for above all these things, put on love, which is the bond of perfection, and let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which you are also called in one body, and be thankful. So again, I hope we're all thankful for this spiritual body that God's called us into, the peace that we can enjoy, because as we come together in a harmonious relationship, that is to build the inner peace that we experience on the inside as well. It is a big part of why we come together, Sabbath to Sabbath. Verse 16, let the word of Christ dwell richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms, in hymns, in spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks, giving thanks to God, the Father, through him. Again, this relationship, and it's not exclusive or inclusive of one without the other, it includes them both in this reconciled process. So again, time and time again, Paul describes a collective effort. If you want peace, this isn't going to be dependent on the world, and it's not going to be dependent on your standing alone. This is a collective effort of unity with the Father, with the Son, and with all of us as the people of God bound together by this Spirit. It is a Spirit of cooperation and a Spirit of love. And so I would thank all of you here in the body for pursuing peace. Let's continue to do so. Pursue the things that make for peace, and grab hold. Make that your aim. In an uncertain and an unsettled world, inner peace is often elusive among its population, but the same does not have to be true among us. God's called us out of this world, called us to live differently. God has provided us with the tools that we need to achieve true inner peace, despite the hardships, despite the conditions on the ground around us, because the peace that Christ said I give to you is not dependent on what's happening right outside the door or right next door. It's what's happening in your heart and in your relationship with God. As the people of God today, let us always remember, number one, to draw close to the God of peace in a harmonious relationship. Number two, love the law of God with all your heart, and if you love it, you will live it, and peace indeed will be the result. Number three, cast all your cares upon God, for he cares for you. That takes a relationship. And number four, pursue the things that make for peace. If we do these things, we will find the blessing of true inner peace, again, that a relationship with the Father, the Son, and all of us collectively bound by that Spirit produces. And so I want to conclude with the words of the Apostle Paul. These are the words that he opened almost not everyone, but many of his letters with grace to you, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.