Isaiah 26:3 - Peace That Surpasses All Understanding.
Isaiah 26:3 - Peace That Surpasses All Understanding.
Isaiah 26:3 (NKJV) You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose
mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.
INTRODUCTION
It isn't easy finding peace in a violent world. This task was
no less daunting for the people in the Bible who followed God in
the midst of brutal and oppressive times. Isaiah lived in such
times. He saw Israel (the northern kingdom) conquered and destroyed by
the Assyrians, who then turned their sights on Judah (the southern
kingdom). Yet he spoke of knowing peace--not just any peace but perfect
peace. In fact, he said that if we trust in God and fix our thoughts on
him, he will not only give us perfect peace, but will keep us in
perfect peace.
The key to knowing God's peace in a violent world is to fix
our thoughts on him and trust him. When we fix our thoughts on him,
the dizzying tornado of stress and confusion fades into the
distance. Circumstances may change, but God doesn't change. He is "the
eternal Rock" (Isaiah 26:4)--immoveable, unchangeable, firm, and steady.
We can entrust ourselves to him.
No matter what circumstances you face, keep your thoughts on
and your trust in God. He will give you peace. [The One Year Bible
for New Believers re Isa.26:3, 4]
GOD'S PRESENCE & PEACE
There are two ways for our sense of God's Presence to
increase: for us to draw near to Him by "practicing" His Presence and for
Him to draw near to us by manifesting His Presence. Brother
Lawrence, the famous monk best known for practicing the Presence, became
an intensely focused worshiper. He saw many around him trying to
experience God's love by learning methods and principles, and it seemed
unnecessarily complicated to him. He chose instead to intentionally worship as
constantly as possible, to fix his thoughts on Jesus' Presence. This, he
learned, made all the difference. Theological training wasn't the key to
experiencing God; focusing on God was the key to experiencing God.
When we fix our thoughts on Him, He keeps us in perfect peace
- or perfect shalom, actually. Not only does He put our hearts at
rest, He gives us that sense of wholeness and fullness we seek. Isaiah
26:3 delivers a powerful truth that can affect our satisfaction in
life for the rest of our days: when we are able to focus on God in
trust, He is able to grant us shalom. The satisfaction every human
heart hungers for, so elusive and frustrating to so many throughout
history, can be ours. We don't get it by striving for it but by trusting
in the One who offers it. All we are required to do is keep our
thoughts on Him as He truly is.
This is why so many Christians who are born of God's Spirit
are still discontented and somewhat empty. They have God's life in
them but are too distracted from Him to benefit from His Presence.
But it doesn't have to be that way. If you keep your trust fully
focused on Him, you will live in perfect shalom.
Father, help me keep my focus. Turn my eyes toward You. I
want to experience Your perfect peace in all its fullness. [The One
Year Experiencing God's Presence Devotional by Chris Tiegreen]
Your attention is a precious commodity, and myriad voices are
vying for it. Your to-do list screams at you. The circumstances that
pop up unexpectedly demand an immediate reaction. The people in your
life are probably a little more polite about getting your attention,
but they still expect a response. And the to-do list, the urgent
circumstances, and the people you live and work with all have important
concerns. You have God-given responsibilities with all of them. But their
cumulative voices can be relentless. Meanwhile, you're sometimes just
looking for a moment to breathe.
It's impossible to remain aware of God consistently when
we're under such assaults. We have to prioritize, placing Him at the
top of our list even at the expense of other worthy goals. If we
want to have any awareness of His closeness, any sense of His
Presence, any hint of His voice, we have to clear the clutter out of our
minds, sit with Him, and be still. There's no other way.
This is where we find out the depth of our desire for God.
Would we simply like to experience Him? Or are we desperate for Him?
The way we prioritize our time reveals a lot. If knowing Him is more
urgent to us than the voices that demand our attention, we'll make room
for Him and eventually experience Him deeply. If not, we won't.
We have to determine to make hard choices and then brace for
the assault against them. That doesn't mean we neglect our loved
ones and responsibilities, but we do have to remember which
relationship is our life. Seeking God's Presence and fixing our thoughts on
Him takes time, but it's vital. And it speaks peace to every other
voice that seeks our attention.
Lord, I fix my thoughts on You. I choose to spend time
sitting in Your Presence each day, to turn my heart toward You in brief
in-between moments, and to expect You to step into my circumstances and
relationships. [The One Year Experiencing God's Presence Devotional by Chris
Tiegreen]
ILLUSTRATIONS
Helmut Thielicke, preaching to his shattered congregation in
Stuttgart during the chaos of World War II, described sin, suffering, and
death as hostile powers - enemies of God. War and its horrific
convulsions, he said, come from our separation from God. Yet, for people of
faith, even though the dark powers are permitted their way, a
transformation takes place.
The transformation this young wartime pastor pointed to is
that our Father in heaven sees all. As we call on the Father, even
terror and the dreadful valleys of the shadow of death become places to
traverse beside our Good Shepherd.
Thielicke emphasized to his terrorized congregation in the
bombed-out city that when we know the good hand of the Father is at work in
our lives, we receive tremendous comfort. It was Jesus who taught us
to pray, "Our Father" - the Father who loves us and "has great,
fatherly plans for our lives."
In the midst of the absurd horrors of war or in the aftermath
of the death of a loved one or in the ordinary grief and suffering
of our families and communities, we may find it very hard to sense
the good hand of the Father. Sometimes in our pain we ask, "Where
was the Good Shepherd when this happened?"
In our questions and in our suffering, Jesus' invitation is
to pray, "Our Father ..." (Matthew 6:9, NLT).
Our Father will listen to us and walk with us and lead us.
As Helmut Thielicke preached, he knew his listening
parishioners might at any moment hear the scream of air raid sirens. He told
his congregation that when they prayed "Our Father," they could know
the secret "that the Father's voice is really and truly calling our
name in the dark forest and that we can answer as beloved children:
'Abba! Father!'"
Our Father in heaven, help us to hear your voice and to
respond to you. Give us courage when we hear the sirens going off in our
lives. Let your love, Lord, replace our fears, and help us to share
your love with others.
You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all
whose thoughts are fixed on you! Isaiah 26:3, NLT [The One Year Book
of Encouragement by Harold Myra]
Helmut Thielicke asks how Jesus could ever have gained any
disciples at all when he described the grim prospects of their going out
as sheep among wolves, homeless and receiving hatred and
persecution. Yet they should rejoice and be glad! Thielicke asks if there is
some great mystery here we can't see.
Speaking to Christians who had courageously endured
persecution under the Nazis, he asked, "Did not all of us sense something of
this dark, yet gladdening, mystery during the days when the church
was being persecuted? Were not all of us who suffered with Jesus
Christ incredibly blessed in a way that we would never have dared to
dream was possible?"
We read of saints and martyrs who made ultimate sacrifices
with songs of joy on their lips. We remember Paul and Silas, beaten
and shackled in prison yet singing praises to God. Thielicke says of
this mysterious happiness, "Cross-bearing is full of hidden
blessings." In contrast, those without faith find that the worst part of
suffering for them is its meaninglessness.
Christians understand that God is not thwarted by world
events. His plans for redemption through Christ will continue through
all the travail. Jesus, who suffered for us, prays for us, as does
the Holy Spirit.
Thielicke testifies to the "gladdening" reward of living in
faith during the time of Nazi terrors. "How often during the worst
times," he says, having "summoned God into the fray, I was able to say
joyfully, almost exultantly: 'I'm through, I've made it! Now what comes of
it is God's responsibility.'"
Whatever we face, now or later, we have the same opportunity
to cast all our deepest troubles and even desperations on God and
to let him do his work his way.
Thielicke says that when we step aside, "God himself rises up
to perform his mighty works, in the midst of the earth, where the
powers clash and the terrible battle rages."
Lord, I mostly feel dread when I think of the kind of
persecution that happened in Hitler's Germany or right now in Asia and
Africa. You know all my concerns; grant me, I pray, the joy of fully
trusting you.
You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all
whose thoughts are fixed on you! Isaiah 26:3, NLT [The One Year Book
of Encouragement by Harold Myra]
CLOSING SPIRITUAL PEARL
GOD CAN'T GIVE US HAPPINESS AND PEACE APART FROM HIMSELF BECAUSE
THERE IS NO SUCH THING.
C. S. Lewis
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY ON THIS PASSAGE:
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2003/20030103-1824.html
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2009/20090923-1428.html
EXCELLENT VIDEO SERIES ON EXPERIENCING GOD RECENTLY COMPLETED:
http://sda.biggytv.com/watch/Revive!_-_Dwight_Nelson:_Experiencing_Gods_Grace/revive/
EXCELLENT BIBLE PROPHECY SERIES BY DR RON CLOUZET JUST COMPLETED:
http://www.propheciesdecoded.com/program
