John 14:27 - Jesus: A Peace Like No Other!
John 14:27 - Jesus: A Peace Like No Other!
John 14:27 (NKJV) Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to
you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be
troubled, neither let it be afraid.
John 14:27 (NLT) "I am leaving you with a gift--peace of mind and
heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don't
be troubled or afraid.
John 14:27 (EAV) Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now
give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
[Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not
permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and
unsettled.]
John 14:27 (CWR) I want you to have the same inner peace that I
have - not the kind of peace that the world gives, but that abiding
peace with the Father that only I can give. Don't be afraid of Him,
because He loves you.
INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
A tender and intimate scene unfolds in John 14. The disciples
did not understand everything that was going on, but they knew that
something big was about to happen. They knew that Jesus would be leaving
them. Their teacher, their mentor, their friend for the last three
years was highlighting his most important instructions as though he
was trying to squeeze in some "last words," and their hearts were
crushed with the burden.
Jesus spoke encouraging words to them. Their hearts should
not be troubled; he was going to prepare a place for them; and he
would come again to get them. And in the meantime the Father would
send them the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, to help them and teach them.
In his hour of greatest turmoil, he was trying to relieve theirs.
[NIV Once A Day Bible]
WORD STUDY
Peace . . . my peace. A common Hebrew greeting, which Jesus uses
here in an unusual way. The term speaks, in effect, of the salvation
that Christ's redemptive work will achieve for his disciples--total
well-being and inner rest of spirit, in fellowship with God. All true peace
is his gift, which the repetition emphasizes. ... In its greetings of
peace the world can only express a longing or wish. But Jesus' peace
is real and present. [NIV SB]
Here Jesus speaks of inward peace of soul such as comes to him
who is "justified by faith" (Rom. 5:1), whose sense of guilt has
been laid at the foot of the cross, and whose anxieties about the
future have been swallowed up in his implicit trust in God (Phil. 4:6,
7). Such a peace Jesus terms "my peace." Such a peace the world
cannot bestow. Compare John 16:33. [SDA Bible Commentary]
Peace is the calming of internal conflict. Sin, fear,
uncertainty, doubt, and numerous other forces are at war within us. The peace
of God moves into our heart and life to restrain these hostile
forces and offer comfort in place of conflict. Jesus says he will give
us that peace if we are willing to accept it from him. [Life
Application SB]
At best the world knows an uneasy peace, for the world's peace
depends on circumstances. An earthquake, an outbreak of war, the loss of
a job, a sickness--these are just a few of the things that destroy
the world's peace. In contrast Christ's peace is independent of
circumstances. It is rooted in the knowledge that God is our Father, Christ our
Saviour, and heaven our home. Nothing that happens in this world can
affect these realities. [The 365-Day Devotional Commentary]
Peace is resting in God's sovereignty. The end result of the
Holy Spirit's work in our life is deep and lasting peace. Unlike
worldly peace, which is usually defined as the absence of conflict, this
peace is confident assurance in any circumstance. With Christ's peace,
we have no need to fear the present or the future. If your life is
full of stress, allow the Holy Spirit to fill you with Christ's peace
(see Philippians 4:6-7 for more on experiencing God's peace). [Life
Application SB]
COMMENTARY
Jesus knew that as long as we live on planet Earth, there
will be things that can disturb our peace and cause us to be troubled
or afraid. All we have to do is turn on the news or open a
newspaper to see countless reasons for us to be troubled. Remember the
scares related to Y2K, and UFOs, and mad-cow disease? violence,
terrorism, and the threat of biochemical warfare? The hormones doctors
thought would protect women's hearts have been shown not to do so. Food
is tainted with pesticides. It's easy to see that this world and
its circumstances won't give us the peace our hearts long for. But
we don't have to live in a state of despair. Jesus has left us with
a great gift - peace of mind and heart right in the middle of this
troubled world. It doesn't come from positive thinking or repeating
affirming mantras but from the person of Jesus Christ, who said, "Here on
earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I
have overcome the world" (John 16:33). We can enter into his peace
because he has already provided a way through the Cross.
Jesus thank you for the peace of mind and heart that you
provide for me. In the midst of my circumstances, I want to receive your
peace for my Life. I love you for overcoming the world through your
work on the cross. Help me to keep my eyed fixed firmly on you and to
enter into your peace. [Praying Through The Bible By Fuller]
One of Jesus' favorite classrooms was the storm-tossed Sea of
Galilee. Once He was asleep in the back of the boat when a storm raged
and His friends panicked, but He calmly woke up and told the storm
to be quiet - and it obeyed. On another occasion, He sent the
disciples across the lake ahead of Him, and when they were being tossed
around in a dangerous storm, He came to them walking on the water. In
both cases, His Presence changed the nature of the crisis. And in
both cases, He taught foundational lessons about fear and faith.
This is not an unusual dynamic. Jesus still allows storms in
our lives, He continues to teach lessons about fear and faith, and
His Presence still changes the nature of the crisis. He comes to us
in the midst of a storm - often after He has allowed us to reach a
point of panic - and calms us, the storm, or both. He reminds us that
faith is the key to overcoming, that fear undermines faith, and that
keeping our focus on Him destroys fear and builds faith. He teaches and
strengthens us best not when the weather is calm but when the waves are
about to overwhelm us.
If you're going through a crisis, remember that this is
normal for the Kingdom of God. Nothing is unusual about His children
experiencing storms. What would be unusual is if He never showed up in them
or let them go on longer than necessary. In your crisis, trust that
He is aware, He has already timed His entrance, and He will calm it
at the perfect time. Meanwhile, trust Him. The storm is designed to
teach you how.
Jesus, I hate the storms, but I'm so grateful that You meet
me in them. Please don't delay. Strengthen my faith and calm my
fears. [The One Year Experiencing God's Presence Devotional by Chris
Tiegreen]
Receive My Peace. This is still your deepest need and I, your
Prince of Peace, long to pour Myself into your neediness. My abundance
and your emptiness are a perfect match. I designed you to have no
sufficiency of your own. I created you as a jar of clay, set apart for
sacred use. I want you to be filled with My very Being, permeated
through and through with Peace.
Thank Me for My peaceful Presence, regardless of your
feelings. Whisper My Name in loving tenderness. My Peace, which lives
continually in your spirit, will gradually work its way through your entire
being. (Isa. 9:6; 2 Cor. 4:7; John 14:26) [Jesus Calling by Sarah
Young]
A great many people are trying to make peace, but that has
already been done. God has not left it for us to do; all we have to do
is to enter into it. D. L. Moody (1837-1899)
ILLUSTRATIONS
Hope In Trouble
Ed Dobson tells about the time his cat climbed into the dryer
and onto the top of some warm clothes. Dobson's wife didn't know the
cat was in there and closed the dryer door. Then she pushed the
start button. When she suddenly heard terrible noises coming from the
dryer as it tumbled, she opened the door. The cat staggered out with
hair sticking out in every direction and a totally dazed look on its
face.
Dobson compares the way his cat felt at that moment to what
happened to him in a doctor's office when he was diagnosed with ALS (Lou
Gehrig's disease). Before that moment, he says, he felt warm and
comfortable, like the cat in the dryer. After he heard the terrible news that
he had a terminal disease, he was staggered and dazed.
He draws another parallel to being dazed like that - the
feelings of Jesus' disciples the evening before their Master's death.
Jesus told them that, despite his leaving them, they should not be
troubled. Not troubled? There they were, facing disaster.
Medical diagnoses. Accidents. Profound losses of all sorts.
Everyone experiences disasters in this life - or we fear disasters that
may come. How can we not feel troubled? Here is what Jesus said to
his dazed disciples when he was soon to leave them: "Don't let your
hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more
than enough room in my Father's home. If this were not so, would I
have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?" (John
14:1-2, NLT).
Although, like the disciples, we may face grim circumstances
and disappointments, our ultimate hope is for the life to come. We
are given many promises of God's faithfulness to us in this life,
including Jesus' promise that the Holy Spirit would be our comforter and
lead us into truth. Yet our ultimate hope is in what is being
prepared for us beyond this world.
"Even though Jesus has gone back to the Father," Dobson says,
"he has not forgotten about us."
Lord, I do trust in you. Please increase my faith when
troubles come, and enable me to live in hope of all you are preparing.
When I hear news that scares me, please grant me your courage and
calm. [The One Year Book of Encouragement by Harold Myra]
Joy in Tragedy
Nancy Guthrie, whose daughter, Hope, had been born with a
metabolic disorder and lived for just six months, now found herself
pregnant again. Might this new baby, just eight weeks past conception,
have the same problem? She wrote in her journal that, despite her
sinking feelings about getting the prenatal testing results, she wanted
to say yes to whatever God had for her and her husband, David.
She writes, "If someone had asked me when I was pregnant with
Hope if I wanted to experience what we did with her, I'm sure I would
have said no. And yet it was the most profound experience of blessing
we've ever had. She brought us so much joy."
Those who have not lived through such an experience may find
it hard to imagine how it could be a blessing and a source of joy.
Yet the Guthries are not the only ones to report the profound
enrichment that can come from bearing and nurturing a child with severe
limitations and a shortened life. So much depends on how one receives and
loves the child and lives in faith.
Does that mean the fear and discomfort for Nancy and David
were gone? Not at all! Yet they were determined to trust God each day
- even after they learned that this new baby, too, had the
disorder and they would take him home to die.
They named the new baby Gabriel. They put the future in God's
hands. They continued their journey of faith, continually choosing to
make a new commitment to trust the Lord and to see blessings where
others might see only tragedy.
Father in heaven, it's sometimes so difficult to see
blessings in tragic experiences. Help me to see beyond the disappointments
to your grace and the bountiful ways you are at work in my life.
[The One Year Book of Encouragement by Harold Myra]
NO JESUS - NO PEACE
KNOW JESUS - KNOW PEACE
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY ON THIS TOPIC:
RE: John 16:33 (NKJV) These things I have spoken to you, that in
Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but
be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2010/20100527-1052.html
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2012/20120605-0919.html
RE: Philippians 4:6-7 (NKJV) Be anxious for nothing, but in
everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests
be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all
understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2008/20081027-2333.html
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2010/20100812-1202.html
RE: Isaiah 26:3 (NKJV) You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose
mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2012/20121031-1710.html
EXCELLENT VIDEO SERIES ON EXPERIENCING GOD:
http://sda.biggytv.com/watch/Revive!_-_Dwight_Nelson:_Experiencing_Gods_Grace/revive/
BIBLE PROPHECY SERIES ON REVELATION:
http://revelationtodaylive.com/live
ONLINE BIBLE STUDIES: THUNDER IN THE HOLY LAND
Send email request to fggibbs@aBible.com
