Peace

Scripture

“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.”

~John 14:27, NASB

Quote

“What a life! I know where I came from, why I am here and where I am going. His peace flooded my heart and overwhelms my soul, even in the midst of despair.”

~William Franklin Graham [Turn 98 on November 7]

There are at least four kinds of peace mentioned in the bible and Jesus is the key to all four. No wonder Paul said, “In Him {Jesus} all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden.”

1. There is PEACE with God [Romans 5:1]…Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
2. There is the PEACE of God [Philippians 4:6-7]… Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience the peace of God, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
3. There is PEACE on earth [Luke 2:14]…“Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” Peace of earth will not happen until Jesus returns and establishes peace on earth. It is a future peace.
4. There is everlasting PEACE [Isaiah 9:6-7] And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end.

Jesus did not have wealth. When He died, His cloak was all He owed but He gave His disciples the greatest inheritance anyone can hope for, He left them His PEACE.  “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.”

In the opening sentence of Chapter 15 in Dr. Graham’s last book [Where I AM] he says…”I know men and women who would write a check for a million dollars if they could find peace but it cannot be bought.”

• Full schedule tomorrow: Deacon’s @ 8:15, LCBS @ 9:15, Celebrate Jesus in Worship @ 10:15, Celebrate Jesus with Baptism @ 11:15…AWANA and Visitation @ 5:30 with evening worship @ 6:15.
• Ona Holladay  {100 years old last August} CELEBRATION OF LIFE SERVICE today @ 1:00, FRIENDSHIP Baptist Church.
• June got a new piano yesterday and we tried it out last night. She and I sang “Never Grow Old,” and it was chilling. It made the hair on top of my head stand straight up. We may put that one on our next Album.
• Bufford Burgess is not doing well but I thought Gary Garner looked a little better. I tried to wake him but he was sound a sleep.
• We have a baptism Sunday, Will {the thrill} Morgan will be our candidate. You will get to hear his testimony on Video.

Making Sense of Tragedy

SCRIPTURE: Just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts are higher than your thoughts. [Isaiah 55:9, ERV]

QUOTE: When you bump into someone who has all the answers: you have encountered someone who is much closer to insanity than yourself. ~Chuck Swindoll

COMMENTARY: Cindy’s dad killed in a one vehicle wreck; Debbie’s brother murdered and then the horrible story coming out of Connecticut about the brutal slaying of an entire Kindergarten Class–none of this makes sense. I did not have any definitive answers for Debbie’s mom and I would not have any for the grieving families in Connecticut. What do you say to a parent whose five-year old was gunned down by a lunatic. In the face of tragedy, I just try to manifest the love of Christ. These grieving people are in shock; they have been traumatized. You and I know that eventually, something good comes out of tragedy but that’s not what you want to hear when your child has been murdered in cold blood.

Adam Walsh

I believe God has a master plan but I do not know how tragedy fits into that plan. I do know this: it helps to believe in eternal life. Physical death is a temporary state. It may exist in time but it does not exist in eternity. That does not mean that there is no pain or grief in physical death; but it does mean that we have hope. My oldest brother died at six months of age. When my two brothers and I were teenagers and above, we grieved our mother severely by the way we lived. At one time, none of us bore the fruits of a believer. Mother didn’t know where we would go if we died but she always said about Joe David [oldest brother]– “I know where he is.” The very death that had once grieved her became a comfort in time.

A woman can miscarry and then get pregnant again within weeks of the miscarriage [I know a woman that had this exact experience]. She goes to term and has a beautiful baby that she loves. This does not mean that she did not grieve over the miscarriage; she did but there is no way she could have had both babies. Out of the death of one came the birth of the other. Out of the grief of one came the joy of the other. I fully believe that every aborted baby, every miscarried baby and every innocent child that has died or been killed is in heaven. In the eternal reality of things, they are more alive than most who walk the face of this earth. What happened yesterday horrifies me but so does abortion and we do that everyday.

EXTRA: I do think we should say a prayer for these families that are in deepest grief. Let us pray…Father, we don’t have all the answers. We probably have more questions than answers but we know that prayer works and in the midst of tragedy, we would covet the prayers of all, therefore we do pray for these hurting families. We pray for their peace and salvation. Father, only You could bring something good out of something so evil and we pray that You do. May Your Kingdom come soon. We lone for the rule of the Prince of Peace. We are tired of the violence and bloodshed. In Your infinite wisdom: touch these hurting families with your tender love. In Jesus name we pray. Amen!

JUST 20 DAYS TO GO: THANKS FOR ALL YOUR PRAYERS