"6Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7
Dear believer,
Because of God's grace to you in Jesus through the cross, you have peace with God.
This peace is not primarily the emotion of peace we crave, where our circumstances are free of stress and conflict. Peace with God is positional and relational. Notice the preposition: with.
Because of the shed blood, the former hostility of justice provoked by our rebellion against the king has been removed. The sentence we deserved has been served in full by the Son so that we can be reconciled to the Father, no longer from a posture of fear but of peace. His gaze upon us is no longer as subjects reserved for wrath but as children adopted in love, reserved for eternal blessing and perfect joy.
Now, he works and weaves all circumstances together for our ultimate good, guided by his sovereign wisdom and goodness.
This is the Father we trust as Abba.
This is the source from which the peace of God flows—peace that surpasses understanding, even amid storms, uncertainty, and darkness that naturally stoke human fear.
So, what can we do when fears, worries, and anxieties rise in the heart?
We take them to Jesus. Confess the high seas that threaten to overwhelm and consume. Cast them upon the Savior with prayer, whether we have words or not. The Lord can hear our tears, too.
Since we know Jesus as the One who was overwhelmed and consumed with the waves of judgment on our behalf, we go as children to the throne of grace, freely and without fear of rebuke for a small, weak faith. Small and weak is all it takes.
For as we rest in the security of our peace with God in Jesus, the Spirit flows and fills, producing fruit from within—the supernatural, experiential, hope-filled peace of God.
Discuss:
What is the difference between peace with God and the peace of God?
In Philippians 4, Paul says that the peace of God "surpasses understanding." What does this mean, and how can we tap into this deep and abundant peace in our daily lives?
What does it mean to "take our fears, worries, and anxieties to Jesus"? How can we do this?
What role does the cross play in experiencing both peace with God and the peace of God?
The Holy Spirit produces the peace of God from within us as we rest in the security of our peace with God. What are some examples of this from your own life?
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