Second Monday in Eastertide

4/20/2020

Introductory Note: Dear saints, you and your loved ones are no doubt feeling the trouble and fear of the times in which we live. This next mark of Jesus’ Easter People – after love and joy – is peace. Peace is a gift from the Holy Spirit and precious to us at all times and all circumstances, and certainly here and now.

Peace in God’s Word means more than simply the absence of noise, or activity, or stress. Peace means having a deep sense of wholeness and well-being, an abiding harmony with God, and people, and the world. It is an unshakable confidence and assurance rooted in the sure knowledge and trust in the wisdom, grace, and power of God; that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is for you.

This peace of God that transcends and exceeds our comprehension overcomes our anxieties and worries. This divine peace helps us to resist the temptation to mask our fears with apathy or cynicism or antagonism toward God and others.

The peace that Christ gives is the secret Paul speaks of in Philippians 4:12 “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.”

Jesus’ Easter People having received the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ by faith through His grace are a people at peace with themselves and their circumstances, because they are at peace with God.

Gospel Reading: John 14:27

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

Heidelberg Catechism: Q & A 1

Q. What is your only comfort [and Peace] in life and death?

A. That I am not my own, but belong body and soul, in life and in death, to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all my sins with His precious blood, and has set me free from all the power of the devil.

He also watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my heavenly Father; indeed, all things must work together for my salvation.

Because I belong to Him, Christ, by His Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me wholeheartedly, willing and ready, from now on to live for Him.

Meditation: “My Peace I give to you.”

Jesus’ peace is an infinite, eternal, divine state of utter well-being, of full contentment, total harmony, complete security, strong confidence, and rich plenty in the presence of God by the fruit of the Holy Spirit. This is the peace Christ gives.

Imagine being in such a state of peace. Everything is as it is supposed to be. The Bible is full of imagery of promised peace, of shalom, such as: a man resting contentedly in the shade of his own fig tree; trees heavy with an abundance of fruit; mountains flowing with milk and honey; enemies becoming friends, turning their weapons into farming tools; streams running with sparkling water; children laughing at play in the streets; ships sailing safely into port. Let your hearts and minds play upon the peace of these images.

The world does not know, nor can it give, this divine peace. Where are you searching for the peace your soul craves? What are you clinging to to quiet the troubles and fears of your soul?

Christ offers you His peace. “My peace I give to you,” He says to you this morning. “Here. I give it to you. Receive it. Loosen your grip on your powers, your smarts, your work, your savings, or whatever of the world’s goods you are holding onto for peace.

My peace is true peace. And because I, your Lord and God, freely and unconditionally give it to you – you may receive. And because you receive this peace from me, your Lord and your God, then you no longer need be troubled or afraid of anything in the world.

“In this world you will have trials and tribulations; but be of good cheer, take heart, I have overcome the world,” (John 16:33)

Cloud of Witnesses

“We cannot enjoy peace in this world unless we are ready to yield to the will of God in respect of death. Our times are in His hand, at His sovereign disposal. We must accept that as best.”

– John Owen

“God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.”

– C.S. Lewis

“Blessed are the single-hearted, for they shall enjoy much peace... If you refuse to be hurried and pressed, if you stay your soul on God, nothing can keep you from that clearness of spirit which is life and peace. In that stillness you know what His will is.

– Amy Carmichael

“We are not at peace with others because we are not at peace with ourselves, and we are not at peace with ourselves because we are not at peace with God.

– Thomas Merton

Mustard Seed Theology (for small kiddoes).

Note to parents: Anxiety and worry are things your children can experience without consciously knowing why or how. Even adults have a difficult time recognizing the fear and stress they are under. We often just react. We usually don’t know why. So, we have to empathize all the more with our small children, discerning what their emotional states might be given their changing circumstances and situations.

We can take for granted, I think, that our children now are ‘troubled and afraid’ in some part of their little souls – given all that is happening in the world.

Peace, like so many things for children, cannot really be taken in merely through words. The words have to be accompanied by a dramatization, a demonstration, or an experience – which can then be interpreted by the words.

So, what kind of experiences gives peace to a child’s soul. Here are some ideas: a long, pleasurable stroll, (pleasurable for the child); cuddle time while reading a good story; a lingering, enjoyable meal; quietly looking under the stars in a hammock, or chaise; sitting together and gazing at a small fire; fishing in a boat in the middle of a still lake; messing around on the banks of a stream; praying with your child after tucking him or her in. All you need do is reflect back on your own childhood. Usually, it is the enjoying of some aspect of God’s creation that naturally settles and quiets the child’s soul.

Choose such a time when you, too, are free from your own stress and distress, when you yourself have received the peace of Christ. Then gently lead your child into one of these kinds of experiences – and sometime in the midst of the goodness and sweetness of the moment suggest that this peace is like the peace Jesus gives. Just a little seed planted in the fertile of the soil of the heart.

And, if your child is inquisitive, tell her or him, how Jesus gives you His peace – even when everything around you is hard, or uncertain, or sad. I think this part is very important: that you share what you yourself know from your own experience.

Mustard Seed Truth: Jesus gives His peace to you.

Mustard Seed Scripture: John 14:27 ““Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

Morning Prayer:

Dear Lord, this morning, bless me with Your grace. Keep me with Your love. Make your good and beautiful face to shine upon me; and give me Your peace. Help me now to cast all my anxieties, all of my fears, all of my doubts into Your wise and everlasting arms. Help me to see that you are God, the maker and sustainer of all things; that you hold all things in your mighty hands; and direct all things according to Your perfect and loving will. Help me to see that I need not be troubled or afraid – neither for me, nor for those I love. Help me to know that not a hair can fall from my head without your knowledge, your power, and your goodness. Help me, O Lord, to believe that in You I live and move and have my being, and that You are with me, and that You will never leave me, nor forsake me. Guard my heart and mind with these precious truths that are mine in Christ Jesus, and so keep me in your peace. And when I forget them today Lord, please call them to my mind and restore my soul. Thank you, my Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, my Lord. Amen.

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Second Monday in Eastertide

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