Turn with me, if you would, for a short time this evening, as the Lord may enable us, to the book of Philippians, Paul's epistle to the Philippians, chapter 4. Philippians, chapter 4. Philippians, chapter 4. and we wish to take as our text this evening, verse 7. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. We have been looking at Philippians, and we've looked at Iodias and Syntyche, who had fallen out with each other, no doubt over some trivial matter. If it hadn't been a trivial matter, Paul himself would have come in and taken sides with one against the other, but he wasn't going to do that. The whole of what is said here implies that this was something that they should address. He besought them that they would be of the same mind in the Lord. He asked one of the brethren that were there, one who was a true yoke fellow, to help in that situation. As I said before, coming to and going through a book like this, you are brought to these instances, not necessarily because they are a problem in the congregation, but because we can always learn from these accounts. It would appear, I think, when you go down it, that Paul has a reason for encouraging them to be reconciled, not just for the sake of the church and for the sake of the gospel, but also for their own sakes. For their own sakes, they should be, that they should have the peace of God, which passeth all understanding. Now, as we look at it, we come this evening to think upon the peace of God. The Christian can very often go into the slough of despond, as you read in Pilgrim's Progress. When Christian goes into this place of a slough, it's a place like a swamp, very difficult to walk through, very difficult to make any progress. He's held down because he goes into the slough of despond. And when we look at the peace of God and the peace of God the Lord and there, it's really throwing you, I think, back to what's gone before this. If you do this, and then the peace of God will, which passeth on, it will keep your hearts and your minds through Christ Jesus. So if you want to know the answer to these two women who appear to be at loggerheads, this is what they should do, that they might have the peace of God, not only between themselves, but in their own hearts, and that they would be keeping their own hearts, and the peace of God would keep their hearts. And not only that, it brings it to ourselves as well, to the heart that may be disturbed, to the heart that may be finding itself in the slough of despond, the Christian who may be finding the very way difficult, being cast down. Here, the Apostle Paul says, it's the peace of God that will keep your hearts. and that is through Jesus Christ. Let us look first of all at the peace of God, the peace of God. I think when you come to this and the peace of God, he's almost saying there, here are the things that you should be doing. And then the consequence of that is that the peace of God will keep your hearts. And there are three things that he particularly points out, that we may have the peace of God that would keep our hearts. You find the first one in verse four, rejoice in the Lord, always, and again, I say rejoice. It may even be that he has these two women in mind. And he says, instead of being at loggerheads with one another, rejoice in the Lord. Look at the Lord, have your eyes fixed upon him and rejoice. That's where you will find your greatest joy and your greatest peace, by rejoicing and looking to the Lord always. And again, I say rejoice, rejoice in him. So that's the first thing, rejoice in the Lord. Secondary, let your moderation be known unto all men, the Lord is at hand. Let all men see your gentleness, that your passions are not easily roused, but you are moderate. And looking, because the Lord Jesus Christ, looking for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why you have to keep your eyes, once again, rejoice in the Lord. Let your moderation be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. The Lord will come whenever he's speaking about there, whether it is the coming of the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, or more likely, the coming of the Lord Jesus at the end of time. Keep your eyes heavenward, looking for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. So that's the second thing. He says, rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say rejoice. Secondly, be careful for nothing. But in everything, let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. And the third is, be careful for nothing. Be careful for nothing. But in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known unto God. In other words, whatever it is that comes across your life, whatever it is that comes across you, be careful for nothing of it. Bring it to the Lord in prayer with thankfulness. We are able to have the throne of grace. We are able to come there and make your requests be known unto God. So there are these three things that he says, he says, rejoice in the Lord, look for the coming of the Lord, and be careful for nothing. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds through Christ Jesus. That's the answer to a troubled heart. And that is, it's spiritual, it's spiritual peace that is being defined here. These women were maybe at loggerheads with each other, but Paul is saying there is a greater peace, and that's the spiritual peace, the peace of the heart, the peace of God, which passeth all understanding. That is far more important. You can almost understand these women hardly sleeping at night. Thinking out the issue that there was with this other woman. Thinking it out. Being disturbed because of it. The relationship between the two of them being disturbed because of it. Paul says, the peace of God is far more important. The peace of God which passeth all understanding, that will guard and keep your heart. Far more important, he said, than the outward peace even that they have. Here is the spiritual answer that Paul has to a troubled heart. And every single believer has a troubled heart at times. Do we not so often taken up with things that disturb our peace? Paul says, look at these three things. and the peace of God will then keep your heart. And it's the peace of God. It's not just an outward peace. It is the very peace of God. The peace of God. which passeth all understanding. Do you know, he's emphasizing that there in the Hebrew. He's emphasizing this. It's shalom, shalom, the peace, peace of God. The shalom, shalom of God shall keep your hearts. The peace of God which passeth all understanding. It is that peace, it's the peace of God It is born out of a new birth, isn't it? It is only those who are born again that are able to rejoice in the Lord. It is only those who are born again who look for the Lord. The Lord is at hand looking for the coming of the Lord. It is only those who are born again who are careful for nothing of this life's goods, but rather, by prayer and supplication, make the request known to God. There is the implication here that this is the peace that is given with the new birth. When one is born again by the Spirit of God, it is from above. It is that peace that comes from above. It is God that gives it. One place where that shalom, shalom is really, it's in Isaiah chapter 26. Isaiah chapter 26 and verse, thou shalt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee. Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace. Shalom, shalom. Double, double Hebrew. Thou shalt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee. So a consequence of trusting in God. And that's wonderful how here in Isaiah, in verse 26 here, verse 3, thou wilt keep him in perfect peace. Shalom, shalom. Thou wilt keep him there. When you think of the children of Israel at this time, they are in captivity. They are in captivity away from Jerusalem. How can they sing the Lord's song in a foreign and a strange land? Because they trust in God. Thou wilt keep him in perfect, undisturbed peace. not because of what he sees, not because of the providence that comes his way, not when Israel is down in captivity, when they see the Lord's cause so badly done by, thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee. That's telling us, and that's what Paul here is saying, the peace of God. which passeth, all understanding shall keep your hearts, your mind and hearts to Jesus Christ, that he trusts in the Lord. And that is a piece that passeth. all understanding. Now, it surely, of anything, is telling us, here is a peace that passeth all comprehension. It's a different type, a different caliber of peace that the believer experiences. A different kind of peace. The believer knows peace from God. He receives peace from God. The believer has peace with God. He is at peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ. But this is the peace of God that the apostle says the believer has. Not just from God, not just peace with God, but he realizes and experiences the peace of God. And that is something that is beyond human understanding. It's a different caliber of peace altogether. It is the peace that is of God himself. And that's something that you cannot explain. That is not something that you can truly understand. It is beyond understanding of man. It needs to be experienced by the believer. It needs to be experienced in order for you to understand anything of this kind of peace. It is a peace that is which passeth all understanding of man. It is beyond the comprehension of man to know this peace that is of God himself. It is a peace that needs to be experienced. And it's only experienced by the believer. It is beyond this. It's a different kind of peace altogether. How God himself is at peace. Everything in this world may seem to you and to me to be upside down, to be as though it is that things are out of control. God is at peace. He knows the beginning from the end, the end from the beginning. He will work all things together for the good of them that love the Lord, for those who are called according to his purpose. Everything is according to God's will and purpose. Everything. God is at peace with providence. He has decreed that all things that will come to pass And he has decreed that his people will be brought in to experience something of his love and his mercy. And it brings peace which is beyond understanding. You cannot understand it except you would experience it. So it is the peace of God. So that's the first point, the peace of God. It is the result of these three things that have gone before. It is God's peace. And it is a peace that is beyond and past all understanding. But it is that which keeps your hearts and minds. It is that peace which keeps your heart and mind. The word keep there is like a guard. It's like a watchman at the gate. It's watching the gate, it's mounting a guard. It is this peace of God which mounts a guard at the gate of the heart and of the mind. It is that peace of God which strengthens and guards the heart and mind from all the attacks of the devil. It's like a sentinel repelling that which would come in, casting it out, being a guard. The believer needs the whole armor of God, but he needs the peace of God as a sentinel, as a guard, as the keeper of the heart, the peace of God. the heart that's under attack by the world, the flesh, and the devil. But here's the peace of God, that in the midst of the most difficult, trying situations, there is the peace of God. That's beyond all understanding. Paul and Silas, as we've often said, singing Psalms in a prison, in the most dire situation, yet the peace of God. The Apostle Paul facing death in Rome, and those at Philippi worried about him. He says, you don't need to worry about me. Peace of God. He will confront Caesar, be put to death, but here's the peace of God. Here's the peace of God. It is that which keeps his heart and his mind. His heart, the thoughts and the feelings and the affections that can so often run away. The affections and the emotions that can rush away. And what you see and what you experience, but it's the peace of God that calms the storm. The heart and the mind, the perception and the disposition of the heart. He says it's that peace of God when you rejoice in the Lord always, when you let your moderation be known because the Lord is at hand and you are careful for nothing, and God will give you that peace, the peace of God which passeth, which will keep and guard the heart and the mind from racing away. And how we need it, isn't it? How that is needed, how the believer knows how much he needs the peace of God. Think of the heart, fallen human heart. You only need to go back to Genesis chapter six, and right at the beginning of the Old Testament, you have this demonstration of God's wrath against sin. I think it's wonderful when you go back to the Old Testament, and you have the flood in the day of Noah, a symbolizing of the law, a symbolizing of God's detestation and anger against sin, the flood, and then you come to the New Testament, and at the head of the New Testament, you have the cross, and the outpouring, the flooding, if you like, of the love of God. going out into all the ends of the earth, the flood that covered the face of the earth in the Old Testament, the gospel that covers the face of the earth in the New Testament. But look at what was the very reason for that flood. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. comes from the heart, you see. This evil heart. This evil heart that was there and the wickedness he saw. God saw the wickedness of the heart. And the imagination and the thoughts of the heart, which are wicked. And evil continuing. That's the heart of man by nature. That is the heart of man as it is fallen. It is vain, sinful, foolish. But God saw it. God knows it. God knows every aspect of that evil heart that they had, which was evil. That's why it needs the new birth. That's why it needs a change of heart. But that's why it needs to be a new creature in Christ Jesus. There is a new heart. I will take away the heart of stone and I will give unto you a heart of flesh, a new heart. But even in Romans chapter 7, when Paul speaks about that new heart, he speaks about that warfare that there is in, because there are still the remnants of the old man there. There is still the remnants of sin to be found within even the believer. He has a battle, a battle against the world, the flesh, and the devil. He has a battle against the old man. He needs to crucify the old man every day because that mind and the heart. But Paul says here, rejoice in the Lord always, let your moderation, let your gentleness, let your moderation be known, the Lord is at hand, and be careful for nothing, but by prayer and thankfulness make your requests be known unto God and the peace of God. shall keep your hearts and your minds. The believer must still guard his heart. Guard his heart. And it's the peace of God that guards his heart. But how does he do that? Well, that brings you to the third point. It is through Christ Jesus. Through Christ Jesus. This is not a peace that you can manufacture. You know how in the Old Testament there was peace, peace, when there was no peace. Today there are many places where they cry peace, peace, where there is no peace. But it is peace through Christ Jesus, through Christ Jesus. He is the agent by which this peace is established in the heart. It is through faith in Jesus Christ, through faith in the high priest. It is based upon the finished work of Jesus Christ. Even when you go back to the Old Testament, to the book of Leviticus, what do you find? You find the burnt offering and the sin offering. The burnt offering, the sacrifice was totally consumed. Some people, and I've mentioned this before, when I was growing up, you would go to communions and you would hear of the burnt offering, and they would say, the burnt offering, here's the wrath of God coming down upon the burnt offering. My friend, that's not what the burnt offering's about. Not what the burnt offering is about. The sin offering is about the total wrath of God coming down. The burnt offering, is the total consummation of the whole animal to God. It is speaking about the perfect obedience, the perfect dedication of Christ himself as the sacrifice, giving of himself to God and bearing in himself the wrath of God. Yes, it is the wrath of God that is there. All these aspects are there in every sacrifice. But the burnt offering is speaking of the dedication of the whole animal, the whole of the sacrifice given up. The sin offering is the one where the offering is there given for sin. But my friend, there's one after that. That's the peace offering. And it's a wonderful picture you have. The peace offering is based upon the burnt offering and the sin offering. These offerings must be given first before you can have the peace offering. But the peace offering is brought, and as you read through the book of Leviticus and the peace offering, you discover it had to be a sacrifice that was without blemish. No blemish allowed in the peace offering. And it was one that the man, the offerer would bring it voluntarily to the tabernacle. And he would lay his hand upon the sacrifice, and the sacrifice would be given. And it would be burned, but the best of it kept. And those who were there coming, they could sit and have a feast. They would eat. And even people passing the tabernacle could join in the feast as they sat with God and ate of the offering. Not only the priest, but the offerer themselves and the family could eat of this sacrifice. My friend, can I suggest to you, there was no safer place on earth than in that tabernacle. at the tabernacle, feasting with God. They could be in the midst of all the enemies out there. They could be in the midst of all the great, the Babylonians. They could be in the midst of all the greatest empires that were there. But those who sat in that tabernacle, those who feasted with God where they were in the most safe place they could ever be. They were feasting with God. And what peace, what peace. They were coming and they would share the meal and they would eat in the tabernacle. They would eat at the tabernacle with the offerers. What a wonderful picture you have then that in this peace offering that there was peace It was a symbol of peace. Then when you have him who is the Prince of Peace, Christ himself who comes, he not only offers himself up as the great burnt offering, totally dedicating himself, not only the sin offering, bearing the sins of his people, but the peace offering. He's the Prince of Peace. He brings peace with God. He brings peace From God, he brings the peace of God to God's people. Surely there's something of that and a picture of that when the Lord Jesus is in the boat and there's a storm and he stands up and he rebukes the winds and the sea. Peace, be still. And the winds and the sea obey his voice. Peace, be still. The winds in the sea obey him. It is Christ that stands over the troubled heart, the Prince of Peace. And he says to that troubled heart, peace, be still. In the midst of the most difficult situations, the peace which passeth all understanding, that in the midst of a world where there are many things that will upset, and will disturb God's people, Christ stands over the heart and says, peace, be still. He said it to the woman who came with the issue of blood. She touched but the hem of his garments. And when he had finished with her, he said to her, go in peace. Thy faith hath made thee whole. Go in peace. She could be at peace now. She had tried for 12 years to find some answer to her problem. She couldn't find it. But now she could go, because the Lord Jesus said, go in peace. You are now free. You are now cured. And so it is that every believer is able to know something of this peace. the peace of God, which passeth all understanding because it is divinely administered, given by God himself to his people, administered through Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, into whose hands everything has been given, everything to bring peace to the troubled soul. May it be this evening that we would look to that same Jesus Christ and that we would know and hear the voice of him saying, peace, be still, thy faith hath made thee whole.