Well alright, you can go ahead and be turning in your Bibles to Romans chapter 8, and I do want us to begin there as far as reading from the Scripture this morning. As I said last week, I want to take the time in this morning's message to focus on that one critical word, that one glorious word, and that is that word peace that the Apostle Paul uses. I want us to trace that. Briefly through scripture, certainly we cannot do it exhaustively because it's used too many times. So we cannot go to every verse unless we made that a study in itself that would extend over more than one Sunday. But what we do want to see is this matter of peace as set forth by God in His Word, and how it is so radically different from what men speak of when they speak of peace. We hear much today about peace accords, peace treaties, peace agreements, peace in our time, man thinking before World War I and the Enlightenment at all, that we were done with war, we were too smart for that now. We were living in an age when war was obsolete, and as I said, World War I came, and then World War II came, and then men have been fighting ever since. And they would have been fighting previously. And so, men in their fallen estate can speak much about peace. They can come up with documents about peace. They can come up with agreements on paper about peace. But they can't touch the human heart. And so regardless of what governmental entities do, regardless of good intentions, regardless of what people try to do apart from God, it will fail. It is futile. It is something that cannot be attained. It is unattainable. And so, peace is something, again, that people like to talk about, but they have never been able to bring it to pass. Only God can bring peace. And the peace must start in the individual human heart and soul. For man, in and of himself, since the fall, is the center of the war. He is at war with God, he is at war with his fellow man. He is unhappy, he is discontented, he is full of pride, and on and on, the whole litany of things we could list in regards to man's fallen attributes. But as we begin this morning back in Romans chapter 8, just to remind ourselves of what the Apostle has been saying here in this chapter, or in this portion of the letter, I'm going to back up to verse 2 and we're going to read down through verse 6. And really verse 6 is the place that I want to take this parenthetical break, as it were, and consider the use of this matter, the use of the word peace, or what our English translation translates as peace, in the Old and in the New Testament, in the Hebrew and in the Greek. And we're going to see, number one, that in the Hebrew and in the Greek, there are various words that are translated peace in the English. They're not all the same. You have more than one word in the Hebrew and more than one word in the Greek that is translated by our one English word, peace. And so it gives us a greater understanding of the word itself to consider these original languages. And it also shows us that these other words were used based on the situation, based on the context of what this matter of peace is speaking to. But in Romans chapter 8, beginning in verse 2, "...for the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." For what the law could not do, and that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh, but they that are after the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. And as we began there in verse 4, we're going to continue to see this contrast made by the apostle of that which is born of the flesh, that which is born of the Spirit. The word used here in my translation is after. what you have been generated by, the progeny of. The progeny of the flesh is going to mine the things of this present world. It is carnal, it is earthy, it is controlled by its own passions, lusts, desires, and so forth. That which is born of the Spirit that Jesus spoke of once more to Nicodemus, you must be born again. That which is born of the Spirit minds the things of the Spirit, those things that be of God, those things that be eternal, those things that be, as Paul says to the Colossians, set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. Those who have simply been born of the flesh cannot do that, nor do they want to do that. And so, they are once born, but the believer is twice born. And so this is a key element. And as we talked about last Lord's Day, another key element in what Paul will continue to labor here is this matter of the mind. And the matter of the mind and the heart, once again being mentioned synonymously in the Scripture, going hand in hand, the mind and the heart is where we're going to find this discussion of peace centered. We hear people talk about peace of mind. I have no peace of mind. I am all stirred and troubled inside, they'll say, but they'll refer it to their mind. I have no peace of mind, but I feel it inwardly, I feel it in my gut, or as the Scripture says, the bowels, or the emotions were often said to be centered. And so, peace in the mind, in the heart, is impossible apart from God, is impossible apart from the God of peace, is impossible apart from He who is life and truth. And so we continue on, for they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh, but they that are after the Spirit do things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life, and not only life, but peace. Life and peace. Oh, if I could just have peace. We live in a world that doesn't have peace. We live in a society that is awash in material goods and there's no peace. There's troubled minds, and troubled hearts, and troubled families, and trouble on every hand. There is no peace. There is no contentment. And so, let us begin by considering, first of all, this word itself, peace. As I said, there are various derivations of this in both the Hebrew and in the Greek. And the one we are going to specifically focus on in the Hebrew is Shalom. The one we're going to focus on in the Greek is Irenae, and that's how it's pronounced. It's not how it's spelled. But these are the two that we're going to focus on. Now, Shalom comprehends the meaning of being safe, of being well, of being happy, friendliness, of rest. Irenae, now notice the similarities here between the Hebrew and the Greek. Quietness, rest, and also it contains this, set at one again. Are you seeing that? A reconciliation factor, right? set at one again." And we're going to focus on that because that is the peace, that is the word Paul is using here in Romans 8.6. This is the peace he is concerned with. Because you see, there are other forms of the word that we translate peace. For instance, to hold your peace is another Hebrew word. It has its own Greek word, to be silent. And this silence can be voluntarity, like I sit here and I don't speak, I mute. I'm quiet, I'm silent. And then there's an involuntary holding your peace, such as when Jesus commanded the demons not to speak. All right? Shut up. Be quiet. There is another word that means to make peace with in the Hebrew, and it is very close to shalom, but it is pronounced shalom. S-H-A-H-L-A-M instead of O-M, to make peace with, to be safe in mind and body and your estate, to be completed. That's an interesting addition, right? To be completed. What is man since the fall? And he feels this, he's incomplete. Something's not right. The world's not right. The world is an imperfect place. Another word for complete. To make restitution, to restore, to make amends, to finish. What do you see Jesus saying? It is finished. This is part of the definition of the word peace. It is finished. When Jesus said it is finished, what was He declaring? Peace. The battle is over, there will be no more war. War between whom? God and man. You see, the antagonist today is not God, it's man. Paul says in Corinthians, we are ambassadors, and what do we say as these ambassadors sent out? We're to say, God has made peace, why are you still fighting God? Be reconciled. You're the one that's still hiding out in the woods with your uniform on. You ever heard the story of them finding Japanese soldiers on these islands hiding in a cave somewhere for years after World War II was over? Still hiding, still there with their rifles, still in their uniform. Didn't know peace had been made. And that's the way people are today. They don't know that peace has been made. Also, the word in Hebrew, Shalem, again, E instead of an O or an A, is what is used when they're speaking of peace offerings. in the Old Testament, a sacrifice of thanks to requite, and so you have again these various meanings and uses of this word that we hear as peace, the one word we hear as peace in the English. So to have peace with God, to have peace with one another, is peculiarly connected with, first, a right relationship with our Maker and our Creator. That is what fell apart in the garden. That is what we lost. No peace. Here is Satan, in the form of the serpent, promising life, promising health, promising joy, promising happiness, promising all these things, and it actually destroyed them all when they disobeyed God. God was the source of all those good things, and Satan said, no, He's the opposite of all those good things, and they believed Him. Let me rephrase that. We believed Him. We were all there. We believed Him. And so let's just begin to consider, and I'm going to ask you to keep your page-turning fingers ready and limber if you need to do any stretches or popping the knuckles or anything of that nature, because we are going to look at a lot of Scriptures in a short amount of time. Okay? And this is just a few. This is a smattering. Like I said, there's no way that I could go to all of them. I just picked a few to highlight. These two particular words in Hebrew, Shalom, and in Greek, Irenae. Just to focus on these in and of itself gives us many passages of Scripture to consider. You recall I mentioned last week Isaiah 26.3, "...I will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed upon Thee, for he trusts in Thee." Again, that's that word Shalom. I will keep him in perfect peace, rest, quietness, contentment. And notice it is connected with the mind being stayed upon God, upon the Lord, being fixed as it were upon Him. And what is connected with our mind being fixed upon Him is that we trust Him. If we don't trust Him, as I noted, your mind is not going to be stayed on a God you don't trust. Once more, what was the enemy's strategy in the garden? He's not trustworthy. That's how he was able to pull them away from their Creator. God is not trustworthy. He has deceived you. He is misrepresenting things to you. You will not surely die. He lied to you. How can you trust somebody that's going to lie to you? And so the trust must be there in order for our minds to be stayed upon Him. Now, interesting that the first place that this word shalom, that we translate peace, is found in the Old Testament is Genesis 15. We heard about Genesis 15 this morning, right? The Abrahamic Covenant. Remember hearing that in Sunday school this morning? And I thought, isn't that wonderful how he's talking about that, because that's where we're going to go to begin. So go with me to Genesis 15, and this will be our most lengthy reading, but I wanted to pick up the context here of what's going on. This is one of the most well-known passages in the Old Testament, where it speaks of the faith of Abraham. And so it is fitting that the word peace would first appear here in regards to God making these promises to Abraham. And ultimately, how will these promises be fulfilled? In the Prince of Peace who will come, the Messiah. So, in Genesis 15, we'll begin reading at verse 5, So God brings Abram forth, and He brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell, or count the stars, if thou be able to number them. And He said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the Lord, and he counted it, or imputed it to him for righteousness. Here again is one of the passages that Paul will use in the letter to the Galatians and so forth to show that justification is by faith and not by works. And he said unto him, I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees to give thee this land to inherit it. And he said, Lord God, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it? And he said unto him, Take me a heifer of three years old, and a she-goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtle dove, and a young pigeon. Interesting that you see in these sacrifices something that will come later going from rich to poor. See, a rich man would be able to afford those first ones. A poor person, such as Mary and Joseph, only the pigeons. So this is going to encompass them all, the whole specter. And He took unto Him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another, but the birds divided He not. When the fowls came down upon the carcasses, Abraham drove them away. So the buzzards come to get these animal carcasses. Abraham has to drive them away. And so there's a period here where the Lord is letting him wait. And he's having to fight to keep these buzzards away. And when the sun was going down, so he does this all day long so you know he's tired from nothing else but from doing the preparatory work and from protecting it from these buzzards and so forth. When the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram. And lo, a horror of great darkness fell upon him. Some believe this is a preview of the horror of Egypt that his people would go through. And he said unto Abram, because notice what he says here, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them, and they shall afflict them four hundred years. So this great darkness at first falls upon Abram. And also that nation whom they shall serve will I judge, and afterward shall they come out with great substance. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace. Here's the first use of the word. Thou shalt be buried in a good old age, and thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace." And what's the basis of Abram going to his fathers in peace? It is because of what God had told him earlier. It is because of who Abram's God is that he will be able to die in peace. Let's not miss the significance of that, that here in the very chapter in which God is making this particular vow, as it were, this covenant of peace with all of His people, He speaks it first to Abram, the father of the nation. Peace, peace, shalom, peace, quietness, rest. Abraham understood the tumultuous nature of the world that he lived in as well as we do today. And yet God says unto him that all of these glorious things that he has spoken to him in chapter 12 and here in chapter 15 are going to come forth unto victory. You see that? There's a victory coming. There is a new heaven and a new earth. There is salvation coming for God's people. That God is going to do this glorious work of redemption and renewal and salvation in the midst of man's wickedness. In the midst of the fact that man can't know peace. There is no peace for the wicked. But what do the people of God have? And we'll see this as we get into the New Testament Scriptures. They have a peace that passes understanding. They have a peace that is not dependent on outward circumstances. They have a peace that doesn't depend on the environment they are presently in. Now, we're going to go, in large part, to the Psalms as far as our time in the Old Testament. So turn with me to Psalm 28. And once more, I'm just focusing on this one word. And I wanted to keep writing down verses and I had to stop myself. Psalm 28 and verse 3. First, I'm going to start off with a negative connotation. Psalm of David. Draw me not away with the wicked and with the workers of iniquity. Notice, which speak peace to their neighbors, but mischief is in their hearts. So here is man. He speaks, as I said at the opening, he speaks of peace. But his words are actually, or holding behind his back are drawn swords. He speaks smoothly. He's a flatterer. He speaks of wanting to be your friend, but he turns against you. He speaks as a Judas. He speaks as the people of Israel. Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest. Crucify Him. That's man's peace. So they make accords, they make agreements, and they break them. I think of all the, in our own American history, the peace treaties made with the Indians out west and so forth. and in gold would be discovered. Well, you know that land there, you know, that was supposed to be a perpetual hunting ground for you all? We need to revisit that. And you can either agree to it or we'll take it. That's man's kind of peace. And so David is speaking of these hypocrites that speak about peace, but mischief is in their hearts. Here we are again, they're speaking one thing, but their heart is something else. Talk is cheap. We all are familiar with that saying. Now look at chapter 29 of the Psalms and verse 11. Now we've gone from men to the Lord. The Lord will give strength unto His people. The Lord will bless His people with peace. Man says, Shalom. God actually gives it. See that? That when men speak peace to my heart, they can't actually give peace to my heart. Because one of the things I will be thinking, knowing my own human nature and knowing others' human nature, okay, what are you up to, buddy? Yeah, right. Because you're not strong enough presently to do what you want to do, you're taught you're being all nice and lovey and peace talk. But the Lord who could destroy us so easily at any time, He's not weaker than we are. He's not fearful of us. He doesn't have to flatter us. He says, peace. I give you peace by the grace of God. 3737 also here in Psalm. Ultimately, I believe this verse refers to the man Jesus, but certainly it should be evident in those who bear His name as being His children. Mark the perfect man, the complete man. Notice one of the things I talked about was this peace makes you complete. Mark the perfect man and behold the upright, for the end of that man is peace. Something else we're going to see as we move through these verses is without righteousness there is no peace. You can talk about peace, you can talk about an end of armed conflict, but righteousness hasn't been brought in. You made some agreement on paper, but the people are still unrighteous on the opposing sides. Right? So what have you ultimately changed? Nothing. Without righteousness, there is no peace. All of these attributes are interwoven with one another. No righteousness, no peace. The wicked have no peace. They are like the waves of the sea. We've quoted that many times. Look over at Psalm 72. Psalm 72. First of all, let's begin by looking at verses 1 and 2. Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the king's son. He shall judge thy people with righteousness and thy poor with judgment. Verse 7. In His days shall the righteous flourish an abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth." Once more, I read these verses out of Psalm 72 to highlight the fact that the connection there between righteousness and peace. Righteousness and peace. There is no peace to the unrighteous. Look also at Psalm 85.10. Psalm 85, 10. And I hope when I read this verse, maybe you've already marked it in your Bible that you can see the cross in this verse. Mercy and truth are met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Now think about what occurred on Calvary's cross. The truth And righteousness pierced Christ as our sin bearer. What came forth to us? Mercy and peace. Mercy and truth are met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. They've kissed one another. They've embraced righteousness and peace. Righteousness and peace. How can a sinner ever have peace? What a dilemma this is. How can a sinner ever have peace with a righteous God? We're diametrically opposed. There's a great gulf between us that can never be bridged by man's efforts. Righteousness must be given to us. It must be an alien righteousness. It must be the righteousness of another accounted to us. And we have a hint of that even here. Mercy and truth are met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Harmony, reconciliation, oneness, rest. Rest. Sin has made man weary. Running to and fro. My grandpa used to have a statement, he said, people running to and fro, seeking pleasure and finding none. Running to and fro, here and there. Proverbs chapter 12, let's go to the Proverbs. Chapter 20 of verse 12. Deceit is in the heart of them that imagine evil. Imagine, where is that located? In the mind. Try to keep all these words we've covered together. The mind, the heart, righteousness, peace. Here is someone who is imagining something. The evil, deceit is in their heart. Untruth. Satan is the father of lies. Satan is called, one of his names means deceiver. But to the counselors of peace is joy. So now we have joy connected with peace. Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace. Now we're going to the prophet Isaiah. Much in Isaiah about peace. Isaiah chapter 9. We hear some of these verses read every year during the Christmas season concerning the birth of Christ. but they are applicable for much more than just the Christmas season. Isaiah 9, verse 6, For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor. We just read about a counselor back here? the Counselor of Peace, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. The people of Jesus' day didn't want the Prince of Peace. Remember, Peter preaches to them, you have crucified the Prince of Glory and denied Him. One of His names given here is the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace, there shall be no end. Amen, amen, amen. Upon the throne of David and upon His kingdom to order it and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth and forever, the zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. Men won't perform it. God will perform it. Notice capital L-O-R-D. The Lord Yahweh, the Lord Jehovah will perform this. He's going to bring it to pass and no one is going to overthrow it. And this peace is an everlasting peace. And notice, it is established with justice. Righteousness? Where there is no justice, where there is no righteousness and judgment, there is no peace. Isaiah 32, 17. Isaiah 32, 17, "...and the work of righteousness shall be peace. And the effect of righteousness, quietness," which is one of the things comprehended by that word shalom, quietness, "...and assurance forever." What we just read in Isaiah 9, it's an everlasting peace. Assurance everlasting. Assurance forever. And on and on we see these truths connected. Peace and righteousness and holiness. We understand the fact that they must all be there simultaneously. Isaiah 48.18 Again, I'm hurrying through these as best I can. 48.18, the Lord speaking through the prophet Isaiah to rebellious Judah, people of the land, and notice what He says. Notice this lament. "'Oh, that Thou hadst hearkened to My commandments!' Then had Thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea." You can almost hear Jesus weeping over Jerusalem, can't you? Oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how often would I have gathered you together as a hen doth gather her chicks under your wing, and you would not. Therefore, your house is left unto you desolate. You didn't know the day of your visitation. And it's over. And so here is God crying out to these people in this, you might say, anthropomorphic speech, this language of high emotion, saying, Oh! You would have had peace like a river and righteousness like the ways of the sea. if you had hearkened to My commandments. But we know they didn't. 52.7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of Him that bringeth good tidings, that publishes peace, that bringeth good tidings of good that publishes salvation, that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth." Once more we can see a hint here, prophetic view of that which is to come. But once more we know what happened when He did come and the majority rejected Him. He came unto His own and His own received Him not. 53-5, but He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we are healed. Here it is in the Old Testament prophets, what your Messiah will be. It was He who would bear the punishment that would bring us peace. Finally, Isaiah 57.19. The Lord speaking, I create the fruit of the lips, Peace, peace to him that is far off and to him that is near." Aren't you glad that verse is there? You'll see this quoted in Acts chapter 2. You'll see it quoted in Ephesians chapter 2. Peter will quote it on the day of Pentecost and Paul will quote it in his letter to Ephesus. And to him that is near, saith the Lord, and I will heal him. Notice, but the wicked are like the troubled sea when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked." The Lord is calling out to His and saying, peace. And the wicked know no peace. The God rejecters know no peace. They will know no peace in this life, and they will know no peace for eternity. What a horrible thought. No, there's not going to be any parties in hell. Everyone is going to be consumed with their own misery and their own lack of peace. Jeremiah 6, let's go to the prophet Jeremiah. and hear a strong rebuke of the false prophets. They have healed also the hurt of thy daughter of My people, slightly saying, Shalom, Shalom, when there is no Shalom. Peace, peace, there is no peace. What was Jeremiah preaching? Repent, or judgment's coming. These other prophets will say, oh no, times of prosperity are coming. You ain't seen nothing yet. It's going to get gooder and gooder. Right? Any similarities with our own day? Peace, peace. They speak peace to my people and there's no healing in it. They're false prophets. They're false physicians. I have not sent them. They prophesy from their own deceitful hearts. And so in these verses, these few that I've chosen just from the Old Testament, we've seen the contrast between a false peace, a wicked man using and talking about peace, and the Lord's true peace. There's always in these truths that we see in Scripture a counterfeit and a true. You see that run throughout Scripture. There's a counterfeit and a true. When we come to the Gospels, the first use of this next word in the Greek, which is translated into English as peace, Irenae, is found, the first use is Matthew 10. First place we see peace, Matthew 10. Turn with me to Matthew. And notice where this is used, and it's used by Jesus. And consider the context, what is going on here with Jesus and His disciples when He uses this word, peace, Irenae. Again, very similar in the definition of it with Shalom. Beginning with verse 7, He's sending His disciples out. He says, as you go, preach saying, the kingdom of heaven is at hand. That's the key phrase. The kingdom of heaven is here. What is the Kingdom of Heaven? It's the Kingdom of Peace. It's reigned over by the Prince of Peace. Right? Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils, freely receive, freely give, completing broken, incomplete, fallen, decaying people. Sin brought disease. Sin brought demonic possession. Sin ultimately brings death. So you're going out preaching the kingdom of life and peace. Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses, nor script for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet stays, for the workman is worthy of his meat. And into whatsoever city or town you shall enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and there abide till you go hence. And when you come into a house, salute it, And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you." In other words, if they reject the message of the kingdom. Whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words when you depart out of that house of the city, shake off the dust of your feet. Verily I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city. So here is the message of peace, and these disciples, as they were sent out under the authority of Christ, had this message of peace to either bring to a house that received it, or to take it back to themselves if they rejected the message. And to be exposed to this message of peace and to reject it was putting themselves in a place of severe, severe, severe judgment on the judgment day. I'm coming to you saying, peace, and as the Hebrew writer said, you're rejecting it and trampling underfoot the blood of the Son of God. So instead of peace, you're going to have wrath. So we see again the importance of peace. God is speaking peace to people who don't deserve any peace. You're in the shape you're in because of what you chose with your eyes wide open. But I'm coming as the offended party saying, I want peace. And the only way I can have peace with you is to crush my own son. I want peace that much. And you won't even listen. You don't even want to hear it. So, I don't need peace with you. I want you to stay out of my life. I want you telling me what to do. You see the depravity of man? Mark 534. Let's move along. Jesus makes a statement that always infuriated the Pharisees and religious leaders when He would make a statement like this. He said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole, go in peace, and behold of thy plague. He gives her something much greater than physical healing. He says, go in peace. In the Pharisee. Who does he think he is that he can say something like that? Who does he think he is that he can say, your sins be forgiven you on another occasion? Only God can do that. That's right. He's here. Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. And you're rejecting it. And you're going to be worse off than Sodom and Gomorrah one of these days. Go in peace. Aren't those wonderful words? To hear God say to you, go in peace. Luke chapter 1 and verse 79. Notice the prophecy here in Luke. And all of this is moving us towards something. We know what that someone is, not something, someone. Zacharias, after his tongue was loosed, then stole the Lord and His grace, His mercy in sending Messiah and His own Son, John the Baptist. Notice what He says there. I'm just going to pick up one verse. Verse 79, "...to give light to them that sit in darkness, in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." What did the Old Testament Israelites desire? What did they understand they needed? Peace. Peace. We need peace. And this ideal and this understanding of peace is the longing of the human heart. If I could just find a place of peace. Peace is not a place, it's a person. John 14.27, part of the Upper Room Discourse. before Jesus went to Calvary's cross. John 14, 27. Jesus telling His disciples who would be very downcast and troubled when He is arrested and crucified. We know what is to come as they hide themselves behind closed doors. But He tells them this, and no doubt the Holy Spirit brings this back to them after He has come to indwell them. Jesus says, peace I leave with you. My peace I give unto you. Not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. So I'm going to be leaving. They didn't understand again all the ramifications of this. They saw Him as being there to set up this kingdom now. this earthly kingdom, and He is preparing them by saying, I'm leaving my peace with you. Not what the world offers as peace, we've already seen how fickle that is, up and down that is, dependent on circumstances that is. I'm giving you my peace, therefore your heart, again we're talking about the heart, we're talking about the mind, need not be troubled or afraid. What has man been since the fall? He's been afraid. He is fearful. First emotion we've talked about here a few Sundays ago that you see expressed in Scripture is in the garden after Adam and Eve have fallen and the Lord is calling out for them and they're hiding and Adam says, I heard you and I was afraid. Where did that come from? Why are you afraid of me? Because of sin. Because He's just and I'm not. See, I can't have any peace. I can't be at peace with that. Because I'm a sinner, I'm guilty, guilt plays into all of this, I can't be at peace. My heart has no peace. Acts chapter 10, Peter. Acts chapter 10, Peter's sermon to Cornelius and those gathered in his household, Cornelius the Gentile. Verse 36, the word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ. He is Lord of all. Peace. That's the word. Peace by Jesus Christ. Peace how? By Jesus Christ. Not by any other means. Not by government efforts. Not by personal efforts at turning over a new leaf and trying to get along with people. It's by Jesus Christ. Peace by Jesus Christ. Let's go back to Romans. Some of this we've seen. We're going to see it again because it's connecting to what we're looking at in chapter 8 now. Romans chapter 2. Here we're going to see again the connection of righteousness with peace. Paul making the clear connection here. between righteousness and eternal life. And what He's doing here in these first two chapters is, as you remember, showing the universal guilt of all mankind. Nobody does this. But here's what's required. But glory, honor, and peace to every man that worketh good. The Jew first and also to the Gentile. You want to have peace? Be righteous. Do good. Do what's right. Obey God's commandments. Then you'll have peace. It's pretty simple. Let's just start doing that. Right? No. Because no one does. Not only is it no one does, no one can. as we've already seen in chapter 8. The carnal mind cannot be subject to the law of God. It cannot be. What about Romans 5.1? You remember what he said there? Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. As Peter spoke to Cornelius in chapter 10, what did he connect peace with? The Lord Jesus Christ. Here Paul says, therefore being, past tense, completed action, completed work, justified by faith, I am in present possession of peace with God. Does that mean anything to anybody in this room this morning? Peace with holy God. He will not be at peace with a sinner." So I'm righteous. This is telling me I'm righteous if God has said, I'm at peace with you. I sure don't feel like that should be the case, Lord. I make a lot of errors. What are we doing when we do that? We're denying the work of the Son. Folks, that's not a light thing. Let's tell ourselves that's not a light thing. It's not a matter of you being presumptuous, it's a matter of you being unbelieving. And then go ahead to Romans 14 and verse 17. Here when we get into the very practical application of this letter where Paul is applying the doctrine that he's given them in the previous chapters, he says, "...for the kingdom of God is not meat and drink..." Again, worrying about various dietary laws and abstaining from this and abstaining from that and being focused on the outward. But notice, "...but righteousness and peace..." There they are again, "...righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost." That's where you and I are today. Righteousness and peace and joy. Righteousness and peace and joy. Christ's righteousness is my peace and my joy. When I look at me, when you look at yourself, you have no right to joy or peace. But then you say, and then you understand by the Word of God that the righteousness of Christ has been placed upon you, that you are in Christ. And your proper portion and my proper portion is peace and joy. Peace. Again, the world knows nothing about it. Can't attain to it. Trying to find it. Trying to figure out. Trying to come up with some kind of way to bring people together. You know, as I said before, no, it's not going to work because you buy them a Coke and get together and sing, we are the world. Because that person standing there next to you holding their hand is full of pride just like you are. And they want what they want and you want what you want. And it's not going to jive. Is somebody's timer going off? What is that? He might as well turn it off. Galatians chapter 5. Galatians chapter 5. I've already mentioned this several times, but Paul says again, contrasting the fruit of the Spirit with the deeds of the flesh and all those terrible things he mentioned. As a matter of fact, let's consider some of those deeds of the flesh beginning there in verse 19. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these, adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness. In those words I just read out of verse 19, what is that? Dissatisfaction, discontent. Why does someone commit adultery? Because they're not satisfied, they're not content with whoever their wife or husband presently is. They have no peace. Fornication, no peace, uncleanness, lasciviousness is simply lack of sexual restraint, lust. It's because there is no peace. They're looking for peace. They're looking for something to secure them, to comfort them, to complete them. The grass is greener on the other side of the fence. You hear people say that in regards to somebody jumping over and taking another wife or someone else's wife and the grass was the greener on the other side of the fence. My mom would always say what they don't realize is they got to mow that grass too. All they see is the pleasure. Idolatry, witchcraft. hatred, variance, disunion, emulations, envy, jealousy, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and such like, of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." This is what the flesh produces. It's ugly. It stinks. It's a stench. And it could be all encapsulated in the word discontent, no peace. The wicked have no peace. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, self-control. Against such there is no law. You're under the law of Christ. I don't have to be under the law of Moses if I'm under the law of Christ. Because what is the law of Christ? He delights in the law of God. He fulfills it. He loves it. It's not cross-grained to Him. And it's not cross-grained to the believer. When you see someone who claims to be a believer that hates the law of God, or resents it, there's something wrong. Something more than wrong, there's evidently no life there. Ephesians chapter 2, continue on with me please. Ephesians chapter 2. Now here Paul is talking in this particular portion of the letter to Ephesus. about a piece that has been brought between peoples, Jews and Gentiles, that in Christ, all of these various partitions, and there was literally a physical partition. All of you that are familiar with the temple complex, that the Gentiles could not go past that partition under penalty of death. You stay back here. The Jewish women can go this close. The Jewish men can go this close. So on. You get the ideal. So these partitions were there in which you must abide by these partitions. And so what that told you as well is I'm divided from my fellow man because he's a Jew and I'm a Gentile. Christ destroyed that. For He is our peace, verse 14. Look at that. Notice, peace is a person. It's not a program. It's not a document. It's not an effort. It's a person. For He is our peace who hath made both one. What is the great mystery that Paul preached? Jew and Gentile in one body. No more fighting, no more struggling, no more hatred between one another. "...and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us, having abolished in His flesh..." See, all these fleshly distinctions were abolished in His flesh. The enmity, the hatred, the strife, the division, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances, for to make in himself of two one new man, so making peace." Peace with God translates into peace with our fellow man. There's no more division anymore. He speaks of this as well in Galatians. There is no more Jew or Gentile, bond or free, so on. "...and that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby, and came and preached peace to you which were afar off and to them that were nigh." You that were afar off are the Gentiles. Those that were nigh were the Jews. I preach peace to both of them. For through Him, we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father." Amen, amen, amen. We both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. I don't have to go through any kind of ritual. I don't have to go through any kind of ceremony. I don't have to become Jewish to approach God. But through Christ, He has destroyed the division and the divisiveness that Satan originally brought into creation. As you've heard probably people say, the ground is level at the foot of the cross. By one Spirit. You want to talk about unity? You want to talk about peace? Christ accomplished it. and it's from the heart. I've said this before, use this as an example. While I'm saying this, go ahead and turn over to Philippians. You have all kinds of racial programs and trying to bring people together racially and all the rest, again, that men come up with that cannot change the heart. But you know, when I was working in the factory, Some of my closest brethren in Christ were black men. And no one had to tell me, now you need to be nice to those black men. You need to get along with those black men. We'd talk about the Lord and we'd weep together, those black men, because we had the same Father and we had the same Spirit. And the government's programs would have never brought me to that place. Because when you're with someone who is in Christ and knows Christ, that's not even part of your consideration. Because that's a fleshly thing. But people again have their counterfeit of bringing people together and it just makes folks resent it and resist it when you try to force these things on people. Philippians chapter 4. beginning with verse 7, And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds once more through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, here's the mind, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, Whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things which you have both learned and received and heard and seen in Me, do, do, and the God of peace shall be with you." So we can't just hear about peace and have a sense of assent to it. He says, do it and part of the doing is actively discipline your mind to think on what He says here in verse 8. Your mind again, your mind and heart is the abode of peace or a lack of peace. And so he is saying, if you do these things, what are you doing? You're acting righteously. You're living godly, as he tells Titus, in this present world. And the result, the fruit, will be peace. Well, I just want to get up in the morning and have a feeling of peace on me. Well, it's not going to come that way. Colossians 1 20 moving on here Colossians 1 20 And having made peace having made peace," it's done, "...having made peace through the blood of His cross by Him to reconcile all things with Himself. By Him, I say, whether they be things in earth or things in heaven." It's finished. I've said before, we're going to see it later on in Romans chapter 8, that the work of Christ on Calvary's cross did not just redeem us, did not just cleanse us, it cleansed the universe. Everything that fell under the sin curse had to be redeemed. Nature itself, as Paul will say in Romans 8, is groaning, waiting for the redemption. See, it's subject to death and disease too. All that stuff out there. It didn't sin. It's because man had dominion. And everything under his dominion suffers because of what we did. And one day it will be no more. One day there will be, as the song says, a place where the roses never fade. with a peacemaker. And finally, and this is the last one, thank you all for hanging in there with me, Hebrews chapter 13. Hebrews chapter 13. The very end of this letter to the Hebrews, the Hebrew believers. Now the God of peace, verse 20, notice he calls God the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect or complete, in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. Let us pray. Oh Father, we thank You that You are the God of peace. We thank You for the message of peace. We thank You that You have made peace. We were not seeking peace. We were not seeking You. There's none that seek after God. We were for war and You were for peace. And so, Father, I just pray that we would extol Your name, rejoice in Your name, magnify Your name in life or by death, that Christ would be seen large that what you have done would be heralded this great and glorious news. There is no news that even compares to it. And we're so full of other kinds of news. Lord, the news that needs to go forth is, be you reconciled to God. For He has made the way. flee to Him at once. In this day of salvation, the door will not always be open." So, Father, we believe Your Word concerning Your Son, and we trust in You. We trust in You, and may our minds be stayed upon You, and only there will we find peace in this tumultuous world. in this struggling, jealousy-filled, hate-filled, warring world. Oh, that is tossed to and fro, and they're beating their brains out for that which does not satisfy, does not endure, it is rotting. Lord, we pray again that we would be bright and brilliant lights in this dark place. and thanking you daily that you have saved us from this present evil world and spoke to us peace. Let us go forth this week speaking peace to others in your name. In Christ's name I pray, Amen.