Gods' peace He freely gives to us, not the peace that the world offers through material things, but the peace that comes from contentment in whatever circumstance we are in. In Christ and our faith in His finished work of the Cross everything is guided by Holy Spirit what more could we ask for? Trust Him to accomplish what we cannot.
Philippians 4:8-9
8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. 9 The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.The New King James Version
By faith we believe God and that He is in total control of our lives. The love of God for us was manifested in Jesus. We know love because He first loved us. All of the human race has come short of the glory of God but we are justified freely by His grace in Christ Jesus. Jesus was and is the propitiation for our sins. God’s wrath for sin and His mercy and love for His creation were fulfilled in Jesus.
1 John 4:6-9 In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
God has prepared a way for us to know Him. The Holy Spirit is the way to open our understanding of the things of God, He takes the deep things and reveals them to us. He wants us to know Him and the Holy Spirit which is freely given to us as believers. In the flesh we cannot fully know Him it is only spiritual discerned.
1 Corinthians 2:9-10
But as it is written:
“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”
But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
The god of this world, Satan, blinds those in unbelief. He does not want the world to see and accept God’s mercy nor celebrate His glory in the salvation offered in Jesus Christ.
Love one another. Love is of God and love is God.
2 Corinthians 4:3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.
The agape love of God is beyond human understanding. In loving one another we fulfill the requirements of the Law. We obey the law because we love Him and He loves His creation. Love wishes blessing and not cursing on others. Even our enemies
Romans 13:8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,” “You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Jesus came to Israel to fulfill the promises made to the Fathers. That we are blessed in His coming is grace, unmerited and undeserved. Carla
Romans 15:8
Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers, and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written:
“For this reason I will confess to You among the Gentiles,
And sing to Your name.”
And again he says:
“Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people!”
And again:
“Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles!
Laud Him, all you peoples!”
And again, Isaiah says:
“There shall be a root of Jesse;
And He who shall rise to reign over the Gentiles,
In Him the Gentiles shall hope.”
The Greek word used here, eirēnē, conveys a range of meanings, including well-being, prosperity, freedom from anxiety, safety from harm, and deliverance from enemies. Paul envisions God’s peace as a soldier who protects the hearts and minds of believers from anxiety, fear, and doubt. Paul’s life offers an example of putting his instruction into practice. Faithlife Study Bible
The peace of God, the comfortable sense of being reconciled to God, and having a part in his favour, and the hope of the heavenly blessedness, are a greater good than can be fully expressed. This peace will keep our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus; it will keep us from sinning under troubles, and from sinking under them; keep us calm and with inward satisfaction. Believers are to get and to keep a good name; a name for good things with God and good men. Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Romans 15:33 Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen.
1 Thessalonians 4:1 Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God;
James 3:17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.
Genesis 21:17 (CSB) "God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, 'What's wrong, Hagar? Don't be afraid, for God has heard the boy crying from the place where he is. '"
God is committed to having His family back together and chose one family to be a blessing to all the nations of the world.
God presented Abraham with both calling and promise.
Throughout this exile experience, Abraham believed all of God's promises, yet only some were fulfilled during his lifetime. Others were fulfilled as God worked out His purposes over many generations. For instance, Abraham believed all families of the earth would be blessed through him (Genesis 12:3), yet he did not see the full realization of that promise, which was ultimately fulfilled through Jesus some 2,000 years later (Hebrews 11:13; Galatians 3:14).
And Abraham's exilic life also intersected with others: Hagar was from Egypt (Genesis 16:1), but she lived far from her homeland as a servant to Abraham's family in a country not her own. Expected by the culture of her time to be a surrogate for Abraham's wife, Hagar became pregnant. But eventually this caused conflict in Abraham's home, and Hagar fled into the wilderness (Genesis 16:3-6) … another exile.
Yet God found her out in the desert and offered her both calling and promise. God's words to Hagar remind us of what He told Abraham, yet God's plans for Hagar were also personal and unique to her. God called Hagar to "go back" (Genesis 16:9) rather than to "go" (like Abraham in Genesis 12:1). God also told her to name her son Ishmael, which means "God hears" (Genesis 16:11). The Lord's presence with Hagar in her trouble and exile would come to mind each time she spoke her son's name in years to come.
Although they experienced a hard path through the wilderness (Genesis 21:15-16), God provided Hagar and her son with freedom, protected them, and enabled them to build lives on their own. As with Abraham, God made some promises He fulfilled in their lifetimes (Genesis 16:11-12) and some He fulfilled over many generations (Genesis 16:10; Genesis 21:18). While they were not the family through whom Jesus would come, Hagar's descendants would have the opportunity to be blessed by Him.
God called Hagar, and because she followed, she knew God's presence as she waited for God's promises.
And God still calls His people today. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we receive both calling and promise (Matthew 16:24-25; John 8:12; 2 Timothy 1:9; 2 Corinthians 1:20). Our Savior still says, Follow Me. He knows the purposes He has for us, and He calls us to walk by faith, depending on Him even when the path is unknown, submitting to Him even when the path is hard. And forever His promise in our exile is: "I am with you" (Matthew 28:20, CSB).
God the Son has always existed with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit (John 1:1; Genesis 1:1-2) God is invisible, but Jesus has made Him known in physical form (Colossians 1:15). First5
So. Here’s the real question; where do you tether your well-being?
I can relate because I have spent much of my life tethered to (invested in) my brokenness and shame, seeing my identity wrapped up only in scarcity. It is no surprise that I see only my infirmity or defeat. It is no surprise that I feel disconnected and diminished. Because shame entombs capacity and dignity. And to be made well unnerves me more than I want to admit.
Jesus cuts to the chase. Yes, your hope has dwindled, however I see your capacity to choose, grow, give, transform and spill light. Where you see scarcity, I see sufficiency.” Grace tells me that my well-being and value is a given.
Victor Frankl’s reminder, “The one thing you can’t take away from me is the way I choose to respond... The last of one’s freedoms is to choose one’s attitude in any given circumstance.”
We heal and find wholeness when we respond to the invitation and permission to embrace the sacred in each moment, leading a life that keeps our heart and soul awake every day.
Jesus is always and everywhere in the business of making new and making well. His desire to heal is intrinsic to his character — it doesn’t depend on me. In other words, ‘Do you want to be made well?’ is a question he will never stop asking, because his heart’s desire is for my wholeness, my freedom, and my thriving.” Sabbath Moments
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