"Peace"

John 14:27

Pastor Tom Johnson, May 5, 2013

In our Gospel reading, Jesus speaks to us in words of departure—his last will and testament to us:

“Dear family of God,” Jesus says. “Beneficiaries, co-heirs, and recipients of my holy estate and riches of my Kingdom. As King of kings and Lord of lords, I hereby bequeath to you my peace. I give you 100% of my peace which is not to be divided or unspent but shared by all and to the full. I leave you 100% true and abiding peace. The peace I endow—the peace I bestow upon you is like no other peace. You will not find this kind of peace in all the universe. Even with all of its assets and natural resources, the world cannot give to you the peace that I give. So, don’t be anxious. Stop your worrying. Don’t let fear get the best of you. Live your life with the reality of peace.”

With these words, Jesus boldly reveals our restless, inner world. He peals back the veneer. He unmasks the needlessness of our strife, anxiety, and fear. He exposes our careless disregard for God’s transformative peace in our lives. The prophet Jeremiah said the people of God in his day did the same thing, “They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace” (Jer 6:14; 8:11). We speak of peace as the absence or cessation of violence. That is not true peace. Apathy is not true peace. Leaving each other alone is not true peace. It is a sad irony that the most common greeting in both Arabic and Hebrew is “Peace!” Salaam. Shalom. It is even growing in popular American culture. “Peace!” the rock star says. “Peace out!” the teenager says as they sign off their social network.

Peace is not silence. Peace is not goodbye. Peace is not two fingers held up with the “V” of victories because our enemies have been defeated, silenced, or eliminated. Proverbs 16:7 says “When the ways of people please the Lord, he causes even their enemies to be at peace with them.” Peace is not the absence of hostility. Peace does not celebrate the demise of others. Perhaps you can relate to the Proverb (21:9), “It is better to live on top of the roof in the corner than to live inside the house and share it with a contentious [person].” Although this sentiment is true enough, true peace is not going our separate ways. It is not agreeing to disagree. It is not passive aggression.

We as a church family, run the same risk of hypocrisy by our language. We “exchange the peace” together. We welcome one another with the words, “The peace of the Lord.” We greet one another, “God’s peace.” The height of our service is the Body and Blood of our service and the pronouncement of the “Peace of the Lord be with you always!” Our worship ends with the word “peace” in the benediction. The goal of worship is to launch us out into the world as God’s peace-benefactors and his peace-makers. Our interaction can merely be superficial—just another, “Good morning, how are ya?” Jesus tells us in his Sermon on the Mount that God does not want our worship offerings if we are not truly reconciled to each other. It is one time God tells us not to go to church—if we aren’t at peace! “Leave your offering at the altar, Jesus says, and first be reconciled with your sister and brother and then come, worship, give thanks, and experience true peace” (Matt 5:23,24). Peace is not living in denial of broken relationships. Peace is not the bliss of ignorance. Peace is active. Peace takes courage. Peace requires attentiveness. Peace flows out of selflessness. Peace empathizes with both friend and enemy.

The source of this peace is the Prince of Peace. Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” These words reveal that we needlessly live our lives without authentic peace. In our worldliness, we actually are denying ourselves true peace. And so Jesus gives us his peace. His peace is a sure antidote to strife, anxiety, and fear. Will you and I have the courage to pursue and pray for that peace in our lives? Will we hold Jesus to his word and boldly ask him that we experience his peace? Perhaps it will be the peace as Paul describes it—“the peace of God which surpasses understanding—peace that transcends comprehension—which guards our hearts in minds in Christ Jesus” (Philipp 4:7). It is a peace that, in Jesus’ words, “is not of this world.” It is not delivered “as the world gives.” It is delivered by God’s Son. Peace is given by the Prince of Peace who died and rose again where he has victory over death, sin, and evil.

Over and over again, the resurrected Jesus greets his disciples with the word “Peace!” And now he delivers his peace through the Word, one another, and his Body and Blood in the bread and the wine. Jesus challenges us to leave worry and anxiety behind and to truly experience his peace. That is an offer we should not refuse.