The Peace I Give

Today, I want to share with you another precious gift of “peace” Jesus offers us as we grow in our relationship with Him and become His disciples.

A few weeks ago, Pastor Matt spoke to us about “shalom” peace, a kind of peace with God in which we are no longer enemies because of the work Jesus did on the cross and through His resurrection. Jesus did what we could never do for ourselves, redeem us from sin and its consequences in our lives as we make Him LORD of our lives.

Today, I want to share with you another precious gift of “peace” Jesus offers us as we grow in our relationship with Him and become His disciples. It is the “Eirene” peace Jesus offers His friends in John 14:27 as He tries to prepare them for His imminent departure.  The peace He speaks of here and more than 20other references in the Gospels speaks of more than Shalom “Eirene: conveys the sense of an inner rest, well-being and harmony. The ultimate peace is the state of reconciliation with God, effected by placing one's faith in the gospel.” Percept Austin Greek word Study

I recently embarked on a pilgrimage of sorts in which I discovered this peace in a profound way. Not a physical pilgrimage to the Holy Land like Leon and a few of you have had the privilege to embark on but rather a nine-month pilgrimage of prayer deeper into the heart of Jesus. 

My pilgrimage began last fall and concluded just a few weeks ago ...almost the same amount of time as a pregnancy… I use that term because I really feel the Spirit of God has birthed something new in me and my life with Him. A deeper awareness and gratitude for His unfathomable love and care for each us that are His Beloved and cherished possession, of which I am one.

My pilgrimage was divided into four distinct stages which had a different focus or intent to help me move to a place of greater spiritual freedom and a more wholehearted commitment to My Beloved and service to His Kingdom 

The first section of daily scripture reflections prepared me for the journey of my pilgrimage. These passages firmly rooted me in a deeper understanding and awareness that I am a part of a world that has been lovingly created by a Holy God which then invited me to better understand my vocation and His call in my life as well as grasp a “healthy” sense of sorrow and remorse for the impact of sin, both my own and others, in this world. These reflections on God’s love, mercy and grace allowed me to consider my true identity, worth, and value in light of the long and loving gaze of God upon me...scary at times but so very rich and transforming. To know in the deepest places of my soul that I am loved by God not because of what I do or do not do, but because He chose me as His very own!

The second stage of reflections then moved on to teach me how to follow Jesus as his disciples did. This was very eye opening as I became aware of how uncommitted some areas of my life really have been. I reflected on Scripture passages related to Jesus’s birth and baptism, His sermon on the mount, His ministry of healing and teaching, His raising of Lazarus from the dead, just to name a few.

I was especially moved by His love and compassion for those who were “outcasts and unlovable”. His heart for them, how He really “saw” them, interacted with them, and acted on their needs.... the ways He has loved my unlovable parts… I was also deeply impacted with His encounters with Martha and Mary. Through these scripture reflections, I was drawn to a place in my heart and life where I was able to surrender my propensity to “DO” in order to have value and worth and embrace more of the “being” in order to follow Jesus more closely, love Him more intimately, and know Him more clearly…a deeper liberating sense that life is not an achievement that can be measured but rather a gift. How incredibly life changing this process has been and these are early days for me in this new way of being indeed!! This section ended on a high with the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem however that is all about to change….

The third section was probably the most emotionally difficult as I really sat in and reflected on the scriptures of Jesus Last Supper, His passion, and His death. I deeply ruminated on these events … seeing his suffering and death as the ultimate expression of God’s love to a world so far from His heart for them. As I did, I was able to notice the ways I too had done just as those around Him had done, no, I may not have physically nailed Him to the cross but my sins did.

During these weeks, I was encouraged to be a friend to Jesus in his darkest hours, to think what it would have been like to experience those things with Him, to remain faithful, to not deny, abandon or betray Him….Would I have been true to the very end…can I be now in this time in history in my walk with Him?!? I pray the Spirit in me will help me live out my heart’s desire to do so.

This next and final section focused on scripture passages around Jesus’s resurrection and appearances to His disciples showing me that I walk with the risen Christ and through this awareness I am compelled to set out to love and serve him in concrete ways in the world. It is here I discovered the amazing gift of peace Jesus offers His loved ones…Eirene….

Outline of Biblical Usage Strong’s concordance

1. of     the Messiah's peace some text
    
   1. the      way that leads to peace (salvation)
 
2. of     Christianity, the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation     through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its     earthly lot, of whatsoever sort that is
3. the     blessed state of devout and upright men after death

What an amazing word!! This traditional greeting now transformed by Jesus’ resurrection!!

I spent a number of reflection times discovering the richness of this word and feel it is one of my special take-aways from my pilgrimage!

Never again will I worry to hear the words in Matthew7:23…… away from me I never knew you…

What about you my dear friends…do you know this gift of Eirene peace with Jesus? Although we may never have peace in the world in which we live, we can experience peace in our hearts regardless of the external turmoil we find ourselves in.  I encourage you to ask the Spirit in you to help you know this peace in the deepest places of your heart and soul. Speak with Leon or someone on our Encounter team, we would love for you to have a fresh, transforming Encounter with the Lover of your soul. One in which you too could come to have a deeper awareness and gratitude of His great love for you and a firm assurance of your place (salvation)…Eirene, my friends, Eirene

Deeper dive word study:  https://www.preceptaustin.org/peace_eirene#nt , https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g1515/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/

Fondly, Melody

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