My Peace I Leave With You

"My Peace I Leave With You" – Philippians 4:6-7 “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.” Jesus said it to His disciples the night before the crucifixion, knowing He would be crucified: He left them a permanent gift, a peace the world cannot offer and which He paid for on the cross. The message walks through John 14:27, Philippians 4:6-7, Isaiah 26:3 and Psalm 29:11 to teach that God's peace is supernatural and does not depend on circumstances; that “shall keep” is the word for a sentinel guarding a city; that He keeps in perfect peace the one whose mind is stayed on Him; and that the same majestic God who governs the universe gives strength to His people and blesses them with peace.

I. Everything on this earth needs peace.

A. The day's toil wears us out, agitates us and drives us to anguish.

1. The sheep is the meekest animal; that is why God leads us to be sheep.

2. Life is only one, and what must be attained must be attained.

3. If one falls short it is not the devil: it is the flesh we will not put to death.

II. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you (John 14:27).

A. Jesus said it the night before the crucifixion, knowing He was going to die.

1. He told them He would depart and promised a peace the world cannot offer.

2. He gives us His own peace, the peace of the One who went to the cross so we might have it.

3. Peace is not indifference nor “that does not move me.”

B. Peace does not flow from man: it is a gift, and a permanent one.

1. It is not temporary: it remains even in the midst of every difficulty.

2. In trouble we climb into a box without peace and cut off our own oxygen.

3. You do not gain it because things are going well; stop pretending before people.

C. Not as the world giveth.

1. The world's peace depends on all going well; Christ's remains in sickness and uncertainty.

2. Peace is mine and yours: you cannot carry peace to another nor fix the world.

3. “Let not your heart be troubled”: the one who must govern your body is you.

D. If you have no peace, you have already infected your own household.

1. Let us contaminate the earth, but with peace.

2. Some problems cannot be solved, and still one must keep living in peace.

3. Keep the anger and the revenge and you dry up, and your root bears no good fruit.

III. Be careful for nothing (Philippians 4:6-7).

A. Paul does not say there will be no troubles, but that anxiety must not rule the heart.

1. The same subject repeated at home becomes chaos, and there anxiety appears.

2. Anxiety is a lament, and we carry it to one person and then another.

B. “Let your requests be made known”: start praying.

1. There is sleepiness and weariness, yet a thousand things are watched on television.

2. No worry is too small and no burden too great for Him.

3. With thanksgiving: we give thanks before seeing the answer, because He is faithful.

C. The peace of God passeth all understanding.

1. When we do wrong God steps in; and if I go to my own defense, God withdraws and I lose.

2. Sometimes we cannot explain why we have peace in the middle of a trial.

3. “Shall keep” is the sentinel's word: God guards the heart and the mind.

IV. Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3).

A. It is God who protects and sustains: peace does not rest on our effort alone.

1. A church must grow: you cannot go on being the same.

2. The Hebrew expression stresses a full and lasting peace that reaches heart and mind.

3. Why live angry from waking to bedtime? Peace is a happy living.

B. “Whose mind is stayed on thee”: keeping mind and heart fixed on God.

1. On His promises and His faithfulness, rather than being ruled by fear.

2. “Because he trusteth in thee”: the more we trust, the firmer the heart stands.

V. The LORD will bless his people with peace (Psalm 29:11).

A. The Psalm exalts God's power and majesty: His voice on the waters, the thunder, the forces of nature.

1. If the planets and stars keep their order and nothing moves, why do we move as we please?

2. “The LORD will give strength unto his people” for trials, duties and challenges.

3. God gave a church to train a people that rises and is not condemned.

B. What was lived working the mission in Venezuela.

1. Years of mission, journeys without money and borders to cross when the passport expired.

2. Jehovah Jireh has always been the provider and the strength to face everything.

3. We have been left with nothing and without a building, and God has always come through for us.

C. The same God who governs creation grants peace to those who belong to Him.

1. Not merely the absence of conflict: security, rest and confidence in Him.

2. God's peace does not depend on the storms ceasing, but on knowing He still reigns.

3. It is peace that has sustained us; in His death He gave us peace.

VI. The Lord's Supper (Luke 22:7-22).

A. The earth shook and the universe trembled, and He took no account of it: He took account of our names.

1. We eat the bread knowing His body was broken, and today there is no condemnation in our life.

2. His blood was poured out from head to foot so that today we might be washed in it.