The Peace of sonship

Holy Spirit spoke to me about peace from John 14:27 where Jesus tells the disciples He is leaving them His peace different than the world's peace.  It struck me that Jesus' peace came from heaven and is derived from His relationship with the Father through the Holy Spirit.  I once heard a pastor say that the atmosphere of heaven is peace.  When we think of peace in our day, we drift to ocean beaches on tropical islands or idyllic waterfalls which symbolize more of an escape.  Our thought is if I can be in a peaceful place with no trouble then I can have peace.  The peace that Jesus gives is altogether different because it is not dependent on the absence of trouble but the Presence of Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the Father.

It does depend on us being in a peaceful place but that is not escaping our current circumstances or our current location but dwelling in heaven.  It days gone by they would be familiar words over a person's grave site on their tomb, R.I.P. (Rest in Peace).  It was believed that finally peace would come when you exited this world.  God has given us a peace by seating us "in Christ" in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6), so that we can progressively become more aware of heaven's reality over situations and people.  The Old Testament word for peace "Shalom" is pregnant with meaning.  Some of the meanings are completeness, soundness, welfare, health, prosperity, safety, and peace.

It seems in order for us to have peace God would have to take us out of this world with all it's brokenness, problems, wars, crime, sin, murder, etc.  He did better than that by having our old man crucified which was subject to all these forces and then raised us up united with Christ finally to sit with Him at the right hand of the Father.  In Romans 8:6 says, "...the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace..."  Meaning that as lean back into your inner man/woman of the spirit (your spirit and His Spirit) in you that it is normal for your spirit to experience life and peace.  Your old dead spirit had become polluted with being present to this world whereas your New spirit raised with Christ is always present to God.

Jesus had an unending peace because His peace was never broken since His fellowship with the Father through the Holy Spirit was continual.  This is what Father has purchased for you and I through Jesus Christ.  Now we who are "in Christ" have the door open for us to continually experience peace by being in fellowship with the Father and Son.  Heaven's perspective on the challenges and difficulties you face are much different than an earthly or orphan mindset.  The Holy Spirit will readily reveal Heaven's perspective over a situation but if we are looking somewhere else (mind set on the flesh is death) will miss His perspective.

In His Peace,
Bret