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Grace takes you from where you are, to where God wants you to be in your walk with Him. And so it is that, when you call upon the Lord, He hears your cry to answer you. And, even if it is a pit of destruction, He lifts you up from it, to stand upon the Rock who is Christ. It is the story of salvation, in your life and mine. And, the work of grace continues, for God wants you to have all that He has accomplished on your behalf, so that you may experience peace in your life from within. It does not happen overnight, but is a step by step pilgrimage, as the apostle Peter describes , He who would love life and desires to see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; Let him turn from evil to do what is good; let him seek peace and pursue it. [1 Peter 3:10,11]
Peace in scriptural terms is wholeness in you. For, as a human being, you have a spirit, soul and body, which is made up of relationships, beginning with your relationship with God, your emotions, your finances, and your physical well-being. And, God desires that you may experience fullness and an absence of lack in every aspect of it. For, He who seeks the Lord shall lack no good thing in life. He did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all, that together with Him, He may freely and graciously give us all things. [Romans 8:32] And faith is the key in receiving all that the grace of God makes freely available to you, for faith receives, what grace gives to you in a relationship with God, as His child.
A covenant relationship :
It is a covenant relationship that God entered into with Abraham in the Old Testament. It was one in which He Himself took upon the full responsibility of fulfilling its obligations that promised blessing in Abraham’s life, that he may be a blessing, and become the father of many nations. And, it was a foreshadowing of the new covenant that He would in the fullness of time make with man, by giving His Son as the atonement of sin. It was the one perfect sacrifice by which you and I now enjoy eternal redemption, as we put our faith in it. The Cross of Calvary was, and still remains the blood covenant that He has made with you and I, a blood relationship with Christ, through which we partake of all the blessings of God, including His peace. It was a prophetic utterance of the psalmist that declared how the Lord would in the future, perfect all that concerned him.
But today, the prophecy stands fulfilled through the Cross. ‘It is finished’, was the victorious cry of the Lord as He laid down His life in love, declaring that all that you need in life has already been accomplished through His death on the Cross. And, even on earth the Lord proclaimed it so that you need not be anxious. Troubles may come against you in this world, the Lord admits, only to say that they need not cause fear in you, and all because He has overcome the world ! [John 16:37] For, when you are in a covenant relationship with Him, all that is yours becomes His.
Your problems now become His, and with Him there is no problem, for He is the All knowing, All powerful, Almighty God who has already dealt with it all on Calvary’s Cross. Therefore, now it is His promises that become yours. And every promise that comes to you through His word and His Spirit, is ‘yes’ and ‘amen’ in Christ. It is the glory of the new covenant that you enter into today, by faith in the Son of God. And, the responsibility that lay with Abraham is yours. It is to put your faith in the covenant, as God remains faithful to His everlasting covenant. It is an everlasting covenant, because He is the eternal God, who does not change. Therefore, His promise to you through His covenant is settled forever in the heavens.
A covenant of peace – established & settled :
It is also a covenant of peace that God invites you to enter into with Him. And the prophet Ezekiel enunciates its nature in God’s own words, that can never ever fail , ‘Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people’. [Ezekiel 37:26,27] And, a broader understanding of it would be that He is going to settle you in all the areas where you may be feeling disturbed and unsettled. He will settle you as He establishes you in life.
And, why is being established so important ?
The legacy and history of any project, plays a very pivotal role in it succeeding or failing in attracting you to be a part of it, or partake of it.. It is why institutions and enterprises very proudly display in their logo the year when they were established, because mentioning how far back they go, or the number of years that they have been around, adds weight and credibility to what they stand for, be it a product or an institution. Anything that has just begun yesterday, will not build any hope in you regarding its prognosis of how long it would sustain and be in operation. It could be like the mushrooms that spring up after the overnight rain, only to wither away in a day !
But, it can never be said so about the word of God, one that is permanent and eternal, settled and established forever. And, the moment that you receive a promise from Him in His word, is when it has been established and settled. It has already been done in the sight of God. But in you, to be established and built upon His word does not happen in one day, but takes place day after day. It is not an overnight happening, but a step by step progress, just as it always is when it comes to God and what is eternal. Thus, when the psalmist describes how God heard his cry to lift him up from the pit of destruction and set his feet upon a rock, it is more than mere poetry.
And the same can be said about every word of God, for it is inspired by the very breath of God. It is a narrative, a testimony and prophesy, of God’s work of grace and salvation, that can be summarized in the twenty second, twenty third, and twenty fourth psalms when they are taken as a whole. For, the twenty second psalm describes what happened on the Cross of Calvary, the internal agony that the Lord went through, described with painfully honest intensity. The salvation that we receive freely now, all by the grace of God and through faith, did not come easy for the Father, and His Beloved Son, who for the joy set before Him, endured the brutal Cross and more importantly, paid the penalty for the sins of the whole world.
The twenty third psalm goes on to describe what the Lord does now in your life, when you choose to become the flock of His hand, to say that He is your Shepherd. And, the twenty fourth psalm is the glorious finale that describes the second coming of the Lord as the King of glory. It is what you and I await, that we may reign and rule on earth together with Him. It is when the kingdom of God that is now within you, will become the kingdom of the world. And it is through a progression that happens step by step, and day by day in your life and mine, that He settles you.
Settled on the Rock, who is Christ :
The identity of the Rock that accompanied in their journey in the wilderness, is revealed and explained in Paul’s letter to the Corinthian church, as he says ,And all drank the same spiritual drink. For, they drank of the same spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. [1 Corinthians 10:4] God promises to settle you upon the Rock who is Christ, to keep your feet firm and unshaken. Christ is the Rock upon which your life needs to be built. And Christ made it very clear, that the one who heard His word, and applied His word in his life was like the wise man who built his house upon the rock that stood firm even when the storms that lashed against it. [Matthew 7:24]
Applying the word of God in your life is equivalent to building your life upon the rock. The connection can be seen, for Christ is the Rock, and Christ is the Word who was in the beginning; the Word who was with God, and the Word who was God. [John 1:1] There is a difference between being wise and being smart ! And, being a wise man or woman is what God commends, and advocates. It is the wise man who builds upon the rock, which is a hearing of God’s word and doing the word of God. It is the wise woman who builds her home, and everything concerned with it.
How can you be the wise builder ?
Wisdom comes when you listen to the word and put it into practice. Listening to what God speaks to you, hearing His voice through His word. And it involves a responsibility on your part, for it is when you spend time in meditating upon and studying the word, and become familiar with God’s word, that you will be able to recognize and know when His word comes to you. For as a small boy, when Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and God spoke to him, he ran to Eli, the priest, thinking that it was he who had called him. And Eli taught the young boy Samuel a prayer that was exquisitely simple and immeasurably profound. It was ‘Speak Lord, your servant is listening’. [1 Samuel 3:10] It is how the faith principle operates in you. It comes by hearing His word to you. And when His word declares that ‘man shall live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord’, you indeed shall live ! For, His word is the incorruptible seed that will certainly germinate and do what it declares, and will not fail.
Teach your children, therefore !:
As a parent, you would be wise to teach your children the word of God, from a very tender age, when they can articulate but a few words. And, in the child, it can begin that way, but it ought not to remain that way ! For, Christianity is a relationship with God, growing in intimacy with Him day by day, to be changed from glory to glory, by the renewal of your mind that comes by hearing His word, to be transformed as you practice it in your life. ‘I am the Bread of Life’, and ‘Jesus wept’ may be the verses of truth and life that you were taught to begin with, and all because of their length ! But as you grow older, and grow in your relationship with God, there may come times in your life when you would start weeping, and that is when He would lovingly reach out to you through His word, bringing solace and comfort through the essence of His truth that says, ‘Do not weep; for I have done it all for you on the Cross of Calvary’.
The prayer that was Samuel’s can be yours every day of your life, to begin your day with it. For, when you go first to the newspaper and the news, and it is as you step out for work that reminded of the challenges that lie ahead, you call out the Lord, ‘Speak Lord, your servant is listening’, by then the voices of many masters would have spoke into you to confuse you ! Therefore, even when your children come to you with a problem, teach them to go to the Lord first in prayer, to hear from the Only wise God, for whom nothing is impossible. And, recognizing His answering voice is something that you should be familiar with in your walk of faith with God, for it is then that you can explain and teach it to your children.
Faith comes by hearing from God; and it is neither superstitious nor foolish. For, it is by understanding the truth that belief comes; one that leads you to confess with your mouth out of the fullness of your heart, to see a change in your conduct to come in alignment with your confession. Faith finds its full expression, as you confess God’s word to you and make it yours. And when you say ‘Amen’ and ‘Hallelujah’, it is an acknowledgment of the demonstration of God’s glory in your life, saying, ‘Let God be glorified’.
Understanding that leads to peace :
A right understanding of the truth of God’s word needs to be in you, for your faith to be effective in bringing about an establishment or settlement in your heart. It is the key that gives you the strength to stand in your difficult situation, to be settled and experience peace within you, even though outwardly it may seem to be turbulent and stormy. When you are asking and waiting on the Lord for physical healing, there needs to be in you an understanding of the truth of what happened at the Cross, where the punishment for your sin was carried away by the Savior. It is then, that you can out of your heart truly confess the truth, to be led into conduct that is in line with it, to see healing manifest in you.
Even in a human relationship, whether it is between the husband and wife, parent and child, the employer and employee, in any environment where peace needs to be experienced and sustained, understanding needs to be present in the people concerned. It is also very true in the church setting, where people come together looking perfectly fine on the outside, but completely lost and broken on the inside. The problems of people are complex, and sometimes people themselves are complex ! The truth concerning the connection between wisdom and understanding is established very clearly in the book of Proverbs, where it guides you in the path to it, declaring , Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom.
And, in all your getting get understanding. [Proverbs 4:7] It is through understanding, that you will know the need for compassion, and also develop it in you. And without it, you will tend to become very critical, and ultimately cynical in the way you look at people. But compassion together with comprehension will always result in compatibility that smoothes out differences between two people, and brings peace. Within the home, the husband needs to treat his wife with understanding and consideration, knowing that she is the weaker vessel, but also one who is a co heir with him in the sight of God. In fact being harsh with her will hinder his prayers being answered, is what the word of God states very clearly. [1 Peter 3:7]
Even when it comes to dealing with children, when they come to you disturbed and afraid, often it is the mother who is able to patiently listen to the woes of the little one to comfort and bring within it a feeling of settlement and peace once again, for compassion springs very naturally within her heart, towards her offspring. Compassion is the vital ingredient that needs to be in you, in order to have a true understanding concerning any problem that is hindering you from experiencing peace in your life. And, in any relationship, when you point out negative traits that can crop up in any person occasionally, with the added word, ‘always’, you are branding that person forever, and closing all avenues for peace to enter into the relationship as the divine solution.
The understanding that the bible encourages you to have in order to experience settlement and peace in you has three components to it :
1. Spiritual discernment :
When you are born of God, to be able to call Him ‘Abba Father’, you are more than a mere man, for you are a spiritual man, with discernment that comes to you through the Holy Spirit. It could be therefore labeled as ‘sanctified common sense’! And it becomes your guide in revealing things that you need to know in any environment that remain hidden to your normal physical senses. It could be in your work place, family or anywhere else. It requires spiritual discernment to judge and discern rightly, and make a choice which would result in peace and well-being.
It is what Samuel himself needed; and he was the one who had been taught to pray, ‘Speak Lord, your servant is listening’, and had heard the guiding voice of God many times after that. But as He stood in Jesse’s house, to anoint the one who would be the next king of Israel, he was initially carried away by external appearances. And it was then that the Spirit of God had to intervene in him to impress upon him the truth that, while man looks at the outside of a person, God look at his heart. [1 Samuel 16:7] And it was with that spiritual discernment that Samuel was able to anoint David, and not Eliab, the first born as the future king.
And today, the same truth applies in you when it comes to your offering. It is not the amount, but the attitude that matters in God’s sight. The amount can vary according to the ups and downs of your life, but your attitude should be what is in Christ Jesus. And it also ought to be noted that there is a difference between judging and discerning. A judge looks at the situation, and also at the evidence that is presented to him, as he gives the verdict. He cannot do anything more or anything less in his role as a judge; and as a consequence sometimes because of a lack of evidence he may have to pronounce a guilty man to be innocent, knowing well in his heart that it was not so!
But, with God it goes much deeper, for everything lies naked and bare before Him. Adam trying to hide from God is in a sense laughable, for where can you and I go to hide from Him ? And when you try to run away from God you are only running into Him, as Jonah found out ! It is why the prayer of the psalmist needs to be the cry of your heart, that the Lord would search your heart to know your anxious thoughts, and see if there is any wicked way in you, so that He may lead you in the everlasting way. For, it is the knowledge and understanding of the truth that comes from God, which enables you to lay the foundation of your life upon Christ the Rock. And, Paul amplifies upon it in his letter to the Colossians, to show what you and I need to pray for, as he says, We pray asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding. [Colossians 1:9]
The encounter that Philip had with the high ranking Ethiopian official, who was certainly not lacking in human intelligence, but was genuinely perplexed when it came to an understanding of the scriptures, is a vivid example of it. ‘How will I know, unless someone explains it to me ?’, he said to Philip.[Acts 7:27-39] He represents the group of people who even today go to church as a ritual, with no spiritual understanding. But, after Philip explained the scriptures to give Him understanding, he went home rejoicing ! Therefore if you really want to experience peace in your life, you need spiritual understanding. And it then needs to be followed by a mature comprehension.
2. Mature comprehension :
When the Lord Jesus warned his disciples about the yeast of the Pharisees, they received what he said to them, very superficially and literally, to think that He was making a comment about not having enough bread for their next meal. Their understanding was not mature enough. And, one would think that after being with Lord Jesus for so long, they would have quickly got the truth that He was alluding to. But it can happen in any child of God, if your relationship with Him is not deep and intimate. It is why the wise man dug deep to lay the foundation upon the Rock. It is with deepened relationship and communication as you spend more and more time in fellowship with God through His Spirit and His word that mature comprehension will come in you.
And then, just one word that you hear from Him, will speak to you in a thousand ways, while it may be totally meaningless to someone else. It is what deepened communication with the word of God, and not just a skimming through the scriptures could bring about in you. And, it is what Paul describes as being ‘thoroughly persuaded’ in trusting God that He would guard what has been entrusted to Him. The fellowship of suffering that Paul chose to exult in, is also something very real and true, for God is closer to you in the midst of your suffering. And, you will know then, that nothing can separate you from His love for you ! Wisdom of God is something that is mandatory in your Christian walk. It comes with the knowledge and understanding of God’s word, one that leads to a right application of it in your life.
3. Application of wisdom :
Wisdom that is knowledge and understanding needs to be followed by application. And instead of being overwhelmed by the task, you can find your rest in the truth that the God who gave you understanding will also give you the power to apply it. He will not leave incomplete all that you have been taught and learnt, and the understanding that will make you live. He is the God who carries on things to completion. Even in your family and in your home, all your children will be taught by the Lord, and great will be their peace. But, it often happens when you are a role model in their lives, and use wisely the teachable moments that arise to teach them, and also pray and believe in faith that the God who gave you the courage to say what needs to be said, will also give them the power to apply it in their lives.
It is what the preacher who preaches the message from God needs to believe in too, when people gather to worship the true Living God and hear Him speak into their lives. Wisdom finds its fullest expression only in its application. For, knowledge puffs up, while love builds you up. Therefore, learning the things of God instead of making you arrogant, must lead you to a deepened relationship with God, that is reflected in loving God and loving others. It is why the longing in Paul’s heart is to know God more and more, and he is also able to add, ‘Yet, not I, but Christ who lives in me’, and, ‘Not I, but the grace of God in me’.
Foundation on the ROCK of CHRIST :
It happens as you hear and listen to the word of God. Not merely listening, but, hearing with understanding, and by bringing an application of it in your life. It comes as you stand firm to believe that He will give you the power to practice what He has spoken to you; and it is only by applying it that you will experience peace that is wholeness in you. The challenge lies in not hardening your heart when you hear what God is saying to you. For then your life can be like the house that is built on the sand; it will not weather the storms of life that come to unsettle you. It is the house upon the rock that will stand.
God wants to settle you !:
In your heart there could be thoughts which unsettle and disturb you. But, God’s covenant of peace with you is to settle you, to bring a calm and settled peace. And it is wisdom which is a practical application of God’s truth, on the foundation of Rock who is Christ, which establishes you to say, ‘Since He is at my right hand I will not be shaken’. When your heart is focused upon Him, the God who understands your frailty will also fill you with His power that you may stand firm on the firm foundation of the Lord Jesus Christ. Faith comes by hearing from God in your circumstance. Peoples’ opinion you may have heard, but what will abide is the word of God. So let Samuel’s prayer be yours today, saying, ‘Speak Lord, your servant is listening’.
And let your heart be filled with thanksgiving unto the Father, for the blessing of His Son, the Rock, the firm foundation on which you are settled and established in every aspect of your life, as you hear with understanding to apply it in His power in your circumstance. May He always remain your Rock of peace in times of trouble, and His love the anchor, and may the blessing of God be upon your life in an eternal covenant of peace.
In the Name of Christ Jesus Amen.
