We have lost something that is critical, even life threatening to lose. We’ve lost something so vital that we must reclaim it immediately or suffer dier concequences. Allow me to explain.
By the time you were a teen, you no doubt had already begun your rightful pursuit of happiness; that is, happiness defined as gaining worldly positions and freedom from any adverse circumstance. But in this world, your ability to gain possessions and to provide freedom from conflict is based solely on the access you have to what you desire. If you have access to what you desire then you have the ability to ease the struggle of circumstances and provide happiness. If you do not have what you desire, you do not have freedom, happiness or access to any possessions there of. In this world, there is no peace with out possessing your hearts desire, even if your hearts only desire is peace.
And that’s what we’ve lost. This generation has lost TRUE PEACE. We barely even know it’s missing because we’ve become so accustomed to the only peace this world understands; the only peace we’ve been taught. We learned to be at ease only when we have all of the things we want and are not faced with any type of conflict or struggle.
Money, education, worldly status and opportunity lie at the root of what we know as peace; because these things determine if and how often we face conflict. For example, a person with a large income will not recognize the minor fluctuating gas prices, the rising expense of quality child care or the outstandingly high cost of college tuitions as conflict; however a person without income will see the same dilemmas as tumultuous situations threatening their home, children and their well being. Money has become the key factor in every person’s ability to provide peace for themselves, their family and all those connected to them.
But peace based on the amount of money you have at any given time is merely momentary peace because your present condition and the quality of the solution on the horizon (or lack there of) can change at any time. Circumstances will never permit this type of peace to be anything but temporary. Yet and still, many people have become so desperate to be free of the conflict that they resort to drastic and even unimaginable measures to gain what they've come to know as peace.
This type of peace was designed with the intension of forcing you to utter the most terrible phrase a person can ever say: “I’ll do anything to be free”. Once you have reached this point, nothing is beyond consideration to achieve what would supposedly make your life whole and provide peace. It’s at this point that a mother will sell her body to strande men for money to buy just a moment of what this world has dictated to her as peace. It's at this point that a young black teenager will murder another young black teenager in his own pursuit of possessions and status seeking this world’s version of peace. It’s at this point that a husband will divorce his spouse, walk away from his children and marry his work (or his co-worker) with the diluted intension of making life “better” searching for what this world has defined as peace. It’s at this point that people will drink enough alcohol to kill them or inject chemicals into their bloodstream if for no other reason,, to artificially acquire a momentary taste of this world’s version of peace. In fact, some individuals (especially men) are so proud they’ve vowed to “Get Rich or Dye Tryin’" in their pursuit of peace that they've tattooed that phrase on both arms. In this world Lotto has more devote, consistant, faithful followers than Jesus; many of whom are one-and-the-same willing to pledge their allegence to any God who can provide them with peace. Politicians embezzle public funds and even some so-called Christians “mishandle” church funds willing to do "anything" for this world’s version of peace. We have lost TRUE PEACE so we are left down here literally dying to get our hands on some of what the world has as a substitute.
The world’s version of peace is false. It is a fisade; it's a mirage But TRUE PEACE, is not gone, it’s only misplaced. It can be found. To find it, you just need to know where to look.
Peace is located in John 14:27. The verse says this:
“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid”.
Jesus said, “MY peace I give to you”. Notice Jesus made no mention of conflict or circumstances. He makes no mention of possessions. Yet he said I’m leaving Peace with you.
Then Jesus explained that His peace is real; it’s not like the kind that the world gives. It’s not superficial, it’s not temporary and it’s not circumstantial. It’s unconditional. The peace Jesus gives is everlasting. Jesus said that with His kind of peace, your heart will never again need to be troubled or afraid.
So excactly what is the peace that Jesus gave us? It is revealed 2 chapters later endepthly in John 16:33:
“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
Jesus said that in this world any sense of peace that you achieve will ultimately turn to tribulation. But in Him you have the source of REAL PEACE that will overcome the tribulation of this world. The world’s method of seeking an absence of conflict is a faulty pacifier for the peace in Jesus that exists even in the midst of conflict.
Abandon the world’s version of peace that you have come to understand. Instead, seek to obtain the peace that Christ gave you which surpasses understanding. Don’t allow circumstances and desires to determine your definition of peace. Regain the peace that was lost. Find the peace that is in Christ and then you’ve found true peace.
