God's Peace Be With You

Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” John 20:21-23 ESV

Peace be with you. I know that there are some who really dislike sharing the peace during Worship. I hear lots of reasons for this. "It's flu season and we don't want to get sick" is one of the biggest reasons. But, often I see congregations using that only as an excuse for not wanting to be too close to other brothers or sisters in Christ. 

Most of you have who know me have probably noticed that when I greet people, I usually greet them with these words, "God's peace be with you" or simply "God's peace." When we share this greeting with others, we are letting them know that we do not want there to be any animosity between us. We are in essence telling the other person that whatever sins they have committed against us, they are forgiven. When we share the peace of the Lord, we are saying let us be reconciled to one another through our Lord, Jesus Christ because by the blood of Christ we are reconciled, so let us live in that truth!

The peace of God which surpasses all understanding comes when we know that we have been forgiven our sins and are now reconciled to God our Father through the blood of Jesus Christ. We, you and I have received the Holy Spirit so that we might go out proclaiming this Good News of reconciliation through Jesus so that others also might know this peace. So, if the Holy Spirit truly abides within us, then I would think that we would actually go and share the peace with others; forgiving them their sins; being reconciled to one another.

When we share God's peace, we are not only forgiving others any offenses, we are also asking them to forgive us for anything we may have done to offend them. In order for there to be peace; in order for their to be genuine reconciliation, we must forgive and be forgiven.

God's peace be with you all - Pr. J

The Lord, My Helper, Is With Me

"The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
What can mere mortals do to me?"
Hebrews 13:6 NIV

Lately, it seems that an unusual amount of people are asking me if I am okay. Not, "how are you?" but, "are you okay?" That, I assume, is a form of greeting that I am not accustomed to. However, when I've replied, "I'm fine," that first question is followed up by another: "Are you sure?" (LOL) Of course, I am sure. I am a child of God. There is nothing that gets better than that. But, I'm beginning to wonder a bit about that follow up question. Are they just super concerned about my well-being or do they know something I don't know? Do I look sick? Am I acting depressed? Is there an enemy lurking about; yet, unseen by me?

It doesn't really matter. I know that my whole life is in God's hands. He has taken care of me my entire life. Nothing happens to me without Him knowing. There have been some really rough times; but, those rough times just helped me to learn to trust in God even more. There is no reason to be afraid of sickness, turmoil, friends, enemies, life, or death. He is my helper. I have eternal life in Christ.

Do not be afraid of anything the world may throw at you. The Lord is with you and for you. All who believe have already entered into the Kingdom, where Jesus reigns!

God's Peace - Pr. J

P.S. I do appreciate all of the concern. It is good to know that people care. I really am okay. God is with me and always will be.