My husband has a habit of leaving his cell phone in the car and missing important calls. During a recent trip, I actually was thankful for his forgetfulness because we avoided a call from an angry person. After our lunch stop, we sat in the front seat and shook our heads in disbelief as we listened to the voice message full of condemnation. I was sad to realize someone we loved so dearly could be filled with so much hatred.
Our peaceful road trip was veering off track into a pit of despair, so we stopped right then to pray and ask God to help us let go of any animosity and to help us respond to our loved one with grace. Only Jesus can restore the inner peace that this world seeks to steal from us.
The enemy of our souls works very hard to get us to hate one another. Our adversary loves to drive a wedge between us and make us mad at one another. If we are aware of his sneaky schemes to create conflict, we can arm ourselves with God’s peace and help bring reconciliation.
Whenever I feel attacked by someone else’s words or actions, it comforts me to think about how much hostility Jesus faced during His ministry on earth. Our Savior was misunderstood, falsely accused, and humiliated. Jesus understood what His higher calling was, and He never wavered.
He came to die for sinners, and His sacrifice on the cross makes our peace possible.
Picture Jesus with arms outstretched gasping for breath on a cruel cross. He was broken and beaten to bring you unshakeable peace. Any barrier that stood between you and God’s peace came tumbling down on the day you looked to Jesus and placed your faith in Him for the forgiveness of your sins. No matter how much you have sinned, you can look to Jesus right now, repent of your past, and be made whole. The resurrected Christ who lives in you will guard your peace as you trust in Him.
Jesus came to bring peace to both prideful people and derelicts. No one stands too far off from His love. He relentlessly pursues those the world casts aside, invites us into His grace, and brings us near. Every soul who surrenders to Jesus is welcomed into His family and receives His peace. The only barrier that stands between you and peace is your unbelief.
When we trust Christ, we are transformed into a new creation united under the banner of faith. Hatred and fear no longer guide our thinking. We are filled with His peace and led by His sacrificial love. Even if the world around us is filled with conflict, we can exchange our turmoil for tranquility as we experience the presence of the Prince of Peace.
The blood of Jesus paved the way for us all to not only have peace with God, but also to extend His peace to one another. Instead of viewing angry people as our enemies, we can follow the example of Jesus and preach peace to those who are still lost in the darkness of sin. We can point them to Jesus and tell them the Good News of salvation.
In a world full of hatred, we are here to proclaim Jesus is our peace. Remember, all the angry people you will meet are far from the Lord and desperately need God’s forgiveness. May God help us respond with the right message and help bring them near.
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