“You May Have Peace” Part Four

Note: To get a better understanding, read “You May Have Peace” Part Three.

It could be, or course, that your present disquietude is due not to past sins but to present temptations. You are worried lest you may fall into some trap the enemy of all good is laying for you. But here again God has made provision for the dispelling of your fears.

“The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptation,” says the apostle Peter (2 Peter 2:9). He is right. God does know how to do it. As Jude says, He “is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (verse 24).

But, you say, maybe I shall sin again. Suppose you do. This will not take God by surprise. He has made provision for such a slip on your part. Should your conscience ever tell you that you have done something displeasing to Him, remember that you have “an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1). He who died on Calvary for our redemption is now “even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us” (Romans 8:34).

“Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered” (verse 26).

So we have strong help in heaven. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who together form the Holy Trinity of love, are eager to help us in our struggle with sin. They yearn for our victory. All the angels, too, are dedicated to be “ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation” (Hebrews 1:14).

There is nothing God is not willing to do to help those who have surrendered their lives to Him. With such ample assurances why worry so?

From “Your Bible and You”, by Arthur S. Maxwell, pgs. 143-145.

End of Part Four.

“You May Have Peace” Part One

The more you study your Bible the more clearly you will see how much it has to say about your life. It is full of good counsel as to how you can make the most of it. Obviously its Arthur is deeply concerned for your welfare and is anxious that you shall be happy, contented, cheerful, and a source of spiritual strength to your family and community.

Take, for instance, the subject of peace o mind, which has become so very important to multitudes in these trying times. While millions of nervously upset people visit psychiatrists and spend fortunes on tranquilizers, your Bible offers a most reasonable and inexpensive remedy.

All too many nowadays chain smoke “to sooth their nerves,” then drink stimulants to spur themselves on to do their work. But the peace they seek eludes them. They are never really at rest, never truly happy. Such living is a poor substitute for the good way of life revealed in that wonderful Book of yours.

True, your Bible states that “there is no peace… to the wicked” (Isaiah 26:3).

There is a reason for this, and it is given in the same beautiful passage:

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee. Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is the rock of ages” (verses 3, 4, margin).

Peace is to be found in God because He is more durable than the mountains. With Him there is stability and permanence that invite the fullest confidence. He is ever the same, unaffected by forces that work changes in others. The passing of time brings no alteration to His person or His character. He endures “from everlasting to everlasting” (Psalm 90:1, 2). Forever and ever all power in heaven and earth belongs to Him (Matthew 28:18).

How restful it is to trust in a God such as this–to have a Friend who never changes, whose love will never die! The very thought suffuses the soul with delicious tranquility. As the old hymn says:

“Unlike our friends by nature,

Who change with changing years,

This Friend is always worthy

The precious name He bears.”

There will never come a time when God’s love for His children will lessen. There will never be an occasion when he will cease to hear their petitions and supply their needs. Always He will be to them a tower of strength, a sure refuge. His wisdom will be to them a tower of strength, a sure refuge. His wisdom and power will ever be available to assist them in every emergency.

That is why peace of mind is to be found through trusting Him. With such a wonderful Friend ever thinking of us, ever caring for us, there can never be any need to worry.

From “Your Bible and You”, by Arthur S. Maxwell, pgs. 135-138.

End Of Part One