the peace of God

With six kids we seem to accumulate a little trash.   What if on Monday morning I went through the weeks discarded trash and brought back with me a plate for my kids to share at breakfast from the trash?  What if I said:  "Here, help yourself. Have some." They would look up at me like - dad, you've finally flipped. "Oh, no, daddy." Why not? "If I ate that it would make me sick." 


That is right!  My momma always told me garbage in, garbage out.  You know, just as that garbage will make you sick physically, the wrong kind of things in your mind can  make you sick mentally and morally and spiritually.   We must be careful what we think.

Statement of Truth: The way to get rid of bad thought is not to focus on the bad thoughts.

The way to get rid of your bad thoughts is not to fight those bad thoughts. The mind tends to get in a rut. You begin thinking about something and you get to the point that you can't think about anything else. The way you are fight those ugly thoughts or those bad and impure thoughts is by refusing to focus on them.  The way to overcome a evil thought  is to replace them with the right kind of thoughts.

Turn to Second Corinthians 10, verse 5 says, ^NIV 2 Corinthians 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

Take your thoughts captive. Every now and then an enemy thought will fly overhead.  What must we do?  Shoot it down in the name of Jesus. How?  Fill your mind with the Word of God. Fill your mind with holy and beautiful and lovely things. Whatsoever things are good. Whatsoever things are honest. Whatsoever things are just. Whatsoever things are pure. Whatsoever things are lovely. Fill your life with the beautiful lovely things. Learn to appreciate  good and godly music, books and relationships.

He goes on and says, "Whatsoever things are of good report."  Things that are excellent or praiseworthy. If there is any virtue, if there is anything that is beautiful about it, think on these things. The right kind of thinking.

Paul talked about THE RIGHT KIND OF LIVING. 

^NIV Philippians 4:9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me-- put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

The reason some people don't have peace of mind is because they are living wrong. You are doing wrong things. You are going wrong places. You are having wrong values in your life. You've established wrong goals in your life. Live right and it will bring peace in your heart. There is no peace like knowing you've done right. You've done the right thing. You've lived the right kind of life.

The right kind of praising. The right kind of praying. The right kind of practicing. Then in verse 7 becomes a reality in our lives…   "And the peace of God." Look what he says about the peace of God. First of all, The peace of God passes all understanding. The peace of God is beyond our intelligence. The peace of God is incredible. The intellect can't fully understand this. The intellect becomes like a bird with a broken wing.

Statement of Truth: You can't understand this peace, but you can experience it.   


Some of you have been through a crisis in your life and to your utter amazement, through it all there was the peace of God. It passes all understanding. The peace of God is incredible. The peace of God will stand guard at your hearts and minds. The word, stand guard, really was used of a sentinel who would stand guard around the sleeping quarters of the army. He would say, "Who goes there?" he would say, "It's midnight and all is well." God says I'll put my peace to stand guard at your hearts and your minds and it's invincible. Nothing can get through the peace of God.

Then he says the peace of God is available. "It is through Christ Jesus." He says in verse 7 that the peace of God comes through Christ Jesus. Verse 9 says, "And the God of peace shall be with you." Peace is not only a spiritual commodity. Peace is a person. You come to the Lord, give your life to Jesus Christ and He will give you the peace of God. He gives you the peace of God through the God of peace - through the Lord Jesus Christ. If you want peace, you have to know the Prince of Peace, the Lord Jesus.

Jesus was on a boat one time and storm came up and Jesus was asleep in the boat. The disciples came down and told him about it. Jesus went to the deck of the ship and said, "Peace, be still." When He did, the storm ceased its raging. Are you in a storm today? You need some peace today? Jesus says I want to give it to you. You come to me and I'll give you peace.

The reality today is this:  the peace of God is yours because the person of God is yours!