Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts

(Colossians 3:15)

This would have to be one of my favourite scriptures in the Bible…and there are many! But this one gives us a great insight.

Peace is incredibly important for we have been called to peace in Jesus Christ. Peace is one of the things we strive for as Christians.

But the ways of the world can overturn our peace and take our peace away from us. And this is why this scripture is so important to remember.

let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts

One of the things we need to remember in this verse is the first word of this scripture. This is what the scripture says, and I have highlighted the first word.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. (Colossians 3:15)

I have written various times about the importance of the “little” words in the Bible. These are the words that can be easily overlooked because they seem to be insignificant. But when we look at them they can make an incredible difference to our understanding of the scriptures.

The first word in the scripture above is the word “Let.”

Think about what that word means in the context of this scripture. It means to “allow.”

You need to allow or let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts. You need to permit the peace of God to rest upon you and don’t let ANYTHING take God’s peace away from you.

This scripture is telling us that peace will not just come and stay with us of it’s own accord. We need to allow it to settle within our hearts and hold it fast so that our peace is not taken away.

And we see this same sentiment reflected in other scriptures also, for example:

”…let him turn away from evil and do right; let him seek peace and pursue it.” (1 Peter 3:11)

This verse tells us that we have to PURSUE peace. That is, we need to chase after it so as to not let it escape us.

And again in this verse we see the word “let” or to allow. When it comes to peace we must chase it like our life depends on it and then allow or let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts. This is crucial to the Christian walk because we have been called to peace. We have been called to be sons of peace just as Jesus spread peace on earth to those with whom He was pleased.

Who rules your heart?

Now the next critical point we see in this scripture is this: “let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.

This section in bold is very important and so I ask this question. Who is ruling in your heart and in your mind?

To understand this AND to have the peace of God ruling in your heart you need to stop and consider what you are thinking about. If you want to have peace in your life, and especially the peace of God, then you need to be in control of your thinking. Consider what Paul wrote to the Roman church.

5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. (Romans 8:5-6)

As we see in this scripture, the mind that is set on the things of the flesh, that is, all of the issues, problems, troubles and concerns of this life, is not set on God. To set the mind on the flesh is death. It leads only to death.

But the mind that is set on the things of the Spirit is set on life AND peace. And this is not the peace of or from man, but is the peace the comes from God. It is the spiritual peace from the Lord that leads to eternal life and sets us free from the problems of this world and this life.

So when your mind is set on the Spirit you are in a place where you can let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts. That is the key to having the peace of God ruling in your hearts. It’s all about what you set your thinking on.

So don’t be caught up and bound up in the problems of this world. Pass your concerns to the Lord for His guidance and His counsel and remain at peace knowing that He will provide the answers you need. And this will happen because when you walk in the Spirit and set your mind on the things of the Spirit, your heart is ruled by the peace of God.

And be thankful

The last thing we see in this scripture is something we should never forget. We ought to be thankful for what the Lord has and is doing in our lives.

In all things let us praise God that He is watching over us and leading us to life in His son Jesus Christ. Be thankful in all and every situation because YOU are God’s chosen child. Consider the words of the Old Testament prophet who wrote:

Though the fig tree do not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. 19 God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like hinds’ feet, he makes me tread upon my high places. (Habakkuk 3:17-19)

Look at the words of the prophet. In any and all situations he found reason to rejoice in the Lord. Even though the world was falling apart around him, he recognised that God was in control and that God was his strength.

We are in a similar situation today, perhaps even more so as time goes on and the last days approach.

But like the prophet, let us give thanks to the Lord and be thankful. Let us praise God for all He is doing with us and that He has a plan for us and His plans cannot be thwarted.

And coming back to the scripture I am reviewing today, let us let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.

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