The Peace of God and How to Find It

(Philippians 4:8-9)

Every normal, rational person in the world wants or needs the peace of God and understand how to find it.

The nature of mankind is that people want to be peaceful. They want to live their lives in peace. Nobody wants to live in constant fighting and conflict. It doesn’t matter whether we are talking about individuals or communities from the local level up to sovereign states.

Everybody wants God’s peace. So in this post today we will look at the peace of God and how to find it.

What is the peace of God?

When most people think about peace, it is often about the cessation of conflict. They seem more concerned with peace between two (or more) parties who are fighting.

But the God’s peace is deeper than that. In fact, if we can find the peace of God, the conflicts that exist between people will cease also.

The reason for this is that the peace of God is not externally generated, but is internal.

God’s peace is within a person. Thus, if a person is at peace within themselves, the likelihood of external conflict is very low.

The peace of God runs deep within a person when they find it. When someone learns to walk in His peace, they have the ability to stand in the face of conflict. They do not seek adversity and conflict, but rather seek conciliation. They want to maintain and hold onto peace as far as it is within their power.

When someone is walking in the peace of God, they are not easily swayed.

It is not an emotional thing. It is based upon calm, reason, rationality, logic, compassion, and conciliation.

When a person is walking in this manner they remain stable, provided they hold fast to their peace.

Where can we find the peace of God?

The only place to find the peace of God is to seek it from God Himself. I know that sounds like a no-brainer, but that’s about the sum of it.

God’s peace is found in the pursuit of the things of God. When we learn the things of God, we find His peace in His knowledge and the teachings of Jesus Christ.

As we learn and grow in Jesus Christ, we learn how to walk in the Spirit.

If we look at the fruits of the Spirit, we find that peace is one of these fruits. That is, as we walk in the Spirit, we bear the fruit of peace over time.

But how do we learn to walk in the Spirit?

The first thing we must do to walk in the Spirit is to receive the Holy Spirit to dwell within. The work of the Spirit is then to counsel, teach, guide, protect, and most importantly, transform us into the image of Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ was the embodiment of God’s peace in fleshly form. When He taught the people He taught the ways of God, which are the ways of peace.

As we walk in the Spirit based upon the teachings of Jesus Christ, we learn that the words of God bring us to peace. The word is a weapon the Spirit wields to overcome affliction and adversity, and so restore our peace. This is all predicated on learning how to use the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

So to find the peace of God we need to study the word, have faith in Christ and learn to walk in the Spirit.

But once we understand and do these things, how do we then hold onto this peace of God in the long term? The Apostle Peter made the point:

”…seek peace and pursue it.” (1 Peter 3:11)

Peace does not come easily. It must be pursued or chased after to first get it, then to hold onto it. This begs the question:

How do we maintain the peace of God?

And the answer to this brings us to the section of scripture under review today.

8 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4:8-9)

The majority of walking in the Spirit is about how you think. It is in the mind that the battle for the soul is waged.

This scripture in Philippians 4:8-9 tells us clearly that we ought to set our minds on things that are good. We see the same message in Romans 8:5-6 where we are told set our minds on the things of the Spirit rather than the things of the flesh.

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)

Note that in both of these scriptures, the outcome of setting your mind on what is good…is peace.

We see in the Romans 8 verse that when we set our minds on the things of the Spirit, we receive life and peace.

But what are the things of the Spirit?

Well, the things of the Spirit MUST be good things because they are of God. And so we see in the Philippians 4 verses above just what those “good things” are. Everything that is true, honourable, just, pure, excellent, lovely, gracious, or worthy of praise, are good things. These are the things of the Spirit.

And what are we told to do regarding these things?

We are told to THINK about these things. Set your mind on these things rather than the negative actions of this world. Think about all that is good and you will have peace. Think about Christ Jesus and what He did to secure your eternal redemption and salvation and you will have peace.

This is the key to peace. What you think about determines your attitude and your actions.

So focus on what is good and study the word to learn how to walk in the Spirit. These are the ways to find the peace of God.

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