God's peace—a guard and regulator

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Philippians 4:2-9

TO CHEW ON: "Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6,7


If I were asked to choose a life verse or verses, today's focus passage would be it. I don't know how many times I've quoted Philippians 4:6,7 to settle myself and turn my sites from the thing that is making me anxious, to Jesus. As I commit that thing to Him with thanks for His answer (yes, before it comes) I can take a deep breath and let the "peace of God" replace frenetic, gnawing, debilitating worry in my spirit.

What are the mechanics of God's peace replacing anxiety? Two words give insight into how it works.

"... the peace of God ... will GUARD your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7.

[Guard - phoureo  is a military term that pictures a sentry standing guard as protection against the enemy - Dick Mills, Word Wealth, New Spirit-Filled Life Bible p. 1763.]

God's peace is that soldier that stands guard at the entry-way to our hearts and thus our minds.

A cross-reference to Philippians 4:7 in my Bible is Colossians 3:15: "And let the peace of God RULE in your hearts."

[Rule - brabeuo means to act as umpire, to direct, control, rule, regulate, arbitrate, decide, determine.]

A while ago ago at my church the speaker told the story of when he and his wife lived in their recreational vehicle for a time. One morning he was catching just a few more winks when his wife's voice from the shower cut into his dreams. "Ken! The hose has a hernia!"

"It'll be okay," he muttered, half-asleep.

"Please. Come here!" Now there was great urgency in her voice.

He got up to find the shower hose hissing and writhing about like an out-of-control snake, spewing water everywhere. He turned off the water and subdued the "snake." Then, before they used the shower again, he installed a regulator—a device that toned down the force of the water which came from the city water lines with too much power for the RVs plumbing.

"That's how God's peace works in our hearts," he said. He explained how the raw emotions generated by the news, politics, interactions with our spouse, our children, our neighbors, etc. are like that gush of city water. God's peace—brought by the knowledge that He is in control and we've committed everything to Him—regulates us so that we don't go thrashing about like that water hose, controlled by our reaction to circumstances.

So today, whenever something troubling comes along, let's let God's peace stand guard over our hearts and regulate our reactions.

PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to appropriate Your peace for every disturbing bit of news, circumstance, and interaction today. Amen. 

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Backsliding

TODAY'S SPECIAL: Galatians 4:8-31

TO CHEW ON: "But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage?" Galatians 4:9


In our reading today Paul continues to make his case against the Galatians returning to life under the law. What he calls a "turn again" we might label backsliding  [a relapse into bad ways or error]. We find the tendency to turn again, turn back, or backslide throughout the Bible.

Backsliding in the Bible

• Moses warned the Israelites about returning to the ways of Egypt in his Deuteronomy sermon - Deuteronomy 17:16.

• Throughout the Old Testament the prophets pleaded with the Israelites to stop their backsliding - e.g. Hosea 6:4. For them the symptom was often idol worship. Such backsliding was called a sin against God (Jeremiah 14:7) and a sin that angered God (Isaiah 1:4).

• The backslider's heart was affected. It was self-absorbed (Proverbs 14:14), stubborn (Hosea 11:7), cold (Matthew 24:12), and loveless (Revelation 2:4).

• Backsliding caused people to make nonsensical substitutions. The psalmist called it  a return to "folly" (Psalm 85:8). In Galatians 1:6 Paul called it a return to a "different gospel." In our reading he described that to which they were returning as the "weak and beggarly elements" which would put them in "bondage" (Galatians 4:9). Peter described such a return to the old as becoming "again entangled" (2 Peter 2:20).

• Backsliding made the backslider unfit for kingdom work (Luke 9:62; Hebrews 10:38).

How to keep from backsliding

We recognize that we are as apt to backslide as were the Israelites and the Galatians. What can we do to keep from going back, both into old sinful lifestyles and/or old spiritual forms and practices?

* Guard who we associate with.  Solomon was lured into backsliding by his idol-worshiping wives (1 Kings 11:4).

* Beware of the world's attractions (2 Timothy 5:10).

* Don't let success change us and tempt us to become self-sufficient (Zephaniah 1:6).

* Become rooted in God's word  (Luke 8:13).

* Fill our lives with good things (Luke 11:24-26).

* Depend on the Holy Spirit's insights (John 6:63,64,66).


PRAYER: Dear Father, please help me to be aware of my own tendency to backslide in big and little ways. May my life be one of progress in Kingdom growth, not regression into faithless fear, self-direction, and independence. Amen. 

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Unless otherwise noted all Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.