”“I leave the gift of peace with you—my peace. Not the kind of fragile peace given by the world, but my perfect peace. Don’t yield to fear or be troubled in your hearts—instead, be courageous!“
Before Jesus was arrested He was preparing His disciples for the fact that He would be leaving them and sending Holy Spirit in His place. This is one of the encouragements He gave them at that time -- that He was imparting them with the gift of His perfect peace. The shalom peace of God goes far beyond our modern Western understanding of peace. It’s much more than a feeling. It speaks of supernatural health, peace, welfare, safety, soundness, tranquility, prosperity, perfection, fullness, rest and harmony as well as the absence of agitation and discord. That is the kind of peace that our Savior Jesus has given to us as a gift -- a holistic, all encompassing peace. Like with any gift, it is our part and our responsibility to receive it if we want to be able to access it and take it as our own. And as we take on that kind of peace, He expects us to live courageously and without fear or worry because His all encompassing peace has equipped us to do that. His all encompassing peace gives us the bold confidence that David had when he said in Psalms 27, whom or what shall I fear?
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