“But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5 NIV (Emphasis, mine)
My word for 2023 is PEACE.
2022 came with a lot of challenges that relentlessly tested my peace. Therefore, this year, I am digging my heels into the Word of God and inviting the Holy Spirit to teach me how to prioritize and practice the peace of Christ (even when life throws me multiple curve balls all at once).
As you may know, a lot of the articles on this website are borne out of what God is teaching me in different seasons of my life. This one is no exception. I write to keep myself focused on the Word. So, I invite you to join me in studying the Word on how Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross made it possible for us, His followers to receive and enjoy His gift of peace.
Grab your Bibles and study the Word with me!
What is Peace?
The Dictionary of Bible Themes defines peace as “the state of harmony that is available to believers through having a right relationship with God and others and is especially associated with the presence of the Holy Spirit.”1
Peace implies much more than the absence of conflict. One of the definitions of peace from Dictionary.com is “freedom of the mind from annoyance, distraction, anxiety, an obsession, etc.; tranquility; serenity.”
The Hebrew word translated as peace in the Old Testament is shalom, which means completeness, soundness, welfare, peace. 2 While the Greek word translated as peace in the New Testament is eiréné, defined as one, peace, quietness, rest. 3
To help us get a fuller picture of what peace is, I have included some synonyms and antonyms below.
| Synonyms | Antonyms |
| Tranquility | Anxiety |
| Calm | Worry/ Unrest/ Turmoil |
| Quiet | Stress |
| Harmony | Discord/ Disharmony/ Strife/ Conflict |
| Contentment | Upset/ Distress |
| Serenity | Agitation |
Peace Stealers
Here are ten things that can steal our peace (if we let them).
- Sin
- Fear, anxiety, and worry
- Strife and unforgiveness
- Discontentment and comparison
- Busyness, feeling overwhelmed, and hurried
- Too much information
- Obligations and work-related stressors
- Health problems
- Low self-esteem/ identity issues
- Perfectionism, which can be a sign of self-absorption and self-centeredness
The Quest for Peace
Sometimes we may depend on the wrong things for peace. Some people may search for peace through relationships, career advancement, money, sex, vacations, or even drugs and alcohol. Not everything I listed is inherently bad. However, none of them will give us true, consistent, and lasting peace.
Everyone’s search for peace ends when they realize that peace is a Person and His name is Jesus Christ.
So, how can we find and consistently enjoy true, lasting peace that comes only through Jesus Christ?
The first step is to make peace with God by acknowledging, receiving, and identifying with everything Jesus Christ accomplished for us on the cross.
Jesus Exchanged our Punishment for His Peace
In the beginning, God created humans in His image so that He could enjoy close, intimate fellowship with us (Genesis 1:27;3:8-9). But sin came into the world through the first man, Adam (Genesis 3:6). Every single one of us descended from Adam and inherited the sin nature from him. We were all born into this world, as sinners, with no exceptions (Romans 5:12;3:23).
God is holy; therefore, our sin created a wide chasm between Him and us (Isaiah 59:2). Because of sin, we deserved punishment from God and eternal separation from Him (Romans 6:23). God, being a just God, (Psalm 89:14) could not overlook our sin, but He is also merciful and compassionate (Psalm 145:8-9). So, He sent His Son, Jesus to die on the cross in our place to satisfy the justice we deserved (1 Peter 3:18).
“But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5 NIV (Emphasis, mine)
On the cross, Jesus took upon Himself, the punishment that was due us because of our sins. He completely identified with us to the extent that He took everything bad that rightfully belonged to us upon Himself and gave us what rightly belonged to Him.
It was a glorious exchange indeed!
Peace With God
Romans 5: 1 says that “since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Jesus took our punishment, and in exchange, gave us His peace by reconciling us to a peaceful relationship with God.
As believers in Jesus Christ, we are no longer in conflict with God because of sin. Jesus bore the full weight of our sins so that we can enjoy a peaceful relationship with God. We are justified through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. This means that we are acquitted and no longer guilty in God’s sight. God treats us just as if we have never sinned.
Personal Testimony
I grew up going to Church but did not put my faith in Jesus Christ until I was a young adult. People had presented the Gospel to me innumerable times, but I was deceived into thinking that being a Christian was too difficult and impossible. I thought I had to depend on self-will to live holy, and since I didn’t have much self-will at the time, I stayed in my sins way too long.
I clearly remember that I used to have recurrent nightmares about the second coming of Jesus Christ. In my dreams, the sky would transform, the stars and sun will change color, and I would start panicking and begging God for mercy. I obviously had no peace with God because I had not put my faith in Jesus Christ as the only Way to Him (Acts 4:12). Once I accepted Christ, I received the gift of peace with God, and the “left behind” rapture nightmares ended.
“For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.” Colossians 1:19-20 NIV
Now that I have peace with God, I no longer have a sense of doom. I am not afraid or ashamed to come into His presence to worship Him, speak to Him, spend time with Him, and receive His grace (Hebrews 4:16).
Peace Within Ourselves and PEACE With Others
The peace that Jesus brings is not restricted to our relationship with God. Through Jesus, we can also experience peaceful relationships with one another, and be at peace within ourselves, irrespective of our circumstances. This will be the topic of my next article on peace.
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Next Steps
Here are two statements of faith to commit to memory and meditate on consistently.
- Jesus took the punishment I deserved and gave me His peace.
- I have peace with God through Jesus Christ.
If you are not yet a follower of Christ, I invite you to join me in being reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. You can pray directly to God or use the prayer below as a template.
Father, I ask You to forgive me of my sins. Specifically, I repent for rejecting Jesus as my Savior. Today, I confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord and I wholeheartedly believe in my heart that You raised Him from the dead to give me eternal life. I lay my life down, and I receive Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. I pray that You fill me with Your Spirit and empower me to live in peace and follow Jesus all the days of my life. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.
Until next time….
Chizobam Idahosa
References
- Manser, M. H. (2009).
. London: Martin Manser.
- Strong’s Hebrew 7965 https://biblehub.com/hebrew/7965.htm
- Strong’s Greek 1515 https://biblehub.com/greek/1515.htm
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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
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Your article is beautifully written and peace is highly desirable by most people. You have given much good advice to this end. Thank you. Just one thing, bear in mind what King Jesus Christ has said in Matthew 10:34.
Love this, and you my friend! As always I appreciate you.