By Elizabeth Prata
In Acts 16, Paul was followed by a slave girl who made much money for her owner by telling fortunes. She kept hollering after Paul and his group, and vexed Paul very much. Finally he cast the demon out of her, and that was that.
Or not. For when her owners saw their means of gain was gone, they beat Paul. Magistrates threw him and Silas in jail. (Acts 16:19-24). Not just jail, but “inner prison”.
Continue reading “As Paul did, can we sing when our lives seem shattered?”By Elizabeth Prata
SYNOPSIS
In this series, I discuss the importance of understanding theological terms for maintaining doctrinal clarity. I explore the biblical concept of peace as a fruit of the Spirit. True peace signifies reconciliation with God foremost, and reflects love in interpersonal relationships as an outworking of our lack of enmity with God. Peace is essential for a spiritual community’s harmony and for a witness in effective evangelism.
Continue reading “Understanding the Fruit of the Spirit: Peace Explained”by Elizabeth Prata
I made that collage above shortly after I was saved. I was reading Philippians, which famously says,
And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7).
I liked to think that I could be calmly drinking tea, when the world around me becomes chaotic.
I think we all like to think that.
I’ll get real here. There were predicted some severe storms to come last weekend. Not just one or two weather guys, but most weather guys were saying it was a once in a lifetime event, deaths will occur, and all that. They were serious this time. We do get tornadoes and severe thunderstorms. But usually the energy in the storms dissipates to below severe levels once they pass through Mississippi, Alabama and western Georgia and get to us here in East Georgia.
I thought, well, maybe not this time. The weather guys all were strongly recommending citizens take all due precautions. I began to get nervous. Tornadoes freak me out. I prepared in all the ways the emergency organizations and the weather people said to. I got more and more nervous as Saturday dragged on. I kept saying ‘God’s got this and then I’d take it back and get nervous again. In my opinion anxiety shows distrust in God’s goodness, omniscience, and wisdom in all circumstances- even uncomfortable, dire, or life-threatening ones. I was troubled by my lack of equanimity. I was all, ‘Lord, I trust you! Help my untrust!’
So I finally put my hands together and had a long talk with Jesus in a focused, worshipful prayer. And then I became peaceful.
As to the verse, what does it really mean? You know that it makes sense on the surface but it also makes sense when you read it and meditate more deeply, and then it has an even deeper meaning if you go even deeper with it. That is how the scriptures are alive, helpful with meaning no matter how many times you read it. According to Strong’s, in the Greek all the words mean exactly what you think they’d mean. I thought Barnes’ Notes had the best commentary on the verse.
And the peace of God – The peace which God gives. The peace here particularly referred to is that which is felt when we have no anxious care about the supply of our needs, and when we go confidently and commit everything into the hands of God. “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee;” Isaiah 26:3; see the notes at John 14:27.
Which passeth all understanding – That is, which surpasses all that people had conceived or imagined. The expression is one that denotes that the peace imparted is of the highest possible kind. The apostle Paul frequently used terms which had somewhat of a hyperbolical cast (see the notes on Ephesians 3:19; compare John 21:25), and the language here is that which one would use who designed to speak of that which was of the highest order. The Christian, committing his way to God, and feeling that he will order all things aright, has a peace which is nowhere else known. Nothing else will furnish it but religion. No confidence that a man can have in his own powers; no reliance which he can repose on his own plans or on the promises or fidelity of his fellow-men, and no calculations which he can make on the course of events, can impart such peace to the soul as simple confidence in God.
Shall keep your hearts and minds – That is, shall keep them from anxiety and agitation. The idea is, that by thus making our requests known to God, and going to him in view of all our trials and wants, the mind would be preserved from distressing anxiety. The way to find peace, and to have the heart kept from trouble, is thus to go and spread out all before the Lord. –end Barnes’ Notes
It is OK that we may get nervous, anxious, scared. We’re human. God knows this. But when we feel those things we have a holy Priest who hears our prayers and stands ready to impart this peace to us.
1. The peace we are promised is given,
2. The peace we are given is not simply offered, it is imparted to our body/mind/heart,
3. The peace we are given which is imparted soothes us to our very soul,
4. We do not understand how this occurs (passed all understanding) but it does. It simply does.
Just saying ‘God’s got this’ is head knowledge that is uttered in my own strength. It wasn’t enough to calm me before the storms came. But focused prayer and appealing to the Great Intercessor delivered a peace that shouldn’t be, but it is. It prompted Paul to sing in jail, Stephen to appeal on behalf of the stone throwers even as the stones rained down, for isolated Apostle John to worship on the rock of Patmos.
Picture this peace as a holy, heavenly blanket swaddling us, Christ’s babes, enveloping us to soothe the wrinkled heart, the troubled mind the restless soul.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:7).
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The Lord of the universe gives us peace, HIS peace. No longer at enmity with Him, we possess peace in our heart and fear is dispelled.
Poetry by Kay Cude. Used with permission.
By Elizabeth Prata
Sundays are a good time to ponder who God is. He is worthy of service and worship. We have been taking a look at God’s attributes each Sunday. Links to previous weeks are below. Most definitions are taken from Tim Challies’ visual theology chart of the attributes of God.
Remember, God’s attributes are not parts that make up a whole. Everything good that there is, is 100% contained in God. He is 100% beauty, 100% aseity, 100% omniscient, etc. He is complete in Himself.
Tim Challies explained: “To study God’s attributes is to study his character, to answer questions like, Who is God? and What is God like? A typical classification of God’s attributes divides them into those that are incommunicable (those that he does not share or “communicate” to anyone or anything else) and communicable (those that he shares with other beings). Like most theological classifications, this one is imperfect but still helpful as we seek to understand what is so far beyond ourselves. God’s communicable attributes can be further categorized into: attributes of God’s being, mental attributes, moral attributes, attributes of purpose, and “summary” attributes (attributes that, in a more particular way, modify each of the others).”
PEACE
Moral attribute. God, in his being and actions, is separate from all confusion and disorder.
Jonathan Edwards on peace: “My peace I give unto you.” Christ by calling it his peace signifies two things,
1. That it was his own, that which he had to give. It was the peculiar benefit that he had to bestow on his children, now he was about to leave the world as to his human presence.
2. It was his peace that he gave them, as it was the same kind of peace which he himself enjoyed. The same excellent and divine peace which he ever had in God, and which he was about to receive in his exalted state in a vastly greater perfection and fullness.
John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, my peace give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.”
RIGHTEOUSNESS
Moral Attribute
God is the final standard of what is right and he always acts in accordance with what is right. (This is also known as God’s justice).
RC Sproul on God’s righteousness: “His righteousness is of two sorts. We distinguish God’s internal righteousness from His external righteousness. What God does is always consistent with who God is. He always acts according to His holy character. God’s “internal righteousness” is the moral excellence of His character. It is rooted in his absolute purity. There is no shadow of turning in Him. As a holy God, He is utterly incapable of an unholy act. Only unholy beings commit unjust and unrighteous acts.“
Psalm 11:7, “For the LORD is righteous, He loves righteousness; The upright will see His face.“
PERFECTION
Summary Attribute
God fully possesses all excellent qualities and lacks no qualities that would be desirable for him.
Charles Spurgeon on God’s perfection: “Perfection, indeed, seems to be the sole prerogative of God. He is perfect in everything. In all his attributes there is no lack; from whatever point of view we regard him, he is without blot or blemish; and no man, speaking truthfully of God, can say that there is aught of imperfection in him.”
Matthew 5:48, “Therefore you shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
Previous entries of the Attributes of God-
1. Attributes of God: Aseity, Beauty, Blessedness
2. Eternity, Freedom, Glory
3. Goodness, Holiness, Immutability
4. Invisibility, Jealousy, Knowledge
5. Love
6. Mercy, Omnipotence, Omnipresence
Previous weeks-1. Aseity, Beauty, Blessedness
2. Eternity, Freedom, Glory
3. Goodness, Holiness, Immutability
4. Invisibility, Jealousy, Knowledge
5. Love
6. Mercy, Omnipotence, Omnipresence
7. Peace, Righteousness, Perfection
8. Will, Wisdom, Wrath
By Elizabeth Prata
God is love. God is Justice. God is holiness. God is unwavering. God is mercy. Think of the quality of Jesus as being peace, and offering peace as He left us in person.
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27)
Not man-made peace which doesn’t last. That kind of peace is fleeting, as when someone offers you a raise, or pays your debt, or after a refreshing nap, or when a project is completed or a meal is good. That kind of peace is surface, shallow peace.
That kind of peace can be disrupted by mundane and ridiculous things. A car horn, a baby’s cry, a shove in line, traffic, a missed deadline. Peace that is man-made can also be taken away by man.
The peace that Jesus gives us is a permanent peace. It drenches every molecule of us with its truth and comfort. As Charles Spurgeon wrote in his sermon on the John 14:27 verse, titled, Spiritual Peace,
“The donation, the blessed legacy which our Lord has here left, is his peace.”… There is a peace of God which reigns in our hearts through Jesus Christ, by which we are bound in closest ties of unity and concord to every other child of God whom we may meet with in our pilgrimage here below.”
“Our peace then, is God’s own child, and God-like is its character. His Spirit is its sire, and it is like its Father. It is “my peace,” saith Christ! not man’s peace; but the unruffled, calm, the profound peace of the Eternal Son of God. Oh, if we had but this one thing within our bosoms, this divine peace, a Christian were a glorious thing indeed; and even now kings and mighty men of this world are as nothing when once compared with the Christian; for he wears a jewel in his bosom which all the world could not buy, a jewel fashioned from old eternity and ordained by sovereign grace to be the high boon, the right royal inheritance of the chosen sons of God.“
Right-Click to see larger in new tab.
The Lord of the universe gives us peace, HIS peace. No longer at enmity with Him, we possess peace in our heart and fear is dispelled.
Poetry by Kay Cude. Used with permission.
By Elizabeth Prata
This has been an interesting week, hasn’t it? I’ve watched political events unfold at lightning speed, my mouth metaphorically hanging open. In my 60 years I’ve been witness to some of the most amazing events in history, but this past week, rather since November 3, 2020, has left me speechless.
If the Big Tech Oligarchs have their way we conservatives & Christians will be left literally speechless soon, right? I’ve tried to write essays this week that encouraged, that referenced some events obliquely without delving. I read a tweet from a missionary friend who wrote, “Husbands, guard your wife against information overload. She may not want to hear you constantly talk about how the US is falling.” So true.
I have to guard myself against that, and I LOVE information. The relentlessly bad news, coupled with near-impossible ability to assess its credibility, means I have to push away and do some calming techniques. I’ll lay those out below, but first ICYMI, a recap of the week’s essays:
Continue reading “Week’s recap, & Calming-Down Techniques”By Elizabeth Prata
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.” (Colossians 3:15-17)
Christ called us to be different. To be salt, which is a preservative, and light, which is shining to show our works in His name and give Him glory. We cannot be hid. Though you may have lost your job and want to hide, you cannot. You must not. Though your brother may have wronged you, you cannot hold a grudge and hide from fellowship. You must not.
NOW is the time for which we have been put on the earth, for just such a time as this. We should be seen singing praises, hosannas, psalms to Him and about Him with all joy! We need to have peace with each other and in our hearts. Everything we do, let us do for Jesus, He who became sin and died for ours. Even now, especially now, the kind of Christians Paul was urging the Colossians to be, let US be!
By Elizabeth Prata
I’d mentioned in yesterday’s blog post that some of the younger people were seeking answers to the mayhem that is everywhere today. They want to sort out what is happening. Their consciences are tender and their heart moves easily. So I’d compiled a list of theologically solid podcasts so that anyone seeking answers would hopefully be steered to good resources.
Yesterday I was contacted by one of the younger sisters in my church asking for a review of a post she intended to publish. She wanted it looked over to see if it contributed to the discussion, was absent any virtue signaling, and was faithful to scripture. She’d also listened to the recommended Just Thinking podcast. My heart immediately soared. There are still young people who care deeply about being a dew drop of grace in His name, and not a clamoring, shouting secular rioter, and who proceed with caution before speaking. Continue reading “Guest post from younger sister: The Amazing Exchange”
the-end-time.org 