“And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7 ESV
Reflection: why is it easier to have a conflict than peace?
We have recently been watching a number of efforts, attempts to obtain peace between nations. But from afar, it seems so very difficult to achieve. I would imagine that if you asked most people individually, even those who you might strongly disagree with, whether they prefer a conflict or want peace, most would say they want peace. But that desire of peace does not represent what we see all around us as there seems to be conflict everywhere, not just between nations. So it begs the question – if most people truly are interested in achieving peace, why is it so hard to obtain? And we may at times wonder,
Is peace even possible in this world?
We learn from the Bible of a fundamental conflict, which really is a spiritual conflict between good and evil, between the kingdom of God, and evil forces in this world. But we also learn that this conflict, this fundamental war even rages within, between the Spirit of God and the flesh. “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.” Galatians 5:16-17 ESV. “Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.” 1 Peter 2:11 ESV.
Paul explains why this is the fundamental battlefront in the world, explaining “Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21 ESV. If you think about pretty much any conflict, it is grounded in fleshly desires, somehow. Even wars between nations are rooted in the flesh. Then, as a contrast, we learn about characters of God, of the Spirit of God in us, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Galatians 5:22-24 ESV
When we look at these two, flesh and Spirit, compare and contrast, it is pretty easy to understand why there is conflict everywhere. For those who let the flesh dominate, with pride, envy, jealousy, and so on, there will always be conflict. And, as a follower of Christ, we even notice the battlefront within us. But we learn from Paul in today’s focus verse that we can have peace within. “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7 ESV. So we can. But we must pursue it. How? Paul gives us three topics to focus on. Let’s try to find them in the text.
We read “Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Philippians 4:5-6 ESV. We see 1) be reasonable, kind, gentle to all people because the Lord is close, 2) do not be anxious or worried, but bring it before the Lord in prayer and thanksgiving. But, where is the third, you might say? It is actually below, where he writes “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”Philippians 4:8 ESV. So 3) is to focus our mind on truth, on pure and good things, to take our thoughts “captive”; “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,” 2 Corinthians 10:5 ESV
We can have peace, starting within us, and Paul gave us the tools here to pursue and achieve peace. And, if we truly pursue peace within, and in our circles, Jesus said ““Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Matthew 5:9 ESV