and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you. Philippeans 4: 7-9
What does the word “peace” mean to you? How do we get peace? How do we keep the peace when life is crazy, uncertain, or even scary?
The principal word used to express the idea of peace in the Hebrew Bible is shalom. The root of the word is found in many Semitic languages. The Akkadian salimu comes closest to the core meaning of the root, “to be whole, complete.” In one form or another the notions of wholeness, health, and completeness inform all the variants of the word. Peace is not, then, simply a negative, the absence of war. Peace is a positive notion, a notion with its own content.
Shalom is the daily greeting in Israel; meaning peace to you. It really is closer to “may you be well.” To be well is, of course, to be “whole, to be complete,” to have physical and spiritual resources sufficient to our needs. Total well-being, prosperity, and security associated with God’s presence among his people. It is linked to the Old Testament with the covenant, the presence of peace, as God’s gift, was conditional upon Israel’s obedience. In prophetic material, true peace is part of the end-time hope of God’s salvation. In the New Testament, this longed-for peace is understood as having come in Christ and able to be experienced by faith. The early church understood “peace” in this same way as the final, end-time salvation of God given already through Jesus Christ.
We may not understand everything that is happening in our world, however we can have peace in God during this time. We can guard our hearts and minds against fear. We can trust God in the middle of a crisis and have peace.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for your wisdom and peace. I pray that each person will find you during this crazy time in the world. I pray that they will have an encounter with you. I pray that they will find your peace in this time.
In Jesus name
Amen
