# tactiq.io free youtube transcript
# The Key to Continuing Peace – Dr. Charles Stanley
# https://www.youtube.com/watch/Wuz88KhGURo
00:00:15.549 [music]
00:00:21.021 Dr. Charles Stanley: Is itreally possible to have true,
00:00:24.458 genuine peace when thecircumstances in your life are
00:00:29.096 all fouled up and messed up?
00:00:29.963 In other words, you’d like tochange this and change that and
00:00:31.965 change the other.
00:00:32.933 Is it possible to have real,true peace when things are so
00:00:37.471 uncertain?
00:00:39.673 When you feel sometimes suchpain in your body or in your
00:00:43.210 emotions?
00:00:45.112 When things seem to just not beable to, you just can’t
00:00:48.248 straighten them out?
00:00:49.883 How can you have peace in thosekind of times?
00:00:52.552 Well, Jesus was in the upperroom with His disciples and
00:00:59.459 Peter had just argued with Jesusabout washing His feet.
00:01:04.631 Judas had gone out to betrayHim.
00:01:07.968 He was talking to them about thefact that He was going to leave
00:01:10.537 them and the fact that He wasgoing to be crucified.
00:01:14.374 None of that made a lot of senseto them.
00:01:16.310 And then to top all that off,here’s what He said, “Let not
00:01:20.147 your heart be troubled.”
00:01:21.848 I’m sure He didn’t say it quitethat way.
00:01:23.817 But I think that would have beenthe most ridiculous thing Jesus
00:01:26.286 could have said.
00:01:27.254 In the midst of all of that, andYou tell me don’t have a
00:01:30.023 troubled heart?
00:01:32.492 This is one of those verses andyou might want to turn to John
00:01:35.395 fourteen for a moment.
00:01:37.664 This is one of those verses ifyou don’t understand what was
00:01:40.133 going on, it doesn’t make anysense at all.
00:01:43.704 And so, even in the midst ofthis very, very difficult time,
00:01:48.041 Jesus makes this statement, “Letnot your heart be troubled.”
00:01:51.545 He said, “You believe in God,believe also in Me.”
00:01:54.481 Now, what was He saying?
00:01:56.149 Here’s what He was saying: don’tlet your heart be troubled any
00:02:00.220 longer because they were alreadytroubled.
00:02:04.424 I mean, when He said one of youshall betray Me, that was
00:02:07.060 troubling.
00:02:08.294 Peter arguing with Him aboutwashing His feet, that was
00:02:10.964 troubling.
00:02:12.466 When He said, “I’m going away,”that was–everything He said to
00:02:15.635 them was very troubling.
00:02:17.504 And yet, He said, “Let not yourheart be troubled.”
00:02:20.440 What He meant was: let not yourheart be troubled any longer.
00:02:24.544 “You believe in God, believealso in Me.”
00:02:26.847 So, He had something He wasgoing to say to them.
00:02:30.851 And the truth is: thefourteenth, fifteenth,
00:02:32.919 sixteenth, and the seventeenthchapters of John are all very
00:02:37.057 encouraging.
00:02:37.924 Remember, He said to them, Hesaid, “I’m going away, but I’m
00:02:40.360 not going to leave you asorphans.
00:02:41.828 I’m going to send the HolySpirit who will be in you, with
00:02:44.364 you, and upon you forever.”
00:02:46.033 So it was a matter ofencouraging them.
00:02:48.268 But when He said, “Let not yourheart be troubled.”
00:02:51.338 That is, don’t let it betroubled any longer because I’m
00:02:55.709 going to show you how you canlive through all of this.
00:03:00.147 All of us have faced thosedifficulties and times in our
00:03:02.849 life and situations andcircumstances that we thought,
00:03:06.686 “God where are You?
00:03:08.655 If you were there, why don’t Youhear my prayer?
00:03:11.425 Why don’t why don’t You providewhat I need?
00:03:13.693 Why don’t You heal my body?
00:03:15.162 Why don’t You change myrelationship?
00:03:17.330 Why don’t You bring him or herback into my life?”
00:03:19.866 We’ve all been there for sometime or the other.
00:03:22.703 And so, when we talk aboutpeace, what I want to talk about
00:03:25.872 in this message is, listen, talkabout the key to continuing
00:03:30.610 peace, not ups and downs, peacetoday, not so much peaceful
00:03:34.381 tomorrow.
00:03:35.549 Not ups and downs, butcontinuing peace.
00:03:37.717 Does that mean that there’llever come a time in your life
00:03:40.120 when everything is finally goingto be leveled out and there’s
00:03:43.256 going to be perfect peace allthe time?
00:03:45.325 No, it does not mean that.
00:03:46.726 But here’s what it means: thatin the most difficult, trying
00:03:50.330 times, when your circumstancescannot be managed, when you
00:03:55.635 cannot handle them, when youdon’t have any idea what’s going
00:03:58.972 to happen and where’s it’s goingto happen, can you have a peace
00:04:04.611 that overrides those feelings?
00:04:07.114 A peace that is so deep, sotranquil, so reassuring that in
00:04:14.621 spite of everything you see andfeel and hear around you, there
00:04:18.524 is a peace that levels it allout, deep down inside of you?
00:04:22.996 There is a security between youand God that gives you a peace
00:04:26.867 that Paul described in this way.
00:04:29.536 He said, “Don’t be anxious aboutall these things.”
00:04:33.640 But he said, “Rather, by prayerand supplication, make your
00:04:37.444 requests known to God.”
00:04:38.945 And here’s what will happen,”The peace of God, which
00:04:43.150 surpasses all humanunderstanding, will circle you
00:04:47.187 around, will garrison you about,will guard your hearts and minds
00:04:52.325 in Christ Jesus.”
00:04:53.994 He talked about a peace that wedon’t understand.
00:04:56.930 He talked about a peace thatwould guard us from anxiety and
00:05:01.434 worrying and fretting andcaring.
00:05:03.370 Now I think, as I look back overmy life as a pastor and all
00:05:07.240 these years, there was a momentin my life when everything in my
00:05:13.246 life was threatened.
00:05:16.149 And I would have had a thousandreasons for being afraid,
00:05:20.120 discouraged, and you name it.
00:05:23.523 But when I received thistelephone call and I hung up, I
00:05:29.196 had the most overwhelming senseof absolute tranquility, peace,
00:05:36.236 and serenity in my life.
00:05:38.605 And I remember saying, “God,You’ve guided me thus far in my
00:05:42.342 life, You’ll guide me throughthis.”
00:05:45.078 I would normally have thought Iwould have been greatly
00:05:47.881 disturbed.
00:05:49.015 So you say, “Well, why do youthink that happen?”
00:05:51.284 Exactly because what I’m goingto talk about today.
00:05:54.321 I know that it works.
00:05:57.123 I met somebody after the servicea few moments ago who had been
00:06:00.894 through something that wasequally probably as difficult.
00:06:05.098 And he said to me, “You know, Iknow exactly what you mean.
00:06:08.935 When everybody was telling us todo something different, we
00:06:13.106 obeyed God, we did what webelieve was the right thing, and
00:06:18.111 God gave us this awesome senseof peace through it all.
00:06:21.348 So, when we talk about peace,we’re not talking about
00:06:23.783 something that just comes andgoes.
00:06:26.786 Because you see, that’s the waymost people’s peace would be
00:06:29.155 described: it’s peace today andwar tomorrow.
00:06:32.459 That’s the way it is in somefamilies.
00:06:33.994 That’s the way it is in,oftentimes, some place where you
00:06:36.763 work.
00:06:38.031 But what’s the kind of peacethat is continuing?
00:06:42.235 And that’s what I want to talkabout in this message.
00:06:43.837 So, I want you to turn to Johnchapter fourteen, and there are
00:06:46.673 three verses of Scripture I wantus to read here.
00:06:49.509 And in this first one, we readin the fourteenth chapter, verse
00:06:52.846 one.
00:06:53.780 Jesus said, “Do not let yourheart be troubled; believe in
00:06:57.617 God, believe also in Me.”
00:06:59.486 Then He begins toencourage them.
00:07:02.622 And so, if you’ll move on overall the way to the
00:07:05.025 twenty-seventh verse of thisfourteenth chapter.
00:07:07.761 Listen to what He says.
00:07:08.762 He says, “Peace I leave withyou; My peace I give to you; not
00:07:15.268 as the world gives do I give itto you.
00:07:17.437 Do not let your hearts betroubled,” any longer, He would
00:07:20.106 say, “nor let it be fearful.”
00:07:22.442 That is, “My peace.
00:07:24.644 That’s the same kind,” He says,”that I have.”
00:07:27.180 Then if you go to the sixteenthchapter and look at the last
00:07:30.016 verse of the sixteenth chapter.
00:07:31.785 Again, He says to them, “Thesethings I have spoken to you, so
00:07:37.924 that in Me you may have peace.
00:07:40.827 In the world you havetribulation, but take courage; I
00:07:44.297 have overcome the world.”
00:07:45.965 So, I want us to understandsomething very, very important
00:07:49.703 here.
00:07:50.804 There is a difference in theBible.
00:07:53.239 There is a difference betweenpeace with God and the peace of
00:07:57.844 God.
00:07:58.745 So I want to explain that.
00:08:00.246 Because the truth is: the firststep to having the peace of God
00:08:07.187 in my life on a continuing,daily basis is making peace with
00:08:11.157 God.
00:08:12.392 So you say, “Well, what’s thatabout?”
00:08:13.860 Well, here’s what the Scripturesays and you may want to follow
00:08:15.695 some of these verses.
00:08:16.896 If you go back to thefifty-ninth chapter of Isaiah
00:08:19.999 for a moment.
00:08:21.167 And if you’ll think about: whatkind of spiritual condition were
00:08:25.505 we in before we trusted JesusChrist as our Savior?
00:08:29.342 And here’s what he says.
00:08:30.510 He says in the fifty-ninthchapter, “Behold, the Lord’s
00:08:34.447 hand is not short that it cannotsave; nor is His ear so dull
00:08:38.985 that it cannot hear.
00:08:40.153 But your iniquities,” that is,your sins, “have made a
00:08:43.990 separation between you and yourGod.”
00:08:46.826 So what he’s saying is simplythis: that sin separates us.
00:08:50.363 We’re talking about ourcondition before we trusted
00:08:52.899 Christ as our Savior.
00:08:54.601 And if you look in the fifthchapter of Romans,
00:08:58.671 here’s what you’ll find.
00:08:59.739 The Bible says that in the ninthverse, “Much more then now,
00:09:04.110 having been justified by Hisblood, we shall be saved from
00:09:07.714 the wrath of God through Him.”
00:09:09.816 Before you trusted Christ asyour personal Savior, the wrath
00:09:13.186 of God was abiding upon you.
00:09:14.921 And then he says, “While we wereenemies we were
00:09:16.990 reconciled to God.”
00:09:17.991 So, think about this: before aperson is saved, God says their
00:09:22.462 sins have separated them fromGod.
00:09:24.697 Secondly, they’re under thewrath of God, that is, the
00:09:27.233 judgment of God.
00:09:28.134 They live under that.
00:09:29.202 And He says they were enemiesof God.
00:09:31.571 Somebody says, “I’m not an enemyof God.”
00:09:33.072 Well, think about this: if youdon’t believe Him, you don’t
00:09:35.508 trust Him, you don’t obey Him,then you’re working against Him
00:09:38.611 in different ways.
00:09:39.712 And what you’re saying is,you’re saying He’s a liar.
00:09:41.881 He says, “I’ll meet your needs.”
00:09:42.949 You say, “No, You won’t.
00:09:43.817 I’ll meet them myself, my ownway.”
00:09:45.819 Well, if you die without Christ,you’re going to be lost forever.
00:09:49.355 I don’t believe that.
00:09:50.256 So, a person who isliving without Christ is
00:09:54.494 an enemy of God.
00:09:55.495 It doesn’t mean that you fightagainst Him, though some do,
00:09:58.431 denying that He even exists.
00:10:00.200 But He says we’re enemies.
00:10:01.935 And we’re enemies to ourselveswhen we’re living that kind
00:10:04.704 of life.
00:10:05.638 We’re enemies of God, he says,under the wrath of God,
00:10:08.108 separated from God.
00:10:09.108 And he says one other thing.
00:10:10.510 He says you can’t haveany peace.
00:10:12.579 You don’t have any peace.
00:10:13.480 So, I want you to turn back toIsaiah for a moment.
00:10:15.682 It’s interesting that threetimes, beginning in this
00:10:19.853 forty-eighth verse and then onover, He mentions here the fact
00:10:24.524 that there is no peace apartfrom our Lord and our
00:10:27.627 relationship to Him.
00:10:29.095 So, in the forty-eighth chapter,in the twenty-second verse,
00:10:33.700 here’s what He says.
00:10:34.968 He says, “‘There is no peace forthe wicked,’ says the Lord.”
00:10:39.205 You say, “Well, I am notwicked.”
00:10:41.207 Well, how do you define wicked?
00:10:42.609 You define wicked like murder,adultery, rape, no.
00:10:45.879 Wickedness is a deliberate,willful rejection of the Son of
00:10:50.850 God whom God sent into thisworld for the primary purpose of
00:10:54.354 dying on the cross, shedding Hisblood and making it possible for
00:10:57.891 us to be saved.
00:10:58.992 To reject that is wickednessindeed.
00:11:01.995 Then He says, for example, inthe fifty-ninth chapter and the
00:11:04.631 eighth verse of Isaiah, “They donot know the way of peace, and
00:11:08.368 there is no justice in theirtracks, they’ve made their paths
00:11:11.437 crooked, whoever treads on themdoes not know peace.”
00:11:14.908 So, what I want you to see isthis: until a person receives
00:11:18.111 Jesus Christ as theirpersonal Savior, you don’t
00:11:20.713 have any peace.
00:11:21.714 Oh, you say, “Yes, I do.
00:11:22.949 I do have peace.”
00:11:23.950 Well, let me ask you a question:what’s going to happen to you
00:11:26.986 when you die?
00:11:27.854 You say, “Well, I don’tknow that.”
00:11:29.589 Well, you mean you’re notconcerned about that?
00:11:32.025 “Well, I’m not concerned aboutthat because what I believe is
00:11:34.928 that I believe that somehoweverybody’s going to get there
00:11:37.463 one way or the other,” but youdon’t know that.
00:11:39.432 And the truth is because it’snot true.
00:11:41.668 I could think of a lot ofthings.
00:11:43.236 Think about your circumstances.
00:11:45.572 Everybody has circumstances, andsometimes they are very
00:11:49.275 difficult and very painful.
00:11:51.811 You may go to a party and feelvery peaceful or happy.
00:11:55.515 There is a difference betweenreal, genuine peace and
00:11:58.084 happiness.
00:11:59.018 When a person has peace, thereis a joy deep down inside.
00:12:03.523 That is, when a person has true,genuine peace, the kind of peace
00:12:06.492 that God’s talking about, whathappens is that peace overrides
00:12:10.663 those feelings of frustration,anxiety, or anger, or whatever
00:12:14.200 may be going on in your lifethat causes you to lose your
00:12:17.270 peace.
00:12:18.404 And so, when you think about thefact that a person is separated
00:12:21.207 from God, under the wrath ofGod, the enemy of God, and has
00:12:24.243 no peace, that’s the conditionof people without Christ.
00:12:28.648 That’s the condition that all ofus have been in at some point in
00:12:31.584 our life before we trusted Jesusas our Savior.
00:12:35.088 Now, with that in mind, here’swhat happens: when a person
00:12:39.158 trusts Jesus Christ as theirSavior, what takes place?
00:12:43.930 What takes place is we say thewar is over, no longer fighting
00:12:47.834 against God, because rememberthis: when you are living
00:12:50.436 without Christ, the Spirit ofGod; the Holy Spirit is
00:12:53.339 continually attempting toconvict a person of their sin
00:12:57.277 and convict them, the Biblesays, of the righteousness
00:12:59.379 of Christ.
00:13:00.313 That is, of His adequacy to paytheir sin debt in full, He’s
00:13:04.784 continually working.
00:13:06.019 They ignore it, yet they can bevery hardened to the work of the
00:13:09.322 Holy Spirit.
00:13:10.690 Their conscience can becomeseared.
00:13:12.759 The Spirit of God comes into aperson’s life to do what?
00:13:16.429 To lead them into a savingrelationship with Jesus Christ.
00:13:19.766 So, when you think about that,Christ died, for example, and in
00:13:24.570 Colossians the first chapter,listen to what he says in this
00:13:28.775 chapter.
00:13:29.776 Colossians chapter one, he talksabout this whole idea of what
00:13:33.880 our Lord’s done for us.
00:13:35.181 And he says that, “Through Him,”that is, through Jesus, “He came
00:13:39.452 to reconcile us to Himself,having made peace through the
00:13:43.790 blood of His cross.”
00:13:44.857 That is, when Jesus Christ came,He died on the cross, made it
00:13:48.428 possible by shedding His bloodfor our sins to be forgiven.
00:13:51.931 So, here’s a person living insin and they want peace, they
00:13:56.836 like to have this kind of peace.
00:13:58.371 What do they have to do?
00:13:59.439 First thing you have to do is todeal with the sin problem in
00:14:01.708 your life.
00:14:03.276 You have to deal with the sinproblem.
00:14:04.944 You have to deal with therelationship problem.
00:14:06.813 He says enemies under the wrath,separated from God, and does not
00:14:11.451 know the way of peace.
00:14:13.619 Well, think about this: thenwhat must happen?
00:14:16.456 I must be willing to receive theLord Jesus Christ as my personal
00:14:20.193 Savior.
00:14:21.094 I must be willing to deal withthis sin issue.
00:14:24.030 The sin issue cannot be ignored.
00:14:26.833 And even when you trust the LordJesus as your Savior, you can’t
00:14:29.836 be at peace with God as long asyou’re sinning against Him.
00:14:32.338 Because He made us a certainway.
00:14:34.507 But what happens here is, whenyou and I trust Him as Savior,
00:14:37.543 for all practical purpose, wegive up the war, we surrender to
00:14:41.748 Him, and what happens?
00:14:43.783 We change our position.
00:14:45.418 We’re no longer enemies underHis wrath and separated from Him
00:14:48.321 and without peace.
00:14:49.655 And what happens is, He says inRomans chapter eight, for
00:14:52.859 example, that we become thechildren of God.
00:14:56.729 And when I think about that,notice what he says in verse
00:14:59.599 fourteen, “For all of us who arebeing led by the Spirit of God,
00:15:03.236 these are the sons of God.
00:15:05.471 For as you have not received aspirit of slavery leading to
00:15:08.307 fear again, but you’ve receiveda spirit of adoption as sons.”
00:15:12.779 So, he says the Spirit of Goditself–Himself testifies to
00:15:16.449 that, and that we become jointheirs with Christ.
00:15:18.785 That is, we’re adopted into thefamily of God.
00:15:20.987 We’re now a member of the familyof God.
00:15:23.256 So, if I’m going to havecontinuing peace in my life, the
00:15:28.127 kind that overrides thosedifficulties and hardships and
00:15:31.497 unchangeable, unmanageablecircumstances in my life,
00:15:36.569 something’s got to happen.
00:15:38.204 And what must happen is I mustlay down my warfare and say,
00:15:42.608 “Lord, I surrender my life toYou.”
00:15:44.343 Trust Him as your personalSavior.
00:15:45.912 And then all that firstdisappears and you have
00:15:48.247 a new position.
00:15:49.282 What’s the new position?
00:15:50.349 Now you’re a forgiven child ofGod, walking in His love,
00:15:54.387 indwelt by the Holy Spirit,sealed by the Holy Spirit, he
00:15:57.924 says, until the day ofredemption, eternally secure in
00:16:00.693 Him, available for God to workin our life and to receive the
00:16:03.896 blessings of life.
00:16:04.864 We have a whole new position.
00:16:07.700 Now, once we have a whole newposition, then what happens?
00:16:11.304 Then we can begin to understandand begin to experience what
00:16:17.443 He’s mentioning here.
00:16:18.411 What He said to His disciples,for example, when He said, “My
00:16:21.914 peace I give to you; not as theworld gives give I unto to you.
00:16:25.785 Let not your heart be troubled.”
00:16:27.587 Now, so think about it in thislight: peace, watch this now,
00:16:31.991 peace with God is a one-timedecision.
00:16:36.429 You receive Christ as yourSavior, the war’s over; you
00:16:39.098 become a child of God.
00:16:40.132 One-time decision.
00:16:42.068 The peace of God is a continuingdecision that you and I make
00:16:47.807 throughout our daily life.
00:16:49.842 We can have it or we can rejectit.
00:16:52.378 We can experience it, enjoy it,or we can neglect it in some
00:16:55.948 fashion.
00:16:56.849 But remember, peace with God:the war’s over; we became a
00:17:00.686 child of God.
00:17:01.787 Now the peace of God that passesall understanding, as Paul said
00:17:05.790 in that fourth chapter ofPhilippians here.
00:17:08.861 What is this peace?
00:17:09.795 Well, you might want to turn toPhilippians four for a moment
00:17:11.731 because I’m going to come backto it in a minute.
00:17:13.766 And notice what he says, hesays, challenging his listeners,
00:17:18.503 he said, “Stop being anxiousabout all these things.
00:17:22.141 Stop being anxious about allthese things.”
00:17:24.076 “But in everything by prayer andsupplication with thanksgiving
00:17:28.247 let your requests be made knownto God.”
00:17:30.716 And the peace, listen now, thepeace of God will garrison you
00:17:36.088 about, protect you in thosetimes.
00:17:38.391 Paul says in Romans chapterfive, verse one; he says,
00:17:41.994 “Therefore, being,” watch this,”Therefore being justified by
00:17:45.264 faith, we have peace with God.”
00:17:48.067 That is, when you trusted Him asyour Savior, now the war is
00:17:50.736 over, you become a child of God,peace with God.
00:17:53.339 “Therefore being justified byfaith, we have peace with God.”
00:17:56.943 Then, if you want the peace ofGod, that is a daily issue in
00:18:02.048 all of our lives.
00:18:03.316 And if I should ask you: howmany of you can control your
00:18:05.751 circumstances?
00:18:07.019 Not a one of us.
00:18:08.754 How many of you can manipulatethem?
00:18:10.623 Not much.
00:18:11.891 How many of you’d like to changeyour circumstances?
00:18:14.226 Probably most people.
00:18:15.995 Well, how can you live with thiscontinuing peace?
00:18:20.333 This serenity?
00:18:21.734 This inner quietness?
00:18:23.636 This inner sense of security andtranquility that overrides no
00:18:28.607 matter what’s going on aroundus, how can we experience that?
00:18:32.378 Well, we can because it’s theoffer of our Lord Himself.
00:18:36.415 Now, I want you to go back toJohn for a moment in that
00:18:41.487 fourteenth chapter, and let’slook to see what He said.
00:18:45.491 He said in this fourteenthchapter and the twenty-seventh
00:18:48.361 verse, if you’ll notice how Hedistinguishes between the two.
00:18:53.032 He says, “My peace I give toyou, not as the world gives
00:18:58.104 give I unto you.”
00:18:59.105 He says, “Let not your hearts betroubled, any longer.”
00:19:02.541 Now, when He said, “My peace Igive to you,” what did He mean
00:19:07.179 when He said, “My peace”?
00:19:09.682 Well, He’s certainly talkingabout a different kind of peace
00:19:12.618 than we’d had before.
00:19:14.053 And when He says, listen, “Notas the world gives.”
00:19:17.490 So, what is Jesus saying?
00:19:18.557 He says there’s a differencebetween the peace He gives and
00:19:21.627 the peace that the world has tooffer.
00:19:23.829 Wealth doesn’t give you peace.
00:19:26.198 And prosperity doesn’t give youpeace.
00:19:28.701 When you’re seeking peace in thewrong places, the very things
00:19:33.439 you seek to make you peacefulmake you less peaceful, put you
00:19:39.311 in a worse condition than youwere before.
00:19:42.281 Jesus said, “My peace I giveunto you, not as the world
00:19:45.651 gives out.”
00:19:46.552 He says, “That’s not goingto work.”
00:19:48.387 And you and I, maybe you’reexperiencing that kind of thing
00:19:51.590 today, or you and I know plentyof people who have no peace
00:19:56.362 whatsoever.
00:19:57.496 And if you ask them why they’renot peaceful, they could tell
00:20:00.766 you who’s making their lifemiserable or what’s made their
00:20:03.869 life miserable or what they hadand what they lost and all of
00:20:07.073 these things, because all ofthese are changing situations
00:20:10.009 and circumstances.
00:20:11.043 And when you think about it, youthink about it in this light: if
00:20:16.148 you can’t manage yourcircumstances, you can’t control
00:20:19.852 your circumstances; well, howwould you–in other words, how
00:20:23.856 long will you have this?
00:20:25.524 And everybody’s lost enoughmoney to know you may have it
00:20:28.661 today, but you may not have ittomorrow.
00:20:31.097 The truth is, all circumstancesare like that.
00:20:33.299 They can’t be controlled.
00:20:34.800 And here’s Jesus saying, Hesays, “Look, trust Me.”
00:20:39.672 He says, “The peace that I giveyou is going to be totally
00:20:42.575 different from all the peacethat you’ve had before.”
00:20:45.845 So, what is this peace thatJesus offers?
00:20:49.482 Well, first of all, it has to dowith Him.
00:20:51.684 He said, “My peace.”
00:20:54.820 Remember what Jesus said aboutHis relationship to the Father?
00:20:58.557 He said, “If you’ve seen Me,you’ve seen the Father.
00:21:01.994 I and the Father are one.”
00:21:03.863 And so, if He and the Father areone, the peace that He’s
00:21:07.366 offering us is godly peace.
00:21:10.336 It is a heavenly peace.
00:21:12.605 It is a practical peace.
00:21:14.573 It is a peace, listen, thatdoesn’t come and go with
00:21:17.443 circumstances.
00:21:18.477 It is a peace that be can becontinuing.
00:21:21.180 Jesus said, “My peace I give toyou.”
00:21:24.617 Don’t allow your heart to betroubled any longer.
00:21:29.021 It comes from Him.
00:21:30.489 So, you are looking and tryingto find some peace in your life
00:21:33.726 and you’ve tried this andyou’ve tried that and you’ve
00:21:35.995 tried the other.
00:21:36.896 There’s only one place to findit and that’s Jesus.
00:21:40.166 You say, “Well, I don’t evenbelieve in Him,” then you’ll
00:21:41.700 never have peace.
00:21:44.403 You say, “Well, I’ve triedthat.”
00:21:46.238 No, no, listen, once youunderstand what it means to have
00:21:51.744 a personal relationship withJesus Christ and you understand
00:21:56.148 that, you’ll discover that youcan have a peace that overrides
00:22:00.486 anything and everything that youhave to face in life.
00:22:03.956 You say, “Well, that doesn’teven sound reasonable.”
00:22:06.091 It’s not reasonable.
00:22:06.959 That’s what Paul said.
00:22:07.860 He said–he says it surpassesunderstanding.
00:22:11.530 There is a peace, there is atranquility.
00:22:14.233 And you see, in the Greek, theword peace means to bind
00:22:17.069 together.
00:22:18.370 So, what happens?
00:22:19.538 Jesus was talking about Hisrelationship to the Father.
00:22:22.908 His relationship to the Fatherwas one.
00:22:25.144 That is, what brings us intothat relationship is a sense of
00:22:29.348 oneness.
00:22:30.749 Now, when you think aboutoneness, you think about two
00:22:34.486 people, for example, who havethe same ideas maybe about
00:22:36.755 things who are in agreement.
00:22:39.959 And I think of all the wordsthat I could use.
00:22:42.461 I would say the word “agreement”is probably the best one.
00:22:45.531 And that is, when you and JesusChrist, when you and God the
00:22:50.202 Father, when you and the Spiritof God, when you are in
00:22:53.005 agreement with Him, there’sgoing to be peace.
00:22:55.741 When you’re in disagreement,there’s not going to be.
00:22:57.977 Which simply says this: you canbe a believer and not experience
00:23:03.282 this continuing peace of God.
00:23:04.650 Why?
00:23:05.651 If you’re in disagreement withGod about your life when He
00:23:08.287 knows what is best, He has thebest will for your life, the
00:23:10.656 best plan, and you’re indisagreement about it.
00:23:13.158 You say, “Well, what do youmean?”
00:23:14.159 I mean simply this: here’s whatyou want to do, but you know in
00:23:17.029 your heart that’s not what Godwants you to do.
00:23:19.098 And so, you wrestle, you’refretting with God about it.
00:23:22.368 You don’t have any peace.
00:23:23.469 As long as you’re out of thewill of God, you’re not going to
00:23:25.371 have any peace.
00:23:26.372 And the truth is, the more youknow Him and the better you know
00:23:30.509 Him, then boy, you know that foryou to violate the will of God,
00:23:34.813 step out of the will of God,argue with God, become angry
00:23:37.616 with God, try to walk away fromHim, you’re not going to have
00:23:40.619 any peace.
00:23:42.021 It’s absolutely impossible.
00:23:43.689 He is the source of peace.
00:23:46.225 And that’s what Paul said inEphesians chapter two.
00:23:49.695 He says, “Jesus is our peace.”
00:23:52.698 When you trusted Him as yourpersonal Savior, He came into
00:23:56.368 your life to dwell in thepresence of the Holy Spirit.
00:23:59.938 You have the peace of God withinyou and you can, you have the
00:24:07.046 capacity to experience thispeace that is absolutely capable
00:24:12.184 of enabling you to override thepain, the heartache, the
00:24:15.654 suffering, the misunderstanding,and all the things that you and
00:24:18.490 I deal with in life.
00:24:20.292 So, I want you to turn to thethirty-third verse of this
00:24:23.529 sixteenth chapter again now.
00:24:25.664 Now, He’s been talking to them,say fourteenth, fifteenth,
00:24:27.933 sixteenth chapters andencouraging them.
00:24:30.703 Remember He said to them,”I’m not going to leave
00:24:31.637 you as orphans.”
00:24:32.638 So, these are tremendouslyencouraging chapters to anybody.
00:24:36.909 Then He says in the thirty-thirdverse, “These things I’ve spoken
00:24:40.179 to you, so that,” listen, “inMe,” not in the world.
00:24:46.352 That is, from Me, not from theworld, “in Me you may
00:24:51.323 have peace.
00:24:52.324 In the world, tribulation, but,”He says, “take courage, I have
00:24:56.295 overcome the world.”
00:24:58.297 Now, what is He saying?
00:24:59.765 He’s saying simply this, thatthe key to peace is a
00:25:03.502 relationship with Jesus.
00:25:06.238 Now, watch this, watch thiscarefully: where do people look
00:25:10.142 for peace?
00:25:12.211 In circumstances.
00:25:13.712 If I could just change thiscircumstance and change that.
00:25:17.349 If I could have this or havethat.
00:25:19.351 That’s where they lookfor peace.
00:25:20.586 He said, “No, it’s not incircumstances, it’s in a
00:25:22.721 relationship.”
00:25:25.891 And until a person has apersonal relationship by faith,
00:25:30.229 having surrendered themself toChrist and then beginning to
00:25:33.665 live obediently before Him,there’s not going to be
00:25:36.135 any peace.
00:25:37.136 “My peace I give to you.”
00:25:39.038 He says, “This peace that I’moffering is in Me.
00:25:43.041 It’s in a relationship.”
00:25:46.478 And that relationship must be arelationship of faith and of
00:25:49.581 obedience and of love towardHim.
00:25:53.185 You can search the world over.
00:25:56.054 You can have all of the world’swealth.
00:25:58.457 You can travel here and afar.
00:26:00.926 You can do anything andeverything you want to do.
00:26:03.962 There is one single source ofpeace.
00:26:06.665 You say, “I don’t even believein that Jesus.”
00:26:09.168 Then I’m telling you you’re notgoing to have any peace, because
00:26:13.372 how are you going to have it?
00:26:15.674 The only thing you can do is tryto control your circumstances,
00:26:19.878 and you can’t control them.
00:26:22.781 So where are you going to findpeace?
00:26:24.550 You have to resort to what Jesussaid: the world.
00:26:27.152 So, if I had this and had thatand had this and had that and
00:26:30.088 him, her, and all these things;but you can’t control that and
00:26:32.891 you can’t do that.
00:26:34.626 And even if you do, it’s onlytemporary.
00:26:37.162 Then when you come to die thenwhat are you going to do?
00:26:40.299 There’s one source of peace.
00:26:41.834 And, listen carefully, youcannot, you cannot, you cannot,
00:26:45.704 you cannot live in disobedienceto the will of God and have
00:26:49.007 peace, period.
00:26:50.375 It doesn’t make any differencehow much alcohol you drink, how
00:26:52.978 much drugs you have, how muchsex you have, how many marriages
00:26:55.714 you have, how much wealth youhave; none of it is going to
00:26:58.917 give you peace.
00:27:01.186 He’s made it very simple.
00:27:03.055 And He says, “Besides, the peaceI’m going to give you is going
00:27:05.958 to be so awesome, you can’t evenunderstand it.
00:27:08.126 You won’t even be able tounderstand why you can be so
00:27:11.230 tranquil and serene in yourheart when everything around you
00:27:15.033 is falling apart.”
00:27:17.002 That’s what Paul said: it’sbeyond our understanding, but it
00:27:20.005 is not beyond our experience.
00:27:23.375 I may not be able to understandit, but I can experience it.
00:27:26.912 So, think about this: He said,”I and the Father are one.
00:27:30.782 You’ve seen Me, you’ve seen theFather.”
00:27:32.451 He and the Father had perfectoneness with each other.
00:27:35.387 So, let me ask you thisquestion: what is it in your
00:27:38.390 life that’s keeping you frombeing one with the Lord Jesus?
00:27:44.329 Let’s say, for example, thatyou’re saved, you know you are.
00:27:46.698 The war’s over, you’ve become achild of God.
00:27:48.834 He’s your heavenly Father, butthere’s no peace.
00:27:52.938 There’s something in your lifethat’s causing you, cheating
00:27:58.343 you, depriving you of havingthis awesome sense of peace that
00:28:03.649 He offers.
00:28:05.017 That’s something the Spirit ofGod may have already prompted
00:28:08.620 your mind to think about even asthis message began.
00:28:12.724 Or it may be that right now,you’re thinking about it, “Well,
00:28:15.227 you know, I–God and I arearguing about this, and I don’t
00:28:17.930 like this.
00:28:18.931 And I want to changethat in my life.”
00:28:20.799 And you’re not at peace.
00:28:22.834 What are you going to doabout it?
00:28:24.636 There’re some things you can’tchange in life.
00:28:27.205 So, you’re going to go throughlife miserable because you can’t
00:28:29.541 change them?
00:28:30.709 There are some diseases thatseems–there doesn’t seem to be
00:28:33.946 any healing for.
00:28:34.813 What are you going to do?
00:28:35.714 Just say, “Well, you know, I’mjust going to blame God the rest
00:28:40.319 of my life,” and that’s notgoing to do any good.
00:28:45.490 You cannot live in sin andhave peace.
00:28:47.893 You cannot.
00:28:48.961 You can reason it any way youwant to.
00:28:51.697 You cannot have peace and livein sin toward Holy God who loved
00:28:57.169 you enough to die for you, wholoved you enough to not only
00:29:00.439 save you, but, listen, to comeinto your life in the presence
00:29:04.242 and power of the Holy Spirit anddo what?
00:29:07.679 And provide this peace.
00:29:08.780 Now, remember what the Biblesays about the Holy Spirit for a
00:29:11.617 few moments.
00:29:12.985 Remember what He said to Hisdisciples?
00:29:14.419 He said, “I’m going away, butI’m going to send you the
00:29:17.990 Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whowill be in you and with you
00:29:22.894 forever.”
00:29:24.096 Well, why did He send Him?
00:29:25.530 You remember what He said to Hisdisciples?
00:29:26.765 He said to them, “Now look, yourcommission is to go into all
00:29:30.335 world and preach the gospel, butyou’re not ready.”
00:29:33.639 They walked with Him forthree years and watched
00:29:34.940 all of His miracles.
00:29:35.841 “What do you mean it–we’re not ready?”
00:29:36.908 “You’re not ready.
00:29:37.843 I want you to sit down,” that’swhat the word tarry means.
00:29:40.979 “I want you to sit down in thecity of Jerusalem and wait until
00:29:45.784 you are endued with power fromon high.
00:29:48.820 Wait until the Holy Spirit comesupon you and in you, and then
00:29:54.459 you’ll be ready to do the workthat I’ve called you to do.”
00:29:57.262 Now, think about this: when youtrusted the Lord Jesus Christ as
00:30:00.399 your personal Savior, the HolySpirit came into your life sent
00:30:04.469 by God, listen, for the primarypurpose of enabling you and me
00:30:09.107 to experience and to do and toachieve what, humanly, we never
00:30:13.345 can.
00:30:16.615 That’s why He came.
00:30:17.983 He is the omnipotent person ofthe Trinity even as the Son and
00:30:23.321 the Father.
00:30:24.823 He is omniscient,He knows all things.
00:30:27.159 When you trusted Him asyour Savior, He came to dwell
00:30:30.362 within you.
00:30:31.363 He resides in your life today.
00:30:35.367 You say, “Well, I’m not much ofa Christian.”
00:30:36.902 But if you’re a true, genuine,born-again believer, then you
00:30:40.472 are indwelt by the Holy Spirit.
00:30:42.908 You may be ignoring Him, and ifyou don’t have any peace, more
00:30:45.811 than likely you are.
00:30:46.778 Now, why did He come?
00:30:48.113 He came to enable us to becomeand to achieve what His will is
00:30:52.818 for our life and for the kingdomof God.
00:30:54.986 Now, what does the Bible sayabout Him?
00:30:58.457 The Scripture says that theSpirit of God, listen, the fruit
00:31:02.527 of the Spirit–now what’s that?
00:31:04.496 That is–that’s what Heproduces.
00:31:07.365 “The fruit of the Spirit islove, joy, peace, goodness,
00:31:12.604 kindness, gentleness,self-control,” and all the rest.
00:31:15.207 Nine fruits of the Spirit.
00:31:16.908 The fruit, listen, He says thefruit of the Spirit, when the
00:31:20.378 Spirit of God comes into yourlife, what is His
00:31:22.948 responsibility?
00:31:24.149 His responsibility, if you andI, listen, if we will be at one
00:31:28.420 with Him, if we will cooperatewith Him, He will do what?
00:31:33.558 He will enable us to have loveand joy and peace and goodness
00:31:39.164 and kindness and serenity andself-control.
00:31:42.567 In other words, all of thesethings are the
00:31:44.569 fruit of the Spirit.
00:31:45.504 That is, it’s what Heproduces in us.
00:31:48.306 Circumstances are not the issue.
00:31:50.542 Whenever I am at one with Him,He is able to live out through
00:31:55.147 your life and my life everythingwe want to become.
00:31:59.417 Do you not want to be a personwho loves and has joy and peace?
00:32:04.356 And a person who’s really good?
00:32:06.591 In other words, everything youand I desire to be, everything
00:32:11.396 that is essential to being likeour Savior, the Spirit of God
00:32:16.301 produces within us.
00:32:18.270 So, what’s my responsibility?
00:32:20.038 My responsibility is to be atone with Him.
00:32:24.109 Jesus said, “My peace I giveunto to you.”
00:32:26.344 He says, “In Me,” Jesussays, “In Me is where you
00:32:29.080 find that peace.
00:32:30.048 Not in the world, but in Me.”
00:32:31.883 This is why it is futile, it isa waste of time, it is a waste
00:32:36.588 of resources, it’s a waste of aperson’s life.
00:32:39.758 Why live miserable when you canhave peace?
00:32:43.061 You say, “But you don’t know mycircumstances.”
00:32:44.996 That’s not the issue.
00:32:46.431 Could they be any worse thanthat group of disciples who were
00:32:49.067 there with Jesus, and all of asudden, all the things He
00:32:51.036 taught them?
00:32:51.903 “I and the Father are one.
00:32:52.971 I could bring down legions ofangels.”
00:32:54.773 And now You’re talking aboutbeing crucified.
00:32:56.842 You’re talking about leaving us.
00:32:57.909 None of that made any sense.
00:32:59.978 But He said, “My peace will giveyou the capacity to make sense
00:33:04.182 out of it.”
00:33:06.151 What I want you to see is this:there is peace with God, which
00:33:12.424 happens when you trust Him asyour Savior.
00:33:14.292 The war is over.
00:33:16.828 There is the peace of God thatonly comes when you live
00:33:20.866 surrendered to Him.
00:33:22.767 Listen, He says, “I and theFather are one.”
00:33:25.437 You know what Jesus wants of ofus?
00:33:27.305 What God wants of us?
00:33:28.306 He wants us to be at onenesswith Him.
00:33:31.076 What does that mean?
00:33:32.244 It means I want to walk inagreement with Him.
00:33:35.881 Would you not agree thatcertainly it’s wise to walk in
00:33:38.750 agreement with Jesus, to walk inagreement with the will of God?
00:33:42.487 Do I know something God doesn’tknow?
00:33:44.823 Do I have power that He doesn’thave?
00:33:47.425 Does He do I know ways that Hedoes not know?
00:33:50.662 Can–do I have strength that’ssufficient within myself?
00:33:55.166 No, I don’t.
00:33:56.735 He says, “I and the Father areone.”
00:34:01.539 He said, “You can find peace inMe,” that is, in a personal
00:34:06.311 relationship with Jesus Christ,you can have peace.
00:34:10.382 That is the only place you’regoing to find it.
00:34:15.152 Now, I know somebody says,”Well, but you know, I think I
00:34:17.688 can have it without Him.”
00:34:19.690 Well, let me ask you a question.
00:34:21.860 If I gave you a piece of paperand said, “Describe your present
00:34:24.129 life to me,” I guarantee youyou’d bring up some things that
00:34:28.300 you’d like to change.
00:34:30.001 You’re not happy about them.
00:34:31.235 Now, does this mean that youwill reach some stage in your
00:34:35.040 life where there’ll no–be in nomore troubles and no more
00:34:38.009 heartaches and everything’sgoing to go smooth?
00:34:39.978 No, it doesn’t.
00:34:41.146 Jesus didn’t have that.
00:34:42.313 But here’s what it means.
00:34:43.614 It doesn’t mean the absence inour circumstances of all things
00:34:48.320 that would trouble us, but itsimply means this: because of
00:34:51.790 that intimate relationship,because I know who He is and who
00:34:57.094 He is in me and who I am in Him,and because of these awesome
00:35:01.399 promises He’s made, because Helives out every promise He’s
00:35:05.637 ever made, because of who He iswithin me, because within me
00:35:10.609 there is the living God in thepresence of the Spirit of God.
00:35:14.179 No matter what comes our way, nomatter how awful the
00:35:17.916 circumstances, no matter howawesome they may be, no matter
00:35:20.652 how often they change, there canbe a tranquility, a serenity, a
00:35:25.757 calmness, and a quietness thatanchors my soul so that I’m not
00:35:30.695 blown by the winds of adversityand heartache, not like the
00:35:34.132 waves of the sea, but absolutelystabilized because Jesus
00:35:43.074 is our peace.
00:35:45.710 There is no other way.
00:35:48.847 I’d be happy for somebody totell me is there any other way
00:35:50.582 to have peace?
00:35:51.716 When he said–Paul said,”He is our peace.”
00:35:55.820 And He knew that being withinus, He’s the source of our peace
00:36:00.225 every single day if I understandthat.
00:36:07.332 Now, listen, do I have anyresponsibility?
00:36:09.200 Yes, I do.
00:36:10.669 One of those things I mustremember is this: that I must,
00:36:17.876 watch this, I must claim whatis mine.
00:36:22.547 What is mine?
00:36:23.415 What is yours?
00:36:24.549 You have the Spirit of Godwithin you.
00:36:28.586 You have the awesomesupernatural power of God
00:36:32.490 within you.
00:36:34.325 You have the potential foreverything God has for your life
00:36:38.596 within you throughthe Holy Spirit.
00:36:41.066 I have to claim it.
00:36:42.367 So, I come into a situation thatcould cause me a lot of turmoil.
00:36:45.236 I have to claim who I am.
00:36:47.505 I’m a child of God.
00:36:48.707 What I have?
00:36:49.607 The Spirit of God within me whois the source of peace within
00:36:52.677 my life.
00:36:54.245 And the second thing I must dois to get my focus right.
00:36:57.882 Whatever you focus on, whentroubles and trials and
00:37:02.887 heartache come, He says, “I’m toset my focus upon Him.”
00:37:06.458 Why?
00:37:07.459 Because He is your peace.
00:37:11.262 He’s not just the source of it.
00:37:12.497 He is your peace.
00:37:14.199 And you say, “Well, you mean totell me that if I’m going
00:37:16.401 through pain, I’m to focuson Him?”
00:37:18.169 Yes.Why?
00:37:20.271 Well, focusing on paindoes what?
00:37:21.940 Just makes it worse.
00:37:23.708 When I’m, watch this, I’m goingto show you how it works in
00:37:25.677 a moment.
00:37:27.679 And so, what do you do?
00:37:28.580 You trust Him to be what He saidHe would be and to provide what
00:37:33.818 He said He would provide.
00:37:36.020 Now, if He is my peace, what isHe going to do?
00:37:41.826 When He sees me hurting andgoing through some trial or some
00:37:45.330 difficulty, what is He goingto do?
00:37:47.532 When I focus upon Him, He isgoing to remind me of
00:37:53.404 some things.
00:37:55.106 “You’re my son and I love you.
00:37:58.209 And remember, I’m only going toallow those things in your life,
00:38:02.847 when you respond correctlythat’s going to turn out for
00:38:04.983 your good.
00:38:06.317 So I know you’re hurting today,it’s going to turn out for
00:38:08.653 your good.
00:38:09.521 I know you miss her, but it’sgoing to turn out for your good.
00:38:12.223 I know you’ve lost him, but it’sgoing to turn, I’m going to
00:38:14.425 show you–”
00:38:15.360 In other words, listen, when Godis reassuring you in the midst
00:38:20.532 of heartache and trial andtribulation in your life, when
00:38:23.935 He is there to reassure you thatHe understands, He’s going to
00:38:28.206 bring you through this, youdon’t have to give in, you don’t
00:38:31.442 have to give up.
00:38:32.544 You don’t have to throw up yourhands.
00:38:33.812 You trust Him.
00:38:35.980 That’s what the whole Christianlife is about.
00:38:39.150 And many of us have lived longenough to understand and have
00:38:42.353 gone through enough differentkind of troubles and heartaches
00:38:44.522 that what I’m saying to you isabsolutely the truth.
00:38:48.960 The Bible says it is the truth.
00:38:51.029 And I want you to understand,you do not have to be thrown
00:38:54.499 off course.
00:38:55.400 You do not have tothrow up your hands.
00:38:57.402 You do not have to go to alcoholand drugs and sex and immorality
00:39:00.438 and all the rest.
00:39:02.340 It’s Christ, Jesus within you.
00:39:06.010 He says, “I am your peace.
00:39:08.279 In Me,” He says, “you find it.”
00:39:12.550 Then we make a choice.
00:39:14.852 We make a choice to fuss aboutour circumstances, try to change
00:39:18.656 our circumstances and argue withGod about them.
00:39:22.660 Or we say, “All right, Lord, Yousaid You are my peace.
00:39:27.031 I’m claiming that byfaith right now.
00:39:30.001 That in spite of what I’m goingthrough, You’re going to
00:39:32.904 tranquilize my heart.
00:39:34.672 You’re going to give me aserenity and quietness and
00:39:36.741 assurance and the comfortin my life.”
00:39:39.010 I’m here to tell you I’ve beena Christian long enough.
00:39:41.879 For sixty-five yearsI’ve been a believer.
00:39:44.115 He keeps His word.
00:39:49.120 And I think any pastor can tellyou, we’ve all been through
00:39:52.624 enough stuff that if you can betried, tested, tempted,
00:39:58.830 brow-beaten, you name it, thereis a peace that absolutely
00:40:05.637 overrides everything the devilcan throw at you.
00:40:10.174 It’s yours for the asking.
00:40:13.044 You see, you say, “What mustI do?”
00:40:15.046 Just what I said: claim it.
00:40:18.483 In other words, it’s yours.
00:40:21.653 Trust Him.
00:40:23.321 Get your focus on Him.
00:40:24.455 He’s the–in other words, He’sthe source.
00:40:26.591 Let me ask you a question: howdid you get saved?
00:40:31.596 “Well, I did thefollowing things.”
00:40:33.298 No, no, no, no, no.
00:40:34.399 You only did one thing.
00:40:37.435 God made this so simple.
00:40:38.770 You only did one thing.
00:40:40.505 You trusted Him to do whatHe said He would do.
00:40:45.076 He said if you would confessyour sins, place your trust in
00:40:48.780 Him as your personal Savior,He’d save you.
00:40:50.515 That’s what you did.
00:40:52.116 You didn’t have to raise a hand.
00:40:53.951 You didn’t have to take a step.
00:40:55.053 You didn’t go anywhere.
00:40:55.920 You didn’t give anything.
00:40:56.821 In other words, you trusted Him.
00:40:58.389 And what did He do?
00:40:59.657 He changed your eternal destinyin that moment.
00:41:04.462 He wrote your name in theLamb’s Book of Life.
00:41:06.431 You’re a child of theliving God.
00:41:08.466 And what did you do?
00:41:09.500 You accepted.
00:41:10.968 You received whatHe had to offer.
00:41:17.041 If He can do that in a one-timeevent, can He not do that every
00:41:21.079 day of your life?
00:41:22.013 Yes!
00:41:23.881 It’s a matter of trusting Him,claiming it and getting your
00:41:26.984 focus on the source of peacerather than on the source of
00:41:31.656 your frustration.
00:41:35.493 You must not forget this messagebecause I can tell you, you
00:41:38.663 already know this.
00:41:39.564 In fact, you’re sitting there,maybe somewhere in your home or
00:41:42.633 wherever it may be and you’rethere and you’re so frustrated.
00:41:46.070 Your circumstances are totallyout of control.
00:41:51.109 All I want you to do is to atleast consider this: if Jesus
00:41:55.980 said something, don’t you thinkit’s the truth?
00:41:59.684 Secondly, listen to this, manypeople don’t believe in Jesus.
00:42:05.256 Has anybody ever namedone sin He committed?
00:42:09.694 Never.
00:42:11.996 There are people who don’t evenbelieve in Him will say,
00:42:13.498 “Well, I know He’s a good man.”
00:42:14.499 Well, how good was He?
00:42:15.566 So good He never made a mistake.
00:42:17.001 So good He never sinned.
00:42:18.369 Wait a minute, there must besomething different about Him.
00:42:20.505 You know why?
00:42:21.372 Because He’s the Son of God.
00:42:23.775 And that Son of God has chosento live within your life and my
00:42:27.979 life through the presence of theHoly Spirit.
00:42:31.015 So, if somebody were to ask me:what is the Christian life?
00:42:33.684 Here’s what I would say: theChristian life is this: it is
00:42:38.556 the acceptance of Jesus Christas my personal Savior through
00:42:41.359 faith and His work at the crossof shedding His blood and
00:42:45.830 bringing about atonement for mysin.
00:42:47.932 And then indwelling me with theHoly Spirit whose responsibility
00:42:54.105 it is to live out the life ofJesus through me because that’s
00:43:00.812 what He does.
00:43:02.814 It isn’t what we do, it’s whatHe does.
00:43:04.849 So, what is my responsibility?
00:43:06.551 To yield to Him.
00:43:08.085 You see, as long as there’soneness, I can have peace.
00:43:12.623 And when I decide that I don’tagree with Him about anything,
00:43:17.495 my peace is gone.
00:43:22.433 Does it get any simplerthan that?
00:43:24.635 I didn’t say it was easy, butit’s simple.
00:43:28.706 You want peace?
00:43:31.042 You got to have Jesus.
00:43:33.911 Give up the war fightingagainst Him.
00:43:35.613 No longer an enemy.
00:43:36.647 No longer under wrath.
00:43:38.216 No longer separated from Him.
00:43:40.885 No longer without peace.
00:43:42.520 It is yours for the asking.
00:43:45.156 He will not disappoint you.
00:43:51.662 What do they call Jesus?
00:43:53.664 The Prince of Peace.
00:43:58.903 The Source of Peace.
00:44:01.305 He’s the Giver of Peace.
00:44:03.274 It’s all about a personalrelationship with God through
00:44:08.913 His Son Jesus Christ.
00:44:11.749 That is the source of continuingpeace that works every day in
00:44:16.487 a person’s life.
00:44:18.523 And Father, how grateful we arethat Your Word’s so full of
00:44:23.561 awesome truth.
00:44:27.265 You’ve made it so simplein points.
00:44:31.269 I pray the Holy Spirit willspeak to every single person who
00:44:36.140 hears this message to realizeI’ve just told them what
00:44:40.478 You’ve said.
00:44:42.747 I’ve just told them what Youclaimed about Yourself: that You
00:44:45.883 and the Father are one.
00:44:46.884 You’re the Source of Peace.
00:44:47.919 “In Me,” You said, “is peace.
00:44:50.021 My peace I give to you.”
00:44:52.023 That each person, whatever theircircumstance would recognize
00:44:57.528 that upon acceptance of Christas Savior, their potential for
00:45:01.699 peace becomes a living realitywithin their hearts.
00:45:07.505 And their willingness tosurrender to Him makes it
00:45:13.311 possible to face everything,every day with an awesome sense
00:45:22.520 of indescribable peace.
00:45:25.289 I pray the Holy Spirit will ringthis in their ears, God.
00:45:30.061 Stir it in their heart and sendthem enough of whatever’s
00:45:33.764 necessary that they would put itto work, put it to practice,
00:45:37.868 claim it for themselves.
00:45:40.037 In Jesus’s name, amen.
00:45:44.275 male announcer: If you’ve beenblessed by today’s program,
00:45:46.544 please visit us at intouch.org.