John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. ...Do not let your hearts be troubled."
This was all our Savior had that He could leave to His disciples, but what a precious legacy -- the peace of God! "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you."
Peace does not come easily these days. Pressures from without and pressures from within disturb our peace. Our nerves are taut. We cannot relax. We are restless, worried, irritable. The burden and demands of work, the guilt of sin, the fear of death, and sometimes the fear of life -- these wear us down. We have no peace.
Christ offers us His peace! He offers us the same serenity with which He went to Golgotha. He calms our troubled hearts with the same peace that stilled the Sea of Galilee and the fear-filled hearts of His disciples. He grants the same peace He breathed on His apostles when He commissioned them, "Peace I leave with you."
The peace He grants is the peace of a clean heart and a right spirit, the peace of guilt removed and sins forgiven, the peace of fellowship with God that gives us strength for every burden and sufficient resources for every task. It is the peace of God that passes understanding. Nothing can disturb it.
PRAYER: Grant us Your strength, O Lord, beneath the crushing load of life, and through Christ let us find peace in You. Amen.
(Taken from "Words of Promise," copyright 1996, Concordia Publishing House (out of print). For information on other devotional materials, call 1-800-325-3040.)
Today's Bible Readings: Proverbs 2-4 John 19:23-42
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