The Clio messenger. (Clio, Mich.) 1907-current, 1920-09-02

text is not peace with God. AS has fire.
quently been said by students of the
Word of God. there is peace with
God" and Il 'peace of God" We be-
lieve thar the peace of this text is the
latter. The disciples of Jesus proba-
bly, quite fully understood what the
peace with God" was, hut they did
not know tie "peace of God" Peace
with God" is quite legal; while the
peace referred 10 here has to do with
mans experience.
Quite uniformly through all the his
tory of Christian experience. we have
testimony 10 this. The Psalmist says,
Great peace have they that love thy
law" The prophet Isaiah had the same
idea when he said, Thou wilt keep
him in perfect peace whose mind Is
stayed OH thee" Jesus sometimes
spoke TO his disciples that they might
have peace although they already had
peac" with God. Paul wrote TO the
Philippan Christians of the peace OF
God that pasSeth all understanding"
and prays for the Thessalonian
Christians that the "God of peace
give them peace" This peace spoken
OF in all these passages was certainly
Il peace of experience. and he Chris
tian does very wrong who permits him
self TO be perturbed and agitated, and
is bound TO maintain in all his expert
ence the spirit of peace.
The Peace That the World Gives.
In the text Jesus said that the world
gives peace. This may be questioned
by some at first thought, but IL is
fact that there is pleasure in sin. The
world does give what we may fairly
call peace, although temporarily.
Now Jesus says that there is a
difference between the peace of the
world and the peace he gives. The
world gives only to the lowest part of
man, the flesh. The world never
gives except for pay, therefore,
really never gives. whatsoever
man soweth that shall he also reap"
A man who yields 10 the world must
remember that the world is a Shylock,
and will demand the pound of iesh.
Furthermore, the world never salts
fies. John Ruskin has said tina, the
satellites of the flesh belong TO the bit
terest experience Of men. There is
momentary pleasure in sin TO the
normal man. but this pleasure does
not reach the deeper nature of man,
and cannot therefore satisfy.
The Peace That Jesus Gives.
H.
give as the world gives, and running
the parallel, we may say that he
gives to the highest part of man. that
is, he gives 10 the spiritual. In the
last year and q half of our Lords
life he was in the midst of all kinds
of opposition, but he always main
tanned a spirit of quletness. His spirit
prevailing over the flesh; and he
would have his followers have the
same experience.
Jesus literally gives his peace to the
world, asking nothing in return. He
said, 81 give unto them eternal life"
and "Come unto me all We that labor
and are heavy laden, and / will give
you rest"
This peace Of Christ's satisfies. The
Psalmist said, "He satisfeth the long
ing soul, and filleth the hungry soul
with goodness" This peace enabled
Job TO say in the midst of his many
troubles, BLESSED be the name of the
Lord" President William Mckinley
as he lay dying repeated the words.
Nearer my God to Thee. nearer TO
Thee"
This Peace Tested by Jesus Himself.
/. This peace is Gods own peace.
Whatever commotion there may be on
the earth, or indeed in the universe,
God is calm and at peace. and this
peace was the peace that Jesus Christ
himself tested on this earth. "Niy
peace / give unto you That peace
sustained him before the mob that
attacked him In Gethsemane; when
he stood before PLATE and Herod; as
he gazed on tho crowds about the
cross hooking him. and said, "Father.
forgive them, for they know not what
they do"