“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” – John 14:27
Jesus doesn’t operate the same way everyone and everything else does in this world. He doesn’t operate the way you might expect Him to. He doesn’t give in the selfish, transactional, manipulative way the world usually gives. He gives His followers peace and it’s far different from what and how the world gives. The world imagines peace as the absence of conflict, difficulty, or stress and Christians often accept that definition to their detriment. Such peace is elusive and illusory because we live in a fallen world that is ravaged by human sin. We keep chasing the world’s peace but it doesn’t come or it doesn’t last very long.
Jesus gives His followers peace in their hearts despite the presence of conflict, difficulty, and stress in the world. He knows we live in a fallen world. Just as Jesus overcame the world, He empowers His followers to overcome the chaos, trials, violence, and suffering of the world even when they continue. He gives us the ability to follow Him in perfect peace no matter what’s going on around us or in our lives. He can calm our racing hearts and soothe our weary and anxious minds.
However, we must let Him. We must choose to draw nearer to Jesus – in reading and meditation on Scripture, in public and private worship, and in prayer throughout the day and night. This command (and it is a command) not to let our hearts be troubled or afraid implies we have a role to play. We must choose to accept Christ’s peace. We must choose to turn our eyes, hearts, and minds away from the evil of the world and toward Him. We must learn to pray for and embrace His peace, to walk in His Spirit, and to refuse to let fear rule within us no matter what’s going on around us. We can do this because Jesus is present with us and in us at all times. We can do this because He will give us His peace if we’re willing to accept it.