How Can I Have A Greater Peace? part 2

You can read part 1 here: “How Can I Have A Greater Peace? part 1”.

While watching a movie recently, I enjoyed observing the star character. It was played by the boy of a very famous actor. It was really incredible to watch his mannerisms and how he spoke. Many times throughout the film I found myself saying “He’s just like his daddy.”

I’m sure that most of you have heard that expression, haven’t you? Or perhaps you’ve been told “You’re just like your daddy”, or “You remind me so much of your momma.”  We really can’t help it, can we? When we’ve grown up in the environment of our parents we just become like them, not to mention DNA.

The same can be said about Jesus:

John 8:  19 “Where is your father?” they asked.
Jesus answered, “Since you don’t know who I am, you don’t know who my Father is. If you knew me, you would also know my Father.”

Colossians 1: 15a Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.

He’s just like His Daddy! Isn’t that cool? But check this out:

Genesis 1:  27 So God created human beings in his own image.
In the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.

Romans 8: 15 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.”

(I’ve learned that the word Abba is an intimate, Aramaic term that a child would use for their father and can be translated as ‘Daddy’ or ‘Papa’. )

Do you see the similarity? We were made in our Daddy’s image, that’s how human beings were designed.

Think about this for a moment and allow it to sink in: “I am designed to be like God, which is how I am supposed to be.”

I can recall a DVD player I once had. Its purpose was simply to play the DVDs, without problems. That is what it was supposed to do.  It didn’t. It failed to play my DVDs and for that reason, I got rid of it. Of course, I gave it a few chances to work, it was not my desire to throw it way, but if it would not work for me, I considered it useless, so into the trash it went.

Matthew 21: 18 In the morning, as Jesus was returning to Jerusalem, he was hungry, 19 and he noticed a fig tree beside the road. He went over to see if there were any figs, but there were only leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” And immediately the fig tree withered up.

Of course, the fig tree was designed to bear fruit, and when Jesus discovered that it was not, He quickly discarded it. He determined that it was useless and acted accordingly.

Isn’t it interesting that we are a lot like God without even trying to be? When something doesn’t work, we pitch it out. We like to create, He likes to create. We like to see progress, He likes to see progress.  He worked 6 days, I work 6 days. He likes to see people getting along, we like to see people getting along. This is the intrinsic nature of God that I think we all have, but when it comes to fruits of the spirit, they are developed only through our relationship with Him.

He is patient, I am…. wait. Sorry, that doesn’t work for me, at least not when I sit at a red light. He is humble, I am…. wait, that doesn’t work for me either. Let’s try He is loving, I am… wait, not always. This isn’t going so well now, is it? Then I am reminded of these verses:

John 15: 5 “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. 6 Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned.

This makes me so glad that God is patient, although I am not. When I first realized this, I realized how far I am from His “factory specifications”.  I can hear God saying about me: “This one isn’t working very well. What will I have to do to get him in line with my plans?”

I am so glad that God has more patience with us than He did that fig tree, aren’t you?

We’ve been discussing finding greater peace lately and one thing not to be overlooked is found in these verses above. To paraphrase: “When we ‘remain in Him’ we produce much fruit” Then “When we don’t ‘remain in Him’ we can do nothing.”

Isaiah 9: 6 For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Just as Jesus is the Prince of Peace, we were designed to be People of Peace. After all, the human body works best when filled with peace.

If my life cannot be described as one of peace, that only means one thing: I have not been spending enough time with Daddy. It is that simple. We discussed this at the very beginning, a child becomes like their parents after spending years of intimate time with them. The greater the love a father has for his child, the more that child has peace. The child of a loving father feels secure.

Galatians 4: 6 And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.”

God wants His children to feel secure so that they do not have to be pre-occupied with worrisome thoughts which hinder their ability to think and act as they should. This is where the greater faith we develop over time, the more at peace we will be.

Psalm 103:  13 The LORD is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him.

Just like the bumper sticker says “No Jesus, No Peace. Know Jesus, Know Peace.” This is not on an intellectual level and has little to do with Bible knowledge. I’ve read about many persecuted Christians in various parts of the world who had very little Biblical knowledge but they certainly knew their Lord very well and that was by relying on Him through prayer.

That’s enough for now; I’ll leave you with my favorite verse relating to prayer (One that I think should be memorized):

Philippians 4: 6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Are you your Daddy’s child?

“Heavenly Daddy, you are so good to me. Thank you for teaching me so many things. You have provided for me and have answered my prayers in so many ways that I cannot count them. You are my provider and I know that every good thing comes from you. What will it take for me to really know you and love you as a child loves His father? What will it take for me to surrender my life in exchange for the Life you have to offer? Please hold me tight and keep me on your path. It is you, Lord, that I desire more than anything. In Jesus’ name, amen.”

 

Photo by Chris Liu-Beers on Unsplash