THE GIFT OF PEACE

SUNDAY CELEBRATION SERVICE

31^ST DECEMBER 2023.

MESSAGE TITLE      –           THE GIFT OF PEACE

PREACHER               –           P.G. NDU

TEXT                           –           Isaiah 9:6-7,  John 14:27

ISAIAH 9:6-7:

⁶ For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

⁷ Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

JOHN 14:27:

²⁷ Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

WHAT IS PEACE?

• The state of Harmony and Tranquility.
• The absence of; and freedom from disturbances, conflicts, violence, and hostilities.

NOTE: Biblical peace is more than just the absence of conflict; it is taking action to restore a broken situation. It’s more than a state of inner tranquility; it’s a state of wholeness and completeness.

From the above scriptures, we gather the following:

• That Jesus is PEACE personified.
• He is the full embodiment of PEACE
• He is the sole custodian and dispenser of PEACE.
• He is the epitome of PEACE

• Prophet Isaiah prophesied about Jesus and called him the prince of PEACE
• Jesus testified about Himself in John 14:27 and said “My Peace” I give to you.
• Paul in his letter to Thessalonica in 2 Thess. 3:16 said that  God is the Lord of ‘PEACE’

1.       THE VALUES, QUALITIES AND CHARACTER OF HIS PEACE

John 14:27:

²⁷ Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

• The Peace Jesus gives is incomparable. It’s unrivaled. It is one of a kind.
• His Peace can abide with you,  live with you, stay with you, and dwell with you.
• The Peace of Jesus Christ is an assurance and an antidote for fear and all its effects.  

Colossians 3:15:

¹⁵ And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

• The Peace of God can regulate, govern, and provide leadership in our lives.

Philippians 4:6-7:

⁶ Be careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

⁷ And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

• The Peace of God passeth all understanding. (Transcends, is higher, surpasses, exceeds, trumps, outshines, outdoes)

• The Peace of God can protect our hearts and minds (KEEPS, GUARDS)

Psalms 29:11

¹⁰ The Lord sitteth upon the flood; yea, the Lord sitteth King forever. ¹¹ The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace.

• Peace is a blessing from the Lord.

• And the blessings of the Lord, it makes rich and adds no sorrow with it …Proverbs 10:22

• Therefore, PEACE preserves, protects, and shields us from sorrow.

Exodus 14:14:

¹⁴ The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

• Desiring and holding onto PEACE is how you allow God to fight your battles for you.
• A state of PEACE is an invitation to God and a signal to Him to take over the fight for you.

WHY ?….SEE NEXT SCRIPTURE:

Isaiah 26:3-5

³ Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

⁴ Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength:

⁵ For he bringeth down them that dwell on high; the lofty city, he layeth it low; he layeth it low, even to the ground; he bringeth it even to the dust.

• It requires a level of peace to trust God BUT,
• When you trust God, you go from just having peace to having PERFECT PEACE Because God takes over.

Provers 16:7:

⁷ When a man's ways please the Lord, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.

• This means that if a man's ways are pleasing to the Lord, even his enemies will be at peace with him.

• The word “pleasing” suggests silence, stillness, a ceasing to be obvious. When a man walks conscionably and constantly in the good ways of God, both the man and his ways are well pleasing unto God.

• The Peace of God is a kind of shield and immunity from unnecessary battles, troubles, and oppositions.

Isaiah 54:10 :

¹⁰ For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.

• PEACE is part of God’s covenant with His children.
• God does not break His covenant

Psalms 122:6-8:

⁶ Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. ⁷ Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. ⁸ For my brethren and companions' sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee.

• Peace and Prosperity go hand-in-hand
• Peace within your walls will guarantee Peace within your Palaces

2.       GROWING IN PEACE :

2 Peter 1:2-4 (kjv)

² Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,

³ According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

⁴ Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

• Grace and PEACE can be multiplied to you.

•  Peter indicated that grace and peace – those two most precious of gifts – are ours in the knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord and can be multiplied.

• This multiplication takes place through:
• The Knowledge of God and
• The Knowledge of Jesus our Lord

•   As we know God we gain these essentials foundations for salvation and living.

• Also His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness: However, not only grace and peace – but also all things that pertain to life and godliness are ours through the knowledge of Him.

•  Knowing God is the key to all things that pertain to life and godliness of which PEACE is an essential element in a life of victory and purpose.

2 Peter 1:2-4 (Ampc)

² May grace (God’s favor) and peace (which is ^[a]perfect well-being, all necessary good, all spiritual prosperity, and ^[b]freedom from fears and agitating passions and moral conflicts) be multiplied to you in [the full, personal, ^[c]precise, and correct] knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.

³ For His divine power has bestowed upon us all things that [are requisite and suited] to life and godliness, through the [^[d]full, personal] knowledge of Him Who called us by and to His own glory and excellence (virtue).

John 17:3:

³ And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

• The more we grow in our knowledge of God and of Jesus our savior;

• The more GRACE and PEACE will be made to abound to us.

• Isaiah 9:7 declares that “….of the increase of His government and PEACE; there shall be NO END”

• Grace and Peace are a set of two elements needed to live a victorious Christian life in experience.

• GRACE – is the systems of advantages bequeathed to us by God such as Mercy, favour, godly wisdom etc.

• PEACE is a state of being. Much like the vehicle that conveys all the systems of advantages to us.

• PEACE is the platform of delivering GRACE.

• Both the Grace and Peace are fully embodied  in Jesus Christ.

To know God is to know:

1. His Character ( His Nature)
2. His Ways (His Methods)
3. His Power  (His omnipotence)

3.       THE DEMONSTRATION OF PEACE

Mark 4:39:

³⁹ And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

As seen in the above referenced story:

• The Peace of God has the propensity to bring calm and stillness to every raging storm in our lives.

1. It has the inherent power and potential to quell every turbulence in any and every area of our lives.

• Peace even in the midst of troubled waters.

• Peace to every vexatious and vicious attack on our lives

• Peace when it seems like we are drowning with no one to rescue us.

• Peace  when it looks like we are sinking beneath life’s circumstances

• The PEACE of God is our way out and rescue from chaos and turmoil,

Uncertainties and confusion.

• Peace is part of Heaven’s escape plan for God’s children from hazards and tempestuous seasons and occasions in our lives.

• PEACE when we are not sure how we are going to make it to the other side.

• PEACE when faced with opposition and threats to our lives, purpose and destinies.

• Jesus here rebukes the wind (the spirit behind the ocean’s restiveness) BUT TO THE SEA (The actual trouble) He pronounces PEACE.

• PEACE is a veritable tool for defense and attack

LANDING:

Philippians 4:8-9:

⁸ Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

⁹ Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.

Isaiah 9:6-7:

⁶ For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

⁷ Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

• Jesus is that “GIFT OF PEACE” given to humanity wrapped up in human flesh.  
• PEACE is one of the items in the Gift Bag which is delivered at Christmas. (the birth of Christ)
• However, this GIFT OF PEACE has to accepted and received

2 Thess. 3:16

¹⁶ Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all.

• The Lord gives His Peace by Himself.
• He is determined to always give us His kind of peace and by all means.
• He’s resolute in His quest to give us His Peace. This confirms Isaiah’s statement in Isaiah 9:7

AMPC

¹⁶ Now may the Lord of peace Himself grant you His peace (the peace of His kingdom) at all times and in all ways [under all circumstances and conditions, whatever comes]. The Lord [be] with you all.

Numbers 6:24-26 (Ampc)

²⁴ The Lord bless you and watch, guard, and keep you; ²⁵ The Lord make His face to shine upon and enlighten you and be gracious (kind, merciful, and giving favor) to you;

²⁶ The Lord lift up His [approving] countenance upon you and give you peace (tranquility of heart and life continually).

The peace of God is one things we are really going to need in 2024, if we are going to live a victorious and an excelling life, while fulfilling purpose and destiny.

BOW YOUR HEAD AND PRAY FOR HIS PEACE.