| The Christian Life | December 1942 |
Perfect Peace
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee: because he trusted in Thee.”
—Isaiah 26:3
THE peace enjoyed by the Christian is referred to in the Bible as a perfect peace, which means that it is complete, not only in the sense of possessing it all the time, but complete also in the sense that its possession relieves the mind from all anxiety. Who is the recipient of this perfect peace? This text tells us that it is the one whose mind is stayed on God. In Romans 5:1 we read, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Peace with God means that He no longer treats us as enemies. Having accepted Jesus Christ as our Redeemer and having turned from sin unto righteousness, we are now considered as being friends of God.
Surely it is wonderful to have peace with God, to realize that we are no longer alienated from Him. But through faith a still more wonderful peace is possible, namely, the “peace of God.” That is the peace enjoyed by those who take the step of consecration referred to by Jesus in Matthew 11:29: “Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” The yoke enabled the oxen to serve their master and beautifully pictures our full consecration to serve God and to do His will.
But we must also “keep our minds stayed on Him.” (Isaiah 26:3) The mere making of a consecration is not sufficient. How can we do this? There recently appeared a picture in a magazine showing a tub placed next to a rock where a stream of water dropped about ten feet into the tub. The lesson the artist was teaching was that if you wanted to have fresh cool water all the time you should see that the tub was placed just where the water would drop into it. So, if we want to keep our minds stayed on Him, we need to keep continually where the water of truth can trickle into our hearts and minds. Where is this? We answer at the Sunday and mid-week meetings where the Bible and Scripture Studies are used; also by reading and re-reading these books. When we do so, we not only have made plain to us the doctrines of the Bible but also catch the spirit of faith and full consecration to God.
Another way to keep under the trickling water of truth and divine grace is by meditating on the Daily Heavenly Manna text and comment each morning and by attending, if possible, the weekly testimony meetings where these Manna texts and comments are used as the basis of the testimonies. We recall one Manna comment where Brother Russell likens our habit of thought to the needle of a compass. Some outside attraction may temporarily deflect the needle to point in a different direction from what it should, but as soon as the attraction is removed the needle immediately points to the magnetic north. Likewise during the day, our minds may be occupied with business or other cares but whenever we are free to do so, our minds should immediately turn to the Lord; sometimes in prayer, sometimes in meditation on some Scriptural subject, sometime on some opportunity to witness for the Lord and His plan.
A brother many years ago said to Brother Russell, “The Bible says that we should set our affections on things above. I try to do so but they slip off. What should I do about it?” Brother Russell replied, “Set them back again. No matter how many times they slip off keep setting them back. The more you do so, the less they will slip off.”
Another thing we need in order to keep our minds stayed on the Lord is balance of character. We need to keep our spiritual balance and avoid going to extremes. Take, for instance, self-esteem. If we have too much of it we are liable to get puffed up and heady or else be easily offended. If our names come up for election as elders and we are not elected, we should not be offended and hurt. Let us remember that water is quiet only when it reaches its lowest level. On the other hand, we should not have so little self-esteem that we do not take advantage of opportunities to serve the class or witness for the truth when they are presented to us. This balance of character is very essential if we are to enjoy perfect peace.
SINGLE MINDEDNESS
Single mindedness is another essential to keeping our hearts stayed on the Lord. To be single minded means a whole-hearted, undivided devotion to God. In James 1:8 we read, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.” The “little flock” class is not double minded, but the members of the great company class are. They are seeking to please God and at the same time are seeking to gratify their fleshly desires. The Lord is daily sending us trials and tests to prove our sincerity in claiming to be fully submitted to His will. If we are fully sincere, we not only will grow in Christian love but will enjoy perfect peace.
We have been considering the heart condition necessary for one who is to enjoy perfect peace—the one “whose mind is stayed on God.” Let us now look at the gift itself—“perfect peace.” The poet has said:
“Some folks pray for rain and some for shine
And some for both together
I just pray for sunshine in my heart—
And then forget the weather.”
This sunshine in. the heart, this peace which is not dependent upon outside conditions, is the legacy of priceless value which Jesus promised the church when He said: “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.” (John 14:27) In Isaiah 30:15 we read, “In quietness and in confidence shall be your strength.” This quietness refers to the absence of rebellion and murmuring in our own hearts. The confidence refers to our full trust in God which gives us the strength to do His will.
We recall a trip to the Natural Bridge in Virginia. It was a warm pleasant day. As we walked beside the clear quiet stream in the valley spanned by the bridge and listened to the “Bells of St. Mary,” (a phonograph transcription) as it echoed down the valley from the side rocks of the bridge which acted as natural sound boards, we were reminded of Isaiah 66:12, “For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river:” Just as the river flows on all the time, so nothing should interrupt our peace. A rock thrown in the liver makes a splash, but the river continues to flow. So now and then we may have some disturbance, but the deep flowing peace continues in our hearts, Our Lord has promised that He will never leave us nor forsake us. The valley at the Natural Bridge could picture the Valley of Blessing where we have sweet fellowship with our God and where we hear the song of Moses and the Lamb telling us of God’s wonderful plan of the ages.
Does the possession of perfect peace mean that we will always be fully satisfied? Oh no, not until we are beyond the veil will we be fully satisfied, for we long for the perfect divine bodies wherein we will be able to perfectly express the desires of our hearts. We long to be in the personal presence of our Father and His Son, our Bridegroom. Our heart’s desire is well expressed by the Psalmist, “I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness.”—Psalm 17:15
In the meantime, while still this side the veil, we are content because we know that all our trials, experiences, and circumstances are overruled by the Lord for our best spiritual interests, so long as we are His people seeking to do His will and coming to Him in prayer for grace to help in every time of need. Paul tells us in Philippians 4:11, “I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.” There are some who have an imitation peace based on recklessness—a “don’t care” spirit. But invariably and inevitably this disposition eventuates in the remorse of despair when the shallow feelings of security are shattered by the vicissitudes of life; but this is not the proper attitude for a Christian. We have peace because we put our trust in our never-failing God.
Do all have the same measure of this “peace of God?” We answer, no! Our rest is in proportion to our faith. To the extent we can realize that God has a tender love for us as individuals, and that He not only is willing but able to overrule all our affairs and that the transforming power of His Holy Spirit is working in us, we can have this peace. Through the divine “Plan of the Ages” we see the stately steppings of our God. (Eph. 3:11, Diaglott) We see it is not such as are the schemes of men which will fail, but as the expression of God’s love and power which will surely bring deliverance to us, even as He has promised.
In Revelation 4 and 5 we have a beautiful picture of the Giver of this perfect peace. He is shown seated on a throne as the King of the universe. His character of wisdom, justice, love and power is implied by His jewel-like appearance. In His hand is a scroll, a symbol of the divine plan of the ages which He hands to Jesus to carry out. Jesus is pictured as a “lamb slain.”
But note the rainbow around the throne of God. A rainbow in the sky implies quietness and peace after a heavy storm. Therefore this becomes a beautiful symbol of God’s peace based on His loving character and His complete mastery of every situation at all times. This same God is our Friend, who will use all His resources of power in His loving care for us, whose minds are stayed on Him.