The God of Peace

God has many titles in the Bible. Studying his names is one way by which we can understand who he is and what his intentions are. One of his titles is the God of peace. Peace itself is a major topic in the Bible. Sometimes, the writers refer to God’s peace; at other times, they refer to the peace that his people know. This occurs in both the Old and New Testaments. It is wise to begin with God’s peace because when we understand what it is we will appreciate better the peace that we can have.

 

Where do we begin when thinking about God’s peace? No doubt there never was any loss of peace within the Trinity. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit know peace constantly and fully. But we can also think of their peace regarding others. One way to consider their peace is to look at what is often termed ‘the covenant of peace’, which is a reference to the pre-temporal covenant of redemption.

 

In that covenant, the three divine persons agreed to provide peace with and for sinners. Obviously, we should not turn this covenant into a heavenly business meeting. No participants in an earthly business meeting possess omniscience. The three persons didn’t have a discussion as to what to do. They knew completely their plan from eternity. 

 

In this agreement was found the details of the way in which peace would be provided by God for humans. Peace was necessary because humans were not viewed by God merely as creatures but also as sinners. The omniscient God knew that Adam and his race would become rebels against divine authority and exist in a state of rebellion against God. But God determined to restore sinners to a state of peace in which they could experience peace. So what did this involve for the three divine persons?

 

The Father

In this agreement the Father’s love was revealed in giving some sinners to his Son. Jesus referred to this in his prayer for his disciples recorded in John 17:6: ‘I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word.’ This giving revealed the love of the Father, but it was sovereign, discriminating love that was shown, because every human sinner was not included. It is not possible to know how many were given to the Son by the Father, except to say that it is a number that no one can count.

 

Other attributes of the Father were revealed in addition to his love and sovereignty. His justice was revealed in the requirement that the Son would become a man to pay the penalty of the sins of those people on the cross. Moreover, the Father’s desire to be at peace with them was also revealed, which is a reminder that reconciliation was needed between the Father and sinners.

 

In what way would the Father display his peace? The gospel tells us about it when it offers peace with God to sinners. The Father who loved sinners raised his Son from the dead after he had given his life on the cross. One of the reasons why Jesus was raised was for the justification of his people. In what way will they be justified?

 

Paul tells the Romans that they, having been justified by faith, have peace with God through Jesus. Through the gospel, they were invited to trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins, and when they did so, they were justified by the Father. In this justification, two things happen: one is that each believer is pardoned; the other is that the righteousness of Jesus is reckoned by the Father to each believer (the righteousness of Jesus is his life of obedience). The outcome is that each believer is accepted in the sight of God and is at peace with him. This position of peace is external as far as the believer is concerned. It is also endless in that it is a decision by the Father that cannot be revoked even when his people sin.

 

What can we look for now that the Father is at peace with us? We can refer briefly to some verses that highlight what we can expect. After all, expectation is an expression of faith. The first reference is Hebrews 13:20-21: ‘Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.’ In this reference, we are promised provision for living the Christian life. Out of his divine resources, the God of peace will give to each of his children what they need for serving him, which means that they will never be in a situation where his help will not be known. The author reminds his readers that the God of peace raised Jesus from the dead, the greatest example of divine power, and a reminder that he has the power to provide for his people.

 

The second reference is 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24: ‘Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.’ These verses inform us of the purpose of the God of peace for his people, and that is their purification so that they will be blameless when Jesus returns.  This benediction is similar to the one in Hebrews 13 except that it stresses God’s determination that his people will be holy.

 

The third reference is Paul’s words in Romans 16:20 that ‘The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.’ This statement is connected to what God said in the garden of Eden about the seed of the woman crushing the head of the serpent. Here, believers are promised by the God of peace that they will all participate in the triumph of Jesus over the powers of darkness. God will give complete victory to his people, but he will do as the God of peace, the One who keeps his promises made to them in Christ even at the beginning of time. 

 

The fourth reference is also by Paul and it too is in his letter to the Romans. He says, ‘May the God of peace be with you all’ (Rom. 15:33). This apostolic desire points to more than peace. It includes all that accompanies the presence of the God of peace. As Matthew Henry observes, ‘Those who have the fountain cannot want any of the streams.’ But it does remind us that we, as his children, live in the presence of the Father who is favourable towards us. What greater blessing could we have than to live in the presence of a reconciled God! He justifies, he provides, he purifies, he promises victory to, and he will be with his people.

 

The Son

In the Old Testament book of Isaiah, the prophet announces that the coming Messiah will be the Prince of peace. Indeed, this description is only part of his wonderful name: ‘For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace’ (Isa. 9:6). The description ‘Prince of peace’ means more than that he is a peaceful prince; it means that his kingdom, the sphere where he will reign, will be one of peace. 

 

The other details in his title inform us of his wisdom in maintaining peace – he is the Wonderful Counsellor, his power in providing it – he is the mighty God, and his tenderness in conveying it – he is the everlasting Father, which is not suggesting that he is the first person of the Trinity, but that he is like a tender father constantly. Surely this Prince is one we would desire to have as our Lord. But how does that happen?

 

We have already mentioned what was necessary before the Father could justify sinners. Jesus had to make peace by offering up his perfect life as a sacrifice for sin in the place of sinners. His perfect life will give them a standing in God’s presence, but only if he also pays the penalty for their sins. There was no other way for Jesus to provide this peace. It involved for him a descent into the judgement of God as far as his human nature was concerned, a place where he sensed the abandonment of God and caused him to pray about his being forsaken by his Father. If one wants to venture an answer to his question, ‘Why have you forsaken me?’, the answer is because he was in the process of making peace. Of course, we should notice that Jesus died in a state of peace when he committed his spirit into the hands of his Father. He could die in such a frame of mind because he had achieved what he came to do, which was to ensure that the sinners for whom he was the substitute would enter into a state of peace with God.

 

But that is not all that Jesus does. After his resurrection, he ascended to heaven and was installed as the exalted Mediator on the throne of God. As the Mediator, he performs certain roles. One of them is that of a prophet, and as the prophet he teaches sinners about the gospel (as well as about many other blessings after they become believers). Paul reminded the Ephesians that Jesus had preached peace to them. In a physical sense, Jesus had never been in Ephesus. Yet he was there when his servants, be it Paul or his colleagues, spoke about the gospel. Through them, Jesus announced the possibility of peace with God through faith, and in the process united those sinners to one another, despite the fact that prior to them believing they had been hostile to one another.

 

But Jesus does more than bring the information about how to enter into a state of peace with God. He also provides inner peace for his people after they believe in him. This too he does as the Mediator through the work of the Holy Spirit whom he sent as his representative. In the upper room, on the evening of his arrest, he told his disciples that he was giving his peace to them: ‘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). This was his legacy, what he was was leaving with them. 

 

What marked the peace of Jesus? He confided in his Father, he was content with his Father’s will, and he was consecrated to fulfilling it. Obviously, there were aspects of his life and work about which we have no counterpart in our outlook and living. Yet those three aspects that I have mentioned as marking the peace of Christ personally will also mark our peace as his people. We cannot have peace if we don’t confide in the Father, if we are not content with his providence, and if we are not consecrated to serving him. Where can we get such peace? Jesus himself has told us, from him. He desires that we would have such peace in our lives, and when we think of his offices in heaven as the Mediator, we should experience peace in our hearts.

 

The Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit possesses infinite peace because he is a divine person. It is not possible for us to imagine the nature of this divine experience because it is far above what we can know. Yet we can also look briefly at two biblical details connected to his work. 

 

First, there is the descent of the Spirit, in the symbolic form of something like a dove, on to the person of Jesus at his baptism. This descent indicated that there was complete and constant peace between the Spirit and the Son throughout the so-called thirty silent years lived by Jesus in Nazareth. Jesus was constantly filled with the Spirit as he grew in wisdom and favour with God and man. The descent as well as the Father’s verbal commendation reveal the degree of peace that there was in the Trinity as they focussed on the provision of salvation for sinners. On the mission of peace, they shared peace.

 

The descent of the Spirit in the form of a dove also pointed forward to what would happen after the baptism of Jesus. His baptism was when he commenced his public ministry, which would last for about three years. It would involve him engaging in teaching about the kingdom of God and giving signs that he was the prophesied Messiah, and in all that he did, the Spirit would be present in peace as well as in power. The Spirit was at work within many individuals who were led by him to become disciples of Jesus.

 

The Holy Spirit also possesses peace as he is involved in the outworking of the divine purpose of salvation, fulfilling the task of bringing the blessings of the gospel of peace to millions and millions of sinners. We can see something of his peaceful involvement in the Book of Acts as he brings sinners from different religious backgrounds and social levels into the kingdom of Jesus. He is the instrument whom Jesus the Mediator uses, through the gospel, to enlighten the spiritually blind and to enable the spiritually powerless to embrace the gospel of peace.

 

Responding to the God of peace

What can we say to the Lord if we are his people? First, we can express our gratitude that the triune God thought about us in peaceful ways in eternity. Second, we can express our gratitude to the three persons specifically for their particular contribution to the divine provision of peace.

 

What can you say to the Lord if you are not his people? If you have it, you can tell him of your desire to be at peace with him because the presence of that desire is evidence of his work. Yet you cannot stop there. You can ask him to lead you to the place where peace was made, the cross, and to enable you to embrace the Saviour by faith. 

 

What can you do if you do not wish to be at peace with God? That outlook is certainly one to think about. It means that you prefer to be opposed to the God of peace, and such opposition is futile.