Fight Your Way to God's Peace!

Love and kindness is the need of every human being. it is the substance which makes iife worth living. However, very often, our attempts to show kindness and trust have been misunderstood and even rejected. As a result, we become wounded and fear to place our trust in others in a way that will make room for love to grow. Some have even adopted the attitude that "Love is war", and life experiences actually do practice and prove that saying to be true.

However, God has a better way! It is possible to change our life perspectives and to turn and learn a new way to experience life. The love of God for all his creation is passionate and trustworthy. Peace and love are the heritage of God's children, and you are invited into the family!

Romans 5:8

But God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

By accepting the offer of salvation through Christ we are cleansed of the hurts of past failures and renewed. We become brand new creations as we learn to apprehend the love of God for us. That love then begins to be poured out toward others, and we learn new ways of relationship. However, this wonderful abundant life will require a fight of faith to experience and to maintain. We have an enemy who would seek to prevent our good success in God. In Paul's writings, we are instructed to fight the good fight of faith.

1 Timothy 6:12
Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, unto which you are also called, and has professed a good profession before many witnesses.

Jesus taught us that peacemakers will be known as the children of God. .

Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

How is it that we can be called peacemakers while at the same time fighting a faith fight?

It is a spiritual battle against the powers of darkness and for the good of men. Satan is the enemy of all men; hatred and division and death are his delights. Our own sin makes us his captive. God sent his son to die for the sins of the human race, and demonstrates his good will toward man while seeking to turn man away from his sin.

Ephesians 6:12
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

We learn from the teachings of the scriptures that action and skills are required to inherit the promises of God. We have a need to set our hearts to learning and practicing the truths which will bring the overcoming victories we desire.

Romans 13:14
But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not give thought to the flesh to do its desires.

Sadly, there is a divisive mindset in the Christian camp which resists the full counsel of gospel truth. We find that in those who fail to go on with the Lord the fruit of salvation is not apparent. I speak to that religious mindset; we come to God as babies, but we must learn to grow up in him! We remain in deception while we hold onto our idols. This mindset will remain captive to the very powers we sought to get set free from.

We are given a choice. We can learn to effectively use the mighty weapons of warfare God has provided for our victory, or we will continue to be a part of the world's warfare. As long as we are in the world, wars are being fought all around us. Everywhere we look we see this. Relationships and families are in crisis. Governments are becoming corrupt and untrustworthy. Wounded people, rebellion and anarchy are common events. These are the tribulations of the world prophecied in scripture.

Root cause examples:

Wars of the sexes
Wars for control in politics
Wars over racial hatreds
Wars to revenge wrongs done
Wars over money

Wars against sickness and disease
Wars of the accuser of the righteous

In the wars of the world, the ego of men rules. The winners are most often the richest, the hardest and the most ruthless. These conflicts start as word wars, strife and division, man set against man! Beginning at the home front and on into the cities and nations. Often when words are not powerful enough to bring relief, men graduate to fists and guns and bombs. These are wars of darkness!

Romans 13:12
The night is far gone, and the day is near. Let's therefore throw off the works of darkness, and let's put on the armor of light.

The good fight of faith is the solution to the tribulations all around us. The armor of light is the Lord Jesus Christ, the light of the world.

The first good fight the believer must engage himself in is the personal one. We must learn how to "get the beam out of our own eye, so that we can see clearly to remove the mote from the eyes of others". Without the cleansing work of the Holy Spirit, we are captive to the enemy's powers through the lust of our own flesh.

Ego has to die! The only cause that is pursued in God's army if to advance the Kingdom of Christ and give the glory to God. The heart motives of those of the kingdom of Christ are righteousness, love and peace, for the profit of all.
To be a part of this army brings eternal rewards.

It's every man's individual choice! Which army do you want to be a part of? A sure deliverance from the wars and the works of darkness is offered to those who hunger and thirst after God's purposes.

1John 3:1
"Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!"

John 3:16-17
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever would believe on him would not perish, but would have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.