The Lord our Peace
When Gideon was afraid he was going to die because he had seen the angel of the Lord consume the sacrifice, God spoke peace into his heart:
"But the Lord said to him, 'Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.' So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it the Lord is Peace. To this day it stands in Ophrah of the Abiezrites" (Judges 6:23-24).
God gave Gideon peace within his spirit before he ever won the battle. Peace does not come because of outward situations. Peace comes because of He Who is inside us.
Philippians 4:6-7 says it this way:
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
People in Israel say "Shalom, shalom!" and the reason they say it twice is because they want you to have peace in the inner man and peace in the outer man. Shalom, meaning, "whole," shows us when God's peace reigns in our hearts, we are whole.
Isaiah 48:18 says, "If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your righteousness like the waves of the sea."
When we obey the Word of God, we will have peace that flows from us like a river, touching other people. Although we may not see victory or feel that victory is near, we have to let God's peace keep us.
Colossians 3:15 tells us to "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts."
We have to decide which way we will yield our emotions. We have to let the peace of God rule and reign. We're not to worry or be anxious because Jehovah Shalom gave us peace. He wants us to know that He is in control:
"You
will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts
in you" (Isaiah 26:3).
