An Aggressive Peace

What an intriguing phrase Pastor Ben tossed out in Sunday’s sermon… did you catch it? An aggressive peace. Have you ever thought that maybe the delicious fruit of the Spirit called peace isn’t such a fragile, delicate thing after all? That it might actually be able to weather the worst life can send our way – that it might even rise to the occasion and beat back the enemy and protect our minds and hearts for us? That it might be… aggressive?

Webster defines aggressive as “ready or willing to take issue or engage in direct action; militant.” Doesn’t sound very peaceful, does it? But listen to Philippians 4:7: “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

John MacArthur writes: “The word for ‘guard’ in Philippians 4:7 is not the word that means to ‘watch,’ or ‘keep imprisoned.’ It is a word that is often used in a military sense, meaning ‘to stand at a post and guard against the aggression of an enemy.’ When peace is on guard, the Christian has entered an impregnable citadel from which nothing can dislodge him. The name of the fortress is Christ, and the guard is peace.” I like Chuck Swindoll’s word picture; he says the peace of God “will do sentry duty” around our hearts and minds. Can you envision His peace protectively patrolling your inner being while you sleep and eat and work?

There’s a condition to be met by us, however; it begins in verse 6: “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs and don’t forget to thank him for his answers. If you do this you will experience God’s peace” (TLB)… that peace which is commissioned to do sentry duty around your heart and mind. Never sleeping, always watching, missing nothing, God’s peace knows well the lay of the land in our hearts and lives. It sees the direction from which the enemy is approaching and calls out sharply, challenging the intruder. It sounds the alarm and alerts us to the looming threat. We hear his voice, a pinprick in our hearts that says, “Here comes trouble. What will be your response?”

Too often, at that point we forget to “pray about everything.” To tell God our needs and thank Him – in advance – for His protection and His answers. By our silence, our growing inner dread, our outward shaking on our boots, we say to the sentry, “Let the enemy pass.” We will not resist him. We will not fight. We cave and cower and run up the white flag. Peace steps back, then, and watches helplessly as fear and worry and all their troops rush the walls of our hearts and minds, scale them easily, and quickly begin their evil work, wounding, tying up, taking captive.

Paul is saying that it doesn’t have to happen. God offers an aggressive peace that will encircle us, watch for us, warn us, and effectively protect us – not from the battles of life, but from fear and worry and dread. His peace will not desert, but it cannot protect us without our permission and cooperation.

Sunday’s sermon nudges me; I can do a better job of this. I can make my Sentry’s job a lot easier than I have in the past, and I can let him rout Fear and Worry from every situation… even from the situation that threatens right now…

The question is, Will I?