How to Live with The Peace of God in Your Heart (continued) – Live in Christ, part 6
What’s the key to true peace? This message will help you learn how to have peace and get practical instructions of who you are and how to live, plus 4 steps to peace and blessing. The lifestyle you clothe yourself in reveals your heart. God has chosen you. A call to live in Christ is a call to action. You can have his peace and joy always
What choices are you making this year? Will you choose to live God’s best for you, no matter the circumstances? This series explores what it means to live in Christ, why it's important and how to do it. When you believe, trust, and seek the Lord with all your heart, you will be able to look back and see God accomplishing his will in your life and the lives of others. Make Jesus first in your life and allow the Holy Spirit to guide you in paths of righteousness.
Let The Peace of God Rule in Your Heart
Set Your Heart and Mind on The Things Above
Today we are in lesson six as we continue our study in Colossians. This is part two of the lesson I started last week. We have seen that living in Christ in a fallen world is not easy. The apostle Paul has challenged us to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord. That means avoiding the temptation to compromise, or following false teaching, and worldly philosophy. It’s something believers face daily. It will mean to put to death whatever belongs to our earthly/worldly nature and put on the love of God.
Every believer has a choice to make. We each must decide to live dead to sin and alive in Christ each day.
Each person must decide for themselves what they believe and how they will live.
Choose to live in Christ and for Christ.
Choose to live in Christ in your neighborhood, city, state, and nation.
Choose to live your life in a manner worthy of the Lord and please him in every way.
Choose to live rooted and built up in him daily.
Choose to live by faith no matter the situation and do not move from the hope you have in Christ.
Choose to view things through the blessed hope you have.
Choose to rid yourself of acts that reflect your old lifestyle and nature and put on the new self. Put on Christ.
Live renewed in the knowledge of Christ in your heart and mind.
Ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom and understanding in every situation and relationship.
The most important point to remember is that God loves you and that his grace is sufficient. You will experience the grace of God before you experience any true peace in your heart or peace with God. The world needs to see a difference in your heart and life and it is witnessed in your new priorities and lifestyle of God first. If we are going to live in Christ and for Christ, we need the wisdom and spiritual understanding that only the Holy Spirit gives. We will also need to make some lifestyle changes in our hearts, our minds, actions and thinking. We need to live dead to sin and alive in Christ.
Last week we learned that as people of God we are to live holy, set-apart lives and that we are dearly loved by God. Allow the knowledge of God’s love to develop into a deeper love for God each day. We are to live differently and clothe ourselves with (put on): compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. We are to bear with each other and forgive one another as the Lord has forgiven us and let the peace of God rule our hearts.
May the peace you have with God be the rule to extend God’s love, forgiveness and peace to others.
Today I want us to begin reading from Colossians 3:17. I believe verse 17 is key to having peace with God in our hearts and with others. It is also a key to the verses we are looking at. The verses we are about to read touch on both family and everyday personal relationships.
WWJD: Do You Live Trying to Please and Be Like Jesus?
“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. 18 Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them. 20 Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged. 22 Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. 23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. 25 Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs, and there is no favoritism” (Colossians 3:17-25, NIV).
Allow me to repeat Colossians 3:17 again: “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
Paul does not leave the believer any wiggle room regarding how the believer is to live. Everything we do is to be done in the name of the Lord Jesus. Think about that for a moment. Do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus. Paul is not saying some things or most things that you do are to be done in the name of the Lord Jesus. No, he says everything is to be done in the name of the Lord Jesus. Not only that, but we are to give thanks to God the father through him while doing them.
You are to give thanks to God for your spouse; your children; your employer; and your job for starters. For some this might not be so easy. Maybe your employer is cheated you out of pay; or your kid did drugs and ran away; or your spouse treated you wrong many times. And you are to give thanks to God for them? You are to love or submit to them?
Think about the things you least like doing. Things that you do not like doing and yet you are to give thanks for them and do them in the name of the Lord Jesus; as unto the Lord.
What are examples of some things you may not like doing?
Taking out the garbage.
Washing or drying the dishes.
Cleaning toilets or doing laundry.
Doing your taxes.
Waking up early to go to work.
Changing diapers, babysitting and noise—nonstop children or grandchildren.
Shopping with your spouse.
Physically caring for a friend or elderly relative who may not have treated you nice and now is unable to care for themselves.
Sharing or giving the last scoop of your favorite desert away to someone.
Paul tells us to do them all in the name of the Lord Jesus and give thanks to God the father at the same time. But doing so is not easy.
How do you respond to trials and frustrations?
Maybe you don’t like being told that you need to do something right away. How do you answer back?
Maybe a driver just cut you off. What do you say? How do you react?
What about when you are not feeling good: you’re sick, tired, or grumpy. How do you respond?
Is your response uplifting and glorify the name of the Lord Jesus? Are you giving thanks to God at that moment? How you act—is it what Jesus would do? Is what you are doing as unto the Lord?
What about if someone offended you? Do you get angry? Do you attempt to get even? Do you say things that you wish you never said?
We all make mistakes and respond poorly at times. But according to scripture we are to live and act differently from the world. God’s love, grace, forgiveness, and mercy should be seen in you. The peace of God is to rule in your heart and be seen in all you do and speak.
Usually if a person is on their first or second date, the person will be on their best behavior. Nothing will matter, all is good. The person might overlook something because they want to make a good impression. But now the two are together. The honeymoon is over. No longer is your best foot forward. No longer do you try to impress the other person.
When a person is first hired, they will make sure they arrive and clock in and out on time. However, after a while the person might begin to arrive late and if no one notices, they do not put down the true time they came in. They might start leaving early every day but not show it on the timecard. Fudging on a timecard or taxes may not bother them. They feel it is owed to them. Sometimes, they think, “everyone does it.” But as Christians we are not to live like everyone else.
Paul tells us that all we do or say is to be done in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the father through him. We are not to live or act like the world.
Ask yourself: do I do all that I do in the name of the Lord Jesus? I was humbled when I asked myself that question, and I was reminded of something that was popular a few years ago. It was the abbreviation: WWJD, meaning “what would Jesus do?”
I want to use the term WWJD in relation to these verses and in every relationship and today, in particular, with family relationships. There are many relationships in our lives:
Husband and wife.
Children and parents.
Workers and bosses.
Believers and non-believers.
No matter the relationship or circumstance, WWJD should be the key factor in every relationship.
Remember in earlier studies we read that we are to set our hearts and minds on the things above and not on earthly things. You will not be able to truly do things in the name of the Lord Jesus and give thanks to God the father unless your heart and mind is set on the things above. This is exactly what we are to do in every relationship, and especially in the family relationship. In relationships, we should have our hearts and minds set on heavenly things and do what Jesus would do. This can mean putting the other person first and honoring them even if they do not deserve it. That is what Jesus did when he died on the cross so that you might live.
Honoring and loving others does not mean putting up with bad behavior or abuse, but loving them and setting boundaries through it. Jesus loved people but he also set healthy boundaries for himself (he took time to be with God (see Luke 5:15-16); he said no to inappropriate behavior (see Luke 4:28-30, Matthew 21:12-17, John 2:12-16); he did his part and asked others to do theirs (see John 5:1-14, Matthew 13:58); he spoke the truth in love (see John 8:1-11).
As a person of faith, you are now a child of God and one in Christ and the righteousness of Christ is yours.
“So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:26-28).
The man and woman who are united in marriage are as one in God’s eyes.
“Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh.” (Matthew 19:4-6).
Love and care for one another as Christ loves and cares for each of you. Ephesians 5 is another place where Paul touches on family relations.
‘Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. 22 Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband’ (Ephesians 5:21-33).
The relationship between husband and wife is very important. It is the foundation of the family unit, and it models how believers who are husband and wife are to love one another and live in submission to Christ as Lord. Consider how Jesus, who is equal with the father, submitted to the fathers will.
“Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:6-8).
As believers we are to submit to Christ just as Christ submitted to the father. In like manner, the wife is to submit to the husband as fitting in the Lord, while the husband honors and loves his wife as Christ loves the church and gave himself up for her. We each are to live in submission to God.
“But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God” (1 Corinthians 11:3).
Only God the father is the ultimate authority. Jesus as the son of God; Jesus, being 100% God, chose to submit to God’s authority.
“Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves” (Romans 13:1-2).
The apostle Paul may step on a few toes in Colossians 18-25. Here he is addressing an area that many within the family unit or in the world question and are against. That being, wives submit to their husbands. For Paul it is a relational submission of authority in regards to the family unit. It is not because the wife is a lesser person or is inferior in some way to a man. Woman are equal to men as individuals in God’s eyes. We have seen that women and men can both have superior IQs, income, outside employment, and abilities. But within the family unit only one can be the authority. The submission of the wife to the husband is a voluntary act of submission in roles within the family unit, as is fitting in the Lord.
We should never forget that Paul’s instruction in these verses covers more than just the family unit, it also covers employees and employers. This instruction on submission begins with God being sovereign and it is a spiritual truth that we should always keep in mind, all our lives. In the truest sense, as believers we submit to the truth of God and the word of God first and foremost, over the lies and way of the world. So then, every other act of submission regarding the will, plan or word of God is an act of submission to God’s sovereign authority. At the same time, any act of rebellion towards submission or the obedience to the will of God is an act of rebellion to the will and truth of God almighty. Jesus did not see submission to the authority and will of God as being something that took away from who he is.
“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God” (Philippians 2:5-6, KJV).
The same should be understood and be true with wives and husbands. Each spouse has a different role and responsibility before God. In the relationship of husband and wife, the wife’s role is different from the husband’s, not because she is inferior or any less important (because she is not!), rather due to her leadership role in the family. Remember we all have authorities over us. God designed the husband’s role as head of the family.
“Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God” (Romans 13:1, NIV).
As already noted, God is sovereign, meaning no authority is above him. God is sovereign over kings and nations. God is sovereign over all creation; even over your employer.
“Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven” (Colossians 4:1).
Just as wives are to submit to the husband, the husband is to love his wife. The love the husband is to show his wife is selfless love, sacrificial love and he is to care for her. Just as Christ loves you, the body of Christ.
If you have any questions about submission and love in the relation between husbands and wives, look at Ephesians 5.
Paul tells us that we are to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. 22 Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:21-25).
Christ is to be at the center of the family unit. Husbands are to always love and care for their wives.
“Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers” (1 Peter 3:7).
Men, you are to love and care for your wife with a divine love that lends you to deny yourself for her benefit. Ladies, you are to submit to him as you ought to do in the Lord. When both husband and wife act as they should in Christ, submission and love for one another comes naturally. Now this does not mean if the husband is physically, verbally, or emotionally abusive that the wife must simply submit and take it. No, no, no; a thousand times no! This is also true for wives who abuse husbands. Each of you is to treat the other with love and respect as they would want to be treated.
How to Glorify God, and Have Peace & Blessings
Do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the father; living dead to sin and alive in Christ.
Submit to Christ, the Lord and submitting to the authorities above you. Live in such a way that glorifies God in your family, workplace and in every relationship. Understand Christ was submissive to the heavenly father even as Paul told us that he is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation (see Colossians 1:15).
“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form” (Colossians 2:9).
Jesus is fully God, yet he submitted to the will of God. The lifestyle of living in Christ is to be seen in every relationship we have. In society today, marriages do not appear to last. Many couples simply live together and do not marry. The family unit is often seen as fractured because the husband and wife refuse to submit and love each other as fitting unto the Lord. This is because God is not the center of their lives and family. This needs to change.
If people are to see the difference in your life, they will need to see it in your personal life. In your marriage relationship between you and your spouse and in your relationship with your children. They need to see it in the workplace. In church and with your unsaved neighbors. I know I have focused more on the relationship between husband and wife, but it is also to be true with every relationship in life. Mom and dad love your children and demonstrate the love of God to each other. We are each under an authority. Children obey your parents. This obedience is not a suggestion but a command, much like how we are all to obey God Almighty. Employees are to work as unto the Lord. Bosses are to care for the employee and treat them right.
None of us are better than any other. As believers we are all sinners saved by grace. Many others in the world are yet to be saved. Some people have totally rejected Christ all together, and yet we are to show the love of God to everyone.
We are to submit to the authorities over us so long as it is fitting unto the Lord.
Do the following and you will glorify God in your life; you will do things in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the father:
First, place Christ first in your heart.
Second, make Christ first in your relationships: marriage, family, friends, coworkers, etc.
Be steadfast in prayer and in the word of God.
Walk and live in the wisdom of God and with spiritual understanding that only the Holy Spirit can give.
As you do these things, you will enjoy the peace of God to rule in your heart, and you will be blessed in all you do.
Suggested Praise and Worship
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