PAUL TAUTGES
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:7)
God wants us to bring everything to Him in prayer because we need the humility and dependence that prayer effects in us. As a result of prayer, the peace of God protects our hearts and minds from fear. God’s peace commands anxious thoughts to leave and prevents new ones from entering. This inner peace has three qualities.
An Indescribable Calm
First, this peace eludes adequate description; it “surpasses all understanding.” It is a peace that the world cannot understand or furnish. Jesus says it this way, “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 indescribable peace comes only through Jesus.
Protection of Emotional and Mental Stability
Second, the apostle assures this peace “will guard your hearts and your minds.” The word guard is a military word. It refers to a garrison of soldiers on duty. When we pray, God dispatches a defense force of armed warriors to surround our inner person and protect it from anxiety attacks, thus keeping them from disturbing our peace. This reminds us of a wonderful promise in our older Testament: “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you” (Isa. 26:3). When our mind is fixed upon the Lord, His peace watches over our hearts and minds.
Belonging Only to Believers
Third, this peace may only be experienced by Christians. It guards the hearts and minds of those who are “in Christ Jesus.” To be “in Christ” means to be united to Him by faith (Gal. 2:20). Jesus is the vine, and we are the branches (John 15:5). Only when we are connected to Jesus can His peace reign in our hearts. This indescribable calm cannot be experienced by the unsaved person because it comes from the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22).
Let me say it another way: If you are not at peace with God, then you will never be able to experience the peace ofGod. Being at peace with God means your sins have justly been dealt with on the Cross of Calvary (1 Pet. 3:18). It means you are trusting in Jesus Christ as your crucified and risen Lord and Savior who has made peace with God for you (Col. 1:20). He is the only Mediator between God and sinners (1 Tim. 2:5). When you come to God through faith in His Son, receiving His atoning work on your behalf, then this rock-solid promise belongs to you: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1). Are you at peace with God? If not, you cannot even begin to overcome anxiety. Spiritual peace is found only “in Christ Jesus.” If you are not a Christian, turn to Jesus in faith today.
If you already know Jesus Christ, then rest in the peace God has provided. Those who are redeemed by the blood of the Lamb find security in His promise: “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
Application Projects
Go to God in prayer. Confess your anxieties to him. Let Him send His peace to set a guard around your heart, and post a sign saying, “Anxiety, you are no longer allowed entrance here. Don’t disturb the peace!”
Meditate on Isaiah 26:3. Write the verse on a 3×5 card and place it somewhere you will see it often.
Question for Reflection
How does being at peace with God lead to experiencing the peace of God?