In my experience there are a multitude of persons and forces which seek to appeal to our sense of emotional guidance. There is history and tradition, society and family, peer and principle. There is the autonomously minded trinity known as "me, myself and I", where I confidently hear in my heart that which I want to do anyway.  This is often housed in language like,: “God has given me peace about my decision" or the infamous "I (I as in me, myself, and I) feel led", the feeling led part being a reference to supposed "peace".  I would never suggest that the peace of God is not a reality. However, I would take issue with anyone who suggests that the peace of God is an emotion. I suggest to you that peace is not an emotion, but rather a state of being that comes to us as a gift of faith, a fruit of the Spirit given us when our minds are working in a way that honors God. (Please read the first few verses of Romans 5 for a good discussion of peace.)

In Philippians 4 Paul discusses the peace of God. The entire book of Phil. is a book where Paul is addressing himself to a division in the church due to a disagreement between two of the leaders in the church, Synteche and Euodia. These two church leaders are obviously set at odds with one another to such a degree that the well being and "peace" of the entire congregation is at stake. Paul is clearly teaching “peace” as the solution, but in no way does Paul suggest that peace is an emotion, or a sensation that leads believers away from one another. Biblical peace, in fact, is the opposite. Biblical peace is leading these two leaders to agree with each other in the Lord, for biblical peace is restoration of relationship. Romans 5 teaches that Jesus came into a world full of enemies in order to make “peace”, to create relationship where there was only division, to restore enemies into a community of brothers and sisters.

I once had a client who told me, “I am leaving my wife, and God has given me peace about spending my life with a different woman who I have fallen in love with.” I instantly turned to John 14, verse 27, and read this to him. In this passage Jesus promises to give peace, but not in the same way the world gives peace. Peace as an emotion or a sensation or as a confirmation for what we have already decided to do is not the peace Jesus gives. Christians in today’s churches will search for someone, anyone, and in some cases just one, who will agree with their assessment of things, confirm what they have already decided that God is saying to them, and stand before the world proclaiming – “God has given me peace about my decision”. (In these cases peace is almost always described as an emotion felt in their heart.) God will never give us His peace which leads us to reject our brothers and sisters, even our enemies, for that matter. Peace is reconciliation, not rejection. Biblical peace leads us toward people, not away from them. Our problem is that we have relegated God to a place inside our soul where God desires us to feel comfortable with our choices, guilt free about our rejection of others, and at ease with our dismissal of brothers and sisters in Christ.

The modern church is in search of peace, I’m just not sure they have a good sense of what biblical peace really is all about. God’s will is a revealed will, given us in the context of the study of Scriptures and our relationships with brothers and sisters, and our call to our local church body. Without considering these as priority in our decision making, it is most likely that our will takes over, and the emotion we call peace is simply a biblical word robbed of its true meaning and value in order that we might attribute to God that which we already have decided to do, thus remaking God in our image rather than living the reality of His image in us. The good news, some do allow their ideas of peace to be challenged. In regards to the client mentioned above: After our discussion this man was a little less sure of the peace he felt about leaving his wife. Praise God, the two of them are still together as husband and wife. He had simply fallen victim to a non-biblical view of “peace”, and God’s Spirit broke through when this view of “peace” as an emotion was challenged. God was then free to speak through His Word and the helpful advice of mentors and teachers. On this day, he is set at peace with his wife, which was really the peace God wanted to give him all along…… Peace/Out.