Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
Colossians 3:15
The great preacher Charles surgeon once spoke on the topic of peace as connected with one’s submission to God. In this sermon, titled “The Reason Why Many Cannot Find Peace”[1], he explained,
Until you submit yourselves to God it cannot be well with your souls, for He resists the proud but gives Grace to the humble.
Spurgeon then explained the heart of surrender by suggesting this prayer:
This is the long and the short of it—you must cast yourself at God’s feet and you must say, “Have mercy upon me, O Lord, and have mercy upon me in Your own way. I dictate not to You, but I implore Your Grace! I humbly beg forgiveness. Be pleased to pity me. I yield up myself to You, asking You to make me holy. I do from my very heart give up the love of sin. I fear I shall sin, help me to loathe myself when I do so! Make me what You will have me to be and then deal as You will with me. I make no terms nor conditions. Mine is an unconditional surrender.”
Spurgeon then concludes,
You will have peace when your heart is brought to this point.
Have you come to this point in your life? The point of unconditional surrender to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? “Yes” resounds from the lips of most Christ-followers, but have you remained in this place of surrender?
The familiar words of our Lord beckons, “take up your cross daily” (Luke 9:23). This “dying to self” reaches beyond self-importance and self-preservation to the posture of one’s whole life placed at the disposal of Christ Jesus for His purposes and His glory. A casual and “non-surrendered” approach to Christian faith is no real expression of faith and forsakes the very idea of the rule and reign of Christ. Paul exhorted the Colossian church with, “let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts since as members of one body you were called to peace” (Colossians 3:15). Notice the emphasis upon the inner man – “the heart.” Many speak peace with their mouths while war and antagonism rages in their hearts. (David prayed, “do not drag me away with those who speak cordially with their neighbors but harbor malice in their hearts”, Psalm 28:3.)
The encouragement from Colossians focuses upon a deep and abiding peace that results from Christ ruling the inner man. The Colossian Christians struggled with false teachers who attempted to rule their conscience with a fake knowledge of Jesus and an inflated importance of self. But God used Paul to convey words of freedom from such fraud that countered superficial knowledge with the peace of Christ that alone should rule the heart of every believer. This peace becomes the disposition of a life in union with Jesus and His church. And, the experience of true peace stands proportional to one’s surrender to the rule and reign of Christ. To genuinely know Jesus is to know peace.
With this emphasis, how can one check him or herself concerning genuine surrender to Jesus (genuinely walking with Him every day)? Consider 4 ways you can be certain the peace of Christ is ruling your heart.
First, abide in Christ instead of simply striving for goodness. Jesus said in John 15:4, “abide in me.” To abide is to live in the vital connection of an unhindered relationship. Matthew Henry describes the abiding as, “the union of the human and divine natures in the fullness of the Spirit that is in him (the believer).” There is no peace with the human striving at good works. There is an abundance of peace living in daily union and fellowship with Jesus.
Second, surrender your need to be in control. James 4:7 implores, “submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” This submission indicates placing oneself under God’s authority. To hold on to control attempts to supersede God’s rightful place with our own importance, ideals, or agendas. But peace comes in submission to the loving rule and reign of God through Christ our Lord.
Third, prioritize the secret life over the spotlight. James 4:8 prescribes, “come near to God and He will come near to you. . . cleanse your hands and purify your hearts.” This emphasizes the private and personal resolve of surrender, for the emphasis is upon one’s own heart. Seek this much more than desiring to be seen as righteous by others. There is no way to walk publicly in peace with God if your heart is not privately at peace with God.
Fourth, surrender your whole self: your mind (what and how we think), your body (it belongs completely to God), and your will (all that you are chasing in this world). The Psalmist prayed, “examine me, Lord, try my mind and heart.” Consider your whole life in surrender to Christ if peace is to be the result.
So, surrender is indeed directly connected with living in the peace of Christ. When you are at this point in your Christian journey, peace will not only be an experience, but your very way of life.
Today, surrender afresh and anew to our Lord. Walk in peace, and the discouragements of your present moment will most assuredly be under your feet.
Blessings.
[1] Charles Haddon Spurgeon, Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Volume 24: “The Reason Why Many Cannot Find Peace with God,” (Sermon No. 1408), April 7, 1878.
