It was evening on that first Easter when Jesus appeared to His frightened disciples and said , “Peace be with you.” They were huddled in a room behind closed doors. Fright was the prevailing atmosphere in that room. At any moment the Roman soldiers might come to take them to court. Already one betrayer had been found in their group. They all wondered about each other, hoping that no other betrayer would give them away. Any knock at the door brought trembles. Any word from outside brought terror.
And then Jesus came and stood in their midst. His presence with that group was like that of a parent with a frightened child. His very presence brought peace and security.
What a strong word — Peace. Peace in the biblical sense is a condition of being whole and complete. It is much more than a mere absence of conflict.
Shalom. Peace is the “aloha” of Jewish culture. It means hello, goodbye, I love you, you are my friend.
In the context of Easter it certainly means “relax, God is in control.” Jesus is telling His friends to lift up their heads, to smile and believe. Even the brutality of beatings, the crown of thorns, the naked exhibition of the cross, the slandering of evil leaders have no power to take away the shalom of God.
To bring peace into that room is to bring back their faith. Jesus did not ask for revenge or war, He stated again His mission to bring the peace of the Father into a world wrecked with sin and evil and violence. Peace.
Jesus reassures the disciples saying, “My peace I leave with you. My peace I give unto you. Not as the world gives give I unto you.” {John 14:27}.
Peace, inner calmness, is our inheritance. I sometimes wonder if that is not the most desirable trait possible in this hustle bustle, restless age in which we live. It is very hard to find somebody who has the gift of inner calm. Yet I believe with all my heart that this is the right of every believer. You do not have to be harried, hurried and pushed out of your calm. You have the right to claim this inner peace which our Lord speaks of here. That is His resurrection gift to us.
But, how do we find peace?
One man said that he had been told that one way to achieve inner peace is to finish the things he’s started. He said, “Today I finished two bags of potato chips and a chocolate cake. I feel better already.”
We have a name for it, don’t we? Comfort food. Be honest about it, ladies. Chocolate. And gentlemen, perhaps a doughnut with your coffee helps relieve your stress–not your waistline, of course, but perhaps your stress level.
Another misconception rampant today is that people may achieve peace if they simply ignore their problems. As one song writer says, if you just, “don’t worry. Be Happy!” But it doesn’t work that way.
A young executive sat nervously on a plane for his first business trip. The plane taxied down the runway, but it slowed down and turned around. The young executive inquired about the problem. A flight attendant explained that the pilot thought he heard a noise in one engine.
After an hour of repair work, the plane attempted another take-off. But again, when it reached the end of the runway it slowed down, turned around, and taxied back to the hangar. The pilot thought he heard another noise.
After another hour’s delay the plane was finally airborne. The executive remarked to the flight attendant his relief at finally getting the noise fixed. The flight attendant exclaimed, “Oh, we didn’t. We just got another pilot.”
We laugh at such antics, but we do the same things at times. Jesus never told his disciples, or us, that the road to peace was one of putting blinders on and ignoring our problems. We are recipients of peace in spite of trouble, not in exclusion of it.
“Peace be with you”, said Jesus. Let us be whole and complete because of His resurrection.
“An artist was commissioned by a wealthy man to paint something that would depict peace. After a great deal of thought, the artist painted a beautiful country scene. There were green fields with cows standing in them, birds were flying in the blue sky and a lovely little village lay in a distant valley. The artist gave the picture to the man, but there was a look of disappointment on his face. The man said to the artist, “This isn’t a picture of true peace. It isn’t right. Go back and try again.
The artist went back to his studio, thought for several hours about peace, then went to his canvas and began to paint. When he was finished, there on the canvas was a beautiful picture of a mother, holding a sleeping baby in her arms, smiling lovingly at the child. He thought, surely, this is true peace, and hurried to give the picture to the wealthy man. But again, the wealthy man refused the painting and asked the painter to try again.
The artist returned again to his studio. He was discouraged, he was tired and he was disappointed. Anger swelled inside him, he felt the rejection of this wealthy man. Again, he thought, he even prayed for inspiration to paint a picture of true peace. Then, all of a sudden an idea came, he rushed to the canvas and began to paint as he had never painted before. When he finished, he hurried to the wealthy man.
He gave the painting to the man. He studied it carefully for several minutes. The artist held his breath. Then the wealthy man said, “Now this is a picture of true peace.” He accepted the painting, paid the artist and everyone was happy.
And what was this picture of true peace?? The picture showed a stormy sea pounding against a cliff. The artist had captured the fury of the wind as it whipped black rain clouds which were laced with streaks of lightning. The sea was roaring in turmoil, waves churning, the dark sky filled with the power of the furious thunderstorm. And in the middle of the picture, under a cliff, the artist had painted a small bird, safe and dry in her nest snuggled safely in the rocks. The bird was at peace midst the storm that raged about her.”
His peace is the eye of the hurricane … better still, a bull’s-eye, a target of hope. With life at its worst, the promise of His peace continues to enfold us.
Jesus is true to His promise, “I will never leave you.”
An ancient tribe of Indians had a custom for its young men who reached age seven. To demonstrate their courage, they had to spend a night in the forest alone. They could take only their bow and arrows for protection. As expected, the boy was petrified with fear. The slightest sound became a wild beast ready to prance on him.
But he wasn’t alone. As the night faded into morning, he saw his father resting against a tree. In his darkest moments, father was there as a protector.
The “Comforter,” the Peace Giver, is on our side. As we tough it through our pain, He is the Friend who listens and understands. His peace is always with us, ready to fill our hearts, to give us comfort and strength, if we allow our hearts to be open.
Barry Kolp tells about a trip to an amusement park he and his wife took with their son Matthew when Matthew was quite small. After riding several kiddie rides, Matthew wanted to try the rocket ride which was quite scary. Sitting in the seat, Barry tucked Matthew safely between his knees, and off they went.
As the rocket twirled through the sky, Matthew whimpered a little and said, “Hold me, Daddy.” Once he leaned against his father’s arms, he relaxed and even wanted to ride the rocket ride again.
After that experience, says Barry, whenever he himself faced something new and frightening in his life, he found himself whispering to his Heavenly Father, “Please hold me,” just as his son had asked his Dad to hold him. Barry reports that as soon as he became aware of God’s presence, he could relax and even begin to enjoy himself.
That is the true secret of peace within…letting yourself live nestled in the arms of your Heavenly Father.
On that evening in the upper room, Jesus came and stood among the disciples and said, ‘Peace be with you.’” And He showed them His hands and His side.
Today and every day, Jesus comes to stand among us, proclaiming, “Peace be with you.” We can live in peace and hope, no matter how wildly our world is spinning, because we are sheltered safely in the arms of Christ which were stretched out on the cross for us.
Praying that you will find peace in the love of our risen Lord and Savior!
In Christ’s peace
Linnea Gustafson
The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of The Kewanee Voice.
***This column is sponsored by the Kewanee Ministerial Association
