©Kris Gerbrandt
John 14:27-31 (ESV) - “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. You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.”
Question to consider: How would you define the word ‘peace’?
This word “peace” is eirḗnē in Greek and shalom in Hebrew, and it goes beyond our feelings of comfort and security or the absence of conflict. These things are more like what Jesus described as “what the world gives you.” The peace that is exclusive to Christ is in being in a right relationship with the Father. It is the peace of knowing that we have been brought from death to life. If we want a mental picture of this kind of peace, think of Jonah’s suffocating description of drowning in the sea, “The waters closed in over me to take my life; the deep surrounded me; weeds were wrapped about my head,” (Jonah 2:6) and then being delivered by the great fish sent by God. It is only then that Jonah could proclaim, “Salvation belongs to the LORD!” (Jonah 2:9) Did you know that this entire phrase was expressed in a single word? Yeshua! (Jesus in Greek).
This is the peace that Jesus gives to all who call upon His name. The disciples did not need to drown in the fear and trouble that would surely come upon them when Jesus was betrayed, arrested, and crucified, for He would be going to the Father and then coming back to them from the grave.
Jesus told them these things ahead of time so they would believe when they occurred. In fact, if the disciples had experienced these things after receiving the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, they would not have been troubled but would have rejoiced that these things were to take place. Think for a moment of Peter and John having been beaten for proclaiming Christ by the same people who crucified Jesus, "When they had called in the apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus." (Acts 5:40-42)
We have a tendency to treat Good Friday or the Communion meal as solemn events. I believe it is a good thing to receive these things with reverence, but I pray that you also find them as a source of great joy. Your sins have been forgiven! You are at peace with God! Let not your hearts be troubled, for there is nothing in this world which can take that from you!
Jesus had them rise and go from the upper room because Judas had already left to get the guards. Jesus would take them to the Mount of Olives and then take Peter, James, and John with Him to the garden of Gethsemane to keep watch while He prayed. The next three chapters capture Jesus’ final words before His arrest.
Dear Lord, thank You for being our Caesar of Peace and cleansing us from all unrighteousness. Help us to rejoice in this with a desire to walk in newness of life and abide in You and teach others to do the same. Amen.