The Peace of Obedience

War. We have been at war since the dawn of time. It first happened in the garden of Eden, when we decided to make war with God by disobeyed his first command to us, thinking that we knew better than he did and eating of the fruit of the tree, breaking the first commandment by making ourselves to be our own god. And for the past few thousand years, we’ve constantly been at war, either with God because of our sin, or with mankind in a struggle for power and control. For some reason, we think that the only way to achieve peace, which is the opposite of war, is by conquering others, or when it comes to achieving peace spiritually, to do what we want, be our own god, and try to make peace with ourselves and others. But, it actually doesn’t work that way. The only way to have and know true peace is through Jesus Christ the Lord, trusting in his death for our sins, his burial, and his resurrection for eternal life and salvation. Ultimately, true peace with God and mankind can only come through Jesus. We will see that in our scripture today, and our big idea summarizes this passage for us. Here’s our big idea, it will be up on the screens.

Big Idea: Jesus gives us his peace when we obey him, because he brought peace when he obeyed God.

So, now that we know where we are heading, let’s start on our journey together, by first examining this: the observation regarding peace. The observation regarding peace.

1. The observation regarding peace.

Before we go into why Jesus peace is so important, we must understand what peace actually is, especially from a Jewish perspective. You may have even heard the word for Jewish peace before, “shalom”. It doesn’t just mean a lack of war. True peace is so much more than that. It is a sense of overall well-being, a wholeness, a soundness, where you experience every king of good in life.

Now let’s look at the kind of peace that is brought. It’s the peace of Christ. Christ’s peace. It is Christ’s wanting what’s best for you in every facet of life. In fact, after he was resurrected, this was how he greeted he disciples. We see this, for example, in Luke 24:36. The disciples are hanging out in a room, afraid to venture outside, and Jesus appears, out of nowhere. Look with me. Luke tells us:

Luke 24:36 CSB

As they were saying these things, he himself stood in their midst. He said to them, “Peace to you!”

In fact, Christ not only brings peace and wishes peace in our lives, but he HIMSELF is peace. We see this in Isaiah 9:6.

Isaiah 9:6 (CSB)

For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

This is the reason that Jesus is able to bring peace to us, because he himself is peace. In fact, it gets much deeper than that. The bible tells us that, as the Prince of Peace, he did something for us on the cross of calvary. Romans 5:10

Romans 5:10 CSB

For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, then how much more, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life.

But. it’s not just that Jesus peace is a life of contentment and well-bring. It’s the opposite of what the world gives to us. The world tries to offer us peace by conquering us, telling us what to do, under the guise of peace. But see, that’s not true peace, that’s a lack of war. Jesus peace is a peace that’s like that of a mediator between to warring parties. Look with me at 2 Corinthians 5:18 and then I’ll give you an example of the worlds peace vs Jesus peace. Here’s what it says.

2 Corinthians 5:18 CSB

Everything is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.

Jesus himself is our reconciler, he is the one who makes peace between God and manking, and even between humans.

The world’s kind of peace still brings peace to us that troubles us, makes us afraid. It’s a peace by fear and threats. That word for troubled heart has the imagery of a hot tub that’s been turned on and the water is just a bubbling and churning away. Yes, the water underneath MIGHT be calm, but on tob, it’s a different story.

Then there’s Jesus’ peace. It’s the hot tub that’s been turned off, and the water is now still. It’s the lake that’s calm and still, like it is first thing in the morning before anyone or anything gets on it.

Christ’s peace is a constant peace, and unchanging peace, because he himself is constant. Hebrews 6:19 describes him as the anchor in the storms of life. In fact, Hebrews 13:8 tells us this about Jesus.

Hebrews 13:8 CSB

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

The worlds peace is constantly changing because the world, who is ruled by Satan, is constantly out to conquer.

Let me give you this illustration, by way of a story.

There once lived a very wealthy man who was willing to pay a small fortune to the artist who could best illustrate the presence of peace. Several artists brought paintings of sunsets and quiet meadows, but the man did not accept any of these. One day as he was walking through looking at the most recent attempts, two paintings captured his attention.

One was a painting of a beautiful calm lake surrounded by lush green mountains. The water seemed as still as glass and wispy white clouds danced in the bright blue of the sky. Next to this painting was another with vast differences. It was also a picture of a lake surrounded by mountains, but the strong winds had whipped the lake into a tempest and the dark clouds hovered about the rugged mountain landscape ready to release a downpour of torrential rains.

The audience standing about watched with anticipation to see which one the man might choose to depict the story of peace. All were shocked when he did not choose the first, but instead chose the second. How could such a stormy scene tell a story of peace?

The rich man explained. The first painting was beautiful and peaceful, but it didn’t tell the truth of where peace can be found. Anyone could feel peaceful upon a crystal-clear lake with white clouds drifting across the sky and barely a breeze blowing across the water.

Then he pointed out something in the second painting which everyone else had overlooked. If you peered closely into the mountains of the second, there was a waterfall, and tucked into a crevice of that mountain near the waterfall was a small nest on which a mother bird sat upon tiny blue eggs.

The man spoke. “This second painting is a picture of true, perfect peace because it is within the storms of life we find real peace tucked into the side of God knowing His presence will guard and protect us even in the midst of this world’s storms.”

See, when you have the peace of Jesus in your life, through the Holy Spirit, which guards your hearts and minds, you are like the bird in that story that’s surrounded by a thundering waterfall. You can be at peace, knowing that God is right there with you, in the storm, bringing you peace.

So, if this is WHAT peace is, how do we obtain it? That takes us to our second point regarding the peace of obedience. We’ve seen the observation regarding peace, now let’s look at the one that restores peace. The one that restores peace.

2. The one that restores peace.

Remember, Jesus had previously told them in John 14:3 that he’s leaving them, he’s going away, but he’s going to come back. This terrified the disciples, because they were focused on him being a political savior, not a personal savior. But, in order for Jesus to provide his peace, he must accomplish the mission that God the Father sent him on, calvary and the cross. This is why he says what he says in the middle of verse 28. Look with me. John 14:28.

John 14:28 CSB

You have heard me tell you, ‘I am going away and I am coming to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I.

If the disciples understood that Jesus was there to be the persona savior of the world, the would be THRILLED that Jesus would be heading back to heaven, because that meant that he’d come back for them someday. But, instead, what they wanted was the salvation of Isreal and the kingdom of heaven to come about, but they wanted it without any sacrifice.

Just like we often want the benefits of eternal life, the salvation that Jesus offers, we all wants Christ’s peace, but we often want it without the obedience that’s required by Jesus to obtain it.

This is why Jesus says that he is going to the Father, and the Father is greater than him. He’s told the disciples he’s not orphaning them in John 14:18, he told them that they belong to him, that the disciples are in God and he is in God. Now he’s telling them that, if they truly loved him, if they truly understood what he had to do, they’d want him to go back to heaven, so that he could be glorified by the father.

And after telling them this, after saying that they should really be rejoicing about what he’s told them, he gives them hope. In fact, this verse, verse 29, reveals to us yet again that Jesus is God. Jesus says this. John 14:29.

John 14:29 CSB

I have told you now before it happens so that when it does happen you may believe.

The apostle John, through Jesus Christ, gives us a reminder that Jesus knows all and will always be around in Revelation 1:8.

Revelation 1:8 CSB

“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “the one who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”

He’s telling them now what’s going to happen in the future, so that when it does happen and they look back, they’ll get it and trust and believe.

If anyone in here has seen the karate kid, you’d remember this scene. The fence painting scene and car waxing scene. For those of you who have never seen the Karate Kid, it’s about a teenage boy who’s getting picked on and beat up, named Daniel. He finds out that there’s a local karate master named Mr. Miyagi, and he goes to Mr. Miyagi for help. Mr. Miyagi agrees, but only if Daniel completely obeys him. Daniel agrees.

What’s the first thing that Mr. Miyagi has Daniel do? He doesn’t show him proper technique for punching or kicking. Oh no. He has him paint the picket fence at his point. And not just any technique. Paint brush up, paint brush down. When it comes to his car, it’s “wax on” with one hand, “wax off” with the other. Up and down, wax on, wax off.

Daniel gets frustrated with Mr. Miyagi and come to him one night, because he doesn’t see the point in doing what he’s doing. How do painting, waxing, and Karate go together. Mr. Miyagi asks Daniel to show him the strokes he’s been using…and surprises Daniel by throwing punches at Daniel, which he’s able to block because he did one thing: he obeyed what Mr. Miyagi told him to do, even when it didn’t make sense.

And if we were honest with ourselves, we are alot like the disciples, even like Daniel. Jesus, through his word tells us that we must be obedient to him, as his disciples, no matter what. Yet, when he asks us to do something that doesn’t make sense, like Mr. Miyagi telling Daniel to paint a fence, or he tells us something that we don’t understand, like Daniel having to “wax on, wax off”, we are hesitant to do it. Then, only after we obey, we understand why Jesus had us do something, but at the time it doesn’t make sense. We see that obedience is paramount in the Christian life. In fact, not only does obedience restore peace, but as we now see in our last couple of verses, obedience is required for peace. We’ve seen the observation regarding peace, and the one that restores peace, lastly let’s look at the obedience required for peace. Remember, our big idea is that Jesus gives us his peace when we obey him, because he brought peace when he obeyed God.

3. The obedience required for peace.

Jesus now tells his disciples in verses 30 and 31 that his time is drawing to a close. He knows that, likely even now Judas is on his way to the garden of Gethsemane to arrest Jesus. At this point Judas is possessed by Satan. But Jesus gives the disciples hope. Satan, the one who is the ruler of the world, but is going to be defeated on the cross. Hebrews 2:14-15 says it this way:

Hebrews 2:14–15 CSB

Now since the children have flesh and blood in common, Jesus also shared in these, so that through his death he might destroy the one holding the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death.

In one of my favorite passages in the book of Revelation, we see that because of the cross, Jesus actually holds power of death. Revelation 1:17-18 says:

Revelation 1:17–18 CSB

When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid. I am the First and the Last, and the Living One. I was dead, but look—I am alive forever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and Hades.

See, because Satan had no power over Jesus, because Jesus is God, Jesus chooses to obey the Father. Which tells us of the power of the cross. The cross isn’t just Christ’s statement of his love for us. The cross is Christ’s statement of his love for God.

God commanded Jesus to die. And because of his deep love for the Father, he obeyed the Father, even to the point of death. We see this in Philippians 2:8.

Philippians 2:8 (CSB)

he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death— even to death on a cross.

Jesus obedience to the Father on the cross brought peace between God and mankind. And it’s ONLY our obedience to Jesus that brings us peace in our lives..

The last verse of this passage is so important. “Get up, let’s leave this place.” He’s leaving a place of comfort, with his disciples, to get ready to embark into a word of chaos, while being obedient.

Ever had a time in your life where you knew God was telling you to do something, but the obedience involved meant taking you into a place that you knew would make you uncomfortable? You really enjoyed what you were doing, but KNEW that God was calling you to something else, bigger than you, that was going to make you uncomfortable, even though you were being obedient?

I close with a personal story. <graduation from seminary, shelby systems, green mountaing consulting, misery, then obedience into ministry>

The first step in becoming a follower of Christ is a step of obedience, in faith. You are choosing trust that Jesus Christ died on the cross as payment for your sins, that he was buried, and that he rose from the dead to give you eternal life. And, in obedience to him, you make that trust public by confessing him as Lord.

In just a moment, you’re going to have a chance to do that. You’re going to have a chance to experience the peace of obedience.

The peace of obedience

<gospel>, <invitation>