It’s All in Your Mind

I, ,, II The concern of this study is that when it comes to practical peace, many believers seem to be in the camp of the unbeliever. Isaiah 57:20 and 21 give the same thought a(}JuJ llu lD-i.Jud llll l1Jtt lltt l.,oa/,Jd. Ha., wJun if auuUJl UJf, ~ wohn llUf. up. mill tuul duL g1un, um,.~ udih 1ff1J, .(j.M., I.JJ .. llu wiJud.,, A troubled sea is in turmoil, upset, boisterous, unnavigable. The sinner is like that. The unbeliever is in turmoil and is upset. He may project and falsify peace because of success or personality, but the Bible never equates turmoil with the believer. The wicked are like the troubled sea that cannot rest, but the believer ought to be able to be at peace. The wicked are described as casting up mire and dirt. Do you know any Christians who dig up mire and dirt? Do you know any Christians who are always digging in the muck? Do you know any Christians who are always on the telephone with the latest gossip? They are no doubt bom again, but they are living on the devil's plane. A believer in Jesus Christ should not dig up mire and muck because that action is synonymous with the unbeliever who is looking for something that he cannot have. Here is simple teaching. If you claim the name ofChrist as your Savior, then the God of peace says to you, ''There is peace." Peace means the ability to relax. A Christian who walks by faith relaxes. A Christian who walks by feeling does not relax because his feelings are always changing. Isaiah 26:3 is God's formula or promise for perfect peace-peace, peace. What is perfect peace? What is complete peace? As stated before, it must be peace af two kinds or types. You cannot have the peace of God without peace with God. You must have peace with God before you can have peace of heart and mind. You cannot falsify; it must be in that order. Perfect peace means a mind that is completely quiet, completely composed, not upset. Perfect peace means the absence of war. Paul writes in Galatians 5:17, "(ft,.,. du. /Jnk bufdh tupWUl llu J~ iUUl tJu. Jpi,il tllJlll.lW, IJu ~• mu/, lluu llll ~ fJu lJIU b,... Du oJ:hu...•" For the believer to have perfect peace, there has to be the absence ofwar, which means that the lust of the flesh is completely negated in the everyday walk of life. How much do you trust God? Are you focusing your mind on what is happening to you or are you concentrating on God? The promise of perfect peace is present and obtainable. How do I get it? If I meet the conditions, the promise must come, ".. . u:Ju,.u, mind it .IUllJM tJn llt.tt .•." Isaiah 26:3 does not say heart; it does not say soul; it does not say feelings; but it does talk about what you think. What does it mean to have a mind stayed on God? This means to trust God; the remainder ofttie verse says so. And verse four of Isaiah 26 reemphasizes this fact: a ••• /_o,. in, l.luJ!.t}(TlfJJ r;JJu,o.a.h u flu m,.k. tJ/, agu." Not only do we trust God, but we trust Him in all of His unchangeableness. Further, we must complewly tum to God. in His firmness. Job gives us the -finest illustration of this inJob 13:15. In all of his troubles and his thinking, Job said of God, agMll.lJk Ju Jm,,, nu, ,µ1 will ;;J. lnu1 m him..,, There is Isaiah's meaning-a firmness, a steadfastness, a calmness, a quietness, an unchangeableness. You abide by the choice of your mental decision no matter what happens. Do you only trust God when things are good? How oft.en do you think ofGod? Can 16 r