Jesus was always at peace. According to Mark 4:38, even in a violent storm at sea He was sleeping peacefully in the back of a boat. How do you have that kind of peace and rest even amidst a raging storm? The amazing thing is that Jesus offers us this same peace that allows us to find rest even when the storms of life rage on. 

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. John 14:27 NLT 

I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 NLT 

by William Earnhardt

Jesus offers us a peaceful rest that has nothing to do with the stock market, interest rates, red blood cell counts, or even if our best friend is speaking to us or not. Jesus gives us peace by placing us in a right relationship with God. When we are at peace with God nothing else matters. 

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Romans 5:1 NLT 

Jesus was at perfect peace and had a perfect relationship with His Father because their was no hint of selfishness in His life. 

You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Philippians 2:5-8 NLT 

I believe that the love of self causes unrest. It is selfishness that causes the anxiety that destroys our peace. The roots of restlessness are the roots of selfishness. The roots of rest and peace are the roots of selflessness. When Jesus gives us His peace He gives us His selfless attitude. We are no longer worried about being number one. We are no longer in turmoil, restlessly fretting that someone else may get that bigger slice of the pie that we wanted for ourselves. Our pride that made us worry about what others think about is gone. The peace and rest Jesus gives us helps us to forget about self and relax as we enjoy our relationship with God. When we are in a right relationship with God we can claim this promise,

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you! Isaiah 26:3 NLT 

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A hypocrite is somebody who play-acts, who wants to appear to be somebody who he or she is not. The term is used seven times in Matthew chapter 23 in a discourse in which Jesus publicly shames the scribes and Pharisees, the very center of Jewish religious leadership ( Matthew 23.13-14, Matthew 23:15, Matthew 23:23, Matthew 23:25, Matthew 23:27, Matthew 23:29). The Gospels show us Jesus offering grace and forgiveness to adulterers, tax collectors, prostitutes, and even murderers, but He demonstrated little tolerance for hypocrites (see the many additional references in Matthew 6:2, Matthew 6:5, Matthew 6:16; Matthew 7:5; Matthew 15:7-9; Matthew 22:18).

Read Matthew 23:1-13 and list four main characteristics of a hypocrite mentioned by Jesus.

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Jesus associates four characteristics with the scribes and Pharisees. In the spectrum of Judaism in the first century A.D., the Pharisees represented the conservative religious right. They were interested in the written and oral law and emphasized ritual purity. On the other side of the spectrum were the Sadducees, a group of mostly wealthy leaders, often associated with the elite priestly class. They were highly Hellenized (i.e., they spoke Greek and were at home in Greek philosophy) and did not believe in a judgment or an afterlife. We would describe them as liberals. Both groups were guilty of hypocrisy.

According to Jesus, we are hypocrites if we don’t do what we say, when we make religion harder for others without applying the same standards to ourselves, when we want others to applaud our religious fervor, and when we require honor and recognition that belongs only to our heavenly Father.

No matter how sharp and to-the-point His words, Jesus’ engagement with those He called hypocrites was nevertheless full of love and concern, even for these hypocrites.

“Divine pity marked the countenance of the Son of God as He cast one lingering look upon the temple and then upon His hearers. In a voice choked by deep anguish of heart and bitter tears He exclaimed, ‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!’” — Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 620.

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

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