Overview
You walk in peace with the Father by choosing what you do with your mind, because Isaiah 26:3 says He will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Him, and those two words are actually peace, peace. In Our Peaceful Walk with the Father, Rev. Jon Ryan works through Isaiah 26, Matthew 11, John 16, 2 Chronicles 32, Genesis 49 and 50, and Philippians 4 to show that peace means no fear, that it is available in health, money and relationship pressure, and that it equips us to speak comfortably to others. Hezekiah strengthened himself before he acted, Joseph told his frightened brothers God meant it unto good, and Philippians 4 turns anxiety into prayer with thanksgiving.
Transcript
Bombarded by Negatives: Why People Live by Emotion
So, if you would take your Bibles, please, and turn to Isaiah 26. We call this our peaceful walk with the Father. We live in a day and time when all around us we can be bombarded by negatives.
And I mean that really in the sincerest sense of the word. We can go to work and people are talking about what they have heard, the news, which is so negative. People carry their cell phones in their pockets and their purses and are continually in tune to that.
And there’s just so much that comes around us that we can be faced with negative things. People learn to react and respond and to really live based on emotions. The emotions seem to hold sway in their minds, and yet that’s not what God wants for us.
Isaiah 26:3 and What Perfect Peace Actually Says
God wants us to realize that He is there, that we have nothing to fear, the world is going to let us down, but as we put our trust in Him, we can live above whatever the world puts in front of us. So, in Isaiah 26, there’s a great verse that I think many of us are familiar with. It says in verse 3, Isaiah 26, verse 3, thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee. And those two words, perfect peace, are actually peace, peace.
It’s a repetition of this word, and it’s to draw our attention. It’s a figure of speech. God wants us to know that we can have peace.
Peace Means No Fear in the Face of Real Challenges
Peace indicates no fear, indicates that we are confident and quiet and assured as we move into situations. And there’s all kinds of things that people can come up against in their lives. They can come up with physical challenges with health for themselves or those that they love.
They can face financial challenges, challenges with relationships, so many different areas. And they can rationalize to be afraid or to be anxious because of these things, but God doesn’t want that for us. He wants us to know that He’s there for us.
Matthew 11:28: Take My Yoke Upon You and Find Rest
If you go to Matthew chapter 11, Jesus Christ would have done so much heart-searching in the Word to see how men and women throughout the history before Him, the Old Testament, how they had handled situations, how they had moved with confidence and weren’t shaken, even in the [face] of sometimes life-threatening situations. And so He’s able to declare to His followers this great section in Matthew chapter 11. It’s Matthew 11, and we’re going to pick it up in verse 28.
It says, [the reading of verse 28 is missing from the recording here; Matthew 11:28 reads: Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.] See, that’s not the word for peace, but that’s what it’s about, is we can have rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls. See, He’s showing them that the way that He handled situations, the yoke that He carried, He cast it onto His Father’s shoulders. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
This is how Jesus Christ moved through or navigated His way through life, is He had this intimate relationship with His Father. We can read record after record in the Gospels of Him praying, pouring His heart out to God, and that’s how He could move with that quiet confidence. Look at John chapter 16.
John 16:33: Be of Good Cheer Means Have Your Thoughts Well Arranged
Even at the very end of His life, before He was to give it up and lay it down for us, He’s with His closest followers, and there’s so much recorded—John chapter 13, 14, 15, 16, 17—are all this one intimate time that He had with those men that He had trained, that He had raised up to follow in His steps. He tells them in these chapters that they can do the works that He did, and greater works than these, because He was going to His Father. And here at the very close of John chapter 16, He says, These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace.
In the world ye shall have tribulation, mental pressure, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. So He’s showing them how they can have peace, and it’s this be of good cheer is a phrase that can be rendered, have your thoughts well arranged. That’s how we have peace.
Charles Swindoll on Attitude: We Have a Choice Every Day
It’s what do we choose to do with our minds. There’s a quote I wanted to read from this gentleman that was a minister named Charles Swindoll. It’s on attitude, and he writes, The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.
Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think, say, or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill.
It will make or break a company, a church, a home. The remarkable thing is that we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past.
We cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude.
I am convinced that life is 10 percent what happens and 90 percent how we react to it. And so it is with you. We are in charge of our attitudes.
I like that quote. And when I think about attitude, I think about we can determine if we’re going to stay peaceful or if we’re going to get fear. And we can lead the way for so many to show them how to stay peaceful.
Hezekiah Under Attack: Sennacherib Comes Against Judah
Go back to 2 Chronicles, please. 2 Chronicles 32. There’s so many examples of men and women that were able to maintain a peacefulness in the situations that they faced.
This record here is with Hezekiah, and Hezekiah learns that he’s under attack. He had done so much to bring Israel to the point of recognizing who God is. He celebrated a great Passover.
But as 2 Chronicles 32 opens up, it says, After these things and the establishment thereof, Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, came and entered into Judah, and encamped against the fenced cities, and thought to win them for himself. So here comes the attack. So what does he do? Well, we’re not going to read the entire record, but if you look down here in verse 5, it says, Also he strengthened himself, and built up all the wall that was broken, and raised it up to the towers, and another wall without, and repaired Millo in the city of David, and made darts and shields in abundance.
He Strengthened Himself First, Then He Spake Comfortably
I like the first phrase, and he strengthened himself. See, that’s what we need to do in situations, is there may be action that we need to take in regards to some challenge that we’re facing, but first we must strengthen ourselves. Look what it says in verse 7. Well, verse 6. He set captains of war over the people, and gathered them together to him in the street of the gate of the city, and spake comfortably to them, saying, Be strong and courageous, and be not afraid nor dismayed.
Gosh, that reminded me so much of what Joshua was told as he’s entering into the promised land. He probably had studied those records, no doubt. Be strong and courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed for the king of Assyria, nor for all the multitude that is with him, for there be more with us than with him.
With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles. And the people rested themselves upon the words of Hezekiah the king of Judah. And then they went on to win the war.
What It Means to Speak Comfortably to Someone
They went to see how God took care of this enemy that was coming down upon them. So here he strengthened himself, and then he spake comfortably. This phrase, speak comfortably, comes up a number of places.
Look at Genesis chapter 49. To speak comfortably is to just, it’s to encourage. To speak affectionately is how it’s rendered in one place.
We give people a different perspective than the perspective that they’re facing. We may be facing a challenge, they may be facing a challenge, and we are to encourage them by reminding them of God. In Genesis 49, the very last verse tells us that Jacob, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Jacob has just died.
Genesis 49:33: Jacob Dies and Joseph’s Brothers Are Afraid
Verse 33, And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people. So here Jacob has died. Now, the context is Jacob had 12 sons, and they each represented the tribes of Israel.
Ten of the sons were jealous of Joseph, and they sold him into Egypt years previous. And he was sold as a slave. And then years went by, Joseph was in Egypt, and he rose up to be second in command in the country of Egypt.
And with God working in him, he learned and prophesied that there would be seven years of good, or plenty, and then seven years of famine that would follow. And two years into the famine, he, Joseph, sees his brothers show up, as so many around the country of Egypt were coming for food during the famine. And he discloses to his brothers that, God sent me here to save your lives.
When they’re astonished, they knew how they had treated Joseph. And so here, Jacob has just died. And look at chapter 50 of Genesis, verse 5. My father made me swear, lo, I die, in my grave which I have digged for me, and in the land of Canaan there shalt thou bury me.
So he’s got to bring his father back to the land of Canaan. Look at verse 15. And when Joseph’s brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him.
And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive I pray thee now the trespass of thy brethren and their sin, for they did unto thee evil. And it goes on. They’re concerned that Joseph’s just going to take them out now that dad’s gone.
God Meant It Unto Good: Joseph Comforts His Brothers
But look at verse 19. And Joseph said unto them, Fear not, for I am in the place of God. Or I fear God, is what that actually means.
But as for you, ye thought evil against me. But God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not, I will nourish you and your little ones.
And he comforted them and spake kindly unto them. That word kindly is the same word that’s used when Hezekiah spake comfortably unto the men when they were surrounded by Sennacherib’s armies. So Joseph here is telling his brothers God’s perspective.
Don’t worry, I know that you did me wrong. But you know what? God knew the end from the beginning, and God sent me here so I could save your lives. What a great perspective.
A Runaway Daughter Found by Staying Peaceful and Prayerful
Go to Philippians chapter 4. We can be at peace no matter what situation we come against, and we can help others by walking with that peaceful, quiet confidence. You know, there was a number of years ago, I was in an area, and I had this family that was close to us that we fellowshiped with, and I received a call one evening, and it was about, oh, nine o’clock at night, and they were distressed. This mom and dad had two children, both of them were in high school, and this dad called me up and said they found a letter in their daughter, the 16-year-old daughter’s room, said she was running away.
She was leaving home. And so I immediately drove over there, and I met with them, and we prayed. And I said, okay, me and dad are going to go and find the girl.
Mom, you stay here with your son, and if she comes back, give us a call. And then we drove away from the home, and we went through, there was a major city, we went through the major city, passed by that, went to the next city. We were about 20 minutes away, and I’m just driving along, and we weren’t really talking that much, and I said, let’s take this exit.
And so we turned off the highway and took this exit into a neighboring town, and we drove down a little ways, and I said, let’s turn into this apartment complex. And we go into this apartment complex, and there’s about, I think, 40 or 50 buildings. It was a big apartment complex, and we’re just driving around the parking lot, and I said, let’s stop here in front of this one building, and we pulled into a parking spot right in front of the door, and then I just told the dad, I said, just pray quietly, and within two minutes, the door opens up, and out walks his daughter, and he looks at me, he starts crying.
He gets out of the car, she sees her dad, she starts crying. They both knew the only way this happened was God, because she, this is no place she had ever come before, that her dad knew, we didn’t know, but God just directed our steps, but we just had to stay peaceful. We just had to stay quiet, and thankful, and prayerful, and know that God had the answer.
Philippians 4:6 and 7: Prayer, Supplication and Thanksgiving
Here in Philippians chapter 4, this great section, it says in verse 6, Philippians 4:6, be careful or anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. See, I think about how Hezekiah strengthened himself, how we got in this situation, and we just went to God in prayer, and we were thankful. Jesus Christ certainly prayed time after time when situations arose, and then He acted, and then He saw how God worked within him.
And it goes on to say in verse 7, And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. What an advantage we have to walk like that, to walk in step with our Father, to have peace rather than worry or anxiety. God’s given us His Word and showed us that we can trust Him.
What He just told us in His Word is very evident, that God takes care of us and walks with us step by step. We just need to trust Him. Thank you very much.
Key Takeaways
- Isaiah 26:3 promises perfect peace to the person whose mind is stayed on God; the Hebrew doubles the word, peace, peace, a figure of speech drawing our attention to it.
- Peace indicates no fear: being confident, quiet and assured as we move into health, financial or relationship challenges instead of rationalizing anxiety.
- In John 16:33 be of good cheer is a phrase that can be rendered have your thoughts well arranged, which is why attitude, not circumstance, decides whether we stay peaceful.
- Hezekiah strengthened himself first when Sennacherib invaded Judah, and only then acted and spake comfortably to the people, who rested themselves upon his words.
- To speak comfortably, also rendered speak affectionately, is to give people God’s perspective; it is the same word used when Joseph comforted his brothers and spake kindly unto them.
- Philippians 4:6 and 7 is the pattern the speaker used the night he and a father prayed quietly and found a runaway daughter: be anxious for nothing, pray with thanksgiving, and the peace of God keeps your heart and mind.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does perfect peace mean in Isaiah 26:3?
In Isaiah 26:3 the two words perfect peace are actually peace, peace, a repetition of the same word used as a figure of speech to draw our attention to it. God is telling us we can have peace, and peace here indicates no fear. It means being confident and quiet and assured as we move into situations, and it is promised to the person whose mind is stayed on God because he trusteth in Him.
How did Hezekiah respond when Sennacherib attacked Judah?
According to 2 Chronicles 32, Hezekiah strengthened himself first. He built up the broken wall, raised it to the towers, added another wall without, repaired Millo and made darts and shields in abundance, then set captains of war over the people and spake comfortably to them: be strong and courageous, be not afraid nor dismayed, for there be more with us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God. The people rested themselves upon his words.
What does Philippians 4:6 and 7 say to do with worry and anxiety?
It says be careful or anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God, and the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. The speaker ties it back to Hezekiah strengthening himself and to Jesus Christ praying before He acted: we go to God in prayer, we stay thankful, and then we see how God works.
Scripture References
Isaiah 26:3; Matthew 11:28; Matthew 11:29; Matthew 11:30; John 13-17; John 16:33; 2 Chronicles 32:1; 2 Chronicles 32:5; 2 Chronicles 32:6; 2 Chronicles 32:7; 2 Chronicles 32:8; Genesis 49:33; Genesis 50:5; Genesis 50:15; Genesis 50:16; Genesis 50:17; Genesis 50:19; Genesis 50:20; Genesis 50:21; Philippians 4:6; Philippians 4:7
This text was prepared from the teaching audio. Please verify scripture references against your own Bible.
