Seek Peace & Pursue It

1 Peter 3:10-11

“For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech. They must turn from evil and do good; they must seek peace and pursue it.”

‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭3:10-11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

This is Part 3 of Key to Living A Long & Prosperous Life

Seeking peace and pursuing it is so crucial to enjoying your life and living long.

It is the duty of Christians not only to embrace peace when it is offered, but also to seek and pursue it when it is denied.

“Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:” ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12:14‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

As Christ believers we are peace dealers, Jesus called us peacemakers -

“Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5:9‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

There are three dimensions of this peace that I would like us to examine, there is peace with God, peace of God and then peace with fellow humans. It is impossible for anyone to experience the true peace of God or be able to pursue peace with anyone without first experiencing peace with God.

What does it mean to have peace with God?

Peace with God means that our great sin debt has been paid and God sees us as righteous - we are no longer objects of His wrath because the word of God says ““There is no peace,” … “for the wicked.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭48:22‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

but right now we are enjoying His mercy, grace and love.

We have peace with God through salvation.

What does it mean to have the peace of God?

Paul’s prayer for the Philippians in the 7th verse of chapter 4:

“and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

To have the peace of God means having an extra ordinary calmness in your mind, body and soul that supersedes any prevailing circumstance. As Scriptures says “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Basically, no circumstances no matter how core-shaking it could be, would be able to overwhelm you - that’s why the scriptures say it surpasses all understanding.

Now to the 3rd dimension, which is the subject of our discussion, peace with fellow humans. So the question will be, how do I seek and pursue peace with everyone?

It is only a heart full of God’s love that will be able to seek and pursue peace with others.

In our pursuit of peace, we must learn to seek understanding in conflict so as to reach for peaceful resolution.

Additionally, pursuing peace means we are seekers of forgiveness and not revenge. To help reach the point of forgiveness, we have to learn to let go of past wrongs.

And lastly, fill your heart with joyful thoughts about the situation. Look to the brighter future and enjoy everyday free of resentment and bitterness and thereby allowing yourself to enjoy a long and prosperous life.

Be a peace dealer.

Let us pray:

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for filling our hearts with your divine peace that passes all understanding. Thank you for redeeming us from being children of wrath to being recipients of your mercy, grace & love. Daddy, I pray that you fill our hearts with your peace, enable us to follow, seek and pursue peace as much as it lies in our power to do. In Jesus name Amen! Amen!! Amen!!!