---

A moment's contemplation would suffice to arouse any man to the terror of the position involved in being at war with God. For a subject to rebel against a powerful monarch is to incur forfeiture of life. But for a creature to be in arms against its Creator, this is an appalling thing indeed; but happy beyond all description the man who can say, "I have peace with God."

I. THE PEACE WHICH THE CHRISTIAN ENJOYS.

1. Its basis.

(1) There is the widest possible difference between a man being just in his own eyes, and his being justified in the sight of God. Yet, perhaps no fallacy is more common than to mistake the one for the other. Then, as a natural consequence of building on a weak foundation, the structure, however fair to look upon, is insecure. The peace in which multitudes delight is merely peace with their own conscience, and not in any sense peace with God. I know of no greater contrast than there is between that peace which is a mere stagnation of thought, a lull of anxiety, or a blindness to danger, and that soul-satisfying peace which passes all understanding.

(a) "Are you living in peace with God, my friend?" "Yes," says one, "I have enjoyed peace for years." "How do you get it? Well, as I was walking one day in great distress, a feeling of comfort came over me, and it has remained with me ever since." "Yes, but what is the ground of your confidence; what is the doctrinal proof?" "Well, do not press me," says he, "only this I know — I do feel happy, and ever since, I have not had any doubt." That man, if I be not mistaken, is under a delusion. Satan has said to him, "Peace, peace," where there is no peace. The peace of a Christian is not such a lull of stupefaction as that. It has a reason.

(b) Here is another who says, "Some years ago I never went to a place of worship. I was doing my trade in a very bad way, and now and then I took too much drink; and I thought it was time for me to turn over a new leaf, and I have done so. Now, I am not like the man you brought up just now. I think I may say I have a good ground for saying that I am at peace with God." Now, let this man be reminded that it is written, "By the works of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight." All these moral things are good enough in themselves. They will be very excellent if they be placed at the top; but, if they be used as foundations, a builder might as well use tries, and slates, and chimney pots, as use these reformatory actions as a ground of dependence. All this is only peace with yourself.

(c) Some true Christians will say, "I hope I am at peace with God now, for my faith is in active exercise; my love is fervent; I have delightful seasons in prayer, etc., etc., therefore I feel that I have peace with God." Oh, believer! art thou so foolish as, having begun in the Spirit by faith, to be made perfect in the flesh by your own doing? If thou puttest thy peace here upon thy graces, then there will come another day when all those graces will droop like withered flowers. To look to thy graces for peace is like going to the cistern instead of living by the fountain.

(d) I fear, too, that there are not a few who are tempted to found their confidence upon their enjoyments. If we do this, let us remember that we may have our times of agonising and fruitless prayer; we may be in the valley of despondency, or in the blacker valley of the shadow of death.

(2) The Christian's conviction of his peace with God lies in this — that he is justified by faith. I was a sinner doomed to die; Christ took my place; He died for me. God says that he who believes in Christ shall be saved — I believe in Christ, therefore I am saved. He says, "He that believeth on Him is not condemned." I believe on Him, therefore I am not condemned. Now this is reasoning which no logic can gainsay. There is a rebel — be is pardoned, he is at peace with his king, and a rebel no longer. There is the offending child — his father takes him, accepts him for his elder brother's sake, and he is at peace with his father. This is the basis of the Christian's peace — one on which he may sleep or wake, live or die, and live eternally, without condemnation or separation from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus the Lord.

2. Its channel — "through our Lord Jesus Christ."(1) Though justification by faith is in itself a well of comfort, yet, even from that well we cannot get it, except we use Christ, who digged the well, to be the bucket to draw the water up from its depths. I will suppose that I am in doubt and fear and want to get my peace restored — how shall I seek it? Through Christ, the surety and substitute. Christ tells me that He came to save sinners; I am a sinner, therefore He came to save me.

(a) He says He can save me. This looks reasonable. He is very God, He is perfect man, He has suffered and offered a complete atonement.

(b) He tells me He is willing to save me. This also appears reasonable, for why else should He die?

(c) Then He tells me if I will trust Him, He will save me. I trust Him, and I have not the shadow of a shade of a suspicion of doubt that He will be as good as His word.

(2) Some people say we teach that man is saved by mere believing. We do. There is a poor, starving man over there. I give him bread — his life is spared. Why do not these people say this man was saved by mere eating! And here is another person who is dying of thirst, and I give him water and the man is saved by mere drinking. Why do not we drop down dead in our pews? Just stop your breath a little while and see. Surely we all live by mere breathing. All these operations of nature may be sneered at as merely this or that; and in like manner to speak disparagingly of "mere believing" is nonsense. And if I would get my peace made more full and perfect, having come to Christ by faith, the more I go to Christ believingly, the deeper will my peace be. If I live near to Christ I shall not know fear. Who should know fear when he is covered with the Eternal wings, and underneath him are the Everlasting arms? As Christ was the first means of giving us peace, so He must still be the golden conduit through which all peace with God must flow to our believing hearts.

3. Its certainty. I like to read these rolling sentences of Paul, without an "if" or a "but" in them — "Therefore, being justified, we have peace with God." How different is this from "I hope," "I trust." Now where this language is genuine it deserves sympathy, but I believe in many cases it is cant. Let those who are the subjects of these doubts be cheered, but let their doubts and fears be rooted out. It is not presumption to believe what God tells you. If He says, "You are justified," do not say, "I hope I am." If I should say to some poor man, "I will pay your rent for you," and he should say, "Well, well, I hope you will," I should not feel best pleased with him. If you should say to your child, "I shall buy you a new suit of clothes today," and he should say, "Well, father, I sometimes hope you will, I humbly trust, I hope I may say, though I sometimes doubt and fear, yet I hope I may say I believe you," you would not encourage such a child as that in his uncomely suspicions. Why should we talk thus to our dear Father who is in heaven?

4. Its effect.

(1) Joy. Who can be at peace with God and have Him for a Father, and yet be miserable?

(2) A calm resignation, nay, a delightful acquiescence in his Father's will. What fear is there to the man that is at peace with God? Life? — God provides for it. Death? — Christ hath destroyed it. The Grave? — Christ hath rolled away the stone and broken the seal. Affliction, tribulation, famine, peril, or the sword? "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that hath loved us."

II. WORDS OF COUNSEL TO THOSE WHO HAVE NOT THIS PEACE, OR HAVE LOST IT.

1. There is a man who many years ago was a professor, and who has never been easy in his conscience since he forsook the ways of God. Backslider, do you remember the time when you did feel that Christ could save, and you did trust yourself with Him? Now then, do the same tonight, and the dew of thy youth is restored unto thee. "Oh! but I have forsaken Him." Lay aside thy "buts" and "its." He bids thee come. "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved."

2. There are those who are not backsliders exactly, but have lost their peace for a little time. Many young Christians are subject to little fits, in which their evidence gets dark and they lose their peace, Now learn from me. I find it very convenient to come every day to Christ as I came at first. "You are no saint," says the devil. Well, if I am not, I am a sinner, and Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. Sink or swim, there I go — other hope I have none.

3. There are those who never had peace.

(1) Do not seek peace as the first object; for, it you want peace before you get grace, you want the flower before you get the root, like children who, when they have a piece of garden given them, pluck the flowers out of their father's bed, and put them into their own ground, and then say, "What a nice garden I have got!" But to their dismay, on the morrow all is withered. Better put the roots in and wait till they sprout, and then the flowers will be living ones, not borrowed ones. Do not seek after peace first. Seek after Christ first. Peace will come next.

(2) And remember, that if you put your eye on anything but Christ, or anything with Christ, so as to disturb your whole thought and attention from being directed exclusively to Him, then peace will be an impossibility to you. Do not trust your repentance, faith, feelings, knowledge, sense of need, but come because you have nothing to recommend you; because you are vile, to be pardoned; because you are black, to be washed; come, because you are penniless, to be made rich; but look for nothing else save in Christ.

(C. H. Spurgeon.)

---

---

KJV: Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

WEB: Being therefore justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ;