Whatsoever part 3
Continuing with our study of Colossians 3:14-17 brings us today to verse 15, "And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful." So you know how I always Rant about Christ's love controlling us? Because either we don't know (and believe) His love, so we do everything we can to try to get it... or we DO know (and believe) His love, so we do everything we can to give it away. Well, another way of saying the second part is "let the peace of God rule in your heart." Because that peaceful, easy feeling is knowing the truth. The truth that God is love and He loves you. The ultimate truth of the universe that the Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into His hands. And His hands... are your hands. As He is, so are we in this world. Jesus--God in the flesh, love in a body--is our true identity. That's who we really are. The inner man. The hidden man of the heart. And, like we saw yesterday, when you put on charity (love in action), or the whole armor of God, that's when you aren't afraid to love people. That's when the hidden man of the heart is put on display. When your heart is put on display. When the love of God IN you comes out THROUGH you. That's when the peace of God rules in your heart. When you stop trying to protect your heart by closing it down, and instead you guard your heart by keeping it open. Keeping it open to love. Because while I KNOW a heart can ache... I'm not fully convinced a heart can break. Its too strong. And, yes, sometimes it takes time for the ache to fade. But the love never dies. It can't. Love never fails. Because love endures. Love endures everything. Love is why we lay our lives down for our friends. Love is why we give everything we have and everything we are. We do it becuase its in our hearts to do it. It flows from that peace of God. From knowing the truth, and letting the truth set us free and make us free. And I like the idea of one body. One corporate body of Christ, right? Because if there's only one body, that means there is only one heart. Which is exactly what God promised in Ezekiel 11:19, "And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh." He promised us ONE heart. HIS heart. The heart of God that beats with love in our chest. No longer is it an exterior set of rules written on stone. But it is, again, Jesus--GOD in the flesh. Love in a body. God in OUR flesh. Love in OUR body. Which, really, is HIS body. And that, friends, is something to be thankful for. Because I think one the biggest struggles we deal with is when we think we're all alone. "Nobody gets me." We feel isolated. Disconnected. We feel completely alone even in a crowded room sometimes. When the truth is, we are all intimately connected. We are called in one body. The body of Christ. Connected by the love of God. The light in me connected to the light in you. Even as the deep calls out to the deep. So we're NOT alone. Even if it feels like it. God promised He would never leave us nor forsake us. He took up abode within us. He moved in and He's never moving out. That settles the matter. And that gives us peace. That lets us be still and know that He is God. That lets us know and believe His love. Which lets us share His love. Which is the whole point of the whole thing.