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PEACE OF GOD
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the King James
Version of the Holy Bible.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechani
cal, photocopy, recording, or any other without the written prior permission of
the publisher.
National Library of Nigeria Cataloguing in Publication Data
EKENYERE, Festus Asopuruchukwu 1959 -
Peace of God, Vol. 2
1. Peace – Religious aspects - Christianity
I. Title
BV 4647. P35. E36 vol. 2 2007 261.873
ISBN 978-32046-9-6 AACR2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION………………………...4
LESSON ONE:
RELAXING ALWAYS…………………...8
Peace Amidst Troubles:
1. Be not afraid………………………11
2. Confidence in God Expressed…….15
3. The Peace of God on Board ………20
FOOD FOR THOUGHT………………………...22
LESSON TWO:
NOT AS THE WORLD GIVES…………………25
The Settled Mind in God:
1. Perfect Peace ……………………...27
2. Be anxious for nothing …………...30
FOOD FOR THOUGHT ………………………..33
LESSON THREE:
LIVE IN THE SPIRIT …………………..34
Peace Through His Spirit:
1. Obedience to God’s word ………...37
2. The Promised Comforter …………40
3. To be spiritually minded – Peace ...42
FOOD FOR THOUGHT………………………...45
LESSON FOUR:
BE FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT..46
Baptism of the Holy Spirit:
1. Unavoidable evidence …………….51
2. Unusual boldness …………………53
FOOD FOR THOUGHT ………………………..57
CONCLUSION ………………………...59
LIST OF OTHER BOOKS BY REV. FESTUS ASO. EKENYERE. ………….61
INTRODUCTION
This is the second volume in this series and His Son Jesus Christ aims i
t at reconciling the world to God. It is ideal for Sunday schools, Bible classes
and family Bible discussions.
When God created man He did not intend that he should be overwhelmed by
the sudden onrush of fear, anxiety and temptation. God is not moved by circumsta
nces and so His children ought not to be. He is PEACE!
This nature of God in His children is our focus in this volume of Bible
study. Peace of God is based on your peace with God, which we dealt with in volu
me one. You may not appreciate the in-depth revelation unveiled in this volume u
nless you have studied Vol. 1. I therefore recommend it to you.
A greater percentage of the world’s populace believe that peace means the
absence of wars or rumours of wars. That is why man is trying everything humanly
possible to eliminate crisis. I doubt whether this is possible. The peace we ar
e about to go into is not a psychological state of mind at all. In fact it trans
cends human understanding. It is the presence of Christ in the midst of crisis.
As long as Satan – the author of confusion is still in this world, thee must be cr
isis of different kinds.
The Bible enjoins Christians to cast all their cares upon Him because He
cares for them – I Peter 5:7. This simply means emptying yourself of all worries
and relaxing in His presence always. It is not your duty to think of solutions t
o the problems this world brings. It is His duty! He says – “ Come unto me, all ye t
hat labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you 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. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30.
Jesus did not promise us crisis free life in this world but His presence
. When you understand this fact, you will begin to enjoy an inward spiritual tra
nquility irrespective of what happens outwardly. That is when prayer swallows up
worries in victory.
Peace of God is the nutrient that sustains every believer in the face of
difficulties. It is there for you the very moment you accept Jesus as your Savi
our and Lord. But most unfortunately, today we are hearing of Christians sufferi
ng from anxiety related diseases. The aim of this study therefore is to eliminat
e the power of ignorance and cause you to lay hold on your inheritance as a chil
d of God. It is written – “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge:” – Hosea 4:6.
It is the desire of God that nothing distracts your attention from Him. He desir
es your ceaseless fellowship. When your mind is troubled, you loose concentratio
n. God does not want that!
I therefore encourage you to go through this volume carefully and acquir
e volume three titled – “THE LOVE OF GOD”. Do not rush over its pages. Meditate on the
chapter captions, Bible references and your present relationship with God. Shar
e what you studied with your family members, friends and enemies (if you have an
y). By so dong you are helping some one.
If after studying, you have some questions that need my attention, pleas
e write to me using the publisher’s address and your questions will receive prompt
answers. It is a study that keeps you busy with your Bible so pray for more rev
elation before each chapter. May God bless your reading with deeper revelation.
LESSON ONE
RELAXING ALWAYS
EXODUS 14:13,14 – “ And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and se
e the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians
whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. The LORD s
hall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.”
JONAH 1:4-6 – “ But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mig
hty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken. Then the mariner
s were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that w
ere in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down int
o the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep. So the shipmaster came
to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy G
od, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.”
MARK 4:36-40 – “ And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he
was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. And there aro
se a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now f
ull. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awa
ke him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose,
and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind cease
d, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how
is it that ye have no faith?”
You dare not talk about relaxation of the mind in this world without fir
st of all understanding and in fact having peace with God. This is the reason wh
y Vol. 1 centered on Peace with God.
You cannot maintain a relaxed life, family or business except you first
make peace with God by accepting His only begotten Son – Jesus Christ as your Lord
and Saviour. This is the bitter truth!
All through the Scripture, God strongly admonishes His children not to b
e afraid of any condition or circumstance of this life. A clear expression of Go
d’s thought concerning any condition His children might come across in this world
is seen in these words – “ But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, a
nd he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have cal
led thee by thy name; thou art mine. When thou passest through the waters, I wil
l be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou
walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kind
le upon thee. For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I
gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee.” – Isaiah 43:1-3.
Remember once again, Jesus did not promise us crisis-free life, rather H
e says, “--- be of good cheers, I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33.
Your approach to issues of this life determines whether you have the pea
ce of God or not. A child of God is expected to RELAX ALWAYS no matter the press
ure because of the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ in his/her life.
Do you panic at the slightest onset of the devil? The peace of God will
surely guard your heart after this study.
The absence of wars and rumours of wars does not necessarily mean peace.
Peace is a state of the mind; the relaxation the mind enjoys irrespective of th
e pressures of this life. Again, read and meditate on Matthew 6:25-34 –
“Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall ea
t, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not t
he life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air:
for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly
Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking
thought can add one cubit unto his stature?And why take ye thought for raiment?
Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they
spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed
like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to
day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you,
O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or,
What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these
things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need
of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousnes
s; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for t
he morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficien
t unto the day is the evil thereof.”
LESSON TWO
NOT AS THE WORLD GIVES
JOHN 14:27,28 – “ Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world
giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afra
id. Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye
loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father
is greater than I.”
PHILIPPIANS 4:6,7. – “ Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supp
lication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the pea
ce of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds thr
ough Christ Jesus.”
LESSON THREE
LIVE IN THE SPIRIT
JOHN 14:15-17 – “ If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, a
nd he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Eve
n the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not,
neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in
you.”
ROMANS 8:5-9 – “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; b
ut they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally m
inded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carn
al mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither
indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are
not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in y
ou. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.”
The worst thing that had ever happened to the devil is the ever presence
of the Holy Spirit abiding with the believer. On the other hand, it is the best
thing that can happen to the Christian because it guarantees steady flow of God’s
love, joy and peace.
Without the presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian, life
on this earth is meaningless. The devil desires to see the Christian always fru
strated, discouraged and sorrowful. But with the presence of the Comforter, the
Christian ignores the effects of the attack of Satan. This is possible because o
f the assurance of the glory of Christ revealed to the church by the Holy Spirit
. The Apostle Paul says – “ For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time ar
e not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” – Romans
8:18. Also in I Corinthians 2:9,10 it is written, “ Eye hath not seen, nor ear he
ard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepa
red for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: fo
r the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.” Take note of the
phrase – “BUT GOD HATH REVEALED THEM UNTO US BY HIS SPIRIT.” It is this revelation tha
t guards the believer’s heart in times of trouble.
Peace is the fruit of the Spirit manifesting in the life of a Spirit-fil
led Christian. This peace is love-reposed, stability in crises. The peace that u
nderstands why Romans 8:28 is part of the Bible. It enables the believer to appr
eciate God and other people despite the pressures of this life.
Life in the Spirit is a Spirit-controlled life, which always resist the
flesh. It focuses on God and cares for nothing other than the will of God. It re
sts in the love of God.
To be led by the Spirit is to be no longer subject to the law and dictat
es of the flesh, which aggravates sorrow. The question therefore is – “Have ye recei
ved the Holy Ghost since ye believed?” – Acts 19:2. If not, desire and ask the Lord
Jesus to baptize you with His Spirit.
LESSON FOUR
BE FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT
ACTS 19:1-7 – “ And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having
passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples,
He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they
said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And
he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John s
baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, sa
ying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after hi
m, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the nam
e of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost
came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied. And all the men were
about twelve.”
ACTS 4:7-10,13 – “ And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what powe
r, or by what name, have ye done this? Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, s
aid unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel, If we this day be
examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made who
le; Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name
of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, e
ven by him doth this man stand here before you whole.--- Now when they saw the b
oldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant m
en, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jes
us.”
CONCLUSION
Having come to the end of this study, I strongly believe that your visio
n of “self” has changed for peace. It is not magic; it is the spiritual likeness of
God, which is just restored to you by the power of the Holy Spirit.
However, if by now you still feel guilty of your sins, it means you have
not accepted Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. So pray this prayer by faith.
Dear Father, thank you for sending your Son Jesus Christ to die in my stead on t
he cross of Calvary. I believe His blood atoned for me. Thank you for forgiving
me all my sins. I surrender my life to you from today onwards. In Jesus’ name I ha
ve prayed. Amen!
That is all you need. Believe it and begin to walk in the newness of lif
e, which is given to you by Jesus.
The Bible says – “ Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with Go
d through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this
grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” – Romans 5:1,2.
Congratulations!
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