This week we are looking at the difference between the peace the world seeks for and the peace the Lord offers us.
Peace vs. Peace
The world makes a big deal about striving for peace. They do it through legislation and programs. In the world peace is the absence of conflict. It is something that usually comes from the outside in. If you want an eye opener, look up the definition of peace in the dictionary. Most of the definitions have to do with the absence of conflict. We believe that true peace is far more than just the absence of conflict. Here are some examples of peace found in the scriptures.
Doctrine and Covenants 8:2-3
2 Yea, behold, I will you in your mind and in your , by the , which shall come upon you and which shall dwell in your heart.
3 Now, behold, this is the spirit of revelation; behold, this is the spirit by which Moses the children of Israel through the Red Sea on dry ground.
This facet of peace from God has to do with Him revealing things to us we couldn’t know otherwise. When God reveals things to us in our mind and heart, through the Holy Ghost, He calls this the spirit of revelation. Apparently Moses learned what he needed to do to take the children of Israel through the Red Sea by the whisperings of the Spirit, for Moses had the gift of the Holy Ghost.
The hallmark of this kind of revelation is to come to know something with a certainty that surpasses normal human understanding. There are times when we seek the Lord’s guidance and there comes into our mind and heart a certainty of what must be done. It doesn’t necessarily even have to make logical sense. We just know that this is what we need to do. This is the kind of experience these verses are referring to. In this case, peace is defined as having a spiritual manifestation that your course of action is the right one. No doubt, no distress over the decision, just confidence that this course of action is the right one to take. Faith is demonstrated by taking action on what was revealed to you.
Doctrine and Covenants 85:6
6 Yea, thus saith the , which whispereth through and all things, and often times it maketh my bones to quake while it maketh manifest, saying:
This is Joseph Smith’s experience with the still small voice. Personally, I haven’t ever had “my bones to quake” while learning something from the Spirit. Each of us experiences spiritual things differently. Joseph Smith certainly had far greater spiritual experiences than I have ever had, so I might have felt the same way had I experienced what he did.
The key here is that the Spirit is subtle, not noisy. His usual pattern for teaching someone how to listen to Him is to be really obvious in the beginning, but over time His voice grows quieter and quieter. The goal we are after is to have his voice become so familiar to us that our thoughts and His thoughts become almost indistinguishable. When the Spirit moves us through either thoughts or feelings we want to arrive at the point that we just simply respond to those impressions immediately. The danger for us is when we stop to argue or dispute the feeling or thought we have received. If we argue with Him we risk Him withdrawing and leaving us to ourselves, a position that doesn’t bode well for us. The Spirit will not long stick around to argue His points. Either we heed His prompting or we don’t. He may let us ask a question or two, but outright arguing will drive Him away.
There is a quality to the peace or spiritual tranquility that comes from the Spirit’s communications that settles us and helps us feel calm and confident. The Spirit’s peace brings understanding and comfort in the choices we make, even when we don’t have anything but the next step given to us. We may still have years worth of steps to take to finish the process of what was just started, but if we place our confidence in the step we just received then we can exert the faith needed to move forward until the Spirit shows us the next step with which we need help.
The point here is that the Spirit’s voice is not just lacking in decibels, in volume. His voice also brings knowledge and confidence that creates courage and other good feelings, like love or forgiveness. Many spiritual communications are not the purist kind where only one experience happens at a time. Many times the Spirit’s voice brings with it many good things that build us up and change our heart to enable us to do things we didn’t know we could do beforehand.
Doctrine and Covenants 6:22-23
22 Verily, verily, I say unto you, if you desire a further witness, cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might concerning the truth of these things.
23 Did I not speak to your mind concerning the matter? What greater can you have than from God?
Isn’t it interesting that God says that the Spirit speaking peace to our mind concerning the matter at hand is the greatest witness we can have. This tells us that such witnesses are final judgment material. Knowledge gained through a manifestation of the Spirit brings with it a surety of knowledge that God will hold us responsible for receiving. There is something about the Spirit’s communication to us that surpasses any other kind of learning. Once our soul has been touched by His influence we are held accountable for eternity for that knowledge. As Joseph Smith says in Doctrine and Covenants 85:6 “the , which whispereth through and all things” is a witness that we cannot deny, for God says it is the greatest witness He can give us.
Doctrine and Covenants 11:12-14
12 And now, verily, verily, I say unto thee, put your in that which to do —yea, to do , to walk , to righteously; and this is my Spirit.
13 Verily, verily, I say unto you, I will impart unto you of my Spirit, which shall your , which shall fill your soul with ;
14 And then shall ye know, or by this shall you know, all things whatsoever you desire of me, which are pertaining unto things of , in faith believing in me that you shall receive.
The peace the Spirit brings into our life is based on Him leading us to do good, do justly, walk humbly, and judge righteously. The imparting of this information enlightens our mind and fills our soul with joy. This is the pattern by which we learn about the life God leads. We learn His thoughts through studying the scriptures, and through learning how He would behave in various situations. We learn of God as the Spirit teaches us of all that is good and right. This is a package deal. We learn of God from all angles, not just on the surface, but in depth. Why? Because we are learning to become like Him the same way He learned to become like the man He is, through experience and practice.
God is a man of joy, a man of peace. His soul is never caught up in turmoil and unrest. He lives confidently and courageously. God’s life is full of love and service. As we seek the Spirit He teaches us to live like God, one step at a time. What I need to learn this week or year is probably not what you need to learn. The Spirit’s tutelage is individual and customized to each person’s immediate need. He is the master teacher in the ways of happiness. His calling is to bring us to Christ and teach us of his ways. He does this through consistent quiet motivation and promptings, whisperings that direct us and influence us in oh so subtle ways to learn to do what is right. By following His initial promptings we come to learn what to do. We begin to see the patterns of righteous behavior that the Spirit has revealed to us, and given the opportunity we can choose those same things on our own.
When we have learned the lesson the Spirit has been trying to teach us, because we are now choosing wisely in those situations, it is time for the Spirit to offer us new lessons in what we need most. The schooling never stops. His is one continual round of revelation and inspiration.
Have you noticed in these examples that God’s peace has nothing to do with what is happening on the outside of our lives? God’s peace is individual and internal. His peace comes from the inside out, not from the outside in. This is why the prophets say that when the gospel is taught to the poor God doesn’t take the poor out of the ghetto then teach them His gospel, He teaches those living in the ghetto His gospel and they take themselves out of the ghetto. Everything God does is meant to change us from the inside out and give us greater joy in the process.
Peace is found in “holy places.”
Just as arguing or rebelling against the Spirit drives Him away, so being in places we have no business being in keeps the Spirit from teaching us and guiding us. The Holy Ghost is a God. He can’t abide filth and sin, it is offensive to Him. In Doctrine and Covenants 87:8 the verse begins this way –
8 Wherefore, ye in holy places, and be not moved, until the day of the Lord come;
The Lord was just describing to the prophet about the wars that were going to break out in the United States, and how they would spread across the whole globe. God didn’t promise no conflict for His people. He didn’t say a word about us not suffering from the wickedness of this generation. What he said is that we are to stand in holy places and be not moved. What does that mean?
Our holy places are the Temple, our Stake and Ward house, and our home. When we do all in our power to make and keep these places sacred, God’s Spirit will be there to bring us peace and teach us of His ways. Our spiritual and physical safety in the last days rests on our keeping this commandment. When we leave the safety of our safe places we are at greater risk for temptations and open sins. The world is Satan’s playground until he is imprisoned for a thousand years and eventually banished all together.
Perhaps the most difficult of our holy places to make and keep holy is our home. There are so many ways the world and sin can enter in and defile us and our loved ones that we must be on our guard constantly. What are we watching on television, on the Internet, in printed media, and on our phones? If you are a member of a family you have your own behavior to worry about, but you also have to be aware of everyone else’s behaviors. It only takes one person to defile a place or to disrupt a family. Our home is the greatest challenge to keep holy, because it belongs just to us, and we, as a family are trying to be united in keeping our home sacred and pure.
Our spiritual strength is dependent on our ability to make our living places holy by keeping the commandments and by living virtuous lives. This is how we strengthen one another, by taking responsibility for our own spiritual cleanliness.
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I look forward to studying your articles each week. I highlight many of the scriptures and put them in my church library notebook. Your perspective adds to my own and helps me to better understand our Come Follow Me lessons. I appreciate learning to become more Christlike and the encouragement to make some needed changes. Please keep up your good work. I apologize for not commenting sooner. Composing even a short note is not my talent.
You have talent enough in your truthfulness. Thank you for your note.
Kelly