“Peace I leave with you, my
peace I give to you, not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let
them be afraid.” John
14:27
When Jesus spoke these words
his disciples were experiencing a great deal of inner turmoil. He had been telling them that “his hour had
come to depart from this world and go to the Father” (John 13:1), and while
they did not understand just how this was to take place, they did sense this
was going to be a turbulent time.
Anxiety filled their hearts which Jesus addressed with these words about
inner peace. Undoubtedly they were
worried about their own security, for those who threatened Jesus might threaten
them too, (Matthew 10:25) and worried about their own future, for they had left
everything to follow him. (Matthew 19:27)
So they were experiencing a real angst as Jesus explained that he was
about to accomplish just what he had come into the world to do, and he would
accomplish it with great pain and suffering culminating in the cross.
It was at just this point that
Jesus offered them a “peace the world cannot give” which is a peace that comes
from Christ himself dwelling in their hearts and filling their lives even as
the world around them seemed to be spinning out of control. They were invited to turn their fears and
anxieties over to the Lord and give of themselves to serve others, just as he
was doing in coming “not to be served but to serve and give his life a ransom
for many.” (Matthew 20:28)
In his recent apostolic
exhortation “Evangelii Gaudium” Pope Francis wrote “Whenever our interior life
becomes caught up in its own interests and concerns, there is no longer room
for others, no place for the poor. God’s voice is no longer heard, the quiet
joy of his love is no longer felt, and the desire to do good fades.” (I.2) On that night in the Upper Room when Jesus
spoke to his disciples, they longer to recover that quiet joy they had felt
when he first called them and first taught them by the Sea of Galilee. So for the second time in this one chapter he
said to them “let not your hearts be troubled.” (14:1 and 14:27)
For those who have a troubled
heart in this first month of 2014 Jesus issues the same invitation to let his
peace fill their hearts. For those
worried about health, about healthcare, about finances, about jobs, about
relatives, about the course this country is on and so many other things Jesus
calls them to “believe in God, believe also in me” (John 14:1) and surrender
all their worries to his great love.
Inner peace comes in the midst of outer turmoil when the advice of
Philippians 4:5-7 is followed: “have no anxiety about anything, but in
everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be
made known to God. And the peace of God
that passes all understanding will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
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