Peace in Today's World

Have you ever felt as though something was missing in your life? Have you ever asked, "How can I find peace of mind?" Have you ever wondered, "Is there anything more to life than the humdrum of the daily routine?"

Suppose someone discovered a pill that would guarantee permanent peace of mind. Its producer would probably become a multimillionaire overnight. Everywhere people are looking for personal peace. Multitudes are burdened with guilt. Feeling insecure, emotionally troubled, and unaccepted produces an inner void. Mind-related diseases such as stomach ulcers, heart attacks, and nervous breakdowns are the scourge of our society. One root cause of these diseases is an inner sense of restlessness.

Our lesson today focuses on God's solution to the problem of guilt. It presents the only real answer to the problem of how to find peace of mind.

01. What is our status with God as the result of sin?
Romans 3:19
Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.
Note
The reason we lack inner peace is a sense of guilt. Whether we always realize it or not, there is something eating away at us inside. Unless we deal with the problem of guilt, we will never have real peace.

02. How universal is the problem of sin?
Romans 3:23
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

03. What are the wages or consequences of sin?
Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Note
Left to ourselves, we are caught in a vicious cycle. We are separated from God. Our hearts are filled with guilt. We are restless and lack inner peace. We feel guilty, unaccepted, and unloved.

04. Why is death the natural result of sin?
Isaiah 59:2
But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.
Note
God is the source of life. Sin separates us from God. Sin has separated us from God, the only source of life. The plan of salvation is God's process to bridge the gap caused by sin. Through Christ we are reunited with God.

05. What is God's solution to the problem of sin?
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

06. Why did Jesus have to come to this world and die for our sins? Was His death necessary?
Hebrews 2:9, 14
09. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.
14. Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,
Note
Because God's nature is love, He would not leave us to perish without hope. He took the penalty of sin upon Himself. In His death on the cross He broke the stronghold of death.​

07. How can Christ's life take the place of my imperfect life? What does His death have to do with my eternal death?
Isaiah 53:4–6, 12
04. Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted.
05. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.
06. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
12. Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors.
Note
The Old Testament prophet Isaiah declares that Christ was 'Wounded for our transgressions," "bruised for our iniquities [sins]," and "numbered with the transgressors," and that He "bore the sin of many." In the plan of salvation Jesus bears the guilt of our sins. He credits His perfect righteousness to our account. We owe a sin debt that we can never pay. Jesus paid the enormous debt through the shedding of His blood. He died the death we deserve so we might live the life He deserves.

08. How does the apostle Paul describe Jesus bearing our sin? What did Jesus become for us?
2 Corinthians 5:21
For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Note
Jesus never sinned. He became sin or accepted the guilt of our sin voluntarily. When Christ died on Calvary's cross, He willingly assumed all the guilt of our sins. As the divine Son of God He became a human being, lived the perfect life we should have lived, and died the death we should have died. He is our loving Savior.

09. What does the Bible say Jesus became for us?
Galatians 3:13
Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”),
Note
Jesus became a curse for us. All of the guilt of sin rested upon Him when He died on the cross. He bore sin's curse of condemnation. All the condemnation you deserved, He received.

10. How does God save us? Is salvation something we earn by our good works?
Ephesians 2:8-9
08. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
09. not of works, lest anyone should boast.

11. What question did a heathen jailer ask Paul and Silas 2000 years ago that speaks for all of us?
Acts 16:30
And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

12. What answer did Paul give the Philippian jailer regarding his salvation?
Acts 16:31
So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”
Note
Believing is simply receiving the grace God so freely offers. God's plan for saving us is simple. It is SO simple that anyone can understand it. Often it has been made so complicated that few can understand it. There are four basic steps in receiving Christ.
Let's look at each one of them:

Step 1: BELIEVE - John 3:16.
"For God SO loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever beIieves in Him should not perish but have everlasting life"
- Believe that God loves you and wants to save you through Jesus Christ.

Step 2: REPENT - Acts 3:19.
"Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out".
- Let the Holy Spirit lead you to repentance. Repentance is to turn away in sorrow from sin that separates you from God.

Step 3: CONFESS - 1 John 1:9.
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness".
- Confess your sins and admit you are a sinner and need Jesus Christ.

Step 4: RECEIVE - Revelation 3:20.
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him".
- Receive Jesus into your heart today. Believe He has come to you, because He has promised to do just that when we sincerely ask Him. Don't doubt it. Believe the Word of God. Believe that Jesus Christ can and will reign in your heart because in simple faith and commitment you asked Him to come in. As you believe, repent, confess, and receive Jesus Christ into your life and you will receive His gift of personal peace.

13. What promise does Jesus give to those who open their hearts to believe in Jesus and accept him as their personal Savior?
1 John 5:11–13
11. And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
12. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
13. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.
Note
To receive Jesus is to receive His gift of eternal life. If we have accepted Jesus and by faith believe He is our personal Savior, we can have the assurance of eternal life. Guilt is gone. According to God's Word, we are "accepted in the beloved" (Ephesians 1:6). We have redemption through His blood (Ephesians 1:7).

Concluding Question
When we accept Jesus as our savior, we are adopted into the family of God and become a part of the royal family of heaven. Would you like to open your heart right now and receive the gift of eternal life Christ so freely offers?

My Prayer
Dear Jesus, I know that I am a sinner; lost without You. My sins have separated me from You. I lack inner peace and security. I feel guilty at times. Today I open my heart to You. I confess my sins. I am sorry that I have disobeyed You. I accept Your gift of eternal life today and believe that Your forgiveness, peace, and grace are mine right now. In Jesus' name, amen.

FOR FURTHER STUDY read the following Bible passages:
John 1:12;
John 10:10;
John 10:27, 28,
John 17:3;
Acts 4:12;
Romans 3:23-26;
Romans 5:1, 2,
Romans 6:22, 23;
Romans 8:1, 2;
Hebrews 4:14-16