Peace Be With You

John 20:19
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!"

As I read this verse and pondered all the implications, my heart was overwhelmed with gratitude for my Savior's love for me.  I was especially thinking about the phrase, "the disciples were together with the doors locked for fear of....".

There are a few good lessons to pay attention to here.

Lesson number one:  "the disciples were together". We need to be together in fellowship, doing life together, supporting one another in good times and bad. We need each other for strength and comfort. Even though they had fear together, God was watching and ready and willing to help. He had to work a miracle to get through to this bunch in this circumstance.  We are the same.

Lesson number two:  "with the doors locked for fear".  The same doors that lock out the world because of our fear, lock us into thought patterns and patterns of living that result in ungodly beliefs about ourselves and our circumstances.  These fears also diminish our impact in the Kingdom of God . The same doors lock out help from others. They have to go through great lengths and labor to get our doors down that we've locked out of fear.  The Good News is nothing locks out Jesus.  No matter how much fear, no matter how many walls, doors and locks, Jesus can get through and better yet, He WILLS to get through to us.  He may not come in a form or shape that seems normal.  He will send the most unsuspecting circumstances and people. Even Thomas didn't quite believe it was Him after being with Him three years.  Those he sends us don't always exactly look like Jesus at first. The circumstances don't always seem believable, but in spite of them, Jesus works.

Lesson number three: "Peace be with you!".  Once Jesus appeared THROUGH the door, the disciples were then focused on HIM, not on the circumstance.  Isaiah 26:3, "I will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Me".  Once they were focused on Him, they could accept His ministry of His powerful Words and His love.

Let's look at the definition of "keep".  As a noun it means essentials for living, charge or control or custody like a shepherd "keeps" the sheep.  As a verb it means to have or retain possession of, continue or cause to continue in a specified condition, position or course, preserve, maintain, support detain, restrain, save, reserve, to not return, to not give away, to not throw away (Webster).

There is "keep" on both sides of this Scripture.  We are to "keep"our mind on Him.  Don't keep our mind on the fear. Don't keep our mind on the locked door. Our "keep" here is our essential for living. Without His peace we don't have the essential thing we need for living, His Peace. We have charge and control of what we "keep".  If we "keep" something, we don't throw it away.  We reserve it and save it.  We continue in that condition.  We continue in peace. We do what we need to do to maintain that peace and preserve that peace.

2 Corinthians 10:5 
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

Philippians 4:8  
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

These two Scriptures tell us how we can "keep" His peace, how we can preserve His peace in our lives and continue in that state of peace.  We are to take possession of our thoughts, tear down those ungodly beliefs about ourselves and our circumstances by thinking on what He tells us to think on in His Word.  He tells us to think on what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable.

Most importantly He says He would KEEP us.  That tells me if I do my part in "keeping my mind" stayed on Him, His peace will retain possession of me and my life. He will give me His peace, an essential for living a productive, victorious life as a child of God. He will be in control as a Shepherd is of His Sheep.

Philippians 4:7
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.