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Written by Bill Bradford
Most people don't realize that waging peace is more challenging than waging war!
Notice the emphasis that Paul places upon peace in: Ephesians 4:1-3 "I ... beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavouring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace."
The word endeavour is the key word. In Greek it means, "to exert oneself, to give diligence."
Notice how endeavour is translated in modern translations:
· "making every effort" (Modern English Bible)
· "be zealous in love" (Moffatt)
· "spare no effort" (New English Bible)
· "make it your aim" (Phillips)
· "do all you can" (Jerusalem Bible)
We have to work at peace – we must make it our goal and do all we can do to bring it about.
Most people do not realize that peace has a price. We know that war has a price. Are we willing to pay the price for peace? What is that price? It is our willingness to take an undeserved loss.
Taking a loss is repugnant to human nature. Carnal nature is focused on the self – on our selfish wants and desires. This is one of the chief reasons we sometimes have strife, hard feelings and even division among families and loved ones.
Peace is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. It is a part of God's nature. Author John Andrew Holmes once stated, "Yes, we love peace, but we are not willing to take wounds for it, as we are for war."
"Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, 'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel'" (Mark 1:14, 15). "The gospel of the Kingdom of God" is the message Jesus Christ instructs His followers to believe. This booklet will help you understand and believe this wonderful good news Jesus Christ announced to humanity!
Have you ever considered how much the Easter holiday just doesn’t add up? Start with the timing: Jesus said He would be in the tomb three days and three nights. But do the math—a Good Friday crucifixion to a resurrection on Sunday morning is at most only one day and small parts of two others, plus two nights. Also, John’s Gospel tells us Jesus was already resurrected before sunrise, so we can’t count that part of a day. Does the Bible offer a solution? Yes, and when we understand it, everything adds up perfectly! But that’s not all that doesn’t add up about the Easter holiday. What do rabbits, colored eggs and sunrise religious services have to do with Jesus Christ’s resurrection? Discover the fascinating historical truth about all this and much more in this issue of Beyond Today!