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Human nature is enmity against God,
and it rejects God's
law (Romans 8:7). The result is continual warfare with God and
between men. No one who breaks God's law as a way of life can have peace,
at least not the kind of peace God gives. Jesus says in John 14:27, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you;
not as the
world gives do I give to you."
The world can produce a level of tranquility from time to time, but it is not
the peace of God. When a person sins, it seems as though there is a feeling, a
natural fear, that wells up. Even before the sin
occurs, one invariably seeks to make sure no one else sees it happen. This does
not display a mind at peace. Immediately following a sin, the fear of exposure
arises, and the sinner begins justifying, at least to himself, why he has done
such a thing. If caught, he justifies himself as Adam and Eve did before
God.
In simple terms, God is showing us the consequences of breaking His laws. If
one were at peace with God, he would have no need to hide himself. With a clear
conscience, he need not lie, justifying and shifting the blame on to others. No
one who breaks God's laws can have peace. However, one who loves God's law will
not only keep the peace he already has but will add to it as its fruit and
reward.
Psalm 119:165 promises another wonderful benefit:
Nothing causes those who love
God's law to stumble. "To stumble" indicates faltering along the path to the Kingdom
of God or even to fall completely away from God. This provides great
encouragement and assurance regarding security with God, meaning that we will
not be turned aside by the difficulties along the way.
Instead of fear of exposure and a guilty conscience, we will be assured
because God's Word says so, as I John 3:18-19 confirms: "My little children, let us not
love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.
And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before
Him." What a confident life we can live by following God's way!
Another New Testament passage, I John 2:8-11, parallels the psalmist's thought:
Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in
you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already
shining. He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness
until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause
for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in
darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded
his eyes.
Consider these verses in relation to the meal
offering, representing the devoted keeping of the last six commandments.
Hating a brother would be breaking those commandments in relation to him. It
might involve murdering him, breaking the marriage bond through adultery,
stealing from him, lying to or about him, or lusting after him or his
possessions.
Verse 10 parallels Psalm 119:165 exactly when it says, "But he who loves
his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him." I John 5:3 defines love: "For this is the love of God, that
we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome." The New
Testament strongly affirms that loving one's brother is keeping God's
commandments in relation to him, and this provides us strong assurance and
stability along the way.
I John 2:11 then shows that the blindness of darkness
envelops the eyes of one who hates his brother, that is, breaks God's
commandments in relation to him. This blindness produces stumbling and fighting,
and thus he has no peace.
It is particularly disturbing if the brother spoken of in these verses also
happens to be one's spouse, father, or mother. Old people today stand a high
chance of being shunted off into a convalescent or old-age home, if only for the
convenience of the adult children. Is that honoring a parent, or is it in some
way contemptuous? Are the children unwilling to make sacrifices even for those
who brought them into the world? Will this course of action produce peace? Will
it produce a sense of well-being in either party?
John says, "He who loves his brother abides in the light" (verse 10),
implying that love produces its own illumination. Illumination is what enables a
person to see in the dark. Light contrasts to the darkness, blindness, and
ignorance of verse 11, which result in stumbling. Illumination indicates
understanding and the ability to produce solutions to relationship problems. The
difficult part is laying ourselves out in sacrifice to express love. If we fail
to do this, we may never see solutions to our relationship problems.
— John W. Ritenbaugh
To learn more, see:
The Offerings of Leviticus (Part Five): The Peace Offering,
Sacrifice, and Love
Related Topics:
Anxiety
Conscience
Conscience, Defiled
Consequences of sin
Fear
Guilt
Light
Light as Metaphor of Truth
Peace
Peace of God
Peace Of Mind
Peace Offering
Peace with God
Sin
Sin Destroys Innocence
Sin Destroys Peace
Spiritual Blindness
Spiritual Darkness
Tranquility
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