Growing the Fruit of Peace in Christ
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”—Phil. 4:6-7 (ESV)
Fear, worrisome thoughts, criticism, painful memories, and life’s countless troubles can shake our sense of peace. God’s peace doesn’t shield us from hardship, but it does anchor us in His presence within it. It is not found in escape or freedom from the storms of life, but in being held by the One who reigns.
Here, we find His comfort and nearness even as we experience difficulty. When we learn to deal with our troubles with God, not apart from Him, peace takes root in our hearts.
The Source of Peace: God Himself
Since the fall, our natural posture is not one of peace with God, but one of estrangement and resistance (Rom. 1:30; Col. 1:21; Ps. 2:1-3). This deeper unrest in our souls leads us to striving and anxiety.
But in mercy, God sent Jesus to absorb the wrath we deserved, reconciling us to Himself (Rom. 5:6, 10; Col. 1:20-22). This justification by faith brings us peace with God—which then allows us to know the peace of God.
This divine peace is not like the world’s. 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. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."
Because God is for us (Rom. 8:31), we are safe in His care. Even in trials, we can rest because Christ has overcome the world (John 16:33).
What Christlike Peace Looks Like
The world defines peace as the absence of conflict or pain. Therefore, worldly peace depends on escape, avoidance, or numbing distraction. However, because this is not the way the world is on this side of heaven, these only provide a temporary solution.
Biblical peace, however, begins with a heart at peace with God and at rest in His goodness. This changes how we look at the circumstances that rob us of peace. When we experience anxiety, fear, conflict, and chaos that is part of living in the world today, the Holy Spirit helps us to fix our eyes on God amid the storms. He reminds us of the truth of who God is and helps us to rest in Him.
Have you ever wondered how Jesus could sleep through the storm (Matt. 8:23-24)? Perhaps it is not just that He was bone tired but because His soul was at peace. He knew who was holding the world—and this enabled Him to rest without being frantic. We can feel safe in Him because Jesus has left this very same peace with us—a peace that defies understanding (Phil. 4:7).
Still, peace must be pursued (Ps. 34:14; 1 Pet. 3:11). When fears rise, we face a choice: to spiral with anxiety or to speak truth to our souls. This is not something we do by our own willpower. We need the Spirit to strengthen and ground us in truth. Sometimes, we even need to trust He is praying for us in our weakness when we can’t pray ourselves (Rom. 8:26).
Peace with God not only transforms our inner life, but reshapes how we relate to others (Eph. 2:14-22). We’re called to live peaceably as one body, to the best of our ability (Rom. 12:18). Though peace may not always be possible, we are to seek it through forgiveness, humility, and love.
Growing in Peace: Tending the Garden of Your Heart
If peace comes from God’s presence, how do we draw near to Him practically?
1. Prepare the Soil: Let His Peace Rule
Peace begins with surrendering and resting in God’s sovereignty. We can’t manufacture this. We must receive it.
Begin by reflecting on one area of striving in your life. Where are you clinging to control or outcomes? Will you bring that before the Lord in prayer, releasing your grip and inviting His rule? Commit to set your mind on Him and let His peace rule in your heart (Col. 3:2, 15).
2. Water the Garden: Meditate and Pray the Truth
Peace grows as we entrust our anxious thoughts to God. Meditate on passages such as John 14:27, 16:33 and Rom. 8:31-39. Reflect on the account of Jesus sleeping in the storm (Matt. 8:23-27, Mark 4:35-41, or Luke 8:22-25). How does Jesus model how to rest in God?
Then with these truths in mind, because Jesus’ Father is ours too, bring your anxieties to God with thanksgiving (Phil. 4:6-7). Tell Him your fears honestly, and pray for the Spirit’s help to trust Him in the midst of them.
3. Pull the Weeds: Remove Counterfeits
Peace is often choked by our desire to avoid conflict, people-please, or deny reality. These counterfeit means of peace may maintain outer calm but erode inner rest.
Ask God to show you where these tendencies take root in your relationships. Confess them, and receive His peace that reconciles and restores.
4. Tend the Garden: In Our Hearts and Relationships
Cultivating peace means requires ongoing humility, forgiveness, and trust in His ways over our own. God may not deliver us from trouble, but He promises peace in the trouble. As we grow in faith, peace becomes a practice of rest and trust, even when pain persists.
We can also cultivate peace in our relationships. When we made peace with God, He joined us into His body, making us fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God (Eph. 2:19). But the sin that remains can still make it hard to pursue peace with one another.
Therefore, tending the garden for peace can mean hard conversations, apologies, or confrontation. There’s no guarantee our efforts will be reciprocated, but it is our responsibility to pursue peace (Matt. 5:23-24; 18:15; Rom. 12:18). Whether they respond as we wish or not, we want to honor God by doing what we can to strive for unity, with believers and unbelievers alike.
A Witness to the World
Though we live in a world of unrest, we belong to a kingdom of peace. Our lives, families, and churches become visible expressions of His peace. Our love for one another, made possible by our union with Christ and unity in His body, becomes a testament to others.
As ambassadors of Christ (2 Cor. 5:20), we implore unbelievers to be reconciled to God through Christ and then be joined to His body. Together, we seek to grow in peaceful unity as we await the day when we will see the one who is our peace (Micah 5:5).
Until then, may the peace of God guard our hearts, rule our minds, and flow from our lives as a witness to a world in desperate need of it.