10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints."
Ephesians 6:10-18
We must never forget (this is our third consideration) that the gospel of peace gives us peace itself, peace with God in the objective sense, giving us a new standing in His sight, justified by His glorious mercy, and peace in the subjective sense in the peace that passeth all understanding. We have referred earlier to the nameless fears and dreads that from time to time come upon us, which have no rational explanation. They are nameless and cannot be understood; and the answer to them is the peace that cannot be understood either, that passes all understanding. There is a wonderful word in Isaiah 48:18 about peace being 'like a river'. It is an eloquent simile and worth following through. Those who are musically inclined and knowledgeable will know the beautiful piece of music by Smetana, 'Ma Vlast', in which he traces the River Vltava from its source right down to the sea, and paints in music all the various moods of the river: the tiny rivulet trickling down the rocks and hills at the source, the fast-flowing currents, the deep movements, the long meandering reaches. This is an eloquent illustration of the many-coloured peace of God: in one context bubbling over with gaiety, like a cascading stream, and in another deep and mysterious, with no seeming movement, although the water is flowing swiftly, and in yet another the meandering movement of the water as it approaches the sea, slowly, almost lazily. The peace of God has many 'moods'! Then, if you throw a branch of a tree into the river, does it stop the river's flow? Of course not. What happens is that it is borne along effortlessly and ultimately pushed to the side. There are some people of whom it could be said that it takes very little to disturb their peace. We sometimes say that a little cog can disrupt a machine, but it is not like this with the peace of God. And what of the great rock in the middle of the river bed? Does it stop the river? No; but the river simply flows round both sides of it and it goes peacefully on its way. There are things like that in human experience - immovable, and there for the duration of life, a sorrow it may be, a tragedy, a thorn in the flesh. But the peace of God is not held up by it; it flows round both sides and goes right on. That is what God can do, in the gift of His peace.