Peace is a wonderful state that we all hope for. It is attained when people unite to prevent war and maintain solitude. But looking at the present time, peace does not seem to be what everyone wants. What should be the standard of peace that we should aim for? Will there ever be a life without war and death?

Keep reading to get comprehensive knowledge in achieving ultimate peace!

The Causes of War

War has been the main cause of bloodshed and violence. It is the root cause of massive death among people who were either patriotic or forced to take part in protecting their homeland or allies. Succinctly, It is an armed conflict between nations or groups within a nation.

If we think of it, most people would want to attain peace and not die. Yet, war has compelled individuals to fight and protect what is theirs.

The Beginning of Disorder

As written in Genesis 1, God created man in His likeness and made everything perfect on Earth. Even then, He also bestowed angels with great wisdom and holiness to serve those who would inherit Salvation (Heb 1:14). God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. Undoubtedly, He has only wanted what is best for His creations.

Considering all of these, shouldn’t Earth stay the same way as it should? How did evil things emerge when they should not exist in the first place?

God obviously did not create evil. However, the Guardian Cherub, who used to be the epitome of perfection, became proud on account of his beauty and corrupted his wisdom (Ezk 28). He was supposed to glorify God for what he had; instead, he called himself ‘god’ and turned to his own ways.

The Consequences of Greed

As the fallen angel was expelled from the mount of God, he devised his plans to drag other creations with him. He slithered down to the Garden of Eden in the form of a cursed serpent to lure Adam, God’s man. God firmly instructed Adam not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, but the latter gave in to the temptation and disobeyed God.

Since then, sin entered through him, and in this way, death came to all people because all sinned (Rom 5:12).

TWO KINDS OF WAR

From what was mentioned, war is not only a combat between humans. It is a combat of spirits and flesh. The spirits would use flesh as instruments to fulfill what is expected of them.
 
With that being said, what kind of war do we indulge in and what kind of war does the Bible pertain to?

Physical War

Sin has caused death, but not just that. It also causes regrets and affliction, which make life hard. If a person is not careful in life, he will become a slave to the world and adversely affect others. When greed-driven people unite, the result would be even worse, and it could possibly create war.

With all the recent heated encounters among nations, it is hard not to worry about the impending danger, which may cause a devastating hot war. Every country takes sides and makes alliances for security. Some leaders may claim that they only protect what belongs to them, when in fact it may come from their own personal desires. When they get what they want, they aim to conquer more lands to expand their territory and exploit resources. This dissension is the result of greed for power and authority. 

If the tension rises, there will be no other way but for the citizens to fight for their land. But people should learn from the previous war. Nothing great was gained from it, but the bodies of countless deceased people whose dreams were buried with them.

Spiritual War

Since sin has entered the world, humans also have to put up with chaos. We should remember that evil things are rooted in disobedience to God. It is not God’s way of getting back at us; rather, it is only the consequence of man’s inclination toward sin.

Nonetheless, God continued to make a covenant with the appointed ones. God promised blessings to anyone who believed and could keep them. Sadly, the flesh is weak, although the spirit is willing (Mat. 26:41). They could not resist the temptation and ended up worshiping the devil. Because of this, heaven and hell have been constantly at war for thousands of years.

The big question is: Does the war in the Bible pertain to the conflict among nations?

Although hot war is evident in the Bible, the Scripture actually conveys more than a mere history of physical battles and conquest. 

Let us take the time of Moses, for instance. In the Book of Exodus, Egyptians tormented Israelites as they grew in number, fearing that they might overthrow them. God, being deeply concerned with His people, appointed Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt to the Promised Land, Canaan. They victoriously escaped the Egyptians’ ruthlessness, and God guided them on their long journey in the desert.

Even after all these, the Israelites eventually worshipped another god in the shape of a golden calf as they were impatient to wait for Moses, who was with God in the holy mountain (Ex 32). As a consequence, the Levites killed them as Moses commanded, and about three thousand people died that day (Ex 32:28).

It is shown how God and Moses went all their way to help them. Despite that, the Israelites’ disloyalty doomed them to their destruction.

This event reminds us that there is and has always been one God to worship. God appoints a man to lead his people, and through that man, the believers must steadfastly obey the commands that come from God. Any form of disloyalty against Him will be devoured by evil into nothingness.

Humans, therefore, should seek one true God. We have been aware of how numerous conflicts arise because of religion. Most take a firm stand that God dwells in each respective church, but has there ever been truth to it?

The holy standard is the Bible, which holds the Word of God (Rev. 22:19). God directs His people never to add or subtract from His Word, or else curses will be upon them. Seeing the world of religions, there are definitely many cases where the Scriptures are likely to be interpreted by people, and from there bore countless denominations.

To put it simply, we are spiritually at war in search of the true God. It is never God’s will to see His people create division and make their own interpretations based on their limited understanding. Rather, it is God’s aim for 6,000 years to make His believers come to the Truth and be united as one. In this way, peace will come upon earth as it is in heaven.

TRUE MEANING OF PEACE

 The concept of peace should be easy, but the discrepancy makes it harder for us to unite. Be that as it may, people tend to hold firmly to what they believe is right and what suits their interests best.

Peace on Earth

Keeping our inner peace makes us feel more connected to ourselves and others. Peace, in its literal sense, is the absence of disturbance. This refers to both the internal and external tranquility of an individual or community. It can be done through proper communication and respect.

With these, shouldn’t peace be easier to achieve? What makes it hard to unite people?

Although it might be right to say that everyone wants peace, people actually have different concepts of peace.

Some think peace is simply without physical war. Others think of peace as a mindset or freedom from external noise. Some try to escape from social norms and make their own standard of living. Lastly, others think it could also be attained when they press their ideologies and get others to concede with them, either by force or persuasion.

From these observations, we can say that individuals tend to create their own ideas of peace based on their own standards. Keeping up in life is already complex, and this variation makes it either more meaningful or complicated.

But is there a standard of peace that could unite everyone despite differences?

Peace on Heaven

True peace can only be attained if we are able to search for one true God. He has relentlessly fought for His people and continued to redeem the world from evil. However, people kept breaking the covenant and sinning. To resolve this, God sent Jesus to the world to bring Salvation to those who believe in Him.

Jesus, being the Son of Man, preached the Truth with His 12 disciples. But during the first coming, there were already preachers with different stands on faith. Instead of being one with Jesus, they became united to crucify Him, mockingly giving Him the title of ‘King of Jews’ when, in fact, He really was.

This is evidence of how Christians are divided and refuse to be one with God in pursuit of their own religious ideals.

Although Jesus was crucified, His coming was never in vain. He fulfilled what was written in the Scriptures, which gave complete enlightenment to those who had witnessed and believed it.

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Rom 5:1).

The Ultimate Way to Peace According to God’s Plan

People could define peace in various ways, but truthfully, the ultimate way to peace is none other than God’s Salvation plan.

God desires to eradicate the agony of man and offers the gift of Salvation to the faithful. For that to happen, people should come to the only true understanding of His Word and keep it until the very end. Just like how Jesus brought peace to the earth at the time of the first coming, so must happen at the time of the second coming.

We must seek that Truth in our time today. As God has commanded, there will be no other gods before Him (Exo 20:3). But as mentioned, the Word has been interpreted in many ways that have caused more confusion for people. There are many false prophets whom they themselves must not have been fully aware of (Matt 7:15). As a result, many people have been fooled and are hindered from knowing the real God.

To protect ourselves from this, we should study the Scriptures diligently and let our hearts quench for spiritual growth (Jn 5:39–40). God knows our hearts, and He will surely show the Truth to those who have truly sought Him.

God’s plan will certainly be fulfilled at the appointed time. When that happens, true believers will be one in God in His kingdom free of sufferings and death. Peace that is in heaven will come down to earth, and we shall live forever.

Conclusion

Jesus has come not to give peace but a sword (Matt 10:34). This tells us that Jesus’ intent is to separate those who believe and those who do not believe in Him. This is the time when we must end war, and to carry that out, we must work together with God to gain eternal peace. Therefore, let us put on the full armor of God so that when the day of evil comes, we may be able to stand our ground (Eph 6:13).

So how do we start signing up for eternal life and peace?

Come, and let us be one in this heavenly mission by learning the Word of God. We are elated to have you in our FREE BIBLE CLASS!