A Prayer for Peace Now may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all!
(2 Thessalonians 3:16 NASB) Paul closes his second letter to the Church of the Thessalonians with a prayer for peace. He does this for good reason. The Christians there were facing persecution and trials. They were living in troubled times. The church was shaken because many of them thought the Day of the Lord had already come. If that were not enough, some of the Christians there were lazy. They were unwilling to work and took advantage of the generosity of other Christians.
Paul addresses his prayer to the Lord of peace. In First Thessalonians Paul prays to the God of peace (God the Father). Here his prayer is directed to Jesus (God the Son). Jesus is our source of peace. He adds the pronoun Himself. Only God Himself can give real peace. Paul prays for: 1. Lasting Peace. He is praying that God would continually give them peace all the time. He does not pray that God would give them peace some of the time but all of the time. This is a prayer for lasting peace. This is not a peace that comes and goes. It is a peace that stays.
2. Peace in Every Circumstance The apostle is praying that in every circumstance they would have peace. Whatever trials, troubles, or problems the church was facing, he believed they could have peace.
3. Peace in His Presence. “The Lord be with you all!” What the Thessalonians needed more than anything was to know that the Lord was with them. We can face any circumstance knowing the Lord is with us. Paul prays for the Lord to be with them all. Everyone in the church is included in his prayer (even the idle).
Our churches today need peace. These are troubled times that we are living in. I believe that God wants His church to have peace in the midst of all that is happening in the world and peace in the midst of all that is happening in our churches.
Thought for the week: We can face any circumstance knowing the Lord is with us.
Prayer for the week: Now may the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all!
(2 Thessalonians 3:16 NASB)