PEACE PROGRESSES FROM GOD’S LOVE
PeaceG1515 to the brothers and loveG26 with faith
from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.
Ephesians 6:23-24
As usual, Charles Swindoll, nails it with this note:
As Paul beautifully began his letter, so he eloquently closes it. He extends a blessing of peace, love, and faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus (6:23). It’s almost as though Paul were summing up the main themes of the entire letter to the Ephesians. Since Christ has established peace with God and between believers (2:14–15), those called by His name are to live out that peace, “being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (4:3). This peaceful way of life was first on Paul’s mind, and close behind it was love—the basis for achieving peace. (85)
The Expositor’s Bible Commentary points out the difference between this prayer and others of Paul’s prayers:
Ephesians finishes with a truly apostolic benediction, but one different in form from others in Paul’s writings. Couched in the third person, not in the second, it has two parts instead of one. “Grace,” which usually comes first, stands last. The three blessings that figure most prominently throughout Ephesians—peace, love, and faith—occupy the first half of the benediction. This is more than a farewell greeting; it is a prayer for reconciliation. Paul longs to see the whole brotherhood of believers in Ephesus and its environs—Jews and Gentiles alike—at “peace” with each other in the one body of Christ (3:15, 19; 4:3). This will only be brought about through mutual “love” (1:15; 3:17-18; 4:2, 16) combined with “faith,” from which it is derived (1:15; 3:17; Gal 5:6). The ultimate source of these three essential features of Christian community life is God himself. The name of Christ the Son is associated with that of God the Father in perfect equality. (86)
The foundation for peace and unity in the local church as well as the church worldwide is the love that fills us and flows through us when we place our faith in Christ. If we are living examples of agápē, we will be living at peace with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We reminded ourselves of the definition of agápē by looking it up in The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament:
G26 agápē – Spoken more especially of good will toward others, the love of our neighbor, brotherly affection, which the Lord Jesus commands and inspires (John 15:13; 17:26; Rom. 13:10; 1 Cor. 13:1; Heb. 6:10; 1 John 4:7). In 2 Cor. 13:11, “the God of love” means the author and source of love, who Himself is love. In Rom. 15:30, “the love of the Spirit” means that love which the Spirit inspires. (87)
When we truly love others, we will consistently treat them as we would like to be treated (Luke 6:31). Wouldn’t that behavior help us to live in peace? Throughout Ephesians and in many of his other letters, Paul urges believers to live in unity, harmony, peace with each other. That is only possible as the Holy Spirit instills Christ-like love in us, and we allow it to flow through us. All the Fruit of the Spirit must be cultivated and nurtured. In other words, we must learn what the Bible says about each characteristic, then practice it until we internalize it. We are to be in the process of becoming more and more like Jesus. The Fruit of Spirit should be evident in our daily lives and should become our natural response—like breathing—rather than something we must think about and struggle to do.
Is it your natural response to make every effort to keep the peace with other believers? Do you consistently respond in love? We all need to evaluate how we are doing by checking our attitudes and actions against the Fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23. When we fall short by reacting rather than responding, we need to ask the Lord to forgive us and strengthen us in the areas in which we struggle.
Father, none of us will reach perfection this side of Heaven. However, You are continuing to perfect and complete the work You began in each of us (Philippians 1:6). Help us to live in unity, harmony, peace with other believers, especially those in the local body of Christ in which we serve.