New Book - PACE to Peace

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This article consists of exerpts from the Introduction to the book entitled PACE to Peace: Finding Inner Rest in a World of Unrest.

This book is a tool to facilitate transformation of the inner person. Why is inner peace only possible through constant change? The an swer will become apparent as you read, study, and apply the truth found here. We will explore themes discussed in the Bible, especially the book of Hebrews that directly connects our relationship with God and the quality of the inner rest of our souls (see Hebrews 12:14-15, 3:1-12). Increasing the quality of our relationship with God requires constant realignment of our thoughts, actions, and patterns of behavior (Romans 12:1-2). Transformation and sanctification are processes of consistently reordering our old attitudes, beliefs, and standards of living to align with God’s.

 

“Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one  will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled” (Hebrews 12:14-15 NASB).

 

Looking at these verses in context of the book of Hebrews from the beginning of the chapter to the point where they appear, the sanctification of our soul emerges as a very dominant theme. Faith is defined in the previous chapter, Chapter 11, in the passage best known for introducing the “heroes of faith.” Chapter 12 offers specifics of how faith is lived out.

First, Jesus is the “founder” AND “perfecter” of our faith (see Hebrews 12:2, ESV). The Passion Translation (TPT) expresses it as, “Jesus who birthed faith within us and who leads us forward into faith’s perfection”—that is, completion. There is a beginning and a completion to faith in Christ. Believing in Jesus at a conversion experience begins a process of completing faith’s work the remainder of our lives.

Secondly, verses 4-11 speak of growing, as children grow in their Father’s (parents’) care. Growth involves change and stretching of what is, into what it needs to become. The growth process requires discipline. A commitment to this kind of change brings about joy and peace.

Now to verses 14-15, quoted above. Sanctification is explicitly mentioned “without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). Without completion of faith in Jesus through the sanctification pro

cess (change and growth through discipline toward holiness), we have no faith at all. This ongoing change is to be pursued, intentionally sought, and not merely expected to happen on its own. Moreover, this process is intrinsically linked back to our conversion to faith in Christ, and forward to establishing the conditions for our inner peace.

 

Bible Says Much About Peace

 God’s purposes and plans for peace are far greater than our personal experiences of escaping the feelings of unrest inside. However, our inner life is very important to God. So important that he commands complete surrender of our ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving in exchange for his. The psalmist reflects, “Those who love Your law have great peace, and nothing causes them to stumble” (Psalm 119:165; NASB). God’s ways are superior to human ways. We are wise to accept this truth, “How blessed is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding. Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace” (Proverbs 3:13,17 NASB).

Jesus himself had some things to say about peace. Jesus didn’t come into the world to chase away conflict (see Matthew 10:24). He came to deliver us from enslavement to conflict. First, the conflict that exists within our own soul, and the conflict that puts us at war (sometimes literally) with people around us. Without Christ, conflict is inevitable within, but with and through Christ conflict is, was, and will be an nihilated. Since the first sin of mankind, conflict within and conflict without (our environment) are built into the default nature of every human being. Putting our faith and trust in Jesus means we are yielding to his power to remove the grip of unrest in lost parts of our souls.

Often at the root of conflict is bitterness. Bitterness is created by the seeds of failed expectations, disappointments, regret, hurt, or offense. Roots of bitterness are specifically mentioned in these verses in Hebrews as destructive anti-growth agents. Bitter roots are weeds that will “defile” (reduce the productivity of the garden of our hearts). Bitter roots can take the form of ill-willed thoughts, envy, jealousy, malice, slander, and the like. The critical, condemning thoughts and opinions turn into blame, resentment, hatred and even sometimes revenge.

Our tendency to want to rule our own fate causes our failure to trust God to work all circumstances for good. God’s justice demands that only he can sit on the throne as Judge. Our demands to think and act as Judge create conflict. The rebellion against God at the core of this conflict is why the “Prince of Peace,” Messiah Jesus, came to this earth (see Isaiah 9:6).

 

Conversion AND Convergence

 This goes to the heart of the gospel message. Luke records Jesus as saying, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10 NKJV). Until recently, like most Christians, I thought of “lost” souls coming to faith in Jesus in a conversion experience as the full extent of interpreting the meaning of this statement in Luke 19.

However, God is challenging me with a deeper understanding. The inner peace stolen by the enemy of our soul with the entry of sin into the world is part of the loss that Jesus came to redeem. Through the transformation and sanctification process, the seeking and saving of the losses in our lives continues. Faith in Jesus makes us whole. All the broken parts of our soul still touched by the losses are being brought together into the wholeness God intends for us from the beginning. Is is a process of convergence.

Sanctification is God’s divine plan. Being made whole through holiness (set apart on the inside) yields the fruit of increasingly greater degrees of outwardly “holy” behavior. Becoming completely at peace with God’s plan in our innermost being begins at conversion and is fulfilled through a lifelong PACE. I call this a PACE, as each letter in the word corresponds to one of the four parts of this

book; Prepare, Accept, Cooperate, and Engage (described below);.

I grew up in the Christian church thinking the “salvation of souls” refers merely to the conversion of souls. However, the term salvation includes sanctification as well. It includes Jesus completing the faith he has begun. It includes the discipline of growing the faith into maturity. It includes the inner peace Hebrews calls the “peaceful fruit of righteousness” (see Hebrews 12:11).

 

Soul Harvest

 The “harvest” of souls includes all of the above. Let’s be clear that believing in Jesus is not just a decision of the mind to repent (turn around) from one way of life to another. It is a radical surrender to a process of heart transformation as well. For a Christian, seeking the sanctification of our soul is not an option. Responding to God and allowing him to change our heart from the inside out will yield greater

degrees of inner peace. Inner peace can be a gauge for measuring our progress. The more we surrender to God, the more peace we will have in our soul.

Inner change is difficult, but we can be at peace with the uncertainty change brings when we are trusting God through our faith in Jesus. An inner peace and assurance of what Jesus has accomplished

for us, AND what he continues to empower us to do, is foundational for facing the challenges of life. It’s all about his power, not ours.

In summary, I offer my paraphrase of the Hebrews 12:14-15 verses quoted at the beginning. “Pursue inner peace through reconciliation with God, for yourself, and seek this condition for every person you know. Practice surrendering your heart to God for the purpose of a holy being, until the day you see Jesus face to face. Make sure you are living the fullest of God’s purposes for your life by rooting out any bitterness that remains—i.e., admitting your critical judgments, surrendering all judgments to God, and releasing all demands for justice so your relationships (with God, others, and self) can be made whole.” This book is a tool to help guide and encourage you on the journey

 

 Four Parts to P-A-C-E

P-repare the Heart

A-ccept Our Broken Heart Condition

C-ooperate with God through Surrender

E-ngage Inner Change as a Lifestyle

 

Summary of the P-A-C-E

The journey through this book begins in Part One with preparing the heart. Recognizing what makes us “tick” (so to speak) is critical to making any kind of positive directional changes. Our heart is like a house. The center of all activities for a farm is the farmhouse. The farmer eats, rests, plays, plans, and finds shelter in the farmhouse. When the farmhouse functions well to meet the needs of the farmer, the foundation for the success of the mission of the farm is secure.

Part Two of this book is about accepting our broken-down heart condition. Without God, our farmhouse and therefore our entire farm is in disrepair and cannot be fixed on its own. Self-honesty about the true condition of our heart is key to taking first steps toward positive change. The humility to continue taking steps toward God is essential to grow out of our brokenness.

Part Three walks through cooperating with God to restore our heart so it can thrive once again. Surrender is a key. Gaining something new requires giving up the old. That’s easier said than done when it comes to old (familiar) patterns of thought and behavior. We must become “wholly” dissatisfied with our own ways to gain satisfaction with God’s “holy” ways (see Proverbs 14:11-12).

Part Four deals with engaging transformational growth as a lifestyle. Changing to be a better person is great, but God’s purposes are far beyond our imaginations and expectations. The only way to discover God’s greater purposes is to embrace inner change by drawing ever closer to God. This includes nurturing a healthy discontent with how far we’ve already come. The moment a farmer becomes too content with his farm’s productivity, conditions out of his control (e.g.,severe weather, pests, economy, thieves) will push things in a declining direction. We must remain vigilant in fighting our broken world’s declining tendencies. We must embrace our need for constant change from the inside out.

I provide some practical tools along the way, and in the appendices. Also in the back of the book are a group of questions for each chapter. The questions are designed to help the pace reader on their own journey to peace. I encourage writing out the answers for each chapter before going on to the next chapter.

Inner life change begins with a better understanding of our inner life. So why not get started now. If you don’t have a copy of the book yet, order the print or ebook version and dig in. Buy the book at: https://edwardhersh.com/pacetopeace .

See more articles at: https://edwardhersh.com

by Ed Hersh, Blue Rock BnB Healing Ministry

Be at Peace with Hebrews 12:14-15

“Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.  See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled” (Hebrews 12:14-15; NIV).

While recently studying these two verses of the Bible, I was challenged by new insights, some of which I share here.

Looking at the context from the beginning of this chapter, the sanctification of our souls is a much more dominent theme than I noticed in the past.  Faith is defined in the previous chapter eleven.  This chapter twelve lays out specifics of how faith is lived out.  

First, Jesus is the “founder” AND “perfector” of our faith (see Hebrews 12:2, ESV).  The Passion Translation expresses it as, “Jesus who birthed faith within us and who leads us forward into faith’s perfection” (TPT), i.e. completion.  There is a beginning and completing to faith in Christ.  Believing in Jesus at a conversion experience begins a process of completing faith’s work the remainder of our lives.  

Secondly, verses 4 - 11 speak of growing as children grow in their Father’s (parents’) care.  Growth involves change and stretching of what is, into what it needs to become.  The growth process requires discipline.  A commitment to this kind of change brings about joy and peace.  

Now to verses 14 - 15 quoted above.  Sanctification is explicitly mentioned  “without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).  Without completion of faith in Jesus through the sanctification process (change and growth through discipline toward holiness) we have no faith at all.  This ongoing change is to be pursued, intentionally sought, and not merely expected to happen on its own.  Moreover, this process is intrinsically linked back to our conversion to faith in Christ, and forward to establishing the conditions for our inner peace.   

The phrase “pursue peace with all men” is obviously an exhortation to relate to people on friendly terms whenever possible.  But a deeper meaning struck me as I did a word study on the use of the word “peace” in the Bible.    

Peace is not merely the absence of conflict.  It is not merely a feeling of self-satisfaction, contentment, security, or harmony with external worldly circumstances.  The Webster’s 1828 dictionary explains the definition of peace as, “ a state of quiet or tranquility; freedom from disturbance or agitation.”  The Bible uses the term “peace” most often as a way to describe our inner (heart) condition before Almighty God.  Authors in the Lexham Theological Wordbook point out, “In the biblical writings, peace is the wholeness that comes as a result of alignment with God’s creative and redemptive purposes. …  Peace occurs not only in interpersonal relationships, but also in ethnic and political relationships. Peace also carries a cosmic connotation, in which all aspects of creation, both human and non-human, should exist in harmony with each other. Peace is thus the ideal of creation that God’s redemptive activity seeks to restore. ….  The flourishing existence of creation described in Gen 1–2 shapes how peace is understood throughout the rest of the Bible. Peace involves well-being. ….   ultimately peace comes as a result of Jesus’ work and thus is a gift given by God. Ephesians describes Christ creating a new humanity by healing the divisions between Jews and Gentiles and making peace (eirēnē) between them (Eph 2:14–15)—and by being “our peace (eirēnē)” ”  (Lookadoo, J. (2014). Peace. D. Mangum, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, & R. Hurst (Eds.), Lexham Theological Wordbook. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press).

God’s purposes and plans for peace are far greater than our personal experiences, however, our inner life is very important to God.  So important that he commands complete surrender of our ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving in exchange for his.  The Psalmist reflects, “Those who love Your law have great peace, and nothing causes them to stumble” (Psalm 119:165).  God’s ways are superior to human ways.  We are wise to accept this truth, “How blessed is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding.  Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace” (Proverbs 3:13,17).  

Jesus himself had some things to say about peace. Jesus didn’t come into the world to chase away conflict (see Matthew 10:24).  He came to deliver us from enslavement to conflict.  First, the conflict that exists within our own soul, and the conflict that puts us at war (sometimes literally) with people around us.  Without Christ, conflict is inevitable within, but with and through Christ conflict is, was, and will be inihilated.  Since the first sin of mankind, conflict within, and conflict without (our environment), is built in the default nature of every human belng.  Putting our faith and trust in Jesus means we are yielding to his power to remove the grip of unrest in lost parts of our souls.  

At the root of conflict is bitterness.  Bitterness is created by the seeds of failed expectations, disappointments, regret, hurt, or offense.  Roots of bitterness are specifically mentioned in these verses in Hebrews as destructive anti-growth agents.  Bitter roots are weeds that will “defile” (reduce the productivity of the garden of our hearts).  Bitter roots can take the form of ill-willed thoughts, envy, jealousy, malice, slander, and the like.  The critical, condemning  thoughts and opinions turn into blame, resentment, hatred and even sometimes revenge.  Our tendency to want to rule our own fate causes our failure to trust God to work all circumstances for good.  God’s justice demands that only He can sit on the throne as Judge.  Our demands to think and act as Judge, create conflict.  The rebellion against God at the core of this conflict is why the “Prince of Peace,” Messiah Jesus, came to this earth (see Isaiah 9:6).         

This goes to the heart of the gospel message.  Luke records Jesus as saying, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).  Until recently, like most Christians,  I thought of “lost” souls coming to faith in Jesus in a conversion experience as the full extent of interpreting the meaning of this statement in Luke 19.  

However, God is challenging me with a deeper understanding.   The inner peace stolen by the enemy of our soul with the entry of sin into the world, is part of the loss that Jesus came to redeem.  Through the sanctification process, the seeking and saving of the losses in our lives continues.   Faith in Jesus makes us whole.  All the broken parts of our soul still touched by the losses, are being brought together into the  wholeness God intends for us from the beginning.  Sanctification is God’s divine plan.  Being made whole through holiness (set apart on the inside) yields the fruit of increasingly greater degrees of outwardly “holy” behavior.  Being completely at peace with that plan in our inner most being only begins at conversion.  

I grew up in the Christian Church thinking the “salvation of souls” refers merely to the conversion of souls.  However, the term “salvation” includes sanctification as well.  It includes Jesus completing the faith he has begun.  It includes the discipline of growing the faith into maturity.  It  includes the inner peace Hebrews calls “peacable fruit of righteousness”  (see Hebrews 12:11).

The “harvest” of souls includes all of the above.  Let’s be clear that believing in Jesus is not just a decision of the mind to repent (turn around) from one way of life to another.  It is a radical surrender to a process of heart transformation as well.  For a Christian seeking the sanctification of our soul is not an option.  A result of responding to God and allowing him to change our hearts from the inside out, will yield greater degrees of inner peace.  Inner peace can be a gauge for measuring our progress.  The more we surrender to God, the more peace we will have in our soul.  

Inner change is difficult, but we can be at peace with the uncertainty change brings, when we are trusting God through our faith in Jesus.  An inner peace and assurance of what Jesus has accomplished for us, AND what he continues to empower us to do, is foundational for facing  the challenges of life.  It’s all about his power, not ours.

In summary, I offer my translation of the Hebrews 12:14-15 verses quoted at the beginning.   “Pursue inner peace through reconciliation with God, for yourself, and seek this condition for every person you know.  Practice surrendering your heart to God for the purpose of a holy being,  until the day you see Jesus face to face.  Make sure you are living the fullest of God’s purposes for your life by rooting out any bitterness that remains--ie. admitting your critical judgments, surrendering all judgments to God, and releasing all demands for justice so your relationships (with God, others, and self) can be made whole.”

For help in ilving out more specifics of the sanctification journey, check out some of my other blog articles (ie. http://authoredhersh.blogspot.com/2018/02/ ).  Be blessed!  Be at peace.

by Ed Hersh, Blue Rock BnB Healing Ministry

Pain Evangelism as Discipleship

The previous article focused on esteeming Jesus by not only trusting him to make right our sin problem, but also to give Jesus the pain of the consequences of sin.  Some think that pursuing healing of the inner person and becoming a more devoted disciple selfishly puts the follower of Christ at odds with the commission to evangelize the world.    The loss and pain (everything from failures and disappointments to serious abuse) are experienced as a result of the broken world we live in. Loss and pain is common to both the new believer, and  the most seasoned disciple of Christ alike.

Healing is part of Jesus’ ministry of evangelism.  Jesus says of himself,  “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). Jesus spoke these words in reply to religious people accusing him of hanging out with people of undesirable social status and the needy.  God wants to meet people in loss and pain.  Whether in small losses, moderate failures, or full blown hopelessness and despair, hope for healing is available for the asking.  

The best way  to help people recover from their losses and find freedom from their pain is the way Jesus himself helped people when he walked on earth.  He found people in loss and pain and offered salvation to them. We must be like Jesus, and offer Jesus as the only true Savior.  Generally speaking, people who responded in greatest measure, were people in the greatest need, with the most losses, and most ready for change.  

We must also be people who are open to admitting our own needs.  If we wish to recover from loss and pain, we must stop trying to hide it, and allow it to be found by Jesus.  Breaking through denial and positioning our hearts for healing involves the following three considerations.  

Consider the purpose of pain.  Physical pain in the body is meant to signal a warning of disrupted functionality.  If a carpenter accidentally hits his thumb with a hammer, the physical pain he feels tells him something bad is happening to his body.  A physical injury to a body may need treatment and a time of healing for functionality to be restored.  Mental, emotional, and spiritual hurts need to run a healing course as well.  

Second, consider what governs out actions. Reaction of the  physical or  tangible (outer man) is determined by the non-physical or intangible (inner man).  Jesus taught us that the sinful actions we take part in have their source in our heart (see Mark 7:20-23).  If the heart is at rest, a person’s behavior will reflect peace and calm.  If the heart is unrestful, the person’s behavior will reflect frustration, dissatisfaction, and all sorts of emotional pain, and all sorts of unpleasant, undesirable, or harmful behavior.

Third, consider what lies at the root of painful feelings.  From our conception in the womb, our own brokenness and the brokenness of people around us, creates  critical judgments,  bitterness, injustices, and  wounds of soul and spirit.  More about this is explained in other articles on this blog site.  Also see my book, Escaping the Pain of Offense: Empowered to Forgive from the Heart.

So  if, 1) our bad behavior is undesirable or destructive (sinful), which is, 2)  caused by a heart full of pain, which is 3) caused by unresolved bitterness and woundedness, then doesn’t it make sense to go after the “bitter root” to bring healing to  the problem?  This is actually commanded in Hebrews 12:15, “See to it that … no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile.”  Why is this so difficult?  It is hard because it cannot be done with mere knowledge or sheer will power.  It requires surrendering to the power of God for transformational healing.

Only Jesus can truly redeem the broken  condition of the human heart.  He has given us the gift and power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish this in our heart.

Healing is a process. We must embrace the process.  As John and Paula Sandford (founders of the Elijah House ministry)  teach in a book called The Transformation of the Inner Man, healing is the process of evangelizing the soul.  It is evangelizing believers in unbelieving areas of their lives.  Everyone is in need of some kind of healing and many times healing is painful because of the weakness of our flesh (2 Corinthians 12:9).  Healing involves transformation.  The Sandfords define transformation as "that process of death and rebirth whereby what was our weakness becomes our strength."   Transformation is still needed after our initial conversion experience (Philippians 1:6 and Hebrews 12:1-2).  Knowing our problem does not set us free, but only the Cross of Jesus (applied to our problem) can set us free.  Our goal then is to discover unbelieving areas of the heart and invite God to minister to them.  Hebrews 3:12 says, "See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God."

Continued evangelism is necessary for discipleship, and discipleship thrives on pain evangelism.  The healing we receive also makes us better evangelists.  The more of Christ’s salvation we receive into our own being, the more we understand and identify with others. Compassion and empathy for loss and pain are more effective tools than condemnation of  people for sinful behaviors.  Again, as Jesus taught, the being (heart) supersedes the doing (behaviors).

Pursuing God’s help for  healing  your own setbacks, losses and hurts, can be one of the best ways to help others.  By becoming a better person on the inside, others around you will surely be blessed.   

Let me encourage you to take inventory of your heart.  What might be remaining lost (and waiting to be found by Jesus) in your life?  Is there a behavior, habit, or pattern of reaction, that may indicate some degree of unrest in your soul?  Is there a root of bitterness and unforgiveness you already know about, but haven’t surrendered it to God for him to be the Judge?  If you think there’s nothing, let go of your denial and start feeling. Let the pain surface.  It wants to be your friend.  Let the ashes of loss,  failures, discomfort, uneasiness, unrestfulness, confusion, doubt, and worry be turned into beauty of pain-free circumstances (see Isaiah 61:1-3).   

Repentance and forgiveness is the path to freedom.   Psalm 32 blessings!

by Ed Hersh, Blue Rock BnB Healing Ministry