Alistair Begg Devotional

Alistair Begg Devotional Peace in the Chaos

Peace in the Chaos

Peace in the Chaos

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.

Jesus never promised His followers the absence of trouble. Nowhere does He say to us that as a result of His coming, dying, rising, and ascending, the world is going to be a more peaceful place or that our place in it is going to be more comfortable. In fact, what He says to us is this: “In the world you will have tribulation.”

Sometimes we want to import to now that which is promised only for then—that is, for the eternal future of which Christ has assured us. We might want to claim for ourselves today those promises—wealth, healing, or absence of tribulation—that God intends to bring to fruition during the age to come. Yes, His kingdom has broken into our world with the advent of Christ. But we still await its full benefits. And if we make the mistake of thinking that God has promised us today what He has in fact only promised us in eternity, then we will certainly be disappointed, and we run the risk of turning our backs on Him on the basis that He did not deliver what He had never actually promised us.

But though we can expect to encounter trouble and tribulation right now simply because we follow Jesus as our King, we still have hope for true peace in this world. Paul writes, “Since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1, emphasis added). This is a peace with God that we can claim now as our own. It is freedom from the fear of judgment and death, from recrimination, and from the dredging up of all the vileness that Christ has already dealt with on the cross.

The gospel is the “good news of peace through Jesus Christ” (Acts 10:36). We still have trials. We will groan and suffer under the weight of sin—both our own and that of others. But in the good news of the gospel we have a true and steady peace, even in turbulent times. “Let not your hearts be troubled,” says Jesus, “neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27). You may not feel like it’s true today, but your Lord Jesus has already overcome the world and all its troubles. The day is not yet here when He will dry all the tears from your eyes, but you can know that that day will arrive, for there is nothing in all the world that can prevent Jesus bringing His final victory. And, in the meantime, you can know that Jesus stands with you by His Spirit, no matter what trouble meets you. What tribulation faces you today? Be sure that Jesus is with you in it and that Jesus will bring you through it—for He has overcome the world. Take heart!

Questions for Thought

How is God calling me to think differently?

How is God reordering my heart’s affections — what I love?

What is God calling me to do as I go about my day today?

Further Reading

I Have Overcome the World

25“I have said these things to you in figures of speech. uThe hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father. 26In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; 27vfor the Father himself loves you, because wyou have loved me and xhave believed that I came from God.1 28yI came from the Father and have come into the world, and now zI am leaving the world and going to the Father.”

29His disciples said, “Ah, now you are speaking plainly and not ausing figurative speech! 30Now we know that byou know all things and do not need anyone to question you; this is why we believe that cyou came from God.” 31Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? 32Behold, dthe hour is coming, indeed it has come, when eyou will be scattered, each to his own home, and fwill leave me alone. gYet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. 33I have said these things to you, that hin me you may have peace. iIn the world you will have jtribulation. But ktake heart; lI have overcome the world.”

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Footnotes
1 16:27 Some manuscripts from the Father

Devotional material is taken from the Truth For Life daily devotionals by Alistair Begg, published by The Good Book Company, thegoodbook.com. Used by Truth For Life with permission. Copyright © 2021, 2022, The Good Book Company.

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