SHALOM Peace I bring to you

Video  Shalom, or peace, is not only the absence of conflict but also the presence of connection and completion.

Luke 8:40-48  The Voice 40 When Jesus and His disciples crossed the lake, another crowd was waiting to welcome Him. 41 A man made his way through the crowd. His name was Jairus, and he was a synagogue official. Like the man on the other side of the lake, this dignified man also fell at Jesus’ feet, begging Jesus to visit his home 42 where his only daughter, a girl of 12, lay dying. Jesus set out with Jairus. The crowd came along, too, pressing hard against Him. 43 In the crowd was a woman. She had suffered from an incurable menstrual disorder for 12 years [and had spent her livelihood on doctors with no effect].[a] It had kept her miserable and ritually unclean, unable to participate fully in Jewish life. 44 She followed Jesus, until she could reach Him. She touched the fringe of the robe Jesus wore, and at that moment the bleeding stopped. Jesus (stopping and looking about): 45 Who touched Me? Some in the Crowd (everyone speaking at once): Not me. Another in the Crowd: It wasn’t me either. Peter [and those with him][b] (intervening): Master, what kind of question is that, with this huge crowd all around You and many people touching You on all sides? Jesus: 46 I felt something. I felt power going out from Me. I know that somebody touched Me. 47 The woman now realized her secret was going to come out sooner or later, so she stepped out of the crowd, shaking with fear, and she fell down in front of Jesus. Then she told her story in front of everyone—why she touched Him, what happened as a result. Jesus: 48 Your faith has made you well again, daughter. Go in peace. ___________________________ In this passage, we see how a woman found shalom in the midst of a chaotic crowd. As soon as she touched Jesus, she was made physically whole. Jesus recognized her faith in him and said, “go in peace,” or in other words, “continue to live in this whole and healed state.” In this story, the woman needed physical restoration and wholeness. But wholeness, or lack of wholeness, can affect other parts of our being as well. Where there is fragmentation in any part of our being, there is a wound of some kind, and it is a place where we need shalom to be restored. Where do you need shalom to be restored in your body, mind, or spirit? Consider how Jesus responded to the woman in need. Reach out to him in prayer. Ask for his shalom to meet you where you are. Consider your community for a moment. Where does shalom need to be restored? Jot down a list of your answers as a petition to God, and then circle one thing on the list. Prayerfully consider what practical steps you or your community can take to bring connection and completion to that one fragmented place.

*The relationship between faith and works is often misunderstood. Some think that salvation is God’s reward for good deeds. If that’s true, then it can’t possibly be a gift. If it were a reward, then heaven would be a place where people might compare notes on what they did to make it through the gates. But Paul is confident in the truth of the gospel. The truth is that salvation is God’s gift through Jesus. Grace and faith make salvation real in us. When we are transformed by grace, then we become His new creation and begin to live out the good works He has planned for us. Works, then, aren’t the cause of salvation; they are its result. To put it another way, works aren’t the means of salvation; they are its presence. Ephesians 2:11-18 11 Paul writing: So never forget how you used to be. Those of you born as outsiders to Israel were outcasts, branded “the uncircumcised” by those who bore the sign of the covenant in their flesh, a sign made with human hands. 12 You had absolutely no connection to the Anointed; you were strangers, separated from God’s people. You were aliens to the covenant they had with God; you were hopelessly stranded without God in a fractured world. 13 But now, because of Jesus the Anointed and His sacrifice, all of that has changed. God gathered you who were so far away and brought you near to Him by the royal blood of the Anointed, our Liberating King. 14 He is the embodiment of our peace, sent once and for all to take down the great barrier of hatred and hostility that has divided us so that we can be one. 15 He offered His body on the sacrificial altar to bring an end to the law’s ordinances and dictations that separated Jews from the outside nations. His desire was to create in His body one new humanity from the two opposing groups, thus creating peace. 16 Effectively the cross becomes God’s means to kill off the hostility once and for all so that He is able to reconcile them both to God in this one new body. 17 The Great Preacher of peace and love came for you, and His voice found those of you who were near and those who were far away. 18 By Him both have access to the Father in one Spirit. _______________________________ In Ephesians, Paul is addressing the division between two different communities of people, namely Jews and Gentiles. His point is that through Jesus, these groups have been brought together into one family. The hostility that once made it impossible for these groups to get along was put to death on the cross. In Jesus’ family, we have access to peace with God and with one another. Take time to meditate on this fact. Read verses 11-13 again. What is it like to be far away from God? Jesus provided a way to bring us close to God. Consider your personal story. How did Jesus bring you to God? What is it like to have peace with him? We often use the figure of speech “a wall between us” to describe interpersonal conflict. Consider one relationship in your life that needs peace. Read verses 14 and 15 again, and then take a moment to imagine Jesus taking down the wall between you. What does the scene look like after Jesus destroys the wall of hostility? Copyright © 2020 The Bible Project 1302 SE Ankeny St Portland, OR 97214 The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.