The God of love…peace…all grace
Finally, brethren, farewell. Become complete. Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you (2 Corinthians 13:11).
At the end of his second letter to the Corinthian church, Paul crams some important spiritual advice into one short verse. It starts with their relationship as brothers and sisters in Christ. He bids them farewell or, as the ESV translates it, “Rejoice”. Paul had to deal with some very distressing issues, but they had responded to his appeals and commands. He wanted them to ensure divisions were healed, and their fellowship restored completely. As always, he encouraged them in their Christian pathway and now urges them to be in agreement and at peace with one another. Doing these things would ensure they were in accord with the God who loved them and had given them peace. The enjoyment of the presence of the God of love and peace is dependent upon living lives which are consistent with the character of God.
The title “the God of peace” is used several times by the apostle. Paul wanted the Christians in Rome to have the experience of the God of peace being with them all (Romans 15:33). It is the privilege of Christians to be able to personally walk with God, but God also wants us to enjoy His presence, as His people. When our grandchildren were young, it was pleasant when they stayed with us one at a time. But it was also very enjoyable when they all came together and filled our house. God delights to be amongst His children and to assure them of His peace.
But we need to understand that the God of peace is the God of power. Paul writes, “And the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen” (Romans 16:20). At the birth of Jesus, the angels spoke of peace on earth. But bringing peace was a supreme act of power. It was the power which also abolished death and crushed Satan. God is on our side, and He still acts to defeat evil and to ensure we are not overcome by it. But to know that power we have to follow the example of the apostles. Paul encouraged the Philippians to do the things which they had seen in him. He experienced the constant presence of the God of peace and promised the Philippian Christians the same experience: “the God of peace will be with you” (Philippians 4:9). The power of the God of peace is gloriously seen in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: “the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep” (Hebrews 13:20). To know the God of peace is to know the power of God.
Finally, we learn of “the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you” (1 Peter 5:10). If ever there was a man who could write about the God of all grace, it was Peter. Grace transformed him. He knew there was nothing in him that deserved God’s goodness, and he was fully aware of his frailties. But he had suffered, been shaped, established, strengthened and settled by the grace of God. Stephen lived in the light of the God of Glory. Peter lived in the light of the God of all Grace. That is why his last words to us were “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen” (2 Peter 3:18). May we grow in grace, until by grace we are transported to glory.
