“For He Himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility.”
Ephesians 2:14
Peace is an often-sought goal in life. We endure a lot of work, sweat, effort and mental stress to get to a place of peace. It is something that is a goal at the end of the day, and admired in babies as they sleep.
The peace of this text in the original Greek comes from a word that means ‘to join’ like gluing two things together. Many times in my woodworking hobby a glue is involved, and the pieces become as one when dry. What a great image of Jesus’ blood as the glue that joins us to the Father so that we are ‘one’ with Him. This is Jesus’ prayer in John 17:21 “That they all shall be one, just as you, my Father, are in me, and I am in you, so that they also shall be one in us. “
Peace is more than ‘one-ness.’ Peace also includes the idea of the Old Testament concept of ‘shalom’ – a well-ness and whole-ness in every area of life. Because we are joined forever to the Father through the blood of Jesus, we can live with His Spirit informing and enlivening us each and every moment of our day. The Creator and His created – us – are ‘as one’ which calms us even in the midst of great trials. Peaceful sleep is really good. Peaceful days are even better. The idea that God wants us to have His peace every moment shows what a loving God He is!