Independence results in separation. Sometimes independence is good, such as a teen moving out of the house and becoming responsible, or a people coming out of the oppression of a nation or other people group. But there is always a separation.
Throughout human history, man has time and time again declared independence from God. Instead of coming under His sovereign guidance, wisdom, and Word, we instead become determined to do things according to what is right in our own eyes. We follow our own hearts and make our own law and rules. In this declaration and action of independence, we commit treason and become separated from God. If we desire to be reunited with Him, peace must be offered on His terms, not on ours.
Thankfully, He desires peace with us, and has made a way. He Himself came to this earth and became our peace, and it is through Him and Him alone that we can have peace with God.
If you have been stressed, angry, frustrated, annoyed, fed up, irritated, anxious, or worried...if you're tired of all of this and find your blood pressure rising or mood lowering, this sermon is for you. All of us, to some degree, deal with these things on a daily basis. Our minds and hearts are infiltrated with thoughts and feelings that overwhelm us. There is a war going on inside of us, and it's the battle between peace and anxiety.
But God's Word gives us a great hope, as well as practical advice, on how to combat this and find freedom from it. We can find and have peace even amidst the chaos and confusion and uncertainty of life. We find this when we learn how to "rejoice in the Lord." We don't rejoice "in our circumstances," but we can rejoice THROUGH our circumstances if we learn how to rejoice "in the Lord" in the midst of our circumstances.
This sermon is for you.
