What does it mean to let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts (Colossians 3:15)?

V. 15. "Let the peace of Christ preside in your hearts" (N. Tn.). In Christ we see the new order of man set forth in perfection. He came down from heaven, and could speak of Himself as "the Son of Man which is in heaven" (John 3:13). He walked amidst earth's unrest, but lived in heaven's calm. We pass through a world where there is no peace. Politically, it is a world of wars. Socially, commercially, and religiously, all is unrest and upheaval. The privilege of the Christian is to pass through it, even as Christ, with the peace and calm of heaven in his heart. Whatever the circumstances through which he may be called to pass, with his mind set on things above, he will be kept in the peace which Christ enjoyed.

Furthermore the peace is not only to preside in our hearts, but to be enjoyed in the Christian company; for to this we have been "called in one body". Oneness of the body requires peace between the members if it is to grow with the increase of God. Further, if there is peace in the heart, there will be thankfulness to God. Thus, if marked by grace, love, and peace, the beautiful character of Christ will be reproduced in His people.

The peace of Christ is that of which He spoke in the upper chamber the night before He suffered. "My peace I give to you," He said. It is that rest of heart and mind which results from perfect confidence in the Father's love and perfect subjection to the Father's will. In our chapter we are reminded that we are called to this peace in one body. Consequently, the peace ruling in all our hearts, an atmosphere of peace pervades the whole body. The closing words of the verse, "and be ye thankful," are significant.

Verse 15. "And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts." What sort of peace do you think Christ had? Besides peace of conscience, there was the peace of an undistracted heart. Your heart is often distracted, and of course you have not Christ's peace. If He has brought us into the relationship of sons, we must walk in the peace in which Christ walked. What I feel so important for us is this, that it is not only forgiveness, but the mind and purpose of God is, to bring us really, livingly, and consciously into the place where Christ is. By the Holy Ghost I know I am in Christ; then I know that Christ is in me. I am perfectly accepted as Christ is; then my part comes, which is, Christ to be shown out, "That the life of Jesus should be manifested in our mortal flesh." He has left His own peace with us; and now, beloved friends, are we walking in the peace that Christ had in this world? It is perfectly true that we are to judge ourselves; we find we can do nothing without Him, and if we have been careless, we shall discover that we have not power and strength; but still what He has done, is, to set us consciously in His own place.

The peace of Christ is that peace that Christ knew when He was here and which He gives to us (John 14:27). It flows from communion with Him and the consciousness that we have an adequate resource in every situation. This inner peace preserves from the agitation and fear that otherwise might disturb the company. Its enjoyment enables saints to realise practically the unity of the spiritual body of Christ in its local aspect and nothing hinders the thanksgiving in which all participate.

Thus, love tends to bind together, whereas self or flesh is the very opposite, the one as decidedly removing difficulties, as the other brings them in. Love not only bears and forbears but overcomes evil with good. "And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts." The peace of God is that perfect calm in which He rests as to all circumstances in this world and into which He brings the believer who looks up to Him, committing all circumstances into His hands without allowance of will or anxiety. Instead of our way of escape, which is what man's mind loves to take, because he has always a notion of governing for himself, faith enables a man to look up to God, and brings in the Word of God to bear upon what passes around us. But our epistle speaks of a peace more intimate. It is the peace that Christ has now, the peace He ever had when here below. Thus Christ Himself met all difficulties, as He saw all perfectly, resting in perfect peace about all; and so should we. No sense of evil without, no sense of weakness among His own, disturbs His perfect peace about everything.

"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body, and be ye thankful." v. 16. Thus it is peace, but not an isolated spirit, not as having done with one another, but, on the contrary, cleaving to all, spite of all. Supposing, for instance, something painful troubled me about one in communion, am I to be troubled by this so as to be hindered from going to the Lord's table? That would be adding wrong to wrong; for if it were right for me to stay away, it would be equally incumbent on others also. I am never warranted to yield to trouble about such matters, but entitled to have the peace of Christ ruling in my heart. There is always a way of Christ in everything, and this is very important for our souls to remember. "And be ye thankful"; not anxious nor fretful, but thankful. Everything that is wrong may be matter for judgment; but the best preliminary for judging soundly is to do what is according to God — perhaps to judge ourselves. It is our privilege to think of Christ in all that we enter on.

So the Lord's words on the night of His betrayal, "Peace I leave with you," have a special inflexion of meaning in the further communication, "My peace I give unto you." Again, the apostle enjoins the Colossian Christians, "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts." (Col. 3:15). There must be complete acquiescence in the will of God if peace is to supervene. In being transformed by the renewing of our mind, we prove or test what is that good, acceptable, perfect will of God. (Rom. 12:2). The Scripture says "let," i.e., "allow," which suggests that there are hindrances to the peace of Christ having a free course of control, but we are responsible to remove these hindrances.

There will be no need for a president in our discussions if the peace of Christ presides at our council board, for that is the present purpose of our being called in one body, and in the process we shall be marked by thankful hearts. The natural tendency is for everyone to have a right to express his opinion, and so a Babel of voices will proclaim the failure of human effort in bringing about millennial conditions.

"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts" - with the spirit of peace, the Holy Ghost not grieved, peace is enjoyed with God in a conscience not injured. Then he adds, "Be ye thankful," for I get everything from God. I cannot be thankful for everything if my will is not broken; but the moment I look to God as counting the hairs of my head, I glory in tribulation, and count it all joy, every trial and exercise. There is the Christian's place - the place of Christ ruling in his heart, walking in peace through the world, thankful for everything he gets; it is for his good. Now he is to enjoy the things of his own world. "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly." That is the positive world into which you are brought - "The unsearchable riches of Christ." It is not head knowledge, but spiritual things - "Singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." We know God's ways and thoughts in the wonderful word we have, and we have the mind of Christ. The men of the world sing in their enjoyment: you sing together to the Lord. Now the Christian is enjoying his own world with his heart's affections. We get the rule for his conduct. It is very simple, very sweeping, and uncommonly satisfactory to the heart that really desires to do the will of God. "Whatsoever ye do, whether in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus." If we look at that "Whatsoever ye do, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus," it is bringing all the principle and motive for our conduct from the revelation of a Person who is everything to us, not forbidding things. We know in how many things during the week the question arises, Shall I do this or that? Not as to absolutely wrong things; but a person says, What is the harm of that? Are you going to do it in the name of the Lord? No! Then you are getting away from the Lord, and that is the harm - a great harm for the Christian. In taking a house, or buying a dress, in the way I manage my house, is it "in the name of the Lord Jesus"? What can we say? It is leaving the Lord out (not leaving Him altogether), and letting self in. That is what the will of the flesh is.

To all of these things love is to be added, for it is the only true motivating power for them all. Love's genuine concern for the good of others should permeate every virtue. It is the bond of perfectness, that is, of proper, full-grown spiritual development, which has in it precious uniting power."And let the peace of Christ preside in your hearts" (v.15 - JND). It is the peace of Him now raised from the dead, in calm, tranquil triumph over all things. We are not told to make peace rule, but Let it rule, for the only hindrance to this is an unsubmissive will. We are called to this rule of peace, and a most salutary brief word is added, "and be thankful," for we too easily forget this simple and important matter.Verse 16 gives us the eighth time the title Christ (the Anointed One) appears in this chapter, for His Headship of the new creation is predominant to the end of verse 17. The word of Christ is that word connected with Him in resurrection glory, as is true of the peace of Christ. The word of Christ is to "dwell in you richly" as a settled, permanent thing, with fullness of spiritual prosperity. The comma in the New King James Version after "wisdom," should rather be placed after "richly" (JND), for wisdom is connected with the teaching and admonishing, where it is deeply needed. Another comma is well placed after "one another" (JND). In a place distinct from the teaching, yet accompanying it, is the wonderful exercise of singing. This included psalms, denoting songs accompanied by stringed instruments; hymns, songs of praise; and spiritual songs, those of Christian experience, exercises of soul, enjoyment of scriptural teaching, etc. All of this music should be accompanied by grace in our hearts toward God. This is not merely being able to sing well or beautifully, but with hearts responsive to the grace of God by which we have been so infinitely blessed. The words we sing should fully coincide with the truth of the Word of God, and grace in our hearts will deeply drink in their significance, for though singing is a precious exercise, the music must be only secondary to the words.

We have next, "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to the which ye are also called in one body: and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom." It is all Christ in this chapter. I can only just allude to it now. His peace is to rule our hearts! He Himself said: "My peace I give it unto you." How easily we are able to meet every difficulty if we have the peace of Christ in our hearts! Go down to your shores when the storm is blowing, when the winds are raging; see the billows dashing and breaking on the surface. But go deep down below that troubled surface, and all is perfectly calm. So with the Christian whilst he passes through the storms here. "The peace of Christ," that peace which He enjoyed as a man down here, that peace is to dwell in your hearts, and keep them in perfect calm whatever the tempests around.

Therefore, as the elect of God, who are the new man indwelt by Christ and one with Him, holy and beloved, are exhorted to put on (have it done) the things which manifest Christ. Bowels of mercy, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering. It is the fruit of knowing Christ risen and seated in glory. His own character is reproduced and Christ is manifested in the believer's walk. "As the elect of God, those who owe everything to His will, His choice as those set apart to Him, and those upon whom He has set His love, we are to put on the things which properly accompany this: 'bowels of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, long-suffering, forbearing one another and forgiving one another.' It is striking how, in all these, there is found some form of self-denial. Power is shown by competence for stooping; God turning also the very things that are against us into the means of educating us in this. Things evil in themselves may, nevertheless, furnish us with a wholesome discipline for the way and enable us, in answer, to bring forth fruit which is according to God. We are to forbear as God has forborne. We are to forgive as Christ has forgiven us; to all which is to be added love as that which is the 'bond of perfectness,' which keeps everything in its place and perfects every detail of life. Think how the world, even, has to put on the appearance of love, the more if it has not the reality; but love itself has no need to put on an appearance. It will manifest itself in harmony in every tone and gesture. The manifestation of the divine nature has a unity in it which makes everything to be in harmony. If there is love in the heart, the words will not be hard or unseemly; their very tone will be affected" (Numerical Bible). "And let the peace of Christ (not 'Peace of God' as in the Authorized Version) preside in your hearts, to which also ye have been called in one body, and be thankful." All God's true children have peace with God and their calling in one body is also to have the peace of Christ presiding in their hearts. This blessed heritage (John 14:27) will be enjoyed by all who walk in the Spirit, who walk in love, obedient to His will and in unbroken fellowship with Him. The crown and glory of such a walk is the peace of Christ, the very peace which He possessed while down here. Blessed, unspeakable privilege! Yet how few know this peace of Christ and enjoy it daily! If Christ is all for the believer and seen as being "in all," in every member of the body of Christ, then that peace will rule in the heart and we shall know the comfort and joy of it. Furthermore the word of Christ is to dwell richly in the believer's heart in all wisdom. And this word ever directs us to Himself. It does not teach us self-occupation but occupation with Himself, His own person and glory. It is through His word that we learn to know Him better and by which we are kept in His fellowship. And this again bears the blessed fruits of joy and praise, as well as spiritual fellowship with the saints. "Teaching, and admonishing one another; with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to God." And all the believer does in word or in deed is all to be done in His own worthy name, "giving thanks to God the Father by Him." The Lord Jesus is to be in all our thoughts; in every word and in every deed must be given Him the preeminence. "This consciousness of relationship with Christ, in the life which is of Him in us, applies to everything. Nothing is done without Him. If He is the life, all which that life does has Him for its end and object, as far as the heart is concerned. He is present as that which is the governing motive, and gives its character to our actions, and which preoccupies our heart in performing them. Everything relates to Him: we do not eat without Him (how can we when He is our very life?); we do not drink without Him; what we say, what we do, is said and done in the name of the Lord Jesus. There is the sense of His presence; the consciousness that everything relates to Him, that we can do nothing--unless carnally--without Him, because the life which we have of Him acts with Him and in Him, does not separate from Him, and has Him for its aim in all things, even as water rises to the height from which it descended. This is what characterizes the life of the Christian. And what a life! Through Him, dwelling in the consciousness of divine love, we give thanks to our God and Father." Verse 18-4:1. Wives, husbands, children, fathers, servants and masters are exhorted how to walk in the different relationships while still in the body. The more complete exhortations as to husband and wife are found in the Epistle to the Ephesians (5:22-23); and as to children, fathers, servants and masters in chapter 6:1-9. The same loving submission of the wives to their husbands "as is fitting in the Lord" is here stated once more.