The Gospel of peace

 BY Argie Simonis 

"And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;" Eph 6:15

The Gospel of peace mentioned here is not about peace between mankind. Peace between men is the fruit of the peace that Jesus Christ restored between God and men:

"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:" Romans 5:1

Peace can only come when our relationship with God is based on our faith in what He has done for us and not in what we do for Him. Anyone who believes that he must meet certain standards in order to be accepted by God will never have peace. This kind of attitude puts the weight of salvation on our shoulders and is a burden we can not carry.

It is humanly impossible to live holy enough to please God either before we are saved or after we are saved. We were saved by grace through faith. Failure to understand this truth has led many God-loving Christians not to enjoy the peace that comes to them through faith in Jesus.

This is the Gospel of peace that Paul "paints" so beautifully in his letters and that we are called to spread to the ends of the earth!