Sin and Peace

Shalom
Peace be within you
John14:27 "...Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you."



Sunday's sermon was about Peace. Pastor Don Wong from New Charis Missions used the translations of two words: shalom and irene. Just note that I'm not reproducing sermon notes in this post.

shalom
Jewish word of greeting, 1881, from Heb., lit. "peace," prop. "completeness, soundness, welfare," from stem of shalam "was intact, was complete, was in good health."
 
irene
fem. proper name, from Fr. Irène, from L. Irene, from Gk. Eirene, lit. "peace."
 
Col 3:15 "Let the peace of Christ rule your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful."
 
Phil4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."
 
What Pastor Don was saying was that the peace Christ intended for us was not the serenity and calmness we imagine peace to be, but rather the security and assurance, a sense of groundedness that we maintain despite struggles and chaos. shalom meant well-being, good health etc.
 
I just want to cross this lesson with something on sin.
 
In Matt 9, Mark 2 and Luke 5 when Jesus healed the paralytic, he forgave him his sins first, and the paralytic got up carried his mat and walked. My question is this: does sin rob us of the shalom peace that Jesus bequeathed to us?
 
Matt5:23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother; then come and offer your gift."
 
In Luke 7:48-50 Christ said to the sinful woman "Your sins are forgiven... Your faith has saved you; go in peace." Does this suggest that after she was forgiven her sin, she was free to receive the peace that Christ blessed her with?
 
It COULD be that (during the Christ's years of ministry) because of sin, people were hindered from receiving the shalom peace, and thus illnesses and attacks of the devil, demonic possession etc entered into their lives. It was only when they received the forgiveness of Christ that the peace of God was restored unto them, and they were set free of their infirmity.
 
A final braincandy: a story I remember from Joyce Meyer's book Battlefield of the Mind. Therein she wrote about two painters. Both were asked to paint a picture called 'Peace'. The first painter depicted peace to be irene, painting up a beautiful, still mountain lake with a mirror-smooth surface and serenity all over. The second painter, however, painted a turbulent roar of rapid waters foaming and surging; a flimsy branch dangled low in the midst of the torrent and perched on that branch was a sparrow, wings tucked in and eyes closed in security and assurance. Shalom.
 
May the peace of God that surpasses all understanding guard everyone's hearts.