Bible Truths Illustrated by J. C. Ferdinand Pittman

BIBLE TRUTHS ILLUSTRATED
614. "That deep-lunged, red-blooded preacher, Sydney Smith,
used to throw open the shutters to the morning sun, saying, 'Let
us glorify the room.' Both conscience and temperament led him,
also, to insist on flooding the dark places of the moral world
with cheerfulness, which is the sunshine of the spirit. It was
obvious, he thought, that the larger part of our worries and
perplexities came from the anticipation of evils."
PEACE
615. Peace is the result of victory. It is said that, in ancient
battles, the contesting armies would each choose a representative
to engage in single combat ; the army upon whose side was the
successful combatant would look upon that as a signal of victory—the
army upon whose side was the unsuccessful combatant
would look upon that as a signal of defeat. The two great
representatives, Christ and Satan, have met in single combat;
they fought in the wilderness, upon the temple top, upon the
mountain, upon hill Calvary, and Christ has vanquished the
arch-enemy, a sure sign that we, His followers, shall also have
the victory. "Being therefore justified by faith, we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:1).
Throughout the Christian life, a condition of peace is maintained
only by a continuous victory over the world, the flesh,
and the devil. To be victorious in life's conflicts, there must be
entire subordination to our great Leader. "Great peace have
they that love thy law, and nothing shall offend them" (Ps.
119:165).
To such, Christ bequeaths His own peace. "Peace I leave
with you, my peace I give unto you" (John 14:17). It is a
peace, said our Lord, unlike that which the world bestoweth.
It is of a much higher kind : a peace which is peculiar to Christ,
uninfluenced by the adverse forces of the world; a peace "which
passeth all understanding" (Phil. 4:7).
The possession of such peace does not render us immune
from conflict, but it gives us calmness of soul amid the fiercest
strife, guards our hearts and thoughts in Christ Jesus, and
imparts the utmost assurance of ultimate victory.
At the day of judgment, there shall be for the wicked no
peace, because they have had no victory over sin. They may
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