The Fruit of the Spirit: Peace

The third fruit of the Spirit is peace — not the absence of trouble, but a deep calm that holds even in the middle of it. In an anxious age, it's a fruit we long for. Here's a closer look at peace as the fruit of the Spirit.

A peace the world can't give

Jesus offered a peace unlike anything the world provides: 'Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled.' The world's peace depends on everything going well; God's peace holds even when it doesn't.

Peace that guards the heart

This peace is more than a feeling; it's a guard. When we bring our worries to God in prayer, 'the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds.' It's a calm that doesn't add up by human logic — a settledness that outstrips our circumstances.

Rooted in trust

God's peace grows where our minds are fixed on him. 'Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee.' Peace isn't the fruit of having everything figured out, but of trusting the One who does. It grows as we turn our anxieties into trust.

Given by the Spirit

Because such peace is beyond our ability to produce in an anxious world, it's a gift of the Spirit. As we walk with God, his Spirit steadies our hearts. We cultivate it by handing our worries to him and fixing our minds on his promises.

Peace, the fruit of the Spirit, is a calm that the world can't give and trouble can't steal — a peace that guards our hearts, grows from trust in God, and is given by his Spirit. For every anxious heart, it's the promise that we can be settled and unafraid, even in the storm, because our peace rests in God.