Peace and Discernment Through God's Word

By: Jeff Rowland

Fear often turns the mind into a battlefield. In the worship and teaching shared here, I return to one steady confession: when I am afraid, I will speak the name of Jesus.

I believe peace, rest, forgiveness, and spiritual discernment grow as you fall in love with God's Word. Without that love, you become vulnerable to confusion, offense, and deception.

Speaking the Name of Jesus in Fear

The opening worship names the struggle plainly. The mind can become a battlefield, and fear can make it feel impossible to keep fighting another day. Yet the response is repeated throughout the song: "When I am afraid, I will only speak your name."

I sing of Jesus as Savior, Ancient of Days, Holy Father, my hiding place, faithful anchor, my hope and stay, and the never-changing rock. When my mind is made up in fear, I ask Him to break in with His love and remind me who I am.

The song also carries a prayer over the words we speak. There is power in the tongue of man, so I pray that my words carry the sound of love, joy, and peace. In all that I do, I want to speak His name.

Jesus Is King, Yet He Is Friend

Jesus is holy, eternal, and worthy of worship. I call Him the Lion and the Lamb, the Great I Am, the fire in the cloud, and the One worthy of the crown. He is Prince of Peace, Beginning and End, King of kings, and Son of David.

Still, the worship turns to a personal wonder: somehow, I get to call Him friend.

He came to dwell among us. The song calls Him the reason and source, the oil and reward, the light and Lord, the Master and Maker, the holy and blameless One, and both Savior and saved. These names hold together His majesty and His nearness.

Bringing the Inner Struggle to God

Another prayer begins with the cry, "How long, O Lord?" It speaks of feeling as though God has hidden His face or looked the other way. It also names battles raging in the mind, struggle in the soul, and the fight to gain control.

In that place, I ask God to find in me a heart of praise and a reflection of His grace. The confession is honest: even though I play the role of my worst enemy, I need strength to save myself from me.

That prayer leads into a plea for God to come in power, captivate us with His presence, and deliver us from ourselves.

"Save us, Lord, from ourselves. Deliver us from ourselves. Set us free from ourselves."

I believe there is an invitation to step into a greater measure of God's glory when His presence is among us. The call is to respond to Him, love Him, and let Him take our breath away.

Jesus Gives What Weariness Cannot Produce

The worship song "You Take My Breath Away" describes Jesus as the giver of what I cannot supply for myself. He gives peace in a raging storm, sleep when the body is worn, rest when I am confused, and faith when my mind is exhausted.

He also gives hope when seasons are dry, tears when I need to cry, love when I am alone, and newness when what once felt fresh has grown old. He opens my eyes and brings blindness to light.

At His feet, I fall in worship and find my all in Him. The repeated confession remains simple: "Oh Jesus, you take my breath away."

Spiritual Battles Reach Beyond One Place

I believe spiritual events around the world affect believers everywhere. It is shortsighted to assume that only what happens in one county or local community matters. I raised Italy, Russia, Israel, and Iran as examples of places where spiritual conflict can have a wider effect.

The conflict involving Iran should not be treated as merely another passing conflict. I pointed to Jeremiah 49 as significant for understanding it. In my view, major spiritual developments can shape the lives of believers far beyond the place where those events first appear.

The Order of Events I See in the Last Days

I referred to 2 Thessalonians 2 as an outline of events that precede the end. First comes a great falling away, or apostasy. I described that falling away as a loss of passion and zeal for Christ, the surrender of praise and worship, and a willingness to give up biblical truth when it no longer suits people.

I believe this attack on truth can come from within the church, not only from the world. The sequence I presented is:

1. A great falling away takes place.

2. The restrainer is taken out of the way.

3. The man of sin, the Antichrist, is revealed.

4. God sends strong delusion, and people believe "the lie."

I identify the restrainer as the Holy Spirit. Because the Holy Spirit is present, I believe the Antichrist is presently restrained. The warning is that "the lie" will replace what is true and draw people into a false unity.

Religious Delusion and the Warning About Replacement

I named Islam, Judaism, and apostate Christianity as three great delusions in the sermon. I described Islam as a religious system that stands against Christians, Judaism as a system that denies Jesus as the Christ, and apostate Christianity as a form of Christianity that denies salvation through Jesus alone.

I preach that Jesus Christ is the only way to the Father. Good works cannot save you. Religious status cannot save you. Confession to a religious leader cannot save you. Salvation rests in trusting Jesus Christ as Savior.

When I spoke of Israel, I distinguished support for the land from agreement with everything Israel says or does. I also pointed to the instruction to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

I warned that the Antichrist's lie would need to unite these religious systems into a one-world religion that supports a one-world government.

The Noahide Laws in My Warning

I introduced the Noahide laws as seven laws associated with Noah. They include ideas that may sound good on the surface, such as rejecting idolatry and sexual immorality. I explained that they are understood in rabbinical tradition as laws given to humanity, particularly to govern and make Gentiles righteous.

My concern is the way such laws could replace what God has already ordained. I argued that the law of Moses can be treated as a replacement for the gospel, and I warned that the Noahide laws could also become a replacement for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I also connected this concern to claims about religious and governmental convergence. I referred to an international Noahide conference planned in Jerusalem, a founding charter connected to the Israeli presidential residence, and a 1991 U.S. congressional resolution that recognized the laws as an ethical principle for moral living.

I believe systems become dangerous when they replace the gospel with another path to righteousness. I also connected the punishment described in rabbinical discussion of violating these laws, decapitation, to the beheaded saints mentioned in Revelation 20.

Becoming People of the Book

The practical burden of this teaching is clear. You cannot sustain spiritual productivity in these days by living according to feelings. Many people judge revival or a move of God by how they feel, but I believe faith must rest on what God's Word says and what you know from it.

Psalm 119 repeatedly speaks about the Word of God. Psalm 119 is the Bible's longest chapter, with 176 verses, and nearly every verse describes God's Word.

I believe Scripture is under attack, and neglecting it leads believers toward apostasy. If you do not become a person of the Word, you can be drawn into deception.

Great Peace Comes Through Loving God's Law

Psalm 119:165 has become central to this message: "Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them."

I believe great peace comes when you fall in love with the Word of God. When confusion comes, when a situation is beyond your control, and when your spirit feels troubled, return to the Word.

The verse also confronts offense. I said that if you love God's Word, nothing can offend you. The cross life is a life of forgiveness because Jesus prayed, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."

If you are constantly offended, I believe the answer is not to nurse the offense. Fall in love with the Book again. Peace and forgiveness grow there.

Entering the Rest of God

Hebrews 4:9 says that there remains a rest for the people of God. I connect that rest with the great peace of Psalm 119. Peace and rest belong together.

Physical tiredness is familiar, but spiritual weariness also weighs people down. Hebrews 4:10 says that the one who enters God's rest ceases from his own works, just as God did from His.

Human righteousness cannot produce salvation. Even the best we can do falls short. Therefore, rest requires turning away from self-reliance and trusting God's provision. Hebrews 4:11 calls us to labor to enter that rest rather than follow the example of unbelief. A Hebrews 4 study on entering God's rest follows the same chapter I used for this teaching.

The Living Word Divides Soul and Spirit

Hebrews 4:12 gives both a description and a design of God's Word. The Word is quick, meaning alive. It is powerful and sharper than a two-edged sword. I also connected this to the sword of the Spirit in Ephesians 6:17.

The Word is more than a book. John 1 says that the Word was with God and the Word was God. I teach that the living Word is inseparable from the person of Jesus Christ.

The design of the Word is to divide soul and spirit. When soul and spirit remain merged, you cannot tell what is spiritual from what is sensual. Personal desire, emotion, and religious fervor can then be mistaken for the voice of God.

Spiritual Discernment Requires Surrender

I warned against waiting for a dramatic Holy Spirit "ambush" while refusing to surrender to God's Word. God can move suddenly, and I have experienced the Holy Spirit's touch. Yet I believe God waits for a surrendered heart.

During my cancer journey, God gave me grace that detached my soul from the circumstances around me. What happened in my body had spiritual meaning, and God gave me peace beyond what I could produce myself.

When Scripture divides soul and spirit, you gain spiritual discernment instead of soulish discernment. You begin to see through the eyes of the Spirit rather than through your own desires.

Jesus answered the devil with Scripture. Therefore, spiritual warfare requires knowing and speaking God's Word. I also said that worship songs filled with Scripture carry that same truth, which is why the enemy seeks to keep believers away from the Word.

A Call to Love God's Word Again

I believe the lie is being formed, and vulnerable believers can be pulled toward it when they neglect Scripture. The answer is to surrender to the Word of God, seek what it actually says, and let it divide soul from spirit.

Peace, forgiveness, rest, and discernment come as you love the Book. When you know God's Word, you can recognize deception, resist the enemy, and walk without living under offense.

I want to know what God's Book says, not what my opinion says. That is the prayer: that God would make us people of His Word and teach us to see through the eyes of His Spirit.