The world cannot take away what the world did not give...

The world does not give us true peace. Christ does. The world does not give us true security. Christ does. The world does not give us hope. Christ does. The world cannot give us true joy. But Christ offers joy on a daily basis.

These things can never be taken away from us as children of the King. If we are His, then our peace, security, hope and joy lie in Him, a place the world cannot access.

Peace – everyone in this world longs for peace, true peace that can expel anxiety. We look for it everywhere, and lie in bed wishing we had more of it. But the truth is… the world cannot give us lasting peace. The world is confusing, painful, and constantly changing. And yet as Christians, we have something that the world does not have. We have access to true peace.

When life throws a curve ball, and we feel overwhelmed with stress we can turn to a Rock that is so much higher than us. When we can’t sleep because things have gone totally upside down, we are not without peace. Whatever the world does, or Satan makes us struggle through, we still have peace. The world cannot, and did not give us peace in the first place, and therefore they cannot take our peace away.

Peace is something all of us need and what a blessing to know that it can NEVER be taken away from us by the world.

Isaiah 54:10 – “Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the LORD, who has compassion on you.”

John 16:33 - "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

Philippians 4:6-7 – “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 your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Hope – we live in a world of people who have no hope. I sit in my college classrooms and a sense of hopelessness always hits me. I see people who do not have any true purpose in life. Living is about surviving and thriving for them, and making money in an attempt to fulfil themselves. I listen to teachers talking about how we supposedly came about by evolution, from apes, or a big bang. These things are pretty hopeless. If our thoughts and emotions are only chemical reactions going off in our brains, then what does anything mean or count for? If we look our lives through this worldview, then what hope do we really have? None.

But as Christians, we have a hope. And this hope does not come from anything or anyone in the world; and therefore this hope cannot be taken by the world. We are surrounded by hopelessness, but our hope cannot be moved or deterred.

So when life overwhelms, and we feel depressed and discouraged about the way those around us are living, then we must turn to the source of our hope – Christ.

 1 Peter 1:3: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”

Romans 8:24-25: “For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18: “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

Joy – In Christ we have so much reason to be joyful. And yet, this world does not give us true joy. We look around at a world that is full of pain and suffering. We cannot know what a day will hold, whether good or bad. If we pinned our levels of joy on what the world presented to us then we would be greatly disappointed, time after time. Yes, the world may be able to offer us fleeting happiness and immediate gratification, but ultimately when these things are gone then where is true joy to be found?

There is a difference between happiness and joy. One can be given by the world, the other fully given by the Lord. Happiness is an emotion, fully based on what is happening around us and often fleeting. Joy, on the other hand, is a state of mind. We are joyful even when we face trials and pain. We can have joy through these things because we have hope! We know that fulfilling our desires in this life is NOT all that we have to live for.

The world cannot give us the true, lasting joy that Christ can; and so the world cannot take our joy from us! Our lives may be full of difficult and painful situations, but our deep rooted joy in Christ can never be removed from us.

Isaiah 12:6: “Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you."

John 16:22: “So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.”

And so, we conclude. This concept should be such an encouragement to us – if we are in Christ, then the world cannot have a greater hold on us. We have been given so many spiritual blessings in Him, and these are things that the world will never, ever be able to take from us.

Final verse: Romans 15:13 
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.