I.　"And let the peace of Christ arbitrate in your hearts, to which also you were called in one Body; and be thankful"—Col. 3:15:

A.　By creating the Jews and Gentiles into one new man, Christ has made peace; this is the very peace in Colossians 3:15.

B.　According to Ephesians 2:14, Christ Himself is our peace; with Christ as our Peacemaker, we now have vertical peace—peace between us and God—and horizontal peace—peace with one another:

1.　On the cross Christ redeemed us, reconciled us to God, and made peace between us and God—Rom. 5:1.

2.　Furthermore, through His death on the cross, Christ abolished the ordinances concerning the different ways of living and worship so that there might be peace among the races and nations—Eph. 2:15-16.

3.　By this peace Christ has made the two peoples, the Jews and the Gentiles, one new man, and this peace has become a part of the gospel (vv. 14-18); we should let this peace arbitrate in our hearts for the Body life.

C.　The Greek term for arbitrate can also be rendered umpire, preside, or be enthroned as a ruler and decider of everything; the arbitrating peace of Christ dissolves our complaint against anyone—Col. 3:15.

D.　We were called to this peace in the one Body of Christ:

1.　For the proper Body life we need the peace of Christ to arbitrate, to adjust, to decide all things in our heart in the relationships between the members of His Body.

2.　Our having been called to the peace of Christ should motivate us to let this peace arbitrate in our hearts.

3.　In the Body life our heart should always be in a peaceful condition toward the members and thankful to the Lord.

II.　The arbitrating peace of Christ preserves the oneness in the church life:

A.　To say that the peace of Christ arbitrates within us means that it solves the problems caused by quarreling, fighting, or complaining:

1.　Just as a referee is needed to settle disputes in a game or contest, so the Colossians needed a referee, an arbitrator, to calm down all the differing opinions.

2.　It is significant that only in the book of Colossians, a book that deals with culture and its "isms" and practices, does Paul speak of the inward arbitration of the peace of Christ; this arbitrator calms down all the opinions which have their source in our culture.

3.　For the peace of Christ to arbitrate in our hearts, it must be enthroned as a ruler and decider in everthing:

a.　Through the arbitration of the peace of Christ, our problems are solved, and the friction between the saints disappears; then the church life is preserved, and the new man is maintained in a practical way.

b.　The arbitrating of the peace of Christ is Christ working within us to exercise His rule over us, to speak the last word, and to make the final decision.

c.　When the peace of Christ is enthroned in our hearts to be the unique umpire within us, we shall have peace with God vertically and with the saints horizontally.

d.　If we stay under the ruling of the enthroned peace of Christ, we shall not offend others or damage them; rather by the Lord's grace and with His peace, we shall minister life to others.

e.　This peace should bind all the believers together and become the uniting bond—Eph. 4:3.

B.　An arbitrator is always needed to settle disagreements or disputes between parties:

1.　Often we are conscious of three parties within us: a positive party, a negative party, and a neutral party; hence, there is the need for inward arbitration to settle the dispute within us.

2.　Whenever we sense that different parties within our being are arguing or quarreling, we need to give place to the presiding peace of Christ and allow this peace, which is the oneness of the new man, to rule within us and have the final word.

3.　We need to set aside our opinion, our concept, and listen to the word of the indwelling referee.

4.　If we allow the peace of Christ to arbitrate in our hearts, this peace will settle all the disputes among us.