Gathered For Peace
Notes
Transcript
When one thinks of Christmas, how can one not think of Linus quoting in Merry Christmas Charlie Brown from the book of Luke:
Charlie Brown had just lamented that he doesnt’ know what Christmas is all about and cries out, isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?
He then quotes from Luke 2, verses 8-14 in the King James version:
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, Good will toward men.
Christmas is about peace. But what kind of peace? Later in his ministry Jesus said:
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
Paul wrote about Peace when we pray:
do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
So as we pray and give thanks while lifting up our requests to God, according to Paul we will be filled with the peace of God that doesn’t make sense, it surpasses all understanding and it will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Our Isaiah passage this morning is clearly speaking of the end of War, yet I would contend that the peace runs deeper than that. At a time when there are conflicts all around the world. According to the Geneva Academy there are 110 armed conflicts currently going on in our world today, most of which you will not hear about on the news.
Of course we hear of the horrible attacks of October 7th and the resulting war in the middle east. We hear of the war in Ukraine. And when we bring it to our own evening news, we see battles going on in our cities - gangs.
But there’s other types of wars - there’s the political battles we see on television. Most of us would like to think that everyone running for office has the best interest of the country at heart, unless of course you’re speaking of the other parties perspective. If we listen to the politicians America is on a precipice, democracy is threatened, etc. etc. all of which raise our sense of fear.
This morning however I think there is a greater peace to be sought, and one that leads to all the others. That is the peace in our own hearts.
As the holidays were approaching, prior to Thanksgiving I had multiple conversations with people about how they were not looking forward to family gatherings because of the conflicts that inevitably happen. How sad.
The anxiety levels that rise within us is definitely the opposite of peace. All of us desire that peace that surpasses all understanding. And yet all of us know that we get afraid; we get angry; we lose our sense of peace.
How do we find this peace in the midst of so much chaos in our world and in our lives?
Paul wrote to the church in Rome, Romans 5:1
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
It all begins with that “therefore”. Whenever we come across the word “Therefore” we need to go back and find out what it is there for. And the way we do that is that we go and look at what statements or arguments is it drawing to a conclusion. So we need to go look at the previous paragraphs in Paul’s letter to the Roman church in chapter 4.
What we see there is a discussion of Abraham and his belief being counted to him as righteousness and not his works. The promise made to Abraham did not come to him through the Law but through faith.
We’re told if it was about abiding in the law then faith and the promise would be null and void. Instead,
Romans 4:16 (ESV)
…it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all,
and then the conclusion of that argument begins in chapter 5 with Ro 5:1
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
and continues in verse 2
Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
And so we come to realize that this peace is not based upon our goodness or badness - it is based upon our faith, a faith in the fact that we’ve been justified by our faith giving us peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. And there in lies the question.
Is it our faith as in something we willed into being or worked; or is it God’s doing in the giving us a faith, a gift from Him to us?
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Our faith is a gift. Is it good enough? Is it strong enough? We beat ourselves up about such things. We fear that it isn’t enough, and so we work and work and work to be worthy of the King of glory. Yet we’re told in Romans 5:8
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Jesus did not die for us because of our goodness, but because of God’s love for us. Romans 5:9-10
Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
Perhaps the most famous verse in the New Testament: John 3:16
John 3:16 (ESV)
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son…”
This peace, this faith, this grace, is brought to us because of God’s love for us - not based on anything we’ve done, but because God’s nature is to love.
So now as we are in the midst of this whirlwind of holidays this season with family gatherings, concerts, recitals, pageants, dinners, gift exchanges and all the stresses that these bring to us how are we to be at peace?
Realize that your are valued and loved.
God has indicated our value by what He has done in sacrificing His son for us.
Realize that your are valued and loved.
Your value is not dependent upon what others think of you.
Too often when we get angry or upset it is because we somehow think our value is being diminished. Yet, when we think about it - they don’t have that kind of power unless we give it to them. Which leads to the third point
Realize that your are valued and loved.
Your value is not dependent upon what others think of you.
What are you afraid of?
What are you afraid of? It has been shown that anger most often has at its roots fear. So ask yourself when you’re getting angry, what do you fear? What is it here that you’re afraid?
When you’re not feeling at peace - why? What is it that you fear?
What I know about fear is - Fear is a liar. It always takes us down the road of the worst possible scenario. It’s based in lies. That’s why it’s such a weapon in political campaigns no matter what stripe.
My prayer for you this Advent Season is to examine your faith, what is it you believe? How does that show you God’s love and grace being poured out on your life? Do you trust God?
As you examine these questions realize you are loved. It’s not a meritocracy in God’s house - it’s not by your works of righteousness that earn God’s love, it’s because of who God is. Knowing that, it should give us a sense of rest, and a sense of peace this Christmas season.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
To God be the glory. AMEN!