Jesus Brings Peace
Notes
Transcript
This is the second week of our advent series. Last week we talked about hope. Today we’re going to look at Peace.
I have mentioned the fruit of the Spirit many times this year. We find it in Galatians 5:22-23.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control.
I want you to notice something here. The order of the advent candles is the exact reverse order of the first four fruits of the Spirit.
The first four fruits of the Spirit are “love, joy, peace and patience.” I know you might be thinking that last week was hope, but the fourth fruit is patience.
However, I’m going to show you where the Bible tells us hope is about patience and waiting. Look at Romans 8:25
25 Now if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with patience.
So as we go through the order of the advent candles we are also working our way backwards through the fruit of the Spirit to the primary fruit of the Spirit, which is love.
We aren’t there yet. Today is the second Sunday of Advent, so we are looking at the candle of peace. I can’t think of any better place to start than with the angel’s pronouncement of peace to the shepherds on the very first Christmas Eve.
13 Suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: 14 Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to people he favors!
We have watched a chaotic world full of anxiety wage a war on the Christmas season. Happy Hollidays instead of Merry Christmas.
Lawsuits against crosses displayed on public and even private lands. And even lawsuits over large nativity scenes displayed in yards.
The nativity scenes are so peaceful as Joseph and Mary look upon their newborn child, surrounded by sheep and shepherds under the midnight sky.
We just sang one of the most peaceful Christmas carols ever written. “Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright. Round yon virgin, mother and Child, Holy Infant so tender and mild, sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace.”
In a world full of chaos and anxiety we all long for peace in our lives. Peace is sadly lacking in our world.
People are full of worry and anxiety. Relationships are full of conflict and stress. The world itself is full of conflict and wars.
The same world that seeks peace is the world that rejects the only place we can have true peace. Jesus is not only our hope at Christmas, He is also our peace.
It’s only in Christ that we will truly obtain peace on earth. Bill Bright in a House of Commons debate in the Canadian Parliament once said, “There will never be agreement at the peace tables of the world or rest in the individuals heart until the Prince of Peace reigns supreme in the hearts of men.”
Part of the Christmas story, the Advent Candle of peace is that Jesus brings us peace.
We’re going to look at four aspects of the peace that Jesus brings this morning.
Jesus Brings Peace with God
Jesus Brings Peace with Self
Jesus Brings Peace with Others
Jesus Brings Peace On Earth
Jesus Brings Peace with God
Jesus Brings Peace with God
So let’s start with the first one—Jesus brings peace with God. Romans 5:1 says,
1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Notice that we are not naturally at peace with God. The Bible tells us our sins separate us from God, sin is nothing more than disobedience to God.
Disobedience to anyone will cause separation between you and whomever you are being disobedient or is being disobedient to you.
It is only through Jesus and our faith in Him that we are brought into a relationship status of peace with our God and Creator.
When God sent the angel Gabriel to Mary He sent Gabriel with a message of peace. Look at Luke 1:26-30
26 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.
28 And the angel came to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was deeply troubled by this statement, wondering what kind of greeting this could be.
30 Then the angel told her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
Mary was deeply troubled by Gabriel’s greeting. But the angel spoke words of peace and assurance, telling her not to be afraid because God was with her and that she had found favor with God.
We might wonder just how did Mary find favor with God? The only way any of us find favor with God. She had faith in God and in His promised Messiah to come.
Like so many Old Testament believers before her, she had faith in Christ before Christ even came. Now God had chosen her to be the vessel through which the Messiah, God’s Son Jesus Christ, would enter the world.
God also sent an angel to Joseph, Mary;s husband to be. The angel told Joseph in Matthew 1:21
21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
The name Jesus is a Greek translation for the Hebrew word Yehoshua (Joshua). It means “Yahweh saves” or “the Lord save.”
Jesus was given this name because He was the promised Savior who came to bring us peace with God by saving us from our sins.
When John the Baptist was born three months before Jesus, John’s father Zechariah was fill with the Holy Spirit and prophesied about John.
His prophecy proclaimed how John would go before Jesus preparing the way for this One who would bring us peace with God through the forgiveness of our sins.
Zechariah spoke these words about John the Baptist in Luke 1:76-79
76 And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, 77 to give his people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins.
78 Because of our God’s merciful compassion, the dawn from on high will visit us 79 to shine on those who live in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.
How did Jesus do this? Why is it that everyone who puts their faith in Jesus finds peace with God?
It’s because of what Jesus did on the cross. Jesus was born into this world to die on the cross so that our sins would be forgiven and so we could be restored to a right relationship with God. A relationship of peace with God.
As Isaiah 53:5 tells us.
5 But he was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him, and we are healed by his wounds.
That’s the first and most important reason why we light and remember the Advent candle of peace. Jesus brings peace with God.
Jesus Brings Peace with Self
Jesus Brings Peace with Self
Secondly, Jesus brings peace with self. Sin not only separates us from God. Sin also brings separation within our own being.
We are conflicted beings. We are constantly fighting stress and inner turmoil. We desperately need inner peace, and Jesus not only brings peace with God but also personal peace within ourselves.
Scripture talks about a man named Simeon. God had promised Simeon that he would see the Messiah before he died. As only God can do, the Holy Spirit moved Simeon to go into the temple courts just as Joseph and Mary were bringing the infant Jesus into the temple.
In Luke 2 Simeon took Jesus in his arms and praised God, saying:
28 Simeon took him up in his arms, praised God, and said, 29 Now, Master, you can dismiss your servant in peace, as you promised. 30 For my eyes have seen your salvation. 31 You have prepared it in the presence of all peoples—
What an example of Jesus bringing personal peace. We sometimes talk about our bucket lists, all the things we want to accomplish before we finish our lives here on earth. As far as we know, it appears Simeon only had one thing on his bucket list, he wanted to see the Messiah before he died.
When he finally saw Jesus — that was all he needed. He praised God saying, “Now, Master, you can dismiss your servant in peace.” Simeon held Jesus and in that embrace he was at peace within himself.
When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, we not only receive peace with God, we also receive the peace of God to help us through the difficult circumstances of life.
When you know Christ everything can be going crazy all around you, and you can still be at peace within yourself. Philippians 4:6-7 instructs us:
6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Notice how this wonderful peace of God is only available in and through Jesus Christ. The Bible says the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
And look at these beautiful words of Jesus from John 14:27
27 “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful.
Jesus brings peace with God and He brings peace with self.
Jesus Brings Peace with Others
Jesus Brings Peace with Others
Thirdly, Jesus brings peace with others. Early on in the Christmas story we see a prime example of this. When Joseph first heard Mary was pregnant, he considered breaking the engagement off.
He must have been terribly hurt and really confused thinking Mary had been unfaithful to him. There’s only one way a woman gets pregnant right? And if Joseph hadn’t done anything with Mary someone else must have.
But then we read in Matthew 1:20
20 But after he had considered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
If Mary was pregnant with any other child, Joseph would most certainly have broken the engagement. But this wasn’t just any other child. This was Jesus, and He was conceived in Mary from the Holy Spirit. So Jesus, even before He was born, brought peace between Joseph and Mary and kept their marriage from coming apart.
We go through many challenges in this life, and one of the most difficult is when our relationships are in turmoil. It’s in those moments when we need to ask Jesus — the Prince of Peace — to come and bring us peace in our relationships, to intervene, to reconcile, and to restore.
Paul tells us how Jesus provides this in Ephesians 2:14
14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility
Jesus came to break down the barriers, to bridge the gaps, to bring people together and to restore peace to our damaged and sometimes broken relationships.
As believers in Christ, we are called to follow in His footsteps. Colossians 3:15 says,
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.
Jesus brings peace with others.
Jesus Brings Peace On Earth
Jesus Brings Peace On Earth
During this advent season we celebrate the reminders that 1) Jesus brings Peace with God. 2) Jesus brings peace with self. 3) Jesus brings peace with others. And finally we celebrate as we look forward to when Jesus will bring peace on earth.
The angels who announced Jesus’ birth to the shepherds that first Christmas Eve also proclaimed the peace that Jesus would bring to our planet. We see this in Luke 2:13-14
13 Suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: 14 Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to people he favors!
The Old Testament book of Isaiah made this prophecy. This wonderful prophecy is found in Isaiah 2:4
4 He will settle disputes among the nations and provide arbitration for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plows and their spears into pruning knives. Nation will not take up the sword against nation, and they will never again train for war.
Some people might ask, “how do we know Isaiah is talking about Jesus and not God in general?” We know it’s Jesus because if we flip ahead a few chapters to chapter 9 Isaiah tells us exactly who will ultimately bring peace on earth.
6 For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 7 The dominion will be vast, and its prosperity will never end.
Even the Jews recognize this is a messianic prophecy. It’s a prophecy about Jesus Christ who was born a child, who will be called Prince of Peace, and who will one day rule in peace over all the earth.
But it gets even better than that! This peace on earth will not only bring an end to war among the nations. It will even extend to nature and the animal kingdom. Isaiah 11:6-9 says,
6 The wolf will dwell with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the goat. The calf, the young lion, and the fattened calf will be together, and a child will lead them. 7 The cow and the bear will graze, their young ones will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like cattle.
8 An infant will play beside the cobra’s pit, and a toddler will put his hand into a snake’s den. 9 They will not harm or destroy each other on my entire holy mountain, for the land will be as full of the knowledge of the Lord as the sea is filled with water.
Have you ever tried to stop a couple of dogs from fighting? Jesus truly is the Prince of Peace. But it doesn’t end there, it gets far better still!
The Bible tells us that Jesus will not only bring peace on earth but will bring peace to all of creation and He will reconcile all things to Himself in heaven and on earth.
Look at Colossians 1:19-20
19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile everything to himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
This verse in Colossians brings us right back to where we started. The reason Jesus brings peace with God, peace with self, peace with others, and peace on earth all goes back to the cross.
Without Jesus shedding His blood on the cross, there would be no peace. And without Jesus being born as a baby, the reason we celebrate Christmas, there would be no cross.
Do you have peace with God this morning? Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins so that we could be forgiven and restored to a right relationship with God. All you have to do is put your faith in Jesus Christ to have peace with God.
Do you have peace with yourself this morning? Place you faith in Jesus and He will never abandon you. Rather, He will come to live in you by His Holy Spirit. And He offers you His peace.
27 “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful.
Do you have peace with others this morning? Place your faith in Jesus and He will provide all the resources you will need to do your part to have peaceful relationships with others around you. Do your part and seek Jesus in prayer asking that He work in other people’s hearts that they may live in peace.
Do we have peace on earth this morning?
Oh how I wish we did! We do not have peace on earth as prophesied yet, but we have the promise of peace on earth. God has never nor will He ever break a promise.
The angels proclaimed to the Shepherds on that first Christmas Eve: “Peace on earth, goodwill towards Men!” Those words still ring in the air this Christmas season as we celebrate the birth, worship, and adore the Lord Jesus, our savior, the Son of God, the Prince of Peace.
