The King Offering Peace
Notes
Transcript
We all would like a bit of peace in our lives, but as we will find today, it doesn’t come easily; it comes with a cost.
Maria and I last Sunday were both moved by the Spotlight story on forgiveness
Samuel Davidson was three times over the legal alcohol limit, drug-affected and out of control when the ute he was driving mounted a footpath and crashed into seven children in the 2020 Oatlands tragedy that shocked the nation.
Abdallah siblings Antony (13), Angelina (12), and Sienna (8), along with their cousin Veronique Sakr (11), were all killed instantly. Three other children were injured. Davidson was sentenced to 20 years in prison, with a non-parole period of 15 years.
At the time, many Australians couldn’t comprehend how parents Danny and Leila Abdallah publicly forgave him. The story was 5 years later and covered how faith and forgiveness not only brought restoration to a horrific situation but also peace for both perpetrator and victim.
There is peace that comes with Forgiveness, but it is a hard road.
As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it
and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes.
Big Idea: Jesus brings peace - but not just as an internal experience of calmness - he offers peace with God, a deep and profound truth, from which our internal experiences - and much more - flow.
Introduction/Background: Peace is a lovely word. We all like the idea of some peace and quiet. We pray for peace in those places suffering war and conflict. Just about everyone wants peace. So doesn’t that beg the question: Why don’t we have it? Why can’t we just make it happen?
Peace Has Requirements: In some places, if peace were simply announced (“That’s it, no more fighting”), there would be an outcry. [For example, Ukraine: If the war is just called off, does that mean Russia keeps what it has taken so far?]
Or Myanmar
No, for real peace, there must also be justice. Last week, we talked about the difficulty we have submitting ourselves to a king who will have authority over us. A big part of that fear is that we might be exploited, worse off, or lose what we have. “If I become a Christian, what might I lose or miss out on?” What if this king is not fair?
But we also fear a king who is fair! Justice is also something to worry about because it might be applied to us. What if this king is coming to punish me? Peace is also not possible if that kind of fear hangs over us. And so we see that mercy is also a requirement of peace. Without mercy, all we have is reprisals/revenge and re-reprisals and more revenge and on the cycle goes. Some kind of amnesty is needed to bring real peace.
Back to the spotlight story
Danny Abdallah was first on the scene of the icedent and recalls friends telling him, There's the driver, let's get him, but all he wanted to do was stay with his kids.
Danny and Leila would then publicly forgive Samuel, the man who had taken 3 of their children, showing mercy instead of revenge.
In the interview, Danny said this man had forced his way into their lives, but now he was a significant person to them, and they had a choice to either try and forget him or embrace him.
That mercy and forgiveness shown to Samuel was life-changing; it saved his life. After a journey of guilt and remorse, being met with mercy and love led to faith in the God who first gave it and a life now lived to God’s glory in the prison where he is serving his time.
That to me is a powerful reality of Peace and justice
The Peace Jesus Offers: One sign that Jesus is indeed the true, rightful king over all humanity is the extent to which he brings justice, mercy and peace - and the way he does it. He speaks the absolute truth. He is not partial, but exposes prejudice (e.g. Good Samaritan parable). But he shows remarkable mercy to those who repent of wickedness and entrust themselves to him. In fact, his followers were a motley crowd of former tax collectors, prostitutes and notorious sinners. And nowhere is his commitment to justice and mercy more evident than in his willing self-sacrifice on the cross for us.
And so real peace is possible - in Jesus Christ.
In a much bigger way than many imagine. Many see Christianity as a mere mental crutch - something you can do that helps you feel a bit better. They say, ‘You go to church, I go for a walk on the beach - whatever helps you feel more at peace.’ But Jesus has a lot more to offer than ‘a sense of calmness’. A sense of calmness is wonderful and important, so are walks on beaches! But Jesus offers something better again.
It is the love for Jesus that allows both Danny and Samuel are able to have peace between them.
This level of forgiveness reminds me of Jesus' Parable:
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
“At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
“But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
“His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’
“But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.
“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
Danny understood the debt he was free from and passed it on in forgiving Samuel, who was also thankful for that mercy and lived in that grace. A cycle of restoration and forgiveness, the kingdom of God.
Many are like the servant and quick to forget or reject the mercy they are shown by God, their king.
An Opportunity Not to be Missed: There has been a long war between humanity and God. And it’s a fight that we can never possibly win. How remarkable, then, that He would be the one to initiate peace, to offer amnesty, and even to pay the cost required for a just settlement! This means two things: If we insist on going on fighting and resisting God, we are without excuse. The consequences of the damage we do to ourselves and others are then on us. But it also means that this is the opportunity of a lifetime. There could not possibly be a better way for us out of our predicament. This is an amnesty to absolutely jump at!
The prophets saw it: (Isa 9:6-7 For to us a child is born… and he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, Micah 5:4-5 He will stand and shepherd his flock… and he will be our peace.)
The angels called it: Luke 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.”Jesus named it: John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives…”
Paul proclaimed it: Romans 5:1 “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
We Need to Step Into It: Paul wrote to the early church, “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier…” (Eph 2:14). The peace that Jesus brings requires us to make a settlement also with others. In those days, it was Jews and Gentiles who needed to become one in Christ and lay down any animosity. For us, it’s probably not that divide, but some other.
Returning to the peace we wish to see in wars and conflicts, in the Cold War, the USSR and USA didn’t fight each other openly, but via proxy wars like Korea and Vietnam, so we tend not to rage directly against God, but to fight him by fighting others. And Jesus calls us now to peace. “Forgive us our sins,” he taught us to pray, “as we forgive those who sin against us.”
Let us show mercy as King Jesus has shown us mercy. Let us trust in his justice, knowing he will never allow evil to prevail. And let us learn to receive and walk in his peace.
pray
